Forced to Step Forward

"In the early spring after the snow, there are winter plum blossoms and trumpet creeper flowers. They emerge from the mountain ridges and follow their own will. The plum blossoms near the water win my heart first. There is no other reason than that they are free from attachment and thus become famous. But now they are old women and no longer compete with the youth for the spring breeze."

"Alas! How many years has this tree taken to grow to the size of a person's embrace? And how can this grass, in a single night, suddenly become known as the 'Tall Tree'?"

"The trumpet creeper rises only from a tall tree; if the tall tree is felled and used as firewood, will this creature also wither away?"

"To thrive on a precarious branch is to not know that old trees often wither and are easily broken by strong winds. At that time, they will likely be destroyed and turned into rotten roots, never to sprout again. How can they be ranked alongside other flowers?"

Even Li Qi frowned when he heard these words.

This article is about how the author saw plum blossoms blooming alone in winter, and how the trumpet creeper was perched on the tree waiting to bloom.

Although Heavenly Horse over and the plum blossoms are about to wither, that's just to avoid competing with the young people for attention.

On the contrary, the Trumpet Flower on the side looked arrogant, but I just didn't like it.

Look at that winged tree, climbing up a hundred feet high by clinging to those withered ancient branches. But how many years did it take for that withered tree to grow that tall? Now, the winged tree easily climbs to the top by stepping on it, and then dares to call itself 'Lingxiao'? Do you deserve it?

By parasitizing her body on a towering, withered tree that is about to collapse, doesn't she know that one day she will fall and be 'destroyed and never to sprout again'?

Does something like this deserve to be ranked alongside a hundred flowers?

By comparing the trumpet creeper to the winter plum, the author urges others to emulate the latter's purity and fragrance, and to be like them, "Unattached yet renowned."

Instead of learning from the Trumpet Flower's "prosperity through a precarious branch," the precarious branch refers to a tree that is about to fall, which is a petty and despicable act, and it is mocked that "if a dead tree is destroyed for firewood, this thing will undoubtedly wither away as well."

This series of combined attacks seems to be a direct response to Liu Donghe's article.

Although it lacks sufficient allusions and its word choice and sentence structure are somewhat superficial, showing a level of skill that is far inferior to Liu Donghe's, the article's theme and word choice are clearly discernible.

They've abandoned all pretense of decency and are going straight for the slap in the face.

Writing such an article at a literary conference is clearly bound to cause trouble.

Liu Shenzhi said, "As soon as this article was published, the atmosphere became tense. The Trumpet Flower God changed her previous smile and couldn't help but speak out to refute it. But at this time, the Hanlin scholars brought up what I had done before."

"They pushed me away, not talking about speculation, but only saying things like, 'Even Liu Donghe's own son came to the literary gathering, and the tall tree that the Flower Goddess climbed is not a dead tree, but is very prosperous.' They really wanted to put the claim of her climbing on others on her behalf."

"The Trumpet Flower God and that fifth-rank Confucian scholar have begun a battle of wills, and the situation is about to get out of control! Li Qi, you need to think of a solution quickly," Liu Shenzhi said urgently.

After hearing all this, Li Qi had only one feeling...

I'm mentally exhausted.

He couldn't help but say, "Why bother? You and I have already helped her anyway, and she's in the wrong this time. If we help her resolve this matter, she'll owe us a huge favor, and with Uncle Liu's protection, it will be perfectly reasonable for us to control her in the future..."

"Why do you have to play mind games with these people? They're fifth-rank officials, you know that...? They're more cunning than ten of you combined." Li Qi felt a headache coming on.

If they really wanted to play dirty tricks, Li Qi, although he thought he was smart enough, was definitely no match for these old bastards. Just like the trap set by the Trumpet Flower God, although Li Qi saw through it, there was nothing he could do but try to fix it afterward.

"I've also realized... Compared to these people, I am indeed a bit stupid. I'm even starting to suspect that the Hanlin scholars around me were deliberately guiding me to say this, making me their pawn." Liu Shenzhi pressed his temples and said with a wry smile.

"But what's done is done, and reflection can wait. Li Qi, you should work with me to think of a solution. If the literary gathering is ruined, the matter of the Witchcraft Silkworm will probably be covered up. It won't be damaged, but no one will care, and our trip will have been in vain."

That's true. Liu Shenzhi saw it very clearly. If the Trumpet Flower God was really humiliated and forced to return to Baiyue, then there would be no place for the Witchcraft Silkworm in the news.

Now that things have come to this, it's no longer possible to remain neutral and watch from the sidelines. We can promote ourselves regardless of whether the Trumpet Flower God of the Clouds lives or dies.

Because they are already intertwined, success or failure is linked together.

To promote the Witchcraft Silkworm, the high-handed attitude of the Trumpet Flower God is essential. No one wants to see what the loser is wearing, but people love to study every inch of the winner's body, even what kind of water she usually drinks.

"Alright, stop overthinking things. It's not that we're afraid of understanding things, it's that we're afraid of not understanding them, but the worst thing is to understand and not understand at all. That's the easiest way to cause trouble. You've already caused trouble twice, it's time to stop." Li Qi rubbed his temples.

Liu Shenzhi wasn't stupid, but sometimes smart people are more likely to suffer losses, especially when they are not as smart as others, they will fall even harder.

Liu Shenzhi blushed and rubbed his hands together with a chuckle.

"But in the end, this whole thing was caused by you and me. If I hadn't introduced you, you wouldn't have come into contact with the Trumpet Flower God ... Come on, let's go back and take a good look." Li Qi patted his face, preparing to clean up the mess.

As he walked, he said to Liu Shenzhi, "We'll try our best to clean it up. If we can't, then... we'll just give up."

"Never mind, where will the follow-up funding come from? How do you plan to sell your Holy Flame?" Liu Shenzhi asked, puzzled.

"I've already sold them. My family paid for the first batch of Witchcraft Silkworm. With my family leading the way, others will definitely follow suit. We've already achieved basic sales, it's just that we're making a little less profit," Li Qi said.

"It's already sold?!" Liu Shenzhi exclaimed, his eyes wide.

Li Qi acted so quickly?

"How many were sold? What price did you offer?" he asked hastily.

"There are two Seventh Rank World. One of them has special products, which are unique to individual cultivators and are quite valuable. In addition, there are some Yu Zao generation technologies, including formations for transferring consciousness between different bodies. We also exchanged for twelve sets of seventh-grade Witchcraft Silkworm, plus the Witchcraft Silkworm's Shaman Path rune compilation technology," Li Qi said.

"You even sold the technology? Isn't that what you value most?" Liu Shenzhi, somewhat surprised.

"So what if I'm interested? I also value the Miscellaneous School's technology. I think if we get this technology, our Witchcraft Silkworm might be able to transfer the simulated mind. The Witchcraft Silkworm is a brand new thing, and I think we can try it out in all aspects. Who knows, it might be useful?" Li Qi said.

"That's true, but the compatibility issues might still be a problem. Sigh... fixing the compatibility issues will cost a lot of money, and debugging might ruin at least thirty batches. Thirty batches, are your two Seventh Rank World enough?"

"The world's resources are still quite abundant. If we squeeze the Seventh Rank World's essence dry, to the point of degrading its quality, the resources we get... thirty batches of Witchcraft Silkworm should be enough, right?" Li Qi stroked his chin as he did the math.

A Seventh Rank World can produce a dozen or twenty Seventh Rank Magic Treasure, enough to support a dozen or so seventh-grade cultivators. Although these people are top-tier artifacts and powerful individuals in those worlds, they are nothing compared to the world's center, the myriad worlds.

"Squeezing the world dry... the consequences are heavy. Don't you Shaman hate this kind of thing the most?" Liu Shenzhi was somewhat surprised. Li Qi's choice didn't seem like something a Shaman would make.

"It doesn't kill anyone. For ordinary people, suppressing the world's grade won't even make a difference. If I had to describe it, it would be like mining the mines dry. Why would I hate it?" Li Qi retorted.

"But you've prevented someone who could have advanced to the seventh rank from ever breaking through in that world. This karmic consequence will be attributed to you," Liu Shenzhi pointed out the danger.

"Huh? I can just bring them out. We can find any place in the world, and just one breath of the world's greatest source of Spiritual Qi will be enough for them to break through dozens of times." Li Qi said, puzzled.

Did Liu Shenzhi's IQ drop after his two failures?

Liu Shenzhi, on the other hand, looked utterly astonished.

"No, you want to drag those people down with you?" Liu Shenzhi seemed somewhat incredulous.

"Is there a problem?" Li Qi asked in return.

"No...actually, it's nothing, no problem. With your status, it's common for you to bring a few people to the world. But no one would do that, after all, those—" Liu Shenzhi wanted to say something.

However, before he could finish speaking, Li Qi interrupted him.

Li Qi continued, "After all, those people from beyond the borders are nothing but barbarians, not even as good as spirit beasts. How can they be worthy of Upper Heaven? Unless they pay a huge price, completely sever ties with their homeland, show sufficient loyalty, or even directly convert to Human Path, they should never be allowed to set foot on the land of the world."

Liu Shenzhi hesitated for a moment, but then nodded.

This is probably the opinion of most Tang Kingdom.

"You see, this is why you, Human Path Liu, follow the path of humanity, while I follow the path of Shaman Path. In my opinion, they are no different from us." Li Qi patted Liu Shenzhi on the shoulder.

The differences in the Dao Path are not merely differences in the methods of cultivation.

There are huge differences in their outlook on life, values, worldview, and every other aspect.

People from different Dao Path often find it difficult to get along.

With that said, Li Qi and the others finally entered the literary gathering venue.

The atmosphere at the scene was extremely cold.

The young people and those who didn't know anything were silent, afraid to speak for fear of angering the adults who were standing in confrontation.

However, one could see that the Trumpet Flower God was surrounded by a group of followers, while the fifth-rank scholar was also surrounded by a group of people.

When Li Qi entered, he heard the Trumpet Flower God just finish speaking.

I arrived too late and didn't hear the whole thing, but it seemed to be something like. "Your article is full of criticisms of Mr. Donghe's articles. Do you perhaps think you have the right to write an article refuting him?"

That's a rather sharp remark.

Liu Donghe wrote that the trumpet creeper climbs the dead tree and transforms into branches and flowers on the dead tree, which looks as if the dead tree has been given a new life.

Then the scholar in front of me wrote, "To thrive on a precarious branch is to not know that old trees often wither and are easily broken by strong winds. At that time, they will probably be destroyed into rotten roots and never sprout again. How can they be ranked with all the flowers?"

Therefore, the Trumpet Flower God directly used Liu Donghe to suppress people.

If this label is confirmed, then the label of 'disrespect' will likely be unavoidable.

Only...

It seems that the debate has now devolved into targeting each other's motives, with no regard for logic; all that remains is the desire to win.

But... Li Qi shook his head. This was a terrible move.

As expected, Li Qi stopped, only to hear the fifth-rank Hanlin scholar say, "Heh, I thought the Flower Goddess had some brilliant ideas, but I didn't expect her to just use her name to intimidate people."

"My article is well-organized and clearly narrated. If you do not agree, then provide evidence to refute it. Instead, you keep mentioning Mr. Donghe, making yourself a laughing stock. You are indeed a sycophant. You think that because someone is standing behind you, others will not dare to point out your mistakes, otherwise it would be considered disrespectful?"

He spoke with righteous indignation, his voice not loud, but exceptionally clear and distinct, so that everyone could hear him.

"It seems that driving the Flower Goddess away from Chang'an back then was indeed the right thing to do. The Flower Goddess should take a look at her own face. Back then, when she had no one to back her up, she was frightened and ran away from Chang'an to the Baiyue lands to act arrogantly. Now that she has found a backer, she has returned here with her head held high and still wants to talk about 'returning'. Is this the return that the Flower Goddess wants?"

"Isn't the Flower Goddess's return a result of her diligent cultivation outside, so that she is worthy of this Lingxiao Grotto-heaven? Could it be that what you think means by 'worthy' is actually having enough people backing her up? If that's the case, then is the soaring figure that the Flower Goddess is so proud of yours, or the tree beneath her?"

As expected of a Confucian cultivator, his words caused the Trumpet Flower God's face to constantly change from red to white. For a moment, she didn't know how to retaliate and could only stand there frozen, as if she had swallowed a fly.

Numerous unrelated parties

Even the former fans of the Trumpet Flower God were speechless for a moment.

Li Qi watched all of this from the side.

The scholar who criticized the Trumpet Flower God in the past did not speak lightly. In fact, like Liu Donghe, that scholar was not one to make River Opening.

He had his reasons for saying this; he wouldn't let the Trumpet Flower be wronged for no reason.

So... who's right on both sides?

The Trumpet Flower God was banished with a single word and lost everything for no reason.

Although the scholar was not wrong, he ruined the life of the Trumpet Flower God with a single sentence. Can that be called 'good'?

As for this fifth-rank Hanlin scholar, does he really dislike the Trumpet Flower? He probably only saw the Trumpet Flower God for the first time today, and had only read the poems of that famous scholar before, so he stood up to criticize her.

Who can clearly distinguish right from wrong?

No one is wrong, but many conflicts are neither right nor wrong.

Just then, Li Qi suddenly stood up and addressed the crowd:

"The Trumpet Flower creeper climbs a tree, but doesn't the tree also need to stand on the earth? Does the tree cling to the earth? And what does the earth cling to? Is it only the foundation of all things that doesn't count as clinging? Is there anyone here who hasn't cultivated by standing on the shoulders of predecessors? Are you all just clinging?"