In a corner of the teahouse, Ge Xian, who had set the pace while keeping his own contributions hidden, was listening with rapt attention. He couldn't help sighing to himself:
"This blasted Dayuan Dynasty could have all the territory in the world and it still wouldn't matter. It's bound to fall apart and be replaced."
"Even ordinary folk talk about the Rebel Army without a care. Looks like the dynasty won't last more than a few years."
"If things followed the history of my previous life, then among these rebel armies, the one who'd make it would be Zhu Hongwu—the one who supposedly started out with nothing but a bowl..."
At that, Ge Xian shook his head.
There were a few similarities, but things were clearly very different.
It wasn't just that "this Yuan wasn't that Yuan." In his predecessor's memories, the dynasties that came before the Dayuan Dynasty were also filled with many strange and uncanny things, enough to make Ge Xian realize he couldn't blindly apply the history of his previous life.
All of this left Ge Xian in a complicated state. He was both terrified by the horrors of this world and excited to explore the unknown.
What made his smile grow ever brighter was that, after they finished discussing strange tales from the countryside and the Rebel Army, the martial artists soon took over the conversation and began sharing all sorts of curious anecdotes about cultivation. Ge Xian perked up both ears, unwilling to miss even a single word.
"Ah, what does it matter how much wealth and glory you gain in this life? You still can't escape birth, aging, sickness, and death. If only one could live forever. Alas, I'm not blessed with such fortune. I've only heard that we common folk might be born with extraordinary talents, or awaken supernatural powers by chance, and then be noticed by an Immortal God and taken in as a disciple."
"I've heard of something like that. A woodcutter went up the mountain and came upon two deities playing chess. In a daze, he passed a hundred years. Now that's a curious tale."
"I heard of a scholar in western Zhejiang who fell into a well. Not only did he survive, he even married the Well Dragon King's daughter and became an Immortal God as her live-in son-in-law."
"Those stories are too ethereal. I heard that back in my hometown, there was a bald child covered in sores who was lucky enough to encounter an Immortal God in the wilderness. He was called the Shenyang Immortal, the master of Shenyang Cave, and had lived for eight hundred years. That child must have stepped in a mountain of dog shit to become his disciple."
"Hahaha... Brother, don't be jealous. That child's flesh and bones have probably all turned to shit and piss by now. The so-called Shenyang Immortal is really an eight-hundred-year-old ape demon who often ravages Guizhou and eats people."
"We martial folk already have our own paths. Why chase after such airy, insubstantial things? Take Shaolin Temple, for example. I've heard it secretly passes down the divine art Muscle Tendon Classic, which lets you transplant the sinews of demons and evil ghosts into your own body, tempering your marrow and transforming your bones until you're no different from an Immortal God. Then there's the Kasaya Demon Subduing Skill. As long as you carve its demon-subduing divine patterns all over your skin, like a kasaya, you can gain extraordinary powers too."
At this, Ge Xian nearly dropped his teacup.
Good heavens!
So that was what the Muscle Tendon Classic was?
Clearly, it wasn't only the Mortal World that had become a version of demons, Immortal Gods, and other beings. The martial world had changed too.
But before Ge Xian could become interested in these "Bizarre Martial Arts," an old man in the crowd shook his head and chimed in:
"Immortal Gods are hard to find, and these strange martial arts aren't easy to learn either. The Beggar Sect, the largest force in the martial world with the most disciples, created techniques like the Dog Beating Staff Technique, Lotus Falling, Lotus Palm, Bronze Hammer Hands, and Eight Immortals Palm. But to cultivate them, the Beggar Sect's disciples must first master Life Harvesting Dismemberment and Blood Sacrifice Hundred Ghosts... And what's the price? Nothing but their humanity."
"Listen to this old man's advice: for us mortals, becoming an Immortal God is harder than climbing to heaven. All that hard seeking leads either to unorthodox paths or wicked, heretical arts. Even if you manage to set foot on the Dao Path this way, you'll surely meet a bad end."
"If you truly wish to cultivate the right way, you'll have to seek out the Myriad Laws Sect. Awaken a talent, find the corresponding Spirit God temple, and you can enter the Dao."
At first, the old man's words sounded very reasonable.
Even Ge Xian had been about to nod.
But soon, someone in the crowd spoke up in rebuttal:
"Heh, as far as I know, both the Fuyang County Magistrate and the Qiantang County Magistrate belonged to the Myriad Laws Sect, and both happened to worship one of the sect's Four Spirit Gods. One followed the Spirit God Without Apertures, while the other followed the Gu-Eating Spirit God."
"When the Fuyang County Magistrate went on a rampage, he ate half the population. And this Qiantang County..."
"Bad luck! What happened in Fu Yang was an accident. The Myriad Laws Sect has been the state religion since ancient times. What ignorant brat dares to spout such nonsense?"
Just as it looked like they were about to start shouting at each other, the teahouse owner seemed to remember something and slapped his forehead, interrupting them.
"Today seems to be the day County Magistrate Lu holds the sacrifice at the Gu Spirit Temple. I heard they'll be handing out Taisui Grains and reward money."
"Oh? It's about time."
Almost as soon as the owner finished speaking,
the other end of the county's main street suddenly erupted into an uproar. Then a large crowd of changshi in yamen uniforms and soldiers in armor appeared, roughly clearing the streets. Soon after, a grand procession of gongs and drums came from the direction of the county yamen.
On both sides, at the front and rear of the procession, constables tossed out reward money and bags of Taisui Grains that had been prepared in advance.
As they scattered them, they shouted:
"Today is an auspicious day! His Excellency the County Magistrate will personally offer sacrifices to the Gu-Eating Spirit God. All county residents may come watch the rites and join the offering!"
With intimidation, reward money, and food all brought together, the common folk had no power to resist.
Amid wave after wave of cheers, the procession swelled rapidly, and Qiantang County seemed to fall into a festive mood.
Ge Xian was among them.
In truth, this was the very scene he had been waiting for.
Although he had received invitations from more than one Spy Organization, he had yet to hand over a single piece of intelligence. He wasn't even an outer member, so naturally he couldn't get any benefits from those organizations, let alone truly join them and set foot on the Path of Cultivation.
This was his chance. The task lists issued by those organizations were numerous, troublesome, and varied, but they shared one rare point of agreement: all of them were extremely interested in "Qiantang County Magistrate Lu Hualong."
As long as Ge Xian could uncover some worthwhile information about him, he would pass their tests.
But now, as he followed the sacrificial procession, Ge Xian was also mulling over the cultivation paths the old man had mentioned.
Bizarre Martial Arts!
The Myriad Laws Sect!
There were two paths in all. He couldn't get close to the former for now, so he would set it aside.
As for the latter, when Ge Xian began carefully searching through his predecessor's memories, his expression gradually grew complicated.
After all, these were the half-life memories of a stranger from another world. Earlier, he had only digested them roughly.
It would take time before he could truly become the Ge Xian of this world.
"The Myriad Laws Sect is also known as the Myriad Gods Sect."
"It seemed to have existed since ancient times, growing and expanding until, during the reign of Emperor Wu of the Great Yan Han Dynasty, a Dong Clan Protector within the sect won the emperor's complete trust. He abolished the Hundred Schools and made the Myriad Laws Sect the sole revered faith. Though things had risen and fallen repeatedly since then, the Myriad Laws Sect held the position of state religion most of the time. The same was true in the present Dayuan Dynasty."
At that point, it still didn't seem all that astonishing.
It was merely a powerful sect that had secured the position of state religion.
But soon, Ge Xian learned more, and the astonishment in his eyes deepened.
"The Myriad Laws Sect is also called the Myriad Gods Sect because it seems to have no taboos. Any Immortal God who pledges allegiance is accepted and given an appropriate title and position. As a result, the number of deities worshipped within the sect has swelled beyond counting. Even the most learned Myriad Laws priests can hardly know them all."
"Overall, they seem to be divided into two factions: Spirit Gods and Flesh Gods."
"As for the Myriad Laws Sect Master, there is only one. He also has titles like Supreme Emperor Lord and Haotian Supreme."
"Under him are many powerful Immortal Gods, and he can command the Heavenly Soldiers and Heavenly Generals. Now that I think about it, why does this sound so much like the... Heavenly Court from my previous life?"
As soon as the thought arose, Ge Xian shook his head and dismissed it.
What kind of Heavenly Court would raise followers like a "Man-eating County Magistrate" or a "Thigh-cutting Magistrate"?
Just as he thought of this, he suddenly realized that he had arrived at the sacrificial grounds with the procession.
A grand, extravagant, and uncanny temple abruptly appeared before him.
It was strangely shaped, and built mostly from materials like black stone and scrap iron. Its walls were covered in lines of patterns that were nauseating to look at. Above the temple hung a rust-spotted bronze plaque engraved with five tadpole-script characters.
His predecessor had boasted of being able to write all sorts of contracts and documents, but in truth, he could only manage set phrases. He was basically half-illiterate and naturally couldn't recognize tadpole script.
But he didn't need to recognize it now. He could guess.
The plaque must have read:
Gu Spirit Temple!
When the county residents drew near, they all looked uneasy, clearly unwilling to enter.
But under the changshi's prodding and the lure of rewards, they all filed inside, cheering even as they wore faces as long as funeral banners.
Ge Xian followed along too, slowly pushing his goods cart, his eyes alight with intense curiosity.
The temple had been built some time ago, but his predecessor had been too afraid to ever go in and look around. So he had no idea what sort of Immortal God the so-called Gu-Eating Spirit God was.
The next instant!
The answer was revealed.
The moment Ge Xian stepped over the threshold, a statue four or five zhang tall came into view, cast entirely from iron.
The deity had a tiger's head and a human body, sharp spikes growing from its back, and wings. It was ferociously vicious, yet wore a brilliantly multicolored Daoist robe. Its pose made it look just like a Spirit God Celestial Lord who punished evil, upheld justice, devoured Gu, and drove out demons.
For a moment, Ge Xian stood before the temple.
His face was filled with an indescribably complicated expression. He had thought the sight would horrify him, but his brief experience since being reborn, the memories in his mind, and the strange tales he had heard not long ago
were all reminding him with absolute clarity that in the world he now inhabited, anything could happen and anything could appear. It all had its own uncanny logic, and there was nothing worth being surprised about.
"Even an ancient, man-eating ferocious beast..."
"Could transform itself and become a Gu-Eating Spirit God, worshipped by mankind and offered incense."
"Since this beast-turned-Spirit God holds some status in the Myriad Laws Heavenly Court, there's no need to say what sort of place that Heavenly Court must be."
Before you continue