I was selling peach wood swords on a live stream, how did I become a Taoist ancestor?

The events that occurred at Longhu Mountain were originally classified as top secret by the Celestial Master's Mansion.

But there were just too many people there that day.

There were at least forty or fifty Taoist priests who bowed to the statue of the deity, whether they were on duty, passing by, or doing their morning prayers.

With more people, there will be more conflicting opinions.

Despite Zhang Yunpu's strict orders not to spread the word, the news still managed to get out quietly.

The Night's Watchmen were the first to sense that something was wrong.

The sentries they had placed near Longhu Mountain had already noticed the subtle unusual activity that day.

Although they were unclear about the specifics of what had happened, upon hearing the rumors and combining them with the previous orders from the General Administration, they immediately reported it.

"There is unusual activity at Longhu Mountain, which is suspected to be related to the peach wood sword sent by Qingfeng Temple."

This message was classified as "Top Secret" within the Night Watchers' internal system.

But "top secret" means that all branch managers have the authority to view it.

Liu Zhenguo was drinking tea when he saw the message.

His hand trembled, and he spilled tea all over himself.

"Strange activity at Longhu Mountain? When did this happen?"

"Two days ago, around nine o'clock in the morning." The intelligence officer retrieved the data. "The energy peak lasted for about five minutes, and its nature... is unknown."

"unknown?"

"Yes, it's not yin energy, not malevolent energy, and not normal magical energy fluctuations." The intelligence officer pushed up his glasses.

Liu Zhenguo fell silent.

What's the difference between saying it and not saying it?

But considering that golden light, and the reaction from Longhu Mountain...

"Retrieve all the surveillance footage from the area around Longhu Mountain that day," he said in a deep voice. "Including civilian cameras and other cameras that had the opportunity to capture the Celestial Master's Mansion that day, leave none out."

"Yes."

After a long day of work, the technical department finally found a video recording from a drone enthusiast.

The drone camera's angle was poor, and it could only capture a corner of the Celestial Master's Mansion.

But we can see that it was 9:03 a.m. that day.

The roof tiles of some halls in the Celestial Master's Mansion shook simultaneously.

It was very slight, like being blown by the wind.

But... how strong of a wind would it take to move the tiles?

Besides, there was no wind that day!

"Zoom in, slow down."

The scene progresses frame by frame.

9:03:17.

In the image, the shadows of all the statues shift slightly in the sunlight.

It's not caused by changes in light and shadow.

Rather, it was the statue itself that moved.

"Continue," Liu Zhenguo said hoarsely.

9:03:41.

The shadow was frozen at a subtle tilt angle.

It looked like he was bowing.

The video ends here.

The drone has limited memory, so it only recorded this much.

But that's enough.

The meeting room was deathly silent.

Everyone stared at the frozen image, speechless.

The statue is bowing?

This is even more outrageous than the peach wood sword used to slay demons.

"Can you be sure... it was caused by that sword?" Chen Jianguo asked with difficulty.

"The timing matches up," the intelligence officer said. "Zhang Minghao retrieved the sword at 8:50, entered the Celestial Master's Mansion at 9:00, and the unusual event occurred at 9:03."

"In other words, three minutes after the sword was in the Celestial Master's hands, the statue..."

Chen Jianguo didn't finish his sentence, but everyone understood what he meant.

"What exactly is that sword?" Liu Zhenguo muttered to himself.

He originally thought that the sword was just a more powerful magical artifact.

But now it seems that it's far more than that.

It can even make the statues of deities in the ancestral temple of Taoism bow down...

This can no longer be explained by magical artifacts.

"Boss, what do we do now?" Wang Hu asked.

Liu Zhenguo rubbed his temples and spoke after a long while.

"First, continue to strengthen the observation of Qingfeng Temple, but absolutely do not disturb it."

"Second..." he paused, "send this video to headquarters."

"Send it to headquarters?"

Liu Zhenguo looked at the frozen image on the screen and smiled bitterly.

"Yes, this is a huge matter. I have a feeling that the one at Qingfeng Temple... might not be able to keep it a secret any longer."

……

The Night Watch headquarters are in the capital.

When the report and video recording were received from the South City branch, the person on duty was a young man.

After reading it, he stood there stunned for a full minute.

Then, he picked up the internal phone.

"Chief, something terrible has happened."

Two hours later.

Night Watch headquarters, high-level conference room.

The video was playing on a loop on the projection screen.

The shift in the statue's shadow, though blurred, is still perfectly discernible.

"Tell me your thoughts, everyone!"

The meeting was chaired by the deputy commander-in-chief of headquarters, surnamed Qin, who was over sixty years old, with gray hair but sharp eyes.

"President Qin, could this video... be fake?" someone questioned.

"The technical department has verified that it's true," President Qin said. "Furthermore, it has been confirmed by Longhu Mountain that an unusual situation did indeed occur that day."

"What's going on?"

"They didn't say, only that it was an internal matter, but their attitude was very polite." President Qin tapped the table. "For Longhu Mountain to be so polite, do you think it could be a small matter?"

Everyone fell silent.

What kind of place is Longhu Mountain?

The ancestral temple of Taoism, a tradition passed down for a thousand years.

When dealing with the night watchmen, although they cooperate, they have an inherent arrogance.

To elicit such a polite response from the Celestial Master's Mansion...

"Where is that sword? Where is it now?" someone asked.

"It's still in Longhu Mountain, being kept by the Celestial Master's Mansion," President Qin said.

"Should we... apply pressure?"

"What pressure are you putting on me?" President Qin glared at the man. "Longhu Mountain is a religious site, and the Celestial Master's Mansion is a cultural heritage site. What are you trying to do? Rob it?"

The man shrank back and fell silent.

"The question now is, what is the background of the sword's maker, Mr. Li?"

President Qin retrieved Li Jun's information: "Nineteen years old, Taoist priest at Qingfeng Temple, Master Zhang Shouqing; eighty years old, ordinary Taoist priest."

"That's all?"

That's all.

The information was shockingly simple.

Li Jun's resume from childhood to adulthood is as clean as a blank sheet of paper.

Going to school, working part-time, helping out at my hometown, and selling handicrafts via live streaming.

There were no abnormalities.

"Where did he get all these skills?" someone asked, puzzled.

"Two possibilities." President Qin held up two fingers. "One, he might be a reincarnation or something... Don't laugh, there's a precedent for this."

"Secondly, his master Zhang Shouqing is the real master, but he keeps his abilities hidden."

"I personally prefer the second option."

"It's not surprising that an eighty-year-old Taoist temple abbot, who lived through that era and spent his life in quiet cultivation, would have some real skills."

"Then why did he let his apprentice sell Buddhist artifacts online?"

President Qin smiled wryly, "How can we possibly fathom the actions of a master?"

Another silence fell over the conference room.

"So now, how should we treat this...Master Li?" someone asked.

"Eight words," President Qin said slowly: "Pay close attention and do everything possible to build good relations."

"If he wants to sell something, we'll buy it through legitimate means, without resorting to underhanded tactics."

"We will provide whatever he needs and strongly support traditional culture."

"In short, we need to make him feel good about us."

"clear."

Everyone nodded.

"Furthermore, notify all branches," General Qin added, "Raise the security level to the highest level for all information regarding Qingfeng Temple."

"No one is allowed to disclose relevant information without authorization. This incident at Longhu Mountain serves as a lesson!"

"yes!"

End of the meeting.

President Qin remained alone in the conference room, looking at Li Jun's photo on the screen.

Young, sunny, with clear eyes.

He looks like an ordinary college student.

"Zhang Shouqing...Li Jun..."

He murmured the two names, his eyes deep and thoughtful.

"What secret are you two, master and disciple, hiding?"