Respect Ghosts and Gods, but Keep Them at a Distance

Duke Jing of Qi remained calm and unruffled, but the ancestral temple in the capital of Qi State had become bustling at this time, preparing to conduct a sacrifice.

Ghosts and gods normally dwelled within divine domains opened up by the power of incense and prayers. Or rather, only divine domains could keep their forms from dispersing.

Ghosts and gods were not Primordial Spirits. Even when fused with spiritual essence, they were inherently fragile. Yet human thoughts were exceedingly wondrous; once combined with spiritual essence, they formed what was known as incense, possessing marvelous power. It could not only allow ghosts and gods to endure, but even increase their strength.

Yet the ghostly path was deep and shadowed. Given enough time, even ancestral spirits would gradually lose themselves, ultimately turning into the ghosts and gods imagined by all living beings. It was not a path to immortality.

But that did not hinder the flourishing of the path of ghosts and gods, especially in Chu, which stood among its finest.

It was only in later ages, as spiritual essence declined and the thoughts of all living beings could no longer transform into the power of incense and prayers, that ghosts and gods vanished.

As for what followed, when spiritual essence revived, cultivation had already veered in another direction. The people of that era neither sought gods nor worshipped Buddhas; even ancestor worship was limited to ritual. I Alone Reign Supreme.

Coupled with universal cultivation, the path of ghosts and gods had already been eliminated.

Cultivators were all self-centered. It was fundamentally impossible to make them sincerely believe in any other being.

Still, traces of the path of ghosts and gods did exist in the future age. The Holy Emperor Path, created by the second Holy Emperor amid peril, was a continuation