The chirping of birds echoed softly beneath the towering ancient trees.
An hour later, the winding blue stone steps in front of Xuanzhen Temple came into view.
A few people disembarked from the carriage and bowed to Master Jian to bid farewell, watching him leave with a silver box in hand.
That silver box was the compensation from Huang'e County for the ritual ceremony.
This public reward needed to be submitted and recorded in the temple's accounts, which would go into the temple's public ledger.
The other public items borrowed for the sacrificial rites would be returned uniformly by the Fuyuan Hall's Shao Shen.
Everyone took their respective bags and prepared to leave.
Seeing that Shaoyang seemed to be filled with combat intent and was looking for him to duel, Bai Yichen quickly turned around, using his footwork to slip away gracefully like a cicada leaping.
He hadn't practiced martial arts yet and had no time to play around with him.
"Shaoyang, why did you scare Shouchong into running away?"
Shao Nian couldn't help but tease a little.
Shaoyang's eyes twitched slightly as he helplessly said, "Shouchong, it was just a… simple match of a few moves."
Instead, Shaosen watched Bai Yichen's graceful movements as he left and silently thought to himself that he was impressive.
This movement technique was the Eight Trigram Cicada Step that Bai Yichen received from Master Du Jiang after officially becoming a certified Daoist and transferring to the Chuanjing Hall. It resonated with the mysteries of Daoism, followed the principles of the Eight Trigrams, and contained the way of yin and yang harmonization, making it quite extraordinary.
It also spared him the risk of using the martial arts footwork from his past life.
Many people in the temple only saw a figure in Daoist robes flash by, and by the time they turned to look, it had already vanished.
...
Before long, Bai Yichen had returned to the backyard assigned to him in the Chuanjing Hall.
"Senior Brother, you're back!"
The little junior brother, who had been practicing standing meditation, immediately rushed over with joy upon seeing Bai Yichen return.
"Where are the delicious things?"
Previously, the little junior brother had insisted on going down the mountain with Bai Yichen when he heard he could leave, so Bai Yichen had promised to bring back some fun and tasty items from below.
He first took out the exquisite pastries from yesterday's box, and then he pulled out a few spinning tops and a nine-link puzzle that he had commissioned the steward of the Wang residence to buy in the county town, giving them to his little junior brother.
While the little junior brother played with the toys, Bai Yichen casually asked about the happenings in Xuanzhen Temple over the past couple of days.
"Um… The Daoists in the Chuanjing Hall are all well. I attended the morning sutra chanting, and I've been following your advice to practice every day. Other than that, I just eat and sleep on time…"
It seemed to be just as usual, which reassured Bai Yichen.
Although with the little junior brother's strength, he naturally wouldn't be able to detect the investigations by Heishi's experts, the presence of so many capable martial artists in the temple would certainly lead to discussions if anything unusual happened.
It appeared that Heishi was temporarily planning to focus on their strategies of collaboration and didn't dare to send people to investigate directly.
Bai Yichen then took on the role of a guardian and collected the small toys, urging his little junior brother, whose mouth was full of pastry crumbs, to finish his training for the day. Only by enduring the hardships of martial arts like him could he enjoy the pleasures of the outside world.
Having just completed his warm-up using the Eight Trigram Cicada Step, he decided to set an example by starting his martial arts training for the morning.
Bai Yichen focused his body, straightened his legs, and threw a left punch, using all his strength. His right hand extended diagonally downward like the blazing sun, executing the One Yang Opening Tai Chi technique, with a faint bronze hue radiating from above.
The inner strength flowed into his body, and once he reached the acquired stage, the inner energy could strengthen the bodily meridians that he had not touched before, causing the inner layers of his muscles to tremble with each punch.
After several punches, a series of crisp cracks echoed from his bones, signaling the successful flow of energy through his meridians.
Sweat trickled down, and vapor rose; his morning training was finally complete.
Afterward, he bathed and changed clothes to calm his mind, intending to find Master Guanzhi.
After all, he was currently one of the highest authorities he could reach within the temple, and perhaps he could take this opportunity to meet the old temple master.
However, before that, he had to report back to the supervising master in the Chuanjing Hall about the ritual ceremony.
He first bowed and paid his respects, then narrated the details of the ritual ceremony he had attended while gracefully pulling out a bag of silver from his long sleeves, offering it without hesitation to express his gratitude.
"If it weren't for your guidance, I wouldn't have gained anything here. Please accept this."
Master Jian looked at Bai Yichen with a smile and nodded in satisfaction.
"Disciple, your filial piety is commendable, but this is also due to your own excellence. I appreciate the sentiment; keep the money for yourself."
With a wave of his long sleeves, the silver returned to Bai Yichen's hands.
"Thank you, Master."
He accepted it and immediately cupped his hands in thanks before putting away the silver.
Bai Yichen knew very well that Master Jian, as one of the five masters of Xuanzhen Temple, was certainly part of the upper echelon and wouldn't lack for such trifling gifts.
But precisely because of this, he wanted to show his respect, conveying abundant emotional value and a proper attitude. Such gestures would lead to further recommendations in the future.
Then, Bai Yichen made an excuse to personally thank Master Guanzhi and headed toward the rear hall.
At that moment, Master Guanzhi was, as usual, meditating in the back hall of the Chuanjing Hall, burning incense. Bai Yichen soon entered.
Upon hearing the noise, Master Guanzhi looked up and gave Bai Yichen a knowing glance.
"Shouchong, today doesn't seem to be a day for me to teach you martial arts."
"If it's about the ritual ceremony, it was also Master Jian who recommended you after noticing your achievements in studies; it's not my merit."
Bai Yichen nearly stumbled over his words upon hearing this, but relying on his experience from his previous life in the palace, he quickly changed the subject and exchanged polite compliments with Master Guanzhi.
"Master, after the sticky ritual ceremony during this trip down the mountain, I encountered Daoist Guanzhi, who brought disciples back to the temple years ago. I heard some alarming news and had to report it to you."
"Wasn't Guanzhi supposed to have resigned from the Daoist path and returned home a couple of years ago? What happened?"
Bai Yichen then informed Master Guanzhi about the incident, omitting some details that he found inconvenient to disclose at the moment.
Of course, in his words, he particularly emphasized that Daoist Guanzhi had been coerced by poison back then, which forced him to comply and become an undercover agent for Heishi. He also stated that over the years, he had not caused any substantial harm to Xuanzhen Temple.
His risky decision to relay this information was driven by his gratitude for the teachings he received from Xuanzhen Temple over the years. Since he was the person Daoist Guanzhi had brought back to the mountain, he wanted to inform them of this incident through him.
After waiting for Master Guanzhi to form his first impression of the situation, Bai Yichen took out the letter written by Daoist Guanzhi from his chest and handed it over as proof of the truth of his words.
From the moment Bai Yichen began speaking, Master Guanzhi's brow gradually became serious. After he received the letter and read it carefully, his expression became even more grave, with a furrowed brow and a complex look on his face, showing both anger and caution.
"Daoist Guanyun and the others… sigh… Heishi!"
In an instant, the hall fell into silence, and even the air felt heavy as they could only hear the sound of Master Guanzhi taking a few deep breaths.
After a while…