Chapter 444: The Sage

After returning to his tribe, the first thing Xuanyuan did was to decline Baoxi's invitation to attack Huaxia together, and then he sought out the Sage who was still wandering within the territory of his Xuanyuan Tribe.

That Sage had no name; he simply let Xuanyuan address him as Zhishou. Xuanyuan respectfully invited him back to the tribe and then carefully inquired about matters concerning Guangchengzi.

"Zhishou, there is a Huaxia state here, and their king is named Baifeng. I wonder if you have ever seen him?"

Zhishou's expression did not change in the slightest: "I have never heard of such a place, nor have I ever seen this person called Baifeng."

Xuanyuan felt certain in his heart and continued to ask: "Baifeng says he has met Guangchengzi, and that Guangchengzi is the Sage of Huaxia. Everything he knows was taught to him by Guangchengzi. Could this be true?"

Zhishou's slightly closed eyes slowly opened: "I have never seen this Baifeng. Guangchengzi is the Guangchengzi of Kongtong, not some Guangchengzi of Huaxia. Guangchengzi's wisdom will only be taught to Xuanyuan, not to Baifeng."

"Is Kongtong also a tribe? Or is it just a place name?"

Zhishou's tone was calm: "It is just a mountain."

"Then what can I learn from Guangchengzi?"

"The Dao!"

Xuanyuan was very puzzled: "What is the Dao?"

Zhishou shook his head and said: "I do not know what the 'Dao' is either, but it is the most exquisite wisdom under Heaven, capable of resolving all your confusion."

Xuanyuan thought for a long while before asking: "The people of Huaxia know how to plant Grass Seed, turning Grass Seed into full, bountiful grain, allowing their tribesmen to no longer suffer from hunger or cold. Can the 'Dao' do this?"

Zhishou did not hesitate at all: "It can!"

Xuanyuan asked again: "Huaxia can use wood and bamboo to build sturdy houses to resist enemy invasions and shelter from wind and rain. Can the 'Dao' do this?"

Zhishou answered again: "It can!"

Xuanyuan did not pause: "The people of Huaxia use wood to make powerful Weaponry, use sand to make exquisite utensils, and use things I cannot understand to make weapons like thunder. Can this 'Dao' also answer my questions about this?"

Zhishou was very firm: "It can!"

As if to block the questions that kept popping out of Xuanyuan, Zhishou continued: "Not only the problems you mentioned, but even making your tribesmen turn from old to young, and extending your lifespan from thirty springs and autumns to one hundred springs and autumns—all of this is possible!"

Xuanyuan stood up abruptly: "Are you sure Baifeng really did not obtain Guangchengzi's 'Dao'! I have seen with my own eyes those who were already aged, injured, or sick—whom other tribes did not want and left to wait for death—become young again after falling into Baifeng's hands. Is all of this not something that only the 'Dao' could achieve?"

Zhishou's face finally showed an expression; he was also very surprised: "You say this Huaxia is actually capable of extending life? But I have lived for more than sixty springs and autumns, yet I have never heard of a tribe called Huaxia, nor a person named Baifeng!"

This time it was Xuanyuan's turn to be surprised: "You have already lived for sixty springs and autumns? How is this possible! You look even more robust than those in my Xuanyuan Tribe who have lived for thirty years!"

Zhishou stroked his long beard, wanting to use this to prove his age, but he still curiously asked: "What is a 'year'?"

Xuanyuan's emotions were immediately suppressed by this sentence; he could only sigh and say: "This is a concept proposed by Huaxia. They call one cycle of cold and heat a year. I have even heard them speak of a 'month', but they themselves cannot explain it. However, by observing the movement of the sun and the moon over these years, I seem to have found some patterns and am almost beginning to understand what a 'month' is. Now I have my Soldier Xihe observe the sun and Changyi observe the moon, hoping to find this pattern soon and surpass Huaxia."

"Besides this, Huaxia also came up with things like the 'chi' to measure length and the 'jin' to measure weight. I was originally unwilling to use them, but I could not think of anything better."

Zhishou was silent after hearing this. This place named "Huaxia" seemed to far exceed his own understanding, yet he had never heard of it. The only one who could have such wisdom was Guangchengzi.

However, he had accompanied Guangchengzi for many springs and autumns and did not know of him passing the "Dao" to others. This time, he had come out only because Guangchengzi had determined through "divination" that there was a person in this place who could inherit his wisdom, which was why he had found Xuanyuan and told him to go to Kongtong to see Guangchengzi.

Finally, Zhishou thought for a long time before saying: "This Huaxia will be your greatest enemy in the future. If they are truly as you say, it means this Baifeng is a person of great wisdom, or perhaps he has been helped by a Sage like Guangchengzi. If you want to surpass Huaxia, you can only go find Guangchengzi."

Xuanyuan still had some doubts in his heart: "Why would it be me? There are so many tribes in this world."

Zhishou answered very firmly: "Because the result of the 'divination' is just so."

Xuanyuan always felt he had too many doubts in his heart: "Why is Guangchengzi so wise, and his Dao so powerful, yet he does not establish his own tribe? If he established his own tribe, wouldn't this land all be his territory?"

Zhishou sighed and slowly revealed the truth: "You can understand Guangchengzi as a deity, or someone who is to become a 'god'. Their pursuit has never been about how much territory they own or how many people they rule; they simply have higher and more distant pursuits. But they are unwilling to see the wisdom passed down through generations and the knowledge they have realized go uninherited and unused. Furthermore, they are unwilling to watch 'people' suffer, which is why they will, at a certain time, seek out people to inherit their wisdom."

Guangchengzi is not a person who appeared out of thin air. You can understand that they are a tribe with their own special pursuits. All of them have great wisdom. Once, Yuhuazi taught Fuxi to perform the Eight Trigrams and taught him to weave nets for hunting. Later, Dachengzi taught your ancestor Shennong to taste the hundred herbs and determine the five grains, and taught the Suiren clan to drill wood for fire. Now, this generation, named Guangchengzi, has chosen to continue to pass the Dao to you."

Xuanyuan was incomparably shocked: "You mean that all these ancestors of mine were taught by those who came before Guangchengzi? But why didn't I know?"

Zhishou pointed to the symbols carved on the wall of the cave where Xuanyuan was and said: "Because you did not have writing before. If you wanted to teach more things, you could not pass them on. Now that you have things that can record knowledge, what you do in the future will be known by others, and you will also be able to bring more knowledge at once."