On the Path to the Great Dao

Shao Jing sent Chen Shi off and sat motionless on the chair.

Beside his hand sat a box, and inside the box were precisely the more than three hundred rat tail tips that Chen Shi had sold him.

His expression flickered uncertainly between cloud and sun.

"With these things, I should first place two of them at Juxian Tower and sell them at a low price, then place a few more and raise the price. Soon, someone will discover the wonder of this item, and word will spread. There will definitely be people coming to buy at a high price. I control the supply and keep hiking the price—I can make a fortune for sure.

"I can also preemptively buy up a batch of iron hats in nearby counties like Xinxian Township and Water Buffalo County, even the provincial capital. Once this item spreads, it will surely cause panic. At that point, iron hats will be in short supply, and only I'll have them. It takes too long for blacksmith shops to forge them. If people want to protect themselves, they'll have to buy from me. I can make another fortune.

"I'm a merchant, not a hero. For a merchant, making money is the great path. But... this will get a lot of people killed!"

His face filled with panic. In a low voice, he said, "There will be thousands of girls who lose their chastity because of this, thousands who die because of it, and countless families shattered! I should destroy these things, burn them to ashes, so they don't bring harm to the world!"

He took out a Samadhi True Fire Talisman. As long as it was slapped onto the box, the Samadhi True Fire would burn both the box and the tail tips to nothing!

"More than three thousand six hundred taels of silver could turn into forty thousand taels, or even more! Burning them would go against the merchant's way!"

"Not burning them would bring endless calamity. Without following the righteous path, where does the merchant's way come from? Is the merchant's way not a righteous path?" His heart waged a fierce battle between heaven and man, leaving him torn and hesitant.

At that moment, Little Peach walked in. She wiped down the tables and chairs, glanced at him sitting so rigidly, and smilingly asked what was wrong.

Shao Jing was utterly distraught and so explained the function of the tail tips in the box. He laid bare his inner struggle and hesitation. "I've been a merchant since childhood. I don't want to violate the merchant's way, nor do I want to commit wrongs that harm my fellow townsfolk. A gentleman loves wealth, but he acquires it properly. I don't want to stray from the righteous path."

Little Peach took a tail tip from the box and laughed. "So the reason I fell asleep twice earlier was this thing? Young Master, you surprisingly didn't take advantage of me while I was asleep to do something?"

Shao Jing's face reddened slightly. He shook his head. "How could I take advantage of someone's misfortune? Don't underestimate this item. A rat spirit in the countryside presses the tail tip against someone's head, and that person sleeps soundly even as their hands and feet are being eaten."

Little Peach thought for a moment. "Yesterday, as I passed by Huatuo Hall, I heard someone inside crying and wailing like a pig being slaughtered. I asked around and learned it was someone possessed. A ghostface carbuncle had grown on their back—a real ghost face. The doctors at Huatuo Hall gave them mafeisan, and they fell asleep at first. But when they used a knife to cut off the ghostface carbuncle on their back, the pain woke them up."

The man howled in agony, and the ghostface carbuncle howled along with him—miserable beyond words.

Shao Jing shook his head. "That person must have gone out to the countryside! The countryside is extremely dangerous—not just anyone can go there."

Little Peach laughed. "That's exactly what I was thinking. If there were something even better than mafeisan, something that could make a person fall into such deep sleep that no amount of pain would wake them, then that person wouldn't have screamed so miserably. Don't the rat tail tips Young Master bought have exactly that effect? Young Master doesn't need to sell them, nor burn them all in a fire. Use them for medicine instead, to treat the sick and save lives—isn't that even better?"

Shao Jing froze. He suddenly leaped to his feet and let out a great shout, overflowing with joy.

"Little Peach, Little Peach! You're truly my savior!"

He was overjoyed, feeling as if he had received tremendous salvation. "Right! This thing has no good or evil in itself. Used to harm, it becomes evil. Used to save, it becomes good! If that's the case, why not use it for good deeds?"

Little Peach held the rat tail tip, looking puzzled. "This thing can really make someone fall asleep? Young Master, if I fall asleep again, will you do something to me?"

She tapped the rat tail tip against her head, and sure enough, she fell asleep standing right there.

Shao Jing saw the affection in her eyes and the shy flush on her cheeks. His heart surged with delight, and wicked flames rose within him. He truly adored her, his heart pounding wildly. He leaned in close and planted a kiss on her soft, thin lips.

Just as he was about to go further, the girl bit down on his lip. Shao Jing jumped in fright and hurriedly pulled back.

Little Peach burst into giggles, smug as could be. "I never pressed it against my head—I was just tricking you! I'm going to tell Madam that you kissed my mouth and even stuck your tongue inside!"

She scampered out like a little rabbit. Shao Jing chased after her at once, wrapped his arms around her slender waist, and laughed. "Little auntie, spare me this once!"

The two were thick with affection, one struggling playfully, the other holding on tight.

Here, two thousand words are omitted.

By afternoon, Chen Shi had learned the location of Wencai Academy. He arrived before long and saw that the academy's walls were quite dilapidated—blue bricks, black tiles, white plaster. Ancient trees filled the courtyard, bearing the marks of children climbing them; the bark had been rubbed smooth, developing a glossy patina.

Some students were reciting texts aloud, others playing. Some were drawing talismans and incantations, while one student faced the wall, repeatedly attempting to activate the Zi-Wu Evil-Exorcism Sword, undaunted by failure.

These students ranged from around ten years old to just over twenty, making Chen Shi one of the youngest among them.

"You're... Chen family brother! It really is Chen family brother!"

A bright and lively girl approached. She wore a small white jacket trimmed in red on top and a red swing skirt below. Her steps were light and quick, her oval face beaming with a smile, her voice soft and sweet. "How did you end up in the city?"

Chen Shi found her face somewhat unfamiliar. Puzzled, he said, "I'm Chen Shi. And you are, miss?"

"I'm Feifei from the Hu family compound!"

The oval-faced girl laughed. "When you and Grandpa visited my home, I was the one who served you tea."

Chen Shi came to a sudden realization and vaguely recalled the girl—though Grandpa had been deep in conversation with the bearded burly man at the time, so he hadn't looked closely.

But weren't the Hu family compound full of spirits and evils?

He felt baffled. How could spirits attend private academies in the county seat?

And hadn't they said there were no spirits or evils in the city?

How had this Hu family girl made it to the city?

"Our Hu family is different from the other spirits and evils."

Hu Feifei glanced around to the east and west. Seeing no one nearby, she leaned close to his ear and whispered in a lowered voice, "As long as we don't absorb moonlight essence, we won't turn into spirits. Those fox spirits you saw that turned evil didn't know how to cultivate and absorbed the essence of moonlight, which confused their minds and transformed them into spirits. Our family has a long scholarly lineage. We don't consider ourselves spirits or evils—we're the same as you humans and call ourselves cultivators. In the era of the True King, we were known as demon cultivators. Our Hu family are fox cultivators, or those cultivating to become fox immortals."

Her voice was soft and glutinous, carrying a faint bodily fragrance. She leaned in so close, with her rosy lips and skin as fair as cream, that it was hard not to have stray thoughts.

Chen Shi knew little about such matters and listened with keen interest.

"Besides, there are five private academies in the county, and all of them have brothers and sisters from the Hu family."

Hu Feifei whispered on. "Even right here in our Wencai Academy, there are three or four of us. For our fox clan, we can transform into women at fifty years old and into beauties at a hundred—or into men, to mate with humans. After a thousand years of cultivation, we connect with the heavens and become heavenly foxes. My little sisters are all obsessed with scholars, which is why they come to the academies to study."

She bit at her fingernail, grinning playfully at Chen Shi. Her eyes were charming as water, utterly captivating.

Chen Shi was still innocent when it came to matters between men and women—six of his seven apertures open, one still blocked. He remained unmoved and asked, "Why do you all like scholars?"

The question left even Hu Feifei a bit annoyed. She kicked at a pebble on the ground. "I don't know either. We just do. Once we transform into women, we always feel there's some indescribable quality about scholarly types that draws us little fox spirits in. We just want to get close to them and see what develops."

She racked her brains over it. This feeling had persisted in her for a long time, its origin a mystery. That was why she wanted to tempt Chen Shi the moment she saw him.

Unfortunately, Chen Shi was too young to feel a thing from her seduction.

"What kind of fox is Uncle Hu?" Chen Shi asked.

Hu Feifei said, "The patriarch is a heavenly fox. No one knows exactly how many thousands of years old he is."

Chen Shi jumped in shock. The bearded burly man hadn't looked anywhere near thousands of years old.

What baffled him even more was that humans lived out their hundred years and then died, so why could foxes live for thousands? Grandpa's cultivation was surely no less than the bearded man's—how could their lifespans differ by so much?

There had to be something wrong here!

He caught sight of Fu Leisheng emerging and hurriedly brushed off the girl to step forward. Bowing in greeting, he said, "Mr. Fu, this humble student Chen Shi has come to pay his respects."

Fu Leisheng smiled warmly. "Good, good. Chen Shi, no need to be so formal—treat it like your own home. I'll show you around and introduce you to your classmates. Our Wencai Academy is a bit crude and rundown. We lack the funds for repairs, so I must apologize for putting you students through this."

Chen Shi took out the silver ingot. "Seeing my teacher in such straitened circumstances fills this student with unease. If these meager few taels can improve the academy even a little, then this student will have done at least one good deed."

Fu Leisheng accepted the silver and praised him. "You are truly thoughtful. What books do you usually study?"

Chen Shi said, "Mostly the classics taught by the sages, such as the Analects, the Poetry, the Book of Documents, the Great Learning, and the Doctrine of the Mean."

Fu Leisheng said, "The sages' classics are enough to pass the county exam. Have you ever practiced any spells?"

Chen Shi replied modestly, "I've learned the Zi-Wu Evil-Exorcism Sword for a few days—just the basics."

"Even the basics will suffice..."

Fu Leisheng said, "For this county exam in Xinxian County, the chief examiner is my disciple, Tian Huaiyi—a most accomplished man. Even if you don't do well, I'll pull some strings for you, and you'll pass."

Chen Shi thanked him profusely. "If I pass, there will surely be a generous gift."

Fu Leisheng saw how sensible he was and took a liking to him. He advised, "No need for generous gifts next time. Just bring some tea leaves. Something substantial—I love to drink it."

Chen Shi took the hint and bowed deeply in acknowledgment.

Fu Leisheng led him on a tour of the grounds. "The county exam is five days away—don't dawdle. Get acquainted with your classmates first. I have things to attend to." With that, he hurried off.

Hu Feifei sidled up again. Once Fu Leisheng was out of sight, she laughed.

"That old money-grubber. Did you give him money?"

Chen Shi nodded.

Hu Feifei said, "A gentleman loves wealth, but that old money-grubber loves it without any principles—he's no gentleman. I heard he even sold one of his own students' divine embryos."

Chen Shi was stunned. "No way? He could bring himself to do that to his own student?"

Hu Feifei's face grew serious. "Chen family brother, if you want to get by well, you can't score too poorly on the county exam—but you can't score too well, either. Otherwise, your divine embryo won't be safe!"

Seeing Chen Shi look worried, she hurriedly laughed. "But don't worry. With me here, no one will dare touch you. See this jade hairpin of mine? It glows in the dark! Come on, I'll show you under the covers! It really glows—no fooling."

Chen Shi politely declined. "I still have a hundred li to walk home. If I don't leave now, I won't make it back before dark."

Hu Feifei had no choice but to let him go. "Chen family brother, next time you have to see my jade hairpin!"

Chen Shi left Wencai Academy and set off on the return journey with Blackie Pot.

The underworld.

Granny Sha led Azure Sheep and the bearded burly man as they drifted through the阴风. This underworld was fraught with dangers everywhere—filled with inconceivable powers and entities, along with bizarre and eerie spaces. Even disguised as ghost gods, they had nearly been attacked several times.

Fortunately, Granny Sha's spell remained effective, allowing them to ride this阴风 and escape the perils.

After drifting for a full day and night, they finally came upon Chen Yindu.

Chen Yindu spotted them at once. Despite their changed appearances and disguises as ghost gods, he recognized them immediately and asked in bewilderment, "How did you find your way here?"

The three recounted their discoveries. Granny Sha said, "We suspect that besides the azure ghost hand, Chen Shi's body harbors another spirit. This spirit was even able to deceive you, lurking inside Chen Shi for a full two years without you noticing."

Azure Sheep said, "More crucially, this spirit feeds on ghost souls—and it has nothing to do with Chen Shi's seizures."

Chen Yindu said, "I already know."

The three were stunned. The bearded burly man asked doubtfully, "How do you know?"

"Look!"

Chen Yindu raised his hand and pointed toward the southwest. The three followed his finger and couldn't help but gape in shock.

In the southwest, mountains sprawled everywhere, shrouded in gloom and gray mist. Amid the mountains loomed a colossal azure ghost god—half its body buried in the earth, the other half rising above ground.

It extended an azure arm up into the yang world, clutching something tightly and refusing to let go.

And crawling densely over that azure arm were underworld creatures,

clambering outward along the ghost god's arm!

The three stood frozen, drenched in cold sweat.

The direction those spirits were crawling toward was none other than Chen Shi's body!

Not just one spirit—but countless!

"The owner of the ghost hand has gripped Little Ten's heart as an anchor linking to the yang world. Using its own ghost hand as a bridge, it has built a road connecting the yin and yang realms."

Chen Yindu's face was grave. "Little Ten's every seizure isn't caused by devouring ghost souls. Rather, it's spirits crawling from the underworld into the yang world and entering his body, causing the azure ghost hand to involuntarily clench his heart and trigger the seizure."

Granny Sha and the others' eyes twitched wildly. Each seizure meant one spirit had entered Chen Shi's body.

And over the past two years, Chen Shi had seized over a hundred times!

Which meant more than a hundred spirits were currently hiding inside Chen Shi's body, biding their time!

The bearded burly man's throat went dry, his voice hoarse as he said, "Then... what grade of spirit is Little Ten?"

Silence fell all around. Cold sweat poured from everyone.

End of chapter.