chsdbacks Chapter 64 Playing in the Mortal World, Gods and Immortals Dragging Their Ways Among Humans.
Chapter 64 Playing in the Mortal World, Gods and Immortals Dragging Their Ways Among Humans.
Chang'an City.
Skyscrapers stand tall, traffic flows like a river, and the streets are filled with stylishly dressed men and women.
Along the ancient city wall, crowds come and go, their laughter, horns, and music mingling together to create a vibrant and bustling scene.
Near the ancient buildings, many young men and women dressed in Hanfu were taking photos and checking in with their mobile phones, their clothes fluttering in the breeze.
Dressed in a Taoist robe, Huang Bai walked among the crowd without drawing too much attention.
The aroma of various snacks wafted from the shops along the street.
Huang Bai paused slightly in his steps.
"It's been so long since I've had anything decent to eat."
Over the past ten years or so, the food he eats has indeed become increasingly unlike what a normal person would eat.
They ate nothing but elixirs and spring water, and had almost forgotten what ordinary human food tasted like.
Huang Bai stood in front of the stall, looking at the sizzling, oily snacks, and his mouth was unusually tempted.
The next moment, his expression froze slightly.
"...I have no money."
He hadn't actually carried money in a long time.
In the past, if one was short of money, whether in Hong Kong or in other parts of the world, there were always ways to obtain it from casinos and money shops and use it as needed.
Now that I've just returned to reality, and only have one day left, it's clearly too late to make another trip back to Macau.
Huang Bai stood on the side of the street, a rare look of helplessness on his face.
Just then, sad music drifted from the alleyway next door.
He turned his head and saw a ragged beggar sitting in a homemade wooden wheelchair, looking miserable and haggard. In front of him was a bamboo basket for holding change, and next to it was a QR code for receiving payments.
"Now even beggars have QR codes for receiving payments."
Huang Bai glanced at him again, and with a sweep of his divine sense, he knew that the man had all four limbs intact and that his so-called disability was an act.
"Perfect."
He subtly moved his fingers, quietly forming a hand seal.
A sudden gust of cold wind rose from the ground, and the people at the alley entrance felt a chill on their collars and instinctively shrank their necks.
Immediately afterwards, two white figures, invisible to ordinary people, swept out from behind Huang Bai, blowing out a breath of yin energy.
call!
The banknotes in the bamboo basket were suddenly swept up by the cold wind and flew towards the other end of the alley.
"Oh! Oh! My money! My money!"
The beggar's face changed drastically. He no longer cared about pretending to be disabled. He jumped up from his wheelchair and scrambled after the flying banknotes.
The passersby were stunned at first, but then they all realized what was happening.
"Turns out he was faking his disability!"
"How shameless!"
"Take a picture quickly and post it online!"
"Call the police! Call the police immediately!"
Huang Bai stood at the edge of the crowd, watching the fake beggar's pathetic attempt to chase after money. He shook his head and chuckled, then turned and walked in the opposite direction.
"Boss, one serving of stinky tofu, please."
"Another roujiamo (Chinese hamburger), please."
"Red willow roasted pork, crispy pork, and cold noodles, a little of each."
Before long, his hands were full of various snacks, which he ate slowly as he walked.
Milk tea, ice jelly, grilled skewers, cold dishes, snacks...
For over a decade, he has roamed through various realms, and he has hardly ever truly relaxed for a single day.
Now, returning to the mortal world, carrying food in one hand and tucking the other in his sleeve, walking the streets, he truly seems to have achieved some spiritual enlightenment and is now descending the mountain to enjoy life.
Before he knew it, he had arrived at the apartment building where he used to rent a place.
Things have changed, and the landlord has probably already thrown away his things.
Now that I don't have a cell phone, I can't contact my family.
"never mind."
Huang Bai waved his hand, and before he finished speaking, he had disappeared around the corner.
The gatekeeper looked up and rubbed his eyes.
"Did someone just come by?"
Huang Bai walked down the street, glanced back at the direction of the residential area, and felt calm.
"This can be considered the end of a worldly connection."
In the time that followed, Huang Bai simply let loose and wandered around the city, taking advantage of a rare day of free time to savor the long-lost human touch.
As Huang Bai walked, a strange sense of alienation suddenly arose in his heart.
He had clearly returned to his own world, yet he seemed like a stranger returning from afar.
In a single day, he traveled through many parts of the city and secretly explored many places with his divine sense.
The result was that nothing was gained.
There was no spiritual energy, no evil spirits, no remnants of magical lineage, and not even the slightest trace of extraordinary fluctuations.
"It seems that this world truly is a land without demons."
"Or rather... it used to exist, but it's all gone now."
As Huang Bai pondered this, he walked into Chang'an Ward in the south of the city.
At this moment, he now wore a white crane mask, a wide robe, and walked with ease. Passersby turned to look at him, but he paid no attention.
Unbeknownst to him, he had arrived in front of a vast complex of palace and temple buildings.
The memorial archway soars high, its eaves layered upon each other, and the palaces stand one after another. Above the central plaque are four large gilded characters:
Everlasting
In front of the temple, buses stopped one after another, and Taoist priests dressed in various colored robes got off the buses, some old and some young, with different expressions.
This place is the largest Taoist temple in Chang'an City—Wanxian Palace.
At this moment, a banner is still hanging above the mountain gate.
[Warmly celebrate the successful completion of the Xuan Tan Dharma Assembly]
A Taoist priest was stationed at the entrance to greet visitors, and would immediately speak to them as they approached.
"Fellow practitioners, please note that electronic devices are not allowed inside during the Dharma assembly. Please store them in your belongings."
The Xuantan Dharma Assembly, held every three years, is a grand gathering where Wanxian Palace brings together Taoist priests from the Northwest region.
Today is the last day.
"Perfect timing, let's go in and see if there's any real magic."
Huang Bai quickly changed his mind and slipped into the meeting room.
There were no worshippers here, only Taoist priests coming and going. He wore a mask, which made him stand out even more, and many eyes had already fallen on him along the way.
"What kind of Taoist priest is that? And why is he dressed like that?"
"Since they were allowed in, there must be a reason from the organizers."
The crowd whispered their guesses, but no one stepped forward to ask further questions.
The Taoist priest in charge of receiving guests was leading the visiting Taoist priests on a tour of the layout of Wanxian Palace.
"On either side are the Bell Tower and the Drum Tower."
"The bridge ahead is called the Encountering Immortals Bridge. Underneath the bridge hang gold coins and a golden bell, which were erected to commemorate the encounter between the Patriarch and the two immortals Zhong and Lü in the past."
"Behind is the Lingguan Hall, which enshrines Wang Lingguan."
"The main hall enshrines statues of the Eastern Emperor and the myriad immortals."
Huang Bai followed the crowd, walking and looking around, but his heart was not much turmoil.
"Most of them are newly built buildings with a strong commercial atmosphere."
In this day and age, everything still revolves around money.
The same applies to Taoist temples.
Soon, everyone arrived at the altar.
The seats in the venue were neatly arranged. Young Taoist priests with less experience could only stand on the periphery, while those who were older and more senior sat in the front row.
"Please welcome Elder Xuanqing of Wanxian Palace to expound the Tao Te Ching to everyone."
applause.
An elderly Taoist priest with white hair and beard slowly ascended the altar, his voice steady as he recited the scriptures.
At first, everyone was quite attentive. But as they listened, many of the young Taoists gradually became distracted, their eyes glazed over, clearly not truly taking it in.
At the Xuantan Dharma Assembly, only a few old Taoist priests at the beginning were still seriously discussing scriptures and Dharma.
Later on, it increasingly resembled a modern management conference.
Someone pulled out a PowerPoint presentation and began explaining the Taoist temple's development plan, business strategy, annual revenue, cultural tourism integration, and new media development...
"We should learn from short video operations and build our own communication matrix."
"That's right. We can find young Taoist priests with good looks to appear on camera and create traditional cultural content to enhance the reputation of the Taoist temple."
"You also need to learn to follow trending topics, use abstract memes, collaborate with bloggers, and increase your exposure."
"Tickets, cultural and creative products, religious items, and blessing packages can all be designed with great care."
The speaker on stage was speaking enthusiastically, and the audience members nodded in agreement from time to time.
Huang Bai stood in the crowd, listened quietly for a while, and suddenly found it somewhat amusing.
"People's hearts are no longer what they used to be."
Beside the main seat on the altar, Elder Xuanqing sighed softly.
The abbot of Wanxian Palace beside him smiled upon hearing this.
"Uncle-Master, times have changed."
"If we don't keep up with the times, how will the Taoist temple survive? How will it worship the gods and spread its teachings?"
"We can't really expect our disciples to live on meager rations, guarding a dilapidated temple and practicing asceticism, can we?"
"Look at that Master Shi, he became famous overseas by spreading Buddhism. Why can't our Wanxian Palace learn from him?"
Elder Xuanqing snorted coldly.
"Why spread it overseas?"
"To acquire more land, sell more tickets, build bigger temples, and buy better cars?"
The abbot's smile faltered slightly at what he was being told, but he did not back down.
"Incense offerings rely on people to gather. Without people, where does the incense come from? Without incense, what is there to talk about with the gods?"
This is no longer just a verbal dispute, but a direct clash between old and new Taoist concepts.
On one hand, some believe that Taoists should be pure and detached from fame and fortune, cultivating themselves in ancient temples with only the flickering lamp.
On the other hand, some believe that times have changed, and if they do not take advantage of the situation, the lineage will only decline.
Both ideas have their merits.
The Dharma assembly lasted from daytime until dusk, as darkness fell and lights were gradually lit up.
While everyone was still debating things like management, dissemination, and inheritance, Huang Bai, who was in the crowd, had quietly disappeared without anyone noticing.
next moment.
It shone with golden light.
A dazzling light crashed down from the dome, instantly illuminating the entire altar as if it were daytime.
"What happened?"
Everyone gasped and looked up.
A golden phantom pierced through the roof of the palace and slowly descended.
The newcomer wore a yellow robe and black shoes, his hair was tied up and he had no crown. His face was covered by a white crane mask, and his vertical pupils looked through the mask, sending chills down one's spine, as if every thought could be seen through.
Its form was half real and half ethereal, seemingly real yet illusory, with golden light flowing around it, mysterious and unpredictable.
For a moment, the entire venue fell silent.
It really is:
The scenery fades and the lights dim, a sound of footsteps comes from the heavens.
"This is……"
"immortal?"
"Amitabha Buddha!"
"Greetings, Immortal!"
Some people were so frightened that they stepped back, some were stunned, and others, like Elder Xuanqing, were excited and immediately bowed in respect.
The abbot of Wanxian Palace was completely frozen in place.
He had recited countless incantations, worshipped countless statues of gods, and presided over countless ceremonies, but this was the first time he had ever truly seen a deity descend from the sky.
A golden phantom stood in mid-air, slowly raising its hand, golden light emanating from its palm.
Whoosh!
A ray of golden light pierced the sky and landed directly on the stone tablet in front of the hall.
The next moment, the golden phantom slowly faded away before everyone's eyes and vanished without a trace.
(Requesting monthly votes)