Chapter 1: The Changes Of The World And The Shift Of Celestial Bodies
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Liren Peak
In the late chill of spring, pear blossoms adorn the trees.
Shen Gurong, dressed in a long green robe that trailed on the ground, with a jade sash tied around his waist, sat cross-legged under a towering Bodhi tree. His white hair and white robes cascaded gracefully on the ground, intertwining with the lotus petals emerging from the water.
His demeanor seemed like that of an exiled immortal, but at this moment, he only wished to leap into the lake.
Not far from the Bodhi tree, a disciple in a blue robe knelt on the ground, tears welling in his eyes.
“I pay respect to Master!”
“Xing He requests Master to save Mu Zhe’s life!”
Shen Gurong’s face remained expressionless, thinking, “Stop calling. Your master is dead.”
During the Lantern Festival in Huitang City, there was a temple fair. The Second Young Master of the Shen family, skilled with his hands, personally crafted an exquisite rabbit lantern for his younger sister. They were happily strolling through the fair, the younger sister holding the lantern.
With a thousand people gathered at the temple fair and tens of thousands of bright lanterns illuminating the scene, Shen Gurong, with enthusiasm, gazed up, trying to guess the riddles associated with the lanterns. Suddenly, he felt the hand of his sister, whom he was leading, loosen.
When he lowered his head, he found himself sitting there.
He sat there motionless for an hour, desperately trying to convince himself that he was just dreaming.
Even though his thighs had turned purple, he still couldn’t wake up.
Finally, he confirmed his location from the words “Xing He” and “Mu Zhe” spoken by the children outside.
Xing He, Mu Zhe.
Mu Zhe.
Shen Gurong, well-read and having carefully measured the weight of every book he had read from childhood to adulthood, rarely encountered the use of the character “Zhe” as a name. The only time he remembered encountering it was in a miscellaneous book.
He couldn’t recall the name of that book, but he remembered there was a person in it who, single-handedly, saved the lives of all living beings in the three realms, and his name was Mu Zhe.
Mu Zhe had a natural demonic mark on his left face. Born during a rampant epidemic, with villages and cities littered with corpses, the surrounding people all believed he was the source of the plague and wanted to burn him alive as a public demonstration.
The Epidemic Demon was set ablaze, and people from villages within ten miles all came to watch the exorcism.
The fire was about to be ignited when a meddlesome immortal Taoist, intervened and saved Mu Zhe. He then became a disciple and left for Liren Peak.
Mu Zhe, with a mortal body, cultivated the Dao. At a young age, he broke through the Nascent Soul stage[1], ultimately defeating the antagonist and saving all living beings.
And outside, the distraught Xing He…
If Shen Gurong remembered correctly, he should be the antagonist mentioned in the book. The one who, in the future, would be tempted by the Demon Cult, fall into darkness, and ruthlessly kill his master, Shen Fengxue, causing chaos in the Three Realms — the antagonist known as Yu Xinghe.
Shen Gurong took a deep breath, feeling a bit sore in his calves.
All of this was just speculation, perhaps just a coincidence. It made Shen Gurong finally confirm the reason he was now in this body — he was a character from that miscellaneous book.
Dressed in green with white hair, eyes covered in ice silk, and a string of red beads made of wooden beads around the wrist, with sixteen beads faintly engraved with the words “Feng Xue.”
The Sage of Liren Peak, Shen Fengxue.
Thinking of the fate of the master in the book, Shen Fengxue, being imprisoned by the vile beast Yu Xinghe for several years, and ultimately cruelly killed by Yu Xinghe before being saved by Mu Zhe, Shen Gurong felt a bit uneasy.
The master’s fate in the book was summarized in just one sentence —
[The Departed Lamp always shines, and he died in a storm of wind and snow.]
Shen Gurong, who disliked snowy weather the most, muttered, “Bah.”
The young antagonist outside continued wailing, “Master! Please save his life!”
For Shen Gurong, the repeated cries of “Master” from the young antagonist sounded like a haunting voice from the underworld.
Shen Gurong thought, “I’d also like someone to save me. I’ve been shouting for help for two hours straight. Let’s see who pays attention to me.”
Perhaps because Yu Xinghe was too noisy, a white crane, resting in the Lotus Lake, spread its wings and flew to the shore. Upon landing, it transformed into a slender youth dressed in white feathers resembling crane wings.
The youth knelt on one knee, a form of greeting, and respectfully said, “Sage, shall I drive him away for you?”
Shen Gurong: “……”
The scene of the crane transforming into a living person almost scared Shen Gurong into a breakdown. He tightly pressed his lips together, maintaining that cold and aloof demeanor, not uttering a word.
He feared that if he opened his mouth, a soul with a small braid dangling from it would come out, turning into a wisp of blue smoke and disappearing.
Inside, Shen Gurong was screaming for help, but no one came to his rescue.
Seeing Shen Gurong silent and seemingly indifferent, the white crane youth thought he wasn’t pleased. He nodded slightly, and with a graceful motion, his slender arms transformed into wings, and he gracefully flew to the side of the young antagonist.
Shen Gurong: “……”
Hiss! It’s changing again, it’s changing again! Dad, mom, elder brothers, help, help!
The white crane spoke in human language, “Under the command of the Sect Leader, no miscellaneous individuals are allowed to disturb the Sage. Yu Xinghe, leave immediately.”
Shen Gurong, who had just managed to recover, almost went into shock again upon hearing this. Even though the little guy looked harmless, he was the future major antagonist causing trouble in the Three Realms. Did that crane intend to turn into a braised crane just like that?!
The young antagonist suddenly looked up, his delicate face, seemingly carved from pink jade, peering over the white crane to gaze at Shen Gurong. Tears welled up in his eyes and streamed down instantly.
“Xing He disturbing the master deserves a thousand deaths. If saving Mu Zhe means I must ask for your forgiveness and accept any punishment, I willingly submit myself!” Yu Xinghe kowtowed heavily, his forehead instantly turning red. “Please, Master, save Mu Zhe!”
The white crane remained indifferent, showing no sign of being moved. It lowered its head and pecked Yu Xinghe, saying, “Step back.”
The young antagonist immediately hugged his head, enduring the pain from the peck. Despite being bitten, he stubbornly refused to leave, sobbing and pleading, “Master, please, save Mu Zhe…”
Shen Gurong: “……”
Shen Gurong finally regained his senses and promptly said, “Stop.”
Wait, should he have said “shut up”?
The white crane that had been pecking Yu Xinghe stopped, turning its head to look at Shen Gurong.
Shen Gurong tucked his trembling fingers into the wide sleeves, trying to maintain composure. “You, step back.”
In the book, Shen Fengxue, the Sage of the Liren Peak, was known for being aloof and indifferent, with no attachment to the mundane world. His greatest hobbies were seclusion and engaging in battles with others. While he had many disciples under his tutelage, he treated them with extreme indifference. After accepting them as Liren Peak disciples, he would simply let them go, some for years without any inquiry.
The white crane youth seemed a bit puzzled but didn’t defy his words. He nodded slightly and, spreading its wings, flew back to the Lotus Lake.
Yu Xinghe, seemingly seizing a glimmer of hope, quickly bent his knees and knelt beside Shen Gurong, timidly saying, “Master…”
Shen Gurong, aware of the cold temperament of Shen Fengxue in the book, sparingly spoke, “Speak.”
Yu Xinghe kowtowed again, his voice choked, “Xing He… Xing He and Mu Zhe went down the mountain together with Senior Brother to buy cinnabars. While on the way, when someone saw the birthmark on Mu Zhe’s face, they insisted on claiming he was possessed by an Epidemic Demon and insisted on burning him to dispel the epidemic.”
Shen Gurong: “……”
Burning a person to death just for being possessed? Are you cultivators all this ruthless?
Shen Gurong’s calves were shaking with fatigue. Thinking about how he took over someone else’s body, he realized it could be considered a form of possession. He tried to maintain the cold demeanor of Shen Fengxue and asked indifferently, “Who was it?”
Yu Xinghe hesitated and said, “Xing He doesn’t know. They were wearing clothes with words on them, but Xing He couldn’t recognize… couldn’t recognize.”
Shen Gurong lowered his gaze. The young antagonist kneeling on the ground looked to be only about five or six years old. It was natural for him not to recognize words.
Upon closer inspection, the young antagonist, though trying to appear calm, was subtly trembling. Even on such a cold day, cold sweat was trickling down his face.
In the eyes of the young antagonist, the words “Master” and “oppressive” were probably synonymous.
Both Yu Xinghe’s ankle bells and Shen Gurong’s wrists, with the string of wooden beads, were jingling softly as they trembled together, the master and disciple silently shaking.
In the end, Shen Gurong took a deep breath, afraid that the child might collapse, and said, “Don’t cry, lead the way.”
Yu Xinghe was momentarily stunned, then his face lit up with joy, tears almost streaming down.
He didn’t dare to hold Shen Gurong’s hand, so he clumsily got up and pointed forward with his chubby fingers, hoping Shen Gurong would follow him.
In the book, Mu Zhe was the one who defeated the antagonist, Yu Xinghe, who wanted to harm his master. As the master, Shen Gurong couldn’t possibly not save him. As for the future major antagonist, Yu Xinghe…
Shen Gurong glanced at the little chubby figure only reaching his waist and thought that there was currently nothing to fear from this little fellow. The master would give him time to grow.
Shen Gurong was about to get up when his legs suddenly felt sore and numb. It seemed as if thousands of silver needles were piercing through his joints and meridians, causing him to stagger and almost fall back.
Sitting for too long had made his legs numb.
Yu Xinghe was extremely anxious, and when he saw his master sway, he tilted his head and said in confusion, “Master?”
Shen Gurong forcibly maintained his expression, attempting to move again. However, that sensation of soreness and numbness instantly spread throughout his body. The pampered young master, unable to endure the pain, nearly let out a sound. But he resisted, fearing that his young disciple would notice.
Yu Xinghe probably sensed the issue and asked cautiously, “Master, are… are your legs numb?”
Shen Gurong: “……”
Nonsense.
The master wasn’t experiencing that.
You’re just making things up.
At that moment, the white crane flew over again, speaking human words from its crane-shaped mouth.
“The Sage should not leave Liren Peak. If there are urgent matters, they can be handled by the divine puppet.” The white crane spoke with continued respect, then held a lotus flower in its beak and handed it to Yu Xinghe.
Shen Gurong successfully deflected the situation, adopting the demeanor of the aloof master. “Exactly.”
Blindly admiring Shen Gurong’s abilities, Yu Xinghe didn’t care whether his master’s legs were really numb just now. He knelt down again, kowtowed, wiped away his tears, and happily ran off with the “divine puppet” lotus flower.
Shen Gurong remained in place, deep in thought.
How do you summon a divine puppet again?
By the time Shen Gurong finally found out how to summon a divine puppet in Shen Fengxue’s fragmented memories, it was almost dark.
Instinctively, he performed a complex gesture, his slender fingers’ joints distinct, resembling lotus petals, gently brushing.
As his consciousness shifted, Shen Gurong felt a moment of dizziness.
Initially thinking he hadn’t done it correctly, it took him a while to realize that he was being carried in someone’s hands, moving swiftly.
He slightly raised his gaze and saw the sweaty face of the little antagonist.
Yu Xinghe, carrying the lotus flower, swiftly flew over the field paths, panting heavily, his small face dripping with sweat.
Shen Gurong looked at himself and finally realized that he indeed hadn’t summoned the divine puppet correctly.
At this moment, he was just a small illusory divine puppet, his entire being shrinking several times, not even palm-sized, and surprisingly standing in the vacant space within a lotus petal.
Shen Gurong: “…”
Oh no, this is bad.
Yu Xinghe didn’t see the tiny figure with a dumbfounded expression standing on the lotus petal. He kept running while shouting towards the distance, “Senior Brother Li Suo! I’ve brought my master!”
Looking from the lotus petal, Shen Gurong saw two groups of people not far away engaging in a skirmish.
The two groups, distinguished by one in red and the other in yellow, sporadically clashed, creating a scene reminiscent of a popular dish in the mortal world, red fruit scrambled eggs. Shen Gurong… suddenly felt a bit hungry.
The disciple in yellow clothes, upon hearing Yu Xinghe’s words from afar, praised, “Good Junior Brother! Which master did you call?”
Yu Xinghe lifted the lotus high and shouted, “My master!”
The Senior Brother named Li Suo, who was leading a child in yellow clothes toward Yu Xinghe, stumbled upon hearing this, almost falling to the ground.
He exclaimed, “Sage Fengxue?!” in shock.
Yu Xinghe replied, “Yes, yes! We’re saved!”
Li Suo’s face was full of fear as he blurted out, “Are you seeking death?!”
Yu Xinghe said, “Look, this is a divine puppet of my master. He promised to come and save us!”
Li Suo hastily led the child to Yu Xinghe’s side, carefully looking at the lotus in Yu Xinghe’s hand with an inexplicable fear in his eyes.
Shen Gurong was even more terrified than Li Suo. If someone found out that the distinguished Sage of Liren Peak could make a mistake even in dividing his divine puppet, it would be embarrassing enough. However, if they discovered he was possessed, it would be a disaster.
However, Shen Gurong quickly realized he was overthinking. After examining the lotus for a while, Li Suo hesitated and said, “Is this truly the Sage’s divine puppet?”
Yu Xinghe replied, “Yes, and it still carries the Sage’s spiritual power.”
Shen Gurong silently breathed a sigh of relief, patting his chest. It seemed that no one could see him, and he didn’t have to worry about being burned alive.
Just as he was feeling relieved, he tilted his head and suddenly met a pair of glass-like eyes.
Shen Gurong was momentarily stunned.
The child who had been running alongside Li Suo was panting slightly. His small face had an expressionless look as he gazed at the lotus. Half of his face bore a red birthmark that seemed intricately carved, giving his otherwise delicate appearance a somewhat eerie aspect.
Shen Gurong observed him for a while and realized that the child’s eyes seemed to be fixed on him. Trying to subtly move away, Shen Gurong used the lotus petal to create a small barrier.
However, he watched helplessly as the child’s gaze followed his movements, staring intently at him.
Shen Gurong: “…”
H-He’s discovered!
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Glossary:
[1]: For now please follow these stages as a general understanding because each normal varies from one to another so I can’t say it’s the same for this novel, details will be explored along the way as more chapters are translated.
Cultivation stages rank from bottom to top:
- Qi Refining
- Foundation Establishment
- Core Formation
- Golden Core
- Nascent Soul
- Soul Transformation
- Void Refining
- Body Fusion
- Transcending Tribulation
- Mahayana
- Immortal Ascension
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