The Sage Who Transcended Samsara

The setting sun was at a slant, the last of its sunshine the color of blood. The hustle and bustle of Bo’Le City gradually calmed, returning the city into a state of tranquility.

After dinner, ‘Junior Retainer’ Cao He sat in silence for a moment, only getting up when the sky overhead gradually darkened. He left in a hurry.

When he made it outside, he looked around alertly and quickened his pace only when he was sure that nothing was off. He took a turn into a nearby alley, occasionally lowering his head out of fear of being noticed.

He took a large detour around the area, constantly changing his direction, before pushing open a door to a mansion. He entered the hall with his back lowered, taking light steps so as not to disturb others or the atmosphere here.

These actions were not purely out of fear of being targeted; they were also subconscious. The lectures of Mr. Su and his companions elicited true admiration and respect from people.

The floor of the hall was littered with straw mats that were occupied by a variety of people. There were those dressed in the attire of scholars, talents housed by aristocrats, wandering martial artists, and ordinary civilians. They may have different identities but they shared the same concentration that vaguely hinted at a sense of piousness.

In the seat of honor was Meng Qi. It was his turn to lecture on the concepts of Love with Impartiality and Mutual Benefits.

“Nature is unkind; it treats all things impartially, but not because it’s tyrannical nor unmerciful. It merely treats everyone the same, that’s all.” Meng Qi had racked his brains to alter the concept of Love with Impartiality, so much so that he even used the contents of the Tao Te Ching book that had yet to appear in this world.

“Nature is unkind; it treats all things impartially… Not because it’s unmerciful…” Cao He, being a distinguished scholar, carefully savored those words. The more he savored them, the more profound they became to him. They were simple but carried the straightforward essence of the world.

“Mr. Su is indeed a great talent. He not only knows the world and its malpractices, he can also pry into the heavenly law…” Cao He quietly sat down, not daring to make even the slightest movement.

He noticed that the innermost circle had strong masters like Zhao Bai and Wang Qi as well as martial artists and scholars who wore solemn and respectful expressions and nodded to himself. “These are the followers of the respected gentlemen of the School of Mo?”

“In this era, the nobility triumph over lowly lives, the wealthy disgrace the poor, and the strong bully the weak. How is this showing mercy to one another? These are all acts that go against heaven’s will and would certainly incur the punishment of supernatural entities. Those who commit such acts would be hard-pressed to ascend to heaven after death. Thus, everyone should carry a merciful heart and love not only themselves but also one another…” Meng Qi forcefully steered his explanation to conform to this line of thought. He could not help adding, “Furthermore, there is no shortage of ancestors of the feudal princes and aristocrats who had acted fairly in the expedition against Zhou state, thus allowing them to become immortals and deities. Before this, they were all ordinary civilians who happened to come upon a Chance to spread the lessons of the fundamental law. They consumed elixirs or achieved great merits, which earned them rewards from the supernatural entities. Gods and Buddhas, immortals and sages, monarchs and aristocrats – are their lives greater than ours just because of their status?”

“Gods and Buddhas, immortals and sages, monarchs and aristocrats – are their lives greater than ours just because of their status?” Cao He and the others felt their scalps tingle as if lightning had struck their bodies. Even as fear gripped them, they found such words to be a breath of fresh air.

Meng Qi changed the topic and said, “You can become an immortal or deity, monarch or marquis, so long as you study diligently and live your life in accordance with the law of nature. Lifespans aren’t pre-ordained but in the hands of the people. This is the concept of ‘Against Fatalism’.”

Everyone was so excited that they could not stay still. The concept of “Against Fatalism” was precisely what they were happiest and most willing to listen to out of Mr. Su’s “Ten Tenets of Mohism”. It was linked to ideas like Adherence to the Will of Heaven and Beliefs of the Supernatural to form the basis of the concepts of Honoring the Virtuous and Moral Harmony, which were the premise of Love with Impartiality and Non-aggression.

Meng Qi appeared to have spoken with frankness and assurance, sitting upright and still as if he had planned this in advance. The truth was that he was trembling with fear deep inside. The aristocrats of this world held too much power in their hands, connected even to Gods, Buddhas, and immortals. He must not make enemies out of them at the moment. Thus, he must push for reforms instead of directing public anger at them. However, it was a challenge to come up with his own school of thought for he had to make sure that no contradictions existed in his reasoning.

Take for example what had happened earlier. He had made a point about supernatural entities not being above the lives of ordinary humans in order to form a basis for the explanation of Love with Impartiality as well as recognize the efforts of the feudal princes and aristocrats. He had acknowledged that they were the descendants of celestial beings and the later generations of deities, so they were equipped with the mandate to rule nations and a temporary position of superiority. That was merely an explanation of the idea of ‘ascending channel’.

With a straight face, Meng Qi continued. “There’s nothing wrong with seeking your self-interest while avoiding doing harm to others. After all, everyone has an innate instinct to protect themselves. But in your interactions with others, you must all carry the idea of Love with Impartiality in your hearts. You must act in a way that benefits both sides. Only when both sides are able to benefit from the situation can a universal love last for a long time…”

Meng Qi spoke at a moderate pace but Cao He and the others felt like their ears were being overwhelmed. It was because every sentence that Meng Qi uttered was profound and thought-provoking, but if they took the time to carefully savor it, they would miss the rest of his words. How they wished that they had ten brains in their heads to process everything!

When it was close to midnight, Meng Qi gave the bell next to him a light tap.

“We shall end our lesson here today.”

Cao He and the others got on their feet instantly, thanking and congratulating Mr. Su. They felt a deep satisfaction in their hearts and enrichment in their souls for they had gained a lot. It was as if they had obtained an unprecedented joy.

Just as Cao He was preparing to leave, he saw someone standing in the corner. His pupils instantly shrunk in fear and his body instinctively tried to move away from the person.

However, the person had already spotted him. He smiled and greeted Cao He. “Younger Brother Cao, I see you’ve come to listen to Mr. Su’s lecture as well.”

Cao He forced a laugh. “I never thought I’d come across Mr. Zhou here.”

The person was Zhou Xin, the strategist of Lord Bo’Le. To think that he would appear in this place!

Zhou Xin chuckled. “Mr. Su’s ambition envelops the world and his followers are so numerous that they can fill countless carriages. He often holds lectures to expound virtue and righteousness. How could I possibly miss it?

“Besides, I was also born an ordinary civilian. My heart agrees with Mr. Su’s words.”

They exchanged pleasantries for a moment before cautiously taking leave from each other. After Zhou Xin left the Zhao mansion, he made a beeline for the manor of Lord Bo’Le.

His agreement with Mr. Su’s words did not mean that he would support him.

Lord Bo’Le had his hands clasped behind his back, pacing as he listened to Zhou Xin reiterate the School of Mo theories that he had learned for the past few days.

When Zhou Xin brought up the points of operation standpoint unifying the superiors as well as the Moral Harmony in the concept of Adherence to the Will of Heaven by the chiefs, Lord Bo’Le could not help giving a mock compliment.

“Good! Very good! They’re all people of great talents. The concepts of Adherence to the Will of Heaven, Beliefs of the Supernatural, Honoring the Virtuous, and Moral Harmony hit home for the common folk! They’re so good that they almost make me feel like I should abandon the thought of building a tomb in hopes of ascending to heaven after my death. My late grandfather obtained great merits in the yesteryears and his physical body was sealed as a deity. With such financial resources in his hand, why didn’t he strive to hold a lavish funeral?

However, when Zhou Xin reiterated the concepts of Love with Impartiality and Against Fatalism, the expression on Lord Bo’Le’s face turned overcast. He thought to himself, “It’s unfortunate that they’re still too unrealistic. People’s minds are always a complex web of intentions and greed is endless. Selfish desires weigh heaviest on one’s heart. How can those who wish to reign supreme love with impartiality? This can only be restricted with their beliefs in the supernatural, but even supernatural entities have their own selfish motives! Moreover, it has been many years since the last immortal descended to earth…

“However, it’s not impossible to put on a facade of Love with Impartiality if it means we’ll be able to recruit talents and attract people to migrate and fill our lands. It’s just like my current facade of a scholar-respecting lord.”

He nodded gently, signaling for Zhou Xin to continue.

“To love with impartiality and to never fight meaningless wars for selfish interests, plunging the people into utter misery…” Zhou Xin said, while sneaking glances at Lord Bo’Le.

As anticipated, there was a slight shift in Lord Bo’Le’s expression as he said, “Ridiculous! How arrogant and impractical! If we don’t attack other nations and plunder the people, lands, and treasures, how can we strengthen ourselves? “If one’s own nation is not strengthened while other nations are, could they really rely on ‘guarding’ the nation to protect it? How superficial and ignorant! Go and ask him tomorrow if he’d be able to make each and every feudal vassal practice Love with Impartiality and Non-aggression!”

This was an utterly delusional ideal!

“Yes.” Zhou Xin had been prepared for Lord Bo’Le’s reaction.

…

It was Zhao Heng’s turn to lecture in Zhao Bai’s home the following day.

When it came to the question-and-answer session, Zhou Xin was the first to stand up, repeating Lord Bo’Le’s question from the night before. He concluded it with:

“I humbly request Mr. Zhao to answer my question.”

This question prompted Zhao Bai, Bai Song, and the others to wear solemn expressions. It did appear impractical to rely solely on Love with Impartiality and Non-aggression unless they were able to change the mindset of the world. While every nation was attacking and plundering each other, refraining from doing so would put their own nation in jeopardy.

Zhao Heng frowned. This was the main reason behind his lack of confidence in the Mohism school of thought. For the other concepts, as long as they could bring together helpers and become a formidable influence, the ambitious and rational feudal princes and aristocrats would at least put on a show and carry out acts to uphold them in order to respect the wise and attract the virtuous. Either way, they only had to keep this going for three months for the task to be considered a success.

“Looks like this is only possible for small nations…” He thought.

Seeing his silence, Zhou Xin once again spoke.

“I humbly request Mr. Zhao to answer my question.”

Zhao Heng racked his brain, thinking long and hard for an answer. Just as he was about to soundlessly relay his voice to Meng Qi, the answer came to the four people who had been listening behind the screen.

Meng Qi stood up and stepped out from behind the screen. “Non-aggression doesn’t mean that we refrain from fighting but that we refrain from fighting meaningless battles. It means that we refrain from jeopardizing the lives of the people for one’s selfish interests. Thus, punishment and attacks are perfectly reasonable in the right context!

“Executing the law of nature and eliminating evil from the world means to ‘punish’ and ‘attack’. Hence, when King Zhou of yesteryears acted tyrannically, King Wu consoled the people by punishing the tyrant. This is also an act of Non-aggression.”

“In our current era, the dispute between feudal princes is the root of all turmoil. If there exist virtuous monarchs who take it upon themselves to unify the lands, end the various nations, standardize the language, carve paths for vehicles, end the turmoil, and return the world to times of peace and prosperity. Is this not ‘righteousness’?”

This time, he had finally adapted the Mo school of thought to fit the Apotheosized World!

“End the various nations and unify the lands? Is this not ‘righteousness’?” Zhou Xin felt a buzz in his mind, preventing him from hearing the rest of Meng Qi’s words. He felt so muddle-headed that he did not know how he even left Zhao Bai’s home to meet Lord Bo’Le.

There had yet to be anyone who harbored the intention to unify and rule the world!

To be more precise, division and conferring lands on feudal princes was the natural order of things, heaven’s law itself, since the establishment of nations!

Lord Bo’Le’s eyes widened when he heard Zhou Xin’s words. His breath became ragged and his grasp on the bronze goblet in his hands slackened. The goblet fell to the ground with a thud.

“Putting an end to various nations, unifying them under one rule, standardizing the language, carving the same paths for vehicles?”

He felt a slight excitement running through him. Even if he harbored great aspirations, he had at most thought about recruiting talents and waiting for his chance to become the overlord of the whole world like the Six Hegemons. He dreamed of perhaps going as far as replacing the royal family of Zhou state and becoming the Emperor. However, he had never thought of destroying nations and becoming the true ruler of the world.

That was because something like this had never happened before!

He took a deep breath, feeling a sudden and inexplicable panic, but he steeled his face and said, “Ask them to leave Bo’Le tomorrow. They must not stay!”

He was still Lord Bo’Le and not the monarch of Han state. Even if he was the monarch of Han state, holding such views would make him the enemy of the world!

Zhou Xin was stunned but kept quiet as he could see that his Lord’s attitude was firm. He hastily took leave from Lord Bo’Le.

The room fell into silence. After pondering over the matter for a long time, Lord Bo’Le suddenly got to his feet and said to no one in particular, “I’m afraid they’re planning to head to Huan state as they have been inquiring about it all this time. That’s why they dare to speak out…”

“It’s not convenient for me to use these talents but I can’t allow others to benefit from them!”

His tone took a dark turn, concealing the intention to kill. “I’m Lord Bo’Le who admires and respects scholars. It’s not appropriate for me to make a move. You, make a trip to Small Heaven Cave atop Yuxu Mountain and request for their help!”

A voice rang out inside the empty room. “Yes, my Lord.”