Chapter 1123: Twenty People and the Alternates (5)

Chapter 1123: Twenty People and the Alternates (5)

On the path of life, two neighboring hilltops, under the same moonlit night.
At the rustic village entrance, they discuss the rise and fall of the empire. The prime minister on night duty at the palace chews on an oil cake.
Literati love to paint pictures of an old fisherman angling in the snow, never mind that the fisherman is shivering like a quail in the bitter cold.

Xie Gou suddenly sighed for no apparent reason, "Mountain Lord, to be honest, sometimes I envy you fist-fighters."

Chen Ping'an smiled. "What makes you say that?"

Xie Gou pointed a finger at the sole martial artist on the adjacent peak. Unlike those cultivators who were either practicing breathing exercises or idly chatting, he was dozing off, occasionally opening his eyes and quickly scanning his surroundings. He clearly followed a path of both internal and external cultivation. His eyes were bright, hiding a divine light. In ordinary martial arts circles, he could definitely be considered a skilled hand.

A pure martial artist, once the fist intent takes hold, true qi fills every acupoint, as if protected by a deity. That was the only thing Xie Gou envied about martial artists — they could sleep soundly every night!

Unlike Qi refiners, unless they could carry a Daoist temple around with them, anyone traveling abroad had to worry about being targeted or ambushed by enemies, lest they take a hit from a hidden club at any moment.

Once you put enough distance between them and consider the keenness of their divine sense, how could a martial arts grandmaster, even a perfected realm practitioner, compare to an Earth Immortal capable of performing the technique of "palm-viewing mountains and rivers"? Especially when a swordsman faced a martial artist, theoretically, a flying sword could zip out and back in an instant, leaving the latter with a head rolling on the ground. But in reality, it was precisely because the martial artist had this invisible protection of pure true qi that they could offset the preemptive advantage of many unconventional methods. Take Chen Ping'an, for example. If he weren't a Sword Immortal who could naturally nourish his physical body with flying swords, plus the physique of a perfected realm martial artist, against that sneaky 14th-tier practitioner, even an ordinary Ascension tier practitioner with a slightly weaker body and soul would, under the same "stealthy" attacks, either die or be severely injured and lose their cultivation. There's no way they could have left that Daoist temple alive and kicking and come wandering over to Tongye Continent like he did.

When it came to sneak attacks, Xie Gou was definitely an expert. That nameless figure from the Wildlands, who was a dual peak in both immortal arts and martial arts, was actually an old acquaintance of Xie Gou's, from a fight that led to friendship. The nameless one didn't even have a name, so naturally there was no Daoist title for Xie Gou to covet. Back then, she simply wanted to gauge the abilities of the Divine tier. The result was one attacking and one defending, neither making direct contact. After a month of this, Xie Gou still couldn't do anything to him. Not only was that guy tough and thick-skinned, he could dodge fatal injuries even if he couldn't always evade the flying swords. In the end, Xie Gou got bored and left.

Xie Gou said softly, "I've heard that the Divine tier is like the height of a god statue in a local shrine — the gap can be enormous."

"It's fair to say it's like heaven and earth, possibly even bigger than the gap between Qi Sheng and Gui Zhen. As for the specifics, one would have to experience it firsthand to be certain."

Chen Ping'an nodded. "So the only chance I had against Cao Ci was if we both were at the Gui Zhen tier and sparred. I missed that opportunity, but of course Cao Ci wouldn't have given me the chance anyway."

Xie Gou asked, "Why wouldn't you be more confident if you were one tier higher than him?"

Chen Ping'an replied with a question, "Why not just say if I were two tiers higher than Cao Ci, then wouldn't I be certain of victory?"

Asking such an ill-conscience question, no wonder you let someone egg you into calling yourself "Doggy."

Xie Gou roared with laughter.

Xie Gou suddenly asked, "Let's say someday you reach the 14th tier, Mountain Lord. Isn't there still something missing?"

Chen Ping'an said honestly, "It's not that something is missing; it's that too much is lacking. Due to my personal circumstances, lacking sufficiently high killing power makes everything seem illusory. It's truly helpless."

Xie Gong let out an "oh." For an outsider to utter the word "helpless" wasn't typical of the Mountain Lord, who always had "composure" on his mind.

Chen Ping'an smiled. "Books say not to blame heaven or others, but that doesn't mean we should completely abandon our emotions and desires. Occasionally venting is good for the body and mind. And as for these seemingly unpositive concerns and emotions, I can talk about them with you, Xie Gou, or with Xiao Mili, but not with Chen Lingjun or Mi Yu."

Xie Gou asked, "Why? Because Xiao Mili is easygoing and I'm relatively careless?"

Chen Ping'an took out his tobacco pipe and began puffing expertly, using locally grown tobacco from his hometown. "Mi Yu is thoughtful. The things said by people he values, he not only listens to but takes very seriously, which makes it even heavier. So generally, I don't talk heart-to-heart with him; I only discuss matters, which is equivalent to sharing hearts through deeds. Chen Lingjun has a strong sense of martial brotherhood. He's used to going all out for friends and likes to take on responsibilities. An offhand remark from me might send him into a spiral of overthinking, turning someone who usually doesn't like to think into a brooding mess. As for you and Xiao Mili, your characters, fundamentally, have a big difference from them. Don't get me wrong — Chen Lingjun and Mi Yu seem very casual, lazing around every day, but deep down they carry many 'things they can't stand.' You and Xiao Mili are different. You can hold things in your hearts because you have many 'things you can stand' about this world."

Xie Gou felt a bit embarrassed but gave a thumbs up. "Mountain Lord, you actually managed to make being thick-skinned and careless sound so beautiful. Impressive, impressive."

She only then realized that aside from swordsmanship, she was apparently this talented! The moral high ground of her demeanor was instantly raised by seven or eight floors by the Mountain Lord.

Did Xiao Mo know this?

No matter. Since the Mountain Lord said so, Xiao Mo would find out sooner or later. A gentleman helps others achieve good things, right? Our Mountain Lord holds the title of Gentleman of the Literary Temple!

Chen Ping'an smiled. "I once heard some thought-provoking golden words from Old Immortal Jia at a drinking party. He said that as long as we have a sense of right and wrong, we won't become people of right and wrong. He said some people are like water ghosts who love to drown others. If you stay with them too long, you'll inevitably become dark and murky, and the climate around you will become turbid. One good thing about Old Immortal Jia is that no matter whether it's useful or not, he always throws out a problem and follows up with a solution. His solution was a quote from the sages: 'I am skilled in nurturing my vast, flowing qi.' With this, you can stand on the shore, plant your feet, not go into the water, and pull back. You might even be able to pull back those friends who are like water ghosts. At the time, Chen Lingjun was laughing his head off, but I felt that this teaching from Mencius truly had weight. A family has a family tradition; Daoist temples and monasteries have their own Dao aura. It's not just cultivators who have Dao aura — which ordinary person doesn't carry a bit of it?"

"People with firm hearts often remain as steady as a mountain, but what is the scenery inside each mountain? Is it decayed and ruined like a desolate temple, or is it like eternal spring with lush flowers and trees? That is where each person's cultivation and Dao power lie."

"Everyone's sincerity has edges and sharpness. At first, it might make people uncomfortable, but it's easier to be around for a long time without getting tired."

"But sincerity is a double-edged sword. Sincerity that is too self-centered will of course hurt both others and oneself. This kind of sincerity is a neighbor to selfishness. Sincerity that is considerate, treating others generously, using it properly and walking the path of the Dao — that is magnanimity."

"In my eyes, whether it's Xie Gou or Bai Jing, whether you think Falling Mountain is not bad or you love the house and the crow and tolerate people for Xiao Mo's sake—"

Xie Gou asked quietly, "Are you giving me a whole lecture like this because you finally found a moment alone to teach me how to be a person? Afraid I'll make mistakes in the future and Falling Mountain will have to clean up the mess?"

Chen Ping'an thought for a moment and said seriously, "In the sword cultivator Xie Gou, I see infinite possibilities."

Xie Gou's expression was strange. "Mountain Lord, you're treating me like a junior."

A young man not yet fifty years old saying this to an old monster who has lived for ten thousand years — Xie Gou always felt something was off.

Chen Ping'an couldn't help but laugh. "If you had always shown your true face, I definitely wouldn't dare say that." At the very least, he would have been more... discreet? He definitely wouldn't have taken her alone on this journey through mountains and rivers. It wasn't about the worldly view of a man and woman alone being improper. Rather, it would have given Xiao Mo a big problem. Whether he cared or not, from Xie Gou's perspective, it would be a big issue. If he cared, he wouldn't be at ease. Couldn't you trust me? If he didn't care, too at ease — do you even like me?

Xie Gou didn't dwell on it. She had her own way of convincing herself.

If it were "Bai Jing," whose cultivation was too smooth, leading to success in cultivation but failure in love, could exchanging it for Xie Gou bring success in love despite a rough cultivation path?

That would be a very good deal.

One who doesn't manage a household doesn't know how expensive firewood and rice are. People accustomed to being thrifty know their own worth best.

Xie Gou greatly admired her Mountain Lord's management of the household. No wonder the Wildlands so wished this young Hidden Official would switch sides and defect from Haoran like Xiao Xun did.

Having the life-bound flying sword "Cage Sparrow" was like possessing a Daoist temple with strict formations that required no expenditure of immortal money. Chen Ping'an didn't need to worry about the loss of spiritual energy from heaven and earth. That was already an enormous advantage, but all the various maneuvers, creative methods, and novel approaches he took would... deplete his spirit.

This was the only and greatest limitation. There was a Daoist saying: "The Supreme nourishes the spirit, the next nourishes nature, and the last nourishes the form." From this, one can see how difficult it is to nourish the spirit. The higher the cultivator's tier, the more consuming the spirit, the harder it is to replenish. The training of the physical body, even the nourishment of the soul, the accumulation of external Dao merits — all have thousands of methods that either show immediate results or work gradually. Only the spirit of the Daoist, since ancient times, has been easy to scatter and hard to gather.

The "Wellhead Moon" that complemented the "Cage Sparrow" could split into millions of flying swords. Its killing power was quite strong, but in Chen Ping'an and Xie Gou's view, it still wasn't top-notch.

Fighting an opponent of the same tier, it was like having the advantage of heaven, earth, and people, with almost no surprises — a very high chance of victory.

If the opponent was a tier higher, even against Xie Gou and Xiao Mo, at most they could cut open the cage's restrictions with one or a few swords... then they'd probably be pulled back into that small world by Chen Ping'an.

As for dealing with an Immortal tier opponent trapped inside, whether that Immortal could escape would really depend on whether they had burned enough incense in their ancestors' hall and whether their ancestral graves were smoking.

But once the hypothetical enemy was a solid 14th tier, that would become rather useless.

Whether they could be trapped or not became meaningless. Besides, could any Ascension tier cultivator outlast someone who had merged with the Dao and could live as long as heaven and earth?

Of course, having said that, there probably weren't many among the Upper Five Tiers who could truly regard a 14th tier as a hypothetical enemy above the Dao.

Almost everyone had an obsession with pursuing magical killing power. Just like Wu Shuangjiang on the night boat, who needed to painstakingly forge four immortal swords to make up for this deficiency.

Chen Ping'an said quietly, "There's no shortcut either. Before reaching the Divine tier in martial arts while refining swords, I can only focus more on talisman methods and thunder methods."

Xie Gou hesitated for a moment but still spoke. "Studying fire methods might be more effective than talisman and thunder methods. I'm familiar with the general methods of the ancient Heavenly Court's Thunder Division. They are indeed powerful. Forming a thunder array for area-effect damage is particularly deadly. But when considering the absolute highest level, it seems still slightly lacking."

"Any ancient Daoist who even knew a bit about alchemy would have long known a strange fact: there is a limit to the lowest temperature in the world, but the highest temperature is almost limitless."

"Hence, it was once concluded that a Daoist relying solely on water methods could at most fail to reach the 14th tier. Cultivating fire methods, on the other hand, offered a glimmer of hope. So when it comes to pure killing power, the possibility of fire methods is greater."

As for backup skills, Mountain Lord Chen had no shortage.

If reaching the 14th tier was the goal, all were transcendent Dao methods, and every path could be taken.

But once thrown into the bottomless pit of the 14th tier, they all became useless, half-baked skills.

Chen Ping'an put away his tobacco pipe. Among mountain dwellers, a few liked this habit, like Mountain Lord Tong and the female sect leader of the Mountain and Sea Sect.

Xie Gou asked curiously, "Earlier you calculated that Fan Tong and Xie Sanniang had two main paths, both leading here, so you waited here for them. But didn't you also calculate the general outcome after you gave them the immortal money?"

Chen Ping'an shook his head. "I didn't calculate that."

Xie Gou placed her hand over her brow as if looking into the distance. "Then I can give you a definite answer — Fan Tong and Xie Sanniang definitely won't come here. Judging by their route, they seem to be heading for an immortal ferry. With two Guyu Coins in their pockets, that's a huge fortune. They're probably afraid the local mountain god would be tempted by the money and might cut off their heads if they weren't careful. Mountain Lord, don't waste any more time here."

Chen Ping'an nodded. "Then let's sit for a little while and then continue on our way."

Xie Gou saw the Mountain Lord take out a blank booklet that looked like an account book and meticulously record all the details. A poor memory is no match for a bad pen — that simple truth Xie Gou understood. Also, regarding the layout of the "Cage Sparrow" small world, Xie Gou had casually chatted with Chen Ping'an when he came out of his room during her time guarding the Fuyanglu Daoist temple. But she didn't understand why the Qi refiners on the adjacent mountain were worth so much of his attention. They were like random flowers and weeds by the roadside. Judging by the content of his notes, it seemed there was a consistent principle — to seek out a "difference" for each person. For example, the old sachet hanging from Duan Yuhu's waist, or Liang Zheng's slight stutter with a heavy local accent.

So Xie Gou couldn't help asking, "Mountain Lord, you've traveled many times. Logically, you should remember a lot of people and events. Why bother with these insignificant people?"

Chen Ping'an explained, "Back then, I wasn't paying enough attention. My view of people and events was not comprehensive, and my impressions were quite superficial. They don't count; it's hard to use them as a draft."

Xie Gou hesitated, wanting to say something. Do you think I'm stupid?

Chen Ping'an added, "By 'superficial,' I mean I was more concerned with whether a person was good or bad and whether a thing was right or wrong. This easily led to omissions and made it hard to understand the underlying character."

Xie Gou frowned. "Underlying character?"

Chen Ping'an smiled. "For example, why would a female sword immortal at the peak of Ascension tier with ten thousand years of Dao age be asking about 'underlying character' at this moment? Whether she's Xie Gou or Bai Jing, that 'why' is one of the character's underlying traits."

Xie Gou changed the question. "Yu Shiwu and the others still seem to be working dead hard on dead things. No matter how many, they never come to life. Once it involves people, especially complex human nature, they each have to be moved by the scene, adapt to events, and show joys and sorrows that are reasonable. At least on the surface, they need to appear lively, not rigid or stiff. For that, you must have an internal framework to support their way of thinking, right? This kind of fundamental creative method seems to be the top priority. Isn't it more basic than underlying character?"

Chen Ping'an lightly clapped his hands. "According to preliminary estimates, I need to roll the die six times."

Xie Gou was puzzled. "Die? Those little things on gambling tables?"

Chen Ping'an said it wasn't exactly the same. With his left hand, he took a Xiaoshu Coin from his sleeve, tossed it casually into his right palm, and then clenched it, shaking it gently. "Just an inappropriate example."

Xie Gou asked, "First distinguish clear good and evil people to do general good and bad things?"

Chen Ping'an shook his head. "At first, that's what I thought. But I soon found it was wrong."

Xie Gou waited for him to continue.

Chen Ping'an smiled. "Heaven's secrets cannot be revealed. Let's skip this part."

Xie Gou raised her hand and casually gathered the five elemental qi of different colors. Even just gathering the spiritual energy of heaven and earth at Xie Gou's speed was extremely difficult — Chen Ping'an definitely couldn't do that yet. Moreover, what Xie Gou gathered was not just separating the clear from the turbid. The trick she showed was truly like picking apart threads. She shaped these pure and refined five elemental qi into different dice: tetrahedrons in the shape of triangular pyramids, the common hexahedrons, stellated dodecahedrons, and so on.

Chen Ping'an asked curiously, "Can it be learned?"

Xie Gou looked embarrassed. "It can be learned, but it can't be taught."

She had long ago caught a glimpse of a teaching session by Master Sanshan Jiuhou; it was purely a matter of inferring one thing from another.

In other words, whether the Mountain Lord could learn it depended on his own insight. She couldn't teach it; she couldn't teach it to anyone.

Besides, learning from others by stealth and stopping when you got enough was always the Mountain Lord's specialty.

Xie Gou was still not going to let the Mountain Lord bypass that obstacle. She pressed on, "No need to reveal heaven's secrets. Can you speak generally?"

"I can only say a few vague words." Chen Ping'an picked up the Xiaoshu Coin, thought for a moment, and found two substitute explanations. He said slowly, "Heaven and Man. Or 'self' and the small world, and 'the myriad things and eternity outside the self' — the great world. These two inspirations both come from the Dao Ancestor's Three Thousand Words: 'The Way of Heaven diminishes what is excessive and supplements what is insufficient. The Way of Man diminishes what is insufficient to serve what is excessive.' Many opposites can be derived: outward going, inward contracting. Selfish, altruistic. Life-seeking, death-seeking..."

"Wait, wait! Let me pause and catch my breath!" Xie Gou quickly raised her hand, signaling the Mountain Lord not to continue. She stared wide-eyed and asked, "First, I have a doubt. Among all sentient beings in the world, the desire to live and the desire to die are naturally opposite. But how can they be of the same... magnitude, weight? Whether it's the mortal commoners in the marketplace or those who enter the mountains to cultivate, who doesn't desperately want to live, to live long, to live forever?"

Mountain Lord, you can't just lead me into a ditch just to show off your knowledge, can you? Discussing the Dao is more important than anything.

Chen Ping'an smiled. "Then let's set aside that objection for now. Pretend I didn't say that."

Xie Gou adjusted her marten-fur hat and habitually rubbed her chin with her palm. "Thinking about it carefully, there's something to it." Shaking her head, she continued, "Going back a step further to the earliest conclusion — whether it's the Dao Ancestor's division of the human way and heaven's way, or the distinction between 'self' and the 'outer world' — wouldn't it be unbalanced? For example, the size of 'self's small world' and the 'great world' — wouldn't the weight difference be too great as the starting point for the first die? As for the earlier discussion about life and death, I can take it with a grain of salt, but on this point, I am very... eighty percent certain!"

I may not have read many books, but you can't fool me, Mountain Lord. You have to treat people sincerely.

Chen Ping'an said seriously, "The 'nothingness' of self is the 'existence' of heaven. From this, if you do not regard nothingness as ordinary nothingness but instead regard it as existence, then doesn't the 'existence in nothingness' of self exactly correspond to the 'nothingness in existence' of heaven?"

Xie Gou almost blurted out, "Is this how you chat? You're just deliberately being a rogue, aren't you?"

Chen Ping'an smiled. "It originates from Buddhism, but the earliest inspiration came from a sentence Guo Zhujiu said to Pei Qian."

The two girls had just met back then, so of course they were arguing.

To transcend the barrier of words, one must cross many fences, correct many deep-seated preconceptions: the weight of things, the height of forms, the length of time, the size of the mind, and so on.

Taking advantage of the time when gods still existed in heaven and earth, when spirits could take form, and Dao techniques could manifest as immortal arts, ultimately it was because spiritual energy still existed in the human world, and humans could refine qi to seek immortality.

Xie Gou suddenly asked, "Chen Ping'an, have you seen the real Daoist yin-yang fish?"

Chen Ping'an was puzzled. "What do you mean? Is there something to it?"

Since Xie Gou chose to call him by his name directly, it must be something important.

But Xie Gou blinked and immediately changed the subject, exclaiming in admiration, "What a grand start! The distinction between heaven and man and the unity of heaven and man — that's starting from the 14th tier!"

Chen Ping'an laughed. "Either go from high to low, building from the top down, or from low to high, accumulating earth to form a mountain. Given my personality, growth environment, and cultivation history, it would be more suitable to start from a low place. But paradoxically, my personality would make this process excruciatingly slow. It could waste hundreds of years just to lay the 'ground' I'm satisfied with. Right now, we're in a great upheaval unseen in ten thousand years, so I can't afford to take it slow. There have been so many new 14th-tier cultivators recently. In another hundred years or so, who knows how many Ascension tier cultivators there will be, compared to the past when each continent in Haoran had only one or two. The old temple master said that in the future, with fourteen states in the Qingming Heaven, if each state produced a 14th-tier cultivator, that would have been a fool's dream before, but it won't be surprising anymore. When I really have free time later, maybe I can tear it all down and rebuild, doing the opposite. Earlier, in the small world, I showed Yu Shiwu and the others a trick. That sieve had seven layers."

Xie Gou grinned. "Hearing you talk about this is much more interesting than sweeping the floor with two shoes on my feet."

Obviously, her earlier comment about not being bored accompanying the Mountain Lord on a stroll was just a polite remark. This was her true feeling.

Chen Ping'an said, "Your analogy is very interesting."

Xie Gou, imitating Xiao Mili, let out a sigh and waved her hand. "Our Falling Mountain doesn't engage in that mutual flattery stuff."

Chen Ping'an couldn't help but laugh. He put away the booklet and took out a wooden box from his sleeve, inside which were arranged a dozen "miniature flying swords" of various materials: jade, jadeite, copper, iron, wood, even gold and silver.

Xie Gou glanced at them and mistakenly thought she was mistaken about their quality, so she looked twice more. Finally, she could confirm they were all fakes. What was the Mountain Lord doing?

Chen Ping'an smiled. "Pretending to be a minor sect grandmaster who can control a sword with qi, pretending to be a land sword immortal who can take heads with a flying sword."

Xie Gou admitted defeat.

Chen Ping'an said, "After the Bottle Gourd Continent business is done, I'll travel through the nine continents of Haoran. You know about this, right?" Attending Liu Xianyang's wedding was the most important thing, without a doubt. Then entering the capital to officially assume the position of Grand State Teacher of Dali, discussing the salary behind closed doors with the emperor, trying to get some benefits in the form of gold and copper coins. In the middle of the year, the coronation ceremony in Qingxing Kingdom, trying to help Taoist Ding achieve Ascension as soon as possible, creating a brand new Ascension method unprecedented. Collecting the remaining Dragon-Slaying Terrace from the Jia No. 6 Mountain of Zhenwu Mountain, re-swordsmithing and mending his Dharma robe, forging the prototype of the first small world for the "Cage Sparrow," arranging to drink well with Zhang Shanfeng and Xu Yuanxia, asking Su Zi to write a preface, finding a bookshop to print and publish that travelogue, and then taking a trip to the Five Colors Heaven...

Xie Gou nodded. "Xiao Mo said that you had long agreed with Liu Jinglong to travel together through the various states without any attendants. Later, you relented and were willing to take Xiao Mo. It's clear that Xiao Mo, though he doesn't say anything, is quite proud of this."

Chen Ping'an smiled and said honestly, "That wasn't exactly relenting. It was pure worry that I'd attract too much attention, that my cultivation and reputation didn't match, and an accident might happen if I wandered around alone. With Xiao Mo by my side, I can be much more at ease."

Xie Gou rubbed her chin. "If you didn't have so many identities, if you were just an ordinary Bottle Gourd Continent rogue cultivator, then traveling to other continents for sightseeing, if you wanted a bit less frustration and more pleasure, the Golden Core tier would be the minimum, and the Nascent Soul tier would be barely acceptable. Adding the identity of a sword cultivator would make it relatively comfortable. But you're not an ordinary person, Mountain Lord. Before the 'change of heaven,' without the Jade Pu tier, you would indeed have felt uneasy. Now that you're a bona fide Sword Immortal, are you thinking of leaving Xiao Mo behind?" One of Xiao Mo's strengths is that when he decides to conceal his aura, others can completely ignore him. Like a green leaf setting off a red flower, no matter where he is or in what situation, he can highlight the Mountain Lord very well. He never steals the spotlight; he can be seen as a shadow. If it's nighttime, it might not be obvious, but when something happens — like a bright white sky — when the shadow hidden in the background steps forward, even if he's still a shadow, can a shadow under the blazing sun be the same as one under the moonlight? What would the sword cultivator Xiao Mo be like then, and how would his enemies feel? Qing Tong of the Demon-Suppressing Tower might have a profound understanding of this. Of course, all this was said by the old chef. Xie Gou herself couldn't come up with such refined words. Sect Leader Cui and Chief Zhou couldn't do it either — they were simply too... flashy. Even if they didn't speak, even standing next to Mountain Lord Chen, deliberately pretending to be deaf and dumb, they still couldn't hide that aura of alcohol.

Chen Ping'an smiled. "Later, I can bring the two of you along. We can imitate the people on the adjacent mountain — arrange a time and place to meet. No need to be together day and night. Just give a shout if something comes up."

Xie Gou's eyes lit up. So being an official was good after all! The Mountain Lord really valued her, his second-in-command!

Recalling Xie Gou's earlier remark about the yin-yang fish, Chen Ping'an asked back, "Xie Gou, have you ever seen the shadow of a shadow?"

Xie Gou looked blank and asked tentatively, "Is that something Lu Chen mentioned? The 'Wang Liang Wen Jing' from the Qiwu Lun?"

"That's not what this is about."

Chen Ping'an shook his head and then asked with a smile, "You even know that?"

Xie Gou laughed heartily. "Pure boredom! I follow Immortal Wei's example and read some miscellaneous books to pass the time. I'm completely different from those who only order food all day, like Great Sword Immortal Mi and Grandmaster Zhong! I'm full of ambition!"

Chen Ping'an, holding back a smirk, said grinningly, "Earlier at the Bliss Mountain Sect, I almost made Sect Leader Lu cry with one sentence."

Xie Gou was shocked and extremely curious. "Tell me about it!"

Chen Ping'an said, "He's been bitterly seeking a certain answer. He values this answer even more than his own Dao and life. In short, even the hope of reaching the 15th tier — the dream interpretation — would take a back seat to this matter."

Xie Gou nodded. "That kind of thinking from Lu Chen's head — no problem!"

Xie Gou could roughly guess the answer. The ancient Heavenly Court's Sovereign, who was rumored to possibly be a 16th-tier existence. What was the "One" Lu Chen was seeking, or what the Dao Ancestor believed in his heart? Why did he do what he did? Why did he disappear? Was it intentional or unavoidable? Was he watching from the sidelines, or was he somewhere else? All these were eternal unknowns, almost impossible to uncover.

Chen Ping'an's smile faded, and his expression became complex. "Once, Daoist Lu was, in my mind, equal to, or at least roughly equal to, the human Daoist. Very heavy."

Xie Gou still nodded. This was a messy account. Even the Second Steward, who kept accounts meticulously, would have to overcome an inner obstacle unknown to others.

Ha! The Mountain Lord still trusted and valued her! He didn't treat her as an outsider! Now she just didn't know whether to call herself sister-in-law or brother's wife? Or should she call Xiao Mo brother-in-law or brother-in-law? Haha, she thought either would be fine, depending on the Mountain Lord's mood.

Chen Ping'an looked at the grinning Xie Gou and said slowly, "If Chen Ping'an and Zhou Mi each occupy half of the 'One,' becoming the shadow of a certain shadow..."

Xie Gou glanced at the Mountain Lord when she heard this. Originally, she had meant it as a joke, but judging by Chen Ping'an's expression, he was very serious. The two were silent for a moment. For some reason, Chen Ping'an was still looking at the marten-fur-hatted girl and said, "The words I said to Lu Chen — coincidentally, they were exactly the most admired passage from my teacher's Qiwu Lun: 'Heaven and earth are one with me, and the ten thousand things are born with me.'"

Xie Gou's expression turned solemn. She raised her hand and said heavily, "Stop! Mountain Lord, let's not talk about this. I still want to practice swords well and reach the 14th tier!"

Chen Ping'an's meaning was simple.

You, Lu Chen, are looking for that 'One'? Then you are like searching for a donkey while riding one. If you're already the examiner setting the exam, do you still need to take the test yourself?

If Lu Chen were like this, then at this moment, in Chen Ping'an's eyes, couldn't Xie Gou, or Bai Jing, escape? Because all of us, all things, are originally the 'One' on the Path.