Ideal World

Becoming an immortal was naturally a very novel experience for Xu Shulou.

At that moment, she felt as light as a swallow. The feeling was wonderful, as if a newborn baby opened its eyes to see the world for the first time, and as if it was about to merge with the heaven and earth. She was wrapped in an invisible and gentle force and sent to the highest point of the sky.

She floated upwards in the sea of ​​clouds and sky. When she opened her eyes again, she was standing in a garden. The air was filled with spiritual energy and every breath made her feel relaxed and happy.

There is a thin mist and rushing clouds here, and in the distance are pavilions, towers, green water and lush flowers. It is exactly the kind of ethereal Penglai scene that people often imagine.

When Xu Shulou entered the painting, he was deceived by the bloody wonderland created by the nameless painting. It was not that he was seriously traumatized, but it was still impressive. Now that he saw the real wonderland like this, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"I was wondering why all the flowers are blooming today," a voice as clear as a silver bell sounded not far away, "it turns out that there are new people here."

Xu Shulou turned around and saw a beautiful fairy walking towards her. The fairy had her hair combed like a lotus flower and a jade-like veil on her arm. Her hands were as soft as catkins and her skin was as white as cream. She smiled at her and said, "Sister, have you just ascended from the lower world?"

"That's right, Xu Shulou has seen the fairy."

"Just call me Xi'e," the fairy waved her hand, "Since we have come to the fairyland, we are sisters from now on. There is no need to be polite."

"Thank you, Miss Xi'e." Xu Shulou responded with a smile.

Xi'e walked around her and looked very happy: "Great, there are finally new people here. I am so tired of hearing those stories told by the old guys! By the way, we hold banquets in the Hundred Flowers Garden every day, you must go!"

"Yes," Xu Shulou replied, and then asked, "May I ask if I should go and pay respect to the immortals since I have just ascended to heaven?"

Xi'e shook her head: "We don't have such a rule. Who do you want to meet?"

Xu Shulou thought for a moment: "Emperor of Heaven, Queen Mother, Taishang Laojun, Erlang Xiansheng Zhenjun, and Fairy Chang'e?"

With each mention of a god, Xi'e's expression became more and more confused, and finally she asked softly, "Have you read too many stories from the mortal world?"

"..." Xu Shulou thought for a moment and changed the question, "May I ask who is in charge of the fairyland?"

Xi'e shook her head again: "No one is in charge, so everyone should take care of themselves."

"Is that so?" Xu Shulou felt a little curious.

Xi'e smiled and said, "That's right. Come with me. I'll show you around. I know you've just arrived here, so you must have a lot of questions. Just ask me. You're welcome."

"Thank you very much," Xu Shulou left the garden with her and thanked her again, "Miss Xi'e, may I ask what I should do since I have just ascended?"

"There's nothing to do," Xi'e gently kicked away a small cloud that was blocking the road, "If you like excitement, play with everyone, if you like quiet, just do whatever you want."

"Then which immortal is in charge of the affairs here?" Xu Shulou asked, "For example, daily inspections or reviewing documents?"

“No one takes care of it.”

"So what do you guys do on a daily basis?"

"We don't have to do anything, just have a party every day, chat and drink together."

"Then may I ask, how should immortals practice? Are there differences between sects here? Are the techniques very different from those in the mortal world?"

"We don't practice." Xi'e seemed to find it funny and shook her head slightly.

"Not practicing?"

"Yes, mortals practice hard to become immortals, but immortals are immortal and free and easy, so why do they need to practice?"

“…”

"Miss Xu, I understand your thoughts. You have worked hard to cultivate from the lower realms, so it is inevitable that you will not be able to adapt when you first arrive," Xi'e said with a smile, "but the fairyland is a paradise. You can think of it as a reward for these hard-working monks. We can do whatever we want. Just put your heart back in your stomach and enjoy it with peace of mind."

Xi'e pointed to the pavilions and towers in the distance and said, "The houses without plaques are uninhabited. You can choose any one to live in. Whether you like the beach or the sea of ​​clouds and snowy peaks, there is one that suits you."

Xu Shulou visited them one by one with great interest, and finally chose a house with a beautiful view, with green shadows across the windows, the fragrance of flowers lingering in his sleeves, the bedroom facing the lake, and beautiful mountains and waters outside the window. When he opened the window at night, he could see the bright moon and the vast lake covered with frost.

She settled down in the fairyland, and life here was a hundred times easier than she had imagined.

She often flew to the mountain alone at night to look down at the Milky Way. The Milky Way was beautiful, flowing under the mountain like a soft gauze. It was a rare beauty in the world of cultivation.

Everything is beautiful here. There is no need to worry about anything. There is indeed nothing to worry about. There is no need to practice, there is no danger, no bad people, and life is peaceful without any disturbances.

There are indeed the rainy days she loves here. In her big house, she can switch between spring, summer, autumn and winter with just a snap of her fingers. She can watch the falling snow and flying flowers at any time, and she can sit quietly and drink tea listening to the sound of rain.

All her needs can be met. In the Yunjin Workshop, there is a huge spinning wheel that will automatically weave clouds into cloth. Then, under people's command, it will weave them into all kinds of clothes they want. The speed is extremely fast. As long as Xu Shulou likes, she can change countless sets of dresses every day.

In the center of the fairyland, there is a huge fountain made of fine wine. Different wine flows out of each spring. Anyone who passes by can fill a wine glass with the clear wine and drink it.

There is a large forest in the northeast corner, where various fresh fruits take turns to bear fruit. Xu Shulou has tried cherries, pears, peaches, citrus fruits and various melons and fruits, all of which are delicious and juicy.

There is really nothing to complain about life here.

Xu Shulou made a lot of friends and also met some seniors who ascended from the world of cultivation.

There are enough resources for everyone here, so there is no competition. Everyone is happy and harmonious. They get together every day to eat and drink, and occasionally play games such as tossing pots, backgammon, or go, mahjong, etc.

There is nothing infuriating here, and the sharp temperaments of our predecessors have gradually become calm here.

There weren't any issues here that required people to think about. People hadn't been using their brains for a long time, which resulted in them speaking slowly. This was more obvious the longer a person had been ascending. Sometimes when Xu Shulou asked a question, they would say "Hmm?" and pause before slowly opening their mouths to answer.

Since everyone's personalities were similar, when Xu Shulou faced them, he often felt that their faces were blurry, and he could even hardly tell who was who.

Many of them were followed by animals such as Pegasus, cranes, and rabbits. They also told Xu Shulou that if she felt lonely, she could go to the Beast Taming Bureau and pick one to keep with her.

Xu Shulou went there and saw rabbits grazing leisurely in a meadow. No one was raising them. They ate grass when they were hungry, drank water when they were thirsty, and occasionally reproduced. They lived freely. She went in and touched them to her heart's content, then left without taking any of them with her.

Because they have never continued to practice, the cultivation of the immortals here has remained at the moment of ascension, and many have even regressed due to their laziness over the years.

Xu Shulou felt that she could defeat at least 90% of them. She couldn't help feeling a little disappointed. She had thought that she could learn more advanced skills here and encounter more difficult opponents.

She didn't see many people every day because there were many more immortals who never left their homes. Someone told her that many of them used to come to every banquet, but later got tired of it.

Xu Shulou naturally asked around for ways to return to the mortal world, but most people said they didn't know. A few people told her that there seemed to be a passage in the past, but it was said that a thousand years ago, a powerful person in the fairy world sealed that passage. Others had also tried to find a way to reopen the passage in the past, but all came back empty-handed.

Everyone asked her at once: "Why do you want to go back? Isn't it good here?"

"That's right. You've seen everything in the mortal world. Why do you have to go back?"

"If there's anyone you miss, just wait for them to ascend."

Xu Shulou fell silent. She didn't know how to explain. She had promised her junior sister that she would go back. Besides, she missed not only the people, but also the world. She missed the prosperous life with thousands of music and the ten-mile-long streets with connected markets.

"It's so nice here," someone said to Xu Shulou, "When I was in the lower realm, I fought with others for a magic weapon and got bloodied. There is no such worry here."

"Yes, there are no disputes, no waves, it's like an ideal world here."

An ideal world?

There is really nothing to refute about Xu Shulou. You don’t have to do anything and don’t need to rush for a living. This is indeed the ideal for most people and the place where all good things are gathered.

From impeccable scenery to endless fine wine, food, clothing, housing and transportation, you don’t need to pay spirit stones for all of them. You just need to reach out and take them.

Some words seem ungrateful when spoken - what are you not satisfied with? You have eternal life and freedom, what else do you want to pursue?

Xu Shulou did not deny that she was indeed enjoying all of this at the moment, but she could hardly imagine that a thousand years later, she would still wake up every day, stagger to the garden, raise a glass of wine, chat with everyone, spend the whole day, and then stagger back to the room to sleep.