Chapter 201 (2): If There Is No Worry In My Heart

Chapter 201 (2): If There Is No Worry In My Heartn/-0velb1n

Drops of rain ferociously pitter-pattered down on the Dragon Whisker River.

A woman whose hair was as dense and lush as water grass was floating under the stone arch bridge and sobbing. She was thinking of her grandson. She suddenly recalled her pitiful fate of having half her godly body destroyed as well, and she became even sadder as she sobbed. Things were already so difficult so close to home, so what would the situation be like for her grandson who was far away in True Martial Mountain, a place filled with immortals and non-human creatures?

Not long ago, she had been happily patrolling the Dragon Whisker River every day. Borrowing the immortal's power, and using shameless scare tactics, she had accumulated many valuable and not-so-valuable treasures after much difficulty. She dreamed about giving all of this to her grandson one day, so that he wouldn't need to worry about money while he was cultivating.

Now, however, she was enduring immense pain. She had disintegrated half of her godly body at the river source, and this had caused her, a river guardian who was yet to obtain a river guardian temple, to genuinely understand the unpredictable nature of the Heavenly Dao and the difficulty of cultivation. For the past while, she had been hiding under the stone arch bridge and washing her face with tears every day.

The woman abruptly stopped sobbing, and she suppressed the shock in her mind as she rapidly swam to someplace near the banks. She obediently moved aside for her superior.

The woman naturally recognized the formal god of Iron Talisman River. Her name was Yang Hua, and it was very likely that she was the youngest high-ranking river god in Eastern Treasured Vial Continent. Her golden hair was three meters long, and her face was concealed by armor. There was also a long sword in her arms, and her temper was as bad as could be. Countless passing spirits and creatures had died at her hands.

Dragon Whisker River was upstream of Iron Talisman River, so it naturally fell under the control of Iron Talisman River. As such, it was only right for Yang Hua to patrol Dragon Whisker River. However, Yang Hua had never visited the waterfall after being appointed to the position of river goddess. Today was the first time.

The river guardian had been called Ma Lanhua while still alive, but even after becoming a deity, she still remained as timid as before. She nervously lowered her head and offered a respectful greeting. When she looked up again, however, Yang Hua had already disappeared several kilometers into the distance.

The woman huffed in her mind. She felt like this young lady was far too unfriendly. Yang Hua was indeed her superior, yet to not even greet or acknowledge her subordinate? This was far too uncaring.

And thus, the woman started to float there and mope in self-pity again. She felt like she was being bullied.

In the end, the woman felt afraid that her grandson was also being ignored and treated like thin air by others. She held a hand to her heart, and she used her other hand to wipe the tears from her eyes. Then, like a carp swishing its tail, she quickly swam back to her residence in the river.

She took a few glances at her treasures and daydreamed about using them as betrothal gifts for her grandson in the future. Only when thinking about this would her mood improve a little, and only with this glimmer of hope would she feel a sense of anticipation for the future while suffering even after death.

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A single-wheeled fortune-telling stall was parked outside the relay station. The young Daoist priest had yet to set up the stall, yet he was already observing the palm patterns of a relay station worker and telling his fortune. In the eyes of the other relay station petty officials, this was as comical as could be. One person was spewing bullshit, while one person was nodding like a chick pecking rice.

In the end, the young Daoist priest didn't accept any copper coins from the relay station worker. In fact, the relay station worker hadn't intended to pay the Daoist priest either. Fortunately, the young Daoist priest was a very tactful person, and he only asked for a bowl of hot water. He stood beside his stall and merrily glugged the water down.

The young Daoist priest wiped his mouth and waved goodbye to the relay station with a wide smile on his face. He pushed his cart and continued onward.

Someone at the relay station vigorously rubbed their eyes.

Huh? Why has a woman dressed up as a Daoist nun suddenly appeared behind that fortune-telling scammer?

"Junior Uncle, you said that you're not the most impressive when it comes to fortune telling and playing Go. Then who's the most impressive?" the beautiful Daoist nun asked in a soft and gentle voice.

Lu Chen, the young Daoist priest, smiled and replied, "Your genuine Junior Uncle and my Senior Brother. He'll be better at Go than me in the future, and he'll defeat that demon in White Emperor City. He's also better at fortune telling than me, and he'll... Ah, forget about it, let's not talk about this. It will only hurt my feelings. In any case, Senior Brother has always been more impressive than me. For him, one plus one is still one, and plus another one is even more definitely one."

The Daoist nun was none other than He Xiaoliang, whom Lu Chen had tricked over from Divine Edict Sect. She was the unsympathetic woman who had rejected Wind Snow Temple's Wei Jin and left him heartbroken time and time again.

In fact, she had represented the Daoist orthodoxy of Eastern Treasured Vial Continent and come here as the Jade Girl before. Accompanied by the Golden Boy, the two of them had retrieved the subjugation treasure that their old ancestor had left in Jewel Small World.

When leaving, she had failed to bring Ma Kuxuan with her, but she had instead obtained a beautiful snake gall pebble. She couldn't help this. Her fortune was far too immense, so much so that she was renowned for this in the continent. It was as if treasures and fated opportunities would chase after her no matter where she went. She couldn't block them or keep them away even if she wanted to.

The Daoist nun was slightly hesitant at this moment.

She wanted to ask a question that even her junior uncle in Divine Edict Sect hadn't been able to find a satisfactory answer to.

Why was the person standing beside her the true crux of the death trap that had led to Qi Jingchun's demise?

What right did he have?!

Lu Chen smiled and didn't offer a response.

Sages also had their own deals to make.

Anyhow, since Qi Jingchun had already reached an agreement with his teacher, he definitely wouldn't interfere in this matter anymore.

This was to show respect to his teacher, and it was more importantly to express deep respect toward that Confucian scholar.

Thinking back to the past...

Fortune Teller Lu Chen had stood with his back facing the private school and performed divinations for people.

Behind him, a Confucian sage had taught in the private school and imparted knowledge to young students.

As for why Qi Jingchun had to die?

This pertained to a profound Great Dao.

While overseeing Jewel Small World, Qi Jingchun had studied all of the scriptures of the three teachings.

Moreover, Qi Jingchun was regarded as impressive enough to found his own teaching. What teaching would this be?

No matter what, his thoughts had aligned with that of a certain other person's, so as that person's disciple, Lu Chen had been left with no option but to come here personally.

Lu Chen gazed up at the sky.

A scholar had once sat there and fought against immortals from the three teachings by himself.

Even though Lu Chen admired and respected that Confucian scholar...

... He had still acted against his conscience and did what he had to do.

Afterward, he had gone with the flow and roughly figured out Qi Jingchun's genuine trump card. Thus, he had given four characters to that young boy, saying that this was for handwriting practice. This was indeed true. However, the most significant purpose of giving the young boy those four characters was in the hopes that he could figure out the most critical move while the young boy was copying those characters. This was purely the curiosity of a Go master.

Strangely, however, the young boy had only given Lu Chen a single chance.

Moreover, Lu Chen hadn't been able to figure out very much.

Lu Chen wasn't worried about this, especially since the outcome was already a foregone conclusion. He genuinely wouldn't take advantage of Qi Jingchun's death to beat others while they were down.

The young Daoist priest had once smiled at the young boy and said, "Something might look like a kind deed performed with good intentions, but it isn't necessarily the case that the person is good and the deed is kind."

There was deep meaning behind these words. He was referring to the four characters contained within those three sheets of medicinal ingredients, and he was also referring to the stick of tanghulu that had been the culmination of a long-planned scheme.

Lu Chen released the handles of the single-wheeled cart and stretched his body lazily. He smiled and said, "If there is no worry in my heart... What's the next line again?"

"All four seasons in the world will be pretty[4]," the young Daoist nun replied with a faint smile.

1. The first line of Laozi's Dao De Jing. ☜

2. The character for guilt (愧) has a heart radical (心) on the left and a ghost component (鬼) on the right. As such, it can be interpreted as "having a ghost in one's heart", which is a phrase that means feeling guilt in Chinese. ☜

3. An idiom from the 'Book of the Later Han'. ☜

4. A line from Wumen Huikai's poem, 'Ode to the Balanced Mind Being Dao'. (Spring brings blooming flowers, and Autumn brings the full moon; Summer brings a cool breeze, and Winter brings the white snow. If there is no worry in my heart, all four seasons in the world will be pretty.) Wumen Huikai was a Chan (zen) master from the Song Dynasty. This poem tells us that only by having a balanced mind can one appreciate the beauty of life. ☜