Chapter 693: Fuzi, the Bright Moon

The mountain cliffs look steep and unclimbable, but in reality, there are extremely narrow paths hidden among them.

At the end of the stone path, there is a small cliff terrace. A very simple thatched hut is set up by the cliffside, and there is a cave near the edge. A tall figure sits on a low stool. This person wears a very precious dark purple cotton coat, with a lean face and a few strands of graying beard on his chin fluttering in the wind. The aura about him seems ordinary, yet it reveals an indescribable quality. He is clearly an old man with gray hair, but one cannot feel any sense of aging from his expression and temperament.

Needless to say, this person is the most legendary Fuzi in the world.

An existence only a head lower than the sky.

However, Fuzi does not seem to notice the arrival of Yu Liancheng and Li Manman at this moment, as he is holding a knife, focusing intently on slicing fish. Before long, the cutting board is piled high with thin slices of fish meat like snowflakes. This is no ordinary fish; the color of the meat is striking, and piled together, they resemble peonies in full bloom.

Fuzi's speed at slicing fish is fast, but his speed at eating it is certainly not slow. From time to time, he picks up a thin slice of fish, swishes it in a bowl containing soy sauce and ginger seasoning, quickly pops it into his lips, and then reveals an extremely satisfied expression.

"Fuzi, the guest has arrived. This business of slicing fish should be left to me." Li Manman walks forward with a smile.

Fuzi seems to have been so focused on slicing and eating the fish that he only now notices the two of them. He looks at the smiling Yu Liancheng to the side and coughs twice, feeling somewhat awkward; after all, it is never quite right to sneak bites before the guest has even arrived.

"The Peony Fish is produced in the deep sea, and its meat is extremely springy. The thinner, the better. I've set an example for you; just slice it like I do. I've tasted a couple of bites, and the meat is as fresh, tender, and smooth as ever. It was worth your arduous journey of ten thousand miles to catch this fish."

"Very well, Fuzi."

Li Manman thinks to himself that Fuzi would certainly not sneak bites; everything is for the sake of better entertaining the guest.

He takes the knife from Fuzi's hand and begins to slice the fish. This Great Teacher is well-named Li Manman (Li Slowly); his fish slicing is also done in a leisurely manner, a world of difference compared to Fuzi.

"Sit, sit quickly. It has been a long time since I truly entertained a guest." Fuzi gestures for Yu Liancheng to sit down. "This Peony Fish is only produced in the Hot Sea of the Northern Cold Domain; it is fatty, tender, and beautiful, a rarity in the world. My eldest disciple heard I was hosting a guest today and went specifically to catch it. His clothes were soaked through when he returned."

Fuzi's tone seems to carry excitement and pride.

He is Fuzi, the person who has lived the longest and possesses the most profound strength in the world. For these past few hundred years, it has always been others hosting him; today, however, he is hosting someone else, so his behavior naturally cannot help but be a bit more attentive.

"The Peony Fish is top-tier cuisine. Looking out from this cliff on my Back Mountain, one can overlook all of Chang'an—it is the top-tier scenery. And with you, the world's top-tier guest, it is truly wonderful. It's a pity... a pity..." Fuzi picks up his chopsticks, gracefully places a slice of fish into his mouth, and lets out a long sigh: "It's a pity there is no good wine, otherwise it would truly be complete."

"Then why not try this pot of Peach Blossom Wine?" Yu Liancheng takes out a wine pot and pours a cup each for Fuzi, Li Manman, and himself.

Fuzi's face immediately beams with joy. He gives Yu Liancheng a look that says, "You kid are quite sensible," picks up the wine cup, takes a sip, and reveals an extremely satisfied expression, his eyes even squinting.

A moment later, he opens his eyes, first praising, "Good wine, truly good wine." Then he asks Yu Liancheng to pour more—pour a cup, drink a cup, pour a cup, drink a cup...

Finally, Fuzi even snatches the wine pot himself, drinks more than half the pot in one breath, and then slowly exhales: "A pity, a pity. Had I known the wine brewed at Taoshan had such a taste, I would not have chopped down all the peach blossoms on the mountain in one go back then."

Yu Liancheng says leisurely: "That is no matter. Peach blossoms bloom once a year; if Fuzi wants to pick peach blossoms now, the timing is just right."

"Haha, that is well said."

Fuzi laughs heartily, eats another slice of fish, and smiles: "I sensed you the moment you entered the Academy. Do you know why I only let you come over now?"

"Oh? I am all ears."

Fuzi shakes his head and says: "Those disciples of mine who can enter the Back Mountain have some arrogance. Although they don't say it on weekdays, I can feel it. My original intention was indeed to have you take them down a peg, but I didn't expect you, fellow, to be so ruthless, especially toward my second disciple. He is proud to the extreme and only holds me and my eldest disciple in his eyes..."

"Young people, how can they get by without taking a few hits?"

Yu Liancheng laughs: "Junmo, a gentleman does not walk a strange path. If he cannot even take this bit of a blow, then he should change his name sooner rather than later."

"Oh, then what blows did you take when you were young?" Fuzi asks with interest.

"This..." Yu Liancheng thinks for a moment and says carefully: "I have great talent for cultivation, I am handsome, everything has gone smoothly for me, and I have had beauties in my arms. I really haven't had any setbacks."

At this point, he lets out a long, light sigh: "Perhaps never having suffered any setbacks in my life is my greatest setback."

"You fellow..."

Fuzi widens his eyes and draws a sharp breath: "Before I met you, I thought you were some kind of hermit master. It turns out you are also a guy with a face as thick as a city wall."

"Just speaking the truth."

Yu Liancheng shrugs.

"There is a heaven beyond heaven; what is the scenery like in the heaven beyond heaven?"

Fuzi picks up a slice of Peony Fish, dips it in some seasoning, and tosses it into his mouth, telling the Great Teacher who is slicing the fish to be faster, otherwise there won't be enough to eat. His movements are very casual, but the question he asks is somewhat shocking. Fuzi seems to have known for a long time that the person before him is not from the Haotian world—a heaven beyond heaven, a visitor from beyond.

"Judging purely by the scenery, it is actually quite similar. The only thing I miss is probably that bright Moon in the night sky," Yu Liancheng says.

"Bright Moon?" Fuzi asks in confusion.

"It is the Moon."

"It is also called Chan-juan, the Silver Plate; it has many names and goes through phases of waxing and waning. Just as there is a sun during the day, there must be a moon at night. It is no longer just a glowing sphere hanging in the night sky, but a symbol, a carrier of culture. 'Raising my cup, I invite the Moon, and with my shadow, we become three.' 'The Moon rises above the sea, sharing this moment at the ends of the earth.' 'Sparse shadows fall aslant on the clear, shallow water; a subtle fragrance floats in the dusk of the Moon'..."

Yu Liancheng drinks a sip of peach blossom wine, ponders for a moment, and draws a conclusion: "A night without a moon is not romantic."

"I see..." Fuzi mutters to himself, looking at the sky where the sun is still hanging: "Then the Moon is truly something to yearn for."

"Actually, besides the bright Moon, there are many things that are different."

Yu Liancheng has had a few cups of wine and completely opens the floodgates: "The world I used to live in is actually a sphere. It's hard to notice usually. But if you are at sea and a ship comes from afar, the first thing you see will inevitably be the high sails..."

"On this sphere, there is also a South Pole and a North Pole, with an equator in the middle that looks like a waistband, ahahaha..."

Yu Liancheng drinks and eats Peony Fish slices while continuously telling Fuzi about the world he used to visit.

Fuzi himself is eating fish and drinking wine just like Yu Liancheng, but gradually he becomes attracted by what Yu Liancheng is saying, puts down his chopsticks, and listens carefully, not even tasting another bite of the Peony Fish.

Until Yu Liancheng finishes speaking, Fuzi's expression flickers slightly: "I am very curious, how did you come to the world of Haotian?"

"If we are talking about going from one world to another, then the simplest and crudest method is—Shattering the Void," Yu Liancheng laughs.

"Shattering the Void?"

"The bright returns to the void, the dark returns to the sun and moon. When cultivation reaches its limit, one breaks through the world barrier, ascends, and reaches a more vast world; this is Shattering the Void. In the infinite universe, many powerful Daxingzhe have left their native worlds through this method," Yu Liancheng says leisurely. "However, it is a pity that this world does not allow it."

"Why?"

"Because of it."

Yu Liancheng looks at the clear blue sky: "This world is almost entirely sealed by Haotian with boundless great power. I think you, Fuzi, should have a deep understanding of this."

Fuzi is silent for a moment, nods, and then raises his eyebrows: "But you still haven't said where you came from."

"Do you know why I am able to have beauties in my arms?" A trace of a smile overflows from the corner of Yu Liancheng's mouth.

Fuzi rolls his eyes: "Don't tell me it's because you are handsome and your cultivation is high?"

"These are of course the main reasons, but also because... of a secret," Yu Liancheng laughs. "Secrets make a man more manly."

Fuzi snorts: "Forget it if you don't want to say. You are quite stingy."

The next moment, Fuzi stops using his chopsticks and, in a whirlwind fashion, sweeps the remaining Peony Fish slices into his mouth, then looks at Yu Liancheng, who is just about to pick up a slice, with a triumphant smile.

First Brother Li Manman to the side was caught between laughter and tears, secretly finding it amusing in his heart, thinking to himself, it is fortunate that Junmo is not here, otherwise he would say Fuzi lacks etiquette.

"Are you interested in cooperating with me?" Yu Liancheng did not mind, his gaze looking toward Fuzi.

"Of course." Fuzi wiped the seasoning sauce from his beard.

"You really are decisive." Yu Liancheng chuckled.

"It is one thing for me, a visitor from beyond the heavens, but you are a 'native.' Without the favor of Haotian, humanity would have been hard-pressed to develop from the age of ignorance. In a certain sense, it is the mother of you all. Haotian sealing this world off completely is actually for your own good; who knows what kind of disaster might descend from beyond the heavens. Heaven creates all things to nourish man, yet man has nothing to repay Heaven. You old fellow not only refuse to repay your mother, but instead think of matricide; your sins are truly heavy."

"When a child grows up and wants to go out and explore, wants to be self-reliant, parents cannot just lock the child at home out of doting love; that would stifle them."

Fuzi shook his head: "Besides, the relationship between Haotian and humanity, in my view, is more like a transaction. Haotian protects humanity, and humanity offers its purest faith to Haotian. Furthermore, have you ever seen a parent 'eat' their own child? In history, it has launched the Eternal Night more than once, and in the future, it might launch the Eternal Night again."

"That is true as well."

Yu Liancheng nodded, then rubbed his chin and said: "Let's agree on this first: if we truly face Haotian head-on, you provide the main force, and I will provide support."

Fuzi rolled up his sleeves and glared, saying: "You brat, do you understand respecting the old and cherishing the young? Such fighting and killing should of course be left to you young people."

"I am exactly respecting the old and cherishing the young; I respect your strength, old man, and cherish my own youth."

Yu Liancheng slapped the table, not backing down at all. In Haotian's world, he was not so foolish as to fight Haotian to the death.

"Besides, although I have a grudge against Haotian, Haotian came down personally to find you, so clearly you are the one who attracts it the most. In its eyes, I fear you are a hundred or a thousand times more delicious than a Peony Fish."

"You fellow..." Fuzi huffed and puffed, and a Short Stick quietly slid from his sleeve into his right palm. Chen Mou of the Zhishou Temple had once been beaten by this stick to the point that he dared not set foot on land.

"What's more, I am an outsider and can leave at any time. Perhaps you have the ability to leave too, but can you bear to part with this Academy? Can you bear to part with Datang? Can you bear to part with the human world?" Yu Liancheng smiled.

"Young people these days really have no drive at all."

Fuzi shook his head and put the Short Stick away; he had only been joking earlier. He had been hiding from Haotian for hundreds of years, and for that battle that would come sooner or later, no one could replace him.

Yu Liancheng thought for a moment and added: "I want to let the New Religion spread within Datang to further weaken Haotian's power."

The hundreds of millions of commoners in Datang, although not as awestruck by the Xiling Divine Palace as other countries, were still faithful believers of Haotian and the source of Haotian's power in the human world.

Fuzi waved his hand: "Go find the Emperor. If I had to manage such trivial matters, I would be annoyed to death in a single day."

"Fine." Yu Liancheng nodded, put down his chopsticks, handed the Tianshumingzijuanshu to First Brother Li Manman, and instructed him, "I may need this book in the future, so please make sure not to lose it," before preparing to leave.

Just two steps away, he suddenly stopped: "Fuzi, do you like the Moon very much?"

"It's alright."

Fuzi replied in a very haughty manner.

In reality, from his previous questions, both Yu Liancheng and First Brother Li Manman could tell that Fuzi was indeed very fond of the Moon.

"Then I will give you a welcoming gift."

Yu Liancheng chuckled, tapped his brow with his index finger, and an invisible ripple emanated from his soul, surging toward Fuzi.

This level of spiritual Mind Power could be broken by Fuzi with a wave of his hand, but he just stood there blankly, and a glimmer of anticipation even flashed in his eyes.

And so, Fuzi's vision suddenly darkened, and he found himself beneath a night sky.

This night sky seemed much brighter than an ordinary night, yet it was not as dazzling as the day; it was gentle and warm, as if draping all things in a silver gauze, illusory and hazy.

Looking up, stars were scattered everywhere, and a silver disc hung in the starry sky.

"This is... the Moon..."

Fuzi looked at the Moon; this Daxingzhe who had lived for a thousand years looked at the full moon in the sky and suddenly felt a sense of hot tears welling up in his eyes.

He had received Yu Liancheng's gift.

He had received a bright moon.

A bright moon illuminating the path home.