Chapter 40: I’ve Learned My Lesson—I’ll Never Get Arrogant Again

All methods of tempering the mind are perilous in the extreme.
The state of transcending emotions to achieve ultimate calm is no exception.
Push it too far, and one easily descends into the demonic path of ruthless detachment.
Fall short of the mark, and one suffers the backlash of suppressed emotions, just as Lu Ge did this time.

Beneath the backlash of emotions lies utter collapse.
In such a state, self-control becomes an impossible luxury.

On this occasion, the dominant current of Lu Ge’s emotional backlash was grief; his physical response was merely to resemble withered wood as his spirit sank entirely into the past.
Had the backlash been one of fury, he likely would have embarked upon a bloody massacre by now.
In the terminology of cultivation, this predicament is known as suffering a deviation of the heart and falling into demonic possession.

For three long years, Lu Ge’s heart and mind were utterly exhausted.
Every single moment was drowned in an inescapable abyss of sorrow.
Yet, years of practicing the path of emotional detachment preserved within him a single thread of lucid awareness.

Mind and spirit wrestled; heaven and man waged war within.
Had there been the slightest lapse, Lu Ge’s soul would have been extinguished forever, reducing him to nothing more than a walking corpse.
It was akin to mortals who suffer a catastrophic blow, never to rise again, sinking into complete despair and feeling that the mortal world is no longer worth living in.
The number of those who take their own lives due to such circumstances is by no means small.

Lucidity and chaos fought within his heart for three years, and now the battle had finally reached its end.
All manner of emotions were suppressed once more, and the rationality of emotional detachment reclaimed the upper hand.
Although the process had been fraught with extreme peril, the ultimate outcome was a favorable one.

Having survived this tribulation, Lu Ge’s Dao of emotional detachment advanced to yet another higher realm.
As he awoke at this moment, a profound realization dawned upon him.
To attain the Dao of Immortality, it is far from enough merely to possess boundless magical power and vast mystical abilities.
All manner of tribulations will swarm upon the cultivator in relentless waves.

Some tribulations, such as the heavenly trials of wind, thunder, and fire, alongside various human calamities, can be resolved through mystical arts and spells.
Yet other tribulations arrive completely unawares, rendering magical arts utterly useless; one must rely solely upon one's own willpower.

"To become an immortal is difficult indeed," Lu Ge sighed softly to himself.

Idly reaching for the food that Shen Dao had brought him, he devoured it with great speed.
While trapped within the tribulation of the heart, he had felt nothing.
Now that he had awakened, however, he realized how fiercely hungry he was.

As he ate, Lu Ge muttered to himself in contemplation.
Magical power should perhaps be considered a form of the Dao in its own right.
He wondered when he might be able to penetrate its mysteries and comprehend mystical abilities from within it.
By then, perhaps he would possess boundless magical power and an endless source of vitality.
With magical power serving as a constant replenishment of energy, his physical body would no longer need to fear hunger or thirst.

However, such thoughts could only remain daydreams for the present.
In this current age, the cultivation of mystical arts remained the absolute mainstream.
The universal practices of refining Qi and tempering the physical body had not yet come into existence.
Nor did Lu Ge believe he possessed the capability to carve out an entirely new path of cultivation for all living beings under heaven.

For now, he would simply wait and see.

After finishing his meal, Lu Ge finally regained a modicum of strength.
Supported by Shen Dao, he slowly made his way down the mountain.
Returning home, Lu Ge settled down to recuperate in peace.
Upon learning of Lu Ge’s return, Li Lin frequently came to pay his respects.

Half a month drifted by in the blink of an eye.
Lu Ge was once again bouncing with vitality.

"Li Lin."
"Quickly take down my spirit tablet from your family ancestral hall."
"I am not dead yet, you know."

Lu Ge had visited the Li family ancestral hall a few days prior and laid eyes upon his own memorial tablet.
How should he put it? It had felt exceedingly bizarre.

Li Lin chuckled and said, "Ancestor Lu need not worry."
"I have already arranged for it to be replaced with a longevity plaque."

A longevity plaque was a shrine dedicated to praying for the blessings of the living out of gratitude for their virtue.
There was no need for any taboo regarding such an object.

Hearing this, Lu Ge finally nodded in approval.
As long as they stopped treating him like a corpse and burning incense for him every day, that was fine.
It carried a rather inauspicious vibe, after all.

Now that his body had recovered, Lu Ge felt the urge to move about.
A few days later, he bid farewell to Li Lin and resumed his journey with Shen Dao.
The journey to wander the world continued onward.

Shen Dao, driving the carriage, asked with a hint of worry, "Grand Master, should we perhaps turn back?"
"You had barely stepped outside before you nearly met with disaster and lay dormant for three years."
"I am afraid that if you happen to be moved by scenery again one day and suffer another accident, what shall we do?"

Lu Ge retorted huffily, "Away with you, you crow's beak."
"Am I truly that fragile?"
"This time was merely an exception."
"Having gone through this ordeal, my emotional detachment is now fully perfected; nothing in this world can ever affect me again."

Seeing this, Shen Dao could only mutter inwardly that his master was simply stubborn of tongue, though he dared not voice the thought aloud.

Despite saying those words, Lu Ge remained inwardly vigilant.
Previously, he had assumed that with his comprehensive mystical abilities, he was utterly fearless.
Looking back now, however, he realized he had been far too arrogant.
Without anyone else even making a move against him, he had nearly managed to kill himself this time around.

There are thousands of mystical abilities in this world, and one can never guarantee that there aren't some bizarre and unpredictable methods out there.
Lu Ge had no fear of attacks directed at his physical body.
But what about attacks directed at the mind?
What about attacks targeting the soul?

Lu Ge even found himself thinking of the legendary Seven-Arrow Book with Nailed Head.
Pray to it for a few days, and your life is snuffed out.
Even a supreme Golden Immortal could not defend against such a thing.

The heart that had been quietly swelling within him now hastily shrank back.
Steady yourself, do not court danger.

Traveling onward, they arrived at Yingdu before they even realized it.

"Grand Master, I have heard that Bo Ya and Zhong Ziqi met right here in this place."
"Later generations erected an ancient guqin terrace at the spot where they first crossed paths."
"Shall we go take a look?" Shen Dao asked with an expectant expression.

Lu Ge gazed into the distance.
Bo Ya and Zhong Ziqi—yet another tale known to everyone.

"Let's go, let's take a look," Lu Ge said with a sweep of his broad sleeve.

The carriage rolled forward once more.
The ancient guqin terrace was situated by the shores of Moon Lake, facing Turtle Mountain to the east and bordering Moon Lake to the north.
It was indeed an exceptionally picturesque scenic spot.

In later eras, the State of Chu corresponded to the region of Hubei.
Lu Ge himself hailed from Hubei, yet he had genuinely never visited the guqin terrace before.
He had originally imagined that the place, if not entirely desolate, would at least be a quiet and secluded spot.

However, Lu Ge’s assumptions proved incorrect.
A scenic spot is a scenic spot; whether in the past or the future, it never fails to attract throngs of people.
All along the way, they encountered numerous individuals.
Moreover, most of these people carried musical instruments.

Furthermore, every single one of them wore an expression of intense excitement, much like starstruck fans.
It was not until they arrived directly before the ancient guqin terrace that the reason became clear.

There stood a man playing the guqin, while several hundred people surrounding him listened with rapturous fascination.

Lu Ge tilted his head to listen.
How should he put it?
Lu Ge possessed virtually no musical talent; if you asked him to analyze the technicalities, he certainly wouldn't be able to say a thing.
Yet he could still tell whether something sounded pleasant or not.

As a melody came to an end, the player withdrew his hands.
The surrounding crowd remained with their eyes closed, savoring the lingering resonance.

"What does Master Lu think of my melody?" the guqin player suddenly asked, raising his eyes to look over.

Lu Ge’s carriage was stationed a hundred paces away, outside the perimeter of the crowd.
Yet this man had pierced through Lu Ge’s identity at a single glance.

Lu Ge smiled and asked, "You know me?"

The man laughed heartily and replied, "Who under heaven does not know the name of Master Lu?"

All those who had been listening to the music turned to look at Lu Ge, their gazes carrying a myriad of different expressions.
Some held reverence, some fear, and others aversion.

"Your piece was played quite well, Excellency. You are surely no mere nobody," Lu Ge calmly inquired. "May I ask who you are?"

Before the man could reply, a voice rang out from among the onlookers.
"This is none other than Ji Ge, the Grand Musician personally appointed by the Son of Heaven."

*Ji Ge?*
Lu Ge was momentarily stunned. How could anyone be named after a rooster?
Shen Dao hurried over and murmured in a low voice, "He is a scion of the Zhou royal house, currently serving as the Grand Musician, and is fervently sought after by everyone under heaven who studies the Dao of music."

Light dawned upon Lu Ge.
Ah, *that* Ji.