On the Path to the Great Dao

Chen Shi watched the white-robed man enter the ornate coffin, admiration gleaming in his eyes. "If I could pull off something like that, the next time I lie in a coffin, it’d be spectacularly cool."

Grandpa steered the cart with his compass as they departed.

"Grandpa, does this Xiao Wangsun also need to stay at the corpse cultivation site to recover?" Chen Shi asked, tilting his head.

Grandpa focused on the compass and replied, "Don’t ask about others when you’re at the manor."

Hearing this, Chen Shi dropped the matter, though he couldn’t help glancing back at the mysterious mountain estate, his curiosity piqued.

This manor, built by Grandpa and a group of enigmatic individuals, seemed governed by a peculiar set of unspoken rules. No one asked about origins or pasts, and everyone abided by these conventions without question.

"It’s like something out of a criminal gang," Chen Shi thought, blinking. "Grandpa must have done plenty of bad things back in the day. Maybe even terrible things. But no matter what, he’s still my grandpa."

When the pair returned to Huangpo Village, a piercing scream soon echoed from Chen Shi’s room.

"My candied hawthorn! My glutinous rice cakes! And my sugar figurine! Who stole them? Which cursed thief dared touch my treasures?"

Grandpa, engrossed in drawing sigils, looked up to see Chen Shi storming out, brimming with fury. "It must’ve been the village kids! They snuck in while I wasn’t home and ate my treats! I didn’t even get to enjoy them properly!" Chen Shi seethed, marching outside with a dark expression. "They’ll all pay for this—time for some torture!"

Grandpa called out, stopping him. "No one stole them. I threw them out. You’ve been asleep for seven days; they had already spoiled."

Chen Shi’s face fell, despair replacing his anger. But soon he brightened, pleading, "Grandpa, you bought so many delicious things last time. I was saving them, only eating a little each day to make them last longer. Could you buy some more for me?"

"No money."

Grandpa put down his brush and looked up briefly. "Didn’t you earn four taels of silver for exorcising the evil in Huangyang Village? Hand it over, and I’ll save it for you. You’ll need it to buy a wife someday… and maybe more treats."

Chen Shi froze. "I didn’t charge them for that job."

Grandpa resumed drawing his sigils. "I found four taels in your sleeve pocket when washing your clothes. If it’s not yours, it must be mine."

With a thud, Chen Shi collapsed to his knees, his face pale, his spirit utterly crushed. His expression seemed to spell out: "Life is meaningless."

After a while, Grandpa, seemingly unable to remain unmoved, set down his brush and tossed a small piece of silver at him. "Here’s one tael. Now get up."

Chen Shi clutched the silver fragment as though reclaiming his soul, leaping to his feet with joy. "Thank you, Grandpa! Thank you so much!"

In the corner, Black Pot rolled its eyes. "Does my young master not realize he earned that silver with his life? It was all his to begin with, and now he’s grateful for getting just a fraction. Once again, the old man has him completely under control."

"Chirp, chirp!"

Chen Shi, holding a piece of exotic meat in one hand, called for Black Pot. The dog lazily rose and shuffled over.

The moment Black Pot bit into the meat, Chen Shi revealed a small knife he’d hidden behind his back, grinning wickedly as he grabbed the dog.

Black Pot didn’t resist, chewing the meat with an air of resignation.

After extracting some black dog blood, Chen Shi locked himself in his room, concocting who knew what.

When he emerged, he carried a stack of freshly drawn sigils. He tied some to Black Pot’s legs with straw ropes, startling the dog, who instinctively tried to bite them off. However, Chen Shi had also strapped two sigils to his own legs.

The symbols on these talismans resembled swirling gusts of wind, with "Ride the Clouds" inscribed amid starry Big Dipper markings, complemented by the Six Ding and Six Jia characters. These were the hallmark designs of the Horse Talisman.

After recovering from his recent ordeal, Chen Shi had become fixated on experimenting with these talismans, inspired by their utility in his encounter with Tiebiweng and Zhao Ming.

He activated the talismans on both his and Black Pot’s legs with a thread of dwindling true qi.

"Black Pot, good things are meant to be shared," he said, stepping forward with a grin.

To his amazement, a breeze sprang up beneath his feet, propelling him forward nearly seven feet in a single effortless stride.

Before his foot even touched the ground, another gust arose, lifting him three inches off the earth and pushing him onward with ease.

Thrilled, Chen Shi took another step, this one spanning almost two yards. Walking on the breeze was like gliding on ice—soft, smooth, and entirely frictionless. Each step covered six or seven times his usual distance.

Black Pot, usually composed, couldn’t resist joining in the fun. It bolted forward, powered by the talismans, stirring up a gale that rattled windows and doors throughout Huangpo Village.

A loud crash echoed as Black Pot slammed into a mud wall across the street, leaving a dog-head-sized hole.

The wall belonged to Old Zhou, who, seeing that the culprit was the Chen family’s dog, dared not utter a complaint.

Pulling its head free, Black Pot shook itself vigorously before darting off again, its legs a blur.

Chen Shi tried to keep up, but Black Pot’s four-legged sprint proved faster than his talisman-aided stride. It tore through the village, causing birds to scatter and trees to sway.

Chen Shi, unable to catch it, muttered in frustration, "Four legs are faster than two!"

Suddenly, Black Pot reappeared before him, tongue lolling out, tail wagging enthusiastically.

Before Chen Shi could react, it disappeared again, returning moments later with the knife used for extracting its blood. Then, just as quickly, it fetched the inkstone.

In a matter of minutes, Black Pot had gathered all of Chen Shi’s sigil-making tools.

Chen Shi sighed. "Black Pot, you’ve already had blood drawn today, and Grandpa took some earlier. Any more, and it might harm you."

"Woof, woof!"

Black Pot barked excitedly, bouncing around and urging Chen Shi to make more talismans. Its current ones were losing power, and the dog seemed desperate for another boost.

Reluctantly, Chen Shi relented, drawing more Horse Talismans using Black Pot’s blood.

Soon, Black Pot was off again, a whirlwind of energy. Chen Shi, now carrying his remaining talismans, had an idea.

He decided to visit Huangyang Village to see his only living friend, Liu Fugui.

However, Liu Fugui’s demeanor had changed, his previous camaraderie replaced by a mix of reverence and fear. His servile behavior disappointed Chen Shi, who left feeling dejected.

"Fugui is afraid of me now," Chen Shi thought sadly. "He’s no longer my friend. He even wanted to kneel and bow to me like everyone else."

Back in Gangzi Village, Madam Sha was conducting a summoning ritual for a widow. The woman sought her deceased husband’s advice on remarrying and selling their property.

Suddenly, a small head peeked through the door crack. It was Chen Shi, grinning with a mouthful of white teeth.

Startled, Madam Sha quickly dismissed the widow, her unease growing as she faced Chen Shi alone.

Carrying a basket of green duck eggs, fruits, and other village specialties, Chen Shi greeted her with a sweet smile. "Grandpa’s at home. I came to bring you some local goodies."

Though wary, Madam Sha accepted the basket and remarked, "Your Grandpa sure went to some trouble for these."

"They’re gifts from kind neighbors," Chen Shi replied smoothly, offering her a plum. "Try it—it’s sweet and a little tart!"

Madam Sha’s fear eased as she bit into the plum, finding it sweet despite its tartness.

Still, she urged Chen Shi to leave before nightfall.

Unfazed, Chen Shi offered to fetch water and help around her home, leaving Madam Sha both amused and suspicious.

Finally, she confronted him. "No one’s this helpful without a motive. What do you want?"

Chen Shi beamed. "Grandpa says you’ve always cared for me, so I want to repay you."

Unconvinced, Madam Sha pressed further until Chen Shi admitted his true purpose.

"Do you know of any abandoned, ancient temples near Qianyang Mountain? The older and more desolate, the better!"

Madam Sha’s expression turned thoughtful. "What do you want with such a place?"