Nightfall

Memories were mere memories after all, not to mention the memories of another world where people could not go back. Ning Que became absentminded for a short moment before quickly returning to the real world. He remembered the phrase Chen Pipi had previously said and asked, “Who is the mute person?”

Chen Pipi saw the non-resistance from his eyes and replied after one moment of hesitation, “Buddhism World Wayfarer.”

Ning Que slowly furrowed the brows and thought that the words World Wayfarer sounded really awesome to the extreme. After a slight pause, he continued to ask, “Your Senior Brother of West-Hill must be World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism. Then who is the dumb one surnamed with Tang?”

“World Wayfarer of Devil’s Doctrine.” Chen Pipi looked at him and seriously said, “He’s a very mysterious guy.”

Ning Que shook his head, thinking of those people who no one in the world knew but secretly stood at the peak. When Ning Que remembered there were only ten acupoints opened up on his own Ocean of Qi and Mountain, he could not help but feel somewhat frustrated and lamentedly said, “I’m still in No Doubts State and still can’t learn many things in the Academy. I really don’t know when I can compete with those people.”

“You don’t need to be so inferior. You’re only in twenties, but have been in No Doubts State. In no matter what sect, you’re an excellent disciple.”

“Why don’t I feel this way? I always feel that every cultivator I met is much better than me.”

Chen Pipi looked at him and sympathetically said, “When you entered the Chang’an City, you met Chao Xiaoshu. When you entered the Academy, you met me and a group of abnormal geniuses in the Back Mountain. Longqing is also a genius in the eyes of the world. The more real geniuses you meet, the easier it is for you to think of yourself as a fool. But you must realize that you have entered the path of cultivation for only six months, and you’ve left behind Xie Chengyun from South Jin Kingdom. Thus although your innate qualification is insufficient, you are still a genius in comprehending and learning.”

“It seems to be the first time you’ve praised me.” Ning Que said.

Chen Pipi shook his head as he said smilingly, “In fact, I have personally praised you many times, but don’t want you to know it.”

“But my Ocean of Qi and Mountain only opens up ten acupoints. The truth can’t be changed after all.”

Ning Que looked calm in the eyes and did not feel inferior because of the inherent qualification problems. Instead, he was filled with the yearning and exploration desire for the unknown world. He looked at Chen Pipi and asked earnestly, “I’ve heard the practice methods of Devil’s Doctrine. Their practice does not seem to require the number of acupoints opened up in the Ocean of Qi and Mountain, but directly putting the heaven and earth inside the body… ”

Chen Pipi did not wait for Ning Que to finish the speech but directly pressed his shoulder to stop him. Chen Pipi said with the seriouest look ever, “What exactly are you trying to say? Do you want to learn from Devil’s Doctrine?”

“With the quantity of opened acupoints in my Ocean of Qi and Mountain, even if I have a better ability for understanding and harder cultivation, I still can’t catch up with the real geniuses like you by step-by-step cultivation.”

Ning Que looked at him and replied, “You, as well as those World Wayfarers, have been in Knowing Destiny State. In front of you, I am nothing but an ant. In fact, if Prince Long Qing wants to kill me, he just needs to move his little finger and then I’ll no longer resist. I hate this feeling very much, so I want to catch up with you, or even go beyond you.”

“Manpower is sometimes limited, and everyone has his own destiny.”

Chen Pipi seriously looked at him and said, “Cultivation is a gift Haotian has given to humans. There has always been only one road. We always insist on going so that we can know whether to go through or not. If you think it’s too long and want to go a shortcut, it may turn out to be an abyss.”

Ning Que intended to say something.

Chen Pipi shook the head and showed his usual seriousness and carefulness on the chubby face. He looked at Ning Que and said with a low voice, “What you have said proves you’re just possessed. If you don’t change this wrong idea immediately, you will definitely destroy the bowels and ultimately die from madness. By that time, there will be no more World Wayfarers but only death.”

Ning Que recalled the words of the old man Lyu Qingchen on the trip last year. After a short moment of silence, he said, “I know there are few chances for one Devil cultivator to eventually survive. But… after all, some people can still survive and they’re very powerful. You also said just now that even your Senior Brother of West-Hill has no assurance to win the Devil’s Doctrine successor surnamed with Tang.”

“The key is not to be successful, but lies in the right road. Devil’s Doctrine goes against the God’s will to put the world within the body, in an attempt to replace Haotian who is in charge of the world’s laws. Besides, in order to make their bodies strong enough to contain Qi of Heaven and Earth, they even tried countless kinds of evil means. Some branches of Devil’s Doctrine even turns to cannibalism. As for those wicked people, their bodies have already been non-human. So they have even more inhuman thinking under the inhuman cultivation!”

Chen Pipi no longer looked natural as he did on weekdays. He stared at Ning Que’s eyes as he said with a cold voice, “Ning Que, I have to warn you that if I know you go for diabolism, I won’t let you die from madness but destroy you directly.”

Did Devil’s Doctrine live on the human bodies or try to stimulate the spirit in this way? If human-eating meant being possessed, then was this world replete with the people cultivating the Devil? Ning Que remembered the numerous pictures he had seen during the drought of the North that year and many memories he was reluctant to recall when walking hard at the foot of Min Mountain. His facial expression became kind of stiff.

“Devil’s Doctrine sneaked into the Wilderness after being beaten by the righteous party. Now there are very few schools left in the Central Plains. I do not think any other school dares to live on human beings. Maybe some schools choose a more normal method to improve the bodies?”

After a moment’s silence, he said, “If those schools of Devil’s Doctrine use the cultivation method that doesn’t hurt innocent people, why not try it? Since the Academy requires openness and tolerance, why do you so care about the difference of diabolism?”

Chen Pipi shook his head and solemnly said, “Even those people of diabolism don’t hurt innocent people during the cultivation, but they also hurt themselves. The practice method that takes the life as a bet is not the gift given by Haotian, but more likely to snatch the light of Haotian. Even if there is no problem with the cultivation method of diabolism, this idea itself is wrong and will only turn people into inhuman ones.”

Ning Que thoughtfully asked, “How to distinguish the right and the wrong? How to distinguish between human and non-human?”

Chen Pipi looked at his eyes and said seriously, “People must know the awe while living in the world.”

…

…

Ning Que officially entered the path of cultivation, with the peak-ascending triumph for less than half a day, and suddenly found a few higher peaks in the distance. Those peaks stood in the clouds, extremely high and steep. With his qualification, Ning Que seemed never to climb them up. Therefore, he inevitably felt a little sad.

Besides the sadness, he even had some desperation he did not dare to utter – Even if he could go on cultivation with the ten acupoints in his Ocean of Qi and Mountain, how could he compete with those young men who have been in Knowing Destiny State and the successors of different schools walking around the world? It was understandable when he could not cultivate in the past, for he and they had been in two different worlds. However, he and those real powerful men were now in the same world, which made him realize the big difference more realistically and clearly.

How could he shorten this gap within the shortest time? How could he make the ten acupoints in his Ocean of Qi and Mountain no longer be an obstacle to cultivation? Ning Que, who had entered the Back Mountain of the Academy to ask the help from Chen Pipi, naturally began to look for shortcuts or non-righteous methods.

He has never encountered the people of diabolism if not counting the Great Sword Master playing with broken fingers at the North mountain. He has never read any one of the diabolism cultivation manuals, but only heard some introductions of the old man Lyu Qingchen on the trip. It was these brief introductions that made he vaguely find the possibility for success. Unfortunately, the serious or even cold attitudes of Lyu Qingchen and Chen Pipi made him soberly realize that if he did not want to become Linghu Chong chased by the Wu Yue Sword School, he had better not try this road.

It was not bad if he really could become Linghu Chong. The problem was that Linghu Chong had the Devil’s Doctrine saint Ren Yingying as his wife and its leader as his father-in-law, so he would be enjoyable to go on the Devil cultivation with such a nepotism. But what did he have? Only a black little handmaiden and his best friend who was the most righteous one among the righteous party.

In front of Haotian divine light and the right course of the Academy, Ning Que finally realized that Devil’s Doctrine that has been powerless no longer had any development space in this world. The difference between good and evil was as meaningless as turning Paris’s Eiffel Tower upside down. To go on the Devil cultivation would only end in tragedy. He has long made his mind not to turn his life into a tragedy.

Devil’s Doctrine now was like a mouse across the street, which everyone cried to beat. Ning Que believed that if the others knew that he has been interested in the cultivation method of Devil’s Doctrine, he must have an extremely miserable ending. However, Chen Pipi would not betray him. As his best friend, the fat lad could not act like the law enforcement team of West-Hill Divine Palace’s Judicial Department, who subconsciously took a fire-punishment station upon hearing a word like Devil even if a poor magician was tied to the station. It was a kind of academic research. Why so serious?

Thinking of these vacant things, Ning Que went down the Back Mountain. But he did not notice the strange eyes of those classmates in the study room, and absentmindedly went out of the Academy.

There were two horse carriages quietly waiting for him beside the meadow outside the Academy.

Old Duan sat on one of the horse carriages. Another one was also black, with a carriage made of some unclear wooden materials. It looked extremely hard and thick, with all kinds of complicated decoration carved on the board. The steed in front lowered its head and gently shook, which looked extremely bored.

Ning Que guessed out the owner of this horse carriage and talked with Old Duan for a few words. Then Ning Que first asked him to take the horse carriage back to the city, and then cleaned the clothes before walking to the front of this black horse carriage. Ning Que greeted a bow with hands folded in front and said, “Nice to see you, Master.”

The horse carriage’s curtain was drawn by an old hand. Master Yan Se exposed his head to yawn and looked at Ning Que as he annoyedly said, “You’ve promised to follow me this afternoon. What time is it now? Even the Academy is a good place to stay. But you’re just in No Doubts State. Besides, Headmaster of Academy has not come back yet. What can you learn here? Why spend such a long time in it? Did you sleep in the grass?”

Ning Que was surprised and did not expect that he has guessed it right. Was it possible that Divine Talisman Master had the ability of fortune telling?