I was forced to cultivate immortality when I just wanted to lie down

Chapter 307 New Year's Eve Fireworks, The Changing Face of Heaven
On the 29th day of the lunar month, it is a dark day.

Today, the funeral home in Jingxia Street held a fire prevention and purification drill. In addition to the spirit mediums who had evacuated in advance, other spirit mediums, including neighbors, also cooperated by leaving the street.

Even the fearless Red-Clothed Cult at the end of the street came running out.

The reason was simple: last night, the sounds of suona horns and sheng drums suddenly rang out in the street, accompanied by mournful wailing, the chattering of mice, and large flocks of crows cawing as they flew from one end of the street to the other.

When the mute carpenter in the carpentry shop opened the door, he was greeted by a procession of paper figures as funeral offerings.

Those paper figures had heads shaped like cauldrons and were over ten feet tall. They wore straw hats and paper gauze on their heads and paper quilts on their bodies. They moved as if walking on wind and mist, and landed without making a sound.

The mute carpenter was horrified!

He thought that his lack of a skill had been discovered and that God had come to take him away, so he hurriedly closed the door, opened the coffin, hid in the newly made coffin, and prayed for the protection of the ancestral master craftsman.

Xie Hongying, the Holy Maiden of the Red-Clothed Sect, and others also saw those paper figures that were as thin and tall as bamboo poles, but they did not see them from outside the door.

Even through the wall, they could see the paper figures, some over ten feet tall, with their heads peeking out and the funeral banners they carried passing by.

Xie Hongying was on high alert and didn't sleep all night, but fortunately nothing happened.

The next day at dawn, Manager Xu of the coroner's shop brought along a female Taoist priest with an ethereal air and a female fortune teller, saying that today was an unlucky day and they had specially invited a professional Taoist priest to exorcise the ghosts and dispel bad luck.

Xu Qing spoke calmly and composedly, showing no sign that he was the biggest evil leader in Jingxia Street.

Upon hearing this, the Red-Clothed Cult members, the mute carpenter, and the others thought, "This is great! The two sorcerers must help us exorcise the evil spirits. This Jingxia Street is great in every way, it's just that sometimes it feels like we're not living in the mortal realm."
Master Yizhen and Bai Qiuyu had just met this morning. One was a fox spirit from Qingqiu, and the other possessed the bloodline of Tushanji. When Xu Qinggang introduced them, they were like two cats who had never met before, wanting to explore each other's origins but also showing some reserve as if they were meeting for the first time.

However, the abbot of Jingxu Temple, contrary to his usual behavior, spoke to Bai Qiuyu in a particularly unusual way.

The legendary nine-tailed fox is something that even a primordial spirit like her has never seen, let alone ordinary people!

Not to mention it's still alive!

After the well street was completely cleared of people, with not a single survivor left, the abbot of Jingxu Temple flew out of the wooden box, landed on Yizhen's shoulder, and asked Xu Qing:
What kind of ritual do you want to perform?

Xu Qing suddenly realized that he had only told the immortals of the Cat Immortal Hall about Tao Sanmei's tribulation today, but had not informed Daoist Yizhen and Bai Qiuyu.

The two men, one holding a whisk and a water bowl with a bell hanging from his waist, and the other holding a divination banner and a compass, were truly putting on an act of searching for ghosts and exorcising evil spirits!

Xu Qing felt a little regretful that he hadn't brought the embroiderer Shi Yue and her son along; it would have been so much more interesting with those two cowards around.
"It's not a ritual. One of the spirits in our shrine has encountered a minor difficulty that needs to be overcome. The so-called cleansing is just a pretext to get the neighbors to leave this place and avoid accidental harm. At this moment, even we must leave in time."

Abbot Jingxu didn't take it seriously and chuckled, "I've cultivated for many years and encountered all kinds of difficulties. Why should I back down?"

"Tell me what kind of difficulties you are facing."

Xu Qing raised an eyebrow and said without hiding anything, "It is the peach tree of the coffin shop that needs to undergo the tribulation of the five-hundred-year thunder calamity. Senior is a Nascent Soul True Person, so naturally you will not be afraid. However, we juniors still need to avoid its sharp edge for the time being."

"."

"You said that the peach tree demon is going to undergo the Three Calamities today?" The abbot of Jingxu Temple's expression changed, and then he said with some annoyance, "Why didn't you say so earlier!"

These past few days, Jingxu has been treating Tao Sanmei like a servant or maid, all for the sake of his own perverse pleasure. After all, she let Hu Baosong out to cause trouble for people.

However, the abbess of Jingxu Temple did not possess true qi. When her qi dissipated and she departed, she would pass on some cultivation techniques or magical artifacts to Tao Sanmei.

Then you can say a few more profound and mysterious words, telling Tao Sanmei that this is a test from the real person, not that the real person is deliberately making things difficult for you.

But now Xu Qing suddenly tells her that the peach tree will face the five-hundred-year calamity today.

In Jingxu's eyes, Tao Sanmei's cultivation level was far from enough to survive the calamity. There was only one fate awaiting the peach tree: it would become a thousand-year-old lightning-struck tree, and the rarest kind of lightning-struck peach tree at that.

Abbess Jingxu felt quite remorseful. If she had known this would happen, she would never have had the leisure to tease the peach tree.

If Peach Sister really doesn't survive the lightning calamity, Abbot Jingxu thinks that countless years later, when she wakes up from meditation in the middle of the night, she'll have to slap herself!

Xu Qing asked in bewilderment, "Could it be that if you had spoken earlier, Senior would have had a way to help Sister Tao escape this calamity?"

"."

Hearing this, Jingxu felt even more awkward.

She doesn't have that ability! Disasters can only be faced by oneself. If she had that ability, how could Yizhen's mother have ended up with no remains?
"I don't have that ability. If you are capable, then you can help her avoid this calamity. In that case, I will call you a True Man!"

Jingxu was furious; this kid's words were hitting her sore spot.

Xu Qing looked at the abbot of Jingxu Temple, who was sulking at him. He wondered if he was destined to be afflicted by old women, as it seemed that he couldn't get along with any old woman.

"I distributed some of the incense offerings from the hall to Sister Tao the other day; I think that should be enough to get through this calamity."

Jingxu glanced at Xu Qing. In this turbid and evil world, it is difficult to establish the true Dharma. Even if you, a celestial temple, do good deeds every day, how many incense offerings can you expect?

If incense offerings with merit and faith were so easy to make money from, then the prestigious sects of the Celestial Master's Mansion wouldn't have fallen from being the foremost practitioners of righteousness to becoming the leaders of heretical cultivation.

In times of great calamity, yin and yang are reversed, and nothing is more so than this.

The 29th day of the twelfth lunar month, the end of the year.

Every household is busy sweeping and cleaning to ward off bad luck, chopping fillings and pasting up auspicious decorations.

Outside the well, a group of funeral shop owners and their assistants strolled around like street urchins.

This year there is no 30th day of the lunar calendar; the eve of the Lunar New Year is the 29th day of the lunar calendar. During this period, restaurants and teahouses are either closed or closed for the day. Even if one or two are open, they are already full.

Xu Qing and the others had nowhere to go, and he was also worried about the Jingxia Street, which was about to be covered by lightning, so he led everyone to stay on the neighboring street and chatted idly.

The rebels of the Red-Clothed Cult huddled together with Xie Hongying, chattering amongst themselves.

Xu Qing, with his sharp ears, listened attentively. When he heard that the Red-Clothed Sect was discussing trivial matters related to their rebellion plan for next year, he regained his focus.

The carpenter in the carpenter's shop was mute. He stood nearby next to the Red-Clothed Cult members, who paid him no attention.

What good would it do for an illiterate mute to hear?
Even at midday, the street below the well remained quiet.

The Red-Clothed Cult members had long been unable to contain themselves and wanted to turn back, but they were blocked in the street by a sturdy iron pillar.

Instead of being angry, Xie Hongying's eyes lit up when she saw this. She began to use her silver tongue to try to bring this brave man into the Red-Clothed Cult and work together on their great cause.

Unfortunately, the brave man was not Wang Liang. He had no desire to conquer the world or gain fame and fortune. He only wanted to take Huang Xiaoliu with him and follow the sect leader to pursue the ultimate martial arts.

Later that evening, sporadic firecrackers sounded throughout Linjiang City, followed by a cacophony of noise throughout the city.

As a hub for water transport and trade, Linjiang County was exceptionally prosperous, and even during periods of turmoil in the dynasty, it remained lively during festivals.

The Red-Clothed Cult was mostly comprised of people who had ruined their families and clans, and the shamanic disciples in Jingxia Street were no exception. During this time, Sun Erzhuang drove a cart to deliver steaming hot shark's ear fungus, which they shared with everyone. The group squatted by the roadside, not feeling lonely at all.

However, at that very moment, the entire street, including Jingxia Street, suddenly went dark.

The mute carpenter looked up in confusion, and when he saw the dark clouds gathering overhead, he pointed at the sky and made incoherent noises, meaning that the sky was about to change.

At the same time, in the alley at the street corner, a female Taoist priest and a female fortune teller hurriedly approached Xu Qing.

Master Yizhen said with some concern, "This lightning disaster is a bit strange; it shouldn't have such a large scale."

From within the wooden box, the voice of Abbot Jingxu Temple came: "Today is the New Year's Eve. People burn incense and worship gods, and even the heavens want to celebrate the New Year. How can the peach tree, which is undergoing tribulation at this time, possibly prosper?"

Xu Qing didn't know if Jingxu was joking or if there was any truth to it, but the thunderclouds above the street in the well were indeed quite large.

However, Xu Qing remained completely calm. Compared to his Heavenly Strike Thunder, this lightning calamity was truly insignificant.

It's true that this lightning disaster has a knack for picking its time; now the whole city is filled with firecrackers, and the smoke, mixed with the festive atmosphere of the New Year, is wafting straight into people's noses.

Amidst the cacophony of firecrackers throughout the city, a blinding bolt of lightning was born and struck down upon the coffin shop!
That sound, whether it was a double-bang or a multi-bang firecracker, was completely suppressed.

The greatest sound is silence. The once bustling city of Linjiang, filled with the sounds of firecrackers, suddenly fell completely silent.

In the coffin shop, when the thunderbolt as thick as a water vat struck, Tao Sanmei, who had been frugal and only had twenty or thirty thousand incense sticks left to hold, hurriedly took out one hundred thousand incense sticks and threw them out.

Heavenly thunder is divided into yin and yang; demons and ghosts fear yang thunder, while cultivators fear yin thunder.

Above that is the divine lightning strike.

Tao Sanmei never imagined that the lightning that struck her would be Yang Lei!
As the 100,000 incense sticks were thrown out, a giant tree phantom, formed from the incense smoke, suddenly rose from the ground at the location of the peach tree in the backyard.

The shadows of the trees, like a dome or canopy, shone with a brilliant light, their open canopies covering half the sky!
The fireworks of Liuxian, the fireworks of Shangping and Lijun, all paled in comparison to the golden, incense-filled phantom.

Through the wooden box, the abbot of Jingxu Temple saw the golden roof and the giant incense tree. The old lady was so shocked that she couldn't even speak, as if she had never seen the world before.

Is this the kind of merit that people can earn?
When the lightning touched the canopy, countless offerings of incense and merit scattered like sparks from hammering iron, while the canopy only shrank by one size.

Like a swirling vortex, the dark clouds gathering thunder seemed to pause for a moment.

The Heavenly Emperor, who was in charge of the lightning disaster, felt that the towering canopy looked somewhat familiar, so he squinted and took a closer look.

Such a grand and righteous act of merit, such an extravagant and elaborate gesture. And then, take a closer look at that incense-scented aroma.

Wow! Well, this is an old acquaintance!
The heavens were in such a bad mood that it was hard to let things fall.

It's a bit unreasonable to direct anger at a devout believer who is trying to make a living, but if this long-brewing calamity of lightning only strikes once and the rest is left unreleased, it won't look good on His face either!

As luck would have it, just when the heavens were fuming from working overtime during the Lunar New Year and had nowhere to vent their anger, a clueless idler in the city actually looked up at the sky.

The idler was a monk. At that moment, he was bald, gnawing on a chicken leg, and drinking from a wine pot. In his drunken haze, he caught a glimpse of the illusory image of the towering tree with its radiant light.

"Good heavens! This is incredible! Whose good Samaritan is hiding from disaster?"

The mad monk rubbed his eyes, but he couldn't understand it at all. In this turbid and evil world, besides his Buddhist sect's nine lifetimes of good deeds, who else could possess so much merit?
He subconsciously calculated with his fingers.

"Hmm, Zhao Zhonghe, the constable of Linjiang County?"

The mad monk frowned. How could it possibly be him?
He's just a constable now, how could he have such good fortune?

The monk put away the wine pot, put down the chicken leg, wiped his body with his hands, and after cleaning off the grease, he began to calculate again.

This time, it wasn't Zhao Zhonghe anymore, but an old monkey who stole the Heavenly Book that jumped out.

"How could it be that white-haired ape who stole the Heavenly Book? No, no!"

The more the mad monk calculated, the more he felt something was amiss. He looked up at the golden canopy in the distance, made a firm decision, and began to calculate again.

He thought to himself, "Although you can't ask more than three questions, I, the monk, have done a lot of good deeds. You can't just kill me, can you?"

Little did they know that when people's sense of luck and curiosity come together, nothing good ever comes of it!

The mad monk rolled up his sleeves, focused intently, and almost flickered sparks from his fingers.

But this time, a new figure appeared in his mind.

The man looked quite refined, a top scholar in the imperial examinations, but he was shirtless, with a five-clawed dragon coiled around his body, its claws outstretched.

Looking at the face
"Your Majesty? Is this true?"

The mad monk stared wide-eyed, still bewildered, when the lightning bolt that was about to strike the peach tree suddenly changed direction and struck him with the remaining lightning bolts.

"Oh no! This is bad!"

When the thunderclouds dispersed, the monk disappeared, leaving only a tattered monk's shoe with a hole in it, smoking, on the ground.

Outside the well, Xu Qing turned his head to look in the direction Tian Lei had turned, his face full of doubt.

Why is the lightning striking somewhere else?

The wooden box that Master Yizhen always carried with him fell into complete silence.

Having never seen anything like it before, Cheng Caiyun turned pale and said, "It's terrifying! Thunder in a dry season is bad enough, but how could it be so close? I hope it doesn't hit our house."

Xu Qing, concerned about his own shop, took Xuan Yu and returned to Jingxia Street first upon hearing this.

Opening the door of the coffin shop and passing through the passageways separated by coffins on both sides, Xu Qing arrived at the backyard, where a refreshing and pleasant fragrance wafted towards him.

He stopped and looked around. He saw that in the twelfth lunar month, the peach trees in the courtyard were blooming in the cold. The peach blossoms on the branches were bright and beautiful. When the wind blew, a faint fragrance wafted. It turned out that the thousand-year-old peach trees had been inspired by the season and, under the protection of incense in adversity, had crossed the boundary between life and death and been reborn.

Xuan Yu looked up at the peach blossoms on the branches and was momentarily lost in thought.

After a while, Xuan Yu suddenly felt a slight touch on its forehead. It stretched out its paw and found that a snowflake had landed on its head.

"Xu Xianjia".

"Ok?"

"Snowing!"

"Um"

(End of this chapter)