Undercurrents

Li Qi got up and left.

He did not go to save the suffering people in the heavens, because there was no need.

Today, Li Qi is no longer the passionate young man he was in Guangyang.

If Li Qi were to return to Guangyang at this moment, he would most likely choose to stand by and watch, only intervening when the Chanzhi finally takes action.

As for what happened before, such as the struggle in Guangyang, the Sky Swallowing Demon Lord's desire to compete, the Rat King's attempt to seize the incense offerings, and even the locals' apathy, Li Qi probably wouldn't care.

There's no reason why, it's completely unnecessary.

Yes, there's no need. These things are all in a very natural state; they're just like this. They're not particularly good, but they're not particularly bad either. There's no need to force any changes.

Forcing change is like a documentary filmmaker trying to rescue a baby seal from a polar bear's mouth.

Is this a good thing?

I'm afraid not.

The only thing that might not be quite right is the arrival of the Zen Chanzhi, so Li Qi would stop that, but he would let the rest go unchecked.

The same applies to matters concerning the celestial realm.

The long life he had lived and the trials of nearly ten thousand years had taken a toll on Li Qi, making him less passionate and energetic than before.

He will still pursue his own path, but he will no longer interfere so intensely with the outside world, because he knows that the essence of those things is actually quite illusory.

The more powerful you are, the more you can appreciate the impact of one or two things on the world.

The impact is essentially negligible.

The broader your perspective, the smaller the individual's suffering becomes. Li Qi is not indifferent, nor has he lost his sense of justice and righteousness; rather, his vision has become more far-reaching, and he wants to solve deeper problems.

For example, just like before when he was in the mortal realm of the celestial realm, he did not reach out to help any mortals, nor did he rescue any suffering people; it seemed that he was just silently observing.

But a thousand years later, those mortals had transformed from animals kept by cultivators into humans, and were even qualified to 'make good intentions'.

Having a kind heart is very expensive; animals don't have enough capacity to be kind.

Before we knew it, everything had changed.

This is what Li Qi is doing now.

Of course, this is a typical Shaman's perspective, which is to view individual gains and losses from the perspective of the balance of the whole world.

From Human Path perspective, what is the point of the balance between heaven and earth? It's obvious that everyone deserves to be saved.

They have done things that saved a small team with millions of times the power. If a ninth-rank Human Path is in trouble in the outer realms and sends a distress message through the terminal, it is very likely that a seventh-rank cultivator will come to his rescue, completely disregarding the cost.

Of course, the premise is that you have to be a human being.

As for the demonic path or the Way of Evolution, don't expect anyone to come to your rescue; just let nature take its course.

Therefore, Li Qi did not interfere with this predicament. To resolve this matter, one must rely on a more profound Dao, a Dao sufficient to change the existing path of the True World.

Li Qi hasn't even figured out the Dao that already exists in the True World, so it's too early to talk about those things.

As for making everyone happy...

Li Qi could not do that.

Because the essence of happiness is not pleasure. No matter how much pleasure you have, you will eventually get tired of it and feel that it is ordinary.

What truly makes people feel happy is the contrast between expectations and reality.

The disparity between oneself and others, and the disparity between oneself and one's past life.

Falling from a high place to a low place and then getting back up can be very happy.

In the past, people ate coarse food and wild vegetables, but now they eat white flour buns. This difference makes people very happy, even happier than those who have lived a life of luxury.

The greater the difference between high and low, the stronger the sense of happiness. But after the difference comes habit, and after getting used to it, even the best things no longer feel like happiness.

The idea of making everyone happy is a false proposition, unless everyone is constantly experiencing ups and downs.

Even the process of going up and down will become a habit, and eventually you will become numb to falling or rising at will.

Just like ranking up in a game, some people feel numb and nervous when they first reach the top rank in the promotion match, but the joy of successfully ranking up fills their whole body.

But the second time, that feeling is hard to replicate.

If you play a few more times, you'll be a champion every season. Even if you start from scratch on a smurf account, you won't feel anything anymore.

Even if you force yourself to achieve chemical bliss with medication, you have to use increasingly larger doses to maintain it.

Therefore, it is impossible for everyone to be happy.

Li Qi knew this well, so he wouldn't pursue such illusory things.

Let's be realistic. After all, the purpose of this trip is not to save the people, but to win over the immortals. In essence, Li Qi is still doing what Shaman is doing.

Hopefully, all that Li Qi has done will lead Xian Tian to choose to join the 'Shaman Path' camp and help the Shaman Path fight against Human Path.

So, on the other side—

With Ling Xiao's help, the invitation letter written by Li Qi was delivered to every prominent person in the city.

Everyone knows that a Heaven-Piercing Realm wants to hold a banquet and has invited many people to attend.

In addition to the banquet at the top level, he even set up a continuous feast outside the venue, where anyone could come and eat, with no limit on the number of meals, but they were not allowed to take anything away.

No one could figure out what this person at the Heaven-Piercing Realm wanted to do.

But no matter what, they're definitely coming.

Li Qi went to prepare the banquet itself.

After sending out all the invitations, Ling Xiao was surrounded by a group of people inside.

But then a sixth-rank official hurriedly asked, "Miss Ling, you are the city lord's niece, so you must be on our side. You've been in front of that senior in the Heaven-Piercing Realm for so long, have you figured out his purpose?"

The others chimed in, "Yes, what does that senior intend to do?"

"Xiaoxiao, what kind of person is he exactly?"

"What is your cultivation level? How is your combat strength? How does it compare to the sect leader?"

"The sect leader is also at the Heaven-Piercing Realm, so he shouldn't be too far behind. But why is he traveling alone? Doesn't he have any disciples or grand-disciples? Or is he all alone?"

A bunch of people were asking questions all at once. They were clearly a group of sixth-rank people who had already attained immortality and were destined to enjoy eternal bliss, but at this moment Mama like a bunch of ducks.

Ling Xiao was also quite displeased with this scene, so she turned away and said, "Everyone, please keep your distance. Let's be more dignified and ask one by one. I will answer to the best of my knowledge. Let's not make this a crowd."

"That was our rudeness. Let's just stand here and ask. How about this, Ling Xiao, you stand there, and the others write their questions on slips of paper and give them to the city lord, who will then ask them one by one," someone suggested.

Despite being a sixth-rank official, he still possessed basic organizational skills. After the proposal was unanimously approved, the city lord stepped forward and sat down next to Ling Xiao, while the others quickly wrote down their questions and handed them to the city lord.

Everyone was eager to know the specific details.

Ling Xiao knew what they were thinking. These people cared a lot about that Heaven-Piercing Realm, but they were also wary of the people around them, fearing that someone might be able to use that Heaven-Piercing Realm to break a certain deadlock. That's why they gathered here, saying they were asking questions, but actually they were interrogating him. They couldn't leave this place on their own.

You have to give all the answers before you can leave.

Even his own uncle, the city lord, sat down in front of him, his eyes showing a smile, but also wary of the others.

Actually, there was no conflict among them, and they even got along quite well. There was no competition between them, because for a sixth-rank official, all the mines were already determined and could not be taken away casually, as that would be too risky.

But they remain wary of each other.

This reminded Ling Xiao of what that senior from the Heaven-Piercing Realm had said about the struggle for one's own subjectivity.

The struggle for fame and fortune is actually about vying for the 'qualification' to discipline others.

Because in the True World of the Immortal Heaven, there is no shortage of resources. As First Rank World, the Immortal Heaven can easily support everyone, so internal strife is entirely self-inflicted.

The total amount of resources occupied is not important; what matters is the percentage of resources occupied.

49% can't compare to 51%. Even if 49% has enough resources to enjoy for a thousand lifetimes, in terms of status, you are in the part that is disciplined by 51%, defined by the other party, and your subjectivity is invaded by the other party.

Whether it's combat strength, resources, or reputation, it's all the same.

The purpose is not for one's own survival needs, but to overpower the other party, otherwise one can only live in the other party's shadow.

Even though that senior from the Heaven-Piercing Realm was just passing by, they were unwilling to let this opportunity slip by easily, and they would never accept any threat from others, not even a 'possible' one.

Ling Xiao used to think that this situation was perfectly normal.

But after spending the past ten days or so with Li Qi, she suddenly realized... that it didn't necessarily have to be this way.

Aside from competition for survival, are other forms of competition really necessary?

What if we cooperate?

Of course, she was only thinking about it, because she knew that eliminating this kind of competition was almost impossible.

This competitive mentality that pressures others has been deeply ingrained in everyone's mind, including Ling Xiao's own.

Ling Xiao saw another possibility, but even she herself felt it was unrealistic.

Cooperate?

How can we cooperate?

There are many twists and turns involved here.

So, instead of doing anything else, she started answering questions.

Everyone submitted their questions to the city lord.

This city lord, who had previously been subservient to Li Qi, now appeared quite dignified. His goatee and middle-aged appearance gave him a rather imposing presence.

The city lord picked up the first question, "Then let's begin, what is this person's purpose?"

Ling Xiao replied, "He is observing the city, from the lowest mortals to people like us. This banquet was designed by him to observe us."

She didn't hide anything, because if she lied or concealed anything, others would easily see through it, and besides... Li Qi had also said that she didn't need to hide anything, she could just tell the truth.

Li Qi had no intention of hiding his intentions.

"Why are you observing this?" The city lord frowned slightly.

"If I had known, I could have become a Heaven-Piercing Realm." Ling Xiao pouted.

"Hmm... the next five questions all have this question, and the next one is, how does the other person feel about you? Do they like you? Do they hate you?" The city lord said, looking at Ling Xiao.

This gaze made Ling Xiao feel a little uncomfortable, but she still said, "He's not interested in me and basically ignores me. However, he asked me to draw his portrait. I used the portrait as an excuse to stay by his side anytime and anywhere and observe his expression."

This answer prompted the others to nod slightly.

There's hope.

Ling Xiao frowned.

These people seem to have misunderstood something.

"The next question is, what is the opponent's cultivation level?" the city lord asked again.

"Can't someone who asks such a question be thrown out? Doesn't he have eyes? He's been in the city these past few days, and your spies have been coming to check on him quite a bit, haven't they? Does someone like him even deserve to sit in this house?" Ling Xiao coldly swept her gaze across the others.

"My niece is right." The city lord smiled, then flicked his hand, and a fat man below changed his expression and was sent flying.

Even though they were both at the sixth rank, he sent the other flying with just one move, leaving the other with no chance to fight back.

Indeed, not just anyone can bear the title of city lord.

This startled Ling Xiao as well.

The city lord is her uncle, but he wasn't always like this.

Etc--

This change in attitude, could it be that the uncle wants to get something from her—

"Alright, let's move on to the next question. Don't be nervous." The city lord smiled and patted Ling Xiao on the shoulder.

Ling Xiao suddenly felt a chill.

Because of Li Qi's arrival, my uncle probably has some bad intentions...

There's no need for that. He's already the city lord, the most powerful person here. What is he thinking?

At this moment, the city lord's voice came again. "Hmm? Why aren't you answering? What are you thinking about?"

Ling Xiao quickly looked up. "Uncle... could you say it again? I didn't hear you just now."

The city lord remained calm and composed, and continued, "Oh, alright, the question just now was, did you grasp the essence of this senior? Even just a tiny bit would be helpful."

Ling Xiao felt a slight tightness in her chest.

A storm is brewing, and the wind fills the tower.

However, Li Qi, as the center of everything, was quite relaxed.

He is now sitting on a rock in the wild, playing with an Immortal Stone in his hand.

The reason for his relaxation is simple: he can mold the city into something completely, destroy it, and rebuild it all with one hand. Of course, that's relaxing, just like a vacation.

Faced with such power, it is only natural for others to want to utilize it; this is a natural ambition and a driving force for human progress.

To acquire power beyond oneself is the original aspiration of many civilizations' cultivation practices, and Li Qi has become accustomed to it.

In reality, it's more accurate to say that he was deliberately provoking these people.

Whether it's the city lord, other forces, or even Ling Xiao, everything is under Li Qi's control.

Driven by this ambition, many things are bound to happen in the city.

It was amidst the turmoil that Li Qi was able to see things more clearly.

A stagnant pool only reveals a calm surface; only when social conflicts are ignited can the true workings of the celestial realm be seen.

It's almost time.

Thinking about these things, Li Qi stood up from the rock.

He should get to preparing for the banquet; he's an expert at that.

Back in Chang'an, Li Qi was a professional at hosting banquets. The Flower Goddesses of the Imperial Garden would hire him as their contractor for their banquets.