[Archive Time, Thirty Years.]
Yu Ke directly chose to begin.
[This year, you were thirty, at the prime age of standing firm. In pursuit of the path of cultivation, you had resolutely hidden yourself within the Immortal Tomb on Mount Zhongnan, cutting yourself off from the troubles of the mortal world.] [On this very day, Lu Yu arrived at his secluded cultivation site, dusty from travel.] [He brought news, his expression mysterious. "Brother, an upheaval unseen in a thousand years has arrived."] [A flicker of confusion passed through your eyes, but it swiftly turned into a composed smile.] [Seeing that you remained as steady as ever, Lu Yu felt rather frustrated. Over the years, he had rarely seen you show any emotion.] [Greatly disappointed, Lu Yu finally began to explain.] [The heavens had changed!] [Spiritual energy had descended upon the world once more.] [Lu Yu took a yellowed ancient book from his robes, gently opened it, and pointed to the words upon its pages. "I happened upon this ancient text in some ruins."] [You gazed at the writing in the book: "The great cord binding the realm is severed, its ropes slackened; those of other surnames rise together, and heroes gather like crows. Human virtue is lost, and all under heaven pursue it together. Thus the spiritual tide recedes, and the Dharma-Ending Era begins."] [Lu Yu added, "Yet now, it seems that all this is quietly beginning to change."]
Yu Ke's gaze sharpened at this point.
Spiritual energy had descended upon the world once more.
The Dharma-Ending Era—could all this have changed because of him?
He did not know, but what changes could this transformation bring him?
Spiritual Energy Revival!
The world Yu Ke was currently in also possessed spiritual energy. If the two were the same...
Yu Ke's heart abruptly grew hot as he stared fixedly at the screen of light.
``` [At first, you remained skeptical.]
[This sounded like talk of ghosts and gods. Spiritual energy was no more than the ancients' conjecture about the unknown, or a trick used by predecessors to fool those who came after.]
["Human virtue is lost?" You sighed softly, finding such a claim utterly absurd.]
[How many rulers, instead of seeking to govern their lands and people, had pursued ghosts and gods, only to meet their downfall in the end?]
[They asked not after the common people, but after ghosts and gods. How laughable!]
[However!]
[When Lu Yu extended his palm, fist intent flowed within it. When he opened it again, a gentle, bright glow shone forth like candlelight.]
[The sight was strange beyond belief.]
[Lu Yu smiled at you. That faint light not only illuminated the tomb chamber, but seemed to stir something deep within your heart.]
[You murmured, "An upheaval unseen in a thousand years..."]
[Lu Yu nodded. "This is spiritual energy."]
["It is formless and intangible, yet it exists everywhere, containing the essence of heaven and earth."]
[Lu Yu directed the spiritual energy in his hand and lightly pointed. As the faint light flickered and pulsed, it struck a stubborn stone in the room.]
[The stone did not shatter, yet a deep hole had been left in it.]
[You were finally moved. This was no longer an ability possessed by ordinary men.]
[You tried to sense spiritual energy, but found only emptiness, gaining nothing.]
[Seeing this, Lu Yu demonstrated for you again. You tried several times, but still gained nothing.]
[You asked Lu Yu in confusion, "You'an, how did you sense the existence of this spiritual energy?"]
[Lu Yu's courtesy name was You'an. At the Taoist temple, they usually addressed each other as junior brothers; when no outsiders were present, they called him by his courtesy name.]
[Lu Yu rubbed his nose. After pondering for a moment, he said, "I can't really explain it. I just suddenly felt that heaven and earth had changed, as if something inside my body had been opened up in an instant."]
[Lu Yu demonstrated several more times, but you still gained nothing.]
[You sighed faintly. Perhaps this was talent. You knew Lu Yu was a true genius of the Dao.]
[You asked Lu Yu about his current martial realm. Lu Yu smiled. "Only above the Great Grandmaster Realm..."]
[You could not help but be stunned. Your younger brother's talent in martial arts was simply astonishing. He was truly the foremost figure of Mount Zhongnan; even your master, Liu Jinchan, was no match for him.]
[Liu Jinchan had sparred with him and lost, then spent several days in melancholy.]
[Liu Jinchan was also in the Grandmaster Realm.]
[Though Master and Grandmaster differed by only one word, they were as far apart as heaven and earth.]
[Great Grandmasters already stood at the pinnacle of the entire martial world of Great Qing. It was merely that Lu Yu disliked fame, so few knew of him.]
[As far as you knew, Great Qing's martial world had produced countless brilliant talents throughout history, with too many famous figures to count. Yet only four Great Grandmasters were publicly known, each a legend of the martial world.]
[Jiang Xiaoyue, who had built a hut on Duckweed-Ox Ridge, was hailed as the "Number One Palm Under Heaven." With his family's palm arts, he stood supreme beneath the heavens; none who studied fist techniques could escape his cage. He had inherited his family's learning from childhood, but his youthful recklessness provoked enemies in the martial world, and his household was destroyed. After enduring every hardship, he spent forty years apprenticing and learning the arts. At fifty, his fist techniques reached great completion, and he finally avenged his blood feud. Thereafter, he built a hut on Duckweed-Ox Ridge, cultivating single-mindedly and ignoring worldly affairs.]
[Chen Sanzhong, the Nine-Thousand-Year-Old of the capital and Ma Bao's master, was a eunuch who served closely at the side of the current Empress Dowager despite already being ninety years old. He went against the current and blazed his own trail, entering the Great Grandmaster Realm at ninety through a peerlessly fierce and domineering path despite his incomplete body.]
[Foolish Monk of Numinous Rhinoceros Temple had once been a celebrated third-place scholar in his youth. Yet the woman he loved married another, and with his heart turned to ashes, he entered Numinous Rhinoceros Temple and became a monk.]
[There had been few rumors of him in the martial world, until twenty-four years ago, when he traveled north in an attempt to rescue Emperor Huizong of Qing, only to fail. After battling the Great Grandmaster North Wind, he emerged without a scratch. He then defeated seven Masters in succession without taking a single life. Only then did his name resound throughout the martial world, and he was recognized as having reached the Great Grandmaster Realm. He was now over seventy, yet not one life had perished at his hands, showing how deeply he embraced compassion.]
[Huang Dao, the Demon Master of the Among Flowers Sect, was a once-in-an-age genius of the Devil Dao. He had integrated the supreme arts of the Yin Sunflower Sect, Immortal Gate, and other Demon Sect factions, entering the Great Grandmaster Realm at only thirty-five.]
[Later, after studying the Demon Sect's supreme scripture, the Heavenly Demon Strategy, this giant of the Devil Dao vanished without a trace, his whereabouts unknown.]
[You could not help asking, "What realm lies beyond the Grandmaster Realm?"]
[Lu Yu said, "The ancient texts record the Innate Gate—the Innate Realm."]
[The Innate Realm was lofty beyond reach!]
[Now thirty years old, you had only just entered the ranks of second-rate experts. To you, the "Innate Realm" remained like the bright moon on the edge of heaven, impossibly distant.]
[Thus, you and Lu Yu spoke at length about the path of cultivation. He held nothing back, pouring everything out to teach you.]
[After this guidance, you finally understood:]
[If one lacked talent for the Dao, then so long as one cultivated steadily and kept both feet on the ground, reaching the Great Grandmaster Realm might perhaps allow one to sense the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.]
[You knew well that diligence could make up for clumsiness. Even a cup of water poured against a cartload of firewood could eventually gather into rivers and seas.]
[You regained a heart as still as water. You cultivated without pause each day, not daring to slacken in the slightest, wholly focused and single-minded.]
[On the morning of the fourth day, your master Liu Jinchan arrived together with Lu Yu, bringing news—the Eighth Prince of Great Qing wished to see you.]
[You wished only to cultivate and comprehend the Innate Realm, so you declined the meeting.]
[Seeing this, Liu Jinchan gently advised, "Shenzhou, do you know that Prince Jing's power is now as blazing as the sun at noon? The Crown Prince has lost favor, the Eastern Palace has been abolished, and Prince Jing is one of those closest to the imperial dragon throne. How many heroes dream of pledging themselves to him, only to find no path to do so? We are merely meeting him once, are we not?"]
[Yet Liu Jinchan still held unspoken thoughts in his heart. If they could form ties with this prince, then the Three Truths One Sect might perhaps take another step forward.]
[At that moment, Lu Yu stood to one side and smiled faintly. "Brother, you will definitely meet him."]
[Liu Jinchan paused slightly, a thread of curiosity rising in his heart.]
[Back then, the Second Prince's power had been no less than the Eighth Prince's, yet Lu Chen had still refused him.]
[Lu Yu said, "The visitor this time is not the Eighth Prince alone. Our uncle is coming with him. In the past, he escorted Mother south. To ensure her safety, he entered the Eighth Prince's service. This time, he has even brought a handwritten letter from Mother."]
[When Mother moved the entire family south, the Lu Clan had not yet risen to prominence. Having just arrived in Kyoto, they faced countless hardships in life, and it was thanks to Uncle's care that they managed.]
[Yet as time passed and circumstances changed, no one in Kyoto now dared treat the Lu Clan lightly.]
[Father had not moved away from Kyoto for the sake of you brothers and the Lu Family Army, so that you could have free skies and earth, free from suspicion.]
[Hearing this, a sigh rose in your heart. Your uncle's affection for your Lineage ran as deep as the sea. With such weighty sentiment between you, you could not betray it.]
[It seemed this meeting with the Eighth Prince was something you truly could not avoid.]
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