Infinite Professions from a Pearl Collector

It was the same female Daoist Child.

Chen Ye spoke softly, his voice catching. "I... I’m troubled. There are some things I’d like to seek a Daoist’s guidance on."

This time, the female Daoist Child didn’t stop him. She even comforted him softly, "I understand. Don’t be sad. Follow me."

She then led Chen Ye through a side door and into a rear courtyard.

The rear courtyard was quiet and elegant, planted with many flowers and herbs.

The Daoist Child led him to the front of a Quiet Chamber and then departed.

Chen Ye pushed the door open and entered. He saw a middle-aged Daoist Nun in a gray Daoist Robe, sitting cross-legged on a cushion with her eyes closed in meditation.

’This must be the person in charge here.’

"Daoist," Chen Ye said, mimicking the other female visitors. Suppressing a wave of goosebumps, he performed a deep bow.

The middle-aged Daoist Nun slowly opened her eyes. When she saw such a remarkably beautiful young woman, an almost imperceptible, peculiar glint flashed in her eyes, but her tone remained icy.

"What is it?"

Chen Ye had his story ready. He sighed and said mournfully, "To be honest with you, Daoist, I... I am troubled by matters of marriage."

But the moment the words left his mouth, the middle-aged Daoist Nun’s expression instantly fell, and she let out a cold sneer.

"Marriage? Hah. How foolish!"

"The reputation of women is dragged through the mud by fools like you, who can only think about men!"

The Daoist Nun’s voice suddenly grew shrill, her eyes filled with contempt and disdain.

"What, you think you can’t live without a man?!"

Chen Ye was left completely stunned by the outburst.

’What’s going on? This isn’t in the script!’

Immediately after, he had to listen as the middle-aged Daoist Nun launched into a torrent of outrageous statements.

"Women are born noble, the very essence of heaven and earth! Why should we have to depend on those filthy men?"

"Men are nothing but tools for procreation, inferior beasts! They deserve to be enslaved and flogged by women like us!"

Listening to these increasingly absurd, almost radical statements, Chen Ye’s mind reeled for a moment before a sudden realization dawned on him.

’Well, I’ll be damned. I took you for a Daoist, but it turns out you’re a radical feminist?’

Before coming here, Chen Ye had considered countless possibilities. For instance, that the Celestial Empress Palace was secretly a depraved cult, or perhaps a den of monsters that lured in naive women to absorb their Essence Qi.

But he had never, ever expected to run into a radical feminist.

The most extreme and outrageous kind, at that.

Watching the middle-aged Daoist Nun before him, filled with righteous indignation and spittle flying from her lips, Chen Ye was struck by how absurd the situation was.

’How can this sort of person even exist in this world?’

But shocked as he was, Chen Ye’s reaction was astonishingly quick.

’If she’s a radical, then I’ll have to use her own logic to deal with her.’

In a flash, the shock and confusion on Chen Ye’s face vanished. It was replaced by the dazed and helpless look of someone whose deepest pain had just been exposed.

His eyes reddened, and two streams of tears slid perfectly down his cheeks. Combined with his devastatingly beautiful face, the effect was lethal.

"Daoist..."

Chen Ye’s voice, choked with sobs, was filled with grievance and frustration. He sounded like a person drowning in a sea of sorrow who had finally grasped a lifeline.

"You’re right, Daoist... I... I was so foolish."

"I washed his clothes and cooked his meals, I managed the household for him, I gave up everything for him, but he... he found another woman behind my back, and even said I was just a burden who could only depend on him..."

He cried as he spoke. The acting, the raw emotion... Forget the middle-aged Daoist Nun—even if Guan Sihai of the Qingchun Troupe were present, he would likely leap to his feet in applause.

The Soul-Stealing Diva Talent wasn’t just effective on ghosts; it worked on people too.

Especially on a radical Daoist who was already taken with his "beauty" and was completely lost in her own ideological echo chamber.

Sure enough, upon seeing this heart-wrenchingly pitiful sight and hearing this tearful denunciation, the ice and contempt on the middle-aged Daoist Nun’s face gradually melted away.

In its place was a knowing look of confirmation, along with the satisfaction and pity one reserves for a kindred spirit.

"Foolish child, you finally understand."

The Daoist Nun’s tone was no longer sharp, but had softened. She walked forward and gently patted Chen Ye’s shoulder with her rough hand.

"What are men? Nothing but beasts ruled by desire. You can’t believe a single word they say!"

"You were born with such beauty—it’s a gift from the heavens. You shouldn’t debase yourself for those filthy men."

"We women are born more noble than them. Why should we grieve for them? Why should we cry for them?"

The Daoist Nun’s voice was hypnotic, patient and persuasive.

"Come, follow me. I’ll take you to a place and show you how a woman ought to be."

Chen Ye’s heart skipped a beat. ’The main event is starting.’ Outwardly, however, he looked as excited as someone who had finally found her tribe, nodding repeatedly and choking out, "I’ll leave everything in your hands, Daoist."

The middle-aged Daoist Nun smiled in satisfaction and turned to push open a wall at the back of the Quiet Chamber.

CREAK. Behind the wall was a deep, dark secret passage.

"Stay close."

The Daoist Nun led the way with an oil lamp, and Chen Ye followed closely behind.

After passing through the secret passage, the space suddenly opened up before them.

It was a huge underground grotto. The perimeter was lined with Everlasting Lamps, illuminating the entire space as bright as day.

And within the grotto, dozens of young women were sitting cross-legged.

Every one of them had a fanatical expression, their eyes shut tight, chanting something under their breath as if performing some kind of ritual.

"Sever worldly ties and attain purity!"

"Kill every last faithless man, and let women reclaim the world!"

"Yin is noble, Yang is base! This is the ultimate principle of the Celestial Dao!"

The slogans echoed throughout the grotto, sending a chill down Chen Ye’s spine.

He finally understood. The women he had seen leaving the side hall looking so relieved hadn’t received any real guidance at all—they had been brainwashed by this extremist ideology!

They were using this ritual to vent all their pent-up resentment without reservation!

Without betraying any emotion, Chen Ye quietly activated his Tongyou Talent.

In an instant, the world in his eyes changed.

He could now see plumes of blackish-gray, resentful energy, invisible to the naked eye, rising from the bodies of the seated women.

This resentful energy peeled away from them like threads, converging in the center of the grotto where it was absorbed by an invisible vortex.

And at the end of that vortex, in the deepest part of the grotto, Chen Ye sensed a frigid, yin energy that was currently gestating!

The aura felt familiar. It was the same one he had detected on Su Lan!

Chen Ye understood. ’Looks like I came to the right place.’

’This place really is connected to Su Lan’s case!’

"Do you see? This is how our sisters should be. Freed from the shackles of men, we will be reborn."

Suppressing the turmoil in his heart, Chen Ye put on an expression of both longing and fear. He asked timidly, "Daoist, I’ve heard that Daoist Jingxuan of the Celestial Empress Palace is incredibly skilled in Daoist Techniques and is the best at helping unfortunate women like us find relief from our sorrows. I wonder if she is here?"

’I have to confirm the relationship between the Jingxuan who set the trap for Mr. Lu and this Daoist Nun.’

"Jingxuan?"

Hearing the name, the middle-aged Daoist Nun’s eyes flickered for a moment. Then she said nonchalantly, "My senior sister is in seclusion and isn’t seeing visitors. If you are sincere, you’ll have a chance to meet her once you’ve joined our order."

She spoke nonchalantly, but that momentary hesitation had already exposed the truth.

’This Jingxuan isn’t just one of them—her status is probably even higher than this middle-aged Daoist Nun’s!’

Chen Ye was about to ask something else when the middle-aged Daoist Nun said, "Let’s go. Your worldly ties are not yet severed, so you can’t stay here long. Go back, think carefully about what is in your heart, and then return for deeper cultivation."

Chen Ye knew he couldn’t be too hasty, so he went along with it and pretended to feel unwell. His face grew slightly pale, and he swayed on his feet.

"Yes, Daoist. I do feel a bit dizzy and unwell."

Seeing this, the middle-aged Daoist Nun showed no suspicion. Instead, a hint of satisfaction appeared on her face.

"That’s a normal reaction. It means your spiritual potential hasn’t been snuffed out. Go home, rest well, and think carefully about what I’ve said."

As she spoke, she led Chen Ye back to the surface.

Before they parted, she didn’t forget to pat Chen Ye’s shoulder earnestly.

"Remember, men will only slow your blade. The sooner you sever your emotional ties and escape their shackles, the sooner you’ll find your true path."

Chen Ye: "..."

He fought back the urge to make a sarcastic remark, bowed to the Daoist Nun with tears of gratitude in his eyes, and then turned to leave.