“…you live in narrow quarters or wander the world. You draw heavenly light to plate mundane iron, pay tribute to sages past with your toilsome study. On your shoulders rests the weight of parents whose temples are weathered with frost and snow, of children whose flesh and bones are as frail as matchsticks. Born into this world, you rise early and retire late—how could you dare to snatch a moment’s leisure?

“When the wind rises, your lives are pricked like paper. Fragrant clouds stoke the consuming flames, luxurious mansions hasten the profusion of desolate graves. Cries of distress receive no response, only pique the interest of monsters and ghosts…”

The black dragon shadow was like a kraken meeting the floodwaters head on. Its claws scrabbled wildly with nothing to cling to. This time, its turn had come to behold heaven and earth.

The dragon shadow that risen to the surface was pressed by compelling force beneath it. In the pitch black silent Territory Map, a cacophony of voices spoke.

From Great Wan's nine provinces, in tones and accents ranging from north to south, those voices clung to the reincarnation wood, reciting again and again in Xi Ping’s ears the article distributed by Zhao Qindan under her pen name “Scholar Xu.” Some were literate and could recite from memory, but the majority of people didn’t really understand; these listened to others explain—the same way they usually chased after the scholars to hear gossip and anecdotes from the toilet bulletins, laboriously asking after their own stories, remembering only a phrase here and there.

It had been a rare year of favorable weather, and the harvest was nearly here, yet now of all times the waters were breaching the dykes. Factories caught fire, and those who hastened to the rescue could not prevent the houses they left behind, which after three years of saving they had repaired to keep out the rain, from half collapsing. They would miss seeing their old mothers who were paralyzed in bed one last time, their wives would be missing, and perhaps dead…

Was it true that this time, merely by sinking into the earth, they could shoulder the catastrophe?

In a mortal’s life, could there also be a moment in which they did not have to submit to the will of heaven?

“The spiritual mountains are distant—no smoke or dust can stain them; the Great Way is boundless—the people have no land to till.”

Even the “Territory Map rubbing” itself—Xi Ping’s consciousness—was submerged in the wave of voices. In that moment, Zhao Qindan’s voice was bigger than him.

Through the Law Breaker, Lin Chi transported a newborn birch sapling to Jinping’s Kaiming Department.

His mouth was too slow. He didn’t have time to explain clearly. The one who received the sapling happened to be a Luwu who had returned to Jinping to report. He was holding the ice-rimed sapling in both hands, completely at a loss, when he collided head on with a Kaiming Department colleague dashing back to get medicine to treat injuries.

The sapling fell to the ground and put down roots in the Kaiming Department’s yard. Its upright trunk rose steeply. In the blink of an eye, it was several zhang high.

General Zhi, who had defended Jinping City over two hundred years ago, walked out of the snow-white tree, saluted the two dumbfounded half-immortals, and was at once outside the courtyard walls.

He didn’t fly, only walked along the Dragon Vein holding Zhaoting. He did not take long steps, nor did he seem to be moving quickly, but somehow, each person only just had a chance to catch a glimpse of him; one glimpse, and that figure would disappear without a trace.

With Lin Zongyi gone, there was no one left who could hold the Dragon Vein in place by force, and the earth of Jinping had cracked in the shape of a dragon. As if sensing the arrival of an old friend, the half-crumbled old city let out a wail.

Where Zhi Xiu walked, the cracked earth closed, and exhausted Kaiming Cultivators were supported by a spiritual wind; their vision blurred, and then an open-eyed grade healing pill appeared before their eyes.

“Who is that…?”

“It’s General Zhi,” a walker in the mortal world of Heaven’s Design Pavilion said softly. “Over a decade ago, he presided over the Grand Selection from Heaven’s Design Pavilion. I saw him.”

Back then, General Zhi had also come on foot like this. He was even wearing the same light grey robe.

The Kaiming Cultivator holding the pill between his fingers remained perplexed. “They say that General Zhi went into seclusion when he was half a step from a shed skin, so by now he would be… Why would a master like that have so many open-eyed grade elixirs?”

No one answered. Everyone looked toward the ground in astonishment. Multitudes of tiny inscriptions were climbing out of the cracks, spreading in all directions. The Dragon Vein, which had been shattered by the Silver Moon and the Territory Map, repaired itself bit by bit—in the blink of an eye, Zhi Xiu had already arrived in front of the Dignitary of Fate Elder.

Zhaoting left its sheath with a clank. Zhang Jue, who had yet to recover from Lin Zongyi’s passing, unconsciously backed away half a step, then saw Zhi Xiu abruptly thrust Zhaoting into the earth.

Branches and leaves seemed to flash over the sword. Next, the inscriptions that were everywhere repairing the veins of the earth gradually converged on the sword and sank through it into the earth.

At this point, the black dragon shadow had no more latitude to resist, held underground by the consciousnesses of millions. The piece of his consciousness that Zhi Xiu had left underground connected with his true body.

Inside the Territory Map, the walkers in the mortal world rushing around all of Great Wan astride karma beasts saw a brightness before their eyes. Soft white light flew along the veins of the earth, pointing in the direction of Jinping. The karma beast seemed to understand without needing instructions. As if gamboling, all its avatars ran after the light, skipping and bouncing as they carried the blue-clothesers.

Pang Jian felt as if he was speeding along a string of lanterns. The warm white light coiled beside him. Staring at it wouldn’t dazzle your eyes, but the karma beast was moving too fast; he couldn’t quite see clearly. Inside that white light, countless human faces flashed before his eyes, holding down the black dragon like an impenetrable bastion.

His eyes, which could dispel barriers, could see a little beyond the crowd. Perhaps it was his mistake, but Pang Jian thought that the edges of the Territory Map were blurry where the white light shone.

Like bolts of lightning the karma beasts brought the walkers in the mortal world back to Jinping one after another, stopping beneath the reincarnation wood tree in Jinping that had made a knot over the hole in the Dragon Vein. The karma beast’s avatars reluctantly set down the blue-clothesers on their backs and returned to the main body.

The reincarnation wood tree that was holding up heaven and earth was encircled by a ring of inscriptions containing sword aura. Passing through them would return you to the human world.

Pang Jian, as general commander, didn’t immediately go up despite arriving early. He kept watch beside the circle of inscriptions, waiting until all his subordinates and colleagues had gone, and only then turned to look at the Territory Map, which blazed with light like a building at night.

The karma beast, as if throwing a playful tantrum, took the hem of his robe in its mouth and gently butted him with its big head, sending Pang Jian reeling.

“All right, all right,” said Pang Jian, petting it. “Things will be unstable for a while. When it calms down, come to the mural, I’ll brush you.”

Hearing this, the karma beast let out a whine, then at last reluctantly released his robe and watched him go. Pang Jian suddenly felt a little unhappy. He thought that that body as big as an elephant standing alone in the wide and empty Territory Map seemed extremely lonely.

It was said that the karma beast “moved through writing and art,” but in fact, this was only the usual fussiness of the Wan people. The karma beast itself wasn’t so finicky. When the blue-clothesers got busy and summoned the karma beast, they would all scribble a line on a wall in charcoal, no more sophisticated than wild moss. Rather than saying “writing and art,” it would be more accurate to say that what the karma beast wanted were human markings.

Pang Jian suddenly thought: the Territory Map rubbing was a “bridge” that let people on the ground touch the Territory Map itself, and “human markings” seemed to be a “rubbing” for the karma beast, letting the sacred beast that stood guard alone over the darkness come out and see a glimmer of daylight.

When the Southern Sage had sealed the Territory Map and placed the karma beast inside it, what had he been thinking?

“Don’t delay.” Just then, Wen Fei, who had hurried back, landed beside him. “This is no place to linger.”

No sooner had he spoken than he gave Pang Jian a shove. The two of them plunged into the inscriptions together. Soon after, Xi Ping walked out of the trunk of the reincarnation wood tree.

As a sacred beast, the karma beast had always been reliable and valiant. Its only humiliation had been suffered at the hands of this brat. The sight of him made it boil with rage.

The sacred beast of the ancient sage was bold and sure. It had no fear of a mere ascended spirit. Now that all the others had gone, it crouched and tensed to spring, planning to have a good fight with this scoundrel junior. But when it pounced, it suddenly caught a whiff of something from Xi Ping. The karma beast came to a sudden halt. Its bared teeth were withdrawn. After a while, it reluctantly puffed out a breath and, with its back to Xi Ping, insultingly mimed digging a hole and burying shit in it. Then it ran off.

Xi Ping dispersed the talisman he had prepared to “beat the dog.” The sword light surrounding him contracted and withdrew into his spirit, turning back into a slightly damaged shard of a broken sword.

Xi Ping sighed. “Shifu, I may not be much good at swordsmanship, but I can do everything I need to do… Short of single combat with a shed skin, I won't have much of a problem. There’s really no need for you to…”

Keep looking after me.

Zhi Xiu interrupted, shushing him. Out of nowhere, he said, “I know…but the snow-capped mountain is too cold.”

Xi Ping stilled.

“Send them off and hurry back,” said Zhi Xiu.

By this time, the Territory Map was completely still. Xi Ping sank his consciousness into the reincarnation wood. The cultivators’ consciousnesses had already left on their own. As if guiding a river, he sent the mortals out of the reincarnation wood one by one. Amid the human tide, Xi Ping skillfully passed through the joys and sorrows of countless people. He had meant to thank them, but on second thought he decided that would be superfluous, so he didn’t speak, only silently plucked the Tai Sui Qin—he played a country tune to celebrate the harvest.

He had traveled in his youth and by chance had heard a cart driver in Guzhou singing it once.

Inside the Territory Map, a response came at once from the area around Guzhou.

“That’s wrong…”

“It’s off-key…”

The response was hundreds upon thousands of voices speaking at once. Then many people tried to correct him, each one singing in a different key. Xi Ping didn’t know what it ought to have been, either. The Tai Sui Qin ran hither and thither after them for a snatch of melody at a time, growing increasingly off-key.

Some people became frantic, some people laughed.

Then those voices little by little became distant as he gently carried them back to the human world.

Now, Xi Ping at last saw the whole Territory Map clearly, but at a single glance, he froze—the people had all gone, but the soft light hadn’t disappeared. The seal in the veins of the earth had undergone some peculiar change. The edges of the Territory Map seemed to be dissolving into that light. The Territory Map and the veins of the earth appeared to be slowly blending!

Xi Ping was startled. What did this mean?

The veins of the earth were the “meridians” of the spiritual mountains, and that menacing black dragon shadow had seemed intent on draining the spiritual mountains dry. They had barely managed to subdue it. If it became one with the veins of the earth…wouldn’t that be like letting it stick a drinking straw into the spiritual mountains?

Xi Ping quickly sent his consciousness out and made separate observations on the surface and inside the Territory Map. The surging spiritual energy had by now returned to its usual state, spreading slowly all over the country through the veins of the earth and the spiritual wind. It wasn’t being sucked up by the black dragon like he had been worried it would be. The black dragon shadow seemed to be “dead.”

“Shiyong, come out now,” Zhi Xiu said. “I’ll explain it to you soon.”

Yes, shifu was still waiting to seal the Dragon Vein. Xi Ping couldn’t linger. Still doubtful, he turned and entered the passageway Zhi Xiu was holding open with inscriptions.

A stench hit him right in the face. The pestilential Heartless Lotus had ruptured all the sewers in Jinping City. Had Wen Fei not been there, there might well have been a plague.

Xi Ping’s true body broke free, and a final thread of sword light from the Sword that Mended the Heavens “flowed” into the damaged Dragon Vein. Devastated Jinping fell silent.

Only then did Zhi Xiu return the sword to its sheath. From a distance of several paces, he respectfully called to Zhang Jue: “Shifu.”

For some reason, the wrinkles on Zhang Jue’s face deepened a great deal. After a long time, he said quietly, “According to the rules of Xuanyin, one’s apprenticeship is complete upon becoming an ascended spirit.”

Zhi Xiu didn’t turn a hair. “Dignitary of Fate High Elder.”

There was a violent tremor at the corners of Zhang Jue’s eyes.

This was the place where the three high elders had just fought the Territory Map. Never mind walkers in the mortal world, even ascended spirits didn’t dare to approach. So apart from the two shed skins, there were only the people who had just climbed out of the Territory Map.

Wen Fei, who had been resting against the reincarnation wood tree like a dead dog, now straightened up indolently. With his back to Zhi Xiu, he shifted a step closer to him.

Peak Master Wen’s feet seemed capable of performing a consecration. With a single step, the atmosphere turned weird. Next, Xi Ping’s true body appeared in the reincarnation wood tree. With one leg crossed over the other, he leaned back against the treetop, closely watching Zhang Jue with a slightly derisive smile.

The division among these four masters was evident.

There was no question about Bai Ling. As soon as Xi Ping appeared, he floated over like a kite, draping himself over a branch beside the master of the reincarnation wood. Only the walkers in the mortal world were helpless and bewildered. Their gazes turned in unison toward Pang Jian.

Pang Jian was silent.

Without a word, he simply toppled onto the ruins, using his power of passing through solid objects to sink into the earth.

“Since the Southern Sage reached the full moon boundary and Xuanyin formed, over a thousand years have passed,” Zhang Jue said slowly. “Over a thousand years of peace and prosperity, Jingzhai… Do you know what you are doing?”

Zhi Xiu calmly responded, “When Jinping’s Dragon Vein broke, by a series of coincidences, the Dragon Vein and the Territory Map sealed within it passed through me, and since then, I have had the fortune to be closely bound with both of them. I received shi…the Dignitary of Fate Elder’s introduction into cultivation. If I had committed myself to the spiritual mountains, it would have allowed the spiritual mountains to subdue the Territory Map through me, destroy the danger that had lurked for a thousand years. I have disappointed the spiritual mountains.”

“Why have you betrayed your sect?” Grey energy invisible to the others flashed in Zhang Jue’s eyes. “Don’t you know that because you have entered an evil way, the Territory Map has fallen entirely into the hands of an evil cultivator? If he…”

“Elder.” Xi Ping didn’t give a damn whether he had any place in this conversation. He impudently opened his mouth and interrupted the Dignitary of Fate. “When you had a use for me, you would have allowed me to take a position among the thirty-six peak masters. Now I’m an ‘evil cultivator’ again?”

“Shiyong, you mustn’t be rude,” Zhi Xiu scolded him mildly. Then he said to Zhang Jue, “The Territory Map will not mutiny under his control…”

Zhang Jue interrupted him peremptorily. “Can you guarantee that? You have placed all of Great Wan into the hands of a person with selfish desires. Zhi Jingzhai, you…”

“No, I ought to have said, the Territory Map will never mutiny again,” Zhi Xiu said softly. “Because I have become a shed skin, the Territory Map and the Dragon Vein have become one. In some decades, no more than a single generation, the two of them will be able to resolve their misunderstanding. Isn’t this also a way for the spiritual mountains to possess the Territory Map?”

Zhang Jue’s expression was aghast. Even Pang Jian couldn’t resist sticking half his head out of the ground—by now, he had understood what was happening from their conversation. Supposing Zhi Xiu had become an orthodox shed skin, cast off his selfish desires and surrendered to the spiritual mountains, the Territory Map would have become an auxiliary of the spiritual mountains, controlled by them. But the shed skin Zhi Xiu had planted an accompanying plant in the spiritual mountains. He was unwilling to be tamed. The Territory Map and the spiritual mountains were naturally equal now… When they blended together, which would be calling the shots?

“Zhi Jingzhai,” Zhang Jue said, his voice shaking from tension, “do you want to destroy the Xuanyin Mountains, destroy Great Wan’s millennia-old foundation?”

Xi Ping and Wen Fei froze simultaneously. Their eyes turned to Zhi Xiu.

Zhi Xiu laughed. “The spiritual mountains will cast off the form of the thirty-six peaks and by this means slowly disperse through the veins of the earth, henceforth be with the mountains and rivers of the land. Does that amount to destruction of the spiritual mountains?”

Zhang Jue said, “Do not forget that beyond our borders…”

Zhi Xiu raised a hand to interrupt him. “The Xuanyin Mountains and I both still have some decades left, don’t we? I will make suitable arrangements. Please return to the Sea of Stars, Dignitary of Fate Elder.”