Chapter 64: The Doctrine of Worshipping the Self as God

In the afternoon, Li Yuan finished work early.

In the inner courtyard, only a handful of apprentices were training their strength; most had entered the inner courtyard in the same batch as him and were mostly at the level of Profound Mastery of Blood and Qi.

Du Yun and Lu Zhong in the front courtyard, and several female apprentices in the back courtyard.

At this moment, seeing Li Yuan, Lu Zhong's expression grew complex; he instinctively stepped aside to clear the path, then came to his senses and could not help but lower his head, his face flushing red.

Last autumn, he had even taught Li Yuan standing stances and hammer techniques.

Yet now, he was still stuck at Profound Mastery, unable to advance further, while that former middle-courtyard apprentice had already become a rising star of the Blacksmithing Shop, a figure known even to the Grand Shopkeeper.

"Senior Brother Lu."

Li Yuan offered a greeting; among the inner-courtyard apprentices, he knew only a few in total, and of these, he recognized only Lu Zhong and Du Yun.

Lu Zhong responded with a sound, put down the stone roller, and was somewhat flustered: "Ah, Li, Li Junior Brother, are you going to the private school again?"

Since entering the inner courtyard, his progress had been extremely slow; with Niu Gui present, Qin Xiong had long ceased instructing him, and with Tang Tong's departure and Yu Zhen's appointment, their situation had become even more difficult.

To this day, he had not even fully learned the combat techniques...

"Yes, a few days ago I asked Master Wang to find a few books for me."

"Oh, oh."

After exchanging a few words, Li Yuan departed amidst the envious gazes of the apprentices, crossed the inner courtyard, and from afar spotted Master Wang of the private school.

Master Wang, whose real name was Wang Wang Wenyuan, was nearly seventy years old, an aged Licentiate who, after failing the examinations repeatedly, accepted Cao Yan's invitation to come to the Blacksmithing Shop to provide elementary education for the inner-courtyard disciples and, incidentally, to spend his old age in retirement.

Few inner-courtyard disciples were willing to read books; most learned only a few common characters and then stopped coming, so he was quite idle.

"Li Yuan, the few books you sought, this old man has borrowed them from several fellow scholars."

Master Wang was quite robust; though in his sixties, his hair was not yet completely white. He was already quite familiar with Li Yuan and, smiling, handed over the few books:

"This old man had to seek out many people to borrow them; you must take good care of them."

"As you say; before I came, I washed my hands."

Li Yuan received them with both hands, smiled and replied, then lay down on a rocking chair under a nearby tree.

Last night there had been heavy rain; today the air still carried the scent of rain-soaked earth mixed with grass and trees.

Li Yuan reclined halfway, easing the day's fatigue.

"Poor scholars, rich martial artists" is actually relative; in these times, those who could read and write were already not ordinary people, and in the outer city, hardly any households possessed book collections.

Mentally thanking Master Wang, Li Yuan opened the pages.

"Baishen Sect!"

On the first page of the book, there were only three large characters.

Li Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly and continued flipping through; only from the second page onward did it mention this sect he had long inquired about without success.

"Not a heretical cult?"

Li Yuan was slightly surprised.

The origins of the Baishen Sect were not discussed in much detail in this book; it merely stated that this was a sect that had existed for a very long time, traceable back a thousand years.

Named the Baishen Sect, yet it was vastly different from what he had imagined.

"This sect!"

Li Yuan involuntarily straightened his posture, his expression changing.

"The world calls whatever it cannot understand, whatever it fears and dreads—be it a person, a thing, a scene, or a fantasy—a 'god,' molds clay into god statues, bows devoutly, believing it can thereby gain protection, good fortune, safety, and ***rich rewards..."

"How utterly erroneous!"

"In this world, there is only one god! All people, from emperors and generals down to peddlers and porters, all bow to this god!"

"Toiling day and night solely to offer food as an Offering, exhausting every effort solely to satisfy this god's enjoyment of all desires, spending an entire life trying to make this god's temple larger and more beautiful, trying to make the god statue cleaner and more magnificent..."

"The god is me; I am the god. This is the scripture and doctrine of my Baishen Sect; beyond this, all are false paths, false scriptures, false gods, false believers..."

"Exalt oneself as god; seek it within oneself!"

Closing the first book, Li Yuan's heart

was truly somewhat surprised; this was completely not the evil sect he had imagined.

It was more like a martial arts outline advocating self-cultivation and the training of the physical body.

"Could this be the 'Bai Shen Fa' mentioned on the Thousand-Eyed Bodhisattva statue and the incense burner?"

Li Yuan was quite interested.

He had always considered himself a Daoist Priest; even though he was not registered and had not studied many scriptures, he still knew that Daoism likewise does not worship gods, but only venerates the Patriarchs.

The pursuits of those moral true cultivators in legends of his past life—Daoist Yu Hua ascending to immortality—were actually somewhat similar to this so-called Baishen Sect scripture.

Worship no god; I am the god.

Worship no immortal; I shall achieve Daoist Yu Hua and ascend to immortality.

"However, such doctrine is destined to spread only narrowly."

Li Yuan continued flipping through.

Of the three books, only a few sentences mentioned the doctrine of the Baishen Sect; afterward, the content became somewhat scattered, likely the travelogue of some failed Licentiate.

There was some gain, but not much.

But at the very end, he spotted a very interesting sentence; it was vague, yet its meaning was clear...

"Exalt oneself as god, and one enjoys long life without a hundred illnesses, many children and grandchildren; thus it is highly sought after by high officials and nobles, generals and ministers, and even the Great Ancestor Emperor also favors it..."

"The Great Ancestor Emperor, the Great Yun Great Ancestor, Pang Pang Wenlong?"

Stroking the stubble on his chin, which was already somewhat prickly, Li Yuan pondered thoughtfully.

Recalling the various temples and gods he had seen, he estimated that this Baishen Sect was probably none other than the imperial court?

"Hmm, small factions occupy a single street or ward, sects control a region; then, the imperial court that encompasses the four seas—is it not the greatest sect under heaven?"

Perhaps it is the Sect Alliance?

Li Yuan's imagination ran wild; the more he thought, the more likely it seemed.

That the Great Ancestor of Great Yun and the sects ruled the world—perhaps because the various sects had merit in founding the dynasty, and their lineage might have lasted a thousand years—that was quite interesting...

"Master Wang, I've left the books in the room!"

As the sky grew dark, Li Yuan rose to take his leave. Master Wang responded with a sound and asked, "Do you need any more books? Tomorrow is the big market; this old man will borrow some from my fellow students!"

"I owe you a debt, Master. I am not picky; having books to read is enough!"

Li Yuan expressed his gratitude, slipped a fragment of silver into the books, then took his leave, retrieved the inner armor from the forge, and departed amidst a clatter of clangs and bangs.

The sky was not yet fully dark; he prepared to go to the Four Seasons Medicine Hall to buy some pills. Even a Blood-Infusing Pill would suffice when combined with a medicinal bath.

Pills are extremely expensive, but one must use them even if they are costly; otherwise, the speed will be slowed by several times. Seeing that Inner Strength was within reach, how could Li Yuan resist?

Before leaving, he glanced back.

Inside the forge, the lights were bright; more than ten burly men were still hammering iron, though the sounds were noticeably sparse.

"Yu Zhen, go to your mother!"

"You beast, you damn wretch!"

"Your old man is so tired..."

Li Yuan could faintly hear the curses.

Yu Zhen's ancestors were probably already torn to pieces long ago...

Inner City, Lu Manor.

Lu Manor is located south of the government office; outside the three-courtyard compound lies a small garden.

In the evening, smoke rose thickly from the Lu household; retainers and maids were quite busy.

In the rear courtyard, the lights were bright; inside the room it was as if it were daytime.

Magistrate Lu Lu Yunqing lightly wiped his hands. On the large table, which could seat eight people, more than twenty dishes were neatly arranged. A maid stood nearby, holding a wine pot, ready to pour wine at any moment.

Fang Fang Yunxiu frowned slightly.

This table of wine and dishes would not be considered extravagant in the Zhe Long Manor, but here in Gao Liu County, it was truly too luxurious.

"Little Xiu, when will Elder Han arrive?"

Lu Lu Yunqing glanced at the sky.

"I do not know."

Fang Fang Yunxiu merely shook her head, ate a few mouthfuls casually, then rose and left.

Lu Lu Bailing wanted to follow, but was glared back.

"Eat."

Lu

Lu Yunqing's expression remained normal; he finished his meal leisurely, wiped his hands and face, and only then returned to the study.

Outside the study, Yu Zhen bowed slightly:

"My sudden arrival did not disturb my lord, did it?"

"What is Master Yu saying? Rather, I, Lu, have been negligent. The servants lack eyes; they did not invite the honored guest inside to rest!"

Lu Lu Yunqing scolded the steward standing nearby.

"No, no."

Following him into the study, Yu Zhen's expression became slightly serious. He said, "Brother Cao sent me here to ask my lord one question: what should be done next?"

"Fengjiu Mountain is vast, and Bi Shui Lake is wide; searching for the Venomous Snake Gang will surely require much time. One cannot rush it."

Lu Lu Yunqing sat behind the desk and responded calmly:

"As long as it does not delay the Grand Opening Ceremony of the Divine Weapon Valley! I hear that Master Master Gongyang values etiquette above all; on the day of the Grand Opening, inner disciples and outer elders must return to the mountain..."

"In that case?"

Yu Zhen's expression shifted slightly: "From Gao Liu to the Divine Weapon Valley, a lone rider on a fast horse might take twenty or thirty days. It is already June twenty-eighth..."

Lu Lu Yunqing picked up the Juan Sect, his expression calm: "Winter winds and snow are fierce; twenty days are not enough."

"In that case, I, Yu, understand!"

Yu Zhen, now clear, bowed and took his leave. As he reached the door, he remembered something:

"By the way, Magistrate, I, Yu, wish to borrow a squad of government office Runners for use."

"Oh? Master Yu, just speak with Steward Zhong."

Closing the study door, Lu Lu Yunqing's gaze darkened slightly: "Ghost-Faced Prajna Han Han Chuijun..."

"My lord!"

Suddenly, an exclamation came from outside the door, and footsteps were chaotic.

"What is the panic?"

Lu Lu Yunqing frowned, then saw a retainer rush into the room in a flustered state:

"The brothers managed to block that man surnamed Qiu with great difficulty, but unexpectedly, someone intervened from the shadows and rescued him!"

"What?!"

Outer City, Chai Yu Ward.

In a small courtyard, Qiu Da groaned softly and woke from a dream where he was being hunted; his expression was extremely ferocious.

"Who!"

The moment he opened his eyes, Qiu Da instinctively tried to bolt, but forgot his wounds. He let out a muffled grunt and collapsed onto the ground; the unhealed wounds oozed black blood once more.

During the more than two months of being hunted, his wounds had never been treated at all and had already festered—looking shockingly gruesome.

"Tossing about a few more times would save me the trouble of saving you. Digging a pit is simple enough!"

Qiu Da struggled to turn his head, and only then saw, beneath a tree, an old man lying in a rocking chair enjoying the cool.

"Was it you who saved me? Who are you, why…"

Qiu Da was on guard inside. Having been secretly harmed by a colleague, he was on edge at this moment. Just as he was about to ask the old man who he was, he felt a faint ache at the back of his head and passed out.

"He's this badly hurt—aren't you afraid a single pebble will kill him?"

Han Han Chuijun gently waved a cattail fan; the ghost-face mask grew all the more terrifying and ferocious in the gathering dark.

"Elder Han, this disciple has waited for you two months and nine days!"

Fang Fang Yunxiu walked in expressionlessly.

"Rushing back by early March next year is fine. Going early, one never knows where one might be sent off to again—might as well take the chance to rest a bit…"

Han Han Chuijun paid it no heed.

"You, sir, are a Talent-Seeking Envoy…"

"You are the Vice Envoy!"

Facing this shamelessly unruly old man, Fang Fang Yunxiu was helpless at heart, yet could only hand over a small booklet:

"This was compiled by my niece. In Gao Liu, and the six neighboring counties, youths under twenty-five with passable root-bone and talent—there's also three with superior root-bone…"

"I've found one myself, not bad. As for you…"

Han Han Chuijun didn't even lift his eyelids, still waving his cattail fan:

"I still have to give you a word of advice: better to have too few than too many. Root-bone must be good, and talent must likewise be good."