Using entries to cultivate immortality in chaotic times

Chapter 418: Chapter 173: “One must use their own life to uphold the teacher’s prestige.
 

“Proud as the spring breeze with swift horse’s hooves, in a single day admiring all the flowers in Chang An…”

Sitting in front of the desk, the young man looked at the lines of poetry on the Xuan paper and couldn’t help but read it again with satisfaction. What excellent poetry it was, that youthful exuberance of success hitting him squarely in the face!

Only then did he rise to his feet.

After the ink had dried, he carefully rolled up the Xuan paper and prepared to head to tonight’s poetry appreciation convention aboard the “Flower Boat” on the outskirts of the Capital; the event would be attended by many literati and even high-ranking officials.

It was said that several City Lords would be there.

Among them, the City Lord of Flying Fish City from Hai Province was one, a mighty figure with Golden Core Cultivation who also happened to adore poetry. It was rumored that he had collected many poetic treasures left by the Lord National Master himself.

His main purpose for coming this time was to show off.

Poetry and literature had always been prevalent in Da Xia.

Many outstanding poems had been passed down years ago, and gradually, Da Xia Country’s poetry had continued to thrive, with the City Lord of Flying Fish City being one of the collectors with a passion for poetry.

Tonight, just one or two hours before the event on the Capital’s outskirts on the “Flower Boat” would begin.

Scores of top Oirans and young men and women from noble families were all hastening toward the Flower Boat, ready to participate in this annual convention.

…

Outside on the riverbank near the Flower Boat.

“Hey.”

The Flying Fish City Lord, suddenly looking towards the Fat City Lord approaching the Flower Boat, broke into a grin: “Isn’t that our dear Fat City Lord? Long time no see. I heard you clung to the National Master shamelessly, insisting on going with him to the Xuantian Continent. How come you’re back?”

“Let me think… If I’m not mistaken, it seems like you were tossed aside just before you left.”

The Fat City Lord’s expression turned slightly sour as he shook his head: “Right before we left, I suddenly wanted to go home for something, so I applied to the National Master for permission, which he granted. It’s just that he forgot about me when we were leaving.”

“Otherwise, how could you see me now?”

“I’m a sixth-layer Body Cultivator. Sticking by the National Master’s side, who knows how much strength I could’ve added for him.”

“Maybe I would’ve broken through to the Nascent Soul by now.”

“Heh heh.”

The Flying Fish City Lord was quite pleased, grinning at this. The National Master hadn’t looked for him, his cultivation wasn’t at the Golden Core Peak either, and he had been too embarrassed to seek out the National Master on his own. But now that he learned his good brother had also been left behind, his mind felt much more balanced.

His own disappointment was saddening, but the disappointment of a close friend was actually invigorating.

“Alright alright.”

The Flying Fish City Lord, as if coddling a child, wrapped his arm around the shoulder of the Fat City Lord and teasingly pulled out a piece of calligraphy from his bosom, carefully spreading the Xuan paper in the air.

On it were written four bold characters.

“Strongest City Lord”!

“Look, look, there’s still a breath of the National Master on it. This is the Lord National Master’s endorsement of me. Do you have one?”

“And this—”

The Flying Fish City Lord pulled out another piece of calligraphy and once more spread the Xuan paper in the air.

It was a poem.

“Formerly scorned for lack of acclaim, now wandering thoughts bound by no frame.”

“Proud as the spring breeze with swift horse’s hooves, in a single day admiring all the flowers in Chang An.”

“This, outlined by the National Master decades ago on this very Flower Boat, was during a poetry appreciation convention, shortly after the beginning of spring. The National Master took seven steps there, the first three steps in contemplation, and with the last four steps, he uttered a poem for each.”

“After four steps, he completed this poem.”

“At that time, everyone thought the Lord National Master was an epoch-making genius, spontaneously creating verses. ‘Proud as the spring breeze with swift horse’s hooves, in a single day admiring all the flowers in Chang An,’ it perfectly expresses the triumphant spirit of youth and starkly contrasts with the preceding two lines of despair. What great writing! The National Master’s works, though spontaneous, are all unmatched gems!”

“It was later realised that the Lord National Master had long been well-read in the poetry and literature of Da Xia, and only after having read through all the passed-down poems of Da Xia, did he produce this earth-shaking masterpiece in a burst of inspiration!”

“It’s just a pity…”

The Flying Fish City Lord shook his head regretfully: “Almost all of the poetry passed down from Da Xia lacks an author’s name; we don’t even know who the contemporary geniuses who penned these were. People in the past for some reason didn’t seem to pay attention to signing their work, and even when they created such timeless works of poetry, they often couldn’t be bothered to sign their names, truly carefree, with no one to record their deeds in future generations.”

“Indeed.”

The Fat City Lord looked enviously at the two pieces of calligraphy in the hands of the Flying Fish City Lord and lamented: “It’s been three or four decades, but for some reason, it feels like it was only yesterday.”

“Back then, I was just a deputy city lord.”

“I had just entered Golden Core not long ago; that was the first time I saw the National Master demonstrate his poetic talent. But thereafter, the National Master rarely composed poems in seven steps. The National Master really has talent in this regard, it’s just that his ambition lies elsewhere. The aspiration of the National Master… is too vast.”

“But the National Master made it.” The Fat City Lord raised his eyebrows and smiled: “Didn’t he?”

“Yes, he did.”

The Fat City Lord said with a tinge of melancholy: “For so many years in Da Xia Country, we’ve only had one National Master, unmatched from ancient times to the present.”

“It’s just unknown whether the Lord National Master will come back, whether there will be another chance to meet him in the future.”

“He will.”

The Flying Fish City Lord spoke with certainty.

“Why?”

“What’s the difference between achieving fame and success without returning home and dying in a foreign land?”

The Flying Fish City Lord looked earnestly towards the brightly lit Flower Boat, which had already begun to fill with people, and said: “For the past hundred years, for the planning of the National Master, countless people have done only one thing.”