The Sage Who Transcended Samsara

The dim light immediately turned bright. Meng Qi found himself sitting in a shabby temple. The setting crescent released its bright light throughout the temple.

Opposite him was that huge man who had seated himself cross-legged on the ground and leaned against a table that was about to fall apart. He was dressed in a black robe. He was tall and large, almost a full head taller than Meng Qi. His facial features were covered with hair, and his eyes were as deep as the vast sky. There seemed to be a twinkling in his eyes.

Meng Qi was still suffering from the aftereffects of the Sacrifice Formula. He had grown weak and suffered a bad headache. Fortunately, he had taken the Recover Pill before, so he was gradually getting better. In order to stall for time and remove his doubts, Meng Qi asked, “Seniors…”

“Why do you call me ‘senior’? Am I old?” The man mumbled, “Call me brother.”

“Hmm. He doesn’t seem to be violent and ruthless…” Meng Qi was kind of relieved. Judging from the reaction of Gu Xiaosang, the man had to be somebody. Maybe he was famous in the Terrestrial Rankings and it was impossible to defend his attacks. “Brother, why do you need me?”

Addressing him this way made Meng Qi feel awkward, but in order to please the man he did.

The man tapped his thighs and said, “To borrow your True Emperor Seal.”

“How do you know that I have True Emperor Seal?” Meng Qi was surprised. He had thought that besides Wang the fraud nobody knew. How did a mere passer-by know that he had True Emperor Seal?

The man laughed. “Others don’t know, but I know. True Emperor Seal naturally is connected to real emperors!”

He seemed to be complacent.

“A real emperor…” Meng Qi looked at his face which was covered and thought of the man’s words, he did not believe the man was a real emperor at all.

However, he would not be foolish and refute him. Instead, he asked him in confusion, “Why did you take me away if you just wanted to borrow True Emperor Seal?”

Although he was grateful that the man had taken him away from Gu Xiaosang, Meng Qi had to figure out the reason. Since the man only wanted the Seal, why had he kidnapped Meng Qi?

The man froze for a moment. Then he scratched his head and said, “Don’t you think that I would be like a bandit if I just ‘borrowed’ the Seal? But if I ‘borrowed you’, I would be more like an expert out of the mortal world. Haha…”

He laughed with a connotation that said, “don’t mind the details”.

“For image…” Meng Qi was astonished as he looked at the man. The image of himself in his old age filled his mind.

“If, if I became a man like him, I would rather kill myself!”

“If you want to take care of your image, you should hide it deeper. You should be consistent. Do you get it?”

He took a deep breath and said, “Brother, when I got True Emperor Seal, I made a Soul-pledging Oath, so I have to bear the consequences. If you want to borrow it, can you mortgage something for it?”

As long as he could “sell” the Seal at a nice price, he would kind of sort of have accomplished Sikong Tu’s trust.

“I would return it!” The man said becoming kind of awkward. “I left in a hurry, so I did not take anything valuable with me.”

He turned to Meng Qi and nodded slightly. He suddenly became serious. “I know all about cause and effect, but since you bear the results, I’d better have you with me. You can still keep the True Emperor Seal.”

“Obviously it’s because you did not have anything valuable!” Meng Qi nodded reluctantly. After all, he could not let anyone “borrow” the True Emperor Seal for the consequences were quite serious.

“Brother, what’s your name?” Meng Qi asked cautiously. A man who understood cause and effect could never be a nobody!

The man straightened his back and abruptly sat upright. He tried to be cool. “I have kept myself away from Jianghu for several years. I am not a citizen of South Jin either, so you probably did not hear about me. Alas, reputation is useless. I am Gao Lan.”

He looked at Meng Qi with his bright eyes as if he was waiting for him to be surprised or shocked.

“South Jin? Is he a man of North Zhou?” Meng Qi frowned slightly. “I really have not heard about you.”

Except for the famous on Ranking List of Young Masters, Meng Qi knew little about other masters outside of the Great Jin Dynasty and the Bohai Sea. Even for Terrestrial Rankings, he merely scanned it because there were too many names listed.

Hearing Meng Qi’s answer, the huge man lifted his brows and said urgently, “Think harder. I’m Gao Lan from Changle!”

“The Gao Family from Chang Le, the imperial family of North Zhou Dynasty… He was an expert of Gao Family… No wonder that Gu Xiaosang was so afraid… It was said that the Gao Family’s ‘Chapter of Heart’s Quietude in Thingless’ was extremely hard to accomplish. One little mistake would lead to insanity. So the Gao Family was known for its violence… Fortunately, he was a funny person…” Meng Qi was shocked, so he chose to remain silent to avoid irritating Gao Lan.

Gao Lan frowned. “Still can’t remember who I am? I’ll give you another hint. I’m the Mad Prince. No, Wise Prince Gao Lan!”

Meng Qi hit the brick beside him hard and pretended to be extremely shocked. “That Gao Lan! I admire you very much. I’ve often felt sorry having no opportunity to meet you. I never imagined that I would meet you here today!”

If Qi Zhengyan had been here, he probably would have laughed at Meng Qi’s pretentious reaction. But Gao Lan laughed as he raised his face toward the sky. He was very much flattered. “Haha. I thought that everyone in Jianghu might have forgotten me since I hid myself for so many years. You are such a wise man!”

“Don’t call me senior. Just call me Brother Gao!”

“Brother Gao, your reaction was also kind of exaggerated…” Meng Qi’s eyes twitched. He continued to flatter him to please him. But Meng Qi did not mention any real event because he knew nothing about Gao Lan!

Meng Qi and Gao Lan were both pleased. Before he could not find any other words to flatter Gao Lan, Meng Qi quickly changed the topic. “Brother Gao, should I keep your destination a secret? I was taken by a demoness, so I’m afraid that my friends will worry about me. I want to leave them a message to tell them I’m well and safe.”

Gao Lan retreated his smile and casually waved his hands. “It doesn’t matter. Nobody can stop me if I want to do it!”

When he spoke, he was so mighty that it felt like he could rule the world.

“Although he is kind of mad, he really looks like an expert…” Meng Qi was not so worried. “Thank you, my dear brother. If we enter Jun City or other cites, I want to leave a message for Sword Washing Pavilion and Huanhua Swords Sect…”

Before Meng Qi finished, Gao Lan came close to him and lowered his voice, saying, “But if we’re blocked by anyone, things would not go well. Leave a simple message for your friends, but do not tell them our location.”

“…” “Brother Gao, I just praised your bearing!” Meng Qi froze before he collected himself. Then he said with a fake smile, “Okay!”

“After all, I don’t know where we are going…”

…

Meng Qi and Gao Lan entered Jun City.

Maybe it was because Gao Lan had not entered Jianghu in several years, but everything was new to him. He was interested in everything, like a child. Controlled by his mood, he sometimes laughed, and at others he kept talking.

“After I finish, I will treat you. Let’s drink until we are thoroughly drunk!” Gao Lan said while tapping Meng Qi’s shoulders.

He seemed to have been born with great strength. Even though Meng Qi practiced Eight Nine Mysteries, Gao Lan was still powerful. Meng Qi almost failed to bear his tapping.

They arrived at Appreciating Sword Pavilion of Sword Washing Pavilion. After taking a breath, Meng Qi stepped into it and walked toward the manager.

“I’m Su Meng. I’m honored to visit you.” Meng Qi gave his salute.

The manager’s expression changed. He looked Meng Qi up and down. “Killing Blade Su Meng?”

“Yes. In order to trace Wolf King, I left Ying City. I’m afraid that Lady Jiang will worry about me, so I’ve come here to inform you.” Gao Lan was just by his side, so Meng Qi could use the Wolf King issue as an excuse.

The manager was relieved. “Junior Sister Jiang was looking for you. Fortunately, you’re safe.”

“And please remind her that Wolf King has mysterious Dharmakaya moves that allow him to transform into a sword. Tell her to be on her guard around him.” Meng Qi did not keep the Wolf King’s secret. Instead, he hoped that everyone knew. Had it not been for that move, Meng Qi could have killed Wolf King inside Happycloud Heights!

But thanks to his initiative position and precious weapons, Meng Qi was not hurt by the killing Qi. Instead, if Wolf King’s left hand did not get proper and timely treatment, it would be incurable. Five Thunder Bombardment of Sky destroyed his meridians so greatly that he was badly hurt. Even with elixirs, it was impossible for him to open Hidden Latch within a year.

He rolled his eyes and said with a smile, “Oh. I met a senior named Gao Lan several days ago. Do you know him?”

Meng Qi pretended to test his knowledge.

Gao Lan stepped forward to get closer to Meng Qi and listened carefully.

“Gao Lan? Gao Lan from Changle?” This Disciple of Sword Washing Pavilion was overwhelmed with surprise.

Gao Lan coughed and put his hands behind his back, the posture of a master.

“You also know him.” Meng Qi was “surprised”.

The Disciple of Sword Washing Pavilion inhaled sharply. “How could I not know him. To be honest, in the past 20 years, Uncle Master Su has been the bright moon at night which was outstanding in the Ranking List of Young Masters and Terrestrial Rankings. You’re a huge pillar that all the masters in Jianghu cannot get away from. But in the previous 20 years, there were two bright stars that shocked the world. One was Evil Master Han Guang and the other was Mad Prince Gao Lan. They were equally strong. Later, Evil Master claimed Dharmakaya, so Gao Lan was left behind.”

“However, Evil Master was killed by Kong Wen Luohan and Mad Prince went insane and was restrained in Changle by sects of North Zhou Dynasty and some aristocratic families. As they passed away, they were forgotten… It’s surprising that Mad Prince is still alive. Master Su, did you mistake him for someone else?”

As he said, Gao Lan’s expression gradually grew into a poker face. He hid his momentum to an unfathomable depth.

With his hands behind his back, he slowly walked out of the Appreciating Sword Pavilion. Meng Qi did not dare irritate him, so he hurried to say goodbye to the manager and followed Gao Lan.

Looking at the dawn, Gao Lan suddenly exhaled heavily.

“Let’s go to the Dragon platform.”