Chapter 22: Borrowing Magic from Hair

Chen Changsheng was somewhat unsure at first.

He stood at the entrance of the Taoist Temple, gazing at the dark-as-ink sky at the horizon.

He stood there straight like that, and stayed that way for an hour.

Xuan Huang was right by his side the whole time, not daring to disturb Mr. Chen.

He thought that perhaps Mr. Chen was thinking about something, but he saw no change in his eyes at all.

“Chang Shan, go light the oil lamp in my room and bring it here,” said Xuan Huang.

Chang Shan paused slightly, then nodded and said, “Yes, Master.”

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When he came to his master’s room and saw the oil lamp, Chang Shan could not help but sigh quietly.

His master almost never lit this oil lamp before.

It seemed that since Mr. Chen arrived, his master had become ‘more generous.’

The glow from the oil lamp fell into the corner of Chen Changsheng’s vision.

Chen Changsheng, who had stood at the entrance for so long, slowly snapped back to attention.

He paused a little in his movements and looked at Xuan Huang beside him.

Xuan Huang was holding the oil lamp with his hand shielding it, to keep the mountain wind from blowing it out.

“Why light the lamp?” Chen Changsheng asked.

Xuan Huang said, “The night mountain is cold; an oil lamp brings a bit more warmth.”

Chen Changsheng glanced at the oil lamp and saw dust on it, so he guessed it hadn’t been used for a long time.

It showed really how frugal Xuan Huang was day to day.

If it were just him alone, perhaps he wouldn’t have such a harsh life, but the temple still had four disciples, so the duties all weighed on him as the master.

“You, ah, you,” sighed Chen Changsheng, shaking his head, but he did not know what else to say.

Xuan Huang smiled gently and said, “With a bright lamp to guide us, perhaps we can see the Great Dao.”

“The Great Dao?” Chen Changsheng blinked.

Xuan Huang replied, “The Great Dao is right before us.”

Chen Changsheng shook his head and denied it, “It’s just a grain of sand in a wide world of people; how could it be called the Great Dao?”

He reached out his hand and took the oil lamp from Xuan Huang.

Xuan Huang said, “The mountain wind is strong, sir; be careful of the fire blowing out.”

The flame in the oil lamp flickered wildly.

As it swayed, the oil inside seemed about to spill out.

Chen Changsheng lifted his hand and pointed lightly toward the oil lamp from a distance.

“Hold!”

With that one word, the divine decree was cast.

The oil and fire in the lamp instantly calmed down.

Mr. Chen didn’t shield it at all; even when a big wind blew, the flame didn’t move a bit.

Seeing this, Xuan Huang was deeply shocked, standing silent.

Chen Changsheng explained, “This is the Decree Art; holding fire is a small dao, really.”

“Then what is the Great Dao?” Xuan Huang asked.

Chen Changsheng looked outside; under the lamp light, his hair fluttered as a gentle breeze came.

Chen Changsheng lifted his hand again, pointing lightly from a distance.

“Wind, cease.”

With that decree, the oncoming breeze stopped dead, and Mr. Chen’s hair settled back down.

The lamp light lit up both of them.

Shock and awe filled Xuan Huang’s eyes, and for a while, he couldn’t speak.

Chen Changsheng turned to him and said, “The small dao is about yourself alone, like this oil lamp. Although it held the fire, the cause of the flickering was never fixed. But if you can change the outside world, without wind, the fire naturally holds. That’s what we call the Great Dao.”

“You’ve been on this mountain over sixty years, used to a simple life. But sticking only to how things are won’t do forever; you need to make changes. Even if not for yourself, think about the Flowing Cloud Temple and your disciples under your care, alright?”

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Xuan Huang knew well what Mr. Chen meant.

The Flowing Cloud Temple was doing worse year by year now. Back when his own master was alive, a few visitors still came up the mountain. But since he took over as temple master, the visitors had almost vanished.

The temple had areas that were damaged, with no money to repair them. Even basic needs had become a problem.

“You speak wisely, sir,” Xuan Huang sighed softly.

Chen Changsheng thought for a moment and said, “There is water on the mountain, so why not dig a well? Behind the mountain, there is land to farm. In front of the temple, there is space to plant trees, for future fruit. Cultivation isn’t just sitting still and meditating. Your disciple sees it more clearly than you.”

“You mean… Chang Shan?”

“When I went up the mountain, I helped him carry water. Do you know what he said?”

Chen Changsheng went on, “He said carrying water was his cultivation. Do you see that?”

Xuan Huang took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and murmured, “Infinite Heavenly Lord, thank you for your teaching.”

Chen Changsheng raised his hand and said, “Go rest.”

Xuan Huang replied, “I had a disciple prepare an empty room for you. Please follow me.”

Chen Changsheng waved it off and said, “No need. I’ll sleep in the Library Pavilion tonight.”

“That can’t be.”

“Why not?”

Chen Changsheng said, “Sleeping anywhere is the same.”

In the end, Xuan Huang couldn’t persuade Mr. Chen. After seeing him to the Library Pavilion, he excused himself and went back to his room.

Chen Changsheng set the oil lamp on the floor of the Library Pavilion.

He picked up a book nearby and began reading it.

The books from the Old City God were all about real divine abilities. Some big players might look down on these small spells, but for Chen Changsheng, they were rare treasures.

“Ah…” sighed Chen Changsheng as he read on.

“Without magical power, I can only read about it idly.”

He could understand these spells, but over the years, he had only been doing Divine Refinement with no magical power in his body at all.

The Decree Art worked only because the method used divine sense to connect to Heaven and Earth. Put simply, Heaven and Earth obliged.

But he couldn’t use any real spells effectively himself.

Only by doing Essence Refinement and Qi Refinement could he gain magical power.

But since he kept living only to die again, how much magical power could he build?

Even though he didn’t die after sundown this time, Chen Changsheng sensed he still had to die. His life was just a bit longer this time, maybe tonight or tomorrow.

Thinking of this, he felt a bit of a headache.

He set the book aside and recalled the events of the day.

“Ah, the hair!”

Chen Changsheng carefully pulled a strand of hair from his pocket.

He held it near the lamp to look closely.

His divine sense focused on the hair.

But it turned out… entirely ordinary.

Chen Changsheng didn’t understand. Why did this strand hold such power in the evil spirit’s hand, while he found no magical power inside?

He thought for a moment and decided to try.

“Maybe there is magical power in the hair strand, but I can’t use it directly. I must borrow it…”

He raised two fingers and clamped the strand between them.

“Borrow magic from hair, the spell called, no dust on the ground, no dust in the room.”

“Cleanse!”

The strand suddenly flashed with a golden light.

By borrowing the magical power within, the cleansing spell took effect.

“Hum.”

The golden light swept across the entire Library Pavilion, stirring all the clutter inside.

In a blink, the golden light faded.

The room’s dust gathered into a ball, dropping before Chen Changsheng.

Chen Changsheng opened his eyes wide and said, “It really works!”