A Manual for Surviving a Weird World

Chapter 383 Human Heart
Ning Zhe stood beneath the lotus platform of the four-faced Buddha statue when a sudden thought struck him: an unfamiliar figure appeared at the entrance of Zanju Town, exposed to Te Rang's perception.

The shadow was slender and moved with light steps, wearing a well-fitting tutu. It was probably Xiao Tao, a maid from Xia Yubing's household.

The idea only flashed through Ning Zhe's mind for a moment before being completely rejected. He no longer believed anything ambiguous; to be honest, Ning Zhe didn't even dare to trust his own memories anymore.

At this moment, there was only one thing he was certain of, and that was:
—The more Fenwu opposes me, the more it proves that I am right.

Ning Zhe stepped back a few paces, exposing himself completely to the Four-Faced Buddha's view. A gentle breeze blew by, lifting the strands of hair that fell over his shoulders, revealing an unremarkable, generic face and a pair of calm eyes devoid of any emotion, meeting the gaze of the benevolent Buddha statue.

Suddenly, the Buddha statue's gaze changed.

The compassionate look in those sharply defined features was replaced by astonishment, which then turned into confusion a moment later, as if waking from a long dream and having one's dusty soul cleansed and cleared.

The Four-Faced Buddha sat quietly in the center of the world, its stone face still benevolent, but its sharp eyes were fixed on Ning Zhe.

He remembered.

Just as Ji Bochang remembered that he had never washed the teacup, just as Tian Zaixu remembered Bai Fugui's name, the Four-Faced Buddha remembered the person who had been forgotten and buried deep in His memory. And at the moment He remembered him, the rules of Taisui failed, and the memories in Taiyi's mind that had been modified returned to their original state.

Tap tap tap, a series of hurried footsteps stopped behind Ning Zhe. He turned around and saw a girl in a maid's tutu standing on the edge of the town square, looking in this direction from afar.

"Do you know what you've done?" Xiao Tao asked coldly, her face expressionless.

“Of course I know.” Ning Zhe said calmly, “I reminded Taiyi of you, so all your modifications to His memories were reset to zero, and the ‘facts’ that you indirectly modified by modifying Taiyi’s memories were also restored to their original state.”

"Do you know what this means?" Xiao Tao asked as she walked toward Ning Zhe.

"Maybe he knows? Maybe he doesn't." Ning Zhe smiled, a plain smile appearing on his otherwise ordinary face. "I don't care."

As the Four-Faced Buddha mistook him for Fenwu, Ning Zhe gained the identity of 'Fenwu in Taiyi's perception'. A massive amount of memories flooded into Ning Zhe's mind along with this identity, making him understand what Fenwu had done to Taiyi and this world over the years.

"...I didn't expect you to be such a good person," Ning Zhe said, somewhat surprised.

"I've always been a good person," Xiao Tao said, her face still expressionless.

"Yes, yes, you're a good person." Ning Zhe looked up at the gloomy and calm face of the Four-Faced Buddha and said quietly, "I've become the bad person instead."

Judging by the time, the "Night Parade of One Hundred Demons" should have already started outside, right?
This is a natural consequence, because the cognitive barriers that Fenwu created for this world with the help of Taiyi's power have been broken.

"Perhaps because the initial contact was not pleasant, you have always held a considerable prejudice against me."

As Xiao Tao approached Ning Zhe, she reached into her skirt and pulled out a gleaming silver dagger, saying:

“Prejudice blinds people, and now you know that whether it’s altering other people’s memories on a large scale or indirectly controlling Taiyi, it’s not just for my own selfish desires. Of course, I admit I have selfish motives, but more than that, it’s for maintaining the stability of this world and society as a whole, isn’t it?”

Ning Zhe remained silent, as if tacitly agreeing.

He certainly wouldn't believe Fenwu's one-sided story, but the identity of 'Fenwu in Taiyi's perception' was undeniable.

Since indirectly controlling the Four-Faced Buddha Taiyi by using the rules of memory, Fenwu has been monitoring the entire Kyushu region through the Four-Faced Buddha's 'observation' all these years.

Whenever a strange event occurs and its effects spread throughout society and the internet, Fenwu uses Taiyi's power to interfere with reality, erasing any trace of the strange event's existence in the world, as well as the memories of the strange event in the minds of all those involved.

Just like erasing the aftermath of the Biyuewan Manor incident.

“The more people in a region know about the existence of the supernatural, the greater the probability of supernatural events occurring in that region, and the more intense the events that happen in that region will be,” Ning Zhe muttered to himself.

This is a consensus circulating among high-ranking ascendants and some top-ranking grantors. Starting from this consensus, it is not difficult to understand Fenwu's motivation for doing these things.

By combining the rules of Tai Sui and Tai Yi, Fen Wu was able to control the influence of strange events throughout the country, limit the number of people who knew about their existence, thereby reducing the probability of strange events occurring in Kyushu and maintaining overall social stability.

Now, Fenwu's arrangements have been destroyed, and the eerie traces that Taiyi had erased have returned to normal as the Four-Faced Buddha regains consciousness. The people involved who had their memories erased have begun to recall those shielded past events. As the number of people who know about the existence of the eerie phenomena soars, the probability of eerie events breaking out in major cities across Kyushu is skyrocketing.

Thus, the world was filled with turbidity, and at this moment, a hundred ghosts roamed the night.

"Oh no, now I'm the villain." Ning Zhe looked at Xiao Tao, who was dressed in a maid outfit, and didn't know whether to laugh or not.

Xiao Tao handed the dagger to Ning Zhe and said calmly, "If you kill Lan Shiwen, there's still a chance to salvage the situation."

Ning Zhe didn't take the dagger from Xiao Tao, but simply looked at her quietly. "You can record what happened here and have Lan Shiwen take it back to the past. Once my past self knows, she will stop hunting you down, and your past self will understand what role I played in this world. Then we can shake hands and make peace," Xiao Tao continued.

Her words were flat, revealing no emotional fluctuations, but anyone could hear sincerity in them.

It's true that Fenwu hunted down Ning Zhe in order to complete his own rules.

It is true that Fenwu used Taiyi and Taichong to maintain overall social stability.

Now that Fenwu is willing to step back, she has handed the choice to Ning Zhe: "You are a smart person, you should be able to make the right choice."

"You mean there's still a chance to salvage things?" Ning Zhe suddenly asked.

"As long as Lan Shiwen is here, nothing is irreversible," Xiao Tao said softly.

Ning Zhe shook his head: "There is one thing that cannot be undone, and that is people's hearts."

Xiao Tao frowned, signaling him to continue.

"Now all the major media outlets outside are reporting on your past identity like crazy. The level of cooperation they have shown is quite incredible to me. Whether it is traditional media or online streaming media, they are all driven by a collective will with a highly consistent demand, and are making efforts to expose your identity."

Ning Zhe paused, then continued, "Under what circumstances would the entire Kyushu government be so coordinated and mobilized for a single goal? Do you know?"

Xiao Tao thought for a moment: "When there is a common enemy."

“That’s right, that enemy is you.” Ning Zhe said calmly, “You have long been the public enemy of the entire Kyushu.”

"You might as well explain it more clearly," Xiao Tao said again.

"In other words, the entire elite class of Kyushu cannot tolerate your existence." Ning Zhe looked up at the Four-Faced Buddha's face and continued.
"Since the beginning of human existence, all rulers, whether in ancient or modern times, in China or abroad, have ultimately pursued only four words: immortality. Countless monarchs and emperors throughout history have been obsessed with this, even at the cost of destroying their countries and overthrowing their regimes."

"In this world where strange things exist, the once elusive and unattainable longevity has become within reach. Whether it is the money to buy life from the Five Paths or the evil diseases of the Plague God, it is easy to extend a person's lifespan to an unbelievable length."

Xiao Tao listened quietly without interrupting.

Ning Zhe continued:

"But the money to buy life can only buy immortality, not eternal life. The longevity brought by the Plague God is a distorted and abnormal state. Among all the known methods of prolonging life in Kyushu, only the Four-Faced Buddha Taiyi is the most perfect and has the lowest cost."

"Anyone who has received the blessing from Taiyi will have their physical condition frozen at the moment they left the town. They will never age, get injured, get sick, or gain weight. Even if they are killed by conventional means, they will be resurrected on the spot by the power of Taiyi. It can be said to be the most perfect immortality."

"And the price to pay for such perfect immortality is merely to bribe the Three Corpse Gods once every two months on the Gengshen day."

The upper corpse was greedy for treasures.
The corpses were craving delicious food.
He was a lewd and lustful man.

Compared to the benefits gained, the cost is far too small.

The mysterious existence is a secret to ordinary people, a memory that has been erased, but it is within reach for the powerful and wealthy who control a large amount of social resources. No one can resist the temptation of immortality. Anyone who knows of Taiyi's existence will spare no effort to obtain His conferment and gain immortality.

"After receiving the bestowal of power from Taiyi and obtaining the long-desired immortality, those who held great power were left with only one common enemy."

Ning Zhe raised a finger and pointed to Xiao Tao's fair and rosy cheeks:
"The lives and fortunes of the privileged elites depend entirely on Taiyi's perceptions. And you, who indirectly control Taiyi, can modify Taiyi's memories and alter his perceptions at any time. This is something that the privileged elites absolutely cannot tolerate. No one can tolerate their life being completely dependent on the preferences of others."

This is why, after Ning Zhe launched his attack on Fen Wu, the entire official machinery of Kyushu responded to his actions so efficiently, so quickly, and so consistently, cooperating with his plans, because they shared common interests and a common enemy.

Lan Shiwen's ability to return from death has its limits. Unless he can go back to before Fenwu controlled Taiyi, this situation will never change. Fenwu will always be the public enemy of the nobles who control Kyushu.

Even without Ning Zhe, there would be Ning Que; if not today, then tomorrow. Fenwu's arrangements will be broken sooner or later, the Five Turbid World will eventually descend, and the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts is an inevitable fact that cannot be reversed even by death and return.

"Hahaha." Fenwu suddenly laughed.

"What are you laughing at?" Ning Zhe asked, puzzled.

"I laugh at you for having all the skills you need, yet your mind is trapped in a cage." Fenwu's smile faded, and he said calmly, "What kind of amazing deity is this 'granted authority'?"

"If people's hearts can't be changed, then don't change them. Just kill them all, won't that solve the problem?"

(End of this chapter)