Ze Tian Ji (Way of Choices)
chapter-676

Chapter 676 – A City Sealed

To tear open the letter would be to grant death to others, then welcome death himself. But Chen Changsheng truly did not care.

Just as he had said to Eunuch Lin, he was at present truly not afraid of death, as there were no longer any matters he could not let go.

All the people and matters of this world had no meaning to him, because three days ago, he came to the sudden realization that his own existence had originally been itself meaningless.

He stood at the destroyed door of the library, holding the letter, quietly waiting for that moment.

The autumn breeze curled above the lake. A belt of light seemed to extend across the great banyan tree, which was still a flourishing green, a stark contrast with the golden-yellow leaves on the grass.

Time slowly passed, and the Orthodox Academy remained in peace.

Chen Changsheng raised his head to look at the gate, his eyebrows slowly rising, just like the fallen leaf that had just been swept up by the wind.

The thunderous downpour of hooves had stopped at some point. The distant plumes of dust beyond the wall slowly settled and no longer rose.

The gate remained tightly shut, the walls unharmed. The leaf that had just fallen back into the waters of the lake attracted the pursuit of several fish.

All was peaceful. No one had charged into the Orthodox Academy.

Nobody appeared, not the black-armored heavy cavalry or those killers and experts of the Great Zhou Army and the Department for Purging Officials concealed outside the wall and in the forest.

Su Moyu and those students and teachers of the Orthodox Academy who were firmly guarding the gate had an even closer view.

They had seen Eunuch Lin’s miserable appearance and could faintly guess at what had happened in the library. They were in shock at Chen Changsheng’s hidden strength, and also understood what choice he had made.

The Orthodox Academy had reached its most crucial moment.

After Eunuch Lin left, the gate to the Orthodox Academy was tightly shut once more. Unexpectedly, the world outside the gates suddenly turned quiet.

They were very tense, and this sudden peace did not make them relax. They only felt it very strange.

The thunderous hooves earlier had been real, had been heard by everyone present.

The chilling murderous intent had also been real, the cold thoroughly penetrating through their uniforms.

The sword glows flowed like water, reflecting an autumn aura.

The sword array of South Stream Temple changed once more. Ye Xiaolian drifted out of the center of the array and came to the front, asking Su Moyu, “Just what is going on out there?”

Su Moyu revealed a determined expression and walked forward, his two hands pushing open the gate.

As the gate opened, a figure appeared before the teachers and students of the Orthodox Academy.

Light spilled through the gates, accompanied by two streams of clear breeze.

An old man stood on the stone steps in front of the Orthodox Academy, his back towards them, his two broad sleeves lightly dancing in the wind.

Su Moyu was somewhat shocked. “Principal Mao?”

He was ‘Two Sleeves in the Breeze’ Mao Qiuyu, the once-Principal of the Heavenly Dao Academy. He was now Archbishop of the Hall of Illustrious Persons, but students of the Six Ivies like Su Moyu were still accustomed to addressing him as Principal.

Before Su Moyu could awaken from his shock, he was stunned once more by the other figures present.

The archbishops known as Daoist Baishi, An Lin, Daoist Siyuan, and Linghai Zhiwang were all standing in front of the Orthodox Academy.

Of the Six Prefects of the Orthodoxy, five were present.

Soon after, Su Moyu saw some even more familiar figures.

They were the current principal of the Heavenly Dao Academy, Zhuang Zhihuan; the Archbishop of the Temple Seminary; the absolutely loyal professor of the Thirteen Divisions of Radiant Green; and also his previous teacher, the Principal of the Li Palace Academy.

The row of restaurants on the other side of Hundred Flowers Lane had earlier been knocked down by the troops of the Imperial Court, but now dust was rising from there, and a black tide of cavalry could faintly be seen.

The Orthodox Academy was still surrounded, but not besieged.

Because this cavalry was not the black-armored heavy cavalry of the Imperial Court, but the Orthodoxy cavalry under the direct command of the Li Palace.

The blades, spears, and divine crossbows of the Orthodoxy cavalry were aimed outward.

Su Moyu was still in shock, but he could vaguely understand that the thunderous hooves from before were not a sign that the black-armored heavy cavalry was charging, but that the Orthodoxy cavalry had come to the rescue.

He subconsciously turned his head back to the Orthodox Academy. He saw that the autumn forest was as peaceful as before, but at the walls and amongst the trees, the figures of many priests could barely be seen.

This was especially the case around the library, and there was even a cardinal of unfathomable cultivation standing ten-odd zhang away from the library.

This array of forces was truly too stunning.

This was the Li Palace displaying all of its strength for the world to see.

Before this strength, even the Great Zhou Imperial Court had to give the appropriate respect and courtesy.

Su Moyu knew that the Orthodox Academy was safe and so relaxed. He then sensed that his back was somewhat wet and came to the realization that the instant he opened the gate, he had been so nervous that his entire body had been sweating.

The disciples of South Stream Temple and the teachers and students of the Orthodox Academy came up behind him to see what was happening. Overwhelmed with shock, they began to feel as if they had been given a new lease on life.

……

……

The doors and windows of the library had been destroyed, and now the rich scent of autumn pervaded the room.

The Pope stood behind Chen Changsheng, saying, “To cultivators, life is an extremely long course of events. In this course of events, we will encounter many challenges, feel much despair, and this is our predestined fate. And how should we confront this predestined fate? To happily live on as if given a new lease on life, or to undergo serious contemplation before finding ourselves once more, that is the greatest distinction. I gave you three days to think, three days to come see me at the Li Palace, but you did not, so I can only come personally to ask you just what you are prepared to choose.”

Chen Changsheng did not turn around, nor did he have any intentions of answering.

The Pope understood why he had not come in these past three days to seek help from him at the Li Palace. “You feel that all of us have deceived you?”

Chen Changsheng remained silent.

The Pope continued, “As long as you live for one more day, I will protect you for one more day. This is the promise I made to Mei Lisha.”

Chen Changsheng still said nothing.

The Pope walked to his side and looked together with him at the window that no longer existed. “I am going to die.”

As he was listening, Chen Changsheng’s gaze was just on the grass by the shore. A thick layer of fallen leaves was there, suffused with a golden luster. It was very beautiful, carrying the rotting of death, a lifeless atmosphere.

He finally spoke.

“Martial Uncle, just what do you want to say to me?”

The Pope gazed at the forest of red and yellow and the rather striking green of the great banyan tree, serenely saying, “The past is the past; such is time. Similarly, the movement of the stars, the changes of fate, all proceed forward, and so we can only look forward. No matter what has already happened, what harm they have dealt to you, at the very least, your illness is cured.”

A normal person would think that in this coup of the Mausoleum of Books, Chen Changsheng had not suffered even the least harm. On the contrary, he had obtained the greatest benefit.

When one’s eyes were closed, the sky would go dark, and after one died, one’s world would be destroyed. There was naturally not a single thing that was more important than living, or worthier of celebrating.

The Pope was not a normal person and so would not think this way. He just wished to use this point to rouse Chen Changsheng from his stupor. “Mei Lisha had probably calculated this at the very beginning, resulting in his acceptance of Senior Brother’s proposal. He believed that compared to the deception, betrayal, sorrow, and pain you would feel, you would receive sufficient return. This is my conjecture.”

Chen Changsheng replied, “Martial Uncle, you know that I am not Tang Tang, nor Wang Po. I’m not that good at accounting.”

There was a deeper meaning to these words, to which the Pope faintly smiled but did not take. He continued, “After today, your blood should also no longer be a problem. Not even the Empress dared to eat you, so there will naturally be no one else who dares to develop a craving for you. Only if the Demon Lord personally appeared would there be a problem, but he has no time for that now, and it should be impossible for him to threaten you.”

Chen Changsheng asked, “What’s happened?”

The Pope answered, “No clear news has been sent back. I only know that Xuelao City has already been sealed for three days.”