288 No Idler in the World (2/2)
Li Qingshan did not spend too much time or energy on this matter. He began to read other files sent by the Imperial Center Administration. He put all his mind on searching for the trail of the Great Divine Priest of Light. When the Headmaster of the Academy was traveling far away, there was such a formidable and horrible god lurking in Chang'an City. Both His Majesty and he himself felt so uneasy about it.
The ambush in the General's Mansion had finally ended in failure. Although the Tang Empire did not suffer any losses, it could be described as a fiasco for the South School of Haotian Taoism and the military, who had gained nothing after plotting it for such a long time.
In that battle, Li Qingshan did not fight with the Great Divine Priest of Light face to face. But he knew that he had been defeated and he felt humiliated about the way of his failure. Would he have felt better if he knew that the Great Divine Priest of Light was working as a dishwasher at this moment?
Where on earth are you hiding?
Stepping on the ebony-bronze floor, the Nation Master slowly walked out of the palace, standing by the handrail and silently watching the withered flowers as well as the remaining snow for a long time. And then, he lifted his sleeves and left the Southern Gate Temple. His eldest disciple, He Mingchi, hurriedly followed up. He Mingchi glanced at the clear sky, thinking that it probably would not snow today, but he still put a yellow paper umbrella under his armpit.
On the top floor of the Wanyan Tower—
Copying Buddhist scriptures, Monk Huang Yang heard a noise behind him and looked back. He saw Li Qingshan's slightly gaunt face, gently sighed in the bottom of his heart, and then got up to welcome him. He looked at his tired appearance, saying, ”In accordance with the Revelation God, the 'Ming' Handscroll should reappear in the Wilderness, near the Front Gate of Devil's Doctrine. But some days ago, you deliberately calculated once. Your cinnabar pen indicated that its location on the map was in the Hulan Sea. So, there is still some distance between the two locations.”
It was quiet on the top floor of the tower. But Huang Yang was not in the habit of ordering the lesser monks, so others could hear the dialogue between these two people.
Li Qingshan shook his head and said, ”That book of the Tomes of Arcane belongs to Taoist treasure. The imperial court really doesn't have a right to grab it, neither does the South School. Since the Academy accepted the task, I'll no longer care about this.”
Huang Yang quietly looked at him and said suddenly, ”Will you keep paying attention to that matter?”
Li Qingshan said quietly, ”The God of Light is in Chang'an City. His Majesty doesn't allow the Divine Hall to send its people here, so I'll be responsible for it. As the Nation Master of the Tang Empire, I have the responsibility of guarding the Empire and this capital.”
And then he looked at Huang Yang and said seriously, ”You have to be careful these days.”
Monk Huang Yang put his palms together and said slowly, ”What kind of figure is the God of Light? I'm just a harmless nobody who copies Buddhist books in a broken tower. How could he think of coming to compete with me in cultivation?”
After finishing this sentence, he went to the tower and watched the magnificent Chang'an City under the clear winter sky, saying with a calm smile, ”If he really dared to come, he must show his real state in order to kill me, even though I'm incompetent. By that time, in Chang'an City this big tactical array could instantly suppress him.”
Nowadays, neither the West-Hill Divine Palace nor the Tang Empire were clear why the God of Light had fled from Peach Mountain to Chang'an City. If it was for that prophecy and the old affairs from more than 10 years ago, it did not make sense. If he wanted to be disadvantageous to the Tang Empire, then Li Qingshan and Monk Huang Yang were undoubtedly most likely to be his targets.
In that case, the former dialogue showed that Monk Huang Yang had the compassion and courage of feeding a tiger with his own body. Li Qingshan looked at the old monk clothes and shook his head after a short moment of silence, saying, ”It's too passive. We must find him first.”
Monk Huang Yang turned around and found that a chessboard had appeared in front of Li Qingshan, who was stretching out his hand toward the chess box.
He was slightly surprised and said, ”Are you ready to divine again?”
Li Qingshan stretched his right hand into the chess box, touching the slightly cool chess pieces, and then nodded.
Monk Huang Yang frowned and said, ”You divine at the expense of your life. Why do it?”
Li Qingshan said calmly, ”These days, my Senior Brother has been in Chang'an City searching for traces of the God of Light. And until now, he has still found nothing. Since he took such a big risk to find that man, I also have to do something.”
Master Yan Se was the most powerful Divine Talisman Master in the world, even level with the Hierarch Lord and God in the West-Hill Divine Palace. Wei Guangming was the greatest God of Light for hundreds of years. No one in the world knew who was the more powerful of the two bigwigs. But this kind of search was extremely unfavorable to a Divine Talisman Master.
A crisp sound emanated, like an early spring rain that had come to earth.
Dozens of chess pieces jumped and rotated on the chessboard. Afterward, they stood still, no longer moving.
These pieces had been arbitrarily taken out of the box by Li Qingshan. But surprisingly, there was only one white piece and the rest were all black. Those matte-black stone pieces silently bunched up on the left side of the board, surrounding the white one.
Li Qingshan looked at the chessboard and kept silent for a long time, then said, ”He's still in Chang'an City. Not far from us.”
...
...
During this winter, Chang'an City seemed to have been stimulated by something and became as moody as it was in summer. It had been clear from last night to this morning. However, after a short moment, the sky was covered by gloomy snow clouds and sporadic snowflakes started drifting.
He Mingchi looked up at the sky and heard the footsteps resounding in the tower behind him. He quickly pulled out the yellow paper umbrella from his armpit and opened it. When he saw that the cheeks of the Nation Master were gaunter than before, he could not help feeling a tension in his heart.
After leaving the Wanyan Tower and returning back to the South School, He Mingchi went directly to the back kitchen and was watching a factotum cooking medicine. As the eldest disciple of the Tang's Nation Master, he did not have a good qualification in cultivation. He also knew that he could not persuade his teacher to not consume the energy, and even his lifetime, to divine. So, he could only do what he could.
Holding a hot bowl of medicine, he slowly walked into the quiet Temple of Taoism.
Li Qingshan sat by the window, looking at the flying snow outside. Listening to the sound of footsteps, he did not look back, but signaled for He Mingchi to put the medicine bowl down.
He Mingchi did not put the bowl down, but kneeled at Li Qingshan's side, bowing his head and holding the medicine bowl with both hands above his head. And then, he silently and stubbornly asked his teacher to take the medicine first.
Li Qingshan sighed reluctantly and took the bowl. He slowly drank the medicine and then said with lament, ”You're too stubborn to be in charge of the Imperial Center Administration. If I die in the future, who would take care of you?”