Chapter Sixteen: Reflection

"I said, I don’t intend to cultivate spiritual power," Lu Zhe repeated his earlier words.

"Why?" Old Liu blurted out.

"It doesn’t fill my stomach," Lu Zhe replied wearily. Then he added, "Didn’t you say that cultivation becomes harder the further you go? I don’t have exceptional talent, and if I reach a bottleneck halfway through and can’t progress, wouldn’t all that time and effort be wasted?"

"How do you know you’ll fail if you don’t even try?" Old Liu asked, puzzled.

"I’m not one of those aristocrats. Is cultivation really that useful for someone like me?" Lu Zhe asked.

"Who says only nobles can cultivate?" Old Liu retorted with some annoyance, before continuing, "Don’t you want to become one of those great families?"

"Of course I do. I dream of it every night," Lu Zhe replied.

"Then why not cultivate?" Old Liu asked, still bewildered.

"What does cultivation have to do with becoming an aristocrat?" Lu Zhe was even more confused now. What connection was there between cultivation and noble families?

"Think about it," Old Liu gestured. "If you became a King of Spirits, the royal family would definitely take notice. They’d pay handsomely to hire you, and then you’d be rich, wouldn’t you? And if you became an Emperor of Spirits, even the old emperor himself would come to invite you. If you became a Lord of Spirits, they’d practically carry you there in a grand sedan chair!"

"Understand this: an Emperor of Spirits is as mighty as an army, and a Lord of Spirits, well, that’s worth tens of thousands of troops," Old Liu said earnestly.

"If you became an Emperor of Spirits, they’d probably marry the princess to you. Would you still worry about starving? You’d be too busy enjoying glory and wealth," he added offhandedly.

Hearing this, Lu Zhe was somewhat tempted. If things were really as Old Liu described, it didn’t sound bad at all.

But the thought vanished as quickly as it came, for he suddenly recalled that in the entire Auga Empire, there were fewer than ten Emperors of Spirits, and they were all from noble families or possessed extraordinary talent. Not one of them came from a background like his.

As he thought of this, his enthusiasm was doused as though a bucket of cold water had been poured over him. The fiery motivation from before was completely extinguished.

Lu Zhe lowered his head in silence, while Old Liu simply watched him quietly.

Time slipped by silently, giving no one a chance to linger in the moment. Soon, the moon hung high in the night sky, and the stars emerged one after another, twinkling as if winking, adorning the endless darkness with their beauty. Beneath the night sky, on the earth below, in a small house, two people sat in silence.

"Uncle Liu, earlier you said that with every benefit comes a drawback. Then what are the downsides of cultivation?" After a long pause, Lu Zhe raised his head to ask.

Old Liu nodded. "That’s right. I don’t want to discourage you, but I must make the downsides of cultivation clear to you."

"Are you prepared to hear them?" Old Liu asked.

Lu Zhe nodded.

"The drawbacks of cultivation—while the benefits are immense, the dangers are not to be underestimated," Old Liu said slowly. "You’ll have to endure long periods of loneliness, hunger, and pain. Breaking through spiritual barriers is not easy. If you fail, the pain can be excruciating—at best, you’ll lose much of your spiritual power, at worst, you could be seriously injured or even crippled."

He paused before continuing, "There’s also the danger. The risks of cultivation are great. If you want to rise above others, you must suffer more than others. You’ll have to train yourself in perilous places, for it’s danger that forges strength. That’s why the mighty roam the Shenya Continent, seeking to temper themselves and take their power to new heights."

Having finished, Old Liu watched Lu Zhe in silence, the atmosphere growing heavier.

"Only by enduring the bitterest trials can one rise above the rest," Old Liu said slowly, as if speaking to Lu Zhe, or perhaps to himself.

"I’ve already endured the greatest dangers," Lu Zhe said with a bitter smile.

"I’ll give you one night to think about it," Old Liu said, arms crossed, his tone calm.

Lu Zhe nodded, stood, and left.

Old Liu watched Lu Zhe’s departing back with a heavy gaze and said quietly, "Child, I await your answer. I hope you won’t disappoint me, for you are destined for greatness."

……

Lu Zhe had never felt so lost. Now, lying on the grass before the temple, he gazed quietly at the star-filled sky. In his heart, he wanted to become the strong man Old Liu spoke of, to venture out and see the world—a dream shared by all young men. But the dangers Old Liu described could not be dismissed. If failure in advancement truly brought lifelong pain, and if cultivation meant courting death at any moment, then he knew all too well his own limitations. Even if he endured all the hardship in the world, he might not rise above others. And if he died, would anyone grieve for him? Perhaps no one would even know, and he would die alone in the wilderness, becoming a beast king’s supper, unmourned, unremembered… no one… no one…

The thought brought a dull ache to his heart. For a boy with no memory before the age of eight, having no one to worry about him was his deepest pain.

His life, or the chance to rise above all others?

That night, Lu Zhe did not sleep at all…

The stars still hung in the night sky, adorning the darkness with their quiet beauty. Beneath them, a sleepless youth lay on the grass…

In the distance, a white figure silently watched Lu Zhe gaze sleeplessly at the sky. After a long time, the figure sighed deeply, turned, and vanished into the night.

The night was as silent as ever, disturbed only by the tireless chirping of insects. Everything was so peaceful, so beautiful, so still…

The darkness came and went quickly. Before long, the moon retreated into the west, and the sun stretched lazily as it rose in the east.

Lu Zhe dusted off his clothes and slowly stood. He had not slept all night, his mind churning with yesterday’s questions. At last, he had decided. Today, he would give Old Liu his answer.

He wandered to the little creek. The water still flowed steadily, its "gurgle" continuous, as tireless as ever. The stream reflected his still-childish face.

Looking down at his own reflection, Lu Zhe felt that this youthful face seemed to have gained a hint of maturity, a touch of world-weariness.

He splashed his face with the cold creek water, then stood up abruptly, as if he had made a momentous decision, and strode purposefully down the mountain.

The foot of the mountain was as lively as ever. The docks bustled with people, the clamor undiminished by Lu Zhe’s heavy heart.

He walked slowly through the crowd, oblivious to the cries of merchants, the shouts, and curses. With heavy steps, he made his way toward Old Liu’s hut at the Qingxi dock. Though it was quite near, it felt as distant as the ends of the earth.

At last, Lu Zhe reached the door. Resting his hand on the brown wooden door, he readied himself to push it open.

The door was not heavy, but at this moment, it felt like a thousand-pound boulder in his hand.

He pushed the door open with effort, and sunlight instantly flooded the small room.

Old Liu was waiting, as if he had known Lu Zhe would come. He gestured for Lu Zhe to enter.

Lu Zhe stepped inside and silently sat across from Old Liu, head bowed.

"So, what have you decided?" Old Liu asked first.

Lu Zhe didn’t answer right away, still lost in thought. Old Liu waited quietly.

After a long time, Lu Zhe slowly raised his head and looked at Old Liu. The old man saw that Lu Zhe looked utterly exhausted, as if recovering from a serious illness.

Lu Zhe opened his mouth, as if to speak, but no words came for a long while.

"What do you want to say?" Old Liu asked gently.

"Uncle Liu, I…" Lu Zhe began, but the rest of the words caught in his throat.

"Go ahead," Old Liu sighed softly.

"I don’t want to cultivate," Lu Zhe said heavily, as if it took all his strength to utter those words. Afterward, he fell silent.

Old Liu’s brow twitched slightly, but he said nothing. Clearly, Lu Zhe’s answer did not surprise him. He simply watched the boy he had pulled back from the brink of death, now looking so dejected, like a son being chastised by his father.

After a long silence, Old Liu sighed and spoke slowly, "I am not your kin, so I have no right to interfere in your choice. Since this is the road you’ve chosen, I respect your decision."

Then he quietly studied the youth before him.

Lu Zhe showed no joy at Old Liu’s words. He merely smoothed his furrowed brow as though a weight had been lifted from his heart.

After a while, Old Liu said quietly, "Go on, get to work."

Lu Zhe did not speak, but looked up at Old Liu, nodded, and left after a brief bow.

As Lu Zhe left, Old Liu’s brow furrowed again. He tapped his fingers lightly on the table, deep in thought.

Before long, he suddenly looked up, clapped his hands sharply twice, and called out coldly, "Show yourselves."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than two figures appeared before him in a flash.

The two revealed themselves—both wore tight white clothing beneath long, flowing white cloaks, their faces masked in white, only their eyes exposed. They looked like assassins.

Both knelt on one knee, right fist to the ground, left hand resting on their bent left leg, heads bowed before Old Liu. The one on the left clasped his hands and said, "Master, what are your orders?"

Old Liu stood swiftly, hands behind his back, eyes gazing out the window. "You two, return and summon my personal guards from the sect. I want them to escort Madam and Miss back first."

The man hesitated briefly, then asked, "Master, what about you?"

Old Liu exhaled deeply. "I’ll return shortly."

The man lingered as if to say something more, but Old Liu raised a hand to silence him. "Yes, sir," the man said, and with the other, vanished from the room.

Old Liu gazed out the window, where dockworkers toiled busily. As if muttering to himself, or perhaps to the unseen men, he said with a wry smile, "Old Yan, your grandson’s answer today truly caught me off guard."

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