Chapter 1461: Who Says Er Zhu Is Not Smart, Merely Great Wisdom Hidden in the Heart

After hearing this, Cao Erzhu's first impression was that it was full of profound meaning, and his second was that the knowledge quickly slipped away from his mind.

He scratched his head and asked: "What do you mean?"

Well, it seemed like I was playing a lute to a cow...

Jinren didn't plan to praise Kui Lei Han's virtues or flatter Cao Erzhu's cultivation.

Though that might have left a good impression on the other party, a sincere person should respond with sincerity.

If Jinren wanted, he could use thousands of ways to deceive Cao Erzhu, luring him to join Tian Shang Di Yi Lou and make money for himself, oblivious to the trap.

In the end, he decided against it and chose to be straightforward.

"The deceased is gone; please mourn and accept fate."

"Since you knew Yu Tu the elder, and Yu Tu the elder was on very good terms with Si Ren, then I, as Si Ren's student,"

"By that logic, you, Cao Erzhu, can also be considered a friend of mine, Xu Xiaoshou. I certainly wouldn't let you sink into a quagmire, so I want to ask you..."

Friend... Cao Erzhu was slightly lost in thought.

He was always the one initiating friendships with others; rarely did anyone claim to be his friend.

Even if this friend didn't seem quite human.

Cao Erzhu hugged the array disk head even closer.

He considered nature his friend, with mountains and rivers as companions. Even if this was just a talking lump of iron, he wouldn't look down on it.

Finally, feeling that looking down was disrespectful, he lifted it up to eye level for an equal gaze: "Brother Xiaoshou..."

In Cao Erzhu's eyes, a talking lump of iron must have gained a spirit and was likely older than him, so it deserved respect.

If the other hadn't offered friendship first, his address would have been "Senior Xiaoshou."

Now, he asked his new friend: "Brother Xiaoshou, what do you want to ask me? I'll answer honestly!"

"So, Erzhu, what are your plans next?" Jinren got straight to the point.

A look of confusion flashed in Cao Erzhu's eyes.

For twenty-six years, he had only kept company with the small town and Qingyuan Mountain; the outside world was all unknown to him.

His plan was to bury his father and then...

Nothing.

Or perhaps leave the town and go elsewhere.

Or enter Lian Ling Jie, but how to enter, where it was, and what was needed—he had no idea.

Cao Erzhu looked helplessly at the old immortal, but felt this wasn't something an outsider could decide for him.

Independence was the mark of a true man.

He lowered his head, a bit disheartened: "I don't know. My dad said I'm not smart, and I'd get tricked if I went out, so maybe I should just stay in the town."

"Is that what you want?" Jinren asked, and seeing Cao Erzhu open his mouth, added, "Answer from your conscience."

Conscience... Cao Erzhu touched his chest and quickly shook his head firmly: "No."

"What you long for has already told me."

Jinren didn't even need to ask; he knew someone who got so excited about the Half-Sage battle couldn't possibly be content in a corner.

Cao Erzhu was bound to step into Lian Ling Jie!

Dao Qiong Cang already knew about this "peerless genius," so he certainly wouldn't let him go.

"If you want to join Lian Ling Jie, my personal recommendation is to join... Sheng Shen Dian Tang!" Jinren said.

Mei Si Ren stood behind, his expression suddenly changing in surprise as he turned to look at the array disk head.

He had thought Xu Xiaoshou was about to start his act, steering Cao Erzhu toward Sheng Nu or his Tian Shang Di Yi Lou.

But what was this about joining Sheng Shen Dian Tang?

"Sheng Shen Dian Tang..." Cao Erzhu murmured, not asking what it was, as he seemed to have heard of it vaguely.

"Sheng Shen Dian Tang is the foremost righteous force on the continent, backed by the five great Saint Emperor families, deeply rooted, with an extremely high ceiling."

"You just need to go to Yujing City or another major city, find a branch of Sheng Shen Dian Tang, and say you want to join 'Bai Yi.'"

"Remember, you can only join 'Bai Yi'—don't join 'Hong Yi,' as it's too murky. As for the Sheng Shen Guards, they're not up to par, so you don't need to consider them."

"There will be many patrons, many, many patrons! They'll recognize you as that rare talent, and you'll rise straight to the top, on a broad and smooth path."

"But lastly, beware—Cao Erzhu, don't enter the higher ranks."

"Your personality isn't suited for their Sheng Mountain headquarters; it's a muddy mess. You're better off as a fierce warrior fighting on the front lines."

"Even if they offer you the position of Bai Yi Dao Master, don't accept!"

"But by then, accepting or not might not be up to you... Though if it's you, maybe you really could refuse."

Jinren poured out his heart, and even he felt a deep sigh within.

He knew that if there hadn't been that Ember Glow seed, or the subsequent events like the Night Guard and the Eight Venerables, this path would have been the best way to seek shelter under a great tree after leaving Ling Palace and understanding the world's true nature.

He was laying out the road he never took for Cao Erzhu.

Cao Erzhu didn't agree right away but asked instead: "Brother Xiaoshou, are you from Sheng Shen Dian Tang?"

He also glanced at Mei Si Ren.

Mei Si Ren shook his head with a smile and glanced at the array disk head.

Regardless of whether Xu Xiaoshou was being "sincere," he approved of this path and naturally leaned toward his own student.

"I'm not. I'm from Tian Shang Di Yi Lou."

"Tian Shang Di Yi Lou?" Cao Erzhu's eyes shifted.

The name was straightforward and easy to grasp, which suited his taste, especially since the old immortal was involved.

The old immortal always gave off a "family" vibe, even though they had only met by chance on the mountain and spent one night together.

But that was something others couldn't achieve no matter how long they spent together.

After his father's death, in this world, the straws Cao Erzhu could grasp were only the newly met old immortal and Xu Xiaoshou.

"Don't listen to Si Ren's nonsense. Tian Shang Di Yi Lou is nothing. If Sheng Shen Dian Tang wanted to act, they could wipe it out with a flip of their hand." Jinren quickly interjected, his words carrying a hint of rebuke.

Mei Si Ren chuckled softly and said no more.

His thoughts were clear: Xu Xiaoshou was truly considering Cao Erzhu, not himself.

—As expected of my student!

"Brother Xiaoshou, what about you?" Cao Erzhu looked at the array disk head, treating it with equal respect even if he didn't think it was someone of status.

"What's important now is you; your attitude matters most!" Jinren didn't answer directly.

"I..." Cao Erzhu hesitated, "I'm fine with anything."

"Maybe it's not that urgent?" Mei Si Ren flicked open his fan, knowing Cao Erzhu's lack of understanding of the world and thinking he should learn more before deciding.

"That showy old Taoist won't give him time." The voice from the array disk head was serious. "A passive choice and an active one are very different."

Mei Si Ren fell silent; he was familiar with his student's past and knew Xu Xiaoshou had the most say on this.

"Showy... that guy, is it him?" Cao Erzhu pointed to the sky, piecing together from the conversation that it matched Brother Xiaoshou's reference.

"Yes, he's Dao Qiong Cang, on par with your father, one of the Ten Venerables." Jinren spoke without reservation, since anything said would be heard anyway.

"What faction is he from?" Cao Erzhu felt the name Dao Qiong Cang was familiar, as if he'd heard it several times.

Jinren fell silent for a moment; this was tricky.

He knew saying it outright would likely cause Cao Erzhu to misunderstand, and as he pondered...

"Sheng Shen Dian Tang's current hall master!" Mei Si Ren answered with a smile, as if he'd anticipated his student's words might contradict.

"Ah?" Cao Erzhu's expression immediately turned resistant, waving his hands at the array disk. "Then I won't join Sheng Shen Dian Tang. He's not a good person."

"Hiss, how to put it..." Jinren said helplessly, his mind flashing through many aspects of the showy old Taoist's character. "He's not a good person in the strict sense, but not absolutely bad either—let's call him... neutral!"

"Sheng Shen Dian Tang is vast, and the showy old Taoist has the capacity to tolerate people; he won't hold your earlier punch against you."

"The Bai Yi's ideals align very well with your personality."

"As long as you focus on eradicating the various dark forces on the continent, Bai Yi is your best fit."

Dark forces... Cao Erzhu's eyes darted around, glancing from the empty night sky to Mei Si Ren, and finally to the array disk head, asking: "Is Bai Yi good?"

"Yes!"

"Is Tian Shang Di Yi Lou bad?"

Jinren couldn't answer that.

He didn't think so, but the outside world probably did.

Mei Si Ren chuckled and lightly fanned himself. "The world isn't absolute; there's no pure black and white."

"But many things are black and white, especially in matters of great right and wrong—there's no gray area." Cao Erzhu spoke with conviction.

Jinren and Mei Si Ren were both surprised. Was this the awareness Cao Erzhu could have?

Who said he wasn't smart? It was just great wisdom hidden in his heart!

"My dad said that..." Cao Erzhu added a bit sheepishly.

"Your dad is right." Jinren said gravely. "From the current situation, Tian Shang Di Yi Lou is bad; it's the opposite of Sheng Shen Dian Tang, a dark force!"

Cao Erzhu looked back at the old immortal.

He saw thousands of sword-wielding students behind the old immortal—that was the "aura" of a truly venerable person.

"Sheng Shen Dian Tang isn't entirely good, but there are things like Bai Yi..."

"Tian Shang Di Yi Lou is a dark force, but the old immortal is definitely a good person..."

Cao Erzhu murmured to himself, his gaze a bit scattered. "I don't quite understand, but it seems I can accept it."

This was indeed complex, hard to explain or define. Jinren could sense Cao Erzhu's dilemma.

Cao Erzhu quickly sorted through his thoughts and asked again: "What about my dad?"

"He was like Yu Tu, a free spirit, equivalent to having no stance." Mei Si Ren said.

"No!"

Jinren spoke up, firmly opposing his teacher for the first time.

Mei Si Ren was somewhat surprised. "Go on."

Jinren's spiritual sense had visited Changde Town and knew Kui Lei Han's state well. He said deeply: "Passive free spirits and active ones are not the same."

Cao Erzhu pondered this.

Was his dad trapped in the town?

He suddenly yearned for the elder's life; maybe that was what he truly wanted to become!

Jinren added at the right moment: "And as you've seen, though I haven't met Yu Tu the elder, I dare say he's only temporarily active."

"Once the outside world changes, he won't be able to remain a free spirit."

"Even after entering the game, he'll lose control of his own agency and become even more passive than your dad!"

Cao Erzhu's eyes grew even more scattered.

He racked his brain but couldn't make sense of it.

"Is what I said confusing?" Jinren sighed.

"No, I can actually understand what you mean, Brother Xiaoshou." Cao Erzhu shook his head, then nodded again: "I'm just thinking, why aren't the good ones entirely good, the bad ones entirely bad, and why do the active and inactive ones both end up passive in the end?"

Mei Si Ren listened and his gaze turned deeply melancholic.

Cao Erzhu's words always hit home for him. He wanted to speak but held back, ultimately saying nothing.

He, Mei Si Ren, couldn't provide an answer.

"This is a 'mistake'!"

In the empty silence, Jinren's words exploded like thunder, drawing surprised looks from Cao Erzhu and Mei Si Ren.

"Erzhu, don't doubt yourself."

"The fault isn't with your dad, or Yu Tu the elder, or Sheng Shen Dian Tang, or even Sheng Nu or Tian Shang Di Yi Lou..."

"The fault lies with the 'chaos' itself, with the 'mistake'—it's the way of the times, the way of the greater situation."

Pausing, Jinren felt his thoughts clarify: "Erzhu, you've enlightened me."

"I once asked the Eight Venerables a similar question and sought an answer from him. He gave me one: 'freedom.'"

"At the time, I agreed with it, but after all my experiences, I think even Sheng Nu's ideals are somewhat flawed—that might be one reason Sang Lao and the Eight Venerables parted ways."

"In this situation, only by solving the problem at its root or from the highest point can the chaos truly be cured."

The night wind was slightly cold, and Mei Si Ren felt a tingle on his scalp.

He understood Xu Xiaoshou's words: the situation was like a tree, with "root healing" as Sheng Nu and "healing from the heights" as Sheng Shen Dian Tang. Whichever won, the mistake could be fixed.

But being in the midst of it made it hard to discern the true self; healing from top to bottom would only torment the tree itself and all that lived on or under it.

The Sheng Shen Continent, with its endless holy wars and stormy unrest, was the best proof of this.

Cao Erzhu listened intently, unsure what was on his mind or if he grasped the deeper meaning.

Jinren turned and smiled at the old Sword Saint, as if moved: "Si Ren, I understand now why Tian Shang Di Yi Lou exists."

"Why?"

"To end the mistake and rewrite the ages!"

Mei Si Ren could hardly believe his ears and felt a headache coming on.

You're trying to defy heaven!

You're even more arrogant than the Eight Venerables!

"What do you mean?" Cao Erzhu looked down and asked.

Jinren laughed: "If a tree is beyond saving, the best way isn't to heal it from head to toe but to chop it down and plant a new one—the soil is still fertile anyway."

Cao Erzhu gained more insight and continued to ponder.

Mei Si Ren was astonished by Xu Xiaoshou's bold audacity and worried about the future of "Tian Shang Di Yi Lou," now truly given a meaning that matched its name.

The bright moon shone, and the mountain breeze blew gently.

Qingyuan Mountain remained the same, yet seemed changed, a bit brighter.

After a long silence, Cao Erzhu chuckled naively. "Brother Xiaoshou, I know about the Eight Venerables and Sheng Nu."

"Your eighth uncle, right? You've mentioned him." Jinren wasn't surprised; Kui Lei Han had likely given some warnings and probably didn't want Cao Erzhu to join Sheng Nu.

"They are dark forces, but not entirely bad, right?"

"Mm-hmm."

"Sheng Shen Dian Tang has Bai Yi, but I don't like it anymore; I won't join."

"Why? Because of the showy old Taoist?"

"Yes, Brother Xiaoshou. My dad told me not to play with heavenly mechanism masters or even get near them."

"Uh, your dad is right..."

"Brother Xiaoshou, you're a good person." Cao Erzhu's shift was abrupt, like snapping a branch.

"Ah?" Jinren was stunned. "No, no, you can't say that!" He was caught off guard by this sudden compliment.

"Brother Xiaoshou, you're from Tian Shang Di Yi Lou, right?" Cao Erzhu said surprisingly.

Who said Cao Erzhu wasn't smart?

Jinren was startled; he hadn't expected Cao Erzhu to figure that out.

"No!" He flatly denied it. "I'm not from Tian Shang Di Yi Lou."

"Uh?" Cao Erzhu, who had felt a bit proud, suddenly deflated. "Was I wrong?"

"Well, not entirely—it's just that the fundamentals and priorities are mixed up..." Jinren smiled faintly and said: "Tian Shang Di Yi Lou is mine!"

Cao Erzhu's heart shook. He saw an array disk head but felt an unparalleled, immense presence.

He stared in disbelief at Mei Si Ren.

Mei Si Ren nodded with a smile and closed his fan.

"It's his."

In that instant, Cao Erzhu finally understood.

That was why Brother Xiaoshou had defined Tian Shang Di Yi Lou so directly and decisively, as if he were the master...

There was no "as if"!

He truly was in charge!

"End the mistake and rewrite the ages..."

It was an incredibly grand dream.

Yet for Cao Erzhu, newly venturing into the world like a startled rabbit, it was the first light he saw in the night sky of Qingyuan Mountain amid his confusion.

He always said such impressive things, like "even emperors and generals aren't born noble"...

And he had someone as venerable as the old immortal by his side—his dad said that things of a kind come together, people of a kind flock together...

He was genuinely good to me, planning for my future, and the first to actively befriend me—there was no one like that before...

He didn't say anything weird like 'Li Official' and only advised toward the light; he wasn't like 'Yu Zhi Wen' deceiving me with 'Yu Xing Xing,' but was honest...

As dawn broke on the horizon, the moon could no longer hide the stars, the night faded, snow and frost glistened, and Qingyuan Mountain ushered in a new day.

"Dad, I'm making a bold decision!"

"I want to choose for myself!"

Cao Erzhu's gaze became extremely firm, his fists clenched.

This meant he wasn't leaving himself any way out; he wanted to be independent and become a true man!

"Brother Xiaoshou..."

"Cao Erzhu..."

Just as he spoke, the array disk head also said something, perfectly timed without any delay.

"You first." Cao Erzhu quickly gestured.

"Uh, you go ahead..."

"No, no, Brother Xiaoshou, you first!" Cao Erzhu unclenched his fists; yes, he was the kind of person whose resolve could be interrupted by surprises—he didn't dare persist.

"How about we say it together?" Jinren suggested.

Cao Erzhu was stunned for a moment, then chuckled.

Brother Xiaoshou was always like this, so in tune with him, suggesting ways he never thought of but found fun—Cao Erzhu liked that.

"Okay."

They didn't count down.

They didn't lock eyes.

They didn't linger or wait deliberately.

In the wind and snow, when Cao Erzhu suddenly spoke, Jinren said it at the same time: "Can I join Tian Shang Di Yi Lou?"

"Are you willing to join Tian Shang Di Yi Lou?"

The two lines, sounding like they were spoken in unison, brought laughter from Cao Erzhu and the array disk head once they landed.

They were like two big kids, laughing until they suddenly squatted down, then simply sat in the snow.

One clapped his hands, the other clapped its array disk head...

They kept laughing uproariously, full of joy.

"Aren't they just kids?"

Mei Si Ren held his paper fan, smiling at the scene, his thoughts drifting with the wind and snow...

Heroes appreciating each other, youthful recklessness.

How similar!

How wonderful!

Was this the benefit of living long?

His gaze held sighs, nostalgia, envy...

It was as if he saw two young men in the snow back then, wild and arrogant beyond measure.

The image shattered, the laughter faded.

The world seemed disconnected from him.

When his eyes finally fell on the purple-red of the Tai Cheng Sword, Mei Si Ren gently stroked the blade, his expression lost in a daze.

Thus, the wind and snow grew even more somber.

(End of chapter)