Zhang San, please behave yourself!
Chapter 216 - 209: The Immeasurable Path of Ghosts and Gods

Chapter 216: Chapter 209: The Immeasurable Path of Ghosts and Gods

Ye Longchen, traveling southward, finally arrived at Jun Mountain.

Jun Mountain was not as tall as he had imagined, nor were its paths steep. In fact, carrying the huge Bronze Coffin on his back, he reached the peak in no time at all.

At the summit, there stood a City God Temple, weather-beaten and ancient.

Inside the temple, a few sparse incense sticks burned with a faint glow, giving off a rather desolate sense.

A tall but somewhat emaciated old man, dressed in patch-covered clothes, was sweeping the floor inside.

"Excuse me, is this Jun Mountain?"

The old man turned around, glanced at Ye Longchen with the Bronze Coffin on his back, and nodded with a smile.

"It is. Young man, what brings you here?"

Although Ye Longchen did not use the Observation Skill, he could sense that the old man’s presence was very weak, like the ordinary people he had encountered along his way.

Yet, he felt it was better not to pry into the other’s affairs indiscriminately.

So, carrying the coffin, Ye Longchen entered the City God Temple, faced the grand statue being worshipped above, set down the coffin, and knelt to kowtow.

"I was originally just a child from a common family, dependent on my parents since childhood. Later, I was kidnapped by traffickers, and after many years of hardship and suffering, I finally met my master, Tian Xiamian, the Sect Master of the Corpse Nether Sect. Although he was the leader of a demon sect, he treated me very well."

"Later, when I descended the mountain to search for my biological parents, I unexpectedly found that they had been killed by someone, and the brother they had later also fell victim to villains. I used the secret technique of the Corpse Nether Sect to turn my parents into Iron Corpses, hoping that one day I could find a way to resurrect the dead and bring them back to life."

"It’s just a pity that my poor younger brother had been hacked into pieces by enemies. In the end, I forged his blood and bones into my Mysterious Weapons, hoping that one day, I could avenge him."

"Recently, I read in one of our sect’s ancient books that there was a god in Jun Mountain who had died and been resurrected and was worshipped by the surrounding villagers, becoming the City God. I wanted to come here to find the method to resurrect the dead and revive my parents."

Ye Longchen, in front of the City God’s stone statue, narrated his "past experiences."

He continued to kowtow as he spoke.

The old man initially kept sweeping the floor, but as he listened, he eventually stopped his broom and watched the handsome faced Ye Longchen.

"Young man, the dead cannot be revived; this is a rule of Heaven and Earth, unalterable and irreversible."

Ye Longchen immediately shook his head, "No—I heard that the Mountain God here was resurrected, which is how he became a god!"

The old man let out a wry laugh and said, "What’s called resurrection of the dead is just what ordinary people perceive. They see a person die and then see them come back to life, and they think he has been resurrected and consider him a god. In reality, he might not even know what’s happening, just transformed from one state of being to another."

After speaking, the old man came to Ye Longchen’s side and appraised him carefully.

"Young man, your filial piety has touched me. I am willing to teach you my skills, would you like to learn?"

Ye Longchen was secretly delighted.

He had guessed right, this old man was definitely no ordinary person.

Yet, Ye Longchen still pretended to be very shocked, looked at the old man with wide eyes, and asked, "Could it be that you are..."

The old man couldn’t help but burst into laughter, his arms spread wide, and the surrounding City God Temple underwent a momentous transformation.

In an instant, Ye Longchen saw the previously dilapidated City God Temple become magnificent and splendid.

And where it had seemed deserted before, now many worshippers gathered to offer their respects.

He was indeed the only one who could approach the closest to the City God’s statue on the altar.

"Thank you, City God. I will definitely treat you as I would my own father."

By this time, the old man’s clothing had already changed into a brocade robe.

The old man helped Ye Longchen, who was kneeling on the ground, to his feet and, with a wave of his hand, the two of them arrived in the backyard of the City God Temple.

The City God pointed to a small room in the backyard and said, "From now on, that room will be your dwelling. My name is Liu Qi, what’s yours?"

"I am Ye Longchen, greeting my teacher."

Ye Longchen took the opportunity to cement the master-disciple relationship.

Although he already had a master and could not arbitrarily pledge himself to another, calling the other party "teacher" was still possible.

Liu Qi smiled and nodded, asking, "I have two abilities, one is the Path of Life and Death, which I took because I was resurrected after dying and entered a state between life and death. If you wish to learn this ability, you too, will one day enter the state between life and death like me."

"My other ability is the Path of Ghosts and Gods. The Path of Ghosts and Gods is a path of faith. To embark on the Path of Ghosts and Gods, you need to acquire faith. The more Power of Faith you gather, the more prosperous your incense will be, and the stronger your power will become."

"Between these two abilities, Ye Longchen, which one would you like to learn?"

At this moment, it seemed to Ye Longchen that a new door had opened before him, and although he had only heard of the world being composed of six different Paths, the legendary Paths had always seemed too remote for him.

But he had never imagined that today, this door had opened before him.

"Teacher, it’s not that I am greedy, but both of your abilities sound incredibly formidable and unimaginable. So, may I learn both?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Qi couldn’t help but burst into hearty laughter.

After he finished laughing, Liu Qi looked at Ye Longchen and said in a low voice, "If you are willing, it’s not impossible. However, walking both paths at the same time is no small feat. Every cultivator in this world needs to be focused; if you learn too much, it will become mixed, and being mixed, it will not be refined, and will inevitably have flaws. So, do you still plan to take both paths?"

Ye Longchen didn’t know if this was a test or if taking only one path would indeed be better, but he remained very resolute as he nodded.

"If my teacher can walk them, then as a student, I must also walk them, and I must succeed!"

Liu Qi smiled and nodded.

"Good! Today, you can rest properly. Starting tomorrow, I will teach you the skills."

Ye Longchen immediately knelt down to Liu Qi and kowtowed again to express his gratitude.

At this moment, Ye Longchen’s heart was already brimming with joy.

Ordinarily, cultivators follow the Imperial Path, but the strongest legacies of the Imperial Path are in the hands of the Imperial Family and those powerful Aristocratic Families, so what could he learn from walking the Imperial Path?

But following Liu Qi was different; this was a resurrected Mountain God, a being who cultivated both the Path of Life and Death and the Path of Ghosts and Gods.

Previously, when he had met Zhang San, he hadn’t even had the chance to finish speaking before Zhang San slapped him twice.

When he had achieved something in his cultivation, he would start by giving Zhang San two slaps upon meeting him!

========

[Note 67]Reference explanation

This story of Liu Qi, who died and resurrected to become the god of Jun Mountain, is referenced from Gan Bao’s "In Search of the Supernatural", concerning Liu Qi’s deification.

And the reason he is the City God involves the world-building and power system setting of this book. To avoid spoilers, no further explanation will be given for now.