Chapter 665: Playing Tricks (Thanks to Suo B47 for the Alliance Leader)

Chapter 665: Playing Tricks (Thanks to Alliance Master Suo B47)

“Now this Longhu Daoist Kingdom is flourishing more and more. At this rate, it won’t be long before Celestial Master Zhang can attempt to break through to Order One, right?”

“President Yan is joking. If mere numbers of believers could allow one to ascend to heaven and become an immortal, then the Zhu emperor would have long since attained godhood. How could he have fallen to his current state?”

Liang Gongming listened to Yan Dongqing’s admiration beside him and could not help but smile as he shook his head.

“The Dao dwells in the high heavens. In ancient times, those who wished to see the Dao had to approach it through some means—by transforming into a rainbow, riding a crane, or sailing the wind. Now this vast sea of believers is merely the Celestial Master’s own stairway to heaven. As for finally attaining the Dao, there are still many barriers and bottlenecks to be penetrated. It cannot be rushed.”

“I see. Then I was merely talking nonsense. But even if achieving Order One is beset by a thousand difficulties and ten thousand obstacles, Celestial Master Zhang can still be called the foremost figure in Daoism since antiquity. For a hundred or even a thousand years to come, no one should be able to match him.”

This was a platform at the summit of a peak. Yan Dongqing stood at the edge, looking down from a height at Guixi City, where the clamor of voices and the smoke of incense were both at their peak.

“When Celestial Master Zhang ascends to become an immortal lord in heaven in the future, Reverend Liang, you will be the Dao Ancestor of the mortal world.”

Yan Dongqing suddenly spoke with profound meaning.

“I dare not accept such an honor.”

Liang Gongming, standing shoulder to shoulder with him, smiled faintly. “I am now merely an ordinary devotee of the Dao within the Celestial Master Mansion. Whatever happens in the future, the immortal lord in heaven will only be surnamed Zhang, and the earthly Dao Ancestor will also only be surnamed Zhang.”

“Zhang Fengyue is now the leading figure of the Confucian Order, unrivaled in the art of ‘mathematics.’ Yet among the Six Arts, the ‘Rites’ art is still revered as the foremost.”

Yan Dongqing turned to look at him. “Does the Reverend know why?”

Liang Gongming frowned slightly, not understanding why Yan Dongqing had suddenly steered the conversation to the ‘Six Arts.’ After a moment’s thought, he said, “I am ignorant and ill-informed. I pray the President will enlighten me.”

“Because without rules, nothing can be accomplished. Ruler and subject are rules; teacher and student are rules; father and son are also rules. The classics and texts handed down by the sages are vast as an ocean, but their core is about rules. The rituals and procedures for advancing through the various orders do not communicate with each other, yet their essence is the same—they too are rules. Therefore, rules are the true foundation and advantage of the Confucian Order.”

Yan Dongqing said softly, “Although I am shallow in learning and talent, and only broke through to the orders through the rapid promotion of imperial favor, a leaky Order Three is still Order Three. Right now, the rules I have set are around us. Do not listen to impropriety, do not look at impropriety; we may speak freely.”

Yan Dongqing paused, his gaze fixed on Liang Gongming, who was feigning sudden understanding. He no longer concealed his intent and asked directly.

“Reverend Liang, do you truly intend to spend the rest of your life on this Dragon Tiger Mountain?”

Hearing this, Liang Gongming’s heart tightened.

He subconsciously looked up at the floating summit above. “President, I cannot understand a single word you are saying.”

“I know you have your concerns, but I am not a man courting death. Since I dare to ask this question, I naturally am not worried that a third person will overhear. Unless Reverend Liang disdains to associate with a lost man like me and is determined to abandon the light for the darkness.”

Yan Dongqing half-closed his eyes. “However, I do not believe you are that kind of man.”

“I still cannot understand what President Yan is saying, and I have no interest in spending my effort deciphering your meaning. Please rest well, President. I shall take my leave.”

Liang Gongming threw out a cold, hard remark and turned to leave without hesitation.

“Not long ago, Fuli’s life was nearly lost in Chengdu Prefecture. Once a sect leader, now reduced to another’s pawn, charging into battle, living from hand to mouth—truly lamentable.”

A sigh, whether sincere or feigned, successfully halted Liang Gongming’s steps.

“A scholar dies for his bosom friend—that is a saying from your own Confucian Order. The Celestial Master gave Fuli a way to live; now he repays with his death. Is that not right?” Liang Gongming said without turning back.

Yan Dongqing laughed bitterly. “The New Daoist Order has stripped away its old flesh and bone, taking the Dao Foundation as its root, heaven and earth as its parents, seeing this life as a difficult journey, and remaining steadfast as a traveler. Since he is not a scholar, how can he have a so-called bosom friend? Repaying with his life is even more absurd.”

Liang Gongming turned his head like an eagle or wolf. “Your words are enough to earn you death a hundred or a thousand times!”

“Yet I am still alive and well. No flying sword has fallen from heaven, nor has any thunderbolt struck.”

Yan Dongqing spread his hands. ‘Every man for himself, and the devil take the hindmost.’ That is the maxim people like us should hold sacred.”

“What kind of people are you and me?” Liang Gongming asked coldly.

“People who refuse to be manipulated, of course.”

Liang Gongming turned fully around, sneering. “Yan Dongqing, don’t forget—you were the one who chose to come to Dragon Tiger Mountain. Now you want to drag me down with you?”

“I endure humiliation to survive, having no other choice. Reverend Liang, are you not the same?”

“What do you mean?”

“Neither of us willingly acts as the tiger’s accomplice, nor is it a long-term plan to negotiate with the tiger. So we should both make early preparations.”

Liang Gongming frowned deeply, warning, “Throughout history, those who died most often were those who thought themselves clever. Don’t you understand?”

“Fuli was not clever, but what good did it do him? His Dao Foundation was severely damaged by Zhang Siyuan. Even if he heals, he will never have any hope of advancing again. Within ten years, he will be utterly old and decrepit, sealed away, reduced to cannon fodder released only when someone needs to die.”

Yan Dongqing’s eyes were sharp. “Are you willing to end up like him?”

“Yan Dongqing, this is Dragon Tiger Mountain!”

Liang Gongming’s voice turned harsh, all trace of a cultivator’s otherworldliness gone. He raised his hand and pointed downward.

“I know this is Dragon Tiger Mountain. A mountain full of temples and gods, with a strict hierarchy of high and low, honor and inferiority. There are more rules than Daoist scriptures. The slightest mistake is considered an insult to the gods. Why?”

Yan Dongqing answered his own question. “Because incense is the money of the gods. Only great gods are qualified to eat the incense; lesser gods can only eat the ashes. Those worthless mountain spirits and wild gods are fit only to be treated as unorthodox cults—either taken in as dogs or annihilated.”

“I can come to Dragon Tiger Mountain and be treated as a guest of honor by the Zhang family because I still have value.”

Yan Dongqing spoke with ease. “The struggle between the Spring and Autumn Society and the New Donglin Faction seemed to end with the destruction of the Spring and Autumn Society. But does Reverend Liang truly believe I lost? I can tell you plainly: I did not lose. Everything proceeded according to my plan!”

“The Spring and Autumn Society is gone, but my reputation among the younger generation of the Confucian Order has been pushed to its peak. Though I lack the title of President, I possess the reality of one. And Zhang Fengyue? His conduct grows ever more overbearing, so naturally, more and more people grow dissatisfied with him.”

“What a scholar finds hardest to accept is being ridden like a horse. Outsiders may do so, but never one’s own kind. Even fathers and brothers can be killed, let alone him?”

From below the cliff behind Yan Dongqing rose the sound of devout chanting. Thick incense smoke rose like mountain mist into the sky.

“When Zhang Fengyue’s true intentions are fully exposed, the desperate members of the Confucian Order will explode. That will be the perfect opportunity for me to make my comeback. That is also the reason Zhang Xiji has allowed me to remain on this mountain. But—”

Yan Dongqing’s gaze pierced into Liang Gongming’s eyes. “Where is your value?”

Liang Gongming’s expression appeared calm, but his hands hidden in his Daoist robe sleeves were rubbing against each other.

“The struggle between the old and new sixty years ago, and the bitter defeat of the Zhang family on Dragon Tiger Mountain, gave you hope. Zhang Xiji’s feigned death made you ecstatic. And yet a single seat of the Heavenly Immortal of the Jiazi cycle blocked you for decades. When Zhang Xiji finally returned to life, with a mere turn of his hand, he easily crushed all your previous efforts.”

“Perhaps you attribute everything to bad luck, regretting that the True Man’s sword back then failed to kill Zhang Xiji completely. But have you considered that all of this might have been Zhang Xiji’s plan—a act of self-inflicted suffering, staged by him to shed his skin?”

“In his eyes, people as foolish as you—other than becoming tools for his conquest and food for his immortality—what other value do you have?”

Liang Gongming sneered. “After all this talk, what difference is there between you and me?”

“No difference. That is why we are now grasshoppers tied to the same rope. We must find a way out before our current value is completely exhausted.”

“President Yan’s glib tongue and sharp words are no less impressive than the Zongheng Order that specializes in playing with people’s hearts.”

Liang Gongming’s admiration was heartfelt, but his tone suddenly shifted.

“Yet it is you who is on the brink of death. Why should I be in a hurry?”

Why was Yan Dongqing on the brink? Because everyone knew that Li Jun would soon come to Dragon Tiger Mountain to take his life. The man’s sudden ‘heart-to-heart’ today was certainly related to this.

Yan Dongqing had laid bare Liang Gongming’s situation; Liang Gongming likewise saw through Yan Dongqing’s intentions.

“Ha ha ha ha! If the Zhang family issued an edict today to expel me from the mountain, I would admit the truth of your words ‘on the brink.’ But do you think Zhang Xiji has any intention of handing me over to appease Li Jun?”

“Since he has promised you safety, why are you jumping out so early?”

Liang Gongming narrowed his eyes and smiled. “President Yan, are you not being too impatient?”

“I fear that if I wait any longer, you will no longer be valuable enough to cooperate with me.”

Liang Gongming could no longer maintain his calm demeanor. He asked solemnly, “What did he say to you?”

“Does he need to say anything? Once Li Jun sets foot in the territory of the Longhu Daoist Kingdom, who do you think will be sent to fight the first battle? Himself, or Zhang Chongcheng, who shares his surname, or you, an outsider?”

Yan Dongqing said, “Thus, it is you who is truly ‘on the brink,’ not me.”

"Can you change his mind?"

Liang Gongming, it seemed, finally sensed the crisis; urgency showed in his eyes.

"I cannot."

Liang Gongming's face twisted with sudden ferocity; just as he was about to erupt, he heard Yan Dongqing laugh: "But I can die in your stead, and help you live."

The rampaging divine thought abruptly ceased, and his bristling hair slowly fell back onto his shoulders.

Liang Gongming sized him up with a strange look, yet all he saw was sincerity, with not the slightest hint of jest.

"Yan Dongqing, what exactly do you mean?"

Liang Gongming clearly had no patience to continue this game of riddles and asked directly.

"Reviving by borrowing a corpse is a good method; I also intend to learn from Zhang Xiji."

Yan Dongqing laughed: "But I still need the help of the person behind you, Master Liang!"

"How did you know?"

"I only guessed before, but now I know for sure."

Liang Gongming's face was thick with murderous aura; he laughed in fury: "No wonder you dared to contend with Zhang Fengyue for the position of Confucian Order leader. Such boldness—I, this humble priest, admire it!"

"You flatter me, Master."

Yan Dongqing lowered his eyes and his gaze, his demeanor modest.

"I suppose you've already said this to Fulai as well?"

Yan Dongqing nodded: "Since it was a guess, I had to test each person one by one."

"Aren't you afraid he might betray you?"

"The Zhangs forced you to abandon your sect's ancestral legacy. If you only sought to live in disgrace, clinging to a century of mere survival, that would be to underestimate you all. Anyone who thinks so is truly foolish and a laughingstock."

"The words I spoke earlier were only to test you, Master Liang. Allow me to offer my apology here."

Yan Dongqing clasped his hands in a bow, and said in a tone filled with respect: "In truth, whether it is you, Master Liang, or Fulai, or even the deceased masters of Maoshan and Gezaoshan, you have all upheld your ancestral precepts, working tirelessly for the rise of your sects. When have you ever feared death?"

"Since you do not fear death, you will surely stop at nothing to make the Zhangs taste the bitterness of a broken clan and a ruined home. Fulai was not chosen by the Eastern Palace, but he is no more willing to be the Zhangs' dog. How could he betray me?"

Liang Gongming fell into a long silence; the trembling of his pupils proved his mind was in turmoil.

After a full quarter of an hour, he let out a long sigh and said slowly: "Yan Dongqing, I can help you once, but the price you must pay is far more than a mere body."

"Naturally."

Yan Dongqing said respectfully: "In my vision, there will be no place for any Daoist state in these mountains and rivers."

"Good! But if you dare to deceive me, I will never forgive you in this life."

Liang Gongming stepped forward, his gaze like a drawn sword, the naked edge pressing straight to the other's face.

"I, Yan Dongqing, dare to deceive a sovereign, dare to fool a god, but I dare not betray a man resolved to die."

On the mountaintop, the two once again stood shoulder to shoulder, their gazes falling simultaneously on a certain spot below.

On a slightly lower peak in the distance, Zhang Chongcheng stood before a great hall, looking up and making a distant bow in their direction.

"He might also be a useful man."

"He deserves only death, not life."

Yan Dongqing and Liang Gongming wore the same smile and both bowed in return to Zhang Chongcheng.

"From this moment on, order a thorough purge of the remaining Daoist followers in Shu. For those who can be cleansed of their faith, give them money and let them go. For the fanatical believers, stamp them with the Confucian Order seal. And if even the seal fails to wash their minds clean... you know what to do."

In the city of Chengdu, Pei Xingjian gazed at the vast ruins blasted by the celestial track of stars; the murderous rage in his eyes could not be contained.

"Send orders to the Confucian temples in every prefecture and county: once anyone suspected of Daoist faith is found within your jurisdiction, handle it yourselves—no need to report!"

"Yes."

The host of Confucian Order members standing behind him responded with one voice and sped away in all directions.

"Lord Pei, the Grand Secretary Zhang is awake."

The old clerk Xu Zhun, standing by with his hands clasped, approached and spoke softly.