Chapter 2 - True Comprehensions of the Way

"How could this be?"

The lord's estate was filled with vibrant colors and celebrations. Yet, Fang Yuan sat alone at a table outside the main hall. He dumbly watched a group of colorful fish swimming in the pond. Suddenly, he got the urge to join them.

He had forgotten how he walked off the stage and how he was brought here by the lord's servants.

Currently, the lord was hosting a banquet.

According to usual practice, after the examination that occurs every three years, the lord would host a banquet to celebrate those who were listed and will one day become disciples of the immortals. This year is naturally of no exception. It is even more vibrant as the lord's daughter was named on the list of candidates as well. Fang Yuan should be sitting on the seat reserved for the guest of honor. Yet, he could only sit at an empty table in the outer hall.

He could feel the sympathy, pity, ridicule and gloating eyes around him. He was beyond exhausted.

He shouldn't be here!

Since the True Comprehensions of the Way part of the examination was cancelled, not only did he not make it onto the second-tier list, but he couldn't even make the third tier list…

Since he spent all his time on the True Comprehensions of the Way, he could not devote time to other disciplines such as medicine, divination or devices. In fact, he had no idea about anything else since his teacher Mister Zhu had said that the True Comprehensions of the Way was most important and worth more than everything else added together…

After all, he could learn the rest after entering the Sect. Yet, to truly understand the scripture, one had to start young.

The reality was so as well. In the immortal examination, Fang Yuan only took the True Comprehensions part and still earned the top position.

Who could have imagined that there would be such misfortune before he could receive the jade seal?

His name was no longer on the list. But since the lord had a kind heart, he ordered his servants to bring Fang Yuan over and arranged a seat for him.

However, he did not mention the marriage again. There was also no longer a seat for Fang Yuan in the inner hall.

The people in the outer hall, perhaps purposely, or perhaps not, all avoided him which forced him to sit by himself at a large table. It was like he had an invisible force s.h.i.+eld that turned people away and isolated himself.

"Hey, little brother Fang is so pitiful. He was originally the top but now…"

"Oh, it is hard for the poor to come out ahead. Even the heavens won't give him a break…"

"Why do you think he's still here? Does he want to be shamed?"

There were many whispers around that burrowed into Fang Yuan's ears like flies.

He felt that he should leave.

"Since you came, why be in such a hurry to leave?"

A large hand fell on Fang Yuan's shoulder and forced him back to his seat.

Fang Yuan turned and saw an elder wearing a blue robe. He was aged around fifty or sixty, thin, and unimposing. He sighed and sat next to Fang Yuan. Raising the liquor bottle, he poured a full cup and handed it to Fang Yuan.

"Mister Zhu…"

Fang Yuan quickly rose to bow as he held this elder in great respect.

This elder is a daoist, formerly one of the Qingyang Sect's inner disciples. He had caught Fang Yuan eavesdropping outside the lecture hall and lead him in. It was also he who taught Fang Yuan for the past ten years and helped create this youth of the present…

…Although, the Fang Yuan of today is a nameless rotten egg!

"Sit down!"

Mister Zhu waved his hands and turned to look at Fang Yuan. He asked softly, "Are you disappointed?"

"I…"

Fang Yuan's mood was low. Ten years of blood and sweat was destroyed in an instant. How could he not be disappointed?

But, looking at the caring eyes of the daoist, he could only smile and say, "I'm just thinking, would the lord still want me as a son-in-law?"

"Haha. You are unnamed on the list. Your future is bleak. Who would want to betroth their daughter to you?"

Mister Zhu laughed and filled another cup of liquor. He stuffed it in Fang Yuan's hand and sighed. "Actually, it was expected that the True Comprehensions of the Way is fake!"

The forced smile on Fang Yuan's face froze as he raised his head to look at Mister Zhu.

Mister Zhu filled a cup for himself and drank it in a single gulp. He sighed and said in a low voice, "It is said that a great calamity befalls us every three thousand years that would destroy all life. A thousand years ago, to prevent this great calamity, top experts from the immortals (xianmen), the demon faction (mozong), and the spirit tribe (yaozu) abandoned their differences and gathered at the Yuxu Cave Mansion on top of Kunlun Mountain. They worked together to find a way against the great calamity. But, no one could have imagined that after studying for ten years, there was a disaster just as they were about to complete their retreat. Rolling fires fell from the sky and the Yuxu Mansion was destroyed. Not a single expert from the three factions came out alive. Even now, we do not know what happened!"

"However, even though the three factions' experts perished at Yuxu Mansion, rumors started about them being successful in creating a tome called the

>. Within this tome held the secret to fight against the great calamity of three thousand years. Each faction was relentless in finding the

>."

"No one could have imagined that this tome really did appear. Not only did it appear but hundreds of copies appeared at once. What is more mysterious is that these tomes had similarities and differences in content. Not a single faction could figure out which was real, and which was fake at the time. So, every immortal sect that obtained a

> treasured it. Countless people spent their lives studying its secrets. Pitifully, after a few hundred years, every single one was proven to be fake!"

"Then the Qingyang Sect…" said Fang Yuan subconsciously with hesitation.

"The True Comprehensions of the Way of the Qingyang Sect was obtained by Grandmaster Gu Song seven hundred years ago. He studied it for a few hundred years without result. Thus, he pa.s.sed it to others within the Qingyang Sect. No one could understand its secrets. He had no choice but to share it with the four other great immortal sects. Countless people of the five immortal sects spent countless years on this tome and still gained nothing…"

"Since then, there were various speculations. One of them came from a diviner!"

"The diviner had been good friends with Grandmaster Gu Song for eight hundred years. After considering the text, he believed that this True Comprehensions of the Way is unpredictable. It contains a great opportunity. But the greater one's cultivation, the easier it is for the text to blind one's eyes to the truth. Therefore, it is necessary to find those who had not stepped onto the path of cultivation to interpret it. Grandmaster Gu Song deeply believed in this theory. Three hundred years ago, he started recruiting mortal disciples. From this came the immortal examination that occurs every three years…"

Mister Zhu gave a long sigh. "In these three hundred years, who knows how many people were accepted to the immortals. Yet, nothing was learned from the True Comprehensions of the Way. Coincidentally, the immortal examinations helped the sect obtain many new talents. As time pa.s.sed, the other sects lost hope for understanding the True Comprehensions of the Way and started choosing disciples based on other abilities. A hundred years ago, there were people in the Qingyang Sect who proposed to do the same. Only the Grandmaster was against it. But since no one could go against his will, things went as it did until yesterday. The True Comprehensions of the Way had always been the most important subject in the examination…"

"Then…. Then why did it have to be today…"

Fang Yuan couldn't understand. Why did it have to be the moment when he received the highest honor that it would be cancelled?

"That is because Grandmaster Gu Song pa.s.sed away three days ago!"

Mister Zhu's face was full of emotion and seemed to be embarra.s.sed about it.

Fang Yuan was frozen and did not know how to respond.

Mister Zhu laughed bitterly. "Actually, I had spent most of my life on this scripture as well. Each time I felt like I learned something would end in disappointment. I have also been suspicious about whether this is fake. I foresaw that there will be a day when my suspicions would be proven correct. Even then, I continued guiding you all. Not because I wanted to hurt you, but because of its weight in the immortals examination. Studying this subject does not cost money like other subjects and was perfect for those from poor circ.u.mstances. It is a great opportunity to use this path to enter the immortals. Even if it were to be proven fake in the future and you must start fresh, it would still be better than being expelled. Using this method, I had delivered many talents to the immortals. Yet, I have mistreated you…"

"Mistreated me?"

Fang Yuan was lost and the smile on his face turned bitter.

Mister Zhu sighed and said, "I did not come to talk about this. There is only one thing I want to tell you!"

Fang Yuan refocused and laughed bitterly, "If mister wants to comfort me, then why don't you share a bottle of your treasured pear flower liquor with me…"

"If I had a daughter, I would betroth her to you without hesitation. But to desire my pear flower liquor… you better forget about it."

Mister Zhu laughed, then looked into Fang Yuan's eyes. After a moment, he gravely said, "My words are not to comfort you. I just wanted to tell you a truth… The True Comprehensions of the Way may be fake, but your number one place on the list is not!"

Fang Yuan was shocked and raised his head to look at Mister Zhu.

"Let's not consider whether the True Comprehensions of the Way is real or not. No one can say that it is easy to study. Interpreting the scripture is a difficult and arduous process. Each word, each sentence can lead to many interpretations. To excel in this subject, not only do you have to memorize the entire text, but also need the text from other sects and the previous interpretations of countless scholars. Even great scholars with years of cultivation have descended into madness after studying the True Comprehensions of the Way, let alone children like you guys."

Speaking till this point, Mister Zhu looked at Fang Yang with love, "This old man has taught at Taiyue City's immortal student hall for decades. I have seen countless smart and talented children. But I have never seen one who worked as hard as you. You were able to accomplish what great cultivators and experts could not. Just with this one point, I admire you greatly…"

"So…"

"The glory of topping the list is the result of your ten years of effort. You are the winner among the hundred thousand students in the Yue Country. Not only did you start from the same point as everyone else, but your family situation could not compare to many others. Still, you used these ten years and excelled above them. Who can say that your position on the list is fake? Who can deny that you are stronger than them?"

Mister Zhu looked at him with dignity and heavily patted Fang Yuan's shoulder. "Child. Today will be my last lesson for you. Don't forget how you spent the last ten years. When you step onto the path of cultivation, it will be your guide!"

With these words, Mister Zhu drank another cup of liquor and turned to leave.

"How I spent the last ten years…" murmured Fang Yuan as he watched Mister Zhu's retreating shadow.

"Right, how did I spend these last ten years?"

"When I was five, I climbed onto the banyan tree outside of the immortal student hall to eavesdrop on Mister Zhu's lecture and got stunned by bees to end up with a head full of b.u.mps…"

"When I was seven, I worked alongside my uncle and aunt in the field while reciting Mister Zhu's teachings. The sickle cut my hand and I didn't even notice until I saw fresh blood sprinkled on the seedlings…"

"When I was ten, I would dream of those hateful verses everyday…"

Feelings of sadness and pride rose from the depth of his heart…

"How did I get here?"

"I paid ten times more blood and sweat than anyone else. I spent ten times more effort to get to where I am today…"

"Mister Zhu is right. You guys can say that the True Comprehensions of the Way is fake and deny I really won. But who can say that I did not earn the top position with my own strength and excel over everyone else?"

He forcefully poured the cup of liquor that Mister Zhu had given him down his throat and immediately filled another.

He looked up at the direction in which Mister Zhu had left and silently said, "Rest a.s.sured Mister Zhu. I will not collapse from this!"

With the knot untied, the fog in front of Fang Yuan dispersed. His body regained strength as he gave a sigh of relief; readying to leave. As he stood up, he couldn't help but think of another question, "If the True Comprehensions of the Way is fake, then during these years, when he studied its contents, why did his heart seem to move?"

After thinking about this question, he remembered that a month ago, during a night when he was half awake, he suddenly felt a breakthrough and seemed to touch upon a mysterious power…

He didn't know whether it was a hallucination or real, so he never told anyone!

He once believed that when he begins his cultivation, he would be able to use the feeling to understand the truth within the True Comprehensions of the Way. Who could have imagined that it would be fake?