Super Elation Under the Sun

Chapter 95 Qing Mountain Is Charming

Around the Summer Solstice, it was extremely hot in Dayu.

Judging from the physical features, this empire located between Yanling and Liangxi was much lower than the two empires on both sides. If somebody looked down from the clouds, he could see that the terrain in the whole empire Dayu was lower than the other two empires. They were like a huge bowl, and the other two empires were the bowl edge, while Dayu was the bottom.

So in summer every year, it was matchlessly hot in this empire, which made the common people in this country hate the summer. Some rich men would leave home at this season and find a cooler place to spend the summer, but it would cost them a lot of money. The common poor people couldn't afford that, and they had to make a living, so they couldn't quit their jobs.

Qing Town was a small town at the border of Dayu. It got its name because it backed on Qing Mountain, which was not just a name, but this mountain was named Qing Mountain indeed, while the Taoist temple located on this mountain was naturally named Qing Temple. Dayu was different from Yanling and Liangxi, and it was not under the control of one religious sect, so there were many different kinds of people and cultivators mixed together in this empire. There were Buddhist temples, Taoist temples and Confucian temples on mountains in the territory. Although they belonged to the three religious sects, they were not quite related to the orthodoxies. Qing Temple was a Taoist temple, yet the people inside never joined the Daoist assembly in Liangxi or sent anybody to Chenxie Mountain. Perhaps there was no record about this Taoist temple in the history books on Chenxie Mountain. The cultivators were on Qing Mountain, but the Taoists in this temple often went down and stayed at the foot of the mountain. As time passed by, it became a small town. However, if the common people in the town had to tell how many years this Taoist temple had existed, perhaps even they didn't know. After all, according to the information passed down from generation to generation, this Qing Temple must be thousands of years old, while none of the common people outside the mountain could live for so long, so they naturally had no idea when they were asked about this temple.

Qing Town was near a great river, so the weather here was much cooler than the other places in Dayu. With Qing Mountain behind it, many tourists came here to avoid summer heat these years. The members in the Taoist temple were on the mountain. Logically, even if they kicked all these tourists down the mountain, they wouldn't do wrong. How could the cultivators on the mountain let these common people disturb them? However, nobody knew what these Taoists planned to do, and they never drove the tourists away from the mountain. They even let the tourists have a rest in the front yard of the temple. However, they never allowed the tourists to enter the main hall.

The path on Qing Mountain was not rough, and there was no perilous peak on the mountain. When people went up, they could feel the cool wind and certainly wouldn't feel so hot. When they walked to the front yard of Qing Temple and drank a bowl of tea made of the stream water, they wouldn't feel the heat anymore. Around the Summer Solstice this year, it was not as hot as the weather in former years, but all the hotels in Qing Town at the foot of Qing Mountain were occupied. Many people went to Qing Mountain as soon as they checked in. In fact, if they could stay on the mountain, perhaps they would stay there. Who would stay in the town?

At dawn, there were few tourists climbing up the mountain, and most of them were old people who didn't need much sleep, so a group of four people on the mountain path were uncommon. There were two men and two women among the four young people. The two young men were dressed in almost the same clothes. Each of them wore black clothes with a bun on the head randomly, with nothing in hands. They looked unrestrained, like the immortals.

One of the two women wore a long purple dress and looked cold and beautiful, while the other was dressed in black clothes, looking calm.

The four climbed up the mountain slowly. They observed the arrangements on the mountain while walking. After seeing that, nobody would think that they were just watching the scenery.

The man in black who walked in the front suddenly said with a frown, "Qing Temple is famous at the border. The Taoists in the temple are not like the other cultivators on mountains who would be distant, but they are always gentle to all people. Qing Temple has existed in the world for even much longer than most of the other temples for Buddhists, Taoists or Confucians in Dayu, yet they are not arrogant because of this. At ordinary times, they would even draw some talismans and give them to the common people at the foot of the mountain. They can do something like this, so how would they be evil people? I come to the mountain this time in order to clarify Qing Temple. As for the people in Luoshui Academy, please explain to them, two ladies."

The cold and beautiful woman wearing a long purple dress, Leng Pingxue, looked indifferent. "Master Wang, if what you said is true, I will tell the master in the town frankly."

The man in black smiled heartfully. "Master Leng, you have a good reputation at the border of Dayu, so I certainly trust you."

Leng Pingxue responded impassively, "You flatter me. All people in Luoshui Academy are unwilling to get involved in what happened at the border of Dayu the other day. They said that since Liang Shu surrendered to the North Military Government of Yanling, the academy shouldn't get involved. However, anyway, he was a scholar from our Luoshui Academy but died for no reason. I don't want to accept it. If my master didn't stop me repeatedly, I would go to Yanling."

The woman in black advised, "Leng, since Liang left the academy, we shouldn't worry about his life or death. Moreover, the masters in the academy don't want to get involved. Why do you take it to heart?"

Leng Pingxue glanced at her junior sister apprentice and didn't say more. This girl was young and hadn't cultivated for long, but she was the only daughter of Leng Pingxue's master and came to Qing Mountain from the academy on this trip. Leng Pingxue was distant innately, yet she loved this little junior sister apprentice. She wouldn't rebuke the girl even when nobody was around, let alone being in front of others, so after looking at her several times, she turned to the young man in black behind Wang Shi.

All people in Luoshui Academy thought that the young Taoists in Shouye Temple were nice. This Taoist temple at the border of Dayu and Qing Temple were called a pair of jade at the border, yet compared with Qing Temple with a long history, Shouye Temple was much inferior. Shouye Temple was a Taoist temple which rose in the past hundreds of years. It was said that the founder was once a disciple who cultivated on Chenxie Mountain. Because he was tired of the environment on that mountain, he left there and came to Dayu. Then he established the temple and controlled it for hundreds of years. Nobody dared to offend the temple till he passed away fifty years ago. The current temple owner was that founder's disciple, who was at a high stage and one of the top ten on mountains at the border of Dayu. The people in Qing Temple were kind to others, while the members in Shouye Temple killed the demons. There were many demons on mountains and in rivers in Dayu, and a lot of demons at low stages were extremely violent and wicked and liked to harass the common people. Shouye Temple would send the Taoists in the temple to go down the mountain and kill the demons. These years, there were fewer demons at the border than before, most of which was Shouye Temple's contribution.

Now the most outstanding two young Taoists on that mountain were Wang Shi and You Muzhi. Wang Shi was the leader of the young generation and at a high stage. He was gentle and appreciated by the temple owner, while You Muzhi was a rare genius in Shouye Temple these years and came to the mountain only twenty years ago, but he had finished the Triplex Unity Stage and entered the Fundamental Stage. However, You Muzhi was always arrogant and didn't take anybody among the young generation seriously except his senior fellow apprentice Wang Shi, so this time when Shouye Temple sent two people to the other mountains to investigate the case that demons attacked the common people at the border these days, they didn't plan to let You Muzhi come here. However, since they decided in the end to tell a master to lead Wang Shi to Qing Mountain, it was no big deal to bring You Muzhi. It was beyond expectation that they met three people from Luoshui Academy halfway. Fortunately, that master had got the news from the temple, so he wasn't surprised. He stayed in a hotel in the town with the master from Luoshui Academy who took the lead, and they told these four young people to go up the mountain and investigate first.

In the group of four people, Wang Shi and You Muzhi were outstanding among the young generation in Shouye Temple and both of them were at the Fundamental Stage, while among the two female masters from Luoshui Academy, Leng Pingxue was at the Fundamental Stage, and Li Baizhu was still at the Awakening Stage, so when they walked up the mountain, Leng Pingxue was extremely careful as she was afraid that something bad would happen.

From the bottom of his heart, Wang Shi thought that Qing Temple was not like what they said in their temple, but since their temple sent people to check if Qing Temple had something to do with this matter, it was better to send him instead of others.

After the four reached the mountainside, they saw a bamboo cottage, in front of which was a small pool. A young Taoist was washing clothes beside the pool. Wang Shi looked around and found that the wooden basin next to the young Taoist was full of red clothes, which would be worn when the common people got married.

The young Taoist rolled his sleeve and wiped the sweat on his forehead. When he was about to lower his head and continue to wash, he looked up, to see the four people. Wang Shi took a few steps forward and introduced, "I am Wang Shi from Shouye Temple. These are my junior fellow apprentice You Muzhi and two lady masters from Luoshui Academy. We come to the mountain to avoid summer heat. If we disturb you, please forgive us, Master."

The young Taoist kowtowed and said with shyness, "I am Li Nianshan, a disciple of the temple owner. You and two ladies come to avoid summer heat, and you won't disturb me, but I have some clothes to wash, so I can't climb up the mountain with you. I am sorry."

Wang Shi looked at the wooden basin next to Li Nianshan and asked in doubt, "Are you getting married?"

Li Nianshan blushed on his young face and nodded. Then he replied in a low voice, "When I was a teenager, I loved a girl. I cultivate on the mountain these years yet can't keep calm. It's fine that I am at a low stage, but I miss the people in society. I thought that it was unforgivable. However, after I told my master, he didn't get angry at all. Instead, he asked me whether I wanted to leave here or stay on the mountain. I pondered for a long time and decided to leave the mountain, while my master told me not to hurry up. He advised me to ask what the girl thought about before I left. So I went down the mountain and asked the girl. Fortunately, she likes me and agreed to marry me. After I returned, I told my master, and he allowed me to leave. He told me to buy the clothes and something for the wedding. In the future, I can live on the mountainside or leave the mountain. I don't want to leave, so I have to live on the mountainside. The wedding date is a few days later. If you don't hurry to go away, you can come up and drink some wine then."

Wang Shi was speechless. The Taoists on mountains could get married, which was not a big deal, while most of them would marry female cultivators, and few of them would marry a girl in society.

You Muzhi and Leng Pingxue didn't have an interest in this thing, while Li Baizhu was excited and asked with a smile, "Master, will you marry a great beauty?"

Li Nianshan blushed and nodded, whispering, "In my heart, she is certainly the most beautiful girl in the world."

Li Baizhu tut-tutted, "You are right."

Li Nianshan giggled and soon showed a sad face. "I won't chat with you guys. If I can't finish washing these clothes today, the wedding date would be delayed for a few days."

Li Baizhu joked, "Are you so anxious?"

Li Nianshan answered seriously, "I have waited a few years and don't want to wait any longer."

Li Baizhu was shocked by Li Nianshan who got serious all of a sudden. Then she showed a thumbs-up sign approvingly.

Wang Shi asked Li Nianshan about the location of the Taoist temple on the mountain and then didn't disturb him anymore. The four climbed up the mountain together, while Li Nianshan returned to the pool and continued to wash the red robe.