A long time ago, there were many unknowable places, and in those unknowable places, there were many unknowable people.
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There is a fireball hanging in the distance in the wasteland at dusk. The red light it emits is like a huge flame, spreading slowly but surely. The moss that grew up after the snow melted on the wilderness was smeared everywhere like burn scars. The surroundings were quiet, and only the occasional hawk's cry from above and the sound of yelps jumping in the distance could be heard.
Three people appeared in the open wilderness. They gathered under a small tree that was rare in the wilderness. They did not say hello, but bowed their heads in a tacit understanding. It seemed that there was something interesting under the tree that deserved serious study and consideration.
Two nests of ants were fighting over the light brown tree roots exposed in the cold soil. Perhaps it was because it was difficult to find another perfect home like tree roots in this wasteland, so the war was extremely fierce. After a while, The remains of thousands of ant corpses seemed to be bloody and tragic, but in fact they were just small black dots.
The weather was still very cold, but the three people under the tree didn't wear much clothes. They didn't seem to be very afraid of the cold. They just watched intently. I don't know how long they watched, but one of them suddenly spoke in a low voice: "The earthly ant country, How is the road?"
The person who spoke had childish eyebrows and a thin figure. He was still a teenager. He was wearing a moon-white thin collarless shirt. He carried a thin wooden sword without a scabbard on his back. His black hair was delicately combed into a bun with a wooden fork. Crossing it - the wooden fork seemed like it could fall at any time, but it was as unshakable as the green pine growing on the mountain.
"During the first sermon, I saw countless flying ants rising from the light."
The person who said this was a young monk. He was wearing a tattered kapok cassock. The new stubble on his head was green and black and sharp, and he was as determined as his face and the smell in his words.
The boy with the wooden sword shook his head and said: "Flying ants will eventually fall down, and they will never reach the sky."
"If you always insist on thinking like this, then you will never understand what Taoist heart is." The young monk closed his eyes slightly, looked at the ant colony under his feet that was scattering body parts, and said: "I heard that your temple master recently After accepting a kid named Chen, you should understand that you will never be the only genius in a place like Zhishouguan."
The boy with the wooden sword raised his eyebrows and responded sarcastically: "I have never understood how a guy like you who can't be unruly has the qualifications to walk the world on behalf of the Xuankong Temple."
The young monk did not respond to his provocation. He looked at the anxious ants scurrying under his feet and said: "Ants can fly and fall, but they are better at climbing and laying the foundation for their companions. They are not afraid of sacrifice. They build up ants one by one. As long as there are enough, they will definitely form an ant pile that can reach the sky."
There was a sharp hawk cry in the dusk sky, and he looked very panicked and frightened. He didn't know whether he was afraid of the three strange people under the tree, or the non-existent giant ant pile rising into the sky, or something else.
"I'm scared."
The young man carrying the wooden sword suddenly spoke, his thin shoulders shrinking inwards.
The young monk nodded in agreement, although the expression on his face remained calm and determined.
The third young man under the small tree has a strong body, wrapped in clothes that look like animal skins. His bare legs are as hard as stones. Under the rough skin, you can clearly see the muscles with infinite explosive power. He remains silent. He didn't say a word, but the small dots on his skin finally revealed his true feelings at this moment.
The three young people under the tree came from the three most mysterious places in the world. They were walking around the world under the orders of their masters. They were as dazzling as three stars that traversed the world. But even they felt that they were in this wilderness today. Overpowering fear.
The eagle is not afraid of ants. In its eyes, ants are just black spots. Ants are not afraid of eagles because they are not even qualified to be food for eagles. There are even powerful creatures like eagles in their world that cannot be seen or touched.
However, over thousands of years, I believe that there are always a few mavericks in the ant colony who, for some mysterious reason, decide to temporarily break away from the rotten leaves and shells and take a look at the blue sky, and then their world will be different. .
Because I see it, I am afraid.
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The three young men under the tree raised their heads and looked at a shallow ditch on the ground dozens of meters away. The shallow ditch is naturally not deep, and there is nothing but black inside, which looks particularly clear on the mottled wasteland surface.
This ditch suddenly appeared two hours ago. It suddenly appeared and reached the sky. It seemed as if it was carved out by an invisible ghost with a giant ax as big as a mountain. It seemed like it was drawn by a master craftsman with a giant brush like a rafter. It was chilling. Incomprehensible and fearful.
The young man with the wooden sword on his back stared at the black line and said, "I always thought that the Immovable Pluto was a legend."
"It is said that Pluto has 70,000 children. Maybe this one only occasionally wanders into the world."
"Legends are legends." The young man carrying a wooden sword said expressionlessly: "Legends also say that saints appear every thousand years, but in these thousands of years, who has really seen a saint?"
"If you really don't believe it, why don't you dare to cross that black line?"
No one dared to step across that black line, even the proud and powerful them.
Ants can crawl over it, long-limbed insects can jump over it, gazelles can jump over it, and eagles can fly over it, but only humans can't cross it.
Just because we are human, we dare not cross it.
The young man carrying the wooden sword looked up to the horizon and asked: "If that child really exists, then... where is he?"
At this time, more than half of the setting sun had sunk into the ground, and night was pouring in from all directions. The temperature in the wasteland dropped sharply, and a palpitating atmosphere began to envelope the entire world.
"When night falls, it's everywhere. Where can you look for it?"
The young man wearing animal skin broke the silence. His voice was deep and rough that was inconsistent with his age. The buzzing vibration was like a river constantly rolling, and like a rusty sword clashing with the hard stone. Stop rubbing.
After saying this, he left, leaving in a special way.
Several flames suddenly burst out from his two hard and thick bare legs, covering the boy's lower body in a red color. The howling wind caused the gravel on the ground to roll rapidly, and then it seemed as if there was an invisible force grabbing him. neck, lifting his body more than ten feet into the sky, then whistling through the air, falling hard, hitting the ground hard, and then jumping up again, like a stone jumping into the distance irregularly, looking unusual Clumsy yet extremely fast and powerful.
"I only know his surname is Tang, but I don't know what his full name is."
The young man carrying the wooden sword said thoughtfully: "If we meet at another time and place, only one of him and I will survive. If the apprentice is so powerful, how strong will his master be?... ...I heard that his master has been cultivating the Twenty-Three-Year Cicada these past few years. I wonder if he will be burdened with a heavy shell after he breaks through in the future."
There was silence around him, no one answered, and he looked back with some confusion.
The young monk's eyes were closed tightly and his eyelids were trembling rapidly, as if he was thinking about some troubling issue. In fact, ever since the beast-skin boy said those words about the night, the young monk has been stuck in In this weird state.
Sensing the gaze, the young monk slowly opened his eyes and grinned. The original determination and calmness in his smile had turned into compassion that came from nowhere. The blood inside his open lips was a bit of chewed tongue.
The wooden sword boy frowned.
The young monk slowly took off the rosary beads from his wrist, hung them solemnly on his neck, and then walked away. His steps were heavy and steady, seemingly very slow, but in an instant his figure was blurred and about to disappear in the distance.
There was no one else under the tree. All the emotions on the wooden sword boy's face faded away, leaving only absolute calm, or absolute indifference. He looked at the stone in the dust in the north that kept jumping up and down. The shadow shouted in a low voice: "Evil."
He looked at the back of the young monk in the west, who was walking silently with his head lowered, and said, "Here's a Taoist."
"Not worth mentioning."
Evil demons and outsiders are insignificant.
After saying these words, the thin wooden sword carried behind the young man vibrated involuntarily, making a buzzing sound, rising into the air with a hiss, turning into a stream of light, and chopped down the small tree in the wasteland into fifty-three thousand pieces. Three hundred and thirty-three pieces, regardless of branches or trunks, were all turned into powder, and they spread over the ants who forgot about life and death.
"When the mute speaks, put some salt on the bread."
The young man sang a song and walked towards the east. The thin wooden sword was suspended in the air a few meters behind him and followed silently.
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In the first year of the Apocalypse of the Tang Dynasty, a vision came from the sky in the wasteland, and all the sects of the world gathered here, which made no sense.
From that day on, the disciples of Xuankong Temple practiced Qi Nian and closed their mouths and stopped speaking. The descendant of the Demon Sect surnamed Tang hid in the desert and disappeared. Ye Sukan, the descendant of Zhishou Guan, broke through the death barrier and traveled around various countries. Each of the three got something.
But the three of them didn't know that when night was approaching that day, at the other end of the dark ravine that they didn't dare to cross, and by a small pond in the direction of the capital, there was sitting a scholar, a man in a uniform. A scholar wearing straw sandals and a torn coat.
The scholar seemed not to feel the power and severity represented by the black ravine at all. He held a book in his left hand and a wooden ladle in his right hand. He would read when he had nothing to do, rest less when he was tired, and take a nap when he was thirsty. Hold a ladle of water and drink, covered with dust, with a happy face.
It wasn't until the three people left in the distance, and until the shallow black ravine on the wasteland was gradually leveled by the wind and sand, that the scholar stood up, dusted off the dust on his body, tied the wooden ladle to his waist, and carefully hid the scroll in his coat. Inside, he took one last look in the direction of the capital before leaving.
直到三人远去,荒原上浅浅的黑色沟壑被风沙渐渐夷平,书生才站起身来,掸掉身上的灰尘,将木勺绑在了身上.腰间,小心翼翼地将卷轴藏进外套里.在里面,他最后看了一眼京城的方向,然后就离开了.
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There is a long alley in the capital city of Chang'an. To the east is the residence of Dr. Tongyi, and to the west is the residence of General Xuanwei. Although he is not a top-notch powerful title, his official authority is profound. The long alley is usually quiet, but today it is no longer quiet. .
It was agreed that there was a happy event in the doctor's house, and the midwives were busy coming in and out. However, from the master to the maid, the joy on the faces of everyone in the house always seemed to be mixed with some other emotions. No one dared to laugh out loud. Those The maid who hurriedly walked past the corner with a basin in her arms looked even more frightened when she occasionally heard the sounds coming from outside the wall.
General Xuanwei Lin Guangyuan, who was famous for his bravery, had offended Xia Hou, the most brave general in the empire, and was no longer brave. He was accused of being in contact with the enemy. After several months of personal interrogation by His Royal Highness, the results were finally obtained.
The result is very clear, the punishment is very simple, just four words - behead everyone.
The door to Doctor Tongyi's Mansion was closed tightly. The housekeeper leaned against the crack in the door and looked nervously at the General's Mansion, which had also closed its door. Hearing the sound of heavy objects chopping into pieces of meat from the opposite side, and the sound of those skeletal watermelons rolling, his body was tormented. He couldn't help but tremble.
The two families had lived in the same alley for many years, and everyone in the General's Mansion, from the housekeeper to the disciples, knew him well. Listening to those terrifying sounds, he seemed to see countless sharp knives slicing the necks of familiar people, and saw those heads with familiar faces rolling on the bluestone, then hitting the door, gradually overlapping and squeezing. Pressed into a hill...
Blood dripped out from under the door of the General's Mansion. It was black and sticky, like glutinous rice liquid mixed with cinnabar, and there were some muscle like purple potato wadding in it. The pale butler stared at that place, unable to control it anymore. Due to his own emotions, he leaned forward while holding the door and began to vomit.
Suddenly, there was the sound of rapid horse hooves outside the door, scolding, and then the sound of being beaten roughly. The scolding was vaguely heard, as if someone had escaped from the general's palace. A general from the prince's palace was riding on a horse and shouted: " No one should be left behind!"
There were several scratches and bloodstains on a wall somewhere in the garden of the back house of Doctor Tongyi's house.
"Master, be obedient. You can't go out. Let Xiao Chu go. Let him go..."
In the firewood shed not far from here, a steward of the General's Mansion covered in blood looked at the two four or five-year-old boys in front of him. His withered lips moved slightly, and his voice was hoarse and extremely ugly, full of wrinkles and black mud. His face was filled with despair and struggle, and he continued to struggle until old tears squeezed out of the corners of his eyes, which were so cloudy.
It didn't take long for the Yu Lin army who broke into the Tongyi doctor's house to find the woodshed. After seeing the dead bodies of the old and young in the woodshed , the captain reported loudly with lingering fear: "Everyone is dead."
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The simplest way to interpret the four words "Experts from the World" is that experts generally live outside the world, and those who live outside the world are likely to be experts. There is actually some truth hidden in the nonsense. What they fear is something that mortals cannot touch, and what they are happy about It is beyond the comprehension of mortals.
Therefore, the secular world never knows what is happening outside the secular world, and people outside the world will not pay attention to the scenes of life and death or the joy of rebirth that are going on in the secular world, let alone the butcher's scale that is missing a pound, or the cellar of an alcoholic's house that is eaten out by rats. In Mudong, General Xuanwei died in the court, and a certain civil servant gave birth to a daughter.
The joys and sorrows of the two worlds are never connected.
If you can communicate with each other, you are a sage.
There is a high mountain on the outskirts of Chang'an, the capital city. Half of the peaks are hidden in the clouds. Between the cliffs facing the west of the back mountain, there is a figure slowly climbing up the mountain. The man's back is extremely tall. He is wearing a black blouse on top of his unlined upper garments. There was a food box in it.
Walking swaying in the wind to the outside of a cave, the tall man sat down, opened the food box, took out the chopsticks, put a piece of ginger into his lips and chewed carefully, then picked up two pieces of mutton and ate them, sighing with satisfaction.
The capital city Chang'an under the setting sun will gradually be shrouded in darkness, and there are faint rain clouds floating in the distance.
The tall man looked at somewhere in the capital and said with emotion: "I seem to see you back then."
Then he looked up at the sky, pointed at the sky with a chopstick in his right hand, and said: "As for you, what's the use of flying high?"
Obviously, the objects of these two sentences are two different people.
After a moment of silence, the tall man picked up the rice wine at hand and drank it all in one gulp. He held up the empty wine bowl and looked at the surrounding capitals around the world and chanted: "The wind is coming, the rain is coming, and the night is coming."
When the wind blows, there is a wind coming from outside the mountain, making the skirts of clothes whistle, the old trees among the rocks shaking sharply, and the rocks falling straight down. When the word "rain falls" comes out of his mouth, the rain clouds floating in the distance over the capital city There was a sudden darkness, and countless raindrops turned into a column, pouring down from the last twilight. When he finished these words, the night just occupied half of the sky, and it was as dark as the eyes of Hades.
The tall man put down the wine bowl heavily and muttered in annoyance: "It's so damn dark."
In the spring of the thirteenth year of the Tang Empire's apocalypse, it rained in Weicheng.
This military border city is located at the northwest end of the vast territory of the empire. In order to prevent the invasion of barbarians on the grasslands, the earthen walls in all four directions are extremely thick, and it looks like a solid earthen fence.
During the dry season, the loose soil on the earthen walls will float around when blown by the northwest wind, and then fall on the simple barracks and on the soldiers. The whole world will turn into a khaki color, and people will fall asleep at night and lay down their bedding. There will always be a sandstorm.
During the spring drought, the rain came at the right time and was warmly welcomed by the soldiers. The pattering raindrops from last night to this time washed away the dust on the roof, and seemed to make people's eyes a lot brighter.
At least Ma Shixiang's eyes were bright at this time.
As the highest military officer in Weicheng, his attitude at this time was very humble. Although he was a little dissatisfied with the yellow mud footprints on the expensive blanket, he successfully concealed his dissatisfaction into a just right amount of shock.
He bowed respectfully to the old man in dirty robes next to him, and asked in a low voice: "Dear old man, I don't know if the noble man in the tent has any other needs. If the noble man insists, we will set off tomorrow. , then I can allocate a hundred-man escort to accompany me at any time, and I will make a note and send it to the military headquarters immediately. "
The old man smiled gently, pointed at the figures in the tent, and shook his head to express that he had no objection. At this moment, a cold and proud female voice came from the tent: "No need, just run your own errands."
Early this morning, after the opponent's convoy rushed into Weicheng in the rain, Ma Shixiang didn't take long to guess the identity of the nobleman in the convoy, so he had no objection to the other party's pride and indifference, and did not dare to have any objection.
The people in the tent were silent for a moment, and then suddenly said: "The road in Minshan Mountain is difficult to travel from Weicheng to the capital. It seems that the rain will continue for a while, and maybe some mountain roads will be washed away... You join the army Send me a guide."
Ma Shixiang was stunned, thinking of a certain hateful guy. After a moment of silence, he lowered his head and responded: "There is a ready candidate."
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Several captains outside the barracks looked at each other with different expressions on their faces, including regret, reluctance, joy, and shock. But it was obvious that they did not expect that Ma Shixiang would choose that person to be the nobleman's guide.
"General, are you really going to let him go just like that?" a captain said in surprise.
Weicheng is not large, and all officers and soldiers are all added together without more than 300 people. Sometimes the barracks far away from the bustling land are sometimes more like a bandit nest. The so -called generals are just the lowest level. However, Ma Shixiang was extremely strict, or the Weicheng bandit leader liked to be called the general, so even if it was a daily conversation, the subordinates did not dare to forget to look up and add the word of the general.
Ma Shixiang wiped the rain on his face, watched the yellow -brown stagnant water around the barracks, and sighed with a sigh: "You can't always leave him in the place where the bird does not shit. The great future is waiting for the boy. Anyway, he is going to the capital to conduct the first test of the academy, just right with the noble team, even if you send that noble person. "
"I think the nobleman may not be appreciated ..." The captain answered angrily.
The door of the barracks behind the crowd was pushed away, and a beautiful niece came out, looking at Ma Shixiang and the captains indifferently, "Take me to see the guide."
In the end, it is the personal niece of noble people, and facing the court's side, there is no obscure arrogance.
The prime minister's door, the nobleman, the prince of the prince, this is a very headache character in the officialdom. It is recently causing people to cause trouble. It is the most troublesome. Ma Shixiang was really unwilling to deal with such people. He spoke two gossip at will, and waved his hand to call a school captain and instructed him to take the noble niece to find someone.
The rain was temporarily resting, and the Weicheng of Weicheng after the light rain was particularly fresh. There were three or two branches of Hu Liu beside the road with spring green, but although the scenery was good, but the captain did not take a few steps, the school captain led the niece. The destination is a humble and lively barracks.
Listening to the noise in the door, drinking the scolding order, and the maid frown slightly. Is it true that someone dares to drink in a barracks under the day of light? The curtain was brushed by the wind, and the sound inside was suddenly clear. It really was punching, but it was not a serious wine boxing -listening to the content of the line order, the niece's beautiful face flashed a hint of shame and anger, secretly clenched the sleeves secretly Fist in.
"Let's scratch the sensuality! Who is sensual, you sensuality! Who is sensual, I'm sensuality! Who is sensuality, he is sensual! ..."
The row of the lines of the line of lines is noisy, but after a long time, the victory and defeat have not been able to divide it. Seeing a teenager opposite the square table.
The teenager touched about fifteen or six years old, wearing a common cotton shirt in the army, the cotton shirt was covered with oil stains, and a black hair did not know if it was naturally generated. It was also greasy, but the face was washed very clean, so that the eyebrows were particularly clear, and the freckles on the cheeks were particularly clear.
"Who is sensual, you are sensual!"
Contrary to the contents of the punching boxing, the boy's expression at this time was particularly serious. Not only did he not have a slightest obscenity, but even his eyebrows were a little holy and lofty. Fabrics, punching like wind , and knife with a knife, as if the winning or losing of this punch is more important than his life.
Several green -headed flies with powerful vitality that survived in the harsh environment in the northwest were constantly trying to land on the front of the young cotton shirt that was dyed with oil, but was always driven away by his boxing wind knife.
"I won!"
It seems that the fist of all the air in all the air in the lungs of the two people at the table finally ended. The black -haired teenagers waved their right arm hard and declared their victory. They smiled very happily, showing a cute dimple on the left cheek.
The teenager's opponent refused to lose and insisted that he changed his punch when he finally called who was sensual, so he suddenly fell into a fierce quarrel in the room. At this time, I don't know who yelled: "According to the old rules, listen to Sangsang!"
Everyone puts their attention to the corner of the room. There was a eleven or two -year -old girl moving the bucket on the ground. She was short and thin, her skin tone, her eyebrows, and the maids who didn't know where her owner had stolen from her body. Loose, the hem is dragging on the ground, and the bucket that may be heavier than himself is obviously very difficult.
The little maid named Sang Sang put down the barrel and turned around, and the soldiers looked nervously at her, just like the heroes on the casino waiting for the dealer to open the final size, and it was clear that this scene was no longer no longer this scene was no longer For the first time.
The little maid frowned and glanced at the young man, and then looked at the army who was still angry at the opposite table, and said seriously: "The 23rd round, the cut of you, his fist, but you are talking about him. Less, so you lost at that time. "
There was a laugh in the room, and the crowd spread out. The army scolded the money. The teenager happily took the money with the money, wiped the oil stains on the chest, and then patted the other party's shoulder. Express sincere comfort.
"Want to open some, the whole Weicheng ... no, who can win my good luck throughout the world?"
The maid's face was ugly, so she had been standing next to her face to observe her face, the school captain's face was hard to look. He held the curtain with his hands, took a deep breath, was preparing to cough twice, but was stopped by the two strict eyes stared at by the maid.
Prevent the school captain from aware of the other party. The maid followed the young man and the maid to leave the barracks and looked at it silently all the way. The captain did not know what she wanted to do, so she had to be attributed to the cautious and weird habits of the nobles.
The young man named Ning Que did not show any special places along the way. He bought some food and greeted the fat aunt on the street tavern. It seemed very leisurely. The more ugly, the thin maid dragged the bucket behind him, but the teenager didn't mean to help at all.
The empire is a strict country, but the folk customs are simple. Even if they are the most indifferent nobles in Changan, the capital Changan, they can't watch a thin girl who is eleven twelve years old and can't move.
"Allow soldiers in the army?" Qingxiu's girl forcibly suppressed her anger and asked the captain next to him.
The captain scratched his head and replied: "A few years ago, Hebei Road was drought, and countless exiles flocked to the south and border counties. The roadside was dead. I heard that Sang Sang was taken out of the dead body at that time. Ning Que is also an orphan, and two people have been dependent on each other since then. "
"Later, he signed up for the army. The only condition was to bring this little girl into Weicheng." He glanced at the maid and carefully explained: "Everyone knows that this kind of thing is not allowed in the army, but their situation is a bit special, it is always a bit special. There is no way to force a little girl into a stalemate, so everyone is ... I didn't see it. "
Hearing this explanation, the maid's face looked a little bit better, but when she saw Ning Que's appearance of half a roast chicken, she saw the little maid who dragged the bucket in a few meters behind him to drag the bucket and red black. The thin cheeks, the mood became worse again, and said coldly, "Where is this dependent, he clearly wants the girl's life."
Weicheng is really small. After too many, four people went to a house south to a house in the south. There was a small Shiping outside the house. There was a humble fence on the periphery of Ping.
The little maid moved her half of the tall bucket to the side of the water tank, and then stood on the bench next to the tank to do the abnormal energy of the whole body and poured the water into the tank. While the steamed rice was empty, she took a rag and started wiping the tables and chairs doors and windows. After a long time, there was water mist rising, covering her thin body in it.
Although there was a rain last night, the rain was not large enough. The loess accumulated on the doors and windows was not rushed clean, but it turned into an ugly mud water trace. These mud marks were quickly cleared under the rag of the little maid. The house of the house suddenly became clean and bright.
Obviously, these housework she is doing it every day, she looks very skilled and fast, or the child's little black maid is hard -working like an ant, like a servant woman, walking west like a servant woman, full of sweaty face red, looks a little funny, it looks a little funny And some sympathy ...
The guy named Ning Que obviously lacks these two emotions. He is quietly lying on a bamboo lounge chair, holding a roll of old books with his left hand, and holding a hard branch with his right hand on his right hand. When he kept moving on the wet mud, when he thought about it, he threw the branches in his hand at will, and stretched his palms upwards in the air. After a moment of time, a pot of temperature put the good hot tea on the palm.
The army in Weicheng has long been used to the daily life pictures in this courtyard, so it is not surprising. The noble maids standing outside the fence are gradually cold, especially when the little maid is busy cooking and cleaning. Among them, I dare not forget to pay attention to observing the requirements of the juvenile army. When she is ready to pour tea at any time, she has grown the frost on her face, as if she is going to condense.