Revelation of the Way of Heaven

Du Cheng turned his gaze from the oil painting to Qin Xiaochuan's face and said with a smile, "It is unexpected to meet Brother Xiao here today, but it is not a bad thing."

"My surname isn't Xiao, it's Qin," Qin Xiaochuan replied without any politeness.

Upon hearing this, Du Cheng carefully examined Qin Xiaochuan and said without changing his expression, "Judging from your state, you seem to have already begun to comprehend the Great Dao. I remember once discussing the Dao with Brother Xiao over wine, which was quite a pleasant experience. Since we meet again here today, how about we enjoy some tea and discuss the Dao together?"

"There's nothing I can't do," Qin Xiaochuan said without hesitation. He had been looking for an opportunity to find out more about the other party, but he hadn't expected them to come knocking on his door.

"Then please." Du Cheng gestured for him to proceed. Qin Xiaochuan, carrying his tote bag in both hands, strode confidently and calmly toward a booth on the side of the exhibition hall.

"Sister Kexin..." Guo Shiyi said to Han Kexin with some concern, but hesitated to speak.

"Don't worry, it's fine. The other party won't do anything excessive in public, especially since there's an art exhibition here. Judging from his tone, he seems to have great respect for this painter named Lin Xia. It seems we need to investigate this person thoroughly; perhaps we can find out his true purpose," Han Kexin said coldly.

Next to the exhibition hall is a small tea room. The tea room is very simple in its furnishings. In the center is a huge wooden tea table, which can be seen to be made from a whole tree root. The edges still retain their natural shape. On each side of the tea table are two low cushions.

Du Cheng gestured for Qin Xiaochuan to sit down. Qin Xiaochuan didn't stand on ceremony, put his bag aside, and sat down naturally. As soon as Du Cheng sat down on the other side, a waitress came in with a tea set.

After the waiter left, Du Cheng patiently placed the tea set on the tea table and then began a complex and precise oolong tea ceremony—warming the cups and rinsing the teacups, pouring the tea from a height, his movements were fluid and graceful, carrying an undeniable sense of ritual.

Qin Xiaochuan sat cross-legged opposite him, his posture relaxed, even somewhat lazy, completely out of place in the austere atmosphere. He watched as Du Cheng poured the clear, orange-yellow tea into a teacup and pushed it in front of him, a faint, almost imperceptible, smirk playing on his lips.

"Are you referring to the Way of Tea when you say 'discussing the Way'?" Qin Xiaochuan didn't touch the small cup, his gaze fixed on Du Cheng. "Then I'm sorry, you've come to the wrong person. I'm not an expert in this art."

Du Cheng slightly raised his eyelids, his hands continuing their work as he poured himself a cup. "Isn't the way of tea also a way?" he asked calmly. "The way of tea emphasizes harmony, tranquility, pleasure, and truth—doesn't that perfectly align with the spirit of the Great Way?"

"In my opinion, your tea ceremony is nothing but pretentious affectation and showing off your elegance," Qin Xiaochuan said disdainfully. "If your mind is unattached, whether you drink like an old ox or savor it like Lu Yu, you are on the right path." Before he finished speaking, he picked up the teacup that was supposed to be savored and drank the tea in one gulp, his movements rough and devoid of any elegance.

Du Cheng stared at him, his gaze deepening. "The heart is bound by something? Hmph, in my view, the Dao lies in a single thought." He extended his right index finger, pointing it into the empty cup before Qin Xiaochuan. A wisp of pure spiritual energy emanated from his fingertip, transforming into a clear stream of water that precisely poured into Qin Xiaochuan's empty cup. "Just like this tea, if the heart is unattached, the tea will be cut off, and the Dao will lose its foundation."

The water flowed steadily, carrying Du Cheng's powerful will. However, when it was half full, the flow abruptly stopped, suspended in mid-air, as if by an invisible boundary.

Qin Xiaochuan glanced at the half-full cup of tea, then looked up at Du Cheng, his gaze sharp. "Your thought has ended, but mine has arisen again." Spiritual energy emanated from his body; without any visible movement, the stagnant water flow resumed on its own, smoothly filling the teacup until the surface was level with the rim, without a ripple. "So, is it the Dao that arose because of your thought, or is it your thought that exists because of the Dao?"

Two invisible spiritual forces kept converging and colliding within the small teacup, causing it to tremble slightly and emit a faint hum.

A cold glint flashed in Du Cheng's eyes as he said, "If you don't generate any thoughts, how can you confirm the existence of the Dao?" His tone turned icy. "It's like having no teacup; what will you use to hold the tea?"

"Snap!"

With a crisp crack! The exquisite white porcelain teacup could no longer withstand the pressure from the two completely different yet equally powerful spiritual energies. The cup suddenly cracked with countless fine lines and shattered!

The porcelain shards didn't scatter; instead, they were gently enveloped and slowly landed on the tea table. Even more surprisingly, the tea in the cup didn't spill or fall.

"The tea doesn't exist because of the teacup," Qin Xiaochuan's voice remained calm. "If you observe the Dao with your thoughts, it's like observing tea through a teacup, seeing the tea as the shape of the teacup, when in reality, tea can be any shape. Only by letting go of thoughts and giving rise to a mind free from external appearances can one avoid being bound by them." With that, he extended a finger and gently touched the clump of tea floating in the air. The tea seemed to come alive, quickly gathering and condensing into a perfectly round, translucent water sphere, slowly rotating in the air.

Du Cheng stared at the suspended water sphere, his pupils shrinking slightly. He then snorted coldly, "If there is no thought in the heart, how can the mind arise? When the mind arises, thoughts arise; when thoughts arise, the mind arises. How can the two be separated?" His spiritual energy surged, attempting to interfere with or even control the water sphere with his own spiritual energy. The spiritual energy of the two collided and surged in the air, and the water sphere also spun rapidly along with their spiritual energy.

"The Way of Heaven is vast and boundless, yet it never ceases its cycle." Qin Xiaochuan looked at his opponent calmly, his aura steady, and slowly said, "Cease your thoughts and stop pondering; let your Dao heart operate naturally. Why should you give rise to thoughts?"

As soon as the words fell, the water sphere in the air seemed to have completely broken free from all constraints. It was no longer "tea" or "water sphere." It transformed into a wisp of pure water vapor, which spread out and then disappeared into nothingness as if it had never existed.

The two looked at each other sharply, neither willing to concede.

"Hahaha." Du Cheng suddenly burst into laughter, but just as Qin Xiaochuan was puzzled, he abruptly stopped laughing, stared into Qin Xiaochuan's eyes with a venomous gaze, and coldly said, "According to you, I'm really curious, if I killed Guo Shiyi right here today, could you still remain unmoved? Can you still say you're not tormented by your obsession?"

Qin Xiaochuan felt a chill run through his heart, but his gaze immediately turned cold. He clenched his fists and asked, word by word, "What do you mean?"

Du Cheng saw Qin Xiaochuan's reaction and a mocking smile appeared on his face again. He said casually, "Of course, it means what you said. To be honest, I did have that plan, but she just happens to be the one who can understand the painting."