Chapter 292

Chapter 292: The Dao!

In the days that followed, Ye Tianming began living the life of a free and wandering soul.

He found a place of scenic beauty, and each day, besides reading, he spent his time accompanying Zhantai Zhan in herding sheep and cattle.

Blue skies, white clouds, flowing streams, wooden cabins, and flocks of cattle and sheep.

Beautiful as a painting.

Ye Tianming lay on a rock, holding an ancient scroll in his hands, reading with great enjoyment.

What he was reading was his eldest martial uncle’s book. He had been reading it for a very long time, going through it slowly and repeatedly, because some of the principles within were so vast, so immense, that they felt almost impractical to him.

But he still loved it very much!

Not only did he enjoy reading those grand principles, he also enjoyed reading the annotations his eldest martial uncle had left behind. He read those notes with great care, and through them, he gradually began to understand this eldest martial uncle he had never met.

As his little martial uncle Liu Sha had said, this eldest martial uncle was clearly someone who loved to reason and argue, because all the annotations he left were about reasoning, and sometimes he would leave behind many viewpoints to refute those grand principles.

Very interesting!

While he read and cultivated each day, Zhantai Zhan would be off in the distance chasing a flock of lambs. Since arriving here, Zhantai Zhan had fallen in love with the place and was cheerful every single day.

Then one day.

A young woman came slowly along the river. By her appearance, she looked about sixteen or seventeen, dressed in a deep purple gown, her ink-black hair draped over her shoulders, with a blood-red ribbon tied at the ends.

The woman’s beauty was breathtaking, as though she did not belong to this world.

Most notably, she carried an aura that enveloped the surrounding land, commanding without anger.

Not far behind her followed an elderly man dressed in a coarse hemp robe, extremely thin and small, as though malnourished, missing one arm, with a broken blade strapped to his back.

Ye Tianming, who had been reading, stopped and looked toward the woman. She walked slowly up to him and smiled, “Young Master Ye, hello. My name is Bei Zhao Di.”

Ye Tianming said, “Han’s younger sister?”

Bei Zhao Di nodded, “Yes.”

Ye Tianming smiled, “Something on your mind?”

Bei Zhao Di smiled, “Young Master Ye, may we talk?”

Ye Tianming nodded, “Sure.”

The two walked slowly along the river.

Bei Zhao Di said, “My sister wrote to me saying she had found me a teacher, but asked me to come see for myself. Though I am very busy, I decided to come, because over the years, very few people have ever caught my sister’s eye.”

Ye Tianming said, “Miss Han thinks too highly of me.”

Bei Zhao Di turned to look at Ye Tianming, “Young Master Ye, do you think true equality among all living beings is really possible in this world?”

Ye Tianming shook his head.

Bei Zhao Di smiled, “Then what is your Law of All Beings?”

Ye Tianming said, “An ideal.”

Bei Zhao Di looked at him, “Striving for an ideal you yourself believe is impossible… is that meaningful?”

Ye Tianming said, “Before, I believed equality among all beings was achievable. With the right system, why couldn’t it be? But gradually, I realized that many things in this world are unequal from the very start. For instance, birthplace — some are born in places where spiritual energy is depleted, while others are born in blessed lands of immortals. Some are born with extraordinary talent, while others are born dull and slow-witted…”

As he spoke, he shook his head slightly, “These are innate inequalities. When I said it was impossible just now, it was because I currently lack the ability to change these innate inequalities. But sometimes I also wonder, why do these things happen? Why is it that some are born into great fortune, while others are born into great misfortune?”

Bei Zhao Di looked at Ye Tianming and smiled, “Why do you think?”

Ye Tianming thought for a moment, then said, “I don’t know. But I do know that if the person born into great fortune was a truly good person in their past life, a great benefactor, and so receives good fortune in this life as karmic reward, then I think that’s something I can accept. But… past lives, present lives, karma, karmic reward — these are all intangible things. So…”

At this, he slowly raised his head and gazed into the depths of the void, saying softly, “This world, whether it’s the empires ruled by mortal power or the intangible cycle of heavenly karma… it’s all complete bullshit. Because in the world we live in right now, more often than not, the better a good person is, the worse they fare, while those who are ruthless and vicious tend to thrive and flourish.”

The equality among all beings he once envisioned had centered on “people.”

But now, he had begun to contemplate the “Dao.”

Because at the root of it, at the very essence, birth itself was often an unfair thing. So who was it that governed the cycle of reincarnation and karma?

In his view, merely constraining people was far from enough — the “Dao” itself needed to be constrained.

Of course, this was only his current grand ideal, but he felt that for the Law of All Beings to continue developing in the future, it should move in this direction.

Bei Zhao Di smiled, “Young Master Ye, you think even further ahead than I do. For now, I only concern myself with people.”

Ye Tianming nodded slightly and said nothing more, but in his view, without resolving the matter of the “Dao” and only addressing “people,” one was merely treating the symptoms rather than the root cause.

Of course, this was only Ye Tianming’s own path of the grand Dao.

It had nothing to do with anyone else.

Bei Zhao Di looked at Ye Tianming, “Is Young Master Ye interested in joining forces with me first to resolve this matter of ‘people’?”

Ye Tianming looked at Bei Zhao Di, “The Great Qian Empire is an imperial system, but you now wish to move toward a republican system. To do that, you would essentially be overthrowing your own power. I’m quite curious — when that final moment comes, can you truly let go of power?”

Bei Zhao Di smiled, “Young Master Ye really cuts right to the heart of things. What if I truly can let it go?”

Ye Tianming said, “Then you would be remarkable.”

Bei Zhao Di stared at Ye Tianming for a long moment, then said, “Every great path begins from the smallest of origins. Since you hold such lofty ideals, you should put them into practice. Take power, for instance — if you have never possessed it, how can you speak lightly of giving it up?”

Ye Tianming smiled, “I have possessed it. I must say, the feeling was truly extraordinary.”

Power!

When he had become “Yang Jia,” he had experienced firsthand the terrifying nature of power.

The countless living beings of the Guanxuan universe had all been subject to his single thought!

An ordinary person could never imagine that feeling in an entire lifetime.

Who would not be captivated by it?

But as he had said, to achieve true equality among all beings, simply changing the system of one empire was in fact of little use.

Treating the symptoms, not the root cause.

After a moment of silence, Bei Zhao Di said, “Young Master Ye, I will come again.”

With that, she turned and left.

Ye Tianming returned to his rock and continued reading.

On the other side.

Bei Zhao Han found Bei Zhao Di and asked urgently, “Did he agree?”

Bei Zhao Di smiled, “How could he possibly agree? The path this person holds in his heart far surpasses mine. What he wishes to resolve is no longer merely a matter of systems, but a matter of the cycle of fate itself…”

As she said this, a flicker of complexity crossed her eyes. The pursuit of someone like him was far beyond her own.

Bei Zhao Han nodded, “What a pity. If only he could come to our Great Qian Empire…”

Bei Zhao Di suddenly said, “I heard he had some unpleasant dealings with the Savage Demon Clan.”

Bei Zhao Han nodded, “Yes.”

Bei Zhao Di turned to look at the elderly man beside her, “Summon all of my personal guards, and in the name of the Great Qian Empire, issue a decree to the Savage Demon Clan — if they lay a hand on Young Master Ye, it will be considered a declaration of war against our Great Qian Empire. A war to the death.”

The elderly man was slightly taken aback but said nothing, and immediately withdrew.

Bei Zhao Han was stunned, “You…”

Bei Zhao Di glanced toward the far edge of the horizon, “You can’t catch a wolf without risking the child. If we don’t offer something, why would anyone come to help us?”

Bei Zhao Han fell silent.

Wanting only the benefits without putting in any effort was clearly not going to work.

But Bei Zhao Han was still somewhat worried. She said in a low voice, “There is still quite a significant gap between our strength and that of the Savage Demon Clan…”

Bei Zhao Di looked at her and smiled, “My dear sister, you must understand — this Young Master Ye doesn’t even think much of the Divine Academy. Why would he fear the Savage Demon Clan? Do you really think he needs our help? No, he doesn’t need it at all. The reason I did this was to make a statement, to show our sincerity.”

As she spoke, she gently patted Bei Zhao Han on the shoulder, “Dear sister, many times, don’t only look at your own gains and losses. Your vision and perspective can be a little broader.”

With that, she turned and left.

Left standing there.

Bei Zhao Han was stunned for a long while, then shook her head with a sigh.

On the other side.

Zhantai Zhan held a little lamb in her arms, looking at Ye Tianming with pitiful eyes, “Are you really going to kill it?”

Ye Tianming said, “Roasted lamb is delicious, really.”

Zhantai Zhan shook her head repeatedly, “No, no, I won’t eat roasted lamb…”

Ye Tianming tempted her, “You should try it, it’s really quite good.”

Zhantai Zhan still shook her head, “No, I would rather die than eat it.”

In the middle of the night.

Zhantai Zhan, who had been sound asleep, suddenly sat up and came outside, where she found Ye Tianming roasting something.

Zhantai Zhan hurried over, and Ye Tianming handed her a large piece of meat. Zhantai Zhan took it and bit into it fiercely.

Ye Tianming smiled, “Is it good?”

Zhantai Zhan nodded repeatedly, “Delicious… what kind of meat is it?”

Ye Tianming took a bite, then said, “Lamb.”

Zhantai Zhan’s eyes went wide instantly, and soon tears streamed down her face, “Lamb… my lamb…”

Ye Tianming asked, “Is it good?”

Zhantai Zhan, “…”

A moment later, Zhantai Zhan was still crying, but still eating.

Eating and crying at the same time.

Halfway through, Zhantai Zhan said softly, “Didn’t you say all beings are equal? Eating lamb — isn’t that inequality?”

Ye Tianming thought for a moment, then said, “Finish eating first, then I’ll answer you!”

Zhantai Zhan, “…”