Acting on Behalf of Heaven

Inside the quiet stone house, Long Qing looked at the thin book in the Abbey Dean's hand, wanting to say something, but the words that finally escaped his lips were far from his original thoughts.

"Qing Pass is not yet open, making it difficult for the Tang people to march south. Moreover, with Qinghe in the North, Nan Jin is an isolated land. The Sword Garret no longer has Liu Bai, and no one can protect Lin Kang. If we want to kill, I can go and kill at any time."

"There is no rush for this. Wait until that great matter is decided before speaking," the Abbey Dean said. "Today, a distinguished guest has arrived. Just stand quietly by the side. If you have any comprehension, do not miss it."

Long Qing shuddered slightly, thinking to himself that now that Master had left the mortal world and Liu Bai was dead, and the Chief Preacher of the Xuankong Temple never easily left, who else in the world was qualified to be called a distinguished guest by the Abbey Dean?

Just then, a knock sounded on the door of the stone house. The knocking was very disorganized, without any rhythm, as if the person had not been a guest for a long time, or was drunk.

Long Qing opened the door. Along with a harsh creak, a cool breeze rushed in, carrying an intoxicating smell of wine, and a middle-aged man in ordinary cloth clothes.

The middle-aged man looked extremely ordinary, with wrinkles but not looking old, with white hair but not feeling the vicissitudes of life, because his skin was softer than that of a young girl, and his black hair was darker than that of a newborn baby.

This was a person whose age could not be seen.

Or rather, this was a person without age.

Long Qing was slightly stunned, suddenly thinking of something. His pupils contracted, and the peach blossom in his chest began to bloom petal by petal, preparing for a desperate blow!

This person was not from the Xiling Divine Hall, yet could directly enter Taoshan, reach the Cliffside, without causing any reaction from the countless powerhouses of the Divine Hall, including himself. This could only be explained by one situation.

This person was Limitless!

The next moment, Long Qing's gaze suddenly became calm. His violent perception was completely withdrawn into his sea of consciousness, and the peach blossom in his chest slowly drooped, its petals closing, no longer wishing to bloom.

Because the middle-aged man untied the wine flagon at his waist and began to drink. He drank very heartily, like a whirlwind sweeping across the sea. The flagon never lowered, yet the wine kept flowing out.

This person was Boundless!

Limitless and Boundless were both great divine abilities above the Five Realms of cultivation. To possess both, the Daoist Sect had only had the Abbey Dean in a thousand years. Now, Long Qing had finally seen the second.

Facing a powerhouse of this level, Long Qing knew that whether he risked his life or not had no meaning, so he instead became calm, while also guessing that this was the distinguished guest his master had spoken of.

"Senior, please."

...

The Drunkard stepped into the stone house, holding the wine flagon in one hand and placing the other behind his back. He raised his head to assess the layout of the stone house, saying mockingly, "It has been a long time since I came to Xiling. I did not expect the Daoist Sect to decline to this extent."

His voice was still as ancient as before, like old bronze bricks continuously rubbing together, very harsh to the ear, even directly stabbing into the hearts of everyone.

Long Qing's face turned slightly pale, feeling his Snow Mountain and Qi Sea showing signs of instability and collapse just from a single sentence from the opponent. He tried hard to take a deep breath, relying on his extremely overbearing perception to finally, with great difficulty, stabilize his Dao Heart and his Snow Mountain and Qi Sea.

The Drunkard turned to look at him, somewhat surprised that this young Daoist could calm himself down, and said, "I take back my previous words. The young people of the Daoist Sect are stronger than I thought."

The Abbey Dean was currently a ruined person, but he seemed completely unaffected by the Drunkard's voice, looking at Long Qing with a smile and saying, "Yes, he has made no small progress over these years."

The Drunkard looked at the middle-aged Daoist behind the wheelchair and said, "You are even better."

The middle-aged Daoist smiled and said, "Thank you."

This middle-aged Daoist was extremely ordinary, so ordinary that he was easily forgotten, easily obscured by the darkness. He had no reputation in the Daoist Sect or the world; even the Hierarch and Long Qing only knew him as the Abbey Dean's junior brother, a cultivator of the Knowing Destiny State, but did not even know his name.

He seemed to be a nameless person, but for decades, the Abbey Dean had been forced to the South Sea by Master's staff, not daring to easily set foot on the continent. All matters of the Zhishou Abbey and the Daoist Sect were, in fact, presided over by him. How could a person who could quietly and calmly do so many things truly be ordinary? Ordinary people could not see it, but what kind of person was the Drunkard? He could naturally see his extraordinary nature.

The middle-aged Daoist did not care for empty fame, but having cultivated the Dao, how could he truly be pure? Thus, receiving the Drunkard's evaluation made him feel very satisfied.

"Of course, the most extraordinary person is still you."

The Drunkard looked at the Abbey Dean in the wheelchair and said, "I must admit, if you were still in your peak period, the Butcher and I combined might not be your match."

The Abbey Dean smiled and said, "It has all passed."

The Drunkard changed his tone, saying, "Therefore, I do not understand. You are currently a ruined person, so why do you still dare to invite me to your door? Are you not afraid that I will kill you?"

He had previously praised Long Qing and the middle-aged Daoist hidden in the dark, but praise was just praise. If he wished, he could still kill the three people in this stone house.

"If I am not mistaken, Haotian must have gone to the small town to find the two of you, which is why you appeared outside Chang'an City. The Daoist Sect having a chance to catch its breath is also thanks to you."

The Abbey Dean looked at him with a smile and said, "So, why do you want to kill me?"

The meaning of this sentence was very clear: since both you and I are currently working for Haotian, why do you want to kill me?

The Drunkard stared into his eyes and said, "If you hadn't become a ruined person, you would roughly have the qualification to stand shoulder to shoulder with me. But now, you are just ants. If I kill you, why would Haotian care?"

The Abbey Dean said calmly, "If the Divine Kingdom cannot be reopened, you will ultimately also be just an ant."

The Drunkard's face changed slightly, not expecting this person, who was half-ruined, to still know such a secret, and said coldly, "The matter of the Heavenly Vault is not something ants like you can have any effect on."

The Abbey Dean said, "I heard that when the Chief Preacher preached, countless flying ants once bathed in the light and flew up. Although they could not fly to the Heavenly Vault, they burned into countless flames, looking like the gate to the Land of Ultimate Bliss."

The Chief Preacher in this sentence was naturally the Chief Preacher of the Xuankong Temple. The Drunkard understood his meaning, frowned slightly, and said, "So arrogant. I truly do not know why Haotian believes you are devout."

The Abbey Dean said, "Haotian's view of the world will not be affected by the actions of the world."

The Drunkard said, "I am not Haotian. I will be affected. Right now, I want to kill you even more."

The Abbey Dean asked, "Why do you want to kill me?"

The Drunkard said, "Because your arrogance makes me feel afraid. Moreover, do I, the Drunkard, need a reason to kill?"

The Abbey Dean said calmly, "You do not need to pretend to be an arrogant scholar, because that has no effect on me. I know you are not Ke Haoran, nor are you Liu Bai. You are just a drunkard."

The Drunkard's expression shuddered slightly, and he said, "In your eyes, what kind of person am I exactly?"

"Lusting for wine is a loose desire, lusting for meat is a desire of the palate. The two of you cultivate desire. Human desire is so strong, so indestructible, which is why you could survive the long Eternal Night. But precisely because you cultivate desire, you are so cowardly. The desire to live is too strong, so you naturally fear death."

The Abbey Dean looked at him with a smile and said, "Previously you said it had been a long time since you came to Xiling... I know that was a lie, because you have never set foot in the Xiling Divine Kingdom, because you did not dare. You feared being seen by Haotian."

The Drunkard's expression became serious.

The Abbey Dean continued, "In the teachings of our Haotian Daoist Sect, human desire is the original sin. You and the Butcher are even more deeply sinful. But since Haotian has agreed to wash away your sins, I think you should not be as cowardly as you have been for countless years."

The Drunkard said coldly, "But what you want to do has violated her will."

The Abbey Dean shook his head and said, "You are wrong."

The Drunkard said, "Where am I wrong?"

"Speaking again of desire, plus a bit of the karma that the Buddhist Sect speaks of, we can see the truth of most things, seeing what each person wants. Xiong Shumo wanted glory and loftiness, wanting empty fame in the secular world, so he cared for nothing. While he wanted power..."

He glanced at Long Qing, then looked at the Drunkard and said, "You and the Butcher want eternal life, while Haotian wants to return to the Divine Kingdom. Perhaps she herself will forget this matter, so we, as believers, must remind her of it. If she truly does not remember, then we must find a way to send her back."

The Drunkard said, "Does that not count as violating her will?"

The Abbey Dean said, "It does not."

The Drunkard was silent for a long time, looked at his wisdom, and said with emotion, "I have never met anyone as strange as you. Forgive me, I cannot accompany you."

The Abbey Dean said calmly, "You must accompany me."

The Drunkard said mockingly, "For countless years, the Daoist Sect has not dared to provoke me. Has that changed now?"

The Abbey Dean said, "What about Haotian?"

The Drunkard said, "If she personally tells me, that is one thing. You guessing her thoughts is another. Moreover, your thoughts might violate her will."

The Abbey Dean said, "You can look first, and then carry a word for me."

The Drunkard frowned slightly and said, "Carry a word to whom?"

The Abbey Dean said slowly, "The road to the West is long. I am currently inconvenienced, so I must trouble you."

The Drunkard finally truly confirmed all his thoughts, his expression changing drastically as he said, "You are too bold! This has no hope whatsoever! Even if she is currently much weaker, she is still Haotian! Over countless eons, how many have acted against Heaven? Even Master ultimately fell to her Heavenly calculations, let alone you and me!"

"You are wrong. This is not acting against Heaven, but..."

The Abbey Dean said calmly, "Acting on behalf of Heaven."

Receiving Heaven's mandate to preach, if Heaven does not speak, what should be done? Acting on behalf of Heaven, if Heaven does not comply, what should be done? If the Dao does not prevail, what then? Ride a raft to drift on the sea?

Those were not the choices of the Abbey Dean.

His choice was extremely firm: since Heaven does not enforce the Dao, then I shall act on behalf of Heaven. As long as what I revere is the Heavenly Dao, and what I perform is the Heavenly Dao, then even Heaven cannot say I am wrong.