The Desolate Ancient Hall, a Thousand Years Gone

With a flash of light, Qiu Yan felt the soil beneath his feet churning, realizing that Chen Yun had used a teleportation technique. If he were to activate his Heart Fire and interfere with the Spiritual Qi at this moment, he could immediately disrupt the operation of this Method Formula from within.

"Chen Yun's cultivation level is not low. He can cast spells with his physical body. He is at least Divine Soul cultivator, comparable to a god."

Qiu Yan did not react to this, allowing the force to move him, while simultaneously using his senses to perceive the changes in the surrounding Spiritual Qi.

This change is extremely complex, and even ordinary cultivators would find it difficult to discern anything from it. However, Qiu Yan's Divine Spirit Body can analyze it using Incense Faith. After spending some time, he can determine the movement route through the changes in Spiritual Qi.

"Judging from the flow of Spiritual Qi and the increasing density of the surrounding aura, we can roughly determine that this teleportation Method Formula is not for traveling on flat ground, but rather for moving everyone underground. It seems that the destination is somewhere underground."

These thoughts flashed through Qiu Yan's mind, and then the scene before him changed—

The woods were gone, replaced by a dilapidated shrine. The shrine was dimly lit, but there was still a faint light that allowed people to make out objects; the light source was a few candlesticks on the altar.

This relocation didn't take long; it only took Qiu Yan a moment to think about it.

The candlestick held a candle, and the flame flickered.

Qiu Yan gathered his senses and looked around the ancestral hall in front of him.

The ancestral hall looks quite large, but more than half of it has collapsed. The ground is covered with huge rubble and layers of soil, and the thick layer of dust on top indicates that it is quite old.

While Qiu Yan was observing his surroundings, Daoist Lu and Tao Ying were also looking around, completely unconcerned about Chen Yun's methods.

As for Daoist Lu, he was no stranger to teleportation Dao Arts, but Tao Ying seemed unfazed. However, this official, who held the position of county magistrate, did not look too well; his face was sallow, and his steps were somewhat unsteady.

Qiu Yan glanced at it and knew that this was a side effect of high-speed movement, similar to motion sickness he had seen in his previous life.

"Tao Ying is disoriented due to the teleportation; it seems he has never practiced cultivation."

Qiu Yan already had a general idea of this. When he observed Tao Ying in the Lin Zhong earlier, he noticed that the man was physically weak. Although he had the air of an official, his Qi and Blood and energy were not strong. Even though he looked quite energetic, it was only due to his pampered lifestyle.

Noticing Qiu Yan's gaze, Tao Ying snorted coldly and turned her head away.

Qiu Yan's words in the Lin Zhong just now left Tao Ying with no face at all, directly exposing his and Chen Jing's plans and rebuking Tao Ying without any concealment. This was a minor offense to an official of rank, and would certainly cause him resentment.

Chen Jing noticed the tense atmosphere between the two and smiled slightly. He greeted them, "Brother Qiu, Brother Tao, Lu Dao, please come over. Let's meet the Sage first, and then we can explain the details of what happened next."

Hearing this, Qiu Yan withdrew his gaze and looked in the direction of the voice. He saw Chen Jing and Chen Yun standing in front of the altar not far away. Behind them, on the platform, stood a clay sculpture. The lower half of the sculpture was illuminated by the light, but the upper half was hidden in darkness. Even Qiu Yan's eyes could not see its appearance clearly, as if it was shrouded in a layer of mist.

However, upon closer inspection, he could clearly sense a simple and profound artistic conception emanating from the sculpture. Although this artistic conception was faint, it gave Qiu Yan a feeling of unyielding Hard to Sever, lingering around the clay sculpture.

"This ancestral hall should be Sage Worthies Hall, but judging from its appearance, it has been abandoned for a long time. How can the Sage Spirit still remain on these clay sculptures? Since no one worships, makes offerings, or presents scholarly articles, the Sage Spirit on the clay sculptures should have long since dissipated."

Reaching the altar, Qiu Yan looked up and finally saw the clay sculpture clearly. It was an old man dressed in coarse linen clothes. Although the clay sculpture was rough and the face was blurry, he could still catch a sense of peace between the sculpture's eyebrows, which faintly revealed a humanistic spirit. Upon closer inspection, he realized that it was different from the Literary Qi of Confucianism.

"This clay sculpture—whose Sage does it represent, and what doctrine does it represent...?"

One question after another arose in Qiu Yan's mind.

Based on Ji Zheng's words and the information collected and organized by Qiu Yan, he had come to understand the function of the clay Sage Statue and knew that they were a manifestation of the Heavenly Order.

The Heavenly Order originates from doctrines and teachings that are truly popular throughout the world; otherwise, it is difficult to form a spirit. Even if a certain doctrine was once manifest in the world and had many disciples, if its doctrines failed to penetrate people's hearts, it would still be difficult to build the Heavenly Order. Even if it left behind writings, it would be unable to mobilize the Force of Order.

Correspondingly, if clay sculptures that can inherit the Order Spirit cannot gather Literary Qi and are not enshrined in academies, over time, the spirit within them will gradually dissipate, eventually reverting to ordinary clay and losing their magic.

This decline and its eventual disappearance will not take long.

The clay sculpture that appeared before Qiu Yan was clearly quite old, and judging from the surrounding environment, it was even less likely that anyone would have worshipped it with Literary Thought inspiration.

"How many years has the spirit of resilience embodied in this clay sculpture endured?"

Just as Qiu Yan was wondering, Chen Jing spoke up, "Everyone, I think you have all seen this clay sculpture, and you should have also noticed the spirit surrounding it. That's right, this clay sculpture is a Sage Worthies Clay Statues! It embodies a Heavenly Order and a principle of Human Path!"

As soon as he spoke, Qiu Yan, Tao Ying, and Daoist Lu all turned their attention to him and focused their gazes on him.

Chen Jing nodded slightly upon seeing this, then pointed around. "We are located directly below the Eastern Capital, in a Sage Worthies Hall that has been buried by mud."

Upon hearing this, Tao Ying opened his mouth to speak, but Chen Jing waved his hand to stop him. "Brother Tao, don't be in such a hurry to ask. This place was not discovered by my Chen Household, but the discoverer has some connections with my Chen Household. My father spent a considerable amount of money to buy the information and then sealed it off."

Upon hearing the word "blockade," Qiu Yan felt a slight unease, sensing a hint of bloodshed within it.

"According to the discoverer, he stumbled upon this place more than twenty years ago and discovered this strange Sage Worthies Hall. After receiving the news, my Chen Household sent many people to investigate, record the things and environment here, compare them with ancient books, and finally came to a conclusion..."

At this point, the Chen Household's expression turned solemn, and he said, word by word, "This Sage Worthies Hall has been abandoned for at least a thousand years!"

"What!?"

A gasp escaped Tao Ying's lips, his face filled with shock. He muttered to himself, "A thousand years?" After saying those four words, he looked around, his gaze sweeping across the surroundings. "A thousand years of history here? A thousand years, sunk underground, no one could offer Literary Thought. How could clay sculptures still retain their spirit after a thousand years?"

Clearly, Tao Ying also had some understanding of clay sculptures of Sage.

Not only him, but the Daoist Lu also showed surprise, though not as obviously as Tao Ying.

Even Qiu Yan's expression shifted slightly, and he became even more curious about the Sage Worthies Clay Statues.

"I understand your surprise."

Chen Jing said at the opportune moment, "When I first heard about this, I was also shocked for a long time and found it hard to understand. However, I had no way of knowing the reason. My Chen Household is quite powerful and can mobilize a lot of forces. Although we are limited by secrecy and cannot ask the enshrined officials of the Five Army Commandery to help, we have sent many of our Lineage elites here to investigate and find out the root cause. Unfortunately, we have not found any clues. Moreover, we dare not disrespect the Sage, so we have not been able to gain anything."

He turned and glanced at the statue behind him. "Eastern Capital has been a city for over a thousand years, and it has experienced wars and natural disasters. The old city was destroyed and rebuilt several times. The place where we are now is once a site of Eastern Capital. Due to the changes in the landscape, it was buried here and has long been forgotten. However, we can infer that this place was once an academy."

After a moment of reflection, Chen Jing, knowing he had said enough, finally got to the point. "However, although the reason is unclear, this statue allows us to find solace in the spirit of the Scholar Forest!"

He winked at Chen Yun, who understood and stepped forward, taking two boxes from his sleeve and handing them to Chen Jing.

Chen Jing received the boxes and opened one of them first.

A faint glow emanated from the box, inside which lay a roll of pristine, flawless paper, radiating pure spiritual energy—a blank canvas.

Sensing this fluctuation, Qiu Yan immediately recognized that it was another Sage Paper.

Reaching out and grasping the paper, Chen Jing looked at Qiu Yan and said, "With this Sage Paper, as long as Brother Qiu writes an essay on it, expounding the way of self-discovery and shaking the world, then the Gate of Scholar Forest can be opened ahead of schedule!"

He took a deep breath and raised his voice. "In this Eastern Capital, besides a few academies, the only place that enshrines Sage Worthies Clay Statues is the Hall of Illuminating Ethics in the Imperial City. However, neither the academies nor the Minglun Hall in the Imperial City are easily open or accessible. During the Apricot Altar Dao Discourse, academies from all over the country jointly worship the Sage, with thousands of people arriving. There will be countless variables. But if we can enter the forest in advance, we can make arrangements at our leisure, gain the upper hand, and finally use the Apricot Altar Dao Discourse an opportunity to return, reducing the danger."

Having said that, Chen Jing opened another box and took out four jade bracelets. Each bracelet exuded a continuous artistic conception, like flowing water, and the bracelet body was even more shimmering, as if the flowing water had condensed. It was clear at a glance that they were not ordinary items.

"The Soul Entry into the Scholar Forest the Lin Zhong, which is one thing, but the physical body remains in the Mortal Realm, hiding danger. Those who enter the forest from the academy and the Imperial City naturally do not need to worry about the safety of their physical bodies, but we cannot do so. However, I, Chen, have made preparations in advance. These four Linked-Water Bracelet, one for each person, are linked together and protected by each other. In addition, my cousin Chen Yun did not come to go with us, but left behind as a protector to ensure our safety."

Chen Jing's gaze shifted, "Is Brother Qiu satisfied with this arrangement? I wonder if you can make a decision?"

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone's eyes shifted and focused on Qiu Yan. He immediately narrowed his eyes, weighing the pros and cons.

ps:

Thank you to "Justice Pest" and "Crescent Moon" for the generous donations!

Thank you "Twenty Moons" for the tip and review!

I'll probably update again tomorrow evening.