Chapter 940: Funeral

"Gu Master, how could you tell?"

Gu Master picked up the stone fragments, examined them carefully for a moment, and nodded. "This crushed stone is half new, half old, showing signs of decay, and these chisel marks... near Lonely Mountain, the pickaxes and other spiritual tools used for mine repairs are all refined by the refining workshop. I'm more familiar with them than anyone. Ordinary pickaxes absolutely cannot leave this kind of mark when chiseling stone."

"These marks were left by spiritual tools used for tomb robbing."

Gu Master recalled for a moment and continued, "In the past, when I was learning refining tools, I met several fellow practitioners. We had a good relationship, and while drinking and chatting, I heard them mention some secret matters. Only then did I realize... they had refined spiritual tools for tomb robbers."

Ink Painting's expression was a bit strange. "Wouldn't the Dao Court Division find trouble with them?"

Gu Master smiled bitterly. "There's no way. This is a gray industry. Some refining tool masters have very strapped lives. If they don't do some side jobs to earn some spiritual stones, their cultivation cannot improve, and their refining tool skills are also difficult to advance inch by inch."

"Generally speaking, the Dao Court Division is too lazy to investigate this kind of matter. Unless a big mess is made, they won't trace it to the root and check on the refining tool masters."

"Moreover, sometimes there's no choice. Tomb robbers are all ruthless, vicious desperadoes. If they target you and ask you to refine tools, you do it, and perhaps you can have peace. If they don't say anything and you don't say anything, no one will check on you."

"If you don't do it, they will think of all ways to threaten you, grab your handle, and even threaten your family, relatives, and Dao friends."

"One less thing is better than one more thing, and there are also spiritual stones to take. General refining tool masters cannot refuse either..."

Ink Painting nodded, indicating understanding.

Although one should be clear about right and wrong, people always have to live.

Since they have to live, there are too many involuntaries, and one cannot blame them too much.

He himself was once "coerced" by Lu Chengyun and refined a Corpse King for him.

Gu Master looked at Ink Painting, saw that he could understand, then relaxed a breath and continued:

"Those several fellow practitioners of mine were also involuntary. Later, when we were drinking, they let something slip. When I pressed them, I understood some of the ways inside."

He pointed to the marks on the ground and said, "These axe and chisel marks are ancient and clever in shape, like a crane's beak, like a crescent moon. Others may not be able to see it, but in the eyes of those with intention, at a glance they can see that these are spiritual tools used for tomb robbing."

Ink Painting nodded, pondering in his heart.

"Tomb robbing..."

According to what he knew, the cultivation world has funeral customs, and the categories are numerous.

Water burial, fire burial, wood burial, and earth burial all exist.

Except for the barbarian lands and remote states with different customs, the overwhelming majority of cultivators still choose earth burial after death to enter the earth for peace.

And there are also many ways of burial.

Ink Painting remembered that long ago, when he was still in South Yue City, Master told him about some cultivators' funerals and the array theory of yin residences and yang residences.

And in Tai Xu Gate, he has a little junior brother named Xie Ling, from Gen State.

Gen State has many mountains, strange mountain forms, high ridges like dragons, gathering the essence of heaven and earth, sun and moon, and at the same time hiding numerous ancient tombs.

Xie Ling's Xie family seems to be one of the big families in Gen State. Their family tradition is geomancy techniques, discerning the pulses of mountains and rivers, determining life and death burials, and passing on yin yang feng shui secret arrays.

They emphasize discerning qi, escaping mountains, fixing tombs, and suppressing evils. Discerning the qi mechanisms of heaven and earth, borrowing mountains and rivers to escape forms, looking at feng shui, fixing burials, preventing corpse changes, driving away ghosts and evils...

But the ways inside are very deep.

And Ink Painting's experiences from childhood to adulthood, although also "varied and colorful," involved very few tombs, and he didn't know much about cultivators' funerals.

Tong Xian City is very poor, and basically has no big tombs.

"Do cultivators have to be buried after death?" Ink Painting asked Gu Master.

Gu Master is a Gold Core from the Gu family. When he was young, he traveled everywhere to learn refining tools, ate many hardships, saw many worlds, and should know more than himself.

Gu Master said, "Generally speaking, it is so. People are born between heaven and earth, live standing between heaven and earth, and after death enter the earth for peace."

"But if you are poor and alone, then it doesn't matter: when you are alive, you have no place to stand; after you die, how can you have a piece of soil to cover your body?"

"If you have no descendants, it also doesn't matter: if you have no son or heir, no one will build a grave; if you have no incense or fire, no one will visit the grave. Everything is done after death."

"If you die accidentally, your corpse is exposed in the wilderness, buried in a demon's belly, naturally there is no such consideration."

"Of course, these are mostly loose cultivators. Family cultivators are different."

"Once you have a family, even if it's just a small family, there will be an ancestral hall and an ancestral grave. For funeral matters, they naturally value them."

"The bigger the family, the more important the funerals, and the stricter the rules. Many family cultivators take pride in being able to enter the family ancestral grave after death."

"And for world-level families, after the death of some high-rank cultivators, the Dao Court will even strictly require and force burial."

"Force burial?" Ink Painting didn't quite understand. "Does the Dao Court even manage the matter of burying people after death?"

"Generally, they naturally don't manage it, but for high-rank cultivators from world families, they do."

"How does one count as high-rank? Gold Core?"

Gu Master shook his head. "It specifically depends on the state. Generally, in the boundaries of small states, if Gold Core is the peak, then the funerals of Gold Core cultivators must be managed. But in some large state boundaries, large world families, only cultivators above the Featherization Realm who fall, the Dao Court will care about their funeral matters."

Ink Painting was a bit puzzled. "What does the Dao Court manage this for?"

Gu Master pondered for a moment and slowly said, "Allegedly... it is to allow the spiritual energy between heaven and earth to revive."

"Spiritual energy revive?" Ink Painting's heart skipped a beat.

"Yes." Gu Master pointed to the sky. "Allegedly, in ancient times, the spiritual energy between heaven and earth was very dense. Ancient cultivators cultivated without needing spiritual stones at all. They just found a mountain, sat in meditation, breathed a few cycles, and the spiritual energy between heaven and earth would surge into their meridians and settle into their qi sea."

"Now times have changed, mountains and rivers have transformed, and the spiritual energy between heaven and earth is already thin to the extreme. Cultivators all have to rely on spiritual stones dug from spiritual mines to cultivate."

"But spiritual stones are different from spiritual energy."

"Spiritual energy is a gift from heaven and earth to all things, but spiritual stones will become the private property of cultivators."

"Spiritual energy wanders in the sky, fills the earth, and treats all beings between heaven and earth equally."

"But spiritual stones, since they are treated as 'property,' will only gather from bottom to top, ultimately concentrating in the hands of a minority."

"And mining spiritual stones itself is like eating the mountain empty. In the long term, it must be difficult to sustain."

"So more than ten thousand years ago, some old ancestors of the Dao Court set a rule: the great powers of world cultivators, especially Featherization cultivators, must undergo corpse dissolution after death."

Ink Painting's pupils were shocked. "Corpse dissolution?"

A series of miserable dismembered images floated in Ink Painting's mind.

Gu Master saw the situation, knew Ink Painting was thinking crookedly, and quickly explained: "Not literal corpse dissolution, the so-called 'corpse dissolution' is not flesh body corpse dissolution, but spiritual power corpse dissolution."

"Spiritual power corpse dissolution?"

"Correct," Gu Master said. "Through some array, the vast spiritual power cultivated by these cultivators throughout their lives will be re-decomposed and turned into pure spiritual energy, scattered to heaven and earth."

Gu Master's voice was deep and solemn.

"Cultivate throughout life, gather spiritual energy to oneself; after death, corpse dissolution, return spiritual power to heaven and earth..." Ink Painting murmured, feeling a shock in his heart.

He only felt that the old ancestor of the Dao Court who stipulated that cultivators above Featherization must undergo "corpse dissolution" after death probably not only had cultivation that reached the heavens and overwhelming power, but also had shocking vulgar far-sightedness and breadth of mind.

But...

Ink Painting frowned and said, "It's impossible for world families to agree, right?"

"This is natural," Gu Master nodded. "Cultivators are people of the cultivation dao. They rely on their cultivation. This cultivation is not easy to cultivate throughout life. Even if they die, how can they be willing to scatter it to heaven and earth?"

"Allegedly, that year, when the Dao Court promoted 'corpse dissolution,' it provoked public anger, and world families rebelled one after another."

"But the Dao Court still 'persisted,' not even hesitating to dispatch the Dragon Soaring Forbidden Army, acting in the world, suppressing the world clans of the nine provinces, and forcibly promoting the 'corpse dissolution law' with irreversible will."

"That period of time was filled with beacon fires everywhere, and disputes were continuous. Even some five-grade big world families, because they refused corpse dissolution, had their old ancestors chopped off by the Dao Court, their grades and registrations removed, thus annihilating them."

"This wave lasted for nearly a thousand years before gradually quieting down."

"World families defaulted to this rule, and corpse dissolution also became a convention."

Ink Painting was listening with a pounding heart.

This segment of the cultivation world's history, though only a few words, yet contains the rules of the heaven dao, the games of great powers, the laws of the Dao Court, and the disputes of world families. In between, who knows how many open fights and secret struggles, changes in power, and casualties of cultivators there were. It was truly magnificent...

"But... is corpse dissolution really useful?" Ink Painting asked. "Now, isn't the spiritual energy between heaven and earth still thin?"

Gu Master smiled bitterly. "This involves a game above Featherization. I, this mere Gold Core, am just not clear. But it should be a bit better... Now it's only thin, but suppose no cultivators' great powers underwent corpse dissolution after death, returning spirit to heaven and earth, perhaps not even this bit of 'thin' spiritual energy would exist."

Gu Master sighed, disappointed. "When that day truly comes, and there is no trace of spiritual energy between heaven and earth, even if there are spiritual stones, they will be useless."

"Without spiritual energy, some spiritual things naturally generated by heaven and earth will be completely extinct."

"The so-called cave heavens and blessed lands, immortal spirit mountains, will all lose their spirituality and become ordinary earth, stone, mud buildings."

"Spiritual mines will also shrink, and spiritual stones will become even more scarce."

"Bottom cultivators will find it more difficult to cultivate."

"By then, I truly don't know what will happen..."

Gu Master was a bit worried.

Ink Painting also frowned, his mood fluctuating for a time.

After a moment, he looked at Gu Master, admiringly saying, "Gu Master, you know a lot."

Gu Master was startled, and said self-deprecatingly, "Little Gongzi overpraises. These were not said by me."

"Not you?"

"That year, when I was seeking learning outside, I met a storytelling old senior. When we were chatting, he told me these things."

"Storytelling old senior? Was his cultivation very high?" Ink Painting was curious.

Gu Master shook his head. "At that time, I was just Foundation Building. How could I tell... But even if this old senior's cultivation wasn't that high, just with this vision and knowledge, it is enough to make people feel awe."

"Indeed." Ink Painting nodded.

World family burials, Featherization corpse dissolution, spiritual energy revival...

These are absolutely secrets that ordinary cultivators cannot be involved in.

"Storytelling old senior..."

Ink Painting pondered for a moment, then thought of something else and asked:

"Gu Master, suppose high-rank cultivators do not undergo 'corpse dissolution,' do not scatter spirit, and are just directly buried in a tomb, what will happen?"

Gu Master's brows furrowed tightly. "This... to not hide from Little Gongzi, I have only heard a little about this kind of matter, and it may not necessarily be true."

"I understand, you say." Ink Painting said.

Gu Master lowered his voice and said, "Allegedly, if high-rank cultivators do not undergo corpse dissolution, retain their spiritual power, and are buried in a tomb, changes may occur."

"Changes?" Ink Painting raised his eyebrows.

"Um," Gu Master said. "Corpse change or ghost change..."

"If fierce evil entwines the body, they will turn into copper corpses or flying corpses. If a mouthful of resentment does not dissipate, they may possibly turn into red-clothed 'fierce ghosts'."

"Moreover, a tomb is a yin residence, stained with dead qi. Corpse changes and ghost changes inside a tomb are completely different from general demonic dao corpse cultivation and ghost cultivation. They are much more ferocious and terrifying..."

Ink Painting's heart was stern.

"Of course, these are just things I've heard. Little Gongzi doesn't need to take them as true." Gu Master emphasized again.

"Um." Ink Painting kept all of this in his heart and nodded.

Gu Master's words contained many secrets that he had never known before, so he had to remember them firmly and digest them well.

Insights into the cultivation dao may sometimes be more important than cultivation.

Ink Painting pondered for a long time, and when he came back to his senses, he found that it was not early.

He turned his head again, looked at the stone fragments and chisel marks in front, and asked, "Are there any burials here in Lonely Mountain?"

"This is the strange thing," Gu Master frowned. "This is a mine. There are so many mine wells, and it has been mined who knows how many times. Who would bury a tomb here? These tomb robbers, I don't know if they are stupid or really have ideas..."

"Do they have other purposes? Tomb robbing is just a cover?" Ink Painting guessed.

"Possible..." Gu Master nodded in agreement.

Ink Painting touched his chin. "Let's take a look, see if there are any other clues, and see what this group of tomb robbers is exactly trying to do."

Gu Master hesitated a bit.

This is a matter of Lonely Mountain City. He didn't want to trouble Ink Painting too much.

Little Gongzi is a person who does "big matters". There is no need to delay time here.

Moreover, tomb robbers are mostly people who see profit and forget justice, are extremely vicious and ruthless. He also didn't dare to let Ink Painting take risks.

But in the blink of an eye, Ink Painting was already flipping through clues in the surroundings.

Gu Master sighed in his heart.

With Little Gongzi's current identity, whatever he wants to do, he can do. He has no qualification to stop him.

Gu Master could only follow closely within a zhang of Ink Painting, protecting Ink Painting on one side, and searching for traces of tomb robbers near the mine on the other.

He was actually also curious about the purposes of this group of tomb robbers.

He was even a bit vigilant in his heart.

Matters out of the ordinary must have demons. The always peaceful mines actually have thieves from outside robbing tombs. There is definitely something strange inside...

Afterward, the two of them just searched around nearby, but there were very few traces outside the mines, and the mine wells were very deep, reaching out in all directions, with no other clues.

Gu Master looked at the color of the sky, then said, "Little Gongzi, let's go back first."

Ink Painting could only nod.

The matter of the tomb robbers is just strange, it's not suitable to waste too much time.

The current urgent matter is still the matters of Lonely Mountain, especially the Shen family.

But although that's what he said, it's not good to do nothing.

Ink Painting thought for a bit, then said, "Let's go to the Lonely Mountain Dao Court Division and tell them about it."

Conveniently, he could also just go see the Dian Si of Lonely Mountain City, Fan Jin.

"Okay." Gu Master nodded.

So the two of them left Lonely Mountain, entered the city, and walked directly along the green stone streets to the Lonely Mountain Dao Court Division located in the north of the city.

The Lonely Mountain Dao Court Division was quite large, but very broken and old.

At a glance, it was once prosperous, but now it is in decline.

There were not many people inside the Dao Court Division either.

Lonely Mountain City is down and out, cultivators have no way to make a living, which also makes the Dao Court Division poor, a clear water yamen, unable to support so many idle people.

When they entered the Dao Court Division, there was an executive officer guarding the door.

This executive officer was listless, with an impatient expression, until he saw the Gold Core realm Gu Master, then he immediately stood up and smiled:

"Gu Master, why do you have time to come over today?"

In recent years, the business of the Gu family's refining tool workshop has suddenly improved, and they have earned a lot of spiritual stones. The spirit tax paid to the Dao Court Division is also quite abundant.

If it weren't for this, the days of these small executive officers would still be unknown how hard.

"Parents of clothes and food," might not be well supplied, so this executive officer was particularly polite to Gu Master.

Gu Master said, "Is Dian Si Fan in?"

"In, in." The executive officer nodded.

"Trouble you to report, I invite him for tea and chat about some matters."

"You wait a moment, I'll go report."

The executive officer finished speaking, then ran to the inner hall in a flash.

The Dian Si room in the inner hall.

Fan Jin was sprawled in a chair, with an annoyed expression, in an extremely bad mood.

The executive officer came in from outside, his footsteps hurried, making Fan Jin's heart even more annoyed and chaotic.

Before the executive officer entered the door and could speak, Fan Jin couldn't help but scold him head-on:

"Didn't I tell you? Don't bother me today! Damn, it was originally just a place where birds don't shit, without a moment of peace..."

The executive officer was scolded but was used to it. He stuttered a bit and said, "No, it's..."

"What is?"

"It's Gu Master."

"Gu Master?" Fan Jin frowned. "What is he here for?"

"Gu Master said, he invites you for tea... to chat about matters." The executive officer lowered his voice and said.

Fan Jin rubbed his forehead and said impatiently, "Just tell him to come another day... I'm not in a good mood today."

"Yes," the executive officer said. "I'll go back and tell him that you're not in a good mood and ask him to come another day."

Fan Jin's forehead twitched, his anger growing, and he gritted his teeth and said, "Are you... a pig's brain? Can you reply to people like that? I've told you so many times, why can't you just remember! You have to say I'm 'busy with affairs' and 'please' him to come another day."

Fan Jin was a bit despairing.

They all say that where the land is spiritual, the people are outstanding; where the land is not spiritual, the people are not outstanding.

In this bird place of Lonely Mountain City, poor mountains and bad waters, the several executive officers they recruited have unspiritual brains and cannot speak smoothly.

"Oh, okay..." This executive officer remembered the words "busy with affairs" and "come another day" and walked towards the door.

"Wait a moment," Fan Jin wrinkled his eyebrows and asked, "Did Gu Master come alone?"

"No," the executive officer said. "He also brought a follower."

"Follower?" Fan Jin frowned, waved his hand, somewhat disappointed. "Then forget it."

The executive officer again walked towards the door.

Just as he walked a few steps, Fan Jin's heart skipped a beat. He always felt a little uneasy, and he shouted at him again, "Stop!"

Fan Jin asked, "This 'follower'... what does he look like?"

The executive officer thought for a while and described, "...Fair and clean, not tall, very handsome in appearance."

Before his words fell, Fan Jin, who was originally sprawled in the chair, immediately shot up like a carp and jumped up.

"I'm really... going to be killed by you sooner or later." Fan Jin was extremely angry.

Just a little, just a little...

"Quick, go invite them in!" Fan Jin commanded.

The executive officer was confused, said "yes," and was about to turn around, but was called back by Fan Jin again.

"Forget it..." Fan Jin pondered. "No need to invite, I'll go personally!"

"You personally go?" The executive officer was stunned.

"Um."

Fan Jin took out a mirror from somewhere.

He faced the mirror, tidied his clothes, fixed his hair and crown, then instantly plastered on an extremely brilliant smile, and stepped out of the inner hall under the ghost-like gaze of the executive officer beside him.

Out of the inner hall, when he came to the front courtyard and saw Ink Painting from afar, Fan Jin's eyes lit up, and the smile on his face became even more brilliant.

"Gu Master! Ink Gongzi! I have been remiss in not welcoming you from afar. Please forgive me, please forgive me!"

Fan Jin was extremely enthusiastic.