《Records of the Nearby Seas》

Fierce Slaughter ventured forth upon the waves to seek out Heavy Profound Zun, finding him gravely injured, unable even to speak. Consumed by fury, Fierce Slaughter raised his spear, leveling it at Liu Yu, the sect elder protecting the Fishing Sea Tower, and declared, “The Fishing Sea Tower shall pay for this transgression!”

Liu Yu replied, “Men are much alike in their folly, stupidity, and virtue. Fate, whether misfortune or fortune, is summoned by oneself alone.”

And thus, battle ensued.

Fierce Slaughter raised his fist and defeated Liu Yu at Star Pearl Island.

He battled Deng Wen, and defeated him.

He battled Sea Capital Ping, and defeated him again.

The Fishing Sea Tower boasts eight protector sect elders, all of whom have attained Divine Arrival. Fierce Slaughter consecutively defeated three of them, and the remaining elders scattered, avoiding confrontation.

Liu Yu coughed blood and said, “Among the islands near the sea, a Divine Arrival may not always act with ferocity. Were it not for Old Man Floating Diagram’s sense of justice, Fierce Slaughter would surely not return.”

Fierce Slaughter responded, “There is reason in that!”

With that, he summoned the Life-Severing Blade from the west. It cleaved the angry sea, and before a myriad of onlookers, he ascended to the True Cave realm!

At that time, Elder Xu Xiang of Pacify Sea pulled back. Fierce Slaughter passed by without a word.

He then ascended the Heavenly Stairs and challenged Chongguang Zhenren, the First Elder of the Fishing Sea Tower.

They battled in the nine heavens for three days and nights before the wind and thunder finally subsided.

Fierce Slaughter’s left arm was broken, yet he laughed heartily and departed.

Everyone believed Fierce Slaughter had been defeated.

Only Chongguang sighed and said, “I have lost thirteen years of my life!”

Thus, he repaid Heavy Profound Zun with the sunk-sea green crystal.

***

In the Star River space, Jiang Wang and Heavy Profound Win sat opposite each other. Heavy Profound Chu Liang’s display of might in the nearby sea archipelago was not a recent event, but only now did Jiang Wang hear Heavy Profound Win speak of it. Jiang Wang, while diligently making his way, cultivated and read history, yet missed many shifts in the winds and clouds.

“Marquis Dingyuan’s blade, can it truly sever life?” Jiang Wang’s face showed surprise.

Heavy Profound Win rolled his eyes. “Otherwise, why do you think he lingered in the Divine Arrival realm for so long? During the time of the Qi Xia Hegemony, he was already a Divine Arrival. Though not widely known, few of the same realm could match him. After the Hegemony, he was even considered the first in the Eastern Domain! He has cultivated for so many years, truly because his Dao is too potent, making it difficult to grasp its essence. A rash breakthrough would instead create a flaw.”

“Then this time…”

“So many years have passed, it is time for completion. But my uncle said that the Life-Severing Blade must not be without a renowned target; it must always await the proper moment. The battlefield at Qiyang was originally intended for Yang Jiande to perform, a pity he was trapped by a demonic art…” Heavy Profound Win said. “This trip to the sea was in part to support my hall brother, and in part to curb the Fishing Sea Tower’s momentum. Family affairs and state affairs are intertwined, and thus he proved his True Cave realm.”

Danger Seeker, having just gathered formidable individuals to ambush the Ten Pupils, was rising in momentum. With the boldness of his Sink Capital True Monarch status, he was somewhat supporting the not-yet-established expected Town Sea Alliance.

Heavy Profound Chu Liang immediately went to the Fishing Sea Tower to assert himself…

Qi Country’s suppression of the Fishing Sea Tower was indeed unwavering, not even allowing a single night’s pause, truly a continuous effort day and night, year after year.

If Fierce Slaughter had not achieved completion this time, Qi Country would presumably have taken other actions.

But nothing could have been more fitting or more impactful than Fierce Slaughter’s move. Fierce Slaughter acting on behalf of his own family’s nephew—who could find fault with that? And he, invincible in the Divine Arrival realm, saying he would enter the True Cave realm and then immediately challenging Chongguang, the first True Person of the nearby sea archipelago… This kind of power, how could it not instill fear in the sea people?

Recalling the times they had encountered each other, the feeling of looking up to Heavy Profound Chu Liang, Jiang Wang sighed and said, “To enter the True Cave realm and defeat Chongguang Zhenren, Lord Fierce Slaughter is truly an awe-inspiring figure.”

“At the True Cave realm, the competition lies in one’s understanding of this world. There is no concept of long years; only who reaches it first,” Heavy Profound Win shook his head. “But my uncle said he cannot truly be considered victorious. After all, the higher one’s cultivation and the stronger one’s physical body, the more difficult it is to recover once damaged. For him to break an arm in the True Cave realm is not much better than losing thirteen years of life… Of course, this loss will be compensated by the court.”

This was the advantage of his origin.

Heavy Profound Win’s cultivation was now steadily below Jiang Wang’s, but his understanding of cultivation realms still far surpassed Jiang Wang’s. The casual words Heavy Profound Chu Liang spoke to him were rare pieces of cultivation knowledge to Jiang Wang.

The so-called elixirs that bring the dead back to life and regrow flesh and bone are not truly rare, but those are mostly for ordinary people. A cultivator’s bones, flesh, life, and soul have all been cultivated to a certain degree. Once damaged, ordinary elixirs cannot heal them. The more powerful the cultivator, the greater the price required for recovery once injured.

For instance, when Gu Huaixin, the True Person of the Fishing Sea Tower, prepared to save Ji Shaoqing on the spot, it required array altars and many materials. If he wanted to save an ordinary person who had just died, as long as their soul had not scattered, True Person Gu could probably just find a random elixir. However, if a cultivator of the Divine Arrival realm died in battle, True Person Gu could not save them.

Of course, Jiang Wang understood this aspect of knowledge, not only because he had cultivated for a long time and gradually accumulated deep understanding, but more importantly, he himself had experienced the feeling of a severed limb, leaving a deep impression… What he lacked was this casual remark from Heavy Profound Win: “At the True Cave realm, the competition lies in one’s understanding of this world.” Heavy Profound Win understood these things, while he did not.

Jiang Wang shook his head. “The power of that realm is beyond my imagination. Let’s talk about things I can understand.” When Chongguang Zhenren had carried him to the illusory realm, that strange land and peculiar feeling were something he still couldn’t fully grasp. He only knew that Chongguang Zhenren was very strong, but he couldn’t understand just how strong.

“I also know it, but I don’t know the reason why. This so-called understanding must ultimately be applied to one’s own realm,” Heavy Profound Win said casually, then added, “The Crown Prince has sent you a gift!” He chuckled, sounding quite malicious, and said, “It is currently in your room, placed before the painting below the Eleventh Hall.”

“This is strange.” Jiang Wang raised his eyebrows. “Why would he send me a gift at this time? What is it?” If he remembered correctly, before leaving Linzi this time, he had severely offended the Crown Prince…

“He sent a pot of flowers, a Gentleman Orchid. It is said to be personally raised by the Crown Prince. As for why he sent it at this time…” Heavy Profound Win’s smile seemed to deepen. “Because the Chang Le Palace was closed for a month earlier, and the Crown Prince has only been free for a few days.”

Jiang Wang’s heart grew cold. He knew that this “month of palace closure” was likely one of the ways the Qi Heavenly Emperor had pressured Jiang Wuhua. But he still asked, “For what reason was the Chang Le Palace closed?”

Heavy Profound Win happily continued, “The Crown Prince achieved Divine Arrival, and the congratulatory guests were endless. The Chang Le Palace was filled with banquets and drinking day after day. The Heavenly Emperor said, ‘The Crown Prince is complacent and has forgotten himself, frivolous and not diligent. He should close the palace for a month to reflect.’ …So that’s how it was.”

Closing the palace gates, forbidding internal and external connections, to a certain extent, was almost equivalent to being banished to the cold palace! Although this “cold palace” sentence was only for one month, for the Crown Prince, it was already a very bad sign.

“So as soon as he came out, he sent me a gift. What does he want to express?” Being outside of Qi Country, Jiang Wang’s tone was relaxed, even venturing a casual joke. “Does he remember me? Is he indicating that this enmity is not forgotten?”

“Sending a flower he personally raised, of course, is to indicate his tolerance, to indicate that he doesn’t remember your enmity, to indicate that he doesn’t blame you, this Great Qi prodigy, for past events. Although you treated him as an enemy, he still treats you as a gentleman of the country. This is our benevolent Eastern Palace.”

“What enemy? I didn’t target him!” Jiang Wang retorted, then mused, “How credible do you think this is?”

“The Gentleman Orchid has its meaning. A gentleman, after all, is harmonious but different. The association of gentlemen seeks common ground while preserving differences,” Heavy Profound Win said. “He also doesn’t want to forcefully exile you from Linzi with a bad reputation. Moreover, thinking about it, he indeed has no reason to hate you.”

“Explain.”

“You raised three cases, and the Heavenly Emperor permitted them all and handled them straightforwardly, clearly a case of striking a mountain to startle a tiger. This shows that whether you were involved or not, that case from seventeen years ago was always a thorn in the Heavenly Emperor’s heart… This time it can be considered pulled out. For the Crown Prince, it is still unclear whether this is a blessing or a disaster.

The Crown Prince achieving Divine Arrival at this time seems at first glance to be a sign of weakness, giving the Heavenly Emperor an opportunity to strike. Looking at it from another angle… Since the Heavenly Emperor wanted to strike him, he simply obediently extended his hand and allowed the Heavenly Emperor to fully hit his palm. How is this not a kind of wisdom? If he had hidden his hand and waited for the Heavenly Emperor to find a place to strike, it might not have just been the palm…”

Heavy Profound Win paused and continued, “Furthermore, the more the Crown Prince does not hate you, the more it can show that he has no complaints about the Heavenly Emperor’s arrangements. So not only does he not target you, but he continues to show you favor. Showing you favor is just expressing loyalty to the Heavenly Emperor. How can this business not be worthwhile?”

Jiang Wang sighed and said, “You people are truly complicated!”

“But whether the Crown Prince truly doesn’t resent you or fakes not resenting you, the human heart is like an abyss; I am simply incapable of seeing through it,” Heavy Profound Win shrugged.

Recalling the scene of sharing porridge with Jiang Wuhua, Jiang Wang said in a slow voice, “Perhaps the Crown Prince is benevolent…” The rest of the sentence was stuck in his heart and he did not voice it – the current Empress was not necessarily so.

He could never forget the act of placing a father’s corpse before a three-year-old daughter. It was simply brutal. Although the current Empress has been the mother of the world for many years, dignified and noble, she has never once lost her decorum, and even has a reputation for benevolence, often advising the Heavenly Emperor to be less angry.

But this person, who went with the flow and almost allowed Consort Lei Noble Consort to suffer a double death, and after forcing the death of Lin Fen and tenaciously holding on, still deliberately placed his corpse before his daughter… How could such a person not remember enmity?

As long as the Heavenly Emperor is in power, it is fine. As an external minister, he will not be greatly influenced by the Empress. However, if the Heavenly Emperor abdicates one day, the Empress may not necessarily tolerate him.

Of course, there was no need to say these things to Heavy Profound Win. This fatty already had enough to worry about every day. Heavy Profound Zun was so powerful overseas this time; he might not avoid being suppressed again…

“As long as there are no troubles now, it is fine. If someone wants to reopen old accounts one day, I will not be who I am today,” Jiang Wang said.

“Of course, I am also not who I am today! A great man born into the world, how can he remain long oppressed under others? By then, it will be others who look to our faces!” Heavy Profound Win echoed with great momentum, then said, “In short, that’s how things are. The trouble you actively provoked can be considered concluded. After finishing the matters in Chu Country, you can come back directly.”

“You make it sound like I was forced to leave,” Jiang Wang muttered. “I truly had an agreement with Zuo Guangshu earlier…” Heavy Profound Win let out a cold laugh and directly left the Star River space.

Of course, the cost of opening the Star River space this time was paid by Jiang Wang.

Chu land is vast and has always been the most prosperous place in the Southern Domain. After leaving Cloud Country, Jiang Wang traveled south. He passed through Song Country but did not enter, and after another seven days, he arrived at Chu Country. Of course, in the Eastern Domain, this distance would not take this long. A fourth-grade blue card holder could fly directly across the Eastern Domain without hindrance. In the Southern Domain, one must abide by some rules…

This border city in the north of Chu Country is called “Linshang”. This name doesn’t seem particularly unusual at first glance. However, it is worth noting that the capital of Song Country is called “Shangqiu”… Chu Country does not even conceal this on the name of its border city. Their attitude towards the surrounding countries can also be imagined. No wonder people from Song Country often despise them as “Chu barbarians”.

Of course, people from Chu Country don’t really care about being called barbarians and such. As long as it is not mockery to their faces, they often just laugh it off when they hear it. The rituals and teachings that people from Song Country so promote are mostly despised by the people of Chu.

People of Chu love splendid clothes and carved buildings, love romantic freedom. Among the six great overlord countries in the world, it can be said that Chu Country is the most “relaxed” in temperament. The children of the shepherd country also love freedom, worship the freely soaring eagles, indulge in galloping horses, and the fiercely united wolves, but after all, they still have a supreme god to respect. Chu land has many beliefs in gods, but most people of Chu do not actually believe in gods. For many ordinary people of Chu, they simply like the mysterious atmosphere of gods and ghosts. When happy, they “sincerely prostrate with spirit, gods and ghosts, please drink high.” When unhappy, they “further come to cut off the cow’s head, and heartily follow the wine for life,” or “dissect the horse’s face, and capture and question Yan Luo.” In short, very casual.

As for why Jiang Wang knows this… That set of books, 《History Knife Chisel Sea》, which almost filled his storage box and tormented him terribly, recorded one merit. Jiang Wang did not dare not read it, did not dare not memorize it. In these days of travel, he had leisure time and, instead of cultivating, simply memorized the book. After all, the Qi Heavenly Emperor could joke, but he had no right to treat the Qi Heavenly Emperor’s words as a joke…

Linshang City, as a border city, was not like the border cities Jiang Wang had seen before, which were rough and solemn. Instead, it exuded refinement, magnificence, and prosperity. Rather than calling it a city of war, it was more like a commercial city. But the soldiers standing solemnly on the city gate tower and the brightly polished splendid weapons placed on the city tower also indicated the city’s military strength.

Standing beneath Linshang City, Jiang Wang was still thinking about how to report his name to enter the gate. Should he report his name as the Yellow River Champion, or be low-key and use an alias…

Suddenly, the city gate opened, and a troop of cavalry came rolling in with a cloud of dust. This troop of cavalry had an extraordinary momentum, absolutely the elite among elites. Everyone wore armor and robes. On the splendid armor, the light flowed like water. Except for the general leading them, all wore neat fire-red battle robes burning in the air. The steeds beneath them were uniformly red, their hooves the size of bowls striking the ground like thunder. They startled pedestrians, who scattered to avoid them.

Jiang Wang originally thought this troop of Chu Country cavalry was going to carry out some military task and did not want to cause trouble. He honestly avoided them on the side of the road along with the other passersby. He did not expect this troop of cavalry to seem to fix their gaze on him and come straight towards him.

When they got close, the general leading them, wearing a water-blue battle robe, took off his helmet. He was a handsome young general. His eyebrows were like willow branches, and his eyes were like the moon, a very clean and pleasant appearance. He simply pulled the reins, and the sky-blue divine steed beneath him stopped in front of Jiang Wang. The person stood up, and the horse neighed like a dragon! The young general sat steadily on the horse’s back, his spirit indescribably soaring!

1. “sincerely prostrate with spirit, gods and ghosts, please drink high” – fabricated casually by the author.

2. “further come to cut off the cow’s head, and heartily follow the wine for life” – from “Drinking Wine Chapter” by the author.

3. This is the last day of the month.