novelapdf Chapter 26: 3 roads
Chapter 26: 3 roads
After a short while, Ying Zheng calmed down a bit.
He stared intently at Zou Yun, his gaze like the deepest, most mysterious well, yet he remained silent, as if he wanted to say something but couldn't.
Zou Yun stood with his hands at his sides, eyes downcast, awaiting the final test.
One second, two seconds, three seconds...
Time seemed to pass for a very long time, so long that Zou Yun thought Ying Zheng would never speak again.
finally--
He still asked that question that had been buried deep in his heart for so long.
"Master Zou..." His voice was low and slow, "besides the 'Taiyin Refinement' method you mentioned..."
"Is it really true that... there is no other way to attain immortality in this vast world?"
When he asked this question, Ying Zheng's gaze pierced straight into the deepest part of Zou Yun's eyes, as if trying to penetrate his pupils and see into his heart.
Facing those all-consuming eyes, Zou Yun simply smiled calmly and then slowly uttered his answer.
"have!"
Just one word.
But a thunderbolt exploded in Ying Zheng's mind!
Unexpectedly, he gave Ying Zheng the completely opposite answer.
Zou Yun already had a plan in mind regarding this issue.
He knew better than anyone else that even though he described the Taiyin Refinement Form in the most mysterious way that day at Zhangtai Palace, he hadn't truly understood the situation.
Even though he used that minor ice-controlling technique to carefully create the illusion of revealing heavenly secrets, temporarily suppressing the First Emperor.
Even if he told Ying Zheng that this was the only path, he wouldn't ask any more questions.
But as time goes on, this emperor of all ages will surely continue to test himself in various ways.
This is not because he does not believe in Taiyin Lianxing.
On the contrary, it is precisely because he so desperately desires and wants to grasp this only apparent hope of immortality that he is even more afraid of being deceived and misled.
This fear is far more deadly than mere suspicion.
Moreover, he is Ying Zheng!
An emperor who lived amidst conspiracies and betrayals, ultimately sweeping across six kingdoms through mountains of corpses and seas of blood to achieve unification.
The word "trust" is too much of a luxury for him.
"Besides physical death, as far as I know, there are several other ways to achieve immortality in this world."
Zou Yun's voice wasn't loud, but it sounded exceptionally clear in the quiet space.
"I'd like to hear the details." Ying Zheng raised an eyebrow slightly.
Without hesitation, Zou Yun immediately recited the draft he had prepared.
"The first is the way of the sage—establishing oneself with virtue and achieving longevity through the world."
"This path does not cultivate the physical body, nor does it involve the spirit and soul; it only cultivates merit and reputation."
"Only by establishing rules, setting order, saving the people, and bringing peace to the world, and by accomplishing the great deeds of establishing virtue, merit, and words, can one even begin to glimpse the slightest bit of understanding."
"After death, though the body is gone, the Way remains, and faith and righteousness are immortal."
Accompanied by Zou Yun's narration, which carried a certain strange rhythm.
In a daze, it was as if an invisible scroll was slowly unfolding in Ying Zheng's mind.
The names of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, the various philosophers and sages, those who shine brightly in the annals of history, along with their pioneering efforts and the merits that benefited the people, appear one after another like stars.
That is the long epic of humankind's journey from ignorance to civilization, a profound accumulation passed down from generation to generation.
"Your Majesty, the position of the Lord of the Underworld benefits from this path."
Zou Yun's voice rang out at the right moment, a faint, ambiguous smile playing on his lips.
Then, without waiting for Ying Zheng to ask a question, he continued his explanation.
"The second is the way of the divine and human—using power to understand the profound and to achieve immortality."
"This path does not cultivate virtue, nor does it avoid the world; it relies on supernatural powers and creation."
"By refining the spirit into nothingness, controlling yin and yang, one can cultivate great supernatural powers. One can move stars and change constellations, burn mountains and boil seas, and ride the wind..."
As each supernatural power was revealed, this time it surfaced in Ying Zheng's mind.
It is a scene of those ancient gods standing tall and mighty, with a wave of their hand causing mountains to collapse and the earth to split, and with a flick of their fingers burning mountains and boiling seas, displaying their supreme power and dominating the world.
It stirred his heart and made his mind wander to distant lands.
"The divine soul transcends the physical body, can take on the form of all things, is omnipresent, and can freely live forever through supernatural powers."
"However, this path can only be trodden by those born with divine powers; it is not something we mortals can climb. Those ancient gods and immortals traversed this path."
Speaking of this, Zou Yun shook his head and sighed, as if he could see the countless withered bones of people who had wasted their lives without ever finding the way.
"Finally, there is the Way of the Perfected Man—to unite with the Way through truth and to achieve longevity through tranquility."
Upon uttering this sentence, he slowed his speech, speaking clearly and with a serene, otherworldly quality.
"This path does not covet power or fame, but leads to a pure and solitary practice."
"In the darkness, hold fast to truth and oneness, reject all disturbances, and unite with heaven and earth and nature."
"Upon stepping upon it, one's physical body is refined, one's lifespan is equal to that of heaven and earth, one either dissolves into the mortal realm or undergoes Nirvana and reincarnation. One comes alone and goes alone, untouched by cause and effect."
"And this—"
"That is, the perfect man has no self, the divine man has no merit, and the sage has no name."
Zou Yun's voice finally faded, its echo lingering between the beams and pillars, while the three paths to heaven appeared in Ying Zheng's mind.
At that moment, his face was filled with genuine joy.
However, this joy was fleeting, like a flash in the pan.
Ying Zheng's expression froze as he realized what was happening. He immediately understood the three paths, those almost insurmountable barriers.
"The perfect man is selfless, which is difficult because he forgets himself; the divine man is without merit, which is difficult because he cannot be ascended to his position; the sage is nameless, which is difficult because he remains true to his heart."
None of these three things are within his reach.
In other words, Zou Yun's long speech was of no use to him whatsoever.
After going around in circles, the only path he could take was the Taiyin Chain Form.
Ying Zheng couldn't say anything yet, since the passerby had already shown him the way, and whether he could reach the top depended entirely on his own abilities.
Of course, he never imagined that these so-called three paths to immortality were just empty promises made up by Zou Yun.
And he was completely fooled.
Therefore, Ying Zheng could only reply in a hoarse voice, "Thank you for your explanation, Master Zou!"
At the same time, Zou Yun secretly breathed a sigh of relief, 'Looks like I've managed to fool them.'
"But things shouldn't happen more than three times. It seems that no matter what, I have to find a chance to leave Xianyang and get away from Ying Zheng as soon as possible," he thought to himself.
However, Zou Yun was completely unaware that as he described the three paths to immortality, a few faint lights flickered in the frame deep within his consciousness.
"Since Your Majesty has understood, then I will not disturb you any longer and will take my leave now."
Without giving Ying Zheng another chance to ask questions, and seeing that he was still immersed in the three great paths, Zou Yun immediately took his leave, leaving Ying Zheng alone to savor the experience.
After he retreated outside the hall, the palace gates behind him slowly closed.
Zou Yun paused slightly, then subconsciously turned around to glance at Ying Zheng inside the gap.
Through the gap, Ying Zheng's figure was not clearly visible in the dim light.
For some reason, the image of that incomparably majestic figure on the stage when he first transmigrated to this time suddenly flashed into his mind.
At that time, although that figure was seriously ill, he was like a sharp sword drawn from its sheath, showing no trace of the majesty of an emperor of all ages.
At this moment, the person in front of him, though with a ruddy complexion, was merely a terminally ill old man.
"Longevity..." Zou Yun sighed.
"Will I become just as unfamiliar to you one day?" This thought, like a cold, venomous snake, suddenly burrowed into his mind.
However, it was completely blank.
The answer, like a stone sunk to the deep sea, has not surfaced for a long time.
Just like the young Ying Zheng who had just ascended the throne, he did not know that he would be so obsessed with immortality in his later years.
At this moment, Zou Yun also cannot foresee where he will end up in the future.
"but......"
He took a deep breath, straightened his wide robe sleeves, straightened his back, and strode off in the opposite direction from Ying Zheng.
A gentle breeze stirred behind him as his robe sleeves swept away the question from his mind.
And so, the deep palace, which symbolized supreme power but also imprisoned the emperor's soul, was left behind in the twilight.