206 Going South of the Mausoleum

The wattled fencing was pushed over, and the night wind was able to blow inmore easily. The temperature of the area around the grass hut dropped. Comparedto the starlight which had landed in the yard, the oil lamp within the hutseemed especially dim. Chen Changsheng walked into the yard and looked at theman who was sitting on a rock. He wanted to say something, but he did not knowwhat to say. Xun Mei had been an expert with astonishing talent in the past, but now, hehad already spent thirty odd years viewing the monoliths within the Mausoleumof Books. Therefore, he did not know what level his cultivation had alreadyreached. Xun Mei as expected knew the group of teenagers had arrived behind himand said, “I am not afraid, nor am I embarrassed. I know that I am currentlynot as strong as he is, so do I even have a reason to leave?” Ever since his youth, Zhexiu had been exiled from his tribe. He had survivedand grown up in the midst of fighting. Although he knew this middle-aged man’scultivation was extremely high, he still could not accept such an attitude. Hemurmured, “If you haven’t fought him, then how do you know that you are not asstrong as he is? Is there, perhaps, any reason for you to trap yourself withinthe Mausoleum of Books?” Xun Mei’s voice became somewhat lonely, “I have already stayed within themausoleum for thirty-seven years, and I have not communicated with the outsideworld. I gave up the painting and calligraphy that I loved most in my youth. Ieat only to fill my stomach and sleep only to keep warm. I have put all my timeinto viewing the monoliths and comprehending the Dao. I have cultivated andmeditated, but I am still unable to catch up to him. I also really want to knowthe actual meaning of life.” “Do you know Wang Po’s current level of cultivation?” Tang Thirty-Six was alittle surprised and said, “I had thought you would not know how much time hadpassed, and would ask us.” “Every year, , new people will enter the mausoleum at the end of the GrandExamination. After a period of time, senior will also send someone to visit me.I am not interested in other human affairs, and I do not care who the currentemperor is. But I really want to know Wang Po’s current condition. This is whyI know his current and yearly condition.” Xun Mei stood up and gazed at the night sky outside of the mausoleum. He couldvaguely see the lights of the capital and said, “The year I entered themausoleum, he placed first on the Proclamation of Azure Clouds. Afterwards, Iknew that he had entered the Proclamation of Gold Distinction and placedsecond. Afterwards, he entered the Proclamation of Liberation, and he onceagain placed in front of Xiao Zhang. At that moment, he must have been veryhappy.” Wang Po of Tianliang and Painted Armor Xiao Zhang, they were all famous peoplefrom the previous generation before Chen Changsheng’s generation. Theirpositions were similar to Qiushang Jun’s current position, and they were stillthe true experts of the current age in the continent. Originally, Xun Mei wasthe same as they were but with an extremely well-known name. However, as he hadnever left and stayed in the mausoleum to view the monoliths, the continentslowly forgot about him. At least, some people like Chen Changsheng had noknowledge of him. “If you did not continue to stay within the mausoleum, your name woulddefinitely be on the Proclamation of Liberation. You would have also had anextremely high chance to place within the top five.” Tang Thirty-Six said whilelooking at him. Xun Mei turned around and looked at the three teenagers. He said, “Top five……is indeed already very glorious, but in the end, it is not first place. So inthe end, aren’t I still placed after him?” Tang Thirty-Six felt that he still could not really understand and asked,“Then, are you, perhaps, only at peace while staying in the mausoleum andbecoming forgotten by everybody?” “The Mausoleum of Books is an opportunity, the only one for me to overtakeWang Po.” That cold feeling within Xun Mei’s eyes grew heavier and heavier. However, itdid not frighten people, and he only seemed to become more determined, “As longas I stay in the mausoleum and continue to view the monoliths, then one daywhen I reach the top of the Mausoleum of Books, I will completely understandthe true meaning of the Dao. On that day, how can Wang Po still be my opponent?” The yard fell into silence. A kind of small animal was digging under thewattled fencing, and it produced a rustling sound, as if it protested what hehad said earlier. “Senior, in these past thirty-seven years, how many monoliths have you seen?”Chen Changsheng suddenly asked. After hearing this question, Xun Mei frowned slightly. He lowered his head andthought hard. Then he said, “In the first year, I used three months tocomprehend seventeen monoliths. In the summer of that year, there was a hugethunderstorm. After that, my speed began to decrease. By the time it waswinter, I had comprehended another five or six monoliths?” After spending thirty seven-years within the mausoleum, the time had just beentoo long. He had already forgotten many details from the earliest days, and heneeded to think back carefully to remember them. He seriously thought back tothe obstacles he had faced before and said, “In the second year, I think Icomprehended four monoliths, and in the third, three monoliths? I can’t reallyremember.” He shook his head and looked at Chen Changsheng. He said, “I really can’tremember the total amount.” “However, it is very obvious that how quickly you comprehend the monoliths hasbecome slower and slower.” Chen Changsheng hesitated a little before saying,“Please forgive me for being rude, but perhaps, you are unable to remember howmany monoliths you have comprehended in the thirty-seven years. However, youshould at least be able to remember how many years it has been since you lastunderstood a single monolith inscription.” Xun Mei’s body slightly froze, and his face paled slightly as well. His old,dirty clothes fluttered slightly in the night wind. “Understanding the inscriptions of seventeen monoliths in only three months.This kind of talent for comprehension really lets people show admiration. Thatis extremely impressive. I believe that if that stone hut had not beendestroyed by His Majesty Taizong, then we would definitely been able to seesenior’s name. However……” Tang Thirty-Six said while shaking his head, “Since you have such a talent forcomprehension, why must you continue to torment yourself inside if you can onlyreach such a level? I remember very clearly that back then, Wang Po spent ayear in the mausoleum, and he had comprehended thirty-one monoliths beforeleaving.” Xun Mei’s eyes suddenly brightened, as if he was hurrying to show off hischild and said hurriedly, “Although I don’t remember how many monoliths I havecomprehended, I am extremely certain that I have surpassed thirty-onemonoliths. I have comprehended more than him.” “So what?” Tang Thirty-Six was once a student of Heavenly Dao Academy. While looking atthis middle-aged man in dire straits, he unconsciously wanted to help him.After hearing what was spoken, he could not help but feel slightly heartsick.He sighed, “If Wang Po had continued to stay in the mausoleum for a couple ofyears with his talent for comprehension, he definitely would have also beenable to comprehend a few more. But why was he determined to leave? He had aclear idea of his own limits. If he had decided to stay, even though he wouldcomprehend a few more monoliths, the ratio of time spent working hard toproducing results would be subpar. This would be wasteful.” After hearing these words, Xun Mei became a little angry, but afterwards, herealized he did not know how to rebuke Tang Thirty-Six. For a moment, he couldnot help but stare blankly, and the yard in front of the grass hut once againfell extremely silent. “Are you saying….. in those years I spent in the mausoleum, I had just beenwasting away my life?” He shook his head and said with a trembling voice, “Both his talent forcultivation and comprehension heavily exceeded mine. What else can help meovertake him other than the Mausoleum of Books? Yes, he still currently standsabove me. If I am unable to overtake him while I am inside the mausoleum and heis outside, then what hope do I have if I leave the mausoleum?” “The monoliths within the mausoleum can help us with cultivation, but manyother opportunities exist to help us with cultivation outside the mausoleum.How else could Wang Po become so strong?” Zhexiu who had always stayed silent suddenly opened his mouth and beganspeaking. Xun Mei’s brows were tightly furrowed and he asked, “What other opportunitiesexist outside the mausoleum that can help me with cultivation even more thanthese monoliths, which contain profound mysteries?” “There are many.” Zhexiu said expressionlessly, “Battles, trials and tribulations, expandingyour horizons, and hardships. Most importantly, there are life and deathsituations outside the mausoleum.” Xun Mei opened his mouth slightly, but he could not say anything for a longtime. After witnessing this, Chen Changsheng sighed sorrowfully. Zhexiu was clearlya teenager, and his level of strength was way below Xun Mei’s. However, hecurrently spoke to Xun Mei like a teacher educating young kids——A young wolfwho had grown up with difficulties on the snowy plains had a more realistic andaccurate understanding of the world than a cultivator who had spentthirty-seven years inside the Mausoleum of Books. “But…….these thirty-seven years……” Xun Mei turned around to look at the mausoleum in the night sky, and hisexpression became somewhat frustrated. He said to himself, “There are stillmany stone monoliths up there that I cannot understand nor read. I really wantto understand. If I can reach the top of the mausoleum, understand all of thesemonoliths, and grasp the true meaning of the heavenly Dao, I can definitelydefeat Wang Po. If I just leave like this, how would I be willing?” After saying these things, he shook his head with a bitter smile and thenwalked towards the outside of the yard. The starlight illuminated bits and pieces of the courtyard, and it also landedon Xun Mei’s hair. Perhaps it was the lighting, but Chen Changsheng definitelyfelt that he could see a few strands of white hair. The night breeze seemed tobecome a bit chillier. “Where is he going?” After observing Xun Mei’s somewhat melancholy back and his slightly staggeringsteps, Chen Changsheng became a little worried. He wondered whether Xun Mei’smind had received too much of a shock or not. Tang Thirty-Six said slightly sympathetically, “He should be heading towardthe mausoleum to view the monoliths……. in the past thirty-seven years, perhapshe was like this every night. The starlight was very bright. Although it would be slightly difficult towrite under its illumination, it was enough to view the monoliths. There werealso faint lights that could be seen within the mausoleum. After thinking aboutit, there must have been many people also viewing the monoliths by lamplight. “He is not going to view the monoliths.” Zhexiu’s expression suddenly changed. He looked at Xun Mei who had slowlydisappeared into the night forest and said, “The path to view the monoliths isnorth of the mausoleum. He is going southwards.” Tang Thirty-Six stared blankly and said, “Perhaps he was so angry that hebecame confused and is now travelling in the wrong direction?” Chen Changsheng was slightly regretful and said, “As the senior spent most ofhis life within the mausoleum, he is perhaps slightly confused. However, thissituation is different. The reasoning we believe is correct seems wrong to him.We are also his juniors after all. Didn’t you go a little overboard with yourwords before?” “Wrong is wrong. Wasting your life away is wasting your life away. This hasnothing to do with being juniors or seniors.” Zhexiu said expressionlessly. “Well……. I want to follow him and see what happens. Hopefully nothing happens.” Chen Changsheng walked towards the exterior of the wattled fencing, and TangThirty-Six also followed along. Zhexiu stared blankly at the wattled fencingthat had collapsed on the floor for a while, and then he also left the grasshut. This grass hut was in the southwest region of the Mausoleum of Books. Aftercrossing over the river and walking southwards, they could hear the rumblingsounds of the dozen waterfalls south of the mausoleum. Xun Mei’s silhouette could be vaguely seen in the night sky. The threeteenagers followed him. They passed through the spray of the waterfalls likewalking through the spring rain, and they arrived in front of the rock plateaucovered with shallow canals. Starlight scattered across the rock plateau, and the clear water within thecanals flowed gently from side to side. It was very beautiful. Xun Mei waded through these shallow canals, which caused his clothes to becomewet. However, he did not pay attention to it at all and seemed to be a littledistracted. He arrived in front of the Divine Path and raised his head to look at the topof the mausoleum. His expression became slightly frustrated. For thirty-seven years and countless days and nights, he had only wanted toreach the summit. However, he still could not get there unfortunately. Although the Divine Path led directly to the top of the mausoleum, he did nothave a way to walk up it. This was because of that person clad in armor who sat quietly within thepavilion in front of the Divine Path.