Divine Tang Era

Chapter 142 Setting Off on the Treasure Hunt

Chapter 143 Setting Off on the Treasure Hunt

"Ooh ooh ooh————"

A loud cry came from afar, breaking the tranquility of the morning.

Xu Dan knew without even looking that the sound was his own "bastard rooster" crowing. Ever since he had disciplined it, the rooster had stopped crowing at home and instead went outside to crow every day, hiding very well so that even he didn't know where it was.

The white of the sky gradually faded with the crowing of roosters, revealing a pale blue horizon.

The outlines of distant mountains appeared and disappeared in the morning mist, like an unfinished ink painting, hazy and tranquil. Gradually, the eastern horizon was tinged with a faint purple, as if gently painted by an invisible brush, the colors gradually spreading from light to dark.

Xu Dan and Xiao Que'er sat on the roof and saw the purple aura coming from the east, so they quickly began to breathe in the air.

Yun Niang would usually practice her qi cultivation downstairs, but since there were guests today, she felt embarrassed and went to the kitchen to busy herself. Xue Diao and Xue Bao'er sat in the back, watching quietly.

After finishing his breathing exercises, Xu Dan led Xiao Que'er to practice boxing in the yard.

The rising sun slowly peeked over the horizon, like a shy maiden cautiously unveiling her face. Its light was not dazzling, but soft and warm, bathing the earth in a golden glow.

The morning dew glistened on the grass blades in the yard, like countless sparkling pearls, swaying gently in the breeze.

The wind howled as he punched, his movements as swift as lightning.

Xu Dan had already mastered the Demon-Subduing Fist he learned from the Mo Family Martial Arts School. Every move was as powerful as a mountain and as overwhelming as a raging storm, shaking the heavens and earth; it was also like a sudden clap of thunder, startling down countless stars.

The creation of heaven and earth quelled demons; a cloud dragon explored the sea to subdue monsters, bringing rain that broke through the earth's mantle; embracing the moon, I held my true self; the monkey shrank back, its breath soft and continuous—

Little Magpie had memorized every move and stance of the Demon-Slaying Fist.

At this moment, she was practicing on the side with great skill. Although she was young, her movements were quite adept.

When Xu Dan practiced his boxing, he didn't engage his qi and blood; he only used the strength of his physical body to execute the techniques. Otherwise, if he unleashed a force of ten thousand, coupled with the indomitable, rebellious, and fearless spirit of the Behemoth Emperor facing all the Buddhas and Gods in his boxing intent, this courtyard would probably have been razed to the ground.

Xue Diao watched Xu Dan's actions and secretly admired him.

Although he was a member of the Xue family, he practiced archery more often and wasn't particularly skilled in hand-to-hand combat. Despite his lack of expertise, he had a keen eye. Xu Dan's boxing skills had clearly reached a very high level; every move was full of power and beauty, as if he were one with the universe.

"This is truly masterful!" Xue Diao exclaimed inwardly.

Many people know about "entering the Tao," but few know that there are two more realms before entering the Tao: "entering the subtle" and "understanding the profound."

"Entering the subtle" refers to mastering martial arts or weapons, progressing from proficiency to mastery, and then to a profound understanding of every detail, reaching the pinnacle. "Entering the profound" signifies that after entering the subtle, the body and spirit become unified, allowing one to perceive the universe and comprehend its mysteries. The next step is "entering the Dao." The state of entering the Dao is one of perfect harmony with heaven and earth, unparalleled in its depths and profound mystery, traditionally difficult to describe.

[At this point, I hope readers will remember our domain name 12199.99]

A little while later, Xu Dan finished his morning exercise, wiped the sweat from his forehead, walked up to Xue Diao and Xue Bao'er, and asked, "Have you eaten yet?"

"We ate three big meat buns, and we even bought some more as dry rations," Xue Bao'er said with a smile, her tone tinged with pride.

"You like eating that much?" Xu Dan teased.

"That's right! I feel that the meat buns at that shop are better than all the meat buns in Chang'an, and they're packed with so much meat. Where in Chang'an do you find meat wrapped like that? They're all just a bunch of skin wrapped around a clump of meat." Xue Bao'er looked down on the bun shops in Chang'an without any politeness.

"If Chang'an were to make steamed buns like his family, they would go bankrupt in less than a month," Xue Diao said quietly.

"That's true. With prices in Chang'an, selling so much meat for such a small amount would definitely result in a loss, but if it's too expensive, no one will buy it. Most importantly, if it's too delicious, people will scramble to buy it, and some might even bring sacks to collect it, which is quite alarming," Xue Bao'er added.

"Is it really that exaggerated?" Xu Dan said, somewhat incredulous.

"Really, there are so many fools in Chang'an, and that's exactly the kind of people they're talking about," Xue Bao'er said very seriously.

Suddenly, as if remembering something, he turned and exchanged a glance with Xue Diao, then fell silent. They suddenly realized that the Xue family also had such a "fool," and it was best not to say anything about it, lest they say too much and make a mistake.

Seeing that they had finished eating, Xu Dan didn't ask any more questions and went to eat breakfast on his own.

After dinner, as usual, Mom took Xiao Que'er to school and bought groceries on the way.

Xu Dan, Xue Diao, and Xue Bao'er sat at the entrance, waiting for the Mo Clan Martial Arts School's team.

After waiting for a while, the people from the Mo Clan Martial Arts School walked over, dressed in black robes, holding long swords, fully armed and imposing.

"Grandfather, let's go," Lu Shizong called out.

Xu Dan quickly closed the door, led Xue Diao and Xue Bao'er over, joined the Mo Clan Martial Arts School team, and headed out of the city.

The martial arts school owner didn't seem to be in the crowd. Xu Dan looked around but couldn't find him, so he whispered to Lu Shizong, "Wasn't the owner supposed to be here? Why can't I see him?"

"You'll see it when the time is right," Lu Shizong said mysteriously.

Seeing that he didn't say anything, Xu Dan didn't ask any more questions and just continued to move forward with the group.

Stepping out of the city gate, all that can be seen are low-lying alpine meadows. The terrain of the plateau is not flat; the meadows rise and fall like waves, stretching endlessly to where the horizon meets the blue sky.

However, the monster siege had just ended, and the meadow near the city wall was trampled beyond recognition by the beast tracks, leaving it in a state of utter devastation.

Bloodstains still remained on the grass.

Fortunately, the weather is cold now. If it were summer, there would probably be swarms of flies and insects everywhere.

After leaving the city gate for a distance, the Mo Clan Martial Arts School's group stopped. Lu Shizong took out a round disc from his storage bag, which was engraved with Yin-Yang symbolism, the Eight Trigrams, the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, the Twenty-Four Solar Terms, and the constellations of the four directions. Its shape was very similar to a compass.

"Everyone take out the tags that record the aura of ghosts and place them on the tags. We'll see which direction has the strongest ghost aura, and that's where we'll start searching."

After speaking, Lu Shizong placed his own black wooden plaque on it.

The people from the Mo Family Martial Arts School seemed to know this step was involved; without being told, they all took out their badges. Xu Dan, Xue Diao, and Xue Bao'er did the same.

Numerous dark wooden plaques were placed on it, causing the yin energy to condense and almost turn into mist.

With the weather being cold, some people couldn't help but shiver. Xu Dan, however, was fine; his blood was surging, and he didn't take the chill seriously at all.

After all the signs were placed, Lu Shizong placed a spirit stone in the center of the disc.

In an instant, the Yin-Yang symbol, the Eight Trigrams, the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, the Twenty-Four Solar Terms, and the constellations of the four directions engraved on the disc began to rotate simultaneously, and the condensed Yin energy was dispersed in various directions. Among them, the Yin energy in the south was the most concentrated.

"Head south," Lu Shizong said to the group as he put away the disc.

They put the signs away and headed south, where the ghostly aura was strongest.

Jingning City has a protective array, and there are many people in the city who make a living by digging for treasure. Even if there were things on the ground near the city, they would have been searched long ago, so it is impossible for ghosts to hide nearby.

Therefore, the team could only go to a more distant place.

After walking for a while, someone finally followed the ghost's scent and found a small hill.

Everyone worked together, taking out their tools to dig. Xue Diao and Xue Bao'er had never experienced anything like this before, and they went over to help with great enthusiasm. With someone volunteering to do the hard work, the disciples of the Mo Clan Martial Arts School were naturally happy to relax and readily gave up their positions.