Yellow sand filled the air and slowly dispersed in the mountain wind. Four hazy figures could be vaguely seen squatting in the dust with their heads buried and their hands on their heads. Someone hurriedly reached out to touch his face and chest, and when he put his hand down and found that he was not injured, he let out a long breath.
“Phew… That was a close call. I’m fine.”
"I'm fine too. It doesn't hurt. Hehe, I wasn't hit."
"It seems that God favors scholars like us!"
"As the saying goes, those who survive a great disaster will surely have good fortune in the future..."
Amidst the soft words, they suddenly heard the low groan of a beast, "ho ho..." The four scholars subconsciously raised their heads, waved their sleeves to blow away the dust in front of them, and glanced in that direction.
Outside the drifting yellow sand, the hillside was in a mess, and I could vaguely see the outline of a huge white shadow lying on the ground, its belly heaving up and down.
"... No way..."
"The four of us brothers have met again."
"Gu~~"
One of them swallowed, leaned over and whispered: "Let's run away quickly while it's not paying attention..."
The four of them looked at each other tremblingly, squatted on the ground, tiptoed a few steps back, concentrated and held their breath, slowly stood up and turned around, tiptoed, and crouched down the slope little by little.
Just as they were going down the hillside, the person walking in front suddenly stopped, and the remaining three people behind him bumped into the bookshelf on his back one after another, and the fine stones and soil under their feet rolled down the hillside.
"Brother, why did you stop?"
"Go faster."
When the three of them steadied themselves, they saw that Wang Feng in front of them had trembling shoulders. They subconsciously looked over his shoulder and saw a man in a cloak with a white plush collar standing opposite him, with blood hanging from the corner of his mouth. The three people who were still talking suddenly shut their mouths, instinctively retracted their steps, and forced out dry laughs.
"My brave man... are you injured? If you are injured, you must go see a doctor. Unfortunately, the four of us are just scholars and don't know how to treat injuries. Um... let's go first!"
"Goodbye, goodbye!"
The three men bowed, then pulled their brother Wang Feng in front of them and retreated to the back. However, the man opposite reached out and grabbed the scholar's shoulder. His lips parted in a grin, and he squeezed out a weak voice from his blood-stained beard.
"You four should take me to Hezhou... If you are slow, I will eat you."
The four scholars over there were so frightened that their faces turned pale. When they heard that they were going to be eaten, they screamed, "Ah!" and huddled together in a ball.
"Your Majesty, the four of us have traveled a long way back to Chang'an. We are so hungry that we are skinny and pale. We are not enough for you to eat. How about you find another one?"
"Yeah yeah."
"Why don't we go back to Chang'an first and gain some weight before coming back..."
"Yeah yeah!"
At the side, the always upright Wang Feng slammed the bookshelf on his back to the ground, and looked at the three brothers behind him with a serious look, and scolded: "We are scholars, holding the words of sages in our hands and speaking the words of sages. How can we face the evil spirits and disturb our minds! How can you say such words?"
Seeing the three people lowering their heads, Wang Feng turned around, smacked his lips, and cupped his hands towards the figure in the white wolf fur cloak opposite him.
"Hmm... I have already reprimanded them. I wonder when this warrior will set off?!"
Gongsun Liao covered his chest, stared at the four scholars in front of him, and squeezed out hoarse words through his clenched teeth.
"immediately."
He could feel that his soul was still moving. The evil wind he had used before had made his injuries even worse. He was afraid that it would be impossible for him to fly all the way over.
Fortunately, I met these four people, so I should be able to catch up.
Soon, four pale and skinny scholars found some sticks and branches, and spent two hours slowly building a simple sedan chair. They let the monster sit on it, and the four of them each held up one end of a long stick in front and back. At Wang Feng's shouting, they stood up with difficulty, staggered down the hillside, endured the pain in their shoulders, and hurried south.
…
The sky was setting and the two-day continuous spring rain stopped.
On the damp ground, the Toad Taoist priest, shirtless, pushed a round stone towards the towering stone tablet. He turned around and leaned against it, his tongue hanging out, his white belly heaving up and down as he gasped for breath. Eight people including Lu Pan and the Taoist priest, who had finished their work, sat around him, quietly watching the figure walking back and forth under the stone tablet, waving his pen and ink.
Blue ink outlines lines along the cleaned stone tablet, winding or stretching straight, drawing the eaves of the roof, and a wide street below spanning the cracks between the bricks and stones.
Lu Liangsheng kicked off his feet and jumped into the air. The tip of the pen in his hand pressed the stone tablet upwards, drawing out the long street while his arm holding the pen waved quickly, sketching out the prosperous market and the old tree standing beside the well.
As the painting was finished, Lu Liangsheng threw the brush away, and it turned into a black shadow in mid-air. Mu Qiyu floated down to the ground. Looking up, he saw the scholar in the air summoning the Yuelong Sword. As his figure descended to the ground, the tip of the sword followed the market outlined in green ink and the lines of the painting, chopping and cutting, and stone chips and powder flew everywhere.
Pah! Lu Liangsheng stood firmly on the ground, sheathed his sword, stretched out his hand to the side and grabbed the Taoist who was originally unscrewing the water bag. He raised his head and drank it all. The bag flew into the scholar's hand, and he took a sip of it and sprayed it on the stone tablet.
In an instant.
The reliefs on the stone tablet seemed to move, the flags of the tavern fluttered slightly in the wind, and steam rose from the opened steamers in the street stalls.
On the street farther away, the sound of wooden wheels could be heard as the cart shaft passed by.
There were such continuous and non-repetitive relief carvings on all four sides of the tall stone tablet. At this moment, they seemed to come alive. Unfortunately, there was no human figure walking on it, and the emptiness seemed mysterious.
"There's only one step left."
Lu Liangsheng looked at the ten-meter-high stone tablet, and his originally confused mood finally calmed down. The stone tablet was made of broken bricks and stones from this town, which he polished and laid by hand. Through this medium, he gave the souls of the wrongfully killed a home again.
He put down the water bag and bowed to the figures spreading out in the shadows of the surrounding woods.
"I am Lu Liangsheng from Qixia Mountain. I have come here to atone for my master's sins. My master was guilty of what happened back then..."
The Toad Taoist who was leaning on one side curled his lips, leaned forward and wanted to stand up and speak, but swallowed the words back and sat down again.
Lu Liangsheng ignored his master's actions. He found some sacrifices that could be used from the bookshelf and the Taoist's pocket and placed them in front of the stone tablet. He then lit a few pieces of talisman paper and burned them to ashes.
"… But the master is still the master after all. As a disciple, I naturally don't want to see him lose his life, but this sin must be repaid. It has been a hundred years. Today, Lu Liangsheng came here and tried his best to do something for you. I don't expect you to forgive me, but I hope that you can find a new place to live, so that you don't have to wander around as lonely ghosts outside."
The burnt ashes emitted a wisp of green smoke. Lu Liangsheng spread his palms, formed a spell with his fingers, and pointed it towards the distant woods. Hundreds of ghosts transformed into visible dark winds and flew into the rosy clouds. They were led along the magic power to the square stone tablet and into the relief carvings.
Figures appeared one after another on the originally deserted street. Hawkers picked up wooden spoons at the steaming stalls. Figures walked into the door of the tavern arm in arm, chatting and laughing. Through the open window, one could see the waiter pulling down the rag from his shoulder and greeting with a smile. Behind the counter, the chubby shopkeeper was calculating the account with a smile.
On the adjacent streets, an empty carriage now has a driver who whips and tightens the reins. Children in groups of three or four chase and play and run past the horses, causing the people in the carriage to lift the curtain and yell. In the pavilion above, a girl sitting in front of a bronze mirror with half-opened windows is applying rouge. Her mother beside her has a kind face and puts jade beads and gold hairpins on her...
The cold relief came alive, like a scroll painting of prosperity and peace in the world, telling their story.
…
With his magic power gathered in his eyes, he looked at this scene for a long time, then Lu Liangsheng bowed again, then picked up the Toad Taoist on the ground and put it on his shoulder.
"Master, we should go now."
As for the stone tablet, let it be erected on the ground of Luohe Town, which is the hometown of these people who died unjustly. It can be regarded as the beginning of a new life.
The next morning, they packed their bags and left the place where they had stayed for a few days. They pulled the old donkey, took Lao Sun, Lu Pan and the other eight people out to the main road. Occasionally, they would meet some passing merchants. They would greet each other in a friendly manner and then go their separate ways.
This road has undulating terrain and connects several county towns. However, there is a strange town called Luohe there and few people choose this place. However, a group of merchants who just passed by came to a higher place and saw from afar a huge black monument standing in the ruins of the past in the middle of a forest.
"What's going on? I haven't seen this before when I passed by here."
The caravan stopped, and some brave men crept over to find out what was going on. Most of the dilapidated houses and rotten walls that were originally scattered all over the place were gone, and a square stone tablet ten meters tall stood in the sky. The carvings on it made people feel a little creepy, as if the motionless people and objects on it were alive.
The man immediately told everyone in the caravan what he had seen. Anyone who encountered such a mysterious thing would naturally tell others about it. Soon after, it attracted many curious people to watch. The originally deserted site of Luohe Town gradually became popular, and some people even lit incense, candles, and offered money and paper as offerings.
"Some time ago, I was farming nearby and didn't see any."
"Maybe it's the gods showing their power. It's not the fault of the people who died in vain here that they erected the monument. Otherwise, why is the coldness here gone?"
"Yes, if you hadn't told me, I wouldn't have thought so. Now it seems to be the case."
"Oh, then hurry up and burn more. Hey, you have any extra paper money? Sell me some."
"Of course there are. I prepared some extra when I came here."
“I want one too!”
"Enough is enough, stop pushing!"
"That guy selling incense and candles, you look so familiar."
"Hey, I just sell paper money and incense in the temple..."
A few days ago, an exquisite stone tablet suddenly appeared, with a carving of Luohe Town painted on it. The government was eager to write about it and report it to the prefecture and county government. It might even be regarded as a good omen, which would boost local income and add to their own political achievements. They would probably wake up laughing in their dreams.