Demon, come and cultivate for me.

In the past few days, the two men, one fat and one thin, have been searching everywhere, almost running themselves ragged.

They searched every corner of Guniu Mountain, from the top to the villages below, and all the clues they found pointed to a man named Zhou Chu.

This man killed the mountain god of Guniu Mountain, set fire to the mountain god's temple, and then disappeared.

The loss of the Crimson Mirage Pearl is closely related to a man named Zhou Chu.

Having heard that someone recently saw a crimson bead in Wuyang City, the two men, one fat and one thin, suspected that it was the Crimson Mirage Bead that had been brought to Wuyang City.

So he searched aimlessly around the city like a headless fly.

At this moment, Zhou Chu was hiding in a nearby house, separated from the two by only one wall.

He listened to every word of their conversation.

He took out the bead from his pocket and thought to himself: So this thing is called the Red Mirage Bead.

The old Taoist priest mentioned by these two men valued this item highly, and was even willing to kill someone to find the bead.

He looked at the bead again and again, but he couldn't figure out how it was related to any magic or immortality.

If you can't figure it out on your own, just ask someone who knows...

As the two men, one fat and one thin, were squatting on the ground, struggling with their predicament, they suddenly heard someone behind them say:

"Are you two looking for me?"

The two turned around at the same time, and saw Zhou Chu walking towards them unhurriedly, holding a crimson bead in his hand.

The skinny man looked closely and recognized it as the Crimson Mirage Pearl they had been searching for for days.

"That's right!" The fat man rolled up his sleeves. "You've delivered yourself right to my doorstep. Hand over the bead, and I'll leave you with a whole corpse."

The skinny man's eyes darted around, and he quickly pushed the fat man aside, saying politely:

"Young man, my junior brother is not good with words, please forgive him."

There are quite a few registered martial artists in this martial city. If we make a move and attract them here, it will be difficult to handle.

Zhou Chu remained silent, intently playing with the Crimson Mirage Pearl in his hand, waiting for the other party to continue.

"You little brat... um..." The fat man's words were cut off by the skinny man's mouth.

"You son of a bitch, you won't die if you keep quiet!" the skinny man cursed, then turned around and put on a smiling face: "Brother, please forgive me. I am Jin Yuan from Jiling Temple. This is my junior brother, Mu Yuan."

May I ask your name?

"Zhou Chu".

"I've heard so much about you... Zhou... Zhou Chu?!" Jin Yuan's expression changed instantly. "You're Zhou Chu?"

"That's right, I am 'that damned Zhou Chu'."

"Hehe." Jin Yuan chuckled awkwardly, slapping himself across the face. "I had a foul mouth, I deserve to die, but even if I die, you shouldn't die. You're the one who vanquishes demons and saves people from suffering..."

Zhou Chu interrupted him without any politeness: "Enough with the nonsense, why are you looking for me?"

"Um... hehe." Jin Yuan rubbed his hands together. "This bead you have in your hand, um... are you selling it?"

"Sell!" Zhou Chu looked up at the two of them. "I'm afraid you can't afford it."

"Name your price. Even if we can't afford it, our master can," Jin Yuan said with a smile.

Right now, all he wants to do is keep Zhou Chu calm. If he can trick him into coming to his master's place, that would be a great achievement.

Zhou Chu held up one finger: "Ten thousand taels, gold."

"Gold... gold?!" Jin Yuan swallowed hard. Damn, they really dare to ask for it.

The fat man, Mu Yuan, wanted to say something, but when he saw Jin Yuan glare at him, he swallowed his words back.

Jin Yuan pointed behind him with his thumb and said, "Why don't you come back with us to find my master? He's rich..."

Zhou Chu wanted to see their master, the so-called old Taoist priest, to get to the bottom of the matter regarding the beads.

So he nodded and agreed, "Lead the way."

Jin Yuan wiped the sweat from his forehead and breathed a sigh of relief.

He thought to himself, "This kid really is someone who values ​​money over life."

The old Taoist master has gone mad for this bead; how could this kid possibly survive in front of him?

Whether this kid lives or dies is none of Jin Yuan's business; right now, saving his and his junior brother's lives is the priority.

Zhou Chu followed the two out of the east gate of Wuyang City, and after only five or six miles, they arrived at Jiling Temple.

He looked at the plaque above the gate and saw the two characters "Ji Ling," and suddenly felt a sense of familiarity.

"Brother, please come in. Our master is inside the temple." Jin Yuan gestured for him to enter.

Zhou Chu did not hesitate and went straight in.

Jin Yuan and Mu Yuan followed closely behind.

The two exchanged a glance, closed the door, and bolted it shut.

Jin Yuan left Mu Yuan to guard the main gate, while he himself went to the backyard of the Taoist temple to find his master, the old Taoist priest.

Zhou Chu entered the Sanqing Hall alone and looked around.

It was nearly dusk, and the Sanqing Hall was brightly lit with candles.

The incense burner was filled with sticks of incense, and the smoke rose in a swirling motion.

The statues of the Three Pure Ones were surrounded by incense smoke.

The hall was spotless, and the murals on the left and right sides were brightly colored, as if they had just been painted.

It seems that Lingji Temple is very popular with worshippers.

A moment later, Jin Yuan followed an old Taoist priest with white hair and beard as they emerged from behind the statue of the Three Pure Ones.

Upon seeing the old Taoist priest, Zhou Chu immediately understood why the name Ji Ling felt familiar.

Jin Yuan's master, this old Taoist priest, was also known to Zhou Chu's original self.

This man's Taoist name was Jiling Daoren, and he could be considered Zhou Chu's half-master.

Three years ago, Zhou Chuyuan received guidance from Daoist Jiling and learned the Dragon Elephant Fist and Dragon Form Guiding Exercise.

In the same year, a mountain demon came to Guniu Mountain, occupied the mountain god temple, and often came down the mountain to harm the villagers.

Under the guidance of the Taoist Jiling, Zhou Chu went up the mountain to deal with the mountain demon and successfully became a shaman.

He led the villagers to worship the mountain demon as a mountain god and made an agreement with it that each village and hamlet at the foot of the mountain would make offerings to it on a regular monthly basis.

From then on, the mandrill stopped coming down the mountain to cause trouble.

Meanwhile, Zhou Chu's original form was also trapped in Guniu Mountain, where he spent his days plundering the villagers' money and searching for women for the mountain demons every month to offer as tribute.

During those five years, he never saw Ji Ling Dao Ren again.

In retrospect, it all seems to have been a series of elaborate schemes set up by Daoist Lingji.

The mountain god, the shaman, and the centipede under the mountain god's temple all seem to be pawns placed by the Taoist Lingji.

The villagers worshipped a mandrill, and the woman who was offered as a sacrifice was brutally violated by the mandrill and eventually thrown alive into the centipede cave.

The centipede cave devoured living people, generating poisonous mist to nourish the Crimson Mirage Pearl...

What a well-laid trap! It's utterly inhumane.

I did all the bad work and bore all the blame, while you, you old bastard, stayed out of it all and reaped the benefits cleanly. You deserve to die! You deserve to die!

In the blink of an eye, Daoist Lingji was already standing before Zhou Chu.

"Amitabha! Zhou Chu, you've become even more vigorous and robust in the years since I last saw you."

Lingji Daoist flicked his whisk, a smile on his face, but his eyes were icy cold.

Originally, seeing that this kid had mediocre talent, he casually gave him some guidance on cultivation techniques and combat skills, and made him work hard for him at Guniu Mountain.

Unexpectedly, in just a few years, this kid's skills have improved by leaps and bounds, and he was able to kill a mountain demon, a great demon in its initial stage.

What's even more despicable is that he killed the centipede monster that nurtured the Crimson Mirage Pearl and stole it, ruining my grand plan.

Once I obtain the Crimson Mirage Pearl, I will crush this brat and use the blood and gourd as food for my insects.

Looking at Ling Jidao's wrinkled, evil old face, Zhou Chu wished he could smash it to pieces with a single punch.

But this old man knows the use of the Crimson Mirage Pearl. Let's pry him open first, get the answer, and then kill him.

This old bastard went to great lengths to kill many innocent people for a single bead.

Even if they are killed, it is still doing a service to the people.

Zhou Chu didn't waste any words, and took out the Crimson Mirage Pearl to get straight to the point:

"Old Taoist priest, are you looking for this bead?"