Chapter 74: Who Am I
Hot Recommendations: , , , , , , ,
Who is Chen Changsheng?
He is the river child picked up by Ji Daoren from the stream.
He is the young Daoist from Xining who is betrothed to the Heavenly Phoenix Divine Maiden, Xu Yourong.
He is the heir to the National Church, the successor to the Pope.
He has read through the Daoist Canon, possesses extraordinary talent, and is a genius of the sword.
But... who is he really?
He looked into the eyes of the Heavenly Tome Elder and asked with utmost seriousness, "Am I the Crown Prince Zhaoming?"
This was one of the most sensational yet most secret rumors in the capital over the past year.
No one knew the answer.
It was said that the Heavenly Tome Elder knew everything. So, did he know?
This question was simple and direct, yet exceptionally sharp—like Su Li's sword or Wang Po's blade.
Even though the Heavenly Tome Elder had mentally prepared himself for this, his eyes still narrowed, and he fell silent for a long time.
No one knew how much time passed before he finally spoke. "Her Majesty sent me to the capital specifically to take a look at you. In truth, she wanted to ask the same question."
Chen Changsheng thought, *This is exactly what I most want to know.* "And the result?"
The Heavenly Tome Elder replied, "There was no result, because... your age doesn't match the Crown Prince Zhaoming's."
Chen Changsheng did not feel relieved by this answer, for two reasons.
He had calculated carefully. Although his own age didn't match the Crown Prince Zhaoming's, Senior Brother Yuren's age did. Moreover, the Heavenly Tome Elder's words carried a deeper implication: because the ages didn't match, there was no result. So, did this mean that if the ages *did* match, from every angle, he should be the Crown Prince Zhaoming?
"If your age truly matched the Crown Prince Zhaoming's, then that would actually be wrong."
"Why?"
"Because it would be too right."
Because it was too right, it was wrong. This sounded somewhat mystical, but Chen Changsheng understood it easily. If his age matched the Crown Prince Zhaoming's, the rumors in the capital would easily come true. The hidden storms and thunder would inevitably burst forth—either tearing open the capital's dark curtain or blasting him to pieces.
The Heavenly Tome Elder's next words jolted Chen Changsheng awake, making his body stiffen.
"I know you have a senior brother. His age does match the Crown Prince Zhaoming's."
The Heavenly Tome Elder looked into his eyes and said, "Don't be nervous. I'm not saying he is the Crown Prince Zhaoming."
Chen Changsheng asked, "Why?"
The Heavenly Tome Elder said, "Because he matches the Crown Prince Zhaoming in every way."
Chen Changsheng didn't know what to say.
"I have always admired Dean Shang's myriad Daoist techniques."
The Heavenly Tome Elder spoke calmly. "When false is taken as true, the true becomes false. Unfortunately, it can't fool me."
Chen Changsheng didn't ask why it couldn't fool him. At this moment, his mind was entirely elsewhere.
He recalled a volume of the Daoist Canon called the *Sutra of Time*. Time... meant age.
"Does this mean... aside from age, I match the Crown Prince Zhaoming in every other aspect?"
"Yes. I am very certain that you are a descendant of the Chen royal clan."
Hearing this, Chen Changsheng could no longer remain calm.
In the rumors or hearsay that had circulated in the capital for over a year, before saying he was the Crown Prince Zhaoming, they first mentioned that he was a member of the royal clan.
"Why? Why is everyone so sure I'm of the royal clan? Just because my surname is Chen?"
He looked at the Heavenly Tome Elder and asked, not noticing that his tone was higher than usual.
This kind of emotional agitation was rare for him.
The garden was shrouded in thick fog, tightly sealing off their conversation so that absolutely no one could hear.
"Why can we be sure you're of the royal clan?"
The Heavenly Tome Elder looked at him, a complex emotion in his eyes, and said, "Because there was once a Sun Wheel inside your body."
"Sun Wheel?"
Chen Changsheng was not unfamiliar with this term, though since the Heavenly Sea Holy Empress took power and all members of the royal clan were expelled from the capital, few people mentioned it anymore.
Back when the Chen royal clan rose from Tianliang Commandery to pacify the world, producing peerless experts like Chen Xuanba and Emperor Taizong, it was because the bloodline talent of the Chen clan was inherently unique. Their cultivation differed from other sects and schools. The specific differences were, of course, the royal clan's greatest secret, but the term "Sun Wheel" had still leaked out.
Chen Changsheng recalled his cultivation journey from Xining to the capital, especially the countless times he had meditated and observed himself. He shook his head. "No. I've never found any Sun Wheel inside my body."
"That's because the Sun Wheel inside you was destroyed long ago. More precisely, it exploded."
The Heavenly Tome Elder gazed at him calmly. Chen Changsheng couldn't tell if it was an illusion, but he felt a hint of pity in the old man's eyes.
"How is that possible? If, as you say, there was once a Sun Wheel inside me that exploded, why didn't I feel anything?"
"Because the Sun Wheel inside you was destroyed when you were still an infant."
"...But even so, why has no one ever discovered traces of the Sun Wheel in my body before? Why didn't you notice when you came to see me in the capital last time?"
Chen Changsheng still couldn't accept this reasoning, even though it came from the Heavenly Tome Elder.
"Because your cultivation level wasn't high enough back then. As your cultivation deepened, starlight entered your body, making your meridians more clearly visible. Only then could I confirm it."
"Weren't we talking about the Sun Wheel exploding? Why bring up meridians?"
"You... have broken meridians, don't you? Your true essence circulation has always been problematic, hasn't it?"
The Heavenly Tome Elder looked into his eyes and asked.
Chen Changsheng was stunned into silence.
Like his blood, his blocked or broken meridians were another of his body's greatest secrets.
This secret was even more terrifying because, according to his master, the problem with his meridians would directly cause his death at the age of twenty.
He never expected this secret to be so easily seen through and spoken aloud by the Heavenly Tome Elder.
But... what did broken meridians have to do with him being of the royal clan? What did they have to do with the Sun Wheel?
The Heavenly Tome Elder raised his right hand and, across the table, pointed to a spot between Chen Changsheng's chest and abdomen.
"When you were an infant, the Sun Wheel exploded right here. Then, like a spiderweb, it spread and severed your nine meridians."
"You're asking what connection there is between your broken meridians and the Sun Wheel's explosion?"
"Your broken meridians are the scars left by the Sun Wheel's explosion. They are the most direct evidence."
"Among all the people in the world, only you have this kind of meridian damage."
"Therefore, you are of the Chen royal clan."
"Of course, you are a very unfortunate member of the royal clan."
"Logically speaking, at the moment the Sun Wheel exploded, you, still an infant, should have died."
"But you survived. That in itself is already a miracle."
The garden fell silent.
The fog grew exceptionally thick.
The warm, spring-like atmosphere suddenly turned as cold as deep winter.
Chen Changsheng remained silent for a long time.
Only after a long while did he look at the Heavenly Tome Elder and ask, "But... I'll still die, won't I?"
This time, it was the Heavenly Tome Elder's turn to fall silent.