Chapter 179 - 44 Saint and the Great Tao

Chapter 179: Chapter 44 Saint and the Great TaoIndeed, this place was absolutely a prison—a chamber without windows on all sides could only be a dungeon or a treasury, yet he couldn’t find anything that would associate this building’s interior with a treasury. Could ’the amiable Taoist,’ as that little mouse mentioned, refer to a prisoner in this cell? Those detained in the Xuanxu Palace’s prison were likely to be individuals of status and strength, perhaps even great demons or evil sect ancestors. There might be an opportunity to gain some benefits. With these thoughts in mind, Xiao Jie headed downstairs, but before he even reached the bottom, a burst of clamor left him slightly surprised. "Let me out; don’t kill me, please!" "Hahaha, you ignorant fools, you fail to recognize my Immortal’s wondrous powers. If you provoke me, I’ll obliterate your very souls with a single move." "I want to eat Roasted Meat, not steamed buns. I want wine, bring me wine!" "Everyone shut up; your noise is keeping me from sleeping." Huh? Why do these voices sound so familiar? It sounded like many people shouting, but upon careful listening, it seemed like the voice of a single person. When Xiao Jie arrived downstairs, he was shocked into stillness. He had imagined many scenarios, but what he saw before him was still completely beyond his expectations. It was indeed a dungeon below, with a corridor in the middle and many cells on either side. Currently, the cells were packed with people. Several Heavenly Soldiers stood rigid on both sides of the corridor. These Heavenly Soldiers were summoned beings, somewhat resembling robots, showing no reaction to Xiao Jie’s appearance. But Xiao Jie was not focused on these Heavenly Soldiers; instead, his attention was on the prisoners. The inmates in these cells looked incredibly familiar: mustaches in the shape of the number eight, tattered Daoist robes, disheveled hair, and faces that combined an air of mystery with a hint of sleaziness. Weren’t these the Foolish Taoist/Mad Taoist? Looking at their names confirmed it: indeed, they were the Foolish Taoist, and not just one but more than a dozen, locked up on the left side of the dungeon. Due to the large number, the single cells were insufficient, so they simply put three or five together, all of them crying and begging for mercy at the moment. On the other side of the dungeon, seven or eight Mad Taoists were also confined in their own cells, shouting and cursing angrily. The place was as bustling as a market. Seeing so many Foolish Taoists and Mad Taoists, Xiao Jie was startled. What was going on? Why were there so many identical Foolish Taoists and Mad Taoists? He had always found these two NPCs peculiar, and now he was even more puzzled. No, these must not be real people, but some kind of Clone Technique? Xiao Jie suddenly remembered a part of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms he had read as a child—Zuo Ci throwing his goblet to fool Cao Cao. After Zuo Ci tricked Cao Cao, he fled, and naturally Cao Cao would not let it go and sent his soldiers after him, only to capture several hundred identical Zuos. The original text reads: Cao ordered his generals to pour pig and sheep blood on him and take him to the southern training ground of the city. Cao himself led 500 armored soldiers to surround them and behead them all. Every individual’s neck emitted a stream of blue vapor, which rose to the sky and collected together to form one Zuo Ci, who summoned a white crane to mount and rode it, clapping his hands and laughing loudly, saying: "Rodents follow the Golden Tiger, the treacherous hero’s time is over!" Cao ordered his men to shoot him with bows and arrows. Suddenly, a Gale whipped up, carrying stones and sand; the beheaded corpses all sprang up, carrying their heads in their hands, and rushed to the practicing grounds to attack Cao Cao. Civil and military officials, covering their faces in shock, scattered in disarray... (This Chapter is 200 words longer.) This part had struck Xiao Jie with a vivid mental image when he read it as a child, leaving a profound memory. Now seeing so many identical Foolish and Mad Taoists immediately reminded him of that. Could it be that this Foolish Taoist/Mad Taoist is an Immortal similar to Zuo Ci? Why had the people of Xuanxu Palace captured so many avatars? He couldn’t help but recall the Foolish Taoist’s words when they first met, which seemed to mention something about Xuanxu Palace capturing, beating, and torturing him. So it was true. His mind filled with both astonishment and curiosity, and fortunately, there were no other Taoists guarding the jail, only those puppet-like Protecting Heaven Soldiers. Xiao Jie walked past them, and suddenly all the Mad Taoists and Foolish Taoists stopped talking and turned their gazes towards him. Xiao Jie felt his skin crawl under their stares. As Xiao Jie hesitated on how to start a conversation, he suddenly heard a sinister voice from the end of the dungeon. "Hehe, you’ve come to interrogate me so early today? Daoist friend, why have you come alone?" He turned his head to look, and there, at the very end of the dungeon, was another Taoist in a single cell. This person’s voice was indistinguishable from that of the Foolish or Mad Taoists, yet he did not possess the crazed demeanor of the Mad Taoist or the foolishness of the Foolish Taoist. Driven by curiosity, he approached, and when he got closer, he saw everything clearly. The Taoist inside had the same number eight mustache, disheveled hair, yet his Daoist robe was very tidy. His face bore a hint of wickedness, and he was securely bound with iron chains and covered with numerous talismans. Even the cell door was inscribed with talismans—clearly, he was a person of importance. Evil Man: Level 36 BOSS, Life Value 420/4200. The Evil Man was actually locked up here! Seeing the familiar face before him, Xiao Jie immediately harbored a guess. Could it be that all these Mad Taoists and Foolish Taoists are avatars of this Evil Man? This can be inferred from their levels, but why is this guy a red-named Monster while all his avatars are ordinary citizens? "I’m here for an inspection, not to interrogate you," I said. "An inspection? That’s novel. When did Xuanxu Palace ever need inspections? Aren’t the Heavenly Soldiers you summoned quite useful? Eh—no, you’re not from Xuanxu Palace! Hehe, interesting, quite interesting. Your transformation skill is really something; even I was almost fooled," he chuckled. Xiao Jie was startled, damn, he hadn’t noticed, but his voice remained unchanged. "What transformation skill? I don’t know what you’re talking about." "Hahaha, no need to pretend with me. I’m not one of those dumb Taoists around here that can’t see the obvious problems right in front of them. Tell me, did you come looking for me because you’re seeking knowledge? I’m pretty idle anyway, so if you can amuse me, I might just teach you." Xiao Jie instinctively felt the other party was trying to deceive him. Not just because the Dao he’s offering seems too easy to learn, but also because he’s got a big red name above his head like a Monster, and he’s a BOSS too. How could I believe you? However, he had come here to gain Strength, and he couldn’t leave empty-handed. "Indeed, I ventured deep into this place seeking knowledge. Alas, the Daoists of Xuanxu Palace were unwilling to take me in, so I had to find my own way. I entered here by accident—is it possible that you’ve been locked up here because you’ve done something atrocious?" "Hmph? What heaven? What reason? The heavens and earth are but illusions, and all reasons are delusions. Why should I care? Even if it is against heaven and reason, so what? Whose heaven is it anyway? Whose reason? You, young man, are only concerned with trivialities. You must be a mediocre person." Xiao Jie thought to himself that the man’s verbosity was quite slick, but if it came down to a battle of words, he wasn’t afraid of anyone. "Hehe, I get what you mean. Are you suggesting that the world we see with our human eyes is not the real world, that our mortal eyes can’t comprehend the truth of the world, and consequently, the rules built upon this false world are also meaningless?" The Evil Man was surprised, "Eh, the young man has some comprehension. Could it be that you’ve read my Taoist book?" Xiao Jie thought, that’s just it, I got the theory from your Nameless Taoist Book, but he didn’t speak the truth. Instead, he chuckled, "What book? Never heard of it. I figured it out on my own, though I’m not sure if it’s correct. I just spoke out after hearing what you said—is the reasoning I’ve come up with actually plausible?" "Hahaha, young man, you have talent, of course it’s reasonable. It is the Supreme Dao! It’s a shame that what you’ve figured out is just scratching the surface of the Supreme Dao. The real principles within, you’d probably break your head thinking and still won’t comprehend them." "That’s true. Although I understand that the world I see is false, how can I see the real world? I have no clue at all. Do you know, Daoist?" "Hahaha, young man, you’re lucky to have met me today. I just happen to know how to see the true nature of this world. The so-called truth of the world, that is the Dao. The Dao is the ultimate rationale of all things. There are Human Dao, Earth Dao, Heavenly Dao. Only by understanding the three Daos and combining them into one can one achieve the Supreme Dao." "The Supreme Dao? That sounds incredible. Can I become an Immortal?" The Evil Man disdainfully said, "Become an Immortal? What’s that worth? If I cultivate this Dao to the extreme, I can become a Saint. Do you know what a Saint is?" Xiao Jie had been quite excited, but upon hearing the Evil Man’s words, he was suddenly speechless. Great, ran into another braggart. If this Evil Man said he could become an Immortal, I might have believed him a little. But to become a Saint, that seems a bit far-fetched. You, a Level 36 Little Kalami, why the pretense? If you were really so great, wouldn’t you have ascended to heaven long ago, instead of being locked up here? From Xiao Jie’s years of experience with martial arts novels and fantasy stories, this Evil Man probably had some abilities, but certainly not comparable to Xuanxu Palace, otherwise he wouldn’t be imprisoned here. However, his abilities must be somehow extraordinary, likely similar to the difference between a reputable sect and the Evil Path. Generally, the martial arts of reputable sects progress slowly but steadily, while those of the Evil Path advance quickly but come with hidden dangers, leading to a bottleneck later on. But for ordinary players, getting the Cultivation Technique of the Evil Path may not necessarily be worse than that of the right path. After all, it’s a death game; as long as you’re powerful in the early stages, you don’t have to think too far ahead. Right away, he followed along with what the Evil Man had been saying: "What’s a Saint? Even more powerful than an Immortal?" "Hahaha, what are Immortals? A Saint knows Yin and Yang, comprehends heaven and earth, extends the universe, transforms Qian and Kun, masters the mysteries of myriad worlds, perceives the infiniteness of the Great Dao, commands nature with his words—even frivolous speech can become truth. His mind whisks between creation and destruction of heaven and earth, and his casual laughter influences the existence of all things. How about it, do you want to learn?" "I do, I do! Please teach me, Daoist," Xiao Jie thought, even if what the Evil Man teaches is only one-tenth as impressive as his boasts, it would be utterly thrilling. "Good, listen carefully. Of the three Daos of heaven, earth, and human, the principles of the Human Dao are the most straightforward. Let me start with the Human Dao Chapter..." Xiao Jie leaned in to listen when, suddenly, a flurry of footsteps came from behind. Not good! Xiao Jie cursed silently, damn it, why did someone have to show up now? Without a second thought, he performed another Transform into Human. Poof! A puff of white smoke flashed by, and this time he turned into the figure of a Protecting Heaven Soldier, clad in Golden Armor, with a vacant expression. Not bad, not bad, the effect of blending into the environment is indeed miraculous. He really feared that a random transformation would make him into a Foolish Taoist or a Mad Taoist; that would be a huge bummer. This Protecting Heaven Soldier was just perfect, completely inconspicuous. Xiao Jie checked the formation of the other Protecting Heaven Soldiers and directly found a vacant spot in a corner to stand in. A moment later, he saw a Daoist wearing a Moon White Taoist Robe walking down briskly. Eh, it turned out to be a player. Tree Under the Cicada (Daoist): Level 28. Life Value 660. Not good! Xiao Jie’s heart jolted, although Transform into Human could change his appearance, his name wouldn’t change, he could fool NPCs but not players. Fortunately, he had chosen a secluded position. The other player did not notice anything out of the ordinary with a Protecting Heaven Soldier standing off in the corner and went straight to the Evil Man’s cell, completely unaware of the presence of another player in the cell. "Daoist, I’ve come to see you again," Tree Under the Cicada said with considerable respect, evidently not his first visit.