Pure Yang!

Chapter 138 Returning to the Zhang Family Mansion! It was Zhang Fan
The next day, early morning.

Sanqin District, Shangmafang old residential area.

The old courtyards are connected to each other, and look like pigeon cages from a bird's eye view. They appear old and dilapidated in the city of tall buildings.

At the foot of the broken and mottled wall, a pancake stall stood there alone. The pancakes on the anvil were sizzling and smoking, and the rising hot air became the last fireworks in this old city.

"Uncle Feng, give me two eggs..."

Zhang Fan stood in front of the stall, watching Feng Ping'an skillfully making pancakes, and couldn't help but add an extra dan.

"You really know how to eat." Feng Ping'an grinned and said, "Do you want some chopped green onions and coriander?"

"Yes, both, but with less cilantro."

Zhang Fan nodded, his eyes fell on the pancakes, but his attention kept wandering around.

Yesterday, after returning from the Jiangnan Provincial Alliance, he became a little restless.

Sui Chunsheng's words were like a wake-up call, making Zhang Fan feel urgent.

"More than 20 years ago, someone stole the dragon energy of Yujing by stealing the sky. Ten years ago, there was an extremely unusual leakage, which caused the waters of the Huaiyan section of the Yangtze River to be cut off for three hours."

"According to investigation, the source of the dragon energy theft is in the old residential area in Sanqin District."

"Xiao Fan, your father asked you to go back to the old house if you have time. He left something there. It's quite important."

Combining the many clues from the Jiangnan Province investigation with Liu Fusheng's instructions, Zhang Fan didn't think there were such coincidences in the world.

At this moment, Zhang Fan had a bold guess in his mind. Although it might not be correct, the more he thought about it, the more he felt that the source of the so-called "stealing the secrets of heaven and stealing the dragon's energy" was his old house.

"Xiao Fan, eat it while it's hot." Feng Ping'an wrapped the hot pancake in brown paper and handed it over.

"Uncle, how much is it?" Zhang Fan took out his cell phone.

"You want to slap my uncle in the face? I'm asking you for money for a pancake." Feng Ping'an rubbed his greasy hands on his body and smiled with his head down.

"Uncle, your cake is so delicious."

Zhang Fan took a bite. The dough was soft and the sauce was rich. It was no exaggeration to say that this was almost the most delicious pancake he had ever eaten.

"Hey, the key to whether the pancake is delicious is the heat..."

Feng Ping'an lowered his head and murmured softly, "If the heat is controlled well, everything will taste good."

"Xiao Fan, uncle will teach you the secret. If you can't make it in the future, at least you still have a skill. You can make pancakes like uncle."

"The secret?" Zhang Fan was stunned for a moment while eating a pancake.

"The secret to controlling the temperature is just two words: calmness." Feng Ping'an grinned.

At this moment, the pancake stall owner who stayed in the old city seemed to have a gleam in his eyes, and his slightly hunched body seemed to be straighter.

"Calm down!?"

"I remember that winter, my uncle was still using a charcoal stove. The snowstorm was so strong that the fire in the stove went out... When your father was helping my uncle light the fire, he muttered something in a very literary way, with a bit of that meaning..."

"My dad? What did he say?" Zhang Fan couldn't help but ask.

"Only when your heart is as empty as a deep valley can you spark a fire and produce wonderful flowers." Feng Ping'an whispered softly, but his eyes were empty and lonely.

“Only when your mind is as empty as a deep valley can you spark a fire and create wonderful flowers…” Zhang Fan chewed over these words, seeming to be thinking about something.

"Zhang Fan!?"

At this moment, a sound of surprise came from the side, pleasant and familiar.

Zhang Fan turned around and looked, and was stunned for a moment. He never expected to meet Xu Zhixia here again so early in the morning.

Next to her stood a tall and thin young man, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, a white shirt, and looking very polite.

Zhang Fan recognized him at a glance. This was the man who drove the three-pointed hook that night.

"Zhixia, long time no see." Zhang Fan whispered.

We said goodbye in a hurry that night and I was almost hit by a car, so I didn't have time to say hello formally.

"Not long." Xu Zhixia stopped and kept a distance from Zhang Fan, a smile appearing on her face.

All in all, it has only been three or four months since graduation.

"Are you doing well?" Xu Zhixia asked softly.

When exes meet again, nine out of ten pairs will say something like this.

"Pretty good." Zhang Fan said casually.

The atmosphere seemed a little awkward. No matter how close the relationship was in the past, there was always nothing to say when they met again after separation. It really proved the old saying that it is better to miss each other than to see each other.

"Why are you here?" Xu Zhixia broke the silence.

"I lived here when I was a child. I wanted to come back and take a look early in the morning, but unfortunately I can't get in." Zhang Fan pointed to the old residential area behind him and said.

"Of course you can't get in, here..."

At this moment, the young man wearing gold-rimmed glasses spoke. He spoke indifferently, and there was a hint of arrogance in his eyes when he looked at Zhang Fan. He stopped talking halfway, as if he didn't want to waste words with such an insignificant person here.

"Zhixia, let's go in."

"Wait a moment."

Xu Zhixia looked at Zhang Fan and said apologetically, "This is my friend, Li Gaoyang."

"Zhang Fan, the old city here is about to be renovated, and foundation surveying and risk assessment are currently underway, so in principle ordinary people cannot enter..." Xu Zhixia explained.

"Ordinary people can't get in?" Zhang Fan murmured.

He believed this reason before yesterday, but after returning from the Jiangnan Provincial Dao Alliance, he realized that the risk assessment was a cover-up and was just an attempt to find the source of the dragon energy theft.

Such a big thing naturally won't be allowed to get involved by ordinary people.

"That you……"

"How are we the same as you?" Li Gaoyang pushed his gold-rimmed glasses and sneered.

"More than half of the renovation of Yujing City's old city was undertaken by the Xu Group. We represent the Xu Group."

"Xu Group!?"

Zhang Fan was stunned for a moment, then looked at Xu Zhixia with some surprise. Although they had been together for so many years in college, he didn't know that the Xu in Xu Zhixia was actually the Xu of Xu Group.

You know, the Xu Group is a well-known large conglomerate in the south, and the industries it is involved in almost every aspect of ordinary people's lives.

"What? Zhixia, didn't you tell him? It seems that your ex-boyfriend doesn't know much." Li Gaoyang looked at Zhang Fan's surprised expression and couldn't help revealing a hint of teasing.

The implication is that Xu Zhixia's feelings for Zhang Fan are very ordinary, or even just for fun, and she is unwilling to tell the other party her true situation.

"Zhang Fan, my home..." Xu Zhixia raised her eyebrows and hesitated to speak.

"I understand, it's okay." Zhang Fan waved his hand and didn't care.

The Xu Group is a large and prosperous conglomerate on the surface, but secretly...

"The lineage of the founder of the Jingming Sect, [Xu Zu]!" Zhang Fan thought to himself. Ever since he came down from Zhenwu Mountain and gradually came into contact with the Taoist world at night, his horizons gradually expanded, and he naturally knew many secrets that were unknown to many people.

Taoism has been passed down to this day, and those who can be called "ancestor" must have cultivated to the realm of pure yang and infinity, crossed the changes of three and five, and achieved the status of immortals on earth.

For example, the founder of Chunyang [Lü Zu], or the Quanzhen Taoism [Qiu Zu] and so on.

In addition, the most famous are the so-called "Four Heavenly Masters", namely Zhang Daoling, Ge Hong, Sa Shoujian, and Xu Xun.

The reason why these "Four Patriarchs" were named Heavenly Masters and passed down to later generations is because most of their achievements were at the level of Heavenly Master, but their true cultivation and achievements were far more than that.

The so-called "Xu Zu" is Xu Xun, one of the four great heavenly masters. He is the founder of the Jingming School of Taoism and is most famous for slaying a dragon.

It is said that Xu Zu was a Taoist priest in the Eastern Jin Dynasty who practiced supernatural powers and had boundless magic power. When floods occurred frequently and affected the people, Xu Zu led his disciples to travel around the world to control the floods. In total, he killed ninety-nine flood-causing dragons and became famous from then on.

In later generations, if one wanted to slay a dragon, one must remember the magical powers of Xu Zu. Even the so-called "Dragon Locking Well" and "Dragon Trapped Pool" in many scenic spots today have the talismans left by Xu Zu engraved on the chains.

The Xu Group was passed down from the lineage of [Xu Zu].

Although they live in seclusion and practice in the secular world, unlike the Longhu Zhang family who occupy famous mountains and caves, they still hold an important position in Taoism.

Compared with the Xiong Family in Yujing City, the Wang Family is much more prominent.

It was surprising to Zhang Fan that Xu Zhixia was actually the descendant of Xu Zu.

It seems that the friend next to her, Li Gaoyang, is of high status and has a close relationship with the Xu family. No wonder he looks down on ordinary people like Zhang Fan.

They only said that they were the Xu Group, and never revealed the lineage of Xu Zu.

But this is normal, because in their eyes, Zhang Fan is just an ordinary person, and the two are completely two different worlds. Even if they tell him about the so-called [Taoism] and the so-called [Xu Zu], Zhang Fan probably won't understand.

"Why don't you come in with me?"

At this moment, Xu Zhixia's voice brought Zhang Fan back to his senses.

"Zhixia..." Li Gaoyang frowned slightly when he heard that.

“I can still do this, Lord.”

Xu Zhixia looked at Zhang Fan and smiled slightly, "I can't let you come here for nothing so early in the morning."

"Um...thank you very much." Zhang Fan nodded.

Originally, he planned to wait for Sui Chunsheng and Zhan Xinyue here, and then go in together.

"Let's go."

Xu Zhixia led the way, Li Gaoyang glanced at her sideways, but followed closely behind, leaving Zhang Fan at the end.

Entering the old residential area, there were people stopping people for inspection almost every ten or so steps on the narrow alley. Fortunately, Xu Zhixia showed his badge, so he was able to pass through.

"Zhang Fan, did you live here when you were a child?" Xu Zhixia asked without turning her head.

The narrow alley can barely accommodate two people walking side by side.

"Yes, I lived here until I was twelve years old." Zhang Fan nodded.

Although he had been away for ten years, this place had hardly changed. When he revisited the old place, many vague lights and shadows emerged in Zhang Fan's mind.

"I've never heard you say this before." Xu Zhixia said softly.

"How can you say that when you live in a place like this?" Li Gaoyang sneered.

Zhang Fan followed behind, looking at the back of the former's head with a slightly gloomy gaze, and suddenly he had an urge to pat him.

"Gao Yang, if you keep speaking so harshly, go back first."

At this moment, Xu Zhixia stopped, perhaps because she didn't want to embarrass Zhang Fan, and her slightly angry face showed some dissatisfaction.

Seeing this, Li Gaoyang quickly softened his expression and said soothingly, "Okay, since we are your friend, I won't say anything."

"Zhang Fan, where is your old house?" Xu Zhixia's eyes passed over Li Gaoyang and turned to Zhang Fan.

"Turn left into that alley ahead."

Zhang Fan tried hard to recall, and looking at the house number of the abandoned yard next to him, he gradually remembered.

"Let me take you there first."

Xu Zhixia continued to walk forward: "Now the procedures for entering and leaving here are very complicated. If you don't register, you will probably be kicked out even if you go."

"Thank you for your help." Zhang Fan nodded.

Yesterday, he had heard from Sui Chunsheng that, ostensibly this was an expert evaluation, but in reality it had been taken over by the Jiangnan Province Taoist Alliance. Apart from anything else, there were dozens of Taoists in charge of the periphery alone, including five high-level Taoists.

It can be seen that the Jiangnan Provincial Dao Alliance attaches great importance to this matter. After all, "stealing dragon energy and stealing heaven's secrets" is no trivial matter. If it happened in ancient times, it might give birth to a big devil and bring disaster to the world.

"This is it."

In front of an old house, a big tree emerges from the yard, casting a canopy of green shade.

The door was not locked. Xu Zhixia pushed it open and walked in. There were many Taoist priests in the yard. There were talismans on the shabby door and walls...

In the middle of the yard, someone was setting up an altar, lighting incense, and hanging up flags, and they were busy all the time.

"Don't mind...breaking ground still requires some feudal superstition." Xu Zhixia turned around and looked at Zhang Fan who was standing behind him and explained.

"Huh? She also came here for the purpose of stealing dragon energy." Zhang Fan looked at Xu Zhixia's expression and understood something in his mind.

The renovation of the old city is just a cover. Maybe it is true, but it is not the real purpose of Xu Zhixia's trip.

"You are……"

"Someone from the Xu family!?"

At this moment, a woman walked out of the yard and looked at Xu Zhixia and Li Gaoyang beside her.

"Well, my name is Xu Zhixia."

"I'm Zhou Miaochan, in charge of this alley... I've already informed the higher-ups, but..."

Zhou Miaochan glanced around and found that there was someone standing behind Xu Zhixia and Li Gaoyang.

"The document said that only two of you were allowed in. Why did you bring another..."

Before she could finish her words, Zhou Miaochan was stunned. Only then did she see clearly the appearance of the person behind her.

"He is my friend and used to live here. Please come in..." Xu Zhixia greeted him.

"Not even friends. Don't think you can break the rules just because you're from the Xu family. This is Jiangnan Province..."

At this moment, Zhou Miaoyu also came out. She spoke sharply and directly scolded: "Hurry up and let your friends leave..."

At this point, Zhou Miaoyu's voice stopped abruptly. She looked at her sister beside her. They were both stunned, their eyes trembling slightly, and then they looked behind Xu Zhixia, at the figure who was slowly walking out.

"Miss Zhou, I haven't seen you for a while." Zhang Fan greeted her politely.

"Zhang Fan!?" Zhou Miaochan frowned slightly, with a hint of vigilance and fear in her eyes.

(End of this chapter)