Chapter 24: Tianyi Hall

A three-story wooden building, ten mu in area, classical and elegant, located at the southeast corner of the Heaven and Earth Alliance.

“Master Li, this is the Tianyi Hall.”

Ding Liang said.

Li Rui looked up at the wooden building.

“A fine place for cultivating one’s nature.”

He was very satisfied with Tianyi Hall’s surroundings—situated in a corner, far from the Alliance’s turmoil, peaceful and detached.

Tianyi means water.

Hence, many book repositories bear the name Tianyi, such as Tianyi Tower, Tianyi Pavilion.

Li Rui waved his hand: “You can stop here. Pass on my thanks to Brother Wu—I’ll treat him to wine another day.”

“Got it.”

Ding Liang bowed respectfully and turned to leave.

Wu Tu held Li Rui in high regard and specifically instructed Ding Liang to treat him well, so Ding Liang only felt at ease leaving once Li Rui spoke.

Li Rui walked alone to the foot of Tianyi Hall; the front was quiet, no one in sight, green leaves scattered thickly on the ground.

He entered the wooden building.

Antique wooden bookshelves lined the walls, crammed with countless books.

He saw a young disciple dressed in the Alliance’s black uniform, slumped listlessly over a wooden desk on the first floor.

Li Rui walked up to the young disciple.

“Is this the Tianyi Tower?”

The young disciple didn’t look up, but tossed a sheet of paper aside: “Fill this out. There’s a pen over there. Hand it to me when done, then wait for your book.”

He gestured smoothly toward another table.

On the table lay ink, brush, and inkstone.

Li Rui: “I’m Li Rui.”

“Don’t tell me you’re Li Rui—even if your surname were Zhang, it wouldn’t matter.”

“L-Li Rui?”

The young disciple snapped his head up.

He suddenly remembered: yesterday’s notice said a new hall master had arrived—wasn’t his name Li Rui?!

“H-Hall Master.”

The young disciple leapt to his feet, hands clasped stiffly behind his back like a guilty student.

Li Rui waved his hand: “Why are you the only one here? Where are the other two?”

The young disciple explained: “Senior Brother Liu went out on business. Junior Brother Liang is upstairs.”

“So you’re Zhou Shulin?”

Before arriving, Ding Liang had told him Tianyi Hall had three disciples.

Liu Tong, Liang He, and Zhou Shulin.

“Y-yes, yes.”

The young disciple nodded vigorously.

Li Rui: “Alright, go back to sleep.”

“.”

Zhou Shulin looked torn—should he sleep, or not?

Li Rui stepped past Zhou Shulin and wandered casually around the first floor. Tianyi Hall was large, with many books, but most were trivial miscellanies.

It was said one of the three founders of the Heaven and Earth Alliance had once been a scholar who failed the imperial exams before taking up martial arts.

Perhaps he believed that even in the martial world, culture mattered.

Hence, every branch of the Alliance had a Tianyi Hall for storing books.

Li Rui then climbed to the second floor, hands behind his back.

Compared to the first floor, the second was much more streamlined.

Here were placed only basic martial arts manuals; Li Rui flipped through a few—no better than the Eight Pieces of Brocade, all common, run-of-the-mill texts.

As for the third floor…

He couldn’t go up.

Yes, even as Tianyi Hall’s master, he couldn’t ascend to the third floor.

The third floor held the true treasures of Tianyi Tower: the Alliance’s accumulated martial arts manuals over the years—though all were copies, still priceless.

To enter the third floor, one needed a letter from the branch master, and only with both Tianyi Hall and Transmission Hall personnel present.

Anyone caught stealing techniques from the third floor would be branded a traitor and hunted without end.

“No wonder no one wants to be Tianyi Hall’s master.”

No profit at all—just a high-class gatekeeper.

As he walked, he encountered another subordinate among the bookshelves.

“You’re Liang He?”

A still youthful boy sprang up at the sound: “Are you Hall Master Li?”

Li Rui smiled faintly: “Clever.”

Those assigned to Tianyi Hall generally fell into two categories: one, those with connections but poor physiques; the other, those without connections but decent physiques.

Those with neither connections nor good physiques were dumped to guard posts—no chance of lingering in the branch’s quiet halls.

Zhou Shulin and the unseen Liu Tong were the former.

One was the nephew of Deputy Branch Master Zhou; the other, the brother-in-law of Deputy Branch Master Qian.

The worst off was this Liang He before him.

According to Ding Liang, Liang He had once been in the Martial and Literary Hall, but offended its master and was banished here.

Liang He shamefacedly hid a book titled “The Chronicles of the Female Hero of Yunzhou” behind his back.

Li Rui said nothing, but patted Liang He with a knowing look: “Little He, no tiger’s cubs without entering the tiger’s den—just reading won’t help.”

“.”

Liang He fell silent.

Li Rui finished touring the second floor of Tianyi Hall.

He then returned contentedly to his private room on the first floor.

Being a hall master was indeed comfortable.

In Tianyi Hall, he had almost nothing to worry about.

Most daily tasks were handled by Liang He and Zhou Shulin—unless some brazen thief dared sneak in to steal martial manuals.

But Li Rui was confident he could handle it.

After all, the third-floor manuals could attract at most ninth-rank martialists; eighth-rank techniques were kept only at the Alliance’s headquarters, so the worst threat would be a ninth-rank expert—and he had other strong warriors in the branch to back him up. No need to worry.

Dusk approached.

Only Liang He remained on duty at Tianyi Hall.

But Li Rui’s residence stood just one wall away; any sound from the hall could be heard, and nightly patrols by Alliance guards ensured absolute safety.

Li Rui entered his residence.

A four-courtyard mansion—more than enough for one man, even too quiet. Usually, a Hall Master’s residence would have two or three maids or servants.

But Li Rui had no intention of wasting money on them.

He had too many secrets; if any leaked, trouble would follow.

The mansion was fully furnished; the old items he brought from the Zhu family now seemed out of place.

In the end, he packed everything he brought into a large wooden chest.

“The Heaven and Earth Alliance’s bed is soft.”

Li Rui slept soundly.

Dawn.

Li Rui’s biological clock woke him before Chen Hour to practice his blade.

He had martial bones and secret methods.

But neither was an excuse to slack off; in a few days, he would truly be seventy—back then, who knew how many years he had left?

Li Rui drew the Heaven and Earth Alliance-issue sword he had received yesterday.

The hall master’s sword was far superior to the disciples’—though craftsmanship was average, the materials were generous; the hilt was wrapped in cowhide, so it didn’t chafe the hand.

In the vast courtyard,

Li Rui practiced alone, no longer fearing prying eyes.

His blade grew faster and faster, until it became a fluttering phantom.

Exhilarating!

(End of Chapter)