Chapter 613: Passing Down the Holy for Twenty Thousand Years

The Woodcutter Saint calmly accepted Qin Mu's bow. "I don't have many disciples," he said. "I used to teach princes and crown princes, but they weren't required to formally acknowledge me as their master. So, officially, you and your senior disciple brother are my only two. Compared to him, you're still quite green; you genuinely need to learn a lot. I'm not teaching you to be wicked, merely how to avoid being taken advantage of."

Qin Mu blinked. The Woodcutter Saint sounded less like a grand master and more like one of the elders from Disabled Elderly Village.

"Master, what exactly is a Saint?" Qin Mu asked.

"A Saint is a state of mind."

They arrived at the base of the God-Slaying Platform. The Woodcutter Saint surveyed the divine mountain and spoke unhurriedly, "I once told your senior disciple brother that sainthood requires three achievements: establishing doctrines, founding institutions, and performing meritorious deeds. When these three are accomplished, one's state of mind reaches a lofty realm, making one unmatched in terms of inner cultivation. A Saint speaks; only with words can one establish enlightenment, educate all beings, transmit knowledge, impart skills, resolve doubts, clear thorny paths, and pave the way forward."

Qin Mu paused, then blurted out, "Establishing enlightenment? Isn't it about founding the Heavenly Saint Cult and spreading its teachings?"

The Woodcutter Saint shook his head. "It's not 'founding a sect,' it's 'establishing enlightenment.' Founding a sect is too superficial. When you found a sect, there will be sectarian disputes; with sectarian disputes come verbal conflicts, and then the establishment of doctrines becomes impossible. Wouldn't that undermine your own foundation? So, when you mentioned you were the Heavenly Saint Cult Master, I knew your senior disciple brother's path was likely mistaken."

Qin Mu's mind reeled. He suddenly remembered the past Heavenly Saint Cult Masters lingering in Fengdu, and couldn't help but imagine them in tears.

They took immense pride in their identity as Heavenly Saint Cult Masters, unaware that, in the Woodcutter Saint's eyes, it was all wrong.

The Woodcutter Saint walked along the divine mountain, occasionally grabbing colossal boulders. These boulders were instantly melted by his magic, transforming into stone pillars adorned with raised patterns. He then inserted them into the base of the mountain in a marvelous formation.

"'Founding a sect' is about 'establishing enlightenment.' How does one establish enlightenment? By initiating education, establishing academies, broadly cultivating talent, performing practical deeds, and researching divine arts and abilities for the benefit of daily life."

He spoke softly, refining the teleportation pillars while instructing Qin Mu, "If a nation is weak, reform its laws to strengthen it."

His refining technique wasn't superior to Mute's, but it was exceptionally swift. He transformed the runes of teleportation abilities into imprints, branding them onto each stone pillar.

"If the populace is weak, spread doctrines that benefit them, to strengthen the people."

"If the military is weak, reform weapons, to strengthen the armed forces."

"If the ruler is incompetent, remonstrate with them once, explain the consequences, and urge them to change. If they don't change, remonstrate a second time. If they still don't change, then overthrow them and establish a new ruler."

"If the heavens are without proper order, reform the laws of heaven once to bring harmony to the world. If the heavens don't change, seek to alter the heavenly path through reform. If they still don't change, then strike down the heavens and establish the true path."

He spoke in detail, and before they knew it, they had traversed most of the mountain's base.

Qin Mu listened intently, committing everything to memory. When the Woodcutter Saint finished articulating his philosophy, Qin Mu suddenly asked, "Master, the requirements for a Saint are too demanding. Reflecting on everyone I've met or heard of, no one can meet those standards. Can you, yourself, achieve all of this?"

The Woodcutter Saint stopped. The mountain stones suspended in mid-air were melting, forming stone pillars.

The Woodcutter Saint remained motionless, and the patterns on the stone pillars ceased their evolution.

Qin Mu felt uneasy, somewhat regretting his outspokenness. He quietly looked up and saw that the middle-aged man, dressed as a woodcutter, was unexpectedly in tears.

"I once believed I could achieve it," he said.

The Woodcutter Saint's voice was hoarse, tinged with deep sorrow. "I thought I could become a Saint, and others called me one. I believed I could establish enlightenment, reform laws to strengthen the nation, expand the Founding Emperor Era's empire, change the weak state of the populace, grant them vast divine abilities, overcome military weakness, and empower the army to guard the four borders and deter barbarians. I also thought I could ensure the ruler wasn't incompetent, prevent the heavens from losing their way, and perform meritorious deeds to defeat corruption... On the last three points, I failed..."

The unfinished stone pillar fell to the ground, sticking into the soil. The Woodcutter Saint rested his right arm on the pillar, burying his head in the crook of his elbow, tears streaming down, concealing his distress from Qin Mu.

"I failed. I couldn't stop the Founding Emperor from going to Carefree Village; I allowed the ruler to become incompetent. I failed. I thought I could change laws and alter the Way to transform the heavenly dao, but instead, heaven destroyed the Founding Emperor Era's empire, burying the entire era. I failed; I couldn't achieve merit in that final battle..."

"I failed... Qin Mu, I am not the Saint you are looking for. I cannot teach you. I am merely a failure..."

Qin Mu stared at him, a sense of empathy brewing within his chest.

At the peak of the Woodcutter Saint's fervent reforms, the Founding Emperor suddenly retreated, establishing Carefree Village instead of fighting to the last stand. This led to the Woodcutter Saint's deep despondency.

He watched the Founding Emperor's retreat, watched the hard-won Founding Emperor Era turn to dust, watched comrades fight and die for the same ideals, watched their heads severed, their hot blood spattered on the familiar earth. He watched those who had eagerly awaited the Founding Emperor's return to lead them in battle grow old and die one by one, watched the common people of that era vanish generation after generation, as new faces replaced the familiar ones.

The frustration and pain in his heart were beyond anyone's imagination.

Qin Mu suddenly exclaimed, "Master, can you pass on your Way of Sainthood to me?"

The Woodcutter Saint wiped away his old tears with his sleeve, then turned to look at him. Qin Mu, excited, declared, "I want to inherit your legacy, to continue down this path, to continue initiating change! If the ruler is incompetent, overthrow them! If the heavens are without order, strike down the heavens!"

The Woodcutter Saint's expression was indifferent. He shook his head and said, "You cannot."

Qin Mu's fervent enthusiasm was doused. He clenched his fists and retorted angrily, "Why not me? My senior disciple brother's comprehension and understanding are a bit lacking, mistaking 'establishing enlightenment' for 'founding the Heavenly Saint Cult.' I'm not that foolish!"

The Woodcutter Saint shook his head. "Your senior disciple brother is a bit slow and foolish, but you're not much better. You're prone to acting on impulse and charging ahead blindly. Though you can be cunning at times, you lack focus. Your nature is restless; you find everything new and want to explore it. While you possess some depth, it's not deep enough. While you have conviction, it's not steady enough. Your Dao heart isn't yet firm enough to remain unchanged even if mountains and rivers shift. You are not the material for a Saint. At the very least, you are not enough right now."

Qin Mu loudly declared, "I can change! I can learn!"

"I cannot wait," he said.

The Woodcutter Saint revealed a gentle smile, his voice softening. "My good disciple, I truly cannot wait that long."

Qin Mu stared blankly.

The Woodcutter Saint continued refining the stone pillar and walked onward.

Qin Mu silently followed him, watching him refine each teleportation pillar.

After a long while, the Woodcutter Saint finally completed his setup. He glanced at the somewhat dejected Qin Mu and smiled. "No need for the long face. If I didn't know you through and through, I might actually believe, like that fellow Black Tiger, that your Dao heart was truly that weak. Come, let's go up the mountain."

The dejection on Qin Mu's face vanished, and he followed the Woodcutter Saint back to the summit of the God-Slaying Platform.

The Woodcutter Saint activated the teleportation formation. Each stone pillar radiated brilliant light, projecting the imprinted runic symbols into the air, transforming them into strange and magnificent characters, patterns, and glyphs.

These symbols linked together in mid-air, whistling and spinning, their rotation speed rapidly increasing!

Even a being like the Woodcutter Saint needed to transform his teleportation abilities into a formation first, leveraging the formation's power to teleport the God-Slaying Platform itself.

Amidst the roaring burst of light, the God-Slaying Platform whistled upwards, spinning and flying along with the light!

Qin Mu stood on the divine mountain, looking back. He saw the anomalous star receding further and further, quickly disappearing from his sight.

All around them was the vast, boundless dark starry sky, desolate and silent, with only tiny stars occasionally visible.

Qin Mu suddenly said, "Master, I believe there's someone whose talent and comprehension are superior to mine, and who also meets your criteria. I'd like to introduce him to you."

The Woodcutter Saint paused slightly, then smiled broadly. "Very well. But you no longer need to call me 'Master'; 'Teacher' will suffice."

"Teacher."

A torrent of light burst forth from the sky of Luofu Heaven, illuminating the ground in front of an altar there.

Under the light's illumination, the ground instantly revealed countless intricate runic imprints, constantly shifting. Then the light vanished, and the colossal, magnificent God-Slaying Platform abruptly appeared!

The Woodcutter descended from the God-Slaying Platform. The large axe on his back flew up, splitting open a gateway directly to Supreme Emperor Heaven. "Bring him to me," he said.

Qin Mu bowed. "Yes, Teacher."

Supreme Emperor Heaven, Li City.

The Imperial Preceptor of Eternal Peace and a group of scholars from various academies and schools across Eternal Peace were designing spirit weapons for sieges and large-scale battles. Qin Mu approached and said to the Imperial Preceptor, "Imperial Preceptor, the Woodcutter Saint wishes to see you."

The Imperial Preceptor's body trembled. He looked up at Qin Mu, a mix of surprise and joy on his face.

The two arrived in Luofu Heaven. The Imperial Preceptor looked up at the tall, majestic altar, where a middle-aged man dressed as a woodcutter stood.

The Imperial Preceptor's heart stirred with emotion. He straightened his robes, about to ascend the altar to seek an audience, when suddenly the Woodcutter Saint's voice, as resonant as a bell, boomed from the altar: "Imperial Preceptor of Eternal Peace, I have three questions. Answer these three, and you may ascend the altar to see me! Begin your ascent!"

The Imperial Preceptor began to climb the stone steps. When he reached a third of the way up, the Woodcutter Saint's voice descended again: "First question: Your original intention! Answer!"

The Imperial Preceptor stopped, and declared sonorously, "To establish a heart for Heaven and Earth, to secure life for the common people, to carry on the lost teachings of past Saints, and to open up an era of peace for all generations—this is my original intention!"

At the top of the altar, the Woodcutter Saint was silent for a moment, then said, "Ascend the altar."

The Imperial Preceptor continued his ascent. When he reached two-thirds of the way up, the Woodcutter Saint's voice rang out once more: "Second question: Your Dao heart! Answer!"

The Imperial Preceptor paused, looking dignified and spirited. "My original intention remains unchanged, my Dao heart is eternally steadfast!"

"Ascend the altar!"

The Imperial Preceptor continued climbing, nearing the altar's peak. The Woodcutter Saint then asked, "Third question: Do you know that because of this, you might die, your reputation might be ruined, and future generations might forget or even despise you? This endeavor, this path, might not only destroy your life but also your renown, leaving you nameless hereafter."

"I know," he replied.

The Imperial Preceptor bowed. "I am willing to do so, without a guilty conscience, without regret or complaint."

The Woodcutter Saint smiled. "I have taught countless people, but only taken two disciples. Yet, neither of them inherited my mantle or received my true teachings; instead, the flowers bloomed outside my gate. Come up."

The Imperial Preceptor ascended the last step, reaching the summit of the altar, directly facing the Woodcutter Saint.

*Clang!*

The large axe behind the Woodcutter Saint fell to the ground, sticking upright. The woodcutter then sat astride the axe handle, a picture of commanding presence, his hands resting on his knees. "You may now acknowledge me as your teacher," he said.

The Imperial Preceptor lifted his green robes, knelt, and declared solemnly, "Jiangling Scholar, I pay my respects to my Teacher!"

Qin Mu looked up at the altar's summit, his cheeks unexpectedly wet with tears. He had witnessed the passing of a Saint's legacy, spanning two eras: the Founding Emperor Era and Eternal Peace.

The burden of sainthood was transferred from one era to the shoulders of a person from the next.

There were no thrilling scenes or impassioned speeches, yet it moved him to tears.