Chapter 944: What is Scheming
As his mind returned to the Demon Suppression Tower of Tongye Continent, Chen Ping'an opened his eyes, stood up, and once again saw that tall, elderly gentleman. Chen Ping'an silently clasped his hands in a bow.
The first time, he had been taken by his Master to the summit of Sui Mountain. The second time, as the last Hidden Official, he had represented all the sword cultivators of the Sword Qi Great Wall in the Riverside Meeting.
Earlier, in his hometown market town, Chen Ping'an had only met the Dao Ancestor, but not the Supreme Saint or the Buddha.
At Sui Mountain, Chen Ping'an had seen the Supreme Saint for the first time. Afterwards, his Master had asked him what he thought. There was nothing to hide from his Master, so Chen Ping'an told the truth: if he had encountered the Supreme Saint, dressed in a Confucian scholar's robe, in a market alley, he would have suspected that the old gentleman might have… run with the underworld when he was young.
The old scholar had laughed heartily for a long time, saying that was a good assessment, a very good one.
Chen Ping'an knew from his Master's expression and look that it was trouble. He worried that his Master might later, at the Confucian Temple, or while getting drunk with Xi Ping of the Merits Forest, let it slip out to everyone. He made his Master promise not to tell anyone else. The old scholar agreed verbally, but in reality, now not only Xi Ping of the Merits Forest, but also the two vice-chieftains and the chief of the Confucian Temple, along with Old Master Fu, Old Master Li, and so on, all knew this assessment. Outsiders? Within the Confucian Temple now, there were no outsiders. Especially Old Master Li, who had been drafted to help at the Confucian Temple, asked the old scholar whether his closed-door disciple had said this directly to the Supreme Saint. The old scholar said he wouldn't dare. Old Master Li was greatly regretful, saying it was still not quite enough, that the young Hidden Official's guts weren't big enough. The old scholar immediately got anxious. That's not called big guts, that's called being thick-headed… The next day, Old Master Li found that his share of hydrological and geographical affairs had doubled.
The Supreme Saint smiled and nodded in acknowledgment.
Ran with the underworld? That was a good way to put it. Wasn't it much more pleasant than "a stray dog" over there on the Qingming Heaven?
Chen Ping'an then clasped his fists to the middle-aged Daoist who stood beside the Supreme Saint, holding a whisk and carrying a sword on his back. "Junior pays respects to Patriarch Lü."
"Lü Yan pays respects to the Hidden Official."
The Pure Yang Daoist did not presume on his seniority, nor did he put on airs of an elder just because Chen Ping'an called himself "junior." Instead, he made a Daoist salute, using the respectful title "Hidden Official" as a return gesture. Lü Yan then smiled and said, "As for the opportunity with the Yellow Millet Sect, Sect Leader Chen handled it very prudently."
The Supreme Saint let out an "oh." "That's a big title, Patriarch Lü. Impressive."
The Pure Yang Daoist smiled dismissively.
The Supreme Saint said, "Daoist Pure Yang, just a bland 'prudent'? What's the matter? Upstairs on the corridor a moment ago, you didn't say that. If I remember correctly, you even sincerely praised, 'The Dao cannot be monopolized; it is in harmony with my Dharma.' A good word from the heart can't become worthless just because it's spoken out loud, can it? Is that the way of things?"
The Pure Yang Daoist felt helpless.
Supreme Saint, you're the boss.
Outside the Demon Suppression Tower, the Hao Ran World was already shrouded in dusk. Down the mountain, people had already visited graves, offered sacrifices, and pasted Spring Festival couplets. After the sound of firecrackers and the New Year's Eve dinner, they had begun to stay up for the new year.
But here, the moon was still at the center of the sky, bright as day.
The Supreme Saint said, "Come, let me show you around this Demon Suppression Tower. Aside from the one in the Central Earth Divine Continent, the other eight majestic towers of the Hao Ran World were all designed by the Ritual Saint back then."
Chen Ping'an noticed that almost every hall and pavilion in the Demon Suppression Tower was full of things: books, paintings, various curios, along with armor, weapons, and numerous mountain treasures. These were clearly the accumulated holdings of ten thousand years, gathered through the frugal method of a swallow gathering mud and an ant moving its home. In the end, an outsider touring this tower would feel like they were visiting one treasure hall after another, like a true itinerant peddler.
The Supreme Saint stopped outside the threshold of a palace, turned his head to look at the hall's horizontal plaque and couplets on the pillars. There were also two rows of chairs placed inside… all of them dragon thrones.
Qing Tong looked embarrassed.
These dragon thrones, from various fallen dynasties in Tongye Continent's history, along with the national jade seals that had "leaked into the common world," were all objects that the old Daoist master had discarded as unwanted. In the end, Qing Tong had gathered them all together here. He had always thought they looked magnificent and imposing, but now that the Supreme Saint and the young Hidden Official were stopping to look, Qing Tong wished he could dig a hole and crawl into it.
The Supreme Saint asked, "Chen Ping'an, what do you think? Should this Demon Suppression Tower be turned into a place similar to the small Merits Forest at the Confucian Temple, as suggested by Little Heavenly Master Zhao Yaoguang of Dragon Tiger Mountain, to imprison the barbarian demons swept down from various continents? Execute those who should be executed, imprison those who should be imprisoned? Or should we follow the suggestion of Hengqu Academy's Headmaster Yuan Pang, and let Daoist Qing Tong directly establish a sect here with the Demon Suppression Tower as its mountain head? That would stabilize the mountain and river qi of the continent, and also appease the native demon cultivators of the Hao Ran World. The relationship between the Demon Suppression Tower and this new sect's Patriarch Hall would be somewhat similar to the Water Dragon Sect in Beiju Continent."
Qing Tong immediately felt a surge of goodwill toward the Confucian scholar Yuan Pang, who came from the line of the Lesser Sage.
Rumor had it that this Yuan Pang was a defector the Lesser Sage had recruited from the Qingming Heaven.
Chen Ping'an thought for a moment. "As long as a Confucian academy headmaster is willing to resign his position and come here to serve as a Discipline Patriarch, then we can have both."
The Supreme Saint neither agreed nor disagreed. He continued walking, teasing, "You've only paid homage to a few mountains. Let me count: Central Earth's Sui Mountain, the Nine True Immortal Temple, the mountain god temple near the watershed of Treasure Bottle Continent. Compared to your earlier dream journey to the Water Mansion, is that enough? There's a strong suspicion of starting strong and ending weak. If you were writing a book or establishing a doctrine, that would be a major taboo. You still seem to have a considerable amount of merit left? As they say in your hometown, 'surplus year after year'? Save it for later?"
Chen Ping'an smiled bitterly and said nothing.
Like a sudden pang of conscience, Chen Ping'an suddenly felt sorry for the sword cultivators of the Hidden Official lineage in the Summer Palace.
First, traveling through the river of time, even if only in a dream, was not easy for a land immortal cultivator. Fortunately, Chen Ping'an also had the physique of a martial artist at the peak of the Imperial Realm, so he wouldn't be mentally exhausted or physically drained. But asking for favors, no matter how thick-skinned you are, you still need to find a way. There were indeed countless mountain lords and mountain gods in the world, but those Chen Ping'an knew, especially those with whom he could sincerely light a stick of incense, were actually not many.
However, just like his own Lotus Root Paradise and the broken, miasma-ridden secret realm of the Nine True Immortal Temple, he could light a stick of heartfelt mountain and river incense. Chen Ping'an actually had no problem visiting more places. He was even prepared to continue traveling far with Qing Tong, visiting places like the Old Pit Paradise under the name of Fu Lu Yu Xuan, and calling on the Money God Liu Jubao of the White Aiai Continent, spending all his own merits and using up all his mountain friendships.
But when it came to the Five Sacred Mountains of the Central Earth, aside from Sui Mountain, which he had already toured, the other four didn't nod in agreement. This had indeed caused Chen Ping'an's spirit and morale to plummet to the bottom.
He could only console himself: human strength always has its limits.
Otherwise, just in terms of asking for favors, Chen Ping'an believed that among the direct disciples of the Literary Sage lineage, he was the most skilled, or at least the most familiar with it.
As for those senior brothers, they disdained to do it, had no need to do it, or simply didn't have to.
His Master was different in a way. So what if his Master favored his closed-door disciple a bit?
The Supreme Saint suddenly said, "Don't hold a grudge against that mountain lord of Gui Mountain with the divine title 'Tian Jin.' He had received a decree from the Confucian Temple in advance, which was why he gave you the cold shoulder. Otherwise, even if he didn't have a close relationship with your Literary Sage lineage, he wouldn't dare show no respect to a young Hidden Official. That would mean he doesn't understand human affairs at all."
Lü Yan smiled. "Daoist Chen, keeping accounts is fine, and a real man should distinguish between kindness and enmity. But you must not narrow your great path and heart because of it."
The Supreme Saint laughed. "Daoist Pure Yang likes to speak only half his mind. Actually, he thought you were too easygoing back there at the Barbarian Peach Pavilion, and earlier at the gate of Da Yue Gui Mountain. Whether as the last Hidden Official of the Sword Qi Great Wall, or as the closed-door disciple of the Literary Sage lineage."
The middle-aged Daoist, holding a whisk, carrying a sword, and with a gourd hanging from his waist, stroked his beard and smiled. "Isn't it so?"
Who was the last Hidden Official of the Sword Qi Great Wall invited to the Confucian Temple meeting? None other than the Ritual Saint.
Who led the dangerous expedition to the Barbarian World and accomplished a series of extraordinary feats? It was you, Chen Ping'an.
Down the mountain has its own etiquette; up the mountain has its own rules.
In Lü Yan's view, you, Chen Ping'an, may not take credit for your exploits and act arrogantly, but that doesn't give others a reason not to take the "Hidden Official" seriously.
Lü Yan narrowed his eyes and asked, "Hidden Official, do you know that the Sword Qi Great Wall has been split in two? Half is in the Five Colors World. Where is the other half?"
Chen Ping'an said, "In me."
Lü Yan warned, "For a cultivator, there are only two ways to avoid being burdened by status. One is to be like Leader Lu, who completely disregards external things—an empty boat sailing on emptiness. The other is to elevate your future realm, heart, and deeds to surpass your former status."
The Supreme Saint laughed. "Alright, alright. Chen Ping'an has his own difficulties. Daoist Pure Yang, don't keep pressing him."
Lü Yan was about to explain, but the Supreme Saint waved his hand. "The true meaning is known between you and me. Chen Ping'an also understands your original intention and goodwill, so there's no need to say more."
Chen Ping'an clasped his fists and smiled at the Pure Yang Daoist.
The Supreme Saint reminded, "Daoist Pure Yang, Chen Ping'an is asking for a favor again."
Lü Yan smiled and nodded. "Then I won't argue with that Peach Pavilion Daoist who got his opportunity."
Otherwise, whatever the Young Daoist heard from Li Huai in that Lou Shan residence of the Yellow Millet Sect, Lü Yan would take back.
Chen Ping'an was curious about one thing, so he asked via heart-to-heart voice, "Senior, have you already reached the Fourteenth Realm?"
Lü Yan shook his head. "Back then, I had one foot across the threshold, but at the last moment, a ripple appeared in my heart, and I withdrew."
For the Pure Yang Daoist, cultivation was never just about realms. So when Lü Yan withdrew his foot, his cultivation didn't drop at all; instead, his realm truly became perfect.
The Supreme Saint suddenly asked, "Some questions, why bother asking Lu Shen? Wouldn't asking your own Master at the Merits Forest yield a clearer answer?"
Chen Ping'an shook his head. "I'm afraid of worrying my Master."
In fact, he had considered this earlier. But at the Merits Forest of the Confucian Temple, when his Master had his temple position restored and everything was bustling, Chen Ping'an held back.
Later, in that small lane in the capital city, in the Ren Yun Yi Yun Tower, his Master was looking at an old book, looking lonely. The student watching him felt that, and Chen Ping'an completely abandoned the idea.
If he hadn't been thrown into the Dream Liang Kingdom by the Supreme Saint and happened to meet Lu Shen, as far as Chen Ping'an was concerned, before traveling to the Qingming Heaven, he still had plenty of time for cultivation, at least a hundred years, at most… Well, it was hard to say. A few hundred years, or even a thousand. He could take his time verifying those conjectures.
No need to rush.
They arrived at a library. The Supreme Saint teased, "After ten thousand years of painstaking management by Daoist Qing Tong, this Demon Suppression Tower has everything—all sorts of dazzling things, so many you'd be dizzy. Except it has very few books."
Qing Tong said nervously, "I will make up for it."
Chen Ping'an said, "The Demon Suppression Tower could open a bookshop, print copies of the rare editions and ancient texts in the library. That would also be a considerable merit, and it wouldn't cost much—not even two Grain Rain coins."
The Supreme Saint smiled. "If Daoist Qing Tong had done this earlier, during the last Confucian Temple meeting in Central Earth, the Lesser Scribe might not have personally invited Daoist Qing Tong, but a Grand Sacrificial Priest of the Academy would have definitely appeared on Tongye Continent. Then at Sui Mountain, you wouldn't have needed the Hidden Official to help you ask for a simple bowl of noodles. Mountain Lord Zhou You might have even been willing to accompany you and sit down. You wouldn't have had to pay those few coppers yourself."
Qing Tong said, "I'll take care of it as soon as I get back."
The Supreme Saint asked, "Regarding the remaining merit in your hands, if I and Daoist Pure Yang hadn't shown up, did you have some ideas?"
Chen Ping'an nodded. "I did think about it, but it wouldn't conform to ritual propriety. It would easily attract a lot of criticism and also put my friend Zhong Kui in a more delicate position."
"Ritual propriety? Who established the rules of etiquette for the Hao Ran World?"
The Supreme Saint laughed. "The Ritual Saint took the lead, setting the outline. Then the various sages contributed ideas, filled in gaps, and even negated some of the Ritual Saint's plans and threads. In the end, it was handed to the Ritual Saint to implement. But is this truly the earliest origin of 'Hao Ran's rules'?"
Chen Ping'an said, "The earliest origin was the hope that people's hearts would turn toward the sun, that the world would move upward. An uphill path may be slow, but the journey is stable, and people would no longer be rootless wanderers adrift in wind and rain."
Lü Yan nodded lightly.
In fact, the heartfelt words that the current leader of the Yellow Millet Sect, Gao Zhen, had spoken to Chen Ping'an—in Lü Yan's view, they were well-intentioned, without any problem, but might not be entirely correct.
What really drives the world upward might very well be making mistakes and correcting them.
The Supreme Saint was the first to enter a building resembling a Wen Chang Pagoda. The stairs spiraled upward. After reaching the top, they came to the corridor under the eaves. Leaning on the railing and looking out, the Supreme Saint said, "The Lesser Scribe of the Hao Ran World, the accountant of the Book and Bamboo Slips Lake. This is the answer sheet that Cui Chan, the Embroidery Tiger, wanted the Confucian Temple to see."
Chen Ping'an shook his head. "Heaven and earth apart, clouds and mud apart."
The Supreme Saint laughed. "Both results come from the same mind, don't they? As long as a young person isn't complacent, there's no need to be too self-deprecating."
"Do you know why the Ritual Saint ultimately failed?"
"Was it because he saw some kind of drawback?"
"For example?"
Chen Ping'an thought for a moment and replied, "Something akin to the construction of a cross-continent ferry?"
Something overly intricate, a massive thing built from countless details linked together, seemingly solid but not truly so.
When he was a child at the Immortal Tomb, watching other children play from a distance, he once saw a grasshopper with a broken leg still able to jump and flee through the grass. The children found it strange that humans couldn't do the same. Later, when he left his hometown and began his travels, he learned that mountain and river gods, as well as the immortals up on the mountains, seemed to be able to do it. Even later, there was the view held by Senior Brother Zuo that "mountain cultivators are no longer human." It wasn't until Chen Ping'an personally got involved in ferry construction that he finally had a definite answer.
The Supreme Saint smiled. "No wonder the old scholar praises you to everyone he meets. His tail is sticking up to the sky."
Chen Ping'an's expression was strange. It always felt odd when the Supreme Saint called his Master "the old scholar."
In fact, the peak cultivators who had a good relationship with his Master also habitually called the Literary Sage "the old scholar." As his Master put it, it's not strange at all. Being called an "old scholar" elevates your generation, right? It's like taking advantage—like drinking a pot of free wine. Why not? Just like the Ritual Saint is often called "the Lesser Scribe." What a great nickname, forever young!
The Supreme Saint said, "As for drinking, you should still be moderate."
In his heart, Qing Tong was secretly amused. He had actually wanted to use a saying of the Supreme Saint himself, "Do not be troubled by wine," to remonstrate with the young Hidden Official.
One must know that the Supreme Saint had listed this matter alongside three other great affairs, making it one of the major issues of virtuous character. If someone became addicted to drinking and got dead drunk, it was a serious matter of moral failing.
But after accompanying "Chen Ping'an" on a trip to the Nine True Immortal Temple of the Daoist couple Yun Miao and Wei Zi, Qing Tong no longer dared to lecture a great demonic tycoon about these Confucian proprieties.
Chen Ping'an hesitated for a moment, didn't make any solemn vows or speak with conviction, just said, "I'll try."
Qing Tong felt a bit of admiration for this young Hidden Official. Here in front of the Supreme Saint, you're still acting aggrieved?
The Supreme Saint asked, "Having read so many books, are there any sentences you particularly like or detest?"
Chen Ping'an nodded. "Of course."
"Pick a few that aren't from bamboo slips."
"Just from recent reading, I especially like one from the 'Record of the Joyous Pavilion': 'Fortunate to have been born in a time of peace.' And also this line from 'Seeing in the Mountains on the Sixty-Ninth Year: A Family Eastern Begins Marriage, A Family Western Welcomes a Bride, Lanterns Before the Door, Laughter and Talk.' I learned that poetry isn't only about golden horses and iron spears, or poor scholar's dreams of gold. So when I found it in the books, it was love at first sight. As for what I dislike, there are many. But one I truly detest is that line 'Watching others harvest rice in the noon wind.' To me, this so-called refined and leisurely comfort is completely heartless."
The Supreme Saint chuckled. "If I remember correctly, that line comes from a great literary master under Suzi's tutelage, one of Suzi's most proud disciples."
Lü Yan lightly patted the railing and couldn't help laughing.
This man was from the Huang family of Xiu Shui, a famous family of scholars who valued reading and farming. It was a first-class family of poetry and books, with a fragrance of literature that had lasted for a very long time. Until this man, the literary fortune was at its peak. Afterwards, the family branched out and its reputation remained excellent.
Qing Tong's expression turned grave. He felt that Chen Ping'an shouldn't be so reckless with his words in front of the Supreme Saint.
Chen Ping'an smiled. "It's just directed at that line, not the poet himself. Even if this senior heard it, with his breadth of mind, he would probably just laugh it off. Just like when I was young, I loved the line 'Sweat drips on the soil', and also 'Drive thunder and lightning to eliminate the wicked.' As for the poet who wrote them… well, that's just how it is. So people are people, words are words. They should be viewed differently. One can't judge a whole by a part."
The Supreme Saint smiled. "You really are the old scholar's closed-door disciple. When you speak, you have a whole set of arguments. Whether you say it positively or negatively, good words or bad, the truth always belongs to you."
Chen Ping'an thought of something and tentatively said, "The sophistry of the School of Names can easily fall into the mire of pure debate, and the so-called pure conversation of self-styled scholars is even more unacceptable. But I think that at the Confucian Temple and academies, Confucian scholars could be allowed to appropriately study and research Buddhist logic, as well as the theories of the old Daoist master."
"For example? You'll have to give me an example to convince me."
"For example, the issue of 'whether reading is useful.'"
The Supreme Saint smiled knowingly and waved his hand. "I more or less understand what you're trying to say. But you can refine this topic further and save it for discussion on the Night Boat in that City of the Useless."
The Supreme Saint turned his head and said, "Daoist Qing Tong, those who fear the strong and bully the weak, who flatter superiors and oppress inferiors—there are rarely exceptions among people or affairs. If you don't have the spirit to reason calmly with the strong, you will inevitably lose patience with the weak."
"Take Chen Ping'an standing beside you. It's not because he became the last Hidden Official of the Sword Qi Great Wall that he can speak so frankly with me, an old man usually only hung on the walls of the Confucian Temple. Remember, back then when the old scholar took the initiative to accept him as a student, Chen Ping'an even declined. So the order of things cannot be confused. Now that the Literary Sage's teachings have been unsealed, if Daoist Qing Tong is not too busy, besides your cultivation, you might want to read more of the old scholar's works."
Qing Tong had no choice but to continue promising that he would diligently study the Literary Sage's teachings.
He had, of course, flipped through the old scholar's works before, but he just hadn't taken them to heart.
Chen Ping'an suddenly said, "Supreme Saint, Qing Tong actually wants to ask something: 'Why should I have patience with the weak.'"
"First, I, Qing Tong, am now strong. Moreover, when I, Qing Tong, was weak, the strong did not show me any patience."
"So I, Qing Tong, want to ask: what's in it for me? Why should I?"
Qing Tong's face changed dramatically, but he steadied his heart. With mixed feelings, he nodded. "That is indeed what I, Qing Tong, was thinking."
Far from resenting the young Hidden Official for his outspokenness, Qing Tong felt a certain relief. Yes, this is what I think. If it incurs the Supreme Saint's displeasure, so be it. This is still what I, Qing Tong, think.
The Supreme Saint smiled. "Building walls and beams must be done by oneself. Replacing beams and pillars is the same. If you feel your current dwelling is already sufficient to keep out wind and rain, and you live comfortably in it—as long as you're not bent on tearing down your neighbor's house to expand your own territory—then even if you don't know 'what's in it' or 'why,' I think the problem isn't big."
After all, Qing Tong wasn't a Confucian disciple, so there was no need to hold him to the strict standards of a saint.
Qing Tong let out a huge sigh of relief. It seemed he wouldn't be held accountable by the Supreme Saint.
Then he found Chen Ping'an frantically making eye signals at him. Qing Tong was completely bewildered and panicked.
The problem was, I don't know what deeper intention the Supreme Saint has, nor do I understand what you want me to ask.
Don't hint! Just tell me clearly, okay?!
Chen Ping'an had no choice but to grit his teeth and speak via heart-to-heart voice: "Just chat a few more sentences with the Supreme Saint. As long as it's from the heart, speak your true thoughts. If you have any questions, ask. If there's anything you don't understand, say it. Anything is fine."
If it weren't for the fact that you used the "guest elder of Xiandu Mountain" identity at the Yellow Millet Sect, and here in the Demon Suppression Tower, seeing you play the role of the ten-thousand-year itinerant peddler, which counts as diligence—you and I are practically fellow travelers—and earlier at Lu Shen's place, you didn't turn your coat against me, do you think I'd be willing to build this bridge for you?
Since the three religious founders have decided to scatter their teachings, which is an unchangeable matter, then every word the Supreme Saint says to you today, every principle, big or small, every extra sentence, even just a few characters, is an opportunity you, Qing Tong, have earned with your own ability. In front of the Supreme Saint, as long as your words and actions come from sincerity and a straight heart, why should you feel embarrassed? Would the Supreme Saint be stingy with a few words of guidance on cultivation? In the worst case, would he scold you or hit you?
Instead, you— are you playing dumb or truly dumb?
The Supreme Saint laughed. "Alright, alright. Stop making it hard for Daoist Qing Tong. Being single-minded in cultivation isn't a bad thing."
The direct disciples of the Literary Sage lineage—they really hold a grudge, and they're really protective of their own.
Lü Yan teased, "With a pure mind, you should have some pure-minded questions. What a pity."
The Supreme Saint said, "Human nature cannot be twisted too early. But one must not be ignorant of reason. Just that when implementing enlightenment, it must not be too rigid."
"In your disciple Pei Qian and your student Cao Qinglang's cases, you did well."
"Chen Ping'an, you must be careful of a certain precedent. Don't become that kind of person, or you may suffer a gentleman's condemnation. Then it won't just be Zouzi waiting for you to make a mistake; the Ritual Saint will also come to correct your errors."
"I'll remember."
Because Chen Ping'an knew who the Supreme Saint was referring to—someone killed by the Supreme Saint himself. This matter was a notable public case across several worlds.
"But your method of teaching and resolving doubts has a not-insignificant problem. Chen Ping'an, do you know where it is?"
"It's easy to become too much like me."
Like being carved from the same mold.
"You only know one part, not the other."
The Supreme Saint shook his head. "Once bitten, twice shy. After what happened at Book and Bamboo Slips Lake, you became afraid. You've become cautious and hesitant. Many truths are bumping into each other in your heart's house, bickering. Although the muffled sound of truths colliding is conscience, there is such a thing as too much introspection. You've been using truths to polish your Dao heart all along. I know your difficulties and your long-term plans, but there's no denying that one day, carelessly, a big problem will arise. Then Zouzi will say that infuriating thing: 'As expected, just so.'"
Chen Ping'an said, "I'll be careful, very careful."
Lü Yan suddenly said, "Since the Supreme Saint is here, why don't you ask him? Regarding what you think is out of private grudge to avenge a private wrong—is it feasible or not? This thing you must do in this life—is it right or wrong? Anyway, the Supreme Saint has decided to wash his hands of 'worldly affairs' now. He probably won't stop you. But if the Supreme Saint also approves, wouldn't that set your mind more at ease?"
At the ancestral mountain of the Yellow Millet Sect, before parting with Li Huai, Chen Ping'an had, for the first time as his little junior martial uncle, left Li Huai an assignment.
It was to think about a question.
Suppose you, Li Huai, are a ranger. One day, you pass through a place and encounter a person who has committed countless atrocities and crimes in the area. In the dead of night, you sneak in, kill him, and leave.
This person's family includes a son who should have been studying the classics to take the imperial examinations. But from then on, his character changes completely. His lifelong pursuit becomes revenge against this ranger. From a scholar with an originally decent nature, who might even have become a good official benefiting the people, he overnight becomes an obstinate man who never turns back on the road of vengeance. Over the next few decades, he commits numerous sins, killing innocents endlessly, his offenses ten or a hundred times worse than his father's, until he finds that ranger to take his revenge…
Chen Ping'an gave Li Huai three small questions. First, is this causality related to the ranger, who remains ignorant of the aftermath? Second, if the ranger knew all this would happen, would he still kill the scholar's father, or simply kill the scholar boy as well that night? Third, if you, Li Huai, are that ranger, when facing the avenger, you have two choices: one is to admit your fault, and the other party then stops; the other is to not admit fault, and after the former scholar boy gets his revenge, he continues to kill people. Would you admit fault?
Li Huai had asked a question: Couldn't the ranger just stay in that place after chivalrously eliminating the evildoer?
Chen Ping'an said no. Either you directly face the second question, or you have no other choice.
Li Huai was terribly troubled, and Chen Ping'an said he could think about it slowly.
But in Lü Yan's view, the problem Chen Ping'an gave Li Huai was, of course, a different matter from Chen Ping'an's own situation. They couldn't be compared.
The Supreme Saint laughed heartily. "We are all scholars. We must convince people with reason and virtue. Without words, our deeds themselves are reason."
"At the root of it all, we are just struggling with one thing: the truth with which we convince ourselves—does it truly have reason? Can it be called self-evident and just?"
Having said this, the Supreme Saint shook his head. "Chen Ping'an, you just resemble a sword cultivator. You are too unlike us Confucians."
Even Qing Tong was starting to worry about Chen Ping'an.
These words carried a lot of weight!
And they were spoken by the Supreme Saint himself!
The Supreme Saint placed one hand behind his back and gently pressed the railing with the other. "If it weren't for the profound impact of that incident back then—the Dao Ancestor left the Little Lotus Paradise and also dragged the other one along, inviting me to discuss that ten-thousand-year pact—and Qi Jingchun were not so determined on his own…"
The old gentleman suddenly blurted out a three-character curse.
Lü Yan immediately coughed, reminding the Supreme Saint to mind his status in front of his own Confucian disciples.
The Supreme Saint sneered. "In our Hao Ran World, the two bastards at the White Jade Capital—I could kill one with each slap. If even a single drop of blood splatters, it means I don't know how to fight."
Lü Yan smiled. "Sayings like that are fine for the Supreme Saint to say, and for you, Chen Ping'an, to hear."
In life and worldly affairs, there's much helplessness. Even the Supreme Saint is not exempt.
Qi Jingchun's unyielding stance in the Li Zhu Cave Heaven, Bai Ye's lone sword journey to Fu Yao Continent, one man challenging the eight barbarian king seats, the pure Confucian Chen Chun'an shouldering the sun and moon, risking death to stop Liu Cha from returning to the Barbarian World…
And then there were so many wise men of the Confucian Temple, the noble scholars and ordinary Confucians of the academies, and the soldiers and warriors down the mountain who died generously on their respective battlefields.
It was like the most proud man in the world, Bai Ye, who once said on the battlefield of Fu Yao Continent, surrounded by enemies: "There are some things I can say that even the Supreme Saint cannot."
It would take someone who had truly read only dead books to think that only the strong can speak of reason, that only the strong are worthy of having reason.
In our Hao Ran World, the eternal and immovable thing is not the Supreme Saint or the truths in books, nor any cultivator of the Fourteenth Realm. It is only the majestic and ever-lasting essence of heaven and earth of a thousand autumns.
Qing Tong's scalp tingled.
Xiao Mo, on the other hand, didn't find it strange at all.
Because he knew the temperament of the first wave of "scholars" from ten thousand years ago.
The tall, elderly gentleman reached out his hand and pressed it on the young man's head. In a deep voice, he said, "Someone once asked, 'What about repaying resentment with kindness?' An old immortal, meaning me, had long given the answer: 'Then with what shall you repay kindness? Repay resentment with justice, and repay kindness with kindness!'"
In Confucian history, there was an era of extreme brilliance and splendor.
Beyond the heavens, the Ritual Saint led a group of accompanying sages from the Confucian Temple, along with great cultivators including the former Great Heavenly Master of Dragon Tiger Mountain, to cross the stars and actively hunt down the remnants of the gods.
In the mortal world, wandering scholars were as numerous as clouds, and there were not yet many entrenched families. The common people were filled with a spirit of vigor, hot-blooded, with clear distinctions between kindness and enmity. "Can one still take revenge after nine generations? Even a hundred generations is permissible."
And even earlier, before the Hao Ran World Confucian Temple was established, the old gentleman had traveled the world, teaching the people.
Besides bringing a large group of his direct disciples (who later became the seventy-two accompanying sages of the Central Earth Confucian Temple), one should not forget that the Supreme Saint also traveled with a sword at his waist.
There is a later rumor that this iron sword was given by the Supreme Saint to a disciple he was particularly partial to, a scholar known for his… explosive temper.
So why the Supreme Saint favored this particular student—isn't it obvious?
And there is another piece of unverified gossip, that the long sword the Supreme Saint wore at his waist back then was named with a single character: Virtue.
If that were true, then this kind of "convincing people with virtue"—were they convinced or not? Who would dare not be convinced?
"I owe you an apology."
By the same reasoning, with the old scholar around, the Supreme Saint found it hard to say these things.
The young man lifted his head, confused.
"Back then, when Kou Ming left the White Jade Capital and the Qingming Heaven to come to our Hao Ran World, one of his avatars needed to attain the Dao in the Li Zhu Cave Heaven. The Lesser Sage helped convey the message, and I personally gave my consent."
The young man lowered his head.
"Why do you dare to be angry but not speak, and dare not even speak or be angry? That's utterly unreasonable. So what?"
"Dare to complain! The most unreasonable thing in the world is emotions. If even the seven emotions and six desires can be severed, suppressed, dismantled, then the cultivator truly ceases to be human! Following this path, you may ultimately reach the peak, but you will never ascend to the heavens. This kind of self-deception, seemingly profound but actually a wrong path, is like damming a flood and having people walk under the river. I say, discard it."
Lü Yan naturally understood the Supreme Saint's reasoning. If the new became like the old, failing to ascend to the heavens would be a minor matter. Having Zhou Mi perform a "world" on them—that would be the real trouble.
Then, regardless of whether Chen Ping'an's humanity or his pure divinity was left, it would be completely covered, dismantled, and dissolved by Zhou Mi's divinity.
To win this great Dao struggle, the answer had actually been given ten thousand years ago. It was just that it was difficult to achieve for a single person.
Because the three religious founders had a ten-thousand-year pact, first proposed by the Dao Ancestor at the original Riverside Meeting, it was essentially an unwritten rule established by the three founders.
First, all three parties had to keep their pact. Second, each of the three worlds had indeed shown signs of being "Daoized" by one person to varying degrees.
The most severe was the Qingming Heaven, where the Dao Ancestor sat. This was even with the premise that the Dao Ancestor tried as much as possible to remain in the Little Lotus Paradise and not easily go out.
Once it reached the halfway point, each of the three founders would become the "half of their world" in the truest sense. This trend of merging with heaven and earth would intensify and eventually become uncontrollable. Even the three founders themselves would be unable to resist this Dao evolution.
This was the extreme of Lu Shen's so-called "swallowing mountains and rivers," which would solidify the saying that "the three greatest gluttonous beasts in heaven and earth only eat and never excrete."
For ordinary cultivators, this was a dream come true. But for the three founders, it was something they had to reject.
Once the three founders scattered their teachings, as Lu Shen said, "the sky will rain." Then kindness would be bestowed upon all living beings, and the Dao would fall upon the world like rain.
But at the same time, it would inevitably lead to a chaotic time of heroes contending for supremacy.
It could almost be said that any cultivator of the Fourteenth Realm would, either actively or passively, be caught up in it.
Just like Chen Ping'an, through Lu Shen's "superfluous action," and by connecting Wu Shuangjiang's series of actions, could easily predict that the first fight between cultivators of the Fourteenth Realm across several worlds would most likely occur in the Qingming Heaven.
Old Daoist Master Sun Huaizhong of the Xuan Du Temple, the leader of the Daoist sword immortal lineage, the immovable Fifth in the world, had entered the Fourteenth Realm as a sword cultivator.
He would ask for a duel, at least to settle the outcome, with Yu Dou, the Second Leader of the White Jade Capital, known as "Truly Unrivaled" and nicknamed "Dao Second."
And Wu Shuangjiang of the Sui Chu Temple, a former martial temple's ten wise men of the Hao Ran World. Attending him was "Xiao Bai," historically recognized as the war god of the military strategists.
Once Wu Shuangjiang joined forces with Daoist Sun, and they questioned the White Jade Capital in both words and swords, they would definitely fight Yu Dou to the death, with no end but death.
The Supreme Saint smiled. "If this fight starts, it will truly shake heaven and earth. Daoist Pure Yang, what do you think the outcome will be?"
Lü Yan said, "There are only two possibilities. One is that all three Fourteenth Realm cultivators perish together, and Yu Dou will certainly die and his Dao will vanish."
"The second is a more complex scenario, which might make Yu Dou lose all hope of ever reaching the Fifteenth Realm, but at the same time, it could make his Fourteenth Realm even more stable."
"In the end, Yu Dou would solidify his position as the indisputable strongest below the Fifteenth Realm."
The Supreme Saint nodded. "The latter sounds enviable, but for Yu Dou, it would be different. It wouldn't be 'living death,' but it would probably be close."
The Supreme Saint turned to look at Chen Ping'an. "On the way here, did you ever think of joining forces with Daoist Sun and Lord Wu?"
Chen Ping'an nodded. "I did, but I held back."
Chen Ping'an looked up at the sky.
He had even thought of going beyond the heavens to forge his sword early.
Wu Shuangjiang had appeared of his own accord at Ascension City in the Five Colors World. It was a kind of invitation, but it was subtly rejected by Chen Ping'an.
Since Chen Ping'an had refused this matter in his own way, Wu Shuangjiang didn't press.
The Supreme Saint said, "Don't agonize too much. You don't have to become someone exactly like Qi Jingchun or Cui Chan. Just being similar enough is fine."
Chen Ping'an nodded.
The Supreme Saint smiled, put his hands behind his back, and looked up at the sky. "I imagine even our Leader Lu, who is reputed to be unkillable, was scared into a cold sweat just now. Even after arriving at the White Jade Capital, he'll still be trembling with fear?"
Lü Yan smiled. "Putting myself in his shoes, I would abandon all that cultivation of the heart and mind, and just curse Cui Chan's vicious intentions."
Qing Tong's face was full of confusion. What were they talking about? How did the Embroidery Tiger and Leader Lu come up? Did they have a grudge? Or had they secretly fought?
The Supreme Saint turned to look at Chen Ping'an, smiling. "Didn't you ever wonder why Wu Shuangjiang made this trip to the Hao Ran World? Why did he go to the Sword Qi Great Wall to meet Zheng Juzhong? Why did Wu Shuangjiang separate a bit of his mind early on, hiding it in the Sword Qi Great Wall, only to appear in Ascension City to see you? And why did Lu Shen hurriedly go to the Five Colors World's Lotus Flower Paradise to see his descendant Lu Tai, then interpret the dream of the scholar Zheng Huan and immediately gather the phase of the wooden chicken heart?"
Chen Ping'an nodded. Only after meeting Lu Shen had he understood some things.
If he had chosen to surround and kill Lu Shen back then, then the hidden arrangements left by his senior brother Cui Chan would have been Zheng Juzhong and Wu Shuangjiang.
But Chen Ping'an hadn't thought that far before. For example, both the Five Colors World and the Qingming Heaven had Cui Chan's schemes.
When Lu Shen casually said, "If I were deliberately targeted and schemed against by Cui Chan," it turned out to be meaningful.
For instance, Wu Shuangjiang would appear early in the Five Colors World, leave Ascension City, and deal with that Yu Zhenyi of the Lotus Flower Paradise.
As for the Qingming Heaven, perhaps that White Bone Immortal, rumored to have a decent relationship with Elegant Minister Yao Qing, had long had some "self-rescue" method with Wu Shuangjiang that was enough to hide from heaven and cross the sea.
And as for that Lu Shen who appeared at the Sword Qi Great Wall, real or false, if he was entangled by a Zheng Juzhong who had chosen to act, his fate was predictable.
Moreover, this was definitely not a hasty action by Zheng Juzhong. He had definitely been planning it for a long time.
The Supreme Saint asked again, "Then do you know how Cui Chan convinced Zheng Juzhong and Wu Shuangjiang?"
"I can't guess Master Zheng's side."
Chen Ping'an spoke with his heart. "But as for Lord Wu, it might be related to the resurgence of the Military Strategist lineage. After the ten-thousand-year pact expires and the First Ancestor reappears, Lord Wu will have a chance to leap to become the 'Second Ancestor.' Even if his fight with Yu Dou fails, Lord Wu can still return to the Fourteenth Realm at the fastest speed in the next life."
The Supreme Saint shook his head. "Wrong. To my mind, if you had chosen to surround and kill Lu Shen back in the Barbarian World, and such a fight had actually happened, then the Military Strategist's First Ancestor might not have been able to reappear. Or at least, someone else would have had to take his place. I only just figured these things out now. It took a lot of brainpower. Very tiring."
Chen Ping'an instantly understood the connection, his Dao heart shaking violently. Trembling, he said, "Master Zheng's third avatar is already in the Qingming Heaven?!"
The Supreme Saint smiled. "Whether or not it's Zheng Juzhong who is already in the Qingming Heaven cannot be confirmed. It's uncertain."
Chen Ping'an thought about it. No wonder "one of the Zheng Juzhongs" had entered the Fourteenth Realm in the Barbarian World. Had he already been scheming to obtain that new "First Ancestor of the Military Strategists" identity?
Lü Yan, who could naturally hear Chen Ping'an's heart words, sighed. "This Embroidery Tiger! What audacity to think, what boldness to act."
In the Qingming Heaven, the Dao Ancestor was scattering his teachings. Grand Leader Kou Ming of the White Jade Capital, for the foreseeable future, would not be able to return to the Jade Emperor City. If Lu Shen were to be so targeted as well, and the one sitting in the White Jade Capital became Yu Dou, then what would happen next in the Qingming Heaven? Naturally, it would be a chaotic world of smoke and fire. The fourteen provinces would be full of war.
Don't blame me, Cui Chan, for being unkind. I'm sorry. Cui Chan is already dead. He's long ceased to be the head disciple of the Literary Sage lineage.
The Supreme Saint teased, "Look at your senior brother Cui Chan. Then look at you, Chen Ping'an. You are a good-natured, overly good-natured pushover!"
Even the Supreme Saint couldn't help sighing with emotion. A scholar like Cui Chan—one absolutely cannot be missing, but one more simply cannot be allowed.
You, Yu Dou, think you're acting on behalf of heaven with a clear conscience? Very well. The countless subtle karma accumulated over thousands of years will, like the wild grass on the plain, burst forth wildly in this generation's Qingming Heaven, exactly in the spring breeze of the new year.
You dealt with my junior brother Qi Jingchun like that, so I, Cui Chan, will scheme against your junior brother Lu Shen like this.
You made the Li Zhu Cave Heaven shatter and fall to the ground, so I will make your entire Qingming Heaven completely sink.