Desolate Era

by RWX

  Whoosh. Lord Jiang, Ji Ning, and the others flew to the very top of the mountain, landing atop a mountain path. “If we follow this path to the very top, we shall reach the place where Master trains in the Dao and teaches his disciples,” the white-robed Lord Jiang said. Ning and the others followed him upwards.

  The mountain path winded up the mountain, but fortunately there were stone steps to walk on.

  After walking a short while, the white-robed Lord Jiang turned and moved onto a well-trodden pathway that led into a mountain forest. “Ji Ning, come with me to meet our eldest apprentice-brother.”

  “Eldest apprentice-brother?” Ning felt slightly puzzled, but he followed the white-robed Lord Jiang deep into the forest.

  “He was the very first to follow Master. You absolutely must not be disrespectful to him,” the white-robed Lord Jiang said.

  “Right.” Ning nodded. As he walked forward, he could just barely make out a voice speaking out.

  “A one, a two, a three and a four. A five and a six, a seven and an eight, a nine and a ten…now fall down!” As the bright voice rang out, a ‘crunch’ sound could be heard, followed by a rumble…

  The white-robed Lord Jiang and Ning moved quite quickly. As they moved closer to the sound of the voice, they saw an enormous tree fall down. Through the other trees, Ning could just barely make out the figure of a woodcutter dressed in grass shoes and a grass hat. The woodcutter’s skin was swarthy and dark, but he was dressed quite simply.

  The white-robed Lord Jiang walked over. “Eldest-apprentice brother.”

  “Eldest apprentice-brother?” Ning was flabbergasted. This woodcutter? He was their eldest apprentice-brother?

  The woodcutter in front of him appeared very ordinary and was dressed in a very ordinary manner as well. Ning’s judgement was quite astute by now, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t see anything special about the tattered grass shoes or raggedy clothes; they seemed to be ordinary clothes, not magic treasures.

  And…no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t sense any presence or aura stemming from this woodcutter at all. In fact, Ning didn’t even feel the slightest hint of danger emanating from him. No matter from what angle Ning inspected him, this woodcutter seemed like an ordinary mortal!

  “Whew.” The woodcutter rested his hatchet over his shoulder, straightened his waist, then turned and said with a laugh, “Haha, so it’s Lord Jiang. Why have you come to my place?”

  “Per Master’s orders, I went to the world of the Grand Xia to bring our junior apprentice-brother. I’m back now, and I thought I’d bring him over to see you, senior apprentice-brother,” the white-robed Lord Jiang said.

  “Junior apprentice-brother?” The woodcutter looked at Ning, looked at him quite carefully. His gaze, however, seemed quite ordinary. It didn’t seem to be the slightest bit penetrating.

  “He’s our junior apprentice-brother. His name is Ji Ning, and he is currently just a Wanxiang Adept,” the white-robed Lord Jiang said. “Ji Ning, hurry up and pay your respects to our eldest apprentice-brother.”

  “Greetings, eldest apprentice-brother,” Ning said while bowing.

  The woodcutter laughed. “I’m just a chopper of firewood. Still, for you to be accepted by Master at such a young age means that Master must value you highly. Master is very good-natured, but you still need to work hard and not disappoint him.”

  “Right.” Ning nodded.

  “Alright, you can go now, Lord Jiang. Take this Ji Ning to meet Master,” the woodcutter said.

  “Alright.” The white-robed Lord Jiang immediately led Ning away.

  Back on the main mountain road.

  Ning said, puzzled, “Eldest apprentice-brother…he isn’t a mortal, is he?”

  When he saw the likes of Lu Dongbin and the Xia Emperor, he could clearly tell how incredible they were. But of course, it was also possible that this was because Lu Dongbin and the others hadn’t retracted their auras! But this woodcutter…no matter how hard Ning tried, he couldn’t sense even the slightest hint of cultivation about him. In fact, the woodcutter even had calluses on his hands, and there was some white hair on his head.

  “Of course not,” Lord Jiang said. “From the Primordial Era to the present day, Master has taken in many disciples, and there are even quite a few True Immortals and Empyrean Gods. But in terms of power, eldest apprentice-brother is the undisputed number one! He’s far more powerful than the rest of us.”

  “The undisputed number one?” Ning was stunned.

  “Right. Only, ever since the destruction of the Primordial World, eldest apprentice-brother has never left this world of the Tristar Crescent Abode,” Lord Jiang said. “This is why there are very, very few people in the Three Realms who know of him.”

  Ning couldn’t help but feel stunned. It was only after the destruction of the Primordial World that the three thousand major worlds and the trillion minor worlds were born. An unfathomably long period of time had passed since the creation of the three thousand major worlds, but this eldest apprentice-brother actually had the patience and temperament to never roam the Three Realms? Generally speaking, powerful experts would like to stroll about many of the places of the Three Realms. After all, each of the trillion minor worlds had their own unique aspects, and were quite exciting.

  Lu Dongbin, for example, liked to play around in the mortal world. He had left behind his legacy in countless worlds.

  The names of many formidable figures had been spread throughout the Three Realms. But eldest apprentice-brother had never left after the destruction of the Primordial World?

  “What is his name?” Ning asked.

  “Woodcutter,” Lord Jiang said.

  “I meant his real name. Or his Daoist title,” Ning said.

  “Real name, Daoist title…all I know is that eldest apprentice-brother is referred to as the woodcutter.” Lord Jiang shook his head. “I don’t know anything else. When you are training in the Dao on the mountain, you can come to this mountain forest to train. Perhaps he will see you and be willing to guide you.”

  Ning nodded. So the senior disciple under Patriarch Subhuti’s tutelage was actually such a mysterious figure. Ning was quite curious as well.

  Soon, Lord Jiang brought Ning to the entrance to the cavern. The entrance had a large stone in front of it, which had three words on it: Tristar Crescent Abode!

  By each side of the entrance, there were two azure-robed Dao novitiates. For these two to be assigned to Mount Innerheart meant that they were monstrously talented figures themselves. However, here at Mount Innerheart, they were only viewed as ordinary figures. They were already quite delighted to be chosen as entrance guards.

  “Patriarch.”

  “Patriarch.”

  The two novices respectfully bowed towards Lord Jiang. Lord Jiang was a Pure Yang True Immortal. His rank was extremely high!

  “Mm.” Lord Jiang nodded, then brought Ning, the Whitewater Hound, and Little Qing through the entrance. The two novices naturally did not bar his way.

  ……

  They continued to walk forward into the cavern.

  The insides of this Tristar Crescent Abode was quite beautiful and graceful. It had all sorts of fairy cranes and animals. Their auras were all retracted and hidden, but despite that Ning could still sense a tremendous degree of threat and power emanating from them.

  The aura of the Tristar Crescent Abode itself was quite calm and peaceful. The various beasts and Diremonsters didn’t have even a hint of a baleful, savage aura at all. They seemed extraordinary docile.

  “When the Patriarch takes on disciples, he doesn’t care about their birth or lineage. Thus, aside from humans, even many monsters and Fiendgods have come to learn the Dao from him,” Lord Jiang said with a laugh. “The Patriarch has a particular rule; anyone who comes to Mount Innerheart is forbidden from fighting with the other disciples. If any disciple dares to assault another, the Patriarch will immediately intervene to suppress the fight and shatter his soul!
”

  “No matter who! Even I am not permitted to act against those various younger generation disciples. If I do, then Master will kill me as well,” Lord Jiang said. “This is an iron rule that no one can violate.”

  Ning nodded. No wonder the aura here was so peaceful. So all types of battle were completely forbidden. The Patriarch himself was at the top of the mountain. Who would dare act wildly?

  They continued to walk forward. On the path upwards, they heard various greetings, such as ‘Patriarch’, ‘uncle-master’, ‘uncle-master’, ‘Patriarch’, and more. Clearly, Lord Jiang’s status was very high.

  “Master is inside.” Lord Jiang pointed to an ordinary-looking Daoist monastery up ahead. There were two more Dao novitiates standing in front of the monastery.

  “Uncle-master, the Patriarch instructed us long ago that Ji Ning can be brought straight to him. There’s no need for any report to be made,” one of the novitiates said with a smile.

  * * *

  Book 13, Chapter 2 - The Status of Daoist Threelives

  “The two spirit-beasts should wait here for now,” the Dao novitiate instructed.

  Ning nodded. Little Qing and Uncle White both obediently stood to one side, waiting silently. Both of them knew quite well that the person within this Daoist monastery was an awe-inspiringly famous supreme power of the Three Realms, Patriarch Subhuti.

  “Let’s go.” The white-robed Lord Jiang led Ning directly into the monastery.

  “Uncle White, Master is going to go meet a Daofather. I feel like I’m dreaming.” Little Qing’s eyes were filled with excitement.

  The Whitewater Hound nodded gently as well. He, too, was still in a state of shock. That little child who had trained in the sword and in archery by his side…he was actually about to become an apprentice to a major power, Patriarch Subhuti. “A person’s fate truly is unfathomable.”

  Within the monastery.

  There was an empty region filled with many prayer mats. In front of this empty region, there was an elevated platform, atop which there was another prayer mat. On this elevated prayer mat, there was a skinny, white-bearded elder. This skinny elder was dressed in loose robes. He was seated in the lotus position, and he emanated an aura that caused others to feel at peace in their heart.

  “He is Patriarch Subhuti?” Upon seeing this white-bearded elder, Ning couldn’t help but secretly feel nervous. This was a truly major power, a power that had even killed other Fiendgod Daofathers, a power that was acclaimed as the most mysterious Daofather of the Three Realms!

  How could Ning not feel nervous in front of such a person?

  “Master, I’ve brought Ji Ning over,” Lord Jiang said with great respect.

  “I bow in respect to you, Daofather,” Ning said with great respect as well.

  Patriarch Subhuti opened his eyes, looking at Ning. A hint of a smile appeared on his face as he nodded gently. He then instructed Lord Jiang, “You can leave for now. Ji Ning can stay by himself.”

  “Yes.” The white-robed Lord Jiang respectfully departed, leaving behind only Ning and Patriarch Subhuti.

  Patriarch Subhuti said with a calm smile, “No need to be nervous. Pick any prayer mat and sit down first.”

  “Yes.” Ning chose a prayer mat, then sat down in the lotus position.

  “I watched the Conclave of Immortal Destiny of the world of the Grand Xia. Of the participants, you, Woodpass, and the Sloppy Daoist were the most outstanding,” Patriarch Subhuti evaluated. “Crimsonbright ended up choosing Woodpass…and this was as I expected. In choosing disciples, Crimsonbright cares about mindset and temperament the most. The temperament of that Woodpass truly is most suited to him.”

  Ning couldn’t help but sigh in secret. The spirit of the underwater estate had said that Patriarch Subhuti was very good at teaching students. Comparatively speaking, Daofather Crimsonbright and Grand Emperor Xuanwu’s teaching abilities were significantly lower. For even Patriarch Subhuti to praise both Woodpass and Sloppy as excellent meant that they truly did have potential.

  “But in my eyes, you have even more potential than the other two,” Patriarch Subhuti said.

  Ning felt a surge of joy in his heart. This was the very first time someone had said that he had more potential than Sloppy and Woodpass…and the speaker was Patriarch Subhuti!

  “The path of Immortal cultivation is filled with many dangers and obstacles. Thus, with each step, you need to leave a firm footprint as you walk forward in a stable manner. Your heart must be stable as well. This is indeed true,” Patriarch Subhuti said. “From this perspective, Woodpass and Sloppy are both excellent disciples. Their foundations were the most stable amongst the contestants in the Conclave, and their hearts were also the most stable and calm as well.”

  “However…everything in this world is divided into yin and yang,” Patriarch Subhuti said. “Although it is important to be stable and solid, it is also important to be sharp.”

  “You need to be stable, but you also need sharpness.”

  “Stability is yin, while sharpness is yang! When yin and yang support each other, one can walk farther on one’s path.” Patriarch Subhuti laughed. “Ji Ning, you are far ‘sharper’ than the other two, and your foundation is quite solid as well. Only…a disciple like you is harder to guide and teach. It is very easy to teach disciples like Sloppy and Woodpass. So long as you let them slowly train and slowly adventure, they will slowly rise in power.”

  “As for you…your rate of improvement will be faster, but things will also be more risky. Your future potential might be higher than theirs, but you might also perish midway.” Patriarch Subhuti looked at Ning. “Today, I shall impart a few words to you. You need to memorize them.”

  “The path of Immortal cultivation… your goals should be distant and grand, with Pangu and Nuwa as your models.”

  “The path of Immortal cultivation…it requires you to lower your head and watch the road, for you to remember to maintain a solid foundation. Do not merely think about soaring into the skies; when a bird soars too far, its eggs might be stolen and destroyed. It will perish, its Dao gone.”

  “The path of Immortal cultivation…it requires caution. It is a boat that will sail for ten thousand years that you must control with care.”

  “The path of Immortal cultivation…it requires sharpness. Only with a heart that is filled with a desire to charge into the heavens can you walk even farther on this path.”

  Patriarch Subhuti’s words were simple, but they struck at the very foundation of an Immortal cultivator’s heart and mind.

  Everyone summoned before Patriarch Subhuti as a student had superb talent and comprehensive abilities. What determined one’s accomplishments after that…was the heart!

  “Ji Ning shall firmly memorize these words,” Ning said seriously.

  “How to make your goals grand but not too high…how to be cautious and yet have the desire to charge into the heavens…you will need to handle this yourself. The world is divided into yin and yang, and between yin and yang lies the heart,” Patriarch Subhuti said.

  Ning nodded.

  As soon as the Patriarch had met him, he had imparted these words. Ning understood how important these words were, and also the principles which the Patriarch spoke of. However…some things were easy to ‘understand’ but hard to ‘carry out’. On the path of Immortal cultivation, one would need to constantly remind one’s self, so as to prevent one’s self from embarking on a wrong path. These four things the Pariarch had advised him regarding was like four signposts on the Immortal path that would constantly remind him.

  ……

  Patriarch Subhuti continued to speak. “I watched the Conclave of Immortal Destiny. You should have learned the divine ability, [Starseizing Hand].”

  “Yes.” Ning admitted it. Since the Patriarch himself had said the words [Starseizing Hand], how could he even think about hiding it?

  “My fellow Daoist Threelives…he finally has a true successor. His divine ability ha
s once more reappeared in the Three Realms!” Patriarch Subhuti let out an emotional sigh. “Little bear, why haven’t you come out yet?”

  Whoosh. A figure suddenly appeared out of nowhere next to Ning. It was the giant yellow bear.

  “Eh?!” Ning realized to his astonishment that the giant yellow bear next to him was quite solid and seemingly real, as though he were a living creature. He didn’t seem as illusory and dreamlike as he did when he was the spirit within the underwater estate.

  “This little bear pays his respects to the Daofather.” The giant yellow bear fell to his knees, pressing his forehead against the ground.

  “So indeed, Ji Ning, you managed to enter the Starseizing Manor and learned the divine ability within it.” Patriarch Subhuti nodded.

  Ning revealed a surprised look. “Patriarch, the Starseizing Manor…?”

  The nearby giant yellow bear explained, “The ‘Starseizing Manor’ is the true, original name of this underwater estate. Although the estate was left behind by Master for his successors, it was also the estate which Master lived in. In the past, Master would often receive his guests within the Starseizing Manor, and even invite some Fiendgods to listen to him expound upon the Dao.”

  Ning instantly thought back to the many giant prayer mats in the middle of the underwater estate. Indeed, many people must have come to listen to lectures on the Dao.

  Patriarch Subhuti said, “The relationship between Threelives and the Starseizing Manor was similar to the relationship between myself and the Tristar Crescent Abode. In the past, when Threelives knew that the upcoming tribulation would be a hard one to overcome, he made careful preparations, adding a vast quantity of treasures into his estate. He even melted down and extracted the essence of multiple Protocosmic spirit-treasures and invited multiple major powers over in order to forge it. Afterwards, he gave it up and had this little bear search for a successor for him.”

  “I ask for your guidance, Daofather.” The giant yellow bear pressed his head repeatedly against the ground, his eyes brimming with tears. “Tell this little bear…where is Master? Is he alive or is he dead?”