Chapter 795: Chapter 492: The Heavenly Hunting and Destruction of Buddha Six Hundred Years Ago
Shhh...
The summer breeze blew gently, rustling through the lush canopy of the large banyan tree, as patches of fractured golden sunlight shimmered through the cool patches on the ground.
After such a long time, seeing the Old Heavenly Master of the Daoist sect again, Zhao Douan had initially thought he would be nervous.
But perhaps it was due to the gentle demeanor and smiling face of Zhang Yan Yi that instantly eased his somewhat anxious heart. The distance suddenly seemed to close, and it felt as if their last meeting had only been a short time ago.
"I have met Heavenly Master Zhang." Zhao Douan greeted respectfully and bowed.
Heavenly Master Zhang, who looked like an elderly man playing chess and napping under the trees in the alley on a summer day in the Capital, teasingly joked:
"Such formality and politeness are not like you. You and I are not meeting for the first time, so there’s no need to be reserved. Feel at home."
You said it... Zhao Douan took a deep breath, as if he had turned into a different person, swaggering over and plopping himself down on the vacant bamboo chair.
He casually picked up a yellow duck pear from the fruit tray on the table, took a bite, finding it juicy and sweet, very tasty. His eyes lit up as he took another bite, speaking indistinctly:
"Old Zhang, since you said so, I won’t hold back then."
The large banyan tree above, watching secretly, was dumbfounded.
In all the world, how many dare to act so presumptuously in front of the Heavenly Master? Even the most favored Jin Jian wouldn’t be so bold, right?
Zhang Yan Yi, half-crying and half-laughing, said: "You are quite impolite."
Crunch, crunch... Zhao Douan finished one pear and was not satisfied, grabbing a peach, rolling his eyes, and retorting:
"You weren’t polite when you freeloaded off me either."
The esteemed image of the Old Heavenly Master had long crumbled to pieces in front of him.
Zhang Yan Yi cleared his throat to interrupt the topic of "freeloading," and said with a bitter smile:
"The city is unstable these days; a lot of matters await you. Why do you find time to come to this old man’s place to mooch around?"
Zhao Douan leaned forward, propping his elbows on his knees, took a bite of the peach, then lifted his head, suspiciously:
"Didn’t you foresee I would come? Why ask when you already know? I came to thank you face-to-face for sending Jin Jian and her group to rescue me. Secondly, I want to ask why."
Zhang Yan Yi, half lying down, with his hands crossed over his belly, smiled:
"It’s the first time I’ve seen someone visit to express thanks empty-handed."
Zhao Douan raised his eyebrows, pointed with his chin in the direction of the Divine Dragon Temple, justifying:
"I just wiped out Divine Dragon Temple; isn’t that a grand gift?"
The Divine Dragon Temple and the Heavenly Master Mansion have been rivals for many years, old adversaries. The court’s current Buddha-destroying actions undoubtedly benefited the Heavenly Master Mansion’s lineage.
Zhang Yan Yi chuckled, shook his head with a sigh:
"If my few disciples were half as clever as you, I wouldn’t need to worry about the Heavenly Master Mansion suffering losses in the future. Well, consider that you have given a gift. Now what about this so-called ’why’?"
Zhao Douan spat out the peach pit, using a handkerchief to wipe his fingers, and seriously said:
"Old Zhang, after thinking it over, although you’ve freeloaded off of me, I’ve also helped Jin Jian and Gongshu Tianyuan. In all calculations, what you owed me has been repaid. Yet, this time you sent people to rescue me, even intervening in worldly conflicts... I can’t figure it out."
Zhang Yan Yi smiled: "Isn’t that good?"
"Haha, there’s a saying in my hometown, every gift has a price tag hidden in the dark... Since you’re helping me this much, without understanding your motives, I can’t sleep at ease." Zhao Douan sighed:
"Let me be clear, if you’re after my body, forget it. I was born to serve Your Majesty, and that’s how I’ll die. I’m definitely not transferring to your Heavenly Master Mansion."
Zhang Yan Yi’s expression turned peculiar, as his bright eyes regarded him with amusement before shaking his head and saying:
"You already said why. Indeed, I have considered recruiting you, so naturally, I wouldn’t want you dying amidst imperial conflicts."
"Is that all?" Zhao Douan, dubious, thought Old Zhang went through a lot of trouble just to take advantage and cherish potential talent?
"That’s all." The Old Heavenly Master nodded, his demeanor natural.
Zhao Douan didn’t believe it; he felt there was more to this old man’s motives. However, Old Zhang was insistent on cherishing talent, which was impossible to refute.
"So, if you’re purely curious, you’ve got your answer. As for Baihua Village’s matter, Zhong Pan has already sent me a message. They barely exerted any effort. Since Your Majesty has leveled up, it’s as though it didn’t happen, so you needn’t feel indebted." Zhang Yan Yi said surprisingly cooperatively:
"If there’s nothing else, you should get busy."
Zhao Douan paused, pondering: "There’s one more thing..."
He reached into his bosom and took out that page of the Golden Scripture: "This item was given to me by the head of the Scripture Pavilion, do you recognize it?"
After much hesitation, he decided it was prudent to show it to Old Zhang, as it involved the bald monk of Xuan Yin, requiring caution.
"The wordless golden scripture, so that’s it." Zhang Yan Yi exclaimed with a bit of sentiment: "It’s still around, not destroyed by Xuan Yin."
"You recognize this thing?" Zhao Douan’s spirit lifted: "Why would Xuan Yin want to destroy it?"
Instinct told him there were secrets waiting to be uncovered here.
Zhang Yan lightly nodded, his tone somewhat pretentious: "Just some old stories, that’s all."
He initiated but then clammed up, clearly intent on keeping him in suspense.
Zhao Douan silently cursed the old man for leaving things incomplete, and his face suddenly broke into a bright smile. He eagerly stood up, respectfully picked up the teapot, poured Old Zhang a cup, and presented it with both hands in a "please, master, have some tea" groveling, deferential posture:
"This junior has always loved hearing stories, please, Heavenly Master, share a bit?"
One moment ’Old Zhang,’ the next ’Heavenly Master’... those entrenched in the court have hearts as black as night... Zhang Yan Yi, amused by his sudden switch of attitude, reluctantly accepted the teacup and took a sip, recalling: