Unsheathed

The old scholar then turned to Cui Chan and asked, “Do you know why I answered your question so quickly back then?”

The old scholar was picking at an old scab.

“Because you were fonder of Qi Jingchun and had higher hopes for him!” Cui Chan huffed in anger. “You regarded my philosophies as useless balls of paper in the trash can, and you didn’t want to soil your sagely hands by fishing them out and opening them back up!”

The old scholar shook his head and explained, “It was because I had already mulled over that question for many years before you asked it. No matter how I pondered at that time, I could only reach a single conclusion — an embankment of 500 kilometers destroyed by ants, a flood of great magnitude unable to be reigned in. Because it only treats the symptoms and not the root cause, and because your foundational knowledge wasn’t strong enough, these initially well-intentioned philosophies would have ended up causing more harm than good. This is analogous to constructing a tall building. The taller and more majestic it looks on the outside, the more dangerous and deadly it will be if it collapses due to an unstable foundation.”

Cui Chan faltered upon hearing this. However, he was still slightly reluctant to accept this explanation.

The old scholar sighed and continued in exasperation, “All of you need to realize that the Confucian teachings also have their issues. It isn’t perfect and without blemish. With so many rules and regulations, it’s only natural that not all of them will be able to keep up with the progression of time. Otherwise, what will happen to people in the current generation and the future generations if our ancestors have already offered the best and most correct philosophies? What else will there be for us to discover and learn?

“The solution offered by the Paramount Sage is the purest and most general. At the same time, it’s also the most gentle and beneficial. The solution that he offered is a tonic food that’s entirely beneficial and with no harm. However, this is subject to the prerequisite that everyone adopts the practice of eating ‘Confucian’ food. Isn’t that right?

“However, there are also times when exceptions need to be made. For example, as a person’s biological functions degrade, or perhaps because they’ve been weakened by the elements, it’s only natural that they’ll experience sicknesses and diseases that can’t be immediately remedied by tonic foods. During these times, medicines will be necessary.

“However, every medicine has its side effects, so one must be as diligent as one can be. Only after tasting countless herbs did the sages of the past dare to say which herbs were medicines and which herbs were poisons.

“Cui Chan, with how impatient you are, are you truly willing to spend so much time and effort on something? Your junior brother Qi Jingchun warned you many times that you’re too smart and that your ambitions are loftier than the heavens, yet how could you achieve anything great if you didn’t work hard on the fundamentals? So be it if you only want to play around like a child and become the mountain master of an academy. If that’s the case, then there’ll be someone to rectify your mistakes even if you screw up and cause a huge issue.

“However, if your philosophies become mainstream in the Confucian Sect, who will save you when an issue arises? Me? Or the Etiquette Sage? Or perhaps the Paramount Sage? Even if they step forward to help you, how can you guarantee that they won’t introduce extra trouble? How can you guarantee that they won’t try to spread their teachings in this Majestic World instead?”

Cui Chan was still unwilling to concede.

The old scholar was slightly exhausted, and he said, “Even though I came up with the concept of pragmatism before you, you focused all of your attention on this area and eventually gained a deeper understanding than me. In the end, I was also tempted by this, and I felt like I could perhaps give this philosophy a try. Thus, the true ‘battle between third and fourth’ that took place behind the scenes was carried out in two large empires in the Middle Earth Divine Continent. One side promoted ‘etiquette’, while one side promoted ‘pragmatism and practicality’. After 60 years, a victor would be decided based on the advantages and disadvantages provided by each ideology. Everyone knows the result of this battle. I lost, and so I was forced to imprison myself in the Forest of Virtue.”

Cui Chan’s face was filled with disbelief, and he suddenly stood up and shouted, “You’re lying!”

“Have you forgotten again? When debating with others, one needs to maintain their composure and should refrain from acting based on their emotions,” the old scholar said calmly.

Cui Chan dejectedly plopped back down onto his chair. His expression was despondent as he murmured, “How could you possibly have made a bet using this? How could I possibly have lost…?”

The old scholar turned around to look at the courtyard, and he warned, “Pay attention to this and make sure not to ignore it.”

“Alright, I know,” the tall woman replied in a lazy voice.

Only after hearing her reply did the old scholar take a large swig of wine and say in a self-deprecating manner, “Using wine to extinguish one’s gloom, and using wine to muster a cowardly person’s courage…”

He placed the flagon on the table and straightened his sleeves, saying slowly, “The Etiquette Sage filled our world with two characters. Cui Chan, what are these two characters?”

“Social order!” Cui Chan replied instinctively.

After saying this, he immediately became filled with annoyance and regret.

The old scholar nodded with a solemn and dignified expression. “Correct. Etiquette and rules are synonymous with social order. The Etiquette Sage, the second sage of the Confucian Sect, pursues the ideology of social order. All matters in the world have their natural order and rules, and these rules are things that the Etiquette Sage painstakingly ‘snatched over’ from the Great Dao one line at a time.

“It was using these that he finally managed to construct what he self-deprecatingly refers to as the ‘rundown thatched cottage’, a cottage that can keep out wind and rain for the mortal beings of the world. It’s extremely large, so large that almost no one can walk from one wall to another even after spending their entire life studying Confucian ideology. It’s so large that cultivators will be unable to reach the roof no matter how lofty their cultivation. Thus, this is the notion of peace and stability for beings of the world.”

“Then what about Qi Jingchun? Did his knowledge reach the wall on the other side?” Cui Chan sneered coldly. “And what about A’Liang? Did his cultivation slam into the roof? If these things happen, then what should be done? What should these people do? Why aren’t these prodigies allowed to walk their own paths and pursue their own Dao? Why aren’t they allowed to open the door of the Etiquette Sage’s cottage and head somewhere else to build their own cottage?!”

As he said this, Cui Chan unconsciously pointed at the door of the room.

At this moment, the young Cui Chan was filled with an intense and imposing aura.

From this, it was clear that he had involuntarily become completely invested in this discussion already. In fact, it was possible that these were no longer the young Cui Chan’s thoughts alone. Rather, these were perhaps thoughts that were shaped by the most complete Cui Chan in the depths of his soul.

“Chasing the absolute freedom in your heart?” the old scholar chuckled. “You’re free to do so. However, how can you guarantee that you’ll exit through the door? How can you guarantee that you won’t smash the wall or break the roof instead, causing the shelter that blocked the elements for you and enabled you to grow become leaky and precarious?”

Cui Chan roared with laughter and replied, “Old geezer, you already said it yourself! This is absolute freedom, so is there still a need to care about all this?! And what gives you the right to assume that the new cottage we build won’t be bigger and more stable than the old one that we break?”

“Oh? Then are we not back at square one of my Great Dao?” the old scholar asked with a chuckle. “You, Cui Chan, can’t even break free from my ideology, so how will you possibly break free from the Etiquette Sage’s social order and create your own ideology?”

“So how is human nature intrinsically evil then? Old geezer, you’re spouting absolute nonsense!” Cui Chan roared in anger.

The old scholar remained calm as he replied, “This isn’t a question for me. I’ve left one side of the net open for you, so seize this opportunity to make your soul whole. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so go ahead and pose this question to your heart.”

Cui Chan froze to the spot.

In the end, it was as if only the old scholar and Chen Ping’an remained in the world. The old man and the young boy sat facing each other.

The old scholar smiled faintly and said, “The Etiquette Sage wanted to install social order, one where everyone understood the rules. He hoped that everyone could abide by these rules. Afterward, these rules were spread far and wide by the traveling scholars. When these scholars became nobles, they then became the teachers of the emperors and the rulers. After some time, the imperial examination came into existence, and this was also a time when teachers would accept students from all backgrounds. This made it possible for commoners to soar in status and eventually become nobles. Commoners were no longer resigned to the fate of being commoners forever.

“The rules were comprehensive, and it was hard work to maintain them. However, as time went on, it became increasingly difficult and not worth the effort to maintain and abide by these rules. Human nature is intrinsically evil, after all. Casting one’s gaze over the world, is there any shortage of people who like to abuse and degrade others after eating their fill and putting down their chopsticks?”

The old scholar looked up at Chen Ping’an and continued, “Because of this, I’m looking for two specific characters now — sequential order.”

It was as if the old scholar were talking to himself as he explained, “I simply want to figure out a proper order for all matters in the world. For example, what’s the crux of the problem when judging whether a person is detestable or pitiable? The problem lies with the fact that the Etiquette Sage has already taught the world enough rules and standards to judge whether a person is ‘detestable’ or ‘pitiable’. However, people are lacking in knowledge when it comes to the notion of separating root from cause. If one runs over to focus on the ‘pitiable’ nature of a person before they’ve even figured out the ‘detestable’ nature of the person, how can they possibly reach the correct conclusion? Right?”

Chen Ping’an nodded in reply.

The old scholar smiled and asked, “Just listening to these words alone, does sequential order sound far inferior to social order?”

Chen Ping’an furrowed his brows.

The old scholar roared with laughter. Without worrying about how much of this the young boy could understand, he took a sip of wine and continued in a jolly manner, “If these two characters are placed inside the Etiquette Sage’s rundown thatched cottage, they can of course only be considered as mends and patchwork. I can at most only be considered a repairer of morals and etiquette. If these two characters are placed inside a loftier and vaster area, however, the result will be quite extraordinary indeed.”

“Where?” Chen Ping’an asked.

The old scholar picked the flagon up and placed it in the middle of the table. He then spread his palms open and forcefully wiped them across the table. “By the looks of it, this flagon is nothing more than a resting area on the banks of the river of time. However…”

He paused for a moment before continuing with a faint smile, “Regarding the terrain of this river of time, this is dependent on the riverbed that supports it. Even though the two are complementary to each other, there is indeed the existence of ‘dependent origin’[1] between them. There are many explanations in the world for this — sailing downward with the current and going with the flow — so I want to give it a try as well.”

“The Etiquette Sage wants people to live a peaceful and stable life within the bounds of the rules and regulations, yet it’s sometimes necessary to sacrifice… the absolute freedom of a small portion of people?” Chen Ping’an asked. “And what you hope to achieve is to have everyone abide by your sequential order and walk forward on the Great Dao that you’ve proposed?”

The old scholar chuckled and added, “Don’t think that I’m pointing fingers and ordering people around. My sequential order ideology won’t be overbearing and over the top. After putting in enough effort at the origin of the Great Dao, the ensuing flow of things will be dependent on each individual person. Whether these flows part ways and enter the sea individually, whether they gather midway and form a lake, or whether they continue to flow to someplace else, everyone is free to decide this for themselves.”

Leaning forward to grab the flagon and take a sip, the old scholar then smiled and asked, “Chen Ping’an, what do you think? Are you willing to follow Qi Jingchun’s arrangement and become my disciple?”

For the second time tonight, Chen Ping’an wanted to say something but couldn’t help but hesitate.

The old scholar’s smile was kindly and amiable, and he repeated, “You only need to speak your mind, and you don’t need to worry about whether your answer is correct or incorrect. There’s no outsider here.”

The young boy took a deep breath and straightened his back. With his fists resting on his knees, he replied with a serious expression, “Because I’ve never properly studied before, I’m unsure of what the Etiquette Sage’s social order is truly about, and I’m even more unsure of what the essence of old mister’s sequential order truly is.”

“Go on, courageously voice your thoughts,” the old scholar encouraged with a faint smile. “When I was alive, I came across extremely sinister people and also experienced extremely terrible things. Because of this, my temper has already become very good.”

Chen Ping’an’s eyes became increasingly bright, and he recounted, “While in the small town, I killed Cai Jinjian for my own sake and I fought against the mountain-moving ape with my life on the line for the sake of my friend Liu Xianyang. Afterward, I promised Mr. Qi that I would accompany Li Baoping and the others on their journey to seek knowledge. And after that, I promised Big Sister Immortal that I would definitely become a Qi refiner. I had full peace of mind when I did these things. After making up my mind, I started to work on these things straight away. I didn’t need to think about anything else.

“Old mister, you said a lot just then, and I was listening intently the entire time. After mulling over it, I felt like some of your explanations made a lot of sense. For example, I strongly agree with your explanation about those who are detestable and pitiable. We can’t get the sequential order wrong. After hearing this, what I wanted to say was that I really wanted to kill the female ghost in the wedding dress back then. I want to kill her even more now, and I’ll definitely kill her in the future. I want to tell her that no matter how big her grievances are, this still isn’t an excuse for her to transfer her pain onto other innocent people. I want to personally tell her that she’s pitiable, but she still deserves death!”

This was a young boy from Clay Vase Alley who often appeared warm and gentle in the eyes of others. Right now, however, he was radiating with an aura of peerless intensity.

Chen Ping’an’s voice became increasingly firm as he continued, “However, if it’s something that I don’t understand, something that I perhaps won’t understand for my entire lifetime, then I definitely won’t make any promises. After all, if I feel like I can’t understand and achieve something, why should I promise people otherwise? Simply because I feel embarrassed to say no? Simply because I don’t want to disappoint them? However, the answer to this question is very simple. If I promise someone to do something, yet I don’t have the confidence to do it and eventually fail to do it, then won’t I leave them even more disappointed?”

A stern expression replaced the old scholar’s smile. After pondering for a moment, he became slightly absent-minded for a little while. He habitually reached down with two fingers, and it looked as if he were pinching a peanut from a plate.

The tall woman smiled widely in the small courtyard.

She had purposely put on a sulky and sad expression just then, yet hadn’t the young boy still rejected her in a stern manner?

What if Ma Kuxuan, Xie Shi, or Cao Xi were placed in Chen Ping’an’s shoes?

Would they risk angering a sword spirit who had already lived for 10,000 years and would accompany them through thick and thin for the rest of their lives for the sake of a girl who they had only been acquainted with for a single month and who was already far away in someplace else?

Was this a small matter?

It was indeed a small matter.

At the same time, however, it definitely wasn’t a small matter.

The battle between Great Dao would stretch for countless years. If one betrayed their own conscience, there were some small issues that could be magnified into huge and terrifying obstacles. These were the most unpredictable dangers.

The higher a Qi refiner’s cultivation base, and the closer to the heavens they became, the more the blemishes in their mind’s realm would be magnified. For example, if the Dao Ancestor had a blemish in his mind’s realm that was as only as big as a mustard seed, this would perhaps be magnified into a blemish that was even larger than the fissure on the Yellow River Small World once it transformed into something tangible.

For example, taking a closer look at that period of time that seemed trivial and barely worth a second glance, what would have happened if the young boy from Clay Vase Alley had decided to accept the store owner’s kindness and take that free skewer of tanghulu? Indeed, this seemed trivial and unremarkable. However, if he had accepted the tanghulu and happily ate it, casually tossing the bamboo skewer aside as he cheerfully hopped back home, would this really have been as trivial and unremarkable as it initially appeared?

Would Chen Ping’an still have encountered those fated opportunities and arrived at where he was today?

Sitting inside the room in Autumn Reed Inn, Chen Ping’an looked at the old scholar and said, “Even if Mr. Qi wants me to do this, I still won’t agree if I feel like I can’t do it. For example, if I feel like something is wrong even after thinking about it carefully, then I’ll truthfully voice my opinion to others regardless of who they are and even if they place a knife on my neck.”

Chen Ping’an’s voice was very calm.

In the end, he said, “I’m not the kind of person who can embrace an ideology and carry it forward a great distance. To me, the purpose of reading and learning characters is actually very simple. It’s for the sake of being able to write couplets by myself and stick them in front of my house. In the future, I’ll also be able to inscribe characters on my parents’ tombstones. At most, I’ll learn some life principles from reading these books. However, I definitely don’t have any lofty ambitions. So, I won’t become your disciple, old mister.”

Cui Chan became deathly pale, and cold sweat streamed down his back.

Even Li Baoping felt like things were about to take a turn for the worse. She surreptitiously grabbed the seal from the table and prepared to use it to smack someone. As for whether she would smack the baddie Cui Chan or her teacher’s teacher, she couldn’t care less about this. She only cared about the fact that her junior uncle was the most important person in the world.

However, the old scholar simply asked in a warm and gentle voice, “This is your current thought, correct? If you feel like your current thought is incorrect in the future, will you change your mind and beg me to take you as a disciple?”

“Of course!” Chen Ping’an replied without hesitation. “However, I won’t insist too much if you’re unwilling to take me as a disciple at that time. I’ll probably feel regretful, but definitely not very much.”

“I’m the Scholarly Sage who was once honored with the three other sages in the Confucian temples, so just how great a fortune and opportunity is it for you to become my final disciple? Should you not accept this sudden offer with haste and secure your position before considering anything else?” the old scholar asked with a puzzled expression. “If you come across any obstacle in the future, you’ll always have your teacher to bear the brunt and alleviate the pressure. What are you afraid of? Becoming my final disciple is a beneficial decision no matter how you look at it.”

“If it’s something that goes against my conscience, then I can’t allow myself to take even a single step in that direction,” Chen Ping’an suddenly said.

The old scholar heaved a long sigh. “Since the time is not yet ripe, I won’t try to push you anymore.”

However, he quickly smiled and continued, “I’m very disappointed that we couldn’t become teacher and student. However, I’m sure that Qi Jingchun wouldn’t have been disappointed at all. This kind of Chen Ping’an is extremely stubborn, just like Qi Jingchun when he was young. Perhaps this was why he was willing to cup his hands and return the respect to you in the small alley back at that time.”

Chen Ping’an was extremely confused upon hearing this.

The old scholar slowly stood up. As he looked at the three children, he said, “Sitting down and discussing Dao is a very good thing.”

He chuckled and continued, “However, don’t forget that actions speak louder than words. If we don’t act upon what we say, then all discussions of Dao will become void and meaningless.”

A delighted expression suddenly appeared on the old scholar’s face. He had a wide smile, and he clasped his hands behind his back as he walked out of the room. “An old man sitting down to discuss Dao, and a young boy standing up to act upon Dao,” he clucked his tongue in wonder and said with a pleased expression.

“Only a young boy? Then what about me?!” Li Baoping asked in anger.

The old scholar opened the door and replied with a hearty laugh, “Yes, yes, yes, and there’s also Eastern Treasured Vial Continent’s Li Baoping!”

Sitting down to discuss Dao, standing up and acting upon Dao… This is a very good saying. I need to remember it, Chen Ping’an thought to himself.

Dazedly sitting on his chair, the young Cui Chan suddenly shuddered at this moment. After coming to his senses, he hurriedly stood up to cup his hands and bow at Chen Ping’an, saying, “Teacher!”

“Why are you still playing at this?” Chen Ping’an asked in exasperation.

“Did teacher want to kill me just then so he wouldn’t need to repay the money? It’s several thousand taels of silver, after all,” Cui Chan grinned cheekily and asked in amusement.

“If I killed you tonight, I would have definitely helped construct a tomb worth 2000 taels of silver for you once I earned enough silver in the future,” Chen Ping’an replied calmly.

An awkward expression appeared on Cui Chan’s face. In the end, he could only squeeze out three words, “Why thank you…”

1. The Buddhist concept of conditioned dharma (有为法) (samskrta dharma). 👈