The Path of the Sage

Deep at the mouth where the Yangtze River flows into the sea, the Flood Dragon Palace gently swayed.

"Ah... out of all people to provoke, you chose someone capable of composing imperial poems. And the little princess, who has read countless poems, happens to adore his the most. Had you won, that'd be the end of it. But since you lost, what a pity, such a pity..."

Above the Yangtze River, the Flood Dragon King of Qingjiang opened its draconic mouth, its eyes glaring wide. With a slight release of its grip, the sacred horn of the Flood Dragon fell. But with a swift move, its claw caught the horn.

"An imperial poem... there's an ominous feeling about it! He's only written half of it. I still have a chance!"

With these thoughts, the Dragon King held the sacred horn in its mouth, pouring his vital energy into it.

The heavens and earth changed color again, dark clouds reconvened, rain resumed, and a thick curtain of rain blotted out the sun.

The literati of Jing Kingdom felt their hearts tighten. The first two lines, "In the deep ocean the mountains are dark, reaching the heavens nations gleam," had the "momentum" but not enough "power." The final lines are crucial; if the "force" isn't enough, then the dragon depicted on the paper can't truly transform, and it would be impossible to end the heavy rain and flood in Jiang State.

Only a poem that can form a dragon is a true imperial poem.

Literati from Qing Nation cursed Fang Yun, wishing him failure in their hearts.

Fang Yun penned down:

"When rain and wind cloud our sight, the sun breaks through, shining Divine State bright!"

Before he could finish the last line, Feng Yuanjun exclaimed, "Sun breaking through the waves, that's enough!"

Fang Yun titled the poem "Praising the Sun" at the top.

Upon completion, the small dragon shadow on the paper solidified, transforming into a golden dragon. Yet, it was still able to swim within the confines of the paper. The golden dragon consumed every character Fang Yun wrote, making smacking noises. It then began to push against the paper as if trying to break free.

With a soft "pop," the paper exploded into a cloud of mist. Following this, the golden dragon emerged from the mist, flying into the sky and growing larger with each ascent.

"Roar..."

With a deafening roar, the golden dragon calmed the winds and halted the rain across thousands of miles in Jiang State.

The sun, which was originally set to set in two hours, suddenly emitted endless red rays, bright as the rising sun, piercing through the clouds, dispersing the fog and mist.

Wherever the sunlight reached, rivers reversed their flow, rain evaporated, and the impending flood crisis was swiftly resolved.

Tens of thousands of water demons, exposed to this sunlight, evaporated and screamed, fleeing into the depths and desperately swimming towards the Yangtze River.

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Then, the sunlight seemed to converge on the golden dragon formed by the imperial poem. The dragon suddenly shone brightly, dazzlingly so.

Hovering above the city tower, everyone but Fang Yun had to shield their eyes. Even the highest-ranked official, Lord Lu, had to close his eyes to avoid being blinded. Even the servants squinted.

The golden dragon, seemingly sentient, turned to glance at Fang Yun before letting out a defiant roar at the Dragon King.

Despite being a noble Flood Dragon King, second only to the Dragon lineage, it found its scales shattered, blood splattering, under the roar of the Sun Dragon.

The Dragon King was dumbstruck. "It's just an imperial poem. Why is the emperor's dragon aura so strong?"

Before the Dragon King could understand, a cloud rose from the East Sea. The Dragon King watched as the sacred horn of the Flood Dragon, seemingly grown wings, left its grasp and flew towards the Flood Dragon Palace.

"You are..."

Before the Dragon King could speak, a melodious dragon chant echoed in the sky.

"Flood Dragon King of Qingjiang, you've defied the East Sea Dragon Palace's decree, attacking the Jade Sea Port at night. First crime, horn severed!"

Before the Dragon King could react, a giant seal, measuring a full zhang on each side, appeared in the sky. The seal looked like an ordinary jade seal but had a dragon palace carved on its top.

The sight of the Dragon Clan's seal sent shivers down the Dragon King.

With a scream, both of the Dragon King's horns were severed.

"For stealing sacred objects, misusing the waters of the Four Seas, causing chaos in a state, leading to countless deaths. Second crime, skin peeled!"

The mark of the Dragon Clan remained motionless, but the Flood Dragon King suddenly cried out in pain. A crack opened on its chin, extending all the way to its belly and ultimately reaching the tail. Subsequently, an entire dragon's skin was peeled off.

The people on the city tower watched this scene in disbelief. After all, the opponent was the son of the Dragon Saint, a king among demons with the sacred dragon bloodline. Even those Great Scholars who rarely engage in combat couldn't kill it. Such a mighty demon king was now, right above the Flood Dragon Palace, being gruesomely defaced. This was no ordinary punishment.

"Considering your meritorious services to the aquatic clan, we'll take note of your three sinews extracted as punishment. To prevent you from causing harm, we'll extinguish two layers of your Dragon Orb's divine light!"

"No..."

As the Flood Dragon King screamed, blood gushed from its entire body, a significant amount of which flew towards the sky. Eventually, it was absorbed into the mark of the Dragon Clan. The Flood Dragon King's status plummeted from a Demon King to the equivalent of an Imperial Scholar among the human race.

A ray of light shot out from the Dragon Clan's mark, trapping the Flood Dragon King. With a forceful tug, the Flood Dragon King was pulled into the mark and disappeared.

"Follow me," said the voice. The Great Sun Dragon glanced at Fang Yun, noticing a little fox waving its farewell to the dragon. It then let out a long roar and dashed into the cluster of white clouds, disappearing from view.

The remnants of the Flood Dragon King, including its horns, skin, blood, and scales, were levitated by an invisible force and thrown outside the South Gate of the city.

"These are our clan's items to atone. The dragon horn is given to Fang Yun, and no one else should claim it. Fang Yun, if you have original poetic manuscripts, you can exchange them at the Dragon Pavilion."

White clouds returned to the sea. The city tower was silent for a moment, then burst into jubilation.

"Incredible! Absolutely admirable! The Accomplished Scholar has written an emperor's poem. In times of chaos, just this one poem could win over the hearts of an entire state's populace," said an official.

"From the deep sea where thousands of mountains are dark to the sky where ten thousand nations shine brightly. This line is magnificent. While 'thousands of mountains and ten thousand nations' is quite standard, the whole line encapsulates the process of the Great Sun lurking beneath the sea and then rising to illuminate the world. It's masterfully crafted and unmatched in its grandiosity. This kind of ambition and spirit is perhaps only possessed by founding emperors," praised Feng Zimo.

"His line about the rain and wind obscuring one's sight is also excellent, fit for a noble."

"Do you recall the last character of the first, second, and fourth lines? Black, bright, red - the luminosity gradually increases. Not only is the atmosphere grand, but the meaning is also seamlessly connected, flawless."

"Why does the line about the sun breaking through the waves make my heart race? Fang Yun, what's the story behind it?"

Fang Yun remained silent. He couldn't reveal that particular story.

"It's truly an eye-opener! Who would've thought, after so many years of a standoff among the ten nations, we'd witness the creation of an emperor's poem? It's such a rare sight!"

"Fang Yun, how did you come up with this poem?"

Fang Yun paused for a while, then with a mysterious expression, said, "When I was a child, before dawn, I was playing by the Enlightenment River. I witnessed the sunrise, and the scene etched in my mind, unforgettable. Today, after helping Mr. Feng complete 'Locking the Dragon,' I pondered deeply, trying to think of a line even grander than 'Watching the tide of Zhejiang from the tower, with the sea beneath,' and suddenly recalled that childhood scene, naturally writing this line."

"So it was the Enlightenment River! No wonder."

"Mr. Feng gained enlightenment by the river, and one of the painters from the Great Origin Prefecture had a similar experience there. I heard that several Accomplished Scholars also gained insights by the river. They are likely to be chosen as Presented Scholars this year. Fang Wu Jia is fortunate to have grown up contemplating by the Enlightenment River. His future is likely unparalleled."

Fang Yun began to think that the Enlightenment River was truly special.

Governor Dong laughed heartily, "Excellent! If anyone dares to say the flooding in Jiang State was your doing, I'll slap them right away! Good job! Although Jiang State suffered for days, it has neutralized a Sacred Demon King that nearly broke through the Jade Sea Port. A monumental achievement! No one can stop you from being promoted to a Fifth-Rank State Earl now!"

"The Left Chancellor probably won't agree, and might instead award a literary honor." one person remarked.

"Literary honor or not! Fang Yun is taking the Presented Scholar exam this year. Next year, he'll be an Imperial Scholar and directly become a prefect. That's even more domineering than an emperor's poem!" Fang Shouye laughed.

Feng Yuanjun joked, "There have been top Imperial Scholars who directly become fifth-ranked prefects. But if Fang Yun were to directly become a third-ranked state governor or a second-ranked cabinet minister, that would truly shock the world."

Fang Yun replied, "Let's not talk about such lofty dreams. Do you know which dragon from the Dragon Clan is in that white cloud? It has such a captivating voice."

"After the Dragon Clan transforms into human form, their voices can be differentiated. But once they revert to their dragon forms, unless you're very familiar with them, we humans can't distinguish. After all, the dragon language is different from ours."

Fang Yun nodded in agreement.

General Yu Xingshu of the Eastern Sea said, "I'll send someone to clean up the things below. Don't worry, since the esteemed dragon declared the dragon horn is yours, we will not embezzle. You will naturally have your share of the dragon scales, dragon skin, and dragon blood."

Governor Lu remarked, "Let Fang Yun measure it in the army. Later on, we can directly give him a set of dragon scale armor and dragon skin trousers. The blood of the Dragon King might not be as extraordinary as that of the Sword-Browed Dragon, but it's still exceptional. Once processed, we can send him a box."

Governor Lu is very thoughtful. Fang Yun, what do you think?" Yu Xingshu asked.

"I'd like to thank Governor Lu," Fang Yun replied, fully aware of how complicated the process of crafting dragon scale armor and dragon skin trousers can be. Since he received the most precious dragon horn, the other items would be divided between the Holy Academy and the national treasury, and he wouldn't get much. It's more convenient to directly get the finished product.

Yu Xingshu said, "Now that the flood prevention is over, I'll be leaving. Farewell, everyone."

Most of the military officers followed Yu Xingshu and left, with only a few remaining.

Governor Lu didn't say anything further, simply nodding his head and turning to leave.

"Safe travels, Governor Lu."

The crowd's tone was more respectful than when bidding farewell to Yu Xingshu, but there was a lack of warmth. After all, this person has deep ties with the Left Chancellor. The fact that the officials of Yu Sea Prefecture didn't directly criticize him was only out of respect for his outstanding military achievements.

Feng Yuanjun said, "You also know about the Dragon Attracting Pavilion. Even if you're unwilling to exchange the dragon horn with your handwritten manuscripts, this horn can be traded for many things."

"I know the Dragon Attracting Pavilion is the largest independent merchant in Yu Sea City, specializing in Eastern Sea treasures. Is it truly the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace's branch in Yu Sea?"

"Indeed, it is. The people inside aren't ordinary. They all have dragon bloodlines, incredibly strong. Unfortunately, at best, they can only become Accomplished Scholars, with none becoming Presented Scholars."

"I'll visit in a few days. I want a Treasure of Literature, and Sister Yu Huan needs a zither. I'd like to get the best for her, perhaps a Treasure of Literature zither."

"Wow, hasn't your wife just started learning the zither recently? You're really generous. In a few days, you should visit."

"Alright."

Laughter and joy echoed in the city tower, with everyone seemingly forgetting that there are still people from the Qing Nation present.

(To be continued...)