The trio walked north along the winding path. The grass grows on both sides and the warbler flies, and the trees in the distance are full of trees. looked right in front of him, but he walked for more than half an hour before he entered the town.

Xuan Ming Xuanzhu was surprised to find that this town was richer and more prosperous than the other towns they had seen along the way, and the houses were basically blue bricks and tiles, refined and charming, and they didn't see the thatched houses with stone walls or mud walls that filled other places—which were the most common in ordinary towns. There are several small two-story buildings along the street, and you can see guest houses or liquor stores connected to each other every short distance.

"It is the recruitment of Ziyang Mountain that has created the prosperity here. Meng Qiang introduced.

"Can the Ziyang Mountain Recruitment Exam still create prosperity?" asked Xuanzhu in surprise.

"Of course, you want to! This town is the only westbound passage for our Dahua people to go to Ziyang Mountain. Not to mention the men and women who go to worship the mountain on weekdays, they are the people who come to the mountain to worship at this time of year, dozens of people take the small test, dozens of people take the big test, and even hundreds of people rush here from all directions. Every spring, when spring comes, young people who want to cultivate the truth and learn martial arts come early with their heads and silver taels, and some rich sons and ladies also bring servants and maids, all of whom live here to prepare for exams, eat, live and live. Many people from afar simply don't go back if they can't get admitted to the exam that year, so they have been living here and waiting for the next year's exam. There are also people who have set up exam preparation halls here, and according to the content of the past years' examinations, they sell so-called entrance examination subjects and examination questions to young people who come to take the exams, or provide guidance, counseling, and training to people. In this way, it is difficult to think that this place is not prosperous!" Meng Qiang said.

"How can this Ziyang Mountain attract the world so much, and it has such a big reputation?" asked him.

Meng Qiang said: "Brother Tai looks extremely smart, I didn't expect to be so confused." Looking at Dahuaguo, no, it should be looking at the world, the Ziyang Mountain Ziyang faction is a first-class famous faction, no! It should be said that it is a unique faction with the word "Tian" No. 1! Not only is it famous, but it is also powerful, the two of them came from Gunzhou in the east, they should know the Qingyang faction of Qingyang Mountain, right?"

Xuan Ming said: "Of course, the Qingyang Sect of Qingyang Mountain is in the eastern part of the entire Great Hua Kingdom, it is like the sun is in the sky, and the moon is in the sky, and everyone who wants to study Taoism and cultivate the truth is proud to be able to enter the Qingyang Sect of Qingyang Mountain." ”

Meng Qiang said: "But in the western part of the Great China Kingdom, the folk all recite such a ballad: 'The green mountains are high and the green mountains are high, and the green mountains are only to the waist of the purple mountains'." ”

Xuanzhu asked anxiously, "What do you mean?"

Meng Qiang said: "This green mountain refers to the Qingyang Mountain on the East China Sea, and this purple mountain refers to the Ziyang Mountain in front of you in the west! ”

Xuanzhu smiled: "People in the world can really gossip?"

Meng Qiang, a scholar, is very talkative, Xuanming Xuanzhu rarely goes down the mountain because of his perennial cultivation in the mountains.

Locals walked by, and Xuanming Xuanzhu felt that their faces were a little weird. Most of them wore colorful and beautiful satin clothes, and few wore linen and coarse cloth, and most of the dresses were embroidered with snake-like patterns, so they were easier to recognize. The outsiders walking on the street have all kinds of costumes, almost more than the locals, most of them are young talents, there are men and women, and from time to time someone nods or greets Meng Qiang, it seems that they are already acquainted. It's dinner time, and if you're hungry, you can smell the enticing aroma of wild meat, the original grain rice, and the mellow aroma of wine as you walk down the street.

After walking through two streets, I entered a guest house with a courtyard, a suite of blue bricks and tiles, a path paved with bluestone slabs, and the yard was also planted with green flowers and trees, which was very refreshing.

"Shopkeeper, a new guest has arrived. Meng Qiang shouted.

The short and fat shopkeeper hurriedly ran out, and when he saw that it was a man and a woman, he was a little embarrassed, scratched his head and said: "There is only one single room left, and the double rooms are occupied, fortunately, they are not full, but most of the young ladies who came to recruit like to be spacious and quiet, which is convenient for preparing for the exam, so the double rooms are often chartered by one person." So I'll have to ask. ”

"Do you think this is going to work?" Meng Qiang turned his face to look at Xuanzhu Xuanming and said, "Please Miss Yingzhu live in that single room, there is still an empty bed in my room, or will Brother Tai and I squeeze together and stay together?"

"That's great, I'm afraid of disturbing the little brother's rest. Xuanzhu hurriedly replied.

Meng Qiang smiled: "Don't bother, don't bother, I like to be lively, and I can chat with many people to relieve boredom." If I need to pay for my room, it will be on my head. ”

Xuan Ming hurriedly said: "How can it be counted as yours? ”

"Okay!" replied the shopkeeper, and when he saw a few young men walking out, he greeted him with a smile.

Xuan Ming walked to the counter alone and said softly: "Ask the shopkeeper, I heard that this Luwei Valley is haunted again, tell me the story of this Luwei Valley, what is the situation now?"

The shopkeeper smiled: "The things of demons and monsters sound quite scary, what is there to talk about?"

Xuanzhu also walked over and said, "Senior brother and I are going to cross the valley together, first understand the situation, please ask the shopkeeper brother to do me a favor?"

When the short and fat shopkeeper heard this, his face changed suddenly, and he said solemnly: "Are you two impatient to live?

Xuanzhu said loudly: "We're going to the valley!

Immediately, seven or eight people gathered around.

Xuan Ming smiled and hurriedly said, "Senior sister, what are you kidding? Big shopkeeper, my junior sister is joking with you, we are just new to the city, just curious. ”

Someone next to him immediately answered: "We are also very curious!

The fat shopkeeper said helplessly: "Forget it, it seems that I have to talk about it." I'll tell you all what I've heard!" and he walked out of the counter and sat down at a table. "Sit down too!"

Several people in front, including Xuanming Xuanzhu and Meng Qiang, immediately grabbed their seats next to the shopkeeper, and the people behind had to stand in a circle. The fat shopkeeper whispered:

"This valley in the north of our town, because it opens on the edge of our town, is named the valley of the world, also known as the valley of the valley or the valley of the valley. This valley is sandwiched between the mountains and mountains on both sides, the nine mountains of Mangshan on the south side belong to our Dahua Kingdom, and the north side of the Wei Mountain is not far from the ghost country in the north. The valley is nearly 300 miles deep from east to west, the valley is deep and densely forested, the terrain is complex, and there are many forks in the road. According to them, there are groups of jackals, pairs of wolves, and big insects such as tigers and pythons. In order to hurry, passing merchants sometimes pass through in groups. Then there are the young people who rush to Ziyang Mountain to take the exam, because they often know some martial arts and spells, and sometimes they will cross in groups in twos and threes. ”

"Then has this deep mountain valley been haunted all the time?" asked Xuanzhu curiously.

Humpty Dumpty said: "That's not it! Although there are many fierce birds and beasts in it, there are no demons and ghosts in the first place." ”

"When did that start to cause demons and monsters?" Hyunjoo continued to ask.

Humpty Dumpty said tremblingly, "The winter before last, people began to disappear inside." At the beginning of spring last year, two outsiders wanted to take a shortcut to cross in order to hurry, but none of them came out, and the next day more than ten strong men came to look for people together, and found the white bones of two people fifty miles near the west exit. Strangely, the two piles of bones were clean, and there was not a trace of flesh, and the skulls of both men were gone. Then the Yangxia Festival came, and the young people who rushed to Ziyang Mountain to take the examination did not go straight through the valley for safety, and they all went around from the south of Jiuzhong Mountain instead, and I heard that most of them delayed taking the examination because of this. Just two months ago, four more merchants went through the valley together, and only one escaped alive, alive and alive, but the man was crazy, and he was shouting 'ghost' while running, his body was torn by something, his flesh was mush, and the strips of flesh that were torn on his back flew as he ran, and the back half of his thigh was scraped off, and a long strip of white bone was exposed......

When everyone heard this, their faces were shocked.

The next morning, everyone in the dormitory got up early, and after a while of activities in and out of the courtyard, they came to the dining hall in the backyard of the guest house on time. The steaming noodles, the fragrant and attractive steamed buns, the silver rice porridge, and the red, green, and green side dishes immediately attracted everyone's appetite.

"Everyone!" a young man in blue finished eating early, and shouted to everyone, "In order to be able to rush to Ziyang Mountain before the Yangxia Festival, Brother Lao and I will set off today, ready to climb the Nine Mountains, do you have any companions?"

A blue-clothed man with thick eyebrows and a black face next to him said, "It's still too late to leave, and we can't hesitate and delay here." ”

"I'm with you!"

"I'm going with you!"

"I'll go too!"

......

Everyone echoed, and more than a dozen people gathered in an instant.

Meng Qiang, a young man in Xuanyi, said loudly: "It's a pity that I have an appointment with someone, and I have to wait, otherwise I will walk with you." As he spoke, he turned his face and asked Xuanming Xuanzhu softly: "Brother Jin, Miss Yingzhu, aren't you going with them?"

Xuanzhu said: "Thank you Meng Gongzi for your concern, we have other things to do, and we can't leave for the time being." ”

In the morning, the two walked around the town, bought some necessities for walking at night and climbing mountains and mountains, and said goodbye to Meng Qiang after lunch.

Xuanzhu said: "Little brother! You are a warm-hearted and good person! You are also a young man with knowledge, insight, and retribution! You will definitely become a pillar of the country in the future." ”

Meng Qiang asked softly, "Are the two of you really going to go to the Valley?"

Xuan Zhu was about to answer, but Xuan Ming shook his head at her and said, "We have other things." As he spoke, he took off his jade jue from his waist and handed it to Meng Qiang, "Little brother, thank you for your companionship and guide for a day, we are destined." When your friends come, you can rush to Ziyang Mountain from the side of Jiuju Mountain together! If you delay the recruitment time because of this, then hand over this jade pendant to the Taoist chief of Ziyang Mountain who is responsible for recruiting new people, and there may be a turnaround. ”

Meng Qiang said: "Brother Tai, are you ......?" Forget it, I won't ask, I said that you are not like the disciples who took the exam! The two immortal wind bones are by no means ordinary products in the world, and the saints will bless you." Cherish all the way!"

Xuanzhu returned the salute: "I also wish the little brother a smooth journey!"

The two of them walked out of the inn to the north, and quietly came to the valley mouth in the north of the town, there was no one nearby, it was deserted, obviously because of the haunting and haunting in the valley, so that this place was inaccessible. In the distance, there is a tall mountain stone, which is engraved with three red seal characters of "魆嵬谷", which is particularly eye-catching. The two of them walked along the flat and spacious avenue next to the stone carving.

After walking for about two quarters of an hour, I came to a circular square paved with earth and stones, and found that there were as many as five or six paths leading into the mountain from here, radiating in a radial shape, stretching out in different directions. There is a small stone tablet at each intersection, which is written with the words "Nanban", "Xingtian", "Ziyang", "Beiyou" and so on, and the two chose to go to the "Ziyang" trail to go inside, and disappeared in the reckless mountain forest for a while.