Murim's Weakest Princess-Chapter 238: Walk a Mile In Someone’s Shoes

Although not daily, Yan Ping checked in on Anji regularly. Anji did not mind. After all, she was only tasked to do a lot of reading and journaling to document and review her findings with her teacher.

However, the sheer depth of understanding the last few sections of the Heart Sutra stumped her. It was as if every word she read refused to be acknowledged by her eyes. The struggle was frustrating enough that Anji had to take a breather from her reading.

After nearly three weeks of not making further progress, Yan Ping sat down with her successor. It had finally come to this.

If it were up to Yan Ping, she would never recommend this method for training. Most of the people who chose to undergo acceleration training were those who had lived at least one human lifespan of eighty years, in addition to meeting all the requirements to break through to the Enlightened Core.

"The easiest way to understand someone is to walk a mile in their shoes," Yan Ping began. "I understand you’ve been having troubles simulating the sages and their interpretation of the Heart Sutra."

Feeling ashamed at her lack of ability to understand the more profound teachings, Anji bowed her head in silence. While Anji understood the concept of impermanence and death, she could not understand the greater act of abandoning wisdom in pursuit of empty compassion. After all, it went against the very teachings of her upbringing.

"How old are you?"

The question surprised Anji as it had nothing to do with her training or progress.

"Eight, shifu."

The red ribbon on her longevity lock was the newest addition, marking another year she had lived. She promised to finish her training by ten. However, at this rate, she might not even finish it by twenty.

Eight. Yan Ping had lived several centuries, and the number reminded her just how much time she would be robbing from the child with the last resort. However, she could not decide for Anji. Her successor’s resolve mattered just as much.

"Must you really complete the successor training in the next two years?" she asked once more.

Instead of wavering, Anji nodded with resolve.

"But wanting to finish it is not the same as being able to," she sighed sadly. "Anji was too naive. The interpretations of the Heart Sutra by sages in these journals are too profound. It might take me until twenty to truly understand them."

Yan Ping snorted.

"Twenty? If you can accomplish that by twenty, these sages would be rolling in their graves from frustration. Even geniuses need to be at least forty to understand it."

Hearing how severely she had underestimated the difficulty, Anji’s jaw fell. She knew it was difficult. However, she had no idea it would be this difficult. Panic quickly set in. She did not have that much time if she wanted to finish it in two years. Surely, there had to be another way!

Sensing Anji’s desperation, the answer was clear to Yan Ping. It was a method she did not want to use if possible. However, Anji’s determination had spoken. She would resent Yan Ping forever if she were not given the option to try.

"There is a method to achieve this quicker," Yan Ping stated carefully. "However, the speed is entirely up to you and your health. Many who attempted it have become insane. You can see just how many crazy people we have in the Mystical Qilin Sect. It’s the terrible side effect, even after we tried to prepare those undergoing this training thoroughly."

Like all new experiments, there will be unknown side effects. Anji was fully aware of the risk. She thought many of the sect members were originally this eccentric. However, Yan Ping explained that it was only partially due to their personality.

"If you have visited the outer court, they are relatively more sane. Those living in the Mystical Qilin Sect as non-cultivators might be a little quirky. However, they do not have this strange obsession and lack of fear or hesitation that those in the inner court do."

Now that Yan Ping mentioned it, Anji realised it was true. There was a distinct conviction that the Mystical Qilin Sect held, compared to the other orthodox sects. Many outside the sect only knew that they prioritised knowledge and he pursuit of truth. Secluding themselves from the noise of the outside world was what many assumed was their form of intense cultivation. Yet, when they opened the sect temporarily to the Rainbow Alliance, something was different about the scholars of the Mystical Qilin Sect. Anji noticed this. However, she thought it was merely a training difference until her teacher brought it up.

"The Heart Sutra teaches about embracing nothingness. However, for many who have undergone this special method of training, the meaning of nothingness becomes distorted from peace and acceptance into one of fearlessness and recklessness. When the fear of death is removed from a human, they become what you see. Fear is a human limiter. It is what differentiates mortals and sages. But half-sages do let fear manage them or manage fear. They chase it, like many of your seniors do. It makes them crazy in the eyes of both mortals and sages."

Anji reflected and shuddered when she realised it was true. If she had to describe the people she knew, they were like moths throwing themselves at a flame. Many would stare into the abyss and jump in with a big smile on their face. Death was not as scary as the unknown, and she knew many people who would die to find out the truth. Even among the elders, there were people like this.

"Shifu, did you not go through the training? Is that why you’re not like the rest of them? Will I turn out like them as well if I choose to go through the special training method?"

...

"Do I seem sane to you?" Yan Ping asked, purely out of curiosity.

Anji blinked. What kind of question was that?

"You seem saintly. We cannot judge saints the same way we do with humans, can we? My father always told me how you were the wisest person to walk this world. If there was something even you did not know, then it must not exist. After all, some people even worship your existence as a living God."

Hearing the genuine reply, Yan Ping sighed.

Anji expected her teacher to nod in acceptance. If anything, she thought her teacher would feel flattered by such high praise. The reaction caught her off guard. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

"Ci Wang, there is one thing you must remember. No matter how powerful, smart or strong a cultivator becomes, they are still human if they cannot escape the effects of time. I am human, just like you and everyone else. I simply chose to react differently to the accelerated training program because, unlike the rest who have devoted their purpose to knowledge, I have the duty to lead the Mystical Qilin Sect. That was the only difference. I’m not sane. And I’m not a saint. At the end of the day, I’m just an old lady who has lived too many years and seen too many things. I’m tired."

Shocked by the unexpected revelation, Anji began to see the weariness hidden beneath Yan Ping’s stoic façade. She never considered it before. However, it only made her resolve firmer. If other seniors went through the program because of their thirst for knowledge, she would focus all her energy on becoming stronger because she had a war to end.

"Shifu, Anji will undergo the special training in hopes of helping ease some of your burden. Please tell me what I need to do."