Chapter 40: Chapter 37 What Happens on the Mountain
Zhao Rong and his companions slightly deviated from their planned route and after two days of travel, they arrived at the nearest mountain market called Baiyun Ferry.
From the map, Zhao Rong learned that the current dynasty, named Great Chen, honored Legalists and governed the state with the principle of “strict punishment and harsh law enforcement.”
When Zhao Rong passed through several cities before, he noticed that people on the streets were very cautious with their words and rarely whispered to each other, afraid of being accused of a crime because of their speech. As for Confucian and “alternative” books, they were completely banned nationwide. He had heard about instances of national book burning campaigns before. The Legalists in this nation were indeed highly exclusionary.
Zhao Rong frowned, recalling his past few city visits where, due to his Confucian scholar attire, he was subjected to rigorous inspections. Had it not been for his complete set of identity proofs and a flag from Linlu Academy, whose authenticity was questionable, he probably would have run into conflicts already.
Zhao Rong looked around the solemn Immortal cultivator market, which seemed to have adopted the atmosphere of the foothills, and thought back to the indifferent official at the gate when he first entered Baiyun Ferry.
It seemed that the boundary between the mountains and the foothills was blurrier than he had thought. The number of cultivators involved in the mundane world probably far outnumbered those who had left it behind. It appeared that the Legalists of this nation even managed to control the mountain Immortals.
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Zhao Rong remembered growing up in Great Chu, which also solely revered Legalists. However, later on, the current State Preceptor, who hailed from Linlu Academy, managed to reverse this trend. Until he left, Zhao Rong had still heard rumors that remnants of the Legalist faction were seeking a comeback during the unstable period following the new emperor’s ascension to the throne…
Zhao Rong’s thoughts drifted as he ambled through Baiyun Ferry.
Su Xiaoxiao did not go up the mountain, as it was better for her to stay down with her Demon Race identity, especially with the Legalist officers monitoring the mountain market. Being discovered could mean trouble, so he had her stay below. However, when they parted, the young girl was visibly reluctant. Afraid she might secretly follow him, Zhao Rong promised to tell her a new story from Strange Tales at night, which finally calmed her down.
Liu Sanbian went his own way after entering Baiyun Ferry, claiming he was going to prepare medicinal herbs necessary for Zhao Rong’s cultivation in the Ascending Realm. According to Brother Sanbian, martial artists at this level should focus on “technique as the mother, fist as the foundation, and nourishment as the key.”
The technique referred to the “Ant Ascending Heaven Technique,” the fist to the “Mountain Carrying Volume,” and the forthcoming nourishment was a medicinal bath, which was exactly what Brother Sanbian was now preparing.
Zhao Rong aimlessly arrived at a building resembling a bookshop and realized it was a place selling residence reports from the mountains.
These residence reports were similar to newspapers from his previous life, published by some well-informed powers and regularly updated, serving as one of the main channels for information flow in the mountains.
The reports on major events on the mountain were quite reliable, but sometimes they would also print hearsay and interesting gossip, such as speculations about the emergence of Spiritual Objects on certain immortal mountains, or evaluations of the unparalleled beauties among the fairies of Wangque Continent. As for their authenticity, it was up to the reader to decide.
Zhao Rong purchased a recent edition of the residence report that seemed trustworthy and started to read it carefully.
The report stated that dozens of countries, including Anling Country and Zhi Shui Country, were still in lockdown. Tianya Sword Pavilion continued to pursue that Evil Flood Dragon, and the situation was escalating. Currently, the entire Wangque Continent’s mountains were particularly sensitive to anything related to the Demon Race. Those connected with the Evil Flood Dragon were all treated as suspects and all demon cultivators on the mountain were required to register with the Punishment Mansion’s records to clarify their identities and track records for several years.
Zhao Rong slightly knitted his brows, feeling that there was more to the issue, but decided not to dwell on it as it probably no longer concerned him.
Besides, it was fortunate that Su Xiaoxiao did not come up the mountain, otherwise, she might have been caught by the Punishment Mansion’s Inspector disciples and sent back to Qiantang Mountain… Eh, why do I feel somewhat let down that Su Xiaoxiao missed this danger? Ah, such a silly little Fox Demon shouldn’t be wandering outside carelessly.
Zhao Rong’s gaze shifted downward again.
There were two other widely discussed major events on the mountain in Wangque Continent.
Siqi Academy, one of the two Confucian Academies on Wangque Continent, had a scholar awarded the title of “Gentleman” by the Central Continent Confucian Temple.
This honor was extremely rare; typically, only the Mountain Masters and a few Teachers from both academies possess it. The scholar in question is only twenty years old, just reached adulthood, and is already seen as the likely next Mountain Master. The Mountain Master of Siqi Academy is almost like half of Wangque Continent’s literary world leader, a representative figure for Confucianism on the continent.
Therefore, this new Gentleman is the talk of the mountain.
It is said he was always immersed in books, focusing on learning, unknown to the world. But now, with his fame spread throughout Wangque, he remains neither arrogant nor impatient, and privately, he is a righteous Gentleman. He not only pursues academic rigor, but also practices self-discipline, tolerance, and holds high ethical standards. Moreover, he is still unmarried, has never set foot in pleasure houses, and many fairies should seize the time… wait, what is all this below?
Zhao Rong’s face was lined with exasperation as he glanced through, seeing that the rest of the report gradually became gossipy.
Nonsense about his mother dreaming of a bright moon entering her embrace while pregnant with him.
What when he turned one-year-old and it was time for the Zhuazhou ceremony, he grabbed a Confucian Saintly Book without hesitation.
What about those few stunning fairies on the mountain who sent him poetry papers, to whom he earnestly replied with lengthy discourses, pointing out that some tones and rhymes in their poems didn’t conform to the rules, and how they should amend them to avoid such rudimentary errors…
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It seems that everywhere is the same, people are only interested in amusing gossip, not the gentleman’s scholarly pursuits and propositions.
Zhao Rong shook his head, but as a fellow Confucian Scholar, he felt a sense of curiosity about this gentleman, wondering if he possessed any brilliant and unique knowledge.
Another big news was that two prodigies from the Taiching Four Mansions had successfully graduated, a male and a female. The former, named Cheng Lugu, was twenty-eight years old, a Golden Core Fifth Grade, and the latter, named Lu Yao’er, was twenty-seven years old, a Golden Core Fourth Grade. Both were inscribed on Taiching’s Talented List and just after graduating, they planned to hold a grand ceremony to become Daoist partners.
In fact, if it were just the graduation and coupling of two geniuses from the Taiching Four Mansions, it wouldn’t have generated such widespread attention.
The centers of attention here were the identities of these two individuals.
One was a son of the deputy sect master of the Xinhuan Sect in the northern part of the Wangque Continent, a position of great prominence.
The other, though lacking a noble identity, in fact hailing from an obscure small country in the eastern part of the Wangque Continent, and daughter of an unknown hunter from an unknown forest, had astonishing talent and beauty. She had fought against her fate to enter Taiching Four Mansions and remained among the top of her peers in this gathering place of geniuses. Moreover, with her stunning appearance, she had long been one of the cherished fairies of Taiching Four Mansions, consistently featured on various fairy rankings in the Wangque Mountain Residence Reports.
Both were celestial beings, with commendable looks and talents, equal in age and cultivation. Now, as Daoist partners, they indeed seemed to be a match made by destiny in the eyes of the Mountain Immortals, a beautiful tale, albeit a pity for those admirers of Fairy Lu.
Zhao Rong put down the Residence Report and pondered.
The Xinhuan Sect, he had indeed heard of this colossal entity.
If one were to divide the entire Wangque Continent into just north and south, and not consider unconventional powers like Tianya Sword Pavilion, Taiching Four Mansions, and the two Confucian Academies, then Xinhuan Sect and Weiwei Mountain were the two largest Immortal Sects in the northern part, each claiming half of the Wangque Continent. As for the other half, numerous forces stood in competition, with no dominant sects or schools.
This was also what Zhao Rong found quite strange, were Xinhuan Sect and Weiwei Mountain simply idling away?
Even so, Xinhuan Sect remained a top force in the Wangque Continent, and its deputy sect master would definitely be a major figure in the mountains.
Well, from this perspective, it seems Fairy Lu is the one who has climbed upwards. Is this the Otherworld version of a Cinderella marrying into a wealthy family?
Zhao Rong was pondering so much because it concerned the Taiching Four Mansions, where he had some people he wanted to meet, and from the tone of Qian’er, if nothing unexpected happened, they should also be able to graduate from Taiching Four Mansions without issue, it was just a matter of time. Twenty-eight was the minimum age for graduation, he wondered how long it would take for Qian’er and her.
Zhao Rong pursed his lips and read a bit more.
The founder of Dawn Sect, having traveled abroad for many years, brought back a precocious child with golden pupils to train as his closed-door disciple, indicating that the internal strife for the position of sect leader was likely to intensify…
The eldest son of the Lin family from Lanxi of Zhongnan Country, who had studied for many years in Siqi Academy, had now returned home and was ready to carry out his marriage arrangement, taking the daughter of Zhongnan’s State Preceptor, a couple well-matched in literary grace and beauty…
After browsing a while longer, Zhao Rong realized that the rest of the Residence Report contained content that was unrelated to him. The only thing connected to him, “the top ten young talented men of the Wangque Mountain Immortals desired in their dreams,” Zhao Rong enthusiastically searched from top to bottom of the list and didn’t see any starting with Zhao.
Is this it?
A vulgar and uninteresting list.
The sword-bearing scholar sneered and tossed the Residence Report behind him, striding away nonchalantly.