Liu Xuande would never be a succubus of the Eastern Han Dynasty!

Liu Bei twitched his nose, then took a sip as the strong man looked expectant, and exclaimed: "...Excellent craftsmanship!"

Jia Xu and Master Lu both looked at this with a sidelong glance, thinking that Xuande was truly courageous, actually daring enough to drink this unknown object directly...

"That's that!"

The smile on the strong man's face became even more intense, but at this moment, Liu Bei suddenly reached out and pressed his head into the soup.

"The host follows the guest. Why don't you try your hand at cooking?"

"Woooooooo..."

While struggling, the strong man drank a big mouthful of soup and his face turned pale in an instant.

"...Xuan De, are you okay?"

Liu Bei stretched the strong man and explained calmly: "There is indeed nothing strange about this soup. Someone just added some seasoning to it."

"What seasoning?"

“…Tsubaki medicine.”

"Ah, then you..."

"It's just a trick. How could I really drink so much when I knew something was wrong? Do you think I'm Senior Sister Gongsun?"

Liu Bei rolled his eyes, then pushed the strong man to the ground and said in a deep voice: "This amount is a bit too much, so, what do you want to do..."

"Husband!"

When the woman heard the noise outside, she hurried to the strong man and protected her beloved man with both hands.

"My Lord God, we were wrong. Please don't hurt my husband..."

"Don't worry, he just fainted, so just tell me what you want to do."

Liu Bei said in a cold tone.

He wasn't one to kill indiscriminately, and he certainly wouldn't let them all hack to death, then use the name "these two people have ulterior motives" to comfortably occupy the room, even going so far as to snatch the clothes off the wall...

Even if it is entirely possible to do so under the current circumstances, Liu Bei would not do so, nor would Master Lu.

Jia Xu really can do it.

It doesn't look like he's after Master Lu and Jia Xu's beauty, and the medicine he gave them didn't intend to poison them. It would be right to find out the reason before taking any action.

Whenever this happened, Liu Bei would secretly guess in his heart.

If Miss Meng De were faced with such a situation, she would probably chop the couple to death as soon as she entered the door, then wear the clothes on the wall, even sleep in their bed, and then burn the place down the next morning...

"As you command, Immortal Master..."

The woman immediately bit her lip, looking humiliated, and explained in a low voice: "We...we just, just, want to borrow...the immortal's seed..."

"?"

Liu Bei and the other two immediately showed extremely surprised expressions.

I thought this broth was made from your flesh, and I thought you had bad intentions, maybe greedy for money or lustful?

But I never thought there was such a possibility.

The borrowed seeds have all run away...

Liu Bei was a little confused: "Just because of this?"

"Yes... because of this..."

The woman blushed, seeming to feel extremely embarrassed. "...The Immortal is so handsome. If...if I get pregnant, our family will definitely be able to leave..."

"What do you mean?"

Liu Bei was almost speechless, but it seemed like there was a chance of a turn of events?

Then the woman continued to tell the story: "My husband didn't tell me the whole story of the divine monkey before... Actually, the divine monkey used some magical power on this dress..."

"Ever since we hung this dress on the wall decades ago, we've discovered that no matter how much time passes, no matter how many times we die, our appearance and age won't change... No matter what happens, we'll always be resurrected right here the next day, and we can't leave..."

"So, so, my husband believes that only by conceiving a divine child... can we completely escape the curse of the divine monkey..."

No buddy, is there really a magical monkey here?

Liu Bei's eyes widened instantly, wondering where the Five Finger Mountain was located. He wondered if he could find time to go over there and give it some bananas, perhaps to build some connections in advance...

But speaking of it.

If it really was the Monkey King who had just gone out that year, it would curse people for no reason... No, maybe it wasn't a curse, but a blessing.

Seeing that Liu Bei remained silent, Master Lu sighed leisurely, "How can the Way of Heaven and the Way of Man be confused? Gods do not become gods simply by being immortal. Only those who become gods are immortal. For mortals, achieving immortality is not a blessing but a curse."

Then, she turned her head and stared at Liu Bei, sighing again: "It's fate. This dress is not given to ordinary people, but is actually a gift from heaven to Xuande..."

Jiujiang County: Chapter 13: Obtaining the Second Heavenly Dao Fragment

"Master," Liu Bei said with a twitch of his lips, "you mean to say that the divine monkey knew I would come here in the future, so he gave the clothes to a mortal in advance so that I can take them away later?"

Why are you so superstitious?

However, if the monkey's surname was really Sun, with its abilities, it might be able to do such a thing.

What's the point?

"Clap."

Master Lu raised his hand and tapped Liu Bei on the forehead, saying in an unhappy tone, "The Analects of Confucius: Shu Er: The Master does not speak of strange things. How can there be gods and immortals in this world?"

"Then you also said..."

"There are no gods in this world, but there is the Way of Heaven," Master Lu interrupted. "The Way is invisible, yet it surpasses the visible. Therefore, to accomplish something with 'nothing' is what is called Heaven's Will."

Liu Bei frowned and said, "You old man, you are actually still reading Taoist books?"

"None of the hundreds of schools of thought are entirely wrong. Only those who thoroughly study the classics can cultivate a noble spirit in their hearts. How can my teachings be necessarily more noble than others?"

Master Lu looked at Liu Bei, who seemed to be lost in thought, and shook his head, saying, "Although the Way of Heaven is destroyed, its fragments will choose their master and serve him."

She paused for two seconds, then continued, "This object has existed here alone, yet no one has taken it away for decades. Xuande, the Way of Heaven has no independent consciousness; it can only subtly influence all things. Therefore...it's entirely up to you whether you take it or not."

Liu Bei gradually understood.

What the Master meant was probably that Heaven will not force the treasure into your hands, but will, through a series of designs, put you in a situation where you have to choose or not.

If they choose not to take this item, then the couple will remain here, waiting for the ruthless passage of time, until the next person chosen by Heaven arrives...

It’s unknown how many years it will take, and it’s also questionable whether that person will choose to take it away.

And if it's taken away... Haha, would Heaven really be so foolish as to leave you any treasure?

When the Way of Heaven breaks apart and the Way of Heaven is born, people will no longer be controlled by "fate".

Therefore, collecting fragments of the Heavenly Dao is equivalent to helping the Heavenly Dao repair its body. After reaching a certain level, He will be able to regain control of the fate of the world.

Liu Bei was not sure whether people had good or bad fate. The only thing he was clear about was... Heaven also bears grudges.

Since it was the great-grandfather who cut it apart, then after the return of Tiandao, the first people he will deal with will definitely be those who hold the fragments of Chixiao.

Although he didn't understand why he could absorb the fragments of the Heavenly Dao, he must be more careful to avoid being harmed by the Heavenly Dao without noticing.

This is the choice proposed by Heaven.

Liu Bei was silent for a while, then asked hesitantly, "Master, what are your suggestions?"

My advice?

Mr. Lu suddenly found it a little funny.

This silly disciple probably thought she was a really good teacher... But in reality, she was the biggest lackey of the Heavenly Dao.

She was born with a fragment of the Heavenly Dao in her body, which meant that she was destined to fight with the descendants of the Liu family.

Even if she has suppressed the fragments of the Heavenly Dao now, she doesn't know how long she can suppress it, and she doesn't know if she will turn into a little girl before that.

By then, I'm afraid I'll have gone from being the teacher leading Xuande forward to being a mere follower at his heels...

Master Lu was silent for a long time, then smiled faintly and said, "... Let me test you. There's a line from Mencius's "Exerting One's Mind" that perfectly fits the situation. Do you know which line it is?"

Liu Bei opened his mouth, then smiled and said, "'A gentleman has three joys: his parents' joy, his teacher's joy, and his descendants' joy.' Is that the line?"

"Bullshit! Where did you make up this nonsense?"

"Master, please speak clearly."

Master Lu laughed and scolded, "Silly boy, of course it's the saying 'A man who knows his destiny does not stand under a rock wall.'"

Liu Bei seemed to know what the Master would say, and immediately continued, "Master, I beg you to explain this more clearly. According to the context, this statement is about following the Way of Heaven. But if you take it out of context, it means 'A gentleman does not stand under a dangerous wall.'"

"Just know it in your heart."

"But I don't know it in my heart." Liu Bei bowed and said, "Besides, the teacher's role is to resolve doubts; the disciple's role is to be confused. I hope the teacher can resolve my doubts. After all, the teacher's joy is my joy."

What this means is: I will listen to you in everything.

Faced with this trust, Master Lu felt a warm feeling in his heart, but he snorted, "I didn't teach you how to deceive people with lies. Humph, go away and figure it out on your own."

"The words are rough but the truth is..."

Liu Bei shook his head, then slowly walked to the wall and took the clothes hanging there without any hesitation.

"Hey, Xuande," Jia Xu, who had been watching, said, "Why did you just take it without thinking for a second?"

"What's there to think about?"

As Liu Bei began to remove his clothes, he smiled and said, "A benevolent person loves others, and a righteous person benefits others. Just a little effort can help them end decades of suffering, so why shouldn't I do it?"

Jia Xu said tentatively: "Because they just tried to harm you..."

"I'm fine, but he's collapsed there. What harm is there?" Liu Bei shook his head. "Besides, he's already being a host by inviting us in. From his perspective, this is just a painful situation with no other solution."

His life has been extended for decades because of the fragments of the Heavenly Dao... He watches the world change and his descendants die, but he himself remains eternal and cannot leave this place.

This is undoubtedly a torture to the soul.

Anyone placed here would go crazy, so it is not surprising that they believed that as long as they conceived a son from the gods, they would be able to escape.

"Besides..." Liu Bei sighed, "Hasn't their punishment arrived yet?"

The moment the clothes fell from the wall, there was a flash of white light.

The strong man woke up at some point, and together with his wife, he was bathed in the white light. He knelt down and kowtowed to Liu Bei: "Thank you, God, for liberating us... Thank you, God, for liberating us!"

A white light flashed, and their young skin aged rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye, their black hair turned gray, and in the end... only a pile of dry bones was left.

When the so-called "curse" of the monkey god disappears, the fate owed to heaven will naturally be returned.

Liu Bei looked at the dry bones on the ground and said, "They say this is my kindness, but I say this is their punishment. Oh, the same event, yet there are different views. This world is really interesting."

The clothes in his hand melted away, and the fragments of the Heavenly Dao in his body expanded five times.

Master Lu looked at the scene calmly, with some appreciation in his eyes, but more of anger.

because……

"Xuan De, you finished them all off with just a few gestures. How handsome! Now, who will cook?"

Liu Bei's face suddenly turned pale.

Jiujiang County: Chapter 14: Master Lu still loves his disciples

On a thunderstorm night, the natural thing to do is to solve the problem of dining.

This broth with a lot of technology and harsh words is naturally unpalatable.

Fortunately, there was food stored in the kitchen, so Liu Bei and Master Lu cooked some food. After eating normally, they sat down around the fire.

The night is dark.

Although there is a wooden bed in this room, it belongs to the "deceased person". They have just liberated the person, so they naturally won't feel comfortable sleeping on it.

Moreover, along the way, they always had to find a tree to lie down and sleep in the wild. Liu Bei and the other two were not spoiled people, so naturally they didn't care much about this.

At least there is fire.

Jia Xu hugged his legs, rested his chin on his knees, shook his head, and then seemed to "inadvertently" lean on Liu Bei's shoulder.

Liu Bei raised his eyebrows, reached out to adjust the guy's posture, and then moved his head over.