Chapter 41: I Am Utterly Common

The Old Sword Cultivator took a sip of tea and said, “Me? Besides being a bit thick-faced, this is my only bad habit. If others can’t stand it, that’s their problem. Seeking immortality by purging all desires—what’s the point of that?”

Chen Changsheng couldn’t help but laugh. “Turning lust into something so refined and elegant—only you could pull that off.”

The Old Sword Cultivator gave a shameless grin. “It’s only natural. Immortal cultivation, isn’t it just a process that dehumanizes you?”

Chen Changsheng found this reasonable. “There is truth in that.”

Ever since he received the curse, each time he awoke, he felt his emotions calming. Few things could stir any real feeling in him now.

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Cultivation was probably the same. Meditation, ascetic practices—over time, the Seven Emotions and Six Desires were bound to fade away. And it might even be irreversible.

Anticipating this outcome, Chen Changsheng had worked hard after his “death,” forcing himself not to stray beyond the realm of being “human.”

“What do you think happens if we keep our humanity?” Chen Changsheng asked.

The Old Sword Cultivator shrugged. “Keep it then. But becoming a True Immortal would be forever out of reach.”

“A True Immortal?”

“Mm-hmm.”

The Old Sword Cultivator nodded. “Countless Cultivators throughout this world dream of crossing beyond the Dongxu Realm to step into True Immortality. Yet without exception, they all fall along this Path.”

“The Path of Immortality is hard to find; True Immortals are even harder to become. Those who walk the Path, in the end, become nothing more than rows of tombstones.”

“Great Dao fifty, Heaven unfolds forty-nine; humanity grasps the one chance to flee.”

Chen Changsheng put down his teacup. “There is a chance. But until that chance appears, any effort is just wasted.”

Hearing this, the Old Sword Cultivator paused slightly. “Celestial Immortal, are you also one walking that Path?”

Chen Changsheng shook his head. “In my view, the Seven Emotions and Six Desires are the very essence of freedom within the Mortal World. I am utterly common, incapable of becoming a True Immortal.”

The Old Sword Cultivator burst out laughing.

He nodded repeatedly, murmuring over and over.

“Exactly! Exactly!”

Chen Changsheng laughed along, but then a thought struck him. He suddenly realized he had forgotten to ask something.

He had wanted the Old Sword Cultivator to assess what level he had reached. Seems it would have to wait until next time.

The bright moon hung high in the sky.

Though Shangjing City reveled nightly with song, after midnight it slowly calmed down.

After the Old Sword Cultivator took Chen Changsheng to listen to the opera, Chen Changsheng wasn’t in a hurry to leave. He wanted to see more of Shangjing City.

Later, the Old Sword Cultivator brought Chen Changsheng to a gambling den in town. Unfortunately, the Old Sword Cultivator had abysmal luck. After a few losses, every coin in his pocket was gone.

“Celestial Immortal, why not gamble a few hands?” The Old Sword Cultivator looked at Chen Changsheng.

Chen Changsheng shook his head. “Pockets are empty right now.”

He was still in debt—not a single coin could be fished out of his pockets.

“What a pity.”

The Old Sword Cultivator sighed deeply. “I was hoping you’d help me conquer the tables tonight.”

Chen Changsheng couldn’t help but chuckle. “Your Fortune Blessing runs deep. You would win at gambling. Why not use it?”

The Old Sword Cultivator said, “Where’s the fun in gambling when you already know you’ll win?”

“That makes sense.”

Chen Changsheng asked him, “Where to next?”

“Opera house, gambling den… what’s left is…”

“The Brothel?”

“As expected of a Celestial Immortal, you hit the mark instantly.”

The Old Sword Cultivator grinned brightly, his eyes sparkling with eagerness.

Chen Changsheng asked, “You haven’t got half a coin left. How do you plan to visit a Brothel?”

“I don’t pay at Brothels,” the Old Sword Cultivator said with a grin. “Eight or nine out of every ten Brothels and Pleasure Boats in Shangjing City are owned by the Imperial Palace. That brat Yan gave me a Waist Token back then. Since then, I haven’t spent a coin.”

“Brat Yan?”

“Yan Bei’an. Celestial Immortal, you’ve met him.”

“Him…”

Chen Changsheng recalled the Swordsman from the desert. “A prince of Great Jing… ending up in the Northern Desert. Quite unexpected.”

The Old Sword Cultivator nodded. “Foolish to say the least, but that kid has a clear Sword Heart. He’ll surely make something of himself in the future.”

“Did you teach him the way of the Flying Sword?”

“That’s right.”

A realization dawned on Chen Changsheng. “You wanted to take him as a disciple?”

The Old Sword Cultivator nodded, then shook his head. “Not exactly. I just saw potential in him. As for becoming my disciple…”

He shook his head again. “He’s far from ready.”

The Old Sword Cultivator waved his hand dismissively. “Enough of that. Celestial Immortal, care to join me?”

Chen Changsheng declined. “The Brothel is for you. I’ll just wander around on my own.”

“You shameless old man,” Chen Changsheng remarked.

The Old Sword Cultivator merely chuckled, unfazed.

After arranging to meet again at dawn, the Old Sword Cultivator hurried eagerly towards a certain Brothel—clearly partial to a particular lady inside.

Chen Changsheng then strolled through Shangjing City alone.

Shangjing City had over a hundred districts, but at night, only a few places remained lively. Only Wine Taverns, Inns, Opera Houses, gambling dens, and Brothels stayed open.

Chen Changsheng wandered for a while but found it rather dull.

He headed back toward the Imperial Palace, thinking of visiting the Library Pavilion to read, a way to pass the time.

After casting a Spell, Chen Changsheng strolled nonchalantly past the Imperial Guards protecting the Palace perimeter—they never saw him.

Chen Changsheng expanded his Divine Sense, scanning the layout of the Imperial Palace. Locating the Library Pavilion, he walked briskly toward it.

The Library Pavilion was guarded by an Old Eunuch, his face like withered wood. He sat wide-eyed in the darkness, looking rather frightful.

Chen Changsheng approached the Old Eunuch and raised his sleeve slightly.

The Old Eunuch let out a huge yawn, overwhelmed by sudden drowsiness. His head nodded, and then he slumped onto the table, fast asleep.

Chen Changsheng lit an Oil Lamp and entered the Library Pavilion.

There was no denying it—the books within Great Jing’s Library Pavilion were truly countless. Dozens of well-ordered bookshelves stretched before him, packed full. There was even a second and third floor above.

He scanned the books on the first floor. These were mostly ancient texts or manuscripts, leaning towards the classics like the Four Books and Five Classics.

In a corner, he found a history book and began to read.

“Huh?”

He’d barely flipped two pages when he heard faint movements at the Library Pavilion’s entrance.

Chen Changsheng blew out the Oil Lamp, set the book down, and walked toward the doorway.

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Peering from behind a bookshelf, he saw a small girl tiptoeing quietly into the Library Pavilion.

She had sneaked in to find a book.

She looked around furtively, picked up an Oil Lamp, and began searching the shelves on the first floor.

Finally, she stopped before the bookshelf storing popular folk tales.

“Here it is!”

The girl’s eyes lit up, and she eagerly started flipping through, hunting for the stories she wanted.