Surviving in the Demonic Sect, one begins cultivation by retrieving corpses.

Although Gu Zhao had solved the mystery of the unborn child and accepted his past memories, he still knew very little compared to the old man in the stable who had come from a background of retrieving corpses.

He asked, "Brother Ma, why did you choose to join the Mingyi Sect in the first place?"

"There are several other major sects around here."

This sounds like a question: Why don't you go to Tsinghua or Peking University?

But the reality is quite different.

For those exceptionally talented disciples, choosing a sect is like choosing a path to immortality; naturally, they must be very selective and cautious.

But for these menial laborers, where they cultivate themselves is no different from doing odd jobs to earn a living.

As long as one has just stepped into the Fetal Movement Realm, one can enter the threshold of these sects.

In his memory, although the Mingyi Sect was a major sect in the vicinity, it was not unique, and there were other sects that could rival it.

Ma Fang took a sip of his drink and chuckled, "Brother Zhao, you don't know this. Although there are many sects around here, none of them can compare to the Mingyi Sect in terms of their origins and backgrounds."

Gu Zhao's eyes lit up slightly: "Is there any other explanation behind this?"

The stableman tilted his head back and drank heartily. Seeing this, Gu Zhao wisely refilled his glass.

"Speaking of which, this matter has to start with the name. Zhao-ge, do you know what this world is called now?"

Gu Zhao was aware of this, "Qingming Tianxia".

"Indeed, the Azure Sea governs the world with the Dao. But what is the Dao?"

"Although we are called the Demonic Sect, the Demonic Path is also a Path."

"As the Dao Ancestor said, the Dao is everywhere, and there is nowhere that the Dao cannot be observed."

"The words of the Dao Ancestor are naturally profound and difficult to understand, but for us ants, they can be put into simple terms."

The stableman picked up a piece of food with his chopsticks and said, slowly and deliberately, "Cultivation is the Way."

Gu Zhao was somewhat confused by his rambling: "What...what does this have to do with the Mingyi Sect?"

The stableman chuckled and slowly said, "Do you know the meaning of the two characters 'Ming Yi'? Ming means fire, and Yi means earth. In this hexagram, Kun is above and Li is below. Kun, representing earth, is above, and Li, representing fire, is below. The fire is hidden in the earth, and the light is temporarily obscured, which is called 'Ming Yi'."

He paused, then continued, "The sixth line of the hexagram says: 'It first rises to the heavens, then sets to the earth.' The sun rises in the sky and eventually sets on the earth. But after the sun sets, it will surely rise again. This is the cycle of the heavens, the endless cycle of life."

It's quite strange that the stable boy, with his pedantic manner, would utter such a passage.

But Gu Zhao knew in his heart that these menial servants had all received two years of free Taoist enlightenment in their early years, but because their aptitude for cultivation was too poor, they were sent to the lower courtyard to do hard labor.

Therefore, everyone has a basic understanding of Tibetan Buddhism, so they have some foundation in it.

What the stableman said wasn't particularly obscure.

Gu Zhao vaguely remembered the corresponding records in his mind, and seemed to understand something.

The stableman got straight to the point, "The Mingyi Sect has a lineage above it. It is said that our sect's ancestor once ascended to the Jade Palace."

"Baiyujing!?"

The world is governed by the Dao, and the greatest Dao in the world is the Jade Capital in the Central Continent.

Ma Fang laughed, "So, instead of going to Xiaoyushan, Guandao Sect, and Qianji Sect, I came to Mingyi Sect."

"There was an old prophecy in the southern border region: 'Mingyi is the abyss where a hidden dragon dwells. The hidden dragon awaits Mingyi.'"

"In the future, a great figure will emerge from the Mingyi Sect, soaring to great heights."

The stableman patted his chest and said, "I, Old Ma, also have aspirations."

Gu Zhao finally understood that this stable was essentially a gamble on the Mingyi Sect.

Who can say for sure about these things?

Anyway, it has nothing to do with those menial servants.

He then casually asked, "Brother Ma, which part of southern Xinjiang are you from?"

Gu Zhao had a good idea of ​​what was going on: if the stables were from a respectable family, they would have been talking about it by now, but they didn't seem to mention it, so their family background must be ordinary.

The stableman clicked his tongue. A few years ago, he would have mostly glossed over it, afraid of being looked down upon for his humble origins.

Now that I'm older, I've come to terms with it.

"Sigh... Brother, I'm just from a poor, remote area. When I was young, I was just like you, a handsome young man in the surrounding villages."

"I am the only one in the whole township who has been found to have the aptitude for spiritual cultivation. My parents are hoping that I will bring honor to our family in the future."

"Even the township head personally came to my door to see me off on my way."

"Back then, I thought I was born with a noble destiny to cultivate the Tao, and I was determined to ride the wind and control my sword to become a true immortal master."

"As a result, everyone ended up doing odd jobs in the morgue."

The stableman picked up another piece of greens with his chopsticks. Having eaten too much meat, he felt greasy and casually asked, "Brother Zhao, where are you from? Judging by your bearing, you must be from a poor family that has fallen on hard times?"

These words had been on his mind for a long time. Although Gu Zhao was a menial laborer, his temperament was refined and otherworldly, unlike that of an ordinary laborer.

The stableman secretly guessed that he was probably a descendant of a fallen monk whose ancestors had been monks but had later declined and gone astray.

There are quite a few people like this among the menial servants, and they all have to mention their family history at every turn.

In the eyes of the stable master, no matter how respectable one is, he is still just a down-on-his-luck person.

Gu Zhao, relying on the original owner's memories, calmly replied, "I wouldn't even qualify as a poor family. I fled from the Great Wilderness, my parents died early, and I only entered the Mingyi Sect by chance."

"Our ancestors only had a few acres of meager land, and they never even had a single cultivator who had reached the Qi Refining Realm."

This was the first time I'd ever heard of a stable; I never imagined it had such an origin.

He put down his wine cup, looked at Gu Zhao's face, and felt a pang of pity. He sighed, "Zhao-ge, I shouldn't have asked that..."

At this point, the stableman suddenly realized what was going on and understood.

No wonder that senior sister from the outer sect treated Gu Zhao so differently.

Gu Zhao smiled faintly: "That's why I don't like to talk about my family background. Being born into poverty is not a disgrace, but it's not something I should be talking about."

The stableman waved his hand dismissively: "What's the big deal... We corpse retrievers may be insignificant in the sect, but once we return to the mortal world, apart from those true immortal clans, we can easily live the life of a wealthy man in an ordinary dynasty, marrying several wives and concubines, and still live a comfortable life."

He changed the subject, glanced at the other servants in the room, and sighed heavily: "Outer sect, inner sect, upper cultivation..."

"We menial servants are nothing more than people who stand outside the door looking at the stars and the moon. The great world inside is right before our eyes, yet we can't take even a single step inside."

"It's better to be an ordinary person, living a muddled life, which means you suffer less."

As if the alcohol was taking effect, Ma Fang's eyes cleared as he stared at Gu Zhao, no longer displaying his usual aged and shrewish demeanor.

"These past few days, I've noticed that you seem like a completely different person, Zhao-ge."

"Lately, he has become increasingly diligent in his cultivation and has been constantly asking about cultivation methods... I have noticed all of this."

"Zhao-ge'er, you really want to join the outer sect, don't you?"

Just as the stable was about to speak, he was about to say a few heartfelt words.

A waiter came over and said, "Fellow Daoists, have you finished your meal? May we go upstairs?"

The stableman slapped his forehead. "Oh dear, I almost forgot about the important matter."

"Zhao-ge, let's go upstairs."

The waiter stepped forward. "Master Daoist, do you recognize anyone?"