Chapter 450 (2): Let's Wait a While Longer

On the peak of Tassel Mountain...

There was exasperation on the mountain god's face as he said, "Tell me, how will you deal with all the troubles in the future if you continue to delay like this? Just how long have you left that extremely busy mountain master hanging? You're draining his goodwill toward you regardless of how much he admired your crooked teachings in the past."

The old scholar sat cross-legged and massaged his ears with his hands, replying, "Humans can't bend the will of nature. Let him be."

"According to the news we have, there's something fishy going on at Mount Longhu's ancestral hall. After that person unleashed a sword strike, Spiritual Master Fire Dragon from the Complete Reed Continent seemingly made matters worse by providing his help," the mountain god in golden armor said slowly.

The old scholar smiled and said, "This might look like a terrible thing in the eyes of others, but how do you know this result isn't exactly what the external Great Heavenly Master from Mount Longhu wants to see?"

The mountain god of Tassel Mountain was only mentioning the matter in passing, and to say nothing of an external Great Heavenly Master, he wouldn't even care about the actions of a legitimate Great Heavenly Master from Mount Longhu's Heavenly Master Residence.

However, the mountain masters of the three Confucian schools had encountered obstacles when trying to visit Bai Ze, the proud scholar, and the old scholar. Either they failed to achieve their goals, or they failed to even gain an audience. Even the mountain god of Tassel Mountain felt anxious about this matter.

This was because these matters were far too important — they pertained to the most fundamental great trend of the world.

"I have very few disciples compared to the other major scholarly branches," the old scholar said. "However, this can't be helped. I'm very picky when it comes to these things, and no one can compare to me in this regard..."

"Is there any fun in spewing this nonsense to me?" the mountain god scoffed.

The old scholar nodded and replied, "It's at least more interesting than saying it to myself."

The mountain god shut up and remained silent.

The old scholar was slightly disappointed upon seeing the mountain god refuse to argue with him, so he could only continue, "My first disciple, Cui Chan, was the most talented in a literary sense, and he was also the most prone to getting hung up on things. This should have been the best attitude for studying and obtaining new knowledge. However, Cui Chan was too smart, and his view of the world was a pessimistic one. This was the case from the very beginning.

"Let me skip to my third disciple, Qi Jingchun, first. He was the most knowledgeable, and it wasn't just that his knowledge was the loftiest. As his master, even I had to praise his knowledge as magnificent and all-encompassing. If he hadn't ended up with me as his master and had instead joined the scholarly lineages of the Etiquette Sage or the Second Sage, perhaps he might have achieved even greater things. Qi Jingchun's view of the world was an optimistic one.

"Returning to my second disciple, Zuo You, he was the most stubborn of my disciples. However, he was actually a very good person. When we were still living in poverty in some small alley, I tasked Zuo You with looking after our finances. He did much better than me, someone who can't hold onto money no matter what. After all, could I not spend money if Cui Chan asks for Go guides, Qi Jingchun asks for books, and A'Liang asks for wine? I was as poor as could be, but I could only puff myself up at my own cost and pretend to be rich. However, I felt at ease letting Zuo You look after the finances.

"Zuo You wasn't the most talented, knowledgeable, or good-natured of my disciples, but he was the most balanced one. He was innately patient and focused as well, so his ability to pick up swordsmanship was unfathomably quick even though he started learning very late. Yes, unfathomably quick, so quick that even I felt slightly flustered at the time. I was afraid that he might become the first fourteenth tier sword cultivator in several thousand years in the Majestic World. What would I do then?

"Zuo You might appear distant from the human world, but it's actually he who's most afraid of loneliness. Even though he's been wandering around the seas far away from the human world for the past one hundred-odd years, where is his mind truly at? He's still thinking about his master and his junior brothers... Which master wouldn't be fond of a disciple like this?

"Do you remember that reputable scholar scolding me in a... slightly vicious manner back then? But how could I argue back? He was only a measly sage of a Confucian academy, and he didn't even have the right to be honored in the Confucian temples. As such, I would have been stooping to a very low level to argue with a junior like him.

"That being the case, Zuo You secretly went over to give him a good beating. But seriously, he stupidly admitted to his crime, and he even ran back to apologize to me. Why apologize? Apologize my ass! Couldn't he have worn a mask before beating that sage up? Afterward, couldn't he have run away and refused to admit guilt? What could the others do? Perhaps they would run over to hit me? But could they beat Zuo You? Even if they could, would they be able to beat Zuo You to death if he refused to admit guilt no matter what? If they dared to beat Zuo You to death, then would I not dare to beat them to death?

"Sigh, and that's why I always say Zuo You is too impulsive and lacks consideration for the consequences. What could his pitiful master do? After all, Little Qi and the others were all standing there and watching. As such, I could only punish him and giddily run over with him to apologize to that sage. Afterward, I even had to do this and do that to compensate everyone. It was truly annoying."

"Zuo You is willing to admit his wrongdoing to you, but how could he be willing to apologize to others?" the mountain god asked in puzzlement.

The old scholar rolled his eyes and replied, "I explained the situation to Zuo You in private, of course. He was so light-handed when he beat up that sage, so how could he live up to his status as a disciple of the Scholarly Sage? How could he vent the frustration for his master? Zuo You silently nodded in understanding when he heard this, and he said that it made sense and he would take more care in the future."

"I'm truly speechless," the mountain god said with a chuckle.

The old scholar sighed in resignation and continued, "Things are more complicated with my fourth disciple, and he can only be regarded as half a disciple. It's not that I don't recognize him as my disciple, but rather that he feels like his background is too lowly, so he isn't willing to cause any extra trouble for me. In other words, he's the one who doesn't recognize me as his master. Even though the reasoning is different, this situation is very similar to the situation regarding my final disciple. Apart from them, my unofficial disciples each have their own strengths and weaknesses as well.

"Among them, Mao Xiaodong is the most similar to me when it comes to teaching and answering questions for others. Of course, his knowledge is still yet to reach the level of his master. He follows the rules no matter what he does, so he's still a fair way off the old geezer's notion of doing as one pleases without overstepping the boundaries. However, it's a shame that outsiders can't explicitly and carelessly point this out. One has to understand and overcome this by oneself. In this sense, the Buddhist notion of self-cultivating monks is very appropriate. On the other hand, the Daoist Sect is quite lacking in this regard..."

The old scholar didn't delve into more detail, nor did he elevate the topic to a higher level. Instead, he changed the topic and said, "When I argue with other people, I never feel like I'm definitely correct or definitely perfect. I need to understand the good and the bad of the other party as well. Otherwise, what's the point of arguing with them? I might feel extremely satisfied after making all of my arguments, but where has my belly full of knowledge actually landed?

"The most frightening thing about knowledge is to have it become sourceless water that falls from the sky. It might appear impressive as it pours down from lofty heights, but what significance does it hold apart from being pointlessly praised by our own scholars? It won't touch the ground and provide nutrition, and it won't provide any tangible benefits to the common people.

"Rather than giving the people big baskets and small baskets for them to place the principles in and thus feel at ease from the myriad of troubles of life, we're instead stuffing the baskets full of essays that only remain on paper. As such, people mistakenly think that only scholars and sages are worthy of speaking reason. This is an incredibly exhausting mindset, so how can we hope to educate and enlighten people if this is the case?"

The old scholar stood up, his back slightly hunched as he gazed into the distance and murmured, "Is it wrong to say that people are innately good at birth? No, it's not. However, a very awkward problem soon arises. Since people are innately good, then why is the world so complicated? What have the teachings of Confucianism actually taught people? Has it taught people to become evil? What can we do about this? The old geezer and the Etiquette Sage were both waiting, and they finally waited until my arrival.

"I posited that people are innately bad at birth, using this argument to promote healthy debates and the perfection of knowledge in the Confucian Sect. Most importantly, I was able to make a strong case for this viewpoint, and the strength of my principles allowed me to become the Scholarly Sage. However, an even more awkward problem arose. To an outsider of the Confucian Sect like you, perhaps you might feel like the philosophy of people being innately bad at birth can become a scholarly branch of the sect. This doesn't matter. However, can it truly become the main branch of the Confucian Sect?"

The old scholar answered his own question, saying, "No, it most definitely cannot."

He then raised a thumb and pointed at himself, continuing, "In fact, even I feel the same way."

There was a long period of silence.

The mountain god heaved a rare sigh, a sigh that carried a hint of sympathy.

The old scholar didn't retract his thumb, and he suddenly sighed with emotion and said, "Thinking about this, I truly am both a sage and a hero. Yes, I am indeed very impressive."

The mountain god remained silent the entire time.

The old scholar finally turned around and asked in exasperation, "Why aren't you retorting me? How am I going to use reason to subdue you if you remain silent?"

"I won't give you the chance at all," the mountain god replied calmly.

"Oh, then by the looks of it, I've already used my morality and virtue to subdue you," the old scholar replied in satisfaction.

The mountain god took a deep breath.

What else could he do?

The old scholar's expression suddenly became serious as he said, "There's no rush to shoo me away just yet. I also want to copy Bai Ze and that most disappointed scholar. Let me wait for a while longer. Even though I don't know what they're planning, I still want to wait and see the outcome."

"What if you find out that you're wrong in the end? Will you not feel disappointed?" the mountain god asked.

The old scholar clasped his hands behind his back and narrowed his eyes, replying with a cold chuckle, "Feel disappointed? Disregarding the choices we've made regarding our Great Dao, no one from me to my in-house disciples feel disappointed. Not in the least!"

————

Atop the golden arch bridge...

There was a sword stabbed into the bridge railing, and the tip of the sword as well as a small portion of the blade had already sunk inside the railing, leading to a brilliant explosion of sparks.

The woman sitting beside the sword placed a parasol leaf umbrella horizontally across her knees. She then stood up and opened the seemingly unremarkable umbrella, raising her head and glancing up before disappearing in a flash. Only the parasol leaf umbrella remained hovering on the spot.

She arrived inside a blessed land in a single step, right beside a well.

The parasol leaf umbrella that had been "casually given away" naturally possessed much deeper implications. After the previous owner gave it away, however, the new owner might not live for long enough to discover the truth.

However, did this have anything to do with the previous owner? This was a scheme, yet it wasn't necessarily a scheme. The Dao that can be explained isn't the universal Dao[1].

A tall and sturdy old Daoist priest appeared beside her almost instantly, saying with a faint smile, "Long time no see."

She ignored him, surveying the surroundings before nodding and saying, "Taking into account the current situation, this can already be regarded as a fairly big investment."

"Of course. Otherwise, how else can I discuss Dao with the Dao Ancestor?" the old Daoist priest replied with a chuckle.

She shot a glance at him.

The old Daoist priest remained calm and composed.

She focused her gaze on someplace in the Lotus Flower Blessed Land, seemingly coming to a realization as she sneered, "It seems like you still remember your roots."

The old Daoist priest chortled with hearty laughter, replying, "I'm simply going along with the great trend and spending little effort. Things will be turned upside down, and one continent shall sink."[2]

The woman frowned upon hearing this.

The old Daoist priest sighed and remarked, "The current times are ultimately different from the old times."

The woman shook her head and said, "I've simply swapped owners."

The old Daoist priest didn't say anything in response.

It wasn't suitable for others to comment on this matter, not even him.

"Your land is only this small?" the woman asked.

"It genuinely can't be any bigger," the old Daoist priest replied with a smile.

The woman seemingly lost interest, with her figure disappearing slowly as she left in disappointment. She returned to her own world and put away the parasol leaf umbrella.

The old Daoist priest stood beside the well and looked down, gazing intently at the dark well water.

After retracting his gaze, he looked up at the sky and said, "This is my greeting gift when I return to the Heavenly World. How is it?"

In the Lotus Flower World that was connected to the Lotus Flower Blessed Land, there was an old man who was still observing a drop of water, watching it slide down the uneven lotus leaves. The drop of water was the same size as ordinary raindrops, yet many of the lotus leaves were as large as towering mountains. There were even larger ones that were the same size as mortal states. As such, the veins running through a lotus leaf might measure tens or even hundreds of kilometers in length. If one wanted to observe the journey of a water droplet and witness its final endpoint, one would most definitely have to wait for an exorbitantly long time for the conclusion to arrive.

However, the old man was in no hurry at all.

𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Time slowly flowed past.

As the greatest regulation in heaven and earth, even the mighty river of time had to voluntarily take a detour when it flowed past the old man.

1. The first line of Laozi's Dao De Jing. ☜

2. The phrase for a continent sinking (陆沉) is the same as Lu Chen's name. ☜