Ze Tian Ji (Way of Choices)

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

(TN: A reference to a poem called 'The Brocade Zither' by Tang Dynasty poet Li Shangyin. This line comes from the end, which translates as, 'Why wait to recollect these emotions? Just that at the time, I was already confused.')

The Daoist that had appeared from midair in the rainy night was precisely the previous Principal of the Orthodox Academy, Shang Xingzhou, and also the extremely enigmatic Daoist Ji of Taizong's era.

He was the leader of this undertaking in the capital, the principal schemer.

After he appeared, the only thing that he could be heard between the heavens and earth was his conversation with the Tianhai Divine Empress.

Whether it was Zhu Luo and Guan Xingke or those fifteen princes that had already entered the capital, they all maintained their silence. This represented their respect, or perhaps their awe.

But the heavens and earth were vast, the world enormous, so there would always be one or two voices, there would always be some other voices appearing.

"What need is there for this?"

A voice emerged from a canal to the southeast of the capital.

The large ship sailing along the canal slowly came to a stop.

The expression of the old Daoist nun at the bow of the ship suddenly shifted. Like lightning, her arm stretched out, yet all she snatched was air.

The different shade of red that had been rippling in the gloomy waters of the canal from the start was now gradually fading.

Just then, a streak of light suddenly appeared in the night sky outside the Mausoleum of Books, clearly revealing the drops of rain descending from the sky, and also shining upon a figure.

This light was not a thunderbolt striking down from the dark clouds, but the Qi emitted by the meeting of this figure with the restriction over the Mausoleum of Books.

This figure slowly drifted down from the rainy sky, landing in the river outside the Mausoleum of Books.

It was a middle-aged scribe, his gown already soaked through with rain, yet his appearance did not seem the slightest bit dispirited. His calm eyes exuded an enchanting air of grace.

A bright red flower was tied to the pinkie finger of his right hand and was currently lightly bobbing in the rain.

Bie Yanghong.

This expert of the Divine Domain was also unable to break through the restriction of the Mausoleum of Books and was sealed outside.

But since he had already spoken, he would continue to speak.

There was a sharp crack.

Bie Yanghong's body instantly became illusory as a clear path appeared through the heavy curtains of rain. On the river outside the Mausoleum of Books appeared an extremely straight line of white-capped waves.

In a breath, he had intruded into the Mausoleum of Books and reached the very top of the Divine Path, in front of that stone plain.

But he could not proceed any further forward, because the Tianhai Divine Empress glanced at him.

A lightning bolt descended from the sky and fell on Bie Yanghong's body.

A dazzling ray of blazing white light instantly converted all the water in the canal into steam, while several extremely thick scorch marks appeared on the firm black stone.

Bie Yanghong gazed up at the end of the Divine Path, at the summit of the Mausoleum of Books, his expression grave.

Just a moment ago, he had sensed the Qi of the world faintly change and so had halted his steps. Otherwise, he really might have been struck by the lightning bolt and been heavily injured.

The Tianhai Divine Empress had only glanced at him.

The level of strength she had revealed was far too frightening, already giving off the faint sense that she could mobilize the laws of the world!

Everyone knew that the Tianhai Divine Empress's cultivation was unfathomable, but only now did they realize that all their speculations had still underestimated her!

On the official road to the northwest, Guan Xingke raised his head and pushed up his bamboo hat, revealing a plain and unremarkable face and two eyes tinged with fear.

In the wheelchair, Zhu Luo calmly looked in that direction, his left hand lightly rapping against the sheath of his sword. At present, it was his only hand.

"The capital is Our stage. You should not have chosen this place."

The Tianhai Divine Empress calmly declared to the world.

Bie Yanghong had halted his steps, but he still continued to speak. "No matter where, we still had to come."

"We hoped that you would not come." The Tianhai Divine Empress turned to him and calmly said, "We do not wish you to die."

Bie Yanghong replied, "Since I study the holy books, I must always seek peace of mind."

The Tianhai Divine Empress praised, "Truly worthy of Bie Yanghong. Our heart is consoled. Amongst these people, We have always felt you to be rather decent, a different color, a different bearing."

The rain suddenly grew disorderly, transforming into countless ripples. The white-capped waves in the river outside the Mausoleum of Books suddenly grew much more chaotic, the Qi a little out of sorts.

The Daoist nun had also arrived at the Mausoleum of Books. She stood by Bie Yanghong's side, her gaze warily looking upwards.

"The most bewildering thing you have done in your entire life is to marry this thing."

The Tianhai Divine Empress mockingly said to Bie Yanghong.

The Daoist nun was his wife, Wuqiong Bi, similarly of the Storms of the Eight Directions.

Wuqiong Bi was furious at this comment, feeling that both the sound of the rain and the sound of that woman's voice were equally vexing, yet she dared not express it.

At this time, Bie Yanghong also could not say much. After a momentary pause, he said, "Empress, since he is bound to die, why does Empress not give him a single joy?"

He did not say all he wanted to say.

The part he did not say was: And then, we can battle to our hearts' delight.

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Very rarely, joy could be understood as pain and delight. (TN: The Chinese term for joy/delight/happiness used here is 痛快, which can be divided into 痛, 'pain', and 快, 'joy', or in this case, 快哉, which can be translated as 'delight'.)

Chen Changsheng was presently in terrible pain and could not feel the slightest delight, even if the wind weaving through the rain came from a thousand li away and was growing stronger and stronger. (TN: This seems to be a reference to a poem by Su Dongpo, '黄州快哉亭赠张偓佺'. In particular, it references the last line, 'With a little noble spirit, one can enjoy the delightful wind from one thousand li away'.)

Upon hearing Bie Yanghong's words, the Tianhai Divine Empress slightly turned her body to glance at Chen Changsheng. It was only an apathetic glance, yet she was able to get an extremely clear picture of the state of his body.

According to the Elder of Heavenly Secrets's calculations, before he was even born, his sun wheel had been destroyed, his nine meridians severed.

The present Chen Changsheng had all seventy-two of his meridians completely shattered, his three hundred and sixty-five Qi openings all torn open.

He was currently suffering an unimaginable pain, just as he had in her womb, but the him at that time had been unaware and unfeeling. The only person in the world that could sense the pain he was feeling was her.

The Tianhai Divine Empress thought of the pain when he was in the womb, the pain when he was born, and slightly creased her brow, somewhat annoyed.

The rain gradually increased, yet there were still stars faintly twinkling, and that calm, clear, and soft splendor.

Guan Xingke, pushing the wheelchair holding Zhu Luo, had also arrived at the Mausoleum of Books.

Four of the Eight Storms had arrived.

The Daoist was some place in the dark rains.

The monk was by the stream tens of thousands of li away.

Everything in the capital tonight had all been part of the Tianhai Divine Empress's plan. At this moment, everyone had arrived, so Chen Changsheng's existence ceased to have value. So naturally, he could die now.

The rain pouring from the sky increased in volume, forming into lines and then gradually into torrents. The wind carried along with the rain also grew greater and greater.

Deep within the storm came the rumbling of thunder, the occasional real lightning bolt flashing in the night sky, illuminating the scene at the peak of the Mausoleum of Books.

The Tianhai Divine Empress stood at the edge of the Divine Path, her hands behind her back, no excess emotion on her sublimely beautiful face as her black hair danced behind her. She was like a demon or god.

The torrential rain was incapable of wetting her hair, but it drenched Chen Changsheng's clothes.

Chen Changsheng's face was pale, his body soaked. He looked abnormally feeble, pitiful.

He gasped for breath, using his hands to push himself out of the puddles on the ground. With great difficulty, he raised his head towards her.

At this moment, he was truly very calm, because he was already numb. To this world, he had already lost all hope.

The Tianhai Divine Empress perceived his actions and indifferently commented, "Yourong wished to save you. I sent her away."

When she said this, she did not turn to look at him.

Chen Changsheng's body, which had grown somewhat numb because of the cold, pain, and disappointment, grew somewhat softer at these words, a tiny speck of warmth still left in the pit of his stomach.

Yes, there are still people in the world that care about me, like Yourong, or the people in the Orthodox Academy, or Luoluo in the distant White Emperor City, or Senior whose location I don't know…

"Thank you, my lady," he said to the Tianhai Divine Empress's back.

He was thanking her for saying those words at the final moment of his life, thus helping him remember that there was still some beauty in life.

This way, when he left, he might be somewhat unwilling because of his reminiscence, but at least he would not be sad because there was nothing to reminisce about.

The rain grew greater and greater, flowing down the Mausoleum of Books along the two sides of the Divine Path. Gradually, it transformed into a waterfall of astonishing power.

The sound of rain in the night was vexing, but a torrential rain was disastrous. In the forest, many beasts could faintly be seen hiding away, yet it was no longer possible to hear the chirping of autumn insects.

A squirrel was leaping and weaving through the forest, seemingly seeking out a place suitable to hide from the rain, yet unable to find one, so it was quickly soaked through. The rain was too great, so much so that the squirrel's originally oily and waterproof tail was unable to completely endure it. The fluffy tail drooped down, the gray fur clinging wetly to its body. It was a very pitiable sight.

If that tail were dry and fluffy, perhaps this squirrel might look very fat.

Just like the squirrel in the forest of the Hundred Herb Garden.

The Tianhai Divine Empress's gaze followed the squirrel through the forest for a very long time before finally looking away.

The experts had already gathered within the Mausoleum of Books. Under the seemingly calm surface of the dark capital in the rain, many undercurrents were flowing.

Her reign over the Great Zhou Dynasty was currently confronting its most forceful challenge.

Yet at this time, she was attentively watching a squirrel hide from the rain.

Just what was she thinking?

"Two years ago in the palace, you should have seen a squirrel."

She suddenly said these sorts of words.

These words had no head or tail.

Chen Changsheng was somewhat dazed, mystified as to what she was saying.

Then, in his daze, he remembered some things.

That was truly a matter from a long time ago. Two years ago, on the night of the Ivy Festival, he had been lured by Mo Yu into a cold palace and imprisoned by the Tong Palace array. In order to escape, he had risked entering an underground space through the gate of life. He encountered the Black Dragon and, with great difficulty, returned through a pool in the Imperial Palace.

At the time, a middle-aged woman had been standing by the pool, perhaps preparing to wash her hands or wash her clothes.

At the time, he emerged from the pool with an extremely sorry appearance, his clothes utterly soaked, and it was even late at night. The middle-aged woman seemed startled and took one step back, her wooden clogs clicking against the gray stones.

At the time, in the forest by the pool, a squirrel was eating. Leaping up in fright, it threw down the fruit and leaped to the second floor of the side palace, running along the balcony, its swaying tail brushing against a flower pot.

At the time, the middle-aged woman had been right below the flower pot.

At the time, Chen Changsheng had just escaped from dire straits and was still deep within the palace. He was in an extremely tense situation where he could not be found by others, but upon seeing this scene, he didn't even need to think before rushing over.

He hugged the middle-aged woman to his chest and curled around her. This way, even if the flower pot fell, it would only shatter against his back and not on the woman.

Fortunately, the flower pot did not fall.

Now that he thought about it, none of it had been real, because she was no middle-aged woman, but the Tianhai Divine Empress. How could she be startled?

Were his actions at the time excessive and laughable in her eyes?

But why was she suddenly mentioning that squirrel at this moment?

As he thought of that time, Chen Changsheng felt a little confused.

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