Chapter 228: That Was a Long Time Ago

Today Wei Yi Yi learned something: that everyone has a small, unsightly personal quirk.

But some people are different; they seem to have no sense of shame and disdain hiding this oddity before others.

But for some reason, even though she and Wang Wu were merely strangers and not even well acquainted, she stubbornly stayed outside the carriage for over an hour.

Until midway, the carriage curtain was lifted, and she saw…

One can only say that aristocratic life is indeed utterly absurd. No wonder so many people want to become nobles, or belong to one of those great families.

Because of humanity's most primal desires, because of human nature.

They have power and wealth, so those born into such families often can act even more recklessly.

Even though, given the administrative standards of Chu, such reckless treatment of the lives of aristocratic youths wouldn't occur near the capital, the tricks they can pull are already far beyond ordinary people's imagination.

Although Wang Wu arrived outside Ying Du early, he didn't enter the city until it was almost night.

Because some unexpected incidents en route caused a delay, but it was no big deal, as the matter had already been resolved.

After solving the problem, Wang Wu entered Ying Du alone as a demon; the female cultivator who had been traveling with him left in a hurry because the delay was too long.

As for the Chu noblewoman who caused his long delay, Wang Wu took fierce revenge and humiliated her, making her understand that even though he is a demon, she cannot insult him at will.

Men—no, male demons—have dignity, and anyone who tramples and floors that dignity will inevitably face his boundless retaliation.

Sometimes, traveling alone is quite nice.

Yes, Wang Wu is on summer break now; even though it's not summer yet, that doesn't matter—he's on break.

When he was still on Earth, he often imagined taking a trip as soon as he got a job and a vacation, but unfortunately, before he could find a job, he already transmigrated.

Although by then he had been out of college for a while, he still stayed at home, mooching off his parents, playing games, waiting for exams, instead of looking for a job.

That period isn't far from the present, yet for some reason, in Wang Wu's memory it feels as if it was long, long ago.

Many of his past Earth experiences remain clear, even sharper than those from when he first arrived here. As his cultivation realm advanced, he can even recall the scenes from his infancy clearly.

But Wang Wu doesn't dwell on them, because they're not pleasant experiences. With his body strengthened and his realm elevated, recalling that memory now feels entirely different.

A heavy body, murky air, and that overly fragile world.

Even though a newborn's body should be the most vital, in Wang Wu's current view that body is lifeless and heavy.

This is the chasm between the extraordinary and the ordinary; the gap between the present Wang Wu and his former self is already vast.

However, this does not mean Wang Wu no longer feels he is his former self; such self‑recognition doubt does not arise for someone like him.

Moreover, even ordinary Earthlings from his hometown have cells that constantly renew throughout life, except for certain cells.

In his hometown's terms, a person is a Ship of Theseus, continuously replaced over time. Of course, some cells cannot be endlessly renewed, so the analogy isn't entirely apt.

However, after reaching the Complete Realm, Wang Wu has indeed replaced his entire body inside and out, not just the cells but also his brain.

After all, the most crucial step in the Fourth‑grade Complete Realm is "brain reorganization," which, like his name, is a process of fully restructuring the brain.

Disrupt, then reconstruct.

Yet this obviously doesn't mean the present Wang Wu isn't the former Wang Wu, because after transmigrating he learned of something: the existence of the "soul."

As for what the soul is, even the Earth of his master's hometown lacks solid research. The former human empire did explore it a bit, but people soon stopped paying attention.

Because the nature of the soul was unimportant to the old human empire, and manipulating souls was not of interest to its people.

They had little pursuit of life and death, or of immortality and eternal existence, which differs greatly from the human civilization of Wang Wu's hometown.

They did not chase the so‑called "eternity," nor did they vigorously pursue transcendence of their civilization beyond their own universe to broader realms.

For their civilization, the greatest purpose of existence is killing—no, war.

From birth to demise, violence and destruction are etched into this civilization's DNA. Of course, some enlightened individuals within the civilization have become aware of this issue.

Thus, when creating the New Humans, although their primary purpose was to enable humanity to wage war more effectively, the New Humans are indeed less fanatical than the old humans.

Yet the New Humans clearly have little interest in mastering soul reincarnation to achieve an eternal empire, or perhaps they haven't reached that stage of interest yet.

After all, although they inherited almost all the production means of the old human empire, humanity is still in a developmental phase, and many star systems where New Human civilizations reside lack resources.

And it's not just their own star system; the entire universe is scarce in resources.

The old humans' overexploitation of the cosmos has left universal resources barren and scarce, which is undoubtedly fatal for surviving and nascent civilizations.

Even those star regions that luckily escaped the old empire's warfire did so not because the old humans never reached them, but because there were hardly any resources there.

Without resources, they attract little attention and happen to survive wars by chance.

Star regions that already host civilizations might enjoy a period of stability, then wait for the outer universe to calm, waiting for the cosmos, which has been raging for countless years, to finally settle.

For star regions without any civilization, even hundreds of millions of years cannot raise the probability of life arising to one hundred percent.

Although the life in the universe where his master resides has a relatively higher chance of originating, and a higher chance of forming a civilization, perhaps that civilization is simply luckier.

Yet overall, it's still low.

However, these ultimate philosophical questions are not for Wang Wu to consider; he's just an ordinary person, at most a slightly muscular ordinary person.

He would not waste even a single brain cell on matters concerning humanity's essential civilizational destiny.

Speaking of it, although the current Wang Wu still has "structures" in his body akin to cells, they are now completely different from typical carbon‑based life forms.

As for what form of life Wang Wu now constitutes, uh… such a question needn't be probed; better to let it rest for now.

Continuing onward, before the sun set, Wang Wu reached the massive walls of Ying Du, the capital of Chu.

On the way forward, he encountered a father and daughter, just as he did when first heading to He Dong Xian.

But unlike that time, this time his companion raised no alarm in the pair, because the aura he emitted could not possibly be related to any Yao Mo Gui Gui.

Even if they are demons, demons are quite common in Chu and can walk openly on the road without worrying about humans' attitudes toward them.

Because Chu people are tolerant of demons, demons enjoy great freedom there—go wherever they wish, never intercepted.

Of course, entering the city still requires a brief inspection, mainly to see whether they've eaten humans and how many.

Because Chu's harmonious relations with the demon race lead them to mingle often, such an environment gives rise to collaborations between humans and demons unseen elsewhere.

For example, assisting humans in handling corpses.

As is well known, mishandling human corpses can cause serious trouble; whether cremated or buried, special processing is required before interment.

And if the handling of corpses is left to monsters, the problem would be easily solved, and the cost would be low.

But for monsters, unless they truly have nothing to eat, humans are indeed not high on their menu.

The main reason is that they taste bad; the lack of nutritional value is secondary, except for cultivators.

What cultivators value most is their human core; as for the flesh, that kind of meat is never more valuable than the meat of a monster beast.

It tastes bad, they don't like it. But for money, they can sometimes tolerate it.

Of course, the premise is that it is fresh enough. Even a carrion eater before transformation would still prefer fresh food after transforming.

If conditions aren't harsh, who would willingly eat rotten food?

Helping the human race handle corpses is a very lucrative trade, yet even so, few monsters are willing to take it up.

Because unlike other nations, the Chu Kingdom's tolerance toward the monster race has led to deep integration with human society, making it extremely easy for them to obtain food.

Since obtaining other foods, especially the ones they like, is so easy, why would they eat food they don't really like?

Thus, at this point, the lure of profit appears.

Just as some people will eat excrement for money, there are monsters who, for profit, will pinch their noses and handle human corpses.

Specialized corpse haulers hand the bodies to monster funeral workers, who then arrange everything properly and finally place the prepared corpses in coffins for a grand burial.

The father in this father‑daughter pair is a corpse hauler.

Sure, the name sounds rather mysterious, but in fact it's just an ordinary profession. Uh, it's ordinary here; back in the old hometown it does seem more mysterious.

After all, they truly can manipulate corpses.

Although they are not sect members, they can still perform minor techniques; they are the "Fashi" among humans, a very low‑level transcendental—if not, they don't even qualify as transcendental.

Because they possess no so‑called transcendental power, their lifespan is no different from ordinary humans.

The little girl's father is taking his daughter to Yingdu to visit relatives; according to this corpse hauler, he has a son who serves in the Yingdu government as a clerk, and reportedly, despite his youth, has already become a Fifth-rank Clerk.

At this rate, it is estimated that before he turns forty he could officially become an official of the Great Chu Kingdom, whose compensation far exceeds that of a clerk.

In this world, humans age slowly and the average lifespan is longer, so sixty is still considered prime, and only after eighty does one enter old age, with bodily functions beginning to decline.

After ninety, their bodies begin to age rapidly, deteriorating day by day, and they usually die around a hundred.

A forty‑year‑old official, a civilian official, is indeed seen as having limitless prospects among ordinary people, only slightly behind families that have cultivators.

If one can advance further, they naturally surpass the lowest‑rank cultivators and become a well‑known figure among common folk.

Therefore, when he mentions his son, the corpse hauler father's face is filled with pride.

The corpse hauler's daughter is cute; at her age children aren't yet judged for beauty, and as long as they aren't hideously ugly, kids that age are generally very cute.

And she is no exception.

"Wang, Wang brother, where is that Earth you mentioned?"

On the road, bored and suddenly reminded of the topic, Wang Wu began talking to the little girl and her father about his hometown, leaving the two listening in stunned silence.

Nowadays, most people know that beyond their own planet there are other civilizations, and many cultural products of the March people have arrived here and spread rapidly.

Because these items are extremely cheap and entertaining, they quickly became popular among the masses.

The little girl wears around her chest a device Wang Wu doesn't recognize, but it appears to be some kind of communication gadget, resembling a tablet or a mobile phone.

"In a far‑away place, what I'm telling is a story from long ago."

Wang Wu replied with a smile.

(End of Chapter)