The Dao was a wonderful place, and a wonderful thing indeed. As he immersed himself in the creation of his story titled the ‘Dao of Dreams’, his understanding rose. In fact, his understanding rose to such a point that all the Qi in his body unlocked new meridian pathways throughout his body. Of the Twelve Earthly Meridians, all of them had been cleared. Among the Eight Heavenly Meridians, one had been cleared out, bringing him one step closer towards Immortal Ascension.

In the dark underground library chamber sat Lao Chen, his work illuminated by a single candle as he continued to write and write with no sign of stopping. The light of day did not enter the library, and because the regulars within the library were all scholars, it was deathly quiet.

Although he wanted to enact his curiosity and see his new limits, the Dao of Dreams was still being elucidated upon, and in that hour of Enlightenment, little could end his momentum.

Almost an entire night had passed and Lao Chen had written down his thoughts on a thick scroll that not even his hand could wrap around. Deciding that it was good, he interred it in his bag of holding, placing it carefully next to his other works of art.

Closing his eyes, he introspected, drawing in wisps of Qi into his body to see what was different.

His absorption rate was magnified hundredfold, and his core seemed to have compacted, reducing itself to a hundredth of its natural size. Lao Chen knew that aside from meditating on the Dao, he also needed to focus on his core.

The library was empty, so it wouldn’t bother anyone if he was to cultivate-

Well, until a certain youngster entered. With a sigh, Lao Chen decided to put a hold on it and picked up a random history book to read. While fiction was well and good, the stories surrounding him were enough to make him vomit. Thousands of chapters of an increasingly powerful protagonist destroying one foe after another. It wasn’t worth wasting brain cells on.

Lao Chen sensed the boy staring at him, causing him to shift uncomfortably as he tried to focus on the Battle of Wherever-it-was where General Whasshisface repelled the invading who-were-they troops from the Empire of-‘Gah!’ Lao Chen’s mind was in turmoil. He could barely even concentrate on the words enough to commit them to memory with the eyes burrowing into his soul from behind him.

“Gah!” Lao Chen couldn’t hold on no more. Turning around, he gave the dumbstruck youth a pleading look. “Stop staring at me, please. I can barely concentrate!”

The youth stepped into the light of a nearby candle, giving a short bow. “Apologies, old-timer.”

Looking around the room, he saw the rows and rows of bookshelves stretching on for several dozen meters. “This crowd of strangers sure does love their books, huh?”

Lao Chen raised an eyebrow. “Was there something you wanted from me?”

“Oh yes, old-timer. Now, you seem like a reasonable man,” he began, to which Lao Chen nodded. “Great. What is your relationship with Lao Lin and Wu Shan?”

“They’re my children,” Lao Chen admitted. “Why are you asking?”

The boy narrowed his eyes in suspicion, yet he could not deny the truth in his words.

“Before you ask, the name’s Wang Chun,” he said before showing his tongue. “I’m a servant of the Empire. Now, second question-”

“I don’t think you answered my question,” Lao Chen sighed. “Why are you asking? Surely, a servant of the Empire has better things to do than question a group of travellers out on a simple adventure.”

Wang Chun flexed his jaw at the question. “All you need to do is answer, old man, and this will all be over,” Wang Chun gestured in the blink of an eye. “I have two techniques. A memory eraser spell and a torture spell. If you answer my questions, we can forget this ever happened, so you won’t have to report it back to her, got it?”

Lao Chen blinked a few times, raising both eyebrows questioningly. “Pardon me, son, but I am actually completely dumbfounded. What is happening?”

Wang Chun glared at him. “Have you gone senile, old man?”

Lao Chen gasped at the insult. “I’ve still got millennia in me, young boy! Imagine someone comes to you and starts demanding answers to questions they don’t need the answers to, with the threat of torture and memory erasing? And besides, who’s ‘she’?”

Wang Chun grunted. “You’re really stupid, aren’t you? Your daughter, old man. The insanely talented Dao Seeker.”

Lao Chen’s eyes widened. “Lin-Lin’s a Dao Seeker, too? Wait a minute… did she make her own Nascent Soul without telling me? Can she even do that? So many questions,” Lao Chen’s mind began to race at the implications.

With a bang on the table, Wang Chun’s face was inches from Lao Chen’s. “Listen here, old man. You better not have gone senile on me!”

“I have honestly no idea on what’s going on, kid. Lin-Lin’s my daughter. I wasn’t aware that she became a Dao Seeker… wait a minute…” Lao Chen’s eyes began to close in shame. “Don’t tell me she became one before I did… Even if it was a day’s difference, I can never live down the shame.”

Wang Chun’s eyes darted open. “Are… are you a Dao Seeker?”

“Why, I guess I am,” Lao Chen smirked. “A little scared, Core Formation pup?”

Wang Chun backed away, dispelling the memory erasing spell on his hand. “A thousand apologies for my impudence, Dao Seeker.”

Lao Chen frowned. “Hey, now, did your attitude just change because I’m a Dao Seeker? That’s two-faced behaviour, you know. It’s unbecoming.”

“Were you not aware that your daughter is a Dao Seeker?” Wang Chun asked.

“Well… now that I think of it, I guess it would make sense for her to be one.”

“H-how old is she?” Wang Chun asked. Crucial information. He wasn’t backing down before he could receive an answer.

“Uhm… ah,” Lao Chen began to count down on his fingers. “I created her on my third year of training, sooo… seven years old? Yes, seven years old.”

Wang Chun let out an audible gasp. “H-how is that possible?”

Lao Chen smiled brightly. “Anything is possible when you dream!”

Wang Chun steeled his resolve before asking Lao Chen the question he needed an answer to.

“Are you a part of a rebellion?”

“I rebel against poorly written books and uninspired fiction, yes? I believe I am a rebel, if you refer to someone who wants to shed literary conventions!” Lao Chen replied.

Wang Chun frowned. “I meant: Are you planning to overthrow the Emperor? Is this village of yours a base of powerful experts biding their time to attack the Emperor in his lowest point? Does your allegiance lie with the Azure Empire?”

Wang Chun threw caution to the wind and asked all the questions. Worst case scenario, he would die, but his death would trigger a large-scale investigation. He had them in checkmate. The Empire was secured.

His life was not, however.

Lao Chen frowned. “No.”

Wang Chun persisted. “What do you mean?”

“No, as in, none of that is true. I’ve taken my family on an adventure. All we’re doing is simply touring the lands. As for our village, we aren’t planning a rebellion. As it stands, we’re pretty independent from the Empire. Now, my answers might change if the Empire decides to provoke us. Until then, we aren’t planning on overthrowing anyone, not now, nor have we been at all, to the best of my knowledge.”

Wang Chun resisted a smile. These answers were highly specific, and true for that matter, and the best thing was that his Truth-Teller’s Eye revealed the truths of everything under the sun, be it mortal or Dao Seeker. Even if someone implanted false memories in his mind, his soul still carried the truth, and it was where the Truth-Teller’s Eye laid its gaze.

“One more question…” Wang Chun asked. “Does your village truly have no name?”

Lao Chen shook his head. “It had no name when we departed, but outside its threshold, I bestowed upon it a name. The Village of Heaven and Earth. Any more questions, Wang Chun?”

“None, old man. Though, I do sincerely apologize for my heavy-handed tactics. A lot is at stake these days, and I couldn’t afford to act kindly.”

Lao Chen shook his head. “There’s always a better solution than violence and threats. If your mind is wired to always resort to violence, that hurts your ability to think of solutions. For example, you could have lured the answers out of me by treating me nicely, or you could use your memory erasing spell to get to know me several times, and make it easier for me to trust you each time you interrogate me, but you felt that violence was the way. Violence is never the way. Violence is far from the Dao that animates us. Remember this, young pup.”

Wang Chun nodded his head. “I let my stress overcome my sense. I thank you for your advice, Dao Seeker. I shall take my leave, now.”

As Wang Chun walked up the stairs and left the library, Lao Chen felt at his face a little. “Now… If Lin-Lin decides to create a Nascent Soul, will it be able to create a Nascent Soul that can create one of itself? What would the end-result be?”

Laying down flat on the floor, his mind entertained all sorts of ideas and outcomes of that very situation.