Chongming Xianzong

Chapter 421 Taking Root (I)

Kuang Liuting's Dan formation was a great event for the entire David Immortal Dynasty. But for the Chongming Sect at this time, the Nan'an Earl, who had already gone to the outer sea, was now difficult to approach.

However, these days in the remote Yunjiao Prefecture, in addition to the above-mentioned earth-shaking news that has spread to all counties, there are also a few things that are a little bit intriguing.

One was that Yuan Buwen, a local tyrant in Jingnan Prefecture, defected a few days ago. After seeing off the two alchemy masters of the Liangyi Sect stationed in the Yuan family, this top fake alchemist went to the front of Laoniu Mountain to find Gun Shilu and Zhu Tong, who were in charge of the battle, and knelt down in surrender with his naked body bared.

At that time, after the governor Zhu Tong comforted him with kind words, not only did he not make things difficult for him, but he treated him with great courtesy and accepted his surrender without any humiliation.

In the eyes of outsiders, Yuan Buwen was not a decisive leader, and was far from being as courageous as he was once said to be.

Moreover, the Jingnan Yuan family has just submitted to the provincial government, and the price is much lower than before. It is possible that Yuan Buwen will find it difficult to keep Jingnan Prefecture, which he has always regarded as a forbidden delicacy.

Another thing is that even though Yuan Buwen surrendered, he did not choose to turn against the Liangyi Sect. This is quite interesting. Equally intriguing is the attitude of the provincial governor Zhu Tong.

In recent days, the homes of those people who are used to playing both sides will probably be very lively.

The second is a piece of news that was distributed to all counties by the He family caravan: "The Chongming League has opened up a thousand miles of land in the Jackdaw Mountains for this campaign, so we have started recruiting volunteers to join the war and settle down in the Jackdaw Mountains from this year. The Chongming League will distribute spiritual lands based on their achievements. Other innocent independent cultivators who are interested can also come to us to make a request."

The third piece of news was still spread by the He family. The Ascension Conference originally scheduled for September 15 of this year by the Chongming Sect will be advanced to April 15, and according to reliable sources, the standards will be relaxed.

If the previous piece of news had little relevance to most of the cultivators in Yunjiao Province, then the two pieces of news mentioned by the He family were truly intriguing.

It is so difficult for independent cultivators to practice cultivation. Many of them cannot even afford the annual rent for renting a house in the market place, yet Chongming Sect is willing to give it to them.

Even if one thinks with his ass, it is impossible to take a piece of spiritual land for free as the foundation of his life, but it is also a spiritual land that belongs to him! How many casual cultivators would not be tempted? !
As for the third piece of news, it was even more personally related. The news that the Chongming League had expanded its territory thousands of miles away spread quickly, and people in the market naturally knew that several of them had suffered some serious losses.

In fact, it was not only the Chongming Sect that opened its gates this time, but also the two foundation-building sects, Qiaogongbao and Hemudao, did the same.

Although the four immortal cultivation families of Ming, He, Lu and Ma were not recruiting disciples, they were also recruiting large numbers of sons-in-law because there were a lot of new widows in their families.

The Hanshan Sect, which also suffered heavy losses, was different. This time, they lost Lu Xingbei, a foundation-building master, and also stopped this year's Ascension Conference. People outside were talking about it, but they didn't know why the sect leader Xu Liuxian would do such an unwise thing.

However, even if other families were recruiting disciples to marry into their families' household, it would be enough to make the independent cultivators very excited when they heard the news.

After all, if one can find a reliable force to rely on and practice well, it can be a good way for those timid and cowardly cultivators who do not have the courage to ask for spiritual land in order to earn a foundation.

Therefore, when the independent cultivators in Yunjiao Province heard the two pieces of news, at least half of them would be excited, which led to a lot of traffic outside the doors of each family in the Chongming League.

Because of this, Sun Fu, the outer sect steward of Chongming Sect, has been guarding at the foot of Xiaohuan Mountain for quite some time.

These days, there has been a constant flow of followers and independent cultivators from the outside world coming and going in front of Deacon Sun. Just dealing with these people has made this old cultivator very tired. He feels that he has never been so busy in his life.

After noon, it began to drizzle, and the raindrops fell on the makeshift bamboo roof, making a continuous rustling sound, which made Sun Fu close his eyelids.

At this moment, he was lying listlessly on a jade couch. However, after taking a short nap, someone came in and gently woke him up:

"Uncle Sun, another Taoist friend is here."

Zhu Yunsheng said this with difficulty, but secretly he felt sorry for the old cultivator Sun Fu.

The latter is also impossible. After all, the leaders and elders of Chongming Sect have no time to do these complicated things, and now even within the sect, some outstanding disciples have emerged.

But they either already had duties or were not very experienced in dealing with people, so it was difficult to tell whether the monks who came to serve were honest. Therefore, Sun Fu did not even dare to rest these days. After all, if they really had to do such things, he, a careful person, would not be at ease.

In addition, recruiting independent cultivators to settle in the Jackdaw Mountains was an important task entrusted by the head of Kang Da himself, so even if Sun Fu was not here, it would be difficult for him to rest. Although he was tired of managing the affairs in this bamboo house, he finally felt at ease, right?
Sun Fu opened his eyes sleepily again and casually cast a breeze spell. The breeze blew across his face and finally drove away some of his sleepiness.

Only after finishing these things did the old cultivator straighten his clothes, look up and ask, "Master Brother Zhu?"

Zhu Yunsheng responded respectfully before explaining, "These Taoist friends have been waiting since yesterday evening. It's been quite a while, so I dared to come and bother Uncle Sun."

"Well, don't panic, you did the right thing, the important thing is the business." Sun Fu was not dissatisfied with this young man who worked hard, because he and Zhu Yunsheng actually had the same personality.

The old cultivator turned his head and looked at the four men and one woman behind Zhu Yunsheng, and said in a gentle voice: "Greetings to all fellow Taoists, I am Sun Fu, honored to be the steward of the outer sect of Chongming Sect. I was sent by the head of our sect, Lord Kang, to be in charge of the distribution of spiritual soil this time.

Please forgive me for being old and confused. I am so old and confused that I cannot recognize the names of you fellow Taoists. I would like to ask you to tell me where you are from, where you were born, whether you have volunteered for the land reclamation campaign, and whether you have made any contributions. I will then make my own judgment.

Sun Fu, who was born as a casual cultivator and practiced randomly for more than ten years, only received the true Dharma after he met Li Duanxu, the new elder of Chongming Sect. He was no longer a mere idiot.

Since entering the Chongming Sect, this old cultivator has not only made rapid progress in his cultivation over the years, but his demeanor and bearing has also improved. The casual cultivators in front of him could not help but admire him and sigh in admiration.

"I am You Xiaobao, a junior from Chongming City. I enlisted twice and was wounded once. After the war, I was ranked among the Yicong according to my merits."

"I am Bai Fang, a junior from Wang County, but I have not applied yet."

"I am Chen Yi, a junior living in Jin County temporarily. I will take part in the recruitment once and be commended for my merits."

"I am Hu Mingsheng, from Baisha County, and I have not applied for the job."

"I am Dong Hu, the younger generation, and I am honored to be the head of the Chongming Dong family. I applied for the job once, and my performance was average."

Only after the last strong man finished speaking did Sun Fu regain some spirit. He raised his eyebrows and asked Dong Hu, who claimed to be the head of the Dong family, "Dong Daoyou, what is the relationship between my nephew Dong Liuer and you?"

Dong Hu's spirits perked up, and then his face was mixed with pride and hurt: "It's the younger sister of the clan."

Sun Fu said in his heart, "No wonder Zhu Yunsheng was so hard to wait this time. The "Dong" in Dong Liu'er is also the "Dong" of the wives of the two elders, Big Dong and Little Dong. Not to mention that the spiritual elder Zhou Yixiu, who was about to die, had not forgotten his ill-fated disciple.

No matter how selfless Sun Fu was, he still had to talk about this kind of personal feelings. Moreover, Dong Hu also had genuine merits, so even if Sun Fu handled it according to the facts, he could still get the spiritual soil, and it could not be considered as favoritism or fraud.

Thinking of this, Sun Fu also sighed, and then turned to Dong Hu and said: "No wonder you look so kind, you are actually one of us."

After saying this, the old cultivator stopped Dong Hu, who was about to take out two letters of recommendation, and took out a deed and said to Zhu Yunsheng, "This is a member of your senior sister Dong's clan. Don't treat him harshly. Go and make arrangements quickly."

Dong Hu immediately showed ecstasy and kept thanking him. Zhu Yunsheng also understood and ignored the envious looks of the other four casual cultivators in the field, and only took Dong Hu to sign the contract.

Sun Fu watched the two of them leave the bamboo house, and after a dry cough, he finally attracted the attention of the remaining practitioners in the hall.

The four of them came to their senses and hurriedly bowed to apologize.

Sun Fu smiled amiably, as if he didn't take everyone's impolite behavior to heart at all. He only asked the only old cultivator in the room who was about his age, "Brother Hu, are you from Baisha County? If you get the spiritual soil here, will you manage it alone, or will you have other Taoist friends to help you?"

Hu Mingsheng was much more experienced than the other monks in the room, and he answered, "Deacon Sun, I have a wife, a brother, a daughter, three monks, and more than ten thousand clansmen in my family. If we get the spiritual land, we will move them all here slowly to serve the sect."

Sun Fu was not interested in these nice words, and asked directly: "May I ask what the cultivation level of the other three Taoist friends in Hu Daoist Fellow's family is? Do they have any special skills?"

"They are all in the initial stage of cultivation. As for the Baiyi Hu family, there is no such talent. However, the cultivators in our family have some experience in the matter of Jiaqiang."

Beforehand, Chong Mingzong had agreed to verify the truth of what was said, so Hu Mingsheng did not dare to lie. However, the old cultivator only told half of the truth, and he felt a little unconfident.

"Yes, that's how it is." Sun Fu nodded expressionlessly, and glanced at Hu Mingsheng in front of him, who had just reached the fourth level of Qi training. He took out a jade slip and covered it with it. After finding the Baisha Hu family that had registered in advance, he engraved the words "Bingxia" behind it.

"Please find my disciple and tell him where the fairyland is. If there is a spiritual land that can be used by your family, I will pass it on to you through the spiritual bird."

Hu Mingsheng had been in Xiaohuan Mountain for some time. He had been asking the casual cultivators in front of him for information, so he knew something. So when he heard what Sun Fu said, Hu Mingsheng was not disappointed. He just went forward respectfully, bowed, and then unnoticeably passed something in his sleeve into the sleeve of Sun Fu, who was also bowing, and then left the bamboo house.

Sun Fu secretly glanced at the storage bag, and after thinking for a moment, he rubbed down the word "下" on the jade slip again.

The old monk did not try hard to conceal his actions, and the other four people in the hall knew exactly what to do.

The next person Sun Fu pointed out was the short and thin casual cultivator named "Chen Yi". He took a look at the latter's sixth level of Qi training and observed that there were no fine lines on his face. He thought that for a casual cultivator, this boy was doing quite well in his cultivation, which was quite rare.

Sun Fu took a sip of the spiritual tea and flicked his fingers. A freshly-made map of the spiritual land spread out in the air.

This map is more than ten feet in radius, but it is obvious that it was made in a hurry. The mountains and rivers are not clear on it, and the various colored light circles are mixed together, which is quite an eyesore. It takes Sun Fu's clear explanation before the cultivators can see it clearly.

The old cultivator said softly, "There are 467 spiritual places up there, 136 of which have been dispatched. There are still 293 spiritual places near the spirits and 38 first-class spiritual places left. All Taoist friends can apply for them."

Chen Yi squinted his eyes because of the dazzling array of lights in front of him. He would not open his mouth to ask where the second-level spiritual places that were rumored to have been found by the various families of the Chongming League were and why they did not appear on the map.

He only looked for a while before saying, "I am alone and have been practicing the fire method "True Flame Art" for many years. I would like to ask Deacon Sun, are there any fire veins left in the remaining spiritual land?"

"It turns out that he is practicing a top-grade technique of the Wilderness Rank, which is quite rare."

Sun Fu was about to respond when Chen Yi handed something into his sleeve. The old cultivator weighed it and smiled even more: "There is a place that is quite suitable for you to practice, fellow Taoist."

Sun Fu summoned a talisman pen and pointed it at a spot of light in the middle of the map, explaining:
"This is Huoshitang, a first-class lower-grade spiritual land. According to the geomancer, there may be some small-scale fire-attributed minerals that can be mined, which may be used as income for you later. However, the spiritual soil here is very poor and it is difficult to open it into a spiritual field. I must inform you of this in advance."

After Chen Yi heard what Sun Fuyan said, he immediately showed joy on his face, but soon he asked again: "I wonder if this is necessary?"

Sun Fu took out another jade slip and examined it, then said: "This spiritual land is enough for twelve or thirteen Qigong practitioners to practice. The fire spirit in the spiritual vein is good for those who practice fire magic, and there are also miscellaneous minerals below.
Well, according to this calculation, you need to pay 200 spiritual stones as deposit first, and then pay 34 spiritual stones, 7 broken spiritual seeds and 200 gold every year. After half a decade, this spiritual land will belong to you, and the deposit will be returned in full at that time."

As Sun Fu finished speaking, the joy on Chen Yi's face gradually faded.

He was a solitary cultivator, so poor that he didn't even have a single mortal follower around him. If he hadn't taken the spirit stones he had received from the donation, he wouldn't have had the confidence to come here. How could he suddenly come up with so many spirit stones as a deposit?
"Well," Sun Fu could see that Chen Yi was short of money, so he did not make things difficult for him. He just said, "Daoyou, as a fellow Taoist, has made great contributions. According to the rules, you can reduce the deposit by 30% and the loan by 5%.

If Daoist Chen still can't come up with it, you can also use the rank items on your body or even go to the nearby Chongming Market to find my Chongming Building as collateral. The annual interest rate is 15%, and the first year can be waived based on merit.

If you are unwilling to lend again, or cannot lend the full amount of the deposit, you can also look at other places close to the spirits. In my opinion, if you are alone in the future, it will not be much different to use it for cultivation. "

After hearing the voice, Chen Yi stared at the light spot called Huoshitang for a long time, and finally bowed to Sun Fu, saying, "Please keep me here for a while, I will come back in ten days with enough money for the bail."

Sun Fu was very easy to talk to. He nodded, made a mark with Huoshitang, and then said, "You have done a great job in volunteering, so I will reserve it for you for half a month. However, my words are not taken seriously, so I can't delay it any longer."

Chen Yi thanked him profusely for a while before heading out towards Chongming Market.

After dealing with three waves of people, Sun Fu felt a little tired again. The only female cultivator in the hall, Bai Fang, was wearing a veil on her head, and her color could not be seen, so the old cultivator was not interested in her.

Of course, according to the teachings of Master Kang, Sun Fu would accept the spirit stone handed over by the latter.

These have to be taken back to supplement the sect's treasury. Chongming Sect has been suffering from a severe shortage of spirit stones these days. Otherwise, Sect Master Kang would not have specifically instructed Sun Fu to keep a close eye on these independent cultivators who come to join the sect for such a small amount of money.

After Sun Fu found out that he was alone, had only reached the third level of Qi training, and had only an insignificant formation skill, the old cultivator dismissed him hastily.

Afterwards, he didn't even say a polite word, but used the carving knife hidden in his sleeve to erase his name on the jade slip.

Finally, the only person left in the bamboo house was You Xiaobao, who was worried. He was not short of bail money. This was because Yuan Changsheng, the general he had applied for the second time, was one of the most powerful officials in Chongming Sect and was very generous to his subordinates.

Fortunately, he survived and made a small fortune on the battlefield. Together with the income from his two applications and the rewards for his meritorious service, the total amount was about two hundred spirit stones.

This is not a small amount for a casual cultivator at the third level of Qi training. If most of it had not been used to save his master's life, You Xiaobao could now be considered to be wealthy.

But now?
You Xiaobao met Sun Fu's gaze nervously and whispered, "Deacon Sun, I only have my master and I to rely on. I have only a few mortal relatives, and I don't have many spiritual stones on hand. I just want to find a place close to the spirit world that can produce some."

Sun Fu had also heard from his old friend Niu Kuang that You Xiaobao had applied twice. Just for this reason, Sun Fu refused the gift from the latter.

The old cultivator narrowed his eyes and carefully searched the map. After a long while, he asked, "How is this place?"

You Xiaobao looked at the place pointed by Sun Fu with concern. The latter said calmly, "There is a first-grade lower-grade spiritual vein in Fenglin Mountain, and there is a mountain stream with spiritual essence. You may try to raise some lower-grade spiritual fish. The spiritual soil here is quite fertile. Daoist friend, you only need to spend some time to plant crops and it will grow well."

Sun Fuyan paused here, then looked at You Xiaobao and asked, "Fellow Daoist You, have you ever cultivated the spiritual field?"

The latter was stunned: "I am not very experienced, but my master is quite good at this."

"That's good. If you are successful in the award ceremony, the deposit can be reduced by 50%. Since this is your second application, I will reduce it by another 10%. In this way, the deposit will only be 80 spirit stones.

The annual tribute is supposed to be thirty-six spirit stones and one broken spirit seed, but with merit, it can be reduced by 10%, which is thirty-two spirit stones and four broken spirit seeds plus nine hundred gold. I will take the initiative to waive the deduction for you, so that you only need thirty-two spirit stones per year."

After counting on his fingers, You Xiaobao still looked embarrassed and said, "I still can't afford so much."

Sun Fu was also a little surprised. According to his thinking, You Xiaobao, who had just come down from the battle array, should have a lot of spirit stones in his hands. "Maybe he used them up while practicing?"

The old cultivator muttered to himself, and then suggested, "Fellow Daoist, why don't you go to Chongming Little House and get a loan? The annual interest is only 10% based on your merits, and there is no interest in the first year."

You Xiaobao smiled bitterly, clasped his hands and said, "To be honest with you, Senior, I don't have much money, so I'm afraid I can't lend you so much."

"This..." Sun Fu didn't know how to say it for a moment, but You Xiaobao spoke first:

"Please take a look at those spiritual places for me. I don't want anything else. I just want to provide a place for me and my disciple to practice and for my tribe to take care of themselves. It's better to be safe. My master and I are not good at cultivation. No matter if it's a monster or a fellow Taoist, I can't afford to offend them."

You Xiaobao was open-minded, but Sun Fu felt sorry for him. He started looking for a place close to the spirit world while muttering, "If you choose a place close to the spirit world that is not worth the price, it will be a waste of your merit. If you have spirit stones, you can find a first-class upper-grade spirit vein to occupy. Then, in half a century, you can save a lot of spirit stones."

You Xiaobao didn't have such courage, he just said he didn't dare.

Sun Fu had no choice but to search for it carefully, but he could not find a satisfactory one for a long time. He advised again: "Daoyou You, I feel sorry for you. Fenglin Mountain is indeed very suitable for your family. Daoyou, why don't you consider it again?!"

You Xiaobao also knew that what Sun Fu said made sense, and after thinking about it for a while, he still couldn't make up his mind.

After hesitating for a while, You Xiaobao was about to refuse again, but he heard a man striding in and saying, "You loser, take it. You have come back from the gates of hell, so you should have a better foundation to pass on to your descendants, right?"

"Eternal life?" Sun Fu looked surprised.

"General Bai!" You Xiaobao took the storage bag with a look of surprise on his face.

Yuan Changsheng did not answer You Xiaobao, but just made a gesture to the latter to keep quiet, and then he moved closer to Sun Fu and whispered to him.

The wrinkles on the old monk's face were gradually filled with joy, and then he couldn't even control himself and started laughing out loud. At the same time, the Chongmingzong ritual bell also rang, a full twenty-four times, which was deafening.

You Xiaobao, who was standing aside holding a storage bag, had no idea what it meant, but there were many independent cultivators at the foot of Xiaohuan Mountain who had some knowledge and knew what the twenty-four bell sounds meant.

"The Chongming Sect has established its foundation again."

(End of this chapter)