Li Qiye nodded: “Yes, this is a merit law but if you can’t understand the meanings within, just knowing that it is a merit law is useless. These aren’t legends but also a thick historical book containing old tales and an ancient dao system. Only through understanding this book would you be able to grasp the law’s profundities.”
“A law contained in history?” Xinxue was surprised - this was her first time hearing about this matter.
For cultivators, merit laws and history were separate and had nothing to do with each other. This was the reason why people didn’t care about history or legends. These tales were meant to put children to bed, that’s it.
“Inside books are gold and jade, not just merit laws. History lies before you and the path requires tracing to the source. Before understanding its meanings, you won’t be able to get through the door.” Li Qiye smiled and said.
“Then how should I begin?” She had to ask with great interest.
“The dao has always been in your heart.” Li Qiye said with a smile and reached forward to pull a path out of the ground.
Xinxue could hear water splashing as if Li Qiye was pulling up an invisible world.
Amidst her confusion, he placed his palm on her forehead and resoundingly stated: “Use your heart to feel the dao in your heart.”
His voice was full of charisma and clout, drowning everyone inside. Xinxue slowly closed her eyes, feeling herself giving into a deep slumber.
When she opened them once more, the world before her had shifted. There was no house and Li Qiye.
A large river ran before her with a surging current. However, no noise was coming out this time around in this silent world.
She suddenly thought about a legend after seeing this river: “Si!”
“Bleat!” The cry of a Song Deer interrupted the tranquility as it galloped upstream.
“The legend…” Xinexue murmured after seeing this. It was an old legend told to many children before bed.
The deer turned to look at Xinxue before speeding and disappearing up the river.
“Song Deer riding Si.” She quickly gave chase by entering the river.
However, the moment she put one foot in, a buzzing came about. She was pushed back into her original position.
“The three lines…” She remembered something else and murmured: “Three inches per step, three steps per shift. This is the way of the deer.” [1]
With that, she carried out this belief. Sure enough, when she did so, she could finally follow the deer…
She experienced one legend after another in different worlds, from the Song Deer to the night phoenix…
This put her into a strange trance. If one didn’t understand the meaning of a particular legend, they couldn’t delve deeper to understand the true profundity.
“Clank, clank, clank.” After going through all of them, everything disappeared. She was now still sitting in the meditative pose inside the stone house.
However, it was no longer the same. The entire room emitted the light of the dao with laws appearing. These laws eventually wove together to form an old building containing all the divine beasts.
Finally, the stone house resembled a thick historical book with the sound of pages flipping; each page contained one legend.
It directly imprinted itself into her mind, causing her to tremble. The aura of this grand dao surged around her with a familiar presence. She was now locked with this grand dao for it has become a part of her.
This feeling of being close to the dao made her cry because her lack of talents didn’t allow her to do so at youth. Others only needed one or two days to get started on a merit law while she needed four to five, perhaps even longer.
She heard her cousins talk about this sensation but she lacked this privilege. It was as if she was born far away from the dao and she could only look at it from the distant.
Being embraced by the dao and feeling it becoming a part of her left her emotional with tears. She has waited twenty years for this day!
“Teacher, I… I…” She couldn’t help prostrating before him; words unable to come out. The gentleness and harmony of this feeling was opening her heart.
“This… is my first time… being so close to the dao…” She sobbingly stammered with tears filling her cheeks.
This sensation was too rare because she had been abandoned by her clan and even parents. So now, she would forever remember this feeling of being hugged by the dao. Li Qiye gave her rebirth and everything.
“Stand up.” He nonchalantly said: “There are countless paths and innate talent isn’t the only requirement. Alas, too many laymen believe that talent is crucial. In this world, everyone is talented; no one is truly trash. Some are gifted with strength; others with patience; more with comprehension… Your seniors might think that you are trash but that’s only because they haven’t found the right path for you!”
She was considerably stirred by his words because unlike her seniors, he didn’t deem her as trash. The girl found it hard to calm down.
“Go back and try your best to understand it.” Li Qiye continued: “Work hard and work hard some more so that your life will not be wasted.” With that, he turned and left.
He was already far away when she calmed down and looked up. Nevertheless, she still bowed deeply towards his direction with great deference.
When he returned, Goldloop Fist has been waiting for a long time. The guy was excited to see Li Qiye and got on his knees as well.
“Teacher, you are the Wang’s benefactor, giving us hope to rise again for the second time. We will establish a shrine for you and our descendants shall worship you for generations to come.” Goldloop wouldn’t get up from the ground.
After receiving Li Qiye’s guidance, he indeed found his clan’s lost merit laws from the stone forest. He didn’t let down his clan’s great expectations. Now they could finally answer their late ancestors without feeling shame.
“No need for an eternal shrine.” Li Qiye said: “Cultivate hard to not bring down Wang Ao’s heroic reputation. Back then, he relied on his Goldloop Moongrasping Law to defeat many High Gods from the three races.”
“Teacher, I will forever keep that in mind, never bringing shame to the ancestor’s illustrious name.” He bowed his head again while answering with sincerity coming from the heart.
Li Qiye nodded and went back to his room.
The guy prostrating on the ground finally got up. Though Li Qiye had shut the door, he continued to stare in that direction and bowed deeply.
1. I don’t understand this either, just translating literally here