Qin Shi: I went astray in the Heavenly Sect

Chapter 105 What is meant by "blending with the world"?
As night falls, the bustling streets of Xinzheng are filled with pedestrians, showing no sign of the tension of an impending war. Some people continue to indulge in a life of pleasure and oblivion, while others toil tirelessly, trying to avert disaster.

The moonlight was hazy, and the storage room was empty. This palace, built in a corner of the royal palace, had been neglected for a long time, except for the boy who had recently appeared. A very faint aura flashed by next to an empty bookshelf.

"Only after a great awakening can one realize that this was a great dream, but the foolish think he is awake."

Tonight, in this very place, a young man drifted off to sleep under the moonlight.

Seemingly already familiar with the situation, when the boy opened his eyes again, he first looked around, but soon he frowned.

This time, the person who appeared before him seemed to be a scholar. Looking at the desolate environment before him, his eyes held a strange expression.

He has many stories of students from poor families in his memory. When he was in school, his teachers often used these stories to teach them principles.

More often, it's "A sharp sword is forged through tempering, and the fragrance of plum blossoms comes from bitter cold." Or, "One who doesn't study diligently in youth will regret it in old age." And yet another saying goes, "There is a path to the mountain of books, and diligence is the way; the sea of ​​learning is boundless, and hard work is the boat."

When I first heard it, I was filled with fervor and took it as a warning to myself. But as time went by, the enthusiasm gradually faded and I returned to normal.

Looking back now, I feel a sense of regret.

To achieve success, one naturally needs unwavering willpower, but it is still not enough to leap over the dragon gate and soar to great heights.

There is a saying among the common people: "First, fate; second, luck; third, feng shui; fourth, accumulating good deeds; fifth, studying."

The world is vast, and just like him back then, he only saw and understood a corner of it.

After arriving in this new world, he witnessed even more amazing powers.

Take, for example, the two people he saw right now: Han Fei and Wei Zhuang.

Their achievements today are due not only to their talent, but also to their diligence, hard work, and unwavering perseverance in the face of life and death.

But can they really change their fate in the future? The answer is probably no. It seems that it was destined all along that they would not be the ones to end this chaotic world.

Xunzi once attributed the mysterious forces that control destiny to the power of time, but is this answer really correct?

Looking at the scholar before him, Xiu Yuan's thoughts raced. It felt as if a long time had passed before his mind slowly returned to calm.

This time, time seemed to flow exceptionally slowly. Xiu Yuan watched as the scholar before him worked diligently and determinedly, through the changing seasons, without ever slacking off.

After he bid farewell to his parents and went to study at a private school, several years passed. When Xiu Yuan heard about the imperial examination, his expression changed slightly. Clearly, the events in this dream did not take place in this time and space.

During this time, he met many people, but most of them were the same: they came from humble backgrounds and none of them were willing to give up their dream of studying hard and passing the imperial examinations. Every child in the private school was doing their best, and no one caused trouble or slacked off.

Before long, another spring arrived, and everyone in the private school took the exam, but unfortunately, not everyone succeeded.

However, the scholar succeeded, but he did not become complacent. Instead, he continued to devote himself to his studies. This time, he went to the academy in the city. There, he made three or five friends. When they were together, they would talk about everything under the sun, sharing their dreams and ambitions.

The principles of scholars are all found in books. Confucianism advocates self-cultivation, family harmony, governance of the state, and bringing peace to the world, so these are the ideals of scholars.

Whether it was the favor of fate or the mercy of heaven, the scholar marched triumphantly through the encirclement and arrived at the grand hall that all scholars dream of, where he met the ruler of the empire.

He was fortunate because his name contained the character "安" (an, meaning peace or safety), which the emperor remembered. After all, for the whole country, stability and peace were the best affirmation of an emperor's achievements and the greatest benevolence to all the people.

Young and spirited, with his blood still boiling, he would still step forward to fight injustice, hoping to sweep away the deep-seated problems of the court, fulfill his original aspirations, and realize his ambitions.

But he overlooked the darkness within the court and forgot that the person who ruled the world was just a human being, not a god, with his own likes and dislikes.

He was demoted after his remonstrance angered the emperor and was further emboldened by powerful eunuchs who took advantage of his misfortune.

As an outsider, Xiu Yuan witnessed the scholar's experiences and saw things more clearly. He was arrogant and intolerant of worldly affairs, making him an outsider to the imperial court.

No one likes someone who is inflexible and only knows how to act recklessly, not even an emperor.

In the imperial court, there is no clear line between right and wrong, and black and white are never clearly distinguished. Sometimes right is wrong, and sometimes wrong is right. In the clash of interests, there is a back-and-forth.

Watching this dejected scholar walk out of the capital, a heavy snow fell that day, and in the silent world, it seemed only this lonely scholar was reflecting on why he had been demoted.

Xiu Yuan sighed softly.

The problem might not be with him, but with the imperial court.

However, the scene didn't end there; there was more to come. Xiu Yuan's gaze shifted slightly, and he began to watch again.

This winter was the hardest for the scholar, because what tormented him was not only his demotion, but also his own inner turmoil.

Amidst right and wrong and perseverance, he seemed to be reborn from the ashes. Five years passed in this way. During a sacrificial ceremony, he took the opportunity to offer auspicious words to please the emperor, ushering in the second leap in his life.

This time, he cast aside all his past ways, learned to flatter, learned to be shrewd and diplomatic, and learned to understand the emperor's heart. From then on, he rose rapidly in rank and became all-powerful.

Power breeds corruption and erodes human nature. Under the absolute power, he formed cliques, amassed wealth, suppressed loyal officials, and monopolized the government, causing officials to look down on him and social contradictions to intensify.

He became the person he hated most back then.

Looking at the old man with a white beard in front of him, Xiu Yuan's expression was somewhat complicated. From the old man's aged face, one could still vaguely see that youthful face.

At this moment, Xiu Yuan suddenly had a feeling, and he seemed to have guessed what this dream was showing him.

However, the world is unpredictable, and rumors often reach the emperor's ears. Gradually, the emperor also grew disgusted with them. Later, there were censors who impeached him, and his confidants stabbed him in the back. At this time, the powerful minister who once wielded great influence in the court was abandoned by everyone.

In the blink of an eye, it was winter again. Looking at the old man huddled on the straw mat because of illness and hunger, Xiu Yuan murmured softly, "You have gone astray."

As Xiu Yuan turned to leave the tomb, the scenery before him changed once again.

This time, what he saw was a dyeing workshop.

The owner of the dye shop sat on the ground, dejected, seemingly at a loss for what to do.

After watching for a while, he learned from the servants what was going on: a new dye house had opened in the city, using new machines and new patterns and styles for the fabrics, which severely impacted their family's production.

Xiu Yuan, who was standing still, had a slight change in his gaze. Then he looked at the dye shop owner, wanting to see what the other party would do next.
Outdated machinery and unchanging styles led this dyeing workshop through a harsh winter of economic depression.

This winter is still very cold. Faced with difficulties, some people will back down, some will rise to the challenge, and some will stop moving forward. After hesitating and wavering, this boss finally came out of his predicament.

New machines, new processes, new designs, and new problems—a new beginning. The first step they took was stained with blood and was heartbreaking, but through step-by-step exploration, they opened up a new landscape.

When the smile reappeared on the boss's face, Xiu Yuan knew he had succeeded.

This segment is very short, lasting less than a year. He witnessed the process of a dye house being reborn from the ashes. Although he doesn't know what the dye house will eventually look like, he believes the ending will be good.

Standing beneath the gate of the dyehouse, Xiu Yuan gazed into the distance and began to ponder.

In this new era and with new trends, the owner of the dye shop was able to revitalize it and bring it back from the ashes. The key was that he actively sought change, adapted to the times, and embraced them. Compared to the scholar, the two seemed to have something in common, but he also felt that they were different.

The scene shifts, and another new scene appears before our eyes.

What lies before us appears to be a battlefield, where the righteous and the demonic paths are locked in a standoff.

"To exorcise demons and defend the righteous path is utterly ridiculous. You bunch of hypocrites, do you dare say that your men have not shed innocent blood?"

The speaker was a man in black robes. His attire clearly indicated his allegiance, and his aura surged like billowing smoke, exuding a menacing presence.

"The Demonic Sect acts recklessly, slaughtering countless lives for its own selfish gain, disregarding right and wrong, and ignoring cause and effect. Is this the path you seek?"

The man who answered him was a man in a white robe, righteous and fearless.

"The law of the jungle is a matter of course. When we're hungry, we eat; when we're thirsty, we drink. Should we kick away obstacles in our way instead of worshipping them?"

A sneer appeared on the lips of the man in black robes. The pursuits of the demonic path are different from those of the righteous path. They seek freedom and ease, doing whatever they please, and naturally cannot tolerate the hypocrisy of the righteous path.

"Kicking them away isn't indiscriminate killing. Do you know how many innocent people have died at the hands of your demonic sect in the nine counties of Jiangzhou? Pursuing freedom and ease is not a reason for you to indiscriminately kill innocent people!!"

The man in the black robe's eyes turned cold.

"Enough with the nonsense! If you want to speak for those worthless fools, then use the sword in your hand to talk to me!"

The battle was about to break out, and the battlefield was filled with the glint of swords and the constant screams and cries of agony.

The fragility of life is vividly displayed here.

This seems to be a moral battle, as good and evil have been irreconcilable since ancient times.

Xiu Yuan watched the battle with some doubt in his heart. This clash between good and evil seemed to have no connection with the previous two scenes.

However, dreams are not something one can control, so he patiently continued reading.

The battle lasted for a full day and night, until only a handful of people remained on the battlefield.

"The Daoist Sect prides itself on transcendence, detached from worldly affairs, seeking only the Dao. Today, in this great battle, you have violated the sect's ancestral precepts. I'd like to see how you explain this to your fellow disciples when you return!"

The man in black robes stood leaning on his sword, panting heavily, his gaze icy as he looked at the man in white robes opposite him.

"The Demonic Sect values ​​doing whatever you want and pursuing freedom. Killing is like killing a chicken. Your minds are unrestrained and your will is like a wild horse. One day, you will die by your own hand!" The white-robed man's voice was firm and resonant, carrying a hint of transcendence.

Upon seeing the other person's appearance, the man in black robes couldn't help but curse, "Bullshit!!"

"The martial world is now a mess, everyone is scheming, and there are plenty of people who are all talk and no action. If I don't kill them, they will come to kill us. You make it sound so easy. If you're so capable, stand there and let me kill you!"

The white-robed man frowned. Although the Dao Sect was aloof, he still knew about things in the martial world, and what the other party said was true.

"The martial world has always been like this: there can only be one victor. Those who come after will step on the corpses of their predecessors to ascend to the throne of the supreme martial arts. The Dao Sect has been severely weakened in this battle, but the Demonic Sect will not, because in this era, everyone is a demon. The next time will be the time of your Dao Sect's destruction!"

With reinforcements arriving from both sides, this fierce battle ultimately came to an abrupt end.

The scene then shifts, and the man in white robes returns to the mountain.

In a spacious hall, he sat cross-legged, his eyes swirling with turbulent emotions, unable to calm down for a long time.

After a long while, he murmured to himself, "The founder of the Daoist sect once said, 'Hide your light, mingle with the dust, and blend into the world.' Now that the world is like this, is the choice of the Demonic Sect right or wrong?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the scene before Xiu Yuan's eyes shifted again. It was an era of moral decay and social disorder. The four social classes of scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants were all in such a state. You deceive me, I deceive you; you kill me, I kill you. The world was in chaos. Even without the people from the Demonic Sect, the order remained the same.

Seeing this, Xiu Yuan seemed to understand why the man in black robes acted this way. It wasn't that the Demonic Sect was unforgivable, but rather that society as a whole was like this.

If this is true for the entire era, what about the righteous sects?

With a single thought, the scenery before one's eyes changes once more.

Soon, Xiu Yuan saw the scheming and bloodshed within the righteous sects; in this era, it seemed that only in this way could one survive.

As the scenes flashed before his eyes, Xiu Yuan's heart sank. He seemed to understand what this dream was all about.

Then he thought of the man in white robes. Knowing everything, having gone through the path of self-examination, what choice would he make?

To blend in with the world?

Aloof from worldly affairs?

Seemingly recalling the last words left by the man in black robes, the man in white robes sighed softly.

For him, this was an extremely difficult choice.

Faced with survival and extinction, all rhetoric seems insignificant. The tide of time rolls on, and those who do not conform will be swept away into dust.

Xiu Yuan stood aside, watching the man struggle, and his heart was also stirred.

If you were in his shoes, what choice would you make?
He seemed to be the head of a sect, bearing not only his own head but also the lives and deaths of the sect's disciples and the glory of the entire sect.

"Blunt its sharpness, untangle its knots, soften its light, and mingle with its dust."

A soft whisper rang out, and the man in white robes raised his head again.

"Our ancestors would never have wanted us, their descendants, to stoop to their level; that is absolutely not the solution!!"

Upon hearing this, Xiu Yuan frowned.

The first two dreams began to churn in his mind. The first scholar's "blending in with the world" seemed to mean going along with the corrupt practices, and he foresaw its fate. But the second dye shop owner's "blending in with the world" was different from the first; he succeeded.

The strange feeling that had been lingering in my heart resurfaced. Two people, two similar predicaments, why was one able to overcome it while the other succumbed to despair?

He raised his head and looked up at the sky. The Dao Sect was built on a mountain. The mountain was very high, and the main hall was on the top of the mountain. Xiu Yuan walked slowly to the entrance of the main hall and looked up. It was as if he could look down on the human world.

"Same. Different"

Xiu Yuan murmured to himself, and a glimmer of light suddenly appeared deep within his heart.

Both the dye shop owner and the scholar changed with the trials of life, but the owner remained the same while the scholar changed.

This is the most fundamental point.

If that boss also becomes greedy and insatiable, pursuing only profit and losing his bottom line, then how is he any different from the scholar?

To blend in with the world only changes the means of interacting with it, not the inner self; what it seeks remains constant. It has different requirements for the inner and outer worlds: outwardly, it coexists with the secular world; inwardly, it maintains clarity.

The scholar, both internally and externally changed, ended up being lost in the world and ultimately swallowed up by it.

Is that so?

With a single moment of clarity, all things become possible.

Just then, Xiu Yuan felt as if he were floating up, and countless things began to flood his mind. He frowned slightly. Those things were none other than the contents of the books he had read in the past few days.

Wisdom is a means of understanding the world and solving problems, not a factor that controls whether a person moves forward or backward. The path a person adheres to is the fundamental factor that determines their success.

When Xiuyuan realizes this in his dream, the wisdom described in the book will no longer affect the path in his heart, but will only become an aid and means for him to move forward.

He turned around abruptly, and when he looked at the white-robed man again, a hint of relief flashed in his eyes.

If the scholar and the dye shop owner had revealed this truth, then the confrontation between the black-robed and white-robed figures was actually a clash of their own wills.

Now he has his own answer to the other party's predicament.

In the world they live in now, there aren't many choices. Killing or not killing are both means. The most important thing is to maintain a clear mind. Perhaps in the future, there will be no distinction between the demonic sect and the Taoist sect. There will only be like-minded people who want to make this world a better place.

Outside, a strong wind swept in, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was swept in by an inexplicable force, instantly descending upon this inconspicuous storage room in a corner of the Han King's Palace.

In the empty corner, a power seemed to be awakening, and then the spiritual energy from the outside world seemed to be swallowed up by a whale, disappearing completely from the spot.

A moment later, a figure appeared outside the keeper's room. Looking at the gentle moonlight, he raised his palm and clenched it, as if he had grasped the entire world.

"It was an unexpected bonus."

This person was none other than Xiu Yuan, who had just awakened from his dream. He stood there, a strange glint in his eyes.

There are many kinds of power in the world. After further understanding the principle of "harmony between light and dust," he felt that all these powers in the world could be used by him.

After thinking for a moment, Xiu Yuan raised his hand, and an ice spike suddenly appeared in his palm. Looking at the object in front of him, his eyes flickered slightly.

This was the same power he had felt during his last encounter with Bai Yifei.

After standing there for a while, a thoughtful look flashed across Xiu Yuan's eyes. This dream seemed different from the previous two. In the previous two dreams, he used the perspective of his predecessors to comprehend the mysteries of the cultivation technique and then ascended to the heavens in one step.

But this time, he saw more different scenes. He wasn't sure if this was due to the different cultivation methods, or if all his subsequent dreams would be like this.

However, compared to the former, this kind of thing, which you experience and comprehend yourself, is more familiar and you don't need to spend time digesting it separately. But in terms of depth, it may be somewhat different from the person who created the technique.

After a long silence, Xiu Yuan said softly to himself, "Each has its advantages and disadvantages, but if you want to forge your own path, the current dream world is better."

He then took a light step, and the next moment, he disappeared from the spot.

Zilanxuan
As soon as Chen Xiuyuan pushed open the door, he saw a girl asleep on the table.

Upon seeing this woman, Xiu Yuan gently shook his head.

After thinking for a moment, he raised his right hand, and an invisible force lifted her up from the void, then gently placed her on the bed to the side.

Then, Xiu Yuan went to the window and looked outside. The sky was overcast, and it looked like dawn was approaching.

Yesterday, he heard news from Honglian that Li Si had arrived in Xinzheng.

The case of the assassination of the Qin envoy appears to have entered its most crucial stage.

Of course, what he cared about was not this matter, but something else. Accompanying Li Si was another person, the King of Qin—Ying Zheng.

Recalling some fragments of memory, it seems that Ying Zheng has not yet taken over the power of Qin from Prime Minister Lü Buwei, and his life in Qin is not easy.

By chance, he read Han Fei's articles, which coincided with some of his own thoughts, so he came to meet this person he admired.

Of course, it wasn't just the two of them who came this time; there was also an assassin from the Qin Kingdom, the Heavenly Assassin of the Luo Wang—Hei Bai Xuan Jian.

For some in the Qin state, Ying Zheng's trip was also an excellent opportunity for assassination.

Thinking of the emperor who might one day unify the seven kingdoms, Xiu Yuan's gaze became somewhat distant. He thought that he might need to meet this emperor of all ages. As a king who ended the chaos, he would have many burdens on his shoulders. He might be the darling of the era, or he might be the supreme ruler who emerged from the chaos.

Perhaps tomorrow or the day after, he will witness this figure who will be remembered for all time.

"Cultivating affinity."

(End of this chapter)