Bearing the blue sky

Chapter 327 Summary

As the armored beast pulled the carriage out of the city gate of Jingdezhen, the afternoon sun was pouring down from directly overhead in the west, making the blue stone plaque with the words "Jingde" on the city wall gleam with a warm, glazed sheen.

Sitting on the carriage shaft, Liu Jianjian looked back one last time at the tall and short chimneys, then looked down at the bag of porcelain she was holding, and sighed, "Are we leaving already? We haven't had enough yet."

"I've had enough shopping." Zhu Ge's voice came from behind the carriage curtain: "I've seen what I wanted to see, taken what I wanted to take, and finished what I needed to finish."

The sounds of horses' hooves, wheels, conversations of pedestrians on the roadside, and birdsong from the distant fields blended together, creating a gentle and peaceful rhythm to the journey.

The carriage traveled eastward along the official road for about an hour. The outline of Jingdecheng gradually shrank into a thin gray-white line on the horizon, eventually disappearing completely behind the undulating hills.

The scenery on both sides of the road changed from dense farmland to more open fields, with occasional scattered villages nestled at the foot of distant hills, their rooftops glowing with a warm, grayish-brown light in the sunlight.

Liu Jianjian leaned listlessly against the carriage shaft, playing with a strand of hair that fell over her shoulder. She turned and peeked into the carriage curtain: "Master, are we really going to Shengjing? Will we get beaten to death by the New Year's Eve officials?"

"No," Zhu Ge said speechlessly, "This world doesn't belong to the New Year's Eve Official alone; we also have the Lantern-Carrying True Lord!"

Although Lord Lantern said on the surface that he wouldn't interfere in worldly affairs, Zhu Ge knew that Lord Lantern wouldn't let the New Year's Eve Official cause trouble.

Of course, there are ten Heavenly Officials of the Human Race, and the Lantern-Carrying True Lord is only one of them.

In the event of a major melee, it's uncertain who will win or lose.

In situations like these, individual ability becomes the most important factor.

However, Zhu Ge considered their caravan to be just a small caravan.

Therefore, worrying about the existence of a state of direct confrontation with one's true self is simply being overly pessimistic.

Just be yourself and walk your own path.

He wanted to complete his plans and arrangements step by step.

"How much longer until we reach Shengjing, Master?" Liu Jianjian asked expectantly. "Shengjing, that's the center of the world! I'm so excited!"

"At this speed, it will take about seven or eight more days," Zhu Ge's voice came from behind the carriage curtain.

He unfolded the water vein map on his knee and was comparing the various nodes marked on the map with the geographical distribution of the human race in his memory.

Although the lines on the watercourse map are mainly concentrated in Jingdezhen and the surrounding area, some branches extend beyond the edge of the map.

One of the thicker branches extends northeastward, vaguely pointing to the approximate location of Shengjing.

"Seven or eight days—" Liu Jianjian pouted, but didn't complain.

She has always been an easygoing person. Whether she's sitting in a car or walking on the road, as long as there's something interesting to see or hear, she can find joy in it.

Especially since she has thousands of demonic beasts in her hair to chat with her, she's not in a hurry at all.

She glanced at the wildflowers and bushes passing by the roadside for a while, then turned back and asked, "Master, what is Shengjing like? How does it compare to Jingdezhen?"

"Much bigger," Zhu Ge said. "And much noisier too."

Liu Jianjian blinked: "Noisy? Why are you noisy?"

"There are a lot of people." Zhu Ge rolled up the water vein map and put it aside, then leaned against the carriage wall and closed her eyes.

Shengjing was the cultural center of the human race, the location of the main campuses of various academies, and the central location of the Great Sheng Dynasty.

It was a gathering place for scholars, monks, wealthy merchants, politicians, and dignitaries from all over the country.

On any street, you can hear groups of people debating scriptures, discussing current affairs, and critiquing articles.

There are also various arenas where knights-errant, soldiers, thieves, and others fight each other.

There are also many immortal retreats, where various cultivators fly around.

There's also alchemy, qi cultivation, medicine making, and clothing crafting—

In short, Shengjing is a land of abundant resources and natural treasures, a place where the essence of heaven and earth is gathered.

"So many people—" Liu Jianjian nodded thoughtfully, then suddenly perked up as if she had thought of something: "There must be lots of good food in Shengjing, right? With so many scholars, there must be a lot of restaurants and eateries!"

Zhu Ge chuckled, amused by her leaps of thought: "That's true."

The carriage was quiet for a moment, with only the rhythmic sound of wheels rolling over the road and the heavy, steady breathing of the armored beast.

The carriage continued its journey forward.

Zhu Ge closed her eyes and carefully reviewed everything to ensure that nothing went wrong.

First, there's his realm. He was previously a martial artist at the Mountain Crushing Realm, the second realm of martial arts, and also a scholar at the Confucian and Taoist realms.

At the same time, he also assisted in the practices of witchcraft and immortality.

The Way of Witchcraft involves the dual cultivation of fire witchcraft and poison witchcraft, while the Way of Immortality begins with the introduction to thunder magic and array magic.

Both are in the same realm.

He has not yet broken through to the third realm, mainly because he is deliberately suppressing his realm and accumulating strength, waiting to reach the most ideal state when the Shangyuan Palace opens.

Furthermore, his four Daoist hearts share the same origin but flow in different directions, belonging to four aspects of the same original mind.

Martial arts are the essence of the heart, encompassing all things and all rivers, and can integrate all kinds of martial arts and techniques of all beasts. It will not become saturated until it can go no further.

Confucianism and Taoism are based on the human heart and take "human needs" as their foundation. They are inclusive and have the same origin as the original heart, and can accommodate all schools of thought.

The path of witchcraft has only one realm, and the witch's heart has not yet been formed. However, it can communicate with heaven and earth, mountains and rivers, and insects and beasts. Currently, it is mainly used to activate witch fire and cultivate Gu insects.

There is only one realm in the Immortal Path: tempering the soul with the Thunder Sound Refining Divine Technique and building array cultivation based on array stars.

His Return to Origin Intent allows him to fuse the four forces (blood energy, literary energy, witch power, and spiritual power) back to their origin.

Although not yet fully mastered, it can already be flexibly switched and complemented in battle.

Besides that, there were the various insights he gained along the way.

First, the dawn!

This trend originates from the concept of dawn, and its core is to tear through the darkness, break through difficulties, and usher in the light.

Now, Dawn's Might has evolved from "Intent" to "Momentum," capable of manifesting phantoms, tearing apart enemy defenses, or breaking through stalemates. It is Zhuge's strongest offensive tactic at present.

Previously, this technique had been used to break Zhuge Yu's nighttime momentum in the Battle of Chengdu.

Next comes the terminology for the destination, also known as the terminology for speed.

This stems from an understanding of time and space: a mayfly lives only a day and dies in a day, while a human life is as fleeting as a shuttle.

The ultimate skill allows him to freely switch between the rhythm of his staff and movement during combat, varying the speed to make it difficult for the enemy to adapt.

Unlike the Dawn Momentum, the End Momentum leans more towards skill and control than explosiveness.

Finally, there is the concept of returning to the origin, used to unify the four forces into one, which is an important cornerstone for Zhu Ge's breakthrough to the third realm.

In actual combat, he can flexibly allocate and rotate the power of the four paths.

Besides that, there is the true meaning of Confucianism and Taoism.

For example, the true meaning of divination in the Dao of Heavenly Secrets.

Using three copper coins as a medium, the principles of heaven and earth are deduced, future possibilities are predicted, and the weaknesses of the current situation are perceived.

It can also be used to predict the opponent's movement trajectory in battle, and can also be used for macro-strategy.

There is also the meaning of green bamboo, which comes from the poem given by Zhu Ge, namely the poem about holding fast to the green hills.

Driven by literary energy, a tough green bamboo barrier can be formed on the body's surface, withstanding a medium to high intensity attack.

And recently, the bone monster's clone received a sense of cleansing after reciting "Thoughts on Reading".

He used the essence of literature to cleanse and purify impurities, and used it to enlighten the great river and wash away its impurities.

It has a strong restraining effect on the unclean forces of ghosts and spirits.

In addition, his Hellfire Star Staff is also an important part of his own power.

The material is the genuine Star-Picking Silver, which was gifted and refined by the True Lord of the Lantern.

Its characteristic is that it can change in length, thickness, and hardness according to his will.

At the same time, it can also absorb suitable materials to grow, but currently none of them are "suitable" for this stick.

Materials.

Currently, it is being infused with the blood and literary energy of the blessing song, resulting in a silver-red hue. As the blessing song is used and nurtured, it continues to improve.

Another feature is Redmi's custom interface.

This is one of his core trump cards.

Obtained from the Red Rice Immortal, it contains spiritual rice fields, high-level rice, spiritual spring water channels, a library of cultivation manuals, and more.

Currently, Zhu Ge is integrating into his own world, but it has not yet been fully refined.

At the same time, the bone monster clone is also his trump card.

The Bone Monster's clone was formed from the skull of an old man from an ancient shaman, and its appearance is shaped like a chicken skeleton.

The Bone Monster clone possesses innate abilities such as manipulating bones, refining bones, and transforming bones into its own body.

Currently stationed in the South Vietnam-Myanmar battlefield, advancing the front line alongside Yan Liyuan and others, he can be considered Zhu Ge's hidden pawn.

However, all of the above can only be considered Zhu Ge's publicly known trump cards.

The real trump card that only he knows is the survival-of-the-fittest tool!

Today, he has almost mastered the use of his four traits.

【Kunpeng】Unique traits, effects include calmness, insight, possession, detachment, and arrogance, etc.

The Spider's unique trait includes functions such as layout, web weaving, planning, and luring prey into traps.

【Stealth】A common trait that can conceal one's presence, reduce one's overall presence, etc., making one appear like an ordinary passerby after wearing it?

【Fallen Scale】Unique trait, passive type, can accumulate and store dissipated energy for later use. Dragon transformation, enhanced by scale patterns, improves defense, speed, underwater adaptability, etc., and allows him to fly without divine consciousness.

In addition, his wind cultivation technique in the martial arts manual "Great Sun Glazed Body" has been perfected, and his water cultivation technique is also steadily improving.

Zhu Ge possesses physical hardness and resilience comparable to a Yuan-level weapon.

This is also his trump card.

There's also his cultivation of Gu worms.

Currently, hurricane rhinoceros beetles have been cultivated, and in the future, they can be provided with high-density gales to assist in wind refining, and they also possess a certain combat capability.

On the path of immortality, he has already condensed his first "array star" in his dantian, which can be used to set up small-scale guiding arrays.

If combined with the principles of Yi Jing and Bagua, a large-scale formation covering a city can be set up.

Of course, he also founded the "Human Newspaper" to enlighten the people with stories, while suppressing the growth of literary talent and reserving it for the final explosion.

"call----"

Looking back at himself, Zhu Ge couldn't help but let out a long breath.

Zhu Ge's current strength structure can be summarized as follows.

It takes body refinement as its foundation, the original heart as its central hub, the four powers as its fulcrum, special qualities as its trump card, and momentum and intention as its sharp edge.

He is following a path of "accumulating knowledge and experience before unleashing it, and embracing diverse perspectives."

Instead of rushing to break through the three realms, he diligently accumulated the power of each path, waiting for the opportune moment to complete it in one go and soar into the sky.

"but----"

Zhu Ge closed her eyes: "But, it's still not strong enough."

Not strong enough!

If it weren't for the pursuit of perfection and the desire to become stronger, Zhu Ge might have already broken through to the next level.

However, he knew very well that—

One genius at the third realm cannot save the human race.

He couldn't save himself either.

If he were to rush to break through to the third realm, perhaps he could achieve temporary success, hold his own against Lin Zhi in battle, and even be listed on the "Imperial Ranking".

But someone like that would certainly have no future.

What the human race lacks is a true self-level pillar!

"Official of Cold Snow — Lord of Annihilation — Official of New Year's Eve —"

Zhu Ge opened her eyes, her gaze lowered, yet gleaming with sharp light.

He had already used the [Kunpeng] and [Spider] before.

However, now that everything is ready, it's time to make final arrangements before arriving in Shengjing.

The next moment, [Kunpeng] and [Spider] started up simultaneously.

"Whether you're an official on New Year's Eve or during the Spring Festival, once you're caught in my net, you'll never escape."

Zhu Ge's eyes were incredibly bright.

layout!

Although he himself cannot become the strongest in a short time, he can leverage external forces!

While other people's strength is ultimately their strength, in the current situation, we can only act expediently for the time being.

"Master, the Cloud Mist Sect should be just ahead. There is a prodigy there whom you said you wanted to meet."

Liu Jianjian pointed to a mountain in the distance.

There are many pavilions and towers on the mountain, and they all float above the crimson clouds.

When the mountain came into view, Zhu Ge put the water vein map on his knee into his personal realm.

The armored beast neither quickened nor slowed its pace, steadily moving forward along the official road, its wheels leaving two shallow ruts on the dirt road.

Liu Jianjian had already sat up straight, her gaze passing over the drooping back of the armored beast and looking at the pavilions and towers floating on the crimson clouds in the distance.

Unlike ordinary sect pavilions, these buildings were not rooted in the mountain, but rather suspended above something like a frozen sunset, layered from the mountainside to the top, each layer separated by a reddish cloud of varying shades.

The clouds at the bottom are the darkest, almost dark red, and the color becomes lighter as you go up. By the time you reach the mountaintop, they have a nearly transparent light pink hue, like a thin veil dyed by the setting sun covering the outline of the buildings.

"Yunxia Sect." Liu Jianjian repeated the name in a low voice, her gaze not leaving the clouds: "Are those clouds real clouds, or were they created by them using magic?"

.

"Yes, both." Zhu Ge walked out of the carriage, sat down on the carriage shaft, and looked at the mountain side by side with Liu Jianjian: "The mountain itself has the spiritual energy of the earth veins gathering, which naturally forms that cloud layer after meeting the water vapor in the sky."

Later, the founder of the Yunxia Sect discovered this mountain, established the sect here, and used magic to reinforce the clouds so that they could support the weight of the buildings.

When the armored beast stopped at the foot of the mountain, there was a gray stone archway at the end of the road. The archway was not tall, only about ten feet high, but it was made of very thick material. There was a line of words carved on each of the stone pillars on both sides.

Zhu Ge jumped off the car, stood in front of the archway, and looked up at it for a while.

The inscription on the stone pillar on the right is somewhat blurred, but it can still be roughly made out: "Where the clouds and mist rise is my hometown."

"6

The inscription on the left stone pillar is relatively clearer: "At the end of the mountains and rivers, one can see one's true self."

"Beautiful writing." Liu Jianjian leaned over for a look and couldn't help but exclaim, "These two sentences are really well written."

"It's really good." Zhu Ge nodded, her eyes full of admiration.

He didn't linger under the archway, but walked up the steps, with Liu Jianjian following behind him.

The steps weren't steep, but they were long, and each step was laid out very neatly.

Occasionally, a few stone tablets covered with moss can be seen in the grass on both sides, with some insights or short sentences inscribed on them during cultivation.

Some of the inscriptions look very old, and the writing has been worn away by wind and rain, making it somewhat faint.

Upon reaching the mountainside, Zhu Ge felt a tingling sensation throughout his body. He realized someone had scanned him with divine sense, so he clasped his hands in greeting and said, "I am Zhu Ge. Gui Zong Yun Yin helped me when facing the New Year's Eve Official, so I have come to pay my respects!"