Chapter 183: Don’t Be So Naive

The difference between an immortal and a mortal was as vast as this. Mortals do not contend with officials; mortals do not contend with immortals.

Seeing this scene, Qin Haoxuan vaguely understood the reason for Ximen Sheng’s leisurely pace. This “Entering the Mortal World” trial had no specific destination. He had deliberately slowed their progress to let this group of new disciples, who had begun to cultivate but had not yet subconsciously elevated themselves to the realm of “High Immortals,” understand the distinction. He wanted them to truly comprehend what it meant to be an immortal, and what it meant to be a mortal.

Ximen Sheng glanced coldly at the kowtowing county magistrate and asked in an indifferent tone, “What are you doing blocking the road? What is the matter?”

Seeing the High Immortal address him, the magistrate’s face was filled with excitement, but he still did not dare to lift his head. He said, “I beg for your compassion, High Immortals. Our Qingfeng County is haunted. Many people have already been killed. We have invited Daoist priests to perform exorcisms, but to no avail. Today, I happened to learn that you were passing through, so I boldly came to implore you for your aid. The people of Qingfeng County will be eternally grateful and will offer incense to you day and night…”

Ximen Sheng had no interest in listening to his long-winded speech. After a moment’s thought, he said, “Haunted? It’s just something formed from resentful energy. What ghost is there to speak of? But since it is on our way, then we shall go and have a look.”

“It’s on the way, on the way!” Seeing the High Immortal’s tone soften, as if he intended to help, the magistrate said repeatedly, “It’s just in an elm forest on the main road, not far ahead. Please, have mercy, High Immortals.”

“Let’s go and see,” Ximen Sheng said to himself, then spurred his horse forward.

An aura that was different from the mortal world faintly emanated from the group of Taichu disciples. This aura made the parent official of Qingfeng County not dare to even breathe too loudly. He didn’t dare to rise, but instead crawled on his knees to the side of the road. Only after they had all passed did he cautiously climb to his feet. He no longer dared to ride in his sedan chair but instead followed behind them at a trot, not daring to get too close. The unintentional aura that emanated from the group was too oppressive for him.

This scene, in the eyes of the Taichu disciples, once again made them sigh with emotion at the difference between immortals and mortals. Before, when they were commoners, whenever they saw an official, those officials were all riding high horses or sitting in sedan chairs, with gongs clearing the way in front of them, an incredibly majestic sight. It was incredibly difficult to even get a glimpse of them. Now, he was kneeling at their feet, not even daring to lift his head or breathe too loudly. Now, they were the ones on horseback, and he only dared to follow at a distance from behind, looking extremely cautious.

A new disciple asked his Guiding Senior Brother, “Senior Brother, what is the difference between the ‘resentful energy’ the Hall Master spoke of and a ghost? When we cultivators exhaust our lifespan, we dissipate into nothingness. So why do ghosts exist?”

The Guiding Senior Brother pondered for a moment before explaining, “A ghost, how to put it? It’s just a thing formed from a person’s resentful energy before death, a kind of obsession to remain in the world. The common folk call them ghosts, but we mostly call them ‘resentful souls.’ But in reality, they are not true souls.”

The new disciple nodded in a daze and muttered to himself, “Then becoming a so-called ghost sounds even more powerful than being a person. By becoming a ghost, can one achieve eternity?”

“What are you thinking? Only by attaining the Dao and becoming an immortal can one live as long as the heavens and the earth!” This senior brother was very patient. He explained, “After becoming a ghost, the ghostly energy will also gradually dissipate into the air. An ordinary ghost can only exist for a very short time. After the ghostly energy dissipates, it will completely turn to nothingness.”

The disciple said, “Humans can cultivate to vie for life against the heavens. Is there a way for a ghost to extend its lifespan?”

“If one accumulates a great deal of resentment before death, they can become a fierce ghost after they die. A fierce ghost can exist for much longer than an ordinary one, but as time passes, its ghostly energy will also gradually disappear. After it’s all gone, it will still die. In the end, it cannot achieve eternity.”

Just then, another disciple from one of the four great halls, who was on good terms with this Guiding Senior Brother, said leisurely, “It’s not entirely impossible for them to exist for a long time. Firstly, they can kill the living and absorb the resentful energy of new ghosts to slow the dissipation of their own. Secondly… in extremely, extremely rare cases, if these resentful souls continuously devour each other and accidentally give birth to intelligence, they can become what is known in folklore as a ‘Yin Immortal.’ But even a Yin Immortal will eventually dissipate…”

The new disciples who were listening attentively had a sudden realization. They had learned a great deal. It turned out that ghosts were real, but they could not exist for long as they had imagined. Even after becoming a ghost, they could only linger for a short time before completely disappearing.

Before they knew it, they had arrived at the haunted elm forest the magistrate had spoken of. After entering Qingfeng County, Qin Haoxuan had also keenly sensed a faint, almost imperceptible yin energy. As they drew closer to the elm forest, this feeling grew stronger.

From a distance, they could see a patch of elm trees. The sky above it, whether it was cloudy or clear, was always shrouded in dark clouds. These were not rain clouds, but more like a faint fog of sorrow that hung over the entire area, making one feel an oppressive, suffocating sensation.

A Guiding Senior Brother saw this from a distance and mused, “Looking at this elm forest, the whole place is enveloped in yin energy. Such heavy yin energy is clearly not from an ordinary resentful soul. From the way the resentful energy is soaring to the heavens, this must be what the common folk call a fierce ghost, and it must have suffered a great injustice before it died. I think we should first ask the magistrate what kind of injustice it was.”

His words reached the ears of Ximen Sheng at the front. He turned his head and his faint gaze fell upon the disciple. “We are immortals. We do not meddle in the affairs of the mortal world.”

Being spoken to in such an indifferent tone, the disciple from the four great halls immediately fell silent, not daring to speak again.

However, a new disciple, filled with confusion, still spoke up. “Hall Master Ximen, shouldn’t we cultivators uphold justice and punish evil? This fierce ghost’s resentful energy is soaring to the heavens; it has clearly suffered an injustice. If we let it remain here, it will be a detriment to these commoners. But if we eliminate it without distinguishing between right and wrong, it would be unjust to it.”

Ximen Sheng let out a contemptuous snort. He was clearly displeased that this new disciple dared to question him, but he still said with a face as still as water, “We are immortals. We do not concern ourselves with the affairs of the mortal world. We only need to maintain the order between heaven and earth. As for the secular world… do they not have their own emperor and officials? We who cultivate, how can we have the time to manage such trivial matters every day?”

His tone and voice were somewhat unfeeling. He said, “As for the rest, we need not discuss it further. An immortal is an immortal, and a mortal is a mortal. We do not need to concern ourselves with the rights and wrongs of the mortal world; that is their own business. We only need to maintain order.”

“Hall Master Ximen,” Qin Haoxuan asked, seeing that he seemed willing to answer their questions, “can you tell me, what order do we maintain, and what is order?”

Ximen Sheng said, “The magistrate of Qingfeng County came to us and asked us to deal with this fierce ghost. So, we will deal with it. This is maintaining order. As for investigating the matter and determining if there was an injustice, that is a matter for mortals. If we were to interfere, we would be disrupting the rules between immortals and mortals, which is not something we should do. We immortals are high above; mortals are like ants. To be able to exist under our protection is already a great honor. How can we be expected to work for them? Would that not be an insult to the word ‘immortal’?”

Hearing this, the disciples showed looks of sudden realization. From his words, they finally understood the difference between an immortal and a mortal. It was the difference between a person and an ant, an insurmountable gap. A person might allow an ant to exist, but they would never help an ant with its work.

Seeing that some of the disciples still had looks of doubt, he continued leisurely, “Just like if three ants were fighting and one of them was killed, would you go and ask the other two what happened? You wouldn’t, would you? They are just ants, and we are immortals.” As he spoke, a superior air appeared on his face.

Many people nodded repeatedly, but Qin Haoxuan frowned. If ants were fighting and one died, of course I wouldn’t ask, because humans do not evolve from ants. But we cultivators are all transformed from mortals. We are still human, still on the path of cultivation. We have not yet become true immortals. Compared to mortals, we are just stronger and can live a little longer. But an ant, no matter how strong it becomes, will never become a person. Is it really right to compare mortals to ants?

“Perhaps some of you feel that my analogy is inappropriate,” Ximen Sheng said, his sharp eyes sweeping over the crowd. Besides Qin Haoxuan, several others also had looks of confusion.

“Then you will just have to experience it slowly. After you have finished ‘Entering the Mortal World,’ you will understand my words. Do not think that just because you have a little bit of cleverness, you can question the cultivation path that our Taichu Sect has followed for thousands of years.” His tone was now a bit forceful. “You have never seen a ghost before. This trial is meant to let you experience the various dangers of the mortal world, to let you know the difficulty of cultivation. Therefore, I have decided that we will camp near this elm forest tonight. When night falls, you will see what a real ghost looks like.”

With his decision made, Zhang Yang quickly directed the new disciples to set up camp, and the scene immediately became busy.

Although Qin Haoxuan disagreed with his philosophy, he didn’t argue.

Just then, Xing walked over to his side and said quietly, “Now that we’re here, in a mortal territory that the Taichu Sect doesn’t normally manage, that Master Chi Lian will probably make his move tonight, right?”

His words jolted Qin Haoxuan from his thoughts. This place was far from the sect; it was beyond their reach. He began to worry about how he would get through the night.

“Can Master Chi Lian get a token to leave the mountain?” he asked with a final shred of hope.

Xing patted his shoulder, as if to tell him not to be so naive. He’s a Spirit Tree Realm elder, and his lifespan is running out. If he tells the sect he’s going out to search for a life-extending fated encounter, would they really refuse him?

Qin Haoxuan smiled bleakly. He felt that Xing’s pat was right; he had indeed been holding onto too much wishful thinking.