Pastor's Tantra

Narcissus Principality, Protagora Territory, Suburbs.

It was not until the evening of April 7 that Aiwas and his party finally returned to the manor villa rented by Master Chongbo.

After escaping from the ruins of the Tower of Babel, the first person to regain vitality was the wanderer.

He patted the dust on his body, skillfully took off his shredded clothes and burned them, and then changed into a spare leather vest in front of everyone. Then he invited others to go around the neighborhood and go to the nearby village to deal with it for one night, and wait until tomorrow to return to the Port of Basai to officially hold a celebration banquet.

It was as if the person who was cut in half by the Fallen Angels and just resurrected was not him.

But the others still tactfully rejected his proposal - after all, this trip was really a bit tiring. And they brought a lot of high-value items, so it was better to go to a truly safe place as soon as possible.

So under Aiwas's blessing, the group ran quickly into the city.

Not everyone brought spare clothes and armor. They could only slightly smooth out their clothes, wearing weird, ill-fitting coats to avoid the crowds and rush all the way.

Every once in a while, they would stop and collectively check if their belongings were still there under the command of the wanderer - this was to prevent any important things from being lost or stolen on the road, and they didn't know when they were lost. Every time they would run again after confirming that everything was correct.

Finally, they ran back to the villa before the sun set.

Kitty rushed into the bathroom to take a shower as soon as possible, and after Zhengsine thanked Professor Bard again, he hurriedly changed back to the spare robes he had placed in the villa and began to clean Professor Bard's robes with magic.

Master Chongbo disappeared directly after entering the door. But the monk Mu was still in good spirits. He and Baike went to cook some simple meals together.

Monks are not vegetarians - even if they are ascetics, it does not mean that they have to starve and become as thin as a shadow.

They just have some special precepts. For example, do not lie, do not commit adultery, do not kill, do not steal, do not slander others behind their backs, do not be arrogant, do not be stingy and greedy, do not be hypocritical and jealous. But in specific daily behavior, there are not too many restrictions.

For example, when eating meat, monks can only eat meat that is "not seen", "not heard", and "not suspected", because the number of offerings is three - specifically, it means that the meat has not been seen slaughtered, heard the cries, and does not doubt that the animal died because of the motive of eating meat.

Mu seemed to be responsible for cooking in the original temple. Therefore, his cooking skills are very good, and he is skilled and quick when working.

He quickly made a table of simple, delicious and nutritionally balanced meals.

And Baike's cooking skills are more subtle.

As a wandering dream monk who travels the world alone, he usually acts alone. Therefore, he needs to at least take care of his daily life... and because the weather in Horus is too hot, they lack priests dedicated to the Way and doctors adapted to the Way, so even a minor illness like indigestion may trigger a chain reaction and easily take a person's life.

They prefer to make food into a paste that is easy to digest, eat it with a spoon, or spread it on hard bread. The temperature and humidity in Horus are not suitable for the fermentation of dough, so they rarely eat leavened bread.

Zhu Tang closed his eyes and sat with Aiwas.

They sat side by side in the yard, opposite the sunset in the distance.

"... It's like a lifetime ago."

Zhu Tang closed his eyes and sighed in a low voice: "I really didn't expect that this trip away from home would have such a sight..."

He went to the ancient country of Parthia just because he was bored at home and wanted to participate in the Night Festival.

As a result, because he meddled in other people's business, he was forced to experience a thrilling adventure in Parthia, forced to flee westward, and came to a place he had never been to before. Being able to learn a language in a short time, although there was also the assistance of rituals, but more from his intelligence.

"I have traveled westward, passed through so many countries, met many friends and enemies, encountered wars, conspiracies, and rebellions. But never has it been more dangerous and shocking than this time... Just surviving is enough to move me to tears."

Zhu Tang made a serious vow in Taichu language: "If one day I can return to my hometown safely and not be punished by your majesty... I will definitely record all my experiences along the way in a book. It would be a pity if these fantasy stories were lost."

"Then you have to follow me closely, Mr. Zhu-by the way, do you like this kind of danger and excitement, or don't you?"

And Aiwass asked casually while playing with the emerald octagonal gem "Stone of Eden".

Zhu Tang thought for a moment, then shook his head helplessly and replied, "It's better than rotting at home. I've enjoyed all the glory and wealth in this life. I'd rather die in a big event than wither and decay like a quiet tree in a remote countryside."

"This life..."

Hearing this, Aiwass put away the Stone of Eden in his hand and asked with a smile, "Mr. Zhu, you don't even have grandchildren yet? You're already finished with this life at this age?"

"I have four children... The youngest one is almost an adult."

When Zhu Tang talked about his family, his tone became gentle.

Homesickness is as mellow as sweet wine. Even though he was looking at the sunset and the cup was filled with water, his words were as erratic and intoxicated as if he had drunk wine: "My eldest son is much older than you, Your Holiness. He just had some quarrels with me and stayed in the army and didn't come back. Of course, it may also be that I urged him to get married too hastily... But the other party is the princess, how can I let her wait too long...

"Your Majesty always likes to be angry with me, but he is very good to my children. My second son is also an official in the court. He and I have the same upright temperament, but surprisingly he is not annoying. When I was exiled, they were all left in the capital. Only my daughter and youngest son came back with me...

"My youngest son likes to read very much, but he always likes to read books mechanically. I don't like his rigidity. At such a young age, he is like an old-fashioned person who is still citing scriptures to teach me. So I took him to catch crickets, fish, and fly kites. At first, he could still hold it in, reading seriously and pretending not to look at me. Later, he couldn't help it and broke his act, hahaha..."

Zhu Tang laughed loudly, and even laughed out a few tears.

He rubbed his eyes-and then Aiwas realized that there were wrinkles at the corners of Zhu Tang's eyes.

The old wizard should not be very old, but his aging is obvious.

-Rituals actually have a price, and that price is life.

Or rather, that is not a price...but the wear and tear on the body when performing the ritual. Just like carrying a heavy object that you cannot bear, or being too hungry, too full, or too indulgent...Long-term acceptance of great power far beyond your ability will naturally shorten your life.

But for ordinary ritualists, this problem is easy to solve.

Whether in Avalon, Xingbi, or even the ancient country of Parthia, there are rituals of killing other lives to repair themselves. Even human lives are not needed, only living, vigorous young animals are needed. For example, calves or lambs.

——But Zhu Tang has never used such a ritual.

Compared with integrity... this is probably closer to "stubbornness".

He always closes his eyes, probably because the ritual engraved in his pupils is too life-saving.

It is also because of this that after he was resurrected by Aiwas, his steps were so relaxed... at least much lighter than when he left.

It was because after he was resurrected from the dead, Aiwas repaired all the remaining problems!

It was also because the many physical pains were relieved and he suddenly relaxed that Zhu Tang missed home so much. If it were normal, he would probably have consumed too much energy just to endure the pain and smile.