Although Xu Qingxiao was no true scholar, he had at least completed nine years of compulsory education.
Could the verse the handsome man had recited even be called poetry?
But what could he do? The man had lost his memories. Composing a poem in fifteen minutes was already no easy feat.
Xu Qingxiao understood.
But he would rather die than engrave that poem into his own body.
"Senior, after thinking it over, I'd rather compose a poem myself. Your standing is simply too lofty, and I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to bear its weight."
Xu Qingxiao found a tactful excuse and offered it.
"That's true. I overlooked that."
The handsome man failed to recognize it as an excuse. Instead, he nodded.
"Go ahead and engrave it, then. I'll watch over you from the side."
The handsome man nodded, letting Xu Qingxiao begin.
"Uh, Senior, how do I engrave it?"
Xu Qingxiao wanted to engrave it, too. He just had no idea how.
"Jump into the pool, channel your literary qi, turn your spirit into a brush, and visualize the words of the poem."
"But there are two things you must remember. Whether it's poetry or prose, once you begin engraving, you must carry it through in one unbroken flow."
"You cannot falter, or the engraving will fail. At the tenth rank, you only have three chances. Once you use them up, you'll have to wait until next time."
"And since you've only just entered the ranks, your literary qi is insufficient. It's best not to engrave prose or anything of that sort. Stick to poetry."
"Understand?"
The handsome man spoke earnestly, urging Xu Qingxiao to take special care.
"Thank you for your guidance, Senior."
Xu Qingxiao nodded, his mind already searching through poems and essays.
One fortunate thing was that Xu Qingxiao had been a humanities student in his previous life. He had also been especially interested in ancient Chinese poetry and prose, so he had read extensively and memorized quite a bit.
The five hundred Tang and Song poems went without saying.
He also knew a little about essays, rhapsodies, and prefaces.
But given his limited literary qi, he could only engrave poetry.
What should I choose for my first poem?
Xu Qingxiao pondered seriously.
Some time passed.
Suddenly, inspiration flashed through Xu Qingxiao's mind, and he thought of a poem.
At once, he recited it over and over in his head. After all, he had to complete it in a single breath. Wouldn't a mistake be troublesome?
The full poem is long. I don't need to engrave the entire first half. Just selected passages will do.
Xu Qingxiao looked at the literary qi in the pool. After weighing his options, he decided to omit the opening portion and keep only the essence.
Then, with almost no hesitation, he acted.
Xu Qingxiao jumped into the pool.
The pool was not particularly large. It barely had enough room for him to sit cross-legged; he could not even stretch out.
As he entered the pool, a change began.
At that moment, all the literary qi surged toward him.
Xu Qingxiao closed his eyes and turned his spirit into a brush.
Literary qi gathered, forming a writing brush that appeared above his head.
"Between heaven and earth dwells righteous qi."
"In myriad forms, it flows through all things."
"Below, it becomes rivers and mountains."
"Above, it becomes the sun and stars."
At that moment, a grand voice resounded in Xu Qingxiao's mind.
This was the Song of Righteousness.
A poem enduring through the ages.
It embodied the ancient poet Wen Tianxiang's understanding of righteous Haoran qi.
Xu Qingxiao had spent a long time considering what to engrave as his first work. After turning it over in his mind, he had finally settled on this poem.
The Song of Righteousness.
Doesn't the Confucian Dao cultivate righteous Haoran qi?
The Song of Righteousness is the perfect match for righteous Haoran qi.
As the saying went, seek not the best, but the best fit.
In theory, the Song of Righteousness should have suited him quite well.
What Xu Qingxiao did not know, however, was that the Song of Righteousness was far more than merely suitable.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
As the Literary Brush suspended above Xu Qingxiao's head descended and moved behind him to engrave the words, the entire Literary Palace began to tremble.
Blazing beams of light intertwined within the Literary Palace.
Like chains of order, they wove together ceaselessly, giving birth to myriad Daos.
"Peerless verse?"
"This young man is extraordinary."
"And judging by it, this poem is well suited to someone who has just entered the ranks. It can lay a solid foundation."
"No wonder he didn't want my poem. He came prepared."
"Indeed, this poem is a little better than mine."
The handsome man recognized what it was almost instantly. He had lost his memories, but some things he knew by instinct.
Seeing Xu Qingxiao produce peerless verse, he could not help looking stunned, even comparing it with the poem he had composed.
Within the Literary Pool.
The poem Xu Qingxiao was engraving was the Song of Righteousness.
This was peerless verse. Engraving it into his body would bring immense benefits.
As ancient characters appeared one after another and branded themselves onto Xu Qingxiao's back, they carried literary qi, as well as Dao and principle.
"The sages grow more distant day by day."
"Their noble examples remain in ages past."
"Beneath wind-swept eaves, I open a book and read."
"The ancient Way shines upon my face."
The complete Song of Righteousness contained over three hundred characters. All the literary qi in the pool was exhausted, the amount proving just sufficient.
And as the engraving of the poem was completed, a change occurred.
In an instant, the Literary Palace fell still.
But the Literary Pool where Xu Qingxiao sat cross-legged continued to expand.
Six feet.
Ten feet.
Thirty feet.
Sixty feet.
Ninety feet.
One hundred and twenty feet.
One hundred and eighty feet.
Two hundred and forty feet.
Three hundred and sixty feet.
Only after expanding to a full three hundred and sixty feet did the Literary Pool finally stop.
Yet an even greater transformation followed.
Wisps of purple righteous Haoran qi poured into the pool.
Purple was the supreme hue. This was righteous Haoran qi of the highest quality, and every wisp surpassed the entire pool of righteous Haoran qi Xu Qingxiao had possessed before.
"This is impossible! Purple righteous Haoran qi!"
"Nothing like this has ever appeared, past or present."
The handsome man could no longer maintain his composure.
Some memories were imprinted in the soul. He instantly understood just how terrifying this purple righteous Haoran qi was.
"A Literary Pool spanning thirty-six ten-foot lengths, matching the number of the Heavenly Gang. He has the makings of a Confucian Sage."
"Someone who possesses a Literary Palace truly is extraordinary."
The handsome man murmured to himself.
The Literary Pool within this Literary Palace belonged to Xu Qingxiao, and it was precisely because of this pool that the handsome man had been able to awaken.
An ordinary Confucian scholar who had just entered the tenth rank possessed a Literary Pool three feet across. Xu Qingxiao's had been three feet before, too.
But now Xu Qingxiao's Literary Pool spanned a full three hundred and sixty feet. It was not merely large; its thirty-six ten-foot lengths also corresponded to the thirty-six of the Heavenly Gang.
This was a sign, indicating a strong possibility that he could reach the realm of the Confucian Sage in the future.
It could even give birth to a Confucian Dao divine ability.
Just then, the handsome man suddenly remembered something and immediately spoke.
"Once a Literary Pool exceeds a hundred feet, it can condense a Literary Artifact."
"Brother Xu, quickly visualize an object! You can forge your own Confucian Literary Artifact. It will be immensely useful."
Remembering this matter, the handsome man immediately called out to remind Xu Qingxiao, afraid he would miss the opportunity.
As his voice rang out, Xu Qingxiao reacted.
Xu Qingxiao was instantly bewildered.
What?
Visualize an object?
What object am I supposed to visualize?
Couldn't you have told me sooner?
How am I supposed to think of something now?
Xu Qingxiao felt rather lost.
How was he supposed to know what to visualize?
"Don't let your mind wander! Hurry, you cannot delay. If you miss this qi-gathering phase, you'll have to wait until next time."
"A brush, ink, paper, or an inkstone will all do. As long as it's connected to the Confucian Dao, visualize whatever you like."
The handsome man's voice rang out.
He urged Xu Qingxiao to think of something quickly. There was no time to waste; any delay would mean losing an opportunity.
"A brush, ink, paper, or an inkstone."
With his eyes closed, Xu Qingxiao immediately pictured a writing brush, its entire body emerald green.
But suddenly, inspiration flashed through his mind.
At once, the sun, moon, stars, mountains, rivers, plants, and trees appeared upon the emerald-green brush.
Who's the best at character customization?
Character customization was Xu Qingxiao's greatest specialty. He was customizing a brush now, but it was more or less the same idea.
The brush was twenty-four centimeters long and four centimeters wide, crafted entirely from emerald-green jade. It bore the sun, moon, and stars, along with mountains, rivers, plants, and trees. A phoenix coiled around its head, and a dragon adorned its tip.
You had to admit, adding a dragon and phoenix was a little tacky, but it looked undeniably cool.
I've already added a dragon and phoenix. A little radiant light wouldn't be excessive, right?
Wait!
Let's add some poetry, too.
Xu Qingxiao immediately grew excited and tried engraving some verse to see what would happen.
What verse should I engrave?
The brush is only so long. I can't write too much, or it won't look good.
A line or two will do.
At this thought, another flash of inspiration struck Xu Qingxiao.
I'm really full of inspiration today.
[As heaven moves with vigor, the noble man strives unceasingly to strengthen himself.]
That was right. This very line, the opening words of the Book of Changes.
It also suited the Confucian Dao.
As the words were branded onto the Literary Brush, streams of Haoran qi gathered.
In an instant, the Literary Palace trembled once more.
Within the Literary Palace.
The handsome man once again wore a look of disbelief.
"A Sage Artifact!"
"Good heavens, is this fellow a reincarnated Literary Sage?"
The handsome man truly did not know what to say.
He stood there, looking somewhat contemplative, but unfortunately, no other memories came to him.
His sense of how extraordinary this was still came from instinct alone.
At last, an emerald-green Literary Brush appeared before Xu Qingxiao.
And Xu Qingxiao slowly awakened, opening his eyes.
But in the next instant, Xu Qingxiao frowned.
"Who swapped out my Literary Artifact?"
Looking at the Literary Brush that had landed before him, Xu Qingxiao grew upset.
This Literary Brush was nothing like the one he had imagined.
Where were the dragon and phoenix?
Where were the sun, moon, and stars?
Even without the sun, moon, and stars, where were my mountains, rivers, plants, and trees?
Even if all of those were missing, how had the words I wrote vanished too?
Frowning, Xu Qingxiao sat in the Literary Pool and pondered.
Just then, the handsome man's voice rang out.
"This is your newborn Literary Artifact. It differs from what you visualized. You must keep advancing your Confucian Dao rank before your Literary Artifact will change along with it."
As the man's voice rang out,
Xu Qingxiao finally understood.
"Brother Xu, don't move just yet. Sense the Righteous Haoran Qi within your body. A Literary Pool of thirty-six zhang accords with the number of the Heavenly Gang. It may give rise to an innate Divine Ability of the Confucian Dao. Give it a try."
The handsome man spoke.
Xu Qingxiao stopped joking around and immediately sensed the Righteous Haoran Qi within his body.
Sure enough.
The Righteous Haoran Qi within him had formed an ancient character.
[Speech]
The corresponding information appeared as well.
After a moment, Xu Qingxiao understood what this innate Divine Ability was.
The character "Speech" referred to spoken words.
His words, imbued with Righteous Haoran Qi, would have wondrous effects.
As for precisely what those effects were, he did not know.
He would have to explore them slowly in the future.
With a wave of his hand, the emerald-green Literary Brush turned into Righteous Haoran Qi and vanished.
Looking at the Literary Pool, thirty-six zhang across and roughly two zhang high, Xu Qingxiao climbed out with some difficulty.
"Thank you, Senior."
After climbing out, Xu Qingxiao respectfully bowed to the handsome man.
This time, however, the man waved a hand and said,
"Brother Xu, even a poem you compose offhand is a peerless masterpiece. Your Literary Pool spans thirty-six zhang, and you can even condense a Sage Artifact Embryo. I fear your origins must be extraordinary as well."
"Let us address each other as peers. Please don't insist otherwise, or I truly cannot bear it."
The handsome man no longer presumed to be his senior. Before, when Xu Qingxiao kept calling him "Senior," he had had little to say about it. But after seeing such terrifying talent, what if Xu Qingxiao really was a reincarnated Great Sage?
How could he possibly bear that?
So being peers was no loss. In fact, he might even come out a little ahead.
"Well..."
Xu Qingxiao still felt it was somewhat inappropriate.
"Please don't insist."
"Brother Xu, your Literary Pool spans thirty-six zhang, giving you an exceptionally solid foundation. From now on, you will encounter no bottlenecks in the Confucian Dao, and advancing in rank will not be difficult. Read widely, then work to truly understand what you read."
"The more Literary Qi you condense, the faster you will advance."
"The Confucian Dao is unlike the Martial Dao and Immortal Dao, where advancing too quickly risks an unstable foundation. So don't hold yourself back, Brother Xu. Advance whenever you can. Perhaps once your Confucian Dao rank is high enough, you can completely suppress the Demonic Thought."
The handsome man's words delighted Xu Qingxiao.
"I understand, Senior."
Xu Qingxiao cupped his hands in thanks.
"I already told you, there's no need to call me Senior anymore..."
The man sounded somewhat helpless.
But Xu Qingxiao had already left the hall.
"Senior, until I've learned your identity, I'll keep calling you that. We can each address the other as we please."
"Oh, and Senior, if you think of anything, or if you need something, just call me. I'll come right away."
Xu Qingxiao's voice gradually faded.
The next instant.
When he opened his eyes again,
it was already light outside the window.
The room was utterly quiet.
It was not particularly late. Xu Qingxiao's first thought was to go to Zhou Ling's house to read, so he planned to wash up.
But just then,
something in the basin caught Xu Qingxiao's attention.
[County An Ping]
No, that was wrong.
It was [Ping'an County].
Before you continue