Am I the old man who's always by my apprentices' side?

Chapter 383: The "Martial Arts Sage" is actually Zhang Jiao!?
Zhang Chengdao, who claimed to be an ordinary cultivator, gleaned a great deal of information from the old man.

For example, this place is called Fanyu County, and the current dynasty is the unified Han Dynasty—somewhat similar to the Han Dynasty he is familiar with in history, but not exactly the same.

In the history before the Han Dynasty, there were indeed Liu Bang, Xiang Yu, Qin Shi Huang, and all sorts of other well-known figures, but the details were quite different from the history of the time before Zhang Chengdao traveled through time.

At this time, Liu Fuling was in power, one of the protagonists of the famous "Deep Affection for the Old Sword".

As for this old man, he was no ordinary person either.

He claimed his surname was Kong—not the Kong of Confucius, but one of the disciples of Zhu Fuyan, named Kong Lian. In his early years, he was also a chief clerk with a salary of 1,000 shi (a unit of grain). After Zhu Fuyan was executed, he dared not go to collect the remains of his mentor. It was Kong Che, a fellow villager, who heard about this and went to collect the remains of Zhu Fuyan.

As for Kong Lian himself, he was so ashamed that he left his hometown and lived in seclusion here.

Hearing one familiar name after another, Zhang Chengdao felt it was utterly absurd.

Could it be that I have actually traveled back to my own time and space, but the timing of the travel is a little off?
The thought had barely crossed his mind when he immediately dismissed it.

There's no other reason than that something is still wrong with this world.

"The late emperor was fond of seeking immortality and inquiring about the Dao. In the past, the Eastern Doctor catered to his interests and wrote countless tales of immortals and ghosts. My teacher also followed suit. So others may not know, but I do. These so-called gods and ghosts are just clever tricks to deceive people's minds and confuse their senses."

Kong Lian said sincerely, "But you, Immortal Master, are different. Such methods of controlling fire and water are unheard of and unseen. In my decades of following my master, I can tell that this is no trick! Immortal Master, are there really immortals in this world? If you might accept me as your disciple, I will serve you wholeheartedly and diligently! I will never slacken my efforts!"

Kong Lian was still bothered by this, but Zhang Chengdao smiled and replied, "Whether it exists or not, I can't say for sure, but to cultivate immortality, one needs sufficient spiritual energy. With the spiritual energy in the world today, I'm afraid it would be difficult to cultivate."

Kong Lian's thoughts were understandable, but firstly, the other party was only a purple card, and secondly, the concentration of spiritual energy here was indeed ridiculously low, making it impossible to cultivate immortality. In fact, if Zhang Chengdao himself exhausted his spiritual power, it would be difficult to recover in a short time, so it would be impossible for him to take on a disciple from another dimension.

However, to thank Kong Lian for the "information," Zhang Chengdao still took out several secret manuals and handed them over.

Don't get me wrong, it's not a cultivation manual. After all, with the current concentration of spiritual energy, cultivating immortality is just a pipe dream.

What Zhang Chengdao gave him was a martial arts manual that he had collected specifically to study the relationship between martial arts and immortality. However, he had been too busy to study it, so he had kept it in his backpack.

Moreover, these are all relatively common secret manuals. Even if they are given away, it wouldn't be difficult to collect them again later, so I gave them away.

Kong Lian held the manuals in disbelief, his lips trembling for a long time before he finally managed to utter, "This is..."

He had never seen a book like this before! The pages were as thin as silk!
Zhang Chengdao replied, "Although it is difficult to cultivate immortality here, there is another martial art that should be able to be learned. You can try it, and you can also pass it on to your descendants. In chaotic times, it may be useful for self-preservation."

According to history, although the details differ, the general direction is similar. If I remember correctly, it should have been about a hundred years later when Wang Mang usurped the Han throne, and the world was thrown into chaos.

Although Kong Lian himself might not be able to catch up, his grandson might. Giving him a few martial arts manuals to practice would be a small act of kindness on his part.

As for staying to reshape this world and orchestrate another spiritual revival?
I'm really sorry, he simply doesn't have the energy.

Now that he had learned that this spacetime was neither the same as the White Stone Realm (probably) nor the spacetime before his own time travel, Zhang Chengdao had no intention of continuing his exploration. After bidding farewell to Kong Lian, he turned around and flew towards White Stone Mountain, in the direction of the boundary gate.

We traveled along the way, observing the entire Baishi Mountain.

Although Baishi Mountain and the Baishi Realm where Zhang Chengdao established the Baishi Immortal Sect are almost identical, the surface water system is quite different.

I just don't know how different the rocks are.

Thinking of this, Zhang Chengdao casually landed by a lake, picked up a few stones from the bottom of the lake, and even found a few pieces of ore that had been washed to the bottom by the rain.

One of the pieces was bluish-green in color and slightly heavy in the hand. Although it did not contain any spiritual energy, it was still a decent rare mineral. Moreover, its appearance was somewhat familiar, which caught Zhang Chengdao's attention.

He took out a piece of lapis lazuli ore from his backpack and compared it. He found that they were indeed somewhat similar. However, the lapis lazuli ore mined from the iron mine produced by the Golden Finger contained spiritual energy and had a better texture. When the two were placed side by side, the difference in quality was immediately apparent.

"Ugh……"

Zhang Chengdao sighed and lost interest in exploring this "primitive White Stone Mountain".

He casually tossed the stones and ores he had picked up into the lake and was about to leave when his hand slipped, and he accidentally flung the piece of lapis lazuli he had taken out of his backpack into the lake as well.

After hesitating for only a moment, Zhang Chengdao shook his head and rode away on a cloud.

Anyway, a piece of lapis lazuli isn't worth much, so it's fine to just throw it away.

Not long after, he returned to the location of the boundary gate.

Fortunately, it seems that I haven't been gone for long, and the boundary gate doesn't appear to have changed much.

The paper puppet was also quite reliable, as it showed Zhang Chengdao the real way back.

After taking one last look at the silent White Stone Mountain, Zhang Chengdao put away the paper puppet and stepped into the boundary gate without hesitation.

A feeling of weightlessness washed over him, and the scenery before him changed. Zhang Chengdao had once again arrived in the Blue Night Realm.

This time, instead of going out to explore, he turned around and stepped into another realm gate enclosed by the [Bamboo Fence].

A few breaths later, the familiar lake finally appeared before his eyes, and Zhang Chengdao finally breathed a sigh of relief.

It’s finally back!

As soon as he emerged from the lake, he immediately took out the Name-Calling Mirror and contacted He Yu.

"What did you say? You went to different places through the same dimensional gate?"

He Yu's voice was filled with shock.

Zhang Chengdao shook his head and said, "No, to be precise, it's about going to different periods of the same place. For example... in the ancient times of this world... was there a dynasty called the Han Dynasty? And even more ancient dynasties like the Qin and Shang?"

After a long silence, He Yu nodded solemnly and said, "Indeed, there is such a thing, but those historical records have long been lost."

"Lost? Why would it be lost? As far as I know, there should have been quite a few written records from these dynasties!"

Zhang Chengdao was even more surprised.

During the Qin and Han dynasties, the Chinese civilization had already developed the habit of recording "prefecture records".

This is the earliest local gazetteer. In addition to recording the mountains and rivers, it also records the deeds of local elders and gentry. It is a kind of local gazetteer. Going back further, there are also records in the Rites of Zhou, not to mention those vast ancient masterpieces, such as the works of the Hundred Schools of Thought and the Spring and Autumn Annals. Even if some of them were destroyed, there must have been omissions in the countryside. How could they have been lost?

Not to mention that bamboo slips have a very good preservation ability, much more reliable than paper, so it is even less likely that they will be lost!

"This brings us to that martial arts sage. When the world was torn apart, he spread martial arts, enabling even the poorest people to learn martial arts and participate in the game of that chaotic world of great strife."

At this point, He Yu seemed to sneer, but he immediately added, "The evaluation of that martial arts master is mixed in history, but there is no doubt that the method of martial arts cultivation originated from him."

As an "old man," He Yu did indeed know some history—

According to him, when he came into this world, the world was already divided into four parts, but it seems that the originally unified country was indeed called Han.

"At that time, warlords were vying for power, and martial arts were prevalent in various places. However, martial arts were not as flourishing as they are now. The most powerful martial artists had only reached the fifth or sixth rank, which was not worth mentioning."

He Yu sighed softly and continued, "Although I had no intention of interfering in the affairs of this mortal world, I could not bear to see the people suffer. So I joined forces with Fellow Daoist Tang Yu to establish a base in Qin and pursue a great cause. My wife gave birth to two sons and a daughter for me. Although I could not teach them the Dao of Immortality, I still carefully raised them for more than ten years."

"Fortunately, they were obedient enough to follow my instructions and spread my faith, build statues and temples for me, which is why I have survived until now and until you, my fellow Daoist, save me."

Then came the well-known period of chaos that lasted for hundreds of years, until King Zhao became the first martial arts master, which ended the chaos and allowed the State of Zhao to unify the world.

By then, He Yu had long since died, and his friend Tang Yu had also disappeared without a trace. The wheels of history continued to roll forward, crushing the seemingly insignificant variables in the world.

Zhang Chengdao pressed further, "Then why have I never heard of any records of the Qin or Han dynasties?"

He Yu's voice sounded somewhat ethereal in the mirror, carrying a hint of reminiscence and solemnity: "This matter... is a long story, and involves many aspects."

"According to what I later pieced together from some fragmented books and ancient legends, the written records before the Han Dynasty were not lost naturally, but rather... artificially... 'discontinued'."

"Dated period? Man-made?"

Zhang Chengdao frowned.

“That’s right.” He Yu replied, “The founding emperor who ended the chaos and established the Zhao Dynasty was himself a martial arts prodigy. He seemed to be very afraid of certain things left over from the previous dynasty that might shake the foundation of the country or bring about unknown risks.”

"what?"

Zhang Chengdao asked again.

The exact reason is now difficult to verify.

"There is a saying that at the end of the Han Dynasty, there was a large-scale disturbance caused by 'extraterrestrial demons'. Although it was suppressed, the relevant records were strictly ordered to be destroyed."

"Afterwards, in order to eliminate future troubles, Emperor Taizu of Zhao ordered the collection and burning of all official and folk books from the previous dynasty, especially those involving ancient myths, magic arts, sacrifices, and even some historical details. No book was spared."

Zhang Chengdao gasped: "Burning books!?"

Isn't this just pinning the blame on Qin Shi Huang?!

"Not only that," He Yu sighed, "Emperor Taizu of Zhao also issued an order strictly prohibiting the private possession and dissemination of events from the previous dynasty, with violators to be punished for treason. At the same time, he summoned his scholars to revise the history books, greatly simplifying and obscuring the history of the previous dynasty, and even changing some place names and personal names that might evoke associations."

"Later, due to the rise of martial arts, unprecedented changes covered up the buried history, and fewer and fewer people knew the truth. The records about the Qin and Han dynasties mentioned by fellow Daoists gradually disappeared into the dust."

Zhang Chengdao was very puzzled: "Don't the powerful families and nobles care? This touches on their fundamental interests. Besides, even if they don't dare to come openly, they can still leave some records in secret, right?"

How could someone so autocratic not have ruined himself?
The saying "Those who follow the right path receive much help, while those who stray from it receive little help" is surely self-defeating.
"Faced with overwhelming strength, no noble family could rival Emperor Taizu of Zhao. He was the first martial arts master in the world, and it was his invention of the martial arts military formation that enabled him to quickly unify the world."

Historical records even describe the rise of martial arts as "an unprecedented upheaval in the world".

"Zhao Taizu himself was also known for his cruelty. He followed the map and slaughtered the noble families one by one. With the support of the martial arts army and his own strength as a martial arts master, no one could resist him."

Zhang Chengdao remained silent for a moment, digesting this astonishing information.

But then, his face turned pale as he thought of a possibility that was hard for him to accept.

"Fellow Daoist He, do you know... what was the name of the first martial arts sage, the one who spread martial arts? Was it... surnamed Kong?"

He Yu replied, "Oh, no, that martial arts sage's surname was Zhang, and he was also known as the 'Great Master of Virtue'."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Chengdao first breathed a sigh of relief, but then couldn't help choking on his own saliva. Immediately afterward, he asked, "This 'Great Teacher of Virtue' wouldn't be named 'Zhang Jiao,' would he?!"

He Yu was somewhat surprised: "You know about this too? It seems you've read some of the historical records of this world. There is a record that the wife of that martial arts sage, the Great Master of Virtue, seems to have been surnamed Kong, and was also his master's daughter, but I don't know if it's true..."

Zhang Chengdao gave an awkward laugh, trying to cover it up, saying, "Hehehe, I know a little, just a little..."

He appeared calm on the surface, but inside he was seething with rage.

Putting aside the bizarre fact that the "martial arts sage" of this world is Zhang Jiao, the professional rebel who shouted "The blue sky is dead, the yellow sky shall rise," let's talk about how Zhang Jiao actually had a wife, and that his wife's surname was Kong, and that she was even his master's daughter. If that's the case, it's very possible that Zhang Jiao himself was a disciple of Kong Lian—no, the age doesn't match up, so he should be a descendant of Kong Lian.

In short, Zhang Jiao became a disciple of a descendant of Kong Lian and married a woman from the Kong family, which gave him the opportunity to learn martial arts...

The source of all this was actually those martial arts manuals that I had given to Kong Lian!

Could the chaos in the world be because of me?

Zhang Chengdao was unable to accept this for a while, and his expression was somewhat dazed, so much so that He Yu could see it even through the Name-Calling Mirror.

"Fellow Daoist Zhang, what... what happened? Why are you suddenly so interested in these things?"

Zhang Chengdao gave a bitter smile and said to himself, "The rise of martial arts... is probably because of me..."

"With the world in chaos, I cannot escape blame..."

"And your plan to cultivate spiritual energy was also ruined by the rise of martial arts, so the blame should fall on me..."

Isn't this a world of martial arts and cultivation?!

Little did he know that martial arts didn't exist back then!

(End of this chapter)