Chapter 739: Six Ten Thousand

Chapter 739: Sixty Thousand

"Young man, don't just read books all day. If you follow the teachings of the Deception Scripture, you'll learn nothing. Let me teach you—our Way of Forgetting has no place for deceit."

Li Huowang sat in the teahouse, sipping tea while listening to Liu Shi, who stood before him, speak these shocking words.

"Deception is always the most primitive. To deceive, you must make them deceive themselves." A man with beady eyes and a bushy mustache explained to the boy standing before him.

"As long as they can deceive themselves, even the most absurd lie will seem true."

At that moment, an emaciated old woman, carrying a basket of vegetables, walked past the teahouse.

"Look at this Liu Shi. Her husband was conscripted as a foot soldier and hasn’t returned in over ten years. Anyone with sense knows he won’t come back, but she still refuses to believe it. She insists her husband will return someday."

"That’s self-deception. You don’t even need to know what her husband looks like. People who are trapped in their own delusion are the easiest to fool. Watch closely."

Liu Shi wiped his face, and suddenly, a white-haired, ragged beggar appeared before Li Huowang.

*Clang!* Liu Shi knocked the rim of his bowl, then shuffled toward the old woman with trembling steps.

Though far away, Li Huowang couldn’t hear anything, but he saw Liu Shi cautiously speaking to the woman. Immediately, she let go of her basket, which fell to the ground. She rushed forward, crying bitterly.

After such a long separation, the two embraced tearfully and walked home together.

Soon, Liu Shi returned, still dressed as the beggar.

"Did you see? That's how simple it is."

"You didn’t actually deceive her," Li Huowang said, tossing some peanuts into his mouth.

"Who said I didn’t? As long as I want, she’ll feed me well for life. Even if she dies, her son, afraid of being called unfilial by neighbors, will still take care of me in his old age."

"This technique is called 'the crow occupying the magpie’s nest.' Some elderly con artists, tired from their tricks, use this method to spend their final years in comfort."

Li Huowang took a sip of tea. "After spending so much time together, don’t you fear she’ll notice something’s wrong? After all, it's her own husband."

"Ah~ That's exactly where this trick shines. Think about it—what can a lonely old woman do when she realizes something’s off? Will she dare to speak up?"

"Under the constraints of the Three Bonds and Five Constants, would she dare tell others that the man she waited for for over a decade, the one who slept with her for months, is actually a fraud?"

"She didn’t wait for her husband; instead, she was defiled by a stranger, bringing shame upon her family. If word got out, the neighbors would tear her apart. Would she even survive?"

"Compared to such a despairing fate, deceiving oneself might just be a case of overthinking. Isn’t that easier to accept?"

"Heh, senior, you're truly beastly."

"Beastly? Humans and beasts are made of flesh. Humans are beasts. All this talk of benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and music is nonsense. Because people believe in all this nonsense, we can still play tricks so easily."

After placing down his cup, Liu Shi continued, "Our Way of Forgetting thrives on grand deception. The bigger the deception, the greater the change it brings to others—and the more Non-Solid Energy (Fei Gang) we receive from the Heavenly Sovereign."

"Non-Solid Energy?" Li Huowang asked, puzzled.

"Call it whatever you want—it's just that thing. I call it Non-Solid Energy. With it, we can perform the techniques of the Way of Forgetting."

"Simple ones, like disguise or illusion. More complex ones, like making puppets or secret agents. And the more you deceive, the more addicted you become, the more fun it gets! Your skills improve naturally!"

"So that’s how it works. Thank you, senior, for your guidance."

Li Huowang showed a glimmer of longing for such powers.

"But remember, our Way of Forgetting has principles. We can’t deceive just for Non-Solid Energy—it’s too vulgar. In this world, the real reason we deceive is for joy, for entertainment. As long as we’re good at it, there’s no limit to how much Non-Solid Energy we can gain."

"Making money through deception? What’s that compared to the joy of laughing heartily because of it? That’s real skill."

"Exactly! Brother Liu Shi, I’ve always loved playing tricks. That’s why I joined the Way of Forgetting."

"Oh my, young man, you’re getting it fast. But you still have a ways to go before you can fool me. I know you—you didn’t come here on your own."

"Our Way of Forgetting recruits people through deception. You were deceived into joining us."

Seeing Li Huowang remain silent, Liu Shi added, "No worries, it’s not a big deal. I was the same way when I first entered. Even the current leader of the Dice Sect came in the same way."

Li Huowang smiled. "This deception is pretty clumsy. I wasn’t aiming for anything—I just wanted to test how much Non-Solid Energy I could get if I fooled you."

"Ohhh~ So you want Non-Solid Energy? You should’ve said so earlier. I’ve got a plan right now. How about we team up?"

"As long as the job goes through, there’s no limit to how much Non-Solid Energy we’ll get."

Liu Shi raised his teacup and took a sip, then looked at Li Huowang thoughtfully. "When I was deceiving that person, did you poison my bowl?"

"Nope," Li Huowang replied calmly.

The two exchanged smiles, raised their teacups high, clinked them together, and poured each other’s tea into their own cups. They drank deeply.

Liu Shi smacked his lips. "That poison isn’t strong enough. It’s a bit weak. Poison is something those women in the camp are really good at."

Li Huowang didn’t respond, simply bowed to Liu Shi. "Alright, I’m in. Thank you, senior Liu Shi, for your support. How do we pull off this deception?"

"How can you call it deception? We’re helping people. Let’s go~"

Seeing Liu Shi leave the table, Li Huowang followed.

The two walked side by side down the clean street, indistinguishable from the crowd bustling around them.

"Senior, who are we helping?" Li Huowang asked.

"We help the good people, of course. Listen, Non-Solid Energy depends on who you deceive. The lower the target, the less you get."

"The lowest are ordinary people. Slightly higher are those who can read and write. Then come officials. And finally, those from the fringe sects."

"In short, the greater the impact, the more Non-Solid Energy you earn."

"Oh~ I see. Then, if we deceive the emperor, wouldn’t we get the most?"

"Of course. Do you know how our current Dice Sect leader rose to power?"

(End of Chapter)