The Meaning Behind the Ancient Text
It's clear that the Third Elder greatly admires the Silent Daoist; perhaps the Third Elder envy what others have because he lacks something himself.
After bidding farewell to the Third Elder, Lu Yang arrived at Junzi Peak.
Junzi Peak is the territory of the Fourth Elder. The mountain is elegant and cool, with summer-like weather all year round. There are pavilions and streams everywhere, and the bamboo is green and upright. It is obviously a good place for literati to linger and compose poems. Even if the bamboo suddenly started to recite a few words of sages, Lu Yang would not find it strange.
Having seen all sorts of strange and unusual things from the Ask Dao Sect, Lu Yang's mental fortitude had been honed to an extremely high level.
Lu Yang also saw black and white iron-eating beasts rolling around in the mountains, and his senior brothers drinking and making merry, expressing their thoughts with ink and brush, splashing ink to create paintings, and then crawling into the paintings to play with the people in them, having a great time.
The Iron-Eating Beast nudged Lu Yang, almost knocking him over. It was playing with Lu Yang, but Lu Yang had things to do and had to plead with the Iron-Eating Beast before it finally let him go. Before leaving, the Iron-Eating Beast even gave Lu Yang a half-eaten bamboo stalk.
"Greetings, senior brother. May I ask where the Fourth Elder is?" Lu Yang asked respectfully as he stood before the painting, holding half a bamboo stick. This senior brother was extremely skilled in painting, almost to the point of creating lifelike replicas, which was quite terrifying.
Upon hearing Lu Yang's call, the senior disciple of the Painting Dao emerged halfway out of the painting. "Who are you?"
"My name is Lu Yang."
Upon hearing Lu Yang's name, the senior disciple of the Painting Sect suddenly realized, "Oh, I know you, Lu Yang, the newcomer, Yun Zhi's disciple."
"... It was Senior Sister who accepted me as a disciple on behalf of our master. I am the disciple of the Silent Daoist." Lu Yang earnestly corrected his senior brother's mistake.
"My name is Ji Hongwen. I entered the Ask Dao Sect in the same year as Senior Sister. I am the eldest disciple of the Fourth Elder." This senior brother was very approachable and did not show any disapproval for Lu Yang's low cultivation level.
"Greetings, Senior Brother Ji." Lu Yang was surprised, not expecting that Ji Hongwen was in the same year as Senior Sister.
All he knew was that Dai Bufan was in the same year as the senior sister, the most senior among all the disciples, and his cultivation was almost on par with the elders. He had already put the Grand Elder at ease with his handling of matters and had a high reputation among the disciples. He never expected to encounter another one like him now.
By the same token, this Senior Brother Ji's cultivation level wouldn't be too low either.
Big shots who are nowhere to be seen in any city or county outside the Ask Dao Sect can be seen everywhere.
"You want to see Master? Come on, Master should be instructing his students." Ji Hongwen floated out of the painting, and with a flick of his finger, another person appeared in the painting.
It was only then that Lu Yang noticed that there was not only Ji Hongwen in the painting, but also a stunningly beautiful woman.
The woman looked as if she had stepped out of a water town in Jiangnan. Her cheeks were flushed, and she was gentle and refined. Her smile was as beautiful as a flower, and her eyes were expressive. Her beauty was unparalleled, and her clothing was so daring and revealing that even a pure young boy like Lu Yang would blush.
"Haha, isn't it pretty? I drew this. Do you want me to draw one for you too? It can keep you company tonight." Ji Hongwen teased, but Lu Yang shook his head repeatedly.
He needs to protect his kidney essence.
A stunningly beautiful woman linked arms with Ji Hongwen, gazing at him with tender affection.
What Lu Yang didn't know was that there were more people who wanted to learn Ji Hongwen's technique than those who wanted to learn the Third Elder's "Six Heaven-Shaking Techniques".
Led by Ji Hongwen, Lu Yang arrived deep in the bamboo forest, where there was a private school. Inside the school were the Fourth Elder, who were teachers; the hopeless Man Gu; and passersby A, B, C, and D, who were listening attentively to the lesson.
The Fourth Elder is explaining the meaning of the ancient text, "... Looking southwest from the pool, the stream twists and turns like a snake, sometimes visible and sometimes hidden. Its banks are jagged and irregular, making its source unknown... Come on, Man Gu, you translate what 'its banks are jagged and irregular, making its source unknown' means?"
Man Gu lowered his head and thought seriously for a moment, then said with certainty, "There are two dogs fighting on the shore, I don't know why."
The Fourth Elder silently closed the ancient book, rolled up his sleeves, and took out a ruler.
Just as he was about to strike the Man Gu's hand, he remembered the sage's earnest teachings. "Teach without discrimination, and teach according to aptitude."
I saw Man Gu was studying; he's a good kid. This translation was probably an accident. I'll ask him a simple question, and if he answers correctly, I won't have to hit him. It'll be a way out.
What does the saying "Are kings and nobles born with a special destiny?" mean?
According to historical records, when the Great Yu Dynasty collapsed 100,000 years ago, the princes and nobles of the Great Yu Dynasty stood up, raised their banners, and reunified the world, restoring the rule of the Great Yu Dynasty.
People strongly believed in the concept of bloodline, thinking that the bloodline of the Dayu Dynasty was inherently noble, and the words of the princes and nobles won over many hearts.
However, the ancestors of the Xia Dynasty, who had been deeply poisoned by the nobility, knew how corrupt they were at their core. They were high above, indulging in pleasure, unaware of the suffering of the common people, and ignorant of the difficulties of cultivation. They were all nurtured by rare and precious heavenly materials and earthly treasures from childhood, causing their cultivation to soar, and they themselves were almost heavenly materials and earthly treasures. Even if such people could establish a new Great Yu Dynasty, it would quickly rot away.
The ancestors of the Xia Dynasty, as enlightened individuals, raised their arms and proclaimed, "Are kings, nobles, generals, and ministers born with a special destiny?" This famous saying has been passed down through the ages.
Even Man Gu, who came from a barbarian tribe, had heard this saying and was filled with admiration for the courage of the Xia Emperor's ancestor.
"What does this mean? Kings and generals, do you have any guts?"
The room erupted in laughter.
Without further hesitation, the Fourth Elder picked up a ruler and struck the back of the hand, causing Man Gu to grimace in pain.
Man Gu couldn't figure out what he had done wrong. The Xia Emperor's ancestor had dared to provoke the nobles in front of them; that took immense courage.
Isn't that what the sentence means?
Lu Yang stood at the door, silently listening to the lesson, and observed three seconds of silence for Man Gu.
Seeing this, Ji Hongwen shook his head and chuckled, "I don't know what Man Gu was thinking. As Ancient Barbarian Tribe, he didn't learn the Third Elder's unique skills, but instead became a disciple of our master. He's certainly had his share of beatings this past year."
"But I've noticed that he's been sharper than before since he came back from this mission. Do you know why?"
Lu Yang shook his head; how would he know?
"By the way, it seems like there's some kind of pattern to how the Fourth Elder slaps the back of the hand. Is it just my imagination?" Faced with Senior Brother Ji's suspicious gaze, Lu Yang quickly changed the subject.
Senior Brother Ji looked at Lu Yang with slight surprise. "You're not mistaken. This is actually a method to stimulate bloodlines, but it's extremely painful, and few people can endure it. Master is using this method to activate Man Gu Brother Mangu's Ancient Barbarian Tribe bloodline. By the way, don't tell Man Gu Brother Mangu about this."
Lu Yang nodded.
"You can go find Master after class."
After saying that, Senior Brother Ji took the beautiful woman's hand and left.
Class time always seemed to stretch on endlessly. Lu Yang listened from the doorway; the Fourth Elder spoke for a quarter of an hour, but it felt like several hours had passed.
Finally, after the Fourth Elder finished his lesson, he encountered Lu Yang, who loved to ask questions.
"You ask what kind of person Lao Jiu is—a scoundrel who does nothing but evil and is full of bad intentions?"
Lu Yang: "..."
Thank you, I think I now know what kind of person my master is.