Li Junzi looked at the faintly glowing Broken Pen, drew a soft breath, and reached out to grasp it.
The instant it touched her hand, a dense wave of scholarly energy rippled outward, and Li Junzi felt an exceptionally pure stream of scholarly energy pour into her body.
For a moment, she seemed to see an old man with a somewhat pained expression. His clothes were slightly faded, but worn with particular neatness. The only things that looked a little dirty were the battered wine gourd tucked at his waist and the writing brush in his hand, its bristles nearly all gone. His head was lowered over a set of bamboo slips as he gently wrote something.
The old man suddenly stopped and turned his gaze toward Li Junzi.
Their eyes met, as though spanning a thousand years.
A hint of a smile appeared on the old man's face. He nodded gently, then turned back to his writing.
Li Junzi looked astonished, but then smiled as well, returning a gentle nod.
The so-called Second Sage looked rather like an ordinary old man.
Yet this old man had managed to kindle a new flame of civilization all by himself. Even if she could not forge a new path, she ought to be able to pave the road a little farther.
After all, wasn't this old man encouraging her?
Chen Wenqian could not see what Li Junzi saw, but he could sense the weight and depth of that pure scholarly energy.
Was this the splendor of the Second Sage of old?
It truly was... a breathtaking sight.
Chen Wenqian understood that he would never fathom that deepest scholarly energy in his lifetime.
Whether his path was right or wrong, he had already reached its end.
If there was enough time, if Li