"Long ago, my younger brother Jiang Shu and I made a pact—he would be the Underworld Son of Heaven, and I the Son of Heaven of the living. The victor would claim the Six Directions; even the defeated would remain a sacred sovereign. Should we reach a stalemate, we would divide and rule The Present World."
"Later, the Underworld Son of Heaven unfortunately perished in the nether soil. I too have been ashamed before the world of the living, unable to set all things right. The player sat alone at the board; All-Under-Heaven was bleak and silent. Whenever remembrance came, I could not help but gaze into my solitude in dismay."
"Fortunately, Qi possesses a hidden dragon, soaring and leaping through the Ninth Heaven. It cooks and governs a great state, holds the balance of yin and yang. The sun rises in the east—its momentum cannot be stopped!"
"Now, at the time of the summer dragon's awakening, in these years of great contention, the configuration of the heavens has been settled. The Present World is due for a change."
"All-Under-Heaven has looked on expectantly for nearly four thousand years, long awaiting Chang'an, yet unable to attain it. How could one who presumptuously calls himself Son of Heaven and shepherd of the myriad people bear it in his heart?"
"I am willing to take Star Moon Plain as the boundary, marking the borders along Southern Xia, and divide the human realm in two with Great Qi. Perhaps this will become a sound strategy unprecedented since ancient times. Between us lie north, south, east, and west; each may rely on its own means."
"Thus, I shall not betray the old pact before, nor be ashamed before those who come after; I shall not sever the line of former sages above, nor abandon