Chapter 37: All Living Things Must Perish, Only I Remain

It was only after learning that five days had already passed that Li Bai managed to collect his thoughts. He patted his stomach, but perhaps due to the excess of food consumed at the banquet, he felt no hunger.

"Is Master Jiang at home?"

A voice drifted from outside the courtyard gate. Taoist Lian Yue was supporting the old Abbot as they stood at the entrance. Jiang She invited them in. Seeing the elderly man in his Taoist robes, the servant, fearing the chill might affect him, carefully laid out a soft cushion.

"Master Jiang," the old Abbot began, "I have managed to uncover some information regarding that alchemist."

"Please, go ahead, Abbot," Jiang She replied, his interest piqued.

"The man is said to be surnamed Du, though his given name is unknown. He calls himself Daoist Jingchen. It is rumored he possesses great abilities and is followed by many disciples." The Abbot paused, then added, "I have never had dealings with him, and those in my monastery have only heard his title; we know nothing of his character."

"That is more than enough. My thanks for your trouble, Abbot."

"You are too kind, you are too kind."

The old Abbot’s spirits were significantly lifted by this visit. He had originally intended to come down the mountain alone to pay his respects to Jiang She, but his advanced age had caused the disciples at the monastery great concern. Out of both worry and a yearning for a connection to the divine, they had argued incessantly. In the end, they decided that Taoist Lian Yue, who had long-standing ties with Yuan Danqiu, should accompany him.

Seeing Master Jiang once more, Taoist Lian Yue felt a surge of nervousness. Jiang She noticed this, smiled, and said, "Do not be anxious, Daoist; I am not a man-eating demon."

Lian Yue only tensed further.

The old Abbot smiled from the side. "Beyond that Taoist title, there is another matter. Magistrate Cheng stopped by yesterday, and upon hearing that I intended to visit you, he entrusted me with a question."

Li Bai asked bluntly, "Why did the Magistrate not come himself?"

The old Abbot chuckled. "The Magistrate has no reason to present himself, and he dared not disturb you rashly."

"And what is this matter?" Jiang She asked.

The old Abbot explained in detail. Last year, the imperial court issued a decree: this year, in the autumn and winter of the thirteenth year of the Kaiyuan era, the Emperor would travel to Mount Tai to perform the Feng and Shan sacrifices. According to the decree, the entourage was to include capital officials of the fifth rank and above, foreign envoys, members of the Li Tang imperial family, and meritorious ministers along with their descendants.

Furthermore, the Emperor ordered Taoists to set up altars at the foot of Mount Tai to conduct rituals and ceremonies, praying for favorable weather, the prosperity of the state, and the peace of the people. He also commanded officials in various regions to discover auspicious signs—such as the purple clouds that recently appeared over Mount Tai, or the reports from the "Master of the Taoist Gate," Sima Chengzhen, who claimed that the deity of Mount Tai had bestowed a blessing.

Li Bai interjected from the side, "Surely Magistrate Cheng does not intend for Master Jiang to serve as an 'auspicious sign'?"

The old Abbot laughed heartily. "Do not let the Magistrate hear you say that, Master Li, or he would be frightened out of his wits. He would never dare..."

He wiped away the tears brought on by his laughter and continued, "Because of the sacrifices, the Sage has summoned many men of the Way to travel to Mount Tai together. The Magistrate wishes to ask if you are willing to go; he would be honored to provide an introduction."

The old Abbot added, "And I, too, suspect that this Daoist Jingchen might be among them. The world is vast, and finding one person is a daunting task, but this could be a chance to try."

"Indeed!"

"If you possess profound Taoist arts that allow you to locate him directly, then pray, ignore everything this old man has said."

The sun began to dip toward the horizon, and the light grew dim. Thick, grey clouds piled up across half the sky, leaving the air stifling and humid—a heavy rain was approaching. Jiang She made a calculation with his fingers. Li Bai, the old Abbot, and Taoist Lian Yue all held their breath, fearing to disturb the immortal’s divination.

After a few moments, Jiang She smiled. "It seems I truly must make the trip." He pondered for a moment before adding, "As for Magistrate Cheng... Abbot, please decline on my behalf. I am accustomed to a life of leisure; I fear the Imperial House and I are not fated to be together."

It was a simple, flat statement, yet Li Bai looked up sharply, catching the true attitude of a genuine immortal. It was not "I am not fated to be with the Imperial House," but "The Imperial House is not fated to be with me."

Master Jiang was always courteous to others, speaking gently and politely even to the workers at the tea stall, never uttering a harsh word. His tone with the Abbot was equally mild and calm. Yet, the immortal aura emanating from him was overwhelming. To him, the human Emperor, the local magistrate, the poor, and the refugees were all seen as equals. No matter one's political achievements, official rank, or how high and powerful one’s position—even if one were born of noble blood—all were merely mortals.

Li Bai fell into deep thought. The old Abbot seemed to grasp this as well, sighing deeply. "I regret that I was born several decades too early. If I had met Master Jiang sixty years ago—no, even ten years ago—I would have sworn to follow you, worshiping at your gate every day."

Jiang She made no response to this. The old Abbot, sensing the truth, sighed inwardly. He finished his tea and took his leave.

...

After the dragon boat races on the fifth day of the fifth month, another half-month passed. Xiangyang City was hotter, but otherwise unchanged.

One day, while drinking tea on the mountain with the Old Deer Mountain God and reading travelogues, the Mountain God smiled. "Master, you seem to have grown restless in your stillness."

Jiang She agreed. "When I lived in seclusion, I felt nothing of the sort. But once one begins to move, one wishes to see more, to witness the wonders of the world."

The Old Deer Mountain God remarked, "For immortals and deities, wandering is like this: to travel the North Sea in the morning and reach Cangwu by dusk."

"Yet I do not wish to move so quickly," Jiang She replied, turning a page of his book. "If one were to see all the affairs of the world and traverse every landscape in a single day, how would one spend the days that followed? I prefer to slow down, to walk through it step by step, to know it bit by bit."

The Lumen Mountain God empathized. For deities like them, whose lifespans were so long they were considered immortal in the eyes of mortals, he had personally watched over the Lu family for hundreds of years. He had seen the death of the original Master Lu and the gradual withering of his descendants, and he knew the bitterness of such experiences. Having seen so much life and death, he understood the truth in Jiang She’s words.

"We who walk the path of Tao can see the remainder of our own lifespans from the moment we set foot on it," the Old Deer Mountain God asked. "Our world is very different from that of mortals. I wonder, what does the world look like through the eyes of an immortal?"

Having spent much time together, the Old Deer Mountain God was curious about how someone like Master Jiang viewed such things.

Jiang She thought for a moment. "I look out, and I cannot see the end." His tone remained gentle and calm. "And there is also a great terror."

As he spoke, Jiang She took out the map of the ten regions that Magistrate Cheng had gifted him. It depicted the Great Tang empire; lands further afield were unrecorded, and many miraculous places or the fairy isles mentioned in ancient texts were absent. It was a lonely world.

Jiang She looked down, his gaze falling upon Mount Tai, tracing the path through the prefectures he would need to travel. Opposite him, the Old Deer Mountain God sat, long unable to recover his composure. He felt as though he were looking upon those ancient legends of gods and immortals, and that a single sentence from him was as ancient as a thousand years.

Times change, eras pass; men die, books rot, plants wither and bloom, mountains collapse and rivers run dry, and dynasties perish.

All living things die.

Only I remain.