On a sunny hillside somewhere deep in the Niu Kui Mountain, there is a long and narrow cave about ten feet wide and twenty feet high. It appears very spacious inside, and after a depth of about four or five feet, the cave narrows and slants downward, connecting to an underground river.
At this moment in the cave, there was a burly tiger huddled in a nest covered with soft grass. The tiger felt a little itchy on his head, and stretched out his claws to scratch it but stopped in mid-air.
After hesitating for more than ten breaths, the itch was so unbearable that he finally couldn't bear it anymore, so he carefully retracted his sharp claws and just rubbed his forehead with his paw pads.
Just when he was feeling comfortable, he suddenly felt his claws slipping, and the tiger's heart skipped a beat.
He clenched the claw and stretched it in front of his eyes. Sure enough, there was a large group of yellow and black hair on the claw, with a trace of spiritual light flowing on it, but he could not get rid of the fact that it had fallen off.
"Oh... If I had known, I would have used my claws to scratch it..."
Lu Shanjun's face was filled with worry as he looked at his falling hair. One could imagine that there must be a large bald spot on the top of his head.
There is a small pool of water dripping from the stalactites at the back of the cave, which can be used as a mirror, but Lu Shanjun doesn't dare to look at it.
Looking behind him, he saw that the long tail, which was like a steel whip, was also mottled, with flesh exposed in many places.
"Why… "
With another sigh, Lu Shanjun carefully brought the tuft of hair on his paw to his mouth, then opened his mouth and swallowed it.
The same thing happened with the hair that had fallen off before. It was all stored in the stomach. After he had made certain achievements in his practice, this body of hair had never changed. It had accompanied Lu Shanjun for more than a hundred years. Now, seeing them all falling off, he felt extremely melancholy.
"Mr. Lu Shan... Mr. Lu Shan..."
Hu Yun's voice came from outside, which cheered up the tiger lying in the cave, but when he heard the other party's footsteps approaching quickly, he roared again.
"Hoo... Stop! You are not allowed to come into my cave. Let's talk outside!"
Lu Shanjun usually educates the red fox by imitating the majestic manner of a master. Now his body is covered with spots like a tiger, and he is too embarrassed to face the fox.
In Lu Shanjun's opinion, he has already become a disciple of Mr. Deji. Although Hu Yun is still immature, he has become more and more stable. Sooner or later, he will be able to make achievements. They are monsters who will live forever in the future.
It doesn't matter if the gentleman sees me like this now, but if Hu Yun sees me, he will laugh at me for thousands of years.
Hu Yun, with a piece of paper tucked under his neck, ran down the mountain excitedly. He had been planning to rush into the cave, but when he heard the tiger's roar, he quickly stopped outside the cave.
In fact, the fox hasn't seen Lu Shanjun in his current appearance for quite a while. Although he is very curious about how the so-called "hair loss" goes, he is still very afraid of Lu Shanjun.
"Master, uh, is the master awake? Did he ask you to bring a message?"
Lu Shanjun's majestic voice came from the cave, along with a slight whistling wind, blowing some leaves, dry grass and other objects at the entrance of the cave away with a rustling sound.
Upon hearing this, the red fox stretched out its claws, picked up the paper stuck under its neck, and shook it in its hand.
"Yes, yes, Mr. Ji said that your current condition is similar to that of some water spirits that are blessed with natural talents before they transform into dragons. It is a complete transformation. Who knows, you may not be a tiger anymore, at least not an ordinary tiger. Mr. Ji told you not to worry too much and to practice hard!"
Under the shadows in the cave, the tiger's eyes suddenly emitted a faint light.
"I see, I see! It's great to listen to your teachings and understand the supreme Dharma..."
The tiger suppressed his intense excitement and kept whispering in excitement, but this excitement made the itchy parts of his body sensitive again.
But at this time Lu Shanjun was no longer afraid. He stretched out his claws and started scratching fiercely. Compared with the frightened and cautious appearance these days, the scratching at this time was really comfortable, and the tiger couldn't help but want to moan.
Hu Yun held the rice paper in his hand, looked at it in the sunlight, and sniffed the scent of ink on it from time to time. He had been in a hurry to come back before so he didn't take a close look on the way, but now he studied it carefully.
But his level of Taoism was too low, and apart from the illusion that the paper was "very heavy", he didn't notice any other difference. In fact, if he diverted his attention, he wouldn't be able to feel the "weight".
Having almost finished his research, Hu Yun held the paper and shouted towards the cave again.
"By the way, Mr. Shan, Mr. Ji has something for you, saying it will be helpful to you. It's in my hand..."
"What!? Sir, you have a gift for me? Hey~~~~"
Amidst the fierce tiger roar, a giant spotted tiger leaped out of the cave with great excitement, leaped over the red fox's head and landed on the hillside.
"Where is it? Where is the thing that the master gave me? Is this it? The words written by the master?"
Lu Shanjun immediately noticed the rice paper between Hu Yun's two claws. On it, the four big words "reborn" flashed with light from time to time, and a rich Taoist aura permeated the air.
"This is the calligraphy of the master... Beautiful calligraphy, beautiful calligraphy! Completely transformed, completely transformed..."
The tiger approached cautiously, then retracted its sharp claws with its front paws, gently supported the two sides of the paper with its paw pads, and took the decree from Hu Yun.
As soon as I picked it up, I found a line of small words on the paper, which read "A gift to Mr. Lu Shan".
As soon as the handwriting appeared, Lu Shanjun immediately felt a stream of Taoist energy flowing out from the paper and rushing through his body, which lifted his spirits and made his limbs feel relaxed.
"The master gave me something. Look, Hu Yun, this is what the master gave me. Hahahahahaha… This is what the master gave me!"
The tiger's laughter was like a roar, bringing up a mountain wind and shaking the flowers, grass and trees on the surrounding mountains.
"Uh... Shanjun... How did you become like this..."
Hu Yun stared at Lu Shanjun in amazement. The majestic tiger spirit from the past now had many bald spots on his body. There was almost no hair on his forehead and face. He looked like a half-bald giant cat. This state was ten times uglier than if he was completely bald.
The tiger's laughter stopped abruptly.
Lu Shanjun, who was originally extremely excited, became stiff all over. He lowered his head to look at Hu Yun who was standing over there. His tiny fox eyes and round tiger eyes met.
"Why don't we just eat him to get rid of all the trouble?"
Lu Shanjun even thought of this with hatred for a moment, and a faint light flashed in his eyes.
The red fox suddenly felt a chill and shivered twice. He shouted in desperation.
"I will never tell anyone! I will never! Ah... Mr. Ji's paper has magical power, which hurts my eyes. I can't see clearly. I couldn't see clearly just now! I, I'm going to the mountains to practice first!"
After saying these words, the red fox gathered all its strength and leaped away from the hillside.
"Why… "
Watching the red fox disappear into the woods, the tiger spirit sighed, then looked at the copy of calligraphy in his hand, his mood brightened up again, and he took the copy of calligraphy into the cave.
This was the first time that Lu Shanjun had received something that could be considered a gift since he became conscious, and it was given by his respected master. Together with the words that Hu Yun brought, it was enough to offset all his recent anxieties.
After carefully examining it for a long time, Lu Shanjun placed the piece of paper into a recessed groove in the cave, and then began to practice breathing in spiritual energy.
I have heard that spiritual water creatures have to go through several painful or long stages to transform into dragons. Lu Shanjun didn't know what kind of situation he would face, but he was not panicked at all because his master was standing behind him.
'Perhaps the day I am completely reborn will be the day I succeed in my transformation!'
. . .
Without that special fragrance, the Ju'an Pavilion seems even more inconspicuous in Ning'an County. It is as if a special Taoist aura is flowing, and the pavilion always seems more peaceful.
Not long after Hu Yun left, the door of the courtyard was knocked again.
“Boom boom boom…”
Ji Yuan looked up at the direction of the door, walked to the gate and opened it himself. Standing outside were the old beggar and the young beggar.
"How did Mr. Lu and Xiao You find this place?"
Ji Yuan bowed and asked a question, then extended his hand to lead him into the courtyard.
"Come in!"
The solemn little beggar and the smiling old beggar returned the greeting to Ji Yuan together, then walked into the courtyard.
"As the saying goes, great people hide in the city. It's really appropriate to say this about Mr. Ji!"
The old beggar sighed, and his eyes were naturally attracted to the seemingly ordinary but extraordinary jujube tree in the yard. He could even see the fiery red jujubes hidden behind the green leaves.
Ji Yuan shook his head and closed the gate.
"Don't look at it. The jujube tree in my yard also needs to cultivate. It won't drop fruit unless there is something special."
"Isn't my coming here something special?"
After the old beggar said this, he could only smile helplessly when he saw Ji Yuan return to the table under the tree to write.
"The old beggar visited Yu Huaishan. They also saw my close friendship with Mr. Ji. They mentioned it and got the information that you were living in Ning'an County."
Yes, this is indeed the crux of the matter, Ji Yuan muttered this in his mind, but his hands did not stop.
"Since the beheading ceremony in Gyeonggi Province, the old gentleman has not been seen since then. I thought he had left Dazhen. I didn't expect him to stay here."
"I would feel bad if I didn't repay the favor I owe you!"
The old beggar muttered something in his heart, but laughed out loud.
"In the land of Dazhen, it is rare to have the Yuhuai Holy Land. There is also a real dragon lurking in Tongtian River, and there is also a real immortal hidden. This old beggar is very curious. No wonder those long-bearded old men in Tianji Pavilion said that Dazhen is very prosperous."
Ji Yuanshu wrote with a smile and glanced at the old beggar.
"Well, I don't want you to repay any favors, just like the common people who owe money to others and never forget it. You are a beggar who uses the sky as a blanket and the ground as a bed, you are quite mercenary."
"Oh, Mr. Ji, you are so vicious! You know that for someone of my level of cultivation and character, the more you say this, the more I will complain and the more uncomfortable I will feel. But you still say this...tsk tsk tsk..."
While the old beggar was at a loss whether to laugh or cry, Lu Xiaoyou had already walked to the stone table, resting his elbows on the table and looking at the paper on it.
Although he was a little beggar, he had learned to read since he followed the old beggar at the age of nine, so he could see clearly what was written on the paper.
"The universe is as vast as the sleeve, the sun and moon are as long as the pot, and it contains and transforms within a square inch. The Tao can contain thousands of things. This is the art of the universe in the sleeve..."
"Children are so unruly!"
The old beggar suddenly looked nervous and stretched out his hand to pull the young beggar to his side. He didn't expect that Mr. Ji would write such an important technique on paper without any defense. Just by listening to Xiao You reading these few sentences, he could imagine how amazing and mysterious the magic technique was.
It was also his fault that he had known Xiao You for too little about the affairs of the cultivation world. This wonderful method of peeping into the true nature of others was a taboo in all realms of cultivation!
When Ji Yuan saw the old beggar suddenly get angry at the young beggar, he was stunned at first, but then he reacted and laughed.
"It's okay. I'm just practicing calligraphy."
After saying this, he waved his sleeves habitually, and all the pens, ink, paper and inkstone on the table were put into his sleeves. The brush in his hand turned and flew into his sleeves as well.
Not to mention deducing the success of cultivation, the world in his sleeves is almost not even comparable to the kind of great magical powers that Ji Yuan imagined. The first few sentences on the paper are just a wish, or to put it more bluntly, it is more like a self-exaggerated boasting and encouragement, which ended up scaring the old beggar.
The old beggar looked at the table and then at Ji Yuan's sleeves with a puzzled expression. The action of taking away the pen, ink, paper and inkstone just now was not like the ordinary art of accommodating things in the world. It was too casual and free.
'The universe is as vast as the sleeves, and the sun and moon are as long as the pot...'