After the Immortal Disappeared

Wen Daolun nodded after listening. Tong Kao took a few more whiffs of the Cyan Incense before reluctantly returning to its home in the piece of sunken wood.

Wen Daolun said gravely, "No wonder you didn't feel anything. She couldn't enter your Sea of Consciousness at all."

"Why?"

"Everyone's Sea of Consciousness has some instinctual defenses to repel foreign invaders. My Tong Kao may look young, but she is actually over three hundred years old. Slipping into another's Sea of Consciousness is a simple matter for her." Curiosity flickered in Wen Daolun's eyes. "But she told me the outer perimeter of your Sea of Consciousness is a complete labyrinth. She took several wrong turns and nearly got trapped inside."

"A labyrinth?" The answer took Hee Lingchuan completely by surprise. "Couldn't she have forced her way in?"

"You want her to force her way in?" Wen Daolun asked, amused. "If she were to throw your Sea of Consciousness into chaos, you could have been turned into a drooling fool."

'Then how do I explain the Celestial God's intrusion last time?' Hee Lingchuan had indeed felt drained and exhausted afterward, so much so that he could have slept for three days and three nights straight. But he was quite certain he hadn't become a fool or an idiot.

'Probably.'

'Does that just mean I'm tough as nails?'

"Tong Kao also mentioned that this Illusion Barrier is exceptionally tough; with her level of Daoist Practice, she still can't break through it. Furthermore, she had a vague feeling that resorting to brute force would have had dire consequences." Wen Daolun leaned back. "What Divine Power Technique have you been cultivating?"

Hee Lingchuan listed them out, and Wen Daolun immediately said, "Based on your age and Cultivation, there's no way you could have built that defense yourself. The one pulling the strings doesn't want your true destiny to be exposed. Which means—"

"Your immense good fortune might just be a manufactured, superficial illusion." He let out a soft breath. "This phenomenon—where the body and soul are separate, each corresponding to a different fate—is truly a rare sight."

"The body and the soul... have different fates?" A chill ran down Hee Lingchuan's spine. That was exactly his current predicament!

"A person's good fortune is finite; one can't be lucky forever. The backlash must be borne by your destiny. This is what's known as 'outwardly blessed, inwardly damned,' or 'external fortune, internal disaster!'" Wen Daolun explained patiently. "Day after day, this fortune accumulates into a disaster that must eventually erupt. This is what is meant by the saying, 'blessed with a fortune one cannot live to enjoy'!"

Hee Lingchuan stroked his chin. "Tong Kao couldn't even get into my Sea of Consciousness, yet you can claim I'm 'outwardly blessed, inwardly damned' based on inference alone?"

"But we still have those two lines of verse, don't we?" Wen Daolun smiled. "Of course, the most important thing is that you're not the only one. This situation is rare, but I have witnessed it once before."

Hee Lingchuan blurted out, "Who?"

Wen Daolun shook his head. "It's none of your concern."

If he wouldn't say, no one here could force him.

Frustration welled up in Hee Lingchuan. He sighed. "If a calamity is coming, you have to at least tell me how to mitigate it, right?"

"After the great cataclysm, one's fate is no longer entirely determined by the heavens. It is also held in your own hands."

Hee Lingchuan immediately recalled the old turtle's exact words: "No outcome is set in stone." But what he needed now was a solution—a solution!

"Then let us see. Think of a single character, and I will analyze it for you." Wen Daolun cleared the items off the low table and placed a cup of water in front of Hee Lingchuan. "The very first character that comes to your mind. Don't overthink it!"

He wanted to analyze the first character that surfaced from Hee Lingchuan's subconscious.

Since Wen Daolun had said as much, Hee Lingchuan didn't hesitate. He dipped a finger in the water, his hand hovering in the air for just a moment before descending to the wooden table. A few strokes, and it was done.

The character was—

Courage!

Hee Lingchuan truly hadn't overthought it, writing only what was in his heart.

'If he was truly beset by calamity, then what he needed most was probably the meaning of this very character.'

Wen Daolun stroked his beard and praised him, "A promising young man. Are you a Patrol Guard, or have you already joined the Great Wind Army?"

"A Patrol Guard," Hee Lingchuan said seriously. "But I'm working hard to join the Great Wind Army."

"Good, good." Wen Daolun also reached out and wrote the character for 'Courage' on the table. "This is your character. It is composed of two parts. If we take away the lower part, which means 'strength,' what remains has a double meaning. First, it can mean the handle of a great bell—meaning that for others to use the bell, whether to hang it or strike it, they must go through you. Second, it can mean a narrow palace corridor, walled on both sides and difficult to cross, making you the most convenient path."

Hearing this, Hee Lingchuan murmured, "Toiling for another's benefit?"

'That lines up exactly with the old turtle's prophecy, doesn't it?'

"Furthermore, if you add the component that means 'person' to what's left of your character, it becomes the character for 'Puppet'." There happened to be a ceramic Child Puppet on a shelf behind Wen Daolun. He turned, grabbed it, and placed it on the low table.

The Child Puppet wasn't very detailed, its clothes a garish mix of red and green. Looking at the exaggerated, false smile on its face, Hee Lingchuan couldn't help but shiver.

"I don't need to explain what being a Puppet means, do I?"

Sunx Fuling whispered from the side, "A perfect match for 'a body like a cage'."

"But both of those outcomes are predicated on the 'strength' being taken away from your 'courage'," Wen Daolun said softly. "That component for 'strength'—that is where your opportunity may lie."

'True strength is the only way to change one's fate.'

'It seems that principle is universal, no matter the world.'

Hee Lingchuan dipped his finger in the water again and wrote the character for 'strength' on the table. He stared at it for a long time before clearing his throat. "That other component... you can add other parts to it as well, like the radicals for 'movement' or 'water'."

"That would create the characters for 'to pass through' and 'to surge'."

'Building up strength takes time. Are there other ways to avoid disaster before I'm powerful enough?'

Wen Daolun countered, "What do you think?"

"Can those two meanings be put together?" Hee Lingchuan bluffed. "Does it mean I should run away at the first sight of water?"

"Perhaps," Wen Daolun chuckled. "As I said, after the great cataclysm, the calculus of fate is no longer precise. Your destiny..."

"Is both determined and undetermined," Hee Lingchuan finished for him. "I get it."

After this session of seeking answers, he felt like he understood, and yet, he didn't understand at all.

'It seems the old turtle and Wen Daolun both enjoy being deliberately mysterious. Maybe they only have a partial understanding themselves, or perhaps these things are simply impossible to explain clearly.'

Wen Daolun stopped there. He produced a miniature game board from somewhere and turned to Sunx Fuling. "Sunx Girl, shall we have another game?"

Sunx Fuling was just as frank. "Alright. What is Mr. Wen prepared to lose this time?"

Wen Daolun nearly choked. It took him a moment to recover. "I was just careless last time!"

Sunx Fuling stood her ground. "If you lose, you have to come give five lectures at the Shumin Academy."

"Two," Wen Daolun said, shaking his head. "I don't have that much time."

They haggled and finally settled on three lectures.

Of course, if Sunx Fuling lost, there was no forfeit. Given Wen Daolun's status, how could he demand a wager from a junior?

Hee Lingchuan had no interest in board games. He forced himself to watch for a while but soon grew drowsy.

By the time Sunx Fuling shook his sleeve, the carriage had returned to Panlong City. "We're here."

Hee Lingchuan was instantly awake. "Did Mr. Wen lose again?"

Wen Daolun's mustache bristled, but he didn't deny it.

He had indeed lost again, more soundly than the last time.

"For one so young, your skill at the game is..." He sighed. "It reminds me of someone."

Hee Lingchuan asked on her behalf, "Who?"

"Lord Zhong's beloved daughter." With that, Wen Daolun disembarked and stretched his stiff limbs.

A Personal Guard had actually reported to him on the way back that the monster from beneath the Divine Descent Platform had escaped and hadn't been captured.

Hee Lingchuan decided to tell Wen Daolun about the strange incident with the old woman. He concluded by saying, "I have no proof. It's just a wild guess, but I offer it for Mr. Wen's consideration."

Wen Daolun listened intently from beginning to end without interrupting. Only when Hee Lingchuan was finished did he nod. "This information is useful. Thank you."

'Sigh, another meeting,' Wen Daolun thought as he hurried away.

His large retinue departed with him.

The cold wind on South Gate Square made Sunx Fuling pull her coat tighter. Having just stepped out of the carriage, which was as warm as a spring day, she found the chill hard to bear.

Seeing this, Hee Lingchuan said, "Let's go home."

He paused for a moment after the words left his lips.

There was nothing wrong with what he'd said, though; their homes were right next to each other. Sunx Fuling didn't seem to notice anything odd and nodded eagerly. "Yeah!"

Just as they were about to climb into their hired carriage, Sunx Fuling suddenly asked, "You've looked troubled all day. Did something happen?"

"It's nothing," Hee Lingchuan replied out of habit. 'This girl is too sharp,' he thought. He had been sure he was hiding it well.

Sunx Fuling immediately stopped and turned her head to look at him. "Tell me. Brooding by yourself in Panlong City isn't a wise thing to do."

He finally sighed. "I just lost a comrade... a good one."

Fuzzy Peach had been sacrificed, and he hadn't even had time to burn some spirit money for his loyal subordinate.

And besides him, it seemed no one else cared about what had happened, or about the man himself.

From the moment he was laid to rest, the name was scattered to the winds.

Sunx Fuling gently placed her hand on his wrist, her warmth seeping through. "The Mortal World is fickle. Life and death are just a part of it."

She didn't ask which comrade it was. In Panlong City, such partings were commonplace.

Hee Lingchuan nodded. What other way was there to think about it?

She then asked, "Have you released a lotus lantern for him?"

"A what?" He didn't understand.

"Come with me."

Sunx Fuling pulled him into a narrow street bordering the square. A few doors were open, but it was hard to tell if they were businesses or homes.

Residents on a street like this had the advantage of location; they could set up a small stall right at their courtyard gates and do business.

Sunx Fuling chose one and walked up to it. "I'd like to buy an ice lantern," she said.

The place appeared to be a general store. Upon hearing her request, the owner turned and went back into the courtyard, returning a moment later carrying a string of ice lanterns by a straw rope.

The ice lantern was shaped like a blooming lotus flower, the size of a bowl. The carving was exquisite, down to the very texture of the petals.

In the Lotus Core was a small candle, only about a third the length of a pinky finger.

Sunx Fuling paid, then took the lantern and casually strolled away.

"This shopkeeper makes the best lanterns," she said.

Outside was the square and its lake. The water wasn't frozen, and Hee Lingchuan could see plump fish swimming lazily about.

Sunx Fuling handed the ice lantern to him. "Just place it in the lake. The underground hot spring will push it out into the water."

It was already dusk, and with the sun gone, the sky was darkening quickly.

Hee Lingchuan took out his flint and lit the small candle. He held the lotus lantern, murmured a few words, then gently placed it into the water.