Taoist priest in the foggy capital

What is the meaning of Chapter 510?
Even though he knew that Hai Dongqing might not die soon, Ren Qi didn't say anything to him.

I had no intention of reminding him, nor did I have any thoughts of speaking nicely to him in the remaining days.

Because human life is inherently limited. Since we are born, we must also die one day.

In fact, the difference between dying at the age of one hundred or dying at birth may not sound that big to other people's ears - it's just that a person has died.

Even in ordinary times, when people hear that an unrelated person has died, they just hear it like this and don't think of asking how old he is or his life story.

But now in troubled times, those who joined the army were beaten to death, those who died of starvation on the way to escape from famine, those who died of illness, those who were affected by war disasters, all kinds of death have completely numbed the instinctive fear of death in people.

So even if Hai Dongqing died at the age of sixteen or seventeen, it might be a pity, but in Ren Qi's view, he was just unlucky, or very lucky, and finished his journey earlier than others. That’s all.

People are dying every day. It’s not that “one more person is not more”, nor is “one less person is not less”, but whether he dies or when he dies is irrelevant.

In addition, Ren Qiben is a silent swordsman. He has always been taciturn and keeps almost all his thoughts in his stomach. He will not say a word unless necessary.

Therefore, he just walked in silence along the way, occasionally casting a vague gaze at Hai Dongqing.

"The way you look at me is like looking at a dead person."

Hai Dongqing broke off a branch and glanced sideways at Ren Qi.

"Is it similar to when you were hunting?" Ren Qi asked.

"It's different, completely different."

Haidongqing put the young leaves on the branches into his mouth, as if he was chewing them gently, or sucking something, relishing the taste.

“When I hunt, even if the prey has fallen into a trap, I will stare at it until it dies.

Because these beasts are trapped animals in a cage, their desire to survive has long overtaken their little wisdom. Therefore, once they find themselves trapped in a trap, they will struggle desperately and even bite off their own tails in order to break free. The trapped legs can explode and hurt someone.

So when I face these beasts, I never let down my guard. I must wait until they die before I step forward.

I have heard before that some of my colleagues in the mountains had their throats bitten off when they approached rashly when they thought the beasts had been subdued.

However, the way you look at me is not like staring at prey, but rather like visiting a patient. That person has nothing to do with you. You are just following others to take a look, and you don't intend to talk to him, or even It doesn't matter whether you can see it or not. "

"Your description is quite realistic."

Ren Qi glanced at him, "Which martial arts novel did you read it from?"

"It's not a martial arts novel."

As if he had tasted a bitter leaf, Hai Dongqing threw the branch aside in disgust and spit out a little bit of the powder from his mouth.

"When my father was seriously ill, this was how the people in the village came to take a look at him from afar."

"Have you remembered this for a long time?" Ren Qi asked.

"It's already very blurry."

Hai Dongqing murmured: "I have almost forgotten my father's face and the people in the village."

"I see that you are young, but your memory is not very good."

"Do you have a good memory?"

Hai Dongqing glanced at him, "On so many nights along the way, when everyone gathered around the campfire, I have never seen you talk about the past. Could it be that you have forgotten everything?"

"What's there to say?"

Ren Qi looked unkind, "It's all in the past. I'm in my thirties and will be forty in a few years. What's so strange about not being able to remember things?"

"There's nothing strange about it. There are a lot of strange things in the world."

Hai Dongqing suddenly changed the subject and asked abruptly: "So, do you think I am really going to die?"

Ren Qi did not answer him directly.

"I have seen many dead people, even more than I have seen alive people. Most of them were killed by me, and the other half were killed by others, or they died of fear, illness, or drank poisoned wine before I arrived. of."

"So, you're saying that I look similar to these people?"

Hai Dongqing smiled and said, "Actually, you don't need to tell me. The closer I get to Baiyun Mountain, the more I have a strange feeling that I can't survive this winter anymore. It's not a suspicion, but a voice in my heart that I can already recognize as fact. of."

"Then you're still coming?"

Ren Qi glanced at him and said, "I don't think you are the kind of person who would wipe his own neck for a date thousands of miles away."

"Are you trying to trick me into saying that I don't study well?"

Hai Dongqing rolled his eyes, "I just want to leave, but you...you two peerless masters are here, and I can't leave.

But actually I don’t want to leave either. The closer I get to Changbai Mountain, the fewer and weaker my thoughts of leaving become. "

He picked up another branch in his hand, but did not bring it to his mouth, just playing with it.

"It seems that I have some kind of responsibility. What do those Taoist priests call this?"

"Destiny." Ren Qi said.

"Yes, it is destiny. I feel more and more that not only my death will be destiny, but also my birth, it seems to be a kind of destiny, destined."

"Do you think you are a unique person?"

Ren Qi looked at him and finally said: "Maybe you can give up those fantasies."

"What fantasy?"

"I mean, there is no destiny at all. You are not a special person in a martial arts novel, a strange story, a chosen protagonist. You just have a terminal illness and your life is about to come to an end."

"You said I have a terminal illness?"

Hai Dongqing's eyes widened, with only doubts in his heart.

"That's right, terminal illness is not like an acute illness. It doesn't mean that you suddenly vomit blood or bleed from your orifices and die. Instead, it gradually weakens.

I remember seeing an eunuch in the palace. He was in his prime and the steward of the palace. Even we, the imperial guards, could not treat him lightly.

He was strong and strong, and he had reached the master level by practicing kung fu. He also got nourishing prescriptions from nowhere, so that even when he walked, he seemed to have an unrivaled strength.

But there was such a person. One year, he kept complaining that his chest was itchy. He went to the imperial doctors in the palace and the charlatans outside Yujing, but nothing could solve the problem.

He felt no pain or vomited blood, and even continued to eat and drink as usual, but he gradually lost weight. He could eat the century-old ginseng given to him by the emperor, and given to him by officials outside, but he seemed to be unable to supplement it no matter what. If he doesn’t come back, he will eventually die.

I've seen his body, but it's pale and covered in bones, just like a man who died of starvation. It's not destiny, it's just a terminal illness. "

Hearing what he said, Hai Dongqing also began to feel an inexplicable itching in his chest. There seemed to be something really spreading in that heavy part, making it feel hot.

But with Ren Qi beside her, she couldn't really scratch it, so she could only endure it.

But his ruthless analysis and speculation made Hai Dongqing even more frustrated.

"Doesn't it make sense?"

Hai Dongqing shook his lips, "In other words, I am just an ordinary person who died of a terminal disease that no doctor can cure?
I didn't die because of some kind of destiny, or because I was special. I just got sick, like the beasts in the mountains who suddenly died after drinking water? "

"That's probably what it is."

Ren Qi's hands clenched unknowingly, "Everyone thinks they are the lucky one, the chosen one, but in fact there are not so many lucky ones in the world, protagonist. If you die, you will die, that's all." .”

"How cruel."

Hai Dongqing smiled helplessly: "I thought I had some special feelings for the Changbai Mountains because I was a child of the mountains, so I was destined to die in the mountains and return to the mountains.

But now that you say this to me, I can only suspect that all this is just my own passion.

It's like a patient finally reaches the doctor, but even his family members are not willing to lie to him and say that he will get better.

This is really a cruel thing for patients. "

"Feel sorry."

Ren Qi followed Hai Dongqing's example and pulled down a branch, but when he held it in his hand, he accidentally used too much force and crushed it to pieces.

Looking at the broken pieces in his hand, he spread his palms unhappily and let them fall back to the ground.

"No matter how nice I talk, I can't help you at this time."

"I know."

Hai Dongqing wiped his face hard and said to Ren Qi: "Let's go, while I can still walk, don't you want to know the secrets of those apes?"

Ren Qi also put aside the unpleasant feeling during the conversation just now and thought about the current situation.

After Yin Xiu and the others went to check the source of the vision last time, the big red snake suddenly appeared again and headed straight for them.

After all, Ren Qi was a master in the synesthesia realm. Although he couldn't kill the big snake, he still had no problem escaping from that guy's mouth.

They fled north for dozens of miles until they hid in a mountain stream and finally escaped the pursuit of the big red snake.

Because of this setback, they were completely separated from Yin Xiu and the others. When they returned to their original place at the risk, they could no longer find any trace of Yin Xiu and the others.

Helpless, they could only start heading in the direction of Baiyun Peak in the hope of bumping into them.

However, the mountains are vast, and sometimes the distance between the two parties may be only a few hundred meters. However, there is a deep ditch or a mountain blocking the way, preventing them from seeing each other, blocking the possibility of meeting between the two parties.

"By the way, how did you know that you would meet Yin Xiu and the others if you walked this way?" Hai Dongqing asked.

"I do not know."

"Then you are still leaving?"

Hai Dongqing pushed aside a branch blocking the road with a surprised expression, "The mountains here are high and steep. In some places it is easy to go down, but to go up is as difficult as climbing to the sky. In some places, it is easy to go up. If you want to go down, It's very likely that he was smashed to pieces.

You have to know that the Changbai Mountains are not in the city. It’s not as simple as asking a passerby for directions or turning back if you take the wrong road. "

"Aren't we just going to find someone to ask for directions now?"

Ren Qi didn't take it seriously, "And based on my many years of experience in catching people, there is never a time when I miss someone.

Even if the person is anonymous and lives in some remote mountain or cave, I can always find him as long as I lead a search.

This does not rely on technology, but intuition, just like when you hunt. "

"If you rely on intuition to investigate cases, aren't you just like those detectives?"

"Detective? Are you talking about the detective named Foss in Dunling?"

Ren Qi frowned, "Someone mentioned this to me before, saying that I am very similar to that person, and I can be called the Fushes of Kyushu."

"That's a very high compliment."

"What praise?"

Ren Qi said dissatisfied: "I had already set a goal at that time. One day I will capture and torture the ghost guy whose surname is Xia or Fu. Anyway, he has a very long name. Let's take a look at him. Is he as amazing and powerful as the rumors outside?"

"You are such a terrible person."

Hai Dongqing looked at him and said, "Just because of jealousy, people will be arrested and tortured."

"What's there to be jealous of?"

Ren Qi snorted coldly: "Later, when I arrived in Hong Kong Island, I found out that detective was a character in a martial arts novel, made up by others, not a living person.

However, I no longer served in the imperial court at that time, but became a prisoner of the imperial court. I no longer cared about who was better at investigating crimes than me, or who was not as capable as me, because it didn't matter to me. things.

I just want revenge. "

"Is this why you went into the mountain?"

Hai Dongqing had never heard Ren Qi mention anything about himself before. Now that he heard about it, he felt that this taciturn swordsman had many secrets hidden in him. He had gone through many hardships before he could possess such a sharp sword and cold coldness. Sword intent.

Seeing Hai Dongqing looking at him like this, Ren Qi became even more displeased and rushed to the front on his own, not wanting to look at him.

Hai Dongqing naturally doesn't care. According to what Ren Qi said, he is a person who is about to die now. What's the point of knowing more things?
It's okay to hear the truth in the morning and die in the evening.

That's what those scholars who are unsentimental and mean-spirited say one thing on the surface but another behind the scenes. He is a hunter with animal blood on his body and relies on fighting beasts to make a living. How can he care about the so-called outlook on life and meaning.

But if Hai Dongqing is really dead, wouldn't it be embarrassing if someone discovers his biggest secret when collecting his body?
[Hey, you’re dead, what’s there to be embarrassed about? Dead people are not embarrassed. 】

I think so, but Hai Dongqing still sincerely hopes that even if he dies, he will be covered by rocks and soil, making it difficult for people to find him, or simply torn into pieces by those wild beasts, making it difficult for people to recognize him and find him. It’s not bad if you can’t find them all.

While he was thinking this, a shrill howl of an ape suddenly sounded in the forest ahead, making people's scalp numb.

What Ren Qi was looking for seemed to be right ahead.

(End of this chapter)