Nightfall

In the end, the taoist priest on the stone steps managed to control the crowd and did not allow the questioning to continue. He waved his arm around vigorously and spat a lot, talking about the meanings of the classics. His expression was sometimes solemn, passionate, benevolent and stern.

The handful of people listened intently. They would lean forward at times, and backwards at times as they listened about miracles performed by Haotian at certain places. They could not help but marvel as they listened to the deeds performed martyrs and felt sympathy and a desire to be like them.

Eldest Brother and Ye Su went unnoticed. Even though they were both extremely impressive figures in the Academy and the Haotian Taoism, they did not look special outwardly.

After a short conversation, the two greeted each other officially. Ye Su held up a hand and placed his fist against it. He said calmly with his head slightly lowered, “Greetings, Mr. First.”

Eldest Brother greeted him solemnly. “Greetings, Mr. Ye.”

Ye Su said, “I had thought that Mr. Second would appear first.”

Eldest Brother said with smile, “Teacher is worried that if Jun Mo comes, the two of you will fight and turn Chang’an into ruins. Thus, Jun Mo is currently locked up at the back of the mountain.”

Hearing the word teacher, Ye Su thought of the Headmaster of the Academy who was respected by many people in the cultivation world. After a moment of silence, he said seriously, “Do you think I could meet the Headmaster?”

Eldest Brother said, “I will ask my teacher about it.”

Ye Su said, “I have troubled you, Mr. First.”

Eldest Brother looked into his eyes and suddenly asked, “Have you come to visit Chang’an or Xia Hou?”

Ye Su said, “Xia Hou is still an Elder of the Divine Hall. Furthermore, my teacher was the one who led him to the Divine Hall. He served the Haotian Taoism well. Even though he behaved improperly in the Wilderness, it doesn’t negate his previous accomplishments. The Haotian Taoism expects that he will have a good ending. I believe that the officials of the Tang Empire do not wish to see him being discharged after he has served his purpose.”

Eldest Brother said warmly, “The Academy doesn’t have such a saying that one’s accomplishments can negate any wrongs. Accomplishments are accomplishments, while wrongs are wrongs. People have to shoulder their own responsibilities. However, since General Xia Hou has agreed to retire peacefully, I don’t think that anyone would stop him. Furthermore, the General is a powerhouse at the Peak state of Martial Arts. Who can stop him?”

Ye Su said, “Xia Hou gets old, and he has been injured in the hands of the Tang. I know that very well, and I’m sure that the Headmaster and you know this even better than I do. If he were still the Xia Hou before, would my teacher have to send me to Chang’an? Or do you not welcome me?”

Eldest Brother said, “The Tang Empire is a liberal nation. Chang’an welcomes everyone.”

Ye Su glanced at the man who had offered his seat to him earlier. He said, “The Tang Empire is indeed different from other countries. The atmosphere is different.”

Eldest Brother smiled, “I hope that you have an enjoyable stay in Chang’an.”

Ye Su said, “It isn’t very enjoyable.”

An ordinary visitor would not have an enjoyable stay if they were cheated by a shopkeeper or had eaten an expensive vegetarian meal at the Wanyan Tower. However, it would not have any impact on the world. Ye Su had just arrived at Chang’an and did not seem to have a reason for his dissatisfaction. However, he was the World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism and his dissatisfaction might bring unhappiness to Chang’an.

Eldest Brother turned grave when he heard that. He asked seriously, “Why is it not enjoyable?”

Ye Su looked at the taoist priest on the stone steps of the temple and said, “This is not enjoyable.”

Eldest Brother turned to look and listened to the priest preach. He basically understood where Ye Su’s dissatisfaction came after hearing the questions that people raised on the streets.

For thousands of years, the Zhishou Abbey had always been dissatisfied with the Haotian Taoism Sect preaching in the Tang Empire. However, the Southern Gate of Haotian Taoism was in charge of such matters. Since the Tang Empire had the backing of the Academy and a strong army, the West-Hill Divine Palace had no way to influence the matter any further. However, a proud son of Haotian like Ye Su would definitely be displeased to hear such controversial discussions on the streets of Chang’an.

Eldest Brother said, “Believing in Haotian doesn’t mean believing in Haotian Taoism. It does not mean that they cannot raise their doubts about the West-Hill Divine Palace’s classics.”

Ye Su looked at the scholar before him silently.

They had once met by Hulan Sea. However, they had not had the opportunity to chat peacefully for a long period like today on the streets of Chang’an. That was why he looked at Eldest Brother carefully and seriously. He wanted to find out how he had managed to become so powerful. Ye Su thought that he himself seemed to have understood something.

“What about you guys from the Academy?”

Looking at Eldest Brother, Ye Su said calmly, “I understand you guys. I know that you all do not even believe in Haotian. So do you all think that Haotian can be questioned?”

Eldest Brother smiled. He did not deny it nor give any explanations.

Ye Su smiled as well, and his smile was cold and bland. He said, “There are definitely a bunch of scary non-believers in the Academy. All of you should not exist.”

Eldest Brother asked sincerely, “Why do you say so?”

Looking into his eyes, Ye Su said coldly, “If you have no beliefs, you have no fear and respect. Those who do not know fear and respect would not care about consequences. Just like Mr. Ke. Would the next generation of the Academy be like that? Who shall be the next Mr. Ke? Would it be you, Mr. Second, or perhaps that fellow, Ning Que?”

Eldest Brother said calmly, “The Academy only taught us the reason, not the beliefs. There are few devout believers of Haotian amongst my Junior Brothers and Sisters. However, we just believe more in that no Belief is actually a kind of faith.”

Not having a faith is also a faith.

Ye Su frowned slightly and repeated these words in his heart, looking pensive.

Eldest Brother said, “If one day in the future you can agree with or only respect our faith, then you have already own the same faith.”

Ye Su looked up at the sky.

The streets in autumn were filled with trees with yellow leaves. Their branches partially hid the sky, but could not stop the sun from shining down on the earth.

“Haotian Divine Light shines on earth. Flowers bloom when it shines on them, trees grow when it shines on them. Crops grow when it shines on fields. Flowers are pleasing to the eyes, trees provide shade, while crops make people live. And then, they will all wither and turn into dust and fertilize the earth, bringing forth life.”

Ye Su looked at the sunlight that filtered through the branches. Light shone in his eyes as he said firmly, “Everything in the world originates from Haotian.”

“Haotian has gifted humans with everything including life. And the dignity and freedom of civilization are attached to life. Therefore, the belief in Haotian is not a belief, but a way by which the world should operate.”

Eldest Brother followed Ye Su, looking up at the sky. His eyes fell on the clear autumn sky. He did not have such emotions as Ye Su did, only thinking that the sun was blazing today. The air quality in Chang’an recently had been quite poor, and he wondered if a certain metal workshop violated regulations and began working.

Ye Su turned his eyes from the sky. When noticing the scholar beside him, he was obviously displeased.

Eldest Brother felt Ye Su’s gaze on him. He rubbed his eyes awkwardly and said seriously, “The Academy has never denied that everything in the world was bestowed upon by Haotian. However, it does not mean that everything in the world belongs to Haotian.”

Ye Su said, “That’s chop logic.”

Eldest Brother said, “Just like how our physical bodies and lives are given to us by our parents, it does not mean that every part of us belongs to our parents. We learn how to study from our teachers and how to get along with others from our peers. We learn about nature from the wild, and all these acquisitions belong to us.”

Ye Su asked, “What about the Headmaster?”

To the disciples of the back of the mountain of the Academy, the Headmaster was their faith. Ye Su’s question might seem simple, but it was a question that was difficult to answer.

Eldest Brother contemplated for a moment before saying, “The Headmaster said once that humans should respect their teachers, but they should respect reasons more. If the Headmaster is wrong, we as students should not point out his mistakes directly. This is what being a disciple is truly about, and this is also what I believe in.”

Ye Su mocked him, “Can I ask that since you studied by the Headmaster for years, have you seen him make any mistakes and have you ever pointed his mistakes out?”

Eldest Brother was speechless. He thought of that only Junyan among all the disciples at the back of the mountain had offended the teacher with his forthrightness, and in the past six months his Youngest Brother had been brave enough to do so too. Only he himself had not pointed out any mistakes of their teacher.

He did not feel ashamed of it, as the Headmaster was perfect in his heart. However, he knew that Ye Su would think him ludicrous.

Ye Su laughed coldly as he looked at Eldest Brother’s awkward expression. He was extremely pleased and thought that even though Eldest Brother had surpassed him at certain points in life, there were still times when Eldest Brother was not equal to him.

Eldest Brother seemed to have thought of something with his eyes suddenly brightening. Clapping his hands, he said happily, “Four years ago when the teacher cooked the braised meat with too much sauce, I pointed it out.”

Ye Su was startled and he asked coldly, “Does that count?”

Eldest Brother answered seriously, “Of course it does.”

Ye Su’s brows twitched slightly and it looked as if his emotion was on the verge of the outbreak.

He had treated the scholar beside him as a catch-up target, considering him as an admirable opponent, but after knowing him, he only realized that he was nothing like a sublime being, no different from those poor scholars.

Noticing the brightening sword style in Ye Su’s eyes, Eldest Brother couldn’t help feeling helpless, as he thought that he was really not good at fighting.

“The truth is unclear before discussion.”

Eldest Brother said, “Since our opinions differ, why don’t we listen to the opinions of regular folks?”

Looking at those Chang’an people sprawling on the seats with dazed expressions, Ye Su frowned and said, “When do goshawks need to care about the opinions of ants?”

Eldest Brother shook his head and said, “Actually, we aren’t really flying that high up.”

Remaining silent for a moment, Ye Su walked towards the crowd.

Eldest Brother smiled and followed him.