The years when I explored the fairyland.

Chapter 238 235: The Situation and the End of the Sky

Swish!
Hao Songqing took out a folded animal skin from his arms, shook it, unfolded it, and spread it on the desk in front of Chu Zhou.

The animal skin is very thin and grayish white overall. It seems to be very old, with mottled marks from the passage of time.

The outline above is drawn with black lines. As far as maps are concerned, it is quite simple, but at least the approximate location can be seen.

Of course, a county is not qualified to be marked. Only the areas of the four major sects, eight prefectures, and some extremely important cities are clearly marked.

Apart from the Dayun Dynasty, the markings of the Golden Horde and the Dayan Dynasty were even simpler. Although their areas looked large, many places did not even have regional divisions. There were only specially marked black dots indicating the names of sects and cities.

Chu Zhou was observing carefully, and Hao Songqing spoke at the right time: "Before my family was destroyed and I met Zhou Wu, I studied hard for ten years, day and night, seeking the truth in the vast sea of ​​books.

But later I found that what I learned from the book was too superficial and full of mistakes and omissions.

So, I followed the example of the ancients, packed my bag, wore straw sandals, and traveled around the world to see the magnificence of the mountains and rivers, and appreciate the cultural customs.

This map is the work I made when I was traveling and studying. It is certainly not as accurate as the ones made by the imperial court, but it can still be used occasionally."

Chu Zhou couldn't help but look up and asked, "Mr. Hao, you actually have the experience of traveling around the world to study?"

Hao Songqing did not answer immediately, but was absent-minded and sad. After a while, he answered: "When I was young and frivolous, I always felt that the world was so big that I could go anywhere; I also felt that the world was unfair and I could change it.

What a pity, what a pity..."

At this point, he could no longer speak, and waved his hand, as if to shake off the haze in his heart, and said: "Master, let me explain the situation of the Three Kingdoms to you?"

Chu Zhou didn't want to hurt anyone, so he asked, "You tell me?"

Hao Songqing calmed down and spoke, "In ancient times, when the ancient immortals came to the mortal world, there was actually no distinction between countries. Each ancient immortal protected the people of a place and taught them how to farm and reproduce.

Even the ancient immortals are different, and the distinction between humans and demons is extremely clear. If the ancient immortals of the human race and the ancient immortals of the demon race meet each other, there is a possibility that there will be a battle.

The ancient immortals were so powerful that they could easily turn the rain and clouds over, move mountains and fill the sea. In their hands, the mountains, rivers and the earth were just like playthings, which naturally attracted mortals to yearn for them.

At that time, there were also mortals who practiced Taoism and acquired one or two supernatural powers, so they could fly into the sky and hide underground, and enter and exit the universe.

Unfortunately, no one knows what happened later. One day, all the ancient immortals left the mortal world and disappeared, and cut off the passage between the mortal world and the secret realm.

From then on, there were no more immortals in the mortal world, which became what we now call the forbidden land.

The ancients followed the example of the ancient immortals and walked out of the martial arts path step by step, first the internal strength martial arts, then the qi and blood to polish the muscles, skin and bones, and then to the current body tempering martial arts. "

"It was also during this process that mortals gained control of military power and began to fight against each other. Over countless years, there were ups and downs, and eventually a situation of three kingdoms emerged."

At this point, Hao Songqing stepped forward and pointed to a place on the map, saying, "Among the Three Kingdoms, our Dayun occupies the smallest area. The territory is full of mountains, crisscrossing waterways, and dense forests. Although the roads are difficult to travel, it is easy to defend and difficult to attack."

His finger shifted slightly, pointing to the north, and he continued, “Here, northwest of Dayun, where the Golden Horde is located, vast grasslands divide the world, and vast snow-capped mountains are located.

The Golden Horde occupied the largest land area, almost as large as the other two countries combined, but the land was vast and sparsely populated, and most of the herdsmen made a living by herding cattle, sheep and horses, and lived near water and grass.

This is the place I have been to the least. I once traveled west for hundreds of miles without seeing anyone and almost got lost, but was eventually rescued.

I lived with that group of herdsmen for nearly a year, and gained a better understanding of the Golden Horde.

Unlike the numerous sects in Great Yan, the Golden Horde is headed by the Khan of the Golden Family, who is extremely powerful. All the sects are in awe of him and consider it an honor to send their own disciples to serve under the Khan. "

Chu Zhou narrowed his eyes slightly and asked, "According to what you said, are there constant frictions between the Golden Horde and the Great Yan Dynasty?"

"Of course there are, but it's not constant friction. It's mostly because the grasslands were hit by a white disaster and the herders couldn't survive, so the Khan went south to steal some food from the herders.

However, it is not easy for them to achieve their goal, because the three prefectures bordering the Golden Horde all belong to the Sanqing Gate. "

After a pause, he continued, "In fact, the land of the three prefectures did not all belong to the Sanqing Sect before, but later, only the Sanqing Sect had extraordinary strength and was able to defend the border, so the Sanqing Sect took it all.

Moreover, there were three sects before Sanqingmen, namely Taiqingmen, Shangqingmen and Yuqingmen. Although they all belonged to Taoism, they actually had a lot of conflicts with each other.

It was only later, when the Golden Horde became powerful, that they had no choice but to unite and form the Three Pure Ones. "

"What about the Great Yan Dynasty?"

Chu Zhou moved his finger and pointed to the west of Dayun, an area that was about one-third larger than the Dayun Dynasty.

Hao Songqing's eyes were somewhat complicated, and he said softly: "Before the establishment of Dayun, this land belonged to the Great Sui, and the Great Sui was actually separated from the Yan Dynasty.

The Yang family was originally an important official of Dayan, ruling over several prefectures. Later, taking advantage of the chaotic situation in Dayan and with the support of several major martial arts sects, they put on yellow robes, established their own country, and finally named it the Great Sui.

However, the Sui Dynasty did not last long. It fell in the second generation and was eventually taken over by the Ji family, which is now the Dayun Dynasty. "

"Because of this connection, the Great Yan Dynasty and the Great Yun Dynasty disliked each other and sent troops many times to recover the lost territory.

Unfortunately, Dayan was plagued by internal conflicts and its national strength was weakened, so it always returned empty-handed. "

After a pause, Hao Songqing continued, “Yes, when Dayun was founded, Taizu created the Martial Temple and gathered the martial families from all over the world, and eventually settled them in Youyan Mansion.

That is where the two dynasties meet."

Chu Zhou looked around the map and asked, "What do you think of the two countries joining forces and deploying troops on the border, ready to take action?"

"If you ask me, it's both unexpected and reasonable!"

"Why do you say that?"

“They are afraid!

After the reform of martial arts, the strength of the sect would always rise by leaps and bounds. If they could not get enough benefits internally, they would seek outside.

Judging from the current situation, both the Golden Horde and the Great Yan Dynasty are actually stronger than the Great Yun, but it is hard to say how long this strength can last! "

Hao Songqing analyzed: "If the secret martial arts of Xuanzhen Temple are fully spread, there may be no room for them to survive in the whole world.

Therefore, they must strike first!"

Chu Zhou nodded slightly, agreeing with his statement, and asked again: "Then what do you think my Xuanzhen Temple should do?"

"Then it is up to you, the Master, to make the decision."

"But now I want to hear Mr. Hao's opinion?"

"In my opinion, what does the mundane world have to do with my sect?"

Hao Songqing raised his head slightly, his eyes were a little more clear and indifferent: "Although this matter was caused by my Xuanzhen Temple, but, for the immortal sect, it is possible that one can be in seclusion for ten or even a hundred years.

The outside world is also changing rapidly, how can we control it? "

"In my opinion, if I can't manage it, I don't need to care about it. I will cultivate my own way and don't need to pay attention to the ups and downs of the outside world."

"What you said makes some sense!"

Chu Zhou smiled. In fact, Hao Songqing’s idea was exactly what Chu Zhou was going to do.

The immortal sect is not a martial arts sect that rolls in the mortal world. If you want to enter and exit the underworld and enjoy great freedom and ease, you must let go of the mundane world and the trivialities of the world.

Of course, having said that, Chu Zhou was not ready to let it go completely.

If the killing is excessive and causes the wrath of heaven and resentment from the people; or if some people obtain immortal magic, embark on the path to immortality, and use it to show off their power and kill countless people, then it is no wonder that Chu Zhou has to intervene.

In short, the world can be in chaos, but there must be a limit.

As he was thinking about this, another question popped up in his mind. Chu Zhou asked again, "Mr. Hao, you said that there has never been a time when the world was unified?"

"Great unification? Does it mean that the whole world is under the rule of one dynasty?" "Yes!"

"No, I haven't seen it in any of the ancient books anyway!"

Chu Zhou was a little confused: "Why not?"

Hao Songqing was even more confused: "I don't quite understand what you're saying. Why do we need it?"

"Uh……"

Chu Zhou was stunned, and suddenly he seemed to understand something.

This world is originally scattered. Tracing back to the ancient times, among the ancient immortals, everything existed in the form of tribes.

There was no monarch as wise and capable as the Emperor Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Wu of Han, nor was there a dynasty that unified the world. Even if someone did gain control of the world, there would be no such crazy idea of ​​unifying the world.

Changing the topic, Chu Zhou looked at the world map again and asked another question: "Mr. Hao, do you think the world is too small?"

"Small?"

Hao Songqing showed confusion on his face. He also looked at the simple map he drew and said, "The three kingdoms together are thousands of miles apart, why do you say one is small?
Moreover, the reason why I feel that there is no great unification in the world is because the area is too large and the distances are too far.

The distance was too far and the roads were not smooth. Once a policy was issued by the court, it would take too much time to travel back and forth.

As a result, the imperial court’s control will inevitably decline, and it will be impossible to maintain long-term rule.”

Chu Zhou shook his head and said, "Then let me ask it another way. In this world, besides Dayan, Dayun and the Golden Horde, what else is there in the four corners of the world?"

That’s right, from the perspective of mortals and their pace, the world is big enough, but from the perspective of immortals, it is too small.

Chu Zhou really wanted to know what the situation was outside this world.
After hearing what he said, Hao Songqing understood and frowned slightly. He said, "North of the Golden Horde, across the Great Snow Mountain and even to the far north, thousands of miles of land is covered with ice and snow, with no human habitation.

To the west of the Dayan Dynasty, that is, the extreme west, it is said that it is vast and boundless with yellow sand all over the sky, even to the point of being a desolate place where no living person is allowed to enter.

To the east of the Dayun Dynasty, that is, the far east, there are continuous mountains, some of which are thousands of feet high and even birds cannot fly over them.

As for the southernmost land, the sea is boundless. Although there are ships sailing and goods can be transported between Dayan and Dayun, no one has ever been to the end of the sea. "

"Ice fields, deserts, mountains, and oceans. So, is the world surrounded like this?"

Chu Zhou frowned slightly and asked, "What about going outside?"

After a pause, he continued, "These places are indeed like natural barriers to ordinary people, but for powerful warriors, especially martial arts masters, they are just that.

They, have they never thought of investigating?"

"What about this?"

Hao Songqing also frowned, and a thoughtful look appeared on his scarred face. After a long time, his eyes lit up and he said, "I have read an ancient book, which is said to be the travel notes of a land immortal, but it is difficult for me to judge whether it is true or not."

"You say yours, and I'll judge for myself whether it's true or not?"

“I remember that book said that after he became a land immortal, his path to martial arts was over and he had no direction to move forward.

As time passed and he grew older, he was unwilling to give up, so he once took the risk himself to explore the land beyond the mountains, in the far east.

But after crossing the thousands-foot-high mountains, all you can see is thick fog covering the entire area.

He once stepped into it and felt that all his five senses and six consciousnesses were obscured, so that he could not tell east from west, nor north from south.

He drank nectar as water and captured animals for food. After an unknown amount of time, he finally escaped from danger. However, when he found some living people, he realized that a whole year had passed.

But it's not over yet.

He went to the Far East again, sailed on the sea, used a compass to locate the north, and headed further south.

Finally, after two months of sailing and experiencing various situations, big and small, we saw the place where the water and the sky meet, but it was covered by a thick fog, so thick that we couldn't see our hands in front of us.

This time, he did not dare to take the risk himself, but drove the sailors in and tied a rope around their waists.

Unfortunately, the sailor also lost his way after entering. If he hadn’t been pulled back by the rope, he would have died.”

“As for the Arctic Ice Field and the Western Desert, he has never been there.

But he had a guess that this world was shrouded in fog, so he gave those four extreme places a name, the End of the World! "

"Before, I thought this was just a fantasy, something some idiot had made up.

It was only when the master asked me that I suddenly remembered. "

As he said this, Hao Songqing's face showed confusion again, and he said: "But, if there really is an end to the world, then some of the records left by the ancients are a little unreliable.

According to ancient records, this world was billions of miles long and wide, but now it seems so much smaller!

That doesn’t make sense?”

As Hao Songqing was talking, he became confused. Chu Zhou, however, had some ideas. He did not say much, but said: "We are cultivating immortals. Once we are strong enough, we can enter and exit the Azure Underworld. We can gradually understand what this world looks like.

Don't worry, don't worry! "

"Yeah, I'll wait a little longer then."

Hao Songqing also nodded. Xuanzhen Temple did not hide anything from him. He could choose any method of cultivating immortality, magic or supernatural power.

Although he is usually busy and has a lot of things to do, he is also very diligent in his practice. He has now entered the tenth level of Qi Drawing and is about to reach the boundary of Foundation Building.

"Well, that's it! Mr. Hao, let me have the map first, so I can take a look at it."

"it is good!"

Hao Songqing walked away, turned around and left, his figure still steady.

Chu Zhou looked at his back and couldn't help but admire him. This man seemed to have reached the point where he was not surprised by praise or criticism. He really had a good character.

His cultivation speed was faster than Fan Zhong and Wei Jinkui. It was probably his tempered character that played a big role.

However, Chu Zhou did not pay much attention to it. Instead, he turned back to his desk, looked at the map again, and reached out to knock on the animal skin.

Hey!
Da da!

Da da da!
The crisp sound drifted farther in the study. After an unknown amount of time, Chu Zhou murmured.

"Shrouded in fog, I lost my way. The sky is at the end, at the end. Haha, those warriors who broke into Xuanzhen Temple also got lost in the mountain protection formation."

"In this case, the end of the world may really be the end of something."

"And the secret realm, the blessed land, the immortal realm, and the ancient immortals are becoming more and more interesting!"

"I just wonder if the unknown dangers brought about by opening this secret realm are also related to this?"

"There are so many hidden secrets here, right?!"

"Secret realm, secret realm, should I go look for it now, or wait a while?"

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(End of this chapter)