Chapter Twenty-Two: Am I Awesome Again?

Pointing fingers at me? I swear I haven’t done a thing. Ye Qiu felt as if he could die from frustration—why did these people have such wild imaginations? Is this really what cultivators are like? I want to break through, I want to comprehend the Dao too, so why am I not feeling anything? Am I truly that stupid?

“Damn it, the more I think about it, the angrier I get. You all love to brag, huh? Well, I’ll keep up the act for you…”

With this thought, Ye Qiu suddenly felt much better. Honestly, hearing them call him ‘senior’ again and again was quite pleasant. He felt as if he were enveloped in immortal aura, as if he truly were a lofty master. Exhilarating…

Everyone rose to their feet in unison, bowing respectfully to Ye Qiu, “Senior, your Dao is profound and unfathomable. We are sincerely in awe…”

“Ah, keep it modest, keep it modest! I’m not one for flattery, so let’s skip those words from now on…”

Ye Qiu was inwardly delighted, though his mouth said ‘no’, his body was quite honest. Damn it, why can’t I resist these sweet words? I feel like I’m floating in immortal clouds—so delightful…

Having played the part this far, Ye Qiu decided to carry it all the way. He passed through the barrier with effortless grace, wandered across the wasteland, white robes billowing. With a gentle flick of his folding fan, he looked every bit the immortal newly descended to the mortal realm, solitary and apart from the world.

“He truly is a banished immortal from heaven, peerless and alone! Such temperament, such bearing, rare indeed among mortals…”

Fufeng’s heart trembled, unable to help but praise.

Ye Qiu paused, savoring the words carefully—oh, not bad at all. Was that a description of me? Excellent, what a showy phrase. This old fellow knows how to please.

“Hehe, who’d have thought I’d get a flashy phrase like that for free? It’s mine now!”

Ye Qiu was elated, memorizing the words, muttering under his breath, “A banished immortal, peerless and alone? Damn, that’s ostentatious. I must remember this…”

His heart was pounding, but outwardly Ye Qiu remained composed, gazing calmly at the crowd. Then, he began to recite:

“I came from the ordinary, and to the ordinary I shall return,
Arriving with clarity, departing with nothing.
A bold stroke leaves poetry and wild passion,
Jade robes and long sword, elegance flows!
Heaven’s palace cannot contain the banished immortal,
Into the mortal world, red towers and wine!
This is the path of carefree wandering!
Its essence lies in desirelessness.
Know this: To pluck one hair for the world’s benefit, I would not;
To take one thread and ruin the world, neither would I!
Neither plucking nor taking, this is the realm of supreme virtue.
Your minds are too tangled, bloodshed too heavy.
It will be hard for you to touch the true path of supreme immortality.
You must set aside distractions, immerse yourselves in the Dao,
Feel the nature, the breath of heaven and earth,
Enter the mortal world to cleanse your hearts,
Turn wholly toward virtue, only then can you wash away karmic burdens.
Why not ask yourselves, what was your original purpose in seeking immortality?
For what do you cultivate?”

His words echoed, shaking the entire field. Like immortal whispers within a dream, they awakened everyone from their slumber.

“Hearing your words today, I finally know myself! Killing and conflict, these are the lowest paths, but your path, senior, is the highest. No wonder none of us have ever broken through that last step—it was all because of this…”

In that moment, everyone willingly knelt in worship before Ye Qiu, their hearts full of admiration. Unknowingly, he had become their faith; with just a few words, he made murderous fiends lay down their blades and turn toward virtue.

Even the coldest, most heartless souls were moved to tears. His verses spread like heaven’s song, like the sound of the great Dao, echoing far and wide…

“Heavens! Is this the supreme immortal path? In all my years, this was the goal I pursued, yet I lost it thousands of years ago.

We seem to have forgotten the original purpose of cultivation! Was it for immortality? For ultimate power? No… none of those. It was to protect those around us, for the sake of all living beings.

Yet we have slaughtered innocents for selfish desires! How are we any different from demons?”

For a time, everyone was deeply moved, remorseful, as if everything was still possible—yet also as if nothing could be done anymore.

The scene swiftly spiraled out of control. The supreme beings, the mighty, the ancient monsters—all had reddened eyes, their hearts filled with sorrow.

Fufeng Daoist listened to the recitation, deeply affected. He could not help but say,

“Senior’s realm is unfathomable, like the abyss of heaven, impossible to glimpse. Such a state of mind is truly admirable.”

His words happened to reach Ye Qiu’s ears, and Ye Qiu asked sincerely, “Huh? Am I impressive again?”

Really? I was just caught up in the mood, reciting whatever came to mind. No need to be so serious, right? How am I impressive again? Damn, I really didn’t do anything. Is bragging illegal these days?

Fufeng Daoist was embarrassed. He felt that this senior was somewhat unreliable—sometimes his words were profound truths, and other times he asked the most naive questions. Was it intentional or just a slip of the tongue? Fufeng preferred to believe it was intentional, because… even after attaining the highest carefree state, he still could not see through Ye Qiu’s realm.

He was shocked, increasingly unable to comprehend this seemingly young man whose cultivation was so terrifying. That upright aura, appearing fragile, actually carried an irresistible pressure, like the might of heaven itself, impossible to defy. Too frightening, this fellow! Truly worthy of being called the supreme in the world.

“Senior, it’s not that you’re impressive—you’re incredibly impressive! Look around, how many people have had their emotions collapse, their Dao hearts shaken by your words…”

Fufeng said awkwardly; dealing with Ye Qiu was no easy feat.

“Is that so?”

Ye Qiu turned to look, and indeed… many people seemed emotionally unstable, doubting themselves, lost in repentance.

Scanning the scene, Ye Qiu noticed the three fierce beasts standing dumbly in the distance, not knowing what to do. They were clearly out of place—everyone else was repenting, but they were just spacing out.

Truthfully, it wasn’t that they refused to repent—they simply didn’t know what to repent for. Having lived for hundreds of thousands of years, most things were forgotten! Even a nap lasted centuries, so how could they remember so much?

Thus, they could only sit there, bewildered, not knowing what to do…

Ye Qiu pointed at them, saying, “Well, not everyone is like that. Look at those three, they’re just fine.”

“Oh no…”

The moment Ye Qiu pointed their way, the three beasts panicked.

“Damn it, why is he looking at us! Will he beat us up for not showing respect?”

The Fearless Giant Ape spoke timidly, its demeanor utterly at odds with its name.

“I don’t get it, what are these people repenting for? Why don’t I understand a single word?”

The Nine-Headed Lion was completely baffled. The Suanni cast a contemptuous glance at them, saying, “Tch, this time I refuse to play along. Kill or torture me as you please…”

Over there, Fufeng followed Ye Qiu’s gaze and smiled, explaining, “Senior, there’s a fundamental difference between beasts and humans. To make them repent is harder than ascending to heaven…”

“Is that so?”

Ye Qiu was skeptical. Beasts have feelings too, right? Well… since the expert said so, I must be wrong.

With that, Ye Qiu nodded, smiling at the three fierce beasts.

“Damn…”

The Fearless Giant Ape promptly lay flat, closed its eyes, and tried desperately to ignore everything, thinking: Don’t look at me, don’t look at me…

“Unbelievable! Shameless, disgraceful—you call yourself the Fearless Giant Ape? You’re insulting the name. Where’s your courage? Your pride? Your dignity? I can’t believe you’d do something like this…”

The Nine-Headed Lion berated it, ashamed of the ape’s lack of shame, but when it caught Ye Qiu’s gaze, it panicked too.

“Brother, move over…”

With that, it shoved the ape aside and lay down itself, pretending to repent.

Suanni: “???”

Again?

Damn it, is this never-ending? This time, I absolutely refuse to join you.

Meeting Ye Qiu’s gaze, Suanni suddenly realized—sometimes, dignity isn’t all that important.

Immediately, Suanni collapsed as well, entering a state of repentance, its emotions more dramatic than anything real…

Now it was Ye Qiu and Fufeng who were dumbfounded.

Ye Qiu: “Didn’t you say beasts wouldn’t repent? That making them repent is harder than ascending to heaven?”

Fufeng Daoist was embarrassed—the slap to his face came too quickly. Damn, aren’t you all supposed to be ancient terrors? Have you no shame?

Absolutely shameless. You’ve tarnished the name ‘Ancient Terror.’

“Ahem, senior, I think they must have suddenly remembered something sad!”

Fufeng didn’t know how to explain. He couldn’t just say they were faking it, could he? If he did, they would surely kill him. To avoid offending anyone, he decided to brush it off.

Anyone with eyes could see the three beasts were just afraid of Ye Qiu, so they pretended.

Fufeng never imagined that these three ancient terrors, for the sake of survival, would go so far as to rub their dignity in the dirt.

So cowardly.

“Is that so? Hmm, even beasts behave this way, while we humans are entirely cold and ruthless, mere butchers driven by desire, never knowing repentance…”

Ye Qiu sighed, recalling past experiences, his heart filled with melancholy.

This remark made Fufeng’s heart skip a beat.

“Damn, what does he mean by that? Is he hinting at me?”

No way, right?

Fufeng grew anxious, growing more fearful by the second. He looked around and realized he was the only one unmoved—Ye Qiu had just made such a statement, wasn’t that a hint directed at him?

In reality, Fufeng was overthinking; Ye Qiu had no such intention, but he couldn’t stop others from inventing their own stories, conjuring a whole scene from a single line.

With this thought, Fufeng sat down powerlessly, adopting a sorrowful expression, and immediately entered repentance.

Sometimes, when the drama begins, everyone gets swept up…

Ye Qiu had thought himself the star actor, yet today—damn, he was too naive.