Volume Two: Taking on a Task Chapter Fifteen: Drawing Nearer and Nearer

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Eternity stretches like a long night, yet light shines upon the world.
It is often said that cause and effect bear no retribution, that the sword of justice hangs by Heaven’s decree.
No matter how rampant the darkness may be, it will inevitably face the judgment of justice.
Justice may sometimes arrive late, but it never fails to appear.

Such phenomena have appeared across numerous civilizations and many nations.
Often, those steeped in evil, having committed countless vile acts, ultimately find their sins uncovered in the darkest shadows where no light can penetrate. Their crimes meet the judgment of justice, and they are inevitably brought to account.

Chen Chen survives in such a world—not because he fails to understand the ways of the world, but because sometimes, to live among humans, one must live in this very way.

The matter of Ancient City Qingfeng has reached a conclusion. Chen Chen’s arrival was straightforward: to thoroughly investigate the true perpetrators behind the human trafficking that only surfaced during the Dark Era, including the butterfly effects triggered by Chen Fan.

This shroud of darkness has also appeared over the past several centuries, even millennia.
Even in the previous century, during the 1970s and 1980s, it was present.
But now, the nation of Z has grown prosperous and strong.

Such conduct is now outdated and backward.
Human trafficking, if it were to occur today in Z, would be like darkness engulfing the earth, with evil lingering endlessly.
Z cannot afford to be so powerless as to lack dignity, light, or the arrival of justice.

Chen Chen watched as Ancient City Qingfeng gradually fell under strict vigilance. Even the discipline so stern as to avoid all indulgence in women was preferable to a darkness that blanketed the land, where the faces of the people bore only sorrow and misery.

The smiles on the faces of the common folk are more important than anything else.

Those blinded by greed rarely reveal a genuine smile. Those who have committed wrongful deeds, those who have engaged in shady dealings—even when they smile, their smiles are evil, bitter, cunning, insincere, and hypocritical...

The pure and kind smiles only appear on those who refuse to bow to evil forces, who work diligently and honestly, who honor their daily meals, themselves, their friends and family, and their country.

Such people embody true goodness and beauty, and thus their smiles are radiant.

They, too, have faced temptations—temptations of wealth, the weaknesses of human nature—but in the end, they have steadfastly endured.

These people have the right and the strength to smile as survivors after the storm.

Darkness will ultimately pass, and the human world will eventually usher in light. The judgment of justice will propel civilization toward a more advanced stage.

The people’s level of understanding will reach greater heights, and both happiness and security will increase.

Human survival instincts persist, and internal and external troubles never cease.

What halts is merely an illusion—that the present moment is safe, that a life of comfort has been secured, allowing rest and reckless indulgence without care.

Beyond the darkness of human trafficking, many natural disasters and man-made calamities also warrant attention.

Throughout the year, several typhoons will sweep across the land, and numerous entanglements of grudges and passions will challenge humanity’s worldview.

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One murder after another, countless unknown cases of corpses mysteriously rising, and a series of crimes fueled by human desires.

Rampant scams, groups exploited and violated—when will such acts come to an end?

Chen Chen, carrying the missions brought from the novice village, first resolved the internal troubles of Qingfeng City and then turned to addressing the external threats surrounding it.

Zhou You Mountain had experienced several zombie outbreaks; Chen Chen had heard of these before. Similar incidents had occurred when Chen Fan appeared in Ancient City Qingfeng.

Now Chen Chen came to handle these matters, especially the lingering consequences left behind after Chen Fan’s sudden departure.

The phenomenon of corpses resurrecting had long been vaguely understood by Chen Chen.

There are many ancient methods to revive and animate the dead.

On the Third Cultivation Star, such traditions exist within the Huaxia civilization and several others.

For example, in Z country, there are zombies and Taoist sorcery; in the West, vampires and zombies spawned from viral outbreaks; the mummies within pyramids; the sorcery of the South Seas; and the Shikigami of the Land of the Rising Sun...

The zombies previously appearing in Zhou You Mountain were influenced by vengeful spirits inhabiting the bodies, as well as the pull of vital energy and the earth’s magnetic fields.

Of course, human factors causing corpse transformations are also numerous.

Chen Chen had once cultivated the Celestial Creation Technique, which attuned him keenly to the heavenly Dao. The knowledge about the Third Cultivation Star came from his diligent study of these matters.

After reviewing all this information, Chen Chen began organizing his approach, preparing to intervene in Zhou You Mountain and manage the aftermath.

Following Chen Fan’s departure, some issues had gone unaddressed.

The notorious corpse mutations in Zhou You Mountain, the three obscure caves, the unknown flying zombies, and the Netherworld Mountain—Chen Chen suddenly felt the weight of his task.

Fortunately, after Chen Fan left, many issues had calmed.

Most of the unknown zombies had been settled, and many of the beasts that had caused chaos in Zhou You Mountain had long since left.

Still, the occasional reports of vengeful emotions and negative energy from Ancient City Qingfeng greatly disturbed the peace and prosperity, affecting the wellbeing of all living beings.

Chen Chen was busy handling his own affairs as well as the tasks he had received.

Taking advantage of the midday sun, he appeared in Zhou You Mountain.

There, he saw some abandoned film sets—once used for shooting movies, now tourist attractions after filming had ended.

Chen Chen’s purpose was to confirm that the mutated zombies had been laid to rest or properly contained.

The riotous beasts had dispersed and returned to their own habitats.

The nameless bones seemed to have been placed in the caves for a long time. With a casual strike, Chen Chen dug a pit, buried the remains, and continued to manage the mountain’s aftermath.

He wondered whether the temple on Zhou You Mountain had been completed.

He was unsure if Chen Fan had truly helped build a temple, or if it was ever finished.

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When Chen Chen saw the locations of the three caves on Zhou You Mountain, he gained some understanding, then tucked this secret permanently into his heart.

All illusions seemed like deceit, yet some plans appeared unfulfilled.

Someday there might be a temple for shelter, lasting as long as the mountain itself.

Someday there might be a peaceful place to offer incense and pray for the homeland’s blessing.

Those who believe in the divine naturally receive their protection; gods dwell within every person.

That is the closest place to divinity—it resides within us, alongside us.

Whether it be the gods of Taoism or the Three Jewels of Buddhism,
the divine is vast and real. As long as one devoutly believes, upholds precepts, and cultivates the essence of the Three Jewels, sincere prayers will bring divine protection.

Chen Chen’s involvement in Zhou You Mountain was merely perfunctory.

Perhaps his arrival caused the dark forces to avoid making any rash moves.

Having dealt with the matters of Zhou You Mountain, Chen Chen prepared to move on to the next location.

As he was leaving, the mountain spirit Zhou You seemed to wish to converse with him.

On Zhou You Mountain, the mountain spirit Zhou You was but one being. Perhaps after long cultivation in the mountain and Ancient City Qingfeng, legends of a god had gradually formed.

Chen Chen bowed slightly in farewell to the mountain spirit Zhou You.

Thus ended his journey to Zhou You Mountain.

While Chen Chen handled the related affairs there, the dark forces stirred restlessly.

Such occurrences no longer surprised him.

Darkness and light coexist, evil and justice endure side by side.

These four forces are interconnected, yet increasingly divergent.

In the darkness, evil slowly brews—a great weight upon the hearts of all beings, uncertain when it might fall.

In the light, justice grows ever stronger—hope, the salvation for all beings. Perhaps it begins with small acts to drive the darkness far away.

In the end, Chen Chen reflected, the darkness in the human heart is ever close.

Will there ultimately be another light to illuminate this darkness, to warm the human heart, to lead people away from cold shadows toward light, toward a life of warmth?

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