Starting as pearl divers, they have endless jobs.

Chapter 95 I thought you were a Taoist priest, but it turns out you're a boxing master?

Lu, the wealthy man, sighed. "Young Brother Chen, this is a small token of my appreciation. Please, I beg you, help me through this ordeal!"

"Mr. Lu, you jest." Chen Ye smiled faintly, but did not touch the stacks of silver dollars. "I'm just an opera singer. Last night I was just acting rashly in a moment of panic. Don't take it seriously. For things like catching ghosts and exorcising demons, you should find someone else."

He said it politely, but his refusal couldn't be clearer.

What a joke.

The whole affair was shrouded in an eerie atmosphere: a malevolent ghost capable of possessing living people and creating a maze of ghosts, and a Taoist nun from the Tianhou Palace who was hiding her true identity and deliberately setting up a trap.

Neither of them is someone to be trifled with.

Although Chen Ye was not a person who was afraid of trouble, he did not want to provoke such a huge problem for no reason.

Upon hearing this, the smile on Lu Da Hu’s face froze instantly, then turned into a look of bitterness and pleading.

"Brother Chen, you can't just stand by and watch him die!" He grabbed Chen Ye's sleeve, his voice trembling with tears.

"Before she left, the female ghost said she was going to kill my daughter. She's my only precious daughter. If anything happens to her, I won't live either!"

As he spoke, he actually made a move to kneel down before Chen Ye.

Chen Ye frowned, stepped aside, and said in a colder tone, "Mr. Lu, forced relationships are never happy. This matter is complicated, and I am truly powerless to help you."

"I understand, I understand!" Lu, the wealthy man, nodded repeatedly. He was a shrewd man and knew that he couldn't persuade this young master with empty words.

He gritted his teeth, pushed the stacks of silver dollars on the table forward again, then took out a silver note from his pocket and slammed it down on the table.

"Young Master Chen, this is a deposit of five hundred silver dollars. I don't expect you to be able to get rid of that thing, but as long as you're willing to help investigate, whether it succeeds or not, this money is yours!"

"If...if we can really manage to resolve this matter by chance, my Lu family is willing to offer another hundred taels of gold, plus three shops in the south of the city!"

One hundred taels of gold, three shopfronts!
This is quite a large undertaking!
Chen Ye's mind raced with thoughts.

Most importantly, this Mr. Lu's requirements are very flexible; he doesn't necessarily expect success.

This means that you have the initiative and can withdraw at any time.

After a moment of contemplation, Chen Ye finally nodded slowly.

"Since Mr. Lu is so sincere, I will give it a try."

Mr. Lu was overjoyed and bowed repeatedly, saying, "Thank you very much, Brother Chen. Thank you very much, Brother Chen."

Lu the wealthy man has left.

Chen Ye fell into deep thought. This matter was strange in every way, but the root cause was very clear: the Tianhou Palace.

So Chen Ye decided to go to the Tianhou Temple first.

……

The Tianhou Temple in Zhenhaiwei is extremely popular, and even outside of the first and fifteenth of the lunar month, there is still a constant stream of worshippers.

Chen Ye changed into ordinary clothes and blended in, only to find that seven or eight out of ten people who came to offer incense were women.

They came in groups of three or five, or alone, and most of them had a worried look on their faces.

Chen Ye found a corner and observed quietly.

He soon discovered a strange phenomenon.

After worshipping the statue, many women would not leave immediately, but would go to a side hall and whisper a few words to a female Taoist boy guarding the place.

Then the young Taoist priest would lead them through a side door and into the backyard.

No one knows what they did in the back, but when these women came out of the side door again, the gloom on their faces had vanished. Although they weren't exactly beaming with joy, their mood had clearly calmed down a lot.

Once is a coincidence, twice is an accident.

But when Chen Ye saw that all seven or eight women were like this, his heart stirred.

There's something wrong in the backyard of the palace today.

He wanted to follow them in and find out what was going on, so he stepped toward the side hall.

But as soon as he got close, he was stopped by the female Taoist disciple.

"Please wait a moment, sir." The young Taoist bowed and said expressionlessly, "The backyard is a place for quiet cultivation, and we only receive female guests. Please understand."

Chen Ye was rebuffed, but he didn't say much. He just nodded and then stepped back.

But he did not give up. After thinking for a moment, he turned around and went back to the Lu residence.

The entire costume of the opera troupe was still there, and some of the women's everyday clothes were still there. Chen Ye hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and began to change his clothes.

Thanks to his natural talent as a captivating diva, Chen Ye can now convincingly portray any role he plays.

Especially in traditional opera, cross-dressing is a very common thing, so soon, a "woman" with bright eyes and white teeth, who can be described as stunningly beautiful, appeared in the mirror.

Chen Ye touched his face, blinked, and then fell silent.

Who the hell could withstand this?

Fortunately, Chen Ye took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed his chaotic thoughts, then got up again and headed to the Tianhou Temple.

This time when Chen Ye went out, he received even more attention, but before, most of the people who looked at him were women, but now it was men.

Half an hour later, Chen Ye returned to the main hall of the Tianhou Palace.

At that moment, he was actually a little uneasy.

After all, this was the first time in his two lifetimes that he had done something like this.

However, when he entered the main hall and found that the people around him only glanced at him in amazement and did not show any suspicion, he finally felt relieved.

Several young male worshippers even stared at him with wide eyes, looking completely distracted.

Chen Ye silently apologized, then composed himself, gathered his emotions, and immediately put on a pitiful, tearful expression before slowly walking towards the side hall.

It was still that female Taoist disciple.

With a slightly choked voice, Chen Ye said softly, "I...I'm feeling troubled, and I have some things I'd like to ask the Taoist priest in the palace for guidance."

This time, the young female Taoist did not stop her. She even gently comforted her, saying, "I understand. Don't be sad. Come with me."

Then he led Chen Ye through the side gate to the backyard.

The backyard is quiet and elegant, with many flowers and plants planted there.

The young Taoist led him to a quiet room and then withdrew on his own.

Chen Ye pushed open the door and entered, and saw a middle-aged Taoist nun dressed in a gray Taoist robe sitting cross-legged on a futon with her eyes closed, resting.

This must be the person in charge of this place.

"Daoist Master." Chen Ye, mimicking the mannerisms of the women, forced himself to suppress his goosebumps and bowed deeply.

The middle-aged Taoist nun slowly opened her eyes. When she saw that it was a young girl with such outstanding appearance, a strange light flashed in her eyes, but her tone remained cold.

"What's the matter?"

Chen Ye had already prepared her explanation. She sighed and said softly, "To be honest, Daoist Master, I am troubled by matters of marriage."

As soon as he said this, the middle-aged Taoist nun's face darkened instantly, and she let out a cold laugh.

"Marriage? Ha, how foolish!"

"We women have lost all face because of you idiots who only think about men!"

The nun's voice suddenly became shrill, her eyes filled with contempt and disdain.

"Can't you live without a man?!"

Chen Ye was completely stunned by this sudden retort. What's going on? This isn't the script!
Immediately afterwards, he listened as the middle-aged Taoist nun began to spout nonsensical nonsense.

"Women are born noble, the essence of heaven and earth, why should they depend on those vile men?"

"Men are nothing but tools for procreation, inferior livestock! They deserve to be enslaved and whipped by us women!"

Listening to these increasingly outrageous, even outrageous, remarks, Chen Ye's mind went blank for a moment, and then he suddenly realized what was going on.

Goodness, I thought you were a Taoist priest, but it turns out you're a boxer?

Before coming here, Chen Ye had imagined countless possibilities, such as this Tianhou Palace being a cult den of iniquity, or even a monster's lair, specifically designed to deceive ignorant women into absorbing its essence.

But to his utter surprise, he found himself facing a boxer.

It was the most extreme and outrageous kind of fighting.

Looking at the indignant, spittle-flecked middle-aged Taoist nun in front of him, Chen Ye felt a sense of absurdity.

How can such a thing still exist in this world?

However, despite his shock, Chen Ye's reaction was surprisingly quick.

Since they are boxers, we should use their logic to deal with them.

In a flash, the astonishment and confusion on Chen Ye's face vanished, replaced by a sense of bewilderment and helplessness as if someone had hit a nerve.

His eyes reddened, and two lines of clear tears slid down his cheeks at just the right moment. Combined with his stunningly handsome face at that moment, the effect was incredibly powerful.

"Taoist Priest..."

Chen Ye's voice was choked with sobs, filled with grievance and resentment, as if a person drowning in a sea of ​​love had finally grasped a lifeline.

"The Taoist priest is right. It was me... I was too stupid."

“I did his laundry and cooked for him, took care of the housework for him, and gave up everything for him, but he… he had another woman outside, and even said that I was just a burden who only depended on him…”

He spoke and cried at the same time. His acting skills and emotions were so impressive that even Guan Sihai from the Qingchun Troupe would be amazed, let alone the middle-aged Taoist nun in front of him.

The seductive diva's talent isn't just effective on ghosts; it works on humans as well.

Especially for an extreme Taoist priest who already had a different opinion of his "good looks" and was immersed in his own closed-loop logic.

Sure enough, when the middle-aged Taoist nun saw this pitiful sight and listened to this tearful accusation, the coldness and disdain on her face gradually disappeared.

Instead, there is a sense of certainty, and a feeling of satisfaction and pity for one's fellow human beings.

“Foolish child, you finally understand.”

The nun's tone was no longer sharp, but became gentle. She stepped forward and gently patted Chen Ye's shoulder with her rough hands.

"What are men? They're nothing but a bunch of beasts driven by desire. You can't believe a single word they say!"

“You are born with such beauty, which is a gift from God. You should not debase yourself for those filthy men.”

"We women are born nobler than them, why should we grieve for them, why should we shed tears for them?"

The Taoist nun's voice was seductive and persuasive.

"Come, come with me. I'll take you somewhere and show you what a woman should be like."

Chen Ye's heart skipped a beat, knowing that the real show was about to begin, but on the surface he looked excited as if he had found his people, nodding repeatedly and choking out, "I will follow the Taoist's arrangements."

The middle-aged Taoist nun smiled with satisfaction, turned around, and pushed open a wall at the back of the meditation room.

With a creak, a deep, dark passage appeared behind the wall.

"Follow closely."

The Taoist nun carried an oil lamp and walked in front, with Chen Ye following closely behind.

After passing through the dark passage, the view suddenly opened up.

This place turned out to be a huge underground cave, with lamps burning all around, illuminating the entire space as bright as day.

Inside this grotto, dozens of young women were sitting cross-legged.

They all had fanatical expressions, their eyes closed, and they were muttering incantations, as if they were performing some kind of ritual.

Only by severing worldly ties can one attain purity!

"Kill all the unfaithful men in the world and restore the bright and clear world to the women!"

"Yin is superior to Yang; this is the ultimate truth of the universe!"

The slogans echoed through the grotto, making Chen Ye's scalp tingle.

He finally understood that the women who had left the side hall with relaxed expressions had not received any relief, but had been brainwashed by this extreme ideology!

They vented their pent-up resentment through this ritual without reservation!

Chen Ye remained calm and quietly activated his Tongyou talent.

In an instant, the world he saw changed.

All that could be seen were wisps of dark gray resentment rising from the bodies of the women sitting cross-legged.

These resentful energies, like threads, were peeled away from them and gathered in the center of the cave, where they were absorbed by an invisible vortex.

At the end of that vortex, in the deepest part of the cave, Chen Ye sensed a chilling aura that was being nurtured!

That aura seemed familiar; it was the same one that had appeared on Su Lan before!

Chen Ye understood; it seemed he had found the right place.

This place is indeed related to Su Lan's case!

"See? This is what sisters should be like. By breaking free from the shackles of men, we will be reborn."

Chen Ye suppressed the turmoil in his heart, feigning a look of both longing and fear, and timidly asked, "Daoist Master, I've heard that Daoist Master Jingxuan of the Tianhou Palace has profound Taoist skills and is most adept at relieving the worries of us unfortunate women. I wonder if she is still here?"

He needed to ascertain the relationship between Jingxuan, who had set up the scheme against the wealthy Lu, and the Taoist nun before him.

"Senior Sister Jingxuan?"

Upon hearing the name, the middle-aged Taoist nun's eyes flickered slightly, then she said calmly, "My senior sister is currently in seclusion, cultivating in seclusion and not receiving any visitors. If you are interested, you will have the opportunity to meet her after you join the sect."

She spoke casually, but that momentary hesitation betrayed the problem.

This Jingxuan is not only one of them, but his status is probably even higher than that of this middle-aged Taoist nun!
Chen Ye wanted to ask something more, but just then, the middle-aged Taoist nun said, "Go. You are not yet free from worldly ties and cannot stay here for long. After you go back, think clearly about your heart and then come back to cultivate more deeply."

Knowing he couldn't rush things, Chen Ye pretended to be unwell, his face turning slightly pale and his body swaying.

"Yes, Master, I do feel a bit dizzy and unwell."

Seeing this, the middle-aged Taoist nun had no doubts and instead showed a hint of satisfaction.

"This is a normal reaction, which shows that your wisdom is not lost. Go back and rest well, and think carefully about what I said."

As she spoke, she helped Chen Ye back to the ground.

Before parting, she patted Chen Ye on the shoulder earnestly.

"Remember, men will only slow you down when you draw your sword. The right path is to sever your emotional ties and break free from their constraints as soon as possible."

Chen Ye: "..."

He suppressed his urge to complain, bowed gratefully to the Taoist nun, and then turned and left.

　To reiterate, this story contains absolutely no gender-bending or cross-dressing scenes. This part is merely for the sake of the plot. After all, Chen Ye is pursuing a career as an actor, and performing on stage is inevitable. Cross-dressing is a crucial element in traditional opera, hence this preface to avoid reader disapproval. Also, I have no intention of inciting gender antagonism; this scene is simply a response to certain obsessive phenomena prevalent today.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)