Chapter 198 – Mausoleum of Books (1/2)

Chapter 198 – Mausoleum of Books

There was a river south of the capital and on the north side of the river, there was a straight path. Looking southwards from the the riverbank, a large, verdant and lush park could be seen. Deep within the garden, a green mountain was hidden. This green mountain was the legendary Mausoleum of Books——the stagecoaches stopped on the road, and the examinees peered through the curtains. They looked at that green mountain and revealed an expression of yearning.

During the first few days when Chen Changsheng had arrived at the capital, he had always stayed at the Plum Garden Inn, just outside of the Mausoleum of Books. Many times, he had observed the Mausoleum of Books from far away, so he was not as excited as the examinees, especially those peers from the south. The inn only had one room remaining.

The Green Vines of Li Palace, the Bridge of Lamentation, and the Mausoleum of Books were all well-renowned places in the capital, and the Mausoleum of Books was where all the tourists wanted to visit. It was also very lively like the Li Palace, and there were stalls lining both sides of the path on the riverbank. The stall keepers yelled constantly, and it was already crowded although it was still early in the morning. On the main streets slightly north, many offices of government officials could be seen, as well as the offices of many various academies and sects.

The stagecoaches did not stop on the street for too long. Under the direction of the officials and priests, they crossed a wide wooden bridge above the river, and they arrived at the green park outside of the Mausoleum of Books. They also did not stop here for too long, but instead they directly traveled down the path leading towards the tombs between the ancient and lush cypress trees. Under the one hundred and eight statues of virtuous people’s gazes from the older generations, they continued traveling towards the green mountain.

There were already many tourists in the Mausoleum of Books’ outer park, and many citizens of the capital were taking a stroll. They currently watched as the coaches traveled directly towards the Mausoleum of Books. They could quickly guess the identities of the people within the coaches, and they knew that they must have been the examinees of the top three grades. They could not help but reveal an envious expression.

The ancient trees obstructed the morning sun and formed shadows, making it seem extremely quiet and beautiful. The deeper they went, the quieter it became. And in the end, they could only hear the sound of the faintly green rocks grinding against each other under the wheels on the path leading to the tombs.

A stone gate was at the end of the dim path leading towards the tombs. The stagecoaches stopped in front of the stone gate, and the officials and priests walked out in front of the gate, carrying official required documents. They were responsible for the affairs regarding viewing the tombs in the Mausoleum of Books. They began speaking with the soldiers guarding the Mausoleum of Books, and the students all exited the coaches one by one, lining up and waiting for entry.

Not long after, the stone gate slowly opened, and the examinees could feel slight tremors from the ground. They could not help but be very startled. They wondered to themselves how this heavy, unimpressive gate was able to cause the ground to tremble. They also thought about what type of magic formation could open such a heavy gate.

With a low rumble, the heavy stone gate stopped moving, and the entire green mountain appeared in front of everybody’s gaze.

Thus, the Mausoleum of Books appeared in front of everybody.

A mausoleum normally referred to a tomb, but only the tombs of emperors or saints had the right to be called mausoleums.

The Mausoleum of Books indeed was like a tomb. The mausoleum was very clear cut and square, and it was overgrown with countless green trees. So it seemed like a green mountain. Due to those dense green trees, the examinees could not see those legendary stone tablets and did not know where the Heavenly Tomes were hidden. However, they knew that the Heavenly Tomes were inside. So for just a moment, the path became abnormally silent, and everybody’s faces revealed a devoted expression.

As for Chen Changsheng, his current state of mind was wrought with a few problems. His thoughts were in a mess, and he had a difficult time calming down. He truly was not excited like the first time he had entered the city and seen the green mountain from far away in the inn. However, he still felt an indescribable reverent feeling as he actually arrived in front of the Mausoleum for the first time. He looked at those green trees around the Mausoleum of Books and stayed very silent.

The capital was always the center of the continent.

It didn’t matter which dynasty fell. When the flames of war raged on without stopping or when the time was filled with national peace and order, the capital was always the center. Those various sects and aristocratic families of the south also believed this. Even the Fae race in the White Emperor City and the people on the Great Western Continent agreed. The reason why the main altar of the Orthodoxy was here, as well as the Li Palace, was because the Mausoleum of Books was here.

TL: The book only mentions that there are five continents in the world. The Great Western Continent is not one of the five. It is mentioned later on in the book that the Great Western Continent was originally part of the Eastern Continent and split off later. That’s why you still have humans cultivating, which the Heavenly Tomes brought to the world.

Countless tens of thousands of years ago, the Heavenly Tomes descended in rolling flames from beyond, which the heavens had bestowed upon the lands. From that day onwards, the Heavenly Tomes awakened the intelligence of humans, which allowed them to learn how to use fire, how to create and use tools, and how to tie knots to record history. They invented the written language, and because they had invented the written language, it allowed them even to begin studying the mysteries of nature. This caused them to begin questioning their place in the world. They began to look up at the starry skies, began to guide Starlight for purification, and officially stepped onto the road of cultivation. This green mountain was the original source for all of this and everything else.

What was the Mausoleum of Books? Mausoleum did not mean “tomb” here, but rather it meant “flat”.

TL: The Mausoleum of Books (天书陵) can also be known as a mound (陵). In this case, it says ‘flat’ (平) is referring to a rather planar, flat and level mound.

When the Heavenly Tomes emerged, all of the directions “flattened”. The Mausoleum of Books was where the Heavenly Tomes were, and the center of the world was where the Mausoleum of Books were. The Orthodoxy could only originate from the capital where the human empire was founded. As a result, the southern religious sects fought with the northerners for many years. They were actually self-governing, but they still had to acknowledge the Zhou Dynasty as the main country due to this principle.

During the waiting period, the silent park slowly became noisy. Many tourists and citizens of the capital followed the stagecoaches here. If it was an ordinary day, they could not even approach the Mausoleum of Books at all before being stopped by the guards. However, as today was a special circumstance, they had the opportunity to approach the Mausoleum of Books’ front gate. Their faces were full of envy while looking at those youngsters who were preparing to enter the mausoleum.

The tourists and citizens could freely enter or leave the Mausoleum of Books’ outer park, but they could not enter the mausoleum itself at all.