Yin-Yang Academic Debate

At the Spring Equinox, morning mist shrouded the sky, and a steady cold rain fell.

Though the wind wished to still, the trees would not cease. In Dongli Prefecture City, several unfamiliar faces seemed to have arrived.

A man traveled alone, leading a black steed.

He wore a bamboo hat and a straw rain cape, with an Embroidered Spring Saber at his waist.

He arrived at Dongli Immortal Market and found the largest inn there, called the Gold-Suppressing Inn.

"Four taels of beef and mutton, ten jin of strong plum wine."

He gently set the Embroidered Spring Saber from his waist onto the table and summoned a waiter, his voice ringing like thunder as he spoke steadily.

From the corner of his eye, the man glanced toward the table on his right.

A group of scholars sat there, no fewer than twenty in all. Every one of them wore white robes and carried sun-jade pendants at their waists.

Most of these scholars still looked young, save for several older students who appeared to be the teachers leading them. They had come from Pursuing Sun Academy in Dongyang Commandery.

At this moment, the Gold-Suppressing Inn was quiet. Every guest in the hall was listening intently to one man speak.

A wandering storyteller from who knew where stood in the center of the main hall, shouting himself hoarse, gesturing with both hands and feet as he spoke with fervor and emotion.

"One finger destroys Qi Exhalation, two fingers sever the Spirit Bridge, three fingers shatter the Mystic Treasury, four fingers seize the Primordial Spirit, five fingers cut through the mortal world, six fingers... Hehehe. If Nangong Wenqiu were to unleash it, it would be an immortal hand's killing move. Beneath the heavens, I alone am invincible!"

When he reached those final eight words, the storyteller grew so excited that he climbed directly onto the table. His voice rose high as he held two fingers aloft with his right hand, nearly shouting his throat raw.

"Is the Heavenly Capital Sect's Six Meridians Divine Tribulation really that formidable? Sounds like something blown out of proportion!" a Daoist said disdainfully.

"If Daoist Master does not believe it, just give it a try."

"How am I supposed to try it?"

"That Nangong Wenqiu is deep within the Ten-Thousand Mang Mountains. Go find her, Daoist Master!"

"Slay her, and tomorrow Daoist Master's name will ring across the world."

"Hahaha!" Everyone burst into laughter. The Daoist's face heated up; he flung his sleeve fiercely and fled in embarrassment.

That was Nangong Wenqiu, a grandmaster renowned throughout Great Yin. She was far beyond a level he could ever touch.

At that moment, among the party from Pursuing Sun Academy, a young scholar frowned and rose to his feet. Slowly, he said, "I do not think the Six Meridians Divine Tribulation is necessarily invincible."

"And you are?" The storyteller raised a brow.

"Jiang Qingshu of Pursuing Sun Academy." Jiang Qingshu cupped his hands.

"Oh?" Narrowing his eyes, the storyteller said, "So it is the younger clansman of Jiang Qingcheng, one of the Seven Wonders of the Imperial City, from the Jiang Clan Sword Mound. Then it is no surprise."

"So what if I am? My cousin's sword is the second fastest under heaven, while Nangong Wenqiu's Six Meridians Divine Tribulation is a divine art that requires gathering momentum. Before she can unleash it, my cousin's killing sword will already have arrived. He will surely break the deadlock in a single strike!" Jiang Qingshu declared sternly.

"Qingshu, sit down." A middle-aged teacher among the Pursuing Sun Academy group frowned.

"Hmph!" Jiang Qingshu snorted coldly, his gaze sharp.

The storyteller merely smiled at his words, unable to find anything to refute him with.

The rain of the Spring Equinox had come swiftly and gone swiftly.

Day gradually broke beyond the sky, and the gloom dispersed. The party from Pursuing Sun Academy immediately left the inn.

The man in the straw rain cape and bamboo hat, with an Embroidered Spring Saber at his waist, also rose and went outside.

Out in the wilderness, they headed east, apparently toward Shangyin Academy. After walking for a while, the leading middle-aged teacher stopped with his hands behind his back. Turning around, he called toward an empty patch of forest, "Sir, you have followed us all this way. What do you intend?"

At his words, every scholar was taken aback.

From deep within the lush forest, the middle-aged man with the Embroidered Spring Saber at his waist slowly emerged. His left hand rested on the saber's hilt, while his right slowly removed the bamboo hat from his head.

He was a weathered middle-aged man, his hair and beard streaked faintly with white. Smiling at the corners of his mouth, he said, "Master Yuan, I did not expect to encounter you here."

Master Yuan fixed his gaze on him, his pupils contracting as he said in surprise, "Lord Shen, why have you come to Dongli?"

Shen Congyun strolled over, his steps light and nimble, leaving no footprints upon the wet ground behind him. Smiling, he said, "Master Yuan, do not misunderstand. I was not following you. We simply happened to be traveling the same road. This time, I too am headed for Shangyin."

"I see." Master Yuan smiled and nodded. "But Lord Shen's lightness skill has grown ever more exquisite. You leave no trace even upon water. Had you not deliberately revealed a flaw, I fear that even at the foot of Plum Mountain, I would not have discovered you."

"Hahaha. In our line of work, aside from lightness skill, we have no divine arts worth showing off." Shen Congyun laughed and shook his head.

The students of Pursuing Sun Academy were all astonished by this man's sudden appearance.

Northern Pacification Office, Shen Congyun, an Imperial Brocade Guard from Dragon City, the imperial capital.

This lord had quite the reputation. He had solved many baffling and strange cases and often served beneath Emperor Jiaguang. What had brought him to Dongli? Could there be some great case here?

As for Master Yuan of Pursuing Sun Academy, he was known as Pursuing Sun's Third Master. Back when he had gone to Dragon City, the imperial capital, to sit for the metropolitan examinations, he had met Shen Congyun. The two had once solved a strange case together, and thus formed a friendship.

The group headed toward Plum Mountain, chatting idly along the way.

"What a coincidence. It is just in time for the Yin-Yang Academic Debate, where new scholars seek the Dao. Even a rough man like me may observe and learn something." Shen Congyun said with a smile.

Pursuing Sun and Shangyin were the two most renowned academies among the eighteen commanderies of Huanglong.

According to the research of several scholars of the Great Yin Dynasty, the doctrines of these two schools had likely been one and the same in the recent ancient era, both originating from the Yin-Yang Literary Academy. Of course, the founding masters of the two schools did not acknowledge this. It had even created a rift between them, and they often debated the Dao, determined to settle who stood higher and who lower.

This tradition had continued for centuries. Once, two great Confucian scholars had argued until their faces and ears turned red, then come to blows in the hall, destroying several hundred li of land around them.

Thus, the court of that time had stepped in, and afterward only allowed new scholars to debate the Dao.

This time, the site of the debate had been chosen as Plum Mountain. That was also the reason Pursuing Sun Academy had come to Dongli Commandery.

"Lord Shen jests. One need only listen to the words of new scholars seeking the Dao; they should not be taken seriously," Master Yuan said.

Shen Congyun fell silent. After several breaths, he said again, "How certain is Master Yuan this year? I heard that Master Xun personally took on a Fourteenth Master as his disciple—the adopted son of the Prince of Wuan, Xu Yan, a prodigy of the Script of Derivation."

"He is indeed the adopted son of the Prince of Wuan, and a talented scholar. But Shangyin will undoubtedly lose this year."

Master Yuan spoke with confidence, his gaze shifting toward a girl beside him. Though her features were still youthful, her brows carried a heroic air, and her eyes were sharp as swords.

Before long, they arrived at the foot of Plum Mountain.

Shangyin Academy had already sent someone to receive them before the mountain gate. It was the academy's Fifth Master, Qiu Yunji. Upon seeing the man in the straw rain cape among the party, her expression froze slightly.

Qiu Yunji glanced at Shen Congyun, her expression unchanged as she said, "Fellow Daoists, please follow me."

They had only just entered Plum Mountain Valley and reached the gates of the academy.

From the summit of Plum Mountain came peals of muffled thunder. Dark clouds blanketed the place, and high in the sky, ancient scripts of derivation seemed to appear and vanish faintly.

"This is?" Master Yuan asked, looking somewhat startled.

"The Master is seeking the Dao, deciphering an ancient Dao scripture of derivation. There is no need for alarm, everyone," Qiu Yunji hurriedly explained.

"What ancient script of derivation could invoke such a heavenly phenomenon?" Shen Congyun appeared greatly surprised. Stroking his chin, he stared directly toward the summit of Plum Mountain.

Everyone fell silent. Not to mention Shen Congyun—even this Third Master of Pursuing Sun Academy could not recognize those scripts of derivation. Master Yuan's brows drew tightly together as he focused his Dharma eye and looked on, attempting to decipher the scripts. Yet after only several breaths, his sea of consciousness felt as though it were about to split apart. Terrified, he hurriedly withdrew his gaze.