Chapter 434: The Wild Ferry Has No One, the Mound Opens of Itself

Chapter 434: The Wild Ferry Has No One, the Mound Opens of Itself

On the morning of the third day, Tianhai Ya'er and that tall, thin man arrived punctually at the gate of the National Academy. Quite a few citizens of the capital had already gathered to watch the spectacle.

Over the previous two days, Chen Changsheng's spiritual sense had been severely depleted. He still hadn't managed to open the black stone stele on the opposite shore of the Sword Will Ocean. Today, he decided to take a temporary break.

He sat down in the library and began to read and study.

Suddenly, a wind arose, and then rain fell. The sound of the wind, the sound of the rain, the sound of reading, and the sound of cursing from outside the wall rose and fell in turns, each undisturbed by the others.

Chen Changsheng could keep his mind undisturbed by all things, but others could not. The citizens of the capital already had an extremely poor impression of the Tianhai clan, and they held no goodwill whatsoever toward Tianhai Ya'er, whose evil reputation had long been established. When noon arrived, the rain-soaked crowd found Tianhai Ya'er's insults lacking any novelty, as he had reverted to his initial tirade. Finally, someone let out the first jeer, and laughter followed.

Tianhai Ya'er sat in his wheelchair, his face growing paler, his gaze growing more ferocious. He raised his right hand. Thus, a conflict broke out between the crowd and the Tianhai family's attendants. The priests of the Li Palace and the Imperial Forest Army arrived a step or two too late. Two ordinary citizens were injured, and one of the Tianhai family's attendants was beaten bloody by the crowd.

The Li Palace priests were very angry. They demanded that the Imperial Forest Army immediately clear out Hundred Flowers Lane. At the same time, they were prepared to expel Tianhai Ya'er and that man, regardless of the outcome of the discussions among the higher-ups. Just then, Tianhai Ya'er slapped his injured leg and shrieked miserably, "Murder! Murder!"

"The Li Palace is too powerful! They're trying to force people to death! They forced Liang Xiaoxiao to death, they forced Zhuang Huanyu to death, and now they want to force me to death too!"

"Come on, then! Let's see how you explain it to my grandaunt after you've forced me to death!"

The Li Palace priests were furious, but they could do nothing against him.

Ever since Her Holiness the Saint Empress began reviewing memorials and presiding over court affairs on behalf of the late Emperor, the Tianhai clan had, over two centuries, replaced the Chen imperial clan and become the foremost family on the entire continent. The current Great Zhou court was filled with the disciples and protégés of the Tianhai clan, their power at its zenith. Most crucially, all the younger generation of the Tianhai clan shared the same grandaunt—Her Holiness the Saint Empress.

...

...

Looking at the room full of dazzling plum blossoms, and then at the weary-faced Archbishop, Priest Xin's feelings were complicated. He said, "If this keeps up, it's too disgraceful."

Merisa slowly opened his eyes, gazing at some point outside the window, and said, "Anyway, the Tianhai family's face has been lost for so many years. They don't care."

Priest Xin asked, "How exactly should we handle this? If it comes to it, I'll take some men and drive Tianhai Ya'er away."

Merisa said expressionlessly, "Haven't you figured it out yet? This is a diversion."

"A diversion?" Priest Xin suddenly thought of the news that had come from the Li Palace. Slightly startled, he said, "You mean the matter those two Archbishops proposed a few days ago?"

The State Church had what were called the Six Titans. Regardless of seniority or status, Merisa was undoubtedly the foremost among the Six Titans, but the other five were also formidable figures. Mao Qiuyu had stepped down as Dean of the Heavenly Dao Academy and taken up the post of Archbishop of the Hall of Brilliance, becoming one of the Six Titans of the State Church. The two Archbishops Priest Xin referred to were the ones in charge of the Hall of Assault and the Hall of Shadow Steps, respectively.

Several years ago, these two Archbishops had proposed a motion, citing the growing strength of the demon race and the need for the State Church to enhance the practical combat abilities of human cultivators. The motion stated that within the Six Ivies, except for the Star Seizer Academy, as long as teachers and students of any academy were of the same cultivation realm, they could challenge each other. Unless there was a sufficient reason or special approval from the Li Palace, the challenged party could not refuse. Of course, there were many other rules and restrictions.

From any perspective, this motion was reasonable and necessary. So, as soon as it was proposed, it received support from the various halls and academies. The court also highly commended it. The Star Seizer Academy even requested to be included in the plan. The problem was that when those two Archbishops first proposed this motion, they were the most loyal assistants of His Holiness the Pope. Now, the entire continent knew they stood firmly on the side of Her Holiness the Saint Empress. Yes, these two Archbishops were the very ones Merisa had mentioned a few days ago as having "turned the corner." Now that the entire capital's attention, especially that of the Li Palace priests, was drawn to the farce at the gate of the National Academy, what exactly did these two Archbishops intend to do by pushing this matter forward again?

Priest Xin suddenly understood, and a chill crept into his heart. He said, "His Holiness the Pope... won't agree."

"The problem is, is there a reason to disagree?" Merisa's voice sounded weary.

"The National Academy now only has Chen Changsheng and Xuan Yuan Po. Even if Tang Tang comes out of the Heavenly Book Mound, the number is still too small. According to the rules in the motion, it's too disadvantageous for the National Academy..."

"Two years ago, when this motion was proposed, the National Academy didn't have a single student. So you can't accuse them of deliberately targeting the National Academy."

Merisa concluded, "Now that the National Academy only has three and a half students, that's the National Academy's own problem."

...

...

That night, Priest Xin went to the National Academy and explained the situation to Chen Changsheng.

"That man is called Zhou Ziheng. He's from the Ancestral Temple Office, a priest of the Hall of Assault. He holds the position of instructor at the Ancestral Temple Office, and he's also a guest retainer of the Tianhai family."

"'The wild ferry has no one, the boat drifts of itself'?" (Note: A line from a famous poem, playing on the character 'heng' in Zhou Ziheng's name.)

"Zhou, as in 'meticulous' Zhou."

"And 'heng,' which character is that?"

"It's that 'heng'."

Chen Changsheng recalled the tall, thin man beside the wheelchair, and the faintly mocking expression on his face. He thought, indeed, he was a very arrogant and overbearing character.

"Zhou Ziheng has three identities. Any one of them gives him ample reason to act, if you were to make a move against Tianhai Ya'er," Priest Xin said earnestly. "Since you've already endured for three days, it might be better to endure a few more. If the Hall of Assault's motion really passes, we can see how to handle it then."

"Because Zhou Ziheng is a priest of the Hall of Assault, the Li Palace priests guarding the National Academy find it inconvenient to act against him..." Chen Changsheng was silent for a moment, then looked up at him and asked seriously, "So, if that motion really passes, and Zhou Ziheng challenges me, the Li Palace won't do anything either?"

Priest Xin said, "Yes."

Chen Changsheng said, "But he's in the Star Condensation Realm, a whole realm above me. According to the rules, I can refuse."

Priest Xin looked into his eyes and said, "He's challenging the National Academy, and you are its Dean. Or... does the National Academy have someone else who can take up the challenge?"

Chen Changsheng looked at him and said, "You made me Dean, you and His Holiness the Pope. The National Academy has no other students. You know the reason best."

Priest Xin felt a bit embarrassed and said, "Anyway, just endure a few more days. His Holiness the Pope certainly won't let you suffer a loss."

Chen Changsheng said nothing more. He saw Priest Xin out of the National Academy, then walked back into the library to continue drawing starlight to cleanse his marrow, to continue cultivating his sword techniques, and to continue unraveling the secret of that black stone stele.

The night passed without incident. Dawn arrived again, and Tianhai Ya'er, along with that Hall of Assault expert named Zhou Ziheng, also arrived.

Again, there was a light breeze, a fine drizzle, and a torrent of filthy abuse and curses.

Chen Changsheng could endure it. Those vile words were, after all, not greasy, heavy food or a dusty bed. There was nothing unendurable about them. However, as evening fell, a rather unfavorable piece of news came from the Li Palace. The two Archbishops' motion had finally passed. Whether he endured or not no longer mattered.

A letter of challenge was delivered to the National Academy. The signature was Zhou Ziheng's.

Looking at that signature, Chen Changsheng was silent for a while. Then he continued to draw starlight to cleanse his marrow, and continued to observe that black stone stele.

Now, he could clearly see the lines on that black stone stele, confirming it was the Heavenly Book Stele Wang Zhice had left in Lingyan Pavilion. Moreover, he could already clearly sense that on the other side of the black stone stele was indeed the aura of the Zhou Garden.

Compared to the Heavenly Book Stele and the Zhou Garden, the schemes of the Tianhai family and certain figures within the State Church were truly nothing. But whenever his spiritual sense struggled to cross that ocean of sword will, he always seemed to see a small boat adrift in the vast sea. That boat swayed and bobbed with the waves, seeming on the verge of capsizing at any moment, yet it never did. It was somewhat irritating to watch.

He had originally thought that Tianhai Ya'er, who cursed endlessly outside the academy gate, was, like the broken gate from last year, a disgrace to the Tianhai family.

But now he realized that, although he still believed his view was correct, faced with such a situation, who wouldn't get angry?

The next morning, Priest Xin brought two more pieces of bad news.

Zhou Tong refused to release the prisoner. Zhe Xiu was still locked up in that gloomy dungeon, with no one knowing when he would be freed. The entire continent knew that Zhou Tong was Her Holiness the Saint Empress's most loyal and most terrifying dog. Compared to him, Xu Shiji was nothing. Zhou Tong's tough stance in this matter made many people sense an extremely bad omen. The storm was coming, the city was about to be crushed. Was the court really going to break with the State Church?

Chen Changsheng asked, "This was the Pope's intention. The Archbishop personally visited, and Zhou Tong still refuses to release the man. What exactly does he want to do?"

It was then that Priest Xin delivered the second piece of bad news: "The Archbishop is not feeling well. It might be a couple of days before he can go see Zhou Tong."

There was finally some good news, though.

Zhe Xiu couldn't get out, but someone else was finally going to get out.

At five in the morning, Chen Changsheng woke up on time. He led Xuan Yuan Po out of the National Academy's gate. Tianhai Ya'er and Zhou Ziheng had not yet arrived.

From the National Academy to the Heavenly Book Mound in the southern part of the city was a very long distance. By the time they crossed that small river and arrived at the main gate of the Heavenly Book Mound, the morning light was already blazing.

Looking at this lush green mound before him, Chen Changsheng naturally recalled the time he had spent inside contemplating the steles and comprehending the Dao. Then, for some reason, he thought of that tomb on the Never-Setting Sun Grasslands. Next, he remembered that night a few months ago, when Wang Po and Mao Qiuyu had stood right where he was standing now. He, Gou Hanshi, and the others had been standing inside, holding the dying Xun Mei.

After Mao Qiuyu stepped down as Dean of the Heavenly Dao Academy and took up the post of Archbishop of the Hall of Brilliance, his power and position were greater, but he had become much more silent. There had been no news of him in the capital for a long time.

Thinking of Zhuang Huanyu's death and the recent silence of the Heavenly Dao Academy, he vaguely understood the reason, and his mood grew somewhat heavy.

A rumbling sound woke him. Accompanied by a slight tremor in the ground, the heavy stone gate before the Heavenly Book Mound slowly opened.

...

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(The next chapter will be posted before 8:30 if possible.)