Accept It As It Comes

In Mountain Lord Temple, Chen Shi stepped forward. The distance of five feet was traversed in an instant, and his body slammed against the air, even bursting with a thunderous roar. With a loud boom, the doors and windows of Mountain Lord Temple rattled violently!

He threw out a punch, and the fist wind swept outward, reaching a zhang away like flat-ground wind and thunder.

Chen Shi churned his vital qi and threw out another punch. The fist wind was heavier, and the stirred-up wind even burst forth with a deep, muffled thunderous sound. His fist moved with rumbling thunder, looking quite terrifying.

His footsteps shifted, stepping on the Big Dipper Seven Stars, as swift as a ghost coming and going. Walking across the floor, walls, and pillars of the temple, his fists and feet flew out with rolling muffled thunder!

At a distance of five or six feet, where his intent reached, his body reached; where his body reached, his fist reached!

After a moment, Chen Shi drifted down to the ground. The surging vital qi subsided in an instant, and his flapping robes also settled.

He was poised and calm, only feeling the true qi within his body churning and lingering for a long time.

The true qi circulated, incomparably mighty, automatically forming a divine shrine behind his head. The divine shrine shone with brilliant light, extremely dazzling to the eye.

The true qi within his body actually did not dissipate for a long time, and the divine shrine showed no signs of weakening either.

After a while, his true qi began to show signs of leaking away, and the light of the divine shrine gradually dimmed, yet the divine shrine still remained unbroken.

Even with the completion of the Sacred Embryo, it is still impossible to completely preserve the divine shrine. Without the divine shrine, there is no true qi. The flesh-and-blood Sacred Embryo only slows down the rate at which true qi dissipates. If one wants to preserve true qi, a genuine divine embryo is still needed.

Although regretful, Chen Shi was quite content. He bowed to the empty divine shrine of Mountain Lord Temple and walked out of the temple.

He pulled the doors shut, preparing to head out into the mountains.

He did not take the carriage.

For some reason the day before, that carriage driver, who had always been completely obedient to him, ran away the moment he saw him as if he had seen a ghost, quickly vanishing without a trace.

Chen Shi liked Prince Xiao's carriage very much. Riding out in it these past few days had been indescribably majestic, and for this reason, he had searched for it for a long time, only to find that the carriage was not even outside Mirror Lake Villa, causing him to regret it for a long time.

After he left, extraordinary power misted within the temple, gradually gathering toward the divine shrine, faintly manifesting the appearance of a god and devil.

Seeing that the divine image was about to form, suddenly the extraordinary power had nowhere to bind, directly collapsing and dispersing once more into various parts of the temple.

A faint sigh came from the divine shrine.

Still not working, huh?

Chen Shi walked far away and did not hear this sigh.

Outside Huangpo Village, under the old willow tree, Chen Shi made offerings of incense to stone tablet godmother as usual.

Although stone tablet godmother still gave no response, green light flowed across the stone tablet, lasting even longer and seeming to conceal some kind of profound mystery.

Chen Shi attempted to use the incense offering to connect with Godmother, but when his consciousness touched the stone tablet, besides sensing a vast and boundless void, there was nothing else.

Perhaps Godmother is just an ordinary stone.

Chen Shi did not take it to heart. He lit a stick of incense for Scholar Zhu and quietly waited for Scholar Zhu to finish inhaling the incense fragrance.

Scholar Zhu is my noble benefactor—no, noble ghost!

Chen Shi felt a myriad of emotions in his heart. I was unfortunately stripped of my divine embryo by someone, turning into a useless person, but I am also exceptionally lucky to have met Scholar Zhu, allowing me to study here with him. Otherwise, I might not even have been able to pass the literary section of the county examination. In this spring county examination, I will surely shine brilliantly in the literary exam!

Just as he was thinking this, an old man and a youth came down Yellow Earth Slope. The old man was already at the advanced age of eighty or ninety, withered and frail, walking with a hunched back, but his gaze was very bright.

The youth wore green clothes and white robes, with his top hair bun tied with a green hair ribbon. A red silk belt was tied around his waist, from which hung a white lotus jade pendant, and a pair of Chenqiao shoes were on his feet, making him look quite quiet and gentle.

This youth looked to be around eleven or twelve years old, following beside the old man with bright eyes. Although their attire was simple, the texture was quite good, making it clear at a glance that while they were not extremely wealthy, their daily living was quite refined.

Chen Shi withdrew his gaze, took out the Analects, and asked Scholar Zhu for guidance, saying, "The Master said: I have never seen a person of firm and unyielding character. Someone replied in response: Shen Cheng. The Master said: Cheng has desires, how can he be firm? How is this to be interpreted?"

"This passage requires comprehending the Master's state of mind. The Master was already invincible under heaven, so he sighed and said, I have never seen a person whose skull my fist couldn't smash," Scholar Zhu said. "Someone beside him then said, Shen Cheng is very powerful, having refined an indestructible vajra body. The Master then said, Shen Cheng won't do; I've hit him, and he isn't unyielding at all. Little Ten, if you can comprehend the state of mind of the Master when he said these words, you will be invincible."

Chen Shi was thoughtful.

At this moment, the voice of the youth came from below Yellow Earth Slope: "Grandpa, stop! My seventh uncle, Li Kefu, should have died right here."

Chen Shi awakened from comprehending the Master's state of mind and looked down, seeing that old man and youth halt their steps and examine the geography and scenery near Yellow Earth Slope.

"Li Kefu? It seems he is the county vice-magistrate of Shuinui County, the father of the aggrieved plaintiff Li Xiaoding. How did he die?" Chen Shi was surprised.

The youth just now had said that Li Kefu died near Yellow Earth Slope, which made him feel somewhat apprehensive. Huangpo Village was named precisely because of this earthen slope, which meant Li Kefu had died near Huangpo Village!

This youth calls Li Kefu seventh uncle, so they are people from the Li Family! Chen Shi secretly remained on guard.

Below Yellow Earth Slope, the old man asked doubtfully, "Tianqing, how do you know your seventh uncle died here? I don't see his soul."

The old man looked toward Chen Shi. Chen Shi only felt as if a ball of firelight was shining upon him, and this scorching sensation only disappeared when the old man looked away.

This old man is strong!

Just as he thought of this, he saw the old man's gaze land upon Scholar Zhu, who was hanged from the tree, and his heart tightened: He can see Scholar Zhu without using a Heavenly Eye Talisman! That's right, he has refined the Heavenly Eye capable of seeing spirit bodies!

The youth Li Tianqing pointed at a large tree by the river in the distance and said, "The tree crown on the north side of that tree is missing a corner, which is the mark left by the cutting of my Li family's Six Yin Jade Wheel. In Xinxiang Province, only my seventh uncle knows the Six Yin Jade Wheel."

The old man felt quite surprised by the man and ghost on the slope. Hearing this, he withdrew his gaze, looked toward the large tree, and praised, "Tianqing, bringing you out this time was the right choice; your observation skills are astonishing! That being said, your seventh uncle encountered an enemy right around here, urged our Li family's Six Yin Jade Wheel, and as a result was no match, meeting a violent death."

He let out a turbid breath and said, "Li Kefu brought the elite of our Li family in Shuinui County this time, yet they were all buried in the countryside. The Li family's influence in Shuinui County was pulled up by the roots. Such a feat is likely the work of another powerful aristocratic clan, using this opportunity to annex Shuinui County!"

The youth Li Tianqing examined Yellow Earth Slope, suddenly let out a soft exclamation, walked quickly to the front, grabbed a handful of soil and carefully rolled it between his fingers, then licked it on his tongue and said, "It's kaolin!"

The old man widened his eyes, tasted a bit too, spat it out with a pei pei, and said angrily, "It doesn't taste good at all!"

Li Tianqing pondered and said, "Grandpa, kaolin is used for firing porcelain and pottery, not for eating. There's such a large patch of earthen slope here..."

His gaze swept across the earthen slope and then looked toward the ancient tree in the center of Huangpo Village, his eyes lighting up as he smiled, "Near here, there must be a kiln factory! The True King's Tomb should also be nearby!"

The old man touched his snow-white hair, failing to understand how he had arrived at this conclusion.

On Yellow Earth Slope, Chen Shi was also extremely curious.

Li Tianqing said, "The pottery and porcelain needed for tombs of this scale are extremely numerous. Having them fired elsewhere and transported over firstly attracts attention, and secondly makes them easy to damage during the journey, so a kiln factory must be built nearby for firing. The soil used by the kiln factory is this kind of kaolin. Once the porcelain and pottery are fired, the kiln workers who fired the pottery and porcelain must all be executed to prevent leaking news. This village happens to be built right where the kaolin was stored back then, and the trees in the village are also old enough; they should have been planted by the people of that time. Therefore, the True King's Tomb is definitely not far from this place!"

Chen Shi was full of admiration, thinking to himself: This youth is around my age, and his brain is just as clever as mine.

The old man was stirred with emotion, his voice hoarse as he said, "If we can find the True King's Tomb, even if we cannot find the true culprit who killed Li Kefu, the two of us grandfather and grandson returning to Quanzhou will still be a great achievement!"

Li Tianqing shook his head and said, "Two great achievements."

The old man was puzzled.

Li Tianqing said, "Seventh uncle's case is also very easy to solve. Grandpa, look at that crooked-neck willow tree. Old willow trees of this kind are most suitable for hanging, and scholars who are unsatisfied with life often choose such old trees to hang themselves to death. Since this tree is so old, there must definitely be one or a row of scholars hanging from the tree. Most likely, they saw the scene of seventh uncle's death and know the true culprit. We just need to ask them to crack the case."

The old man was dumbfounded, muttering, "On that willow tree, there really is a hanging scholar... Tianqing, you are truly divine!"

Li Tianqing was somewhat sheepishly embarrassed and said, "Just common sense..."

"I'll go ask!"

The old man lifted his foot to go up the slope, but suddenly the space in front of his eyes shook violently, and the small Yellow Earth Slope unexpectedly became exceptionally steep in his eyes, resembling a yellow sky blanketing the top of his head!

The old man's expression changed instantly, and he immediately retreated.

Until he stepped back out of this patch of earthen slope, everything returned to normal.

Li Tianqing did not understand the reason.

The old man steadied his mind and looked toward this patch of earthen slope, feeling only that this small earthen slope was like an unfathomable grand expert, making him dare not set foot on it.

"Rural places often have evil anomalies. When coming to the countryside, one must first pay respects to the local lord to be safe!"

The old man turned around, no longer attempting to climb the earthen slope, and said, "Tianqing, although you are clever and smart, cleverness doesn't work in some places; you have to rely on experience. Let's go pay respects to the Godmother here first and inquire for news in the village!"

The two of them walked toward Huangpo Village.

Chen Shi widened his eyes, watching them walk toward Huangpo Village, feeling puzzled and unable to figure it out: When this old man went up the slope, why did it look like he was scared off? There's nothing scary on this slope.

"Tianqing, you read a lot of books, do you know who this True King is?"

The voices of the grandfather and grandson came from ahead, and Li Tianqing said, "Legend has it that the True King was the King of Western Ox Continent conferred by the Great Ming Emperor, managing the altars of earth and grain of Western Ox Continent. The fifty provinces of Western Ox Continent, fifty Maps of Mountains and Rivers, are all rumored to be grasped in the hands of the True King, and were later taken into the mausoleum by the True King."

"No wonder these fellows care so much about the True King's Tomb."

The old man smiled and said, "They all talk about the Great Ming Dynasty, the Great Ming Dynasty, but who nowadays even knows what surname the Great Ming Emperor had, or which dynasty's emperor it currently is? On the contrary, the True King's treasure stirs the hearts of quite a few people."

"I know. The Great Ming Emperor's surname is Zhu. Right now it is the sixty-six thousand four hundred and second year of Jiajing!"

"Only you know; change to someone else and they wouldn't know."

The grandfather and grandson gradually walked further away. Chen Shi hurriedly stood up, packed up his books, and smiled, "Scholar Zhu, you and the Great Ming Emperor share the same surname Zhu! Could you be royalty?"

Scholar Zhu stammered, "I'm just a hanged ghost, how could I be royalty..."

"I don't think you are either!"

Chen Shi shouldered his book box, excitedly walked down Yellow Earth Slope, and headed toward Huangpo Village.

There were guests in the village, and they looked quite interesting.

When he reached the entrance of the village, he saw that pair of grandfather and grandson had also arrived outside Huangpo Village. The old man held up a stick of incense, stood outside the village, and said respectfully, "Wanderers of the lakes and seas, accidentally arriving at your esteemed village, we only beg that Godmother grants a place to rest our feet. We are immensely grateful, and in days to come we will definitely present incense candles and offerings to thank Godmother for her grace of protection."

--The reason why this old man also called the ancient tree Godmother was because the villagers' custom of worshipping Godmother originated very early. In the era when evil spirits were just beginning to rise, people discovered that all things had a spirit, and after worshipping for a long time, spiritual nature would be born, possessing powerful strength. Ordinary people could not tell whether the spirit was male or female, and thus called it Godmother.

Since the old man had come to the countryside, he naturally had to follow local customs.

The branches of the ancient tree in Huangpo Village danced gently, accepting his incense.

Only then did the grandfather and grandson enter the village. Li Tianqing followed closely behind the old man step by step. At this moment, the sound of footsteps came from beside him, and turning his head to look, he saw a youth around his own age, with a build slightly more robust than his own, smiling at him.

"My name is Chen Shi, nickname Little Ten; everyone in the village calls me Little Chen Shi!"

The youth smiled and said, "What's your name?"

Li Tianqing was somewhat shy, his voice a bit low: "My surname is Li, given name Tianqing..."

"If you don't have a place to stay, you might as well stay at my house tonight!" Chen Shi proposed before he could finish speaking.

Li Tianqing had never encountered anyone so enthusiastic and looked at the old man. The old man smiled and said, "Country folk are simple and honest, and we also need a place to rest our feet, so we'll trouble you for a night."

Chen Shi was overjoyed and immediately led them toward his house, shouting with a smile from afar, "Grandpa, Black Pot, we have guests at home!"