Chapter 58: There Are... Schemes Everywhere in the Human World

In the fading glow of the sunset, five lianqi shi hastily summoned clouds and sped toward the seaside from outside the zhai zi.

The two in front were carrying that covered statue radiating precious light, made of clay;

The old Taoist and the young lianqi shi were supporting Wang Cai, whose legs were trembling...

Wang Cai had a clear fist mark on his chest, sunk in three inches deep, and his own magical power surged like turbulent tides, refusing to calm for a long time. As they flew, he would suddenly spit out a mouthful of blood toward his companion.

Fortunately, he had already reached the Hua Shen Jing, so this injury wouldn't kill him...

Pfft!

Maybe it really would kill him.

The old Taoist shouted hurriedly:

"Wang Cai! Wang Cai!"

With his mouth full of blood, Wang Cai turned his head and forced a smile at his master, trembling as he said:

"Master, I'm fine. We're lianqi shi...

Master, from now on... let's never come back to this zhai zi, okay?"

"We won't come back. We won't," the old Taoist said, deeply moved. "Hurry, let's find a safe place for you to regulate your breath.

And next time you spit blood, aim at your senior brother. This dao robe of mine is brand new."

Wang Cai replied weakly:

"Yes, Master... Could you give me a dan medicine?"

The old Taoist sighed:

"I only have healing dans; I don't have any for regulating qi. Just bear with it for now. Once we're back, a bit of meditation will fix it."

At the zhai zi gate, the group of villagers surged out;

Just moments ago, they had all worn expressions of disdain, but now their eyes gleamed as they watched the five figures in the air.

A sturdy aunt whispered:

"They can fly?"

"Could they really be envoys sent by the gods to save us?"

"Hey, divine envoys, don't go!"

"Quick, chase them! Chase them!"

A hunter uncle roared, and the crowd at the zhai zi gate poured out in an instant, causing the gate to shake and collapse with a boom.

The five in the air turned their heads and all changed color.

Behind them, a dense horde of strong men and women dashed forward, kicking up thick clouds of dust on the ground.

It was like a thundering army on the charge, each one shouting something;

"Don't go!"

"Stop!"

Their voices were so mighty and the shouts so chaotic!

The old Taoist's face changed drastically. He grabbed two fu lu and tossed them out, stirring up a fierce wind in the air. Two white clouds shot upward at high speed, quickly leaving the pursuing villagers far behind.

"Master, why are they chasing us? We haven't even sold them any fu lu yet!"

The old Taoist scolded angrily:

"Did you guys trick some girls in the village again?"

"Master, we've been jumping around all day, and the boss never showed up, so we didn't even get a chance to trick anyone..."

"Cough! Cough cough!"

Wang Cai trembled as he said, "We can't trick them, absolutely can't. Even a little flirtation could get you killed... Pfft!"

"Spit over there!"

"I swallowed it back, Master."

"Hmm, good disciple.

Hurry along. I'll add more magical power," the old Taoist urged again, "This remote place is full of strange happenings. Let's quickly meet up with the boss and deal with the rest later!"

Before long, the two white clouds flew farther and farther into the distance;

The villagers of Xiong Zhai returned empty-handed from their chase, each one dejected and disheartened.

First, they lost the sea god, and now the clay god had left. That evening, when everyone in the zhai zi gathered for a meeting, no one could muster much spirit.

Did their zhai zi really have no favor from the gods?

They were all fragile mortals who needed protection too...

As the main participant in both incidents, Xiong Lingli wasn't scolded; instead, she was assigned to serve tea and water to the elders in the zhai zi.

Seeing everyone so dispirited, the village chief—wearing that large gold chain left by Li Changshou—gradually came up with an idea.

"Everyone, lift your spirits. We still have a sea god, don't we?

In our zhai zi, the disasters over the years have mostly happened while fishing at sea; hunting on land is generally safe.

In my view, we should build a statue for the sea god and offer sacrifices on time; that way, we'll surely get his protection!"

One of the few amateur lianqi shi in the village—Xiong Lingli's father—was about to speak, but the rare slender woman beside him gently pressed his sturdy arm, signaling him to stay silent.

Soon, the villagers of Xiong Zhai began discussing how to offer sacrifices and make offerings to the sea god;

When Xiong Lingli's mother—the slender woman—produced the portrait she had sketched on animal hide while the sea god was asleep...

The group of villagers instantly got excited and started scouting for stones to carve the statue in the night, hauling large rocks back to the zhai zi.

In the dead of night.

On the bed where Li Changshou had once lain, Xiong Lingli was sprawled out in a big star shape, sleeping soundly.

In the next room, the couple sat huddled together on the bed.

Xiong Laosan said gravely:

"Wife, why didn't you let me remind everyone that he was an immortal, not some sea god?"

"Sacrifices are just to give people a bit of comfort in their hearts. What would an immortal care about us?"

The woman sighed softly, "I was hoping to have Lingli take him as her master and learn advanced immortal cultivation techniques.

But I never expected that the immortal would wake up and leave right away."

Xiong Laosan laughed, "Didn't you teach me some cultivation methods? I could pass them on to Lingli, right?"

"That's just basic qi refining; it's nothing compared to the techniques of those immortals," the woman thought for a moment. "I've always wanted to send Lingli to an immortal sect to study, but the journey to Zhong Shen Zhou is too far, and I can't bear to let her suffer the hardships along the way."

"How about this, wife? Let's have another child?"

Xiong Laosan chuckled, "Once we have a younger one, this older one can go out and explore as she pleases, what do you say?"

"You're terrible. Don't— the child is in the next room..."

"I'll go knock her out!"

"Don't. Just be careful."

"Heh heh."

Before long, the sleeping Xiong Lingli heard some familiar noises. She turned over and continued her own sleep.

It seemed she was dreaming of being scolded by her clanspeople during the day, as the young girl let out a few soft sobs and sank even deeper into sleep.

...

A few months later, on that grassland.

After hurrying along and confirming that Western Teachings weren't pursuing him, and after wandering through the mortal world for a while, Li Changshou finally returned here;

He dug a simple earth cave three hundred zhang from his parents' graves in this life and temporarily settled in.

Though the mortal world was thick with turbidity, he had no plans to advance his cultivation lately, so staying here was fine.

He shouldn't have rushed through the prosperous scenes of the red dust, but he feared Western Teachings might track him down, so he never relaxed.

In the vast Nan Shan Bu Zhou, with its beautiful mountains and rivers, flowing streams, not a single scenic spot could make him pause his escape technique;

Countless cities, tribes, and the myriad human wonders born from the long ages of the Hong Huang era—none could make him glance back for even a moment...

My heart seeks immortality, unswayed by mortal affections.

Sitting cross-legged in the earth cave, Li Changshou's mind was utterly serene, contemplating his own dao and pondering ways to control the power of Sanmei Zhen Yan.

The seed of Sanmei Zhen Yan is ignited by essence, qi, and spirit; theoretically, reducing its power would be nearly impossible for his own version.

But he could try a different approach.

For example, once back at the mountain, he could ask Ling E for help, have her produce some essence, qi, and spirit, then let him condense them into seeds and store them in his body.

However, Ling E's cultivation is still shallow, not yet at the Fan Xu Jing, so the seeds she produced would be too weak.

Too strong or too weak wouldn't work;

Plus, it might exhaust little Ling E.

With a flick of his finger, a wisp of Sanmei Zhen Yan appeared in Li Changshou's palm, and he began thinking of other solutions.

A living person can't be stumped by their own waste; after a few days, Li Changshou figured out a way...

Just don't use it.

In other words, only use the qi flame.

He could use his yuan shen power to simulate the fluctuations of essence and spirit flames. Though his qi flame alone is quite powerful, it won't be too conspicuous.

Life is like that—rarely perfect.

As his strength grew, methods to conceal or simulate his aura could deceive seniors of higher cultivation, but they also left this tiny loophole with Sanmei Zhen Yan.

Once back, he needed to be constantly vigilant about this.

Now, even if a Zhen Xian grabbed his wrist and deliberately probed, it would be hard for them to see his true cultivation;

And that condition where he twitches upon touching a woman could finally be cured at some point.

After this trip through the mortal world, Li Changshou wasn't without gains.

'Speaking of earning merit, coming up with some inventions for the human race seems to bring merit too.'

He stroked his chin and thought for a while, but quickly dismissed the idea.

There are plenty of opportunities to earn merit among the human race, like in medicine or production tools.

But the premise is that he must have sufficient strength.

With his current accumulation, as soon as Heaven's Way bestows great merit and causes a phenomenon, the six saints would know;

His most likely fate would be for the saint lords to see through his origins and then extract his soul or dissect him...

'Best to cultivate steadily.'

Li Changshou chuckled lightly in his heart, dispelling these whimsical thoughts.

Steadiness leads to freedom...

Wait, what is this?

Out of nowhere, some vague images appeared in Li Changshou's mind, along with a faint sense.

In those images, a group of strong men and women were kneeling and praying beneath his feet...

He quickly calculated with his fingers and soon found it both amusing and exasperating.

What on earth is this?

That Xiong Zhai really made a statue of him and started sincerely worshiping him as the sea god?

Heaven's Way sensed it, and now he's receiving the incense from that place?

This feels a bit like 'forced buying and selling,' doesn't it?

Li Changshou shook his head and chuckled, not too worried at first;

After all, it's just a zhai zi of a thousand people worshiping an ineffective sea god; after a few months with no results, they'd naturally stop.

It wouldn't involve much karma.

But soon, Li Changshou realized things weren't that simple.

Wasn't he, all alone, essentially competing with Western Teachings for incense offerings?

If the saints of Western Teachings sensed this and calculated it...

No, he had to rush back to Du Xian Men, back to the territory of Tai Qing Saint!

With the elder watching over, he wouldn't fear those two disciples of the Dao Ancestor who go around brainwashing and poaching.

—Among the six saints, only the Three Pure Ones and Lady Nüwa are direct disciples of the Dao Ancestor.

Of course, it's unlikely for Tai Qing Saint to manifest at Du Xian Men;

But as long as Western Teachings has some reservations, that would be enough.

Li Changshou became instantly alert, his figure vanishing from the earth cave as he headed toward Dong Sheng Shen Zhou.

This journey was much faster than his arrival, and the sights along the way were far less eventful.

Occasionally, he glimpsed spirit beasts in the mountains or heard children singing pastoral songs, and once saw a pair of uncle and sister-in-law packing up and eloping, only to be chased by a group of villagers in a bloody, unending battle...

Leaving Nan Shan Bu Zhou and entering Dong Sheng Shen Zhou, Li Changshou was familiar with the route, scouting as he went, hurrying toward Du Xian Men.

After two days of travel, when he was still twenty thousand li away from Du Xian Men, he deliberately slowed his earth escape speed to match the limit of a Hui Xu Jing third- or fourth-stage disciple, gradually approaching his immortal sect.

Once he entered the two-thousand-li range, Li Changshou finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Having the protection of the immortal sect was truly a great blessing in life!

However, if he said he was home to guard his parents' graves and couldn't even hold out for three years before returning, it might raise questions and attention from others.

Abnormal behavior isn't good; most disciples would stay in the mortal world longer to enjoy themselves.

Here, at least, he was safe.

Li Changshou found a mountain hollow near one of Du Xian Men's spirit mines and hid there, planning to cultivate for two years before going back.

The Hong Huang era is truly too dangerous!

The human heart is far too complicated!

He hadn't done anything to Xiong Zhai, yet they worshiped him, forcing him to compete with Western Teachings for incense!

Now that he'd passed his tribulation, he must stick to the principle of staying in the mountains and never going out again!

The mortal world is a perilous place; where in the human realm is there true peace?

If he wandered again, he would... well...

Hmm, vows in the Hong Huang era are potent; he couldn't say such things lightly.

...

"Senior brother!"

By the lakeside under the willow tree, Lan Ling'e, dressed in loose training clothes and sitting in meditation, suddenly opened her eyes, her breathing a bit rapid.

"It was just a dream."

Lan Ling'e exhaled lightly. She had accidentally dozed off during meditation and dreamed of her senior brother being trapped by a group of burly strangers in a chaotic scene, on the verge of being pinned down...

Thankfully, she sensed someone approaching outside and woke from the dream.

Hmm?

Lan Ling'e looked up at the figure she had sensed—it was a somewhat familiar senior sister flying on clouds around Xiao Qiong Peak, hesitating whether to enter the isolation array.