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Upon entering the city, Yuan Ming discovered that the situation was even more dire than he had imagined. The streets were littered with corpses, some already rotting and emitting a foul stench. Along the way, he encountered two medical halls and a government office, all filled with piles of bodies, a sight too ghastly to describe. In the city, the dead outnumbered the living.
Yuan Ming had brought medicine to eradicate the plague, originally planning to add it to the well water for the townspeople to drink and cure their ailments. However, given the current state of affairs, that was no longer possible.
With his limited ability, it was impossible to administer the medicine to each individual. Therefore, Yuan Ming found a residence, cleared out the corpses, and began busily preparing the incense materials he had purchased earlier.
***
By evening, Yuan Ming had produced several sticks of pale yellow incense. The base materials were the same as those used for making fog incense, but with the addition of some plague-eradicating medicinal powder and special refining techniques from the Spirit Incense Secret Manual.
After completing the plague-eradicating incense, Yuan Ming took the incense to an open space in the center of the town and tapped his forehead. Four soul crows flew out, three of which landed on the bodies of the recently deceased, while the remaining one soared above to keep watch. The three bodies, with the soul crows inside, lit up with a faint green glow in their eyes and shakily rose to their feet, approaching Yuan Ming.
He handed each of them a stick of the plague-eradicating incense and instructed them to carry it in three different directions of the town.
Yuan Ming, holding the Heaven-Stealing Cauldron with the incense inserted, sat in the center. Once the bodies reached their designated positions, he controlled them and himself to light the incense. Moments after the incense was lit, billows of yellow smoke rose from various parts of the town, soon engulfing the entire place. Amidst the dense smoke, the townspeople, who were on the brink of death, believed they had reached the netherworld.
With their current physical state, they were too weak to avoid the smoke and resigned themselves to their fate. However, after inhaling the smoke, they felt rejuvenated, their spirits lifted, and their previous despair vanished. They were unsure whether this was a final flicker of life before death or a genuine recovery.
After a long while, as the smoke gradually cleared, the survivors in the city were free of the plague. When they could see their surroundings clearly again and realized they were still in the town, they wept with joy, and their cries echoed throughout the place.
Yuan Ming had already put away the Heaven-Stealing Cauldron, and the four soul crows had returned to his body. After advancing to Foundation Establishment, his soul power had greatly increased, and now even releasing all six soul crows did not overly strain him. After a brief rest, Yuan Ming was back to normal. When he opened his eyes, he saw that some of the recovered townspeople were gathering around him.
They were still weak, some needing support to stand, but upon hearing a child who had witnessed Yuan Ming's entire process of casting spells call him a lifesaver, they all gathered around.
"We kneel to thank the immortal master for saving our lives," someone called out, and others quickly echoed. Soon, the crowd began to kneel and kowtow to Yuan Ming in gratitude.
"You have just recovered from a severe illness and are still weak. Do not tire yourselves with kneeling. Quickly return home to eat and rest. You must also properly handle the aftermath for your deceased relatives. Please, go back," Yuan Ming said, trying to dissuade them. However, more survivors approached and continued to kneel and thank him.
Knowing his words were futile, Yuan Ming slapped his spirit beast bag at his waist, releasing a Qingyun Crane. He stepped onto it and ascended into the sky.
"He's an immortal, truly an immortal!" "Thank you, immortal master, for saving our lives!" "We are saved!" The excitement among the townspeople on the ground grew even more intense. Seeing this, Yuan Ming had no choice but to leave. As the people watched him depart, having just walked back from the brink of death, they finally got up.
A clan elder with considerable prestige suddenly spoke up, "The immortal master asks for nothing in return and has left after bestowing his kindness. We must not be ungrateful. We shall erect a temple in his honor and offer incense." "Yes, we must build a temple for the immortal master and erect a monument!" someone responded immediately. "Is Scholar Lu still alive?" the elder asked with his last bit of strength. "Uncle, I'm still alive," a scholar in the crowd quickly replied. "Did you get a good look at the immortal master? Go home and draw his likeness, so we can sculpt his statue," the elder commanded.
Scholar Lu found it difficult as the immortal master had worn a hat that obscured his face, but he had no choice but to agree.
In later years, the town of He Kou added a temple known as the Plague-Eradicating Temple, with a statue of a figure wearing a hat and standing on a crane. Although it was not officially recognized by the government, the temple's incense offerings remained prosperous, with people traveling from afar to visit, a tradition that continued for a hundred years. But let's not dwell on that for now.
***
After this brief interlude, Yuan Ming rode the Qingyun Crane away from He Kou Town and continued northward.
On his journey, he delved into the Spirit Incense Secret Manual and discovered many incense recipes for healing, rejuvenating, and preserving health. Most had mild effects for cultivators but were invaluable elixirs for ordinary people. Since the materials were common, Yuan Ming refined some during his cultivation breaks, improving his incense-making skills and occasionally helping the sick and troubled he met along the way, which brought him peace of mind.
Eventually, Yuan Ming arrived at Hai Yan City, located in the northeast of Yue Country, near the East Sea. When they had parted in Hei Yan City, Wu Lu had mentioned he would rest here for a while and invited Yuan Ming to join him.
However, Yuan Ming was intent on returning to the Great Jin and had other plans, so he did not accept the invitation. Now that he had arrived in Hai Yan City, he thought of meeting Wu Lu again, as he also had a favor to ask. Hai Yan City was named for its location at the mouth of a river called Hai River, meaning "clear river and calm sea." Besides the famous sight of waves crashing against cliffs, there was also the grand tidal spectacle every year on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month.
It was not the right season to witness the majestic tides, but Yuan Ming was not interested in that. Seeing Wu Lu was his only concern. Upon entering Hai Yan City, Yuan Ming found that the city's prosperity was no less than that of the Great Jin's capital.
The city was crisscrossed with branches of the Hai River, creating a rich water network that formed a unique landscape with streets and buildings along the waterways. The customs and architectural styles in the southern part of Yue Country were still similar to those of the southern border, with some traces remaining in the central region. However, in Hai Yan City to the north, the style was completely that of the Central Plains.
Upon entering the city, Yuan Ming did not immediately seek out Wu Lu. Instead, he found a pleasure house to relax, drink tea, and listen to music. Back in the capital of Great Jin, he often visited such places and occasionally composed his own lyrics and music, though not as frequently as he created paintings and stories. To this day, his compositions were still circulated in Great Jin.
***
After a refreshing bath in the afternoon and changing into new clothes, Yuan Ming left the inn and headed toward the famous Wang Hai Cliff in the east of the city. He had already learned of Wu Lu's whereabouts through the Heaven-Stealing Cauldron before arriving in Hai Yan City.
Wu Lu was staying in a cliffside inn near Wang Hai Cliff, overlooking the East Sea, with the best view in Hai Yan City to watch the tides and the spectacular sight of waves crashing against the cliffs. When Yuan Ming found Wu Lu, the latter was sitting on the second floor of the Guan Hai Lou Inn, at a window facing the sea, with a few dishes and a pot of wine, clearly enjoying himself.
Wu Lu was visibly stunned when he saw Yuan Ming sit down opposite him, seemingly in disbelief. "Brother Wu Lu, it's been a while," Yuan Ming greeted with a smile. "Brother Yuan, is it really you? What a coincidence!" Wu Lu held his wine cup, momentarily stunned, then a sudden joy welled up in his heart.
The joy of "reunion after a long separation" combined with the surprise of "meeting an old friend in a foreign land" made him feel almost unreal upon seeing Yuan Ming. The reason for his strong emotional reaction was not solely due to these feelings.
In fact, Yuan Ming had already used the Heaven-Stealing Cauldron to attach himself to Wu Lu three times in a row before deciding to come to him. Each time, Yuan Ming used the power of the black incense to subtly suggest to Wu Lu that he was a lifelong friend. As a result, Wu Lu sometimes thought there was something wrong with his mind, as he would inexplicably think of Yuan Ming.
However, the black incense made from the ashes of the Xuanhua Viewing Incense seemed to have a weaker effect on psychological suggestion than the incense ashes obtained from Liu Xin Sect, which were unfortunately too scarce and had been used up long ago.
"Why are you here?" Wu Lu asked, somewhat surprised. "I was returning north to Great Jin when I encountered some trouble on the way, so I changed my route and passed through Yue Country. Knowing that Brother Wu Lu was here, how could I not come to meet you?" Yuan Ming replied with a smile. "But how did you know I was dining here?" Wu Lu asked.
"It was just a coincidence. I saw that this place had a nice view, and I didn't expect to actually find you here," Yuan Ming said. "What trouble did you encounter on the road?" Wu Lu asked, frowning.
"Near Tie Hu Town, I ran into some old debtors and managed to collect some interest from them," Yuan Ming nodded and replied.
Wu Lu took a closer look at Yuan Ming, his pupils constricting in surprise."Brother Yuan, you've actually reached Foundation Establishment."