How can one cultivate immortality without learning modern knowledge?

Chapter 138 Opening the Path to the Sea, Uniting the Hearts of Literature

The reason they lost was that they underestimated one person.

Zhou Wenju!

A low-level writer with no literary talent, a legendary figure whose name was unknown to anyone just six months ago.

His poetic talent is unmatched.

His philosophy of music—he only needed to make a bamboo flute on the spot to push the world's music into the era of seven notes!

This achievement of breaking through the Dao has already been determined by the Heavenly Dao.

Such a master of music, let alone He Shuchao, would send chills down the spine even if the head of the Sheng family of music were to come in person!

Why is this?

How can one person straddle two paths, causing all the geniuses on both paths to question their existence?

Inside the wooden house.

Ye Xiaoxiao sprang to her feet, her face flushed.

The saintess also sprang to her feet, her forehead now covered in messy "fallen flower marks".

The traces of fallen petals represent her Daoist heart.

A heart as firm as iron, a mark as sharp as a hook.

When the mind is disturbed, the patterns on the flower are disordered.

At this moment, her Dao heart finally broke down—

Above the sky, a spectacular sight of literature and art unfolded before everyone's eyes: countless blue orioles of literature and art pulled a blue river of literature and art soaring into the sky, reaching the horizon.

This green river is like a green road, stretching for hundreds of miles.

The Baili Qingdao Road is almost comparable to the main road of poetry.

Although Zhou Wenju did not break away from the true path of music and open up another great road, the arrival of the Seven Tones Era marked the true maturation of the path of music.

In terms of the Dao, its transformative power is extraordinary; the fact that Heaven grants a "hundred-mile-wide road" is enough to demonstrate its importance.

The Baili Qinghe River stretched straight into the sky. Above, the Dao Sea opened, and the Baili Qinghe plunged into it. Countless spirit fish rushed towards it, each one leaping with its own musical notes, exceptionally lively. In the sky, it seemed as if his flute music could faintly echo—

"The Dao Sea has opened again!" Countless people among the Spirit Clan cheered.

Some sighed, "Human scholars are truly unimaginable. In a single day, they opened two Dao Seas. Opening Dao Seas is as easy for them as taking candy from a baby."

"Simple? Senior Brother considers this simple?" Someone corrected: "Among the sixteen Grandmasters present, all of them are the top literary and Daoist Grandmasters of their respective countries. Only this Young Master Zhou has opened the Dao Sea twice, while the others have not. This precisely illustrates that opening the Dao Sea is more difficult than ascending to heaven."

"Yes, the Dao Sea is difficult to open, it is the common opinion of the world, this young master Zhou — he is probably truly favored by the Dao."

"The Great Yu Kingdom is favored by Heaven and possesses boundless fortune. If my Spirit Clan were to form a marriage alliance with the Great Yu Kingdom, wouldn't we also receive the favor of Heaven?"

The entire Eldar race's political climate has truly shifted.

Because the results of the Aoyama Literary Association meeting have already been released.

Daewoo wins!

Therefore, according to the agreement, the marriage partner of the Spirit Clan is the Great Yu Kingdom.

The Great Yu Kingdom is so favored by Heaven that opening the Dao Sea is as easy as playing with it. The Spirit Race can also share in this fortune in the future. If they successfully open the Ancient Spirit Array Diagram of the Vast Sea, then the Spirit Race's spring will have arrived.

On the high platform, Ling Feng and the three leaders of the Spirit Clan all wore conflicted expressions.

The Second Elder gently placed his hand on his waist.

His gaze fell on Li Ruoxu.

Li Ruoxu stared straight at the sky, not looking at him.

The Second Elder gently moved his hand away, a slight panic rising within him.

The ancient array diagram in his arms was excellent, but it seemed a bit too hot to handle at the moment.

He took what belonged to him, but ultimately failed to accomplish anything.

This tastes really not good.

However, he was at a loss.

The rules have been set: the winner of the Qingshan Literary Gathering will be granted a marriage alliance.

This is a consensus that the two major factions within the Eldar have worked so hard to reach. Can it be destroyed?

No!

He has professional ethics; once he takes someone's money, he will never fail to deliver.

God is my witness, his help was truly invaluable.

They even resorted to forbidden techniques like poisoning.

However, it still didn't help the Great Yan Kingdom win. My God, could this really be the will of Heaven?

For a moment, this elder, who had weathered countless years of trials and tribulations and believed he had seen through the ways of the world, began to believe in fate.

Above the sky, Zhou Wenju's expression suddenly changed, as if he had gulped down an extremely strong liquor.

Yes, within the hundred-mile-long Qinghe River, countless Heavenly Spirit Fish vied to enter its body.

His brain once again experienced the sensation of being bursting—

Even with the heaven and earth barrier wide open and countless streams of literary energy pouring into his body, causing the Five Paths Mountain within him to expand tenfold immediately, it still couldn't completely eliminate the impact of this literary energy.

This surge of literary energy was like a raging torrent, sweeping over the mountain of literature in my mind.

It suddenly transformed into a massive vortex.

At the center of the vortex, a point, like a spindle, rotates once, becoming substantial; after a hundred rotations, a crystal-clear literary heart emerges above the literary mountain!

A thousand rotations, the literary mind gathers all the literary spirit —

Zhou Wenju stepped into a completely new realm —

He broke through to the realm of literary mind!

He still didn't know whether his entry into the Literary Mind Realm was due to the abundance of literary energy that pushed him to a completely new level, or because of the breakthrough he had made.

The former aligns well with the basic rules of cultivation—when one's vital energy is abundant, one's realm becomes like a dam, allowing one to break through and ascend to a higher level.

The latter aligns well with his past experiences.

On that day, he wrote a poem and won the literary prize.

Writing lyrics rises from the roots of literature to the literary world.

Registering firearms was a bold move that set foot on the literary path, disrupting the literary world and establishing a literary mountain.

Now, Wenshan has been upgraded to Wenxin, temporarily taking on the role of Ledao.

With four leaps across different paths, the realm of literature and art has risen four levels.

This "coincidence" gave him an idea: Was his improvement in literary and moral level closely related to crossing over into other fields? Or was it even based on crossing over into other fields?

Otherwise, why doesn't the literary cultivation level increase when one doesn't cross paths, but only when one crosses a path does the literary cultivation level increase?

I don't have time to think about this right now.

An even bigger surprise awaited him as he calmed his excited heart.

This pleasant surprise is the wondrous sight that appears in the sea of ​​consciousness after breaking through to the heart of literature—

His literary heart has nine facets.

It appears to be a nine-sided literary wall.

Once the literary mind was formed, marks appeared on four sides.

One side is poetry.

All the poems he wrote are listed there.

One side is words.

All the words he wrote were on it.

On one side is the Way of Ink.

On this wall of the inkstone, there are no words, only a gun.

On one hand, there is joy and pleasure.

He probed into the sound with his mind and heard the very same "Yangguan Sandie" that he had just played.

The battle poem above the literary heart could be transformed in an instant into the attack he just delivered against Wang Zhiyi, a full-force strike against the enemy.

He could fire a bullet from the gun on Wenxin's head in the blink of an eye.

This is already defying the heavens!

What's even more incredible is that he can use words that are clearly not combat skills in unbelievable ways, such as the character "moon" that he wrote many times.

With a thought, the character "月" (moon) rose into the sky.

A bright moon appeared in his mind's eye.

If this were moved to the real world, when walking at night, even if there are thick clouds or torrential rain, he could still see a bright moon overhead. Wouldn't you say that's incredibly strange?

No wonder people say that literature is the most magical path.

The power of literary cultivation is not obvious at the lower levels, but once one reaches the level of literary heart, the gap between them and those who cultivate through pulse becomes apparent.

That's indeed the case.

Zhou Wenju now felt that he was terrifyingly strong.

As soon as he opened his eyes, the world beyond the green mountains seemed to be suddenly pulled in front of him.

Every branch, every leaf, every blade of grass, every grain of sand, the iridescent luster on a water droplet, the tiny insect within the droplet—all are visible to him. This is the highest level of understanding in Wen Daohui's eyes: keen insight.

There is another case.

He saw countless illusory things.

Each member of the Spirit Clan possesses a phantom image within them; this is the spirit within the Spirit Clan member.

Those at lower levels have a very vague spirit, seemingly just a wisp of spiritual energy, whose outline is constantly changing.

Upon reaching the level of high-ranking elders, their spirits become clear and concrete; some take the form of trees, some of flowers, some of humans, and some of swords.

These spirits are their primordial spirits.

In other words, he can see the primordial spirit of a cultivator.

Zhou Wenju felt uneasy.

Can the keen insight found in literature reveal the primordial spirit of a cultivator?

Why have I never encountered such supernatural abilities in the information I've collected in the past?

Could it be that his eyes have transcended the scope of Wen Dao Hui Yan and developed another divine skill that others cannot possess?

This is also possible.

The wonder of literature and the Way lies in their multiple possibilities.

Take a pair of eyes, for example; some people have developed the ability to "travel back to the Spring and Autumn Period".

One of the inventions is: keen insight.

Someone developed a skill called "Watching the Fire from Across the River," which is also incredibly powerful. It allows one to see through something.

His own discerning eye, capable of seeing even the smallest details, seemed to exceed his perception of the primordial spirit. But perhaps, in the Heavenly Dao's view, the primordial spirit is merely one type of "small detail"?

A voice rang out from below: "Elders, shouldn't you announce the results of the Green Mountain Literary Gathering?"

Zhuang Wenhua!

At this moment, he completely dispelled all his initial concerns and worries.

Like shedding heavy winter clothes, she faces the whole spring with a light and carefree attitude.

His words immediately silenced the discussions surrounding the Spirit Clan.

On the Yan side, Li Ruoxu's eyes suddenly opened, met Zhuang Wenhua's gaze, his lips twitched slightly, and his eyes slowly closed.

On the high platform, the three elders exchanged glances quickly before slowly rising to their feet.

The Grand Elder stepped forward: "At the Green Mountain Literary Gathering, seven discussions were held on the Dao through literature. The Great Yu Kingdom won in the Dao of Scriptures, Painting, Poetry, and Music, while the Great Yan Kingdom won in the Dao of Calligraphy, Chess, and Mathematics. The masters of both countries have demonstrated extremely high attainments in literature and the Dao, truly broadening the horizons of the entire Spirit Clan!"

He bowed deeply.

More than ten people from both countries stood up and bowed at the same time.

He did not directly state who won or lost, but listed the results of each of the seven literary gatherings.

This can be considered as the final announcement of the outcome of the literary contest, made in the capacity of the arbitrator.

The fact that the winner was not mentioned directly was a way of saving face for the Great Yan Kingdom. After all, the main purpose of the Qingshan Literary Gathering was a "gathering" rather than a "competition." A competition must have a winner and a loser, but a "gathering" is about discussing literature and philosophy, so there is no need to write the winner and loser down on paper.

"The Qingshan Literary Gathering has come to an end. Esteemed masters, you may stay in our clan for a while longer," the Second Elder added.

Zhuang Wenhua smiled: "His Majesty has said beforehand that after the victory at the Qingshan Literary Gathering, he will need to discuss the specifics of the marriage alliance with the elders. Therefore, my group will indeed need to stay for a few more days."

"6

Li Ruoxu's face stiffened, and the entire Yan State team's faces instantly tightened.

The Eldar gave them a dignified treatment.

But Zhuang Wenhua didn't give them any face.

They stated the winner and loser directly, and demanded "winner's benefits"—a marriage alliance!

The Grand Elder smiled gently: "Distinguished guests from Yan, how about you stay for a while?"

Li Ruoxu took a deep breath: "We won't stay any longer, farewell!"

As soon as the voice fell, a royal shuttle soared into the sky from the east courtyard of Lixian and appeared above their heads. The eight people stepped into the flying boat, bowed at the bow, and turned around.

The flying boat took off, breaking through the clouds and disappearing into the distance.

"We shall take our leave now. After informing His Majesty, we may request an audience with the three elders again tomorrow, shall we?" Zhuang Wenhua said with a smile to the three elders.

The Grand Elder nodded slightly: "I must first inform the Clan Chief. We'll meet again tomorrow!"

"Goodbye!" Zhuang Wenhua lifted Wu Tianliang, who was still unconscious, into his arms.

On the other side, Zhou Wenju bent down and picked up Cui Wusheng.

Their eyes met, and their gazes held a meaningful look.

At the same time, they got up, stepped across the flower bridge, and returned to Lixian Villa.

Along the way, there were still beautiful women and handsome men of the Spirit Clan on both sides. Almost everyone's eyes were fixed on Zhou Wenju's face, filled with fervor and passion.

Zhou Wenju didn't dare to look, keeping his eyes down and his mind at ease, and followed Zhuang Wenhua to escort Cui Wusheng into the room.

Cui Wusheng lay there quietly.

Zhou Wenju gently raised his finger and touched the center of his forehead.

His mind was mostly clear, but there was still a trace of strange energy. He stirred it with his literary energy, and it quietly emanated from between his eyebrows.

This energy was originally invisible and intangible to him.

But at this moment, his insightful understanding of literature and philosophy has been upgraded.

He could clearly see this invisible aura, which seemed to have a life of its own, twisting and swirling strangely. Even though this aura was extremely faint, at its last gasp, and posed no real threat, it still sent chills down one's spine.

Someone pushed open the door.

The footsteps were very light.

Zhou Wenju slowly turned around. The person who came was Zhuang Wenhua.

"Lord Gakusho————"

Zhuang Wenhua bowed deeply.

Zhou Wenju was startled: "My lord, please don't do this!"

Zhuang Wenhua slowly raised his head: "Master Zhou, this salute is for the sake of the three billion people of the Great Yu Kingdom!"

"You flatter me, sir!" Zhou Wenju said.

"Master Zhou's achievement is truly remarkable!" Zhuang Wenhua exclaimed. "In the realm of poetry, your ability to break through the barriers was already fraught with countless difficulties. When Master Cui suddenly fell seriously ill, your act of volunteering in the face of danger truly saved the day."

These words expressed his deepest feelings.

But only now can I say it.

"Does Your Excellency really believe that Brother Cui has suddenly fallen seriously ill?" Zhou Wenju asked in a very soft voice.

Zhuang Wenhua's expression suddenly changed—

With a slight blink, a beam of light, like a candle in the dark, silently spread, sealing off the room.

His gaze slowly rose: "What did Grandmaster Zhou discover?"

"This is poison! If nothing unexpected happens, it is a rare poison of the Spirit Clan. Those who are poisoned cannot detect it themselves, and others cannot distinguish it. Its only effect is to trap one's literary mind in a quagmire, making it difficult to exert one's literary skills."

"How can you be sure?" Zhuang Wenhua's whole body tensed up.

"Didn't you ask me before why I left for three days without returning?" Zhou Wenju said, "It's because I was also poisoned by this kind of poison. By chance, I managed to escape this calamity, but it still took me three days."

Zhuang Wenhua's whole body trembled violently.

He has been away for three days and has not returned.

It caused the entire team to be extremely anxious.

In everyone's eyes, this young man was inexperienced, lacked awareness of the consequences, and acted inappropriately.

But who could have imagined it?

He was poisoned!

The trap set and the tactics employed by the other side far exceeded his expectations.

The dangers in the Great Yu Kingdom were ten or a hundred times more terrifying than what he could see with his own eyes.

"Master Zhou—why didn't you say this before the meeting?" Zhuang Wenhua's voice was as soft as a sigh.

"What would happen if I told you?" Zhou Wenju retorted.

"If I had said it, we would be in a dilemma!" Zhuang Wenhua remained silent for a long time: "Is Grandmaster Zhou worried about a complete breakdown in relations with the Spirit Clan?"

Zhou Wenju nodded slightly: "In the grand scheme of things, the rules laid out on the table are just a fig leaf! If we tear off this fig leaf ourselves, we will only force the Spirit Clan to break off all pretense of civility and go down a dark path from which there is no turning back."

Zhuang Wenhua couldn't help but sigh inwardly—

Even though you have leverage over the other party, you choose not to use it.

In the face of the situation, they have a precise grasp and meticulous attention to detail.

This kind of overall perspective.

This kind of reserved and shrewdness.

This kind of scheming—if it doesn't move, it's fine; but if it does, it can turn the tide of battle.

He's so young!

Of all the young people he had ever met in his life, not a single one could match him in any way, including his most prized son.

A thousand thoughts raced through Zhuang Wenhua's mind. He took a deep breath: "In the end, they miscalculated!"