CHAPTER 444: CHAPTER 438: FATE PATH

"How serious is it..."

Calculation looked bewildered. He didn’t expect Hu Ma to suddenly ask him this question. He didn’t think the question would be so important, concerning his own life.

Seeing that he had frightened him, Hu Ma sighed and patiently explained, "Ever since I entered the Path and learned the skills, I’ve heard more and more people mention the so-called concept of destiny."

"But oddly enough, although many people talk about it and destiny seems important, there’s no one in the Path who specializes in this subject, nor have I met anyone who can clearly explain it..."

"It’s only made me more and more confused. What exactly is destiny?"

"Is it one’s birthdate, the eight characters? Or perhaps one’s birth and status? Or even the three souls and seven spirits, or that fate in the great unknown?"

"..."

After voicing his confusion, he merely looked at Calculation, fearing he might brush it off vaguely again. This question was indeed very important to him at present.

Calculation’s eyes rolled around as if tempted by several thoughts, but under Hu Ma’s serious gaze, he eventually dismissed those ideas and sighed lowly, "There are, in fact, Paths that focus on destiny..."

"Hmm?"

Hu Ma was taken aback. "Among the ten Paths, is there a skill focused on destiny?"

But Calculation didn’t continue discussing this. He just shook his head slightly and said in a low voice, "You’ve asked a crucial question, but you’re oversimplifying the concept of destiny."

"Each Path’s skills are varied and categorized differently. Because of differences in everyone’s expertise, sometimes people belonging to the same Path appear to have completely different skills."

"Take Negative Spirit, for example. Some who practice it only require incense-burning and acknowledging a godmother or godfather for protection. But some have to work like an ox or a horse, using their life as a candle..."

"...However, these two are not the most formidable. The most formidable in Negative Spirit walk the ghostly path and borrow ghost soldiers. Though originating from the Negative Spirit Path, they can sit atop the living as an ancestor. That ability to bridge the underworld and the living world is extremely powerful..."

"..."

Listening to him, Hu Ma suddenly thought of the Meng family, who held deep animosity with the Hu Family, and was lost in thought. But Calculation was just giving an example and sighed, "Destiny is just like this. You mentioned birthdate, the eight characters, status, three souls and seven spirits, Five Evils and Eight Fortunes..."

"All are related to destiny, but none truly represent it."

"..."

"At this point, let’s not be all mysterious..."

Hu Ma sighed somewhat helplessly, "Explain it quickly, for both our sakes..."

"It’s not that I’m being mysterious; it’s mainly that this isn’t something solidly there. Unlike you Shousui, who just need to wield fists and knives steadfastly..."

Calculation let out a bitter laugh and said, "You want me to explain it in one sentence? I really don’t have that ability, but I can give you an example."

"For instance, you and that..."

He paused, as if thinking of a suitable example, and suddenly thought of one, "Zhuang Erchang!"

"You and Zhuang Erchang set out together—obviously when you hadn’t learned any skills yet. On the road, you encounter bandits who want to seize your possessions and kill one of you. Which do you think would have more severe consequences if killed?"

"..."

As Hu Ma contemplated the question, Calculation preemptively answered, "Of course, killing Zhuang Erchang would have more severe consequences."

"Why?"

"Because Zhuang Erchang has a master behind him, someone to avenge him. But you, though called a little manager of our Red Lantern Lady’s Club, the Red Lantern Society can’t reach that far, and our Lady doesn’t meddle in personal matters."

"If Zhuang Erchang dies, Old Master Sun will make a grand show of bringing people to catch those bandits, you see?"

"To the bandits, they merely picked one to kill, but killing either has different consequences. Killing you means no consequence, but killing Zhuang Erchang is far more severe. This means Zhuang Erchang’s destiny weighs more than yours."

"..."

Hu Ma found this explanation a bit bizarre. "It can be explained like this?"

"That’s the simplest aspect of destiny. Going deeper, there’s another layer."

Seeing Hu Ma listening attentively, Calculation further explained, "On the surface, you seem to lack a master’s care; your destiny is light. But another possibility is that although he has a master, his master’s skills are not that great. You appear uncared for, but inside, you’re actually a missing young master from a wealthy family."

"So, the bandit originally thought your destiny was lighter. But in fact, your destiny weighs more than Zhuang Erchang’s. Killing you is more troublesome than killing Zhuang Erchang—the wealthy family would come calling..."

"And that’s an oversight of mortal eyes. Sometimes, ghostly gods can know because they can see ancestral protection in your bloodline. They would know you’re from a wealthy family, so even if your skills are inferior, your destiny weighs more than Zhuang Erchang’s."

"..."

Could it be that this talk of destiny is merely about who has the bigger backing, the thicker background?

Listening to this, Hu Ma found it increasingly strange.

But Calculation sighed deeply again, saying, "But even at that level, it’s still shallow. The most profound notion of destiny doesn’t only consider one’s skills and identity; it also involves some things in the unseen realm."

"For example, you neither have greater skills than Zhuang Erchang nor a higher identity, but in the grand scheme of fate, you possess an emperor’s fate, destined someday to become Emperor or at least play a significant role in an Emperor’s birth. The fortune of the entire dynasty rests upon you."

"However, Zhuang Erchang is just a martial artist, so the consequences of killing you would be far more severe than killing this martial artist."

"Ordinary folks often associate destiny with fortune-tellers, because fortune-tellers assess some of these unseen matters..."

"...Though I think it’s nonsense, for I can never get it right!"

"..."

As he rambled on, elaborating on such mystical principles, Hu Ma truly fell silent. He pondered along that line of thought for a long time before softly asking, "Then, setting aside the bandit, what happens when two people with varying levels of destiny meet?"

Calculation paused slightly, then laughed, "That’s when it gets interesting."

"In the mundane realm, when two people with varying levels of destiny meet, the one with lesser destiny is often manipulated by the one with the heavier destiny. This has nothing to do with identity or status; they are simply led by the other."

"In the mystical realm, if the two are adversaries and they meet, circumstances will coincidentally favor the one with the heavier destiny. Conversely, if another’s destiny outweighs yours, then circumstances will favor them."

"No one can resist destiny; it’s just that way."

"..."

At this point, he waved his hand, "Of course, even this explanation is shallow. What I’ve said merely elucidates a fraction of what destiny means, far from the full picture."

"Destiny’s changes are whimsical and ever-unsteady. Whether light or heavy, deep or shallow, it must be gauged according to the times."

"..."

"This..."

Hu Ma thought long and hard about what Calculation said, suddenly feeling enlightened, and he let out a deep breath. He picked up the cold tea from the table and placed it in front of Calculation, "Brother Calculation, you’ve truly broadened my knowledge. Please have some tea!"

"Oh my, oh my..."

Calculation, receiving such courtesy for the first time, felt the wrinkles on his old face stretch out. "Look at that, look at that, offering a cup of tea, and it’s even cold..."

"...By the way, do you still have Blood Food Pills? I got scared earlier and need some replenishment!"

"..."

"None!"

Hu Ma replied, "Once I collect the thousands of jin of Blood Food owed to me, I’ll surely send a few hundred jin to you for nourishment, Brother Calculation."

Heartfelt in his promise, Hu Ma saw Calculation out the door and returned to his bed, pondering silently, as if something had suddenly clicked.

Can the explanation of destiny really be taken this way?

Thinking deeper, the notion of destiny was enigmatic—let alone utilizing it, even understanding it entirely seemed impossible. But in simplicity, even just linking destiny with causality could explain the issues he encountered in his dharma method cultivation.

No wonder there’s a saying that having an official status is necessary to practice the Great Mighty Heaven Master General Seal. After all, an official status borrows fortune from the dynasty, heavily laden with causality, which deters both bandits and ghostly gods from antagonizing you. Even when practicing Cultivation, it suppresses the anomalies in the Divine Soul.

However, for the past twenty years, with no Emperor, the gilt-edged value of an official status has been severely diminished. Besides, even if it weren’t diminished, those wholeheartedly rebellious and not eating beef would never become officials.

As of now, I’m naturally not an official, merely a little shopkeeper of the Blood Food Gang, so to anyone’s eyes, I couldn’t possibly succeed with this dharma method. Even the Big Red Robe told me to seek something that could suppress my destiny in this respect.

But actually, it seemed I already had one...

Thinking of the General Order hidden in his Lifebound Spirit Temple, Hu Ma held his breath slightly, feeling both anxious and excited.

Meanwhile, the town of Shima was in chaos, with people hurrying about, trying to gather information and packing their things to try their luck outside, hoping to escape.

The Immortal Miaoshan of the One Coin Sect was speaking with Old Master Sun and others, soothing people’s hearts, while Bai Shanzi stood by the altar, patiently waiting for his senior brothers’ response.

According to his calculations, the message had been sent, and his senior brothers should have responded, indicating whether they would come and how long it would take. But he didn’t expect that after waiting for so long without a sign, suddenly in the fire pit, a sinister wind rose, and a strange blue flame burned, casting a ghostly glow over the courtyard.

Among them, several little ghosts, bound with chains and struggling in pain, cried out to Bai Shanzi, "Master, the message couldn’t get through! We were captured, but we did our best for you..."

Bai Shanzi jolted awake, only to find no blue flame burning within the pit, but rather some ashes circling his body—the ashes of the paper man burnt earlier, which had flown out of the town and now returned.

He turned pale and cried out, "Not good, even the path to the underworld has been sealed..."

"It’s not just the Shousui Great Hall Officer who came, there’s... there’s also Negative Spirit!"