Chapter 6 Under One Person

But the quality of the disciples this time really exceeded his expectations.

It is a bit of an exaggeration to say that a disciple with excellent physique is rare once in a hundred years. Under normal circumstances, it takes several decades to produce one.

Although there were disciples with excellent physiques every time they were recruited, most of the time there were only two or three, and at most five.

Nine. When Qinghai first heard this number, he thought it was a bit exaggerated.

Unfortunately, several other companies belonging to the Sanshan Talisman have also produced many promising talents in recent years.

Otherwise, hehehe
“Brother, Longhu Mountain sent someone to spread the word a while ago that two of their disciples named Zhang have already mastered their skills and started to travel the world. It is said that these two disciples have their own special abilities.

One was born with all meridians open and no barriers before his Yin Spirit; the other seemed to have a mind with seven orifices, and could master any martial arts after a short while. He was proficient in the Golden Light Mantra and had even mastered the most difficult thunder technique.

There are some people in the underworld who are good at doing things and gave these two disciples from Mount Longhu a nickname, calling them the Dragon and Tiger Twins. "

Qinghai shook his head disdainfully: "A busybody in the underworld, haha."

Having been teammates and healthy competitors for thousands of years, they knew each other very well. The two disciples who were about to go down the mountain must be good, and it was very likely that they were as talented as the rumors said.

But Qinghai doesn't believe that the nickname of Dragon and Tiger Twins was not secretly promoted by Zhang Qingjing.

Qingsong, who knew what his head brother was laughing at, continued, "After Wudang Mountain knew what Longhu Mountain was doing, they recently sent out three disciples who were gifted in magic to compete with Longhu Mountain. Their colleagues in the righteous way called them the Three Heroes of Wudang."

"Gezao, Wudang Mountain has jumped out to perform a big show, I don't believe they can hold back and not take any action."

Over the years, Gezhao Mountain has had no successor, and its reputation in the southern spiritual world has been declining. Even its seat in the Three Mountains Talisman is about to be replaced by the up-and-coming Wudang Mountain. They will never sit idly by and watch Wudang Mountain become so popular.

"Last month, Gezhao couldn't bear to be lonely, so he sent four disciples down the mountain to exorcise demons. In a month, they really accomplished a lot. Their fellow practitioners in the spiritual world gave them the name Gezhao Four Beauties.

Master, these three families have launched their moves one after another. Should we follow them? The spiritual world in the south is so small. If their three families become famous, the reputation of our Maoshan will be three points weaker.

It's fine if it's a short period of time, but if it continues like this, I'm afraid that Ge Zao's today will be my Maoshan's tomorrow."

After hearing this, Qinghai thought about Qingsong's suggestion seriously and realized that it would be impossible if his own sect did not take action.

The reason why Gezhao was defeated was because some people in that generation were a bit stubborn and only focused on practicing Buddhism, forgetting to send disciples down the mountain to promote their own brand.

As a result, it was forgotten about by the Qingting Daolu Si, and with a stroke of the pen, the large paddy fields under the name of Gezhao Mountain were transferred to the name of Galin, the Governor-General of Liangjiang.

At that time, the Qing Dynasty's rule had just reached its peak, and Galin, the Governor-General of Liangjiang, was highly trusted by Emperor Kangxi.

Gezhao Mountain had no choice but to swallow this loss, and as a result, it was troubled by financial difficulties for decades afterwards. It was unable to train its disciples to the best of their abilities, and gradually fell behind and was overtaken by Wudang Mountain.

“Longhu Mountain has sent out two disciples, Wudang Mountain has sent out three heroes, and Gezhao has sent out four beauties. If we follow this rule, we should send out five disciples to compete with them.

But there are no disciples of the right age among the current Nei Mao disciples, and there are not enough Outer Mao disciples to recruit five geniuses, so are they going to fill the numbers with someone who doesn't have the talent?"

Although he was tempted, Qinghai did not immediately nod his head to agree to send out his disciples to compete with the other three. Instead, he looked at Qingsong on the side with a sharp gaze, hoping that his most trusted junior brother Qingsong would not disappoint him.

After years of getting along, Qingsong knew what Qinghai was going to fart as soon as he stuck out his butt.

There is no problem in sending out five disciples to compete with the other three, but if the disciples are not capable enough to defeat the other three, then there will be a problem. Who will be responsible if a good thing turns into a bad thing?

It’s not that Qinghai is afraid of trouble, but that there are some things that he must be cautious about when he is in that position.

"Brother, you are worrying too much. In my opinion, there are still many talented people among this batch of Waimao disciples. How can there be unqualified people filling the numbers?

For example, Shi Jian from the Nanmao Demon-Suppressing lineage was born with a thunder spirit body and possessed an unparalleled talent in thunder magic. He was also able to perform the secret magic of his lineage, the Muchun Great Method, which was unmatched in anyone's ability.

Lin Fengjiao, who is from the Nanmao Bagua lineage, not only has a noble character, but also has many unique insights into talismans at a young age.

Four-eyed Chen You, who belongs to the corpse-driving lineage, has surpassed his master in the art of corpse-driving. By chance, he got in touch with our Maoshan uncle who is a judge in the underworld through the art of summoning gods.

There is also Lou Nanguang from the Nanyang lineage. He has combined our Maoshan Taoism with Western learning for the first time and has made some achievements. If he can really blaze a trail, in this unprecedented change, we may be able to welcome the new world one step ahead of other lineages.”

"There is no need to say much about Shi Jian and Lin Fengjiao. The bones of the corpse-driving lineage Four Eyes are at the top level of excellent, and his foundation has been laid very solid by his master, so it won't be a big problem for him.

I don't like Lou Nanguang, who advocates combining magic with Western learning. He has only been in Maoshan for a few days, but he doesn't study hard and just runs around the mountain all day.

He would argue about everything he saw, even the life lamp in the ancestral hall. If he wasn't the only descendant of the Nanyang lineage, I would have chased him off the mountain long ago."

Qinghai's personality is a bit old-fashioned, but he is not inflexible. He is very optimistic about the combination of magic and science proposed by Lou Nanguang. If they can really research something out, Maoshan will definitely take the lead in the next major change.

If Maoshan can safely survive this major change and reap the dividends brought by the reform, not to mention being on par with the Tianshi Mansion next door, it is possible that it will even be able to surpass the Tianshi Mansion led by the old bull nose Zhang Qingjing.

But Qinghai was not optimistic about Lou Nanguang. According to his observation, he was clever but not very wise. The changes he made in his magic seemed to be decent, but they were just appearances. "There is still one spot left. Who are you going to recommend, Junior Brother?"

"Ding Hai from the Beimao Zhexie lineage."

"Junior Brother Qingyun's eldest disciple? Although his physique is also excellent, among the nine disciples, his physique is at most ranked sixth or seventh. Is he a little worse than Junior Brother Qingyun's second disciple Qianhe?" "That's right."

"Since you know all this, why do you still choose him?" How can we convince others by choosing him? Qinghai was puzzled.

“There are three reasons. First, the other four disciples are all from Nanmao. If no quota is left for Beimao disciples, I am afraid that Beimao disciples will become disunited in the future.

Second, his fate is somewhat unique. The comment given by Junior Brother Qing Cang who read his fortune is that he will bring misfortune to all his relatives. If a person with this fate lives in the mortal world, he will definitely be lonely and miserable, but it is different in our spiritual world. "

Qinghai thought about it for a while and understood: "You mean to let him take the three paths of widower, solitary and alone, which are missing one. For ordinary people, taking one path alone can reduce one point of karma and increase one level of progress. If he is willing to take all three paths, his future achievements may not be weaker than Shi Jian and Lin Fengjiao."

“Third, he has a good master. Junior Brother Qingyun burned up his own life span in order to break through to the Yin God. He can only live for another three to five years at most.

If this situation happened to someone else, no matter how unwilling they were, they would just sigh and accept their fate and wait for death. But it’s different in Maoshan.

With Junior Brother Qingyun's cultivation and achievements, it would not be a problem for him to go to the underworld and take up a position as a minor judge and live out a full sixty years of life."

After Qingsong listed the conditions for choosing Ding Hai one by one, Qinghai nodded with satisfaction.

Compared with Shi Jian and Lin Fengjiao, Ding Hai is somewhat inferior, but if he has a firm determination and a good master to help him, he is indeed no worse than Chen You and Lou Nanguang. As for why he did not choose Qianhe, who has roughly the same conditions, it is purely because Qianhe is too young and cannot take on important responsibilities in a short period of time.

"After this initiation ceremony, we can arrange a competition and divide the seventy-six disciples into five groups and have them compete on the stage. The five winners will be awarded the title of the Five Heroes of Maoshan by Senior Brother."

As for what to do if the five disciples under discussion at this time failed to make it to the end, Qinghai and Qingsong didn't care. The stage has been set for you, and who can you blame if you can't make it? It is already the limit to list them as seeded players to prevent them from colliding with each other in advance.

Of course, they think it is understandable to slightly favor a certain disciple when grouping. Both Nanmao and Beimao are outsiders, and they can't just break one leg and become a cripple.

The Maoshan headquarters did not publicize the event of the return of the outer Maoshan sect and invited fellow Taoists from all over the country to attend the ceremony. Instead, it only invited fellow Buddhists and Taoists nearby to be witnesses.

Witnessed by colleagues from the righteous sects at Jinling Chaotianque and Hangzhou Lingyin Temple, Ding Hai and his companions first worshipped heaven and earth at the top of Damao Peak, then worshipped Sanmao Zhenjun at the Patriarch Hall on the back mountain, and finally paid a visit to the contemporary head of the Chongshou Temple, Qinghai Dazhenren.

In front of the altar, Qinghai laughed heartily several times as he watched the disciples bowing their heads and worshipping respectfully. Although these disciples were not raised in Maoshan and did not have a strong sense of belonging to Maoshan, they all worshipped the three Mao ancestors, drank the same stream water and ate a bushel of millet, and they would surely spread the reputation of Maoshan after they became apprentices.

"You are all great. As your teacher, I hope that you can remember the rules of the sect and study hard, so as to live up to your youth.

After you have mastered your art and come down the mountain, you must stick to your original intention, uphold righteousness and ward off evil, spread the name of the righteous way of Maoshan, and remember the commandment to fight against good and evil for the rest of your life..."

After a not-so-long admonition, Qinghai glanced at Qingsong inconspicuously.

After receiving Qinghai's look, Qingsong understood and walked out of the team: "Most of the disciples had skills before entering our Maoshan. Although the roots of their skills all come from our Maoshan, there are always those who are unique.

In order to find out clearly what the disciples have learned and to be able to teach them according to their aptitude, I have informed the head master that a test will be set up for the disciples to demonstrate their skills.

Taking into account that the disciples entered the Tao at different times and made different progress in their cultivation, there will be no ranking in this assessment. Only the top five will be selected for a slight reward. The remaining disciples do not need to worry that their future training will be affected by this competition.

The competition will begin tomorrow. I would like to ask fellow practitioners who come to watch to bear witness and see the crude skills of my contemporary Maoshan disciples, and help point out any deficiencies."

After listening to Qingsong's speech, the expressions of everyone in the room suddenly changed.

Among the unprepared disciples, some felt that they were strong enough and would be able to put on a great performance tomorrow, while others sighed, obviously thrown off by the sudden competition and afraid of losing face for their lineage in front of their teachers.

The many righteous colleagues who were watching the ceremony on the sidelines all had expressions of expectedness; they all made a living in the southern spiritual world, so they all knew each other.

Longhu Mountain launched the Dragon and Tiger Twins, Wudang Mountain had the Wudang Three Heroes, and Gezhao Mountain followed with the Gezhao Four Beauties. It would be strange if Maoshan did not take any action. I wonder if the disciples launched by Maoshan this time are qualified enough to compete with the heroes of the other three families.

Among the righteous colleagues present at the ceremony, several had dealt with the heroes put forward by the other three. Although those young heroes were inexplicably popular in the southern spiritual world, their abilities were more powerful than each other.

Ever since they debuted, not only have they been hard to rival among their peers, but even many of the evil demons of the older generation have fallen into their hands, adding to their reputation.

The crowd, with different thoughts in mind, hurriedly had a vegetarian meal and then dispersed.

It was a rare free time, and even though there was a competition waiting for them tomorrow, Ding Hai and Chizuru still came to the small courtyard where their master lived.

The three masters and apprentices were not the type to waste time, and after briefly talking about their relationship as master and apprentice, they began to discuss tomorrow's competition.

"Master, I remember you said that when all the Dharma lineages returned to the sect, their Taoist magic was handed over along with the Dharma lineages. Even if there really were some unique ideas, the head master and the others should have figured them out long ago, right?" Ding Hai, who didn't know the current situation of the southern spiritual world, was puzzled.

In his opinion, with Maoshan's dominance in Jiangsu and Zhejiang and its influence radiating to most of the south, it should be easy for it to master the Taoist arts of their branch lineages. The idea of ​​finding out the skills of each disciple through tomorrow's competition is simply not true.

"Although I have been in the sect for some time, I have been practicing hard in seclusion most of the time to seek a breakthrough in the Yin Spirit, so I am not very clear about the twists and turns here."

The skinny Qingyun admitted that he didn't know about this arrangement before: "However, since your uncle Qingsong specifically emphasized that the five best people will be selected for reward, then these five places must have a deep meaning.

There may be some preference in terms of teachers, or some care in terms of practice resources, but this kind of training should not erode the resources that ordinary disciples like you should enjoy.

This is the promise made by the ancestors in the blessed land when they invited the twelve outer Mao lines to slay demons and exorcise monsters in front of the spirit tablets of the three Mao ancestors. Even the head of the sect cannot tamper with it. "

(End of this chapter)