Inside the thatched academy.
"Heaven and earth, dark and yellow; the universe, vast and primordial. The sun and moon wax and wane; stars and constellations spread across the sky."
A group of children was reading the Great Zhou Thousand Character Classic.
Among these students, the youngest was five, while the oldest had already reached sixteen.
Shi Yi stood among them like a crane among chickens, for he was the tallest, already taller than Lou Xuanming, their teacher.
Shi Yi read along at the moment. He had long since memorized these characters—or rather, he had memorized them all after reading along on his first day.
However, the Thousand Character Classic contained only basic, commonly used characters. Many characters had not been recorded within it.
Within the Great Zhou Dynasty alone, there were a total of 13,645 recorded characters, with rare and obscure ones accounting for eighty percent.
That number was somewhat smaller than Great Xia's hundred thousand-plus Chinese characters.
It was not because the Central Great World lacked accumulated knowledge, but because the writing of this world was somewhat special.
The written word carried the Dao; it was not merely an empty saying. Every character had a special meaning and bore the history of civilization.
In the Central Great World, throughout all ages, every person capable of creating a new character and defining its meaning had been a towering figure who shook the ages and shone through history, their names enduring for a thousand autumns.
Lou Xuanming had mentioned all this while teaching.
Shi Yi had even specifically asked about those great figures who created characters.
Lou Xuanming named ancient sage emperors, Ancient Sages, and others, each one a name Shi Yi had never heard before.
Yet when Shi Yi saw the reverence in Lou Xuanming's eyes as he spoke those names, he knew they must all have been major figures in this world's history. He silently committed them to memory.
That also made Shi Yi think of Master Cangjie from the era of Great Xia's Five Emperors, another bearer of Double Pupils like himself, and the creator of primitive pictographic writing.
His predecessors and ancient sages had been able to accomplish such things. Having come to this world, he should be able to do the same.
The four words "Ancient Sages" lingered in Shi Yi's mind for a long while.
"That will be all for today's lesson. Come back the morning after tomorrow."
After watching everyone finish reading the Thousand Character Classic, Lou Xuanming spoke slowly.
Elementary lessons here were not held every day. Usually, there was a day's break in between, and during that time, students had to rely on themselves.
Those who wished to study would use that time to consolidate what they had learned and practice calligraphy.
A person's handwriting reflected the person—that was also a widely accepted saying.
"Thank you for your hard work, Teacher!"
After rising to bow, everyone began gathering their things and leaving.
"Teacher."
Shi Yi did not leave with the others. Instead, he followed Lou Xuanming to the study.
"Shi Yi, you have learned very quickly these past few days. That is good, but you must maintain a steady state of mind."
"Being too impatient in your studies will instead hinder your learning."
Lou Xuanming looked at Shi Yi and spoke slowly.
Seeing Shi Yi learn the Thousand Character Classic in only a few days—reciting it and writing it already posed no problem—made him realize that Shi Yi possessed exceptional learning ability.
Even if Shi Yi had learned some things before, and even if his temperament was stronger than that of ordinary children, reaching this point was already beyond what ordinary people could compare to.
At the very least, among all the students Lou Xuanming had taught, not one had progressed as quickly as Shi Yi.
A good memory was tremendously helpful when it came to studying.
"This is the Great Zhou Ten Thousand Character Classic. It records every character of Great Zhou."
"I have annotated them all. Using the method for recognizing characters that I taught you, you should be able to identify most of them."
"You may take it back and copy it. If you encounter any characters you still do not understand, you can come ask me."
Lou Xuanming took out a thick book. He had read through it many times, and it contained numerous annotations he had left behind. When he revisited it at different times, he would add different annotations.
He had only taken it out because Shi Yi wished to learn more characters.
As for the book itself, he did not give it to Shi Yi, because books were important—especially books containing annotations.
Among scholars, giving away a book with one's own annotations was something generally done only between people with very close relationships.
Lou Xuanming was already being very generous by allowing Shi Yi to borrow it for copying.
The era of the Central Great World differed from that of Great Xia on Blue Star, and its attitude toward books was different as well.
"Thank you, Teacher."
Shi Yi accepted the Great Zhou Ten Thousand Character Classic and thanked him.
There were techniques to learning characters. Once one mastered those techniques, learning became much easier!
The Thousand Character Classic covered enough for everyday use, but it was not enough for Shi Yi. Whether it was the Five Tigers Gang cultivation method in his possession or the writing within the Bodhi seed, many characters lay outside the Thousand Character Classic.
That was why Shi Yi wanted to continue studying the Great Zhou Ten Thousand Character Classic.
"You are my student. Teaching you to recognize characters is my responsibility."
"Even if you walk the martial path in the future, you must still read more. Reading can calm the heart, illuminate reason, and broaden your horizons."
"Those famous martial arts masters within the Great Zhou Dynasty have all read many books."
Lou Xuanming did not try to persuade Shi Yi to abandon martial cultivation and take the path of scholarship.
Everyone had different choices. Forcing one's own wishes upon others would only make them dislike it.
If Shi Yi truly loved reading, then even without Lou Xuanming saying so, Shi Yi would not abandon books and would devote himself to scholarship.
"This student will remember."
Shi Yi nodded solemnly.
Afterward, Shi Yi left with the Great Zhou Ten Thousand Character Classic and headed for Anyang Martial Arts School.
Ever since breaking through to the Blood Essence Realm, he no longer needed to practice daily at the martial training ground in the front courtyard. He could arrange his own schedule or train in the rear courtyard.
The rear courtyard of Anyang Martial Arts School had a place specifically for Lu Feng's disciples to train.
Compared with Shi Yi's residence, the training grounds in the rear courtyard were more spacious. Therefore, Shi Yi usually came to the rear courtyard to train.
Not long after Shi Yi arrived in the rear courtyard to practice, Zhao Cheng hurried over.
"Junior Brother Shi Yi, come. Go see Master with me."
Zhao Cheng pulled Shi Yi away.
Shi Yi was left completely baffled, not knowing what had happened.
"Master, the Divine Capital Divine Constabulary has sent someone. They said a Buddhist treasure was lost nearby and asked the Town Magistrate to arrange manpower to assist them in searching for it."
"There are not many people available in town, so the Town Magistrate asked our martial arts school to send two people to help."
After arriving at the pavilion where Lu Feng was, Zhao Cheng explained why he had come.
"Since it is the Town Magistrate's request, our martial arts school will send you and Shi Yi."
After hearing Zhao Cheng out, Lu Feng spoke slowly.
Unlike Shi Yi, who had peacefully studied and practiced martial arts in Anyuan Town without concerning himself with outside affairs, Lu Feng knew that quite a few things had happened these past few days.
Some matters had not spread through Anyuan Town, so ordinary people knew nothing of them. However, he had his own channels of information and knew what was going on.
Thus, upon hearing Zhao Cheng's words, he understood the general situation.
Several martial arts schools in Anyuan Town had some connection with the local authorities and occasionally helped the government with certain tasks.
He was not surprised that this matter of searching for the Buddhist treasure had come to their martial arts school.
"Shi Yi, you have never done this sort of task before. This time, learn well from your Senior Brother Zhao Cheng."
Lu Feng turned his gaze toward Shi Yi as he spoke.
After breaking through to the Blood Essence Realm, disciples could remain at the martial arts school and practice for free, but they also needed to help the school with certain tasks.
Some tasks came from the authorities, while others arose from personal connections and required them to lend a hand.
"Yes, Master. I will learn well from Senior Brother Zhao Cheng."
Shi Yi nodded solemnly at his words.
Before you continue