Uncle Nine: Scattering beans to create soldiers? I'm using plants and trees to create soldiers.

Renjia Town North Street

Inside a rather grand mansion.

At this moment, Awei had just returned.

A boatload of people died on the Beiqing River last night, and he and his security team worked until dawn to recover.

The process of sealing off the river, transporting corpses, and comforting the people and merchants nearly brought the whole operation to a standstill.

My legs were trembling on the way back, and I was so tired I felt like I was going to faint.

"Finally, I can get a good night's sleep..."

As soon as Awei's head touched the pillow, he fell into a deep sleep as if a stone had sunk to the bottom of water.

however,

Only five minutes had passed when the loud knocking on the door started again.

Bang bang bang!

Bang bang bang!

Awei sprang out of bed, his eyes wide, his anger rising to the top of his head.

"Damn it, who is it?! Knocking on the door again! I haven't even counted to ten with my eyes closed..."

Boom! !

Before he could finish speaking, the knocking on the door started again, even more urgent than before.

"grass!!"

"You better have something really serious to do, or I'll kill you!"

He grabbed the pistol from the bedside table, stomped barefoot on the floor, and angrily pulled open the door latch.

Outside the door, the security guards, seeing Ah Wei's murderous expression, took a half-step back in fright and stammered, "Captain, Captain, it's Lin Xuan. Lin Xuan went to the docks and said he's going to hold an exorcism ceremony today to exorcise the ghost."

"Lin Xuan?!"

When Awei heard this name, his face darkened even more.

"Didn't he say he'd exorcise the ghost tomorrow at 5 AM? Why did he change it to today?!"

"I heard that he has joined forces with that Taoist priest from Lushan to exorcise the ghost."

The team member swallowed hard, glancing nervously at the pistol in Awei's hand, cold sweat trickling down his forehead.

"They teamed up?!"

Awei frowned and gripped his sidearm tightly.

Damn it, this Lin Xuan, just because he's got some skills, he knows how to mess with me!

Just when I was finally able to lie down and catch my breath, he forcibly woke me up again with a single sentence.

He had better be able to get rid of that ghost this time!

otherwise……

"Wait for me to get dressed!"

A loud slam rang out, and the door frame trembled twice.

After a while, Awei appeared at the door with a dark face.

His eyes were sunken, his lips were chapped, and his face seemed to say, "Anyone who messes with me will die."

Then, the two headed towards the dock.

When the two arrived, the pier was already packed with people.

A large crowd of people stood on both sides of the dock, craning their necks and peering towards the river.

"Make way! Make way, everyone! Captain Wei is here!"

The team members quickly ran forward, parted the crowd, and let Awei go in.

Inside the dock, there were many merchants from Renjia Town standing.

At this moment, they gathered in small groups, whispering to each other and pointing at the large boats on the riverbank.

Awei looked up.

There, a large, spacious boat was moored on the riverbank.

The ship planks have been cleaned thoroughly.

An offering table is placed in the center of the bow of the boat, covered with a yellow cloth, and various ritual implements are neatly arranged.

A Three Pure Ones Command Flag hangs in front of the table, fluttering gently in the wind.

Qiu Sheng and Wen Cai were busy on the boat, carefully arranging the items.

As for Lin Xuan—

He then sat alone at the bow of the boat.

He casually placed his hands on his knees, forming a Tai Chi mudra, his eyes slightly closed, his back as straight as an ancient pine tree.

The river breeze stirred the Taoist robe, causing the hem to flutter gently.

Despite the noise and commotion around him, he sat there, surrounded by Daoist energy, isolating himself from everything.

It was as if all the noise in the world could not enter his ears or disturb his mind.

Seeing this, Awei felt a surge of irritation for no apparent reason.

We're all young people, so why is this poor Taoist priest so good at putting on airs?!

Taking two deep breaths, Awei calmed himself down.

Then, looking up and glancing left and right, he spotted a familiar figure in the crowd—Ren Fa.

His eyes lit up, and he quickly went over.

"Uncle, you're here too?"

Awei straightened his wrinkled clothes and quickly went to meet him.

"Well, I heard that Master Lin has changed his exorcism to today, so I came over to take a look since I had nothing else to do."

Ren Fa turned his head slightly and spoke, then noticed Awei's dark circles, which were even more exaggerated than a panda's, and asked with concern, "Awei, why do you look so pale? Didn't you get enough rest?"

"Oh, Uncle, you have no idea. I and my brothers didn't sleep a wink all night, and then we were busy all morning. We really couldn't take it anymore."

Awei had intended to play the victim, but he keenly noticed that when Ren Fa said this, his gaze was not really on him, but was fixed on the large boat on the riverbank.

To be precise, it was the young figure sitting cross-legged at the bow of the ship that did not leave.

There was undisguised admiration in that gaze.

Even... there was a hint of a father-in-law scrutinizing his son-in-law.

Awei's heart skipped a beat.

He suddenly remembered something.

My cousin's husband has no sons, only a daughter.

Ren Tingting!

That beautiful girl who studied in the provincial capital and was well-known in Renjia Town.

Awei couldn't help but recall that youthful and beautiful face.

She has bright eyes and white teeth, speaks with a smile, and walks with her skirt swaying gently.

Every time he visits his aunt's husband's house for a New Year's greeting, he can't help but take a second look.

He always thought that, given his position as security captain and his kinship with Ren Fa, his cousin would eventually...

But now, look at Ren Fa's eyes...

Awei's fists had clenched into fists without him even noticing.

wrong.

Maybe I'm overthinking it.

Ren Fa merely admired Lin Xuan's abilities; that wasn't necessarily what he meant.

But what if?

Awei dared not think further, yet he couldn't help but keep thinking about it.

My cousin is so beautiful and such a wonderful girl, why should she be given away to that poor Taoist priest who deals with dead people all day?!

He looked at Lin Xuan at the bow of the ship, his eyes filled with a hint of jealousy and resentment.

Just then, a murmur arose from the periphery of the crowd.

"That Taoist priest from Lushan is here again, and he's brought a lot of stuff this time! But will it be as useless as last time?"

"Who knows! But with Master Kobayashi here this time, that water ghost is probably safe. After all, Master Kobayashi is Uncle Nine's top disciple, and he's very powerful!"

"Whether we can eliminate them or not, we'll find out soon enough. But what I'm curious about is, who approached whom to join forces this time?"

"It must be Master Xiaolin. With the two of them working together, they can deal with the water ghost sooner, and the Beiqing River can be unsealed sooner. Master Xiaolin is thinking of us."

"Master Lin is a good person!"

"Absolutely! Whoever marries Master Lin is truly blessed!"

Awei's ears twitched. Upon hearing the words "marry Master Lin," his face darkened even further, almost dripping with anger.

quickly,

The crowd parted, and Chen Bingwen walked over with several burly men.

The burly men carried three square tables on their shoulders, with red cloth wrapped around the legs and yellow cloth covering the tabletops.

Several people followed behind, some carrying a stack of yellow paper, others carrying bamboo baskets containing incense, candles, red thread, glutinous rice, and a red-crested rooster with its feet tied.

Hearing the surrounding people criticizing him, Chen Bingwen paused slightly, his face darkening.

What happened yesterday was his fault.

The fact that Boss Wang's entire ship was wiped out made him lose all face in Renjia Town.

But his Lushan lineage is not some lowly martial arts practitioner that can be looked down upon!

He acknowledged that Lin Xuan was stronger than him!

The other party has reached the mid-stage of the Taoist realm at a young age and has even received divine teachings from the Well God. He is a person with great fortune!

However, if others think that the Lushan Taoist priests are just pretentious swindlers, they are sorely mistaken.

Chen Bingwen felt a surge of anger in his chest, and his eyes grew sharper with each step he took.

He must perform well today.

Even if it's just assisting the altar or protecting the Dharma, we must let these people know that the disciples of Lushan are not to be trifled with!

He led his men past Awei without glancing at him, completely ignoring the security captain, and went straight to the side of the boat.

Upon reaching the side of the boat, Lin Xuan heard footsteps, opened his eyes, and stood up.

A sincere smile appeared on Chen Bingwen's face as he cupped his hands in a respectful greeting: "Fellow Daoist Lin."

"Is everything prepared?"

Lin Xuan asked the question in a calm tone, yet it carried a reassuring certainty.

"Everything is ready. Clean water, incense, candles, cinnabar, and chicken blood—all are prepared. The altar can be set up at any time."

Chen Bingwen nodded, his voice steady and powerful.

Lin Xuan nodded: "Then let's get started on the preparations."

"good--"

Chen Bingwen responded, and then he led his men onto another boat moored to the side.

The two boats were positioned one in front of the other, about ten feet apart, and connected by a red rope.

The front boat is the main altar, and the rear boat is the auxiliary altar.

The battle formation is complete!

The people on the dock, seeing the two Taoist priests take their places, began to murmur even louder.

Behind the crowd.

Two young men dressed in white stood quietly in the shadows.

The two men looked fair-skinned with delicate features, and their clothes were made of the finest silk, making them look exactly like young masters from a wealthy family who had come out to watch the excitement.

However, on the inside of their naturally drooping sleeves, a strange white lotus flower was faintly embroidered.

The lotus flowers were embroidered very small, hidden in the creases of the sleeves, and could not be seen at all unless you looked closely.

One of them was holding a scroll of bamboo slips.

The surface of the bamboo slips had an old, yellowish tinge, but a very faint wisp of black mist slowly swirled between the gaps in the bamboo strips.

The black aura was faint and elusive, blending seamlessly with the shadows of the body, making it invisible to ordinary people.

However, if a cultivator were to perceive it closely at a distance, they would discover that within that wisp of black energy was an extremely faint... aura of a ghost.

The two stood at the back of the crowd, their eyes fixed on two boats on the riverbank.

The man in white on the left watched for a while, then sighed softly.

"We're too late."

"That water ghost in the water is probably not meant for us."

His tone carried a hint of regret, as if he had missed out on a piece of good news.

The person holding the bamboo slips didn't seem to care, and a slight smile appeared on their lips.

"Even if you're not destined to be a water ghost, it's not like you won't gain anything else."

His companion turned and glanced at him, frowning slightly.

"What do you mean?"

The person holding the bamboo slips did not answer immediately.

His gaze slowly swept over Lin Xuan, then landed on Chen Bingwen on another ship.

His gaze was calm, even carrying a hint of gentle smile.

"Aren't there two Taoist priests left?"

He spoke, his voice very soft, as if he were talking about something trivial.