Chapter 545: Chapter 10: Celestial Emperor’s Seal and Azure Heaven Crown, the Daoist Enters the World
"Campaign against Dong?"
Haotian was clearly stunned for a moment before he came to his senses, looking thoughtful.
"Are you saying that the Qi Fortune Takers of this era are gathering today?"
Lu Xuan nodded, his brow slightly furrowed.
"If what Celestial Emperor Fu Xi said is true, and the White Lotus Sect is making a major move today, then it must be this gathering of the Dukes..."
He paused, a look of confusion on his face.
"But how could Fu Xi know of Taiyi’s and the Demon Ancestor’s schemes? And... he was able to escape from you?"
Haotian’s expression turned grave.
"I searched for Fu Xi for twelve years and found him in the depths of the West Sea. I tried to keep him there and we exchanged a blow. He was only at a slight disadvantage before he fled and vanished."
As he spoke, the Daoist-like Haotian began to pace back and forth.
"That’s the strangest part. Although I maintain this dead body, a Daluo would never be able to withstand a single palm strike from me. Yet Fu Xi blocked it..."
A thought stirred in Lu Xuan’s mind, and he suddenly asked,
"Elder Haotian, could that Fu Xi be... a Dao Fruit?"
"Impossible." Haotian shook his head decisively. "The number of Dao Fruits is fixed."
"Then is it possible he’s a ’Fake Dao Fruit’—one who holds a Dao Fruit but is not enthroned upon it?"
"Also impossible."
Haotian said, perplexed,
"That is what confuses me... But forget it. Shall we deal with the White Lotus Sect first? We can’t let them truly seize the Human Dao Trend and break the seal above Reincarnation..."
Lu Xuan frowned in thought. After a long moment, he finally spoke.
"The White Lotus Sect itself is nothing. The trouble is the Buddha Mother and the others behind them. What’s certain is that the Maitreya Buddha Mother has definitely entered the mortal world and is plotting something..."
He paced back and forth.
"In my current form, it’s not convenient for me to openly oppose the White Lotus Sect. I need a proper reason... How about this: Elder, you continue searching for Fu Xi, and I will enter the mortal world for a while."
"Very well."
Haotian nodded. Then, as if remembering something, he turned his palm over slightly.
"I retrieved this item on my trip. You should take it for now."
"This is...?"
"The Celestial Emperor’s Seal, a Dao Artifact I forged back in my day. Didn’t you say you wanted to use the Human Dao to rule the Celestial Realm? This item might be of help. It can also allow you to comprehend what a Dao Artifact is."
Lu Xuan’s expression flickered. He bowed formally.
"I will never forget your kindness, Elder!"
"A small matter. In addition, you should take this as well."
As he spoke, a crown appeared in Haotian’s hand. Thirty-six strings of beads hung from both the front and back, for a total of seventy-two.
Each string was threaded with one hundred and eight pale white jade beads, which remained motionless even in the wind.
"And this is?"
Lu Xuan asked curiously as he accepted the incredibly heavy Celestial Emperor’s Seal.
"The Azure Heaven Crown."
Haotian’s expression grew solemn.
"This is not the Celestial Emperor’s Crown, but the Azure Heaven Crown. It is one of the contingencies I prepared when I was still the Celestial Emperor. Every bead was forged from an Ancient Star."
"This crown was consecrated in the Milo Celestial Palace for thirty million years, absorbing the Virtue of heaven and earth. Wearing this crown, your thoughts can connect with the Celestial Realm and the Earth, allowing you to command a sliver of the power of the Heavenly Dao and Earthly Virtue."
He paused, then continued to explain,
"Furthermore, if you wear this Azure Heaven Crown day and night, Dao Rhyme will manifest on its own, and heaven and earth will lend their strength to whatever you wish to accomplish. You wish to unify the three realms of heaven, earth, and humanity; this item can also be a great aid."
Lu Xuan’s pupils contracted slightly. ’Wearing this crown, I can command a sliver of the power of the Heavenly Dao and Earthly Virtue?’
He performed a deep bow, sincere and earnest, and said solemnly,
"This item you have gifted me is of immense use, Elder. This junior is endlessly grateful!"
Lu Xuan had been worrying about how to quietly replace Heaven without exposing himself.
’After all, at The Beginning of Ancient Times, ’Xuan Sheng’ had already wielded the Heavenly Dao and Earthly Virtue. If I do so again, it will inevitably lead the various Dao Fruits to make the connection.’
’But with this Azure Heaven Crown...’
Haotian smiled again.
"Of the four Celestial Emperors, I at least served the longest. How could I not have left some tricks up my sleeve? Xiaoxuan, remember one thing."
"This junior is listening respectfully."
"None of the Dao Fruits are easy to deal with, including Houtu, whom we once struck down. That one has been missing for many years. Even The Three Pristine Ones may not be able to determine their whereabouts..."
As he said this, Haotian placed the Celestial Crown on Lu Xuan’s head.
"Go on, now. Go on."
Lu Xuan felt a profound and mysterious connection form between himself and the Great Heaven and Earth. An endless stream of Dao Rhyme descended from the Azure Heaven Crown, constantly cleansing his very being!
He bowed once more, gravely and solemnly.
「One hundred li from Hulao Pass.」
The great camp stretched for over a thousand li, with an endless number of soldiers. As far as the eye could see, there were blades, spears, swords, and halberds. Upon closer inspection, one could see that beside the sprawling camp, a vast mansion had been erected.
This was personally commissioned by Lord Yuan, whose family had produced Three Dukes over four generations. He had always been accustomed to extravagance and insisted on lavish luxury even in such a situation.
"Extravagant, so extravagant..."
A soldier standing guard in front of the mansion tutted in amazement, looking back at the luxurious residence from time to time. Beside him, another soldier chuckled and remarked,
"I heard that twelve years ago, General Yuan had a near-death experience. Ever since then, he’s been a firm believer in ’seizing the day’..."
"Oh, I know about that. It seems it was twelve years ago when the White Lotus Sect first appeared. General Yuan led his troops to suppress the bandits, but his entire army was wiped out, and he himself barely made it back... Someone’s coming!"
The two soldiers stopped talking and looked toward the three men who were slowly approaching.
The newcomers were three young men. The one in the lead had a face as fair as jade, lips as red as cinnabar, and a refreshing air about him with his dragon-like brows and phoenix eyes. When he let his hands hang naturally, they reached past his knees.
Standing to his left and right were a red-faced man and a black-faced man. The former had long, slanted "phoenix eyes" that were slightly narrowed, while the latter had a rough and brutish appearance.
The gate guards looked the three men up and down for a moment, but they didn’t look down on them for their shabby clothes.
One of them asked,
"This is the central command tent. What is your business here, you three? Halt!"
"Central command tent?" The black-faced man laughed heartily. "Whose central command tent is built out of Cyan Jade? Anyone who knows what’s going on would think we’re here for the campaign against Dong the Thief. Anyone who doesn’t would think we’re here for a spring outing!"
"Yide, no rudeness!"
Liu Bei chided him gently, but Zhang Fei just pursed his lips.
"Fourth Brother, I’m just telling the truth. That Yuan Shao is truly ridiculous..."
"Yide, do you have any idea who Yuan Shao is?" Liu Bei sounded even more exasperated, and a wave of emotion washed over him.
’Twelve years have passed in the blink of an eye... ’
’In these twelve years, one of the four stayed in Luoyang, one was sent to the North, and one returned to Jiangdong, while I, Liu Bei, settled down in Zhuoxian County. We haven’t seen each other in twelve years... ’
Guan Yu and Zhang Fei only knew that Liu Bei had three older brothers, but not who they were. This was because Liu Bei himself wasn’t sure if those three, now all famously powerful, would still acknowledge him.
At this, Zhang Fei slapped his chest and boomed,
"Who’s Yuan Shao? Isn’t he just some rich kid from a fancy family? Fourth Brother, if you ask me, we should just..."
Before he could finish, the two guards glared and shouted,
"Insolence! How dare you slander General Yuan behind his back?"
As they spoke, the two soldiers drew their blades and banged them against their iron shields.
Zhang Fei was startled, his eyes widening.
"You want to have a shouting match with your Grandpa Zhang, is that it?"
He took a deep breath, a gust of wind swirling around him, and was about to let out a ferocious roar when the quick-thinking Liu Bei clapped a hand over his mouth, saying helplessly,
"Haven’t you always been curious who my three older brothers are? If I’m not mistaken, they should all be inside. You really ought to be more polite."
Zhang Fei and Guan Yu were both stunned. The two guards were also startled by the sudden gale.
Realizing that the black-faced man’s cultivation was impressive, they grew more cautious, but still didn’t dare to let them pass. Just then, another young man approached, dressed in a Feather Robe and carrying a flask of crude wine.
He was drinking and muttering something to himself. The two soldiers hurriedly greeted him with a salute.
"Lord Xu!"
The newcomer waved his hand, let out a drunken hiccup, and eyed Liu Bei’s group.
"Who are these three? How come I’ve never seen them before? Are they subordinates of one of the Dukes?"
Liu Bei offered a salute and spoke in a gentle tone,
"My name is Liu Bei, and these are my sworn brothers, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. We have come to answer the call of General Yuan and General Cao and participate in the conference to campaign against Dong the Thief."
"Ha?"
The young man burst out laughing.
"Here to join the conference? Liu Bei... Never heard of you! So, how many troops do you have?"
Liu Bei lowered his eyes slightly.
"Three men and three horses."
The two guards couldn’t help but laugh out loud, and the young man with the wine laughed even harder.
"You dare to attend the alliance with just three men and three horses? Among the eighteen Dukes here, the smallest force has at least a hundred thousand soldiers."
"And besides the Dukes, those who enter this gate are either a Supreme General who shakes a region with his might, or a grand strategist who directs battles from his tent. What do you three count as, to think you can join the alliance?"
Liu Bei remained calm, unhurried, and unangered. Just as he was about to speak, Zhang Fei couldn’t take it anymore. He raised a fist and shouted,
"You there! Say that again?"
"Oh-ho?"
The young man was amused.
"Thinking of getting violent? Do you know who I am? Yuan Benchu treats me as a guest of honor! Cao Aman would rush to greet me with his shoes on backwards! ...Go on, hit me! Right here on the head of me, Xu You, also known as Xu Ziyuan!"
With that, he actually stuck his head forward, provocatively and contemptuously tapping the top of his own skull with his finger.
Zhang Fei didn’t indulge him. He raised his fist to smash it down, a treasured light beginning to glow around it, but Liu Bei grabbed his large fist and chided in a low voice,
"Yide, you must not be rude!"
Saying this, he turned his head and said peacefully,
"So it is Mr. Xu in person. I have long admired your great name. However, the three of us have come in good faith to join the alliance. That Dong the Thief is a man everyone has the right to execute. Sir, why do you obstruct us?"
After a pause, Liu Bei cupped his fist in a salute.
"I ask that Mr. Xu not make things difficult for us."
"Make things difficult?"
Xu You sneered.
"Three nameless nobodies. Are you even worthy of me ’making things difficult’ for you?"
Finished speaking, he paid them no more mind. He shot a sidelong glance at the black-faced man and strode toward the mansion. As he walked, he said to the two soldiers,
"You’re guarding the gate for Yuan Benchu. This threshold of General Yuan’s isn’t for any cat or dog to cross. Remember, don’t let a single dog in... and that goes for three of them, too!"
The two soldiers hurriedly assented. Zhang Fei was so angry steam was practically coming out of his ears. His black face flushed red, even redder than Guan Yu’s naturally crimson one!
Just as Xu You entered the mansion gate and the two soldiers stood guard menacingly with their blade shields, the sound of footsteps was heard again.
At a loss, Liu Bei looked to the side and saw a Daoist slowly approaching.
The Daoist’s attire was extremely strange. He wore a shabby Daoist Robe, but on his head was a peculiar Crown.
Thirty-six strings of beads hung from the front and back of the Crown, the translucent white jade beads so dense that they obscured the face beneath.
"How come there’s another Daoist?" one of the guards muttered in surprise. In the next moment, he saw the Daoist had already drifted to the front of the gate.
"Daoist, halt! This is the central command tent..."
The Daoist paid him no mind, only glancing sideways in surprise at the three waiting brothers and smiling.
"Liu Xuande, have you been barred from entering the mansion?"
The three brothers were all taken aback. ’This Daoist...’
A look of astonishment appeared on Liu Bei’s face.
"Daoist Master, have we... met before?"
"We met once." The old Daoist smiled. "But it was quite a while ago. Let me see... It must have been twelve years, right?"
"Twelve years..."
Liu Bei muttered the words, and his body trembled slightly.
He swallowed, lowered his head, and asked cautiously,
"Are you... the Temple Master?"
"It is I. I was idle anyway, so I decided to enter the mortal world."
The old Daoist, wearing the Azure Heaven Crown, smiled. Liu Bei felt dizzy as he prostrated himself, much to the astonishment of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei.
"Let’s go inside first."
The old Daoist accepted the bow and lifted his foot to walk toward the mansion. The two soldiers wanted to stop him, but they suddenly felt that this Daoist’s approach was as right as heaven and earth, as it should be, a law of Nature itself. They couldn’t stop him; not even the Emperor could stop him.
The two soldiers involuntarily put away their blade shields and stood respectfully to the side, bowing their heads to welcome him.
The old Daoist stroked the crown on his head and sighed softly.
’When the time is right, heaven and earth lend their strength... No, it should be that when the crown arrives, heaven and earth lend their strength... Elder Haotian, this gift is beyond my expectations.’"
"What was that?" the black-faced man asked in his booming voice as he hurried to catch up. The old Daoist just smiled and walked through the mansion gate.
Although Guan Yu and Zhang Fei were baffled and confused, they didn’t ask any more questions, following closely behind with Liu Bei.
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