Why do I have so many masters?

These scattered stories became solemn and serious in Li Qidao's expression, his eyes glinting with a peculiar brilliance. Zhang Zuosheng sensed that heaviness and said indifferently,

"Is this the reason you've come up with? It's hardly worth refuting!"

He gripped the Heavenly Inquiry Scroll Fragment in his hand, the qi mechanism flowing continuously like the surging tides of the Qiantang River, even producing thunderous roars as he shouted coldly,

"Since you've come today, you shall stay here!"

"I will keep you alive until I unite the kingdoms and reestablish Great Shu, and then I'll use you for the sacrifice!"

Jiang Yang responded calmly, "The Qin State's military is powerful, you are no match."

Zhang Zuosheng sneered,

"Jianghu is the best form of checks and balances. How will we know without a try?"

"Besides, there isn't just Qin among the kingdoms."

Li Qidao's mouth curled into a cruel smile, his eyes fierce, while Jiang Yang for the first time showed anger, stepped forward, and said loudly,

"You're so utterly deluded!"

Zhang Zuosheng angrily replied,

"For my country, for my ruler, when have I ever been deluded?!"

"As scholars, we cultivate ourselves, manage our families, and govern our countries as a matter of course. There's a thread of heavenly secrets in Heavenly Inquiry, today you will witness with your own eyes the creation of Heaven and Earth!"

An overwhelming qi pressed down, and as Li Qidao was about to take action, Jiang Yang, whose cultivation was exhausted, stepped forward as if colliding with the qi of Heavenly Inquiry. His gray clothes were instantly stained with blood, and yet, inexplicably, he managed to withstand the suppression of Heavenly Secrets, raising his voice in defiance,

"What about the dead commoners then?!"

"The battles among the Seven Kingdoms caused loss of young lives, and twenty years weren't enough to restore the vital energy. We failed to pacify them and already brought shame to our country, and now you stir up war again. Are you trying to deplete all the qi of Central Plains and exhaust the world's vital energy completely?!"

Zhang Zuosheng, frustrated by his inability to subdue Jiang Yang instantly, said, "They're just commoners from a humble background, ignorant of laws and principles, hardly worth mentioning!"

"Insolence!!"

Jiang Yang, usually gentle, was now inflamed with rage, his aura no less intense than Zhang Zuosheng's. He shouted, "Master once said, 'education without distinction,' what books have you been reading?!"

Zhang Zuosheng responded coldly,

"The people may be made to follow a course of action but may not understand it; these are the Master's words!"

Jiang Yang suddenly burst into loud laughter and angrily said,

"The people may be allowed to follow their own course; if not, instruct them to enlighten their wisdom and understand the world! Have you been traveling the world only to throw the classics to the dogs?!"

"You talk about cultivating oneself and governing the state, but do you realize behind 'state' there are the words 'under heaven'?!"

"Internal conflicts among the Seven Kingdoms once allowed the Xiongnu to invade our Central Plains and slaughter many. Now, while the world's vital energy hasn't recovered, you undertake these actions, fighting internally. Do you want the iron hooves to move south and force all of Central Plains to bow in submission?!"

"I, Jiang Wenyuan, would rather bear the disdain of the world and the curses of a thousand generations after death than engage in what you call loyalty!"

As his aura intensified, Zhang Zuosheng gritted his teeth and tried to suppress it, saying,

"This is Heavenly Secrets."

Jiang Yang, with tears of blood, fearless and laughing, said,

"How can the mere power of Heaven and Earth compare with the principles of human heart? Do you not understand that the will of the people surpasses heaven?!"

Zhang Zuosheng felt the sensation of being unable to suppress Jiang Yang despite his disabled qi and said,

"I do it for His Majesty and the state. Unless you think His Majesty is less worthy than those countrymen?"

Jiang Yang spoke loudly,

"Exactly!"

"Education without distinction, we of the Confucian Sect only wish for everyone under heaven to be educated, free from prejudice! We only wish for everyone to know the principles!"

"We of the Confucian Sect only wish that everyone under heaven could be as dragons!"

The qi dispersed, his voice resonant as a great bell.

The radiance of Heavenly Inquiry retracted.

Within the Imperial City of Heavenly Capital, amidst the treasure-stocked storerooms of the Imperial City, although many famous swords were kept, there remained a gap for one, the longsword that a Confucian Master had carried traveling the world 1300 years ago. Although made of common iron, it had been enlightened through long association with the Master.

Yet now, it was in the Imperial Academy, admired by the children of three hundred noble clans.

That day, the longsword suddenly emitted a clear ring.

It was drawn from its scabbard.

In the tea house, everyone looked up at the sudden surge of the Heaven and Earth Qi, their expressions changing. The tea scholar, however, could not go out to look. A new customer had called him over to add water to his tea. He naturally had a fondness for learned people and diligently added the water.

The scholar, with white at his temples, took a sip of tea, smiled in admiration, and then looked into the distance towards One-Leaf Pavilion, sighing and said,

"Scholars ah..."

"Too many in the world study only to learn the craftiness and methods of getting by, yet they fail to grasp the teachings of our predecessors. Those who do grasp them often cannot believe them, and even if they believe, they find it hard to persist. Alas, counting again and again, it turns out that the most spirited are often the corrupt Confucians."

The tea scholar couldn't help but say,

"Master, that statement seems a bit illogical..."

Su Gu smiled and said,

"How can it be illogical? Those Confucian scholars in the Imperial Court who think they can resolve floods and fires with their lofty speeches, have no real capability after all. They are the very people who have read too much, only to learn to cater to advantages and avoid disadvantages, mastering the act of muddling through to the top."

The tea scholar was taken aback, feeling there was some truth to the words, yet he still forcefully said,

"Then by that logic, with more and more books through the generations, might it be that scholars will lose their spirit? That makes no sense."

The once prominent debater who had traversed the Six Kingdoms said nothing, mumbling to himself in a volume only he could hear, "First for the Shu Kingdom I exhausted my wisdom, unwavering in face of life and death without being able to stop the overwhelming disasters. When the world settled, I sheathed my sharpness, unwilling to respond to the remnants, instead resolving chaos..."

"Corrupt Confucians, corrupt Confucians."

"Rather endure humiliation in life and infamy in death, what a scholar's spirit, what a devotion to family and country."

The tea scholar couldn't hear clearly, and curiously asked,

"Guest?"

Su Gu came back to his senses, smiled, and shook his head said,

"The things to come, who can know for sure? Maybe."

"What the shop owner said also makes sense, although there are many who scheme for personal gain, when great disasters strike, it's always the scholars who step forward, pleading for the people and standing as the backbone of the country, even if it means death follows."

"So many fools, there are always..."

"Generation after generation."

The tea scholar liked this comment, smiled and said,

"That is the reason."

Su Gu murmured,

"Just too much scheming, ultimately failing to understand the principles beneath the text, failing to discern the true spirit. By the time one reads too much, they can no longer be called a 'scholar,' the scholars of future generations will likely be such."

He poured himself another cup of tea, looked in the direction of One-Leaf Pavilion, then closed his eyes, murmuring to himself,

"Thus, being born in this era is indeed the best."

"At least... there's still the scholar's spirit worth observing."

He drank the tea, the Heaven and Earth brightened as a sword split thirty thousand miles of landscapes coming forth.

For hundreds, thousands, and even tens of thousands of miles, a word was spread.

Jiang Yang held the sword, his life force fading, yet he calmed down, looking at his junior brother just like when he had first joined the Confucian School, bowing respectfully behind the Master at the portrait of that benevolent old man.

His right hand holding the sword, the Eight-Sided Sword, a gentleman maintaining integrity, paying respect in all directions, his left hand raised, adjusting his bamboo crown meticulously.

"I excel at cultivating my Haoran Qi."

Cultivate oneself.

Regulate the family.

Administer the state.

Pacify the world.

We scholars, why fear the slanders of the world?

PS: Today's update is delivered... a massive chapter of ten thousand words, fingers are exhausted from typing, you all know I've got clumsy hands, I've done my best.

I'm almost dead, might need to take a break...