The Taoist Temple's Founding Ancestress Comes From a Thousand Years Ago: Metaphysics

A thousand years ago, Yun Shen merged with the Dao to suppress evil spirits, sacrificing herself in the process. She thought she would never be reborn, but when she opens her eyes, she finds herself a thousand years in the future.

By then, her sect has fallen into ruin.

Looking at the leaky roof, the rusty incense burner, and her three descendants, none of whom have even a trace of spiritual energy, Yun Shen falls silent. What happened? Have things really fallen this far?

The old Daoist priest has mediocre talent and is obsessed with cooking. Her eldest grand-disciple, Qingping, is passionate about social media, but after a year, his account still has fewer than a thousand followers. Her youngest grand-disciple, Qing'an, does have some talent for cultivation, but believes firmly in science and opposes superstition… Right. They’re beyond saving.

The temple has run out of incense offerings, and every month they worry about finding enough money for next month’s rice and flour. When Yun Shen, their suddenly appeared founding matriarch, shows up, the three of them fret: They’re already poor, and now they have to support one more person. What are they going to do?

Yun Shen: Give me a break. It’s not even certain who’ll be supporting whom! I’ve never been poor in my past life!

Her first job after descending the mountain is to find a missing kitten. The reward is ten thousand yuan, but after looking at the cat’s owner, Yun Shen says, “Do you know how your cat went missing? Unless you deal with the root of the problem, it probably won’t survive three days.”

Her second job is to divine a person’s romantic prospects, but she discovers that the man’s mother is about to be in danger. He calls home, saves his mother’s life, then gratefully burns incense and buys six good-luck charms.

Her third job concerns a soul-separation illness. A daughter has inexplicably fallen into a coma, and it turns out her mother-in-law, who favors boys over girls, wants her to have a second child. But behind this lies an even bigger conspiracy…

…

As more and more jobs come in, the temple’s incense offerings grow abundant, the buildings are repaired, and the three disciples begin to change.

The old priest likes cooking? Great, let’s see if he has a talent for alchemy!

Qingping’s videos, A Day of Clinging to Our Founding Matriarch, become a hit short series on the platform. Viewers rave that the actors’ performances are wonderful, the special effects are amazing, and the plot is so much fun!

Qing'an rethinks his worldview and starts following Yun Shen around to learn Daoist arts.

What’s more, the authorities even come knocking, hoping to invite Yun Shen to serve as a special consultant for the Anomaly Investigation Bureau…

Tips:

Primarily a story about the mystical arts, told through a series of episodic cases.

Coming Soon

Can a tree spirit become a great emperor?

In her previous life, Jian Muchun lived like an overworked wage slave and spent every day declaring, “In my next life, I never want to be human again!”

In this life, Jian Muchun gets her wish and isn’t human: She becomes a tree, a naturally long-lived being.

After enduring countless years of wind and rain, she faces nine thunder tribulations on a spring night and becomes a tree spirit capable of taking human form!

Being a tree spirit is great! Being a tree spirit is wonderful! Being a tree spirit is fantastic! Photosynthesis keeps you fed! And if lumberjacks show up, you can just run away! Skr~ skr~

All in all, Jian Muchun is delighted to be a tree spirit! She decides to tease cats and dogs, enjoy the gossip, and waste (crossed out) enjoy her tree life!

But when you’re enjoying the gossip and watching the drama unfold in the mortal world, you’re bound to come across plenty of injustice. Once Jian Muchun sees it, she can’t bring herself to turn a blind eye. She helps, steps in, and saves people whenever she can. It’s only a casual kindness, done on a whim, with no expectation of reward.

But

How did helping here and there lead to her building a faction of her own?

How did getting involved here and there lead to her acquiring her own paradise?

How did saving people here and there lead to her becoming a great emperor in her own domain?!

Jian Muchun: …

Tsk. What a miscalculation. All she really wanted was to live freely as an idle nobody!

Theme: Only those with real ability can stand firm.