The Sims: I Open the Immortal Path for All Beings

Chapter 783: Chapter 733: A Favor for a Scoop of Rice, A Grudge for a Scoop of Rice

When you give little favour to others and they can repay it, it deepens the mutual friendship.

But when the debt is so great that they can’t repay it even if they give everything they have, this creates immense pressure for the receiver of the favor.

Gratitude should be mutual, with both sides providing help to strengthen the relationship. But if one side is always giving and the other is constantly taking, unable to return the favor, the relationship is bound to deteriorate.

This becomes particularly distorted when it involves cultivators or increasingly powerful figures with deep vested interests.

Such is the case between the Great Ming Divine Dynasty and Pei Xuanjing. Pei Xuanjing’s contributions to the Great Ming Divine Dynasty are so immense that even if the entire Dynasty were to be emptied, it might not be enough to repay his initial favor.

This is quite terrifying, especially for the emperor of the Great Ming Divine Dynasty, Zhu Houji.

It was Pei Xuanjing who helped him ascend the throne and become the emperor of the Great Ming Empire. Later, Zhu Houji became a nominal disciple of Pei Xuanjing, using his mentor’s power to secure his position as emperor.

Pei Xuanjing taught him the God Refining Skill, set Zhu’s journey on the path of cultivation and later promoted the advancement of the Great Ming Empire to the Divine Dynasty. He assisted in stabilizing the state of the court and facilitated the development of the Great Ming Divine Dynasty. What a great debt of gratitude!

Zhu Houji and the council elders of the Great Ming Divine Dynasty understood the situation. Pei Xuanjing, being one of the parties involved, was also clear about it.

But things have already come to this point. Even if Pei Xuanjing intentionally wanted to downplay the situation, he found it difficult to eradicate.

He was aware that his existence exerts a significant impact on the Great Ming Divine Dynasty, putting immense pressure on them, and thus he intended to diminish his influence.

But it was futile. His continuous growth inadvertently affected everything around him, something none could change.

“This is an insoluble situation,” Zhu Houji sighed heavingly more than once.

Zhu Houji is not ungrateful, but aside from himself, he also plays the role of the emperor. Even if Pei Xuanjing does nothing, the enormous debt and pressure constantly burden Zhu, making it hard for him to relax.

So, he wished to get rid of Pei Xuanjing’s protection, to repay the debt, to dismiss the debt of gratitude, but he was unable to do so. It became a dilemma.

“But the disclaimer seems meaningless now,” Zhu Houji laughed bitterly and shook his head: “At least in my mind, I have never thought about cutting off ties with Master Pei.”

Although he was burdened with the unrepayable debt of gratitude from Pei Xuanjing, Zhu Houji was not the type to forget past kindnesses and considered the only way to remove Pei’s influence was by severing ties.

So regardless of his own continuous growth, what he intended to do was repay Pei using his abilities instead of acting rashly like the Witch God Sect Leader assumed, thinking he would cut ties with Master Pei.

Apart from the gratitude he owed to Pei Xuanjing, considering the current balance of power in Heaven and Earth, the Great Ming Divine Dynasty was relatively strong but still not very stable. Choosing to sever ties with Pei Xuanjing would benefit the Great Ming Divine Dynasty in no way. Losing Pei Xuanjing’s protection and opposing him would only worsen the circumstances. This was not in line with his interests.

“Sometimes, how you feel is one aspect, but we also have to see how others perceive it,” Wu Shijiu said meaningfully.

Having been with Zhu for decades, he believed that he understood the ruler fairly well. To Wu Shijiu, Zhu’s attitude towards Pei Xuanjing was rather complex.

Zhu was like a child that Pei Xuanjing has always taken care of and nurtured. Now that the child has grown up and become powerful, he wanted to break free from the constraints of his elder, refusing to stay under his elder’s wings, wanting to prove his own strength and independence.

However, only those who understood Zhu Houji relatively well would know this. For others, as the emperor of the Great Ming Divine Dynasty, Zhu Houji should have absolute power and control. However, Pei Xuanjing’s existence and influence imposed great restrictions on Zhu Houji and limited his power, which is undeniable. So under such circumstances, it seemed natural that the two close collaborators would part ways.

Zhu Houji fell silent when he heard Wu Shijiu’s words, obviously realizing this point too.

……

While Zhu Houji and Wu Shijiu, who were in the Imperial City, were discussing Pei Xuanjing, they were unaware that Pei Xuanjing had already arrived at the Taoist Academy in Tiandu.

Pei Xuanjing was not aware of what was happening here, but the reason why he had chosen to stay within Shenxiao Mountain over these years was that he realized he couldn’t stay in Tiandu for long. He was trying to minimize his influence on the Great Ming Divine Dynasty.

However, even though Pei Xuanjing intentionally reduced his influence, it inevitably existed. Not only did it not decrease, but it also became stronger with his increasing power.

At this situation, Pei Xuanjing could only laugh and cry, eventually letting things develop naturally. Despite this, he still tried to limit his visits to Tiandu as much as possible.

This time, he had secluded himself for quite some time. As the Dean of the Taoist Academy, Pei Xuanjing could not ignore the academy’s development. Despite his complete trust in Qingyang Zi, the vice-dean, he still needed to attend to the academy’s affairs when he came out of seclusion, both emotionally and rationally.

“Thank you for taking care of things over the years, without your management, the academy wouldn’t have developed so quickly,” Pei Xuanjing thanked Qingyang Zi with a smile.

Presently, the forces under Pei Xuanjing could be divided into two factions: one was Shenxiao Sect where he came from, and the other was the Taoist Academy that he founded.

Both forces were established by Pei Xuanjing himself and grew through reliance on him. Despite this, these two groups barely interacted with each other, functioning independently besides belonging to the same lineage.

In the eyes of Shenxiao Sect disciples, they considered themselves the retainers of the ascending dragon, Pei Xuanjing. Similarly, since Pei Xuanjing was of Shenxiao Sect origin and later became the revitalizing lord of the sect, it was natural for the sect disciples to hold the highest prestige.

To Shenxiao Sect’s disciples, the various people in the Taoist Academy didn’t come across as close disciples of Pei Xuanjing. Primarily they were seen as a group of people who gathered under Pei Xuanjing’s influence.