Am I the old man who's always by my apprentices' side?

Chapter 298 Another "Red Flash"

Before the weasel demon could think further, He Yu continued, "Since you are a weasel who has attained enlightenment and are not afraid of sunlight, you are perfectly suited to take on the position of 'Day Wanderer.' What do you think?"

"Squeak squeak squeak (Day after day, the wandering god)!?"

The weasel demon was so frightened that its screams almost changed tone. Its fur stood on end, its tail stood up involuntarily, its two front paws rubbed nervously, and its beady eyes were wide open. It was clearly startled by this sudden "divine appointment".

It certainly doesn't understand what a "day-roaming god" is, but at least the title has the word "god" in it, so its status must be quite high, right?
How could a mere mountain demon like myself become a "god"?!

"Hehehe, the 'Day Wanderer' is just a position. He walks and patrols the mortal world during the day to prevent ghosts from the underworld from escaping by accident, or those who should belong to the underworld from staying in the mortal world for too long."

He Yu saw through the weasel demon's thoughts at a glance and explained with a smile: "The spiritual energy of this place is just beginning to emerge, and the underworld is also newly established. There is a real shortage of manpower. If you are interested, the advantage is that you can also enjoy incense offerings. The disadvantage is that because there are too few people, we will probably have to work all year round for the next few years."

The weasel demon knew what the "underworld" and the "world of the living" meant.

It had witnessed human funerals in Anding County, heard the mourners recount various things about the underworld, and even spied on village shamans performing rituals to guide the souls of the dead at the edge of the village.

It only knows the fact but not the reason, and only roughly understands that the soul of a person after death goes to the "underworld" while the living stay in the "world of the living".

Beyond that, he didn't know.

But he understood the phrase "to receive offerings of incense" best.

As a demon born of nature, the weasel demon is naturally aware that if it can consume incense offerings, it will greatly benefit its cultivation and spiritual progress.

This is why he was initially lured into aiding and abetting evil in Anding County—he had no concept of good or evil, only that doing so would benefit him, so he did it, nothing more.

Since it could receive incense offerings, the weasel demon had no reason to refuse. It stood up, put its two front paws together, and bowed even more to He Yu, its face showing gratitude and longing.

He Yu nodded in satisfaction, then his expression turned serious. He said, "Well, since you're willing, you'll stay by my side for a few days. I'll teach you some techniques and supernatural abilities for patrolling the Yin and Yang realms and identifying ghosts. I'll also refine some handy magical treasures for you. Once you understand what the daily patrol is all about, you can take up your post. Just know that this time, I'm appointing you to the position of 'Day Patrol God' because of Fellow Daoist Zhang. With Fellow Daoist Zhang vouching for you, you have the opportunity to receive this divine position and enjoy incense offerings. If you are negligent in your actions, or act out of favoritism, or break the law, thus harming the order of Yin and Yang, you will be punished doubly. Don't blame the Yin laws for being merciless then! Do you understand?"

Upon hearing this, the weasel demon stiffened, glanced subconsciously at Zhang Chengdao whose expression remained unchanged, then turned its head and nodded repeatedly, signifying its acceptance of the rules.

Seeing that He Yu and the weasel demon communicated smoothly and got along well, and that the matter was settled satisfactorily, Zhang Chengdao smiled slightly, apologized to He Yu, turned around and took a step, his figure rippling like water as he quietly left the eerie "ghost city".

He was still thinking about going back to try and win the thirty new member red envelopes he had saved up!

In fact, he had collected more than thirty this time, but he was too busy recently, and he also had the idea that "it would be more ceremonial to open it when he had collected a total of fifty", so he deliberately delayed it for half a month.

As of today, he has exactly forty-eight membership red envelopes in his backpack. Theoretically, he originally planned to open them two days later, so that he could open fifty at once.

But...

It's impossible to save it; it's simply impossible to save it.

Whenever I have a moment of free time, I get restless looking at the membership bonus in my backpack. That feeling is a hundred times stronger than the urge to slack off before the end of the semester in college. In short, I can't save up a single one.

Anyway, the "ghost town" issue is pretty much over. Since we have nothing else to do, forty-eight is fine. It's not much different from fifty...

After comforting himself in this way, Zhang Chengdao felt much more at ease, and even had the illusion that "I have already restrained myself very much", so he flew to the Tianchi Lake and washed his hands with a clear conscience.

Washing his hands before drawing member red envelopes has become his mystical standard, deeply ingrained in his mind. After all, previous experiences have proven that as long as he washes his hands sincerely, he can always get something decent—at least it won't all be those gray basic materials that make his blood pressure soar.

So this time, he didn't hold back at all and took the metaphysics to the extreme. He washed his hands before returning to his room and starting to draw member red envelopes.

"Received 10 servings of [Kudzu Root Soup]".

It was exactly what I expected.

Zhang Chengdao had a blank face, his heart was completely unmoved, and he even had a slight craving for braised chicken rice.

Then start the next one.

"Received 10 servings of [Kudzu Root Soup]".

Zhang Chengdao's face darkened, and he couldn't help but think to himself: "Seriously, officer? Not again? Can't you give me something else?"

"Received 10 servings of [Kudzu Root Soup]".

After receiving three consecutive membership bonuses containing only junk medicine, Zhang Chengdao completely broke down and muttered to himself, "Will this ever end...?"

"Received 10 servings of [Kudzu Root Soup]".

When the fourth member's red envelope was opened, it still contained the familiar words and the familiar formula, and Zhang Chengdao immediately stopped.

He began to ponder: was it because he hadn't saved up fifty before opening the account as originally planned that he had such an epic level of bad luck?
Even if I had the worst luck before, I shouldn't have gotten four [Kudzu Root Soup] in a row!
This drop rate is ridiculously low!

After hesitating for a while about whether to back down and choose "it's not a good day to draw red envelopes" or stubbornly stick to his guns with the thought of "I don't believe it, give me forty-eight servings of [Kudzu Root Soup] if you dare," Zhang Chengdao's inherent stubbornness prevailed, and he decided to go for it with "my fate is in my own hands, not in the heavens."

"If you're so capable, then really give me forty-eight servings of kudzu root soup!"

Zhang Chengdao's face contorted with rage as he gritted his teeth and opened the fifth member's red envelope. Because he was afraid of getting another "Kudzu Root Soup" reward, Zhang Chengdao deliberately opened the red envelope with his eyes closed.

This is also a kind of mystical method for drawing cards. As long as you don't stare at the card pool or don't look at it when you draw, there is a high probability that you will get good things.

Hmm... It's a metaphysical technique that Zhang Chengdao summarized while playing various games before his transmigration, without any theoretical basis.

The main reason is that Zhang Chengdao really doesn't want to be bombarded with information about "Ge Gen Tang" anymore, so he's going to try anything, no matter what methods are used!
A red light suddenly flashed in the interface where the member's red envelope had been opened, which Zhang Chengdao had not seen.

It's a red flash! The special effect of getting the highest rarity item!
Unfortunately, Zhang Chengdao, with his eyes closed, couldn't see this exciting scene at all.

He silently counted to a dozen or so in his mind, estimating that the opening animation should be over, before cautiously opening one eye with a feeling of heroic sacrifice, and looking at the results screen of the member's red envelope opening.

"Obtained [Mysterious Pine Cold Peak - Mortal]".

"No way, metaphysics actually works!?"

Zhang Chengdao stared wide-eyed at the prompt text and the icon below it—a longsword with an ancient yet sharp design, its entire body shimmering with an icy blue light.

In the game, although this item is a rare red-rarity item, it's just a weapon exclusive to a certain character, essentially an appearance item. Of course, it also comes with certain attributes, and it's definitely much stronger than the Night Talk Sword that came with Chang Ping'an, and even stronger than all the weapons he drew later. But in the game, it's actually nothing special...

Of course, it is really cool. At least from the icon, the sword seems to be carved from ancient ice or some kind of pure crystal. The hilt is exquisitely carved with intricate patterns, and the whole thing seems to exude a chilling aura. Just looking at it, you can tell it is very valuable.

Zhang Chengdao quickly took it out of his system inventory and held it in his hand to examine it carefully.

The sword blade has a translucent ice-blue color, and upon closer inspection, there seem to be fine snowflake-like patterns slowly flowing inside.

Moreover, the sword's material was not crystal or ice as he had initially imagined, but rather an unknown metal that felt icy cold to the touch and contained a peculiar chill. Just holding it seemed to lower the temperature in the quiet room, and even fine white mist condensed in the air.

"Good heavens, this chill..."

Zhang Chengdao stroked the longsword, marveling at it.

He had no doubt that if an ordinary mortal came into contact with this sword, the cold poison would likely seep into their body within moments, causing them to fall seriously ill. Even a low-level Qi Refining cultivator would probably experience stagnation of Qi and blood from wearing it for an extended period, affecting their cultivation. It would probably require at least a Foundation Establishment stage cultivation level to barely withstand the chill and use it normally.

However, the corresponding increase of several hundred points of attack power and 10% attack speed on the panel is particularly tempting.

After Zhang Chengdao equipped it and tried it out, he found that both the power and the "Ten Thousand Swords Return to One" technique were incredibly easy to use, and the flight speed was exceptionally fast. He didn't know if this was due to the inherent power of the Red Flash's magic weapon or the 10% attack speed bonus...

Moreover, where the sword light passed, it left faint ice crystal trails in the air that lingered for a long time, which was quite magical!
Could it be that these real-world magical artifacts also have "special effects"?
Zhang Chengdao wondered to himself.

Unfortunately, while this sword is excellent, it is not easy to use. There are only a handful of disciples in the sect who have reached the Foundation Establishment stage, and most of them already have suitable magical weapons.

It seems that this [Mysterious Pine Cold Peak - Mortal] weapon can only be temporarily shelved. Later, it will be stored in the [Floating Pagoda], and a high contribution point will be set to encourage the disciples to cultivate diligently. Once their realm is sufficient, they can accumulate contribution points to exchange for it themselves... This can also be considered as setting a goal for everyone to strive for.

After putting away the [Mysterious Pine Cold Peak - Mortal], Zhang Chengdao looked at the remaining forty-odd member red envelopes and decisively decided to stop while he was ahead.

Just kidding, I've already gotten a red flash (a lucky draw), can such incredible luck be from those five servings of [Kudzu Root Soup]? What if the next forty-three red envelopes really use up all my luck and all I get are the same junk materials as [Kudzu Root Soup]?
"Let's play it safe, let's play it safe..."

Zhang Chengdao muttered to himself, "Greed knows no bounds, knowing when to stop is the best policy... Anyway, this wave of red flashes has already made a killing! I'll save the rest and open it again next time when it's a round number, maybe I can get some good stuff!"

Thinking this, Zhang Chengdao immediately felt much better. He strolled out of the house.

Just as I was pondering whether to go train (play Bubble Dragon) or check on the condition of the new disciples in the sect, a "messenger" flew over from the horizon.

It was Xu Ying's pigeon.

The pigeon cooed and flapped its wings to fly to Zhang Chengdao. Its bright eyes looked at him, and a thin bamboo tube was tied to its claws, which was probably Xu Ying's messenger.

Although Xu Ying is the head of the White Stone Immortal Sect, handling many affairs within the sect, and is more like the "Sect Master" than Zhang Chengdao, his cultivation level is far too low.

There's no way around it; the difference in aptitude between people seems quite obvious. At least Xu Ying is busy with sect affairs during the day and diligently cultivates at night, but his cultivation level is always among the lowest in the sect. If it weren't for the support of newly entered disciples, in terms of cultivation level, he would probably be sitting at the same table as Xiao Li and An Che Huai Shan!

Of course, Xu Wen wasn't much better, but compared to Xu Ying, although Xu Wen's cultivation was among the lowest of the older generation in the sect, he loved to immerse himself in reading in the library and could recite many of the classics in the library by heart. The richness of his theoretical knowledge and the number of simple spells he had mastered were even better than Zhang Chengdao's. Therefore, his cultivation level seemed less important to Xu Wen.

It was precisely because Xu Ying, like Xu Wen, had mediocre cultivation that he could not directly have pigeons "carry messages," and could only transmit messages by writing letters.

Zhang Chengdao reached out his hand, and the pigeon obediently hopped onto his arm. He untied the bamboo tube, poured out the small paper slip inside, and unfolded it.

The note bore Xu Ying's familiar and neat handwriting. The content wasn't about some urgent sect crisis, but rather that a group of envoys from the Chu Kingdom had come down from the mountain. Their entourage was quite formal, and they were carrying many seemingly valuable state gifts.

Then, we'll ask Zhang Chengdao, the sect leader, to go and fulfill his duties as sect leader, such as summoning the envoy or figuring out how to deal with the situation...

Although Zhang Chengdao had no desire to deal with other sovereign powers, he still controlled a territory in this martial arts and cultivation world, and fighting alone was ultimately not a good idea.

In particular, the Chu Kingdom has the largest population among the four or five states in the north and south. Its fertile land and abundant labor force make it ideal for providing labor for the future modern era of cultivation.

Establishing a relatively mild and stable relationship with the State of Chu, gradually infiltrating and influencing it, and nibbling away at its resources gently is far better than a future conflict that could lead to a violent war and plunder – the latter would cause massive population loss and social unrest, and severely damage valuable labor resources!
(End of this chapter)