Daily life of a cultivation judge



It didn't take long for Yang Qing to reach the simplistic and quaint courtyard that housed the highest officials within his occupation, the courtyard of the Judicial Review Committee.

Present were Long Enlai, who was trimming yet another miniaturized bonsai tree, and playing go were Jiang Heng and Jia Bohai.

Yang Qing couldn't help but admire the carefreeness of the trio. They never seemed to be working. They were all just sitting around, enjoying their hobbies in a tranquil environment.

Yang Qing entertained the thought of joining them after he reached the late stages of the domain realm, which he guessed could be one of the requirements, as for the other requirements, he had no idea, as it was still too early for him to entertain such thoughts.

"Greetings seniors.." he said as he cupped his fists in greeting.

The trio looked up at him with the gazes of a grandfather looking at their grandchild.

"How is Ma Yuan doing?" asked Long Enlai.

"He handled the news better than I thought, though it would be a hurdle for him moving forward, from what I've seen, he will be okay.."

"What about you?" 

Yang Qing froze and then mustered a smile that would show he was okay, however, he was quickly cut off by Jia Bohai before he could say what he wanted to say.

"There's no need to pretend, Yang Qing..." he said with a gentle look in his eyes.

"We have all lived for quite some time, and in that time, we have experienced all manner of trying moments, and some of them broke us several times over.

So we know, that going through the ordeal you just went through, can't have been easy, and there is no need for you to pretend it was at least not for us. 

We all know it could not have been easy because it wasn't easy for us when we had to do the same thing when we were in your shoes.

Ours were worse because such cases back then were not as few as they are now. We purged countless, at every single turn on every waking moment. to the point rivers of blood and mountains of corpses flooded the continent.

It was a pretty ironic time..." he said as he smiled ruefully.

"We were started in order to reduce large-scale loss of life, but the amount of lives that died by our hands when we just started matched the same numbers as what was seen during the continent-wide large-scale wars.

I almost ran away a few times back then. I couldn't take it, and I had doubts whether I was suited to be a judge.

In my first year as a judge, I had destroyed no less than 200 organizations, and over half of them were complete annihilation.

Weeks after each destruction, I could still smell the metallic stench of blood on me. I couldn't take it so practiced the turtle breathing technique, so I didn't have to take a breath, and when that didn't help, I invested in spiritual herbs that were known for their purifying abilities, and when that failed, I decided if I wanted to avoid that smell, then there was only one sure way, use techniques that would eviscerate the bodies of those sentenced.

If their bodies were instantly grounded to dust, then there would be no blood stench. So I practiced, and practiced, and practiced, countless cultivation arts that were famed for their explosive and tyrannical attributes.

With how diligent bordering on fanatical I was in my practice, I gained an unmatched skill in them, and a nickname too. Because of how I laid waste to everything in sight, people started calling me the sundering phantom of desolation.

I destroyed everything within an instant and left just as fast. A blur of misfortune. However, I still couldn't escape it..that smell.." Jia Bohai stared at the skies before he turned his gaze back to Yang Qing.

"I almost went mad at the time, with my internal demons growing in numbers and ability. Honestly, it still sends shivers down my spine whenever I think back on those days..." 

He chuckled briefly before he went on.

"At the time I tried all I could, to hide that I'd been affected by my duties. I'd been touched by it, but I sure couldn't show it, especially, not when my colleagues did the same thing as I did and seemed perfectly okay.

I wasn't about to be that cultivator who lacked the resolve for his job. 'Cultivators reach greater heights through a pile of corpses' was a saying I grew up hearing as a child which ended up having an influence.

But, eventually, I finally broke. Lucky for me, at the time there was a senior who had noted the changes that had been happening to me.

He pulled me aside and told me it was okay to feel what I felt. We may be cultivators who are able to shatter mountains with one hand and overturn oceans with the other, but our fundamental being has not changed. We are the living first, and have values of the living, which means certain things will affect us whether we like it or not, whether we have a high cultivation base or not.

A mortal or a cultivator will feel the same grief if they lose a loving parent. Having a high cultivation base doesn't absolve you of that. 

They both feel the same level of rush and excitement when they find the right partner to spend the rest of their life with.

Mortals have immortalized cultivators, that we ourselves grew to believe it, that we were different, above it all, but this couldn't be further from the truth.

We got disillusioned by that notion, and that thinking almost drove me to madness.

Yang Qing what you feel is perfectly okay, don't pretend it's not there or wish it away. What you feel is the proof of life, a component of the living. 

Whether we are humans, spirit beasts, or sentient plants, we all have things that will make us feel regret, doubt, anger, and confusion. Feeling those things doesn't make you any less of a cultivator.." Jia Bohai said as he placed his hands on Yang Qing's shoulders.

"We have all felt it, and still feel it even now. Back then that senior had me leave my post as a judge and had my cultivation base sealed for a month, and left me in some remote village where for three years, I got to live my life as a mortal and the ups and downs that come to it.

They may not have our cultivation base, but they have resilience where it matters. Here and here.."

Jia Bohai pointed at his head and heart.

"You're not okay, are you?" he softly asked.

"I'm not...." Yang Qing faintly said.

"Good, we will help you. This is one of the core reasons the committee exists.." he said with a kind smile.

"Don't worry, I won't be sealing your cultivation base and throwing you in some farm in the middle of nowhere like I was.

You don't need such measures. The Order has come a long way from such drastic means. We have created our own ways of handling such issues, one of which is something you have been scheming all these years for..."

Yang Qing's eyes had a glint of curiosity seeing Jia Bohai's smile.

"Could it be?"

"You will be getting a break from your duties, for the next month. A break from this would suit you well. It's the constant thing we discovered helps, along with that for that month your presence will be required at a special ground we have called the Requited blissful peak.

It was built for the express purpose of dealing with internal demons, clarity, and introspection and also doubles up as a blessed ground for silent meditation.

It is anchored by a saint-grade tree, the auspicious grove wood tree, that helps. It will help you see things that you can't at the moment. It exposes your heart, thoughts, and surroundings, to give you a base to see things with clarity, unmuddled by other things.

You'll need to spend your time there for four hours every day, you can decide on the time, and you'll need this to get there. Just input your qi, and it will automatically transport you there.." Jia Bohai said as he passed over a tear-shaped blue stone. 

It was soft and cool to the touch, and Yang Qing could feel his mood gradually improve with his hands on it. The constant thoughts and voices that had made a home in his mind, seemed to gradually turn mute.

"As for the rest of the matters, we can discuss them after the month is up. Your friends will be undergoing the same care too.." added Jiang Heng.

"Thank you, seniors.." Yang Qing said as he gave them a solemn bow.

"Think nothing of it, it's what we should do as your seniors.." Long Enlai said with a soft chuckle.

"Don't lose yourself, young judge.." said Jia Bohai as he cast a meaningful gaze at Yang Qing who nodded back in acceptance.

"What about my pending cases?"

"They'll be there, waiting for you.." Long Enlai said cheekily, as the three old men took pleasure in Yang Qing's changing expression.

"I knew it! There is no way they'd be that nice. Stingy blackhearted Order.." Yang Qing thought to himself as he hastily said his goodbyes.

..

"I'm thankful nowadays we don't have to send our own to Requiem.." said Jia Bohai with a sigh.

"It is.." muttered Long Enlai as the trio went back to what they were doing prior to Yang Qing coming over.