His name was “Li Dan,” and he carried the Dao De Jing personally written by the Virtuous Heavenly Venerable. Meng Qi instinctively thought this might be a case of someone acting on behalf of the Supreme Sage to propagate Dao.
Had the Supreme Sage left the Investiture World and found it inconvenient to appear directly? After sensing his own connection with the Primordial Heavenly Venerable and Yu Xu Palace, had he casually bestowed the Dao De Jing to guide Meng Qi to propagate Dao in this world?
By now, trapped within this chessboard of fate and having experienced much, Meng Qi was no longer the naive novice he once was. He had developed a wariness toward coincidences, and this situation was beyond mere coincidence—it was practically intentional!
If the Supreme Sage intended for him to become Li Dan and propagate Dao on his behalf, then the matter of Meng Qi’s Earth body must have been well within his calculations. Otherwise, the current situation wouldn’t have arisen. Therefore, the Supreme Sage was at least neutral toward his side—although he hadn’t offered any help, he hadn’t exposed him either.
If Meng Qi regarded the Virtuous Heavenly Venerable as aligned with the Six Dao Samsara Master or the great power behind him, then his last trump card would already be exposed. There would be no hope left of escaping his “fish” status, leaving him to pray day and night for another great power to intervene. Life and death would no longer depend on his efforts.
This was the scenario Meng Qi most dreaded—being completely at the mercy of fate, powerless to change anything. Whether he tried hard or gave up would be irrelevant, effectively negating his very existence. If that were the case, he would rather have even a sliver of hope he could grasp. Even if it meant fighting until his soul shattered and his body disintegrated, dying gloriously would still be better than this!
Therefore, Meng Qi instinctively separated the Virtuous Heavenly Venerable from the Six Dao Samsara Master—at least so far, aside from the Dao De Jing being known to the Six Dao, there was no indication they were colluding.
Taking a deep breath, Meng Qi’s thoughts churned as he considered his next move.
The matter had already come knocking. To evade or refuse would be unwise. If this was indeed the Supreme Sage’s well-intentioned effort to help him escape his predicament, offending him would be regrettable.
However, propagating Dao on his behalf was a delicate task. If he directly displayed his “talent,” “conquered” Li Rong, and became a member of the Luoyi Archive, then read all the books, mastered etiquette, understood Dao and virtue, and attracted figures like Confucius to seek him as a teacher, the Six Dao would surely detect him immediately, rendering all his covert efforts a laughingstock.
Therefore, he needed to stay low-key, stall for a few years, make other preparations, and wait until his main body reached the critical moment of severing the past. Then he could coordinate his actions, open a grand Dao for this world, and harness the power of the entire Investiture World to assist him.
Timing had to be precise. A moment too late, and his main body might fail; a moment too early, and the Six Dao would detect him ahead of schedule.
“Thank you, Archivist, for bestowing my name,” Meng Qi clasped his hands in a bow, deliberately using Li Rong’s official title as a sign of respect.
Li Rong was momentarily taken aback: “You’ve read bamboo scrolls and can recognize characters and sentences?”
He didn’t seem like an ordinary refugee!
“In my childhood, I had a teacher,” Meng Qi intentionally misled Li Rong into assuming he was from a fallen noble family.
Li Rong had already felt a sense of accomplishment from Meng Qi’s willingness to learn from him and stop begging. Now, he felt even more admiration for Meng Qi’s potential. Stroking his beard, he said, “Good. From now on, you may address me as Archivist instead of Master. However, as you’re new to the Li household, you must still start with menial tasks. You’ll be responsible for cleaning the courtyard ahead.”
“Yes, Archivist,” Meng Qi replied, exactly what he hoped for—to remain low-key.
Watching Meng Qi being led away by other servants, Li Jianjia pouted: “He doesn’t look like someone who’s studied before.”
“Looks can be deceiving,” Li Rong shook his head. “This shows how chaotic the world has become, with frequent wars. Even a descendant of a high official could end up like this. If you don’t train in martial arts diligently, when turmoil reaches here, you might end up even worse than him.”
As for defending Luoyi, Li Rong had long seen through the Zhou royal family’s weakness and no longer harbored any illusions.
Half a year passed in the blink of an eye.
Because of the name “Li Dan,” Meng Qi dared not slack off. Using divine traces, he slightly adjusted the time, separating day and night. When it was daytime for his main body, it was night for his Earth body, and vice versa. This allowed him to barely manage both sides, keeping his consciousness aligned with whichever was active, avoiding any mishaps.
This was also one of the reasons Meng Qi dared not directly redeem long periods of time for cultivation. If years passed in a flash, who knew what might happen to his Earth body?
Brushing the courtyard with a broom, Meng Qi focused intently, treating the task as if it were the most sacred and worthy endeavor.
Through the study window, Li Rong and Li Jianjia watched Meng Qi work, feeling a sense of peace and relaxation from his demeanor.
“Performing menial tasks without slackening, enduring hardship without losing one’s resolve—Jianjia, just this mindset, this willpower, this focus, makes him a hundred or thousand times better than you. You should learn from this,” Li Rong remarked with emotion.
Li Jianjia’s eyes flickered, and she softly huffed: “So what? He’s still sweeping a courtyard.”
She actually deeply admired Meng Qi’s dedication and focus, knowing she herself could never achieve such consistency. But whenever her father lectured her, she couldn’t help but argue back.
Li Rong chuckled: “I was testing him. Now he’s passed. Soon, he’ll become a personal attendant, responsible for cleaning and organizing the study and archive. If he has spare time, he can read the books and practice martial arts.”
“Pity he wasted his best years. He’ll struggle to excel in martial arts, and his studies probably won’t make him a teacher either,” Li Jianjia added stubbornly, though she genuinely believed it.
Li Rong didn’t argue, silently agreeing with her assessment. But this was for training a personal attendant, not a great general or sage. It was sufficient.
He turned and walked behind a table, kneeling to sit, flipping through messages collected by servants and copied from official reports.
Suddenly, Li Rong slammed the sturdy table, splitting it in two with a single strike. His breath quickened, his mustache flaring with rage, clearly furious.
“Father, what’s wrong?” Li Jianjia blinked her beautiful eyes, puzzled.
“The Mohists of Qi have abolished many rituals, calling them cumbersome and useless. They advocate simple burials and dilute the distinctions of hierarchy,” Li Rong raged. “The rites are collapsing! Truly collapsing! Su Mo is truly the greatest villain in history!”
“People are no longer virtuous, people are no longer virtuous! I only regret my lack of strength to personally slay this villain!”
Ah-choo! Meng Qi sneezed, feeling he must have been targeted again, then silently continued sweeping.
Li Rong clasped his hands behind his back, pacing the study as his anger dissipated. When he saw Meng Qi’s unwavering focus, unaffected by external disturbances, he finally calmed down, shaking his head with a dejected expression. Returning to the table, he resumed flipping through other documents.
Finally, he saw an invitation card and opened it in confusion:
“Ji Yu of Zhongshan?” Li Rong muttered to himself.
Li Jianjia, responsible for organizing these matters for her father, replied: “Gongzi Yu? He submitted this invitation today. Should Father see him?”
“What’s his background?” Li Rong asked.
Li Jianjia recalled what the servant in charge had said: “He’s a prince of Zhongshan, reputed to be highly learned, knowledgeable about the world’s affairs. After Zhongshan’s fall, he has been wandering from state to state. No one expected him to come to Luoyi.”
“Highly learned? Then it’s worth meeting,” Li Rong nodded.
…
A carriage slowly approached the Archivist’s residence, unhurried, as if on a leisurely outing.
Inside sat a man with a headpiece, his hair jet-black, wearing a wide robe with large sleeves. His features were above average, with a touch of noble bearing, yet his expression carried a hint of frivolity and impatience.
He closed his eyes, calming his emotions and composing his expression. Suddenly, a servant with exceptional skills slipped through the window, handing him several sheets of paper: “Master, here’s what you requested.”
This man was indeed Gongzi Yu. He accepted the papers, signaled the servant to withdraw, and slowly began reading:
“… No Li Dan… No Lao Dan… No Li Er… No Boyang… It seems the Archive truly has no manifestation of the Supreme Sage teaching Dao…”
A smile appeared on Gongzi Yu’s face. In this world, no one probably knew that the Virtuous Heavenly Venerable might be incarnated in the humble Archive of Luoyi. If he appeared, he would become the teacher of the future sages, and the Dao De Jing he wrote would contain the true Dao of this world!
If not for his Earthly origins and the fortunate coincidence of his transmigration here, he would never have guessed this.
Now the Supreme Sage had not yet manifested. Would this merit and glory not fall conveniently into his hands?
After transmigrating into Gongzi Yu for several years and relying on his previous knowledge, he gradually gained a reputation for being highly learned. Occasionally, when he preached ideas not yet proposed by the various philosophers, he unexpectedly gained Dao and virtue energy, which complemented his mysterious cultivation technique, rapidly enhancing his power.
After tasting success, his gaze turned toward Luoyi and the Archive. If the Supreme Sage truly had not appeared, this would be his opportunity!
Now, multiple schools had already emerged. If the Supreme Sage did not manifest soon to propagate Dao, logically, he would never appear, as Gongzi Yu had already noticed the early signs of Confucian thought emerging.
Then, he would become the Sage who opened Dao in this world!
Immersed in pleasant fantasies, the carriage arrived at the Li residence. Led by a servant, Gongzi Yu entered the study and saw two men and a woman inside. The older man with a pale face and long beard was Li Rong. The woman appeared to be his daughter, and the other man, with a weathered face and prematurely aged look, seemed to be a senior servant.
After exchanging greetings, Gongzi Yu stated his purpose: saying that he saw the world’s chaos and his own shallow knowledge, feeling helpless, he had heard of the Archivist’s mastery of etiquette and came to learn, requesting permission to read the Archive’s collection.
This precisely struck a chord with Li Rong, who praised Gongzi Yu and immediately agreed.
Gongzi Yu, feigning humility, sighed: “This world lacks Dao and virtue, and people’s hearts have changed. Chaos frequently appears. I’m not talented, but I hope to read all the books to discover the Dao.”
This was just a setup, to avoid suspicion when he later caused a “big sensation.” Moreover, he couldn’t remember the complete Dao De Jing, so he needed Li Rong’s help to complete it.
“Excellent words!” Li Rong clapped his hands in delight. Meng Qi rolled his eyes, thinking, “This guy is really putting on an act, thinking he’s the Sage of Virtue.”
Gongzi Yu secretly felt pleased but feigned humility: “Archivist flatters me.”
Haha, the Dao shall be opened by me!
Before the words had fully faded, he heard Li Rong giving orders: “Li Dan, you first take Master Gongzi to the Archive.”
Li Dan? Gongzi Yu was momentarily stunned.
Li Dan!
His expression froze on his face, turning pale, then red, then dark, then pale again, as if a dye shop had exploded on his face.
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