Chapter 1054: Chapter 1054
Chapter 1054: Chapter 81: A Profound Interpretation of Cause and Effect and Immortal Fate
“Little brother has been away from the village for less than a year, and I never imagined he’d experience such earth-shattering events! He’s completely transformed, now with the grace of an immortal! I wasn’t wrong about him after all!” His words were heartfelt, as he believed Xiao Jie was no ordinary person from the start.
“Haha, Uncle Huang is flattering me.” Xiao Jie smiled humbly, “When I first arrived, I was fortunate to receive much care from Uncle Huang and everyone in the village.”
“Oh, no need to be so polite!” Master Huang quickly waved his hand, “If it weren’t for Suifeng Hero and those ‘returnee’ warriors bravely defending the village, fighting the Zombie Ghost General, how would Ginkgo Village be as peaceful and tranquil as it is today? We are grateful beyond words!” He said, looking over at Yuan Bai, “—This young brother Yuan, is he a friend of Suifeng Hero?”
Xiao Jie glanced at Yuan Bai, who was winking at him, and laughed, “It’s more accurate to say we’re brothers.”
“Hahaha! That’s right, we’re brothers!” Yuan Bai put down his teacup, and with maturity beyond his years, picked up the conversation, then looked at Xiao Jie, “I say, my second brother, seeing your relaxed expression, you’ve settled those pals, haven’t you?”
“Yes, they’ve all become apprentices of those immortals and started learning.” Xiao Jie nodded, asking in return, “Yuan, don’t you plan to try it yourself? Such Immortal Fate is rare.”
“I’ll pass! I haven’t even figured out how to be human, how can I become an immortal?” Yuan Bai shook his head like a rattle drum, “I… uh, I finally rid myself of that old monkey form, becoming human, gaining such a youthful, vigorous, and energetic body; I want to enjoy life and savor the pleasures of the mortal world.
How can I waste those great times learning Daoist skills and martial arts? Besides—” he pointed to his head, “My skills are all memorized right here, clear and distinct! Once I eat and drink my fill and exercise enough, my strength and Qi-Blood will naturally recover.”
He confidently patted his rather slim chest, “Besides, with the potential of this current body, once my strength recovers, it’ll be several times stronger than it was in that old form! Why seek immortal teachings? I plan to stay in the village for a while, get acclimated, and then venture into worldly society!”
Xiao Jie looked at his youthful face expressing worldly words, feeling both amused and relieved; this old monkey-turned-young-man was living his life transparently.
“Great! Then I wish Yuan a bright future and a joyful life!”
“Absolutely!” Yuan Bai assured, patting his chest, then suddenly remembering something added, “By the way, second brother, if you ever need a hand in a fight or anything, just shout my name! I’ll be there!” The young man spoke with the tone of a worldly elder, though quickly his youthful nature surfaced as his attention returned to the chessboard, urging, “Hey, old man, don’t try to feign ignorance and stall! Are we continuing this round or what? Quick, admit defeat if you’re losing; don’t be dishonest!”
“Hmph! I am not one to dishonestly avoid defeat!” Master Huang, provoked, narrowed his eyes, blowing his beard even though his chess skills were lacking, his integrity was strong, “—Here!” Saying this, he tossed a somewhat aged copper key to Yuan Bai, evidently as the wager.
Xiao Jie watched the two banter and felt immensely satisfied. Yuan Bai had found such a peaceful place to settle and could enjoy himself; at least he found a good destination for his ‘brother’.
He turned to An Ran and said, “An Ran, I won’t stay here much longer. Focused cultivation is important.” He took an ancient book from his storage bag and handed it to An Ran, “Here is ‘Thousand Illusion Transformation Technique’, which contains many sorcery transformation techniques; take a look, study it, it might inspire you understanding of the Demon Core’s power and bring insights. Don’t worry about the Demon Core issue, I’ll go ask Dragon Soaring about it; their guild inventory should have some, or they might help gather some. You just prepare yourself.”
The upcoming task is helping Dragon Soaring unify the Nine States, such favor can’t be for nothing, though to Xiao Jie collecting Demon Cores was a trivial matter, if there was an existing supply, it wouldn’t hurt.
Having roughly settled everything, Xiao Jie focused his mind and chose to exit the game.
After a flash of white light, and familiar slight dizziness, Xiao Jie’s consciousness swiftly returned and found himself in the real world, seated at the computer desk in his living room.
Gu Feiyu, who was anxiously waiting nearby, hurriedly came forward upon seeing, excitedly asking, “Damn! Jie, you’re finally back! Why’d you take so long? I almost died of worry! How’s everything going there? Han and the others…”
“No need to rush, everything is fine.” Xiao Jie took off his game helmet, rubbed his brow, and said with a relaxed tone after completing the mission, “I’ve managed to resurrect Han, Wentian Wuji, Xia Yi the Unrivaled, An Ran, all of them. Just… couldn’t bring them back to life in the real world; their souls can only remain in the game world, reborn through reincarnation in the game. They’re all back to leveling in Ginkgo Village now.”
He paused, then added, “Oh, by the way, I even found three genuine immortals to be their mentors, guiding them in their cultivation. Consider it securing Immortal Fate for them.”
Then, Xiao Jie briefly explained to Gu Feiyu about his experiences in the game, including how he negotiated with Yama, persuaded the immortals, arranged for everyone to reincarnate and find a master, and more.
Gu Feiyu was dumbfounded, his face filled with awe and disbelief: “Wow! Are immortals really that awesome? Resurrection sounds so ‘simple’? So, does that mean I don’t have to fear death in the game anymore? As long as I die, I can just get you, Jie, to help me fish people out of the Netherworld?”
Upon hearing this, Xiao Jie was at a loss for words and gave him a playful slap: “You wish! Don’t even think about doing something so dumb! If you die, you’re really dead! Your consciousness will completely enter the game world, unable to return. Even if you can be resurrected, you can only live forever inside the game. You won’t be able to interact with anything in reality — your body, your family and friends, cola and fried chicken, movies, games… you’ll never touch those again. It’ll be as if your soul is forever trapped in that world, becoming a thinking ‘NPC’. Can you truly accept such a result?”
Gu Feiyu was frightened by this, shrank his neck, and indeed thought carefully for a while, finally saying sheepishly: “Alright… when you put it like that, it’s indeed more comfortable to be alive in reality, with cola and fried chicken, WIFI and air conditioning, being able to catch up on shows and movies. But…” He suddenly turned optimistic, “In any case, it’s like having a final ‘safety net’, isn’t it? This gives me a bit more confidence in what I want to do in the game, like an ultimate assurance.”
“By the way,” Xiao Jie remembered something and asked, “Do you want to also hang your name with those three immortals as a follow-up student? Anyway, one sheep is herded, two sheep is released, adding you should be no problem. Aren’t you always searching for Immortal Fate, wanting to advance to ‘Immortal Master’? This is a ready-made opportunity.”
Surprisingly, Gu Feiyu pondered for a long time, then shook his head resolutely.
“Thanks for the thought, Jie! But honestly, I can’t just jump into that.”
“Oh? Why?” Xiao Jie asked curiously.
“Because based on my research,” Gu Feiyu adjusted his glasses and said seriously, “‘Cause and effect’ is extremely important to immortals because it can, to some extent, influence and even bind an immortal’s destiny. Once entangled with significant causality, it’s hard to escape. And the so-called ‘Immortal Fate,’ in essence, is forming a cause and effect with an immortal.”
He continued his explanation: “Back then, when you crossed the Wangliu River, and met those two chess-playing immortals, why did those immortals help you later? Wasn’t it because you invited them for a drink and shared delicious food, forming a benevolent cause and effect? In other words, right now, I have no causal relationship with those three immortals.
Han and the others, however, are different; they have cause and effect with those three immortals. The key to their causality lies with you, Jie — you agreed to join the Heaven Repair Alliance and help save the world, which made those three immortals owe you a cause and effect, and naturally, have to pay you back by teaching your disciples as a way to settle the causality. And when you fought the Red Dust Taoist, you owed Han and the others for fighting desperately on your behalf. This interaction of causes and effects ultimately landed on them, allowing them to smoothly become apprentices.”
He concluded: “But when you fought the Red Dust Taoist, I did not participate at all! Even if I went, I wouldn’t change the outcome. If I forcefully get involved now, it’s demanding something unreasonable, a fruit without cause; even if succeeded, the foundation would be shaky, not what I truly desire, like a flower in the mirror or moon in the water — visible but untouchable.
For Immortal Fate, I must seek and strive for it myself, forming my own cause and effect! Only that, which I gain through such efforts, would be true Immortal Fate, a solid opportunity for me to truly attain immortality in the future!” Read complete version only at novel※fire.net
Xiao Jie listened, showing a face of astonishment. He didn’t expect Gu Feiyu to think so deeply and thoroughly about the underlying rules of this game world. Reflecting on it, his words, although from a player’s analytical perspective, truly had some merit, faintly aligning with the operational logic of this world.
Feeling somewhat embarrassed inside. It seemed that his journey to becoming an immortal involved a lot of confusion, unexpected incidents, encounters and opportunities, and the realization of immortality was indeed a result of luck, effort, and many external factors working together. Surprisingly, his understanding of the essence of ’cause and effect’ and ‘Immortal Fate’ isn’t as clear and profound as Gu Feiyu, an ordinary player.
“Your idea is great, very reasonable.” Xiao Jie sincerely praised, patting Gu Feiyu’s shoulder, “Stick to your own path and strive for it. I believe you can find your own Immortal Fate.”
“Hehe, absolutely!” Gu Feiyu gained even more confidence after receiving affirmation.
As Xiao Jie spoke, he got up and rummaged a stash of old monitors in the nearby storeroom, reconnecting cables.
Gu Feiyu curiously watched him: “What are you up to, Jie?”
“Claiming a reward,” Xiao Jie replied, adeptly turning on the computer and opening the official website of Old Soil.
He clearly remembered that after completing the [Immortal and Mortal Forever Separated] achievement, there was a special reward promised by the system that he hadn’t claimed yet.