Start practicing from Mr. Fox

Chapter 96 Taoists also have difficulties

"call!"

Bai Er opened his mouth.

At first it was just a breath.

But as the breath gushed out, a sense of heat emerged in the air.

"Fire dragon... No, it's a fox!"

Amidst the young Taoist priests' astonishment, the colorless air from Bai Er's mouth slowly transformed into the image of a red fox hanging high in the air.

"It's actually a fox?"

The young Taoists were extremely surprised, as they had never seen such a fire-controlling technique before.

The old abbot and Taoist Xiyun were also a little stunned.

Chen Ji was very calm, and even knew that Bai Erding must have asked Miss Bai before he could do this.

Otherwise, it is hard to imagine that the fox is not as good as the dragon, and will not change the shape of the fox fire.

The black dragon of the young Taoist priest Ziqing is still in the air.

Seeing the fire fox rising into the air at this moment, he naturally exuded a defiant air and glared at the fire fox fiercely.

"Ow!"

A dragon roared.

It was like piercing through gold and tearing silk, exploding into countless water droplets, and filling the air with ink-colored mist.

"Ha!"

The fox's cry was not as loud as the dragon's roar, but it showed no fear. In fact, it even emitted a fire aura, which even evaporated a lot of the oppression brought by the black dragon.

"Ok?"

"Grandmaster, how come Ziqing's magic is so powerful?"

"Did you teach him secretly?"

The young Taoist priests present looked at Taoist Xiyun in surprise.

Taoist Xiyun stroked his beard and shook his head, feeling somewhat helpless.

"I've been down the mountain lately and haven't even seen you. How can I teach you secretly?"

"Then why is his Black Dragon even stronger than before?"

Not only the Taoist priest, but the fox was also shocked.

"Isn't it said that a person's cultivation talent is very good, but it also has something to do with age?"

"This young Taoist priest doesn't look very old, so how come his magic is so powerful?"

"It's not that Ziqing's magic is powerful, it's that this fellow fox's fire fox has alarmed the dragon soul."

The old abbot looked at Mo Long, figured out the key in a moment, and slowly told them.

"Dragon Qi is a very mysterious thing. Any technique that can resemble a dragon can potentially stimulate dragon Qi, but it's generally not easy to see."

"If a cultivator with great magical powers were to perform a spell, it might be possible. But Ziqing Molong probably can't do it."

"The dragon energy that can be stimulated at this moment is probably because you feel that Fellow Daoist Fox's fox fire is challenging the dragon's might."

After the old abbot finished explaining, all the young Taoist priests looked solemn.

Part of it was because of Mo Long's oppression, and the other part was because he was worried about whether Bai Er's Fire Fox could withstand it.

The old abbot then looked at Miss Bai.

"Senior Fox, after the dragon energy is activated, I'm afraid my little disciple won't be able to control it. Should I disperse the magic and start a new round?"

"No need."

The white girl smiled slightly.

"I believe Bai Er can do it well."

"A dragon has its own dragon aura, and a fox has its own fox aura."

"..."

The old abbot seemed to understand something, but before he could say anything, the black dragon below had already rushed towards the fire fox in the air, carrying water vapor.

The dragon's energy pressed forward, taking with it the mist in the air.

There was no dragon roar, and there was not even a trace of expression in Mo Long's eyes, as if there was nothing in front of him.

"Ha!"

The fire fox shrank its body to avoid the black dragon's attack, and then suddenly took off into the air after the black dragon's momentum dissipated.

The flames suddenly erupted and actually bound the dragon's body tightly.

"Ow!"

A miserable dragon roar was heard.

A piece of flesh was torn off from Mo Long's body.

It turned into a ball of ink and exploded and dissipated.

The dragon's body suddenly shrank, and even its spirit seemed exhausted.

"How... could this be?"

The young Taoist priests at Qingfeng Temple opened their eyes wide, unable to believe what they saw.

It was obvious that Bai Er had only released a fox, but now it was stepping on the black dragon and even seemed to be crushing it.

The black dragon seemed to still want to struggle, but unfortunately the water vapor made it useless, and it didn't last long before it completely turned into a ball of water vapor in the air and dissipated.

Until this moment, the fire fox controlled by Bai Er turned around proudly and began to comb its hair. After returning to normal, it turned around and slowly dispersed.

There was a lingering smell of moisture and fire in the air, but other than that it seemed as if nothing had happened.

The young Taoists were stunned, still immersed in their just experience.

Whether it was the profound magic skills of the fellow practitioners in the temple or the fox Taoist's fire fox catching the dragon, these were experiences they had never had before.

It's similar on the fox side.

Although they knew that Bai Er was very powerful, they never thought he would be so formidable.

There are differences between foxes.

But now it seems that the difference is quite huge.

"The wind is coming!"

While the little fox was discussing with the little Taoist priests.

The old abbot raised his hand and slowly summoned a gust of wind to blow away the remaining fire and water vapor in the air. Then he looked at Miss Bai and marveled at her.

"A fox has its own aura. Just this one sentence is more powerful than countless magic tricks."

"Senior Fox is indeed not simple. He can educate the little fox in this way. I wonder when these little Taoists will understand this."

"It has nothing to do with me."

The white girl shook her head.

"It's mainly because Mr. Chen taught them to be a fox that stands tall and proud, which is why they are what they are today."

"A fox that stands tall and proud?"

The old abbot seemed to be thinking about something. After a while, he looked at Chen Ji and bowed slightly.

"This is more majestic than the fox having a foxy aura."

"Sir, you are indeed a man of great virtue. It is not easy for you to say such words."

“It just came to me.”

Chen Ji found a reason.

"When I first saw the little foxes studying attentively, just like human students, I thought of this saying: one must enlighten their minds before practicing."

"But I had never practiced cultivation at that time, so I didn't know it had such an effect."

The old abbot laughed heartily.

"No wonder Miss Bai wants to invite you to be the teacher of the fox tribe. With such knowledge, there may not be such a good teacher in the human academy."

"It's actually more difficult to make a fox understand how to be a good fox than to make them understand how to cultivate."

Then he looked at Miss Bai and bowed.

"Senior Fox can rest assured this year. With such a talented disciple, his study of foxes is a sure thing."

"hope so."

Miss Bai chuckled and nodded.

"If there's nothing else, then continue the performance? There's still a lot to learn, so hurry up."

"nature!"

The original intention was to broaden the horizons of the fox and the young Taoist priest, and he was only delayed for a moment because of the dragon energy.

After explaining this technique to Xiaohu and the Taoists, I asked the next group to continue discussing it.

Taoist Master Wei Ming, who had previously fought with Chen Ji, walked out.

Holding the peach wood sword, he cast spells even faster than before, even with wind and rain coming out at the same time, with rain hidden in the misty smoke. It was truly extraordinary.

I don't even know if it was intentional or not.

Taoist Master Wei Ming seemed to have learned a set of sword techniques. He hid in the wind and rain, ready to attack at any time, and held a talisman to exorcise evil spirits in his hand.

"This method is somewhat similar to what Fellow Daoist Yan did."

"Indeed, the disciples in the temple were asked to teach him sword techniques."

"Why do you want to learn sword?" Chen Ji was a little curious.

Although Taoist priests also use swordsmanship in their daily rituals, it is different from the swordsmanship used to fight against the enemy.

The swordsmanship that Wei Ming just revealed was a killing skill.

Taoist Xiyun looked over with a smile.

"Of course it's because of you and Fellow Daoist Yan Chixia."

"First, he scared Wei Ming away with a sword that day, and then someone came to fight with talisman swordsmanship."

“If the Taoist priests in the temple hadn’t had some skills, I’m afraid Fellow Daoist Yan would have succeeded.”

"Fellow Daoist Yan has been here too? That's not surprising."

Chen Ji thought about Yan Chixia's swordsmanship. Ordinary people would probably call it a magical skill.

Although people who practice cultivation may not be so extreme, they still want to learn.

Now it seems that there are some results.

But why do we need to learn these when we already have mature techniques?
"Master said that what Daoist Fellow Yan said when he came up the mountain that day made a lot of sense. If there were no magic, wouldn't Daoists be able to slay demons and catch ghosts? Even the bravest and most virtuous people in the world are not afraid of demons and ghosts, so why would Daoists be afraid of them?"

"Let the disciples learn martial arts, so that they can at least have some self-defense skills."

Chen Ji nodded, and was curious about how the Taoists could practice these sword techniques without the skills of a boy.

"Master prepared some medicinal food. After taking it, you can lose weight, increase your understanding, and strengthen your body. It's certainly not as good as those who have been training hard to strengthen their muscles and bones, but it's enough for practicing self-defense."

"It's a waste of money."

Chen Ji clicked his tongue.

Although he had never seen the medicinal herbs prepared by the old abbot, the mortal herbs Yan Chixia had mentioned before were already quite expensive, so the old abbot's could only be more valuable.

Using such medicine only to improve physical fitness is really too much...

"Master said that as long as it can exorcise the demon, it's not a waste. If by chance I drink this cup and the increased ability is just enough to escape the demon, then even if I use ten times as much medicinal herbs, it won't be a waste."

"The old abbot is really kind-hearted."

Chen Ji nodded and looked at the old abbot with admiration.

Nowadays, there are not many Taoist temples that are still dedicated to spiritual practice and exorcising demons and ghosts.

"Thank you for your praise. I am just doing what I should do, just as I promised the fox tribe to continue teaching."

The old abbot waved his hands and didn't take it to heart.

Then he looked at the little fox and was amazed at the magic skills it demonstrated.

"This technique is quite exquisite."

Chen Ji looked over and saw Bai Ba demonstrating the incorrect method of taking medicine.

He swallowed the entire table in one gulp and dragged it out of his mouth a moment later.

All the young Taoist priests opened their eyes wide, especially the one who had just taken the candied haws. They were all thinking about how convenient this magic was.

"If you know this technique, fill your mouth with delicious food! From now on, you can get whatever you want!"

"And clean up afterward. Just swallow it directly into your mouth and take it out when you need it."

"But it's still a little bit bad."

A young Taoist priest shook his head.

"If you put something that's inconvenient to eat into your mouth, wouldn't it be disgusting?"

"..."

Chen Ji listened to the discussion of the young Taoist priests and suddenly laughed out loud.

No wonder Taoist Xiyun invited the little foxes to the mountain to discuss Taoism. These little Taoists are as naughty as the foxes.

And Chen Ji also discovered some patterns.

After that, most of the Taoists who came forward to cast spells were using wind and water magic, and some were using fire magic. Surprisingly, there were very few who practiced other magics.

So I asked Taoist Xiyun why it was so.

"Each fox practices its own magic, so why do most of them in the mountains practice the same magic?"

"It's really a helpless move. Taoists also have difficulties!"

Taoist Xiyun sighed.

"There were some magic techniques on the mountain originally. Although they are not as numerous as the thousands of techniques at the Daoguan Temple, they are still not few either. There are at least a hundred or so techniques."

"But it's not convenient up in the mountains after all. There are not enough supplies for cultivation, so many techniques cannot be practiced."

"For example, elixirs and weapon refining are all techniques that consume resources. Ordinary Taoist temples simply cannot afford to support them. Although Qingfeng Temple has a little extra money, it is not easy to provide these for the disciples to practice."

"Gradually, the disciples also realized this, so they only chose those who were easy to practice and could be used when exorcising demons and catching ghosts at the foot of the mountain, and they began to prefer these."

"Isn't there enough silver on the mountain?"

Chen Ji frowned.

"The temple charges fifty taels for exorcising demons and catching ghosts. Do you think you're still short of these?"

"nature."

Taoist Xiyun sighed again.

"The temple has a lot of expenses. Even food costs dozens of taels of silver a month, not to mention the general expenses for cultivation."

"Although the life of a Taoist monk is simple, money cannot be spared for making robes, buying incense and candles, resting statues, and temples."

"As for exorcising demons and catching ghosts..."

Taoist Xiyun coughed twice and looked at Chen Ji.

"Hasn't fellow Daoist noticed that the evil spirits that were causing trouble near Qingliang Mountain are almost gone?"

"The demons and ghosts are not stupid. They always hear the wind and know that this place is not simple, so they rarely come here."

"I see."

Chen Ji suddenly understood.

No wonder Yan Chixia said there were very few monsters and ghosts nearby when he went up the mountain earlier.

It seems that the Taoist priests have taken them away to claim the reward.

but……

Chen Ji then asked about weddings and funerals. Aren’t these things exactly what Taoists are good at?

"For the rituals at the foot of the mountain, we should at least leave some food for the other temples."

Taoist Xiyun spoke slowly.

"Besides, our lineage is not good at doing these things, so we are just exorcising demons and catching ghosts."

"If it weren't for the Grand Ceremony this time, after the Ghost Festival, I would have led my disciples to distant places to catch ghosts and exorcise demons."

“Why after the Ghost Festival?”

"Hundred Ghosts Night Parade."

Taoist Xiyun explained slowly.

"Although the Zhongyuan Festival is a good time to worship ancestors and pray for the salvation of the dead, in July, the ghosts hang in the sky, and the accumulated corpse qi can reach thousands of miles. Hundreds of ghosts will follow the qi, and along the way, evil spirits and demons will inevitably cause harm."

"There aren't enough ghost messengers or city gods on duty that night, so some demons will inevitably take advantage of the opportunity to hide and wreak havoc the next day. We can then capture them before they pass through the gates of hell."

……

Taoist Master Xiyun explained a lot, and Chen Ji finally understood why the grand ceremony had to be held around the Ghost Festival.

A back and forth move was just enough to clear out the demons and ghosts on the road.

If there is anything else, the Taoist has magic to report the news, which is much faster than the government's post horses.

"What a great plan!"

"That's fine. We have to exorcise demons and catch ghosts anyway. I'll take my disciples to Kyoto to have a look. Coincidentally, a few of my old friends will be going there too, so I might as well meet them."

Taoist Xiyun finished speaking and was about to say something else.

Suddenly, exclamations broke out from the crowd and the fox group.

Chen Ji looked at it and found that this time the performance was a bit interesting.

It turned out that Bai Si was fighting against a Taoist priest from Qingfeng Temple who also learned thunder magic.

only……

Chen Ji looked at Bai Si's appearance and understood why others exclaimed.

Bai Si was actually also holding a peach wood sword, and the wood material even looked much better than that of the little Taoist priest.

At this moment, the young Taoist priest was staring at Bai Si with an expression of disbelief.

"Why do you also have a peach wood sword?"

"It was given by the elders of the clan."

Bai Si looked at Miss Bai with great pride.

Chen Ji suddenly understood.

No wonder it doesn't look like the one owned by Taoist Xiyun. I didn't expect that it was newly made by Miss Bai using the material from the outer layer of the Peach Fairy Ghost Body.

This is indeed a good material that is no less than lightning-struck peach wood.

I just don't know what kind of thunder magic it will attract.

Chen Ji also looked over carefully.

(End of this chapter)