August 5, 2025 — 8:09 pm

Chapter 3: Passing on the Dao


After dinner, the oil lamp was quickly extinguished. Once his sister had fallen asleep, Xu Xian quietly slipped out the door. He wasn’t used to going to bed so early, but he couldn’t go against his sister, so every night he could only sneak out.



But in this world, there were neither computers nor televisions. The only thing that could be called entertainment at night was probably the pleasure boats and brothels by the lakeside. Not to mention he had no money on him—even if he did, he wouldn’t dare go to such places. His sister would probably fight him to the death!



All he could do was enjoy the moonlight to relieve his boredom! But tonight, there wasn’t even a trace of moonlight, only the autumn night’s stars shining with a hint of cold loneliness. Yet Xu Xian was especially fond of nights like this. Perhaps only at such times would he let the loneliness in his heart show without restraint.



Yes, his sister treated him like her own son, but there were some things she could never understand. Having lived two lives, how could he easily cast aside the things of his previous life? Xu Xian often felt that he was different from those around him, always thinking about completely different things.



Although this world was not any dynasty from Xu Xian’s memories, if he casually copied a few poems, he could become famous throughout the land. He had seen a world completely different from this one.



But tonight, Xu Xian was destined not to be alone. On the small bridge where he often wandered, there was a figure standing. Xu Xian’s heart tightened. he knew there were ghosts in this world. And being afraid of ghosts was the most natural feeling, but then he relaxed. It wasn’t a ghost, but the Daoist he had met today.



“Daoist, why aren’t you going home?” Xu Xian walked up and asked with concern.



“Home is everywhere, home is nowhere. You don’t blame me for pushing you today?” The Daoist turned and smiled at Xu Xian.



“Of course I blame you, but as long as you teach me immortal arts, I won’t blame you.” Xu Xian originally wanted to pretend to be magnanimous and coax the Daoist into giving him that book, but as soon as he spoke, it became what he truly thought. He really wasn’t good at pretending.



The Daoist laughed heartily. “I wanted to give it to you today, but you didn’t want it, insisting on those worldly things. Now you want it, but it’s gone. But let me ask you, why did you help that pear-selling countryman today? Such a miserly and boorish fellow, and he even wanted to drag you to the authorities.”



Xu Xian was disappointed, so he answered absentmindedly, “He may be stingy, but he was doing honest business, not a bad person. But you, you took his pears and even chopped off his cart handle. You had your fun, but didn’t care about his feelings at all.”



The Daoist said angrily, “I was giving him a small punishment, hoping he’d wake up and not keep being so stingy. Otherwise, he’ll lose more than just pears in the future.”



“That’s his nature. Just like birds must fly and fish must swim. As long as he doesn’t interfere with others, let him be. Why force him? You do as you please,eat pears when you want, punish when you want,and you still have the nerve to criticize him.” As soon as Xu Xian finished, he regretted it. Never mind the Daoist’s magic, even as an adult, he wasn’t someone Xu Xian could handle. If the Daoist got angry, Xu Xian would be helpless.



The Daoist glared, making Xu Xian uneasy, but then the Daoist suddenly laughed. “Let things follow their nature, don’t force them. Let things follow their nature, don’t force them. Master, master, so the one who acts recklessly has always been me!”



“Well, if there’s nothing else, I’ll go back first. You should find a place to sleep soon. There’s a temple on the mountain to the north. It’s a Buddhist place, but since they’re all monks, they should let you stay for the night.” Xu Xian turned to leave, but the Daoist’s words froze him in place.



“Do you want to learn my methods?”



Xu Xian immediately turned around and said, “I do, I really do.” His eyes were brighter than the stars. How could he not want this?



The Daoist found it funny, he was still a child, but this honest nature was what he liked. He had traveled all over, seen all kinds of people. If someone was two-faced, he could always tell. And if someone had such abilities, what he hated most were those cunning and deceitful types.



He had seen all of Xu Xian’s actions during the day. He saw that Xu Xian was mature for his age, kind-hearted, but not someone who sought fame. So he had the thought of taking him as a disciple. After tonight’s conversation, he knew Xu Xian had a clear sense of right and wrong, not just a muddle-headed do-gooder, and liked him even more.



“Although your mind is mature, your aptitude is only average, and your intelligence is just ordinary. This is the first difficulty. To practice this Dao, you must be as persistent as water wearing down stone. But I don’t think you have great perseverance. That makes it even harder. In the end, you might not achieve much and just waste your time. Do you still want to learn?”



“I want to, I want to.” Xu Xian thought, Even if I don’t succeed, I can still do magic tricks! That’s not bad! That’s all he thought, he never thought of stealing or robbing.



“When I was young, I abandoned my wife and child to pursue this path. In the end, I only achieved a life of destitution. Do you still want to learn?”



“I want to, I want to.” Xu Xian thought, My future wife has a thousand years of cultivation—how could I give that up?



“Good, then let’s establish our master-disciple relationship, and I’ll teach you this Dao.”



Xu Xian was overjoyed, but when he looked at his master, he saw only desolation on the Daoist’s face. His heart stirred, and he couldn’t help but ask, “Daoist, Master, do you regret it now?”



The Daoist frowned and thought for a while, then said resolutely, “This is what I’ve sought all my life. I do not regret it.”



“No regrets?” Xu Xian murmured. Just those two words, but who knew how much determination and bitterness they contained? But as long as a person can ask themselves honestly and leave behind the words ‘no regrets,’ then no matter how destitute, their life was not lived in vain.



Xu Xian sighed for no reason, but he was happy for him. At this moment, he also wanted to ask himself, Do you regret it? Scenes from his previous life flashed before his eyes, but he couldn’t tell if he regretted or not. But the past was gone. Since Heaven had given him this life, he would live it well, with no complaints or regrets.



While Xu Xian was lost in thought, the Daoist formed his fingers into a sword and swiftly tapped Xu Xian’s forehead. Before Xu Xian could react, he felt as if his mind was collapsing, wanting to cry out in pain, but his body wouldn’t obey. It felt like an eternity, but in reality, it was just a moment. In that instant, Xu Xian was drenched in sweat as if he’d been pulled from water. He felt as if many things had been added to his mind, but he couldn’t grasp them. He looked up, wanting to ask his master.



But the Daoist only said, “Go on, then!” and didn’t look at him again.



Xu Xian’s mind was muddled, and he obediently walked home. But after just two steps, he suddenly turned back in alarm. “Master, what about the book?” He was still thinking about that secret manual.



The Daoist was slightly stunned, then laughed and scolded, “You won’t be satisfied until I give you all my old tricks.” He pulled a book from his robe and tossed it to Xu Xian. Xu Xian caught it and saw three ancient characters on the cover, which he could just barely recognize: Dao De Jing (道德经).



He was about to argue with his master, but when he looked, the bridge was empty—there was no sign of the Daoist. He felt helpless, but now he was so tired it was as if he’d worked all day, his body so heavy he just wanted to collapse into bed. He could only force himself to walk home.



By now, the lights in every house were going out one by one, only the stars in the sky shining for all eternity. The Daoist watched Xu Xian’s staggering figure disappear into the distance, silently pondering.



“The immortal mountains are distant, the mortal world is vast. Was it right or wrong to lead you onto this path? Xu Xian, Xu Xian, will you truly live up to your name and devote yourself to the Dao of immortality