novelraw Chapter 9 : Chapter 9
Chapter 9 : Chapter 9
Chapter 9
Since things had come to this point, there was nothing left to change.
Cai Suhong led the group toward the Mystic Realm, only to turn back again into that same pear grove where the weather had been abnormal.
The wind and snow had stopped, yet the ground still gleamed white. The earlier snow had already melted; what lay across the earth now was a carpet of pear blossom petals.
Lang Qingyun asked Cai Suhong for the storage pouches taken from the Six Bandits. Sure enough, inside Shi Liuzi’s pouch was a chest of human skin—more than a thousand sheets. Shi Liuzi’s tanning craft was decent. Each piece was snow-white and soft, with brows drawn and lips painted red.
Lang Qingyun frowned hard. He also found many other cruel things in the other pouches.
He gathered the remains of those victims whose families could no longer be found, buried them in this white pear grove, and then returned the storage pouches to Cai Suhong. Though there were quite a few spiritual materials and medicinal herbs inside, Lang Qingyun did not want bloodstained things.
Shuang Wenlü had no intention of touching them either. After Cai Suhong delivered the storage pouches to Wujiguan, they could handle everything properly.
As for whether Cai Suhong and the people of Wujiguan would grow greedy and pocket them in secret, he did not care. Cause and effect could not be seen or touched, yet it was real. In Qiankun, among cultivators who reached the ninth Tianshu Realm, not a single one had taken a crooked path.
It was only that people were often lucky-minded. When their eyes saw immediate gain, they failed to think of an obvious truth.
After Lang Qingyun finished collecting those pitiful remains, he sighed with compassion. “If they had not met the bandits… if Shi Liuzi had not been bullied for being ugly…”
He was not pitying Shi Liuzi. He was thinking that if Shi Liuzi had not suffered humiliation for his appearance, perhaps his temperament would not have grown so warped. Those victims might have lived well, and the world would have held fewer tragedies.
“I know someone,” Shuang Wenlü said. “Since childhood, she was beaten and cursed by her father. Her body was covered in wounds, and every day she had to do endless work. Later, when her father ran out of money, he sold her. She struggled in the mire for many years. After she gained power, she did not flay a thousand men.”
Lang Qingyun sighed. “That is an extraordinary person. It is a pity not everyone can be like her.”
Of course she was good. She was from his Sword Pavilion—her heart was like a nimble swallow. A thousand surging waves could not force her back; ten thousand kinds of filth could not stain her heart.
Cai Suhong chimed in with praise as well. “Senior speaks with such reason. People who want to do evil can always find excuses for themselves.”
Shuang Wenlü glanced at her. “I did not speak any reason. I only told a story.”
Cai Suhong’s heart skipped under his gaze. She immediately turned inward and asked the System again to confirm.
Shuang Wenlü had already turned back and continued forward. His hem carried the wind, pear petals lifting behind him before drifting down again.
Some mourn fallen blossoms for losing their color and fragrance; others feel fallen blossoms become spring soil, nourishing the next year’s bloom.
A flower is only a flower. What sorrow or joy could it have? Sorrow and joy belong to the human heart.
A story is only a story. What people hear from it, what they see within it, is still only their own heart.
If one could truly understand that, the road of cultivation ahead would become clear.
But Cai Suhong was uneasy and did not notice any of this. She only fretted, her heart rising and falling, worrying whether Shuang Wenlü had seen through her concealment.
She asked the System nervously, “Are you sure it is fine? Will he see something?”
“It shou—” the System stumbled. “…be fine.”
“Why did you hesitate?” Cai Suhong grew more nervous.
The System looked at the sword qi that had suddenly appeared inside its internal space and nearly cried. It said to Cai Suhong, “It is fine, it is fine!”
It had finally recognized who this unfathomable figure truly was. Other than a world’s Guardian of the Dao, who else could so casually place a strand of sword qi into its space?
“Boss!” the System knelt with astonishing speed. While continuing to placate Cai Suhong, it confessed honestly to the sword qi, “I am a proper rule fragment. I know all the rules. I will not act recklessly.”
“My original name was ‘We Are the System Behind Global Instances.’ After arriving in Qiankun, I adapted to local customs and have already changed it to ‘We Are the System Behind the Mystic Realms of the World’…”
Cai Suhong said, “Even if there is no problem now, once we reach the Mystic Realm, will he see that it is fake?”
To Cai Suhong, the System said, “No, no. There will absolutely be no problem.”
To Shuang Wenlü, the System said, “The Mystic Realm you are about to enter is fake…”
…
Cai Suhong said, “We only spent a month designing that Mystic Realm. Will there be flaws?”
To Cai Suhong, the System said, “Relax, I have arranged everything.”
To Shuang Wenlü, the System said, “We started designing it a month ago. It is rather rough…”
…
Cai Suhong said, “The Mystic Realm’s bearing capacity is limited. Can it withstand someone of such high cultivation entering?”
To Cai Suhong, the System said, “It is fine, it is fine. We have a solution.”
To Shuang Wenlü, the System said, “That thing is, at best, an illusion realm. It is easy to break…”
This was their first attempt in the Qiankun world. They lacked experience and did not understand Qiankun’s Dao well enough. Beyond scenery, the illusion contained nothing. Cai Suhong had even taken out some of her own resources and placed them inside as fake “loot” to fool people. And at most, it could be entered once—after that, the illusion realm would collapse.
The more people entered, and the more they believed the illusion was real, the more energy they could harvest. Of course, there were other messy influencing factors as well.
Only later could they shape something that truly deserved to be called a Mystic Realm.
The System laid out everything—its plans with Cai Suhong, and all their intentions. It was not afraid Shuang Wenlü would seize its weakness and coerce it.
If it were an ordinary living being, it might give rise to greed and malice and try to exploit it through threats. But a Guardian of the Dao was different. Those who could become the Guardian of the Dao of a Great Thousand World were people of lucid wisdom, sharing weal and woe with heaven and earth. What was there to fear in speaking plainly to such a person?
Shuang Wenlü indeed had no intention of doing anything to it. The Mystic Realm system, like Luo Mi’s Infrastructure System, was a rule fragment approaching the next step—attempting to shape a small world.
Whether infrastructure or Mystic Realms, both were trials within the greater world, meant to accumulate experience before truly taking that next step.
This did not harm the greater world. Moreover, such Systems had often traversed countless worlds. Their records of other worlds’ rules were far richer and more complete than those of ordinary rule fragments. The new rules they attempted to develop would also benefit Qiankun.
After the System finished its cautious confession, the sword qi within it finally responded.
Shuang Wenlü’s voice sounded within its space. “So long as you do not endanger Qiankun, I will not strike against you.”
The System exhaled in relief and hurriedly promised, “Rest assured, I will absolutely not do bad things!”
Then Shuang Wenlü said, “But I want you to help me with something.”
After the System repeatedly promised there would be no problem, the completely unsuspecting Cai Suhong regained her confidence—and seemed a bit overconfident.
She led the group deep into the forest, arriving beneath a pear tree so thick that two people could barely embrace its trunk.
After the fierce wind and sudden snow, nearly all the blossoms in the grove had been knocked down. Only this great pear tree still held branches full of blossoms, drifting thick as snow.
At the base of the tree was a split in the roots, shaped like the character “人,” about three chi tall, dark within.
“This is the place,” Cai Suhong said with a smile. “I discovered it by accident. There is actually a Mystic Realm inside this opening.”
The other three examined it carefully. They did sense faint fluctuations of a mustard-seed Sumeru space. After each used their own methods to probe it cautiously, they nodded.
One asked, “Fellow Daoist Cai, have you entered this Mystic Realm before? What is it like inside, so that we can prepare?”
Cai Suhong said solemnly, “I have entered once. Inside are the remnants of a wilderness. There are no living creatures. I only sensed desolation and killing intent, so I did not dare go far. That is why I asked Fude Pavilion to find you to explore together.”
They questioned her further, and Cai Suhong answered with convincing detail. Inwardly, she smugly told the System, Look at my acting—perfect!
The System… the System stared at the sword qi quietly resting in its space and chose silence as golden.
Shuang Wenlü looked at the great pear tree.
Cai Suhong’s design was not purely meant to fool people. They truly had opened a mustard-seed Sumeru space within the tree hollow, but everything inside was arranged as an illusion. With the power of a rule fragment, it was enough to keep fifth Yuheng Realm cultivators, and even some at the sixth Tianquan Realm, from detecting flaws.
The Mystic Realm system’s accumulation in time and space was already sufficient, but Cai Suhong was not skilled in that aspect. When she linked to the Dao of Qiankun to open that mustard-seed Sumeru space, turbulence was inevitable, causing the nearby climate to turn abnormal.
But Cai Suhong herself possessed another peculiarity, which was why the Mystic Realm system had chosen her.
To shape a flawless illusion from nothing was not easy. Therefore, Cai Suhong and the Mystic Realm system used its accumulation in time to trace back to what this land of Qiankun had once looked like. Using old shadows of Qiankun as the foundation made it far less likely for the illusion to contain errors.
This was precisely the ability Shuang Wenlü wanted to borrow from the Mystic Realm system.
While Cai Suhong chatted nonsense with the others, Shuang Wenlü lightly tapped the ground with his right foot.
The Mystic Realm system shuddered. It felt a vast power seize control of the entire Mystic Realm in an instant. Heaven and earth shifted; constellations moved; the star river reversed; the long river ran backward. Time rushed in reverse. The images of all things spun like a lantern show, then fixed upon a moment from who knew how long ago. The previous illusion collapsed silently, replaced by an even older shadow.
The Mystic Realm system was thrilled. Using its ability as a base, Shuang Wenlü had allowed it to glimpse a fragment of the Dao of Qiankun’s operation!
Profit, profit, profit. Just that single move meant this trip had paid off beyond measure!
Clinging to the Guardian of the Dao’s thigh truly was the most important thing!
Cai Suhong knew nothing of this. She formed a hand seal, shrank her body to one-third its original size, and crawled into the tree hollow. Then—
“Wh-what is going on?!” Cai Suhong stared wide-eyed at the bustling marketplace before her.
“Move, move, move! Standing in the middle of the road like that—are you blind?” A vendor pushing a cart shoved her aside and shot her a glare.
Cai Suhong stepped aside, her jaw still hanging open.
It was not only because the environment had changed, but because this Mystic Realm was far too real!
The more lifeless something was, the easier it was to design. The more living something was, the harder it was to make it convincing. This was her first time editing a Mystic Realm. Only someone with too much spare time would give herself the trouble of arranging this many living people…
The System willingly took the blame. “I did it.”
“…Really?” Cai Suhong asked suspiciously.
“Who else would it be?” the System snapped. “You?”
“Then why would you make a marketplace?” Cai Suhong demanded. “Are you bored?”
What Mystic Realm would do something like this?
“I traced farther back in time,” the System replied. “Back then, this place really was like this.”
“How far back did you go…” Cai Suhong murmured. A moment ago, she had almost not understood what that vendor was saying.
Maybe ten thousand years or more, the System guessed. Shuang Wenlü had reversed time too quickly for it to see clearly.
But that did not stop it from speaking with righteous confidence. “Do not worry about it. As long as nothing goes wrong, it is fine.”
“…All right.” Cai Suhong suddenly remembered something else. “Where are the others?”
She was the first to enter. Normally, everyone would appear in the same place. Yet she had been inside for a while and had not seen a single person.
“Oh, that was me too. I scattered everyone to different places,” the System continued to shoulder the blame.
Cai Suhong said, “Why would you do that?”
If she stayed with the others, she could control the Mystic Realm more easily.
“Are you sure you will not reveal more flaws?” the System countered.
“With my acting, of course I wo—” Cai Suhong remembered Shuang Wenlü’s gaze, and for some reason, she suddenly felt guilty. Her voice grew smaller. “…Forget it. Fine. Let it be.”
“The problem is, where do I go next…”
Shuang Wenlü was sitting in a teahouse.
It was a teahouse in an excellent location, built beside a lovely lake. In the center of the lake stood an ancient banyan tree of unknown age, grown so vast that a single tree became a forest. A broken bridge stretched halfway across the water, ending before the banyan.
On the teahouse’s second floor, many broad, bright windows had been built. Open a window and look out, and the view was magnificent.
It was through one of those windows that Lang Qingyun saw Shuang Wenlü on the second floor.
So he walked toward the teahouse as well.
The teahouse was crowded, but not noisy. People sat drinking tea, chatting softly. On the first floor, several scholars gathered together, debating something in low voices. From the second floor, singing could faintly be heard.
Lang Qingyun went straight up to the second floor.
There were far fewer people on the second floor. On a small platform deeper inside, an old man and his granddaughter sat together. The old man played an erhu with half-closed eyes. The granddaughter, perhaps twelve or thirteen, had a clear voice and sang along with the erhu.
“This is a truly strange Mystic Realm. It is completely different from what Boss Cai described,” Lang Qingyun said with feeling. “I have never heard the language they speak. If not for techniques, I could not even find this place.”
Shuang Wenlü’s gaze was distant. “This is the scenery of a long time ago. Their language is no longer used by anyone today.”
This was the lifetime when he had first entered the Dao. Back then, the Dao of Qiankun was far from as complete as it was now. The path of cultivation was not yet a system. The first beings to step onto the path of cultivation were still groping forward, carving out the road ahead.
“Brother Shuang, why have you been sitting here this whole time instead of exploring?” Lang Qingyun asked curiously.
“What I seek is here,” Shuang Wenlü replied.
This was the old shadow of the mortal lifetime that had been left behind.
Shuang Wenlü poured a cup of tea and slid it toward Lang Qingyun.
Lang Qingyun did not understand, but he accepted it and drank. His eyes suddenly brightened.
He could understand what people around him were saying now!
Downstairs, the scholars were debating with objects as their topic—the old banyan tree in the lake and the broken bridge.
Nearby guests were chatting about rumors in the Jianghu, speaking of a fearsome new hero who had recently appeared.
The little girl singing sang:
“Spring light is fair today.
Pear blossoms fall, fall, like snow.
Green grass lies fine as a mat.
Swallows twine beneath the eaves.
I return beneath the corridor, smiling.”
After she finished, she and her grandfather came down to ask for tips.
Most people drinking tea on the second floor offered a little. In return, they received the girl’s sweet smile and thanks.
But someone refused to sit properly, drink tea, and listen.
He was a man with a sword. His sword lay on the table.
His face looked fierce, and his mouth was always pulled downward, as if he were perpetually displeased.
The grandfather and granddaughter had long learned to read faces and tried to avoid his table.
Yet the man’s seat was placed badly. No matter how they walked, they had to pass near his table.
The old man had only taken a step aside when the man grabbed him. “Do not go! Do you think I cannot afford a tip, and look down on me?”
“No, no,” the old man said, forced to stop and smile.
One hand rested on his sword. The other held a small piece of silver. He stretched his hand out, intending to touch the girl’s face.
The girl shrank back in fright.
The man immediately snarled, “Why are you dodging? I am honoring you by touching you!”
The old man pulled his granddaughter behind him and smiled apologetically. “Sir, we only sing.”
The man laughed in a filthy way. “Of course I know you sing. Do they not all ‘sing’ in the brothels?”
He laughed loudly, as though proud of his vulgarity.
Lang Qingyun frowned. The icy murderous aura he had suppressed began to stir in his chest again. He was about to rise, but Shuang Wenlü stopped him.
“These are only shadows of the past. The matter has already happened,” Shuang Wenlü said.
“Shadows… but if they are shadows, then where do the tea and pastries we are eating come from? Why do they react to us?” Lang Qingyun asked.
Shuang Wenlü did not answer. He only looked at him. Under that gaze, Lang Qingyun calmed down. The cold violence in his chest gradually turned to cool clarity. When he looked around again, everything truly was only a shadow.
“Who created such a Mystic Realm?” Lang Qingyun surveyed the room and lowered his voice. “So many scenes, so many people—so lifelike… It feels as though they still retain their own will and personality…”
Lang Qingyun sat back down, but his brow remained furrowed.
Even knowing this was an unchangeable past, being forced to watch made it all the harder to bear.
But within this illusion of the past, someone else disliked it as well.
“Shi Sansha, so famous—why would you trouble a little girl?” A young man drawled lazily from the corner window.