TDFM Chapter 106

The Meaning of Existence

The Shenle clan called that mountain the Divine Mountain.

The music altar was located halfway up the mountain. This place was wide and flat, surrounded by peach trees, with green stones laid on the ground. Weeds grew from the cracks between the stones, and because no one had tended to them for too long, these weeds had grown wildly, reaching higher than one’s knees.

To the northwest of the music altar, there was a peach-shaped small pond about ten feet wide. The bottom of the pond was covered with pebbles. A waterfall flowed down from the mountain like a silver thread, converging into the pond, and water flowed out from the pointed tip of the peach shape toward the outside of the mountain.

Due east of the music altar, at the Li position of the Fuxi Eight Trigrams, an ancient and simple precious sword had been inserted.

When Yun Qing saw the position where the sword was inserted and observed the surrounding situation, her heart immediately surged with shock and amazement!

This place appeared to have been arranged with a formation array by someone, and the position where the sword was inserted was the eye of the formation.

This formation array was recorded in Emperor Xi’s Wordless Book and was called the “Mountain-Moving Array.” As its name suggested, it had the power to move mountains and seas.

The cultivation required for this array was too vast. Although Yun Qing had learned it, she had never practiced it herself. However, she had once modified this array to help her junior sister move firewood.

This was the first time she had seen anyone other than herself use a formation array from Emperor Xi’s Wordless Book, and moreover, they had executed such a grand array right from the start!

She felt her heart pounding rapidly. The person who had set up this formation should also be able to understand Emperor Xi’s Wordless Book. Could this be related to her own origins?

This question that had troubled her for more than ten years, this question she thought she would never find an answer to in her lifetime—was she about to find the answer soon?

Her mouth felt dry, and her gaze was fixed intently on that sword. There were two small characters on the sword, written in a script very similar to that in Emperor Xi’s Wordless Book. They were too far away to see clearly, so she curiously moved closer.

However, Shi Qingshang moved before she did.

He walked to the sword and said, “A golden eagle lived in this Shenle Valley. When I was thirteen years old, it came to me while I was practicing the qin. The golden eagle brought me to the music altar, where I discovered this sword. The sword’s name was Compassion.”

Compassion.

Who in the world didn’t know that the Compassion sword was the accompanying sword of the Goddess Shen Xi?

Speaking of which, the prosperity of the Way of Compassion was inseparably related to Goddess Shen Xi’s sword name. It was precisely this sword name that gave many people opportunities for forced associations and muddying the waters.

But how could Goddess Shen Xi’s accompanying sword appear here?

Yun Qing frowned as she looked at that sword. Since it was Goddess Shen Xi’s accompanying sword, it meant the formation array should also have been set up by Goddess Shen Xi, and Goddess Shen Xi could understand Emperor Xi’s Wordless Book.

This book could not be understood by humans or immortals, but deities could understand it.

But what about her? She wasn’t a deity…

In that instant, hundreds of thoughts surged through her mind. She even suspected that she might be the reincarnation of some deity.

This speculation was immediately rejected as soon as it appeared. Deities could not reincarnate—this was a well-known fact.

Because deities’ souls were too powerful, especially their heavenly souls. Apart from the divine race themselves, no physical body in the world could bear such powerful souls, so deities could not enter the cycle of reincarnation.

Human souls underwent significant weakening before they could reincarnate.

She wasn’t a deity, yet she could understand the books of deities. What exactly was she?

Yun Qing stared blankly at that sword, feeling as if a tangle of threads was stirring in her mind.

As if afraid that everyone wouldn’t believe him, Shi Qingshang added, “When I was young, Xi held me, and at that time I touched her accompanying sword. I couldn’t be wrong about it.”

Grandma Bayin’ expression changed. She tremblingly walked forward, groping for that sword and carefully feeling the two characters on it. Then her eyes reddened, “It is the Compassion sword, it is Xi’s accompanying sword!”

Shi Feijia kept her head down, her expression somewhat sorrowful, but she didn’t seem surprised.

The other Shenle clan members were all stirred up.

“Xi always kept her sword with her. Why would her accompanying sword be left at the music altar for so many years? Clan leader, what exactly happened? Is Xi still alive? You must give us an explanation!”

Shi Feijia took a deep breath, “I don’t know.”

“…What do you mean?”

She slightly furrowed her brow, falling into memories, “Nineteen years ago, Xi told me that she was going to battle with Qiguang Zi, and her future was uncertain.”

Yun Qing’s heart suddenly leaped—Qiguang Zi!

Shi Feijia continued, “Before going to find Qiguang Zi, she came to Shenle Valley once, set up the Mountain-Moving Array, taught me the incantation, and then left.

How her battle with Qiguang Zi went, I, as a mere mortal, naturally had no opportunity to witness. I only knew that not long after, the Compassion sword fell from the sky and activated the Mountain-Moving Array. In one night, the entire Shenle Valley was instantly transported a thousand li from Lingcang Mountain to Liuyun Mountain.

Along with the Compassion sword came a message-transmitting paper crane. Xi said that the Compassion sword retained divine power, and if we encountered danger, we could activate the Mountain-Moving Array again until the divine power was exhausted.

Since then, I never made contact with Xi again. Whether she was alive or dead, I truly didn’t know.”

Tears rolled down from Grandma Bayin’ cloudy eyes, “How could this happen…”

Shi Feijia walked to Shi Qingshang and sighed, “Child, I’m telling you this not to argue with you about the life or death of deities.

What I want to say is that we Shenle clan don’t exist for the sake of deities, and our cultivation of the Way of Silence is not for the sake of deities either. What we pursue is the Dao that we humans ourselves seek.

Heaven and earth are indifferent, and the great Dao is distant and obscure. Since the day the human race was born, countless people have successively explored the mysteries of the Dao. This exploration might never yield results, might ultimately be in vain, but the human race will not stop its exploration.

The human race is insignificant, like ants before the Heavenly Dao, capable of being reduced to dust at any moment, but the human race is also unyielding. As long as the human race exists for one day, there will be people continuing this exploration.

When our clan’s ancestors discovered that abandoning visual perception greatly benefited cultivation, they collectively destroyed their own eyes. The music they played afterward moved heaven and earth, attracting the favor of deities, which earned us the name ‘Shenle’ from the world. 

Gradually, many people forgot that beneath this prestigious name, we were just a group of people who passed down traditions from generation to generation, tirelessly exploring the great Dao, with no essential difference from practitioners of the Way of Longevity, the Way of Compassion, and other Ways.

You don’t need to pursue the meaning of our existence. The meaning of all our existence is existence itself.”

The music altar fell into silence, with only the sound of flowing water, tireless and continuous.

After a while, Shi Jinse said, “But Pangpang, this concerns deities—such a major matter, why didn’t you tell us?”

“Precisely because this matter was so significant. There are no walls that don’t leak wind in this world. If I had told you, this matter would have spread sooner or later. Many demons and monsters in the world refrained from acting recklessly because they feared Xi’s existence. If they learned that something had happened to Xi, I feared that chaos would rise again in the human world.”

Grandma Bayin said, “Nineteen years ago, you said that Xi set up the Mountain-Moving Array to keep Shenle Valley from being disturbed by the outside world. Was there another hidden reason for this matter? What was Xi’s real reason for moving Shenle Valley?”

“It was because—”

“Naturally it was because she hid her treasure here, and you blind people just couldn’t see it.” Someone in the crowd suddenly spoke up.

Everyone’s expressions changed, and Yun Qing looked toward the speaker—it was actually Ding Lisheng.

Ding Lisheng appeared relaxed, as if treating the people around him like air. He slowly raised his sleeve and took out a small blue object from within.

It was a butterfly.

Deep blue wings, like an unfathomable ocean, with a circle of black patterns around the wing edges. The butterfly stood on Ding Lisheng’s fingertip. He raised his hand and whispered something to the butterfly.

The butterfly then spread its wings and flew up, circling about.

Yun Qing gripped her sword hilt, her whole body tensing up.

Shi Qingshang looked at Ding Lisheng with disbelief, suddenly realizing how strange this good friend had become. No, perhaps it wasn’t from this moment that he had become strange.

“Lisheng? What are you trying to do?”

Ding Lisheng acted as if he hadn’t heard, his gaze only fixed on the blue butterfly. Under the sunlight, the butterfly’s wings reflected magnificent light, shimmering brilliantly.

The butterfly made a circle in the air and flew straight toward the small pond beside the music altar.

Ding Lisheng followed it toward the small pond.

Shi Qingshang angrily shouted, “Ding Lisheng!”

“He is not Ding Lisheng.” Shi Feijia suddenly said.

Shi Qingshang was stunned, “Then who is he?”

“He is Qiguang Zi.” Shi Feijia said this with a bitter smile.

Crash—the crowd stirred, many people instinctively stepped backward, their faces showing hesitation, fear, or wariness, and quite a few drew their swords.

When Yun Qing heard the three words “Qiguang Zi,” she felt all her hair standing on end. The truth she had been desperately seeking was right before her eyes—how could she not be excited!

At the same time, her experience of being suppressed by the immortal in her dreams made her instinctively feel fear, and the hand gripping her sword trembled slightly.

She forced herself to calm down and said in a deep voice, “Qiguang Zi, release my master. Name your conditions.”

Ding Lisheng paused in his steps, glanced at her and said, “You’re qualified to negotiate with me? I don’t kill you only because I’m too lazy to kill you. Little one, don’t make me laugh.”

Fu Xue’s face turned red with anger, “You—!”

Yun Qing feared her junior sister would act impulsively and pressed down on her shoulder.

The butterfly finally stopped above the surface of the pond, circling in a very small area.

“So it was hidden here?” Ding Lisheng kept one hand behind his back and suddenly struck the water surface with his other hand from a distance. The water surface splashed up large waves, and many pebbles were sent flying.

Among the pebbles, there was clearly a perfectly round, pure white precious pearl.

The precious pearl emitted a faint white glow, very conspicuous. Yun Qing felt this precious pearl looked very familiar—she should have seen it somewhere before.

No, not “should have”—she had definitely seen it somewhere before.

She closed her eyes, and many scenes flashed through her mind, finally settling on an elegant tea room with a set of four paintings of Goddess Shen Xi controlling the flood hanging on the wall.

Yun Qing suddenly opened her eyes.

This precious pearl was Sacred Lady Xi’s magical treasure, commonly called the “Wish Power Pearl” by the people!

Ding Lisheng looked at the precious pearl and curved the corner of his mouth, “After all these years, you really made me search hard for you.” As he spoke, he reached out to catch the precious pearl.

But just then, a bamboo staff broke through the air, striking toward his back at lightning speed. He suddenly dodged to avoid it, and the precious pearl fell back into the water with a splash.

Seeing this, Yun Qing breathed a sigh of relief.

Qiguang Zi was, after all, an immortal, and there was a distinction between immortals and mortals. If it had been him personally, Grandma Bayin would unlikely have had the opportunity to interrupt his actions.

Yun Qing said, “He is not Qiguang Zi.”

Shi Feijia naturally also sensed something was wrong and nodded.

Shi Qingshang said, “He’s not Ding Lisheng and not Qiguang Zi either—then who exactly is he?”

Yun Qing looked at Shi Qingshang, suddenly feeling reluctant in her heart. Qingshang should have truly considered Ding Lisheng a good friend. If he learned the truth, he would definitely be very sad.

Jiang Baiyu had also guessed the key point and explained to Shi Qingshang, “Ding Lisheng was made into a living puppet by Qiguang Zi. What a living puppet is, you should be able to guess from the name.”

Shi Qingshang looked at Ding Lisheng with disbelief.

“That’s right. To tell the truth, everyone in the entire Hundred Herbs Valley is my living puppet. This immortal waited for the Shenle clan people to take the bait, waited for nineteen years, and finally caught a fish.” Speaking of this, Ding Lisheng couldn’t help but feel proud.

“No, no…” Shi Qingshang’s eyes reddened as he shook his head and stepped backward. Suddenly, he drew his sword and charged toward Ding Lisheng, “I’ll kill you!”