Changing one's own name on the family genealogy was something even a favored youngest son like Li Longchuan would likely be beaten black and blue by Old Madam Li for attempting.
But Li Fengyao had managed to do it. Setting aside his ambition, his ability was far from ordinary.
Jiang Chen could only sigh, "He's quite the ambitious one!"
Xu Xiangqian knew Jiang Chen had come to Linzi for something important, so he naturally wouldn't keep pestering him to go out for fun.
After walking out of Changhua Avenue, the two parted ways.
For Jiang Chen, the purpose of this trip—to deliver gifts—had been achieved. He had not failed his task.
The Chongxuan family naturally had a Bowang Marquis Manor in the Qi capital as well, a grand estate of noble and imposing bearing, but...
With Chongxuan Zun around, Chongxuan Sheng certainly wouldn't move in to make things difficult for himself.
When he first came to Linzi to socialize, this fat man had spent a fortune buying a lavish mansion to host his gatherings and banquets. However, since it lacked any historical prestige as a marquis's residence, such a mansion, however opulent, still lacked the gravitas of a true noble house in the eyes of the old families.
From this alone, one could see the gap between Chongxuan Zun and Chongxuan Sheng within the family. Chongxuan Zun was already the de facto young master of the Bowang Marquis Manor, while Chongxuan Sheng, though still holding a lofty status within the manor, was nonetheless a step behind in everything.
Linzi boasted seven great scenic spots collectively known, and "Maple Glory at Dusk" was one of them.
Chongxuan Sheng's private residence was located near the famous Xia Mountain, its value far exceeding that of ordinary luxury mansions—it could be called extravagant.
With Chongxuan Zun present, he couldn't make full use of the Bowang Marquis Manor's prestige, so he could only display his own strength as much as possible. Wealth was one such means.
When Jiang Chen arrived at this residence, Chongxuan Sheng had not yet returned. But the servants in the manor had all received instructions long ago, so they naturally would not neglect him.
Xia Mountain earned its name not from the morning or evening glow, but because the mountain was covered in red maples that bloomed like an evening glow, hence "Xia Mountain."
It was said that every year on the evening of the Mid-Autumn Festival, when one gazed at Xia Mountain from afar, one could witness the remarkable spectacle of the evening glow on the horizon merging with the mountain's red maples. The two blended together, reflecting each other in brilliant red, a dazzling sight for a time, hence the name "Maple Glory at Dusk."
The room where Jiang Chen was staying offered a view of Xia Mountain the moment one pushed open the window—a prime location, to be sure.
But...
It inevitably reminded him of the maple forest outside Maple City, of the people within Maple City.
He had once danced with his sword amid the drifting maple leaves. Such pure times were hard to come by again.
In the blink of an eye, years had passed. The people who had once been by his side...
Jiang Chen stood by the window, his gaze distant and unfocused.
Tiger was in the military and had escaped that catastrophe, but contact had been lost ever since.
An'an was placed in the care of the Lingxiao Pavilion. No matter how much Ye Qingyu cared for her, with her young and sensitive nature, she couldn't avoid feeling anxious and confused, could she? Yet he himself couldn't even say his footing was secure. Everything he had gained could be lost at any moment. No matter how reluctant he was in his heart, he couldn't bring her here...
The evening wind rustled the maple leaves, making them sway in waves. From afar, they looked like a red sea churning.
The Mid-Autumn Festival was fast approaching.
Jiang Chen thought, then closed the window.
He sat back on the couch and began exploring his Five Palaces Sea.
Because time was so insufficient, and the desire to bring An'an back as soon as possible was so urgent, he couldn't even spare much time for sentiment.
The immense benefit of having a vast World-Island was most directly manifested when guiding the Dao-Dragon of the Meridian to swim into the Mists of Ignorance—one could more clearly sense the location of the World-Island. Because of its great size, it was hard to get lost.
His consciousness sank into the Dao-Dragon of the Meridian, and as he always did, he first inspected the Celestial Palace itself.
A "guest" resided within the Celestial Palace. He had to be this cautious.
The Star-Entwining Strange Python affectionately coiled around him a few times before darting off to weave through the Star River Dao Vortex on its own.
As for Jiang Yan, he was steady as a mountain, and the Nether Candle remained well-behaved.
The sensation of exploring the Mists of Ignorance was very strange.
The entire Celestial Palace moved in the form of the Dao-Dragon of the Meridian, and with his consciousness controlling it, he was like a dragon himself. Thus, he could clearly feel the constant erosion of the Mists of Ignorance upon the "dragon's body."
He needed to continuously mobilize Dao essence to repair the eroded parts, while memorizing the sensation of swimming forward, constantly exploring "ahead." Because in the Mists of Ignorance, there was no such thing as direction, and naturally, no front, back, left, or right.
Practitioners, in order not to get lost, often had to invent a direction for themselves. Jiang Chen, beyond his vast World-Island, also had the seed of a divine skill as a beacon, making his "direction" relatively clearer.
The struggle against the Mists of Ignorance was a constant throughout the entire Soaring Dragon realm cultivation process.
Given the scale of Jiang Chen's World-Island and the beacon created by his seed of a divine skill, this process was much safer than for ordinary practitioners. But Jiang Chen still set himself a relatively high warning line—when his Dao essence reserves reached this line and the repair speed began to lag behind the erosion rate, he would immediately return.
At this point, his spirit and energy would still be sufficient to support a battle at the level of the soul. In other words, he had specifically left a margin for dealing with Jiang Yan.
Some practitioners said that the process of traversing the Mists of Ignorance was the process of infusing one's own Dao essence into the mist. This statement was not without merit.
The Dao-Dragon of the Meridian itself, through constant erosion and repair, became the "battlefield" between the practitioner's Dao essence and the Mists of Ignorance.
Dao essence was not merely a simple sublimation of blood and vital energy, but a perfect fusion of intent and force, the true feedback of living beings to the origin of heaven and earth. It was the beginning of the Great Dao, the foundation of all cultivation.
And the Mists of Ignorance veiled the three souls and obscured the seven spirits—a corrosion and hindrance to cultivation.
What was "Ignorance"?
It was uncivilized, it was foolishness. But in truth, it was also the most primal state!
Human cultivation began with Dao essence. The term "Dao essence" itself carried the meaning of "the beginning of the Dao." In a sense, it was Dao essence that ended the Ignorance!
Thus, when a practitioner could complete the exploration of their Five Palaces Sea within the Mists of Ignorance, pinpoint the locations of each of the Five Palaces, and completely sweep away the influence of the Mists, they had self-achieved "civilization."
Having mastered their own body and obtained their own "room," they could then proceed from within outward.
Therefore, the realm following the Soaring Dragon realm was the Inner Palace realm!
The Buddhist tradition often likened the mortal world to a sea of suffering, and the human body to a lonely boat.
In cultivation, this referred to the process of guiding one's own Dao meridian and exploring the Five Palaces Sea within the Mists of Ignorance. It described the cultivation of the Soaring Dragon realm.
"The body is like the Bodhi tree, the mind like a bright mirror stand. Wipe it diligently at all times, lest dust accumulate."
This meant that during this process, one must constantly repair oneself, not allowing the Dao-Dragon of the Meridian to be stained by too much "dust," and finally get lost in the Mists of Ignorance.
Of course, there were also the "originally not a thing, where can dust accumulate" type—thea natural-born Buddha. They treated the Mists of Ignorance as non-existent from the start, but for ordinary practitioners, this held little reference value.
And the Confucian saying "If you can't sweep a single room, how can you sweep the world?" in cultivation terms meant that if one could not sweep away one's own state of Ignorance and achieve self-"civilization," one would be insufficient to enlighten the masses.
What it described, however, was the threshold to entering the Inner Palace realm.
...
By the time Chongxuan Sheng returned, night had fallen.
He was reeking of alcohol and his face was full of weariness.
But once he entered the manor, dismissed the servants, and stepped into Jiang Chen's room, his eyes snapped open and his tired look vanished instantly.
"How did things go today?" Jiang Chen asked, half-distracted as he slowly ceased his cultivation.
Chongxuan Sheng replied in a deep voice, "Very full, very dirty!"
The Dao-Dragon of the Meridian withdrew from the Mists of Ignorance and landed back on the World-Island. Jiang Chen withdrew his consciousness. "What happened?"
Chongxuan Sheng's words were unhappy, but his face was smiling. "I spent the whole day being given the cold shoulder and coming up empty-handed!"