togophonebook Chapter 853 Bright Cloud Cave Heaven
Chapter 853 Bright Cloud Cave Heaven
Chapter 853 Bright Cloud Cave Heaven
The Prince of Lu's Palace was an independent royal city, with a moat and city walls protecting the imperial family and nobles amidst a cluster of closely packed buildings.
Following the ritual system of "the court in front and the palace behind," the royal city had ancestral temples and altars of the land and grain on the east and west sides, respectively. Outside the altar of the land and grain, facing west and backed by the city wall, there was a palace in the southeast, arranged in a "sun and moon embraced" pattern, with a plaque inscribed "Mingxia Cave Heaven" hanging above the gate.
Gong Mengbi, like a phantom cast by moonlight, had already found the temple. It was actually quite easy to find. The Prince of Lu would not enshrine a Taoist priest in his bedchamber, and a Taoist priest from outside the palace could not serve in the ancestral temple. He searched around and found his way there.
“Mingxia Cave Heaven.” Gong Mengbi stood outside the temple and could see the main and secondary shrines symbolizing the sun and moon simply by looking up.
Master Cheng was in the Mingxia Cave. Besides him, there were several other masters with profound and mysterious auras. Or perhaps it could be said that the temple was heavily guarded, like a thin layer of ice with surging and terrifying undercurrents beneath.
From the outside, Mingxia Cave Heaven appears peaceful and serene, bathed in moonlight and adorned with dewy stars. Others would find it impossible to detect, but Gong Mengbi, having mastered the Heavenly Connection Technique and possessing the power of the Heavenly Wheel and the solitary illumination of the Moon, found it difficult to conceal the fact that the arrangement within Mingxia Cave Heaven corresponded to the sun and moon.
Gong Mengbi noticed that the couplets on both sides of Mingxia Cave read, "The sun shines on the golden court, opening up auspicious times; its light illuminates the jade palace, calming the heart of worldly dust." His heart stirred slightly. He used the Taiyin (Moon) to determine his fate palace and calculated the auspiciousness and inauspiciousness. Two lunar phases were revealed. One was the Yin phase, which was in the cycle of waxing and waning, indicating a predicament of being shrouded in dust and fog. The other was an extraordinary phase, not in the cycle of waxing and waning. It was the Moon's Path Star, which moved with the moon and was an assistant to the moon, turning misfortune into misfortune and good fortune into good fortune.
Gong Mengbi had already made up his mind. The arrangement in Mingxia Cave Heaven might not have been designed for him, but if he stepped into it, it would definitely affect him.
“Since it is the day when the sun shines on the golden court and the auspicious omens open, it seems that things really cannot be accomplished at night.” He took a deep look at Mingxia Cave, his gaze falling on the city wall that Mingxia Cave leaned against, and he understood why things could not be accomplished at night.
The Prince of Lu's mansion was fortified with high walls and protected by the Jinshui River; it was a city within a city, a city within a city. If a fight broke out in the Prince of Lu's mansion that night, he would be an uninvited enemy, which would inevitably alert the city god to protect him. In that case, he would be attacked from both sides and trapped in a cage.
To take action at the Prince of Lu's residence, it would actually be safer during the day than at night.
Then we can only think of another way to leave Master Cheng until the end. Gong Mengbi is already prepared to put in more effort.
On the second day, before dawn, Gong Mengbi had even met up with Chun Jingshu when two uninvited guests arrived at the inn and found Chun Jingshu.
These were two young women. When they found Chun Jing Shu, she was still resting. When the attendants saw the two women, they hurriedly stepped forward to pay their respects. Before they could kneel down, the women waved their hands, telling them not to make a sound.
They arrived without being asked, pushing open Chun Jing Shu's door and entering. Chun Jing Shu was startled, initially thinking they were servants, but upon opening her eyes, her pupils contracted slightly.
She got up, pulled on her outer robe and dressed herself properly. She then raised the cloud-like gauze, which climbed up the wall like smoke, locking the doors and windows and isolating the inside from the outside.
"Cousin, why are you here?"
One of the fox spirits in yellow sneered and said, "If we don't come soon, Gong Mengbi will expose the heavens."
Another purple-robed fox spirit said, "Jing Shu, you came out with Gong Mengbi. What exactly did that wild fox do to anger the three immortals? My aunt ordered us to come here so that we could both protect Daoist Cheng and take advantage of Daoist Cheng's demonic test to deal with him."
Chun Jing Shu dared not hide anything and told Gong Meng Bi everything she had seen and heard along the way, without making any judgments of her own.
But even without judgment, the way she spoke of Gong Mengbi seemed to carry a boastful tone, as if he were mysterious and omniscient, as if he had everything under control and had no miscalculations.
The two fox spirits exchanged glances, a hint of suspicion creeping into their eyes. The fox spirit in yellow, being straightforward, asked, "So, according to you, Gong Mengbi really is an unfathomable figure?"
Seeing their disbelief, Chun Jing Shu knew they were bound to suffer at Gong Meng Bi's hands. However, she couldn't advise them, otherwise she might be branded as a traitor who "boosted the enemy's morale and diminished her own." But she also couldn't completely ignore them, otherwise they might turn around and come after her for trouble if they really suffered a loss, blaming her for not warning them beforehand.
“My skills are meager, and Gong Mengbi’s abilities far surpass mine. I cannot fathom many of his methods. His actions are unpredictable, and I cannot fathom them at all.” Chun Jing Shu’s voice was timid as she advised, “My two cousins, you must be very careful when dealing with him.”
Seeing her pathetic appearance, the Yellow and Purple Immortals were not very fond of her. The Purple-Robed Fox Immortal sneered: "Qin Shi and that Taoist Zhang are only seventh-rank, dealing with them is just a matter of blowing dust. But this fellow acted so crazy in front of Master Chang and True Man Xiaoyang. Besides trying to embarrass us, he must have some kind of backing."
She paced a few steps and said, "We originally planned to meet him first and give him some advice, but it seems unnecessary. He probably won't turn back until he hits a brick wall, and saying more will only be of no use."
The yellow-robed fox spirit said, "That wild fox has only cultivated for a few years, yet it already possesses such abilities?"
"It's always good to be careful." The purple-robed fox fairy looked at Chun Jing Shu and said, "We'll go to the Lu Prince's Mansion first. If there are any instructions, we'll have someone deliver them to you."
Chun Jingshu cursed inwardly, but still had to respectfully see her two older sisters off.
Before parting, the fox spirit in yellow said, "You should be careful. If he is summoned to the palace, you'd better avoid it if possible."
Chun Jing Shu looked up at her, but she had already turned away and left with the Purple-Robed Fox Fairy.
"I would like to avoid it, but how could that scoundrel Gong Mengbi let me?" Chun Jing Shu began to feel anxious again.
Not long after the two fox spirits left, when the streets became lively, Gong Mengbi went out and summoned all the foxes.
Apart from the two grooms who needed to keep an eye on the Azure Dragon to prevent it from causing trouble, Chun Jing Shu and the six servants were all assigned tasks by Gong Meng Bi.
"Master Cheng is at most a sixth-rank official, with mediocre skills. Since Prince Lu has enshrined Master Cheng in his residence, does he also enshrine other Taoist priests?"
“Since the Taoist priest was worshipped in the palace, he would need to purchase incense, flowers, candles, and cinnabar. These are not businesses that ordinary people can do, so there must be some clues.”
"Do the Taoist priests of the Prince's Mansion have any reputation outside? If so, do they have fellow Taoists? Do they have Taoist temples or separate residences? Do they perform rituals or ceremonies outside?"
Gong Mengbi waved his hand and said, "Go and investigate. Report back immediately if there are any developments."
Several waiters left first. Chun Jing Shu glanced at Gong Meng Bi, seemed to want to say something but hesitated, and finally shut her mouth, said goodbye, and left the inn.
Gong Mengbi's gaze fell on her, a slight smile appearing on his face. Those two fox spirits hadn't bothered to conceal their presence when they arrived, so how could they possibly have fooled him?
It seems the three immortals lacked patience.