Chapter 5 - Time to Intervene

Chapter 5 - Taking Responsibility

The revered master whom everyone feared and respected was, in truth, not human but a demon. Such a notion seemed absurd, almost comical. Yet the master had clearly cultivated a certain level of spiritual attainment; his every gesture and action, his way of speaking and doing things, bore no trace of anything monstrous. On the contrary, he exuded the dignified air of a celestial sage, his demeanor full of grandeur.

Although Xiao Xianyu had already seen through the master’s true identity, he made no move, his expression betraying nothing more than a faint furrow of his brow.

From his recent experience, Xiao Xianyu could deduce that even if he descended now and told the villagers that this master was, in fact, a demon, they would undoubtedly dismiss him as an ignorant youth spouting nonsense.

His master had once told him: in this world, people are divided into good and evil, and the likes of demons and ghosts have their own distinctions of virtue and vice as well. One should not condemn them all with the same stroke.

If a demon bore a kind heart, it was a good demon, perhaps even worthy of being called a celestial demon. If a deity was wicked in nature, then he was an evil immortal, perhaps even a true fiend.

One’s form is bestowed by heaven, but good and evil come from the heart.

If this master before him had truly come to heal and save lives, Xiao Xianyu would certainly not interfere; he might even secretly lend a hand. But if this master was here to harm for profit and take lives, Xiao Xianyu could not stand idly by.

After all, his master had taught him: we who cultivate the way, once we enter the world, must act with heroism, uphold justice, punish evil and remove the wicked. Otherwise, how could we be worthy of the word “hero”?

And for that word, “hero,” Xiao Xianyu still yearned deeply.

…

After putting on a sufficient display of grandeur, the master entered the courtyard of the Zhang estate and politely declined the host’s offer of tea and wine. Smiling warmly, he said, “Saving lives is urgent. Let us first perform the ritual to help the afflicted.”

With the master so considerate, what more could Master Zhang say? He could only thank him profusely.

The master approached the altar, hair loose and sword in hand. Two young attendants stood to either side—one holding a jade bottle, the other a stack of talisman papers.

Seeing this, the villagers watching began to whisper among themselves: “No wonder he’s a master. He doesn’t even look at the patient, just starts the ritual directly.”

“Nonsense! Of course, he doesn’t need to look. He’s surely already divined exactly what illness Master Zhang’s concubine has.”

“It’s laughable. Earlier, some nobody of a youngster claimed he’d studied a bit of medicine and wanted to diagnose the lady. Even the famous doctors from nearby towns and the city couldn’t help her—what could a brat like that possibly do?”

Though standing at a distance, Xiao Xianyu could see and hear everything clearly. Hearing the villagers’ gossip, which now involved himself, he gave an awkward smile and absently touched his nose.

Though the villagers were in awe of the master’s methods, Xiao Xianyu found nothing remotely miraculous in what he’d seen.

“Could it be that this demon’s cultivation is deeper than mine, allowing him to know the cause of illness without even seeing the patient?” he wondered in his heart.

He recalled his master speaking of a Daoist art that could divine the future. He’d asked to be taught, but his master had refused, claiming he did not know it either.

To Xiao Xianyu, his master was the most powerful cultivator in the world. If this demon before him truly knew the art of divination, perhaps he was even more powerful than his own master.

After the master mumbled a few indistinct incantations, he pointed at the stack of talisman papers. Instantly, they fluttered into the air like butterflies.

With a flick of his wooden sword, the master skewered the talisman papers, and with a “whoosh,” they spontaneously ignited.

The onlookers gasped in shock. Such a feat—fire sparked from thin air—could only be celestial magic, and their admiration for the master grew ever deeper.

But Xiao Xianyu saw through part of the trick. The master’s sword should have ignited the talismans through spiritual energy drawn from heaven and earth, yet Xiao Xianyu sensed not the slightest ripple in the ambient spiritual force.

Instead, he detected a strange smell emanating from the burning talismans.

Rubbing his chin and pondering for a moment, Xiao Xianyu drew a silver needle from his left wrist.

He flicked the needle lightly. It flashed through the air and returned, now bearing one of the master’s talisman papers on its tip.

The master, absorbed in his ritual, failed to notice the missing talisman, continuing his incantations undisturbed.

Xiao Xianyu brought the talisman to his nose and inhaled. A knowing smile spread across his lips.

“No wonder I sensed no spiritual fluctuations. These talismans ignite on their own because trickery was worked into them,” he mused. “Though covered in runes, not a trace of spiritual power can be felt. What use are they? The runes aren’t even for healing—at best, they might ward off ghosts!”

“This master isn’t here to heal anyone at all!”

Now fully certain, Xiao Xianyu sighed softly and said, “Master always told me—never turn away from those in mortal danger. It seems I must intervene in this matter.”

With these thoughts, Xiao Xianyu leapt down from the tree, strode into the Zhang family courtyard, and walked straight up to the master’s altar.

“Hey, what you’re doing is completely useless!”

The ritual was strictly off-limits to outsiders. Even the villagers, though watching, kept their distance so as not to interfere.

Xiao Xianyu’s sudden approach and blunt accusation left the onlookers stunned and the Zhang household terrified.

Master Zhang, shocked and enraged, leapt up and shouted, “Where are the servants? Why aren’t you keeping watch? How did a lunatic get in here?”

The servants responsible for order were already so frightened they nearly wet themselves. They had witnessed firsthand the master’s cruel punishments. If they were punished for this youth’s intrusion, what a terrible injustice it would be!

So four or five servants charged at Xiao Xianyu like starving tigers, intent on seizing and ejecting him.

Yet Xiao Xianyu simply shifted his stance and nimbly evaded their grasp.

The servants found themselves clutching empty air, bewildered as to how the boy who’d stood before them was now behind them.

The master, eyes narrowing, regarded Xiao Xianyu with a cold smile. “Where does this madman come from, spouting wild nonsense before my altar?”

Xiao Xianyu smiled faintly. “You know very well whether my words are nonsense. I ask you—if you cannot save a life, what then?”