Chapter 65 – A Lecture Regarding the Dao
Jun De sat quietly in the front row of the wide, stone plaza with his fingers curled around the delicate porcelain cup of tea that had been placed in front of him by a servant before they bowed and left him alone.
The aroma of the tea was rich and calming, and he tried his best to enjoy it despite the eyes staring at him from all around the plaza.
He didn’t question why the servants had led him to one of the best seats in the plaza despite not knowing anyone here. He assumed that it had to do with either his large purchases in the market earlier that day or his higher-than-normal cultivation for his age.
Jun De had been twenty years old when he died on Earth, and he guessed that this body was the same. According to Elder Shen, being in the 6th Level of Qi Condensation at that age was remarkable.
People couldn’t start cultivating in this world until they reached adulthood; their growing bodies needed time to develop and stabilize before absorbing Spiritual Energy.
A good measure of talent was to reach Foundation Establishment before you left your thirties and Core Formation before your sixties came to an end.
As the plaza began to fill up, Jun De became increasingly aware of the attention. There were whispered conversations directed toward him, subtle glances, and outright staring that they didn’t even try to hide.
The seats around him were soon taken up by individuals in fine robes and bearing the calm, self-assured airs of people used to their high status. Many of them greeted one another with familiar nods or brief words, but no one addressed Jun De.
He tried to keep his expression calm and sip his tea as if he didn’t notice the stares. Truthfully, he didn’t mind being left alone. It was peaceful, and he had never been comfortable in crowds.
He had just finished his first cup of tea when a soft stir rippled through the front row on the plaza around him as someone was led by a servant toward Jun De’s table.
The newcomer wore plain grey robes, with their hair tied up under a dark headwrap and a loose outer robe that concealed their form. The young man had a solid foundation at the 4th Level of Qi Condensation, and Jun De judged that they were around the same age.
Without speaking, the young man was led to Jun De’s table and was given a seat beside him. He gave Jun De a brief, polite nod but didn’t offer anything else in the way of a greeting.
Jun De didn’t react outwardly aside from offering his own nod in reply, but he did cast a sidelong glance at his new companion. The robes and clothing suggested he was a young man, but there was something about his presence that struck Jun De as slightly off.
‘Not my business.’ Jun De thought, dismissing his observation.
It wasn’t that the young man was dangerous; it was just that he appeared to be trying not to stand out in any way. But to Jun De, who knew all too well about standing out amongst a crowd, trying hard to blend in often made you stick out even more.
Jun De reached for the teapot and refilled his cup before pouring another and sliding it silently across the table to the young man.
The stranger blinked in surprise at the gesture, and after a small pause, took the cup with both hands.
“Thank you.”
Jun De gave a small smile and a shrug as he continued to look out across the plaza.
They drank in silence, watched by hundreds of curious eyes. And, unbeknownst to Jun De, the quiet person beside him wasn’t a man at all, but a young woman who had discreetly left her home to come listen to the lecture and see the city.
She hadn’t expected to be seated next to someone so remarkable and handsome, and she couldn’t help stealing glances at him every so often.
Realizing that her lingering gaze might be noticed, and wanting to spare herself embarrassment, she offered a small seated bow and clasped her hands together in the fashion of male cultivators greeting each other.
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“I greet my fellow Daoist. I am Shen Yuren, from Yunlai City.” She said, lying about her name. Yuren was borrowed from a servant in her household, while Shen was her true family name. Even when she was hiding her identity to sneak about without her parents knowing, she refused to conceal her heritage.
Jun De glanced at her, and she saw that he wasn’t suspicious of her at all. Instead, he seemed to be an open and honest young man.
“I’m Jun De, of Nan Ao City.” Jun De replied, recalling the name of the city in which he had first appeared.
He wasn’t sure where Nan Ao City was in relation to Yunlai City, but he hoped it was close enough to not be strange for him to be here, and far enough away that no one would ask him questions about it.
“Nan Ao City. I’m afraid I don’t travel much, and I’m unfamiliar with it. Is it far from Yunlai City?” Shen Yuren asked, and Jun De nodded.
“It’s about a week's travel from Tranquil City.” Jun De replied, estimating the distance in his mind. He had flown on the back of a giant swan, but he thought it would take about a week or so to walk that far.
“Tranquil City! That’s quite far!” Shen Yuren exclaimed, and several people around them turned to stare. She blushed slightly in embarrassment and sank a bit lower in her chair.
Jun De chuckled at the behaviour and shook his head.
‘Alright, now I know that Tranquil City is pretty far away. That was worth it!’ Jun De happily thought.
They chatted a bit more, discussing Yunlai City. Jun De mentioned the market, and Shen Yuren eagerly discussed several of the shops there.
They had been speaking for nearly half an hour when a hush fell over the crowd, and an older man in long, black robes approached the raised platform at the front of the plaza and turned to address the crowd.
His presence was undeniable, and with a cultivation at the peak of Foundation Establishment, he would be an expert in nearly any Sect or Clan in the region. He was middle-aged, with black hair streaked with silver, and with an unremarkable appearance.
The symbol of the City Lord’s Mansion was prominently displayed on the front of his robes.
He stood with his hands folded behind his back as he spoke in a calm, measured tone of voice that easily carried across the plaza.
“To cultivate is to rise above the fetters of mortality. It is to cast aside weakness and seize control of destiny. The Dao is not merely a path, but a blade to carve your place in the heavens.”
Jun De listened intently while his tea grew cold in the cup in front of him. The words were poetic and profound, but cryptic in the manner that everyone in this world who tried to discuss cultivation preferred.
And, just like when he read cultivation manuals and spiritual arts techniques, Jun De was nearly completely lost. His understanding of this world and cultivation was still shallow, and despite being in this body for nearly a year, a lot of what the Lecture contained flew over his head.
But there were a few things in the cultivator’s speech that unsettled Jun De.
“There is no shame in hunger. All things strive to grow stronger. The grass drinks the rain, the beast devours the grass, and the cultivator must do what is necessary to ascend.”
Jun De observed several cultivators nearby nodding thoughtfully. A few even murmured in agreement.
‘Is this normal?’ Jun De had nothing really to compare it to, aside from a few lectures and discussions with Elder Shen.
But Elder Shen told him to be patient, and that the path of cultivation can be violent, but there was also morality, and to fight for what you believed to be right.
‘Elder Shen didn’t say anything about doing whatever it took to ascend.’ Jun De thought.
In fact, Elder Shen cautioned him against taking the easy path, and Elder Hua of the Nine-Treasure Pagoda had prevented him from purchasing pills because they were a crutch not to be relied on too much.
Then there was Elder Mu, who had tossed him into the Tower of Tempered Will and gave him free access to the hated Ninefold Refinement Array. He doubted she would approve of doing whatever it took to increase his cultivation; otherwise, they never would have bothered with either of those methods in the first place!
The lecture moved on to discuss casting off worldly attachments and a few other topics, but threaded through it all were very subtle implications that kept drawing Jun De’s thoughts back to the Ren Clan and what Ren Sihan had been willing to do to overcome his brother’s talent.
Jun De didn’t know enough about cultivation to say for certain, or express his concerns to anyone apart from Elder Shen or Elder Mu, but something was off with what was being said. It was like seeing a painting that looked beautiful and perfect at a glance, but when you studied it closely, the colours were just slightly off.
“Remember, the heavens do not wait for the hesitant. They reward the daring.”
The Foundation Establishment expert left the plaza, and the crowd applauded before they began to disperse. He could hear them discussing the contents of the lecture, and Jun De didn’t think anyone else had heard anything wrong with what was being said.
“Did you find the lecture enlightening?” Shen Yuren asked.
“It wasn’t quite what I was expecting. It will take me some time to digest its contents.” Jun De said carefully, keeping his voice mild.
“That is understandable. Having a Foundation Establishment expert discuss the Dao is rare for an unaffiliated cultivator. You should take advantage of this opportunity.” Shen Yuren advised, and Jun De nodded his head but didn’t comment further.
Soon, Shen Yuren said goodbye, and Jun De was left alone in the plaza once again.
The lecture had left him disturbed, not in an overt way, but it had left a bad taste in his mouth. It made him reassess Yunlai City, and he couldn’t help but look at the guards from the City Lord’s Mansion in a different light.
“This city might not be as peaceful as it appears.” Jun De whispered. He stood up from the table and quickly walked back to his rented room while his thoughts churned.
‘I should contact the Sect, or leave this place entirely.’
