Chapter Thirty-Seven: A Gift from Afar, Sincere Words of Childhood, and Impertinent Remarks

In the darkness, distant specks of light glimmered.

"Is this the universe? So after death, people become stars?"

"This isn't the universe. People don't become stars after they die."

"Who are you?" Faced with the sudden voice, Wu Yue's first thought was that the other would reply, "I am you."

But reality was nothing so trite.

"My name is Da Lie, master of Leaving Mountain."

"Master of Leaving Mountain? Are you the sect leader? How did you get here?"

"More accurately, I am the creator of Leaving Mountain. From the second generation onward, all of you are my successors."

"Then you were the first sect leader?"

"He is me, but I am not him. Enough. My time is short. Can you ask something meaningful?"

"Then, can I ask if Huaxia eventually unified the world?"

Silence.

"Forget it, you’d better go back to your original questions. And I can’t give spoilers on that."

Wu Yue laughed, his excitement barely contained. A great secret was about to unfold before him; he needed to calm himself first.

"So, where is this place? And where are you?"

"You can think of this as the source of your divine consciousness, the core of your soul. As for me, you can see me whenever you wish."

A beam of light flared, illuminating the darkness.

Wu Yue saw a man sitting cross-legged before him, dressed in denim, wearing oversized sunglasses, with several earrings on one ear.

Wu Yue sighed and said, "Your outfit is quite modern."

"This is retro! And can you ask something worthwhile? Like the principle behind your golden finger? Or what this place is? You must have seen our messages, haven’t you? Who our enemy is—don’t you want to know any of that? What are these questions you’re asking? I told you, my time is short!"

Wu Yue was a little dumbfounded, then gave an awkward laugh. "I was just adjusting my mood. Now, go ahead—tell me everything I should know."

Da Lie took a deep breath. Each generation of Leaving Mountain’s successors surpassed the last. He swore, among all the masters he had met, Wu Yue ranked in the top three for eccentricity. Wu Yue reasoned that, even on Earth, a thousand years’ difference in era made such differences in outlook understandable.

"My name is Da Lie, from Earth. What you see is a remnant of my will. I don’t know how many years have passed, but since you’ve met me, you must have encountered some difficulty. That’s why the Leaving Treasure sent me into your mind. If you received this passively, there’s only one reason: Leaving Treasure could wait no longer. Leaving Treasure is the spirit of Leaving Mountain’s artifact."

A torrent of information!

Da Lie continued, determined to make an impression. "I’ll be brief and clear. The longer I exist, the more likely I’ll draw its attention. Speaking of it—let me tell you: it’s a beast. But this beast has grown so powerful it knows no bounds. To give you an example, to it, the cultivators of this world are like ants."

Wu Yue was stunned. As far as he knew, that realm was legendary throughout the entire Immortal Spirit Realm! If others heard Da Lie’s words, they would likely go mad—legendary powers, mere ants? But Wu Yue believed him. Da Lie had no reason to lie.

"Resources are finite, but the Dao is infinite. So I, we, all powerful cultivators, are natural enemies to it. Unfortunately, in its eyes, we’re just resources. I don’t know, no one knows, where it came from, nor its weakness. But remember, it’s strong, but there must be a limit." Da Lie’s voice grew more hurried. "I can already feel its gaze. It isn’t dead. So likely, we’re the ones who are. Of course, we might also be in that place—you’ll know when your cultivation is high enough."

"As for golden fingers, they are rules, a form of slavery. Best to avoid them. Earth—yes, Earth is outside the paper; we live on a sheet of paper. That’s the simplest way to explain it. Understand if you can, if not, you’ll find out eventually."

"And finally, a small gift. Cultivate well, but don’t rely too much on it. Only by finding your own Dao, your own world, can you truly be strong! There are no useless masters of Leaving Mountain. My other kin have also left you gifts. Use them well. Remember, it’s hard for newcomers to make their mark! That talk about future generations needing to temper themselves is utter nonsense!"

Wu Yue felt his mind about to explode, the data overwhelming, the core overburdened...

Da Lie had already vanished. Several points of light slowly danced in the sea of consciousness.

Was it really over?

At that moment, cries of alarm echoed throughout Luoyang City. The full moon in the sky suddenly became a waning crescent, as a mass of red mist covered most of it! Anyone could see this was an ominous sign. That night, divination sects across Qin were busy with constant augury.

On the Jade Sill Terrace, restlessness spread. The crowd, previously dissatisfied with the duel between Wu Yue and Zhao Yuzhou, now had no mind for protest.

"Blood cloud covers the moon, the nation falls into chaos." So went the divination from Qin’s Zhou Tian Terrace, though they soon denied it. The blood-red mist came swiftly and lingered for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea before dissipating. For ordinary people, it might be fodder for a few days’ gossip, but for sects and great families, it meant years of preparation and speculation. Meanwhile, Wu Yue had already awakened, his expression profound—a look of complex depth after learning an earth-shattering secret. Pride warred with itself on his face.

But for Wu Yue now, the most important thing was Da Lie’s gift—a divine ability, or perhaps a technique. It was called the Stacked Fire Art—a name both crude and apt. Using special talismans to gather the world’s fires, the more layers stacked, the greater the power; the better the types of flame, the more formidable the result. Practical and convenient, simple yet direct.

The blood cloud passed, and the moon seemed unchanged.

Chen Yankun laughed lightly. "Let the Jade Bowl Banquet continue." As if unaware of the recent events.

The atmosphere was cool.

"So who won between the two of them?" came a timid voice.

All eyes turned—it was a child, a little girl, sitting with those from Dragon Snow Mountain, her innocence sincere.

"Of course, Second Young Master Zhao won!" a voice called out from across half the Jade Sill Terrace. The crowd’s attention shifted to the speaker—a youth of delicate, almost effeminate features, seated among the royal juniors.

"Did I say something wrong? If not for Lord Chen’s intervention, that boy would be dead!" the youth declared loudly.

Those around looked at him as if he were a traitor. Though what he said made sense.

Favor family over reason, favor the close over the distant. That’s human nature. So, by that measure, are you even human? How rude! Such were the thoughts of the crowd...