Chapter 13 — Enduring Tribulations and Delivering Others

The old man had originally been traveling by riding the wind. Dressed in a long robe, he possessed an elegant and refined bearing. Even though he was already old, with many wrinkles covering his face, they could hardly conceal his temperament. Having ridden the wind for a thousand miles in a single breath to arrive in these mountain forests, he was already somewhat fatigued. After all, he was old now, and when circulating his innate qi, it was no longer as effortless as it had been in the past.

Just as he was about to rest for a while, he suddenly heard the clear sound of a zither, extremely tranquil and lingering. The person playing it already possessed zither skills that could be called excellent, and in addition, this zither seemed to be an ancient artifact. Its sound was exceptionally clear and resonant, carrying an air of great refinement.

The old man subconsciously followed the sound. After taking a few steps around, he saw a young Daoist sitting on a bluestone in the forest, playing the zither.

Although he appeared to be young, his temples were already white. As he played the zither, its music was distant and profound, yet capable of stirring the heart.

It seemed that within the zither music, one could see one’s entire life in the past, recalling scene after scene of things that had happened long ago.

It caused one to involuntarily feel a sense of regret and remembrance, and he could not help but stop. When the piece of zither music came to an end, the old man remained immersed in the past for a long while without coming back to himself, seemingly unaware that the song had already ended. Only after quite some time did he seem to sense it, and he sighed deeply, saying, “What beautiful zither music. I became immersed in it for a moment and failed to show proper courtesy.”

The young Daoist replied, “There is no need. To have someone who understands zither music listen to it is a good thing.”

He raised his eyes and looked at the old man before him. Through the method passed down by the Yin Office from the Underworld, he could see the old man’s allotted lifespan.

When his teacher had taken him to Senior Sister Yumiao’s place, Qi Wuhuo had already been able to see it at that time, when his Three Talents had become complete. The old man’s innate qi had already begun to dissipate outward. For a cultivator of the Daoist sect, when one’s innate qi began dispersing into Heaven and Earth like this, it basically meant that one’s allotted lifespan was nearing its end.

It was only that Qi Wuhuo did not know why this old man had left the secret realm and come here when his lifespan was already nearing its end.

The old man’s emotions had been stirred by the music. He gave a slight cupped-hands salute and said, “This old man is Chu Hongtu of Hezhou. May I ask who Daoist is…”

The young Daoist replied, “I am Qi Wuhuo of Helian Mountain. Greetings, Daoist.”

“May I ask why Daoist is in such a hurry?”

Chu Hongtu’s expression was somewhat complicated. He said, “There is a place this old man wishes to go. I know that I have little time left, and thus I am somewhat disheveled. I am indeed far less carefree and at ease than you, Daoist.” At this moment, the young Daoist could sense that the cultivation of the old man, Chu Hongtu, was roughly at the level of innate qi. He had also lived for nearly three hundred years, infinitely approaching the limit of the innate qi realm.

And for him to leave the blessed land where Senior Sister Yumiao resided and travel outside, there must have been a reason. But since the old man did not speak of it, and the two had only just met, naturally neither would casually reveal what was in their hearts.

The young Daoist had originally only been thinking that Senior Sister Yumiao’s Hunyuan Sword Canon had brought him tremendous assistance, laying the foundation for his Sword Dao and allowing him to comprehend some methods, while also enabling him to obtain the resources needed for the little peacock.

After discussing the Sword Dao with the Great Dao Sovereign, he had gained even more insights into swordsmanship.

Although they were not many, he still intended to give the sword art he had comprehended himself to Senior Sister.

When someone gives me a peach, I repay them with jade.

One cause, one effect. He also hoped that it might be of even the slightest help to Senior Sister in her present situation.

Yet he had not even made it to Senior Sister Yumiao’s blessed land when he encountered the person connected to her tribulation hurrying over. There might be reasons involved that could not be spoken of to outsiders. The young Daoist pondered briefly before asking again, “This Daoist travels wherever the clouds carry him, with no fixed abode. May I ask where Daoist Chu is headed? If you do not mind, how about we travel together?”

Chu Hongtu laughed. “Hahaha, this old man is someone whose allotted lifespan is nearing its end. The place I am going is of no interest at all, so I will not disturb Daoist’s enjoyment. There are many wondrous places ahead, with beautiful scenery. I can point out a few directions for Daoist, and you may go there yourself to wander and amuse yourself. You certainly will not be disappointed.”

Chu Hongtu merely smiled and steered Qi Wuhuo’s words elsewhere, afterward discussing the scenery along the road ahead.

Yet he never mentioned the blessed land where Yumiao was.

After talking for a while, the old man had also taken advantage of the time to rest and recover some of his strength, so he bid farewell. His bearing was ancient and refined, while his speech was mostly bold and carefree, though there was ultimately a trace of sorrow between his brows. Seeing him depart, Qi Wuhuo fell into thought.

The little peacock asked curiously, “A-Qi, A-Qi, you know him?”

“Mm.”

“Then where is he going?!”

“I do not know either.”

Just then, the young Daoist suddenly heard several loud crashes in the distance. Turning his head to look, he saw figures rapidly approaching, all of them wearing Daoist robes and appearing rather anxious. They followed in the direction Chu Hongtu had gone.

Qi Wuhuo recalled how hurriedly Chu Hongtu had been traveling and the caution he had shown. He frowned slightly, wondering in his heart whether Senior Sister had encountered danger.

After considering it for a moment, he stepped forward and hurried after them. His Earth-Escape Technique was extremely fast, not much inferior to riding the wind.

From far away, he heard the sounds of fighting, along with the urgent shouts of the crowd: “This person is the Dao Companion of that Wondrous(Miao) Sword Immortal!”

“Everyone, attack! Take this person back!”

The young Daoist saw sword qi crisscrossing the air, while numerous cultivators made their moves, all primarily attempting to capture rather than kill. In Chu Hongtu’s hand, however, was a saber. Its edge was fierce, carrying an indescribably majestic and domineering force. Those Daoists possessing innate qi, along with several great demons, were actually suppressed by him for a time.

But the old man had, after all, already reached the point where his qi was dispersing and his life was nearing its end. Though his saber’s edge was formidable, he could not maintain it for long.

Just as he cleaved apart a bolt of lightning with a single stroke, a rope suddenly pierced through the thunder and flames, flying straight toward him.

It bound directly around Chu Hongtu’s right leg.

With a single jerk, it scattered the innate qi that had already weakened within him.

A man with a pair of wings growing from his back saw this and breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s right. Come back with us!”

Chu Hongtu’s expression was grief-stricken. In anger, he drew his saber, seemingly intending to cut off his own trapped right leg. The others were instead greatly startled. Suddenly, they heard the clear ringing of zither strings, and within the void came the sound of swords and blades. The rope binding Chu Hongtu was directly shaken until its spiritual nature became rigid, and Chu Hongtu actually managed to struggle free through sheer force. Then the zither music changed again, taking on a bleak and murderous quality.

In their dazed state, it seemed that all the fallen leaves of Heaven and Earth had transformed into blades and swords, descending from the sky.

The killing intent was overwhelming.

The pressure of the aura was crushing.

It was almost enough to make one’s heart tremble with terror. Several people exchanged glances, all of their expressions changing drastically. They knew that an extraordinary expert had appeared. Thus, they gritted their teeth. Although the reward was generous, their lives came first. It was not worth staking their lives for profit. One after another, they withdrew their divine abilities, abandoned Chu Hongtu, and fled into the distance.

Like a rabbit rising and a falcon swooping, these people had come swiftly, but when they left, they were even more decisive.

Chu Hongtu himself looked somewhat bewildered as he glanced around. Suddenly, he cupped his hands and said, “Is that Daoist Qi?”

“Please come out and show yourself.”

The young Daoist stepped out. The old man picked up the saber that had just been shaken to the ground and said, “I knew it. Such zither music could not possibly appear twice within such a short time. For me to be in such a sorry state, I have indeed made Daoist Qi laugh at me.” Chu Hongtu gave several bitter laughs and said, “I thought I had avoided them. I never imagined they would still come after me.”

The young Daoist looked in the direction in which the others had been forced back.

These people’s faces were all rather aged. Even the youngest appeared middle-aged, and most of their cultivation was at the level of innate qi, roughly comparable to the young Daoist himself. It was only that the fierce might of this zither, Delivering All Living Beings to Oblivion, was too formidable. Even though Qi Wuhuo merely played its music, the sound itself seemed to wield swords in battle, solemn, murderous, and cold, enough to inspire terror and dread in cultivators of the same level.

He looked toward Chu Hongtu and said, “Those people earlier seemed to be cultivators at the level of Daoist Masters and Temple Masters.”

“They did not seem intent on harming you, Daoist, only on capturing you.”

Chu Hongtu nodded complicatedly.

The young Daoist asked, “Is it because of that True Person Miao?”

A trace of terror, pain, longing, and countless other complicated emotions appeared in Chu Hongtu’s eyes. After remaining silent for a long while, he looked at the young Daoist who had forced back so many people and let out a long sigh. “It is, but it is also not. They dare not use excessive force because of her, but the reason they came looking for me is also because of her. They want to capture me and take me back to Miao’er… take me back to the blessed land of that True Person Miao.”

The young Daoist was astonished.

After considering it briefly, he still asked, “Wasn’t that True Person Miao your Dao Companion?”

“Dao Companion? No, no!”

“She is a demon! A demon!”

  Chu Hongtu’s expression suddenly became grief-stricken and pained, his tone instantly turning fierce and angry, as though he wanted to sever all ties with that True Person Miao completely. Yet in the next moment, he still faltered in defeat and sank down where he sat. “She is also the person I have loved and cherished, but…”

For a moment, he seemed unable to calm his emotions, nor could he find words to describe that exceedingly complicated pain. Suddenly, he sighed. “Daoist Qi, it seems you are rather interested in this old man’s story.”

“Then I shall tell you about it…”

Chu Hongtu sat cross-legged on the ground, one hand caressing his saber, and said, “Miao’er, True Person Miao, I knew her when I was young. I was born into an ordinary family. My parents were both farmers, but I disliked such things from an early age. Like everyone else my age, I yearned to leave the village, become a wandering hero, and travel throughout the world.”

“But how could the son of a farmer from a mere little village ever enter this vast world?”

“At that time, it was merely something I dreamed of. Later, I met her. Do you know what it is like when a woman of such peerless beauty suddenly appears in a village? There was no difference from an immortal descending into the mortal world. I was only eleven years old then, yet I had already fallen deeply for her. Later, she taught me martial arts; I took her as my master, and she took me with her as she traveled throughout the world.”

“When I was young, I only felt that Heaven and Earth were vast, yet it seemed to pale before the scope of my heart, and I could roam wherever I pleased.”

“After only five years, I reached the pinnacle of the secular martial world. Then I learned methods of cultivation, entered the Dao through martial arts, reversed my acquired nature to return to the innate, cultivated the Three Talents anew, and stepped into innate qi. I could be said to have obtained the true transmission. I also overcame worldly desires and became Dao Companions with my master. Those years were the happiest of my life. I would travel the North Sea in the morning and Cangwu by evening, making friends with mountain and river deities, great demons, and water gods.”

“But after reaching innate qi, my cultivation became difficult to advance, while she retained her youthful appearance all along.”

“Even so, I did not think much of it. I was merely saddened that I would probably die before her.”

“Meeting a renowned master when I was young, and having her as the one person in my heart whom I cherished above all else; roaming the martial world in my youth, dressed in fine clothes and riding fine horses, taking pleasure in repaying kindness and vengeance; then cultivating immortal arts and gaining a lifespan of three hundred years, wandering through the mortal world, singing freely among the mountains and rivers—I thought that in this lifetime, I would have no regrets left. But, but recently, I discovered that something was wrong…”

Chu Hongtu’s face had originally held a faint, nostalgic remembrance of the past, but now it had become filled with pain. Even that saber seemed to sense the grief in its master’s heart and gave a faint hum.

His voice was filled with sorrow. “Strange memories have begun surfacing in my mind. They seem to be mine, yet they also seem not to be mine.”

“I do not know who I am. I do not know who is me.”

“Am I merely a substitute? Her abilities are already like those of an immortal; creating false memories is probably no more difficult for her than raising a hand or lifting a foot.

“Could everything about me—all my encounters, my joys, and even those memories—have been fabricated by her and then placed into my soul? Could all my feelings be nothing more than this as well? Could everything I am be like the puppets and shadow plays of the mortal world, never having existed at all? Could all that so-called pleasure of repaying kindness and vengeance merely be a ridiculous joke?!”

“If that is the case, then she is the demon who has controlled my entire life, yet she is also my Dao Companion.”

“I want to go to the places that appear in those memories and take a look. I want to find out who I am. At the very least, I want to understand this before I die.”

Chu Hongtu was utterly grief-stricken.

There was no doubt that this was precisely why he could no longer endure such torment and had fled from True Person Yumiao’s blessed land. The young Daoist, who had originally intended to go see Senior Sister, lowered his eyes. According to his position, it seemed that he ought to take Chu Hongtu back to Yumiao. Yet seeing Chu Hongtu’s grief, the young Daoist ultimately could not bring himself to use his own cultivation to stop the man from pursuing the truth. He merely asked:

“So, where does Daoist intend to go?”

Chu Hongtu said, “Back to my homeland, back to those places within my dreamlike memories…”

“It is very far from here.”

“My lifespan is already like a candle flickering in the wind, lasting only for a moment. I fear that even with the Art of Riding the Wind, I can no longer make it back.”

The old man seemed regretful, then suddenly struck his saber, displaying the boldness and carefree spirit of a wandering hero.

“But even so, I must go back.”

“Even if I die, I must die upon the road.”

The young Daoist’s spirit was clear and pure, and he faintly sensed a gaze from a distant place.

This sensation seemed to have been noticed because their cultivation foundations were somewhat similar, coupled with the other party’s state of mind having fallen into disarray.

It was Senior Sister Yumiao.

Was Senior Sister planning to come personally and take Chu Hongtu back?

Or was Senior Sister also hesitating and wavering?

The word tribulation truly was harmful.

An emotional tribulation was subtle. It seemed not to possess the earth-shaking grandeur of a great tribulation of Heaven and Earth, yet it always emerged in the most hidden places, bringing pain before one even realized it.

Will I also have such a day?

The young Daoist’s state of mind was clear and pure. He withdrew his gaze from that direction. In the end, he could not bear it, and took a slight step forward, placing himself between that gaze and Chu Hongtu.

The zither behind him gave a clear, ringing cry. With its murderous notes, it forcibly shattered the confusion that had enveloped Chu Hongtu at that moment.

The young man’s tone was gentle as he said, “Then, come, Daoist Chu…”

Chu Hongtu was slightly stunned. He looked at the young Daoist, whose temples were already white, and heard him ask:

“May I ask where your homeland is, Daoist, and where you wish to go?”

“I will see you part of the way.”

Chu Hongtu realized that the young man before him intended to help him, and could not help but laugh several times. Then, with a laugh and a sigh, he said, “Hahahaha, what is this supposed to be? Manifesting according to circumstances, undergoing tribulations to deliver others? Daoist, you truly are a disciple of the Daoist sect. Could it be that you are actually following the path of the legendary Taishang Dao Ancestor?”

“With the way you have appeared and conducted yourself, this old man might even start wondering whether you are an incarnation of the Taishang Dao Ancestor.”

“The so-called Taishang Eighty-Two Transformations.”

“It is a pity that I appreciate your kindness, but my homeland is extremely far away, already in Hezhou. Even if you possess divine abilities and can ride the clouds and mist, or use the Earth Deity’s Earth-Escaping Technique, this mortal body of mine is heavy. Carrying me with you by your own strength would greatly slow you down, and you would never make it.”

“Making the journey back and forth would exhaust your spirit, not to mention that these old bones of mine would probably die along the way.”

“It would truly bring bad luck. There is no need to trouble Daoist.”

“Hezhou?”

“Wait a moment.”

The young Daoist took a slight step forward. His sleeve shifted gently as he formed a hand seal, his voice calm and gentle. “Land Gods, where are you?”

“Please come here for a word.”

There was no altar established, nor any spell cast, yet traces of qi had already begun to spread outward.

Thus, beneath Chu Hongtu’s incredulous gaze, accompanied by the rumbling of the earth and mountains, one Land Deity after another appeared here. They cupped their hands slightly toward the young Daoist, their expressions quite respectful as they addressed him as a True Person. The young Daoist apologized, saying that he had not expected to trouble them so soon, and the various Land Deities hurriedly waved their hands, indicating that it was no trouble, no trouble at all.

The young Daoist asked whether they could travel to Hezhou while bringing one person with them.

The old Land Deity glanced at Chu Hongtu and understood immediately. Stroking his beard, he smiled and said, “Hezhou is ten thousand miles away from here. There are also high mountains and deep streams along the way, which ordinary people would find difficult to cross. But we Land Deities have been at this for several hundred years, and we have long since mastered this ability.”

“Let alone one person—even if you added ten more, it would still be effortless.”

“Although Hezhou is extremely far away, it can still be reached within a single day.”

Chu Hongtu stared blankly, utterly stunned.

Seeing the young Daoist, accompanied by a divine bird and carrying an extraordinary ancient zither on his back, turn sideways to look at him and ask his opinion, he said: “So, what about now? Daoist, will you come along for part of the journey?”