I've already become an immortal lord, and only now is the spiritual energy reviving?

South of Xianlu Plain, on the edge of the Qinglu Mountains, at the foot of Langdang Mountain.

The sun blazes high, and dust rises from the ancient road.

A slender figure was walking along a desolate mountain path.

"Master, Master, you didn't say exactly how far 'south' is."

As the young monk Juexin wiped his sweat, he muttered to himself, his mind filled with the image of his master's unfathomable demeanor before his departure.

The saying "Keep heading south, bowing to every mountain you encounter and wading through every river you cross" sounds like a Zen saying, but putting it into practice is incredibly difficult.

"And that karmic connection between 'Sravaka' and 'Dharma Master'..."

Juexin sighed and kicked a pebble away.

"I'm completely baffled. There's only my master and I in the temple, not even a single worshipper. All I do is sweep the floor and chant some scriptures. How could I possibly become a Dharma Master?"

"Gurgle."

A thunderous protest erupted.

Juexin paused, touched her deflated belly, and gave a wry smile:

"Oh dear, my stomach is rebelling first."

While spiritual practice is important, one still needs to eat.

He looked around.

This desolate wilderness is nothing but withered trees and scattered rocks; it doesn't look like a place inhabited by humans at all.

Undeterred, he wandered another mile, rounded a bend in the mountain, and suddenly the view opened up before him.

A few wisps of smoke rose from the chimneys, and a cluster of low, mud-brick houses stood in a neat and orderly fashion.

Half a stone tablet at the entrance of the village is stuck diagonally in the ground, with three large characters crookedly carved on it: Gaojia Village.

"Amitabha Buddha, there is always a way out."

Juexin was overjoyed and, disregarding his fatigue, quickly entered the village.

This Gaojia Village is so remote that it's rare to even see a peddler on ordinary days.

Not to mention a young monk who was covered in dust and dirt.

As soon as he entered the village, several old men sunbathing and children playing in the mud stared at him as if he were watching a monkey show.

Juexin clasped his hands together, about to bow and greet her.

Before anyone could speak, someone shouted, "A monk has entered the village! Quickly, go and call the clan chief!"

Not long after.

A middle-aged man dressed in a dark brown silk robe, holding two iron gall bladders in his hands, strode in, surrounded by a crowd.

With a mustache and a ruddy complexion, he looked quite dignified.

Gao Renyi, the clan chief of Gaojia Village.

Gao Renyi's gaze swept over Juexin, the surprise and doubt in his eyes faded, and a fleeting, almost imperceptible greed flashed across his eyes before disappearing.

Looking up again, I was greeted by a warm, gentle breeze.

"Greetings, young master."

He bowed with his hands clasped in a friendly manner.

"May I ask where your immortal abode is, young master? Is there any business in this remote and impoverished place of yours?"

Juexin honestly returned the greeting:

"Greetings, benefactor. My Buddhist name is Juexin, and I come from Shangmiao Temple in the northern desert."

"Passing through your esteemed land, I am hungry and would like to have a vegetarian meal before continuing my journey."

"Go to Myoji Temple?"

Gao Renyi frowned and his eyes darted around.

He had lived most of his life at the foot of Langdang Mountain. Although he was not very knowledgeable, he had heard a lot of stories about itinerant merchants.

Besides the endless yellow sand, what famous "Shangmiao Temple" is there in the north?

Most of them are wild temples with only two or three dilapidated tile-roofed houses.

Since she has no roots and is a fledgling all alone...

Gao Renyi felt a weight lifted from his heart and grabbed Juexin's sleeve:

"Oh my, so it's a venerable monk who has come from afar!"

"Begging for alms is no problem! But little monk, look how late it is. The mountains around here are high and the forests are dense. It's not safe at night; there are plenty of wild wolves and tigers around."

"Traveling at night is too dangerous. Why don't you stay in our village for the night and continue your journey tomorrow morning?"

Juexin hesitated for a moment: "This... I'm afraid it will be too much of a disturbance..."

"Hey! Monks don't lie, and we ordinary people can't just stand by and watch our young monks take danger, can we?"

Without saying a word, Gao Renyi grabbed Juexin and headed towards the west end of the village:

"It just so happens that there is a spare room at Granny Wang's house at the entrance of the village. The conditions are a bit poor, so the young master will have to make do for the night."

It was hard to refuse such hospitality.

In addition, she was really hungry, so Juexin could only reluctantly agree.

After many twists and turns, the two arrived at a solitary thatched hut on the edge of the village.

The house was dilapidated; the walls were plastered with mud, and some parts were drafty.

"Aunt Wang! Aunt Wang!"

Gao Renyi patted the half-closed wooden gate and, without waiting for a response, led Juexin inside.

The interior furnishings are extremely minimalist.

A table with a broken leg propped up by stones, and a wooden bed covered with old cotton wadding.

Bed.

An old woman with a withered face was curled up in the quilt, seemingly asleep.

Hearing the noise, the old woman struggled to sit up and squinted her old eyes to look over.

Seeing this, Juexin felt a pang of pity and quickly stepped forward to help him up.

"Grandpa, you can lie down, you don't need to get up."

Gao Renyi stood casually in the middle of the inner room and shouted to the old woman:

"Mrs. Wang, this is the young monk Juexin who is passing by. He'll stay here for the night."

"Don't hide your old grains anymore, give your young master a hot meal!"

Wang glanced at Juexin, who was standing to the side with a delicate and pretty face.

His lips trembled a few times, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he remained silent and lowered his head.

After a long while...

Wang's voice was hoarse:

"Good child... stay here."

Seeing that the matter was settled, Gao Renyi gave a few perfunctory instructions, then turned and left with his hands behind his back.

Outside, a timid figure dared to peek out.

She was a girl who was about seven or eight years old.

Dressed in rags, carrying a bamboo basket, his eyes, like those of a frightened fawn, warily watched Juexin, the bald man inside the house.

"Little one, come in."

Wang called out softly:

"He was a young monk who was staying at the temple; he was not a bad person."

Only then did the girl dare to step inside; the wild vegetables in the basket were still covered in soil.

Juexin, with his sharp eyes, didn't wait for the two to greet him. He rolled up his sleeves, took the bamboo basket, and revealed two tiger teeth:

"Old man, since I've come to beg for alms, I'll cook this meal for you both. It'll be a good opportunity for you to try my cooking."

Startled, Wang immediately tried to get up to stop him:

"No, that won't do. How can you let the guests do it themselves..."

"It's alright! My master taught me that self-reliance leads to abundance!"

Juexin chuckled and crawled into the nearby kitchen shed.

Not long after.

The stove fire was lit, and the aroma of cooked food filled the air.

Although it consisted only of boiled wild vegetables and a few coarse cornbread buns, Juexin managed to make them look, smell, and taste delicious.

The little girl was clearly very hungry. She held a broken bowl and wolfed down her food, even drinking all the wild vegetable soup.

Perhaps because of this meal, she was much less wary of Juexin.

After finishing her meal, she boldly approached Juexin, gesturing with her little hands and making cooing sounds.

She was a mute girl.

To outsiders, it was like reading a book written in a foreign language.

Juexin glanced at her, nodded slightly, and smiled gently:

"Oh? So you also like watching ants move house in the mountains? I used to watch them often too, sometimes I'd sit there for an entire afternoon."

The little girl's eyes lit up instantly, and she hurriedly started gesturing.

Juexin smiled again:

"That's right. Although the mushrooms in the mountains are beautiful, most of the colorful ones are poisonous. We can't pick them randomly next time."

The two, one big and one small, asked and answered questions, and chatted very congenially.

Wang, lying on the bed, stared in disbelief and couldn't help but ask:

"Little master...you...you know sign language?"

Juexin helped the little girl remove a piece of vegetable from her hair, and upon hearing this, she was taken aback, then replied matter-of-factly:

"Sign language? I haven't learned that."

"Didn't she just tell me?"

Upon hearing this, Wang assumed that the young monk was simply simple-minded and had fallen into a daze.

Looking at him, her eyes were filled with pity and unbearable sorrow.