A Night of Desperation

Chapter 286: route Four

"I heard that as long as you attend the first three classes properly, you can get an effective amulet from the temple. Then when returning home, you can have something to show to your grandfather."

"An amulet, really? What’s important is the name association. It offers priority when seeking help in times of need."

"By studying here, there’s another benefit. It trains us to differentiate issues on our own initially, instead of bothering the master in the temple for every little thing. We try to handle it with bulk talismans first; if that doesn’t work, then we call the master. This also saves a lot of time and energy."

Yu Hong and the several people beside him were discussing the purpose of this training session.

He listened quietly, yet somewhat furrowed his brows.

"So… we don’t actually teach real Daoist skills?"

"They will teach, but..." A bespectacled male student, who had been curious about Yu Hong’s robust build, hastily chimed in. "Dude, you’re not seriously here to learn Daoist skills, are you?"

"I am considering it." Yu Hong nodded. "Is there a problem?"

"Of course not, but at our age it’s already too late to start training. Moreover, the Golden Jade class just nonchalantly teaches, similar to practicing Inner Qi Gong to regulate the body and nerves, making one slightly more energetic and stronger than the average person. It all sounds quite profound though," the bespectacled student whispered.

"No way, so how do we handle hauntings or similar issues?" A young girl with purple lipstick couldn’t help but ask.

"There are no such hauntings; just hire a bodyguard." The bespectacled guy laughed. "Honestly, my grandfather made me come here, said I had to get a diploma before I could go home. You don’t really think everyone is here to learn Daoist skills, do you?"

"No, haven’t you experienced it?" Another chubby bystander, listening to their conversation, couldn’t help but interject.

"What?" asked the spectacled student.

"Like those missing person cases that even the police can’t solve. Recently, these cases have been on the rise, and a friend of my dad at the City Police Station said there’s no pattern to the crimes. Several culprits were randomly selected from other criminals." The chubby one sighed, "If the world wasn’t becoming more incomprehensible, who would spend so much time and money to fuss over this place?"

"So, are you saying there are many missing cases now?" Yu Hong naturally inserted.

"A lot. Some have been solved, due to people taking advantage of the situation, but most are just untraceable," the chubby student replied, glancing at Yu Hong who was much taller than him and noting his strong muscular contours.

"Dude, you’ve got an impressive build!"

Yu Hong just smiled; his stature and build were indeed very noticeable among the group.

From the chubby student’s response, he could deduce that the Black Disaster’s infiltration into this world was accelerating and intensifying. But since the Nine Sects had been holding on for so long here, he presumed that a targeted countermeasure would eventually appear.

Otherwise, this place would have ended up much like where Yiyi was.

While he listened to the rich heirs’ casual conversation,

On the other side among four people, the one who stood at the forefront, a cold and quiet young man, seemed to be disturbed by the noise, frowned slightly, and whispered,

"How is this arranged? Sharing lessons with those idlers is a waste of time for us and meaningless for them."

"I’ve already suggested that these gilded second-generations should be handed over to the external training staff. They wouldn’t take the teachings seriously anyway," another man, with slightly high cheekbones, responded.

"Just bear with it for now," the cold young man closed his eyes, exhaled, and continued murmuring something.

About two minutes later,

The wooden gate in the yard was pushed open.

An old Taoist, with white hair and one prosthetic eye, entered, flanked by four Taoists.

The old Taoist gestured for the four to stop and quickly walked up to the people inside the yard.

"I am Yu Mo, and the class starts now,"

He seated himself cross-legged.

"The induction into the teachings, primarily for the new kids of the Golden Jade class. As darkness encroaches and chaos approaches, cultivate diligently. Not only can it keep you away from unclean entities, but it also enables you to protect your family and buy enough time for someone from our Taoist Sect to come to your aid."

"May I ask Master Yu Mo, are there really so-called unclean entities in this world?" Yu Hong suddenly raised his hand to ask.

"Believe it, then there is; disbelieve, then there is not." Yu Mo looked at him, his gaze briefly flickering over the strong muscles on his body. "These unclean entities include the evil and distracting thoughts that rise in your mind, among other things."

"I see," Yu Hong showed an enlightened expression.

He wasn’t intentionally causing trouble, but from this old man, he truly couldn’t sense anything different from an ordinary person.

Weak, powerless, he could even faintly hear a phlegmy sound in his breath, clearly, the old man had a cold.

Next, was Master Yu Mo’s time for chanting scriptures. Seeing no further questions, he suggested leading everyone in chanting the Daoist Scripture, Universal Splendor Scripture.

A tedious chanting session lasted for over half an hour, making several people from the Golden Jade class increasingly impatient and yawn one after another. Only Yu Hong solemnly chanted along with the Universal Splendor Scripture.

"This guy is somewhat interesting. Could he actually be here to learn?" On the other side, one female disciple noticed this and couldn’t help but whisper quietly.

"Being able to recite such a tedious scripture, his Determination is strong," another female disciple nodded in agreement.

"Maybe he’s just pretending," the man with slightly high cheekbones speculated. "Zheng Ming, brother, what do you think?" He looked towards the reserved Taoist who had remained silent.

"It’s none of your concern, pay attention to the class. If it’s genuine, he will naturally continue. If it’s fake, he’ll soon give up," the cold Taoist Zheng Ming replied indifferently.

As he spoke, the other three immediately didn’t dare to say more.

Among the disciples inside the temple, he was one of only two who had a minor accomplishment in Daoist Skills, and his authority among the young disciples was considerable.

After Zheng Ming finished speaking, he glanced at Yu Hong, whose robust and strong physique was particularly eye-catching among a group of wealthy second-generation youths.

In reality, not all these second-generation youths coming here just for the name were useless; occasionally, one or two individuals with perseverance and potential would emerge.

However, at such an old age, no matter how talented or determined he was, it was already too late.

Starting halfway would inevitably lead to a limited journey.

Thus, after a few more glances, he continued to listen to Yu Mo’s teaching of the Universal Splendor Scripture.

The day’s teaching quickly came to an end, and everyone respectfully saw off Daoist Yu Mo before dispersing.

"Yu Hong, you’re not a local, right? From your accent, it seems you haven’t been in Taizhou long. Do you want to join us for a meal and have some fun?" asked the chubby second-generation youth who took the initiative to invite Yu Hong.

"No thanks, I really want to seriously learn some Daoist Skills, planning to go back and delve into the Universal Splendor Scripture," Yu Hong declined.

"Awesome! Really dedicated, huh? Keep it up!" The chubby youth gave a thumbs up, admiringly. "Looking forward to you working hard on your cultivation, making those in the Dao Seed Class take notice!"

Yu Hong smiled and looked towards the other four young Daoists, his perception naturally allowing him to hear their private conversation.

He understood that they looked down on the few people on the side of the Golden Jade Class.

But that was alright, some things would reveal their true nature through the test of time.

Turning around, he walked alone towards the outside of the Taoist Temple.

In the days to follow.

Yu Hong came to the temple every day diligently, while initially there were five people from the Golden Jade Class, after three days, only three remained, and after another four days, only two were left: Yu Hong and the man with glasses.

The other four had all ditched classes, finding them boring.

The daily lessons were all about memorizing various Daoist Scriptures, boring and incomprehensible, a complete waste of time in everyone’s eyes.

Only Yu Hong and the man with glasses persisted.

After some time, he got to know the man with glasses, Guo Shangdong, whose family owned a chain bookstore locally.

What they didn’t know was, their perseverance had also sparked a divide among the transmission Daoists inside the temple.

Three weeks later.

Inside Qingchen Temple, at 5:30 in the morning, the monthly routine small meeting was convened as usual.

"Regarding the Dao transmission application for the two from the Golden Jade Class, I plan to officially approve it," said Daoist Yu Mo, sitting cross-legged on a meditation mat, lazily basking in the sun.

"Golden Jade Class? Those young people who came in paying money have any good seedlings? Are you joking, junior brother?" Temple Master Yu Hen, with a chubby and pale face, was counting money, moistening his fingers with his mouth.

"Don’t mess it up, our Qingchen Temple is different from other Taoist Sects, we are all about money. Two transmission Official Disciples need us to spend money and resources to cultivate, isn’t this a waste?"

"That Guo Shangdong can be dismissed, but the other one, Yu Hong, I think he is very determined and wholeheartedly devoted to Daoist Skills. I’ve talked to him a few times; he seems to be someone who has been through hardship, hence his eagerness for Daoist Skills," explained Yu Mo.

"That still won’t do. Every additional person means less income for us. Our temple’s income is already not ample, junior brother, you are unaware of the family expenses, Golden Jade Class Golden Jade Class, what does Golden Jade mean? It’s meant for making money! You’re misunderstanding it," Temple Master Yu Hen continuously shook his head.

"Ah, I was just saying, senior brother, don’t get worked up," Yu Mo laughed helplessly. "How about this, I’ll talk to him, let him bear the cost of Daoist Skills consumption himself, see if that works."

"Hey! That’s more like it! Since he yearns for Daoist Skills, he naturally won’t mind bearing the costs of cultivation. If he even minds this little expense, then I’d have to doubt his sincerity," exclaimed Temple Master Yu Hen, slapping his thigh.

Yu Mo shook his head silently, watching his demeanor, the other old Daoists inside the temple also held back their laughs.

Although Qingchen Temple wasn’t as pure as before, it had money now.

Ever since Temple Master Yu Hen took over, everyone’s life had improved – buying houses, cars, and villas; things once dreamt of were now owned by everyone. Life was rich and flavorful.

As for Daoist Skills?

That was just a business for making money.

What’s the use of sticking to traditions? If one couldn’t even satisfy hunger, couldn’t afford the necessary resources and medicinal ingredients for cultivation, wouldn’t it still end up dwindling and dying out?

Yu Mo watched as the other old Daoists enthusiastically discussed with the Temple Master how to expand business channels, including the newly emergent online streaming and more.

He sighed softly.

Since driving away those obstinate members of the Ascetic Sect, the temple indeed wasn’t short of money anymore, life had greatly improved, everyone’s thin faces had become rosy.

However, gradually, he also noticed something wasn’t right.

The Daoists’ dedication to cultivating Daoist Skills was increasingly lax, spending a lot of time with families, traveling, and indulging in leisure.

If the mentors were like this, the younger generation followed suit even more, having little skill but not lagging in self-pride at all.