Dao Breaker

Chapter 2 - One Cannot Escape!

The road to Qicheng was uneventful.

On his way to headquarters, while still driving the cart-carrying mules he stopped to gaze at a street rife with mortal entertainment. Self-taught musicians; circus acts involving blades and spinning tables with one's toes to the regular mask-changing and fire-breathing spectacles competed with the passing pedestrians on the street for a patron's appreciative coin.

In this world, mortals still dealt in silver and gold, but silver and gold taels were practically nothing compared to a single Gong Shi, also called a "spirit stone" or a "scholar's rock." These Gongshi are understandably, exorbitantly more valuable than a house full of gold taels in the hands of a cultivator, and thus also for mortals.

"ONE CANNOT ESCAPE!"

The stentorian voice of a mortal, self-taught from his lowly accent and rhymes, caught the attention of Tian Ming. He stopped to let the mule rest a bit, as he turned on the saddle and rested his feet on the face of a waking bandit that was tied down in the cart.

"Heaven constructed the myriad things with Dao

Living and inanimate things obey the Law- not you!

You may run from school, neighbors and the law somehow;

But to break off from society is to break off the Dao, it's true!"

Tian Ming has heard variations of the last line many times in his life. It was a popular saying among mortals.

"Heroes shape the Law for their own ends

To follow them is the common man's fate

Under the boot of Dao

One cannot escape!"

Indeed, Dao made up of everything in this world. It was present in the air people breathed, and was in all living and nonsentient things. All had to obey the Law which constructed them.

Thus, this world is very brutal and restrictive. When the underlying unit that composed of all matter in the universe was a strict adherence to Legalism, how could it not be?

When the Founding Ancestor established Legalism as the Dao, scholars to this day debate interpretations over whether the Spring Autumn Emperor truly existed or if it is merely a creation myth rife with metaphors. If he truly existed, did he argue with Immortal Gods and settle upon an agreement? Did he inject an all-source spring with Legalism?

All this theory bored the shit out of Tian Ming.

Tian Ming's trust in the system was not absolute, not because he was overly smart, but because he was a bad student.

Tian Ming wasn't stupid, but he didn't need to study scrolls and pass tests. He always possessed the attitude that he would ride on his talent of Dao Breaker to fame.

Consequently, he was not as well learned in the fundamentals and theory behind the Dao of this world as his adjudicator peers, that is Law.

Of course, this attitude was absolutely unwelcome and needed to be eradicated in a Clan's school.

It would have been faster for Tian Ming to endure the beatings and other forms of corporal punishment exacted by his teachers than it was for him to sit down and study history and theory of the Law.

He could handle pain. Through gritted teeth, as his instructors whipped and struck him one singular thought always helped him endure these punishments.

"I have the Dao Breaker!"

Imagine if he just destroyed the apertures of these instructors, despite being higher in cultivation rank than him, if he decided to go rogue or psycho he could take away their ability to use qi and manipulate the Dao forever.

"Thank you, esteemed audience."

The orator was now finished and holding the sandal hat out for coin to a mixed reception.

"Let's wait for him to recite an actual poem."

"Not bad, here's a coin from one mortal to another."

"What crude rhymes. Even a dog could sound more inspired."

Tian Ming tossed a Gongshi over the heads of the audience, it's shining splendor glinting as it plopped accurately into the sandal basket of the orator. Then he kicked the mules awake as the orator cupped his hands and thanked the unseen patron aloud over the clamor of the audience.

He resumed his return to headquarters.