Unsheathed

When the old scholar exited the scroll again, he saw that Cui Chan was still lying on the ground and playing dead. “How unseemly!” he humphed coldly.

Cui Chan dazedly stared at the sky and mumbled, “There’s nothing to look forward to anymore, so I might as well die and piss off from this world.”

The old scholar walked over and gave him a kick. “Stop trying to act pitiful. Don’t you want to know why Little Qi only lowered your cultivation base and didn’t dispose of you instead?”

Cui Chan’s eyes were adrift, and he murmured, “When you were kicked out of the Confucian temples back then, not only was Qi Jingchun not affected by you, but his cultivation base even continued to rise. This already revealed a lot of things. Qi Jingchun was already capable of founding his own branch since a?long time ago, and his view on Confucian principles was outwardly similar but inwardly different from your Scholarly lineage. Thus, he felt like he didn’t have the right to kill me. Instead, he hoped that you could clean up your own branch in the future.”

The old scholar was infuriated by his lack of fight. Giving him another kick, he roared, “To gauge the mind of a noble person with the mind of an immoral person[1]… This saying is describing people just like you! I’ll count to three, and if you still don’t get up by then, then you might as well lay here forever and wait for death! You won’t need to dream about attaining the Great Dao anymore. One! Two! Two! Two…”

Cui Chan was determined to remain lying on the ground.

The old scholar was left in an extremely awkward position, and he could only turn around and signal to Chen Ping’an with his eyes, asking the young boy to help dig him out of this hole.

Chen Ping’an nodded and retrieved the locust wood sword from Li Baoping’s hands. He then strode forward and arrived beside Cui Chan. With his face completely expressionless, he said the final “one” before thrusting the sword down at Cui Chan’s neck.

His thrust was powerful, and his aim was accurate. Perhaps Chen Ping’an didn’t realize it himself, but after experiencing and understanding the state of a calm mind inside the scroll, his hands were now finally able to keep up with his mind. Because of this, his thrust was incredibly fierce and filled with killing intent even though it looked unremarkable on the outside.

Cui Chan hurriedly scrambled?to his feet in terror.

Chen Ping’an put his wooden sword away and nodded at the old scholar, signaling that he had already resolved the pressing issue for him.

The old scholar sighed and looked toward the tall woman standing not far away from Chen Ping’an. “Let’s find a place to talk.”

He then shot a glare at Cui Chan and ordered, “You keep up as well! This pertains to your Dao attainment catalyst, so if you continue to stuff around, you might as well let Chen Ping’an kill you with a single slash.”

The group of people walked toward the courtyard. The old scholar looked around, and he shot a glance at the “small sky” that was being maintained by the sword spirit’s snow-white lotus leaf. His fingers formed seals, and after hesitating for a moment, he said, “Let’s find a room to chat. Chen Ping’an, is there anywhere suitable? We only need to talk, and it doesn’t matter if there isn’t any furniture in the room.”

Chen Ping’an glanced at Lin Shouyi’s room. His lights were already out, and this was perhaps because Lin Shouyi was already resting after exhausting himself by cultivating for too long in the pavilion. Chen Ping’an could only abandon his plan of using the largest room. He nodded at the old scholar and said, “Then let’s go to my room. There’s only a little boy called Li Huai sleeping there, and it shouldn’t be a big issue even if we wake him up by accident. However, Lin Shouyi is a cultivator who’s likely particular with many things, so it’s best that we don’t go over and disturb his rest.”

The sword spirit sat down on a stone chair in the courtyard and chuckled, “You guys chat. I’m not interested in these things.”

In the end, the old scholar, Chen Ping’an, the young Cui Chan, and Li Baoping sat on four chairs around the table in Chen Ping’an’s?room. Meanwhile, Li Huai was fast asleep on the bed. The little boy had a very bad sleeping posture, and right now, he was sleeping sideways across the bed with his head hanging off the side. Even so, he was still sound asleep.

Chen Ping’an adeptly helped the little boy straighten his body before placing his arms and legs under the blanket. He then folded the blanket in to prevent any warmth from escaping. In the end, Li Huai looked like a tightly wrapped up rice dumpling.

When Chen Ping’an completed all these natural tasks and returned to his seat, Li Baoping asked in a quiet voice, “Junior Uncle, do you help me fold my blanket in every?night as well?”

Chen Ping’an smiled and replied, “There’s no need to. Your sleeping posture is far better than Li Huai’s. You fall asleep immediately, and you remain still for the entire night until you wake up in the morning.”

Li Baoping shook her head and sighed. She struck her palm with her fist, and she lamented, “If I knew this earlier, then I would have developed a bad sleeping posture from a young age. This is all Big Brother’s fault. He lied to me and said that having a good sleeping posture would allow me to have good dreams.”

“Then I’ll need to thank your big brother when I return to the small town in the future,” Chen Ping’an chuckled.

During their journey, the family member whom?Li Baoping mentioned the most was her big brother. As a result, Chen Ping’an had a very good impression of this scholar who liked to hide in the library and read books.

The old scholar looked at the little girl and asked with a smile, “Is your big brother Fortune Street’s Li Xisheng?”

Li Baoping nodded and asked in puzzlement, “What’s wrong?”

“This name is quite ambitious[2],” the old scholar replied with a chuckle.

Cui Chan couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

Li Baoping was slightly worried, and she asked, “Is having an ambitious name a good thing or a bad thing?”

The old scholar became even more amused, and he replied with a shake of his head, “If one can withstand it, then having an ambitious name is naturally a good thing.”

Li Baoping was a little girl who loved getting hung up on things, so she asked, “Old mister, then how can one withstand it?”

Cui Chan rolled his eyes again. Ah shit, here we go again. This plays right into the old geezer’s hands. He loves educating others, so he’s definitely going to start giving a lecture to explain things.

Sure enough, the old scholar swept his gaze over the surroundings. He was slightly disappointed upon not finding any snacks to enjoy wine with, and he explained slowly, “If one’s fundamental nature is kind, if one’s knowledge is vast, if one’s character is highly moral, and if one has traveled the world and experienced many things, then they’ll naturally be able to withstand it.”

Li Baoping placed the seal on the table before kicking off her straw sandals and lifting her legs onto the chair to sit cross-legged. She then crossed her arms in front of her chest and said with a troubled expression, “But my big brother isn’t as impressive as this! Maybe I should write a letter back home and tell Big Brother to change his name?”

Cui Chan couldn’t help but say in reminder, “Old geezer, can we discuss the important matters first? The Great Dao, remember? The Great Dao!”

Li Baoping silently picked up the seal and huffed a breath over the four oracle bone script?characters on the bottom.

Cui Chan hurriedly shut his mouth.

Even if the old geezer possessed a supreme cultivation base, he was still someone who liked to speak reason, after all. Thus, being shameless and persistent was a tactic that would work on him.

However, the two children that Qi Jingchun had chosen were?Chen Ping’an, a hillbilly who had never studied before, and Li Baoping, a little girl whose understanding of principles was as crooked as could be. Meanwhile, Cui Chan was like a dragon who was stranded in shallow waters and being teased by fish at this moment. He was helpless against the two children, regardless of how knowledgeable?and powerful he was. His only fate was to be beaten and humiliated. The more he resisted, the more he would suffer.

The old scholar pulled a flagon of wine from thin air before tilting his head back and taking a small sip. He felt slightly sad as he looked at the seal that Li Baoping had placed back on the table.

In fact, Cui Chan was also feeling quite puzzled tonight. Even though there were some times when the old geezer would reveal his true emotions, he would be a stubborn and pedantic person the large majority of the time. No matter where he sat, he would always look like a gold statue that was sitting atop some divine platform. This was especially the case during the period of time when his teachings had enjoyed the most popularity.

When he hosted lectures to explain his teachings, had there ever been fewer than 1000 “disciples” sitting upright and listening with their ears pricked? Among his audiences, there were also rulers and officials, cultivators and immortals, and noble people and virtuous people. These were magnificent events, and even the traitor Cui Chan had to admit that his teacher had truly been as brilliant as the sun and moon at that time. The Scholarly Sage’s brilliance shone both day and night, and such was his radiance that even the myriad stars in the galaxy seemed to lose their luster.

Just then, however, the old geezer had actually kicked him twice? And he was actually drinking wine while talking about the Great Dao?

Even though Cui Chan appeared casual and uncaring, he was actually feeling extremely serious and solemn at this moment.

At the end of the day, Cui Chan had extremely complicated feelings toward the old geezer sitting beside him. He both admired and resented him, and he both feared and remained fond of him. As the first disciple of the Scholarly Sage, did Cui Chan not also feel angry at his teacher’s lack of fight and aggrieved at his teacher’s misfortunes?

Li Huai started to talk in his sleep, murmuring, “A’Liang, A’Liang, I want to eat meat! Stingy A’Liang, just let me take a sip of wine from your small gourd…”

Li Baoping’s eyes lit up. Li Huai’s embarrassing act could be used as a topic for conversation after snacks and meals for many days.

Cui Chan shot a subtle glance at the old scholar when he heard the mention of A’Liang.

The old scholar cleared his throat and looked at the three people sitting around the table. “Alright, let’s get into the main topic now. Chen Ping’an, Li Baoping, the two of you probably know that I’m Qi Jingchun’s teacher already. As for Cui Chan, he was once my first disciple and Qi Jingchun’s senior brother. Because I was busy studying at that time, it was indeed my first disciple Cui Chan who was responsible for Qi Jingchun’s study and education in other things such as Go.

“Afterward, however, Cui Chan turned his back on me and even committed?the sins of deceiving his master and destroying his ancestors. In fact, Cui Chan could also be considered one of the players in the game of Go that resulted in Qi Jingchun’s death in Jewel Small World. As such, it’s no exaggeration to label him a culprit who killed his own junior brother.

“The same can be said for Ma Zhan, one of my unofficial disciples. However, Ma Zhan wasn’t a player in the game of Go. Instead, he was a critical ‘overplay’[3] controlled by the main culprit hiding behind the scenes. Before I arrived in your hometown, this young body was only a temporary residence for Cui Chan. The real Cui Chan is the imperial preceptor of the Great Li Empire and an old man who doesn’t look any younger than me.”

There was a furious expression on Li Baoping’s face, and the rims of her eyes were red with rage as she glowered at Cui Chan.

However, Chen Ping’an’s response frightened Cui Chan even more. His gaze was lowered, and his expression couldn’t be seen.

The dog that bites doesn’t show its teeth[4].

Cui Chan was far too familiar with Chen Ping’an’s personality. After all, he had paid more attention to the life and experiences of the young boy from Clay Vase Alley than Old Man Yang.

Cui Chan tried his best to maintain his composure. However, he couldn’t help but think, Shit, I’m dead meat. Old geezer, you’ve truly screwed me over.

The old scholar changed the topic, and he looked at Chen Ping’an and asked, “There’s something that I need to ask you first, and we can treat this as the introduction to tonight’s conversation. If you agree, then I’ll go ahead and act according to my plan. I want to extract a ‘segment of time’ from you. Don’t worry, it won’t involve too many of your private matters. Are you willing to accept this request?”

“Go ahead,” Chen Ping’an replied with a nod.

The old scholar extended a hand and flicked his wrist at Chen Ping’an. Before long, strands of mist appeared around Chen Ping’an and slowly flowed toward the old scholar’s palm, eventually transforming into a clear and crystalline ball of water that was green in color. The old scholar turned his hand such that his palm was facing downward. He then lightly massaged the ball of water, causing it to flow toward the table. Lively and vivid images appeared on the table.

Li Baoping widened her eyes in astonishment. She hurriedly leaned over the table and exclaimed, “Wow, Junior Uncle, this is the mountain path where we encountered the female ghost in the wedding dress! Oh, and I’m in this image as well! Haha, my small bookcase is still the prettiest one! Sure enough, it looks better than Lin Shouyi and Li Huai’s. They look quite silly while carrying their bookcases…”

From when the female ghost appeared on the muddy path with her oil-paper umbrella, to when the countless lanterns lit up over the mountain path and created a magnificent dragon that snaked through the mountains…

From when Lin Shouyi used his paper talisman but still failed to break free from the “ghost hitting the wall” trap, to when they were tricked to the residence with the plaque “Beautiful Water Noble Wind”…

And from Wei Jin’s carefree arrival when he shattered the formation with his flying sword, to when he resolved the difficult situation and successfully led them away…

The old scholar made a grabbing motion at the table, causing the “segment of time” to gather into a?ball of water again. He then pushed this ball of water toward Chen Ping’an, causing it to vanish from the world.

This was a supreme mystical ability that pertained to the source of the Great Dao. However, the old scholar was able to dexterously wield it without relying on the small world of a sage and without relying on the mysterious power of an artifact.

Li Baoping found this magical and interesting.

However, Cui Chan was someone who understood the implications of this. He became increasingly astonished. Just what in the world was going on with the old geezer? He had clearly lost his cultivation as a sage, so why could he still wield such incredible powers?

“Is this female ghost detestable?” the old scholar asked in a quiet voice. “Of course she’s detestable. She killed countless innocent people, and her crimes are cruel and numerous. However, is she pitiful as well? She is pitiful in some sense. As a ghost, she was initially kind-hearted and able to hold down fortune for the imperial court. At the same time, she also performed many good deeds for the locals and was very amiable with the passing scholars. This should have been a beautiful thing. In the end, however, she fell into?a state where she was detested by all and pushed back by the Great Dao. She’s entangled in karmic fate, and she’s weighed down by so many matters that she won’t be able to resolve them in several lifetimes.”

The old scholar sighed and said, “That’s why it’s often said that behind every detestable person is a reason for pity. Isn’t that right?”

Cui Chan felt as if he were facing a formidable foe. He didn’t dare to nod, nor did he dare to shake his head.

Li Baoping quickly entered her “contemplation” mode. After carefully mulling over this for a while, she replied, “She’s more detestable than pitiable.”

The old scholar nodded at the little girl and asked with a chuckle, “Then between being detestable and pitiable, how much more detestable than pitiable is she? And what percentage of her is pitiable?”

Li Baoping carefully pondered this for a while?longer before replying, “We’ll measure this using the notions of being fair, being reasonable, and being legal. We’ll evaluate her actions using this, and we’ll carefully calculate the numbers using the results?”

The old scholar smiled and continued to ask, “Li Baoping, sticking to things that are legal is naturally good. However, a new problem then arises. How do we determine whether the laws in the world are good laws or bad laws?”

The little girl was stumped, and it seemed as if she had never considered this problem before. However, she didn’t back down, and she replied, “Old mister, give me some time. This question is quite big and difficult like the one Junior Uncle gave me last time. I need to think about it carefully for a while!”

There was a kindly smile on the old scholar’s face as he nodded and praised, “Very well.”

Cui Chan humphed coldly as he looked at the familiar expression on the old scholar’s face and the expression of concentration on Li Baoping’s face.

As expected of Qi Jingchun’s teacher and Qi Jingchun’s most prized disciple. Their mannerisms are the same, and even the atmosphere of their lessons is?the same!

After stumping Li Baoping, the old scholar turned around to look at the pure eyes of Chen Ping’an. “When studying and contemplating difficult questions in the past, I always liked to consider the worst-case scenarios first. Today is no different. Behind every detestable person is a reason for pity — there’s no glaring problem with this statement. However, many self-proclaimed smart people in the world like to act as if everyone else is drunk while only they remain sober. They focus only on the pitiable aspect mentioned by this statement, and they purposely gloss over and ignore the detestable aspect.

“Some of them are simply abusers of mercy and compassion, and this is compounded by the fact that they aren’t the victims of said people’s ‘detestable’ nature. As such, they don’t feel the same agonizing pain as the victims. Yet, these people like to stand on the sidelines and loudly offer their opinions, blindly insisting that others be tolerant and merciful. Chen Ping’an, where do you think the root of the problem lies?

“You have to realize that many of these people that I speak of have read many books and are indeed quite knowledgeable. Some of them might even be extremely skilled at expounding grand but empty principles. Chen Ping’an, do you have any thoughts about this? Feel free to say whatever is on your mind.”

Chen Ping’an wanted to say something, but he couldn’t help but hesitate. In the end, he replied, “I don’t have anything to say.”

Cui Chan was no longer in the mood to listen to Chen Ping’an’s reply. He started to silently analyze the situation, mulling over why the old geezer was suddenly talking about these things.

The old scholar looked at Li Baoping to his left and Cui Chan to his right before slowly saying, “Right and wrong can be measured by the human mind, while good and evil will be weighed by the god of the underworld. Why is this? This is because each person’s moral character, upbringing, and life experience are?different. The human mind fluctuates, so how many people dare to claim that their conscience is the fairest and most upright?

“And thus, Legalists adopted a shortcut whereby they drew a bottom line for morals and etiquette. The line was drawn at this height, and it couldn’t be placed any lower.”

As he said this, the old scholar reached down and used his finger to draw a line lower than the table.

“Of course, it’s possible for these laws to include ‘bad laws’ as I alluded to just then. I won’t expand on this point anymore, or else we could sit here for three days and three nights and still have a lot to cover. To summarize, laws are inanimate, while the human mind is alive. If there exists no one to enforce the laws, then such laws will further be as dead as can be. As such, we still need to seek a solution from a higher level.”

The old scholar raised his hand and pointed at the roof.

1. Saying derived from Zuo Zhuan. 👈

2. Xisheng literally means “hoping to become a sage”. 👈

3. Literally translates to unreasonable play, and this means a potentially dangerous piece. 👈

4. This means that dangerous people can often look quite harmless 👈