At the base of the Righteous Qi Tower, Xu Qi An looked up at the tall building, its eaves curving upwards in layers, resembling a pagoda.
From the second floor up, each level had a gallery for observation. At this time, the spring scenery was beautiful, and the view from the seventh floor was like a painting.
He didn’t go up immediately, instead standing in a daze for a while. Then, adjusting his sable hat, he looked at the guard with a blank expression and said in a deep voice, “Announce me.”
After the guard went downstairs to report and returned, Xu Qi An quickly ascended the stairs. The clerks he encountered along the way all bowed in greeting, to which he merely nodded and grunted in response.
Entering the tea room, stepping on the soft mat woven from reed stalks, Xu Qi An sat cross-legged at the tea table. A cup of hot tea was already in front of him, as well as Wei Yuan, who was calmly reading a book.
“Lord Wei, your subordinate has something to report.”
“Speak.”
“Your subordinate’s involvement in the Heaven-Human Conflict was for a reason…”
He then told Wei Yuan about Daoist Jin Lian’s request and Qing Dan’s reward.
Wei Yuan nodded slowly, his expression softening slightly, and said, “I guessed as much.”
Xu Qi An immediately assumed a posture of attentive listening: “My rash actions must have angered the loyal officials in court, right?”
He had come to ask Wei Yuan about the historical event of the Shanhai Pass Battle, but that would make it seem like he was treating his superior as a tool, which wasn’t something a clever subordinate should do.
Changing the order, Xu Qi An’s visit to the Righteous Qi Tower was primarily to report, with the inquiry being secondary.
“Not necessarily,” Wei Yuan shook his head. “Although you delayed the Heaven-Human Conflict, you didn’t prevent it. Those who want to see Luo Yu Heng dead might be annoyed with you at most.”
Then, Lord Wei, are you annoyed with me… Xu Qi An appeared relieved and continued, “Thanks to the potency of Qing Dan, your subordinate’s Vajra God Technique has reached small completion.”
Wei Yuan wasn’t surprised by this and simply grunted in acknowledgment.
Xu Qi An waited for a moment, and seeing that he didn’t speak, immediately said, “Your subordinate wishes to know how to cultivate the Fifth Rank Force Transformation.”
Wei Yuan put down his book, picked up his teacup took a sip, straightened his posture, and looked at Xu Qi An: “First, you need to understand what Force Transformation is. Hmm, throw a punch to the left.”
Xu Qi An didn’t understand his intention but followed the order, clenching his fist and striking to the left.
Wei Yuan picked up the book and patted Xu Qi An’s shoulder and upper arm, saying with a smile, “There’s obvious trembling here.”
“This… this is inevitable, isn’t it?” Xu Qi An replied.
You’re an ancient person, so I won’t bother explaining high-level concepts like Newton’s Third Law of Motion to you.
When throwing a punch, whether it hits the target or not, there’s always force traveling through the arm, which naturally causes the shoulder and flesh to tremble.
If it hits an object, the arm will also experience a reactive force.
“Force Transformation doesn’t have to tremble. Martial artists at this level can perfectly control their strength, not wasting even the slightest bit,” Wei Yuan picked up his book again and calmly said, “Why do various systems fear close combat with martial artists? They fear martial artists above the Fifth Rank. They fear martial artists with forced transformation. Do you understand?”
Martial artists with Force Transformation can take out any system in one go. But, but this doesn’t conform to the laws of physics… Wait, I remember now. Back when Yang Yan and Jiang Lu Zhong fought in the fighting arena at the office to compete for me, their blue-eyed disaster…
Xu Qi An recalled that battle. The fight between the two Gold Gongs had no aftershocks, no reactive force, seriously violating the laws of physics. He had marveled at it then, secretly guessing which martial arts system and what rank brought about such mystical abilities.
Now he understood, it was the Fifth Rank Force Transformation.
“You’ve reached this level, so I’ll tell you some more knowledge about the martial arts system,” Wei Yuan said while reading his book:
“Before the Fifth Rank, talent accounts for 30%, effort 30%, and resources 40%. After the Fifth Rank, talent accounts for 60%, effort 20%, and resources 20%.”
“Why is that?” Xu Qi An asked, puzzled.
“To master every bit of one’s strength requires the martial artist’s insight. External factors can’t play a role. In the Night Watchmen’s Office, only the ‘Meridian Theory’ can help you draw inferences, but whether you can achieve Force Transformation still depends on the individual.
“Before the Fifth Rank, as long as you have techniques and resources, and your talent isn’t too poor, you can reach it. The Sixth Rank is as common as cows, but at the Fifth Rank, the numbers start to decrease. At the Third Rank… the Da Feng court only has one Marquis of the North,” Wei Yuan said.
The Da Feng court only has one Marquis of the North… Xu Qi An keenly caught the meaning in Wei Yuan’s words and asked, “Are there Third Rank practitioners in the jianghu?”
“The water is deep and full of turtles. Don’t underestimate the heroes of the grassroots,” Wei Yuan smiled. “But the numbers are still as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns. They all tend to follow the rules. The court’s attitude towards them is to appease and allow them to become local powerhouses. If you have the chance, you should take a trip to Sword Province, the most prosperous place for martial arts in Da Feng.”
No wonder Wei Yuan always wanted me to go to the jianghu. The jianghu seems quite interesting… Xu Qi An gathered his thoughts and casually asked:
“Lord Wei, I’ve been reading history recently…”
Before he could finish, Wei Yuan interrupted with a mocking tone, “You read history books?”
I feel the contempt from this academic… Xu Qi An forced a smile: “Your subordinate does read occasionally. After all, I’m half a scholar.”
Back in the day, he was also a hero who survived nine years of compulsory education, but as he grew older, he became less interested in books.
Seeing that Wei Yuan didn’t refute, Xu Qi An got straight to the point, asking curiously: “Your subordinate has discovered that, apart from the ‘Sixty-Year Beast Purge’ between the Buddhist sect and the Myriad Beast Kingdom, the Shanhai Pass Battle was a rare large-scale war in the history of the Nine Provinces.
“What caused this war? The history books are vague about it. Your subordinate thought that since you, Lord Wei, were the commander of the five armies at that time, you must know it.”
Wei Yuan pondered for a long time, as if recalling, his gaze filled with the vicissitudes of life, and slowly said:
“In the 13th year of Yuan Jing’s reign, the southern barbarian tribes, led by the Gu Clan, suddenly attacked the southern border of Da Feng, conquering cities and poisoning hundreds of miles. After receiving the report, the court immediately organized troops to drive out the barbarians.
“As a result, in August of the same year, the northern barbarian tribes and the beast clans joined forces, organizing 200,000 cavalry and beast soldiers, and launched a southward attack on Da Feng with the posture of a lion pouncing on a rabbit.
“Da Feng was attacked from both front and rear. After a year of war, in the 14th year of Yuan Jing’s reign, we abandoned two provinces and ten thousand miles of territory in the northwest, focusing on fighting the southern barbarian tribes.
“In the autumn of the same year, the Myriad Beast Kingdom occupied those two provinces and declared the restoration of their country.”
Wei Yuan stood up, walked to the standing map of territories, and drew a large circle in the northwest of Da Feng with his finger, saying:
“Once Chu Province and Jing Province split off, the northern barbarian tribes, beast clans, and Myriad Beast Kingdom would form a triangular position. Whether attacking Da Feng to the south or the Buddhist country to the west, the three parties could form the tightest formation and support each other.
“So, by the 15th year of Yuan Jing’s reign, the Western Buddhist country entered the fray. The situation immediately reversed. The Buddhist country and Da Feng joined forces, recapturing Chu Province and Jing Province within three months. Da Feng was able to catch its breath and deploy more troops southward to strike hard at the southern barbarian tribes led by the Gu Clan.”
Indeed, the remnants of the Myriad Beast Kingdom were involved in the Shanhai Pass Battle back then. The orphan of the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox, that beast princess, her ultimate goal was to restore her country… The failure of the Shanhai Pass Battle made her realize that the Buddhist sect was too powerful, and to restore her country, she must weaken the Buddhist sect… So, she started plotting for Shen Shu beneath San Bo?
Xu Qi An nodded slowly. Once you understand the opponent’s goal, many things become traceable, and you can respond calmly.
Then, he thought of another question. The emergence of Great Perfection Buddhist Dharma would certainly cause a huge stir in the West, and ideological conflicts would be inevitable. If the Buddhist sect were to split at that time…
What would that Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox think?
What she had worked hard for hundreds of years to achieve, a small Silver Gong from Da Feng casually talked about for a few sentences, and it caused the Buddhist sect to split…
Wei Yuan continued: “In the 16th year of Yuan Jing’s reign, the southern and northern barbarian tribes, northern beast clans, remnants of the Myriad Beast Kingdom, and the northeastern Shaman God Sect joined forces at Shanhai Pass, staking everything on one throw, wanting a fight to the death with the Western Buddhist sect and Da Feng. Each side deployed over a million troops, and the war continued non-stop for half a year, finally ending with a pyrrhic victory for Da Feng and the Buddhist country. It was historically known as The Shanhai Battle.”
“Lord Wei, why did the Shaman God Sect suddenly join?” Xu Qi An asked.
“Naturally, they saw benefits. The Shaman God Sect… has always harbored resentment towards Da Feng. This relates to an old matter from when Da Feng was founded,” Wei Yuan replied.
I know about this. The founding emperor of Da Feng betrayed the Shaman God Sect. When he needed them, it was all sweet talk, but once he established the country, he turned around and called them peasants… Xu Qi An thought to himself.
“Wouldn’t it have been better for the Shaman God Sect to directly harass Da Feng from the northeast?” Xu Qi An asked, puzzled.
“Even in the court’s most difficult times, we were willing to give up two northern provinces but never relaxed our deployment in the northeast. If the Shaman God Sect attacked the northeast, once they failed to conquer it quickly, and the Shanhai Pass battle settled, Da Feng would have ample time and troops to support the northeastern border.
“Rather than that, it was better to borrow passage through the northern barbarian and beast clan territories to reach Shanhai Pass and decide everything in one battle.”
Xu Qi An held his teacup, lost in thought.
The Shanhai Pass Battle started with the allied forces of the southern and northern barbarian tribes, but it initially began with the Gu Clan leading the southern barbarian tribes to attack Da Feng’s borders, followed by the northern barbarian tribes also attacking Da Feng from the south.
Here, it can be seen that the former leader of the Tian Gu Branch mediated from within, instigating the Gu Clan to start the war.
This fits the plan of the two thieves.
The other thief was a Ritualist, and the Ritualist system evolved from the Shaman system. When the Shaman God Sect intervened in the Shanhai Pass Battle back then, this mysterious Ritualist must have fanned the flames, acting as a catalyst.
Xu Qi An could imagine how the two thieves persuaded various parties back then, forming alliances and instigating this rare large-scale battle in history.
“So the remnants of the Myriad Beast Kingdom know I possess luck because of what happened back then? No, that’s not right. Stealing luck was a private plot by the two thieves. Before my luck awakened, even the Supervisor hadn’t discovered it… Then, how did the beast princess discover the luck within me?
“She must know about it, otherwise she wouldn’t have let Monk Shen Shu parasitize within me.
“Sigh… Let’s not worry about this for now. Set another long-term goal: investigate the reason why the mysterious Ritualist stole the luck. The leader of the Tian Gu Branch stole luck to suppress the Gu God, but the mysterious Ritualist might have a different purpose.”
As his thoughts wandered, Wei Yuan asked, “Is there anything else?”
Xu Qi An shook his head, “No, that’s all.”
He hadn’t decided to tell Wei Yuan about the luck he possessed. Although the Supervisor and Daoist Jin Lian knew about this, they had discovered it themselves.
Xu Qi An had never actively told anyone.
He didn’t tell Wei Yuan because Xu Qi An had a layer of concern in his heart. Wei Yuan was a patriot, and in his heart, the Da Feng dynasty came first, or second.
Xu Qi An didn’t believe that his importance in Wei Yuan’s heart was higher than Da Feng’s. If Wei Yuan knew that the reason for Da Feng’s national decline was that its luck had been stolen and transferred to him.
What choice would Wei Yuan make?
“He’s still my biggest backer, but I can’t bet my life and fortune on it,” Xu Qi An thought.
“Think again, is there anything else?” Wei Yuan stared at him.
“No, there isn’t,” Xu Qi An met his gaze and shook his head.
…
In a dimly lit room, a fair hand held a brush, writing a secret letter:
“Respected Master:
“Many things have happened in Da Feng recently. With the end of the imperial examination, party strife has gradually subsided, and Wei Yuan and Prime Minister Wang have begun to work together to rectify the abuses of petty officials.
“I learned from unofficial sources that their next target is to thoroughly investigate the encroachment of military fields and tax reduction. Heh, the two of them working together can indeed sweep across the court.
“But as long as Emperor Yuan Jing doesn’t give up on cultivating the Dao, he will be like a bottomless glutton, consuming Da Feng’s national strength. The policy of tax reduction will inevitably face obstacles.
“Rest assured, in the next ten years, Da Feng’s national strength will decline to its lowest point. The Buddhist country will lose this powerful ally, and even if it remains strong, it will be powerless alone. If another Shanhai Battle is launched, we will be the victors.
“Oh, I have some good news to tell you. During the magical battle between the Imperial Astronomical Bureau and the Buddhist sect, Silver Gong Xu Qi An proposed the concept of Mahayana Buddhism, enlightening Arhat Du E. Your servant predicts that there may be great turmoil in the West this year, which is an opportunity for us.
“He truly is a man of extraordinary talent, with limitless prospects. Your servant boldly asks, what are your plans for him?”
The fair hand put down the brush, staring at the secret letter for a long time without speaking.
…
Imperial Astronomical Bureau.
The stone door leading to the underground opened with a creaking sound. A Ninth Rank white-robed figure called out towards the deep underground: “Senior Brother Yang, half a fortnight has passed. You can come out now.”
A few seconds later, a white-robed figure walked up backward, stubbornly facing the world with the back of his head.
“I, Yang Qian Huan, will eventually return to the world. No one can suppress me,” the white-robed figure said slowly.
“Yes, yes, yes…” the Ninth Rank Ritualist casually agreed, reminding him:
“Please don’t do foolish things again next time. Master Supervisor said that if you imitate Xu Qi An again, he’ll suppress you underground and you’ll never come out in your lifetime.”
Yang Qian Huan snorted: “Why would I need to imitate him? It’s just that he did what I wanted to do.”
What a lunatic… the Ninth Rank Ritualist thought to himself.
“Hmm, during the time I was in seclusion underground, what happened in the outside world?” Yang Qianhuan stood with his hands behind his back, his tone calm and indifferent.