Chapter 62: The Great Deduction Art, A Journey’s End

Chapter 62 – The Great Deduction Art, A Journey’s End

“A-Li, you are crushing Brother Changsheng! Move over a bit!”

An unrelenting hand shoved A-Li, pressing his face flush against the cold surface of the coffin.

A-Li remained utterly speechless.

It’s not that serious. It really isn’t.

This stone coffin is massive. Fitting three people is more than enough. It’s not like you’re trying to consummate a marriage in here, so is this really necessary?

Indeed, upon learning of Chen Changsheng’s imminent departure, A-Li had begged to be taken out of the Hundred Thousand Mountains.

His reasoning was simple: the world was vast, and he wished to witness its breadth.

Although no formal master-disciple vows were sworn, A-Li could still be considered half a disciple.

Faced with such a trivial request, Chen Changsheng naturally did not refuse.

Thus, the current predicament came to be.

Although the stone coffin of the Hundred Defeats Immortal Venerable was incredibly spacious, fitting three individuals inside remained a rather tight squeeze.

Chen Changsheng rested in the center, flanked by A-Li and A-Man on either side.

A-Man fiercely despised A-Li’s burly physique for crowding Chen Changsheng, ensuring A-Li’s face remained forcefully plastered against the coffin wall.

……

After an indeterminate amount of time, the chaotic spatial turbulence outside finally ceased.

A heavily suffocated A-Li immediately shoved the heavy coffin lid aside.

“Sir, could we not have employed another method?”

“What decent cultivator sleeps in a coffin every single day!”

Ignoring A-Li’s grievances, Chen Changsheng rose and swept the surroundings with his gaze.

This ancient bronze hall was utterly dilapidated; the vast majority of its profound structure had long since decayed into ruin.

After confirming the absence of danger, Chen Changsheng and his two companions emerged from the stone coffin.

Looking upon the unfamiliar world, A-Li’s eyes burned with boundless curiosity.

“Sir, what realm is this?”

Annoyed by A-Li’s incessant chatter, Chen Changsheng shot him a withering sidelong glance.

“You ask me everything. Do you truly believe I am an omniscient Immortal?”

“Let us scour the area first.”

Leaving the ancient bronze hall, Chen Changsheng began to scrutinize the environment.

A brief sweep yielded little; aside from a gnarled tree on the verge of withering, the trio found nothing but an endless expanse of ancient, dense forest.

Seeing this desolate state, A-Li scratched his head. “How about we initiate the array again?”

“This barren place likely doesn’t hold the person you seek.”

“I have accumulated vast experience repairing the Three-Color Teleportation Array. I guarantee it will be functional within three to five years.”

Chen Changsheng ignored A-Li’s proposition. Instead, his gaze remained fixed upon the withered tree outside the ruined hall.

Gently stroking the rotting bark with his fingertips, Chen Changsheng softly hummed an old nursery rhyme.

“The Malan flower blooms at twenty-one, two-eight-two-five-six, two-eight-two-five-seven…”

Following the rhythmic cadence of the song, Chen Changsheng’s fingers carved an invisible pattern against the dead wood.

As the final syllable left his lips, a profound Formation instantly flared to life upon the withered trunk.

Clack!

A solid object dropped smoothly into Chen Changsheng’s palm.

Inspecting the small, wooden carving of a tiger, a faint, imperceptible smile graced Chen Changsheng’s lips.

After a few measured breaths, Chen Changsheng spoke. “I have found my answer. Now, it is time to walk our own path.”

A-Li’s face twisted into a mask of pure bewilderment.

“Found what?”

“The person I have sought this entire time, naturally.”

Chen Changsheng idly tossed the wooden carving in his hand.

“This block of wood is the person you were searching for?”

“Indeed.”

“I once gifted this carving to an old friend. For her to leave it here indicates she is not only alive, but thriving.”

“Since I have confirmed she still walks the mortal coil, my karmic tie here is resolved.”

A-Li remained utterly clueless, yet A-Man completely grasped the unspoken weight of his words.

To remain forever by Brother Changsheng’s side, Niansheng had desperately embarked on the ruthless pursuit of eternal life.

Brother Changsheng had spent centuries scouring the mortal realm simply to verify her survival.

Until she seized true eternity, Niansheng would absolutely refuse to meet him.

Because the tragic limitations of the past remained the unbreakable shackles of the present.

After straining his mind for a moment and failing to comprehend the profound logic, A-Li quickly discarded the matter.

“Sir, since you have found the person you sought, where shall we journey next?”

“An excellent question. It is time to unveil my Great Deduction Art.”

Wearing an expression of utmost gravity, Chen Changsheng procured a mundane wooden branch and balanced it perfectly upright upon the dirt.

Slowly releasing his right hand, the stick wavered for a split second before toppling over, pointing toward a specific direction.

“The Heavenly Dao has spoken. We march that way!”

Chen Changsheng pointed firmly toward the fallen stick, his face a portrait of solemn piety.

A-Li stared in dead silence.

Hearing all that grand talk about a Great Deduction Art, I was genuinely expecting to witness a supreme Heavenly Law.

Turns out he’s just blindly guessing!

After ruthlessly cursing Chen Changsheng’s charlatan behavior in his mind, A-Li probed cautiously.

“Sir… is employing such a method to divine our path not slightly… inappropriate?”

Hearing this, Chen Changsheng nodded deeply. “Not just inappropriate. It is utterly absurd.”

“However, since you dare to question this absurd method, why don’t you divine a direction for us?”

A-Li looked at Chen Changsheng’s unwavering expression, then cast a glance at the terrifying, unfamiliar wilderness around them.

Without missing a beat, A-Li stated, “Sir’s Great Deduction Art is truly profound and miraculous, seizing the very fortune of the heavens. I am more than willing to follow the Dao Sir has chosen.”

Recognizing that A-Li still knew how to properly value his life, Chen Changsheng shot him a faint glance before striding off in the dictated direction.

For an immortal unbound by worldly ties, any corner of the mortal dust could serve as a home.

As the ancient proverb states: nowhere is home, yet everywhere is home.

……

“Fellow Daoist, the dead cannot be brought back to life. Please restrain your grief and accept the inevitable.”

“Although the severance of mortal ties brings immense sorrow, the living must continue walking their path.”

“Behold our shop’s most recent treasure: a coffin carved from pure spiritual sandalwood. I do not ask for 9,998 spirit stones. I do not even ask for 3,998!”

“For a mere 998, you may escort this vessel home right this instant!”

“Furthermore, upon purchasing this sandalwood coffin, simply provide an additional 398 spirit stones, and your beloved kin shall receive our supreme, all-encompassing funeral service package.”

“To top it off, this humble shop owner will personally sweep the leylines and select a geomantically flawless burial site to ensure their peaceful rest.”

A young man energetically hawked his grim wares to the passing cultivators.

By all logic of the cultivation world, aggressively peddling coffins was an outstanding way to get beaten to a bloody pulp.

However, this particular shop owner possessed genuine, heaven-defying skills!

Three years prior, a powerful local clan suffered the horror of a corpse undergoing a demonic mutation. Somehow, they managed to invite this very shop owner to the scene.

Everyone assumed the young man would wet himself in sheer terror.

Who could have predicted that, upon arriving, the shop owner would simply sit cross-legged and chant profound sutras of the Dao?

In an instant, golden lotuses erupted from the earth, and supreme celestial phenomena manifested. The mutated corpse was thoroughly purged of its resentment and peacefully transcended.

From that day forward, business at this nameless coffin shop exploded.

After graciously seeing off the final customer of the day, the young man slumped exhaustedly into a chair and grumbled.

“A-Man, what is wrong with the cultivators of the Kunlun Holy Land recently? They are swarming in, one after another, just to buy coffins.”

“This endless traffic is going to work me to death.”