Wandering Gods of Day and Night

Fei Yue was scorched and naturally unwilling to yield. Its Moon Wheel spun, extinguishing the flames around it.

Just as the fire was put out, Zhao Wuya pointed at Fei Yue in midair again, unleashing a frigid icy force that stretched across the sky, freezing even the heavens. Fei Yue spun once more, dispersing all the icy energy from the tattoo map.

The scorching heat and the icy cold cycled repeatedly within the tattoo map. But with each iteration, the fiery energy diminished slightly, and the icy cold became less biting.

Finally, when the heat and ice completely subsided, the High Monk chanted a Buddhist mantra, severed his right arm, and transformed it into shimmering points of light.

The points of light coalesced into a stream of radiance that flowed into Zhao Wuya's body.

When the last speck of light merged into him, the skeletal High Monk transported Zhao Wuya out of the Kongming Mirror, laying him back onto the bamboo bed.

By now, Zhao Wuya had regained his senses and said to Zhou Xuan, "Landlord, I feel much better."

"How many sticks of incense do you have now?" Zhou Xuan asked again.

"Six sticks—I just burned six sticks," Zhao Wuya replied.

"You originally shouldn't have had six sticks, but the High Monk in the tattoo gifted you some incense,"

Peng Sheng held the now lifeless tattoo map of the High Monk Moon Gaze and said to Zhao Wuya.

"Why did the High Monk give him some incense?"

Zhou Xuan also looked at the tattoo map. Within it, the High Monk's figure had already lost an arm.

"Landlord, I told you—I have the Great Buddha's blessing. Any monk who sees me addresses me as Lord Zhao Buddha."

"Buddha your damned mother."

Yun Ziliang smacked Zhao Wuya's forehead with a cloth shoe and said, "You're a Taoist, a monk is a monk; we're as separate as water and oil."

"Don't say that. You, as a descendant of Dragon Seeking, might actually have a strong Buddha's blessing. Even the tattooed High Monk severed an arm to grant you a stroke of fortune, pushing you to six sticks of incense."

"With such a Buddha's blessing, wouldn't becoming a monk suit you perfectly?" Yun Ziliang's face twitched.

"What's good about being a monk? Dim lamps, worn scriptures, sitting cross-legged chanting all day—no, no way."

Zhao Wuya crossed his legs and said, "Six sticks of incense are just right—not too strong, but enough so senior disciples won't look down on me."

The crowd: "..."

Ya Zi, at least you know how to read the room.

...

The matter of Zhao Wuya's fluctuating incense seemed to have settled. Although it puzzled everyone why a lazy, indulgent person like Zhao Wuya was somehow graced with such benevolence, seemingly possessing a Buddha's blessing,

it was fortunate that no major incident occurred, making it a fairly good outcome.

"Xuanzi, how has your Dragon Seeking Incense progressed today?"

"On the way back from escorting Ya Zi to the inn, my Dragon Seeking Incense fully formed."

Zhou Xuan patted his chest and said, "Thirty-six dragon scales are affixed to the incense—every single one accounted for."

"Well done! You truly are a genius, kid. Perception is the most precious resource in all of Jing Country. With Perception, one's cultivation advances by leaps and bounds. Never before has a sensing Dragon Seeking Heavenly Master from Hidden Dragon Mountain managed to form the Dragon Seeking Incense in a single day."

Yun Ziliang's words carried praise and a hefty dose of pride… A Great Heavenly Master might be on the verge of producing a prodigy.

"Did you hear dragon roars?"

Yun Ziliang asked Zhou Xuan again.

"Dragon roars? You mean the sound of dragons' cries?"

"Exactly."

"I didn't hear anything," Zhou Xuan replied.

"How could you not have heard… When Dragon Seeking Incense forms, dragon roars are inevitable. Ordinary dragon qi produces faint roars,

Great Dragon Qi produces booming dragon cries,

Ancestral Dragon Qi produces piercing roars. A single cry can reverberate through Secret Realms. And yet, you didn't hear a sound?"

"I truly didn't hear anything—not even the faint whisper of an ordinary dragon roar."

Zhou Xuan said.

"This is strange. Did you really collect all the dragon scales?"

"Honestly, I collected every one of them. If you don't believe me, you can enter my Secret Realm and see for yourself."

"I won't go in, but this is peculiar—how could it be missing?"

Yun Ziliang fell into deep thought once again.

In just one day, two strange events occurred within Dragon Seeking Hall—Disciple Zhao Wuya, clearly a Taoist, unexpectedly established a strong Buddha's connection,

Disciple Zhou Xuan gathered all thirty-six scales, yet his Secret Realm produced no dragon roars.

"This world has become a bit baffling to me."

Yun Ziliang sighed and said, "You should rest early; see if you hear dragon roars tomorrow."

Even though evening had arrived, Zhou Xuan naturally didn't go to sleep. He wandered the streets alone, aimlessly.

The night on East Market Street was bustling. Food stalls lined the roads in two neat rows—sweet soups, roadside bun stalls, marinated delicacies—all were available.

Zhou Xuan hadn't enjoyed such leisure in a long time. He walked while buying snacks.

At the same time, he unleashed his Perception.

"Could the absence of dragon roars be because I haven't absorbed enough Dragon Qi?"

Although he had formed all thirty-six dragon scales, perhaps he was slightly off, resulting in insufficient Dragon Qi.

With the bustling night market on East Market Street, he activated his Perception once more.

Suddenly, the thirty-seventh dragon scale formed.

"Why did I form another scale?"

Zhou Xuan was pondering this,

and then the thirty-eighth scale, the thirty-ninth, the fortieth...

"What sort of bizarre phenomenon is this?"

Zhou Xuan turned and headed back to the inn, where Yun Ziliang was drinking tea and listening to music.

"Lao Yun, something's odd."

"What's odd?"

"The number of dragon scales on Dragon Seeking Incense is supposed to be thirty-six, correct?"

"That's right."

"I've already condensed forty scales."

"Nonsense."

"It's true. If you don't believe me, enter my Secret Realm and take a look."

"Fine, I'll check."

"Go ahead."

After all, Yun Ziliang's half-human, half-spiritual nature made entering a Secret Realm relatively easy. Zhou Xuan only needed to grant access for the realm to accept him.

Eager to investigate the anomaly surrounding Dragon Seeking Incense, Yun Ziliang entered Zhou Xuan's Secret Realm for the first time.

His spirit separated from his physical form. What remained of his body collapsed in a heap, resembling a beggar's tattered clothing as it suddenly crumpled down.