"Climb high and gaze far-the scenery here is quite lovely," Zhao Yunhui said, standing on the mountaintop.
"Princess, we just passed the Laozi Shrine, Dipper Mother Hall, Hall of Salvation from Suffering, and Lingguan Hall. This is the Scripture Lecture Platform, where Laozi expounded the Dao in his day," Huang Xiao said.
"The sage's footprints are already hard to find!" Zhao Yunhui said with a smile.
"At least there are still traces left by those who came before us. There are quite a few Daoist temples along the way, as well as inscriptions of scholars' poetry. All of those have survived," Huang Xiao said.
"Only they've all fallen into disrepair," Zhao Yunhui said wistfully.
"Princess, the Laozi Shrine, Dipper Mother Hall, Hall of Salvation from Suffering, and Lingguan Hall are actually in relatively good shape. After so many years exposed to wind and rain, with no one to repair them, they've fallen into decay. As for the Palace of the Ancestral Sage, it went through several wars, and now only its ruins remain," Huang Xiao said.
"It seems nothing can withstand the scouring of time. The Palace of the Ancestral Sage could be called a sacred site of Daoism. It was expanded in the second year of the Tang dynasty's Wude era and was said to occupy dozens of mu, magnificent in its grandeur. To think even it couldn't escape an end in ruins," Zhao Yunhui sighed.
Huang Xiao said nothing. In truth, this could not have been more natural. Nothing lasted forever. Never mind these palaces and Daoist temples-even imperial dynasties could not endure for a thousand autumns and ten thousand years.
"Where are the ruins of the Palace of the Ancestral Sage?" Zhao Yunhui asked.
"This way!" Huang Xiao led Zhao Yunhui a dozen or so zhang to