Under One Person: The Taoist Priest Descends the Mountain

Cheng Mo suddenly spoke up: "Tell me, wouldn't you consider these performers to be extraordinary individuals?"

Xia He thought for a moment after hearing this: "Probably, right? Those knives are all real, sharpened blades. Without some special protective technique, how could an ordinary person step on them barefoot and be completely unharmed?"

"Perhaps." Cheng Mo smiled. In his view, those Nuo opera actors were still a long way from being extraordinary beings; they were merely performing Nuo opera to portray gods...

He shook his head, then asked, "Then tell me, what would it be like if an extraordinary person developed Alzheimer's disease?"

Xia He frowned and shook her head: "I don't know... but it certainly can't be any better than that old man who was serving food to his son earlier, right? What's the use of high cultivation if you've lost your memories?"

Cheng Mo said, "Isn't that the childlike heart that many cultivators pursue? To discard the complicated thoughts and ideas acquired later in life and return to the origin."

"How can that be the same!" Xia He immediately retorted. "A childlike heart is clear and lucid, it's knowing the ways of the world but not being cynical! Alzheimer's is... it's being unable to take care of oneself, with memory and cognitive decline!"

"One is a state of being actively cultivated, the other is damage passively suffered; they are fundamentally two different things!"

Cheng Mo nodded and said, "I know. But from another perspective, if a superhuman gets this disease and his memories return to his youngest and most ambitious time, while the Qi he has accumulated through a lifetime of hard work is at its peak."

"A heart as fearless as a newborn calf, and strength as perfected through countless trials—isn't the combination of these two a wondrous state?"

Xia He was taken aback by his unusual way of thinking, feeling both annoyed and amused.

"That's nonsense! Cultivation isn't just about refining Qi, it's also about refining the mind and character! If your mind and character regress, you'll only have power, which is called being out of control, which is dangerous! The Huainanzi says, 'The spirit is more valuable than the form. Therefore, when the spirit controls, the form follows; when the form prevails, the spirit is exhausted.'"

"Without the right mindset to control power, even the strongest Qi is like a tree without roots; it might harm yourself first and then others!"

After listening, Cheng Mo suddenly sighed softly, looked at the opera troupe members cleaning up the stage in the distance, and said in a low voice, "Yes... you're right. People are really boring."

Xia He: "???"

She turned her head, staring at Cheng Mo's profile, looking utterly bewildered: "Little Taoist priest, what's gotten into you all of a sudden? Why is it suddenly so boring? Weren't you enjoying the performance and the meal?"

Cheng Mo smiled and said, "It's nothing. I just feel that sometimes people think too much, which is quite tiring."

Xia He gave her a look that said, "You're talking nonsense again."

Meanwhile, near the archway on Zhongnanmen Street.

Wang Zhenqiu squinted, his gaze fixed on the old man wearing an old baseball cap not far ahead.

He was originally tracking Cheng Mo and Xia He, that "cheating couple," planning to find an opportunity to get revenge.

But just now, he recognized the old man at a glance.

Xia Liuqing, a renowned figure in the Quanxing Gang, is known as the "fierce clown"!

Wang Zhenqiu's eyes lit up, his interest instantly shifting.

Cheng Mo and Xia He can't escape, so the old man has to keep a close eye on them.

He silently followed behind Xia Liuqing, keeping a distance as he moved with the flow of people.

Wang Zhenqiu did not intend to find Xia Liuqing's hideout and report her.

Although on the surface, Na Du Tong and Quan Xing seem to be opposites, it is not actually that simple.

What Na Du Tong wants is stability in the world of supernatural beings, without affecting ordinary society. The Quanxing organization, to some extent, is a big basket that gathers those "unstable factors" in the world of supernatural beings. It's good to push a lot of trouble onto them.

The legitimate Quanxing sect wouldn't actually do anything that would incur public wrath—those kinds of people would have been heavily targeted by the company long ago.

Wang Zhenqiu simply found the old man amusing, especially his interesting skills.

In Wang Zhenqiu's view, these miscellaneous studies are much more interesting than the proper and orderly inheritance of prestigious schools.

Xia Liuqing walked seemingly casually, her steps unhurried, but she gradually deviated from the bustling main street, turning into a quiet alley, and then heading in a clear direction towards the mountains and forests outside the ancient city.

Wang Zhenqiu followed at a distance, keeping his distance, and wondered to himself: Is this old man going back to his hideout in the mountains?

Following along, the figure ahead flashed by at a bend in the mountain road and disappeared.

Wang Zhenqiu paused, but instead of feeling annoyed, he grinned, revealing a subtle yet excited smile.

Interesting. Were they discovered? Or was the old man testing them?

As he was pondering this, a voice suddenly came from behind him, almost touching the back of his head: "Hey kid, what are you planning to do following this old man?"

A withered but unusually steady hand silently pressed down on Wang Zhenqiu's lower back, the fingertips carrying a subtle yet powerful force.

Wang Zhenqiu's hair stood on end. Without thinking, he twisted his waist and sprang forward like a startled shrimp, narrowly avoiding the press.

He landed and turned around, his face beaming with an incredibly bright smile: "Oh my! Old man! You scared me to death! I just saw your venerable and extraordinary demeanor and wanted to ask you for some guidance!"

Xia Liuqing stood still, the shadow under the brim of her baseball cap obscuring most of her face. Only her deep, almost invisible eyes calmly looked at Wang Zhenqiu, revealing no emotion.

"Ask for advice? What do you want to know?" Xia Liuqing asked in a flat voice.

"Anything is fine!" Wang Zhenqiu rubbed his hands together, took two steps closer, and his eyes shone with an astonishing light.

"You were watching a Nuo opera over there, weren't you? I think you definitely know more about it than those troupes! Those masks, those movements—how do you bring out the spirit? Do you have some secret techniques? Teach me!"

Xia Liuqing's eyelids seemed to twitch. Without saying a word, she turned and walked away. Her pace was not fast, but her footwork was somewhat strange. Although it looked slow, she quickly widened the distance in just a few steps.

"Hey! Grandpa, don't go!" Wang Zhenqiu quickly chased after him, chattering on and on, "My name is Wang Zhenqiu, you can just call me Qiu'er! I really want to learn! I'll even be willing to become your apprentice! I'll serve you tea and water, run errands and do laundry, I can do it all!"

Xia Liuqing ignored him.

Wang Zhenqiu persisted, chattering on and on: "Old man, have you heard about the latest happenings? In the Qianyang area, there's a bunch of fools who tried to take advantage of tourists with underhanded tactics, but they ran into a brick wall and got taken care of by a passerby..."

He rolled his eyes and changed the subject: "Also, I overheard someone chatting the other day that our local branch of All-Tong has done a few pretty good joint operations with the local authorities, and they caught several gangs that were using supernatural abilities to do shady business."

"Do you think this company is extending its reach further and further? Are their rules a good thing or a bad thing for us old-fashioned people?"

"Look, we're both from the same martial arts world, wouldn't it be great if we could exchange ideas? 'Preserve your true nature and don't let material possessions burden you,' how insightful that is! I almost joined them! We're kind of destined to meet, aren't we?"

Xia Liuqing finally stopped and slowly turned around.

Wang Zhenqiu was secretly delighted, thinking that there was hope.

The next second, he saw that Xia Liuqing's face was covered with a layer of seemingly real yet illusory oil paint, with a dark blue-green background, angry eyes and a bushy beard, clearly dressed as the door god Yuchi Gong.

A heavy, fierce, and awe-inspiring aura suddenly erupted!

In Xia Liuqing's hand, a heavy, black steel whip appeared out of thin air, almost solid, and with a whistling sound, it smashed down on Wang Zhenqiu's head!

"Holy crap!" Wang Zhenqiu yelled, his blond hair standing on end in fright.

He didn't have time to think carefully. His internal energy circulated wildly, and his hands instantly formed seven or eight complex hand seals in front of his chest, enveloping him in a hazy, pale golden halo.

hum!

The black whip struck the halo, producing a dull, loud thud.

The pale golden aura fluctuated violently, instantly becoming covered with cracks, and shattered with a "crack".

Using this immense force, Wang Zhenqiu was sent flying backward like a kite with a broken string. His chest heaved with blood and qi, and even in mid-air, he roared at the top of his lungs, "I will be back!"

The sound echoed through the mountains and forests, and the figure, using the momentum, leaped and disappeared behind the dense foliage.

The mask of Yuchi Gong on Xia Liuqing's face slowly faded, revealing her original appearance.

He frowned, staring in the direction Wang Zhenqiu had disappeared, and muttered under his breath, "Where did this brat come from? Why is he so annoying..."

Clearly, Xia Liuqing hadn't yet experienced what real annoyance was.