"Brother Zhang, watch your words!" someone interrupted.
The scholar surnamed Zhang was startled: "It was my oversight!"
"Alright, alright, let's talk about the autumn examination! Brother Zhao, with your knowledge, it seems you'll easily become the top scholar this autumn."
The man in blue shook his head, returned from the bow of the boat to the inside, sat down cross-legged, and said, "There are many people more learned than me. I dare not even dream of becoming a top scholar!"
Despite this, his eyes gleamed with a sharp light, clearly indicating his determination to win.
"Alas! Although the Tang Emperor has given us commoners the opportunity to advance, powerful families still control the lifeline of the nation. Even the seemingly equal imperial examinations are not always equal. Powerful families only care about the rise and fall of their own families; they have no regard for the common people. We must not let the powerful families win this examination. We must work harder!"
Just then, the small boat passed by a ruin, and one of the men pointed to the dilapidated buildings and said, "I've heard that there's a scholar in Wuyi Lane, a disciple of Mingde Academy, who is quite learned. Brother Zhao, that person might be your formidable rival this year!"
"Wuyi Lane? This is the ancestral home of the Wang and Xie families. It's a pity that things have changed. Such a large family is nothing but a passing cloud. Back then, these two families were so prosperous. Most of the civil and military officials in the court came from these two families. Now, let's not talk about it!"
"The student you're talking about isn't Xie Hong, is he? He's not worth worrying about. He's weak and sickly, and he's always struggling to make ends meet. He has no time to study and cultivate his inner strength."
"I do know this person. He's a bit arrogant and doesn't fit in with us poor kids. Even the rich kids don't like him... Although he's a descendant of the Xie family, he's even more down on his luck than us poor kids!"
The hazy moonlight reflected on the clear river water, and a small boat quietly entered the night from before Wuyi Lane. The river flowed slowly, and Jiang Liu sat on the back of a large water buffalo, looking at the vast ruins on the bank—dilapidated houses, overgrown weeds, broken walls, and a desolate sight. Only one small house sat not far from the water, still showing signs of life. The water-stained walls were covered with green moss and some were overgrown with ivy, revealing only a window facing the river.
Night had fallen, and apart from the croaking of frogs in the river and the distant barking of dogs, there was no other sound. Only a dim light shone from a narrow window at the east end, and the sound of coughing could be heard...
Looking through the window, all that could be seen was a table, a stool, and a bed. A dim oil lamp lit the table, barely illuminating the space within three feet. On the stool sat a chipped, rough porcelain bowl containing eight or nine broad beans. A man in his early twenties, dressed in a tattered robe with disheveled hair and beard, sat on the stool, holding a scroll and tending to a medicine pot beside him.
"Is he Xie Hong?" Jiang Liu asked. "With your help, how come he's still in such a sorry state?"
The water buffalo sighed and said, "If it weren't for us, he would have died long ago. Xie Hong was born weak and sickly, and we've tried many medicines over the years, but none of them could cure him. But an environment rich in spiritual energy can alleviate his suffering, so... you know what happened next!"
"There's a question I haven't asked you yet: how did you know my master had passed away?"
The water buffalo blinked and said, "It was the City God of Huaiyin who told me this in a dream!"
"The City God of Huaiyin? It's him again!" Jiang Liu frowned deeply.
The City God is a celestial being, a legitimate civil servant of the Heavenly Court, enjoying both earthly offerings and divine benefits. Their strength varies, closely related to the size of the city and the amount of incense offerings; large cities with large populations and abundant incense offerings naturally receive more power from the Heavenly Court.
To give an analogy, it's the difference between mayors of second- or third-tier cities in mainland China and mayors of Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou.
Huaiyin City was an important town, although it could not compare with Jinling and Yangzhou, it was still considered a large city.
The City God's function is to maintain the balance between Yin and Yang. When a mortal dies, they must be examined by the City God before entering reincarnation. The City God is in charge of the living and the dead, rewarding good and punishing evil, and managing life, death, fortune, and misfortune. He also has the function of protecting the city. However, the City God cannot intervene in wars among mortals. He will only intervene when cultivators, demons, or monsters threaten the city.
The City God's power comes from incense offerings, that is, the power of faith. The more prosperous the incense offerings, the stronger the City God's power.
These are high-ranking local officials in Heaven who serve mortals. At the very bottom are the Earth Gods and Mountain Gods, and the next level up is Yama, the King of Hell.
"The City God of Huaiyin!" Jiang Liu looked north, his eyes icy cold.
Chapter Fifty-Six: Black Robe Lane (Part Two)
"Cough cough... cough cough..."
Coughs echoed from the dilapidated hut. Jiang Liu sniffed and smelled a strong odor of Chinese medicine.
"Bang bang bang..."
Three knocks sounded at the door. Xie Hong turned to look at the door from inside and asked in a deep voice, "Who's outside?"
"Ah Hong, it's me!" The water buffalo transformed into human form, standing outside the door like a black tower. Even the buffalo horns on its head had disappeared, but it still had buffalo eyes and a wide nose, and was roughly human in shape.
This is an illusion technique that can only fool mortals; a Qi cultivator can see through it at a glance. If it is a transformed body, it is difficult to see through without the supernatural power of "Fiery Eyes of Truth."
Jiang Liu looked up at the sky. Just as Xie Chou transformed into human form, he felt a strange energy appear above his head. The seven constellations of the Azure Dragon of the East appeared: Horn, Neck, Root, Room, Heart, Tail, and Winnowing Basket. The seven constellations changed continuously, corresponding to Jinling City.
"The Azure Dragon of the East belongs to the Wood element in the Five Elements theory. The captain said that the great formation of Jinling City was activated, so it must be the Azure Dragon Great Formation of the East! Wood-type lightning, this is a lightning formation! If my lightning techniques hadn't already reached a high level, I really wouldn't have been able to detect it. The lightning of the Wood element has more attribute variations than my Nine Heavens Thunder, and its power is even greater. I wonder which powerful being built this great formation of the mortal realm. Even if one has achieved the position of Earth Immortal, they wouldn't dare to face the Azure Dragon Great Formation of Jinling City head-on!"
As Jiang Liu was thinking, the wooden door creaked open, revealing a young man with a haggard, pale, and sickly face.
"Uncle Chou, Aunt Lu! How did you get into the city? Come in quickly, no one has noticed you, right? I heard that the island nation to the east has recently invaded, and their army has already assembled. You must be careful..."
Xie Chou laughed and said, "It's alright, it's alright! This is Daoist Jiang Liu, the abbot of Qianlong Temple. He can protect us from attacks by human soldiers, and the cultivators from the Demon-Suppressing Division won't cause us any trouble!"
The Demon Extermination Bureau was a department established by the Tang Dynasty to exorcise demons. It was mostly composed of cultivators from various sects and schools. Its main job was to exorcise and eliminate demons, and incidentally, to provide the army with demon mounts.
Killing a demon is easy, but subduing one is as difficult as ascending to heaven.
On the way from Qianlong Mountain, among the three armies we encountered, one captain's mount was an enlightened rhinoceros demon. Humans and demons are irreconcilable, let alone one reduced to a mount. The captain, though at the Innate Realm, had a mount at the Refining Essence to Qi Realm. With the two working together and leading the army into battle, their combat power increased exponentially.
The generals in the army who possessed demon cavalry all treated them like ancestors.
Jiang Liu looked at Xie Hong, and Xie Hong was also sizing up Jiang Liu.
In Jiang Liu's eyes, Xie Hong was just an ordinary mortal who hadn't cultivated, whose blood energy was thin, and who hadn't practiced martial arts. But within his body was a strange energy, a vast and righteous one, the very essence of Confucian righteousness. With this righteousness surrounding him, ghosts and monsters would shun him, and all evil would be unable to invade.
Unfortunately, there's nothing that can be done about physical illnesses!
Confucianism has the Six Arts, and reading and cultivating one's inner strength are fundamental. However, even if one cultivates one's inner strength to a great extent, one's physical body will still be weak. Although one will not suffer from a hundred diseases, it will still be difficult to escape the cycle of life and death.
Compared to the immortality path of Qi cultivators, Confucianism pursues "cultivating oneself, regulating one's family, governing the state, and bringing peace to the world," one for personal breakthrough and the other for the livelihood of all people.
They studied for the prosperity of humanity and struggled for its rise; this was the spirit of all the philosophers of the Hundred Schools of Thought. It was precisely because of the successive efforts of these schools of thought in resisting the invasion of demons during the chaotic pre-Qin era that humanity was able to stand on this land and become its true masters.
The cultivation practices of the Confucian school in the pre-Qin period were closer to those of qi cultivators, with reading as a secondary method of cultivating qi. It was only later, when Dong Zhongshu dismissed all other schools of thought and exclusively promoted Confucianism, that the focus shifted to cultivating qi in order to align with the rule of emperors, with the responsibility of "cultivating oneself, regulating one's family, governing the state, and bringing peace to the world" taking precedence. Of course, Confucians were not afraid of death; they aimed for the three immortal achievements of "establishing virtue, establishing merit, and establishing words" as their ultimate goal.
If one accomplishes even one of these tasks and receives an imperial decree, they can be deified after death and enjoy incense offerings for a thousand years.
This is the origin of ghosts and gods; many city gods were ordinary people in the human world during their lifetimes.
This is why many ghosts and deities are not worthy of a great Confucian scholar's bow; people say that high virtue is revered by ghosts and deities. What they don't know is that after a great Confucian scholar dies, he is granted an imperial decree and immediately deified, and his divine rank far surpasses that of ordinary ghosts and deities.
"This humble one is Xie Hong, courtesy name Zhiyuan, paying respects to the Daoist Master!" Xie Hong bowed to Jiang Liu, then turned to invite the two men and the bird into the house.
The room was simple but clean and tidy, filled mostly with books that took up almost half the room.
Jiang Liu casually picked up a copy of the *Spring and Autumn Annals*. The paper was somewhat worn, indicating frequent reading. The annotations inside were densely packed with tiny characters, yet the writing was subtle, restrained, vigorous, and elegant, reminiscent of Wang Xizhi's style. People often use Cao Zhi's *Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River*—"Graceful as a startled swan, lithe as a swimming dragon, radiant as autumn chrysanthemums, flourishing as spring pines. She seems like light clouds veiling the moon, drifting like swirling snow in a flowing wind"—to praise the beauty of Wang Xizhi's calligraphy. This style of writing does indeed possess a touch of the "startled swan, swimming dragon" charm.
According to Jiang Liu, the annotations in this "Spring and Autumn Annals" already demonstrate five-tenths of Wang Xizhi's skill.
"Excellent calligraphy, reminiscent of Wang Xizhi! I heard from Xie Chou that you were still a student, yet you already had the ability to annotate the Spring and Autumn Annals?"
Xie Hong smiled shyly and said, "When I was studying, I wrote down some of my insights, but I dare not call them annotations. I am not a great Confucian scholar, so I dare not interpret the words of the sages."
Jiang Liu nodded and carefully examined the Spring and Autumn Annals. Xie Hong dared not be presumptuous. Although he was a scholar and did not speak of "strange powers and supernatural phenomena," he still had to give sufficient respect to those who practiced Qi cultivation.
You can't tell a person's age from their appearance. This is a world with immortals and gods, and many accomplished cultivators, though they've lived for hundreds of years, look only in their twenties. In Xie Hong's eyes, Jiang Liu was one of those cultivators who had lived for a hundred years. You have to know, Xie Chou, the water buffalo demon, was also over two hundred years old.
“Uncle Chou, I know my own body. This is a congenital injury that is fundamentally damaged and cannot be cured.”
Xie Hong's expression darkened. He took the boiled Chinese medicine down and placed a copper kettle on the fire.
The egret perched on Xie Hong's shoulder and said, "There will always be a way. How could an immortal not be able to cure a disease that mortals cannot cure!"
Xie Hong shook his head: "Immortals are untouched by worldly affairs and can cure the illnesses of a mere mortal like me. Birth, aging, sickness, and death are the cycle of reincarnation. I have lived for twenty years. If it weren't for Uncle Chou and Aunt Lu's tireless efforts for me, I would have died long ago... cough cough!"
Xie Chou glanced at Jiang Liu, who was still reading the Spring and Autumn Annals in his hands, and said to Xie Hong, "I will do my best. The Xie family has been very kind to me, and I will not let the Xie family line die out. Even if I cannot cure him, I will ensure the safety of your descendants."
The water in the large copper kettle began to boil. Xie Hong took out a tea brick, some ginger, and other ingredients, and put them into the copper kettle. Soon, a tea aroma was released.
Xie Hong took out several large, rough porcelain bowls and solemnly said, “Uncle Chou, Aunt Lu, now that something has happened in the East Sea, the imperial court will surely launch a large-scale annihilation campaign. But after that, there will be a huge change in Jiangnan… The Tang Dynasty will not allow itself to be caught in a crossfire. It will definitely take advantage of its military momentum to wipe out the demons and evil spirits of Jiangnan in one fell swoop… cough cough… wipe them out in one fell swoop. This is a one-time solution, and there will be absolutely no mercy. There may not even be a distinction between good and evil, because there is no time for that. The Tang Dynasty’s focus is on the north, and it will not allow something to happen in the south again… Uncle Chou, you should not come here again. Leave this place of trouble! For our human race, this is a great joy, but for your demon race, it is a disaster, a great disaster.”
Jiang Liu put down the *Spring and Autumn Annals*. This young man was very learned and had exceptional insight into current affairs; his deductions were also well-reasoned and supported by evidence. The Tang Dynasty was currently a target of attack from all sides. Various foreign tribes in the north posed the greatest threat, the Tibetan Empire in the west was also a major problem, and the south was in turmoil, with the Liao people having rebelled since the founding of the dynasty and unable to be quelled in the short term. Only this island nation in the east could be swiftly and decisively annihilated, and its army had already assembled. This campaign would allow them to sweep across Jiangnan in one fell swoop, killing two birds with one stone.
"I wonder how many cultivators will die in this battle!" Jiang Liu thought to himself.
The White Bone Cave Corpse Demon's sneak attack on Master is no simple matter. The death of a cultivator at the peak of Qi Refining, especially one proficient in thunder magic, is a great loss for the human race!
Jiang Liu pondered to himself, realizing that he was about to fall into an even greater crisis, which would be a war between the human race and the demon race.
A great war between humans, demons, and monsters that engulfs the entire Jiangnan region!
With a long sigh, Jiang Liu said, "The Tang Dynasty will certainly not show mercy. This time, the south will inevitably be stained with blood. Even my Qianlong Temple dares not say that we can survive this catastrophe!"
Xie Chou frowned deeply. He had originally thought that after the army wiped out the invasion from the East Sea and killed the Ghost King, things would return to normal. But now it seemed that he had been too naive.
"Master, please have some tea!" Xie Hong placed the large, rough porcelain bowl next to Jiang Liu.
Jiang Liu looked at the strange tea, took a small sip, and found it to have the flavors of tea, ginger, and salt.
It's a bit salty.
"This is tea from the Tang Dynasty? It really looks like tea from the Tang Dynasty!"
Jiang Liu was not used to it, so he only took a small sip and then put down the large, coarse porcelain bowl.
Fortune favors the bold!
These five words suddenly appeared in my mind, but were immediately overturned.
"Enough! We'll deal with whatever comes our way. This great battle is beyond our control. Xie Chou, now that you've joined my Qianlong Temple, I will do my best to protect you both, but you must be prepared... This calamity isn't just about the East Sea invasion and the Ghost King! According to the information I've received, there are definitely Earth Immortals involved. It's a contest between humans, demons, monsters, and all sorts of other forces. We're just small fry; we could be crushed to death if we're not careful!"
Xie Chou's face darkened, his brows furrowed, and he sighed deeply, saying, "Another great calamity is about to begin, and the time for rivers of blood has come again. Centuries of war were a great calamity for humanity, and now that the Tang Dynasty has unified the land, it is time for a great calamity for demons. Fortune turns like a wheel; thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river—it is simply the cycle of Heaven!"
Chapter 57 Unknown Sensations
As dawn broke, a resounding morning bell roused the world. After breakfast, Jiang Liu and Xie Hong headed towards the Imperial Street of Jinling City.
As its name suggests, the Imperial Street is the main street facing the main gate of the imperial palace. As the capital of six dynasties, Jinling City naturally had an imperial palace, which was extremely magnificent. The entire city of Jinling was built around the imperial palace. Starting with Sun Quan, the Great Emperor of Eastern Wu, and continuing through the Eastern Jin, Song, Qi, Liang, and Chen dynasties, the entire city had become a vast and imposing city, covering an area of more than ten miles in circumference.
Before entering the city, looking at the city walls, one could not see the end of the walls to the left or to the right, which showed how large the city was.
This imperial street is called Azure Dragon Avenue, corresponding to the stars and constellations above, and has some connection with the city's protective formation. Jiang Liu looked at the imperial street with his hands behind his back. It was more than two hundred paces wide, almost like a plaza. The two sides of the imperial street were called the Sword Imperial Corridor. Naturally, vendors were not allowed to do business in such a place.
There were no street vendors, but there were large shops one after another.
The Imperial Street has everything: elixirs from Baopu Mountain, talismans from Maoshan Mountain, classic texts from Confucianism, mechanical beasts from Mohism, and weapons from Longquan swordsmiths.
This is a commercial street that serves practitioners.
Xie Hong stood behind Jiang Liu and explained, “Daoist Master, this is Azure Dragon Avenue, as famous as Vermilion Bird Avenue in Chang'an City. These two sides are lined with shops opened by various sects in Jinling City. I bought pills at the pharmacy on Baopu Mountain; although they were expensive, they were incredibly effective. They have everything here, not only selling medicine but also buying materials for alchemy. However, I heard from my classmates at the Imperial Academy that this front shop only serves ordinary people; the real shops are in the back, and only those who have achieved mastery in cultivation can enter. Moreover, they don't use gold, silver, or copper coins; you can barter or use something called spirit stones as currency. Daoist Master, you are a Qi Refiner, so I don't know much about these things.”
Jiang Liu nodded and looked around. In the middle of the Imperial Street, a vermilion-lacquered fork divided the street into two rows, with two imperial moats on the side, filled with water lilies and lotus flowers. On both sides of the moats were peach, plum, pear and apricot trees, which were in full bloom and were a beautiful sight, attracting throngs of tourists.
Although there were many tourists on the street, few people went into the shops, because the prices inside were enough to bankrupt a wealthy family.
Standing on Qinglong Avenue, Jiang Liu felt an increasingly strange sensation. The "disappeared one" seemed to be stirring within his soul, as if it had discovered something. He had only come here to buy some pills, but unexpectedly, he had made this discovery.
"Huh! Is this guiding me somewhere? Does it have a treasure-hunting function? Interesting, very interesting..."
"The Maoshan talismans aren't here! The Baopushan elixirs aren't here either! The Mo Sect's mechanical beasts, and this kind of high-tech stuff, are they robots from the Journey to the West world?"