The Old Geezer

"Your path is to be stronger than everyone else, but do you know what strength is, how to obtain it, and how to use it?"

Shura heard a voice very clearly. He heard it coming from every direction, he also heard it in his mind.

"Who's there?!" Shura looked around and tried to find this mysterious interloper with his sight. No matter how he looked, Shura couldn't find him.

"I am in your mind, I am the residual knowledge fragment of the fallen Saint," the voice continued. This voice sounded like a wise old man.

"Didn't you die?" Shura asked.

"Yes, the Saint is very dead. However, I am not the dead saint, but a new being that evolved from the fragment of his knowledge."

"Something inanimate like 'knowledge' can evolve into a lifeform?" Shura asked. He was perplexed.

"The thing you called a 'fragment of knowledge', is nothing other than a piece of the soul, or something like it. Although the saint is very dead, this fragment of his soul became me."

Shura closed his eyes and inspected his mind and soul. He couldn't find the dark and starry space that belonged to the fallen saint anymore. Of the knowledge of the fallen saint that he had yet to access, it was gone, he could no longer access it.

The knowledge that he had already unlocked and had already become a part of him: those of the spells and of crafting weapons, those were already his so they remained.

His biggest advantage had just suddenly disappeared. And in its place was the voice of an old man who said that he was a new being that was born from the evolution of the dead saint's soul fragment…

It all sounded very bizarre, but even so, the old man continued to chatter. Shura could hear him as loud as day.

His advantage was no longer a vast set of knowledge he could access at any time, but an old geezer watching over his shoulder all the time?

As unwilling as he was, Shura had no choice but to accept the reality that he was experiencing.

'I must get rid of this old geezer as soon as possible!' Shura screamed inwardly. He did not feel comfortable having his every action and thought viewed by an old geezer, no matter who he was. If it was a cute and beautiful young girl, then he would be okay, but he was an old man.

An old geezer was a no! Absolutely not!

"I can hear you, young man."

"What do you want, old geezer?"

"Why do you call me old geezer, young man?" the old man's voice sounded perplexed.

"It's because you talk and sound like an old geezer," Shura said.

"Young man, that's very insulting to all the elderly folks, you know?" the voice continued again. "You will be an elderly man one day, don't insult yourself."

"No offense intended, I just want you to go away," Shura said. He had managed to calm himself.

Shura shook his head. How did a mighty cultivator get creeped out by the voice of an old man in his head?

Shura shook his head again. "No, no, no, no!' Even if it was something ridiculous, he still could not accept listening to the voice of an old man in his head going on and on all the time.

"Name your terms, old man. I want you out," Shura said.

"You don't want me even though I can tell you how to become the stronger?" the voice in his head asked. "I can teach you to become peerless."

"No," Shura replied. Whether he would end up being the strongest or obtaining his heart's desires or not, he would do it himself, he wouldn't have this voice tell him things.

"Very well then, if you wish to be rid of me, you must find someone to transfer me to," the voice said. "There shouldn't be many who wouldn't want the opportunity to be taught by a Saint."

"There is one right here," Shura said.

This strange thing with the old man suddenly occurred. For the time being Shura had to get rid of him, that was his current and most pressing goal. He had to deal with it right away. He had to get rid of this old geezer. This old man talking in his mind was very uncomfortable to Shura.

He would've wasted his time in vain cultivating if he couldn't live in peace without this old man nagging in his mind all the time.

He would not stand it even if the old man was a Great God and could teach him how to become one of the most powerful beings in the universe.

He needed to find someone to transfer this old man to. Since this old man wanted to teach someone, Shura would find someone for him to teach.

"You should find someone unfortunate and down on his luck, young man. Only such a person would be able to truly appreciate me," the voice said.

"Yes, yes, Great Saint, I will find one for you. Anything for you to go away," Shura said in his mind. "Why couldn't you be a pretty girl? I'm so unlucky."

Shura left the forest. He didn't need to waste time at all. As soon as he left the forest he saw a huge city in the distance. He saw more than one of such cities in every direction. The cities here were very magnificent and grand. Not only were they vast, but they also stretched into the skies.

The cities could be seen from far away.

"Which city do you think we'll find your lucky disciple?" Shura asked the voice.

"Any city would do, young man," the old man replied. "Destiny will guide us."

Since the old man replied that way, Shura decided to head to a random city.

Shura reached the city. This city was different from the cities he had seen in the Lower Realm. Buildings weren't just on the ground here, they were also floating in the air. There were mountains and small islands floating in the sky. Both large and small buildings were floating in the air.

Many lines of light connected these many and distant floating places together. Shura's attention was wholly absorbed by this otherworldly sight.

The people around him gave him weird looks like he was someone who saw such a thing for the first time.

Shura didn't pay any attention to these people.

"This city is big and there are countless people here, where am I going to find your disciple who is in a dire situation who would fully appreciate your teaching and knowledge?" Shura asked the old man.

"Keep walking, my predestined apprentice will surely appear before me," the old man said in a confident tone.

Shura didn't know where the heck his confidence came from. He was just a wisp of soul that could talk. Whatever, the sooner he was rid of him, the better.

Shura walked down the street of this city. He saw a kid who was about thirteen or fourteen-years-old dressed in rags sitting next to a dark building. The young man had dirt on his face and a messy hair.

Shura stared at this kid for a while. The kid sensed his stare and stared back at him.

This was the Higher Realm. This city looked really good. Why was there a child who looked wretched sitting here like this?

Shura sighed. No matter where it was, the world was the same. He had been right. What Higher Realm or Lower Realm. The Immortals and Gods he would meet in the future would still be the same as well, they were still people.

"Is this your disciple?" Shura asked the old geezer in his mind.

"Maybe?" the Old Geezer replied.

Shura facepalmed. Is he, or is he not?

Shura sat down next to the child.

"Boy, tell me your story. Maybe I can help," Shura said.

"You? You can't help me," the boy said dismissively.

"How would you know without telling me?" Shura didn't give up.

"I can tell, Mister. You don't look like you're in any shape to be helping anyone. In fact, you could use some help yourself," the boy said.

Shura thought about the boy's words. He was right, Shura could use some help. Help? Help?

"No, I don't need other's help. Even if I needed it, would anyone help me? All people are selfish," Shura told the boy.

"Listen to your own words, Mister. Why would you help me then?" the boy said.

"Easy, that's because me helping someone and someone helping me are two different things. I can't control others. Even if I wanted someone to help me, they wouldn't necessarily help me. But I can control myself. I can choose to help others. That is why, to me, giving and receiving help are two different things, as distant as the distance between heaven and earth. Although they both have 'help', they are two different things."

"That's a very interesting thing of looking at things, Mister."

"Yeah, now tell me what ails you, boy, so I can help you. I don't need someone's help, but I don't mind helping someone," Shura said.

"Even if I told you, you might not be able to help, then why would I trouble you?" the boy replied.

"Tell me anyway, I'm not troubled at all," Shura said.

"Stop troubling the kid, young man," the Old Geezer said in his mind.

'You be quiet, old geezer,' Shura thought.

"Alright. Since you insisted, I'll tell you, Mister." the boy said as he looked deep into Shura's eyes.

The boy's clear and pure eyes reminded him of someone.