Volume One: Hidden Dragon in the Abyss Chapter 135: Settling Dust

"The desolation and ruin before our eyes are entirely the result of the barbaric invasion; the people have suffered a terrible catastrophe. The mournful, wailing sound of the horn echoing over the empty city further accentuates the bleakness of Yangzhou today. By adapting the poetic spirit of Du Mu, one expresses a sense of grief over the troubled times and nostalgia for the past. The entire poem is stripped of all artifice, using elegant and refined language to paint a bleak, hazy picture. Its brushwork is ethereal, its implications profound, and its tone low and delicate, possessing a clear, sharp power and a sense of cold, solitary detachment."

"Aside from His Highness, who else could compose such a masterpiece?"

Regardless, since Wang Chuan had truly returned, they felt at ease. Looking toward the two figures in the distance, there was an indescribable, reassuring strength about them.

"It is impressive, enough to pass for the real thing," Xu Wei said, looking at him with a sigh.

"The sun and moon are born together; yin and yang are one. Whether it is real or fake is merely a matter of their own perception," the man smiled. "It just cannot be hidden for too long, especially since the Demon Realm will eventually understand. I only hope that by then, Wang Chuan will have returned. You need not worry about the rest; I will continue to handle what follows."

"The Lord of Jin seems strange toward Brother Chuan, but what I worry about most is the Fourth Prince. It is rumored that he has already wiped out a nation single-handedly. Will it be alright if you face him?" Xu Wei asked.

"He wishes to use this as a stepping stone to ascend to heaven and become a god! Alas, it is not that easy. The fact that he escaped back then already proved his defeat. His fortune is exhausted and can never be reversed; he will not wait until Wang Chuan is in distress. Thus, he can only descend into the demonic path to seek another turn of fate," the man smiled. "You may understand that the brilliance and waxings of the moon rely on the light of the sun; both he and I are the same."

"I know; Brother Chuan explained it to me," Xu Wei nodded.

"So, if he dares to return, he has no chance of winning," the man said earnestly. "You should rest and tend to your pregnancy; we are about to enter the Jin State. The game on the chessboard has gone on too long; it is time to conclude it."

"There is something I would like to ask you," Xu Wei said to him.

The man, who was about to go down to rest, nodded upon hearing this. "Go ahead."

"Before Brother Chuan left that day, he played a piece for me. I had never heard it before and did not understand its meaning," Xu Wei said.

"Can you still recall it?" the man asked.

"Yes, I have been practicing it ever since," Xu Wei replied. She gently touched the strings, and the music played for a moment before stopping, as if interrupted. "That is all I remember."

"There are two mistakes in it. So it was this piece; it has been many years since I last heard it," the man sighed.

"I felt that Brother Chuan had something to say to me that day, but I do not understand this melody," Xu Wei said sadly.

"When the spring dries up, the fish are stranded together on the land, moistening each other with their dampness and keeping each other alive with their foam," the man told her.

"I know, it is from Zhuangzi. Brother Chuan has mentioned it before; he likes it very much," Xu Wei said.

"Then you naturally understand the line that follows: 'It would be better to forget each other in the rivers and lakes,'" the man sighed, turning his head to look at the distant, quiet carriage.

When the spring water dries up, the fish are stranded together on the land, moistening each other with their dampness and keeping each other alive with their foam. It would be better to forget each other in the vastness of the rivers and lakes, and be free.

Xu Wei fell silent upon hearing this. If it were this allusion, she understood. But eventually, the seawater would rise, and the two fish would finally return to their own worlds. In the end, they would forget each other in the rivers and lakes—living happily in their own suitable places, forgetting the other, and forgetting that life of mutual dependence.

Was this the unspoken message Wang Chuan had hidden within the melody that day? It was a state of being, perhaps one that required a more open and indifferent heart. But could it truly be so easy to achieve?

The familiar melody rose again. With the long zither in his hands, the man played as if his brush were blossoming with flowers, lifting a melodic tune. In that instant, Xu Wei could not help but burst into tears.

As the music faded and she slowly calmed down, the man said, "This piece has a story behind it. It was composed by a female musician; it seems Wang Chuan was very fond of her. She was also my favorite musician. It is a pity she died young; we have admired her for a long time."

"Please tell me, sir," Xu Wei said respectfully.

"In some small city or town, a man bade farewell to his beloved to seek his fortune in the capital. The young girl smiled as she saw him off and improvised this piece. It is not difficult to hear that the melody and rhythm are light and uplifting, with spirited tones, intended to encourage the other not to look back and not to give up when encountering difficulties. It is a very encouraging piece. It seems Wang Chuan and I both like it very much," the man sighed deeply, then said to her, "On that day of parting, he understood your feelings, which is why he played this piece. That is enough. He promised you that he would return."

...

A little girl was picking wildflowers when Xu Qing suddenly lifted her from behind. She shrieked, then turned to see a familiar face.

"Daddy, where did you go to play? Why didn't you take me?" Yan Shuyi asked.

"I went to take care of some business. I will take you around once we enter the city; there will be many fun things there," Xu Qing said.

"Oh, good!" The little girl's eyes lit up.

"Let's go; we may need to head down," Xu Qing saw that preparations for departure were underway and took her back to the carriage. "The wind is picking up."

...

Before the long wind could rise, ten thousand rays of sunset glow were suddenly cast from the horizon. Since the sun had ceased to appear, the mortal world had been in a panic, fearing that heaven and earth were about to fall into eternal night, and that the future world would be a chaos, never to see the light of day again. Above the firmament, where the glow was emitted, clouds and mist curled, resembling a fairyland.

"The Divine Court is finally about to open. Wang Chuan, you are indeed a man who moves the world; your very appearance has drawn out the people of the Martial Arts Academy!" Standing on an unknown hillside, Ying Qian watched. "A great struggle of the era, a true great struggle. The many ants of the mortal world probably have no qualifications to participate. If it were Wang Chuan, I fear he would struggle to save the common people!"

"The Martial Arts Academy is passed down from the Divine Court, from ancient times. Many people probably know that they are arrogant and cold. Many ancient books also say that the Divine Court seeks people only by destiny. Moreover, the people of the Martial Arts Academy have always been high above, looking down on the world, never regarding mortal beings! They do not have the abilities of the God Clan, yet they delusionally try to be gods; it is truly ridiculous. Speaking of which, it has been a long time since I in the Demon Realm have seen people from the Divine Court. I truly miss them."

"That woman looks quite good!" Ying Qian stared at them from afar, revealing a covetous look.

The people of the Martial Arts Academy held a very exalted status. They roamed the heavens and earth, detached from the world, ignoring the mortal masses entirely. When angry, they would leave a trail of blood for a thousand miles. To mortals, they were mostly objects of fear.

The glow lasted for a long time, filling countless people with hope, making them feel that the day of seeing the light again was within reach, even if it was brought by these people from the Martial Arts Academy. Wang Chuan's emergence had once been their last hope. Though rationally they knew Wang Chuan was no saint, they still had to pin their hopes on him. If even Wang Chuan could not do it, then who else could? Who could save them?

Deep within the clouds were three figures: two men and one woman. For those at the level of Ying Qian and Xu Qing, it was naturally not difficult to see them. All three wore ancient attire, appearing somewhat different from the styles of the present day. There was a middle-aged, bearded man carrying a long saber and a young man in blue robes with a sword at his waist. The woman was dressed in white as snow, with a cold and stunning appearance, a graceful figure, and an aura that seemed ethereal, as if she were about to transcend the world. Their auras were vast and ethereal, and their internal energy was so refined that it seemed to have already transcended the heavens and earth.

"This is the mortal realm; the aura here is too turbid. A bunch of ants, and I don't see any powerful existences," the blue-robed man fanned his nose and mouth, his face filled with disgust. "It is hard to imagine that the human race has fallen to this point."

The middle-aged man shook his head. "The human race of the past was not weak; they rose by clinging to the God Clan and countless ascended to heaven to become gods."

"It is a pity that this place has long since become a wasteland, abandoned by those above. It is hard to imagine that there were once elders here; even if there were good seedlings, they would have been ruined by this environment long ago," the blue-robed man said.

"In a thicket of oaks, one may still find catalpa wood," the woman in white said faintly. Her eyes remained cold, as if nothing in this world could catch her attention.

The other two were taken aback. It was the Dean who had first returned from the mortal realm to recruit disciples and had said such things. That Dean loved to travel in the mortal realm and often spoke of these matters. This wood, the most useless, was only fit for firewood; like the oak, which is tall but useless. A great master once said that catalpa wood is easily felled, and only by being useless can one endure; perhaps that is why the mortal world has existed for so long, and it has even approached the limit of an epoch's cycle. Both oak and thorn are useless woods. Only the catalpa tree can be used to build great mansions and support the heavens alone.

"It is said that twenty years ago, an elder also returned with a disciple who had unparalleled natural talent," the middle-aged man recalled.

"This matter is suspicious; none of us saw anyone being initiated. Since that time sixty years ago when someone rejected the Martial Arts Academy, there hasn't been any recruitment for a hundred years, has there? The last time was exactly about a hundred years ago," the young man said.

"I am suspicious as well," the middle-aged man sighed. "However, those above gave us a hint beforehand. After arriving, besides dealing with the demons, we are to keep an eye on a man named Wang Chuan. After our elder returned previously, he was very interested in him."

"In heaven, the White Jade Capital has twelve towers and five cities. The immortal strokes my head, and I receive eternal life from the hair-binding. This Wang Chuan's origins are completely unknown. They say he is the reincarnation of a saint, but how could we be completely unaware of such a major event? He suddenly appeared when he was twenty," the young man sneered. "I fear this is a conspiracy of the remnants of the Demon Realm! This most famous person of the current age, his very existence is problematic. The orthodox traditions in this mortal world are broken and incomplete; I doubt even complete cultivation manuals have been passed down. At most, there are a few masters, but true human powerhouses have likely become extinct."

"Let us go."

After the glow vanished, the undercurrents surged once again.