But without exception, they all stopped respectfully upon seeing Fa Zi, standing with their hands by their sides.

Under countless gazes of respect and awe, Fa Zi, dressed in a Profound Robe and a High Crown, strode forward with slow, deliberate steps.

Although Tang Xiuming was counted among the top prodigies of Qin City, he had only ever admired this figure from afar during a few extremely important gatherings.

Now, facing one of the top twenty personages in the world up close, his legs went weak and his spine tingled, accompanied by a wave of palpitations.

He swallowed hard and bowed his head with utmost respect.

“Gr… Greetings, Fa Zi!”

Beside them, Tang Xiaoxiao and Tang Shitou were first bewildered, then their eyes widened and their scalps went numb.

Even twelve-year-old Little Stone understood what a Master of the Academy signified. Everything he had been taught since childhood told him that a Master of the Academy… was the heavens!

The true heavens!!

The two of them fell silent, standing frozen in place, not daring to move an inch, their hearts filled with extreme trepidation.

However,

The old man in the Profound Robe and High Crown stopped and stared directly at the young man in the wheelchair, whose eyelids were slightly lowered.

A moment later, under countless stunned, bewildered, and uncomprehending stares, he lowered his head.

“Legalist School, Tu Chengquan, greets you, Senior.”

Sen… Senior??

The two noble scions were dumbfounded. The Vessel Master of Lu Zi’s lineage, who had been observing quietly, also stared wide-eyed. The crowd that had gathered upon hearing the news, all standing respectfully with hands lowered, gaped in astonishment.

Tang Xiaoxiao looked around in confusion. ‘Senior… who?’

‘Brother Lu… No, wait, Mr. Lu??’

Her eyes glazed over. It all felt so surreal, as if she had misheard or was still dreaming.

The scene fell into a dead silence, leaving only the sound of rising and falling breaths and rapid heartbeats.

Lu Xuan raised his eyelids, looking at the old man before him with great interest. He gave a calm smile.

“You recognize me?”

“I do not,” Fa Zi said, his head lowered and hands by his sides, as deferential as the academy disciples and Great Powers around them.

He spoke respectfully.

“But I can see the… patterns on Senior’s body!”

As he spoke, he bowed his head even lower, his posture even more reverent.

“This junior, Tu Chengquan, trembles in trepidation. May I respectfully ask for Senior’s name!”

Lu Xuan understood. He had only just recovered his Position of Great Virtue, and the Unity of Virtue and Conduct was only halfway complete, causing some of its legal principles to be exposed.

He smiled and said calmly,

“My name is Lu Xuan.”

“Greetings, Senior Lu Xuan…” Fa Zi began respectfully, but his voice suddenly caught in his throat.

Lu… Lu Xuan?

‘The same name as Lu Zi??’

The crowd watching from the sides was fine, merely stunned and surprised, wondering why this unknown great figure, to whom even Fa Zi bowed, did not shy away from using the name of one of the Ancient Sons.

But Fa Zi looked up in astonishment at the young man’s face. It seemed… it seemed to bear a resemblance to the bronze statue standing at the highest point in the Hall of the Hundred Schools… ‘No, it can’t be, can it?!’

He connected this to the terrifyingly profound Dao and principles emanating from him, which were remarkably similar to the descriptions in the ancient texts of a Great Virtue who had achieved the level of Unity of Virtue and Conduct…

Fa Zi’s legs gave way, and he nearly fell to his knees.

With a quick hand, Lu Xuan reached out and held him up, saying faintly,

“It seems you recognize me now.”

“Lu-Lu-Lu…” A smile uglier than a grimace appeared on the old man’s face. He was so terrified that his speech became incoherent.

Lu Xuan just smiled calmly.

“Let’s go to the Hall of the Hundred Schools to talk.”

After a pause, he didn’t look at Fa Zi, who was trembling all over. Instead, he spoke gently to the dumbstruck Tang Xiaoxiao behind him.

“Would you be so kind as to push me to the Hall of the Hundred Schools, Miss Tang?”

‘My own injuries are secondary,’ he thought. ‘The real trouble is the Physical Tribulation that comes with them. The slightest movement threatens to make my body collapse. It’s best not to move if I can help it.’

Tang Xiaoxiao opened her mouth but didn’t dare to speak, only nodding blankly and stiffly.

Then, under the silent gaze of the countless onlookers, the Master of the Legalist School led the way, the Vessel Master of Lu Zi’s lineage followed respectfully, and the plainly but cleanly dressed young woman pushed the young man in the wheelchair, heading slowly toward the Hall of the Hundred Schools.

Long after they had left, the long street erupted into a clamor, descending into complete chaos.

Amid the countless astonished and terrified discussions, Tang Xiuming gripped Little Stone’s hand and murmured,

“Little brother, what in the world did you two bring back…”

Little Stone just shook his head blankly, offering no reply.

……..

Luocheng was built by the Peach Blossom Spring, modeled after the Zhou Dynasty’s capital from the Ancient Times, which lay beyond the Ten Thousand Mountains. It transcended the eighteen other cities. The only difference was that the city’s central Ming Hall, where the Celestial Son of Zhou once held court, had been replaced with the Hall of the Hundred Schools.

The Hall of the Hundred Schools in Luocheng also stood above those in the other eighteen cities, and was known as the Main Hall.

「Inside Luocheng’s Hall of the Hundred Schools.」

“We’ve already decided to reactivate the Mo School’s creations left behind from Ancient Times.”

The old man in black robes said grimly,

“Ever since the Ten Thousand Mountains were sealed and the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi receded, those creations personally forged by Ancient Mozi have been unable to be replenished. Their uses are limited, but we have no other choice.”

Beside him, another Master of the Academy said in a low voice,

“According to the intelligence from various regions, it seems not all the otherworldly visitors are demons. Some are rather friendly. For example, the news from Lu City reports contact with a group of otherworldly visitors who are capable of friendly communication.”

He paused, then added,

“Of course, that group of otherworldly visitors wasn’t that powerful. Their strongest member seems to be called Marquis Zhuge. His methods are mysterious and wondrous, but he’s not as strong as those demons.”

“We can make appropriate contact with the benevolent ones, but we must not let our guard down.” The old man in black stroked his long beard, his eyes narrowing slightly. Just as he was about to say more,

BUZZ!!!

The several old men, who stood at the apex of power and authority in this Little World, glanced to the side, their expressions all changing slightly.

“The statue of Lu Zi… It’s vibrating again??”

The black-robed elder could no longer sit still. His expression grew grave.

“From last night until now, the statue of Lu Zi has vibrated twice in a row. This won’t do. We must report this to the Forefather!”

“But before the Forefather went into slumber, he said that he must not be woken under any ordinary circumstances…”

“Between the otherworldly visitors and the statue of Lu Zi vibrating, which of these is ordinary?” The black-robed elder shook his head. “I will go seek an audience with the Forefather. You all continue discussing the matter of the otherworldly visitors.”

With that, he hurried away, leaving the other old men to look at each other in dismay.

After a long moment, one of the old men swallowed, his entire body tensing up.

“Speaking of which, the Forefather has been asleep for two or three thousand years, hasn’t he?”

“At least that long,” another elder said solemnly, sighing. “The Forefather was likely the most astonishing figure of the Ancient Times, second only to Lu Zi, right? If he hadn’t also been trapped in this place…”

The old men all sighed with emotion. That Forefather was born during Lu Zi’s invasion of Qi. By the twentieth year of Lu Zi’s invasion of Qin, at the age of just twenty, he had become a Great Sage and founded the School of Diplomacy, becoming the progenitor of an illustrious academy!

Five years later, at the age of twenty-five, the Forefather became a Great Virtue. The few disciples he took on all became “Zi” and Great Sages… Unfortunately, at only thirty-seven, just as Lu Zi re-emerged to roam the world, the Forefather was trapped here when the Ten Thousand Mountains were sealed…

But even so, the name of the Forefather, the Ghost Valley Master, still shook that entire era!

“Speaking of which,” a white-robed old man said mysteriously, glancing at the still-trembling statue of Lu Zi as if he’d just remembered something. “I once read a secret anecdote in an ancient text related to the Forefather!”

“Oh? What secret?”

“The Forefather’s master seems to have also been Lu Zi’s master!”

“Is that really true? Surely it must be false…”

“How could it be false?”

The white-robed old man swallowed nervously.

“Furthermore, three thousand years ago, the Forefather gave me a lecture on the Dao. At that time, I heard him refer to Lu Zi as Xiaoxuan, in an extremely intimate tone!”

Beside them, the Master of the Daoist School, who had been silent all this time, suddenly spoke up.

“My grandfather was trapped in this land along with the Forefather. My grandfather told me that the Forefather once laughed heartily, clapped his hands, and exclaimed, ‘Lu Zi is my junior brother!’ I never dared to take it seriously, but now it seems…”

“But-but during the Ancient Times, when Lu Zi’s name shook the world, hadn’t the Forefather yet been born?”

“That’s where you’re mistaken,” the white-robed old man said with a smile. “In the Ancient Times, the concept of Reincarnation existed… Who’s to say the Forefather wasn’t acquainted with Lu Zi in a previous life?”

“I see!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep