The Confucian Dao had developed in Great Qian for many years, and plausible-sounding theories had long existed, but most were scattered among the various schools and had never been unified.
Some of their ideas were stale and antiquated, incompatible with the present age, and had long since been discarded.
But history did not advance in a straight, unstoppable line. It ascended in a spiral, twisting and turning, sometimes even retreating.
Some old relics long abandoned by the ancients might still be revered as sacred standards in modern times, mistaken for truth. Bring that same set of ideas out again, scrub it clean, and let it dry beneath the sun, and it would naturally seem fresh and intriguing.
Yue Dongyang and Lu Yuan listened, utterly enthralled. They felt that Grand Preceptor Hu truly deserved his reputation as a Grand Confucian among demons: every word was a pearl, every sentence a truth. It was simply exquisite beyond description.
And something even more exquisite lay ahead.
Hu Ze asked them, "Do you two know of Heavenly Principle?"
Yue Dongyang and Lu Yuan pondered briefly. "Do you mean the principles of the Heavenly Dao?"
"Indeed," Hu Ze said. "It is an abbreviated name for the principles governing all things in Heaven and Earth. As the saying goes, the original heart is one's nature, and nature is principle. Just as you mentioned earlier regarding inner cultivation, this is the study of inward sagehood."
"It resides within each individual. By consciously undertaking the work of sages and worthies, perfecting virtue and character, one may find a swift path!"
"Mastering this Neo-Confucianism should be beneficial to attaining sagehood!"
Yue Dongyang and Lu Yuan felt as though lightning had struck them, shaken beyond words. "Might we ask, Grand Preceptor, which school or tradition does this doctrine belong to?