The news that Southern Jin had opened its border pass and allowed Qingming's convoy through had only just reached Qingming when the Tianya Teahouse was packed to overflowing, making a seat hard to come by.
No matter how thick the crowd was, the teahouse owner never raised his prices, showing true decency.
Yet no matter how crowded it became, a window-side table upstairs always remained vacant. It was reserved specifically for a young scholar who styled himself the "Madman of the World."
A month earlier, he was the one who had introduced the concept of the "compliance test." As people pondered it, they found it increasingly profound, discovering that the principle could encompass the Immortal Heaven on a grand scale or a single household on a small one; traces of it could be found everywhere.
Now that Southern Jin had suddenly opened the pass and let the convoy through, Qingming had clearly done something behind the scenes, further validating the young scholar's assessment. Everyone wanted to hear his perspective on the unfolding situation, so they had gathered in the teahouse early in the morning to wait for him.
As noon approached, the Madman of the World finally arrived, taking his time. The moment the crowd saw him, they eagerly flocked around. Only after he settled into his seat and took a sip of tea did a respected scholar of high standing step forward to inquire about Qingming's possible next moves.
Holding his teacup, the young scholar smiled faintly. "The next move? Naturally... no move at all."
Everyone was bewildered. Fortunately, the Madman of the World never strung people along for long; he only ever teased them for a moment. After taking another sip of tea, he promptly explained, "If we look only at Southern Jin, the Realm Lord's move was a compliance test against them. Southern Jin clearly had no way to counter it, leaving them no choice but to comply. Yet looking at the world as a whole, this move was not aimed at suppressing Southern Jin, but rather at responding to the gathering immortals presuming to appoint the universal sovereign on their own.
"The 'gathering immortals' might sound intimidating, but in truth, they are nothing more than a rabble. The only difference is that this rabble possesses cultivation slightly higher than ordinary mortals. What is a rabble? It is a flock that scatters when calamity strikes. The moment they meet hardship, they will surely disperse.
"When the immortals selected the candidates for the world's universal sovereign, they deliberately left out Qingming, and their proclamation was never sent here. They wanted to pretend they didn't see us. But the Realm Lord insisted on making them see. Thus, he chose to step in and support Mountain-Pacifying Military Commissioner Li Zhi, who was not among the imperial candidates. The Realm Lord has already played his piece; now he is waiting for the immortals' response.
"Just as I said last time: if you want to conduct a compliance test, when others refuse to comply, you must be capable of forcing them down. If you cannot press them down, then it becomes a laughingstock."
"Well said!" shouted an old man of dignified bearing and natural authority from a neighboring table. Standing up, he said, "Since the Yuangu era, it has always been the Human Sovereign commanding the world while the immortals came to pay homage! Later on, immortals even entered the court to hold various official posts. Yet now, a bunch of immortals dare to appoint candidates for Human Sovereign instead! It is an outright inversion of the natural order!"
Several young disciples beside him hastily tugged at his sleeves and whispered, "Master, those are immortals! Please restrain yourself."
The old man glared at them. "If this young brother isn't afraid, what do I have to fear? Besides, this is Qingming. It's not like the Realm Lord hasn't pointed at immortals' noses and cursed them out time and again. Haven't the immortals had to swallow it just the same?"
The young disciples wore helpless expressions, thinking to themselves that the Realm Lord had torn immortals apart with his bare hands, so naturally he could curse at them. *Your old bones would be the ones torn apart by immortals; how could you compare?*
The Madman of the World chuckled. "A frank and candid gentleman! You have my admiration! My desire for conversation is spent for today; until next time!"
With that, he left the teahouse, vanishing into the city streets in the blink of an eye.
A moment later, he stepped into a secluded courtyard, closed the gate behind him, and walked into the study. Behind the desk sat a young cultivator with sword-like brows, starry eyes, and a sharp gaze, resembling a peerless immortal sword. He was attentively reading a report in his hands.
Seeing the scholar enter, he frowned with displeasure. "The true body is currently stationed beyond the heavens, and the dharma body is rooted in the Sea of Bitterness. So many critical affairs in Qingming every day rest entirely on my shoulders alone. And what about you? All you know how to do every day is brag and chat with a bunch of idlers, pontificating about world affairs! You don't do an ounce of proper work day in and day out. No matter how grand the topics you discuss are, what use is it?"
The scholar replied lazily, "The true body left you ten thousand divine senses, but gave me only eight hundred. Naturally, the heavy burden has to fall on your shoulders! Besides, you are a pure avatar, two sides of the same coin with the true body. I'm just an experimental subject—tainted to begin with, and a failed one at that."
The sword cultivator frowned. "You merely fell short of expectations; you are not a failure. A new batch of experimental subjects has matured. This batch was blessed with merit from the otherworldly realm. You come inspect and accept them."
The scholar asked, "What are they to me? My brothers and sisters?"
"Pointless questions like that can wait until we have slain all our enemies."
The scholar said, "If such a day ever comes, you and I might end up as enemies. No, that's not right. I wouldn't be worthy of being your opponent, but there will definitely be others."
The sword cultivator sighed helplessly. "If such a day ever comes, the true body will simply absorb us directly! I truly don't understand what you think about all day. You possess intellect that reaches the heavens, yet you refuse to apply it to anything useful."
The scholar shrugged. "That's where you fail to understand. There must always be someone who wanders off the beaten path; only then will there be surprises. If a state, from top to bottom, functions like machine parts—strictly sticking to duty and never stepping out of line—then that machine will forever remain just as it was. And machines, well, become obsolete sooner or later."
The sword cultivator argued no further, merely saying, "Let's go. Time to work!"
Grabbing the scholar by the nape of his neck, both of them vanished simultaneously.
A moment later, they appeared inside a sealed grand hall. The hall was entirely filled with illusory seawater. The waves crashed against the walls of the hall without a sound, yet they possessed a power that seemed to pull at the soul.
Looking at the illusory seawater, the scholar asked in surprise, "The Sea of Bitterness?"
The sword cultivator nodded. "This experimental hall was built upon the shell of the Heaven of Joy and Bliss, half-submerged in the Sea of Bitterness. The Sea of Bitterness gathers all the karmic causes and effects of the mortal world, making it the finest defense to sever karma and prevent outside interference."
"Why guard it so tightly?"
The sword cultivator said, "There are many undying ancient ghosts and wandering spirits in this world. Once they discover these seeds, they will do everything in their power to seize their bodies. Didn't some South Pole Immortal Lord try to seize a child's body back then?"
The scholar said, "I didn't know about any of this."
The sword cultivator snorted. "The records were sent to you long ago; you just didn't read them yourself!"
"I only received eight hundred divine senses. How could I get through so much material in such a short time?"
"If you didn't spend every day bragging to people, you would have finished them long ago! Stop the idle chatter. The time has come."
At that moment, a purple light suddenly flared within the hall, and the floor transformed into seawater. A giant clam surfaced, slowly opening its shell. Inside lay dozens of round, flawless, colossal pearls. These pearls were nearly transparent, and within each one lay a human figure, some male and some female.
The scholar grew serious. Flying toward the giant clam, he said, "Lend me some divine senses; eight hundred isn't enough."
The sword cultivator pointed a finger, transferring three thousand divine senses over.
The scholar inspected the pearls one by one. After each inspection, he tapped his finger, and the pearl was dyed with a layer of color. Most turned gray or pale green, and only two showed a faint blue. It was not until he neared the very end that a faint yellow appeared.
The sword cultivator furrowed his brows slightly. The colors were grading markers. If the aptitude met the standard, it would turn bright red. Now there was only a single faint yellow, indicating a bare pass, far from the ideal requirement. This batch consisted almost entirely of duds; without question, it was another failure.
After checking the final pearl, the scholar shook his head. "Wasn't this batch blessed with otherworldly merit? How is the average quality even worse than my batch? Only one barely passed, but it's nowhere near the standard. Do we keep it or not?"
The sword cultivator spoke expressionlessly: "According to protocol, destroy them all."
A miniature burst of sword qi formed in his hand. At the giant clam, a storm of sword qi instantly erupted, grinding the clam into nothingness in the blink of an eye. It sank into the depths of the sea, and not even the pearl bearing the faint yellow was spared.
Then the sea receded, the hall floor reappeared, and not a trace was left behind.
The scholar suddenly asked, "Tell me, do they count as living beings?"
"They never even hatched from the shell. They were nothing more than puppets," the sword cultivator replied.
"What about me? Am I a puppet too?" the scholar asked.
Chapter 1445