Shang Dynasty, just from the north to south measured four thousands of miles, and east to west were no less than 5 thousand miles. Its territory was wide beyond your wildest imagination.
In such a boundless sovereign state, its capital city was naturally just as grandiose. Not only were more than half of the wealthiest in the Great Shang Dynasty gathered at this place, even most of the super-powerful families were assembled here.
Yindu was one of the ten most famous cities in the whole world. The total population within the city wall and beyond added up to a several million. It could be counted as a magnificent city.
Xiao Chen already arrived at Yindu for more than half a month, yet he still hadn’t visited every corner of this huge city. There were quite a number of scenic spots in the flourishing Yindu district, including many mysterious ruins of the respectful deities.
As for the bustling place within the city wall, there were too many to count. The casinos, brothels, wrestling rings, restaurants, etc… Industries of the same trade were often crowded together and occupied few of the main streets.
Moreover, these could even be said to be the highest quality ones, such as:
The Odyssey Warbeast Castle that shook the whole world. It was already established by the time the Great Shang Dynasty was founded. The Warbeast Castle had countless millennium of history. Legend has it that the founder of Odyssey Warbeast Castle was a Beast God.
The Flowing Cloud Casino was also established eons ago. It was one of the must-go area in Yindu district. Reportedly, the stake at this casino was tremendously high and had even attracted the Immortalis experts to come and bet their magic weapons on the line.
The headquarters of the Spellbind Castle and Moonflower Castle were located at Yindu district. The ones in Celestial City were merely one of the many branches. The glamorous Flower Overqueen and Flower Empress lived in Yindu district. When they only slightly revealed themselves in the Celestial City, it already gave rise to a huge chaos.
The Maritime Moon Garden, it was as elegant as it was majestic…
And there’s still more……
The melodious sound of bell reverberated, the sound of prayer spread out from the Bronze Dragon Temple. This old Buddhist temple was located in the Yindu district. It was usually covered in smoke due to the incense burning in front of the temple. It was like an extremely blissful Buddhist nation.
Xiao Chen didn’t come here in order to burn incense and worship Buddha. After going around the Buddhist temple, he arrived at the rear mountain.
The rear mountain was the very depiction of a beautiful spring day. The scenery was extremely beautiful. However, this was nothing strange in the huge Yindu district. Many historical sites were like this, the mountains and rivers were interdependent, as though it was a fairyland. The reason why Xiao Chen arrived at this place was because they said that the ancestor god Fixu had carved the eight divinatory trigrams somewhere around here.
This was no big secret, every practitioner in Yindu district knew about it. Moreover, many practitioners had gained a little benefit from this place since time immemorial.
Climbing up the three hundred meter tall rocky mountain, A towering limestone stood firmly on top of the flat ground. A hint of spiritual energy was leaking from the ancient limestone. The longer one fixed their gaze at the limestone, the more extraordinary it feels. Along with the elapse of time, it actually started to become fuzzy.
Apparently, the green-colored monolith had already blended into this space. As faint as it was, the monolith had already become a part of the “truth”, it was possessing an indescribable aura.
This made Xiao Chen complimented it inwardly. He was exclaiming in his mind the extraordinariness of this object.
He did not get stirred up at all because of this scene. Xiao Chen took large strides forward and got in front of the green monolith. He jumped onto the monolith and examined it with a normal attitude. He did not look upon it with admiration just because it was engraved by an ancestor god.
Although the notches on the ancient limestone were carved countless years ago, they were still be seen clearly. As everyone knows, the eight trigrams were used in Taoist cosmology to represent the fundamental principles of reality. From these molding, one could easily imagine the figure of Fuxi sitting at this place cross-legged all those years ago.
For the eight trigrams, Qian represent Heaven, Kun represent Earth, Kan represent Water, Li represent Fire. Zhen represent Thunder, Gen represent Mountain, Xun represent Wind, and lastly, Dui represent Lake ⌈1⌋.
Xiao Chen sat on top of the limestone, using his finger to stroke the notches and traced over where Fuxi’s fingertips had likely touched.
A lot of people had gained benefits from this place. Of course, it varied from person to person, everyone had different realization.
Xiao Chen’s thoughts wandered far away. Over and over, he gently stroked the notches on the eight trigrams. Gradually, he started to feel the scenery in front of him becoming fuzzy. It was a spacious space as vast as the ocean. It was as if he had arrived at another dimension.
The rocky mountain, the limestone, the flowers and plants, as well as the Bronze Dragon Temple and sunset glow, they all disappeared before his eyes. Xiao Chen sat upright at that place, as quiet and as still as a rock.
The night arrived, and the starlight shone upon the mundane world.
Xiao Chen was still as motionless as ever. He was immersed in an illusory land of nothingness. He kept forging ahead and ahead, but still couldn’t find a way out.
He only woke up from the dream-like state after noticing a flowing light streaking across the void sky. He raised his head to look up at the sky, and found that the notches of the eight trigrams was floating on the vast sky.
Qian, Kun, Kan, Li, Zhen, Gen, Xun, Dui, these eight symbols were actually connected to eight different sliding doors.
Xiao Chen was very surprised. He felt that there were eight different worlds behind those sliding doors. He didn’t rush up there due to impulse. He just stood on the ground and calmly looked up at the doors. The eight trigrams became fuzzy and regressed to its original form. After that, starting from the initial state, it began to revolve until it became distinct.
From nothingness to existence, and then from existence back to nothingness. It evolved in such a way. Xiao Chen remained motionless and continued to watch calmly.
All of this, could only be described as broad and deep. The more he watched, the more complicated Xiao Chen felt it was. The eight trigrams contained the truth of the world. That was accumulation of ancestor god Fuxi’s wisdom.
Only until the sun rose from the East did Xiao Chen finally return from the illusory land.
The mountain was still that mountain, the water was still the very same water, and the mossy stone was still that mossy stone.
The only thing different was Xiao Chen’s current mental state. He felt that his spiritual power had become more condensed. He could see a hint of the ancestor god’s Imprint of Truth from the evolution of the eight trigrams. This night was very invaluable to Xiao Chen.
They said that, many practitioners had once reaped great benefits at this place. Xiao Chen now believed those were not empty words. He did indeed received no small amount of enlightenment. Jumping down from the limestone, he stood atop the rocky mountain and waved both of his hands. The evolution of the eight trigrams, this was the realization he acquired. It was fundamentally different from the original meaning of the eight trigrams.
Heaven, Earth, Water, Fire, Thunder, Mountain, Wind, and Lake, these eight phases were brilliant and varied as they appeared in Xiao Chen’s surroundings unceasingly. In the end, it was as if eight illusory worlds were lingering around Xiao Chen.
The more he practiced, the more insight Xiao Chen gained. In the end, even the entire mountaintop was shrouded by the drizzling radiance.
Divine Ability!
Xiao Chen found to his surprise. The eight trigrams actually had the probability of evolving into a Divine Ability.
The sun rose and set, Xiao Chen spent three peaceful days on top of the rocky mountain. The eight phases really seemed like they contained eight different worlds. They gradually came into existence from nothingness, and floated all around Xiao Chen.
On the evening of the third night, Xiao Chen opened his eyes. The notches of the eight trigrams had completely been erased in his mind, the only thing remaining was the Eightfold Worlds.
Like the flickering light and passing shadows, Xiao Chen instantly disappeared from the rocky mountain, and abruptly appeared on the bustling main street of Yindu. The divine ability, “Eightfold Worlds,” was still at the initial stage, its power was still unknown. However, his speed had increased by an unimaginable level.
The Eightfold Worlds seemed to be capable of twisting reality. He only needed to take a single step in one of the eight illusory worlds, and it was as if he was flying past the skies in reality. It could even be said to be extremely fast!
This was an unimaginable divine ability. It was poles apart from Fuxi’s truth. The true meaning was completely different from the eight trigrams. This was Xiao Chen’s sudden insight, which ultimately evolved into his very own “truth”. It brought about a new divine ability with unpredictable power.
Now, even without the Undying Wings, he could freely fly in the sky.
Xiao Chen took a light step, and soar through the sky with extreme speed.
Eightfold Worlds. A divine ability with unimaginable power, and it was still at the initial stage. It could already be classified as one of the rare exclusive divine ability!
The streetlights of Yindu district were dazzling. It was the peak hour for the Flowing Cloud Casino, Spellbind Castle, and Moonflower Castle…
Xiao Chen returned to the tavern. He continued to meditate and immersed in an ethereal state.
They said that, there was a divine ability called the Six Cycles. It possessed tremendous power once trained to the pinnacle. Xiao Chen had some kind of hope, he wanted to surpass the Six Cycles with Eightfold Worlds.
Early morning, the sunrise illuminated the Yindu district. A new day had begun. It was a little different today compared to the past. The youngsters walking on the main street had clearly increase by many folds. Many gifted individuals and beautiful ladies were making their way toward the Maritime Moon Garden, in fear that there wouldn’t be any leftover seats if they were just slightly late.
Maritime Moon Garden, that was a park full of picturesque charm. The Moon Lake ⌈2⌋ in the center of the park was a very famous spot. If one didn’t come to the Moon Lake to admire full moon, their trip to Yindu was as good as wasted.
Today, the beautiful third princess of the Great Shang Dynasty was going to host the Sword Verse Tea Party at Maritime Moon Garden. The talented youth all over Yindu districted had received invitation. Even the noble daughter of many aristocratic families were attending. These made the tea party especially conspicuous.
It was obvious to everyone, for the devastatingly beautiful third princess to make an appearance personally, it was to attract the talented individuals to the Great Shang Dynasty. Regardless if they were a peerless youth or a saintly senior, they would rush over like moth attracted to light.
Early in the morning, the Maritime Moon Garden was already packed with a sea of crowds. Fortunately, the park was large amount to contain all these people.
More than half of the most influential families in the Shang Dynasty were gathered in Yindu district. The scions of these families naturally wouldn’t want to miss this kind of occasion. Except for the ones who were far away from Yindu, almost every youth in the city had arrived.
As Yin Feng and his company intimately greeted the scions of some aristocratic families, they kept searching for Xiao Chen’s figure in the crowd. However, the sun was already high up in the sky, and the Sword Verse Tea Party was about to start, they still couldn’t find a single trace of Xiao Chen.
“Brother Yin, your eyes keep wandering around, and your subordinates too are looking all over the place, are you looking for someone? Should I lend you a hound dog? Haha…”
A youth laughed brazenly as he walked over. He had a big stature and a scar on his face. There were also some rich kids following behind him. It was as clear as day that this group of people were at odds with Yin Feng and company.
“Bosch, just mind your own business! Or else…” Someone behind Yin Feng shouted in rage.
“Haha… just by you? Come back after you train for a few more years.” The youth known as Bosch had eyes as sharp as the eagle. Moreover, the scar on his face made him look indescribably keen.
Looking at Bosch leading a few people away, Yin Feng clenched his fists tightly. The rich kids behind him were also extremely angry. One of them even cursed, “That arrogant baldy!”
Bosch could be considered as one of the top experts in Yindu. Hardly anyone among the younger generation dared to irritate him. He had a brother one year older than him, but he was taken away by a senior monk not long after being born. Because of this, he was nicknamed — Stupid Monk. As time passed, those who hate him called him stupid baldy behind his back.
Even until the very last minute, they didn’t see Xiao Chen rushing over. Yin Feng and company were very disappointed. They seriously didn’t understand, was that youth actually this indifferent? Even this kind of party couldn’t attract his attention, could this be the disposition of a true expert?
They did see Yan Qingcheng, Lazio, Windfeathers, Aqua, Frosty, Tenvis, and the others entering the park. However, to them, the two grandeur of the two beauties couldn’t even be compared to Xiao Chen at the moment.
“Sigh, let’s go in. I suppose we will see the stupid baldy and the others showing off again.”
The few of them entered the Maritime Moon Garden with disappointment.
Xiao Chen had indeed forgotten about the Sword Verse Tea Party today. To him, this was not an important matter. The reason he left the Pure Land was to travel all over the world, and to train his heart in the human society. He didn’t have the intention to serve a nation or country.
After analysing the Eightfold Worlds for one night, the sun was already three poles high. Only then did he leisurely left the tavern, ate some stuffs, and took a stroll at the main street.
He only recalled what Yin Feng told him when noon was fast approaching. There was a party today, and all the distinguished youths in Yindu district would gather at Maritime Moon Garden.
To see how profound were the abilities of the Great Shang Dynasty’s youth experts, Xiao Chen walked over to Maritime Moon Garden unhurriedly.
Nobody blocked his path. The Maritime Moon Garden was open to the public today. Walking past a rose garden, pushing his way through a Stone Forest, climbing over two short hill, passing through a canyon, and entering a grass field, Xiao Chen finally arrived at the side of the Moon Lake after going forward for two miles.
Maritime Moon Garden took up a huge space. This was definitely not an ordinary place. The land could be said to be extremely expensive in Yindu City. This made Xiao Chen clicked his tongue unconsciously.
Beside the Moon Lake, more than a thousand people were gathered, and everyone was sitting on the ground.
Xiao Chen didn’t squeeze into the crowd. He just sat at the back, far away from the crowd. He was practically unable to see anything inside clearly, not to mention the rumored third princess.
Gifted scholar and beautiful ladies reciting poem and painting, he was interested to appreciate them, yet he had no interest to compete. Confrontation between the practitioners, he also want to watch, but not willing to make a move. He only came to enjoy watching the bustling scene today.
Just at this time, Xiao Chen saw a familiar face; a golden figure was jumping all around at the lakeside. Although it was very far from the crowd here, Xiao Chen recognized it at first glance. It was actually that warbeast who participated in the finals of the Warbeast Tournament in Celestial City, Goldie!
Three years had passed. It didn’t grow any much taller, but a dozen or more golden figures appeared in its surroundings. Aren’t those the Nine Lives Shadow Partner? Not only had it restored them, it even increased the amount of shadow partners.
Soon after, Xiao Chen found the multicolored Peacock King dancing in the sky not far away.
“How come they are here?” Xiao Chen had some doubts.
The two sacred beasts seemed to have felt something and looked towards Xiao Chen’s direction with a puzzled expression.
Just at this time, a commotion broke out in the crowd ahead. After that, Xiao Chen could hear Windfeather’s angry voice.
“You dare to insult us…”
The fight had already begun. Xiao Chen stood up in a hurry, and walked towards the crowd.
Looking from afar, Windfeathers was already covered in blood from head to foot. With his trembling body, he pointed at the group of youths in front, and said, “Everyone is equal, you guys think too much of yourself! If you keep looking down on the Southern Wasteland, someday, a hero will rise up and defeat all the youth experts in Yindu! You guys are the ones who are truly ignorant and narrow-minded, not us! You will inevitably suffer from the consequences of your own action!”
It was as clear as day, the violent-natured Windfeathers had clashed with the scions of Yindu district again. Still suffering a crushing defeat as before, he had been shamed mercilessly.
Xiao Chen was speechless.
Windfeathers was such a pitiful man. Back in those days, he was one of the strongest four in the Southern Wasteland. As a result, he was defeated by Xiao Chen at Exuvia Ninth Celestial Layer. After he advanced to Historia Fifth Celestial Layer, he came to Yindu, only to suffer a crushing defeat under the Fourth Celestial Layer Hellfire. And now, he suffered yet another crushing defeat. It was not that he was not strong enough, it was just that his opponent was getting more terrifying one after the next.
An arrogant laughter resounded, “Haha… This is the funniest joke I’ve ever heard in my life. Alright, I will make an exception today and spare your life. I will wait for you here in Yindu to take revenge. Remember my name, it’s Bosch.”
“He’s called the stupid baldy.” Nobody knew who it was, but someone among the crowd was jeering.
“Haha…” Everyone laughed out loud.
Far away, many of the palace beauties couldn’t refrain from covering their mouth and sneaked a smile. That place was where the Shang Dynasty’s third princess and Yindu’s beauties were seated.
Bosch was angry. The scar on his face trembled violently, and terrifying rays of light transmitted from his eyes. It caused everyone to hold back their laughter immediately. It became quiet in but a moment.
“Hmph! It’s not that I am underestimating the Southern Wasteland. There is really no one among the youth generation that is worth my time.” Bosch paid no attention to the ashen-faced Windfeathers and returned to his own seat.
Yan Qingcheng and Lazio stepped forward to support Windfeathers, and led him back to the seat.
“Yan Qingcheng, one of the Southern Wasteland’s twin pearls, she is indeed very stunning…”
“Haha… The title is fully justified. Lady Qingcheng, this way please. There are many towering figures in my Shang Dynasty, there is sure to be someone suitable for you.
The youth of Yindu laughed without restraint.
No matter what was said and done, Yan Qingcheng, Lazio, and Windfeathers were from the Southern Wasteland. This moment could even be said to be joining in opposition against the same adversary.
“I, Windfeathers, will remember the disgrace today. I only lost because I don’t have a suitable beast soul and compatible Demon Beast Art. If I find a suitable beast soul, I will definitely come back to Yindu to wipe out my disgrace!” Windfeathers was extremely angry. He already vowed in his heart, that he would travel to the deep mountains and tame a primal beast soul.
Although he was not a beastman, the Demon Beast Art he practiced need a powerful beast soul to serve as the vessel. If he could find a primal beast soul to serve as the vessel, his ability would become much stronger than it is now. After all, the Demon Beast Art had once shook the entire world.
“Haha… Although brother Bosch said he won’t kill you, from your fierce remark just now, I have no intention of letting you off. It’s better to send a barbarian like you off as soon as possible. It’s not that we are afraid of your revenge. Rather, we just don’t want to deal with you again in the future.”
One youth from Yindu laughed out loud, and stepped forward with taunting words.
However, his laughter came to a halt in an instant. That was because a sword ray flashed by, and his head was cut off. The blood sprinkled everywhere as the corpse fell on the ground.
Everyone turned pale with fright, causing the meeting place to fall into chaos.
Few of the youths jumped up immediately. One of them walked into the crowd and shouted, “Who is it? Come out! You dare to injure someone behind their back? Come out and fight!”
“Pfff!”
The blood burst forth. This youth was also beheaded by a sword ray, and his corpse fell to the ground.
“Idiot, just my sword alone is enough. If I come forth personally, you guys wouldn’t even be able to stop me!” A cold voice resounded, but there was only an iron sword floating in the field.
“Who are you?”
The youths of Yindu looked as if they were about to face a strong enemy as they swept their gazes all over the crowd.
Bosch, who just returned to his seat, had a rare smile on his face. He was already on his two feet. He felt that this was definitely one of the top youth experts. To achieve this level of Airborne Fencing, he must be a formidable opponent.
At a distant place, Yin Feng and company also stared fixedly at the scene. However, they did not have a grave expression. After all, that person was pointing his sword at Bosch’s group.
Everyone was searching for the master of the sword.
Even the third princess of Shang Dynasty was startled. She was watching from the sidelines with other gorgeous beauties.
“Just who is it? Come out and fight with me.”
“I am one of the Southern barbarians you guys spoke of. However, I will return your words to you. You guys are ignorant and narrow-minded, you don’t know how high the sky is, nor how deep is the earth!”
The ice-cold voice reverberated at the side of the Moon Lake.
“Haha…” Bosch laughed in anger, “I admit you are strong, but just like me, we are ranked in the hundreds. I am not the strongest in Yindu, but in our eyes, the South is indeed no good!”
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bagua
2. I’d love to use Crescent Lake instead, since it sounded better aesthetically, but Crescent is bow-shaped and we don’t know the shape of the lake… it would be wrong to call a lake that’s not bow-shaped, a Crescent Lake…