What Is Virtue

Inside the secluded little room, listening to the roaring outside that shifted between sonorous strength and low, melancholic murmurs, Wei Yuan remained calm as still water. Spreading out jade paper unique to the Desolate Realm, he lifted his brush and wrote the title: "Abyss Rebirth" Doctrines. He paused for a moment before writing down the opening line: "Heaven and earth are of paramount importance; the shamans come next; the Ancestral Shamans weigh the least." Wei Yuan casually started to add, "Heavenly Shamans are nothing at all..." On second thought, he felt that was improper, so he crossed it out and revised it to: "Heavenly Shamans belong to those who possess virtue." Expanding upon that statement, he wrote, "What is virtue?" Eloquently and at great length, thousands of words flowed in the blink of an eye. The core message was that having merit toward heaven and earth, merit toward all living beings, and merit toward the broad masses of the Shamans was virtue. Reaching this point, Wei Yuan felt thoroughly satisfied. Only then did he realize that a new day had dawned unnoticed—it was once again time to take the altar and expound the teachings. Wei Yuan draped on a robe that covered his entire body, emerged from the hut, and mounted the preaching platform. As was customary, after drinking three cups, he began his sermon: "From this day forward, the 'Abyss Rebirth' sect is officially established. You all are the very first congregation. Is there anyone unwilling?" The Hamster was the first to ask, "May I ask what post the God of Craftsmen holds in the sect?" Wei Yuan smiled faintly. "This master serves as acting sect master. According to the doctrines of our sect..." Before he could finish, the Hamster blurted out, "I'm in!" Wei Yuan faltered, nearly forgetting his prepared speech. Tianyu seemed to have genuinely grown foolish after coming to the Desolate Realm, failing even to choose the right moment to play his part as a shill. Just as Wei Yuan cursed inwardly, the Strength Shamans chimed in one after another: "I'm in!" "Count me in too!" "Whatever sect the God of Craftsmen is in, that's where I belong!" "Today's teachings are truly thought-provoking for us shamans! We must crack open a giant vat!" ... Wei Yuan silently watched the congregation cracking open vats of wine and drinking their fill, at a loss for what to do. He reflected inwardly: had he conducted too many compliance tests? Was there really any need to toil so hard writing all those doctrines? Still, the necessary procedures had to be observed. Wei Yuan said, "Our sect places supreme value on sincerity. Once you join, you cannot lightly turn back..." Before Wei Yuan could even bring up taking a blood oath, a Strength Shaman slashed a vicious gash across his own chest, spraying fresh blood a zhang away! Swearing on the blood, he pointed at it and shouted, "I swear to follow the God of Craftsmen unto death! Whoever breaks this oath is a rat-spawned bastard!" "That's right!" "I'd like to see which cowardly rat dares to turn back!" The shamans slit their chests one after another, spilling hot blood and swearing by it. This was the highest tier of oath among Strength Shamans; it was generally believed that breaking it would bar one from ever returning to the ancestral lands. Wei Yuan was caught between laughter and tears, unsure whether to be pleased or dismayed. But then he noticed that most of the Strength Shamans were glaring menacingly at Tianyu and the few other clever shamans. In the blink of an eye, one of the Strength Shamans lashed out. "You lot haven't managed to cultivate the method passed down by the God of Craftsmen to this day. Are you harboring ill intent?" "Look at these shifty-eyed rascals—one glance tells you they're up to no good!" "Calling them rascals is too flattering; they're clearly spineless rats! Hmph, we Strength Shamans don't tolerate any sand in our eyes! If your hearts weren't deceitful, how could you fail to cultivate Lunar shamanic power?" "Exactly! The slowest among the rest of us mastered it in three days, so how is it that none of you clever ones can pull it off? We don't want to hear excuses—we only look at results!" Tianyu never expected the Strength Shamans to turn their spears on him in an instant. He hurriedly tried to defend himself, but no matter what he said, the shamans refused to believe him. Left with no choice, he swiftly cut himself and swore upon his blood before they finally let him pass. The remaining clever shamans wanted to slip away, only to find the Strength Shamans parting to both sides, deliberately leaving open a path toward the main gate. Left without an alternative, they weighed their options and eventually slit their chests one by one, swearing on their blood. Once all the blood oaths were sworn, harmony and joy returned, and everyone was delighted. The shamans all felt that today's sermon was profound and unfathomable, as though divine wisdom had been poured into their skulls—they seemed to grasp something, yet understood nothing at all. It was precisely this state of bordering on enlightenment that felt extraordinarily wonderful. Deeply moved beyond measure, they could do nothing but crack open more vats of wine. Seated high above, Wei Yuan was equally speechless. He had only spoken a few sentences, not even finishing them, and this bunch had already taken care of everything else on their own? Just then, Wei Yuan's sea of consciousness trembled as strands of karmic luck descended one after another. Each strand possessed a bright red core at its center—every single one was top-grade karmic luck. Only a few lower-tier ones were present, clearly belonging to those clever shamans. Yet Wei Yuan felt a sense of unreality. Was karmic luck really this easy to obtain? Without any trials or tribulations? Gaining such immense rewards without putting in the work gave even Wei Yuan a twinge of guilty conscience. Only an incense stick's worth of time had passed, turning the remaining four hours into pure filler time. Wei Yuan's sole remaining duty as sect master was cracking open more vats. While the outside was bustling with excitement, an extra figure appeared inside the small hut. Ronglong sat in Wei Yuan's seat, meticulously reading the doctrines that had just been set down. The following day was meant for cultivation, but because many in the congregation were still nursing hangovers, it had to be postponed until evening. This session shifted to practicing each Strength Shaman's own cultivation method. To their astonishment, the shamans discovered that the growth rate of their shamanic power was several times faster than before! Amid their joy, their reverence for Wei Yuan deepened. Many shamans were reminded that Wei Yuan had once pushed forward against thousands of flame demons single-handedly with spear in hand, ferociously overpowering everything in his path. As a result, many Strength Shamans changed their title for him from God of Craftsmen to Spear Saint. While the vast majority of Strength Shamans made flying progress, only those few "rats" remained stagnant. Now truly panicked, they pushed Tianyu forward to demand an explanation from Wei Yuan. Under the expectant gazes of the shamans, Tianyu stepped into Wei Yuan's hut, slammed the door shut with a bang, and let out a roar audible from outside: "Sect Master! You said all shamans were equal, so why are you playing favorites and refusing to teach us the true secret arts? This is discrimination!" The shamans outside exchanged glances, never expecting the Hamster to possess such boldness, daring to argue reasonably with their Spear Saint, God of Craftsmen, and Sect Master. Inside the room, however, Tianyu lowered his voice and spoke in a rapid rush: "Boss, we're on the same side here! How come those blockheads are cultivating so fast? You have to help me! Is there any way to fix this?" Wei Yuan sighed. "I taught you half of the Jade Toad Gazing at the Moon Chart so you could cultivate Lunar power. The original cultivation methods of the Desolate Realm's Strength Shamans lacked any Yin power for balance. Cultivating even a wisp of Lunar power now is like lighting a candle in the dark—feeble, yet incomparably distinct. Using that as a core automatically draws in the power of the Desolate Realm to converge. Not only does the cultivation speed increase dramatically, but it also allows them to break through their original limits. "The method was the same for all of you. Who told you clever folks to overthink things and let your minds wander into nonsense? Now that your visualization has gone astray, it's hard to correct." Tianyu felt thoroughly aggrieved. "How was I supposed to know it was a Jade Toad? Whenever I thought of your title, I just... Sigh, it's all your fault! If you had chosen a chipmunk back then, this wouldn't have happened!" Wei Yuan snorted. "Even if I had chosen a hamster, you still would have thought of nonsense." Tianyu scratched his head. "That's true too." Wei Yuan pondered for a moment. "The Strength Shamans here have accumulated power over many years; I merely helped them unlock their latent potential, and the same goes for those clever ones outside. But you are different. Your Dharma body was piled up entirely on pills and medicines, and now that the medicinal efficacy has mostly dissolved, you have no real foundation accumulated. If I step in to stimulate your potential, the others will eventually advance far beyond you. Can you accept that?" Tianyu was shocked. "No way! How am I supposed to keep them in line then? Isn't there some private method that's of great use to me, but only of minor help to them?" "No." Tianyu's expression dimmed, and he sighed. "Why can't I just focus?" Wei Yuan chuckled. "If you could focus, you wouldn't be who you are now. Come here, take this." With that, Wei Yuan flicked his finger, sending a wisp of Lunar power into Tianyu's body. "That should be enough for about a month. Once you deplete it, I'll replenish it. Going forward, your cultivation speed will be slightly slower than the other Strength Shamans, but much faster than those outside." Tianyu whispered, "Could you give them a little too? Just a tiny bit?" Wei Yuan's smile remained unchanged. "No rewards without merit." Tianyu was stunned. "Then what about me..." "You are different. Under normal circumstances, I am impartial and unyielding, but I do not forget old friendships. As long as it does not affect the bigger picture, I will naturally look out for you as much as possible for the sake of our bond." As he exited the hut, Tianyu felt complicated inside. Facing the clever shamans who gathered around him, Tianyu wore a heavy expression and sighed. "I was wrong. Whether you were wrong or not, I don't know, but I know I was wrong." Leaving those words behind, he ignored the crowd and walked off, sighing deeply from time to time. The remaining clever shamans looked at one another, utterly baffled by what had transpired inside. Several days passed uneventfully. The second batch of equipment was completed, and Wei Yuan equipped another fifty Strength Shamans. Having witnessed the power of the battle formation during the previous clash, Ronglong directly allocated two hundred more Strength Shamans to Wei Yuan. Although these two hundred Strength Shamans ranked relatively low in individual strength, they were pure-minded, quick to burn with passion, and easily moved. Without breaking a sweat, Wei Yuan gained two hundred new converts along with two hundred strands of top-grade karmic luck. Furthermore, three days after joining the sect, all two hundred Strength Shamans cultivated Lunar moonlight in unison, confirming Wei Yuan's suspicion: these two hundred shamans had been handpicked by Ronglong. And so, Wei Yuan trained the Strength Shamans and forged equipment by day, while refining the doctrines by night. The more he wrote, the deeper his understanding grew, and the more enlightenment he attained. As his brush moved, leaden clouds would frequently gather over the roof of the hut, though the lightning bolt held back, lingering without striking. Oblivious to it all, Wei Yuan continued writing the doctrines, gradually reaching the section on establishing a new world. The thunder that had gathered in the clouds for so long finally erupted. Even Ronglong could not suppress it, watching helplessly as a waterfall of thunderous liquid poured down. The roof of the hut vanished soundlessly into nothingness, and thunder slurry flooded every corner of the room! Above the hut, a phantom resembling a holy emblem suddenly materialized, swallowing the thunder slurry whole in a single gulp! As the heavenly tribulation dissipated, the hut had long since been reduced to nothingness. Wei Yuan stood where he was, staring blankly at the single corner of jade paper remaining in his hand, feeling somewhat lost. He then looked up at the sky and sneered inwardly: What reason did he have to fear a heavenly tribulation of this degree? It wasn't even as fierce as the tribulation he had weathered when forming his dharma idol. A heavenly tribulation could destroy jade paper, but the vision of the new world was already etched in Wei Yuan's heart; he could simply write it down again. Could this tribulation possibly strike every day? Yet over the next three days, the heavenly tribulation arrived right on schedule, not missing a single day, growing more powerful each time. On the third day, it struck Wei Yuan until he was charred like a roasted red rat. Only then did Wei Yuan once again realize what it meant that the might of heaven and earth could not be defied. He temporarily abandoned writing the third chapter of the doctrines. On the table before Ronglong lay four charred-edged scraps of paper that, pieced together, barely amounted to a third of a sheet of jade paper. Residual text remained on each scrap, yet even combined, the words were fragmented and disjointed. Ronglong picked up one of the scraps and began to read it closely.