Chapter Eleven: Private Counsel (Part One)

As Shi Jun and Hu Hai approached, the middle-aged man slowly opened his eyes and greeted them with a gentle smile, “Welcome, guests. You must be weary from your journey—please, have a seat.” With a wave of his hand, two crystal stools appeared before them out of thin air.

Hu Hai, hearing the man’s soft voice and seeing his kind expression, immediately felt much of his initial nervousness melt away. The man’s courteous invitation to sit left Hu Hai slightly dazed, as though no matter what, he could not disobey this person’s request. He obediently sat down.

Shi Jun, too, smiled and nodded to the elder, then took his seat to Hu Hai’s right.

“Honored Ancestor, we are deeply grateful for your summons. Might we inquire as to what guidance you wish to impart?” After entering and finding no fearsome monsters, Hu Hai’s wariness had already eased considerably. Yet, facing this solitary middle-aged figure, he could not help but feel an inexplicable sense of awe. The thoughts of treasure hunting and adventure that he had harbored earlier faded away, and he now addressed the man with utmost respect.

“There’s no need to be so formal, guests,” the man replied with a smile, glancing at Hu Hai. “My name is Huang Quan. That title of ‘Ancestor’ is but a common nickname given to me by outsiders. I must apologize for inviting you here so abruptly, but there is an important matter I must discuss with you.”

Strangely enough, since Shi Jun had entered the cave, it seemed as if Huang Quan had not looked directly at him even once. Yet, Shi Jun sensed that the man was constantly observing his every move. Shi Jun smiled politely and said, “It is we juniors who should thank you for taking the time to see us, Honored Ancestor.”

But as soon as Shi Jun spoke, Huang Quan’s expression grew solemn. “I do not dare accept such an address from you, sir. In fact, this meeting is one that I, Huang Quan, have long anticipated. However, regarding the matter you seek today, I’m afraid I cannot give you a satisfactory answer.”

Shi Jun had been carefully considering how to inquire about his father’s whereabouts, but unexpectedly, this so-called Ancestor Huang Quan seemed to know his intentions from the start—and refused him before he could even ask. Disappointed, Shi Jun blurted out, “How did you know my purpose in coming here? Why say you cannot answer before I have even spoken?”

Huang Quan did not answer directly. Instead, he regarded Shi Jun thoughtfully and said, “All things in this world arise and pass away according to fate; nothing is constant, and nothing lasts forever. Your longing for your father moves me deeply, but the time is not yet right, and I am powerless to alter fate.”

Only now did Hu Hai realize that the “Shi Li” Shi Jun was seeking was in fact his father. Seeing Shi Jun’s disappointment, Hu Hai felt a pang of sympathy and asked, “Honored Ancestor, since you govern life and death and possess boundless powers, how can you not learn the whereabouts of a single person?”

Shi Jun had never believed in fate. Now, hearing the Ancestor’s evasive words, he grew frustrated and pressed, “I don’t care about fate or destiny—I am only searching for my father. Am I to wait for some predestined moment? If you require something in exchange, why not say so directly?”

“Perish the thought,” Huang Quan replied, still uncommonly polite toward Shi Jun for reasons unknown. “I desire nothing. Even if there were something, how could I dare threaten you, sir? But as I said, the time is not yet right; I truly have no means to help.”

He sighed, his tone filled with a deep melancholy. “For countless ages, those who have passed through the cycle of life and death are as numerous as the sands of the river. To each one and their loved ones, every life is precious beyond measure, yet in the infinite laws of the universe, each is but a speck of dust in the endless red dust. All I hold mastery over is the great tide that sweeps these billions of specks from place to place. I cannot—and dare not—focus on any one particle, much less interfere with its course.”

From the start, Shi Jun had known that searching for his father was a hopeless quest. Yet the matter kept arising again and again, provoking his stubbornness. He realized that further questioning would yield nothing, but inwardly he swore that, no matter how difficult it was—even if he had to move heaven and earth himself—he would find his father’s whereabouts. Silently, he steeled his resolve.

—

“So… what is it that you summoned us here for?” Hu Hai asked in confusion. Since Huang Quan had no intention of helping Shi Jun, he could have simply hidden from them—so why go to the trouble of having the Underworld current bring them in?

“All is due to fate,” Huang Quan replied. “There is, in fact, another important matter for which I have called you.”

Fate again. Shi Jun couldn’t help but smile wryly, but he remained silent, waiting for Huang Quan to continue.

“I only wish to ask you one question, sir,” Huang Quan said, turning to Shi Jun. “Do you wish for a peaceful, ordinary life as a common man, or to become a ruler who determines the fates and fortunes of countless lives?”

“What do you mean by this, Honored Ancestor? I am just an ordinary man who was forced by necessity to become a Netherworld Constable, a mere pawn led by fate. What choice do I have? How can I choose such a destiny?”

“Do you recall the monk Chan Zhen on Mount Shura?”

“How do you know about him?” Shi Jun was increasingly astonished. Huang Quan seemed both mysterious and benign.

“The path of enlightenment is real, but also illusory. That monk was merely a shadow I conjured. Since you parted ways with him on Mount Shura, you are no longer the person you once were.” Huang Quan’s face was calm.

So Chan Zhen was none other than Huang Quan in disguise! No wonder Shi Jun had found him so familiar. Remembering the monk’s earnest warnings at the Temple of Radiant Buddha and everything that followed, Shi Jun grew even more perplexed. Did Huang Quan possess some prophetic power? Otherwise, how could he have warned Shi Jun to think carefully before acting, even before he met Chiyang and the others?

With this thought, Shi Jun asked again, “That day at the Temple of Radiant Buddha, when you cautioned me not to act rashly, did you mean I shouldn’t accept the role of Netherworld Constable?”

“Surely you have noticed the two powers within you—the Eye of Insight and the Heart of Covenant?” Huang Quan asked, not answering directly.

Hu Hai, who had been utterly confused by the conversation, suddenly perked up. “Are the ‘eye’ and ‘heart’ you mention related to the white light that appears around Shi Jun?” he inquired, staring intently at Huang Quan.

“Exactly,” Huang Quan replied, turning to Shi Jun with a faint smile. “You possess treasures within, yet remain unaware. But have you ever noticed strange occurrences in moments of great peril?”

Shi Jun recalled the bizarre events during the Underworld River ordeal and when he subdued the mischievous ghost Su Su, and found himself intrigued by Huang Quan’s words. By nature, Shi Jun was indifferent, but since being dragged into the affairs of the Netherworld and forced into his role, he had always felt like someone else was leading him by the nose. Chiyang’s evasive answers and Huang Quan’s refusal to answer about his father had only deepened his frustration. Ultimately, all these problems stemmed from his lack of power over his own fate. That was why, for the first time in his life, he had resolved to rebel against destiny. Now, with the conversation turning to the hidden powers within him, he listened intently to every word Huang Quan spoke.

—

“…The so-called Eye of Insight and Heart of Covenant are two extraordinary forces within you, powers that transcend the very laws of heaven and earth, yet due to a powerful seal, you have been unable to use them. Their essence lies in the power of the spirit.” Huang Quan spoke gently. “All beings—human, immortal, demon, monster, or ghost—are born with a certain degree of spiritual power. But due to differences in talent and constitution, the strength and potential of this power vary greatly. The spiritual power within you, however, is nothing less than the very source of spiritual power in the universe itself. If used properly, it could shatter worlds and command all beings. How can you belittle yourself as a mere ordinary man?”

He gazed meaningfully at Shi Jun for a long moment before continuing, “Within this universe, there are also infinite material forces. Together with spiritual power, they are called the Roots of Power. They are the foundation upon which all immortals, demons, monsters, and ghosts cultivate. In other words, as long as you master the use of material power and the methods of cultivation, and persist in your training, with the unparalleled spiritual power you possess, it is only a matter of time before you attain incomparable strength.”

“Me?” Shi Jun exchanged a glance with Hu Hai, a thousand questions flooding his mind.

“What I am about to do will affect the course of your life,” Huang Quan said. “I do not know if it is right to speak of this now, so before I proceed, I hope you will answer my earlier question.”

“I once wished only for an ordinary life,” Shi Jun answered after a moment’s thought, enunciating each word. “But I have grown weary of being controlled by fate and others. I have no ambition to hold the lives of others in my hands, but I do wish to be strong enough to choose my own path.”

At these words, Huang Quan’s face grew solemn, but after a moment, he seemed to let go of a heavy burden and exhaled slowly. “I was meddling needlessly,” he said quietly, “but with your temperament, such an answer is only natural… What I am about to show you, I hope you will ponder deeply, for it may help you face what lies ahead.”

With that, Huang Quan waved his hand, and thousands of streams of dark green light shot from the crystal walls of the cave. Like the finest loom ever known, the beams wove together with mist to form a radiant curtain of light before Shi Jun.

As the curtain fully unfolded, Huang Quan pointed again. A burst of light flashed, and the curtain was suddenly filled with countless golden symbols and images, which flickered and flashed before coalescing into a golden stream that shot straight between Shi Jun’s eyes.

Shi Jun’s vision blurred, and then a cascade of incantations and talismans flashed through his mind like lightning. Strangely, he found them all oddly familiar, and in an instant, they were engraved upon his memory. Suddenly, he trembled, and a brand new world unfurled in his mind like a vast scroll.

The infinite mysteries of heaven and earth, the workings of creation—all were nothing more than different forms of energy transformation and evolution. Stripping away these simple illusions, everything became simple and direct: the energy of the world was absorbed by green life, stored and consumed through innate metabolic functions, the food chain enabling energy’s first transfer. Birth, death, and decay were all but stages in the evolution of material force according to natural law; the energies of the universe circulated endlessly among all beings, sentient or not, in countless forms.

The joy of life, the serenity of death, the harmony of fertile earth, the vastness and tolerance of the cosmos—all emotions of conscious and unconscious beings surged into Shi Jun’s heart. For a moment, he felt as if he had become one with all creation, dissolving the boundaries between self and others. A profound sense of unity with heaven and earth, breathing in rhythm with all things, spread swiftly through his soul. In that moment, time itself ceased to flow.