Where Is the Path to Immortality? (Thanks to "Number 5431" for the Alliance Leader)

"Virtue...

"Five Qi...

"Soul-Calming Method..."

Lin Jue's mind was muddled as he recalled the events of last night. Everything felt both real and illusory, like waking from a dream.

He slowly made his way back to the ancestral hall.

It was just before dawn. The daylight had yet to fully brightened, though the sky outside was a deep blue and the east had begun to pale. Inside the ancestral hall, however, it remained dim, the ground still a patch of blackness.

Not knowing what to do, he casually lowered his head for a look. He could vaguely make out debris such as tiles and bricks, and there seemed to be things left behind by that man last night. But the ancestral hall had been empty to begin with, with nothing that ought to be taken away and no reason to linger. He did not inspect it closely. Gathering his bedding beneath one arm, picking up his Firewood Knife and oil lamp, he headed out.

Even his footsteps seemed to float.

After leaving the ancestral hall, he followed the little alley outside. He had not gone far beyond it when the door of a residence suddenly opened and someone emerged, staring at him in surprise.

"Good lad! You really made it through the night?"

"..."

Lin Jue turned to look at the man. He did not recognize him. After thinking for a moment, he finally understood—the man must have been sent by the Wang Family to watch whether they had truly spent the night in the ancestral hall. Only then did he answer:

"More or less..."

"I'll take you to see Old Master Wang!"

With that, the man reached out and took Lin Jue's things from him. Lin Jue gave him whatever he took. At last, hearing him say, "Follow me," he followed behind him.

With every stretch they walked, the sky grew a little brighter.

By the time they returned to Old Mr. Wang's old residence, the morning sun had risen in the east, and its light had crossed the mountains.

Old Master Wang had long since risen. He still sat in the grand chair in the main hall, drinking morning tea as he watched them. Listening to the man recount Lin Jue's situation, he more or less confirmed that Lin Jue had truly spent the night in the ancestral hall.

Old Master Wang could not help but be surprised. Holding his teacup, he looked at Lin Jue.

"You really slept in there all night?"

"Reporting to Old Master, I never left."

Looking at the old master and the spacious main hall, Lin Jue finally began to come back to himself, pulling free from that state where reality and illusion blurred together.

It truly felt as if he were still dreaming.

"That man ran away in the middle of the night, but you didn't?"

"I didn't..."

"I truly misjudged you!"

"..."

"Why do you look so listless? Did you not sleep all night, or were you bewitched by whatever was in that ancestral hall?" Old Master Wang turned to a Madam beside him. "How do you treat guests? Pour our guest a cup of tea as well."

"Neither."

Lin Jue shook his head and answered truthfully.

"Then what is it?"

"It just feels... like I'm dreaming..."

"Then you saw that thing last night?" Old Master Wang set down his teacup.

"I dealt with it..." Recalling the small figure he had seen that morning, as well as the figure from last night's dream—already vague then and now long forgotten—Lin Jue still shook his head. "I never saw its true face."

"A guest is a guest. Don't just stand there. Sit beside me and tell me in detail about last night. Tell me how you made it through the night."

"..."

Since Ghosts and Monsters truly existed in this world, this old man of considerable renown must have seen such things during his many decades of life. Thus, though he knew Demonic Ghosts had come to his family's ancestral hall, he was not overly alarmed. Yet of the three people who had spent the night there, one Old Master had not seen any Demonic Ghosts at all—and given his temperament, might even have declared after leaving that there were no Demonic Ghosts there at all—while another had simply slept through the entire night and awoken after daybreak. It was quite possible that Old Master Wang himself did not know what kind of being had come to his ancestral hall, nor what it looked like.

The Madam brought Lin Jue a cup of tea. Lin Jue thanked her and took a sip. Its clear bitterness, chrysanthemum fragrance, and many other flavors struck his taste buds at once, waking him considerably.

"Old Master need not worry. That one left this morning. I imagine your family's ancestral shrine will have no more troubles from now on."

"Left?"

"Indeed."

"Oh? Why? Tell me in detail!"

"Last night, we..."

Lin Jue then recounted everything truthfully, from beginning to end.

Gradually, more and more people entered the main hall, likely descendants of standing or favor within the household. Their eyes widened as they listened. Some people also gathered outside the door, clinging to the doorframe with the same expressions of curiosity.

Lin Jue patiently told the story bit by bit.

There were only questions, no interruptions.

He was forced to recount it in ever greater detail.

There were only held breaths, astonished gazes, and at most a few scrutinizing looks. No one openly questioned him.

"When I finally woke up, it was nearly dawn."

Having finished his account earnestly, Lin Jue remained sitting where he was.

Old Master Wang, seated at the head, fell somewhat silent, still savoring the words the monster had said to Lin Jue at the end.

"..."

In the end, he said nothing. He merely raised his teacup and took a sip, then looked at Lin Jue again. "If that thing truly left, then our Wang Family must thank you greatly."

"It would not be right to put it that way." Lin Jue thought for a moment, then said solemnly and truthfully, "That one left today first because Old Master's reward scheme had made it unable to rest in peace. Then the Old Master and the butcher from the county town, both difficult to provoke, went in and made it feel troubled and hard pressed. By the time it came to me, the fire had merely reached the right heat. It was not solely the work of my final handful of firewood."

"Hehe..."

Old Master Wang smiled at that, then asked, "How old are you this year?"

"I just turned fifteen."

"Rare indeed, rare indeed..."

Old Master Wang nodded repeatedly, then considered for a moment.

"Let us assume today that you did not lie, and that thing did not deceive you either—that it truly departed for good. No matter what, your contribution was the greatest.

"Since even that Demonic Ghost knew to remember your filial devotion to your uncle, our Wang Family has some reputation in this area. Naturally, we cannot be worse than a Demonic Ghost. Besides, we are neighboring villages. With your family in such straits, so long as we have the means, it is only right, by both sentiment and reason, that we lend a hand.

"Here is what we shall do. The two of you spent the night there, but only you did not leave midway. I will give you the other reward as well, as payment for your service. In addition, your uncle's medical treatment will be borne by our Wang Family.

"What do you think?"

After hearing of Lin Jue's conversation with the monster in the ancestral hall, Old Master Wang had, at some point, shifted from putting on airs to holding Lin Jue in far greater regard. He even turned his head now to seek Lin Jue's opinion.

"Many thanks, Old Master."

Lin Jue hurriedly rose and bowed.

Modesty was one thing, honesty another. This was not something he could refuse.

Old Master Wang raised his eyes to examine him. The more he looked, the more extraordinary he found him, and so he added, "Change it to twenty taels of silver, so it will be easier for him to carry."

"Thank you, Old Master."

"Don't be in such a hurry to return. Our Wang Family has a fine feast prepared for you. You must eat before you leave."

"I appreciate the kindness, but I must decline. I did not return all night, and my family must be terribly worried. Besides, Uncle is bedridden at home, suffering greatly. Aunt and Cousin are exhausted from tending him at his bedside, scrimping on food and clothing. How could I dare eat fine rice and good dishes here at Old Master's house?"

Lin Jue immediately refused.

"Very good."

Old Master Wang continued smiling and waved a hand. "Then prepare the ingredients and wine, and send them to your home later."

"I would be disrespectful to refuse..."

"If you need help in the future, simply come to our door."

"Many thanks, Old Master."

Lin Jue had nothing else to say, so he could only thank him again and again.

After a night of hazy confusion, three pieces of waist-bound honeycomb silver had appeared in his arms, ten taels each. The extra piece was for buying medicine. They weighed heavily in his pocket, tugging at his coarse cloth clothes. Bathed in the bright daylight as he walked out through the Wang residence gates, Lin Jue felt an indescribable sense of possession.

Floating along as he walked back to Shu Village, the sense of fantasy born from last night's experience was not dispersed by the joy and sense of possession brought by gaining wealth. Instead, it grew ever stronger with time, making everything feel ever more wondrous.

There was also an unreal feeling, as if he had passed into another age.

Entering the village by way of Lower Bridge Pavilion, he saw the village elder and that group of children again as he turned the corner.

Perhaps he had barely slept last night. Perhaps battling demonic magic had drained too much of his mind. Or perhaps he was weary from having just glimpsed the unfamiliar side of this world. Lin Jue stopped involuntarily, leaned against the wall, and stared blankly in that direction.

The village elder was still telling tales of immortals and ghosts.

The children still listened with rapt attention.

The story drifted into Lin Jue's ears, and at once, it swept up all the stories he had heard before into his mind.

Foxes, Ghosts and Monsters, good and evil, Deities.

Cultivating the Dao, arts and magic, immortals, longevity.

A single Golden Pill rises to heaven;

A single evil deed falls to earth.

Half true and half false, real and illusory, existing only upon people's lips.

The flavor of such stories was truly hard to express in words alone. Their spirit could perhaps only be felt with the heart. They were not thrilling, nor were they rigorous or rational, yet they were strange and romantic, their images deeply moving.

Lin Jue stood there without realizing it, listening stupidly, yet he could not stop pondering that question in his mind—

What kind of world was this, exactly?

Since monsters existed in this world, did ghosts exist as well? If ghosts existed, then did immortals and the Buddha exist too? Did Daoist magic and cultivation exist? Did the three thousand worlds spoken of by Buddhism exist, and the carefree immortality spoken of by Daoism?

Then how was he supposed to seek them?

Where, exactly, lay this path of immortality and longevity?

And where was he to find the so-called Soul-Calming Method?

He did not know how he returned home. He saw Aunt, went to see Uncle as well, briefly told them of last night's events and the thirty taels of silver, and finally returned to his room amid Aunt's worried instructions.

The room was simple, yet it was a place where his heart could rest.

The moment he lay down, just as his thoughts wandered and his mind grew heavy, he suddenly sensed that something was off.

He turned his head to look—

At some unknown time, an Ancient Book had appeared beside him.

It had no title.

It was an unfamiliar book.

Lin Jue froze for a moment. Then he suddenly remembered that when he had risen and returned to the ancestral hall that morning, he seemed to have seen something like a book in the darkness as well—square and neat. But it had been too dark to see clearly, and he had assumed it was likely left by the man from last night. His mind had also been muddled and full of thoughts, so he had not paid it any heed. He had only taken his bedding, Firewood Knife, and oil lamp before leaving.

He did not know whether it was the same thing.

Lin Jue could not help picking it up.

"Whoosh..."

He flipped it open at random. The book was entirely blank.

Only the first page had words on it.

It read:

Exhale Qi

A method commonly used by demons, spirits, ghosts, and gods.