The five Grand Academicians of the Xuanwu Army rose hastily into the sky on Walking the Blue Clouds. Only then could they clearly see Fang Yun's poem, written in Yan Style.
A river thirty thousand li long flowed east into the sea,
A peak five thousand fathoms high scraped the heavens.
The forsaken people's tears ran dry in the autumn wind,
They looked back for the royal host-another year gone by.
The five Grand Academicians understood. They had not expected the poem to be addressed to the Demon Barbarians of Demon-Grinding Mountain, but on reflection, it was fitting.
One Grand Academician said, "The first two lines describe the scenery. Though they fall somewhat short of the name 'Nation-Quelling,' they are still quite good. The last two lines far surpass the first two; they are truly fine verses. Most of the Demon Race in the Five Demon Mountains can be considered forsaken people of the Demon Realm. The Demon Race forbids them from returning there and forces them to oppose the human race. After all these years, the demons of the Five Demon Mountains have been hoping that the Demon Race's royal host would breach Two Worlds Mountain. Yet year after year, the Demon Sages have never come."
"'Their tears ran dry in the autumn wind' captures all the bitterness of the Five Demon Mountains. If this were written on a Sage Page, it would surely persuade many Demon Barbarians to abandon the Demon Realm and join our human race."
"Although we all know 'the royal host' refers to the sages of the Demon Race, it sounds more as though he is writing about the human race. Could it be..." Chai Zhi abruptly stopped, his expression visibly changing.
The other four Grand Academicians froze, then suddenly understood. Embarrassment immediately spread across