Dao Equaling the Heavens
Chapter 408 - 28 Sanqing Taoist Sect

Chapter 408: Chapter 28 Sanqing Taoist Sect

Heavenly Court returned.

Upon hearing this, Lu Chan and Chi Yu Zi were stunned momentarily before they looked towards the white jade bottle with slightly changed expressions.

Cultivators chasing after everlasting life was nearly instinctual; very few ever truly understood life and death, perhaps beings completely indifferent to life and death never existed.

The living, naturally, struggle for survival by all means.

The position of a Heavenly Official represents a foreseeable longevity, easier to attain compared to the mysterious and extraordinary transcendence to immortality.

"Simply refining this object would grant everlasting life?"

Gu Wen gently wiped the white jade bottle with his thumb, increasingly finding it similar to the Fate Diagram of the Red Dust Immortal.

Both transformed the ethereal path of longevity into a clear and visible path, turning a fantastical goal desired by many into reality.

Xuan Yue looked intensely and nodded in response, "Correct, and beneath the Immortal Position there are Heavenly Officials, who can also grant others everlasting life. It may just be a few thousand years, but that’s something Immortals can’t do."

The biggest difference between a Heavenly Official and an Immortal was that the former could grant others longevity, while the latter could only roam freely alone.

Gu Wen then asked, "Then what is the price?"

"Being controlled by the Heavenly Court, but aren’t Immortals also controlled by someone stronger?" Xuan Yue said, "Cultivation often talks about freedom, but throughout history, no one has truly been free. Trading relative freedom for thousands of years of longevity is very much worth it."

This statement had merit yet strayed from the true essence.

Hence, Xuan Yue couldn’t become an Immortal.

Gu Wen evaluated him internally, not particularly concerned with what Xuan Yue thought, and instead glanced at the others with periphery vision, noticing both women frown slightly.

Chi Yu Zi spoke bluntly, "You just want to become a superior who can lash at others, not someone who wants to escape constraints. Transcendence is about rejecting all external things, not capital for unrestrained actions."

Xuan Yue defended, "Is there a difference? Codes, laws, moralities—all restrict certain behaviors. If you refuse their constraints, you are committing evil."

"Code can be heartless, laws can be harsh taxes. Before Five Spirits Valley existed, regions were filled with starvation and corpses. The difference between righteous and evil paths lies in that the righteous don’t use people for cultivation; everything else is similar."

"So the Immortal Position is good; it’s all longevity with no high or low. Transcendence is hard to find, the Immortal Position is easy. Once the Immortal Positions are set, seeking longevity afterward will be difficult."

After this chance, that opportunity won’t come again.

No one could argue with that, causing Lu Chan to also show some hesitation.

If what Xuan Yue said was correct, now was the easiest time to seek longevity. Once the Immortal Positions are set, seeking longevity will be hard.

No one could guarantee they would definitely become an Immortal, so a clear and visible path seemed extremely precious.

Chi Yu Zi scratched his head, then turned to Gu Wen for help, "Madam can’t win against him, quickly use your Great Saint’s mighty Dao to suppress him."

"Following your honored direction." Xuan Yue responded with a composed smile, "The Immortal Position is but an evolution of the Saint’s Path; I wonder what different perspective the Saint might have."

Everyone looked expectantly at Gu Wen, who slowly raised his hand and then slapped downward.

Boom!

Xuan Yue was sent crashing to the ground, cracks spreading like a spiderweb, shaking the entire house.

The Saint’s mighty Dao was deafening.

Gu Wen calmly said, "I know a little about fighting."

Chi Yu Zi’s eyes sparkled, and she gave a thumbs up, saying, "I like your style."

Lu Chan was somewhat startled, not expecting this kind of response.

She asked, "Brother, what should the Saint’s Path be?"

Gu Wen replied, "The Saint’s Path is the Saint himself; before becoming a Great Saint, it’s not enough for others to perceive."

There was never a fixed great path; the great path is everywhere, and so is the Saint’s Path—the current self they see is the embodiment of the Saint’s Path itself.

Xuan Yue was dizzy for a few minutes, and when he opened his eyes again, the aftereffects of the Saint’s Path still lingered in his mind.

He looked dejectedly at Gu Wen, who was fiddling with the white jade bottle, completely spiritless.

"Is there anything else you wish of me, Saint Venerable?"

"Nothing else; you may leave."

Xuan Yue stood and exited the room, not considering escaping since it was pointless.

Cultivation grew harder with progression, a Daoist Demi Immortal compared to an Immortal was like a fly to a giant. Xuan Yue, who had spent tens of thousands of years among the Demi Immortals and had just entered the Immortal Realm, knew the disparity between the two very well.

Thus, the gap between an Immortal and a Saint could only be even larger.

Since Gu Wen didn’t directly kill him, there was at least a sliver of hope. He guessed it was most likely up to Qingcang to decide, and Gu Wen had not killed the uncommunicative Qingcang, which should allow for some discussion.

And if the Heavenly Court truly returned, he would be half within the system.

Xuan Yue thought carefully, tiptoed out, and on crossing the threshold, he did not forget to turn and bow deeply towards Gu Wen.

His posture humble, unaware that his back was already accustomed to bending.

Gu Wen remembered when he first saw Xuan Yue at Immortal Land, the other, standing far away with hands behind his back, rendered him immobile, carefully asking the elder a question.

Now, he just sat unmoving, with no indication, yet Xuan Yue dared not leave.

Chi Yu Zi muttered, "This old guy is too slippery; I’m ashamed to be associated with him, yet he’s still an Immortal. Even though it’s relying on an Immortal Position to break through, he used to be a genuine Demi Immortal and one of our Daoist Sect’s ancestors."

"It’s normal, only those with weaknesses can get along," Gu Wen smiled, "If someone threatened me with your life and death, you would become weak, and it so happens that Xuan Yue values longevity above everything else."

Everyone is a slave to what they value; there are no unmatched mighty warriors in the world, only struggling mortals in the Red Dust.