218 Viewing the Monoliths in the Night by Lantern Light Part Three

When Tianhai Shengxue had said that these people were about to go crazy, hewas not referring to the nonsense-babbling young nobles who were feasting, buttheir parents, as well as his parents——those people had invited a southerner todisrupt Chen Changsheng’s viewing of the monoliths. The Mausoleum of Book wastoo important to cultivators. Everyone knew that one slow step would leave thema step behind for the rest of the journey. However, he did not care too much about it. This was because in the GrandExamination, through Her Highness Luoluo, he had secretly bet on ChenChangsheng. It was also because, although the reason for why the Pope highlyregarded Chen Changsheng was still a mystery, there must certainly have been areason for such high regard. For someone who could fight evenly with EtherealOpening Realm cultivators, as long as they could not destroy his physical body,it would be almost impossible for them to destroy his spirit. This was howTianhai Shengxue saw it, but now that he had heard Prince Chen Liu’s words andheard Zhou Tong’s name, only then did he finally realize that he hadunderestimated the strength of the older generation. The people of the world said that Zhou Tong was a dog raised by the DivineEmpress, but he was no normal dog. Rather, he was the fiercest dog in all ofhistory. Ever since the Judgement Board of the Orthodoxy had been placed underthe authority of the Ministry of Personnel, his power and influence had risento the heavens. Who knew how many ministers and generals had died by his hands?As for who the ministers of the old royal family and the elders of theOrthodoxy loathed the most? It was not the Divine Empress, but him. Several decades ago, many powerful experts had risked their lives toassassinate him, but not one of them succeeded. As for why this was the case,Zhou Tong always kept numerous sinister and terrible defensive weapons on hisperson. Moreover, Zhou Tong himself was at the Star Condensation realm.Logically, a cultivator at this realm should have a calm and bright state ofmind, no longer concerned with mortal affairs. Even less would they deign toperform such sordid and bloody matters such as interrogation, torture, murder,and search and seizure, but Zhou Tong was just that type of eccentric creature.His interest, no, his goal in life, was in these sordid affairs, notcultivation. This sort of man could not be moved by the Tianhai family. If he really waswaiting outside the Mausoleum of Books for Chen Changsheng, it was, bynecessity, a reflection of the Divine Empress’ will. Tianhai Shengxue ponderedthis in silence, when suddenly, he felt that something was off. The DivineEmpress’ manner had been confident and open-minded. Even if she were to actagainst Chen Changsheng and the revolutionary countercurrent he represented,she would only do so after his return from Zhou Garden. Thinking up to this point, he lifted his head and looked at Prince Chen Liu’sfurrowed brows. He thought to himself that she had purposefully sent Zhou Tongahead of time. In the end, what was she hoping to accomplish? The fallout from the Grand Examination had not completely dispersed yet.Within the capital, countless powers were carefully watching the Mausoleum ofBooks. Within the inns and taverns,  common folk also discussed this matter.They were curious about the situation of all the examinees in the Mausoleum ofBooks, especially Chen Changsheng. Yet they would never have thought thatwithin the Mausoleum of Books, due to specific circumstances, the disciples ofthe Orthodox Academy and the Li Shan Sword Sect were living under one roof, norwould they have imagined that Chen Changsheng had gone together with Gou Hanshito view the monoliths. Just like how those examinees around the monolith hutdid not think that after Ji Jin had finished his criticisms, Chen Changshengand Gou Hanshi did not appear to humbly accept this advice, nor did they seemready to admit fault. Under the dim moonlight, the monolith hut seemed rather eerie. The atmospherewith stifling and tense. The young cultivators did not know what to say. Theanger on the faces of Zhong Hui and the other two from Scholartree Manorcontinued to grow while Ji Jin maintained his icy expression. At this moment,Chen Changsheng broke the silence, saying something that no one anticipated. He looked at Ji Jin and said, “Senior, you are wrong.” These word immediately caused an uproar. A fifteen-year-old youth actuallydared to point out to a Monolith Guardian, who had been viewing monoliths forfar more than fifteen years, that his method of comprehending the monoliths waswrong?! Even if he was this year’s first rank in the First Banner of the GrandExamination, it was just as Ji Jin had said. Every year, the Mausoleum of Bookswould welcome another first rank of the First Banner from the GrandExamination. In this place, how could Chen Changsheng even compare with Ji Jin? The next thing that happened caused the people viewing the monoliths to becomeeven more shocked. After a brief moment of silence, Gou Hanshi also said a fewword to Ji Jin. “Senior, you really are wrong.” The night was dark. Although the stars twinkled in the night sky, to clearlymake out all those complex lines was still rather strenuous. Some time before,someone had quietly lit an oil lantern that had been hanging off of a treeoutside the monolith hut. The dim light of the lantern mixed with the starlightand fell on the youthful faces of Chen Changsheng and Gou Hanshi, both calm andresolute. They knew that what Ji Jin had just said was actually very reasonable. Theso-called ten thousand changes but never straying from the original. It wastrue that the commonly seen methods for comprehending the monoliths, if tracedback to the source, would never be able to escape the confines of the threemost mainstream and most orthodox methods: take the shape, take the idea, andtake the form, but they were both well-read in the Daoist Canons and they hadalso taken a look at Xun Mei’s notebook, so they were even more confident thatthey would manage to find a new path. “Before the Heavenly Tome Monoliths, there are no set methods and no setrules.” Gou Hanshi looked around at the young examinees as he spoke. “Correct, rightnow the only standard methods that we can instantly call to mind are allvariations of the three mainstream methods, but it cannot be believed that thecountless ways to comprehend the monoliths, all of which have already beenrealized by our predecessors. If we were to think in such a way, then how wouldwe have ever surpass them?” Back at the Li Shan Sword Sect, he had often played the role of a teacher forhis juniors, so these words came very naturally to him. Hearing these words, Ji Jin’s expression became more and more heavy. He feltthat this was the unyielding provocation of the younger generation. He coldlyretorted, “The current junior generation seems to be getting more and morearrogant. What often occurs when they want to surpass their worthypredecessors, just like that madman that only knew how to paint armor! Butdon’t forget, if you’re as arrogant as him, in the end you’ll end up possessedby madness.” “To cultivate the Dao is to look at the worthy and unworthy, not early andlate.” Gou Hanshi calmly told him, “If those who came later didn’t have the courageto surpass those who came before, then how could each generation becomestronger than the last?” When Ji Jin had received the message from his alma mater, it only furtherinflamed his inborn loathing for Chen Changsheng to extreme heights, which waswhy he had, from early morning until late night, confronted Chen Changsheng inorder to humiliate him. He could not have imagined that Gou Hanshi would cometo refute him. In the south, the Scholartree Manor had deep roots and longbloodlines, but in the end it still could not compare with the Li Shan SwordSect, the number one monastery of the Longevity Sect. He did not want to arguewith Gou Hanshi, but he was also burning with rage and was being watched by allthese members of the younger generation, so how could he take intoconsideration these other factors? Rebuke apparent in his voice, he said. “TheDao of the Heavenly Tomes lies within the Monolith Inscriptions. You’ve onlybeen in the mausoleum for two days, so what Dao can you have understood? Whatsort of justification have you cooked up? You insist on taking the wrong pathto failure?” Chen Changsheng replied, “Ten thousand streams, each with a different scenery,but in the end they all join the ocean.” Ji Jin stared into his eyes as he callously said, “I hear that during theGrand Examination you managed to break into the Ethereal Opening Realm, shakingthe entire capital. Presumably you think yourself to be one of those bubblingclear streams, but don’t forget! Many streams initially seem to have anabundance of water, but when they leave the mountain, after a few days they dryout in the wasteland, so for what reason would you be able to escape this typeof end?” Up to here, the hostility had already transformed into barely concealedinsults, even curses. The onlookers all turned pale at these words, and eventhe oil lantern hanging on the tree seemed to grow dimmer. Chen Changsheng could not help but shake his head at these words. “In thepast, I heard that senior was a famous talent of the south who willinglyoffered his life to Dao, making you even more worthy of praise. I didn’t thinkthat you were this sort of person who resorts to threats when he can’t speakreason. It would seem that not one bit of the graceful bearing from the pastremains.” He was not returning Ji Jin’s ridicule, but rather really thought this way.His face naturally contained some sorrow and disappointment, but in the eyes ofeveryone else, it was an expression of ridicule against Ji Jin. Ji Jin flew into a rage at these words. Pointing at him, he yelled, “You wantto talk reason, then we’ll talk reason! Since ancient times, of the countlessmethods used to comprehend the Reflecting Monolith, which of them was a part ofthe ocean that is the ‘correct path’? Who could not take the shape, could nottake the idea, or could not take the form to open this monolith? Was it ZhouDufu or His Majesty Taizong? Was it the previous generation’s Holy Maiden orHis Holiness the Pope? Or was it that person surnamed Su from Mount Li? Ormaybe it was that principal from the Orthodox Academy?” The speed of his voice became faster and faster. As he spoke the names ofthese outstanding and famous personages, he was almost like a hurricane,rushing forth with skull-crushing speed. The last two names were seniors ofChen Changsheng and Gou Hanshi. The last name of the principal of the OrthodoxAcademy especially seemed to contain some hidden subtext. The area around the monolith hut became completely silent. Likewise, GouHanshi and Chen Changsheng also said nothing. As for how those legendaryfigures that Ji Jin had mentioned ultimately comprehended the monoliths, no oneknew the exact details. According to the Daoist Canons and official governmentrecords, they had all used the conventional methods, that is the most orthodoxmethods. The year Zhou Dufu had used one glance to comprehend the monoliths, hehad afterwards revealed his method in idle chatter with Taizong. He had takenfrom both shape and idea and combined them into a high-level method, but it wasstill within accepted practice. Just as everyone felt that Gou Hanshi and Chen Changsheng would be leftspeechless in the face of these cold hard facts, Chen Changsheng once againspoke. The oil lantern on the branch gently flickered about due to the night wind.The light swayed to and fro, reflecting from his eyes, almost as if there werestars twinkling within them. “One thousand one hundred and sixty-one years ago, His Majesty Taizong came tothe capital from Tianliang county to view the monoliths. That year, he wasaccompanied by the Duke of Wei, who, back then, was the official secretary ofthe county. His Majesty Taizong used only one day to view three monoliths,whereas the Duke of Wei needed two whole months to understand just thisReflecting Monolith. Of course, everyone knew that the Duke of Wei didn’t knowhow to cultivate. Logically, it would be correct to say that there was no wayfor him to understand the Heavenly Tome Monoliths, so His Majesty Taizong didnot laugh, but rather was baffled at how he managed to comprehend the monolith.He asked the Duke of Wei just what he had seen in the Reflecting Monolith. TheDuke of Wei replied that he did not see the flow of true essence, the traces ofspiritual sense, nor did he see any sword forms or moves…” Chen Changsheng pointed at the unspeaking monolith as he recounted thisancient and long forgotten tale. Everyone’s gaze, including Ji Jin’s followedhis finger, resting upon the inscription on the monolith. They wanted to knowin the end, what had the Duke of Wei seen? Could it be that there were actuallymethods outside the three main methods?” “He saw a forcefully twisted straight line. He saw the pain and helplessnessof that formerly straight line that had been forcefully distorted by externalforces. He saw what was hidden within the fold was the power of straightness.In his eyes, the lines on the Reflecting Monolith had nothing to do withcultivation. It was beyond cultivation. Those lines were the law. They wererules.” There was naught but silence in front of the monolith hut. Only ChenChangsheng’s voice resounded. “In this way, the Duke of Wei comprehended the Heavenly Tome Monolith.”