The sunlight poured into the forest on the mountain ridge, and dappled light fell through the gaps between the trees onto the back of the donkey as it leisurely walked by. Lu Liangsheng extinguished the campfire, unceremoniously took the bowl and chopsticks from the bookshelf, filled them with food, and brought them to his master and the Taoist priest.
Not far away, Zhu Ganglie stretched his neck, watched the scholar scoop out spoonfuls of rice, swallowed his saliva, rubbed his big hands and couldn't help muttering.
"I asked you to eat with me, but I didn't invite so many people. I should leave some for the old pig."
Even though he was tall and fat, sitting there like a small mountain, his fingers dangling around his long mouth while muttering, showing a bit of naivety, the four scholars over there dared not approach him.
"Are you hungry? How about we go together?"
"I think we should just forget it... that's a demon..." "The woman over there is also a demon, why aren't you afraid?"
"Hmm... Looks familiar."
"At the bottom of the well in Lanruo Temple, have you forgotten?!"
"vomit-"
Thinking of the bitter and hard-to-swallow juice, which took half a month to swallow, the four scholars' taste buds seemed to sense the taste, and they covered their mouths and rushed under a tree to retch.
Behind the four people, the Taoist who had packed up the yellow cloth bag spat at them, walked over to take the food handed to him by Lu Liangsheng, glanced at the pig demon over there, nodded at the other party as if he was familiar with them, lifted up his robe, squatted down, and slurped the food into his mouth.
There was actually not much food in the big pot. With two extra people and one toad, half of it was missing. The pig demon watched them rushing the chopsticks into their mouths, leaving afterimages after a few ups and downs. He quickly brought the big pot over, placed it in front of him, reached out and grabbed a handful of food and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing in big mouthfuls.
After eating a few bites, he suddenly looked at Lu Liangsheng and the Taoist priest and asked in a muffled voice:
"You're not afraid of me?"
"Why should I be afraid?" Lu Liangsheng finished his meal, put his bowl and chopsticks on the ground, and said with a smile: "Besides, you and I have no grudges in the past or hatred in the near future. In fact, I was the one who was reckless first."
Talking about the misunderstanding, the pig demon also told the whole story. He came here to go to Fuling Mountain. The weather was too hot, so he came to this forest. He dug up the soil and burrowed under it to cool down. However, he heard Wang Feng, Ma Liu and the other three laughing and explaining how to eat wild boar. He became angry and detained the four scholars to cook for him. He never thought of eating humans.
"Fuling Mountain?"
Lu Liangsheng thought for a while and opened the map paper he carried with him, but there was no place called Fuling Mountain on it. He thought it was further west of the Sui Dynasty.
Over there, the pig demon had seen many people practicing Taoism, but few of them got along peacefully with demons like this one. He nodded while holding the big pot, and raised his hand in a muffled voice, pointing to the west.
"I, Old Pig, am indeed going to Fuling Mountain. There is a Yunzhan Cave over there. In the cave is a woman called Luan Erniang, who is also a fairy. I want to go there to relieve my boredom. Do you want to go? You can go with me."
Luan Er Niang? To relieve boredom
When Lu Liangsheng heard this, he had a series of doubts in his mind and looked at the Taoist priest. The latter spread his hands and shrugged his shoulders: "I don't know what you are looking at me for."
However, the toad in the middle of the two people, who was full of food, put down the exquisite red rooster bowl comfortably, lay down, showing his white belly, and scratched his webbed head a few times.
"You don't understand. Dongfa refers to the residence of monsters. The word 'zhan' means an inn. The word 'yun' means that there are many monsters coming and going, and they all stay there... Combined with what the pig monster said about relieving boredom, then Luan Erniang must be a monster who trades in sex."
"I see."
After hearing the master's explanation, Lu Liangsheng thought it made sense, but then he froze for a moment, "Master, how do you know so much?"
The Toad Taoist turned his head slightly and saw his disciple looking at him. He sat up quickly, with his flippers folded behind his back and a serious expression.
"How could a teacher of such status go to such a place!"
The Yuelong Sword stuck in the ground popped out a piece, and said something lightly.
"Of course the old toad didn't go. He was being pursued by several major sects, so he didn't have the time."
Over there, Toad Taoist clenched his frog webs into fists and trembled slightly, veins on his forehead throbbing, and his eyes were cold as he glanced at the sword.
"Can you say that again?"
"Even if the old toad is angry, he can't change the fact that he is being chased."
"I want a beating!" The Toad Taoist was furious, his eyes flashed red, and he roared, grabbed a stone from the ground and pounced on him, sitting on the hilt of his sword and smashing the stone with it.
Lu Liangsheng smiled helplessly at Zhu Ganglie opposite him.
The sun was pouring down, and the setting sun was shining into the woods at dusk. The sky was gradually getting darker. The few people thought they could not travel at night, so they lit a bonfire to keep warm. The four scholars curled up together and fell into a deep sleep. The Taoist priest secretly flipped through the yellowed books in the firelight, and raised his head from time to time to look around, then buried himself again.
Lu Liangsheng, who was walking past him, looked at the night sky through the gaps in the trees. Today was also the 15th of August, and the stars and the moon formed a silver belt across the night sky.
"I almost forgot that today is the Mid-Autumn Festival. It's a pity that I can't go back to Qixia Mountain."
The night wind blew through the woods, making a rustling sound. The pig demon, who was as big as a hill, didn't say a word. He stood up and walked to the edge of the woods. He sat down right next to the cliff, looking at the bright moon in the night sky. The stars in the sky were reflected and twinkling in his eyes.
"I, old pig, have seen a more beautiful moon before."
There was a rustling sound of footsteps. Lu Liangsheng swept the ground and sat on a stone not far away, also looking at the bright moon. Hearing the pig demon's words, he couldn't help but become curious.
“How beautiful is it?”
Under the soft moonlight, Zhu Ganglie rested his elbows on his knees, supported his face, and looked up at the night sky.
"I, Old Pig, can't explain it. That's a beauty that doesn't exist in the world... You can't see it."
"Oh? I have seen many beautiful sceneries, and few people say that the scenery on earth is inferior to it." In the woods, Toad Taoist priest carried a gourd on his back and walked from the dim firelight into the cold moonlight. He stood beside his disciple, raised his head and looked at the sky full of dense stars and the soft full moon.
"Especially the moon. No matter where you look at it from, it is the most beautiful."
Over there, Zhu Ganglie was interrupted. Looking at the toad that was not even as tall as his calf, he turned back with an indifferent expression and continued to stare at the moon in the sky.
"What do you know as a little toad? I was once so majestic and powerful, standing on the clouds and overlooking the mountains and rivers on the earth. In my eyes, the world is nothing but a farce of laughter and crying."
"snort!"
Toad Taoist also snorted coldly, jumped onto a rock, straightened his back, nodded and spoke calmly.
"Thinking back to the time when I was so powerful, I traveled across countless mountains and rivers, and I didn't care about any demons or monsters, or any cultivators in the world. Dozens of sects surrounded me, and there were so many people and magic weapons that the sun was blocked..."
"When I, Old Pig, tremble, the heaven and earth can shake!"
"What a joke! If I sneeze, thousands of people will turn into blood!"
"But even so, I have subordinates under my command. Which god or monster in heaven or on earth would not treat me with courtesy?!"
"That doesn't matter. As long as I want to have thousands of descendants..."
…
Two monsters, a pig and a toad, were sitting on the edge of the cliff under the moonlight, competing with each other, talking to each other. Lu Liangsheng, who was sitting on the side, slapped his forehead with his hand and listened for a long time.