Revisiting an Old haunt

Gu Fan held the purplish-black wooden sign in his hand, and the light it emitted pieced together to form a map.

Lingxiao Sect disciples often go out to sea to hunt demons, so the sea charts near the Cloud Mist Sea are extremely complete. Gu Fan recognized the coastline in the light screen at a glance.

As for the floating red dot, it was about ten miles from the coastline and did not extend into the sea.

Gu Fan guessed that there must be something there.

Quietly withdrawing his magic, Gu Fan turned to look at the dumbfounded Hou Ying and the complex-looking Madam Sun.

"Does Madam know the secret behind this sign?"

Gu Fan no longer believed Madam Sun's previous words.

Even if a mortal who has never met a cultivator is cured by medicine, their first thought will be that they have encountered a divine doctor, not that this person is a celestial master.

Faced with Gu Fan's questioning, Madam Sun lowered her eyes, a look of reminiscence on her face, and slowly nodded.

"I do know a little."

Next, Madam Sun recounted the origin of the plaque.

It turns out that the Hou family was not as poor as they are now in earlier years; on the contrary, they were quite wealthy.

It wasn't until Hou Ying's father chartered a merchant ship and went to sea, never to return, that the family fell into decline.

The cargo on the ship did not belong to the Hou family alone. The Hou family consisted of only an orphan and a widow, so creditors naturally came knocking on their door.

As a result, the Hou family's property was seized, and Madam Sun was forced to move to this slum with Hou Ying, who was still an infant.

When she left the Marquis's residence, Madam Sun had only a few loose coins and this wooden plaque on her person.

This wooden plaque is indeed a family heirloom of the Hou family.

Madam Sun had heard Hou Ying's father, who was drunk, say that the Hou family's ancestors were immortal masters, but unfortunately, their descendants did not have the aptitude for cultivating immortality, which is why they had fallen to this state. The wooden plaque was passed down from their ancestors.

Therefore, even after her family fortune was exhausted, Madam Sun still carried this wooden plaque with her.

When Gu Fan revived Madam Sun with the elixir, she immediately realized that she had encountered a celestial master. She decisively instructed Hou Ying to present the wooden plaque, hoping to exchange it for a better opportunity for her son.

Otherwise, even if Hou Ying hadn't produced the wooden plaque, Gu Fan wouldn't have said anything.

After recounting the Hou family's past, Madam Sun knelt on the ground with a thud and kowtowed, saying, "I deliberately concealed the truth, and I beg the Immortal Master to punish me. I only beg the Immortal Master not to blame Hou Ying."

Upon seeing this, Hou Ying exclaimed in surprise and rushed forward to hug her.

Gu Fan gave a light snort, shook his head slightly, and asked, "I'm rather curious, if I hadn't noticed the unusual sign, what would you have done?"

Madam Sun raised her head and said softly, "I have looked at the plaque many times over the years, but I have never found anything unusual. Sometimes I wonder if my late husband was talking nonsense when he was drunk."

"If the immortal master does not notice anything unusual about the wooden plaque, then let's just pretend it doesn't exist and put our minds at ease."

Gu Fan nodded slightly upon hearing this.

"As you can see, there are indeed some things in this sign that might be of some use to me. I wonder how much reward you would like, Madam? You can name a price."

"Thank you so much, Immortal Master!" Madam Sun was extremely grateful and pulled Hou Ying to her side.

"I only ask that the Immortal Master accept Hou Ying. He has been well-behaved and clever since childhood. It would be good for the Immortal Master to keep him by his side to serve tea and water."

Upon hearing this, Hou Ying cried out, "Mother, I don't want to leave you!"

The mother and son then engaged in another struggle.

Seeing this, Gu Fan spoke up to stop him, saying, "Let me see Hou Ying's aptitude first."

If Hou Ying possesses spiritual roots, he could send Hou Ying to Zixiao Temple, which would make everyone happy.

Hou Ying hesitated before stepping forward, and Gu Fan placed his hand on Hou Ying's dantian, channeling a wisp of magical power into him.

If one possesses a spiritual root, one can have a slight sense of magical power. The higher the quality of the spiritual root, the stronger the sense. Although one cannot identify the attribute, one can still make a preliminary investigation.

Hou Ying was filled with trepidation, while Madam Sun watched this scene with hopeful eyes.

Unfortunately, Gu Fan was unable to sense Hou Ying's spiritual root and could only shake his head helplessly, saying, "It's a pity that Hou Ying has no spiritual root."

The hope on Madam Sun's face vanished instantly, along with the color draining from her face, and she collapsed to the ground.

Hou Ying quickly stepped forward to help him up.

Gu Fan gently comforted her, "Not having spiritual roots isn't necessarily a bad thing. Cultivators with low aptitude only have lifespans comparable to mortals. In fact, many miss out on the joys of life because they're so engrossed in cultivation, and end up being devoured by demonic beasts. Why not let Hou Ying stay by Madam's side and enjoy family life?"

After saying this, Gu Fan untied the money pouch at his waist, revealing the gold leaves inside.

A tear glistened in Madam Sun's eyes as she shook her head and said, "Thank you for your kindness, Immortal Master, but we are a widow and orphan, and even with this much money, we might not be able to keep it."

Upon hearing this, Gu Fan fell silent and frowned.

......

The State of Wei, Lin'an City.

Lin'an City is located at the border of Yunzhou and Yongzhou, and is Gu Fan's hometown in this life.

The Wei Kingdom comprises three provinces: Yunzhou, Yongzhou, and Liangzhou. The Lingxiao Sect, Hualingmen, and Bailianzong each occupy one of them, and the secular dynasty is jointly supported by these three sects.

The reason why it did not split into three countries was partly because the three sects shared similar Taoist traditions and all worshipped the Creator, and partly because of the pressure from the Wu and Yan kingdoms.

The three sects were forced to unite because they believed in different Taoist patriarchs.

Several years have passed, and the population of Lin'an City has recovered to more than half, but most of the pedestrians on the street still speak with accents from other places.

A large carriage drove into Lin'an City, and pedestrians hurriedly made way for it.

The carriage wound its way around and finally stopped in front of a blue stone courtyard. The coachman turned around and said, "Master, we've arrived."

The carriage curtain was lifted, and Gu Fan stepped out, followed by two people: Madam Sun and Hou Ying and her son.

Gu Fan took out some silver and handed it to the driver, who smiled and said a few auspicious words before driving the carriage away.

The Qing Shi Courtyard was Gu Fan's ancestral home. When he went out to seek immortality, he sold off his property, leaving only this ancestral home. Over the years, the walls have been covered with moss.

The sound of the carriage attracted the attention of the surrounding neighbors. Some of them were unfamiliar faces, but fortunately, there were a few acquaintances among them.

"Mr. Gu is back!" someone recognized Gu Fan and shouted.

Before seeking immortality, Gu Fan passed the imperial examinations and was thus addressed as Mr. Gu by his neighbors.

Gu Fan bowed to the crowd around him, saying that they would catch up another time, and the onlookers dispersed.

The lock on the black door was still there, but it was covered with rust.

Gu Fan reached out and twisted it, pulling it down. He pushed open the gate, kicking up a cloud of dust and revealing the overgrown courtyard behind it.

After Madam Sun and Hou Ying entered the courtyard, Gu Fan closed the gate tightly and a flame ignited between his fingers.

He casually tossed the flames onto the ground, and they immediately swelled in the wind, spreading like water until they reached the entire courtyard in the blink of an eye.

Madam Sun and Hou Ying stared wide-eyed at the scene, not daring to utter a sound to disturb it.

The weeds in the courtyard turned to ashes when they met the flames, and soon, even the moss in the corners disappeared.