The more you believe me, the more real it becomes.

Chapter 159 Difficult, Difficult, Difficult; Don't Take the Golden Elixir for granted (3k)

"Alchemy?"

The gaunt man's throat bobbed repeatedly as he muttered the word over and over.

Du Yuan looked at him, her tone resolute:

"Yes, it's alchemy!"

“But, but, Immortal Lord,” the man raised his head, his deeply sunken eyes filled with confusion and disbelief, “how can alchemy save the Southwest?”

The man had already considered countless ideas about how the immortal would rescue the Southwest.

The most direct solution would be for immortals to summon clouds and rain, bringing a timely rain that would resolve the crisis in the southwest.

Or perhaps, immortals travel far and wide, using their supernatural powers to make parched fields sprout new green shoots.

Even if all else fails, they can use magic to conjure up endless food like before, and the southwest region can overcome the crisis.

Either way, it would be enough to turn the tide for the southwest.

But no matter how hard he racked his brains, he never expected that the immortal's answer would be—alchemy!

Du Yuan smiled and said:
"Difficult! Difficult! Difficult! The Dao is most profound, do not take the Golden Elixir lightly. Without encountering a sage to impart the secret, empty words will only leave your mouth weary and tongue dry."

These were the words that Patriarch Bodhi once said to Wukong.

Now, Du Yuan has adapted and applied some of it.

As for his specific request, he decided to keep it a secret, for the more curious people are, the more mysterious their thoughts become. And for him, the accomplishments would be all the more grand!

As for whether the other party believes it or not.

That’s even easier!

What he hasn't yet achieved is merely the elixir of salvation; as for him, the immortal who came here specifically for this purpose, he has received blessings along the way.

Not to mention that it already possesses the power to burn mountains and boil seas, and the might to pluck stars and seize the moon.

But at least in the current situation, it wouldn't be a problem for the starving people to call him a god!
After hearing Du Yuan's words, the man suddenly understood.

Yes, how could I, a mere mortal, possibly understand the mysteries of divine treasures?
Since the immortal master said that alchemy could save the southwest, then it definitely can!
It's only natural that I don't understand it!

Otherwise, he would be an immortal!
Having figured this out, the man immediately asked eagerly:

"My lord, is that all there is to it?"

Du Yuan smiled and shook her head, saying:
"Such a great disaster is naturally not that simple. However, we must take things one step at a time, and things should be done one step at a time. So, let's go and get everyone here first!"

Picking up the small seal and waving it, all the pancakes that Du Yuan had specially brought appeared in front of him.

No more, no less, approximately two cars.

For the southwest, it's certainly a drop in the ocean, but it's enough to make starving people willing to make the trip up the mountain.

Upon witnessing this scene, the other bystanders immediately knelt down with their mouths agape.

An immortal! He truly is an immortal!

In the magic tricks I've seen before, there are tricks like making people appear out of thin air, but those always have something to cover them up.

And this one just appeared out of thin air!
Seeing this, Du Yuan knew it was enough to speak up:
"Come, come, please take these provisions and distribute them so that the people can gather here!"

After saying that, he raised his hand and waved, and the flatbreads flew away on their own, being delivered to the disaster victims one by one.

They didn't give out many, just two pancakes each.

One purpose was to provide them with food for the journey, and the other was to help them gain the trust of others.

Any more than that, and it will be dangerous.

Faced with such divine magic, how could the disaster victims dare to delay?

They kowtowed and then carried the cakes downstairs.

Watching the disaster victims leave one after another, Du Yuan turned around and began to tidy up the bronze furnace.
-
The starving people who came down the mountain did not scatter, but gathered together under the leadership of the men.

If a well-dressed person is carrying food, most of the starving people will not dare to snatch it, because their experience of fleeing famine for so long tells them that there must be more than one person.

If you mess with them, they might bring bandits or a thieving army; in short, none of them are easy to deal with.

But if it were a few equally emaciated, poorly clothed starving people holding grains, the situation would be completely different. Even a coarse flatbread mixed with grit would be enough to make the starving people pounce on it, tearing and fighting desperately.

The former is certain death, while the latter has a great chance of survival. This difference is the insurmountable barrier.

Therefore, when Du Yuan took out so much food, not a single starving person tried to snatch it.

Goodness does exist, but fear is far more prevalent.

In years of great disaster, it is difficult for people to be kind.

So they gripped the stone spear wrapped in tattered cloth, huddled together, and followed their memories to several nearby settlements of refugees.

Only in this way will other starving people listen to them.

They quickly found the nearest gathering place for refugees.

Upon seeing a group of starving people armed with weapons, the other party's numb expression instantly turned to fear, and they shouted with all their might:
"thief!"

They are thieves, not bandits. If a thief comes, you can fight him, but if a bandit comes, you'll scatter and flee.

Upon hearing the word "thief," the starving people in the gathering point, with unsteady steps, grabbed whatever tools they could find and gathered together to confront the group of men.

They didn't speak, either because they lacked the energy to speak or because they knew it was pointless.

No one would give up their lifeline, so it would only be a fight to the death. Thinking of this, many people even felt a strange excitement in their eyes.

After all, when someone dies, there's meat to eat!

On the road to escape famine, many armed fights broke out, which were less about fighting for food and more about fighting for corpses.
To their surprise, instead of wasting their precious energy by speaking, the other party took the initiative to speak:

"There are three of us here!"

These words did not stir up any ripples in this stagnant pool. If a fight breaks out, in the end, it's uncertain who will win!
Unexpectedly, the other party didn't come to ask for food, but instead took out six flatbreads from behind him and said:
"Two pancakes for one person, who wants some?"

The still water, which wouldn't even ripple if it were to fight to the death, suddenly surged in the face of these few large pancakes.

The starving people looked at each other, and soon four or five men who appeared stronger than the others stepped forward.

"What are you doing?"

The same short, weak voice made the man looking at them feel as if he saw himself in it.

Did they also feel, like I did back then, that this was a matter of buying their lives?
The man, who seemed to have grasped somewhat of the immortal's state of mind at the time, smiled inwardly and pointed to the mountaintop, saying:
"It's very simple. First, you get a pancake. Then, you have to bring back a charred brick from the Cold Pine Temple at the top of the mountain. Only after you pass the checkpoint will you get the last pancake."

It didn't say that immortals were refining elixirs to save the world; instead, it was described as if they were selecting strong, capable men to prepare for a task.

Those who fled famine to this place have seen too many immortals and living Buddhas on their journey.

But they were all man-eating liars and starving fools.

No one would believe that; they might even think it's a way to kill them. But by doing this, they'll believe it and definitely won't run away.

Because they were starving, they hadn't eaten a second pancake, let alone had the 'chance' to eat more.

The three people who had chosen to take the cakes took a few bites haphazardly, then tightened their belts and headed up the mountain.

After watching them disappear from sight, the man and his group left immediately.

He himself was a starving person, so he knew very well how to deal with the same starving people.

That is to give them something to eat when they are starving, and to give them a glimmer of hope that they might survive.

The former can make them obedient, while the latter can make them interested.

They didn't bring much food, and this was the fastest and most convenient way to get more starving people up the mountain.

In this way, once those who went up had seen the immortal,

They would come back immediately and then bring along people they knew.
-
On the hilltop, Du Yuan was watching the several starving people who were panting as they approached.

Just as I was about to ask, I heard the other person ask first:
"Are you the host?"

As he spoke, his gaze kept drifting towards the pile of flatbread.

Although Du Yuan didn't understand what "master" meant, she smiled knowingly and gently waved her hand. Several large flatbreads flew into the air and hovered steadily in front of the starving people.

Upon witnessing this extraordinary sight, the group of people, who were already exhausted from climbing the mountain, suddenly felt their legs go weak and collapsed to the ground.

"This, this is?"

Seeing that he was likely to answer seriously, Du Yuan then asked:

"Did someone call you up here?"

At this point, what wouldn't they say?

He immediately poured out everything he knew.

Upon hearing this, Du Yuan smiled knowingly—a genius! Truly a genius!
After a light laugh, the pancakes that had been flying through the air landed in the hands of the starving people.

Du Yuan just said:

"The methods they used may have been slightly inappropriate, but please forgive them, after all, they are doing it for the people's benefit."

Several starving people stood frozen in place, holding their bread, completely bewildered and helpless.

Du Yuan then pointed to the bronze furnace and said:
"I want you all to know that they were sent down the mountain at my request, with the intention of gathering manpower here. Only with the help of everyone can I open the furnace and refine the elixir that can save the people of the southwest from fire and water!"

"Now that you are all here, I wonder if I could also ask you to persuade the others to come here?"

Looking at Du Yuan's kind smile, and then at the pancake that had just flown straight into his hand.

After a moment of stunned silence, the starving people immediately kowtowed repeatedly in agreement and then rushed down the mountain.

After descending the mountain, they gesticulated wildly and shouted incoherently to the starving people they knew:

"There's a living deity on the mountain! Not one of those we've encountered before, but a real one! A true deity!"

"This immortal lord came here specifically to refine elixirs so he could save us!"

"Look! These cakes! They were all conjured up out of thin air by the gods and bestowed upon us!"

Seeing that the people were people they knew, and that the bread was indeed real, the starving people in the gathering point, still somewhat doubtful, finally began to stir.

The word spread quickly, and more and more people emerged from every corner and shack, forming a slow and silent flow of people.

The crowd meandered towards the charred summit of Hansong Mountain.

Thus, with the man's quick wit and help, Du Yuan only needed a few pancakes to pry open a corner of the great calamity in the southwest.

Perhaps it is still insignificant today.

But a single spark can start a prairie fire!

(End of this chapter)