Chapter 42: The Pact of a Chaotic Age

Behind Xue Daoyong stood a simple-looking Po Yun Zhen Tian Bow, resting quietly on a black rosewood rack; the old man ambled over, his palm slowly gliding along the bow’s stave, then smiled at Li Guanyi:

“Didn’t you just say you couldn’t lift it before? Today’s a rare chance to come again.”

“Come, give it a try.”

Li Guanyi was still pondering the matter of donning armor.

His eyes lifted slightly as he gazed at the warbow, thinking of its legacy—but his first thought was what the old man intended, whether he had discovered Li Guanyi could grasp this five-hundred-year-old divine weapon, and what that meant for him.

The youth had no reason to refuse—at least not on the surface.

He walked over to the Po Yun Zhen Tian Bow.

He extended his hand, fingers splayed, and gripped the warbow; its surface felt exquisitely smooth, perfectly fitting his palm—the intense aura he’d felt before returned, yet this time it triggered no legacy, no ripple or change in the bronze cauldron’s jade fluid.

Entry into the realm…

Only by entering that realm could the bronze cauldron accumulate jade fluid again.

Only then could the divine weapon’s legacy be triggered once more.

Only then could he truly walk through this chaotic age.

A longing for that realm rose within him.

Li Guanyi prepared to release his grip, pretending he still could not lift the divine weapon; he looked at the old man and said, “Xue Lao, I’m sorry, I…”

BOOM!! The old man smiled, and suddenly a surge of qi erupted beneath his foot.

Visible ripples spread outward.

The entire Ting Feng Pavilion seemed to shudder once.

The ancient desk inlaid with gold thread, worth a fortune, collapsed instantly into golden dust; the divine weapon in Li Guanyi’s hand naturally fell downward—but regardless of his will or cunning, his body reacted instinctively: he had already gripped the warbow.

Even if he instantly realized he should let go of the Po Yun Zhen Tian Bow,

Li Guanyi knew that this single moment of instinctive grip had caused the bow to hesitate mid-fall—enough for the old man’s sharp eyes to see everything. His body tensed, then slowly relaxed.

He did not release the divine weapon.

The golden dust of the three-thousand-year-old golden sandalwood scattered in the wind, carrying the scent of wood.

The old man gazed at the boy before him.

Golden dust swirled around him, his sleeves billowing as he straightened his spine; the Po Yun Zhen Tian Bow rested in his grasp, as if he had made a decision—the bowstring hummed faintly, and light flickered in his eyes as he chuckled repeatedly: “Good, good, good!!!”

Li Guanyi said: “That golden sandalwood desk, worth a fortune, just shattered.”

Old man, no honor! The old man paid no mind, laughing heartily:

“To see someone grasp the divine weapon again? Worth more than a fortune?”

He paused, then looked at Li Guanyi, his gaze as if seeing his own youthful dream, and said: “You holding this bow means…”

Li Guanyi closed his eyes.

The bronze cauldron hummed; a low tiger’s roar echoed in the void; the divine weapon in the boy’s palm vibrated, golden light spreading along its surface, its patterns coming alive—as if the souls slain by this bow had awakened, screaming in terror.

【Aru En Wuerha Riwa Bodesadawa】.

The Central Plains Bodhisattva arrow capable of piercing Mount Sheng.

Golden light spread along the bow’s stave, reaching the boy’s palm.

On Li Guanyi’s left hand, a set of gauntlets appeared.

The light settled on his right fingers, forming a golden ring.

The bowstring, forged from the spirit of a fierce tiger, could sever the throats of northern giants—mortals could not touch it with flesh and blood; only now, at this moment, was the divine weapon truly awakened—the White Tiger bared its claws and fangs, opened its eyes, and once again surveyed the world.

Xue Daoyong watched this scene and burst into laughter.

Xue Daoyong asked: “Can you draw it?”

Li Guanyi himself was curious; his left hand gripped the bow, his right fingers rested on the string—the string hummed, the White Tiger’s spiritual form settled upon it, causing the weapon to glow faintly golden—but despite all his effort, the string did not budge an inch.

Not enough.

Xue Daoyong felt a pang of regret: “As expected—lifting the bow requires the White Tiger’s spiritual form, but drawing the string demands an extremely high realm.” Li Guanyi placed the bow back on another table; as his hand left it,

the golden light on the divine weapon faded, the last traces spreading from both ends of the string toward the center, finally converging and vanishing at the midpoint—yet at that moment, Li Guanyi suddenly realized the White Tiger’s spiritual form had absorbed a trace of power from the awakened weapon.

The White Tiger’s spiritual form seemed… slightly larger.

But at that instant, the Crimson Dragon’s spiritual form forcibly drained that power away.

The White Tiger, which had just begun to swell, shrank back into its original kitten form.

In its place, the Crimson Dragon’s spiritual form finally emerged a portion of its body.

It could coil around Li Guanyi’s arm.

Like a dragon coiled around a pillar, it peered curiously at the world around it.

The Crimson Dragon’s spiritual form had appeared.

A ripple stirred in Li Guanyi’s eyes—he wanted to test this spiritual form, see what other abilities it possessed, whether the Xue family’s “One Arrow, Cold as Heaven’s Light” could be wielded with the Crimson Dragon; the White Tiger’s form had shown piercing power—what of the Crimson Dragon? He felt curiosity, anticipation.

The old man had Li Guanyi sit again, then brewed tea, smiling gently: “You cannot yet use this bow.”

"But you have the qualification to lift it. This is the Xue family’s heirloom—I cannot give it to you yet. I will first help you attain the rank of Ninth-Rank Military Wandering Official. Rest assured, granting you a clean official status is only right."

“We of the Xue family know your escape route, and the wanted dossier is held by the Night Gallop Cavalry—even I cannot deduce its contents. But for ten years now, given my understanding of Chen Guo, no matter how serious the matter was back then, the pursuit dossier against you has been suppressed to its lowest level.”

Li Guanyi exhaled in relief.

It seemed the old man, though ruthless and experienced, had not truly uncovered his identity.

He had merely traced Li Guanyi’s wandering path through the Xue family’s merchant network.

Though Li Guanyi himself did not even know his true origins.

Nor did he know whether the old man was bluffing him. So he asked calmly: “How did you know?”

The old man stroked his beard, voice laced with mockery: “Because this is Chen Guo.”

“Marshal Yue may be highly esteemed, but his return to the capital would not instantly cause the border to collapse.”

“It’s because another national guardian general is already in the capital, Jiangzhou.”

“Jiangzhou is now guarded by Chen Guo’s foremost general, Xiao Wuliang. Unlike Marshal Yue, he belongs to the category of fierce general—I once witnessed his might; at thirteen, when the Regent caused chaos, he rode out alone.”

“At eighteen, he led seven riders to charge through ten thousand troops, slaying generals and seizing banners.”

“Ranked fifteenth on the List of Heavenly Generals, his enemies trembled in fear, bestowing upon him the honorific title: Mahā Wuliang.”

“If such a fierce general could join forces with Marshal Yue, crushing all nations and restoring Chen Guo’s former territory under Emperor Wu would not be impossible—but the nobles have kept him stationed in the capital.”

The old man sighed bitterly: “Heaven’s great generals, clad in divine armor, riding exotic beasts and famed steeds, wielding divine weapons and bearing spiritual forms—each one capable of standing against ten thousand. If such a warrior abandoned all else, disregarded his life and the fate of the realm, and stormed through enemy lines to wreak havoc, he could shake the imperial house.”

“That’s why they keep Xiao Wuliang guarding the capital.”

“They call it: ‘The ruler lives, the nation lives; the ruler dies, the nation dies. Thus the ruler is paramount—the vital core of the state, the blood of the people, not to be neglected.’”

“In truth, it’s merely to use this general’s might to protect their own peace.”

“Now Marshal Yue has been recalled, Xiao Wuliang is absent, while Ying Guo brims with fierce generals, Tubo prepares its arms, and noble scions journey to the border for ‘training’—wine and beauties never lacking, while soldiers eat plain rations, getting meat only once every three days.”

“Under such pressure, how could the border garrison not decay? Seeing the small reveals the great—if even state affairs are this way, how much more so for pursuing fugitives?”

The old man’s tone dripped with mockery.

Li Guanyi understood: this was Xue Daoyong revealing his trust in him.

Li Guanyi stated his purpose: “But I still must leave the Xue family, leave Guan Yicheng.”

The old man laughed loudly: “Hahahaha, no problem—I don’t intend to tie you to the Xue family, nor use emotional ploys. This is a transaction—a pact between two men.”

The old man idly sipped his tea and smiled:

“Besides, the Xue family has merchant houses everywhere.”

“Including Ying Guo.”

Li Guanyi: “…………”

The old man laughed.

His heart, shaken several times just now, finally steadied:

“You wish to leave the pass—I know. But with an official status, your travel permit will be simpler.”

“Don’t look at me like that. Logically, the court would fear military officers leaving Chen Guo and tighten controls—but if you think that, you don’t understand Chen Guo. Chen Guo was once a southern province granted by the Great Emperor of Zhongzhou.”

“Over three hundred years ago, during the great upheaval, Duke Liang carved out his own kingdom, aided by Duke Chen.”

“Two hundred years ago, Chen Guo’s ancestors destroyed Liang and founded Chen Guo.”

“To stabilize the situation, they adopted a conciliatory policy toward the original bureaucratic clans, resulting in two, even three overlapping bureaucratic systems—now fused into one, bloated with redundant officials. For instance, this military wandering official: rank is ninth grade, category is wandering official, yet has no official title.”

“Only a temporary assignment.”

“Rank is one layer, category is another, assigned position another, actual duties yet another—interwoven, extremely convoluted.”

“Yet even a wandering official enjoys tax exemptions and numerous privileges.”

“One post, one person—the bureaucrats handling travel permits would rather you left quickly, so they can fill the vacancy with their own nephews or sons—especially for ninth-rank military wandering officials.”

The old man spoke with mockery, yet his words were confidences.

A relative commenting on court politics.

He said this deliberately after revealing Li Guanyi’s fugitive status—it was his own vulnerability, and he handed it to Li Guanyi.

This was an equal pact.

Li Guanyi fell silent, then looked at the old man and said:

“So why do you value me so much?”

The old man stared at him intently and smiled: “Of course, for the Xue family.”

“I’m merely betting. If the world stabilizes, you’ll become a frontier Grand General or a high minister of the court, enjoying ten thousand emoluments. But if chaos comes? Guanyi, you now draw your blade to protect oppressed commoners—in chaos, you won’t lie low.”

“My eyes have never been wrong.”

“Now, the high officials conceal the border’s decay, and the nobles, for their own safety, have removed the divine general from the frontlines.”

"The imperial court revels in music and dance, while lower officials scramble to install their own people, desperate to drive away all others; those above set the example, those below follow—what appears as a blossoming garden is in truth oil on fire. What do you think of Chen Guo? What do you think of the world?"

He reached out and touched the Po Yun Zhen Tian Bow beside him, as if making a decision.

He murmured to himself: "Po Yun Zhen Tian Bow."

"Is my Xue family’s legacy due to this one bow?"

"No—it is because of our ancestors. If my ancestors had not had this bow, would they no longer have been the greatest general under heaven? This bow in the Xue family is merely a lifeless relic, worshipped in reverence. Your true wish is to ride into battle with it."

"What makes the Xue family flourish is people—not clinging stubbornly to dead relics of the past."

He suddenly laughed, bold and unbounded.

He said:

"Li Guanyi!"

"When the age of chaos comes, come here!"

"Take this bow!"

"Ride your horse, and charge into this world!"

(End of Chapter)