Demon Cultivator with Celestial Book

Chapter 361: Chapter 256: Ten-Thousand-Chariot Dao Foundation, 5 Directions Gather at the Origin

The Zi-Wu Fire. Zi is Yin, Wu is Yang. When the two combine, they achieve a state of equilibrium.

Thus, it is also known as the "Civil-Martial Fire" or the "Shao Yin Sovereign Fire."

These days, the Five Elements are the dominant path, and the hierarchy of the Five Virtues is nearly unshakable.

However, with the Earth Element’s decline and the Earth Virtue’s wane, the other four elements have their own strengths and weaknesses.

This makes it difficult to easily maintain a state of "equilibrium."

"When fire is strong and water is weak, material nature cannot be preserved. When water is strong and fire is weak, the resulting depletion is too great."

Jiang Yi toyed with the brilliant golden flame, a profound light flickering in his eyes.

’The true rarity of the Zi-Wu Fire lies in its ability to regulate the Five Elements, balance Yin and Yang, and moderate heat and cold.

The thick shell-like barrier formed by impurities is a form of postnatal qi. When this fire burns it, it is like hot water on snow—it melts away in an instant.’

One must understand that Magic Cultivators who follow the path of the Five Elements are a dime a dozen in the Yanfu Vast Land. For them, to maintain a state of "unmoving equilibrium, constant and unchanging" is as difficult as ascending to the heavens.

It is for this very reason that the Zi-Wu Fire has all but vanished.

Conversely, in Juku Continent, where the Ancient Demon Cultivators hold sway and Blood Qi and Yin malevolence run rampant, the Spiritual Aura of the Five Elements remains undisturbed, allowing such an unusual fire to be born.

’Yao Yun ascended the throne, restoring order from chaos. His destiny is at its peak, finally nurturing the catalyst for the Martial Fire.

The catalyst for the Civil Fire, however, must be obtained from a strategic genius capable of stabilizing the world.’

Jiang Yi tucked the brilliant golden flame into his sleeve and slowly withdrew the condensed Divine Sense he had released, drawing it back into his Primordial Gate.

The Celestial Lord does not disappoint the determined. After several years of "patrolling the heavens as the Great Sun, observing the mortal realm," he had finally found the "material for the Civil Fire."

’Let’s grant him an Opportunity.’

With a slight shift of his gaze, Jiang Yi’s vision crossed mountains and rivers, settling upon a scholar in a green robe.

This man was named Xiao Feibai, a rare prodigy from Pingnan Province. Since childhood, he possessed an encyclopedic knowledge and a photographic memory, never forgetting the classics, histories, philosophies, or even obscure arts. His neighbors all said he had the talent of a top scholar and was destined to one day serve in the Court.

His father, Old Master Xiao, was a respected village scholar. He wholeheartedly hoped his son would endure the hardships of study, pass the imperial examinations to bring honor to their ancestors, and thus urged him daily to study literature and analyze state policies.

But Xiao Feibai was untamable by nature and had no interest in an official career.

Whenever his father mentioned the examinations, he would put down his book, gaze at the distant mountains and drifting clouds, and say with a smile:

"The world may seem peaceful now, but treacherous currents churn beneath the surface. To become a Court official is to be nothing more than a caged bird. I would rather roam the martial world with a sword and live a life of freedom."

As it turned out, Xiao Feibai had been obsessed with martial arts since he was young. Though he had no famous master to guide him, he relied on his own intelligence and intuition, secretly studying the crude fist techniques of village martial artists. He also pieced together fragmented martial arts manuals from miscellaneous records and unofficial histories. Cultivating on his own, he became agile and skilled at a young age, carrying the distinct air of a wandering hero.

He often said, "Martial arts carry the Dao, and heroes aid the people." His one desire was to venture into the martial world, righting wrongs and experiencing all that life had to offer.

Upon reaching the age of maturity, Xiao Feibai ignored his father’s objections and resolutely left home to make his own way.

Clad in a green robe and armed with a wooden sword, he traveled through all the prefectures and counties of Pingnan Province. He would intervene whenever he saw injustice, gradually making a small name for himself.

But he was young and impetuous, not knowing how to conceal his edge. He unintentionally offended a great villain of the Green Forest—the Golden Roc Castle Lord, Li Xiaotian.

Li Xiaotian was ruthless and had countless underlings. He had even taken a White Lotus Sect Protector—one who had aided in the emperor’s rise to power—as his godfather. In the world of the Green Forest bandits, he was undoubtedly a formidable figure.

Xiao Feibai was new to the martial world and naive to the wickedness of men. He never expected that the vindictive Li Xiaotian would be so ruthless as to try and kill him.

「That night」 The moon was dark and the wind howled. Several hundred bandits from Golden Roc Castle surrounded the Xiao Family estate. The air filled with the glint of blades as fire engulfed the manor, lighting up the sky.

Old Master Xiao and his wife were both gentle scholars. How could they possibly stand against such a vicious mob? In an instant, they fell into pools of their own blood.

The entire household, from the old to the young, men and women, none were spared. Only Xiao Feibai, who was out visiting a friend, luckily escaped the massacre.

When he heard the news and rushed back, he found his family’s estate reduced to scorched earth, the bodies of his loved ones strewn everywhere. Overcome with grief and rage, Xiao Feibai grabbed his sword and went to fight Li Xiaotian to the death.

But he was alone and his Power was still shallow. Not only did he fail to get revenge, but he was severely wounded by one of Li Xiaotian’s experts, his meridians crippled. He fled for his life, barely escaping death.

’The heat is still too low. It needs to stew a bit longer.’

Seated in his underwater manor, Jiang Yi’s expression was calm, his heart unrippled. The great river of the Dao surged on, and a mere Mortal couldn’t even cause a single splash.

’This is likely how an Upper Cultivator views a Lower Cultivator.

A grain of sand slipping through my fingers is like a mountain crashing down on them, crushing them to dust.’

Jiang Yi’s Divine Sense wavered for a moment. He then lowered his gaze, his fingers making a series of light calculations as he continued to push Xiao Feibai’s karma forward.

’I’m the one who brought ruin upon my family... Father... Mother...’

Xiao Feibai was at the end of his rope. Not only had Li Xiaotian of Golden Roc Castle annihilated the entire Xiao Family, but he had also framed him, pinning the crime of "colluding with foreign powers and illegally selling military equipment" on him.

With no other choice, he could only change his name and hide in the countryside, working as a simple schoolteacher.

It was then that the Court issued a decree to establish scriptoriums in every prefecture. Their task was to compile the "Orthodox Treasury of the Great Dao" by collecting all the classics, Daoist Scriptures, and miscellaneous records in the land for collation and proofreading. They recruited low-level functionaries to handle the copying and restoration.

Xiao Feibai was known to be a man of integrity, so a prominent family recommended him for a position at the county yamen. He secured a job as a low-level clerk restoring books.

He lived alone in a humble room, his only companions the scrolls and books. He paid no mind to worldly affairs and spoke of neither grudges nor gratitude, pouring all his energy into compiling the scriptures.

Day after day, year after year, regardless of the changes happening in the world outside his window, Xiao Feibai remained buried in the vast ocean of texts, as if trying to entomb his very soul within the ink, brushes, and paper.

And he restored those books for fifty long years.

In those fifty years, Xiao Feibai went from a young man to a white-haired old man. Dynasties rose and fell at Court, and several earth-shattering scandals led to the seizure of homes, the annihilation of clans, and the execution of entire families. Yet he paid no heed to the world outside his window, his mind focused solely on restoring the books.