Refining Taoism and ascending to immortality

Two months later.

Tongbaizhou, Guangyang County, Zhangfu.

A large and slender egret stood on the roof of the building, its long black beak pecking at the white ice on the green tiles. Again and again, the lingering sound was filled with circles of cold white color, spreading in all directions. There was a frightening chill in the air.

Such a sound was heard by the young man in green clothes who came over. Even though he was wearing thick cotton clothes, for some reason, he still felt an indescribable pain rising from his back, and he couldn't help but shiver.

The chill seemed to seep into my bones, and it was colder than the wind outside.

When Zhou Qing pushed the door open and came out, the egret stopped pecking at the ice, then let out a soft cry, spread its wings, fell straight to the ground, and followed behind.

"Lead the way."

Zhou Qing glanced at it and spoke in a calm voice.

"yes."

The boy in Tsing Yi agreed and turned around. Out of the corner of his eye, he happened to catch a glimpse of a puddle of water that had appeared at Zhou Qing's feet. He couldn't help but think of the origin of this so-called "distinguished guest" and suddenly shuddered and didn't dare to Look more and lead the way.

The two of them walked out of the front yard with an egret, passed through the hanging flower gate, then passed through the hand verandah, and finally entered the west garden. As soon as we entered, there were more than a dozen red plum trees reflecting the snow light, a rouge color, full of character and spirit.

A middle-aged scribe is sitting in the octagonal pavilion, with a white face and no beard, and a calm and natural expression.

The middle-aged scribe, the second master of the Zhang family, saw Zhou Qing and the egret behind him. He frowned inconspicuously, raised his hand to pick up a letter from the stone table in the pavilion, and handed it to the person in front of him. Maid, ask her to send it over.

"reply."

Zhou Qing took it and looked at it, nodded, thought about it, put it in his sleeve and put it away.

Seeing Zhou Qing put the letter away, the second master of the Zhang family pointed at the copper pot that kept gurgling in the pavilion. Hot steam came out from the mouth of the pot, condensing but not dissipating, like white smoke, and asked : "The weather is too cold. Would you like to drink a cup of hot tea to warm yourself up?"

For a person like Zhou Qing, he couldn't recognize the obvious perfunctory invitation, so he decisively refused and said, "I have something to do when I go back, so I can't stay too long."

The second master of the Zhang family really didn't want to have more contact with people like Zhou Qing. When he heard what Zhou Qing said, he immediately followed the trend and took advantage of the situation to see off the guests. With false regret, he said: "In that case, let's do it next time."

Next time, there will be no next time.

Zhou Qing knew this very well and didn't care. He gave a long laugh, and together with the egret, one person and one bird, left Zhang's mansion and walked out.

On the street outside, the snow that fell has not melted away, and there are patches here and there. Most of the shops and restaurants along the street had their doors ajar, and there were almost no customers. There were only two or three waiters huddled in front of the stove, complaining in low voices.

In recent years, not only have floods been raging, but winters have become colder every year. How can we live like this?

Neither the gentlemen in the county government nor the gods in the city seem to be very effective!

Zhou Qing listened to the occasional gossip with a calm expression on his face, but secretly remembered it in his heart. He walked slowly along the street, and when he reached the city gate, he waved for a carriage.

"Sir, do you want to take a ride?"

The coachman hurried over, smiling broadly.

"Rocky Bay."

Zhou Qing lifted the curtain and got on the carriage steadily. The egret followed closely behind and jumped onto the roof of the carriage. With a shake of his hand, he threw a piece of broken silver and ordered: "Hurry up."

"I,"

The coachman crushed the weight of silver and immediately swallowed what he was about to say. The smile on his face became brighter, he nodded and bowed, and said: "I am familiar with this road. I just want you to take care of it."

Zhou Qing nodded, lowered the curtain, sat in the carriage, closed his eyes and rested.

"Let's go."

The coachman took over a big job and was in a happy mood. He whipped his horse whip in a showy manner, making a crisp sound, and the wheels moved forward, passed the city gate, and left the city.

The further away from the city, the sparsely populated.

Large expanses of fields stretch as far as the eye can see, and strong winds blow and whine. From time to time, one or two birds flew over and screamed shrilly.

After an unknown amount of time, the horses neighed and the carriage stopped. The driver rushed inside and shouted: "Sir, we have arrived."

Zhou Qing heard the sound, opened his eyes, lifted the curtains and saw that the river in front of him was wide and mighty, but this season, the river was covered with ice, a thick layer, and the sparse sunlight fell down, touching the ice. , gold and white grind together, and the sparkling colors spread out, which is shocking.

Zhou Qing jumped out of the car. At the same time, the egret standing on the top of the carriage kicked off its calf and landed on the ice. Then it raised its neck and faintly saw countless patterns on its long beak like wheels. Non-stop, back and forth.

The long beak fell, and the next moment, pieces of broken ice flew up on the ice. As the egret's long beak continued to fall, more and more broken ice splashed, and the holes in the ice became larger and larger, and wisps of cold air came out of the gaps.

After the cold air, under the gap, the water was as bright as a mirror, and three sailors emerged. They were all wearing armor and holding spears, with big fish heads on their heads. They looked ferocious and terrifying.

When the coachman saw this scene, he was startled for a moment, then realized what was going on. With a look of horror on his face, he shouted: "Monster."

Hundreds of years ago, monsters were legends. But recently, the country has been in turmoil and natural disasters have occurred frequently, and monsters have begun to become a story that people occasionally talk about. This time, I actually saw a real monster. How could I not be frightened and frightened?

The driver was frightened, drove the carriage away from the river embankment as quickly as possible, and soon disappeared.

"Walk."

Zhou Qing glanced at the egret that flew away on its own, called a sailor, and the four of them followed the gap in the ice and went deep into the riverbed.

The water in Luanshi Bay was freezing cold and the current was turbulent. Even the best swimmers had to be careful when entering the water at this time. However, Zhou Qing and his group rode the waves and split the waves easily.

Half an hour later, Zhou Qing suddenly felt his body sink and a suction force came out. He did not resist and went into the whirlpool under the water.

When he stood firm, he had reached the bottom of the river.

It turned out that there was a concave surface here, with fine frost sand densely covering the left and right, and there were scattered coral trees, and glowing fish swimming around, colorful.

It should be a dark riverbed, but it was bright.

In the center of the light, there stood a water palace, surrounded by a circle of colored lights, pavilions and towers, everything.

Two tiger-skin shrimp soldiers stood in front of the water house, two feet tall, wearing black armor, with eyes like copper bells, but they stood loosely and were chatting together.

Seeing Zhou Qing appear, the two shrimp soldiers immediately stood up and said at the same time: "General Black Snake."

As the gatekeepers of the Luanshiwan Water House, they are best at judging people and serving them. They all have some backgrounds and are not careful. They know that the Black Snake General who came has risen rapidly recently and is strong and domineering.

It is best not to offend such a person.

Zhou Qing took a look and stepped over the threshold of the water house. Suddenly, the jade-colored glaze in front of him was very bright, and the light was surrounded by treasure wheels, suspended in the air, constantly hovering in front of the pavilion and treasure platform, and lying across the half-covered door. The fine and fragmented colors fell down, and when they touched the inspiration on the ground, they became a fire tree and silver flower, which was particularly brilliant.

After generations of management, the Luanshiwan Water House has become magnificent, and there is no lack of splendor and treasures in the majestic and steep.

Being in it, it seems that the world is like a prison.

Zhou Qing's thoughts turned, but his feet did not stop. He continued to move forward along the bluestone road, passed through several doors, and arrived at the backyard.

At this time, a clam girl heard the movement and came out. She had delicate features and a beautiful face. She looked at Zhou Qing with a pair of big eyes, intending to block him.

This is the backyard of the Luanshiwan River God. It is not allowed to disturb it for no reason, so as not to offend the ladies.

Zhou Qing knew this, so he didn't wait for the clam girl to speak, and said directly: "There is a reply from the Zhang Mansion. I will send it to the third lady."

"Ah,"

Hearing the reply, the clam girl exclaimed. She knew that her wife was thinking about this matter recently, so she didn't need to inform her. She led Zhou Qing in, walked and talked, saying: "Please follow me, the lady is waiting."

When Zhou Qing got inside, he saw that the waterside pavilion had windows on all four sides. Two windows were decorated with colorful golden cloud dragon patterns. A trace of bright light came through the gaps in the patterns. All the light seemed to gather on a cloud couch in the center of the waterside pavilion, draped on a very beautiful woman.

To stand out in the backyard of the Luanshiwan Water Mansion, her appearance and temperament are first-class. Otherwise, how could she be fascinated by the river god?

Zhou Qing stopped in front of the door, took out the letter, and handed it to the clam girl beside him.

Although the relationship between men and women in the aquatic tribe is relatively open and there are not many human etiquette constraints, since the other party is born in the Zhang Mansion and is a young lady, it is better to avoid suspicion if you judge others by yourself.

The clam girl was a little surprised by such an action. She was stunned for a while before taking the letter that Zhou Qing put in front of her. She walked to the cloud couch in small steps and handed it over. She whispered, "Madam, the letter."

Zhang Qiaoyun on the cloud couch stretched out her slender jade hand, took it, unfolded it, and frowned. After a while, she sighed softly and looked at Zhou Qing at the door. A ray of inexplicable color flashed in her eyes. She opened her red lips and said, "Thank you for your help this time, General. I will remember it in my heart."

"Madam, you are polite."

Zhou Qing felt a sense of alienation. He knew what was going on and didn't care. After saying a few words, he said goodbye and left.