Chapter 40: The Kunlun Gate

Teacher Yang told me that last night, while she was sitting in meditation, a 'man' drifted up from the ground.

Clearly, this was a ghost.

The spirit seemed to harbor no ill will toward her. He claimed that in life, he had been a tank soldier who unfortunately perished in the line of duty. After his soul returned to the underworld, he was told that he had died in vain—meaning his allotted lifespan had not yet been exhausted.

For reasons unknown, this spirit gave Teacher Yang a sense of familiarity. In a gentle and kindly tone, she asked, "Have you come because you want me to help you seek justice? Or to investigate why your lifespan was not yet complete?" After all, even though she resided in the mortal realm, she possessed the official seal and rank of the underworld, allowing her to handle such matters. She had assumed the man was simply seeking her help with a case.

However, what the man said next caught her completely off guard.

The tank soldier suddenly said, "I was meant to be your husband in this lifetime."

It turned out that after Teacher Yang descended to the mortal realm, Xu Linlin had not only destroyed her body but had also recklessly tampered with the trajectory of her destiny.

When Teacher Yang first encountered the circles of metaphysics, someone had once calculated her chart in great detail. That person had been extremely astonished, saying, "Whether judged by your Eight Characters or other methods of divination, it is as if this is another person's destiny. Your original fate was so noble; it should not have ended in such hardship and struggle."

They ultimately concluded that her destiny had been artificially altered. Someone had completely overturned her life chart. Human destiny is woven from countless choices, each leading to different future paths. Along the trajectory of her life, at every crucial crossroads, she had been pulled by an invisible force, always stepping onto the most rugged and unfavorable path, until she was pushed, step by step, to the edge of an abyss.

In his original destiny, the tank soldier was not meant to die. However, to rewrite Teacher Yang's fate, Xu Linlin had not hesitated to sacrifice the lives of others, forcibly snuffing out the soldier’s life. This prevented Teacher Yang from marrying her destined husband, causing the ship of her fate to veer off its original course, ultimately forcing her to marry that scoundrel, her ex-husband Li Qiang.

The tank soldier had always believed his death was an accident, only now learning it was an unjust catastrophe caused by someone else’s malice.

Xu Linlin’s actions, driven by selfish desire and a complete disregard for human life, were truly abhorrent.

Considering that Xu Linlin’s master was the Antarctic Immortal of the Divine Realm, and that she had grown up by his side, there was the principle that a master shares the blame for a student’s failings.

With a focused thought, a wisp of her divine consciousness traversed the void to reach the Divine Realm. She hovered in the air above the mist-shrouded Heavenly Court, gathered her spirit, and projected her voice across the distance to the Antarctic Immortal.

She rebuked him angrily, "Antarctic Immortal, Xu Linlin is your disciple. As her master, is it possible you truly knew nothing of her every move? If that is the case, it is your dereliction of duty; failing to understand the character and methods of your own student shows you have taught her poorly. If you were aware of her actions, then you are even more unforgivable! As a master, not only did you fail to guide her correctly, you indulged her depravity. For the sake of selfish desire, she colluded with forces from the Demon and Monster Realms to harm me in the mortal world. She also took an innocent life and destroyed the marriage meant for me in this life, leaving me to suffer greatly, with physical disabilities that cannot be healed. Now, I only wish to secure justice for myself. If you continue to hide away and ignore this matter, I will expose everything to the Divine Realm so that all the gods will know."

"And then?" I asked at the Taoist temple.

"The Antarctic Immortal did not respond; he played the coward. In a fit of anger, I reported everything to the Divine Realm, and Xu Linlin’s primordial spirit is currently detained in the Celestial Prison."

This visit to the temple was not just about Xu Linlin.

Teacher Xing also told me of an important decision: he plans to establish a sect, the Kunlun Sect.

This idea originated yesterday morning. While aimlessly strolling to the lakeside in the suburbs, he saw four magnificent stone statues of divine beasts standing tall. To a mortal, they were just ordinary stone statues, but what appeared before his eyes were the four great divine beasts of antiquity.

The Azure Dragon, its entire body covered in emerald scales, soared into the sky above the lake, inhaling and exhaling the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Every movement resonated with the water and the sky.

The White Tiger, with fur as white as snow, golden eyes shining brilliantly, and sharp claws capable of tearing through space, struck terror into the hearts of all beasts with every roar.

The Vermilion Bird, clad in plumage as brilliant as fire, with eyes like the most dazzling rubies, swirled through the air, leaving behind a trail of flames with every beat of its wings. Its calls were crisp and melodious, like divine music, cleansing the mind of distractions.

Unlike the other three, the Black Tortoise did not fly. It bore a heavy shell shimmering with a profound, sacred blue light. Its head was that of a winding, giant dragon—a fusion of dragon and tortoise, exuding wisdom and resilience forged by the passage of time.

The four beasts were deep in meditation, absorbing spiritual energy. Sensing someone approaching, they saw Teacher Xing standing by the lakeside, hands in his pockets, calm and composed, gazing at them.

If any outsider had seen this, they would surely have been stunned. The four divine beasts, usually so arrogant and domineering, were being suppressed by the aura of this man—who appeared completely ordinary in every way—as if they had encountered their natural predator. Their pride vanished instantly; they prostrated themselves at Teacher Xing’s feet, their massive bodies trembling, their eyes filled with awe and fear.

"We pay our respects to the Great Kunlun God," the four beasts said in low, respectful voices. They knew well that the seemingly ordinary man before them possessed terrifying power and status.

In the past, the Xiongnu people believed in the god of the Kunlun Mountains. They revered nature and worshipped power, and the "Great Kunlun God" they shouted before every battle was, in fact, Teacher Xing’s primordial spirit, the Lord of Kunlun.

Teacher Xing thought of the Vermilion Bird, Black Tortoise, Azure Dragon, and White Tiger. These four divine beasts had been treasures in Feng Shui arrays since ancient times, each representing different directions and powers. If used skillfully, they could be employed at the temple to help others arrange their Feng Shui.

At this thought, Teacher Xing’s voice became sonorous and powerful, his gaze stern and filled with unquestionable majesty. "From this day forward, you must obey me, follow my commands, and be at my beck and call."

After bringing the four divine beasts under his command, Teacher Xing had an idea: he would found a sect.

On January 9th, Teacher Xing reported to the Divine Realm that he would establish the Kunlun Sect. He would serve as the founding patriarch, accepting disciples from all walks of life. He would teach people how to investigate matters, perform rituals, and slay demons, while Teacher Yang would be responsible for teaching Eight Characters and Feng Shui metaphysics.

Teacher Xing said in a low voice, "After the Kunlun Sect is established, in a few days, you, Zhong Yang, and Cao Na should come to the temple. I will formally accept the three of you as my inner-circle disciples. As for Wang Xinyue..." He pondered for a moment, "Her personality is too aloof and arrogant, and her emotions are unstable, so I will not consider taking her on for the time being."

I remembered Ding Yuan from the group chat and couldn't help but ask, "Ding Yuan’s primordial spirit is also a disciple of Kunlun Mountain. What about her?"

I hadn't liked Ding Yuan at first, but after several conversations, I found her to be decent, and our relationship had warmed considerably.

Teacher Yang interjected, "Although Zhong Yang brought Ding Yuan last time, Ding Yuan never let Teacher Xing retrieve her true primordial spirit, and besides..."

She furrowed her delicate brows, as if unsure how to phrase it. "Don't you feel that Ding Yuan is secretly rejecting our temple?"

"Rejecting the temple?" I repeated, puzzled.

Teacher Xing’s tone was heavy. "No matter how arrogant Wang Xinyue is about being a child of Fuxi, she has never held anything back in her trust when it comes to resolving issues. Only Ding Yuan gives the impression that she is harboring some secret she doesn't want anyone to know, fearing we might discover it. She is inscrutable."