Looking at the distant gate of the Liu residence, Mei Qing felt a wave of melancholy. Twenty years ago, he had been born in this remote mountain village. Twenty years later, he had finally returned, yet everything had changed.
Mei Qing had always felt a certain confusion and helplessness about his own identity. It was said that cultivators who reached a certain level would inevitably ponder fundamental questions: who they truly were, where they came from, and where they were going—not merely concerning life and death, but concerning the self and the Dao, the true self and the other self.
Was I born from the Dao, or was the Dao born from me? If I were to perish, would the Dao perish as well?
Mei Qing had entered the Dao unknowingly and without clarity, and thus had unknowingly crossed the first threshold of confusion. His progress had been astonishingly swift. Yet as he advanced to higher levels, many doubts inevitably began to disturb his mind.
Who am I? What is the Dao?
Am I the manifestation of Zhang Liusun? The son of Mei Wudu? The hereditary Martial Virtue General? Or am I merely a passing stranger, unaware of my own strange words and thoughts?
Which of these is truly me? Are these “selves” my true being, my original heart, or merely my roles and identities?
Is the Dao my heart? The heart of all beings? The heart of the universe? Or the supreme law?
If I do not cultivate the Dao, is the Dao still within me? If I am not myself, then is my identity who I truly am?
As Mei Qing gradually investigated his origins, trying to piece together the fragments of his life into a coherent whole, his confusion did not lessen.
It was as if a detached onlooker were watching another version of himself, striving to dig and discover, ceaselessly busy. Then he coldly laughed and said, “What will you gain by finding it? What you find—will it truly be yourself?”
“If what I find is not myself,” Mei Qing, somewhat unsettled, paused and asked, “then who is the real me?”
“Nothing,” Mei Qing shook his head. “I just feel that I’m drawing closer to the truth of the past, yet somehow drifting further from the ultimate reality.”
After leaving the Zhen family, Mei Qing walked away alone. He did not ask why, but his spiritual senses had already detected the faint traces of qi all around them, subtly following their path. It seemed that this time, Lu Bing’s arrival in Anlu would not go unnoticed.
Mei Qing knew that the big man who had just left was likely shifting into the shadows to make further arrangements. Thus, Mei Qing pretended to know nothing.
Lu Bing and Mei Qing were both accomplished cultivators, but they still observed the proper etiquette when visiting someone’s home. Therefore, they did not display any supernatural abilities, but instead began walking toward the Liu residence from a distance. As they rounded the mountain path and approached the gate, they suddenly saw a nun in a dark green robe standing with her hands on her hips, loudly shouting at the entrance:
Mei Qing gazed at the distant gates of the Liu residence, a sense of melancholy creeping into his heart. Twenty years ago, he had been born in this secluded mountain village. Now, after two decades, he had finally returned, only to find that everything had changed.
As for his own existence, Mei Qing couldn’t help but feel a sense of confusion and helplessness. It was said that those who sought the Dao, upon reaching a certain level of cultivation, would inevitably be plagued by questions of who they truly were, where they came from, and where they were going. It wasn’t merely about the cycle of life and death, but the confusion between “self” and “Dao,” the “true self” and the “other self.”
Was I born because of the Dao, or was the Dao born because of me? If I were to perish, would the Dao perish as well?
Mei Qing’s entry into the Dao had been hazy and unconscious. Thus, he had inadvertently bypassed the initial confusion. His rapid progress was unheard of. But as he delved deeper into his cultivation, many doubts inevitably began to disturb his mind.
Who am I? What is the Dao?
Am I a manifestation of Zhang Liusun? Am I the son of Mei Wuduo? Am I the hereditary Martial Virtue General? Or am I just a wanderer from who-knows-where, who occasionally utters strange words and thoughts?
Which one is the real me? Are these “selves” truly my essence, my true nature, or merely my “identities”?
Is the Dao my heart? Is it the heart of all people? Is it the heart of the universe? Is it the supreme law?
If I do not cultivate the Dao, is the Dao still the Dao in my heart? If I am not myself, then is my identity truly me?
As Mei Qing gradually pieced together the puzzle of his origins, the confusion in his heart did not become any clearer.
It was as if he were an outsider, watching another version of himself, tirelessly digging and discovering, always busy. Then he coldly laughed and said, “What does it matter if you find it? What you find, is it truly yourself?”
If what you find is not yourself, then who is the real self? Mei Qing felt a strange sensation and stopped to ask.
“Nothing,” Mei Qing shook his head. “I just feel that I’m getting closer to the truth of the past, but further away from the real facts.” After leaving the Zhen family, he departed alone. Mei Qing didn’t ask why, but his spiritual senses detected fluctuations of true energy all around, subtly following the two of them. It seemed that Lu Bing’s arrival in Anlu would inevitably attract some attention.
But in his haste, Mei Qing feared that their preparations were not sufficient. Seeing the burly man leave, he understood that he must be moving into the shadows to continue arranging things. Therefore, Mei Qing pretended not to notice.
Both Lu Bing and Mei Qing were accomplished cultivators, but when paying a formal visit, they had to observe some etiquette. Thus, they did not use their supernatural abilities but instead began walking towards the Liu residence from a distance. As they turned the mountain path and reached the gates of the Liu residence, they suddenly saw a nun in a green robe standing at the entrance, hands on her hips, shouting in a shrill voice:
“Liu, you scoundrel, come out here!”
Both Lu Bing and Mei Qing were startled. The nun had a delicate appearance, but at this moment, her brows were furrowed, and her hands were on her hips, exuding an air of extreme rudeness, far from the demeanor of a nun.
“Ahem… Esteemed nun, may I ask who you are looking for?” Lu Bing asked, somewhat surprised, seeing her blocking the entrance to the Liu residence.
The nun, upon seeing the two of them, couldn’t help but blush slightly, a faint red hue appearing on her cheeks. “I must apologize for making a scene. I am here to find Liu Shuxing, that heartless man.”
With that, she turned back to the entrance and shouted, “Liu Shuxing, if you don’t come out, I’ll block this entrance and never leave. If you close the gates for a day, I’ll block it for a day; if you close it for a year, I’ll block it for a year. I won’t believe that I can’t wait for you, you good-for-nothing, to come out!”
Mei Qing chuckled and said, “Esteemed nun, since you are here to find someone, why are you just blocking the entrance and shouting?”
The nun replied with a mix of anger and embarrassment, “That coward has set up some kind of barrier at the entrance. I can’t get in, and I can’t break through it. All I can do is shout a few curses to vent my frustration!”
Then, somewhat sheepishly, she lowered her voice and said to Mei Qing, “I’m not saying these things to you, I’m just angry at him. Actually, I’m not a nun, so please don’t call me ‘esteemed nun’ or anything like that.” Seeing her dressed as a nun, Mei Qing had to ask, “Then how should we address you?”
“Since you both seem to be cultivators, let’s address each other as fellow Daoists,” the nun said politely. “I usually practice in seclusion at Wudang Mountain and rarely venture into the world. My name is Sun Bu’er.”
Very well, very powerful.
In Mei Qing’s mind, the image of two people from his past emerged—one fat and one thin. The fat one was tall and large, bald, wearing a monk’s robe but claiming not to be a monk; the thin one kept saying “sin, sin,” but constantly argued with the fat one. They were the infamous Bu San Bu Si brothers, who had been tasked with protecting Mei Qing back then.
He remembered that the brothers had once asked him to guess the name of their elder sister, and it was indeed Sun Bu’er.
The name Sun Bu’er belonged to one of the Seven Ancestors of Quanzhen, the Hermit of Tranquility. In the cultivation world, who would dare to use such a name? Therefore, Mei Qing had no doubt that the woman dressed as a nun before him was undoubtedly the sister of those two rascals.
Mei Qing secretly observed this sister, whose name he had long heard. From her appearance, she seemed to be in her early thirties, much younger than Bu San and Bu Si.
“So you are the famous Sun Bu’er,” Mei Qing said, cupping his hands in salute. “I wonder if you have two brothers named Bu San and Bu Si?”
“You know those two scoundrels!” The nun’s face suddenly turned red, and she gritted her teeth. “Where are they? Those two, eating my food, drinking my wine, said they would help me find my husband, but then they sneaked off and disappeared! All these years, not a single word from them. If I find them, I’ll lock them in the attic and starve them for three days!”
Mei Qing was dumbfounded. Recalling the words of Bu San and Bu Si from back then, he thought to himself that it was no wonder those two turned pale at the mention of their sister—she was indeed formidable.
Sun Bu’er continued to rage, “They’re completely useless! All these years of searching, and they couldn’t even find that coward hiding here! If it weren’t for the message I received last night… Oh no!”
Both Mei Qing and Lu Bing were startled. Suddenly, Sun Bu’er straightened her posture, looked around, and shouted, “Bu San, Bu Si, you two scoundrels, come out here! I know you’re here!”
Mei Qing was surprised and quickly extended his spiritual senses to scan the area. Earlier, he had sensed people around, but assuming they were Lu Bing’s men, he hadn’t paid much attention out of politeness. Now, hearing Sun Bu’er’s words, he immediately searched the surroundings and indeed found two familiar auras of true energy under a nearby tree—it was Bu San and Bu Si.
But from the way Sun Bu’er was looking around, it was clear she hadn’t pinpointed their exact location. Her cultivation level seemed ordinary, so how could she know they were here?
Lu Bing frowned, clearly also curious about this woman who called herself Sun Bu’er.
At that moment, a familiar, trembling voice said, “Oh no, Third Brother, Big Sister has found us…”
Another deep voice, also trembling, chimed in, “Sin, sin… Second Brother, you… you must be mistaken, right? I think Big Sister is just bluffing.”
“Shut up!” Bu San scolded. “I clearly saw Big Sister glance in our direction just now. You must have missed it. Guess what, was she looking at you first, or me?”
Bu San’s voice, which had been trembling earlier, suddenly became much smoother as he criticized Bu Si.
“You two scoundrels!” Sun Bu’er’s eyes widened. “If you don’t come out right now, I’ll lock you both in the small attic on the peak of Tai Shang Rock, starve you for seven or eight days, and then break your legs and throw you off the mountain!”
“Big Sister, spare us!” “Sin… Big Sister…”
The two voices rang out simultaneously, and soon a swirling gray mist appeared not far away, with faint lights flickering, gradually revealing two figures, pushing and shoving each other, unwilling to step forward—it was Bu San and Bu Si.
“You two scoundrels,” Sun Bu’er said through gritted teeth. “You left me alone at Tai Shang Rock, and not a single word from you all these years! How did you know to send a message back to tell me that Liu Shuxing is in Anlu Bishan? I thought you two had died out there…” She stammered for a while, then pulled Bu Si out from behind her and said, “Third Brother, you… you explain it to Big Sister!”
“Sin…” Bu Si struggled for a while, but was finally pushed out by Bu San. Seeing no way to hide, he lowered his head and said softly, “Big Sister, it’s not that we… didn’t try. That Liu Shuxing is so cunning… we just couldn’t find him…”
“Yeah, yeah,” Bu San chimed in, his voice shrill. “We couldn’t find him anywhere. He must be hiding like a coward…”
“Don’t call him a coward!” Sun Bu’er shouted angrily. “If he’s a coward, what does that make me?”
“Sin, sin, Second Brother, you’ve committed the sin of speaking ill of others, it’s very wrong… That Liu Shuxing is naturally not a coward, but he is indeed very hard to find. Later, Second Brother and I discussed it and decided to join the Imperial Guards, thinking that since everyone says they’re good at finding people, they must have a way to locate Liu Shuxing…”
“The Imperial Guards?” Sun Bu’er looked suspiciously at Bu San and Bu Si, then glanced at Lu Bing and Mei Qing, and said, “What good can come from the government? You two good-for-nothings are really going downhill, joining the Imperial Guards. You’ve disgraced me…”
Mei Qing looked up at the sky, Lu Bing’s face was as dark as iron, and Bu San and Bu Si nodded repeatedly.
Bu San said in a shrill voice, “Big Sister is absolutely right. The Imperial Guards are completely useless. They couldn’t find any trace of Liu Shuxing… Ah, Lord Lu, it’s not that the Imperial Guards are incompetent, it’s just that Liu Shuxing is too cunning, too cunning…”
“Old Liu, come out here and face me!”
Lu Bing and Mei Qing were both startled. The nun was actually quite delicate in appearance, but at this moment, her eyebrows were furrowed, her hands firmly on her hips, her manner utterly brash and defiant—hardly the demeanor of a Buddhist nun.
“Ah… Reverend Master,” Lu Bing, somewhat surprised, asked cautiously, “may I ask who you are seeking here?”
The nun, seeing the two men, blushed slightly with embarrassment. “I’m sorry you had to see this. I’m here looking for Liu Shuxing, that heartless man.”
She then turned back toward the mansion and screamed again, “Liu Shuxing, if you don’t come out, I’ll stay right here and block your door! You can shut it for a day, and I’ll stay a day; shut it for a year, and I’ll stay a year. I won’t leave until that good-for-nothing son finally shows his face!”
Mei Qing smiled and asked, “Reverend Master, if you’re here to find someone, why block the door and curse?”
The nun huffed angrily, “This coward must have set up some kind of barrier at the entrance. I can’t get in, can’t break through—so I just yell a few curses to vent my anger!”
Then, somewhat embarrassed, she lowered her voice and said to Mei Qing, “I didn’t mean to speak like that in front of you. I’m just so angry with him. Actually, I’m not a nun at all. Please don’t call me ‘Reverend Master.'”
Seeing her dressed in nun’s robes, Mei Qing asked cautiously, “Then how should we address you?”
“You two seem to be cultivators as well,” the nun said politely. “You may call me ‘Dao You’ (cultivation companion). My name is Sun Bu’er, and I’ve been cultivating in Wudang for many years, rarely venturing into the mundane world.”
Excellent, formidable.
Mei Qing’s mind involuntarily recalled two figures from his past—one fat and one thin. The fat one was tall and bald, wearing Buddhist robes yet claiming he was no monk. The thin one kept saying, “A sin, a sin,” while constantly arguing with the fat one. They were the two brothers, Bustan and Busi, who had once been assigned to protect him.
He remembered how those two brothers had asked him to guess their eldest sister’s name, which turned out to be Sun Bu’er.
Sun Bu’er was the title of the “Pure and Tranquil Immortal” among the Seven Patriarchs of Quanzhen. In the cultivation world, who else would dare to use such a name? Mei Qing had no doubt that this woman dressed as a nun was indeed the elder sister of those two mischievous brothers.
Mei Qing secretly studied this long-famed elder sister. She looked no older than thirty, much younger than her two younger brothers, Sun Busan and Sun Busi.
“Ah, so you are the renowned Sun Bu’er,” Mei Qing bowed respectfully. “Might I ask if you have two brothers named Sun Busan and Sun Busi?”
“You know those two scoundrels!” The nun’s face flushed red with anger. “Where are they? They took my money, said they’d help me find my husband, then vanished without a word! Not a single message in all these years! If I ever find them, I’ll lock them in the attic and starve them for three days!”
Mei Qing was stunned. Recalling the brothers’ words from years ago, he couldn’t help but think that no wonder those two had turned pale at the mention of their sister—she was indeed formidable.
Sun Bu’er was still fuming, “Complete failures! All these years, and I still couldn’t find this coward hiding here! If it weren’t for last night when I heard the sound transmission… Oops, wrong thing to say!”
Mei Qing and Lu Bing were both startled. Suddenly, Sun Bu’er straightened her waist, looked around, and shouted loudly, “Busan and Busi, you two scoundrels, come out and face me! I know you’re here!”
Mei Qing was surprised and immediately extended his spiritual senses outward. Earlier, he had sensed someone nearby, but had assumed they were Lu Bing’s men and thus had not investigated further out of politeness. Now, upon hearing Sun Bu’er’s words, he scanned the area and indeed found two familiar auras not far beneath a tree—none other than Sun Busan and Sun Busi.
Yet Sun Bu’er was clearly unable to pinpoint their exact location. Given her ordinary cultivation level, how could she sense their presence?
Lu Bing furrowed his brow, clearly intrigued by this self-proclaimed Sun Bu’er.
Just then, a familiar sharp voice trembled, “Oh no, Brother Three, we’re found!”
Another deeper voice, also trembling slightly, replied, “A sin, a sin… Brother Two, you must be mistaken. I think she’s just bluffing us.”
“Silence!” Sun Busan scolded. “I clearly saw her glance in our direction just now. You must have missed it. Tell me, did she look at you first, or me?”
Sun Busan’s voice had been shaky before, but now that he was scolding Sun Busi, it became steady and clear.
“You two scoundrels!” Sun Bu’er’s eyes flared. “If you don’t come out now, I’ll lock you both in the small tower on Tai Shang Peak and starve you for seven or eight days, then break your legs and throw you off the mountain!”
“Sister, have mercy!” “A sin… Sister…”
Both voices spoke at once. Then, not far away, a swirl of gray mist began to gather, dark light flickering, gradually forming two figures. They pushed and shoved each other, neither daring to step forward. It was indeed Sun Busan and Sun Busi.
“You two good-for-nothings!” Sun Bu’er gritted her teeth. “You left me alone on Tai Shang Peak, and not even a single message all this time! How did you finally manage to send word telling me that Liu was in Anlu’s Bishan? I thought you were both dead!”
She grabbed Sun Busi from behind her back and shoved him forward. “Brother Three, you explain—explain everything clearly!”
“A sin…” Sun Busi struggled, but finally pushed forward by Sun Busan, had no choice but to lower his head and speak softly. “Sister, it’s not that we didn’t try… that Liu is extremely slippery… we couldn’t find him anywhere…”
“That’s right!” Sun Busan quickly added. “Nowhere! He must be hiding like a turtle in its shell…”
“Don’t call him a turtle!” Sun Bu’er roared. “If he’s a turtle, what does that make me?!”
“A sin, a sin,” Sun Busi said, “Brother Two, you’ve committed the sin of false speech. Brother Liu is certainly not a turtle, though he was indeed very hard to find. So Brother Two and I discussed it and decided to join the Embroidered Uniform Guard, since everyone says they’re excellent at tracking people down. We thought they’d surely be able to find Liu…”
“The Embroidered Uniform Guard?” Sun Bu’er eyed Sun Busan and Sun Busi suspiciously, then glanced at Lu Bing and Mei Qing. “What good can come from the government? You two good-for-nothings have really sunk low, joining the Embroidered Uniform Guard! You’ve disgraced our family name!”
Mei Qing looked up at the sky, Lu Bing’s face darkened, and the two brothers nodded repeatedly.
Sun Busan cried shrilly, “Sister, you’re absolutely right! The Embroidered Uniform Guard is utterly useless! We couldn’t even find a trace of Liu Shuxing… Ah, Lord Lu, it’s not that we’re incompetent, it’s that Liu is just too cunning, too cunning…”
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