"Why don't you try establishing a sect? With your knowledge, I am sure it will become the top sect in no time... Or, do you already have one?"

Xia Shuiyao was asking why Xia Tian don't utilize his knowledge.

Her thinking was going on the same line as other women who encounter immortals who have reincarnated by chance or possessed a mortal body due to reasons similar to Xia Chen.

Xia Tian chuckled.

He did not answer her question, instead asked something else.

"If you ever become an immortal with power and knowledge which surpasses everyone in the world, what will you do?"

Xia Shuiyao was already used to his way of talking.

She knew he won't answer her normally.

Yet, his words made her think, as a thoughtful look reflected on her face.

'Most powerful? Most knowledge... Doesn't it mean invincible?'

If she has all the knowledge of the world, she would have access to all those supreme-grade techniques which are even envied by peak immortals.

Just the very thought of it can make her a bit unsettled.

Xia Tian continued to observe her.

As for having a sect, he doesn't have any as he doesn't need it.

Cultivators mostly join the sect for cultivation techniques and other resources, and Xia Tian has no shortage of resources and techniques.

Having a sect may sound fun, but it is a sword that cut both ways.

It can make one man powerful, give him an army of cultivators yet make him responsible for the things he doesn't want to do.

Let's say a strong cultivator attacks or bullies a weak cultivator of his sect.

Then what?

Can Xia Tian just ignore it?

He will be forced to react and put that cultivator in place, which will be an easy task for Xia Tian, however, why go through all this trouble, when you can simply avoid it?

This is not understood by many, and they choose to establish a sect to gain power.

They indeed gain power, but at what cost?

By tieing themselves to a random bunch of people?

Growing alone is hard, but once you taste the feeling of it, you would never want to be dependent on anyone anymore, you will get addicted to that feeling...

Growing alone does not mean living in solitude, rather it means not being tied to any dependency-based relationship.

Many people mistake it for being a loner, which is completely wrong.

After a while, Xia Shuiyao had already thought of a proper answer.

She parted her lips and spoke.

"I would create a powerful sect... Live with people I like... I would make paint whenever I want... And.... "

Soon, she shook her head, this was pretty much it, she can only think of this much.

What is there to do after reaching that point?

Xia Tian can't help but smile.

"What is stopping you from doing all you said right now instead of waiting to become the strongest?"

??

Xia Shuiyao blinked her eyes, as her face turned expressionless.

'What is stopping me now?'

Indeed, what is stopping her from doing it all now?

Most people have dreams to climb their mountains...

The mountain represents their ultimate goal...

Just like those sons of destinies who wanted to be strong enough that no one can harm them or their families.

The son of destiny mostly wants to climb that mountain of the peak of cultivation!

That is his ultimate destination and goal!

Everyone has a certain ultimate destination in life... You can lie to others but to yourself...

The one who lies to himself... Can never live in peace...

Some have a goal of just going with the flow in life... That is also a mountain in itself...

So all have their goals which are represented by a mountain peak.

But nobody, ever thought what after it?

What after you have reached the peak of the mountain?

What after, once your goal is completed?

Living peacefully forever?

Living peacefully, haha!

You will soon fall into an existential crisis with no purpose anymore.

This is why rich people develop weird habits after reaching a certain point.

They don't see any purpose anymore.

But they can't die at the same time.

All they do is, somehow justify their existence sometimes by the way of philanthropy.

Some do it by developing weird habits like being a pedo, keeping a human slave, etc.

Being a pedo means being rich in most cases. It is truly expensive.

Even videos are sold for hundreds of dollars on the dark web. But have you ever guessed why the seller of videos isn't caught yet?

I mean how they can maintain the supply?

Well, because there is demand!

Who demands it? I mean it's expensive, a common man certainly has too many other things to worry about and doesn't have the money to go and develop some weird habits of keeping a slave, etc.

So who demands it?

Of course, the one who is rich.

Who is rich?

The same one who creates law and order... Contribute to society...

In the end, it revolves down to the same circle.

Why laws are always beneficial to the rich and not to the poor...

Because who creates laws?

Remember, the one who creates laws is never poor...

So whom will the law created by the rich will favor?

Whom will the law created by the rich will favor?

Got your answer?

No?

Think if you were given the power to make laws...

So will you ever make laws that will go against you?

Will you ever make a law that will restrict you?

I think you have the answer now.

[A/N: Regardless, I won't go more and dig into this topic. My motive was simply to make you understand that rich people often become the victim of existential crises.]

An existential crisis is a very common issue for people who have achieved their financial and other goals.

They start reading books like being a human, the man's search for meaning, etc...

All in the hopeless pursuit of justifying their small existence.

Just for one second, close your eyes and imagine what will the world be like without you.

What if one day you suddenly die?

I know, it is hard to imagine, but you have to!

Stop denying the reality!

Stop that denial!

Think, what if you die tomorrow?

Would the world stop?

What about the people around you?

Your neighbors, wife... Kids... Etc?

What about them?

They would probably get sad, some may cry...

If you are the richest man in the world or an influential person, then you might receive public mourning after your death.

You might leave a legacy behind.

You might leave your name behind.

The day you die might be announced to be a public holiday.

But will people stop living?

No, they will continue...

Your same wife and kids...

They will continue to live on...

The same world will continue to move on...

Before long hundreds of years will pass...

Your name and legacy will start fading...

Maybe you are some very great person, who has a legacy that can rival even the greatest kings of history.

So what?

What about a thousand years more?

Still less?

What about one million years from now?

What about a hundred million years from now?

What about a few billion years from now?

Getting scared?

Haha...

Our existence is too small...

One day there might not even be proof that you lived.

All your legacies will be nothing but long vanished.

Time is only supreme...

Nothing stands on par with it...

[A/N: If you have some time, go and read Ozymandias, It is a short poem, but understanding it requires a lot of patience...]

Time destroys anything which stays in its path...

This is something Xia Tian realized...

He knew he can't defeat time... So why not befriend it?

Why not befriend time?

This is why he chooses to gain true immortality...

This was his goal from earlier...

But he knew, what once he climbed that mountain?

He did not think of living peacefully...

All he wanted was to enjoy... Do what he wants... Not being restrained by the same insignificant people's opinions...

He chooses the way of nihilism...

But for that, he needed to get a place where other people can't affect him anymore...

Doesn't it mean he first needed to become truly immortal for it? [True immortal means void realm cultivator]

That's how Xia Tian started his journey of true immortality a long time ago...

He had long achieved true immortality... Not even surpassed it and became God.

Several times the universe was reconstructed during this period.

He gained a lot of knowledge during this period.

So even then, why doesn't he share that knowledge with others and help them in the process?

Why not establish an empire using it?

Why not make a sect and share his techniques...?

if you learn something new, most of the time you would have an itch inside, to go on and make other people understand it!

Make them see what you see...

Make them understand what you understand...

"Why do you want to make sect?"

Xia Tian asked.

Xia Shuiyao stopped thinking and glanced at him.

Indeed, she said after she becomes strongest, she would want to establish a sect...

But why?

Wouldn't she be the strongest at that time?

So why does she need a sect?

She knew she can't lie in front of him...

So, she was trying to think hard about it and arrive at the correct answer.

Seeing a difficult expression on her face, Xia Tian patiently waited...

It is not just her many people want to establish institutions etc...

All to share what they already knew...

Sometimes people get so desperate that their whole purpose revolves around sharing what they know.

Many scientists and research scholars get stuck in this phase...

They might find something astonishing and get stuck here and instead of continuing their research further, they would go around spreading the knowledge they already knew.

They would open universities...

Spread what they already knew...

They would completely forget that they can research further...

They completely forget that they have limited time...

Xia Shuiyao tried to think a lot, but there were only a few plausible answers she can arrive at.

"I want to spread my cultivation technique... My way of cultivation... Find a disciple..."

She goes on speaking these things.

But all had the same meaning...

She wanted to share what she already knew.

A feeling of servitude.

Nyx raised an eyebrow, he knew he is going to educate this woman.

Yet, she found that both were naked while Xia Shuiyao's legs were sticking with fluids.

The whole room was filled with a pungent smell of love juices.

Was it the right place for it?

Regardless they have been educated by him on even worse places thus she chooses to not comment.

"..." Xia Shuiyao was out of words, and Xia Tian only smiled at her.

The woman only curiously stared at him.

She knew his way of working.

After that Xia Tian opened his mouth.

"You were nothing but at the stage of compassion..."

He spoke, making her confused.

"Compassion?"

Xia Shuiyao muttered.

The old fox started explaining.

There is first the stage of responsibility.

This is the stage where we learn that only we are responsible for our actions... Choices... lives... Etc... Because when we die it's only us alone... No one is bonded to your soul that he or she will die and go to the graveyard along with you.

We inhale oxygen to live... To live to ourselves... Nobody breathes instead of ours...

In the end, only one is responsible for his own life.

This is the stage of responsibility.

After that comes compassion.

The feeling of servitude...

Where we go around telling what we have learned during the stage of responsibility to others.

We will keep telling others, how they had to be responsible for their own choice, etc, etc...

We will give the knowledge we already have to others...

Sometimes we become so consumed here that our whole purpose in life revolves around this.

Thus we ended up becoming like a priest.

Will a priest be a priest if he has no believers?

Of course not...

The people who are stuck in this same forms their very purpose of life around this get trapped in a circle of servitude.

If one day, they don't go around telling people what they already know then they would start feeling life is meaningless and without any purpose.

After compassion, comes another stage.

It is known as reconciliation.

There we learn that whether we tell anyone what we already know or not, it wouldn't matter as it won't change what we already are...

We get out of the circle of compassion.

We learn that we don't need to tell others the things we already knew to have a purpose in life...

[A/N: Like the author has many things to tell, but he just doesn't feel the need. Sometimes, when he is in the mood he will write the psychological stuff or not, it is completely up to the author's mind. It is just you don't feel the need to justify your knowledge anymore as you learn that no one in the world knows everything including you.]

The journey of self-discovery continues...

You arrive at yet another stage...

At this stage, you learn an important life lesson.

Many have questions in the responsibility stage, right?

Like what if a car crushes you all of a sudden...

How are you supposed to be responsible for it?

After all, it wasn't your fault?

This stage solves that problem.

You learn that there are things that you can't control...

You learn that while planting a tree, you can sow the seed, you can water the seed but you can never force it to grow...

You can do all the things in the world but you can't control the results and outcomes...

It is like manipulation.

You can put thoughts in someone's mind, but whether he acts on that thoughts or not, is completely up to him.

He chooses to be manipulated...

You can merely put thoughts in his mind...

Just like that in life, you can be strong ... Work hard ... be even stronger... But one day someone even stronger might crush you...like a car...

Protecting yourself is your responsibility...

But it was the car driver's fault and not yours, right?

So can you control that car driver to not drive over you? Are you a God?

No, you can't control it!

Control the things you can control like yourself...

This stage described above is known as Synthesis.

After this comes the hardest one...

The stage of being Non-Judgemental.

The last stage...

Understanding this stage fully is nearly impossible...

For understanding this first, you need to fully embrace one idea, that everyone in the world is selfish and works for themselves.

[A/N: Although I have already explained how everyone is selfish using wife, children, and other examples, yet I will give one example again, well it relates to my real life, something similar happened long ago...]

How about you observe this dialogue between mother and son:-

Son: I am going to work outside, I feel the opportunity in this place is not enough.

Mother: But what is the need for it? Don't you already earn enough?

Now, here the Son wanted to go outside and grow, it was his objective...His selfish desire...

Now let's observe mother... Why did she ask him why is he going? Why did she try to convince him?

She wanted him to be with her... Stay with family... It was her selfish desire to keep him to herself...

[A/N: Ahem, if you are not Asian then you might not relate to it, so you can switch mother with wife and here the husband is going out to research on a field.]

Just like that many times, you might have a work ... You might want to enjoy outside... But your wife wants to spend some time with you... Both have their selfish desires...

Your children might want to play with you, regardless of how tired you are... All have their selfish desires...

Everyone in this world is selfish for themselves...

But how does it relates to the Non-Judgemental stage?

Well, let's say a ra*ist, pedo, murderer, or serial killer was standing in front of you... What will you think about them?

Do they have positive intentions?

How about a person who kidnapped your son?

Does that kidnapper have positive intentions?

How about a person who wants to kill your family?

Does he have positive intentions?

How about someone who wants to kill you?

Does he have positive intentions?

Well regardless of the case... All have positive intentions!

Yes, even a ra*ist and pedo.

Now before your brain destroys itself... let us see how they have positive intentions...

They have positive intentions... But for whom?

Is it for you?

Or the woman being ra*Ed?

Against whom do they hold positive intentions?

Against no one!

They hold positive intentions towards themselves...

A ra*ist does rape because he feels that it is worth doing at that particular place and time...

A person wants to kill you because he feels it is good for him and not for you...

All are the same...

Still don't believe criminals can have positive intentions?

How about going and talking out with one for yourselves?

How many criminals do you personally know?

How many have you talked with?

If you have, you would find they are completely the same as you and other normal people in the world except for their crime part...

But why did they do crime?

What is crime?

The definition of crime varies from society to society... Country to country... Civilization to civilization... Like the age of consent varies from country to country...

No one commits a crime for negative intentions towards themselves...

They committed the crime with positive intentions toward themselves...

Just like we do things for positive intentions towards us...

We do things always with positive intentions...

But it is for us and not for others...

This is why Xia Tian doesn't feel angry when someone curses him.

Let's say Xia Tian destroys a whole clan.

Now the last member alive of the clan curses him.

But Xia Tian would only feel amused by his curses and not anger...

Why?

Because that person is cursing Xia Tian with positive intentions for himself...

Now add this idea with everyone is selfish and does things for themselves...

You will arrive at a place of non-judgemental...

"So I just wanted to tell others what I knew?" Xia Shuiyao asked.

"En." Xia Tian nodded.

It was indeed the reason she wanted to take a disciple... And Establish a sect.

She was operating out of the place of compassion and servitude... She was finding the purpose of life in serving others...

All void realm cultivators are operating out of the Non-judgemental stage ...

In the world, no void realm cultivator recklessly uses their power... Because they are far more knowledgeable than others... All they want to have is some fun.

Like the Eternal Sun who has now created a new Heaven.

Although he distributes immortal techniques but is he using his powers as a supreme expert to suppress other immortals in heaven?

No!

He is just having fun...

All void realm cultivators operate out of a non-judgemental place.

If not, they would get angered by mortals' small comments and keep destroying their realms...

In crux, you will understand other people's perspectives completely, if you are operating out of this place and stop judging them for their actions and behaviors.

Suddenly, a noise came from the door.

*Knock, knock.*

Xia Tian smiled, he turned to look at the door.

Xia Shuiyao was confused.

??

"Who is coming this late at night..." she muttered without noticing the smile on the old fox's face.

.........................

A/N: The chapter is over.

Read the note if you have some spare time to spend.

The above stages are actually used in a therapeutic context.

The stages are as follows:-

1. Depression

2. Anger

3. Responsibility

4. Compassion

5. Reconciliation

6. Synthesis

7. Non-Judgemental

I have explained from responsibility to non-judgemental but skipped the first two stages.

In a therapeutic context, it is used as follows:-

You first get a person, let's say Jhonny.

Now Johnny is completely depressed, at this stage healing someone is impossible, as no matter what you say the person will assume the negative meaning of it and end up getting even more depressed.

At the stage of depression, talking with the patient is useless.

So what you do is first make Johnny angry, by directing his attention to somewhere else.

Like if Jhonny is depressed about not being loved enough in the family.

You direct his anger to his family, like saying 'Jhonny I think you are completely right! Your parents are completely useless! They ignore you! Etc'

Once you say all this Jhonny will stand up and shout. 'Yes! It's all their fault! They are the me who doesn't love me enough!'

Now once Jhonny is angered, at least you can start talking with him.

Direct your talk to make him realize whether it was his parent's fault or his. Whose responsibility was it?

[I won't explain the process of it]

Make him reach and operate out of the stage of responsibility.

Once he reaches that stage, the work of the therapist is finished.

No therapist will go and educate his patients about the stages above it, as their job ends once the patient gets to the stage of responsibility, no one is going to educate their patient up to the non-judgemental stage.

Well, that's pretty much it.

I thought of giving you a full context so that you don't get confused later, but since it wasn't part of the novel I wrote it as a note.

By the way, do you want to have an existential test?

Let's begin a short existentialism test:-

How about...

Tell me who you are.

No, I don't want to hear that you are a soldier, accountant, engineer, mother, father, student, etc...

Those are nothing but the roles that you are playing right now.

Let's say you define yourself as a soldier...

What if your job is gone?

Once your job is gone you are not a soldier anymore... So what are you?

Similarly never define yourself as roles as once the roles are taken away you will feel without purpose in life.

Life if someone defines him as, 'I am CEO of XXX company'

Then everything will go on fine until he is the CEO.

But what if he is kicked by the board?

Now he isn't a CEO anymore...

That person will soon fall into an existential crisis!

So if not soldier, engineer, Husband, or CEO, then who are you?

Ok, now you might decide to define yourself by your past achievements...

But that it isn't you.

I don't want to hear about your achievements and past accomplishments...

So who are you?

Now you might start defining yourself as your preferences...

Like I like red color etc...

But is it absolute?

What if one day you don't like the red color anymore?

Again fell into a crisis!

So who are you?

If not your roles, preferences, achievements ... Who are you?

Want to define yourself by your appearance?

Think again, because it keeps changing!

So who are you?

Think of yourself floating in a large black void...now think, who are you... Without all those things... Without your roles in life, without the relationships and connections, you have developed so far...

Without any preferences, hobbies, appearance, gender, sexual orientation, past accomplishments, etc...

Just who are you?

Soon you will realize who are you...

You are what you are...

Nobody can describe you in a words...

Because words are made by humans ... Can they define who you are?

What is the value of your existence?

Can those words, other people, awards, society, etc ... Can they decide it for you?

Because once you are dead, everything is over!

In the void, you are alone!

Now can you realize why everyone is selfish?

The day you can stop shaking and getting scared when you imagine yourself in a dark void without imagining yourself with anything you have achieved in this life, will be a day when you can get past your existential crisis.

If the author is being frank, I don't try to think about it, as it makes me scared...

I use the defense mechanism of ignorance to protect myself from it.

So now you might be wondering if getting past existential crisis is impossible, then how do we solve the patient's problem of existential crisis?

By giving them another goal so they are distracted by their new goal and do not think about it, just like us.

Sometimes some patients start opening NGOs, charities, etc to find a purpose in life and justify themselves.

And If you still don't get scared at the thought of it, then it means you haven't removed everything and truly thought this question.

Because once you do, you will realize how small your existence is...

Yet it is so big, as nothing matters to you other than you...

Regardless I will connect this with the principle of balance at some later date, if I do it right now, you might start to have some suicidal thoughts.

Why suicidal thoughts?

Well, let's say some random person comes to you and tells you that there is no difference between a beggar and the richest person in the world... What would you do?

What if I say there exists no difference between a mortal cultivator and Xia Tian?

According to you both are not the same as Xia Tian can completely crush the former...

Well yes, he can.

But what if fundamentally there exists no difference between them?

Most of the time you will laugh and don't believe it...

But what if it becomes true?

You will suddenly feel all your efforts in life are meaningless and fall into despair.

This is why I will refrain from doing it right now, better prepare things before it.

Don't ask why so much philosophy!

The author is suffering from post-nut clarity and asking some bigger questions in life!

Thanks for reading!