Chapter 1319: Discussing the Way of Good and Evil

Inside the secret chamber.

Han Li, with a solemn expression, was bending over to carve array patterns on the ground, setting up the same formation he had used last time to sever his evil corpse.

After finishing the carving, he took out bundles of array flags and plates and began to arrange them.

This formation was extremely complex. Even with prior experience, it took him a full day to set everything up. A yin-yang fish-shaped formation appeared in the room.

Countless thumb-sized runes danced within the formation, emitting crystalline light that bathed the entire secret chamber in a sea of radiance.

Han Li glanced around, nodded with satisfaction, and waved his hand to produce an Earth Immortal puppet, placing it at the yin fish position of the formation, while he himself sat at the yang fish position.

After calming his mind, he immediately formed hand seals to activate the formation.

A hemispherical solid light curtain emerged, enveloping him and the Earth Immortal puppet. Then, chains formed from flames, cold air, lightning, and other elements shot out from the light curtain, piercing into various parts of the puppet's body.

Having done this, Han Li closed his eyes and entered his sea of consciousness.

Unlike the last time he severed his evil corpse, his sea of consciousness was now quiet. A white-robed Han Li sat cross-legged here, eyes closed in concentration.

“Have you come?” The white-robed Han Li opened his eyes and looked over, his expression entirely peaceful, with no intention of fighting.

“You were waiting for me?” Han Li was inwardly surprised but secretly gathered his strength, keeping his face impassive.

“You need not be so wary. I am not the evil corpse, and I have no intention of fighting you. Please, sit.” The white-robed Han Li smiled faintly and pointed with his finger.

The void before them stirred, and a cushion and a tea table materialized out of thin air, along with a teapot and two teacups.

Han Li narrowed his eyes. These objects were all condensed from spiritual power, indistinguishable from real ones.

Such divine skill in manipulating spiritual power was something even he could not achieve, yet his good corpse had done it effortlessly.

“What do you mean by this?” Han Li sat down cross-legged opposite him and asked.

“You and I are born from the same root. The three corpses’ struggle for the body is instinct, but deciding who occupies the body need not necessarily involve conflict.” The white-robed Han Li picked up the teapot, poured two cups of tea, pushed one to Han Li, and took a sip from the other.

“We cultivators do not settle matters by conflict. How then shall we decide?” Han Li did not touch the tea.

“Simple: by discussing the Dao,” the white-robed Han Li said with a light laugh.

“Discussing the Dao?” Han Li frowned slightly.

“Indeed. I wish to discuss the Way of Good and Evil with you, friend. If your answers satisfy me, I will willingly give up the struggle for this body,” the white-robed Han Li said.

“Oh?” Han Li raised an eyebrow.

“Of course, if your answers do not satisfy me, do not blame me for seizing it by force,” the white-robed Han Li added.

“Then you can try.” Han Li’s eyes blazed with sharp light, and he laughed heartily.

A surge of immensely powerful spiritual power erupted from him, causing the nearby spiritual space to rumble and tremble, as if heaven and earth were enraged.

The teacup in the white-robed Han Li’s hand shattered with a bang and dissipated into nothingness.

“Not bad. As the main consciousness, you have some ability.” The man frowned slightly but immediately relaxed and chuckled.

As he spoke, a flash of light rippled in his hand, and a new cup condensed.

“Since you wish to discuss the Dao, I am happy to oblige. Ask whatever you wish,” Han Li said calmly, his aura receding like the tide.

“Good. Then I ask you, sir: why do humans have distinctions between good and evil?” the white-robed Han Li asked.

“Humans are originally without good or evil. So-called good and evil reside in the mind alone,” Han Li said flatly.

If he had been asked to discuss good and evil before, he might not have been able to say much. But after immersing himself in Xiangyi Town for over a hundred years, he had read many classics on the subject in his spare time. Combining that with his experiences, he had gained considerable insight into the good and evil of the world.

“As the saying goes, good is rewarded with good, and evil with evil. But in reality, it is not so. Many who do good in the world live in poverty, while some who commit heinous acts live carefree and happy. Why is that?” the white-robed Han Li asked again.

“Your question, friend, is like a leaf blocking your view, preventing you from seeing Mount Tai. What is good and what is evil cannot be easily judged from the surface. As long as it benefits others and benefits the world, even hitting and scolding people is good. Conversely, if it is only for one’s own purpose, even respecting and loving others becomes flattery and evil. A person who accumulates virtue through good deeds may live in poverty, but their descendants often prosper. A person who takes shortcuts may gain temporary wealth, but in the end, they will come to no good,” Han Li said calmly.

Upon hearing this, the white-robed Han Li nodded slightly, then pressed further:

“Then what is good, and what is evil?”

“What benefits both oneself and others can be called good. What does not benefit oneself but benefits others is great good. What benefits neither oneself nor others is evil. What benefits oneself but harms others is great evil,” Han Li said with a composed expression.

“Can any act that benefits others be called good?” the white-robed Han Li asked blandly.

"No, intentional good deeds, though good, are not rewarded. Doing good with a purpose is merely hypocrisy; doing good from the heart without seeking reward is true goodness." Han Li shook his head and said.

"An old man fell into the water, and a young peddler passing by rescued him. The old man offered a silver ingot as thanks, and the peddler accepted it gladly. Is this act good?" The white-clad Han Li's eyes showed a hint of satisfaction as he asked again.

"Good." Han Li said.

"According to what you just said, not seeking reward is true goodness. The peddler accepted silver—wasn't that a reward? How can it be called good?" The white-clad Han Li pressed.

"Regardless of whether the peddler thought of reward before rescuing him, once this matter spreads, it will surely inspire people's hearts to do good. Any act that benefits all beings can be called good." Han Li said.

"There is a saying in the world: 'A good person is easily bullied.' What do you think, fellow Daoist?" The white-clad Han Li asked again.

"Such things do exist in the world, but they are few and not the norm. We must embrace these minor injustices with an open mind to remain invincible. If we resent them, we fall to a lower level." Han Li said.

"I didn't expect you to understand the true meaning of goodness so deeply. Admirable. I have one last question, please answer it." The white-clad Han Li was silent for a moment, then sighed and said.

"Please speak." Han Li said with a smile.

"In this world, many people talk eloquently about principles but fall short in action. You have a profound understanding of the true meaning of goodness, but how should we specifically cultivate goodness?" The white-clad Han Li stared intently at Han Li and asked.

"In all dharmas, neither grasp nor reject; in all matters, neither defile nor cling; in all circumstances, neither move nor waver; at all times, constantly act expediently, accord with all beings, and make them all joyful—this is the method of cultivating goodness." Han Li was silent for a moment, then slowly spoke.

"In all dharmas, neither grasp nor reject; in all matters, neither defile nor cling; in all circumstances, neither move nor waver; at all times, constantly act expediently..." The white-clad Han Li murmured to himself.

"Haha, excellent! These four lines are superb. I admire you!" The white-clad Han Li clapped and laughed loudly.

Amidst the laughter, the white-clad Han Li's body turned into a ball of white light and flew outward, as if to leave the sea of consciousness.

But a pulling force arose in the sea of consciousness, preventing the white light from leaving.

Seeing this, Han Li's heart rejoiced.

He focused his eyes, raised both hands, and slashed heavily forward, shouting, "Sever!"

A sharp sword shadow appeared in the sea of consciousness and slashed through the air.

With a "rip," the connection between the white light of the good corpse and the sea of consciousness was instantly severed, and it flew out with a "whoosh."

Inside the secret chamber, Han Li's eyes snapped open, and a ball of white light flew out from his body.

His body shook violently, and nearly half of his immortal spiritual power and time crystal threads separated from him, following closely behind the white light.

After flying out, the white light flashed and vanished into the earth immortal puppet within the formation.

A flash of blood light crossed Han Li's face, and blood burst from his seven orifices. He couldn't help but grunt.

Although the white light had taken away nearly half of his immortal spiritual power and law power, Han Li's 1,320 immortal apertures were suddenly fully connected, and his cultivation reached the late Taiyi stage.

"Buzz!"

A formless force suddenly descended, enveloping Han Li.

The void around him twisted completely, as if isolating him from the world, and his entire body floated up from the ground.

The void above Han Li's head suddenly split open, revealing an endless golden ocean.

A vast and immense law power emanated from the golden ocean, shrouding down and wrapping around his body.

Han Li's expression changed. From the golden ocean, he sensed a hint of the will of heaven, carrying an aura of vastness, eternity, and order.

His strength was now very close to the peak of immortals, but before this power, he still felt like an ant, unable to muster the slightest resistance.

Although the auras emitted by Dao Ancestors like Bone Emperor and Reincarnation Palace Master were extremely vast, compared to this golden ocean, they were far inferior.

"This golden ocean—could it be the time law of the heavenly way..." Han Li murmured in shock.

At that moment, the golden ocean suddenly churned violently, and in the next instant, a beam of golden light shot out from it and poured into his body.

The golden light contained immensely powerful time law power, directly merging into the law power within Han Li's body.

Han Li's entire body blazed with golden light, and the depleted time law power within him rapidly recovered, reaching its previous peak in just a few breaths.

Time crystal threads also quickly condensed, soon restoring to 1,800 strands.

The surrounding void continued to churn, and streams of heaven and earth energy permeated out, merging into Han Li's body.

The depleted immortal spiritual power within Han Li's body also rapidly recovered, fully restored in an instant.

In a side chamber of the cave dwelling, Zi Ling, who was meditating cross-legged, seemed to sense something. She suddenly opened her eyes, her beautiful eyes filled with shock as she looked toward the secret chamber where Han Li was in seclusion.