I, the transmigrated villain, please wait, gentle master.

Chapter 156 The Xiang River Breaks and the Jade Mountain Collapses (5)

Wangcai said, "No, that's not it. I genuinely want to laugh because I'm really happy. Don't you think that although my master is scary, he's still very good to me?"

His master forced him to learn the "Star-Picking Step." Compared to other martial arts techniques, this move is certainly not the most powerful, but it is definitely the most useful. When encountering danger, this is a life-saving skill. Of the thirty-six stratagems, running away is the best option!

"I can tell that Master only loses control when he's angry. If he accidentally kills me, he'll definitely be very upset. So, I'll just try to stay away from him and not make him angry, right?"

The dog had followed Li Tingyun since it was a puppy, from birth to death, from cultivating immortality to cultivating demonic arts, from wandering the human world to being trapped in hell, always following behind him, and knew him better than anyone else.

"That's why I want to live in Eternal Calamity Town and go back to Taiji Palace less often. Distance makes the heart grow fonder, you know."

The dog smugly said, "Hahaha, I'm so smart!"

Xuan Yu: "..."

He didn't know what to say.

This is probably what they mean by "fools have good fortune"—being carefree and living a stress-free life.

The two were squatting on the roof talking.

Below us stands a tall pavilion, its four corners topped with gleaming glazed tiles.

Wangcai slipped and almost fell, but quickly grabbed the roof ridge and sat on the tiles.

Turning to look at Xuan Yu, he saw that Xuan Yu had actually stood up, his hands behind his back, standing straight and steady.

As expected of a cat demon, it loves to stand on high places and feel the wind. The higher and more dangerous it is, the more it feels like walking on flat ground.

Wangcai, taking advantage of the bright lights, saw Xuanyu take something off his waist.

"What's that? A talisman?"

"Did you say this?"

Xuan Yu turned around, waved the thing in his hand at Wang Cai, took a step back, and sat down next to him.

Wangcai then realized that what he was holding was a piece of wood, and asked, "You're just a black cat, why do you need to carry a peach wood amulet with you? Aren't you yourself a 'protector against evil spirits'? Are you afraid of attracting evil spirits?"

Xuan Yu said, "This is not a talisman, but a magical artifact used by the Yunlan Sect for communication, similar to a 'Thousand-Mile Transmission Talisman.' This wooden plaque is not made of ordinary peach wood, but of Jianmu wood."

Wangcai asked, "Jianmu? Is that the legendary divine tree that connects the celestial realm and the human realm?"

Xuan Yu said, "Yes. In the wilderness of Duguang in the southwest, there is a divine tree called Jianmu, which is a hundred ren tall but has no branches..."

In ancient times, humans and gods lived together, and the celestial realm and the mortal realm were not separated.

The three divine trees, Jianmu, Fumu, and Ruomu, are the three channels connecting heaven and earth.

Beings in the lower realm can climb the divine tree to reach the thirty-third heaven, and immortals, gods, and demons in the heavenly realm can also descend to the world through the divine tree.

After Emperor Zhuanxu severed the connection between heaven and earth, these three divine trees lost their original function and were no longer "ladders to heaven," but the beings of the lower realm still revered them as "divine trees."

There are no more gods, immortals, or demons in the human world. As time goes by, the place where the divine tree grows is no longer known to people and has gradually become a secret realm.

Later, a large number of cultivators flocked to the area, establishing sects and schools. In order to explore more cultivation resources, various clans and sects launched a craze to search for ancient secret realms.

The Duguang Plain, where the Jianmu Divine Tree is located, was taken into the possession of the Yun clan ancestors of the Yunlan Sect.

The Duguang Plain is a fertile land stretching for thousands of miles, brimming with spiritual energy. Rare flowers and exotic plants grow everywhere, and exotic birds and beasts often appear. How could such a blessed land not attract people's envy?

It is said that several immortal sects fought fiercely for this land back then, plunging the cultivation world into chaos. In the end, each sect suffered heavy losses and no one gained any benefit. Instead, the Yun clan ancestor, who happened to be passing by, picked up a huge bargain!

The Yunlan Sect gradually grew stronger by relying on the blessed land of Duguang Plain.

Even though the Yunlan Sect is not martial and its combat strength is its weakness, it has still managed to reach where it is today and become one of the "Ten Great Immortal Sects" known to people today. This is inseparable from the abundant resources of the Duguang Plain.

The sect token of Yunlan Sect is a "bamboo slip" made of Jianmu wood.

They specially harvested wood from the sacred tree and carved it into wooden tablets and slips:

The wooden slips were long, thin, and light, making them suitable for copying medical books. They were then bound together with rope to preserve the family's traditional prescriptions and medicines forever.

The wooden tablets were slightly wider and thicker, serving as tokens to be distributed to disciples. They were both identification documents and tools for communication.

"Generally speaking, each sect has a special token to facilitate communication among its members and to verify identities when necessary... The Taiji Hall should be no exception, right?"

Xuan Yu asked curiously, "What kind of magical artifact do you use to make contact? Would you mind telling me?"

Wangcai said, "We are conch shells. Someone specially collects conch shells from Penglai Island in the East China Sea and makes them into communication devices. Everyone in Taiji Palace has one, except for the master... He doesn't even know that such a thing exists."

Xuan Yu said incredulously, "The token of the Taiji Palace is a conch shell, and your Palace Master was unaware of it?!"

Wangcai said, "Yes, the master doesn't know, and he doesn't need this."

Everyone in the Taiji Hall knew that the conch shell was used as a token for communication, except for their Hall Master, who was "excluded" and completely unaware of it.

But this was not something that the people below deliberately wanted to hide.

If they did it intentionally, they should have kept it a secret from Wangcai as well, otherwise it would have been exposed sooner or later. But in reality, none of them did that.

As usual, Xia Changfeng handed a conch shell to Wangcai.

Wangcai's spiritual root attribute is fire, making him skilled in fire attacks. The Vermilion Bird City under Xia Changfeng's rule is more suitable for him. Therefore, he is usually under Xia Changfeng's jurisdiction and serves as a subordinate of Vermilion Bird City. However, everyone in the Taiji Palace knows that Gouzi is the Palace Master's spirit pet, and Xia Changfeng usually doesn't care about him, nor can he control him.

The fact that Wangcai got the conch shell is enough to show that Li Tingyun was not actually "ostracized".

It's because he rarely interacts with his subordinates. Everyone feels that their temple master has no need for communication—wild beasts always roam alone, while only cattle and sheep travel in herds.

Normally, in the Taiji Hall, unless Li Tingyun himself consults with his subordinates, they rarely take the initiative to contact him.

All affairs in Four Symbols City are decided by the four city lords themselves. If the four of them bother Li Tingyun with trivial matters under their jurisdiction, Li Tingyun will think that they are incompetent.

Besides, even if they told Li Tingyun, what difference would it make? Li Tingyun doesn't have the "delicate" mind to give them clever advice. His way of solving problems is simpler and more brutal: kill them all.

Over time, many things were decided and resolved by the people below, regardless of whether they would cause any trouble. After all, they were all birds of a feather, without morality, order, or rules. They had nothing, so they were not afraid of anything.

In short, the subordinates invented a convenient communication tool, but none of them informed Li Tingyun. However, everyone assumed that he didn't need the tool at all, so there was no need to report it.

They all felt that, given the Palace Master's personality, even if he discovered this matter himself one day, he wouldn't have the time to investigate. Perhaps he would just scoff and complain that the things they created were not useful!

Two suggestions for improvement were put forward: this needs to be changed, and that needs to be changed.

"Alas, what a pity, I accidentally lost the conch shell that Xia Changfeng gave me..."

Looking at Xuan Yu's wooden piece, Wang Cai couldn't help but think of his own keepsake.

Because of his carelessness and negligence, the conch shell had long been lost.

Gouzi had nothing of value; all his treasures, including the conch shell, were buried in front of Li Tingyun's mother's grave. He never imagined that the feng shui treasure trove he dug would be stolen by thieves!

It has not been found to this day.

Fortunately, he was a carefree dog with a very forgetful nature.

It doesn't matter if I lose all my money, or if I lose my keepsakes.

He didn't need to worry about the affairs of Suzaku City, and his master rarely assigned him any tasks.

In addition, he went "home" less and less often, so he didn't need to keep in touch with any colleagues or friends, and there was no need to pass on messages in a timely manner.

If he had something to do, he could easily run back on all fours, or use earth-遁 (earth-遁 is a type of escape technique) or teleportation, it would just take a little more time and effort.

Therefore, after losing his conch shell, Wangcai did not ask Xia Changfeng for another one.

Upon hearing Wangcai's words, Xuan Yu couldn't help but think: Just what kind of amazing organization is the Taiji Hall!

Those below are completely unaware of what those above are doing.

The sect's tokens can be lost easily; it's not a big deal if they are lost.

...Is Li Tingyun herding sheep?

Perhaps it was precisely because of his free-range management style that Sixiang City developed its crazy and wild growth pattern—like a wild horse running rampant on the grassland.

Anyone else would be unable to manage or control this.

Only Li Tingyun could let the horse run wild.

Because he himself is even crazier and wilder.

Unfortunately, the lower realm was not a vast, uninhabited "grassland," but a bustling "city" where various sects stood side by side and humans, demons, and ghosts coexisted.

Riding a horse through a busy city would definitely cause a lot of trouble.

This is why the cultivation world is united in its hatred of the Taiji Palace.

Xuan Yu said to Wang Cai, "Stupid dog, you've lost the conch shell. If someone finds it and sneaks into Four Symbols City, wouldn't that be..."

He paused here, then suddenly realized that his worries were unnecessary.

Just how incredibly reckless and fearless must someone be to dare to venture into the Four Symbols City and the Taiji Hall?

Even if you manage to break in, what then? In a place where demons run rampant, more dangerous and terrifying than the underworld, once an intruder is discovered, they'll probably be devoured without a trace. If you really fall into that demon's lair, unless God protects you, you're doomed.

Xuan Yu shook his head. Forget it, what's he thinking about here? It's none of his business.

"Enough of this small talk, let me quickly tell Si Wuxie about some things that are happening in this region."

As soon as he finished speaking, he plucked a tuft of hair from Wangcai's tail and turned it into a long, thin writing brush.

Wangcai stared blankly as he wrote on the wooden tablet, then frowned and asked, "What are you doing?"

Xuan Yu, without looking up, said, "To deliver a message."

Wangcai said, "This thing... is it actually used like this?"

Xuan Yu said, "Yes, by writing the other person's name at the top, we can ensure that the text to be written next will appear on his wooden tablet. Since this tablet is so small, the words must be concise, but not too concise and incomprehensible."

Wangcai said, "Then...this is not as good as the Thousand-Mile Transmission Talisman!"

Xuan Yu said, “Indeed. But if a sound transmission talisman is sent out and there are other people present, wouldn’t everyone know? Besides, the main purpose of the Yunlan Sect’s wooden slips, in addition to communication, is to confirm identities.”

“I’m not a member of their Yunlan Sect, so the wooden plaque is bare and has no words written on it. If I were a disciple of their sect, my name, age, spiritual root attribute, and which branch or lineage it belonged to would be engraved on it. The patterns engraved on it would also be different, and there are many rules.”

“My one is not so complicated. It’s mainly used to contact Si Wuxie. He has an identical wooden tablet on his side. He doesn’t use it for anything else, just to receive messages from here.”

Wangcai was completely baffled and said with utter disgust, "This thing is so lame! It's practically the same as a waist tag! And they call it a 'communication device'? Come on. What era are we living in? We still have to write letters to pass messages?"

Xuan Yu said, "Alright, now that you mention it, I also think that this thing is indeed quite useless, tasteless to use but a pity to throw away. However, the communication function of most sect tokens is even worse than this, only allowing one-on-one private communication. In the end, all those miscellaneous magical treasures they created are not as good as the transmission talisman and the image retention bead."

Wangcai muttered to himself, "The sound transmission talisman and the image retention bead aren't very useful either..."

He was filled with regret; he had actually lost his conch shell!

He hadn't expected that the conch shell in the Taiji Hall would be so high-end. He had thought that all communication tools in the world should be like this, no, they should be even better than this.

He also complained that seashells could only chat and gossip, and that they didn't have the function of "transmitting objects".

Looking back, it turns out that other sects still have to rely on letters to communicate?!

For these people, the sound transmission talisman was actually the most convenient and useful thing.

Compared to the communication devices of other immortal sects, the conch shell in the Taiji Hall is not only used for private communication, but also allows everyone to gather in the square to chat and gossip, which is incredibly advanced.

To construct such a vast communication space requires not only the ingenuity of skilled craftsmen but also a continuous supply of magical power—a task undertaken collaboratively by the four city lords of the Four Symbols City.

If any of them malfunctions, the conch shells may malfunction or even stop working when transmitting messages, but so far no such problem has occurred.

In comparison, this tiny conch shell is simply a "miracle weapon".

Wangcai rested his chin on his hands, extremely frustrated, and mentally berated himself:

Wild boars can't eat fine bran!