When Zheng Kairan first chose the site for the construction of the spirit formation, he specially invited the former head of the gate to the Lingwu Gate to visit all parts of the Central Plains and found more than ten places full of spiritual energy. When building the magic circle, Shanhaicheng, Baihuagu, Crescent City, Xuanbing Ridge and Endless Grassland were specially selected. If these five places are connected with Moyun Mountain on the map, their shape is exactly the same as a line The five-clawed golden dragon headed by Yunshan.
The Shanhaicheng Formation is not far from Moyun Mountain. From the perspective of the Golden Dragon, it is just above the dragon claw on the chest, so it is nicknamed the Dragon Claw Formation. Coincidentally, there are five continuous mountain ranges around the array, just in the shape of dragon claws, and the array is in the palm of these five claws, like a pearl held in the dragon claws.
Mu Xiyun and Qin Le rushed all the way, and finally reached Longclaw Mountain in the evening.
The place where the spiritual formation is located was originally a wilderness. Because there were many immortal cultivators coming and going, some people began to sell some food and items beside the formation. One and two business developed, and those who provided services for the immortals slowly built beside the formation. From the village, the name is called Dragon Claw Village.
The two rushed to the entrance of the village and saw a young man waving to them from a distance. Mu Xiyun and Qin Le turned over and dismounted. The young man's legs were a little lame. They came up and asked, "But the immortal from Moyun Mountain?"
Mu Xiyun nodded.
The man said again, "I am the son of the village chief, my name is Wang Ping. My father received a letter from Jinjin Pavilion this morning and was waiting for you at home. Come with me, you two."
After he finished speaking, he led the two horses familiarly and limped ahead to lead the way.
Mu Xiyun and Qin Le followed him into the village. The village is not big, and at this time, every house has smoke from cooking. Wang Ping walked all the way and introduced: "Our village is all ordinary people. We live here because we sold some food to the cultivators here in the early years. Every household has a guest room, which can be borrowed by the immortals. Immortals are not used to living in a farmhouse, and there is an inn behind. My father said that the two of you came here in a hurry, it must be for Su Xianjun's business, let me take you to his place first, and you can stay at my house or an inn for the night. "
Mu Xiyuan nodded and said, "The village chief has been bothered. For the time being, let's clarify the matter of Senior Brother Su, and the accommodation will be convenient."
Qin Le also repeatedly said yes.
The village is not big, and we have already arrived at the door of the village chief while we are talking.
The houses in Longzuo Village are different from the white walls and gray tiles of the Jiangnan dwellings. The village chiefs use red bricks and red tiles, and they also use large stones to accumulate walls or directly use wooden boards to separate the rooms. All ridges are upturned at both ends, forming a graceful arc.
Passing through the gate, there is a patio. An old man with white hair and beard is sitting on a high chair in the main room smoking a hookah. The blue smoke and white mist shrouded his face, making it difficult to see.
Seeing Mu Xiyun and Qin Le enter the door, the old man stood up, still holding a hookah bag, and salutes them: "This old man is the village chief of this Dragon Claw Village, and I have seen two immortals."
Mu Xiyun and Qin Le stepped aside to give way, not daring to accept the old man's salute, and said with the salute of the younger generation: "The old man is polite. We are here for the matter of Senior Brother Su. I don't know what news is there now?"
The old village chief gave them their seats, and after a while, Wang Ping brought tea.
The village chief took another puff of cigarette, and white smoke was exhaled from his mouth. "You two, don't blame the old man for being rude, but I'm getting old, and I always have pain in my body. I need these tobaccos to relieve it." He paused and continued: "Su Xianjun came to Longclaw Village to live with me. Among the tobaccos of this old hookah, there is a medicinal name of purple core grass, which is used to remove dampness and relieve pain, and has the best effect. However, this purple core grass grows in the mountains, and it is not easy to store for a long time, so it must go to the mountains every few months. Picking. A few days ago, my son accidentally fell off while repairing the roof, and Su Xianjun helped to connect the broken leg."
Having said this, the old man wiped the corners of his eyes: "Su Xianjun is a good person. Seeing that my purple core grass is running out, he took the initiative to ask the place and went to the mountains to help me collect medicine. Alas, my old arms and legs hurt. Now, Su Xianjun can't have an accident."
The two finally understood the reason for the matter, and they couldn't help but feel relieved. Speaking of which, picking herbs is not a difficult task for Su Yanjun. If it is said that herbs are hard to find or that he wants to collect more, it is possible to delay his life.
Mu Xiyuan comforted the old village chief for a while, then the old man held back his tears and hurriedly called his son to serve the guests.
Stayed in the village chief's room that night. After a day's drive, Qin Le was already exhausted and fell asleep almost as soon as his head touched the pillow.
Listening to Qin Le's uniform snoring, although Mu Xiyuan was weak, he was always thinking about Gu Qingqiao's injury. The sudden realization last night made his heart chaotic, and the anxiety still flooded his mind from time to time. After lying on the bed for half an hour with his eyes open, Mu Xiyun finally got out of bed in his clothes and came to the courtyard of the house.
The night is cold as water, and the moon is already on its head. The moonlight shone into the small patio, illuminating the bluestone on the ground as bright as a mirror. Mu Xiyun found a small bench and sat in the patio to watch the moon.
A door creaked softly, and an old, hunched figure came out. The old village chief was wearing a short sleeveless jacket and a robe, and he saw Mu Xiyuan as soon as he walked out of the door.
"What's the matter, young man, is it uncomfortable to sleep in the bed?"
Mu Xiyun got up quickly and said, "No, no. I... I just have something on my mind, I need to think about it."
"I have something on my mind, then I really can't help you." The old man smiled and said, "Looking at you like this reminds me of someone."
Mu Xiyun smiled and asked, "I don't know who you are talking about?"
"Ah, that's one of my senior brothers."
"Oh?" Mu Xiyuan was slightly surprised: "The old man also studied with a teacher?"
"Ah, that was all sixty years ago." The old man glanced at Mu Xiyuan, and seeing that he was not impatient, he continued: "I was only ten years old at that time, and I just joined the teacher's door. After mastering, he was handed over to the master to learn the art. My master is just like you, who likes to sit on the ground and watch the moon, and it takes a few hours."
Mu Xiyun's heart moved slightly. Does the person who likes to watch the moon have the same concern as me
"My senior brother is a hard worker. He was a slave that my master bought from the desert. It is said that at that time it was not a purchase at all. It was just a gift for the desert minerals and herbs. My master is a person who refines medicine, and this kind of worthless Slaves have naturally become his test subjects."
"Test medicine?" Mu Xiyuan was puzzled.
"Yes, test the medicine. When the medicine was first made, it could not be given directly to customers because of its unknown medicinal properties. At this time, someone had to find someone to test the medicine." The old man replied.
"However, medicine is for sick people. How can people who are not sick get the medicine's properties? Could it be...?" Mu Xiyun couldn't believe his inference.
"Yes, you are right." The old man's voice became more and more desolate in the cold night. "Of course, the person who tries the medicine must be sick. If you have the same symptoms as the buyer, you can prescribe the right medicine. The pharmacist has a way to make the medicine person also get sick. Watch the effect of the medicine." Speaking of which, the old man sighed: "Actually, getting sick is good, but what's even scarier is testing poison."
"Test poison?"
"Eat the poison first, then take the antidote. If the antidote doesn't work well or doesn't work fast enough, it will try again and again until a fast and good antidote is made. I remember that the master once showed off in front of people that there were Once for some kind of poison, it took almost half a year and more than 70 trials to make a perfect antidote."
More than 70 times in half a year, that is, you have to take the poison once every two or three days, wait until the poison develops, and then swallow the antidote of unknown effect. Refining is not timely and loses life. Mu Xiyun shuddered.
"No one knows how he survived, only that after five years of being a medicine practitioner, he finally made it out and became the master's first disciple.
Maybe because of the miserable childhood, the senior brother always gave people the feeling that he didn't care about anything. When the master gave us the task of eliminating demons, he always rushed to the front alone, and he didn't care when he was bloodied every time he fought. The juniors always say that the seniors are good, and they work hard for everyone, but I always feel that he doesn't really care about his own life. Looking back now, I realize that maybe death is more comfortable for him than life. At that time, the senior brother gave people the feeling that he always lost a bit of enthusiasm as a human being. Until a certain time…”
"Sometime what?" A voice suddenly came from behind, and the two turned their heads to see that Qin Le also came out with his clothes on. The little fat man had already slept for a while, and in a daze, he realized that Mu Xiyun was not there, and immediately woke up. Given that the two previous incidents happened when he was sound asleep, Qin Le immediately got up and found it.
Mu Xiyuan waved to him, and the two sat together on the steps of the patio, continuing to listen to the old man's story.
"That year, my brother was fifteen years old, and he went out with the master, as if he was going somewhere in the east. After he came back, although his behavior was the same as usual, I felt that he had changed. Other brothers and sisters I don't seem to notice it, probably because I was only eleven or twelve years old at the time, so I was very dependent on the big brother, and I always stick to his side when I have something to do."
In the eyes of the twelve-year-old boy, the senior brother who came back from the east, when he looked at him, occasionally showed a kind of tenderness in his eyes. When he did something wrong and was punished by the master, he would come to accompany him and be punished; When he is sick and uncomfortable, he will come to take care of him. What I saw the most was the senior brother sitting alone on the roof, watching the sunset and the moon without saying a word. The gentle eyes seemed to penetrate thousands of mountains and rivers, and landed on a place that attracted him and made him always smile.
"Two years later, the master planned to go to the East again. During that time, there seemed to be a flame in the eyes of the senior brother. I have never seen him look forward to a thing so much. I remember one day, he happily said to him. I said that when he comes back with the master to the Central Plains, he will bring me a lot of delicious and fun things."
"What about later?" Qin Le got excited, saw the old man pause for a while, and hurriedly urged.
"Alas!" The old man sighed, "Just a few days before departure, an enemy of the master suddenly came to the door. The master's son was only eight years old at the time and was kidnapped by the enemy. When he was released the next day, he was planted on his body. Seven or eight kinds of Gu worms are dying."
"Gu worm?" Qin Le cried out in surprise, feeling goosebumps all over his body. However, Mu Xiyun suddenly thought of Lin Xuewu from Hongye City.
"Yeah, my master is not good at poison, so he had to send the younger brother to an uncle overnight. He and the elder brother sent people away together, but came back alone."
Mu Xiyuan suddenly had an ominous premonition, and he asked tentatively, "Where's your senior brother?"
"Eldest brother, was left at the uncle's house to test poison."
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The author has something to say:
Senior Brother: I was probably sent by Master for the phone bill.