Chapter 1214: Heaven and Earth Connected
Chen Ping'an gently released his grip, and a leaf flew away from the high platform, drifting endlessly in the wind.
Yin Ji laughed. "Boundless blue waves, rustic ballads lingering. The sea of suffering has no shore, just a single leaf for a boat."
Chen Ping'an picked up his gourd of wine, shook it—there was still a little liquor left.
Yin Ji asked curiously, "When did Mountain Lord Chen realize this was a dead end?"
Chen Ping'an replied, "The moment I left the city wall and entered Old Oriole Lake."
Yin Ji clapped his hands delightedly. "No wonder Li Ba, a celestial, couldn't even use his mind to warn you about Xian's true dao foundation. By then, you had already locked your dao heart?"
"Xian deliberately built that arched bridge to try and lure me back to the Dashou Dynasty—all of it was a fake. She had long decided to destroy the 'Dragon's Rising Land' of the True Dragon King Zhu in this life."
"But I was still worried that Mountain Lord Chen might change his mind at the last moment, deliberately letting Xian escape back to the Central Continent of the Middle Earth. That would have made my thirty years of painstaking scheming all for nothing."
Hearing this, Chen Ping'an smiled. "You can just call me by name. You don't have to keep emphasizing 'Falling Mountain' and 'half of one' to make me feel stupid and you look foolish. Since things have come to this, why not be more open with yourself and with me?"
Yin Ji nodded. "It's time to open the skylight and speak plainly."
Chen Ping'an shook his head. "You're still not as good as the prime culprit from Wildland's Moon Embracing Mountain."
Yin Ji sat cross-legged, clenched his fist, and lightly tapped his knee. "Of course we're not as upright and honest as him. But you cut off his head, while we succeeded."
Chen Ping'an nodded. "True. The cost to the entire human world might be negligible, but to you, it's everything. In this matter, you're not exactly a coward."
It turned out that Yin Ji's spirit was already flickering, his flesh and blood beginning to dissolve. The hand that tapped his knee was now bare bone. Ash from the calamity fell rustling, scattering in the wind.
Yin Ji paid it no mind. "The moment you 'lent' the two narrow blades, Execution and Punishment, to Zhou Haijing, I knew the outcome was settled."
"When you withdrew your hand, I was extremely nervous. Fortunately, Zhou Haijing took them. You didn't regret it."
"After I relaxed, I wondered why you didn't add a line about lending them for a few days before giving them to Pei Qian. But I soon understood—you didn't want Pei Qian to live too burdened, didn't want her entangled in these karmic debts that have stretched for ten thousand years. Perhaps the accumulated Heavenly Punishment that had built up over years finally dissipated today, but a new Heavenly Punishment began to brew today as well."
Yin Ji was silent for a moment, then said, "How did you determine that the Wuzhou of the Qingming Heaven wouldn't bully Zhou Haijing in the near future, but that in the long run, Wuzhou's dao heart wouldn't stir and still target the Earthly Branches lineage? For instance, crossing the world, striking swiftly, and forcefully seizing the two divine weapons?"
Chen Ping'an said, "I heard her words and saw her deeds with my own eyes by the River of Time. I know what kind of person Wuzhou is. It's enough to ensure that Wuzhou 'now' won't use force to take the blades."
"In Wuzhou's eyes, the last Hidden Official of the Sword Qi Great Wall, or the master of the Sword Bearer, is a strong one, while Zhou Haijing and the Earthly Branches cultivators are weak. Against the former, she can be ruthless without hesitation; against the latter, Wuzhou wouldn't go so far as to deal a killing blow. Wuzhou's spirit is broad enough to allow them to seek revenge in the future."
Yin Ji nodded. "True."
The grudges and loves of cultivators in the human world were like streams flowing out of mountains. Some might merge into rivers and become calm, a silent tributary. Others might cause flash floods, destroy bridges, or even break dykes, making the river change course and flood thousands of miles. The human world would be drenched, the people suffering unspeakably, mistaking man-made disasters for natural calamities.
Yin Ji smiled. "Mountain Lord Chen, you're mistaken. I'm not Pang Ding of Lingbao City—neither his talisman puppet, nor his clone from beheading the Three Corpses, nor a method of 'releasing the yin spirit to travel far' by splitting a mustard seed of his mind. As you said, I wouldn't leave any evidence. Not even Lingbao City, let alone the present Jade Capital, could bear this karma."
Yin Ji turned around. Both hands were now bone, yet he still performed a Daoist salute. "My true name is Shi Zhouren. I did once receive a favor from Lingbao City, that's true. Taking advantage of the upheaval when Qi Jingchun single-handedly resisted the Heavenly Tribulation back then, I quietly infiltrated the Bottle Gourd Continent of Haoran Heaven. I laid low for thirty years. While you were traveling far to the Sword Qi Great Wall, I began wandering the Central Continent of the Middle Earth, where I found 'Xian'. Yin Yimeng's dream journey to the Divine Capital was my doing by sending him dreams. As for Emperor Yin Ji's desire for immortality, I made no small moves—it was entirely unnecessary, lest I gild the lily."
Chen Ping'an smiled. "Shi Zhouren, you overestimate yourself and underestimate Pang Ding."
Chen Ping'an had once had a strange dream. But there was no need to elaborate to Shi Zhouren.
Shi Zhouren said calmly, "Perhaps."
He didn't think Chen Ping'an was trying to smear Pang Ding and the Jade Capital—that would be underestimating the decisive Mountain Lord Chen.
To be honest, Shi Zhouren both hoped that his thirty years of meticulous planning would succeed, yet deep in his Daoist heart, there was a peculiar feeling: Chen Ping'an, you didn't have to go this far.
Shi Zhouren dispelled this ripples in his dao heart. "Since Chen Ping'an could endure for years before going to challenge Zhengyang Mountain, he must allow others to have equal patience, accumulate bit by bit, and target Falling Mountain and Chen Ping'an. Isn't that so?"
Chen Ping'an smiled and nodded. "Setting aside good and evil, it is indeed the principle."
Shi Zhouren asked, "Being harassed by Zouzi—how do you feel?"
Chen Ping'an said, "Isn't your Qingming Heaven also being ruined by that troublemaker?"
Shi Zhouren laughed heartily. "They brought it upon themselves, so they can't blame Zouzi's schemes. Zouzi doesn't target anyone in particular—he targets all sword cultivators with the potential to reach the fifteenth realm. Whoever reaches that level, he pesters them. Our 'Truly Invincible' was one, Feiran of Wildland was one, your Falling Mountain's Chen Ping'an is one, and Ning Yao of the Five Colors Heaven is another. Fortunately, I'm not one—just a Dao seeker."
The list of the Ten in the World and the alternate candidates—it wasn't a ranking of who was stronger. It was clearly a decree that read: "The world has long suffered from Yu Dou!"
Sun Daozhang of the Xuan Du Temple challenging the Jade Capital alone was still manageable, but when Wu Shuangjiang joined forces with Gao Gu and others to question the Jade Capital, that tore apart the veil of shame.
Facing this extremely dangerous "answer sheet" where any wrong answer to the smallest question could lead to utter ruin, Feiran of Wildland was very clever. He chose to back out, not playing the game anymore. He voluntarily became dao companions with Guike, something akin to a "matrilocal marriage" in the mortal world. In doing so, he tied himself to the Wildland Heaven. Moreover, during Haoran's attack on Wildland, Bai Ze was the true backbone of Wildland. At least for the short term, Zouzi wouldn't keep targeting Feiran.
Chen Ping'an smiled faintly. "I actually understand some of Zouzi's painstaking efforts, but that doesn't stop me from killing him if I get the chance."
After a moment of silence, Chen Ping'an said, "Before I kill him, I'll make him eat so many sugar-coated hawthorns that his belly bursts."
Shi Zhouren seemed to be seeing Mountain Lord Chen for the first time. Hearing this, he found it particularly satisfying, laughing until tears almost came to his eyes. He lowered his head to wipe them away. "What a pity, what a pity."
Seeing that both his arms had completely turned to ash, Shi Zhouren quickened his speech. "Did you ever imagine that the Lotus Flower Blessed Land would have problems, or that some new face on Falling Mountain would harbor ill intentions? Those who are in charge always have to guard against thieves for a thousand days—it's indeed exhausting."
Chen Ping'an said, "I did make some conjectures. For instance, within the Lotus Flower Blessed Land, the 'Old Heavenly Father' born from the manifestation of the Great Way—we walk different paths."
Shi Zhouren asked curiously, "And what else?"
Chen Ping'an smiled. "For example, the Great Li Emperor Song He suddenly disappearing today or tomorrow."
Shi Zhouren was so astonished that he wanted to clap, but found both wrists had already turned to ash. Still, he praised, "Truly a headache. Song Changjing, who is on the Wildland battlefield, would surely be enraged. And you, the new Imperial Preceptor—would you support Song Geng's ascension, or help the old neighbor take the throne? How would the civil and military officials in the court respond? They might even suspect the motives of Xiu Hu. If it comes to that, and you have to use some immortal means to keep a fake 'Song He' on the dragon throne, the truth will eventually come out. That would only confirm the reality of your usurpation."
Chen Ping'an said, "First, I found Xiao Xing's trail in the Lotus Flower Blessed Land, then through her I tracked down those few demon clans and eliminated the threat. The excavation of the Great River in Tongye Continent proceeded smoothly. That was a subtle hidden thread. Looking back now, it's a fairly clear vein. Were you helping secretly from behind?"
Shi Zhouren smiled and nodded. "For thirty years, with a mix of falsehood and truth, I have been secretly helping you and Falling Mountain, adding fortune with great restraint. Earlier, I said my relationship with you was closer than that of an ally—that was no lie. Think back: except for the 'Heavenly Disaster' that Zhou Mi, who occupied the ancient Heavenly Court, cast from beyond the heavens, which landed on Falling Mountain. I, with my thin arms and short legs, truly couldn't block that genuine 'calamity from heaven,' so I had to stand by and watch. Over the years, has Falling Mountain suffered any major disasters or misfortunes? No. I dare not claim credit and say it was all due to my care, but at least I have toiled without merit. As for the intelligence network of Zhengyang Mountain, the smooth relocation of the Fox Kingdom, and such matters, I merely added a little embellishment. Very small, just enough. When the work was done, I withdrew. Finally, Chen Ping'an became the Imperial Preceptor of Great Li, and as I expected, the state and the body became isomorphic, with celestial induction. After all, you have actively moved closer to Daoism."
The Earthly Branches lineage might have found it a bit strange: after successfully beheading the ghost, why hadnn't Imperial Preceptor Chen removed the means of isolating heaven and earth and returned to the Great Li capital? Old Oriole Lake over there still seemed to have a mess waiting for the Imperial Preceptor to personally clean up.
Shi Zhouren, however, was fully aware that the greatest mess in heaven and earth awaited Mountain Lord Chen to personally handle. Could it compare to a mere Old Oriole Lake, which was smaller than a sesame seed?
In fact, Shi Zhouren didn't care anymore. As Chen Ping'an had said, to all living beings in heaven and earth, the Daoist Shi Zhouren was not just one in a billion—he was infinitesimal. But to Shi Zhouren himself, he was everything. He was the 'one' who had lost even his previous life's turnaround.
Shi Zhouren looked immensely pleased, laughing freely. "Ordinary opponents feared your growing strength. Every time you advanced a realm, they grew more anxious. But I did the opposite—I wanted you to improve more and have better luck. I was afraid you'd break through too slowly, that Falling Mountain's fortune would be too weak, that the excavation of the Great River in Tongye Continent would be delayed, that you'd be late in becoming the Dao Lord of two continents. Things like that—how I worried!"
Chen Ping'an nodded. "The Way moves by reversal. When water is full, it overflows; when the moon is full, it wanes. Snatching water makes people hate you, but helping to add water makes everyone like you."
Shi Zhouren smiled. "You've been very cautious all your life, which made me even more careful. A person raised on the charity of many must learn to read faces and moods, to be extremely perceptive of people's hearts and subtle emotions. That's not a skill—it's a necessity for survival. A person raised on charity, who later becomes an immortal and cultivates immortal arts, will always be more acutely aware of the traces and signs of the Great Way's flow in the unseen world than ordinary prodigies. If it were anyone else, I wouldn't have needed to work so hard."
Chen Ping'an raised his hand and opened his palm. "For an orphan, making the neighbors think 'the child is sensible and a good person' is like a bowl used to collect charity rice."
Shi Zhouren sighed. "Killing Ma Kuxuan. You were still cautious—you didn't accept any gifts from the Great Way, right?"
To be able to resist that—Ma Kuxuan had no ill intentions or schemes. It was like an extremely proud and yet incredibly pretentious... "street youth," as if he was too awkward to say thank you out loud, but his inner gratitude and recognition were hardly lacking. Among the younger generation of the Li Zhu Cave Heaven, the only one Ma Kuxuan respected was Chen Ping'an.
Shi Zhouren smiled. "But there are some things you can't refuse, like... like the rouge box that the kiln worker Su Han buried at the doorstep of the Clay Vase Alley home."
"And there are also some things you have been praying for all your life."
"That is Chen Ping'an's only weakness, the only flaw in his Great Way!"
"The unattainable person from the poor boy's childhood, the unobtainable things from the orphan's childhood—they become the constant longing of the future Chen Ping'an."
Saying this, Shi Zhouren was deeply moved. "Pitiful, truly pitiful. The outside world always thinks you are glorious, but I think you are utterly pitiful."
"Unnecessary. You don't understand what 'freedom' is, nor the difference between toil and hardship."
Chen Ping'an smiled. "For example, 'Emperor Yin Ji' watches stonemasons split stone and sees knowledge in it. But he finds it hard to appreciate the stonemason's lifelong silent toil, and in that moment, the glory and happiness of having the emperor stand by and watch them split stone. Especially when they return to their own lives, the joy of being toasted at the table, the pride they see in their children's eyes, and the happiness they feel themselves. You Dao cultivators who occasionally dip into the mortal world think you understand the suffering of humanity, that you know their joys and sorrows, but that's not enough, far from enough. You, all of you, see the mortal world like flipping through a book, viewing the vast red dust as a fearful path. I, we, we came out of that book. So unless we are utterly hopeless, we will eventually place hope in someone, in some tomorrow."
Shi Zhouren was silent for a long time, perhaps unable to refute Chen Ping'an's conclusion. He simply turned back to the main topic.
Shi Zhouren turned his head and chuckled. "Having received most of the gifts of a fourteenth-realm cultivator, you're finally full now, aren't you?"
When the fourteenth-realm ghost 'Xian' was beheaded, she finally no longer suffered the torment of three thousand years of Heavenly Punishment.
Forcibly dispersing her Dao, the great tide surged, flooding Bottle Gourd Continent, implicating Wang Zhu who had returned to her true dragon identity—it was a straightforward repayment of resentment with resentment.
Repaying virtue with virtue was both Xian's gratitude to the young sword immortal for a release that helped her escape the sea of suffering.
Especially since he deliberately took out the two narrow blades used by ancient gods to intimidate dragons—that was a silent promise and an open-hearted gentleman's agreement: "Yesterday" was over, and "tomorrow" would at least see these blades still in Bottle Gourd Continent. In the future, if any dragon-kind dared to make trouble, they would see this blade light. If they acted in accordance with the Great Way, then it would be protection of the Way.
So Xian accepted the favor. The power of the Heavenly Punishment accumulated over seven thousand years became somewhat docile, allowing Chen Ping'an to seal it away with his own strength.
But in doing so, Chen Ping'an had to use a "greater"—not "more"—pure divinity to fill the hole of "humanity."
Shi Zhouren asked the most critical question. "Why didn't you ask the Confucian Temple for help—ask for an advance on a great merit, scatter this Heavenly Punishment, and let the entire Haoran world share it? By sentiment and reason, by public and private interests, there should be no scruple. At most, a few commoners would lose a few copper coins, and there would be a few more accidental drownings by the water. That would still be better than the Great Li dynasty having no Imperial Preceptor just after a new one was appointed. With you presiding over the court, the Great Li dynasty's reign could be longer, and the Great Li border troops, even the Haoran soldiers, could have far fewer deaths in the Wildland. Since you chose Cui Chan's pragmatic learning, you should be able to calculate this account clearly. If it were Cui Chan, would he hesitate at all? If I had targeted Xiu Hu like this, he would probably have laughed out loud. Why didn't you do it, Chen Ping'an? I beg you to enlighten me."
Chen Ping'an smiled but gave no explanation.
Different paths, no mutual plans? Shi Zhouren shook his head. "The celestial mechanism is chaotic; I couldn't calculate you. In the end, you've woven a cocoon around yourself, ending in a situation where no one can save you."
"Of all the things you shouldn't have done, you shouldn't have begged left and right, seeking a wisp of heartfelt incense from everyone to help you mend the geographical advantage of Tongye Continent. Even more, you shouldn't have insisted on being headstrong and taking charge of excavating the Great River there. Especially, you shouldn't have thrown away the merits accumulated by those few senior brothers as if they meant nothing. If you hadn't been so generous, I might have had to linger in Bottle Gourd Continent for a long time before finding this once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity. This body of mine, wrapped around a dao heart, would have drifted for a long time."
"Contingencies may be killed by other contingencies, so that we never see that they once existed in this world. They are like wildflowers and grasses that wither and flourish in the mountains."
"Or contingencies may tie a knot with another contingency, day after day, year after year, creating certain inevitabilities, large or small, appearing in the guise of contingency to give us frights or surprises. They are like a wildflower on a ridge that we pass by and see, or a weed in a rice field that annoys us and we pluck out and discard, rotting and dissolving somewhere in the earth."
————
At the foot of Falling Mountain, the young Daoist turned to look at Ning Yao atop the divine path. "Mountain Lord's wife, are you really willing to drag the entire Five Colors Heaven into this?"
On the neighboring Celestial Capital Peak, Lu Shen was deeply worried. That question from the Daoist guarding Falling Mountain's gate—wasn't it adding fuel to the fire? It didn't sound like any attempt to dissuade.
On the outer city wall of the Great Li capital, Xiao Mo kept his eyes fixed on the mink-capped girl within the Imperial Preceptor's residence.
Xiao Mo didn't ask a single question, and Xie Gou didn't seem inclined to explain a word either.
Liu Xiang lived in a rustic village where roosters crowed and dogs barked. His neighbor was a pedantic bookworm, a poor village schoolteacher. Not even a successful candidate at the county level, let alone a provincial graduate or a local gentry. He had barely passed the exams when the emperor changed the next year. All the lamp oil money he had spent for that meager title—the new court didn't recognize it; it was voided. He was no longer young, and often went to the county Confucian Temple, crouching before the statue of the Sage and weeping, his face covered in snot and tears. His wife, who had made her peace with marrying a loser, no longer bothered to scold him. His sharp-tongued daughter-in-law called him useless and cursed at him with "Confucian nonsense." His son just squatted aside, laughing at the spectacle, feeling that his father had indeed dragged them all down—he couldn't get a bit of benefit from it. The old pedant dared not retort. He only dared to curse the times during the day; at night or on rainy days, he never dared.
This elderly bookworm liked to chat with the neighbor who claimed to have never studied. The reason was that although the neighbor's way of persuading him was full of outrageous opinions, his tone at least resembled that of a literate person. For instance, he would advise him: no matter how much knowledge you have in your belly, even if you possess eight bushels of talent, you can't cook it into a few pounds of rice. You still need to find something to do.
The village teacher would curse the neighbor for not being a literate man, but in his heart, he was uneasy. Going to the county to set up a stall and write letters for others? That was beneath him, disgraceful to scholarship. Being a litigation trickster who wrote legal documents was even more unthinkable. As for going to the fields to work, he truly didn't have the strength. Planting mulberries and raising silkworms, picking tea leaves to supplement the household—he had neither the patience nor the stamina.
Today, they gathered again by the mud wall. Liu Xiang took a handful of roasted pumpkin seeds and thanked the neighbor. The old pedant liked this polite and refined manner of his.
Liu Xiang smiled and asked, "Brother Han, why haven't you been cursing the Great Li court and the local officials for doing nothing all year lately?"
The old pedant immediately looked up, glanced around nervously, and glared. "Brother Liu, don't say such things! That could get you sued. For a scholar like me, if I were stripped of my pants and beaten on the county yamen's main hall, I'd rather die."
Liu Xiang held the seeds in one hand, cracking them open. "It seems the county yamen doesn't bother with such gossip. That young man you always said had an official air about him—you were puzzled because his hands were covered in calluses. You thought, 'A real official would have soft skin, not calluses.' So you pondered with me for half a day and still thought you were mistaken? Remember when he came into the yard and asked to borrow some water? You ran to get a bowl, but he went straight to the water vat, took the gourd ladle, and drank with his head tilted back."
The village teacher chuckled. "I did wish he were really a county magistrate, or at least a clerk in one of the six offices. That would be quite a position."
Liu Xiang smiled. "They say 'a prefect for exterminating families, a magistrate for ruining fortunes.' If he really were a magistrate—whether on purpose or passing by—he came to your house to look around. Aren't you afraid he came specially after hearing something?"
The old pedant sighed and waved his hand repeatedly. "Great Li may be no good, ruined my chance at rank, but such lawbreaking acts—those officials would never do them."
Liu Xiang smiled. "How can you be sure?"
The old pedant smiled faintly. "I'm not a civil servant, but I'm not one of those short-sighted gossiping women either. Take those local bullies and tyrants from generations past—in recent years, they've become honest. That tells me there are officials who are managing them. Before, they were pampered and colluded with them; at worst, they cooked up all sorts of pretexts to squeeze money out of the common people. Now, they're keeping a tight leash on them. I don't trust the government, but I trust my own eyes. Hah, Brother Liu, I'm not bragging, but with my eyes and all the sage books I've read in my life, I'm sharp when it comes to people and things."
Liu Xiang smiled and nodded.
The old man patted his chest. "Why did I spend my whole life trying to get a rank? Why did I have to be an official in the yamen? Precisely to be an official who doesn't pamper them but keeps them in check! That's what a scholar does—pleading for the people."
Liu Xiang smiled. "Be a good official with a good conscience, but maybe pocket a little extra on the side?"
The old man chuckled slyly. "To be a good official, you can't make yourself and your family suffer too much."
Liu Xiang asked, "If you really became an official in the yamen, how many days, months, or years could you hold out? The civil service is a cultivation; the sea of officialdom is treacherous. Could you hold out for a lifetime?"
The old man said wistfully, "How would I know? I've never been an official."
Liu Xiang smiled. The village teacher looked at the sky, snapped back to reality, and stomped his foot in a fluster. "Brother Liu, no more idle chat. I have to go pick up my grandson from the village school."
That grandson of his, who had just started elementary learning, was a true seedling for scholarship—far stronger than when he had blindly muddled through books in his youth.
In recent years, it was said that the Great Li Ministry of Rites directly allocated funds, and the county yamen paid the wages of village schoolteachers. The wages had been increasing—every few years, they went up. There were still those who complained it was too little, but when they thought about "next year," they continued teaching. Moreover, the more remote the village school, the more the county yamen supplemented. Word was that in the future, all new local county gazetteers would dedicate a separate section to these obscure schoolteachers. That even got this village pedant tempted. If that were true, it would truly be a glory for us scholars with no rank. But after all the years of cursing the Great Li court, the old man was too thin-skinned to flip-flop immediately, so he thought, "We'll see next year."
The old man ran out a long way, then suddenly turned back. He pointed to his eyes, then pointed at Liu Xiang. "Brother Liu, I know—you're actually a failed scholar who feels born out of time, aren't you? Don't be depressed. Later, we two brothers can become schoolteachers together. In that gazetteer, we can still be neighbors. When we're free, we'll fry a few plates of snacks and drink some rough liquor. This kind of life would be immortal!"
Liu Xiang smiled. "Brother Han, you can't bear to go teach for Great Li yourself, so you're dragging me along, right?"
The old man laughed heartily. "As expected from a scholar—Brother Liu has sharp eyes too."
After laughing, Liu Xiang finished the last of the pumpkin seeds, brushed off his hands, and said with a sad expression. "So many long-term plans—are they really not to be considered anymore? To give up halfway is such a pity."
At the Azure Mystic Cave on the Ape Trample Plank Road in the Great Li capital region, Gu Can raised his head and said with a snort, "That dog-fucked Zheng Juzhong, I, Gu Can, have already thought it through."
Zheng Juzhong said calmly, "What do you mean?"
Gu Can stretched lazily, walked to the edge of the cliff, and looked far into the distance at the Great Li capital as night deepened and lights gradually came on. He shifted his gaze slightly, to that hometown town.
A thin crack began to appear on Gu Can's face from his brow, then slowly spread across his entire face.
The current sect master of Fuyao Sect, the former little snot-nosed kid from Clay Vase Alley, the burden carried by someone else—he sniffed.
"Zheng Juzhong, tell Chen Ping'an: right or wrong, it was my choice."
Gu Can grinned. "Then, finally, I wish this human world that everyone may be like in Shujian Lake."
A handsome young face shattered with a bang.
"I, Gu Can, wish that every person in this world only ever meets the Liu Laochengs, the Liu Zhimaos, the Tian Hujuns, and such—forever, in life and death, in generation after generation, never meeting a Chen Ping'an."
A physical body of flesh and all its souls shattered like a piece of porcelain, splattering across heaven and earth.
Zheng Juzhong, who had long isolated heaven and earth, said nothing, letting Gu Can choose this path.
Heaven, earth, and the human world might give a long-term response to your Gu Can's choice and... "oath." But Chen Ping'an would absolutely never hear these words of Gu Can's.
Zheng Juzhong looked up at this vast and complex world, full of wonders.
Ah, people.
————
Chen Ping'an had finished the wine in his gourd. He set it aside and asked, "Having used every means, what was your goal?"
Shi Zhouren was speechless. Now that everything was so clear, why did you, a man of such intellect, still ask?
The Daoist's hands and feet had already turned to ash and scattered, leaving only his chest and head. He said frankly, "Of course, it was to force you to lose control, to become a god and ascend to heaven."
"With Zhou Mi, you would 'merge with the Way.' Taking advantage of your mutual tug-of-war with divinity, and with the help of the Three Teachings Ancestors and that senior who ascended first, we would completely destroy the ruins of the ancient Heavenly Court."
"Chen Ping'an, Zhou Mi, the Three Teachings Ancestors, and that senior who once opened a separate path to heaven—all would die. The human world would finally be truly peaceful. The human world would belong to humanity."
Shi Zhouren was radiant with excitement. "Since Cui Chan could make the Three Teachings Ancestors scatter their Ways, why can't I win peace for the human world?"
"If not for you and Zhou Mi perfectly splitting 'that one,' if not for you being the master of the Sword Bearer, who else in the human world could unexpectedly stab Zhou Mi with that sword?"
"Chen Ping'an, I help you ascend to heaven—how will you thank me? Hah! More accurately, I forced you to become a god and ascend."
For some reason, Chen Ping'an still asked, "Shi Zhouren, what was your goal?"
Shi Zhouren was confused.
Chen Ping'an asked one last time. "Daoist, what was your goal?"
Shi Zhouren looked back on his lifelong career as a Dao seeker, scenes flashing through his mind. Suddenly, he had a great realization and murmured, "My task is done. My heart has turned."
Chen Ping'an stood up and smiled. "It seems that whether for public or private, whether being good or bad, whether learning the Dao or not, all of us who seek something are very tired."
Shi Zhouren suppressed his smile. Only his head remained, slowly rising. His expression was complicated. "Who says otherwise? Chen Ping'an, let me take a backward glance. Ascend to heaven."
How many infatuated men in the world, clutching their hair, want to reach the sky?
Chen Ping'an placed both hands on the sword hilts at his waist. "Shi Zhouren, a good name."
Shi Zhouren smiled. "Living up to it. If I succeed, does it matter whether I am Pang Ding or not? Does it matter whether the world knows my name or my deeds?"
Chen Ping'an, as half of one, had reached a conclusion in his inner battle between "humanity and divinity."
Shi Zhouren said no more, just waited to see. His shrine had to rely on the Ten Thousand Mountains rooted in the Wildland earth to forcibly drag back a figure that was rising to heaven.
Chen Ping'an, what can you rely on?
Chen Ping'an said, "I finally understand Master Qi's state of mind back then."
Shi Zhouren asked curiously, "What state of mind?"
Chen Ping'an said, "Great freedom."
Shi Zhouren shook his head. He didn't understand.
"Your lack of understanding is exactly right." Chen Ping'an took a deep breath, turned his head, and smiled. "Watch closely."
Shi Zhouren smiled. "I am honored to witness."
Chen Ping'an turned and walked to the center of the high platform. He gripped the hilts of the two long swords, Night Roam and Duckweed, and looked up at the sky.
Next... he bounced a few times. Shi Zhouren stared in shock, then burst into laughter. He laughed for no reason, tears streaming down his face.
Chen Ping'an gave a little "hey," scratched his face. He had wanted to say something heroic, but gave up.
Only...
Only that he hoped the "Gu Cans" of the world—all of us—would never head toward a Shujian Lake.
He hoped that even if they were forced to, they would still encounter their own Shujian Lakes on life's path, and they could—they must—"Heaven moves vigorously; the gentleman strives unceasingly to strengthen himself!" Or... or meet a "Chen Ping'an" who could do better.
Chen Ping'an drew both swords. Life—how can it be like a leaf of duckweed roaming night and day, sinking into darkness in this life and body?
We must all become strong. We must all do something for this world.
Liu Xiang went into the house to fetch a bowl of sweet fermented rice wine gifted by a neighbor. He walked back to the yard.
This existence born from the manifestation of the Great Way in Haoran Heaven straightened his robes, knelt with the bowl, and said, "The spirit is satisfied. I humbly offer this."
In the Five Colors Heaven, Feng Yuanxiao, whom Ning Yao had protected and even taught the Dao, was resting her cheek on one hand, flipping through a book. She came across a sentence: "Give the world abundant benefits, and I will share in its harms." The girl frowned, a little puzzled. She wanted to wait until Sister Ning returned home and ask her, but then she suddenly smiled. Sister Ning might not understand either. She would definitely use that old line again: "Besides sword techniques and Dao methods, you can ask anything—except for reading and scholarship. Ask him later. He knows the most and likes to play the teacher."
In the Wildland Heaven, the young-looking Guike's heart trembled. Feiran was greatly surprised and asked softly what was wrong and why she was crying. Guike shook her head, her voice hoarse, saying she had heard a voice in her heart. It said: "The Wildland Heaven is also the human world." Feiran was completely bewildered. He gently wiped away the tears on his dao companion's face, but Guike couldn't stop crying. Even she didn't know the reason.
Runyue Peak had just returned to the Qingming Heaven with Zhang Fenghai, exhausted. Standing on the mountain peak, he inexplicably recalled an extremely desolate elegy: "Plump flesh feeds the ants and insects; fair bones forever mixed and lost."
At the ruins of the ancient Heavenly Court, the high-ranking gods of the New Heavenly Court—one of whom had been promoted to fill the vacancy as one of the new Five Supremes, "Li Zhen"—looked down at the human world in fury. "This should not be. The River of Time I saw never had such a scene. You could have avoided..."
Zhou Mi's face was extremely dark. He actually devoured several of the "Li Zhen" and others, absorbing them into himself, merging their divinity with his own.
Only the Fire God "Ruan Xiu" could not be eaten for now. Forget it; maybe not eating her was better—eating her might cause more trouble.
Zhou Mi had originally thought that by deliberately taking that sword, he would at least have about a hundred or two hundred years to continue the entanglement with Chen Ping'an. But that bastard Chen Ping'an...
On the high platform, the divinity he had been desperately suppressing had never been so free.
The half-dark, half-bright face of the man in blue finally became completely clear and bright in an instant.
"I have struggled with myself for long. Better to be myself!"
At that moment, Chen Ping'an dared not look at those people he had long cherished. He feared he would regret, feel fear, or have his heart retreat.
He only dared to glance at Fu Dechong of Pu Mountain, far away in his domain. He looked at the Dao book hidden in the mountain god's sleeve. Lu Chen, farewell here.
In the Wildland Heaven, "Lu Chen" shook his head. Don't follow my example, Lu Chen—never, ever do this!
Chen Ping'an, you are still young. You can make many mistakes without fear. You can do many things. Things that are interesting, or meaningful, or both interesting and meaningful.
Once upon a time, a Daoist descended from the bright moon and went to the human world.
Another sword immortal left the human world to ascend to heaven.
Between heaven and earth, dazed and confused, with Bottle Gourd Continent as the high platform and domain, a blue-clad figure rose in a dharma form, radiating infinite golden light.
Man? God?
Was that the orphan and youth from Clay Vase Alley who had always thought, "It's all my fault; I didn't do well enough"?
The man who had been a traveling peddler for years, like slowly accumulating a household, had finally built a "sword shop."
He now possessed four life-bound flying swords: Caged Sparrow, Well Moon, Duckweed, and Big Dipper. He also had two worn swords: Night Roam and Duckweed.
Heaven and earth: one.
The one who had ascended was Zhou Mi.
The one on earth was Chen Ping'an.
Each got half.
An ancient poem said:
"Flustered for thirty years,
Neither in letters nor swords achieved."
Hah. He really shouldn't have seen such good words in a book.
Moreover, he hadn't even married his wife.
Such a good girl—how could he bear not to cherish her? How did it come to this, that they would be separated again?
Chen Ping'an quickly looked at Falling Mountain and gently shook his head at her.
Using Caged Sparrow to envelop his body, transforming Well Moon into countless flying swords to pave a section of the ascending path, opening the way with Big Dipper, and connecting heaven and earth with Duckweed.
A single line split the sky.
Chen Ping'an thus ascended to heaven, closing his eyes, silently reciting: "When it is my turn, I will not yield; who but me can do it?"
Finally, he silently repeated a phrase from the Buddha: "My heart does not retreat."
Abruptly opening his eyes, Chen Ping'an grinned savagely: "Zhou Mi, come down to hell!"
In the entire New Heavenly Court, Zhou Mi, standing on that golden arched bridge, sensed the restless stirring of the entire human world. In an instant, what Zhou Mi saw seemed to be an overlapping of certain moments from ten thousand years ago and ten thousand years later.
Until this very moment, Zhou Mi finally felt a long-missing fear. His face twisted, he ground his teeth, and finally couldn't help cursing loudly: "Chen Ping'an, you're just a fucking mongrel..."
Zhou Mi, possessing nearly infinite divinity and an imperishable body in the heavens, began involuntarily falling toward the human world, heading for Haoran Heaven, that Bottle Gourd Continent.
It was both a divine attraction between the "two halves of one" and a collapse of the Heavenly Dao that meant mutual destruction...
In the entire human world, across all five heavens, all sentient beings witnessed that breathtakingly magnificent scene.
It was like a brilliant golden thread rising from the human world to heaven, while another pure golden thread from the Heavenly Court went down to touch the earth.
Heaven and Earth Connected!