Start practicing from Mr. Fox

Chapter 127 The Villagers Came to Invite
When they went to Qingfeng Temple, there were one person and three demons. When they returned to the medicine hall, only Chen Ji was left with the copper toad demon and the mudfish demon.

The White Maiden led the Iron Pot Demon and the remaining Four Winds Slices back up the mountain to share with the little foxes, and also introduced the Iron Pot Demon to the other demons on the mountain.

This kind of spiritual vegetable is exactly what the demons and ghosts on Mount Sendai who absorb the moonlight need most.

After all, most of the demons and ghosts on the mountain absorb the moon's essence.

They were unaware that the moonlight had five flavors, and naturally, they wouldn't pay attention to the timing of its absorption.

Even if they had the opportunity to exchange ideas and discuss the Dao, no demon should be able to reveal the key to it.

The mountain god happens to brew his own wine and is also a skilled cook, so the iron pot demon could go and exchange cooking tips with him.

"I'm so envious!"

The bronze toad demon croaked and looked towards the direction of Sendai Mountain, its eyes seemingly filled with profound meaning.

Why did you suddenly express such sentiments, fellow Daoist?

"We are both cultivators, but Fellow Daoist Iron Pot has already found his direction in cultivation after only a short time on the path, while I have been cultivating for a thousand years and am still wasting my time. How can I not feel regret?"

Chen Ji suddenly understood.

This was provoked by the Iron Pot Demon.

Before going to Qingliang Mountain, I thought everyone was probably the same kind of demon. I didn't expect that after returning, the Iron Pot Demon had found his own path of cultivation, and there were also fellow Daoists who practiced cooking skills and could discuss the Dao.

Aside from magic, the bronze toad demon had no other strengths.

So he thought about it for a moment before speaking.

"Fellow Daoist, haven't you also figured out the Five Elements Transformation Technique, and now your Copper Transformation Technique has improved a lot? Moreover, it seems that the old abbot also told you about your background?"

Chen Ji had only heard about this from the Copper Toad Demon during a casual conversation. He didn't know anything about the demon's background and was quite curious.

"This must be the abbot comforting me; I shouldn't take it seriously."

The bronze toad demon waved its claws, and seeing that Chen Ji was still curious, it sighed and explained.

"Sir, do you know anything about the golden toad?"

"nature."

Frogs rarely become demons; the most widely known one is the golden toad.

The three-legged toad symbolizes wealth, law, and longevity, possessing all three treasures. It is mentioned in supernatural tales and is very popular among the people.

"Old Abbot, are you of the Golden Toad bloodline?"

Chen Ji was a little surprised.

He had only heard of the Golden Toad, but did not know that the Golden Toad had a lineage that could be passed down.

"It's not a certainty, just a guess."

“I told my old friend about what happened to me, and he checked the flow of spiritual energy in my body.”

"It is said that the five elements flow within my body, and there is a natural image of earth generating metal. The ability to transform copper should also be a kind of ability, but it has not yet received enough stimulation."

"Given the opportunity, it might evolve into a golden toad."

"That's right."

Chen Ji nodded slightly.

Given the old abbot's profound cultivation, he shouldn't speak carelessly; this must indeed be something he discerned.

However, Chen Ji still had some questions.

"Could the golden toad be a toad that has become a demon and cultivated itself into its current form?"

"I don't know either, but my old friend gave me some advice."

"They said if my magic power is sufficient, I can try to turn fossils into silver, and when I can turn them into gold, I should be considered a golden toad."

"That seems to make sense."

Chen Ji nodded.

Since people have never seen a real golden toad, they call any toad demon that can turn stones into copper a copper toad. So it would be reasonable to call a toad a golden toad if it could turn stones into gold.

"Then we should sell the copper ingots for silver. I'll go ask the town supervisor and the others. Copper is an important resource in Iron Gold Town, so they shouldn't refuse."

"There's no need for you to trouble yourself, fellow Daoist."

The bronze toad demon hurriedly stopped Chen Ji.

“The old abbot told me that the temples and monasteries on the mountain need to cast statues of gods and Buddhas, and they can buy our copper ingots.”

"Anyway, there's plenty of silver in the palace, but it can't be used to buy other things. There's no need to worry about buying copper. Even if they had a copper ingot the size of a table every day, it wouldn't be enough for them."

"How many idols do they need to make, requiring so much bronze?"

Chen Ji was astonished.

The copper ingots obtained after the copper toad turns into copper are solid. Even when making a thicker, life-size statue, only one or two copper ingots are needed for one statue.

Every day they need a copper ingot the size of a table. Just how many things on the mountain need to be cast?

"They said there are many incense burners, alchemy tools, and ritual implements, all of which need to be melted down and forged into refined copper before they can be used. A copper ingot the size of a stool can be reduced by a small portion after being forged."

Chen Ji was taken aback upon hearing this.

After a long pause, he slowly opened his mouth.

"Does fellow Daoist know where they fought?"

"Naturally, it's the town where you live, sir. Everyone in the neighborhood knows that the blacksmiths there are the best."

As he spoke, he suddenly realized something.

"Sir, are you saying that my fellow Daoist and his companions were deceived?"

"I don't know yet, but the copper is almost half missing, which is definitely not right. I'll have Little Fox go up the mountain to forge it later, which will also be a good opportunity for her to practice her magic."

"what?"

The bronze toad demon opened its eyes wide, its face full of curiosity.

"Fellow Daoist Bai Qi and his group also know how to forge weapons and blacksmith?"

"It's not them, it's the one who has already returned to the mountain. You'll have the chance to meet him in the future."

"Perfect timing. I'd also like to learn how to forge weapons. Even if I can't learn it, learning blacksmithing is still a skill that I can use when I'm out in the world."

"Ok?"

Chen Ji looked at it again, puzzled.

I don't understand why the bronze toad needs to learn blacksmithing.

Demon cultivators often learn things to pass the time when they have nothing to do, but for a copper toad demon like him, who can turn stone into copper, learning stone carving is more convenient than learning blacksmithing.

"Coo-coo-quack!"

The bronze toad demon puffed out its cheeks and laughed loudly.

"It wasn't just to pass the time, but an old Daoist pointed out a direction, saying that although the Golden Toad is a demon cultivator, it also enjoys offerings and incense from the human world, and already possesses merit and the power of incense offerings."

"If I want to transform into a golden toad, I can start from here, learn blacksmithing, and then go to the human world to blacksmith for a living and collect copper coins."

"If one's thoughts and merits regarding money are sufficient, one may be able to obtain the Golden Toad certification."

"That's a good idea."

Chen Ji looked back in the direction of Qingfeng Temple and was filled with admiration.

This old abbot should not possess such a wondrous existence as the Records of Strange Tales, nor does he seem to be someone who has lived for a very long time like Miss Bai.

To have such insight based solely on years of cultivation in the human realm is truly remarkable.

"Yes, old fellow Daoist is indeed a true master. It must be very good for the Iron Pot Demon to cultivate with him."

Chen Ji nodded in agreement.

"Indeed."

"Iron Pot Demon, Old Abbot, Salt Elder."

"With the three of them together, they have everything they need: fire, pot, seasonings, and a chef. They can also find the remaining spiritual ingredients outside, making it the perfect place to study spiritual cuisine."

“The old abbot is a reasonable person. He won’t do anything to demons and will even help them cultivate. According to what you said, the iron pot demon is indeed lucky.”

The bronze toad demon nodded deeply, then looked at Chen Ji with a somewhat hesitant expression.

"Fellow Daoist, do you have something to say?"

Chen Ji looked at him and asked.

The bronze toad slowly opened its mouth.

"To be honest, I'm a little embarrassed to say this, but I saw that Fellow Daoist Mudfish was able to obtain the Dragon Soul by following Master, while Iron Pot Demon only followed Master for a few days and yet he has such good fortune."

"I... also wish to cultivate under your guidance, Master. I wonder if you would agree?"

“I can pay my tuition fee, one copper ingot per day. If I give it to my old friend, I can get about thirty taels of silver. After deducting ten taels for my cultivation, I can give you twenty taels every day.”

Chen Ji shook his head. "Twenty-five taels will do, I only need five taels. I can save it up and cultivate over time!"

"It's a toad demon," the bronze toad demon said earnestly.

Chen Ji burst out laughing.

“Fellow Daoist, when did I say I would take your money? You can cultivate in the medicine hall. There is enough space in the well. You can just ask Fellow Daoist Mudfish.”

The copper toad was overjoyed. Its eyes bulged out, and it puffed out its cheeks, croaking like a frog. It went straight to the gourd and croaked to wake up the mudfish demon, telling it what had just been said.

"What do you think, fellow Daoist? I'll give you ten taels of silver every day, and you'll stay in the well."

"Ah!"

The mudfish demon, which had been somewhat listless, immediately straightened up upon hearing this, coiling like a dragon.

"Do you think my Water Palace is an inn? Ten taels of silver a day? Isn't that embarrassing for me?"

"You can move in and just handle the well water for me every month by drawing moonlight; that's all you need to do."

“No problem! When I get back, I’ll smelt copper and build another copper water palace for the Dragon Lord. Although it won’t be as good as the Hutuo Dragon Lord’s palace, it should still be much better than the current one.”

The bronze toad demon readily agreed and even made another promise.

The mudfish demon nodded repeatedly upon hearing this.

"That's fine. It would be best if we could add some glazed tiles and inlay some jewels. Well Water Mansion is a water mansion, so it can't be too shabby."

"Of course, of course!"

The two demons, with nothing on their minds, chatted together and looked exceptionally excited.

Chen Ji let them be. Cultivation should be like this, after all. They were all tense like the foxes of Sendai. He wondered if it was really suitable for foxes.

Lost in thought, the wind had already begun to blow over Iron Gold Town.

Chen Ji couldn't use his cloud illusion technique to stop everyone from falling, but it wouldn't take much effort to walk back from outside the town, so he simply landed outside the town and went back.

As soon as they arrived at the town entrance, they saw Zheng Yuan carrying a knife as he went out, followed by a group of yamen runners and several villagers with bruises on their faces.

"Master Chen? You're back?"

Chen Ji made way to avoid interfering with official business, but unexpectedly Zheng Yuan saw him at a glance and quickly bowed.

The constables behind him all bowed to show their respect.

Seeing this, Chen Ji knew that Zheng Yuan must have already contacted him, so he directly asked what was wrong.

"That village..."

Zheng Yuan seemed to be deep in thought, and was about to say something when he looked at the villagers behind him.

“This is a matter concerning your village. You should explain it to Master Chen yourselves.”

"This is a master who can even capture plague demons. Even saints have lowered their talents because of Master Chen. Don't talk nonsense and anger the master. Otherwise, we won't be able to solve the village's problems."

"Natural, natural!"

Leading the villagers was an elderly man with white hair, his neck and arms tied with ropes, clearly indicating that he had broken his arm.

Although he looked fairly healthy, Chen Ji could tell from looking at him that something big must have happened in the village, otherwise, there would be no need to send an old man to deliver a message for such an urgent matter.

"Master Chen, please save our village! If we don't get rid of that demon, the villagers won't be able to survive!"

The old man looked at Chen Ji and knelt down without saying a word.

Chen Ji stepped forward to help, but it was already much slower.

Fortunately, the wind moved with his will, and the old man floated up effortlessly.

But then a thought struck me, and I felt as if something warm had been added to my body.

Since it was difficult to study the matter now, he called for help to lift the old man up, and then asked the people behind him who hadn't yet knelt down to slowly recount the situation in the village.

The old man then spoke out, word by word.

“We are villagers from Xia Ruyi Village in Tiejin Town. We came to see the Taoist priest because the monsters in our village are too rude and won’t let anyone go out every day.”

"If they go outside, they will start to play tricks on people, making them lose their sense of direction, walk unsteadily, and bounce up and down until they fall and scream in pain before they stop."

"Half of the villagers have broken bones because of this incident, and one person fell and vomited blood and fell into a coma, and has not yet woken up."

"If I hadn't been right on the edge of town, I probably wouldn't have been able to get out of town."

Chen Ji frowned.

He vaguely remembered Ruyi Village. People from that village had come to see him before. But that village was clearly closer to Qingliang Mountain, which should be a place of peace and tranquility where evil spirits would not dare to approach. How could there be any evil spirits there?

Somewhat puzzled, he asked the old man.

"Does this demon only do things inside the village, and nothing happens outside?"

"Exactly, things will be normal once we leave the village."

"Since you live so close to Qingliang Mountain, have you had someone check it out?"

"Of course we looked for them. We went to the mountain to find the Taoist priest and the monk immediately after the incident, but..."

The old man looked at Chen Ji with some hesitation.

“Just say it, old man. I’m not one of them, so just say it.”

The old man then sighed.

"The monk said that the village was haunted by evil spirits. To completely expel the evil spirits, a ritual needs to be performed, and at least two hundred taels of silver need to be prepared."

"What a bunch of bald monks, they're obsessed with money!"

Chen Ji had already spoken, and was about to change his mind.

After all, there were outsiders around, and it wasn't good for them to hear him say that monks were monks.

But the anger inside was too much to bear, so he just swore it out.

The previous matter cost one hundred taels, and now it costs another one hundred taels. Do you really think that money comes so easily in the world?
No wonder they have money to build temples and statues, and even buy the largest copper ingots to cast Buddha statues.

The old man and Zheng Yuan were shocked to hear this.

The monks on the mountain are all masters, and I have never heard anyone dare to curse like that.

But listening to Chen Ji's cursing made him feel inexplicably relieved.

That's how it should be!
Chen Ji shook his head, ignoring the monks, and instead asked about the Taoists.

"Why don't they come to exorcise the demon? Isn't it only fifty taels of silver?"

"They came, but they couldn't get rid of them."

"Ok?"

Chen Ji listened, his brows slowly furrowing.

"Why? Aren't the Taoists at Qingfeng Temple quite powerful?"

"We dare not deceive the Taoist priest. It is precisely because the Taoist priests of Qingfeng Temple are too powerful that we dare not go."

After seeing that Chen Ji's expression was not bad, he slowly continued.

“Even monks with little reputation hold a Dharma assembly, so Taoist priests with a good reputation probably want even more.”

The voice gradually faded, and finally fell silent.

"..."

Chen Ji remained silent for a few moments, then shook his head.

"Next time you need something, go to Qingfeng Temple. If you feel you don't have enough money, you can also find a rogue cultivator named Yan Chixia. He charges less money."

Chen Ji thought for a moment and then introduced it to them.

Then they asked why the Taoist priest they had invited couldn't exorcise the demon.

"So that Master Chen knows, the Taoist priests who came from the mountain also asked for fifty taels of silver. However, they prepared a lot of things, including a table, yellow cloth, and three kinds of sacrificial animals, saying that they wanted to offer sacrifices to the earth god to inquire about the reason."

"Is it the Lingbao School or the Talisman School? In any case, it's not the old abbot's school."

Chen Ji pondered, but remained silent, continuing to listen to the old man's story.

"The Taoist priests chose a time to question him, and I don't know what gods they invited. In the end, they told us that the demon was born in the village, and that the village had angered it. The source of its evil deeds was also the village's actions. They even consulted the local earth god, but there was nothing they could do. Since this matter concerned the village, they couldn't do anything about it, and they even returned most of the silver."

"We had no other choice but to come to town to find you officers, hoping to scare away the demons."

Chen Ji looked at Zheng Yuan, knowing that this was probably the premise.

However, he was indeed somewhat curious.

These Taoist priests even returned the silver, so they must be capable people, not people who came to cheat people out of money.

This demon is quite interesting. Since it's not a harmful demon, why not go and take a look? Perhaps we can add a new chapter to the tale of the strange and unusual?
So Chen Ji told Zheng Yuan and the others that they didn't need to go.

"I'll go with these people to take a look."

(End of this chapter)