I Was Originally a Heavenly Being

Chapter 15

"Even immortals have eaten these noodles! One bowl of plain noodles surpasses even a Living Immortal." The plump owner, apron tied around his waist, spun lies without so much as a blush or a skipped heartbeat, utterly unaware that the immortal he spoke of was passing right by his noodle stall.

"Finest charcoal..."

"Perfectly intact fox pelts..."

Gao Xian rode his donkey onto the street and headed out along North Gate Street. As the weather warmed, the streets grew several degrees more bustling and clamorous, and the vendors hawking their wares called out with even greater vigor.

Most men on the road wore round-collared robes and crowned hats, while women wore padded jackets. They did not observe much propriety either, arguing and haggling with vendors.

Women held no low status in Great Zhou. There were plenty who did business, carried swords, or served as female officials. It was nothing like the storybooks Gao Xian had once read, where women all hid away in boudoirs and embroidery towers, forbidden from showing their faces in public.

There were even some bold and fiery women staring at Gao Xian, pointing at him and whispering to their companions. Yet the moment they saw his long hair and the Daoist mark between his brows, their faces flushed crimson, and they no longer dared look directly at him.

He had been in Gongzhou City for some time now, yet this was the first time Gao Xian had truly taken in its bustling prosperity and mortal warmth.

He was honestly a little reluctant to leave. After all, this had been the first stop after he came down from the mountain, and quite a few things had happened here lately.

Spring was just around the corner, and Gao Xian had no intention of returning to Tianyun Temple. He would continue onward instead.

Just as he had told Lu Canghai: gaze upon the vast earth, lofty heavens, and depths of cloud; listen as the boundless sea surged and waves arose.

The mortal world clamored on; for now, there was no date of return.

Along the way, he would seek things that could be bestowed as Guardian Deities and uncover the abilities within himself.

As for the rough route, he had decided for the time being to head northwest.

In the end, he would go see Kunlun, the Sky-Reaching Divine Mountain said to hold up the heavens in the northwest, whose summit no one had ever managed to climb.

He could see the city tower in the distance and was about to leave the city.

Then, on the street, a tall horse suddenly came racing after him and blocked Gao Xian's path.

The man on horseback wore an official robe of brocade. It was Zhongxing Du.

Zhongxing Du had come eagerly to the residence where Xu Bayuan was staying, only to find Xu Bayuan and Lu Canghai, whose sight had been restored. The immortal had already departed.

Upon learning that the immortal could refine immortal pills and had used one to cure Lu Canghai's eyes, Zhongxing Du was both thrilled and excited, yet also terrified that the immortal would leave and all his merits would turn to nothing.

Zhongxing Du had spurred his horse onward in frantic haste. The instant he spotted the figure riding a donkey in the distance, he shouted.

"Zhongxing Du of the Martial Rites Division."

"I have come to request an audience with the immortal."

He dismounted, saluted, and extended an invitation.

Daoists were not uncommon, nor were people riding donkeys. But a Daoist riding a donkey in Gongzhou City was a different matter now.

Gao Xian had already drawn plenty of attention as he passed along the road. Those who noticed him only dared to steal glances, however. They did not dare confirm it, much less step forward.

But the moment Zhongxing Du shouted, everyone on North Gate Street knew that this Daoist was the immortal who had been the talk of all Gongzhou City these past days.

"An immortal! This is the immortal who came to our Gongzhou!" The noodle-stall owner instantly exposed the true face behind all his boasting.

"He really looks like someone who walked down from the clouds." Several servant girls shopping on the street were beside themselves with excitement.

"Oh, don't spout nonsense. The immortal will hear you." An older woman immediately pressed down the little girls.

The entire North Gate fell into turmoil. Every gaze gathered here, and the street's former clamor fell silent in an instant.

It was everyone's first time seeing what an immortal looked like. It had to be said that Gao Xian's appearance fit everyone's idea of an immortal quite well, and with it came an awe that could not be offended, rising from the depths of their hearts.

Gao Xian did not get down from his donkey. Sitting atop it, he looked at Zhongxing Du, whose waist was nearly bent to the ground. "Why have you blocked my path?"

Zhongxing Du replied, "I wish to invite the immortal to the Capital City."

Gao Xian asked, "What would I do in the Capital City?"

A look of confident calculation appeared in Zhongxing Du's eyes. "It is said that on Granny Mountain during the previous dynasty, an unknown Daoist attained the Dao and became an immortal, then secluded himself within Granny Mountain. That must have been you, Immortal?"

The previous dynasty? An unknown Daoist? Wasn't that the old Daoist?

Gao Xian felt that this man's thoughts had gone wildly off the rails. Why was he making blind guesses for no reason?

He was spewing nonsense in one breath, not making a lick of sense.

Seeing no change in Gao Xian's expression, Zhongxing Du assumed his guess was correct and immediately continued, "Since you possess the Art of Longevity, Immortal, why not present it to the Son of Heaven? The Current Emperor possesses both virtue and ability, with the bearing to unite the realm."

"If you emerge from the mountains to assist the emperor and establish an eternal dynasty, that too would be boundless merit."

As he spoke, a hint of longing appeared on Zhongxing Du's face. "High office and generous salary—even the position of Imperial Preceptor is not impossible."

The corners of Gao Xian's lips rose. "High office and generous salary? How generous?"

Yet Zhongxing Du did not notice. He was wholly immersed in his own flights of fancy. "Glory, wealth, and honor, to be enjoyed without end."

"The position of Imperial Preceptor? Is it very high?"

"Of course. Below one man, above ten thousand."

"Is it higher than an immortal?" Gao Xian suddenly asked.

Zhongxing Du's expression instantly turned incomparably ugly.

He felt that he had been mistaken. He could not use his own perspective to judge an immortal who had already transcended the mortal world.

The high ranks, noble titles, wealth, and splendor he had pursued with all his heart seemed to be within easy reach before this immortal. Yet what the immortal wanted was something he could not imagine at all.

With one look at the man before him, Gao Xian understood what he was thinking and saw the whole chain of cause and effect.

"And why have you only appeared now? You already knew where the people from Silver Flower Palace were and how they intended to deal with me, yet you kept waiting."

"I do not know what the immortal means." Zhongxing Du instantly broke out in a cold sweat. He suddenly realized that he had actually used those Jianghu tricks and schemes against an immortal. It was stupidity beyond measure.

"You wished to see how capable I truly was, to see whether Kongchenzi deserved the title of Sword Immortal."

The donkey stepped forward, and the force of heaven and earth pressed down with it, crushing Zhongxing Du's spine until he dropped to his knees with a thud.

"Heaven and earth are a chessboard. Do you wish to play chess as well, treating me as one of the pieces?"

Gao Xian's words struck Zhongxing Du's heart like a bolt of thunder exploding within it, and he collapsed to the ground.

"Heh!"

From that laugh, Zhongxing Du heard contempt for this mortal world, as well as mockery for his ignorance of the immensity of heaven and earth.

"You know only high office and generous salary."

"Do you know how high the heavens are? How thick the earth is?"

The Daoist said no more and rode his donkey past Zhongxing Du's side.

Then layer upon layer of flame wound around beneath him. Gao Xian drew both hands into his Daoist robe, closed his eyes, and rode the donkey as it leaped into empty air.

The donkey trod upon fire, leaping onto the city tower, then transformed into flames and vanished.

Only a few lines of poetry remained somewhere amid deep clouds and lofty skies beyond knowing.

"I was originally a Heavenly Being, Banished Immortal Descends to the Mortal World."

"Riding the wind, I sing one song; my clear whistle reaches the cloud-capped peaks."

"..."

As the poetry wound through the clouds and soared into the nine heavens, it vanished into the distance together with the immortal.

Within Gongzhou City, ten thousand people fell to their knees.

In an instant, the silence erupted into cries of astonishment like mountains calling and seas roaring, along with prayers for Immortals bless. Beneath the northern city gate, a black mass of people knelt toward the direction in which the immortal had departed.

Zhongxing Du, kneeling against the flow at the center, was especially conspicuous. His face was pale as death. The schemes and petty tricks he had played had thoroughly buried him.

What awaited him upon his return was not glory and wealth, but the thunderous wrath of the Duke of Wei.