Chapter 22
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: Fairy of the Sacred Mountain, Fifth Hairpin (3)
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In the path of Immortal Cultivation, there is one thing everyone inevitably encounters. Whether it comes early or late, frequently or rarely, it is a tribulation that all cultivators face without exception.
Tribulations take many forms, but in essence, they are obstacles that naturally arise as one pursues Immortal Cultivation—trials that simultaneously test the cultivator.
If one fails to overcome a tribulation, their cultivation stagnates, reaching a point where further progress or enlightenment becomes impossible.
But humans always find a way around it. Thus, the cultivation world has developed various methods to deal with tribulations that prove insurmountable.
One such method is the Corpse to Remove Tribulation.
The term "corpse" here differs from a mere dead body; it typically refers to a special corpse of a cultivator—specifically, one from which death has been excised.
A corpse without death? It sounds absurd, but this concept stems from the supreme cultivation method known as Corpse Dissolution. We won't delve into Corpse Dissolution or corpses in full here—treat it as a play on words—and focus solely on the Corpse to Remove Tribulation.
By creating such a corpse and using it as a proxy body to deceive and transfer the tribulation, then eliminating it, one resolves a round of tribulation.
However, this isn't true overcoming—merely evasion. Thus, when the realm regresses after performing the ritual and later recovers to its original state, the tribulation returns. Moreover, having been dodged, it strikes back even stronger, demanding a definitive breakthrough.
"But that doesn't make sense, Teacher. You have no soul or body, yet you're conversing with me like this. And you're saying the corpse needs to be eliminated?"
「You've grasped it sharply. Indeed, from there arises a more profound truth. The Corpse to Remove Tribulation is merely an act of evasion. But if insurmountable tribulations accumulate, there exists an even more extreme method: the Tribulation-Bearing Corpse.」
A corpse proxy possesses flesh and a fragment of soul and mind but lacks true agency—it's little more than a scapegoat doll. But what if one divided their own agency and birthed a living other self? And if that living corpse endured all tribulations indefinitely?
The true self could then evade those tribulations and continue advancing their realm. Once sufficient progress renders lower-realm tribulations no longer threatening, even if they rebound upon the living corpse's death, they could be easily overcome.
"So... you're bearing your true self's tribulations, Teacher?"
「Exactly. The living corpse never receives the true self's personal details, so I know nothing of my origin. But since I live, my true self must still live as well.
I bear and endure tribulations in their stead. That's why I cannot die. I must survive as long as possible... waiting for the day my true self comes to reclaim me.」
Yuyeon felt strangely unsettled. She had always cherished herself, so she'd never even imagined dividing her being. This tale felt profoundly alien to her.
What if it were me? Could I condemn another version of myself to endless suffering just to survive? Would that truly be loving and cherishing oneself?
Her thoughts naturally extended to the question of identity between true self and proxy... but she sensed she shouldn't pursue it further and held back. Thank you, Dao Heart, she thought. For granting me this extra cultivation.
"Even so, it's still odd. Why leave such a vital living corpse in a place like this village? You nearly got devoured by that Corpse Ghost!"
The teacher inwardly bristled at her underestimation but, with his profound cultivation, restrained himself and continued.
「Nearly devoured? I was biding my time for an opportunity there. And since the fiend's realm was too shallow to detect me, I planned to possess its distasteful flesh temporarily.」
Another puzzle arose in Yuyeon's mind upon hearing this. What kind of being was this teacher, brimming with secrets? It must stem from origins utterly unlike an ordinary living corpse.
「I hadn't intended to speak of it, but since I've vowed honesty to you and the topic has arisen, I'll tell all. In my view, I'm likely like your parasol—something that fell from the Immortal Realm by chance.」
Yet another question bubbled up, but Yuyeon listened silently. She'd even forgotten her original purpose of learning the dance, utterly absorbed in the teacher's tale.
「From the moment I plummeted into this world, I had no body, and my tenuous soul was fading fast. Minds cannot exist alone; they dissipate—that's natural. But as a mind of profound cultivation, I lingered briefly.
Still, annihilation loomed. Then I spotted a woman. Realizing possession of her body would stave off dissolution, I latched onto her mind. Thanks to her, I survived—and in repayment, I offered her some knowledge and counsel.」
Thus, she became the village's first Shrine Maiden.
Now Yuyeon understood why the shaman called the teacher "tiger bitch." From the shaman's perspective, this spirit had been the mentor of Jina's predecessor—its host—and something of a quarrel must have erupted when the tiger devoured her, the two indistinguishable since she didn't know they were separate.
"So... you've lived within generations of Shrine Maidens, revered as a spirit?"
「Yes. I always aided them when needed, so I deemed it fair exchange. But this incident showed possessing a tiger's body is perilous, and with each new generation of Shrine Maiden, uncertainty breeds anxiety. Your parasol proved far more convenient.」
Yuyeon felt this was mere excuse-making. If true, he could guide the Shrine Maiden to a larger city, freely hopping hosts amid oblivious mortals—the shaman hadn't noticed, after all.
Yet he hadn't. It seemed born of the teacher's pride against parasitizing mortal minds at will, and his reluctance to burden Jina with the "host" label.
But if so, hadn't that yoke now fallen to her? Of course, partnering with the teacher benefited her, so no issue there. On reflection, he seemed averse to harming others.
「I'll offer you counsel, but don't rely on it blindly—especially regarding your Dao path. Ask nothing of it.」
This wasn't callousness. It was a common pitfall for disciples leaning on masters or backers: enlightenment is personal, cultivation solitary. Overreliance stalls self-cultivation, inviting stagnation or tribulation.
Besides, laden with countless tribulations already, any flawed Dao counsel from him risked misguided enlightenment.
「I've spoken too much today. Voiceless, I rely on mind-speech, which drains mental energy. I'll answer more later—now practice the ritual dance for the remaining time.」
Yuyeon agreed; the influx of information needed digestion.
She resolved to begin dancing as instructed, but realized holding the parasol made it impossible. Its shade would trail her movements, forcing bound souls endless motion postmortem—cruelty itself.
Even absent that, dancing one-handed was awkward. She sought the teacher's advice.
"May I set this parasol aside briefly?"
The teacher, despite agreeing to advise yet conserving words from fatigue, hadn't anticipated the immediate query.
「Likely no issue. A dharma tool, once refined, remains under its master's influence even set aside.」
This parasol had recognized Yuyeon as master upon contact, calling her true name—clear proof of refinement in the teacher's eyes.
Emboldened, Yuyeon released it experimentally. Responding to her intent, it hovered midair at her former grip position.
Even as she stepped from its shade, it held. The shade felt slightly fainter— a tool's limitation, unavoidable.
"Stray too long, and it reverts to ordinary parasol."
「Precisely observed.」
Inwardly, Yuyeon likened the teacher to a chatbot—daily message limits, advice not to be taken at face value. Best not thank him casually; it'd waste his tokens.
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「You're a martial clan scion, aren't you?」
After half a shichen observing Yuyeon's rhythm—no, ritual dance—practice, the teacher remarked casually. Startled, she glanced at the Seven Mountains containing him.
"How did you know?"
「Martial daughters are all alike. Mere form without spirit—so I say 'dance,' and you perform it like martial forms.」
Yuyeon hadn't formally trained in martial arts but had internalized footwork; sundry lessons subtly informed her stance usage. Not wrong.
"Should I ask the Shrine Maiden to stand in now?"
「That defeats the purpose. The key is you dancing the ritual to draw Incense Fire Merit toward you, which I gather via the linked Seven Mountains. Your own merit alone suffices not.」
A faint incongruity nagged Yuyeon. Wait—why must he gather the merit? Having handled it before, she asked.
"Why must you collect the Incense Fire Merit? Couldn't I?"
The teacher replied as if coaxing a child.
「Yuyeon, you seem embarked on Ghost Dao, correct?」
"Yes. No formal technique or training, but it happened that way."
The teacher dearly wondered how, exactly.
「Then your Dao Heart condensed around Ghost Dao insights or resolve. To wield Incense Fire Merit now would scatter it all—shallowing your Dao Heart, regressing cultivation. Ghost Dao and Shrine Dao seem superficially akin, but their paths and ends diverge utterly; they cannot coexist.」
Yuyeon's contrary experience defied this logic. She'd gained Ghost Dao insights and wielded Incense Fire Merit—albeit unknowingly Shrine Dao-related—to perform Heavenly Ascension in place of her merit.
「Your Heavenly Ascension likely succeeded because Pure White Body, your unique constitution, and sincere intent in your merit aligned perfectly.
Heavenly Ascension consumes merit, not exclusive to Shrine divinities. Orthodox Dao cultivators avoid it, yet possess the most merit-related spells; they'd excel at it too.
Thus, using one's own merit differs vastly from another's offered via Incense Fire. You're sharp; you grasp it.」
The teacher, assuming her Heavenly Ascension mere coincidence, corrected her—trapped by cultivation world's "common sense," misunderstanding entirely.
Yet Yuyeon gleaned insight: why village merit's Heavenly Ascension differed from her direct one. Source and intent varied.
"But I've wielded Incense Fire Merit before—for Heavenly Ascension too."
「What...?」
The teacher's world crumbled anew.
Having heard the full account, he struggled to accept yet conceded—Yuyeon wasn't one for baseless claims; he'd gauged her character thus.
For context, mere half a day acquainted, yet personalities meshed, enabling swift mutual insight.
Thus, Yuyeon revisited the Shrine Maiden to request proxy dancing. Jina inwardly regretted missing Yuyeon's performance but feigned nonchalance: "Understood."
One worry eased, Yuyeon secluded herself idly—then voiced her earlier curiosity. Tell me about Immortal Treasures, Teacher.
"Teacher, you said my parasol fell from the heavens. What does that mean?"
An odd thought struck her. Things falling from the sky—did this world have spaceships or satellites? With transcendent cultivators, why not?
「Literal meaning. An item coincidentally dropped from a higher realm. Such are called Immortal Treasures.」
A higher realm...
She glanced skyward instinctively, then recalled her blindness and sank into gloom. Born sightless, her Divine Sense unreachable, she'd never truly seen the sky.
No point when invisible. She'd never looked up—her first sunrise her sole solar glimpse.
Thus, her mental sky was her original world's clear blue. Imagining this world's canopy grotesque chilled her.
But soon, memory surfaced: during Heavenly Ascension, heavens parted, imprinting their image on her mind.
Recalling it, she confirmed it matched her old world. Surging anxiety and melancholy ebbed; mood lifted. Unbeknownst, she'd vanquished a heart demon.
The teacher, seeing her sky-gaze turn visibly downcast, puzzled briefly then understood.
「Ahem, my apologies. Never having seen the sky, you wouldn't grasp my words.」
Her heart settled, Yuyeon pettishly retorted sans resentment.
"Do you take me for a fool? I know the sky—I've even seen it. How else could I open Heavenly Ascension?"
Heavenly Ascension's "heaven" (薦) differed from Heaven's Way's (天), but both sought celestial will—Yuyeon punned playfully.
The teacher considered retorting but indulged the child's cute gambit.
「My thinking was shortsighted. Simply put, Immortal Treasures are like everyday tools from the Immortal Realm's denizens.」
The crux: Immortal Realm items, however crude, comprise immortal materials, energies, and techniques. Plummeting to the lower world elevates their tier.
The parasol exemplifies: mere shade for an immortal, yet fallen earthward. Its exalted nature lets it evade nether laws, repelling yang energy.
Thus, base lower-realm beings swallowing it fail to contain its dense darkness, inviting calamity instead. Such "treasure tribulations" are termed Precious Tribulations.
Amid this, Yuyeon drifted into whimsy.
Why need a parasol if so exalted? Is the Immortal Realm's energy—and sun—so intense?
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