Chapter 344 The Challenge After Being Famous
Chapter 344 The Challenge After Being Famous
Li Yundong's heart trembled when he heard Su Chan's cry. He calmly walked over and asked, "What happened? Look at how frightened you are."
Li Yundong went up to take a look and found that Zi Yuan and Ruan Hongling were also there. Everyone was crowding around a laptop and pointing at it.
Zi Yuan nodded to Li Yundong and said, "You're here. Come and have a look."
Li Yundong looked at it carefully and saw that there was a video on the screen. At first, the video was shaky, but soon Li Yundong noticed something strange. There were many trees with talisman and blessings bags in the video. He asked in surprise, "Isn't this Xiyuan Temple?"
Su Chan pulled his arm and pointed to a figure in the video. "Yes. You recognize this person?"
Li Yundong would have been fine if he hadn't seen it. When he saw the figure, he suddenly gasped and exclaimed, "Isn't that me?"
Ruan Hongling sneered and said, "Just wait and see what happens next!" Then, Li Yundong began to fight with a middle-aged monk in the video. Their fight was like something from some SFX-laden movie. The fierce duel with Mahamudra and Vajra magic made everyone feel dazzled.
Finally, Li Yundong threw out the spinning chakram and passed by the middle-aged monk. At the end of the video, the clip became very shaky, as if the man filming was fleeing in a panic.
Li Yundong was shocked and angry. "Who did this? Why has it been posted online?"
Su Chan blinked her eyes and said, "Yundong, everyone on earth now knows that you are a cultivator."
Li Yundong didn't speak, his face dark. Next to him, Zi Yuan sighed and said, "Fortunately, this video hasn't been online for long. Many people just think it's made with special effects. Look at the comments below..."
Ruan Hongling cooperatively scrolled down to let Li Yundong read the comments below.
There were all kinds of comments. "What is this? Which movie's special effects? Not bad, when will it be released?"
"Come on, isn't the camera too shaky? The screen was all over the place. What was the director thinking?"
"Hey, where is this place? Why does it look so familiar?"
"Xiyuan Temple, this is Xiyuan Temple in Dongwu City. I went there a while ago, hahaha!"
"Don't talk about what you don't understand. This is obviously a video that was secretly recorded. When I secretly filmed it, I almost lost my life!"
"Gee, the uploader appeared? Is it a real video secretly recorded by you? Which movie did you secretly shoot for? It almost doesn't even look like a movie. The scene is so real!"
"Haw, Iet me tell you the truth. This is just made with special effects by the CG students from Beijing Film Academy. Someone put it out deliberately to try and go viral. You must all understand that!"
Li Yundong didn't know whether to laugh or cry as he read the comments. He smiled bitterly and said, "Fortunately, they all regard this video as a work of special effects. Otherwise, I would be insanely famous by now."
Su Chan giggled and said, "It's okay. They can only see the back of you, so you can't be recognized! However, Master Fakong has become famous and is being searched for by others!"
Li Yundong said with a bitter smile, "It's my fault. Master Fakong will scold me if he finds out."
Zhou Qin came out with Li Yundong. After learning about the situation, she suddenly asked, "It seems that you are afraid that the truth of this video will be discovered by others. Why can't knowledge of cultivation be made public?"
Zi Yuan explained, "The cultivation world has always been a secret world. Every cultivator is working hard to maintain secrecy, and it can be said to be a hidden rule that everyone follows. Why is it like this? Because every cultivator has very strong destructive power, we are a group of special people. It just so happens that this group of people is involved with religion. Our government is now promoting the concept of there being no gods and implementing strict control over religious beliefs and cultivators. However, because cultivators and cultivation sects are mostly arrogant, the government is afraid of making policies that will lead to a large number of cultivation sects going out in order to be used by hostile forces. Therefore, they have adopted a neutral attitude, but it is absolutely forbidden for cultivators to show off in front of ordinary people."
Zhou Qin suddenly understood and said, "Ah! I see."
Zi Yuan nodded and said, "Why is the cultivation world so weak now? The main reasons are related to the country's policies and government's lack of support for us. In the period of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Hanwen, Emperor Hanjing and the Dou Empress believed in Laozi and Zhuangzi, so the Taoists began to flourish. In the Tang Dynasty, the emperor believed in Buddhism, so Buddhism became prosperous. In the Song Dynasty, the emperor believed in Taoism, and Song Zhenzong called the 24th Celestial Master of Mount Longhu to give him the title of 'Sir'. Most notably, in the period of Songhui, Zhang Jixian, the 30th Taoist priest, first received the favor and trust of Song Huizong, and built a Chongdao temple in the capital. The Shangqing Temple on Mount Longhu was also promoted to Shangqing palace. Our Zhengyi School became famous all over the whole world because of this, and ended up as one of the supreme Taoist sects in the world.
"During the Yuan Dynasty, Genghis Khan and Kublai all believed in Taoism, especially Qiu Chuji, who was a followed of the Quanzhen Dragon Sect. In the year 1127AD, Genghis Khan gave the Golden Tiger Token to Qiu and put him in charge of all Taoists in the world. Therefore, Qiu's Quanzhen Dragon Sect flourished and became a great Taoist sect that could be compared with our Zhengyi sect."
Following these words, Zi Yuan turned to Li Yundong and said, "The one who fought with you last time was Du Fei, the Eldest Senior Brother of the Quanzhen Dragon Sect. He's the direct successor of Qiu Chuji. The Quanzhen Dragon Sect is also the leader of the Six Sects, and their words carry great weight. If Du Fei hadn't ordered the Quanzhen Dragon Sect to leave last time, I'm afraid it wouldn't have been so easy to settle matters on Tianlong Mountain."
Li Yundong nodded and said, "You're right. Du Fei is an upright man."
Zi Yuan continued with another nod, "In the Ming Dynasty, the Emperor began to believe in our Zhengyi Sect again. Zhu Yuanzhang granted the 42nd Taoist priest Zhang the title of 'Great Zhenren', and appointed the Zhengyi Sect as the commander of all Taoists in the whole world until the 52nd generation. Apart from Zhang Guoxiang, the 50th Taoist priest, every other priest is known as 'Great Zhenren'."
Hearing this, Zhou Qin acknowledged and sighed. "The imperial power is greater than everything else. That's been true since ancient times! But why has the Cultivation World declined to this state now?"
Zi Yuan smiled and said, "When it comes to the Qing Dynasty, the Manchus passed Shanhaiguan [the north-east area], then intruded and established the Qing Dynasty. In any age, the rise of Buddhism has inevitably suppressed Taoism, and that's what happened there too. The emperor of the Qing Dynasty believed in Tibetan Buddhism, so Taoism was gradually suppressed, and even the Buddhism in the Central Plains was affected. Until the period of the Republic of China, Taoism had the tendency to flourish. In 1912, Zhang Xiaochu, the 62nd generation's priest, set up a national church for the Zhengyi Sect in Shanghai, which was called 'The Taoist Association of the Republic of China'. However, unfortunately..."
Li Yundong had rarely heard Zi Yuan explain the history of the Cultivation World. He listened with relish and asked, "Unfortunately what?"
Zi Yuan sighed softly and said, "Unfortunately, in 1919, the May 4th Movement broke out, and this activity completely destroyed all of the things that the Cultivation World relied on to survive. Western culture greatly invaded, and the traditional culture was abandoned. The Taoist sect's prosperity was based on its culture, and so was Buddhism's success. However, the traditional cultures of Buddhism and Taoism were destroyed, and they lost the foundation they needed for survival. How could they thrive after that? Therefore, Taoist priest Zhang Xiaochu's Taoist Association of the Republic of China only set up a Shanghai branch and otherwise came to an end."
Zhou Qin was suddenly enlightened. She looked at Li Yundong and became more clear of why Li Yundong had felt such feelings before.
Li Yundong glanced at her and said with an encouraging smile, "Go on, Zi Yuan."
Zi Yuan nodded and said, "You all know what happened later. War broke out between the Kuomintang and Communist Party, the parties that supported atheism won, and the Cultivation World entered its darkest period. Then the events of Destroying the Four Olds, the Great Leap Forward, and the Great Cultural Revolution followed. This series of movements made the Cultivation World suffer a great loss of vitality and it almost disappeared in Jianghu. A large number of cultivators went abroad and founded branches of various sects. The situation didn't improve until the Reform and Opening. The country's control over cultivators loosened a lot. Especially over the past two years, cultivators have slowly begun to appear in the world again.
"Especially the sect master of the Gezao Sect, Wan Zhenyuan. After he realized that the country was beginning to relax its management of the Cultivation World, he began refining the three elixirs again in order to become an immortal. It took him two years to finally refine the Renyuan Jindan, so that you and Su Chan could meet..."
Li Yundong and Su Chan looked at each other and laughed. Li Yundong said, "We were brought together by fate. Everything has its own destiny."
Zi Yuan said, "I've said so much because I want you to understand. Don't think that you can do whatever you want just because the country has relaxed its management of cultivators. Especially you, Li Yundong. You are now a famous figure in the Cultivation World. You must pay attention to every word you say and every move you make. Do not be arrogant or high-profile because it will definitely be a disaster if you attract too much attention. With your cultivation, you'd be able to escape, but what about your disciples and the disciples of the Fox Zen School? What would become of them?"
Li Yundong looked solemn when he heard that. "Thank you for your warning. I'll keep all of this in mind."
Zi Yuan added, "However, this video is not enough to make authorities start watching you from now on, because the state adopts an ‘autonomous’ approach to the management of the cultivation world. Although the cultivators manage the cultivation world themselves, they can't publicize their doings, let alone make them public. Therefore, if this video is exposed, some people in the cultivation world will be unhappy with you. Besides, you are the Leader of the Fox Zen Sect, which is a controversial matter. If others take this matter up against you, you must remain passive."
Li Yundong had been listening with a serious expression until this point, but now he relaxed. He laughed and said, "Since the Cultivation World is managed by the cultivators themselves, there is nothing to be afraid of. These people will want to challenge me as nothing more than settling a score. When it comes to settling scores, I am not afraid of them. At worst, I will deal with them according to the situation."
Hearing the arrogance Li Yundong's words, Zi Yuan said cautiously, "Don't be too ruthless. Last time, the people from the cultivation world were all experts from the younger generation. None of the seniors and elders from the various sects came, and there were countless cultivation sects hidden in the world. Although the May 4th Movement, the matter of getting rid of old ideas and the Great Culture Revoluton have destroyed the soil and foundation that the cultivation world relies on for survival, these cultivators have hidden very well. Now the country has relaxed its grip, so they will definitely come out to take action. Now you are known as the pre-eminent expert of the younger generation in the cultivation world, there must be many cultivators who are eager to defeat you. They know that as long as they defeat you, they will immediately become famous!"
Li Yundong's heart trembled. He nodded to Zi Yuan and said, "You're right. I remember that there was a person from the Blue Cave Sect ambushing me last time. If it weren't for my cultivation being higher than his, I would have most likely fallen into his trap. I'll have to be careful in the future."
Li Yundong then turned to Su Chan and the others and said, "Try to keep a low profile from now on. If you go out, pay attention to your surroundings and walk together."
Su Chan and the others replied in unison, "Yes, Leader!"
Li Yundong smiled and nodded. He was about to speak again when he suddenly heard a knock on the door. "Who is it?" he asked, sounding surprised.
The person at the door shouted, "I have a parcel for you!"
Li Yundong asked suspiciously, "A courier at this late hour? Are you kidding me? Did anyone buy something?"
He looked at Su Chan, who shook her head like a rattle. Zhou Qin also denied it, saying, "Me neither." Zi Yuan and Ruan Hongling also said that it wasn't them.
Cao Yi, Liu Yuehong, and Zhuang Yating all looked at each other and shook their heads. The foxes simply asked, "What is a courier?"
Li Yundong smiled and said, "This is odd. Does he have the wrong address? I'll have a look."
He walked to the door and opened it only to be faced with a man who was about the same height as him, wearing a motorcycle helmet and a pair of sunglasses that almost covered half of his face.
There was a parcel in this person's hand. He looked at Li Yundong and asked, "Are you Li Yundong?"
Li Yundong nodded and said, "Yep, that's me."
The man handed over the bag and a pen. "Your package."
Li Yundong didn't suspect him. He took the pen and lowered his head to sign. However, as soon as he lowered his head, the man in front of him thrust his finger like a spear toward Li Yundong's Baihui acupoint at the top of head.