Myriad Paths

Walking into the building boat, Li Qi looked down from the middle floor of the building boat.

This building is basically a skyscraper floating on the water, more than 30 feet high, with a red pavilion and green pavilion, which can be seen suddenly. There are rows of houses upstairs and hundreds of various banners, half hidden in the air. Halfway up the road, like the colorful clouds in the east sky, there are more buildings with mist and star-picking, and the trees are like the mountains. Among them are many shops, roadside wine shops, and bridgeside tea stoves. It is completely a large complex shopping mall.

Many Chang'an locals relax, shop and spend money here.

Li Qi and Qiu Zhi bought two cups of tea. It was a new type of tea from outside the country. It was not produced in the world. It was said that it came from the ice leaves that grew from a certain kind of spiritual hub. It had no bitter taste, but was a little sour and sweet.

Humanity does not exclude these specialties from outside the territory. On the contrary, a large number of specialties that Humanity likes are sent over every day, which makes many of Humanity's products become better and better with each passing day.

Li Qi looked at Qiu Zhi and paid with only copper coins, and said with some emotion: "This price is really cheap. The people of the Tang Dynasty can enjoy the specialties sent from hundreds of millions of light years away with just a few copper coins. I'm afraid this money It’s not even enough for shipping, right?”

Qiu Zhi replied: "If you only transport this one, it will not be enough, but if you add other items, it will be fine. Specialties from thousands of worlds always have different values. As the center of the world and the capital of all worlds, this place is the center of the world and the capital of all worlds." , it has to be a little bit of everything.”

Li Qi shook his head: "If the capital of all worlds wants to have everything... then what else should we do elsewhere?"

"I know, the view of witchcraft is that you should go wherever you want to eat, but that would be inconvenient, wouldn't it? It's convenient for others." Qiu Zhi said calmly while drinking tea.

It is convenient for people, so it is necessary to bring together thousands of specialties from all over the world.

People must be the center of everything, and everything must revolve around "people".

Li Qi was very uncomfortable with this attitude, even though according to the classification of humanity, Li Qi was also a real 'human'.

In the eyes of humanity, there are actually only "people who pursue the Way". These "people" are truly noble, intelligent, rational, able to divide work, cooperate, coordinate, and work together to achieve the ultimate goal.

And noble people with these qualities are born with the ability to understand the world and transform it.

Other than that, living things are tools, raw materials, resources, and moving ‘mines’.

"I still can't accept that this world is not just for humans." Li Qi looked outside and said.

Qiu Zhi was unceremonious: "Witch's hypocrisy. You are also human beings. You enjoy all the privileges and conveniences created by humans, and then you start to say that the world does not only belong to humans."

"We have different definitions. We do live in everything created by our own hands, but they also live in everything created by their hands, the exquisite spells created by Wu Shenshan, and the clumsy instruments they created. Although they have advantages, There is no distinction between inferior and superior, they are all just things done for one's own purpose. A person's life is always noble, just like fire. If you tire yourself, you will also burn others. "Li Qi. So said.

"If you can't abandon the instinct of the beast and only pursue leisure and comfort, then why should you practice? People should become a torch, lighting up this world." Qiu Zhize replied.

"Do you light up the world? Or do you use the world as fuel to light up yourself?" Li Qi asked back.

Qiu Zhi took a sip of tea and said: "There is no difference. If this world only has stones, beasts, and plants, wouldn't it be too sad? In such a mundane world, only the light of human beings can illuminate it. The lotus emerges from the mud and remains unstained. So are people."

This is the humane point of view.

In this world of nothingness and chaos, thoughts are the only light. The world originally has no meaning. All meanings are given by people themselves. The world itself is just a mass of matter, some energy, and some fluctuations. If there are no thoughts and people to provide it, If given meaning, then everything in the universe is just nothingness. The essence of beasts is just some compounds of Qi, which are no different from stones. What can really distinguish beasts from stones is their thoughts.

Thoughts distinguish people from other things in this world.

With thoughts, people can give meaning to this world, and people are the purpose of the existence of this world.

Li Qi did not refute, because the two of them just said that. In fact, they both knew that it was impossible to convince the other party.

Li Qi didn't say anything more. He stood up and walked to the window of the building.

Reaching out to open the window, you can see the long river, but you can see the waves rippling below, the cattails are rustling, the incense breeze is cooling, and there are other boats outside, and there are also singing, dancing, and various performances. From time to time, they pass by the window, and the world is soft. It's a hard-to-find situation.

If you don't consider humanity's view of the world, humanity is still very beautiful. Li Qi actually appreciates their self-discipline and various restraints on themselves.

After all, humanity does not have double standards. As strict as they are on 'resources', they are also strict on themselves. Even if they are a first-class humane, they have always restrained themselves and made themselves conform to the rules of the public.

In comparison, Li Qi seemed too casual.

But...that's all.

After drinking tea, Li Qi and Qiu Zhi walked to the top floor of the boat. There were many restaurants and shops here, and various craftsmen showed off their cooking skills.

Li Qi came here excitedly and wanted to eat mutton, so he found a mutton restaurant, sat down, and ordered.

I said I wanted to eat mutton, but actually I was watching it more than eating it.

After all, most of the restaurants on the roof of this building have two brushes, which are not comparable to ordinary small shops. For example, here, the mutton is cut and eaten fresh, and the sheep used as raw materials are of high quality. They range from eighth to ninth grade, obviously stuffed by humane breeding farms.

Qiu Zhi paid and watched the performance with Li Qi.

It was said to be a performance, but in fact it was just at the market, nothing unusual for a fourth-grade person.

The meat cutter was meticulous in his craftsmanship and took out a big knife. It was a kitchen knife, but it was very thick. It was like a palm-sized iron plate. He saw Li Qi starting to order the meat. When he opened his mouth, he opened the head, cucumber strips, and three forks. , big fat piece.

Li Qi ordered one, and the chef took out the corresponding piece of meat. The meat was not frozen, but soft to the touch. Meat with this kind of touch cannot be cut well without skill.

But the chef moved very quickly and cut the meat very thinly. He showed off his knife skills near the counter. He took out a piece of meat, covered it with a piece of cloth, pressed the meat with one hand and cut it with the other. His knife skills were sharp and as thin as cicada wings.

When eating meat here, you can grill it or make hot soup. Li Qi chose grilling, so there was a stove in front of him. There was an iron plate with holes on it. After the chef cut it on the counter, the meat slices flew directly. When Li Qi piled them on the plates next to the iron plate, Li Qi shouted and the corresponding meat flew out. At the same time, other people in the store were also shouting. The master cut dozens of tables by himself, but it didn't seem laborious, which shows his knife skills. Yes, if used to kill people, it is also a good hand.

However, humanity is of no use.

On the stove, what is used to barbecue is not charcoal or firewood, nor energy such as magic or fire gas, but the processed and smoke-removed spiritual pine trees, so it has a special aroma, so barbecue does not require many condiments. Only a little salt and pepper is needed, or even no salt and pepper is needed to enjoy the deliciousness of the meat without any fishy smell.

Li Qi just ate meat and nothing else, but Qiu Zhi next to him was different. His eating method was more particular than Li Qi's, so he ordered some green onions.

This is a green onion, white and thick as sugar cane. The chef's skillful knife skills cut it diagonally into slices, and then turned it into dragon's whisker-like threads with a few cuts. It tastes tender and sweet. It is mixed into the barbecue and a basket of sesame seed cakes is served.

This is a sesame pancake. It is very light and thin. There are only two thin layers of skin on the top and bottom. The sesame seeds are stuck on both sides. When you open it, you will get a hot steam. The barbecue mixed with seasonings and shredded green onions is stuffed in the middle. Eat it again, mix the fat and sesame seed cakes, and add shredded green onions to relieve the greasiness, giving it a unique flavor.

The two no longer talked about business or cultivation, but talked about some interesting things about Chang'an they had seen. Li Qi talked about some interesting things about when he was studying in Taixue. This topic interested Qiu Zhi because he had not read Too learned.

The selection threshold for Taixue was too high, so Qiu Zhi failed to pass the exam when he was young. He grew up slowly in the wars outside the territory in the later days.

However, perhaps because he was a late bloomer, he is now better than most of the imperial students.

After the mutton is finished, go to the fish.

After all, this place is on the water, and it is Dadu, Chang'an. Naturally, there are abundant aquatic products, and there are many fish restaurants around.

Most of the food around is stewed fish, which is probably the local taste near Dadu, not necessarily Chang'an. After all, Chang'an is tens of thousands of miles away and has too many areas, so it is probably a specialty of this area.

Li Qi observed that the fish was always stewed in earthen pots, and there seemed to be no secret.

Li Qi ordered a can and it was delivered quickly. As soon as he ate it, it was indeed delicious, but there was nothing replicable. Although the technique was good, the taste came entirely from the fresh fish from Dadu, so there was no need to do anything else. , the boiled water is delicious, and the fish are all freshly caught. There is a group of fishermen on the boat who fish on the river and the boat, not for making money, but just for fun.

Li Qi knew it at a glance, because the bait caught by this group of people was more expensive than the fish, but if someone caught a big fish, some would take it home to eat themselves, and some would be sold to the fish restaurant on the spot, and the diners would You can be blessed and enjoy delicious food.

Don’t blame the simplicity, it’s delicious this way, what else do you need to deal with? After all, this is the fish from Dadu, Chang'an. To magnify it, it is said that this is the fish from the ancient capital of the immortal world. If it is not delicious, it will be haunted.

However, Li Qi still wanted to eat something more characteristic of chef processing, so he ordered another fish fillet.

This time, the chef made it himself, and the selection of ingredients is still very precise. It is not only live local fish, but also unlike stewed fish, not all can be used.

You must use the largest ones, which means they are thicker. Otherwise, if they are smaller, it will be difficult to continue. Cut the big fish into pieces and only use the best part of the middle.

Because the fish was chosen to be large, it looked like a big piece even if it was cut open.

The knife skills are also exquisite. The fish fillets are cut to a moderate thickness, the scales are scraped and the skin is removed. When cutting, all the fish bones are shaved off without leaving any trace.

But because the fish is big, the spines are also big, so this step is not difficult.

After that, wrap in egg white, warm oil, fry until golden and crispy, use good lotus root starch to thicken the gravy, no cornstarch, probably because the lotus root starch is obviously transparent, then make sweet and sour sauce, add a spoonful of hot oil while it is hot, and take it The light, poured on the fried fish fillets, looks like ice cubes, so it is named "rock candy fish". In fact, it tastes sweet and sour. Li Qi originally looked good, but wanted to take a bite, but found it sweet. do not like.

But Qiu Zhi ate well. He probably liked sweet and sour food, but as a mountain man, Li Qi's delicacies were mostly salty and fresh, so he couldn't eat such sweet food.

But when the fish pieces are served, just looking at them is enough. They are indeed made like crystal.

After the fish and sheep were finished, they walked around and ate some snacks. What impressed Li Qi deeply was a bowl of chestnuts boiled with osmanthus. The osmanthus was fragrant and the chestnuts were soft and waxy. Although Li Qi didn't like sweets, he ate them. Still happy.

Time passed quickly, and it was evening soon.

In the evening, when the sun sets, the lights in the building and boat light up.

The lanterns are bright, the orchids are on the hair, the fire trees are gorgeous, the silver flowers are flourishing, thousands of scattered stars, the bright moon in the cold sky, the light shines in the night sky, and it is extremely beautiful.

Li Qi stood on the top of the boat, looked at it for a while, and said, "Let's go, let's visit the Taixue canteen. I haven't seen Brother Guo for a long time."

"Okay." Qiu Zhi did not refuse and just continued to follow Li Qi.

When they were on the ground, the two of them could move freely without affecting other people, so just as they were talking, the two of them disappeared directly and then came to Taixue.

In the evening at Taixue, most of the students have left, so it looks very deserted.

The door was open, and Li Qi couldn't see it before, but now he could clearly see the Taixue door god guarding it diligently inside.

However, besides the door god, Li Qi also saw a young girl standing at the door.

He has a slender figure and rigid movements. He looks underage, but he has an incredible sense of oppression.

Seeing this girl, Li Qi immediately walked up to him, waved his hand, and said, "Mr. Jie Chi!"

This is the magic weapon used by Taixue to sacrifice wine. That ruler, when Li Qi was looking for boundaries, he blew up Taixue, and the underworld came to find him. The other party stopped the people from the underworld, and did not even pursue Li Qi afterwards. responsibility. (See Chapter 376 for details)

The girl glanced at him, a little stunned: "Li Qi?"

Li Qi trotted over: "Mr. Jie Chi, I didn't expect to see you here."

"I should say this. You should be in a confrontation now, and you actually come here... Oh, Qiu Zhi, it's okay, I thought you came here secretly." Jie Chi looked at Li Qi and looked around. Understand the reason.

Li Qi smiled and said, "Now that I am an enemy of humanity, Mr. Jie Chi won't blame me and won't let me enter the school, right?"

But Jie Chi shook his head: "The day you first arrived, you already knew this would happen, so why wouldn't you be allowed in? Go ahead." (End of Chapter)