Under One Person: The Taoist Priest Descends the Mountain

Xia He leaned closer and asked, "Little Taoist priest, are you planning to hand over Village Chief Ma to the state?"

Cheng Mo put his phone back in his pocket: "We'll see how it goes. Let's see what the old man has to say first."

Ten minutes later.

Cheng Mo's phone rang.

The caller ID showed an unfamiliar number, a string of numbers that wasn't in the standard mobile phone number format.

Cheng Mo clicked to connect.

"Speak, what is it?" The old Taoist's voice came through the receiver, much clearer than before, without any background noise or television sound.

Cheng Mo exclaimed, "Oh! Old man, you were hiding this trick all along? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Stop talking nonsense and get to the point." Cheng Shou's tone was impatient. "Do you think everyone is like you, showing off every little thing they have?"

Cheng Mo stopped arguing with him and put away her joking expression.

"Master, this is what happened. I met a man named Ma Xianhong in Biyou Village. He is the one who taught me the Divine Hundred Refinements."

Cheng Shou remained silent, while Cheng Mo continued speaking.

"He created something called the Body Cultivation Furnace, which can transform ordinary people into extraordinary individuals. It's not just a minor thing that stimulates potential; it truly opens up the meridians, completes the circulation of Qi, and allows ordinary people to have a complete sense of Qi."

Cheng Shou's tone was completely flat: "Are you sure?"

"I've examined those people. However, this body-refining furnace has a major problem: the success rate is relatively low. Recently, Old Ma's sister developed a new core that improved the success rate, but the consequences of failure are severe—the body collapses, and there's basically no hope."

Cheng Shou: "You just said it would benefit the entire Chinese nation, is this what you mean?"

Cheng Mo said, "No, I'm telling you that woman is very dangerous. Those who use this core transformation technique will be controlled by her."

Cheng Shou's voice turned serious: "How do we control her? Who is that woman?"

"Qu Tong, the president of Yaoxing Society."

Cheng Mo paused, carefully considering his words: "Master, you know about the Dual-Handed Technique, right?"

There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone: "One of the Eight Extraordinary Techniques, the methods of Duanmu Ying. What, that woman knows this? And how does she control people?"

Cheng Mo explained: "Qu Tong used her dual-wielding hands to create a living core, inscribing the Qi circulation route inside. While transforming the supernatural beings, she also modified their memories and cognition, making them her followers, completely obedient to her."

Cheng Shou asked, "How do you know all this?"

"I opened it to check," Cheng Mo said, only one sentence.

Cheng Shou fell completely silent.

After several seconds, he finally spoke: "Are you sure?"

"Confirmed," Cheng Mo said. "I originally planned to set a trap in Biyou Village and wait for Qu Tong to come to me so I could control her. But that woman was too cautious. She sent three groups of people into the village, but they ran away as soon as they sensed something was wrong, without even showing their faces."

Cheng Mo briefly recounted the events that had occurred in Biyou Village in the past few days, starting with Ma Xianhong's disappearance, then the villagers causing trouble, Qu Tong sending people to investigate, and finally him knocking everyone unconscious.

"If the number of supernatural beings exceeds the safety threshold, many unpredictable changes will occur." The old Taoist's voice was calm, but Cheng Mo could tell that the old man was seriously considering this matter.

"But another important point you mentioned..." Cheng Shou paused, "that the Dual-Handed Technique can alter a person's perception... what exactly does that mean?"

Cheng Mo explained: "Literally, it can modify memories and implant false cognitions, making a person believe that they have been someone else's subordinate since childhood."

"However, it has less effect on people with strong willpower and requires a considerable amount of time to control. Moreover, people's memories and cognition will automatically repair themselves, and over time, without the treatment, those false memories and cognitions will be discarded and they will return to their original state."

"Heh, that's indeed a very dangerous ability." Cheng Shouchang took a deep breath. "I underestimated those people."

He paused for a moment, then said, "I'll handle this. You stay and guard Biyou Village. Can you hold it?"

Cheng Mo laughed: "Old man, don't underestimate me. Let me tell you, I'm incredibly strong right now."

Cheng Shou was too lazy to waste words with him: "If you can't catch Qu Tong, then forget it. Keep an eye on Ma Xianhong for me."

"Okay."

The phone hangs up.

Cheng Mo put his phone back in his pocket, and when he looked up, he saw Xia He standing very close, her eyes sparkling as she stared at him.

"Little Taoist, why do I feel like Master has another identity? Cola Novels, this is where dreams begin, and where dreams come true."

Cheng Mo leaned back: "Don't get so close, it's kind of scary."

Xia He slapped him on the shoulder: "Speak quickly!"

Cheng Mo leaned against the stone bench. Erlang said, "The old man once said that back when Nadutong hadn't been separated from the government, there was a research center for abnormal humans, and he was its first director."

"However, he couldn't stand the atmosphere after less than a year and resigned to return to the Taoist temple. So the higher-ups gave him the title of vice president of the Taoist Association."

Xia He's eyes widened in surprise: "Wow! Why didn't you tell me this before?"

Cheng Mo shrugged: "There was no need for it before. Besides, the old man's department was completely split up. One of the branches later evolved into Na Du Tong, which was used to manage the supernatural beings within the territory."

Xia He chuckled and jumped around in the yard twice: "Hehehe~ We've got this in the bag this time."

Xia He comforted him, "It's okay. Didn't you say that Village Chief Ma's memory would return on its own? Once he regains his memory, he won't hate you anymore."

Cheng Mo shook his head: "It's still the same. If Master can operate as I want, Old Ma will definitely lose his freedom in the end, and his abilities will no longer be usable by ordinary people in the conventional sense."

Xia He asked, puzzled, "Why?"

Cheng Mo didn't explain much, only saying, "You'll know in a few days."

……

The situation in Biyou Village is somewhat delicate.

Those who had been knocked unconscious and then woken up by Cheng Mo looked at Cheng Mo and his companion with complicated expressions.

Some felt fear, some anger, or perhaps both.

But no one dared to step forward.

Cheng Mo was walking on the village road when several people walked towards him, but they all went around him when they saw him.

A young man stood by the roadside, his fists clenched tightly, his eyes blazing with fury. But when Cheng Mo looked over, he immediately lowered his head and pretended to be tying his shoelaces.

Cheng Mo didn't mind and strolled around the village with Xia He.

When he reached the base of the big locust tree, he heard several people squatting against the wall talking quietly.

"We'll settle the score with him after he falls asleep."

"Yes, if one person can't beat them, how can we, with so many of us, not be able to?"

"I don't believe he doesn't sleep at night."

Cheng Mo didn't stop walking, and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly.

These guys don't dare to make a move during the day, but they dare to at night?

Besides, he really doesn't sleep at night.

However, Cheng Mo didn't plan to do anything, since these guys weren't very capable anyway.

He wandered around, from the east end of the village to the west end, from the west end to the south end, and then from the south end to the north end.

Xia He followed beside him, holding an ice pop in her hand, licking it and shaking it.

"Little Taoist priest, what are you looking for?"

"I didn't look for anything, just took a walk to digest."

Xia He rolled her eyes and continued licking her popsicle.

We just wandered around like that for three hours.

It was already dark.

Cheng Mo's phone finally rang.

The caller ID still shows the same unknown number.

Cheng Mo immediately replied, "Master, you're moving way too slowly."

"Slow my foot!" Cheng Shou's voice boomed from the receiver. "Do you know how far this matter involves? I've already done a lot faster than you could in such a short time!"

Cheng Mo held the phone a little further away, only taking it back after the old man finished yelling: "Alright, alright, you're right. How can I cooperate?"

"The military will take over within an hour," Cheng Shou said. "Just don't cause any trouble."

"Okay."

The phone hangs up.

Xia He leaned closer: "Should we call Village Chief Ma out now?"

Cheng Mo nodded: "It's time to call it out and say something. Let's go."

The two left the village and entered the woods.

The moonlight was blocked by the leaves, and the forest was dark, but the two of them had long since adapted to the darkness.

The author, who is asleep and doesn't want to think about anything, has joined Cola Novels with his new work, "Under One Person: The Taoist Priest Descends the Mountain"!