Lanke Chess Edge -
Chapter 93: In the End, Why Have Children?
Although copies of books in Heavenly Script1 were difficult to find, they were not necessarily precious. However, they were rare. Ji Yuan estimated that, although the material requirements were not too extravagant, the required skill of the transcriber was very high, making it difficult to read and troublesome to copy.
It was absolutely impossible for the Land God to have a sufficient understanding of the Tao to understand the mysteries of these records. As for Ji Yuan, he might not necessarily be able to do so, either.
When Ji Yuan mentioned Heavenly Script, the Land God grew a little excited.
“Sir, isn’t this an incredible treasure?”
“Heavenly Script is just a way of keeping a written account. It is not necessarily valuable in and of itself, that depends on its content. The subject matter of your yellow paper book is called “Public Records of Emperor Zhengde.”
Ji Yuan pointed to the yellow paper and briefly explained the content of the book to the Land God, then glanced at the beginning and explained a bit more.
“It seems to be a precious book of revelations regarding the path of divinity2 and the practice of connecting to spiritual earth veins.3 The opening paragraph mentions some evidence for the Tao of divinity, but I haven’t read the rest in detail yet.”
Firstly, Ji Yuan did not know much about the path of divinity and wasn’t interested in it. Secondly, this was the Land God’s book, after all, so it would be inappropriate to read too much of its content before having asked permission.
“Sir!”
The Land God hurriedly stepped down from the millstone and respectfully bowed to Ji Yuan.“Please read the contents of the book for me, sir. I have kept this book here for over a hundred years. It cannot be torn or destroyed, nor can it be damaged by water or fire. It also does not absorb spiritual energy or incense power. I have asked the county god to take a look, but he has found nothing. I hope that Sir can enlighten me!”
“Hmm? The City God can’t read it?”
Ji Yuan asked in surprise.
“I would not lie to you! In fact, the Lord City God once mentioned Heavenly Script to me, and he clearly stated that this yellow paper book was not written in it. Since you can see the words on this yellow paper, sir, please teach me!”
“Don’t bow to me yet, Land God. Let me think for a moment!”
Ji Yuan reached out to support the Land God, and frowned as he looked at the booklet of folded yellow paper,4 that didn’t even have a cover or any outer casing.
Although books written in Heavenly Script were difficult to read, with the spiritual attainments of a county’s City God, as long as he looked closely at it in a state of spiritual concentration without distraction, he would definitely b able to see the words. This was not a guess on his part, but rather a confirmation.
Regardless of the strength of the City God or the attainments of his spiritual practice, he would still possess the status of a City God with jurisdiction over the county.
In other words, perhaps this was not an ordinary Heavenly Script book. Might it require other conditions?
Of course, it was difficult for Ji Yuan to determine the source of these conditions. After all, his eyes were truly special, so the reason would most likely be found in the book.
“Lord Land God, please allow me to take a look at the contents of this yellow paper book first.”
“Alright, sir, please take a good look!”
The Land God could hardly wait for Ji Yuan to finish reading it carefully, and then dictate it to him. It would be even better if he could pick up a pen and write him a copy.
Ji Yuan, on the other hand, focused his attention on the yellow book, and unfolded an entire piece of yellow paper. It was about the same size as a sheet of newspaper from the future era.
The more Ji Yuan squinted, the more the whole content seemed to be no different from other books written in Heavenly Script.5 However, upon closer inspection, he found that the writing was not smooth in some places. This might have been possible had it been a student with little knowledge writing, but it was extremely unlikely to happen in a mysterious Heavenly Script book.
‘It’s like some irrelevant words were squeezed into every other paragraph? ’
The Land God didn’t dare make a sound and stood carefully to the side. He saw that this mysterious master’s eyes, which had previously been half-open, gradually widened, allowing him to clearly see the calm blue color of his iris, like an ancient well.
In Ji Yuan’s eyes, the yellow paper booklet in his hand was changing. Those awkward words and phrases that were originally interspersed between the paragraphs actually had an energy flowing through them, circulating on the page to form a blurry picture that covered the surface of the yellow paper.
Moreover, the colors kept changing constantly, showing white metal, black water, green wood, red fire, and yellow earth, in that order. Finally, it turned into the simplest black and white. Before Ji Yuan’s eyes, the yellow paper had been completely covered with white, and the black formed a large character in the center.
“Imperial Command…”6
After subconsciously reciting this word, Ji Yuan’s heart froze.
Boom… Suddenly, a faint divine light flashed, and the entire piece of yellow paper was charred black in several places. All the original awkward phrases disappeared, leaving only the original text of “Public Records of Emperor Zhengde.”
“Um…”
Ji Yuan was very embarrassed at this moment, and felt like his back was covered in a cold sweat. Did he damage the yellow paper book?
On the other side, the Land God was stunned, and stared at this yellow paper book that he had always treasured. However, before he could get angry or have any other reaction, he suddenly saw words appear on the yellow paper, and felt a stream of spiritual aura flowing throughout the entire booklet. He knew at a glance that the contents were intact and not damaged.
“Public Records of Emperor Zhengde! I can see it too! I can see it too! Thank you so much, sir, for breaking the restriction,7 thank you sir for breaking the restriction!!!”
The Land God repeatedly bowed and saluted Ji Yuan. His already hunched body rose and fell in exaggerated motions. Ji Yuan had been awkwardly stunned for a just few moments, but had already received countless bows from the Land God in that short time. The frequency of his movements showed just how excited the Land God was.
Ji Yuan reacted quickly and hurriedly stretched out a hand to support the other party, and returned the yellow paper book as he spoke.
“No need to bow, Lord Land God. It is your fate to see these words. However, I have left some scorch marks on the yellow paper of Heavenly Script.”
“It’s okay, it’s alright. Sir, you have a vast and mysterious power! You broke the restriction without damaging the basic style of the writing. This old man is very grateful!”
The Land God excitedly took back the the yellow paper with both hands, and kept scanning the contents from the top to the bottom.
Ji Yuan naturally knew that the burned parts had no impact on the main text, and it seemed to have affected some kind of energy, allowing the Land God to easily see the Heavenly Script. The latter must have had some kind of connection to this yellow paper book.
‘It’s just… I’m afraid that what happened just now was not related to a restriction on this yellow paper booklet! ’
As he pondered this, Ji Yuan’s heart lurched again. After a little contemplation, he found that amazing changes were taking place in his inner world. At the same time, a mysterious feeling arose from the heart of his inner sky, which let him obtain something extraordinary.
The Land God had already read several hundred words from the page, and just those few hundred had already made him realize how extraordinary the content of this booklet was. As a ghost after death, he relied on the villagers’ offerings over many years to achieve his current level. He could not cultivate and improve himself like those mountain and river gods in the beautiful wilds. Zhaojia Village was so small that the incense power from the villagers’ sacrifices could barely maintain his status as a deity, and his achievements in cultivation had long been severely limited.
However, this “Public Records of Emperor Zhengde” actually gave him a glimpse of the shift between cultivating the spirit to a ghost, and cultivating the spirit as a deity of the mountains and rivers. It was a true qualitative leap, allowing him with his small piece of land the opportunity to pursue the Tao.
Even though the Land God had never traveled to see the world, he knew that this was really extraordinary. He also understood how lucky he was to have met a truly great master who was willing to help. It would be hard for him to tell what would have happened had it been someone from some other immortal sect.
“Lord Land God, may I ask, where did you get this booklet from?”
Hearing the sudden question from the expert who had been in a daze until just now, the Land God suppressed the urge to continue reading, put away the yellow paper book, and solemnly answered Ji Yuan’s question.
“To reply to your question, sir, to be honest, I found this item when I was out tilling the fields. At that time, I saw that there was not much soil on it, and paper is precious, so I brought it home. Later, I forgot where I put it, but I didn’t care too much about it when I couldn’t find it. It was not until many years later, when I died and turned into the Land God, that this yellow paper book appeared in the Land God Temple again. Only then did I realize that this item was extraordinary.”
“It seems this truly is meant for you. Actually, the restriction on it just now was quite interesting. If the Land God were able to break it by himself, it would be of great significance. Now, it has been beneficial for me…”
Ji Yuan was not in a position to say it explicitly, but he still mentioned the outcome vaguely.
“I am content, I am already content. Without your help, I would still be staring at this yellow paper and thinking hard for many more years!”
The Land God naturally thought that Ji Yuan was just being modest. Even if there were any benefits, for a master such a level it would just be in the realm of “interesting,” and the main part was still the contents of the paper.
Ji Yuan didn’t speak more. What the Land God had received was already extraordinary for a ghost cultivator. If there were even more destined fates, not even the Land God would be able to bear it!
He couldn’t explain why, but Ji Yuan just had this feeling. At this thought, Ji Yuan solemnly warned the Land God.
“Lord Land God, origin of this book is extraordinary. In the future, you must not easily show it to other people. After obtaining this method, no matter how successful you become in the future, you must not forget your initial intentions as the God of the Land. I do not want to cause you and I to bear some avoidable consequences in the future because of my actions here today.”
Hearing Ji Yuan’s tone of voice, the Land God also understood the severity of the current situation, and felt a lot of pressure. Although this gentleman did not state it explicitly, he could still hear the subtext of, ‘I will help you today, but if you dare act in violation of the law, I will rectify it myself…’
“I, Zhao De, the Land God of Zhaojia Village, will follow the master’s teachings.”
The Land God did not dare to be negligent and bowed solemnly once more. This time, his movements were so slow that he did not lift his head for some time. Ji Yuan had no choice but to bow in return.
And a new chess piece flashed when both parties bowed to one another, but it did not appear when the yellow book was returned. Ji Yuan fell into deep thought.
T/n: Welcome back! Lovely to see all of you again ❤ Hope you had a nice August
You may have noticed that the site had a bit of a color scheme change. I’ll be sticking to this for now, but I might change it back if I like the darker one better. It’s a work in progress!
- Note: I changed it in the last chapter too, I had previously translated it as “Heavenly Script” and that honestly fits better with general context. Sorry about any confusion ↩︎
- Specifically the “Tao” of divinity, you’ll see it interchangeably used. Note: the two characters used here (神道) together also signify the Shinto religion (so it would be “revelations regarding Shintoism”), but I believe it makes more sense split up in this context. ↩︎
- 地脉 (dìmài): concept of “ley lines” specifically with regards to geographical positions and feng shui. Think channels of spiritual energy flowing through the earth, kind of like fault lines for energies. It’s a much more complex subject but I figured it simplified well enough to “spiritual earth veins.” ↩︎
- T/n: by the way, in case you were curious like me as to why the paper is yellow… Early paper making included a particular dye so as to protect the paper from insect damage, and as a side effect dyed the paper yellow. There were also artistic dyes that resulted in more vibrant reds or yellows. They definitely did create white paper (as seen in funeral preparations). I’m pretty sure this book falls under the category of paper treated for insect damage rather than artistic dye. ↩︎
- In this line, it’s using the “heavenly divinations” or “record” meaning of the phrase that I have translated as “Heavenly Script.” He’s saying what’s written in this book doesn’t seem much different from other heavenly divination records (i.e. the other books he has). See the last footnote of chapter 92 for more information ↩︎
- 敕 (chì): imperial order, may also be translated as “edict” ↩︎
- Lit: “breaking the law” LOL ↩︎
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