Longevity from Liao Zhai

Chapter 149

Secret realm.

Zhou Ping, Zhao Tiancheng, Wu Dage, Yue Yunfeng, Wu Dafu and Pu Ren arrived at the last level of the secret realm.

This level is very simple.

The house was paved with quaint blue bricks. In the far end of the house there was a stone bed, on which lay a male corpse.

The man's corpse looked lifelike, as if he were alive. He was wearing clothes but no shoes.

There is nothing else besides these things.

And there was a whirlpool next to the male corpse.

When Zhou Ping entered the secret realm, he saw the whirlpool at first sight.

According to the map on the panel, this vortex is the exit.

"If you want to leave, you can leave."

"After hearing the riddle, you can also leave."

"Those who successfully solve the puzzle will receive the storage jade, and others will randomly receive one of my magic weapons."

When everyone heard the words left by the original owner of the storage jade, they all showed joy.

It’s finally the final moment!

On this trip to the secret realm, out of more than 200 people, only about 20 were left.

Zhao Tiancheng wanted to store the spiritual jade, but for the others, they just wanted to leave this damn place as soon as possible.

However, it was an unexpected surprise that the entourage was able to obtain magical weapons.

Monk Pu Ren looked at the dozen or so fellow apprentices around him and sighed. He had brought more than thirty people with him on this trip, but twenty of them had already died.

Pu Ren was tricked by Zhao Tiancheng in the early stage, and seven or eight monks died. Later, he learned to be smart and let Zhao Tiancheng's men go first when there was something going on.

Of course, Zhao Tiancheng did not make things difficult for these monks because they were needed to deal with evil creatures in the secret realm!
Everyone had different thoughts, and they began to think about the rules of the secret realm.

According to the rules of the secret realm, whoever can solve the riddle can get the storage jade, and the other companions can get a magic weapon.

Zhao Tiancheng looked at the people around him and said proudly: "See, this is the benefit of following me. Each of you can get a magic weapon!"

Wu Dafu boasted on the side: "Yes, thanks to following Master Zhao, otherwise how could we have passed so many levels and reached the last step."

Yue Yunfeng didn't say anything. He just frowned and stared at the male corpse, and finally shook his head in disappointment.

Wu Da Ge sneered. If Zhou Ping and the other two hadn't entered the secret realm to save them, Zhao Tiancheng and the others would have long since turned into a pile of dry bones, sucked dry by the human-faced tree.

Wu Dage looked at Zhou Ping and found that Zhou Ping was not interested in the rules of the secret realm at all. He kept staring at the vortex and wanted to leave.

"If you fail to solve the puzzle, everyone will die!"

"After hearing the riddle, at least one person must answer it, otherwise everyone will die."

"Answer wrong, and you all die!"

The voice of the original owner of the storage jade came again.

Everyone's expressions changed.

According to the rules of the secret realm, if you choose to be with the person who answers the riddle, then if the answer fails, everyone will die.

"It turns out that there is no such thing as pie in the sky." Wu Dage muttered to himself.

Everyone knows that if the answer to the riddle is given, it must be Zhao Tiancheng.

With Zhao Tiancheng's identity, he wanted to store the spiritual jade, and others could only drink soup.

But according to the rules of the secret realm, if Zhao Tiancheng answers incorrectly, the others will also die.

No one doubted that the secret realm could kill them all.

Suddenly, everyone fell silent.

Should I leave? Should I stay? Or should I take a gamble with Zhao Tiancheng?
At this time, Yue Yunfeng, carrying the coffin, was the first to walk into the vortex. He entered the secret realm not to obtain the storage jade, but to find what he wanted.

But along the way, Yue Yunfeng did not find what he wanted.

In addition, Yue Yunfeng's mission has been completed. He saved these people and gave the Wu family's magic weapon to Wu Dafu.

Although Yue Yunfeng did not find what he wanted, Wu Laosan had promised not to take back his wife's body and would not let the Wu family cause him trouble again.

So Yue Yunfeng gained a lot from this trip.

Yue Yunfeng had no reason to stay here, so he left first.

Seeing Yue Yunfeng leave, Zhou Ping also chose to leave. He didn't need to store spiritual jade, so there was no need to take risks here.

Wu Da Ge said: "Okay, you go first, I will listen to the riddle before I leave."

Zhou Ping had a good impression of Wu Dage and nodded slightly to him.

Outside the secret realm.

County Magistrate Lu and a group of scholars looked miserable.

Captain Leng and Wang Cheng also had gloomy faces and remained silent. They knew that with their strength, they would most likely die if they went in.

Uncle Lame was very calm, and this calmness made the several escorts from the Yan Family Escort Agency feel at ease.

Then there were the hundreds of sergeants. Although some of them were irritable, most of them were silent. After all, sergeants were supposed to obey orders.

The most annoyed person should be Wu Laosan.

Song Tixia looked at Wu Laosan and said, "It's time to get going."

Wu Laosan said, "Pooh!" and said, "What bad luck!"

Wu Laosan placed his hand between his brows, ready to disperse his cultivation.

Song Tixia forced Wu Laosan to lower his cultivation level, otherwise he would take action.

"Someone's coming out. Someone's coming out."

Two figures appeared at the entrance of the secret realm.

The cultivators surrounding the entrance to the secret realm saw two people and shouted out excitedly.

Zhao Tiancheng and his group have been inside for ten days, and the last group to go in were Zhou Ping and his two companions, who have also been inside for five days.

No one came out from there during these days.

Everyone outside the secret realm thought they were dead.

When Wu Laosan saw Zhou Ping and Yue Yunfeng, he was overjoyed: "They are out, they are out, Song Tixia, these are the people I arranged to rescue Master Zhao, they are out."

The appearance of Yue Yunfeng gave Wu Laosan a life-saving straw. His hands were shaking with excitement!

Wu Laosan stopped dispersing his cultivation and said, "Yunfeng, why are only the two of you out? Where are the others?"

Not only Wu Laosan, but also Song Tixia and everyone else wanted to know what was going on inside.

"We found Mr. Zhao, and I also gave the magic weapon you gave me to Wu Dafu. They are all in the last level, but we chose not to guess the riddle, so we left." Yue Yunfeng simply answered the situation inside.

Wu Laosan's legs went limp and he almost collapsed to the ground: "Master Zhao is still alive?"

As long as Zhao Tiancheng is still alive, Wu Laosan doesn't have to go in.

"What? He's been in there for more than ten days, and he's still alive?"

"Yeah, it's a pity that he didn't die."

When the cultivators outside the secret realm heard that Zhao Tiancheng was not dead, they all felt a little regretful.

Song Tixia stepped forward and asked, "What's going on inside?"

Yue Yunfeng didn't want to say more. He looked at Zhou Ping and said, "Ask him. I'm leaving now."

Zhou Ping's mouth twitched slightly. Wow, this is still the character of the protagonist! Very free and easy!

Song Tixia was immediately furious and wanted to punish Yue Yunfeng. "Big guy, you came out too?" Wu Lao San asked in surprise.

Wu Da Ge walked out of the secret realm: "Elder, I'm back."

Yue Yunfeng took this opportunity to leave. There was nothing he wanted in the secret realm, so he was leaving.

Song Tixia's eyes moved back and forth, as if he wanted to remember Yue Yunfeng. He did not choose to attack Yue Yunfeng because Wu Da Ge came out.

After Wu Da Ge came out, he told the two what was going on inside.

"The last level is to solve a riddle. If you solve the riddle, you can get the storage jade, and others can also get magic tools."

"Mr. Zhao and the others are in there thinking about riddles?"

Wu Dage said.

Song Tixia asked, "They were guessing riddles, why did you come out?"

Wu Da Ge looked at the others, especially Zhou Ping. "The riddle is a bit weird, so I came out first."

"The riddle is to guess how many toes he has on his body," said Big Wu.

Wu Laosan and Song Tixia were both confused when they heard what Wu Da Ge said. Aren't people supposed to have ten toes?
When Zhou Ping heard this riddle, the first thing he thought of was Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils.

Duan Yanqing plays chess with a monk.

In order to gain the upper hand, the monk made a bet with Duan Yanqing.

As long as Duan Yanqing guesses correctly how many toes he has, he can make the first move.

Duan Yanqing guessed that the monk had ten toes, and the monk did have ten toes.

But Duan Yanqing didn't expect that the monk actually broke one of his toes.

So the monk won the bet and Duan Yanqing lost.

The original owner of the storage jade should also be planning on breaking into the secret realm.

If someone guessed that he had ten toes, the original owner would break one of his own toes and then kill everyone.

If anyone guessed he had nine toes, they would be wrong.

No matter what answer you guess, you will die.

Zhou Ping was amazed. He didn't expect that the original owner of the storage jade would be so cruel.

"What a good plan!" Fan Shiyi came to Zhou Ping and said with a smile, "You have understood the riddle."

Zhou Ping was not surprised at all by Fan Shiyi's arrival. He met many familiar faces when he came out of the secret realm.

Zhou Ping quickly shook his head: "I don't understand."

Fan Shiyi knew that Zhou Ping was pretending to know the answer, so she smiled and solved the riddle. Her answer was the same as Zhou Ping's.

When everyone heard Fan Shiyi's answer, they all suddenly understood.

"The original owner of the secret realm was quite sinister. He actually thought of this method."

"That's right. We're going to die anyway. How can we answer this?"

Everyone was whispering, thinking that this was a dead end and that they would not be able to obtain the storage jade at all.

However, Zhou Ping thought of the loophole in this riddle.

People have only ten toes. The first time you guess ten, the original owner cuts off one of his own toes.

The second guess was nine, and the original owner cut off one of his own toes.

If you guess nine times in a row and the original owner has no toes left, then you will definitely be able to guess the answer correctly the last time.

Fan Shiyi looked at Zhou Ping and asked, "You have guessed the answer, right?"

Zhou Ping scratched his head: "No."

Fan Shiyi rolled her eyes at Zhou Ping. She knew that Zhou Ping was pretending to be confused.

At this time, there were more than twenty more people at the exit of the secret realm.

Zhao Tiancheng and Wu Dafu were among them!

The moment he saw Zhao Tiancheng, Wu Laosan breathed a sigh of relief. I am alive again, and there is no need to lower my cultivation!

Not only Wu Laosan, but also County Magistrate Lu, Captain Leng, Wang Cheng and other scholars, they all breathed a sigh of relief.

County Magistrate Lu sat down on the ground, wiping the sweat off his face: "No need to go in!"

Even the soldiers breathed a sigh of relief. Although they had to obey orders, they also knew that entering the cave would be a life-or-death experience.

Now that Zhao Tiancheng has walked out of the secret book alive, they no longer have to put themselves in danger.

It can be said that Zhao Tiancheng saved many lives by coming out of the secret realm alive.

"You saved a lot of people." Fan Shiyi said to Zhou Ping.

Zhou Ping didn't expect the county magistrate to be so crazy that even an innocent scholar would rush into the secret realm to save his son.

When Zhou Ping saw Meng Jiusheng, he wanted to ask him whether he was qualified as a student since he had rescued the person.

However, before Zhou Ping went to find Meng Jiusheng, Meng Jiusheng had already come to find Zhou Ping.

"Zhou Ping, would you be willing to take me as your master?" Meng Jiusheng said.

Zhou Ping was slightly stunned. He didn't understand what Meng Jiusheng meant.

Fan Shiyi quickly said, "Uncle Meng, my father has decided to take Zhou Ping as his landowner. Do you want to snatch his students from him?"

Meng Jiusheng chuckled and said, "What other student does your father want? I'll take this student."

How could Fan Shiyi not understand Meng Jiusheng's thoughts?

A poem called "Spring River Moon Night". Even if Zhou Ping cannot write other good poems in the future, this poem alone can make Zhou Ping's name go down in history. At that time, Meng Jiusheng can also take advantage of Zhou Ping's halo and may also be recorded in history books.

"Uncle Meng, you are not being kind." Fan Shiyi said with a hint of sarcasm. It was not honorable for Meng Jiusheng to compete with Fan Zhongfu for an apprentice.

But Meng Jiusheng has already decided that even if it is shameless, he must keep Zhou Ping as his apprentice. This is related to whether he can leave his name in history.

You have to know that the human race has been established for thousands of years, and there are no fewer than a few Confucian scholars of the third rank. However, over the long course of time, the third rank is like sand in the sand, and only a few can leave their names behind.

So Meng Jiusheng must become Zhou Ping's teacher.

When it comes to this poem "Spring River Moon Night", Meng Jiusheng knows his potential and it is very likely that he will be the first and the last to sing it in the Wei Dynasty.

"Spring River, Flower and Rain Night" can not only surpass Fan Shiyi, but may even surpass Da Wei!

"Zhou Ping, you will become my disciple. In the future, you will have a place in Qianzhou City and the Great Wei. Whether you want to teach in the academy or be an official in the Great Wei, it will be no problem."

"There are several women in my tribe. You can choose whatever you want."

Meng Jiusheng said seductively.

Fan Shiyi was immediately displeased: "Uncle Meng, you are being a bit shameless. Zhou Ping, don't agree to him. This old guy wants to take advantage of the reputation of Spring River Flower Rain Night and leave his name in history."

Meng Jiusheng blushed slightly, and he quickly waved his hand to deny, "Zhou Ping, don't listen to his nonsense. I just have a heart for talent."

Zhou Ping was slightly stunned. He didn't expect Meng Jiusheng to want to be his teacher. "Meng Ru, what are my qualifications as a student?"

Meng Jiusheng still doesn't know whether he has obtained the qualification of a student of the Tongsheng School.

Meng Jiusheng waved his hand and said, "I promised you at the beginning that I would definitely give you the qualification of a Tongsheng."

Fan Shiyi exposed Meng Jiusheng's past: "Zhou Ping, don't listen to his nonsense. Your qualification as a Tongsheng was not given by him at all. It's just because you write well."

Fan Shiyi told Zhou Ping about the riot caused by the scholars in Qinghe County, and only then did Zhou Ping know that such a big thing had happened in Qinghe County.

What Zhou Ping didn't expect was that the poem he copied, "Spring River Flower Rain Night", turned out to be so amazing.

Zhou Ping looked at Fan Shiyi and said, "Brother Fan, now I have the qualifications to be a student, to enter the academy, and to become your father's disciple, am I qualified?"

Before Fan Shiyi could say anything, a group of soldiers walked towards Zhou Ping and said, "Zhou Ping, you have been recruited. Follow us into the secret realm!"

(End of this chapter)