The Blade-Wielding Legend
Chapter 390 - 240 The Legend of the Nine-headed Bird

Chapter 390: Chapter 240 The Legend of the Nine-headed Bird

The tomb chamber was not large, taking the form of a circle, with a square stone platform in the center, upon which rested a stone coffin that had been cracked open.

The skeletal remains in the coffin were jumbled together with yellowed clothing and black mud, making it impossible to discern the appearance of the tomb’s occupant.

Scattered around the coffin were some bronze, gold, and jade articles.

What made it peculiar was the rarity of such circular tomb chambers, and the square stone platform in the center likely symbolized "heaven is round, earth is square."

Li Yan’s gaze was not drawn to the chaotic burial objects on the ground, but rather he lifted the candle and approached the walls.

The walls were covered densely with murals. Despite thousands of years, the colors remained extravagant, filled with the ancient charm of the Pre-Qin era.

On the murals, there seemed to be a mythical story unraveling, featuring a colossal bird with ten heads, one of which was shot off...

The person who shot the bird was flanked by nine bronze cauldrons...

The Nine-headed Bird was buried, and the land and rivers wept with blood...

Nine individuals, each holding a Blood Jade Cong, slept in different positions...

Li Yan watched, wide-eyed and dumbfounded, sensing that he might have stumbled upon an extraordinary secret.

He quickly crawled out of the hole and shouted, "Uncle Sha, quick, get Daoist Feng down here to take a look!"

...

"This tells two stories!"

Daoist Feng held the candle and carefully inspected the murals, his eyes wide round, his voice trembling slightly, "Have you ever heard of the legends ’Contending for the Cauldrons’ and ’The Nine-headed Bird’?"

Li Yan nodded, "I have."

Sha Lifei was utterly confused, "What’s that? Daoist, please explain."

Daoist Feng spoke gravely, "We must start with the origin of the Chu Territory."

"’The Lament’ in ’Three Lus Doctor’ mentioned that the people of Chu originated from Emperor Zhuangxu of Gaoyang, where Gaoyang was a grandson of the Yellow Emperor and the son of Chang Yi. Zhuangxu fathered Lao Tong, and Lao Tong fathered Zhurong...

During the Ancient Shang period, the Chu people’s tribe leader Yu Xiong was a descendant of the Mi clan of the eight surnames from Zhurong’s lineage, and also a descendant of the fire deity Zhurong. He authored ’Yu Zi,’ one of the seminal classics of our Taoist lineage...

Yu Xiong once assisted King Wen of Zhou and King Wu of Zhou in the conquest of Shang and was likely a participant in the Sealing God war. During the reign of King Cheng of Zhou, Yu Xiong’s great-grandson, Xiong Yi, was enfeoffed in the barbaric territory of Chu, taking the surname Mi and dwelling in Danyang, which is today’s Zigui County."

"Chu Territory legend states that Zhurong is the incarnation of the Fire Phoenix; thus, the Chu people ’revere the phoenix and cherish red, hold fire in high esteem and worship the sun, delight in witchcraft and consort with spirits,’ and many of these customs have been passed down to this day."

"But the relationship between Zhou and Chu had never been good."

"When King Cheng of Zhou ennobled Xiong Yi as a duke, not only did he fail to grant him the proper respect, but he also shamed him repeatedly, even denying him a seat at the dining table."

"From then on, the Chu people ’did not accept the Zhou’!"

"During the Spring and Autumn period, the Dukes convened more than ninety times, but records show that Chu attended only three times, primarily because the alliances were mostly discussing how to attack Chu..."

"Emperor Zhao of Zhou launched three military expeditions against Chu, dying on the road during the third, rumored to be at the hands of Chu’s witches and valorous knights. All in all, animosity only deepened."

"During the Spring and Autumn period, the Zhou Dynasty was in decline. Seizing the opportunity of the northern campaign against the Luhun Rong, King Zhuang of Chu marched his troops to the gates of Luoyang City, paraded his army before the Emperor of Zhou, and demanded to know how to forge the Divine Artifact Nine Cauldrons. This is the origin of ’Contending for the Cauldrons in the World.’

"Look here."

Daoist Feng said, pointing to the mural, "This person is followed by nine cauldrons, indicating representation of the Zhou Imperial Family, and the shooting down of one head of the ten-headed bird implies that this person is Zhou Gong."

"At the beginning of Zhou, the Yin Shang was vanquished, but the people of Shang were not extinguished. King Wu enfeoffed King Zhou of Shang’s son Wu Geng in Shangdu, with royal relatives Guan Shu, Cai Shu, and Huo Shu governing, to oversee Wu Geng, known as the Three Monitors."

"Later, upon King Wu’s death and King Cheng’s youth, Zhou Gong assumed regency. The Three Monitors, refusing to accept his rule, allied with Wu Geng and the Eastern Yi in rebellion. Zhou Gong led his army east to quell the rebellion, afterward enfeoffing Dukes and establishing ’Zhou rites,’ revered by Confucianism as a sage."

"The contention between Zhou and Chu started with King Cheng of Zhou. Rumor has it that Zhou Gong detested the ten-headed bird. Upon hearing its call, he commanded people to chase it from Jiuzhou and shoot at it. After three arrows missed their mark, he sent the Heavenly Dog to bite one head off. That left nine heads remaining, thus the saying ’when one head is bleed, still nine heads lead.’"

Li Yan nodded, "I’ve also heard of this, but from what can be seen on the murals, it’s not so simple."

"Exactly."

Daoist Feng’s breathing grew rapid, "The Nine-headed Bird was originally a divine bird of the Chu territory. Its growth of ten heads signified an ambition to contend for the world. When Zhou Gong shot down one head, he clearly aimed to sever the Dragon Vein of the Chu territory."

"No, it should be called the Phoenix Vein!"

"No wonder, the Nine-headed Bird, once a divine bird revered by the Chu people as an auspicious symbol, turned into a ’Ghost Car’ after Zhou, an omen of misfortune, rumored to be able to absorb human souls, preferring dark and obscure places."

"Later on, it became a taboo for Chu people. ’Jing Chu Yearly Records’ noted that on the night of the first month, many ghost birds pass by, and every household bangs their beds and doors, twists dogs’ ears, and puts out candles and lamps to avoid them."

Sha Lifei listened, growing more confused, "Daoist, you’ve rambled on and on, but what exactly are you trying to say?"

Li Yan spoke solemnly, "The rites of state sacrifice, the strife of the Mystical Sect!"

"Yes."

Daoist Feng’s eyes became more excited, looking around and pointing toward the slope of the entrance, "That is the passage, the rites of a Zhou tomb. This ’heaven is round, earth is square’ pattern is the tomb of a Zhou Dynasty Magician!"

"It turns out Zhou Gong had meddled early on, commanding someone to break the Phoenix Vein of Chu territory. With one head missing, tears of blood flowed through the land and rivers."

"Hahaha, during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States, Chu was always the hegemon, yet the ultimate destroyer of Zhou was Qin, and the one who overthrew Qin was Chu."

"A difference of one head, a difference of one head!"

Li Yan spoke gravely, "The affairs of Pre-Qin are no longer important. What is the Ghost Sect now searching for these Blood Jade Congs for?"

Daoist Feng took a Blood Jade Cong and examined it closely, speaking gravely, "In Ancient Times rites, the Jade Bi served to worship the heavens in a circular manner, the Jade Cong to venerate the earth in a square. Yet there is specificity involved; the Jade Bi should be Cang Bi, and the Jade Cong should be Huang Cong."

"These Blood Jade Congs, used to worship the earth, are deemed inauspicious!"