“A gentleman considers matters only within the bounds of his position and responsibilities…”
“He never directly responded to the upheaval at Dongshan. Instead, he only left behind that cryptic reminder.”
After reading the letter several tis over, a thoughtful expression appeared on Fang Xun’s face as he gradually grasped its deeper aning.
“So he’s telling to focus on my own duties and stop ddling in things beyond my station?”
“This attitude is rather subtle. And right now, my identity is that of the Dongshan Garrison Commander. If the Imperial Mausoleum is truly burned down…”
Scenes of Shentu Xin setting fire to the imperial tomb resurfaced in his mind once more.
In an instant, it was as though a bolt of lightning tore through the fog, and realization dawned upon him.
“The Mohists preach frugality in burial, yet now exhaust their ingenuity to construct palaces beneath the earth. Militarists are ant to defend against enemies, yet now bow their pride to guard the gates of the dead. The Legalists uphold law and order, yet now wield harsh punishnts to drive the mourning masses. The Masters of Yin-Yang once studied the heavens, yet now exhaust their knowledge to nourish this dark and sinister energies. The Historians hold their brushes, yet record not the emperor’s fear of death, praising instead the splendor of subterranean and earthen construction…”
“When Shentu Xin burned the mausoleum, he did not rely mock the Qian Emperor. He viciously ridiculed the Mohists, Militarian School, Legalists, Yin-Yang School, and Historians alike, the very schools responsible for constructing the Imperial Tomb.”
“And yet among them… Confucianism was absent.”
“If the mausoleum-burning truly succeeds, then even if the Heavenly Codex restores the imperial tomb afterward, the truth can never remain hidden. Once the news spreads across the world, the reputations of those schools will inevitably suffer.”
“The Hundred Schools contend with one another. One rises as another falls.”
“For the Confucians, however, the destruction of the Imperial Mausoleum would bring nothing but benefits.”
“And Fang Xun himself is a disciple of Confucianism…”
“That is why Dong Chunqiu replied with the phrase: ‘Do not concern yourself with matters beyond your station.’”
“Don’t interfere. Don’t involve yourself. Simply watch as events unfold…”
“Seen this way, Shentu Xin’s act of burning the mausoleum likely involves far more than rely the Jun School faction alone. That would also explain how he managed to infiltrate the imperial tomb so easily and even replace his identity without issue.”
Li Shun’s thoughts churned violently.
Though he had personally experienced that catastrophe and stood within its midst, he still failed to see through the hidden truths behind it all.
Only after Dong Chunqiu’s subtle reminder did he finally react.
“I originally believed that hiding inside the Imperial Mausoleum would at least provide so asure of safety.”
“But who would have thought…”
“Longevity-transferring calamities. The Hundred Schools battling one another. This Great Qian…”
“If not for the Qian Emperor suppressing everything from above, the empire would have long since descended completely into chaos.”
“And yet, even with the Qian Emperor possessing the might to suppress the Four Sages, he still cannot fully restrain the restless ambitions of the Hundred Schools.”
Now that he understood the full picture, Li Shun naturally abandoned any thoughts of stopping the mausoleum-burning calamity.
“This matter was orchestrated behind the scenes by forces outside the five schools responsible for constructing the tomb. Anyone wishing to go against such a tide must first ask whether they are qualified to do so.”
“As for , I have no interest in courting death.”
Li Shun secretly shook his head.
“But…”
“When the Imperial Mausoleum is destroyed, all things in the world will reset. Yet my Fangcun space will remain unaffected.”
A different thought imdiately arose within his heart.
At five in the afternoon on June fourteenth, shortly after receiving Dong Chunqiu’s letter, Fang Xun publicly announced before the masses that he was formally accepting Li Shun as his disciple.
Afterward, Li Shun returned ho to cultivate, while Fang Xun used the excuse of conducting an inventory inspection to enter the treasury of Dongshan Town.
Looking at the dazzling array of treasures before him, a glint of light flashed through Fang Xun’s eyes.
“So long as I transfer everything into the Fangcun space before the calamity arrives, I can quietly claim all of it for myself without anyone noticing.”
“To seize all the rare treasures of an entire province of Great Qian… their value would be imasurable.”
“And no one would ever be able to trace where they went.”
Soon after, however, a trace of regret surfaced in Fang Xun’s heart.
“Unfortunately, the Dongshan treasury is still too small.”
“Oh right. There are also the treasures Jiang Chongguang plundered from within the imperial palace.”
A faint gleam flickered in his eyes.
Without hesitation, Fang Xun personally led a group toward the hidden underground palace within the canyon to conduct a search.
anwhile, on Li Shun’s side, cultivation proceeded step by step according to plan.
Yet this ti, he clearly sensed sothing different from the previous two cycles.
“Even with the experience accumulated from my prior cultivation attempts, combined with Fang Xun’s century of knowledge…”
“My cultivation this ti has instead beco less smooth.”
“Because…”
“I already cultivated the technique known as [Empty Vessel, Bereft of Self] ahead of ti!”
“This tribulation-avoidance thod definitely does not originate from the Confucian path. Though its principles don’t completely conflict with it, it still creates resistance during cultivation.”
“And this is only at the lowest Mortal Physique realm!”
“The higher one climbs, the stronger the ideological conflict between different schools will beco. Trying to unify the Hundred Schools into one truly is no easy task.”
Fortunately, Empty Vessel, Bereft of Self was not a true cultivation thod, rely a secret technique for evading tribulations.
At most, it only slightly slowed Li Shun’s cultivation speed.
On the fifteenth day of the sixth month, he still successfully stepped into the middle stage of the Mortal Physique realm.
After another full day of bitter cultivation, his realm reached perfection once more, bringing him before the Gate of Earth.
Li Shun focused his mind, sensing the faint opportunity to break through that existed sowhere beyond perception.
“This ti, it hasn’t changed. The opportunity still lies within Dongshan Town.”
“So Jiang Chongguang will still break into the Imperial Mausoleum.”
“Fang Xun has already emptied out the treasures within that underground mountain palace and brought them back. He even submitted a morial reporting it.”
“Hopefully this ti the mausoleum’s defensive restrictions are tighter and won’t let that brat Jiang Chongguang sneak in again. Otherwise…”
Sixteenth day of the sixth month.
What was destined to happen still seed fated to occur.
The sky suddenly tore open with a strange rift as a teor streaked downward, crashing directly into Li Shun’s courtyard.
The one who arrived was none other than Jiang Chongguang!
“You are…”
“Why does the key to my breakthrough involve you?” Amid the ruins, Jiang Chongguang stared at Li Shun, scratching his head in confusion.
But he had never liked thinking too deeply about things, and soon stopped bothering with it.
Two massive war hamrs instantly appeared in his hands as he prepared to sever this karmic connection on the spot.
Yet at that mont…
As he looked at Li Shun in the distance, a figure buried deep within Jiang Chongguang’s mories suddenly surfaced, astonishingly similar to the man before him.
“Could he be…?”
Jiang Chongguang’s movents involuntarily slowed.
“Over there, hurry!”
Heavy footsteps suddenly echoed from all directions. Jiang Chongguang frowned, grabbed Li Shun, and within a few leaps had already fled Dongshan Town.
He sped toward the underground palace hidden within the mountains, the very one excavated by Han Sushu.
Along the way, as his mories continued surfacing, the expression on his face grew increasingly solemn.
“Could it really be him?”
“What a coincidence…”
He suddenly recalled that when he was young, while wandering everywhere with his uncle, they had once passed through Lengshan County.
One day, driven by childish curiosity, he secretly slipped away and wandered into town alone without telling his uncle.
Unexpectedly, he ended up getting lost.
At the ti, he had been exhausted, starving, and desperately thirsty.
It just so happened that a laborer from Lengshan County ca across him.
The man had brought him ho and taken care of him for several days.
Only later did his uncle finally co searching for him.
“He does resemble that laborer from my mories sowhat.”
“Could this be why my breakthrough opportunity is tied to him? Am I supposed to repay a debt of gratitude?”
“But I was still too young back then. I can’t rember the details clearly anymore.”
Jiang Chongguang frowned in thought as he arrived at the entrance to the underground palace.
The concealed opening, once completely hidden beneath thick vines, now clearly showed signs of intrusion. The area was in utter disarray.
Jiang Chongguang’s expression changed imdiately as he hurried into the tunnel.
Not long afterward…
“Who stole my stuff?!”
Jiang Chongguang’s furious roar thundered throughout the underground palace.
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