Instant Literary Guts

Guan Yaoyuan and Yan Yue trembled. Their eyes turned bloodshot as countless pages and characters flickered within them, only to be crushed apart by an invisible force.

The two men gave muffled groans, blood streaming from their noses and ears as they immediately wilted.

Guan Yaoyuan was somewhat better off. He had not used poetry to insult Fang Yun and had merely been caught in the aftermath, but his Literary Palace had still cracked and would take decades to repair.

Yan Yue suffered the worst. Cracks covered his Literary Palace, and even the statue within it had split like a spiderweb. His needle-thin Literary Qi drifted like wisps of smoke in the wind, no longer capable of serving its purpose. He would never again be able to use War on Paper.

All the words he had learned had been torn apart. His gaze was vacant as he fell into temporary dementia. From now on, whenever he studied words, invisible forces would continually interfere with him. The higher Fang Yun's Literary Rank became, the stronger that interference would grow.

So long as Fang Yun did not die, Yan Yue would never recover into a normal Academy Student. He would not even be the equal of a Licentiate.

Academic Examiner Wan sneered. "Did you think that just because Fang Yun had no Literary Guts, he could do nothing about your insults? He is a Sage-front Tongsheng. Even without Literary Guts, as long as a work is Nation-Quelling and his resolve is firm, he can gain Instant Literary Guts! Still, I truly must thank you two fools on behalf of Jing Kingdom's students. You actually forced Fang Yun to produce a Nation-Quelling 'Courage-Refining Essay.' Its brush and ink wafted fragrance, its words shone with light. This essay even surpasses that 'Early Departure from Ji County.'"

"With one stroke, he wrote of three sages; with one essay, he can quell a nation. Worthy indeed of a Sage-front Tongsheng. Ordinary people could never match such grandeur," Tang Grand Manager praised. He was a merchant, but also a Provincial Graduate.

"This essay is profoundly reasonable. As the Master said: 'When a gentleman dwells there, what shabbiness can there be?' It is the finest counterattack against Yan Yue and the others. No wonder the words gained life."

"A mountain gains fame, water gains spirit. The magnificence of its opening is seldom seen in this world, but those are secondary. Though dwelling in a humble abode, his heart yearns toward all sages. That is something our generation falls far, far short of," Academic Examiner Wan said, sounding both ashamed and admiring.

"Every word in this essay bears Literary Guts. Some people overestimate themselves; they cannot blame Fang Yun."

Everyone savored it carefully, completely forgetting the two men whose Literary Palaces had been wounded by Instant Literary Guts.

Suddenly, another cracking sound rang out, startling everyone slightly.

The wooden table before Fang Yun collapsed with a crash. The Nation-Quelling essay page that had crushed the table slowly drifted down. Clearly as heavy as Mount Tai, yet now seemingly as light as a goose feather.

Academic Examiner Wan, standing nearby, was quick of eye and hand. Before the table collapsed, he picked up the inkstone, ink stick, and ink-dipped brush to prevent the ink from splattering.

Nunu immediately pounced over, wanting to catch the sheet from below and show off before Fang Yun. But the single sheet weighed a hundred jin, and tiny Nunu was instantly pinned beneath it.

"Ying ying! Nunu! Nunu!" The little fox looked at Fang Yun with tears in her voice, desperately begging for help. She had been frightened badly and could not understand how such a thin piece of paper could be so heavy.

Fang Yun hurriedly bent down and picked up the paper. It weighed several hundred jin in others' hands, but in the hands of its owner, it was light as air, no different from ordinary white paper.

The little fox immediately rolled lightly to her feet, circled the shattered table once, and showed no signs of injury. Then she angrily raised her head to glare at the page, narrowing her eyes in threat. She seemed to regard the paper as a little beast that had bullied her and was determined to take revenge.

Fang Yun chuckled. "This is a good thing. You are not allowed to damage it, understand?"

The little fox immediately lowered her head and nodded dejectedly, putting on an aggrieved expression as though she had been bullied and he still refused to help her. Then she ran behind Yang Yuhuan, stood upright as she hugged Yang Yuhuan's leg, poked out her head, and looked mournfully at Fang Yun.

Nunu made everyone laugh.

Fang Yun put away the original manuscript of the Inscription of the Humble Abode and said, "Let's go inside and talk."

Fang Yun, Tang Grand Manager, and Academic Examiner Wan entered the house together. The people who had come with Academic Examiner Wan to deliver the rewards also carried various gift chests into the courtyard one after another and opened them. There were silks and fabrics, gold and silver jewelry, and in one box lay a blood-red dried sea cucumber nearly two chi long. However, it had been sliced thin and arranged inside.

Nunu stared eagerly at the Dragon Palace Blood Ginseng, circling the box without pause. She was clearly craving it terribly, yet she never extended her paw. Finally, she gave a pained cry and ran back into the house, choosing out of sight, out of mind.

The Academy Students and Licentiates outside gradually left, but the Inscription of the Humble Abode was even more outstanding than Fang Yun's previous poetry and essays. They gathered at the mouth of the alley, recalling the scenes of the Nation-Quelling essay's completion, its fragrance spreading three li, one page shattering a table, and Literary Palaces cracking. They heatedly discussed the noble character contained within the Inscription of the Humble Abode.

Those friendly with Yan Yue and Guan Yaoyuan surrounded the two men, not knowing what to do.

"Yan Yue is truly pitiful. He is still dazed and foolish now. Why did he have to compose that crooked poem to curse Fang Yun? Even if Liu... ahem, could he not have used an indirect method?"

"From now on, I fear few will dare strike Fang Yun head-on. A mere Licentiate possesses Instant Literary Guts. He is simply a heaven-blessed genius."

"Yes, even I am a little afraid."

"Everyone, I am feeling unwell, so I shall take my leave first. I may need to take half a year off to recover. I will take the Provincial Examination for Provincial Graduate next year instead. I will not participate this year!" With that, the man turned and hurried away.

"Timid as a mouse! As long as the Left Prime Minister remains, what is there to fear?" Guan Yaoyuan said weakly.

Several people's gazes flickered.

When the Inscription of the Humble Abode was completed, Li Wenying, head of the Prefectural Academy, was earnestly annotating the Three Character Classic.

"Strange! The Three Character Classic is clearly simple and easy to understand, so why do I feel mentally exhausted after annotating merely a hundred characters each day, unable to write any further? Yet after waking, I am full of vigor, my Literary Guts become more refined, and even my Literary Palace seems strengthened. Could the Three Character Classic possess more Subtle Words, Profound Meaning than The Pillow Chronicle? Forget it. If I cannot understand it, I will not dwell on it. Fang Yun himself likely does not understand either. Once I finish the annotations, I will recommend this work to Sacred Way. With several Grand Academicians and a Great Scholar examining it, the secrets of this work will surely be unearthed."

Li Wenying continued writing stroke by stroke, moving extremely slowly, as though his brush weighed a thousand jin.

Suddenly, Li Wenying stopped writing. He reached out and grasped his Official Seal, then raised his head to look at the sky. Blue skies and white clouds flashed through his eyes, like an eagle soaring high above, taking in the entire prefectural city before finally seeing Fang Yun's location.

After examining it carefully, Li Wenying could not help crying out, "Good! With this essay refining my courage, my chance of becoming a Great Scholar may rise by ten percent!"

After speaking, Li Wenying closed his eyes and involuntarily recited the Inscription of the Humble Abode.

"A mountain need not be high..."

Li Wenying was clearly reciting normally, yet his voice grew louder and louder.

When he reached "with a dragon, it gains spirit," the entire Prefectural Academy could hear him.

When he reached "Ziyun Pavilion in Western Shu," his voice had already spread across half of Jiangzhou. It became even louder then, but most people could no longer hear it. Only those of Metropolitan Graduate rank or above could hear.

By the time he finished, Li Wenying's voice echoed through the skies above all Jiangzhou.

"Confucius said: What shabbiness can there be!"

Li Wenying's heart stirred. He reached out and gripped his Official Seal as his Literary Qi suddenly ran dry in an instant. It drew upon part of the Temple of Sages' power and transformed into a vast, invisible Vast Righteous Qi that silently swept across all Jiangzhou.

Outside Linjiang Town, a fish demon with a mouth full of blood carried a bone fork as it slowly headed toward the Yangtze River. Half of a man's dripping corpse hung from its bone fork.

The Vast Righteous Qi swept past. The fish demon seemed to have plunged into boiling water. Smoke rose from its entire body as it screamed and charged toward the Yangtze River. After only two steps, it collapsed headfirst onto the ground, its body slowly melting into pus and blood.

Outside Jade Sea City, a group of shrimp soldiers were dividing three human corpses between them when they suddenly screamed in agony. The flesh and blood beneath their translucent shrimp shells burst apart continuously until they all died.

Outside Wang Family Village near Demon Mountain, a giant golden wolf standing a zhang tall even on all fours had just finished eating a Licentiate when it suddenly raised its head to the sky. Then, as though startled, it turned into an afterimage and fled swiftly toward Demon Mountain.

However, all the Vast Righteous Qi in the sky suddenly converged there, eventually forming a massive brush ten zhang long made of intense white light that stabbed viciously into the giant wolf.

The rear half of the giant wolf's body was blasted to pieces. Smoke hissed from its wound, which healed for a moment only to be scorched again by the Vast Righteous Qi.

The Demon King wolf threw back its head and roared, cursed several times in demon language, then used its two forelegs to support half its body as it fled toward Demon Mountain, dragging a long trail of intestines behind it.

Li Wenying swayed and sat back in his chair. Muttering to himself, he said, "A Demon King from the Sky Wolf Clan actually infiltrated Jiangzhou in secret. What was it after? And what was this Fox God it mentioned? Hmph. Fortunately, the Inscription of the Humble Abode tempered my Literary Guts and kept my heart vigilant, or I would not have discovered this Demon King. This must be reported to the court and the Sacred Academy."

At a thought from Li Wenying, two sheets of paper rose into the air, and words appeared upon them out of thin air.

Writing by a Single Thought.

The two sheets shot toward the Message Hall with two whooshes and vanished.

Li Wenying's expression suddenly changed. "Oh no! The first copy of the Inscription of the Humble Abode!" With that, he took one step forward. A patch of pure white cloud, three chi across, appeared beneath his feet.

Walking the Blue Clouds.

The so-called blue clouds were not blue-colored clouds, but white clouds above the blue sky.

However, the blue clouds immediately vanished again.

"My Literary Qi has been exhausted!" Li Wenying continued, shouting, "Someone, prepare a carriage! Quickly! We cannot let anyone get there first."

While Li Wenying recited the Inscription of the Humble Abode, Prefect Sun had also seen Fang Yun through his Literary Treasure Official Seal.

Prefect Sun belonged to the Literary Prime Minister's faction. His aspirations lay in the Sacred Way rather than officialdom, so like Li Wenying, after seeing it, he silently recited it twice in full. Though some of his Literary Qi was expended, his spirit became even better.

Prefect Sun strode outside, angrily saying as he walked, "Good you, Fang Yun. Cai He told you to come see me, yet you refused to come. This is simply outrageous! I will personally ask why you look down on this official."

The Academy Student adviser beside him said, "My lord Prefect, there are still so many official documents left unprocessed in the residence. Why are you leaving? And your act of anger does not look convincing at all."

"Cut the nonsense. Have them prepare a carriage immediately. If I were not afraid Li Wenying would impeach me, I would certainly use a Swift Movement Battle Poem. Cai He obtained a copy of Early Departure from Ji County and, in just a few days, wrote me three short letters to flaunt it. I cannot swallow this outrage! The Inscription of the Humble Abode surpasses Early Departure from Ji County several times over. I am determined to obtain it. Move!"

The prefectural yamen lay in the west of the city, while the provincial yamen lay in the east.

Jiangzhou had a witty saying to describe the three foremost figures of its Literary Academy, civil officials, and military: the academy head judged, the general raged, and the governor was always pondering.

At that moment, Governor Ge, who looked like a little old man, was pacing back and forth in his room, mulling things over as he walked.

"That is a Nation-Quelling courage-refining poem and essay, and it is also the most unyielding inscription of resolve. It will benefit me immensely, perhaps even make up for the weakness in my temperament. Because the Left Prime Minister and Literary Prime Minister have remained deadlocked, the Empress Dowager promoted me to Governor of Jiangzhou. To this day, I am only a Metropolitan Graduate and have not entered the ranks of Hanlin Academicians. Being a third-rank governor is the utmost I can achieve."

"If I can obtain his first copy of the Inscription of the Humble Abode, I will very likely break through as a Metropolitan Graduate and become a Hanlin Academician. Even if I cannot become a prime minister, I may have the chance to become one of the Five Ministers of the Six Ministries, enter the Grand Secretariat, and serve as a councilor. By then, I will no longer need to fear offending the Left Prime Minister."

"But if I take the Inscription of the Humble Abode, I will be spreading Fang Yun's literary fame, inevitably making an enemy of the Left Prime Minister ahead of time. What should I do?"

As Governor Ge hesitated, carriage after carriage belonging to high-ranking officials of the prefectural city set out from every direction, racing toward the same destination.

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All you readers, you are far too ruthless!

Confucian Sage actually made it onto the homepage recommendation rankings and entered the top fifteen! That is the private domain of great gods! This is a new book!

Did you charge up there using War on Paper?

Please lend this book a hand. Give it some more recommendation votes and let it stand firm on the recommendation rankings!

Lao Huo offers his thanks!

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