I have a little bit of talent

Fang Mu walked in the mountains and forests for three days, and then walked on the official road for half a day. In nearly four days, he walked nearly a thousand miles. His speed was quite fast. Now he was not far from his destination, Qingxu Peak.

Unlike the uninhabited areas in the deep mountains and jungles where only wild beasts and poisonous insects lurked, there were still some people living on the official road. Caravans and horse-drawn carriages passed by from time to time, and there were many villages and towns along both sides of the official road.

Yizhou has many mountains and many sects, and it is not uncommon to see cultivators traveling around. So when the passing caravans saw Fang Mu walking alone and fast, they were not surprised. They just thought he was a disciple of some sect traveling down the mountain. They only looked at him a few more times because of his age, and then they just kept on going.

Qingxufeng Baiyun Temple, as a holy place of Taoism, has never been well-known to the world. Naturally, it is far away from the official road and its location is quite remote. After winding around on the official road and passing through several mountains, Fang Mu dived into the forest again. When there was no one around, he took off into the air, ready to determine the direction before setting off to avoid going in the wrong direction.

Standing above the clouds, Fang Mu's eyes pierced through the clouds, overlooking the vast land below. As far as his vision could see, the mountains were rolling like a winding dragon, and the forests were lush and green like a green ocean. A natural scene was in full view.

Beyond the jungle in front of him, a lake appeared in his eyes. Under the sunlight, the lake water was sparkling and extremely clear.

"The Shengxian Lake at the foot of Qingxu Peak is right there."

After determining the position, Fang Mu floated down and headed towards the lake.

As the saying goes, "A horse will die if it runs too fast." Although Shengxian Lake did not look very far from the sky, it was actually still dozens of miles away. Fang Mu walked in the mountains and forests for more than an hour before he arrived at the edge of Shengxian Lake.

"Eh? Didn't they say that Qingxu Peak is next to Shengxian Lake? Why can't I see it?"

Fang Mu arrived at the Shengxian Lake, where the water was crystal clear and fish were playing in the water. The shore was lined with green trees and birds were singing on the branches. It was peaceful and tranquil here, like a fairyland.

Although Shengxian Lake has beautiful scenery and is located in a valley surrounded by mountains, Fang Mu's spiritual senses only reveal some ordinary hilltops and he did not find the Qingxu Peak.

Qingxu Peak, as the gate to the Taoist holy land Baiyun Temple, must be extremely extraordinary and certainly not among the ordinary peaks surrounding it.

"Oh right, it's a Taoist holy place that's hard for ordinary people to enter. I'm afraid there's a formation hidden inside. Baiyun Temple is famous for its formations, so it should be so."

After a little thought, Fang Mu began to understand.

Most Taoist sects are far away from the world, seeking peace and tranquility, and are not easily found by outsiders. It is understandable that the location of the mountain gate of Baiyun Temple on Qingxu Peak is hidden.

Otherwise, with the reputation of being a holy place of Taoism, the sect’s disciples would probably have to deal with visits from people who come here every day, and they wouldn’t be able to practice with peace of mind.

Not to mention Qingxu Peak and Baiyun Temple, I'm afraid the other two Taoist holy sites also have hidden formations, and only their internal disciples can enter easily.

Since he couldn't find the location of Qingxu Peak, Fang Mu naturally had to ask around.

There happened to be a village on the other side of Shengxian Lake, not far away from where he was now, so he planned to go and ask.

Fang Mu had very good eyesight and could see from a distance a few villagers staying at the lakeside on the opposite bank. In order not to disturb the people, he had to give up the idea of ​​walking directly across the water. Instead, he took a detour along the edge of Shengxian Lake, preparing to walk along the lakeside to the village on the opposite side.

Fortunately, Shengxian Lake is not large, only about tens of kilometers in size, so even if you walk along the lakeside, it won’t take much time.

They were almost reaching their destination, and Fang Mu was in a very good mood. While admiring the beautiful scenery of Shengxian Lake, he walked slowly forward, as if he was on a picnic.

After walking along the lake for about ten minutes, I saw an old man a few dozen meters ahead, leisurely smoking a pipe and fishing.

The old man was wearing a coarse linen shirt and a sun hat on his head. He held a fishing rod in one hand and a pipe in the other. He took a puff from time to time, exhaling a light smoke, looking extremely leisurely and comfortable.

Although the straw hat blocked his view and Fang Mu could not see his specific face, he knew from the old man's attire that he must be a commoner from the village by the lake.

Since there was someone in front of him, Fang Mu didn't need to go to the village on the other side. He could just ask the old man directly.

"Old man, may I ask where Qingxu Peak is?"

Fang Mugang walked behind the old man and asked. The old man quickly turned around and put his index finger to his mouth, signaling him not to speak.

Then he shook the fishing rod in his hand and lifted it with a little force. A palm-sized fish jumped out of the water. The old man pulled it over and put it in the fish basket beside him.

"Young man, don't you know that you can't disturb people while they are fishing?"

After the fish entered the basket, the old man heaved a sigh of relief. He first scolded Fang Mu, then looked at Fang Mu and asked curiously:

"Qingxu Peak is full of Taoists, what's the point of going there? You are so young, you haven't married yet, it's better not to go."

It was not until this moment that Fang Mu saw the old man's face. He had a simple complexion, slightly sunken eye sockets, and his face seemed to have been exposed to the sun for quite some time, making it look a little ruddy, with a hint of red in the black. He indeed looked like an ordinary citizen, except that his eyes were extremely bright, with pupils so dark and deep that they seemed to be able to reflect light.

"You must be joking, old man. I went to Qingxu Peak just to learn from a master, but I have no intention of becoming a Taoist priest."

When the old man said this, Fang Mu's eyes lit up. He was sure that the old man knew where Qingxu Peak was. Otherwise, how would he know that Qingxu Peak was full of Taoists?

"Want to learn from you?" Upon hearing this, the old man first looked at Fang Mu carefully. His gaze stayed on his face for a moment, and then he shook his head.

"Since you are not going to be a Taoist priest, you probably won't learn anything good even if you become his disciple. You should go back and don't delay me from fishing."

"I came from Yangzhou, and the journey was full of hardships and dangers. I finally arrived at Shengxian Lake, so how can I return empty-handed?

"Since you know where Qingxu Peak is, please tell me."

After Fang Mu finished speaking, he bowed deeply and asked the old man for guidance.

"Coming from Yangzhou? It's not easy to come all the way here." The old man picked up his pipe again, took a small puff, and exhaled a light smoke ring.

"Well, I've been fishing all morning and I'm a little thirsty. You look smart, young man, so you should understand what I mean."

"Of course," Fang Mu immediately reached out and took out a bottle of peach blossom wine.

"This is Yangzhou City's specialty peach wine, which is brewed only in March and April every year from peach blossoms outside the city. It is a rare fine wine, soft on the palate, with a strong floral aroma, and not too strong, just right for quenching your thirst."

The old man took the bottle of wine without hesitation, opened the cork and drank, gulping down the entire bottle of peach blossom wine in one breath.

"Not bad, but a little too little." After drinking the wine in one gulp, the old man's face turned three shades redder, but he was still a little unsatisfied.

"Also, this bottle is Qingmu fruit wine from Tongyang City."

Seeing the old man drinking heavily, Fang Mu was prepared and took out another bottle of Qingmu fruit wine.

The old man still drank it all in one gulp, and after drinking it, he exhaled the alcohol, his brows relaxed, and his expression was extremely happy.

"Senior, you've already drunk two bottles of good wine, you should at least tell me, otherwise I will really go back to my father and complain."

Fang Mu bowed again.

"When did you find out?"

The old man became curious now and took another puff of his cigarette holder.

"There's nothing unusual about my face, but you looked at it for a long time before. Obviously, there's no need to do that, unless you know my face."

"Haha, that's true. It's all because you look so much like your father."

The old man laughed, and his figure and dress changed with his laughter.

The coarse linen clothes he wore were replaced by old Taoist robes. His figure became much bigger. He was originally half a head shorter than Fang Mu, but now he was a head taller than Fang Mu. The wrinkles on his face disappeared. His face was still simple and his eyes were bright. His gray hair was tied into a Taoist bun, and his half-foot-long beard fluttered in the wind.

What a sage old Taoist priest!