Longevity begins with slaying demons and eliminating demons

Chapter 588: Not the same after all, young man’s journey (End)

"What?" Luo Chuan was stunned, not expecting the other party to ask such a question.

"When those two guys, Lord Zhen and Mr. Tantai, stared at you with their eyes wide open like bells, did you feel a sense of 'Wow, I finally turned over'?" The white-haired young man raised his eyebrows slightly. He raised his lips with a playful arc.

Pleasure?

Hey, do I really have it?

Luochuan blinked his eyes, like a Meng boy who was suddenly called upon by his teacher, trying hard to search for the scene at that time in his mind.

To be honest, at that time, he felt more like a frog thrown into boiling water, panicking and not knowing what to do.

People like him have long been accustomed to playing a small role on other people's stages and never expect to get applause from the audience.

But suddenly, he was inexplicably pushed to the center of the stage and became the leading actor without any preparation.

This caught him off guard, and his first reaction was to quickly find a crack in the ground and crawl in.

However, just as he was overwhelmed by the intense embarrassment, he was surprised to realize that deep in his heart, he was quietly growing an unprecedented excitement and a feeling of elation.

After all, every young man, no matter how poor or humble, always has some unrealistic fantasies hidden in his heart, and he longs to become extraordinary.

In the past, when we were in Yuwei Village, boys would squat in the fields in groups, carrying baskets on their backs, cutting pig grass, laughing and chatting about village gossip, and arguing endlessly about whose girl was the prettiest.

The girls were washing yarn by the river, sometimes lowering their heads and whispering, sometimes peeking at the boys who were busy in the fields, with a blush on their faces.

Only Luochuan was always alone, walking in the vast fields with a sickle.

He fantasized more than once that maybe at some point, an immortal with a flying sword would descend from the sky, hold his hand tightly, his eyes shining with excitement, and praise him as a spiritual genius rarely seen in a thousand years, and He sincerely invites him to join the sect and pass on the tradition.

At that time, those friends who used to regard him as a transparent person will turn their heads and look at him with admiration and envy.

However, many years passed.

The imaginary immortal never appeared.

On the contrary, it was a group of bandits who used a stolen carriage and four mules dressed as unicorns to help him get rid of the addiction of appearing holy in front of others.

Thinking of this, Luochuan nodded and said "Yeah".

The white-haired young man suddenly burst into laughter. He laughed unbridled, and his hearty and loud laughter echoed among the mountains for a long time.

"Do you want to know what's happening in the city now?" Before Luo Chuan could answer, he said to himself: "The prime minister found out that his carriage was missing. He was as anxious as an ant on a hot pot. He scolded the servants in the house for their poor supervision and hurriedly sent people out to search.

"Then, when he found out that his precious carriage was tied to four working mules, he was even more furious..."

Luochuan didn't know why the white-haired young man could know everything that was happening in Chaoyang City even though he was more than ten miles away.

He just felt that the white-haired young man at this moment was like a naughty boy who had not grown up. He was so proud that his prank was successful - he laughed so hard that he even covered his stomach. It took a while before he gradually recovered. Calm.

"You just asked me why I arranged all this," the white-haired young man sat down on the edge of the cliff, his legs dangling gently in the clouds and mist. He patted the empty space beside him and motioned for Luo Chuan to come and sit down, "Actually, The answer is simple.

“Because when you passed under Longji Mountain, I had a glimpse of your destiny and found that you were destined to me.

"You and I are both the protagonists of this era.

"We are destined to work together to overturn this decadent world and create a new great era together!"

In the historical materials written by literati, the scene at this time may be recorded as follows:

"When the emperor was young, he had great ambitions. When he met Luochuan, he said to him: 'My son and I should work together to create a great cause and create a great foundation for eternity.' When Luochuan heard his words, he was shocked by his kingly aura, so he set his sights on it. Be loyal and become the emperor's hero."

However, in fact, Luochuan did not feel the so-called "kingly spirit". He just felt that the person in front of him was really shameless - his ability to daydream was something he could hardly match.

"Don't you believe we can make it happen?" As if aware of Luo Chuan's thoughts, the white-haired young man turned to look at him and smiled.

"No," Luo Chuan hesitated for a moment, then shook his head, "Your Majesty will create a great cause in the future, of course I firmly believe it. But how can a pauper like me, whose blood potential is only at the third level, become such a Where is the protagonist of the era?”

"Poor young master, do you really think that a person's achievements in life are entirely determined by his bloodline?"

"Isn't it?"

"Of course not," the white-haired young man said, with an almost arrogant confidence in his tone, "At least, after you meet me, blood is no longer a shackle in your life."

As he spoke, he snapped his fingers.

A three-dimensional star map appeared in the dark night.

The stars in the picture are as bright as pearls and as looming as fireflies. They move slowly along the trajectory, performing the oldest rhythm in the universe.

"This is what I realized a few years ago, the way of astrological destiny," the white-haired young man introduced. "The destiny of everyone in the world can actually correspond to the stars in the sky.

“I call it ‘destiny’.

"With fate as a link, practitioners have the ability to communicate with the stars and destiny. Through fate, practitioners can draw power from the corresponding stars, thereby changing their own qualifications and greatly improving the efficiency of practice.

"In addition, when you enter the astrological path of destiny, you will also be able to use the paths of the stars to deduce the fate of yourself and others."

Having said this, the white-haired young man straightened the messy hair on his temples and smiled slightly: "Young master, pauper, do you believe that before I opened up this new path, the potential of my bloodline was not much different from yours?"

Luochuan was doubtful and did not respond immediately.

The white-haired young man continued: "A few days ago, I pinched it and made a fortune, haha, guess what?

"I discovered that you, boy, are just like me, you are also a prodigy in cultivating the path of astrology and destiny! If you are willing to follow me on this Avenue of Stars, your future achievements will not be comparable to those of ordinary people."

His tone of voice was just like that of a human trafficker, holding a tempting candy in his hand and trying to coax the child away with sweet words.

Luochuan remained silent.

Before he was fifteen, he had never left Yuwei Village. His knowledge of the outside world was almost entirely pieced together bit by bit by his mother's words in his ears.

In her opinion, enrolling in school, entering an official career, or joining the military like her father is the "right path" that can bring glory to one's family and win the respect of the world.

The bandits who turned into bandits were undoubtedly a group of bad guys with corrupt morals and committed all kinds of evil. They were like rats crossing the street, and everyone screamed for them to be beaten.

If Luo Chuan really went astray and became one of them, when his mother found out, she would be so angry that she might even vomit blood and die on the spot.

Noticing Luo Chuan's frown, the white-haired young man chuckled and patted his shoulder gently.

"I understand that you may have some contempt for us bandits in the mountains--"

"——I didn't!" Luo Chuan almost blurted out, denying it without thinking.

"——No, you do," the white-haired young man continued, "It's just that you don't dare to admit it in front of me.

"You think we are a group of desperadoes who are robbing families and oppressing good people all day long.

"But have you ever thought about it, do we really want to be thieves and bandits that are despised by the world from the moment we are born? Do we really want to live a life of hiding in Tibet and being looked down upon by others? Don't we really yearn for it in our hearts? Is that an upright and upright path?”

Luochuan really hasn't thought about these issues.

In his opinion, thieves in this world are inherently bad guys, and they are naturally opposed to good people. They are like weeds in the field, popping up one after another and seemingly never being eradicated.

The white-haired young man paused and then said: "Many of the soldiers on our mountain were originally residents of Buling County at the foot of Longji Mountain. Last year, there was a rare severe drought. The crops in the fields withered one after another, and the harvest was so miserable that even mice Disliked them all.

"However, the government officials were like hungry wolves staring at fat meat. Instead of reducing taxes, they pressed harder. The residents of the county were forced to have no choice but to go up the mountains and become bandits.

"Another example is the brother who took you up the mountain, his Taoist name is 'Tian Kui'. He used to have a beautiful wife, but unfortunately she was taken over by the dandy son of the governor of Wuzhou. He bullied men and domineering women, and did all kinds of bad things. Tiankui's wife couldn't bear the humiliation and chose to commit suicide out of grief and anger.

"In order to avenge his wife, Tian Kui ambushed the evil young man on his way to the brothel, raised his knife and killed him neatly.

"Afterwards, in order to escape the pursuit of the officials, he had no choice but to go up the mountain and fight alongside us."

The words of the white-haired young man made Luo Chuan's head feel like he had been hit hard by a giant hammer, and the buzzing sound echoed in his ears for a long time.

The black-and-white world that Luo Chuan believed in in the past seemed to be instantly destroyed by an invisible force, revealing the real, chaotic, and ever-changing gray that was originally hidden behind it.

He thought of Old Man Wang in Yuwei Village, who liked to steal and deceive his neighbors. If the pots and pans in a villager's home suddenly disappear, 80% of them can be found in his home. When the villagers mentioned him, they looked down upon him with disdain.

However, my mother accidentally mentioned that when he was young, Mr. Wang was a hard-working and simple farmer. Unfortunately, due to the pressure of life, he had to sell several acres of his land to the rich man Lu at a low price. From then on, his situation took a turn for the worse, and he gradually became what he is now.

"You must have seen the true face of this world clearly during the few days you have been in Chaoyang City, right?" The white-haired young man continued, "Bloodline is supreme, family is respected.

“With power and power in hand, you can do whatever you want and become a superior person.

"Otherwise, you are just a weed on the roadside, no one listens to your ideas, no one cares about your life or death."

Luochuan nodded, deeply touched by this.

"So, Your Majesty, you gathered these people in Dragon's Back Mountain to try... um, to subvert this world?" he asked. The white-haired young man suddenly stood up and looked at the stars on the horizon. His eyes showed a pride that he would give up to others, as if he had become the master of the universe.

His clothes rustled in the evening breeze.

I only heard him say:

"A few years ago, I told Gongsun Hao that I had an ideal -

“I hope that every inch of land in Lingxiao Realm will be free from oppression and war, and that everyone can be fed and clothed with their own hands and sweat.

"I hope that every monk in the world can break free from the shackles of blood, and rely solely on their own struggle and persistence to go further and fly higher on the journey of pursuing the great road of heaven and earth.

“I hope that there will be equal opportunities in the world, that everyone’s will can be respected, and that the standard for evaluating a person is no longer their family background, but their character and ability.

"I hope there will no longer be that high-altitude dragon looking down on all living beings in this world.

"If this happens, everyone in the world will be like a dragon."

The tone of the white-haired young man's speech was actually very calm, not impassioned or passionate.

However, Luochuan's heart beat faster involuntarily.

He deeply felt that these seemingly simple words contained an indescribable power.

This kind of power is like a scourge. Once it breaks through the dam, it has the power to flood the entire world.

"What does Gongsun Hao think of this?" Luo Chuan pondered for a moment and asked.

He did not ask the white-haired young man how he met Gongsun Hao - in Luo Chuan's eyes, the white-haired young man had a mysterious origin and unfathomable strength. He could create his own way of practice, and he could also control the situation silently. The prime minister's carriage was stolen from the prime minister's mansion.

It is naturally a normal thing for such a person to meet such a proud man as Gongsun Hao.

Luo Chuan was just a little curious. As the legitimate son of the Gongsun family, Gongsun Hao was undoubtedly the "high-ranking dragon". According to common sense, he should not agree with the white-haired young man's ideas that go against his own interests.

"He and I have the same ideals," the white-haired young man smiled and said, "It's just that he doesn't agree with the way I realize my ideals.

"Gongsun Hao feels that the power of an ordinary man is limited after all. He should use his family background and spiritual qualifications to quickly rise to the top of the country and become a powerful ruler.

“In this way, he was able to mobilize the power of the entire country to initiate profound change from the top down.

“However, I firmly believe that the world is hopelessly sick.

“Top-down reforms will ultimately end in constant compromise.

“Only by turning it upside down from its foundation can we truly change this.”

Having said this, he lowered his head and looked down at Luo Chuan, who was sitting at his feet: "Poor young master, have you considered whether to join us?"

Luochuan was still immersed in what the white-haired young man had just said, his heart was racing, and he had already sketched in his mind the image of knocking down the powerful people who bullied him in Chaoyang City one by one.

But who would have expected that this white-haired young man's painting style suddenly changed and the topic returned to him.

"me……"

"Don't forget, you still owe me a bag of silver. I really can't think of any other way you can find to pay off this debt in your life besides working for me."

My mother is right, there are no free benefits in the world, and everything you owe must be paid back.

Luo Chuan felt regretful in his heart and cursed non-stop. He only regretted that he had been so obsessed that he couldn't help but use the bandit's money to bribe him.

The results of it? Not only did he fail to enter the academy, but he also spent the rest of his life stuck in it.

He was like a pitiful mountain rabbit. He was originally roaming freely in the mountains, but from the moment he was stopped and robbed, he had fallen into the trap carefully woven by the hunter and could never escape. .

He took a deep breath, stood up slowly, and tried to keep his words smooth and not stutter due to nervousness: "Your Majesty, I sincerely appreciate your ideals, and I am very willing to fight side by side with you. However, if If I choose this path, my mother will be deeply disappointed, and maybe she will come here to look for me in person with a spatula in hand..."

"It's easy," the white-haired young man said with a smile, "I have been to all three major academies in Chaoyang City before, but I was kicked out by them because I argued with the teachers in class.

"I can make up a few stories about daily life in the academy for you to use as material for you to write to your mother.

"I still have the gowns, headscarves, boots, paper and pens distributed by the three major academies. You can send them to her to appease her heart.

"Even if you unfortunately die in battle, I can still imitate your handwriting and continue to give her..."

"This...I'm afraid this isn't appropriate!"

Luochuan has never lied to his mother since he was a child.

Just hearing the white-haired young man's proposal, before it was actually implemented, made him feel guilty about being a thief.

"Let me ask you, you have accomplished nothing in Chaoyang City, and even your fiancée was snatched away. Do you dare to go back now and tell your mother the truth?"

Luochuan shook his head involuntarily, with mixed feelings in his heart.

His mother might not scold him.

But he didn't dare to face his mother's extremely disappointed eyes.

"Then you might as well stay on my mountain for a while, calm down and think about it carefully, and you can also learn a little about my astrology and destiny. After you think clearly and make a decision, come and tell me."

Luochuan nodded almost without thinking and agreed to the white-haired young man's proposal.

At this moment, he was confused and in a dilemma.

He neither dared to go home rashly, nor dared to step into Chaoyang City again - the turmoil he had caused in the capital had not yet subsided, and he was afraid that he would be recognized as soon as he showed up, and everyone would point their fingers: "Look, Isn’t that the young master of Ziwei Pavilion? Why is he here again? Could it be that the master sent him back because he felt he was not experienced enough?”

Staying in Longji Mountain is indeed a way of escaping reality for him. It allows him to temporarily put aside many troubles. At the same time, he can also take a look at what the white-haired young man calls "the path of astrological destiny". Is it as magical as he said?

He thought for a moment, then bowed deeply to the white-haired young man and said in slightly clumsy words:

"Thank you, thank you for taking me in, thank you for giving me money, thank you for making a special trip to pick me up at the Marquis Mansion... No matter how others think of you, I firmly believe that you are a good person. Because since I came to Chaoyang City, you are The only person who thinks highly of me and is willing to have a heart-to-heart conversation with me..."

"Has anyone told you before that you are too stupid and not very good at praising others?" The white-haired young man interrupted with a smile, "How can you only say 'good people' when you praise someone? Isn't this right? Is it the same as saying that others are useless and have nothing to offer?”

"Sorry." Luo Chuan immediately lowered his head and rubbed his hands uncontrollably.

"In the future, you should read more history books and see how those ministers say flattering words," the white-haired young man raised his chin and said with high spirits, "For example, just now, you should say, 'Your Majesty, you are really a courteous, virtuous, and talented person. If you are thirsty, you are more powerful than the domineering Emperor Zhao, and this world is destined to be yours...'"

Luochuan said "hmm" and tried to remember what he said in his mind. He thought to himself that it would not be easy to get along with such a narcissistic person in the future.

…………

The childishness on Luo Chuan's face suddenly disappeared, his face became more elongated, and his hair changed from jet black to grayish white. Although there were no obvious wrinkles on his face, it showed the vicissitudes of life and the haggardness of a serious injury that had not yet healed.

Gu Xu sat beside the couch, looked at his face, and brought his thoughts back to reality from the memory of Emperor Ziwei.

I could only hear the unconscious Luochuan, mumbling to himself from time to time, murmuring in his sleep:

"...The emperor is wise, powerful, unparalleled in wisdom and courage, and powerful in all directions. He overthrew the puppet dynasty and unified the country. This is a great achievement for the ages..."

"...The benevolence of the emperor is like the spring breeze turning into rain, nourishing all the people..."

"...The emperor works hard to govern, works diligently and loves the people, which is really a blessing to all living beings in the wilderness..."

"...Emperor...Old minister, now that your teachings have not been in vain, I am not stupid anymore..."

Gu Xu narrowed his eyes slightly.

He could clearly feel an invisible chain, one end connected to himself and the other end connected to Luochuan.

This chain originates from the authority of “ruling”.

It is like a brand engraved in the mind, which can influence the minds of subordinates and make them remain absolutely loyal to themselves.

This is also the biggest reason why Gu Xu dares to pretend to be the real Emperor Ziwei.

He sighed softly, feeling very moved in his heart.

People will change after all.

When he was young, Emperor Ziwei once vowed to make the world "everyone like a dragon" and "everyone's will be respected."

However, today, thousands of years later, the world is still dominated by dragons, and all living beings are as small as grass.

The boy who once firmly believed that he was a good person is now chained to his soul and cannot be free.

It doesn't seem to be like, youth swim.