51: Stand firm

“To establish the heart for Heaven and Earth!”

As the first line was uttered, Qin Chuan clearly felt the entire world instantly come alive.

Amidst the Heavenly Heart's perception, the crimson chains in the void gradually became chaotic, as if an invisible struggle was emerging.

Effective!

Qin Chuan no longer paused, connecting to the previous text, writing the short four lines with exceptional seriousness.

“To establish the heart for Heaven and Earth, to establish destiny for the living, to carry on the lost teachings of past sages, and to usher in peace for all generations.”

As the four lines emerged, their brilliant essence scattered among the characters, and the shadow of Bixi coiled above them.

Qin Chuan picked them up for review, only to see the same line of characters carved into the desk like chisel and axe marks.

Deeply etched!

Before he could examine the characters on the desk, the four lines in his hand suddenly broke free from his grasp.

Qin Chuan did not panic; instead, he looked at the Bixi above them.

The Bixi on the paper nodded to him, then burst into a brilliant light.

Subsequently, the paper recording the four lines slowly faded into the air.

At the same time, a childlike recitation echoed throughout Qiao City.

“To establish the heart for Heaven and Earth, to establish destiny for the living, to carry on the lost teachings of past sages, and to usher in peace for all generations.”

The people of Qiao City, already in a state of panic, suddenly heard these words and looked around, but found nothing.

Inside the academy, in a cubicle not far from Qin Chuan.

Liu Yu was in the middle of writing his answer when he suddenly heard the echoing sound.

He murmured, “I wonder which great scholar this is, establishing the heart for Heaven and Earth… How far can I go?”

With that, he shook his head and erased the answer on the paper.

“I’ll rewrite it!”

West City, a poor family’s home.

“Husband, where is that sound coming from?”

“It sounds like a scholar’s words? How could it reach here?”

“I don’t know, but it feels… quite imposing.”

“Yes, those literary gentlemen… I’ve decided, I’ll let Xiaotaozi go to school too!”

“But the tuition for the private school…”

“It’s fine, it just means I’ll work a bit harder.”

Beside them, a six or seven-year-old child, finding the sound amusing, began to recite along in a childish voice.

“To… to establish the heart for Heaven and Earth…”

Many similar scenes unfolded—

On the street, a vendor with a worried expression, troubled by the scarcity of customers, looked up and silently recited.

In a humble room, a diligently studying scholar, hearing the sound as if discovering a treasure, immediately copied it down and recited it repeatedly.

Scholars, farmers, artisans, merchants…

Gradually, the echoing chants were no longer just the readings of young children.

Spirited youths.

Disgruntled scholars.

Hardworking farmers.

Merchants who toiled from dawn till dusk.

The words of ‘establishing the heart’ grew increasingly grand.

When they reached a deafening crescendo, reverberating in their ears.

South of the city.

Someone suddenly said, “Look, isn’t the color of that ghost domain a bit lighter?”

The remaining people looked, and indeed, it was so.

At the same time, a grand sound came from within the city, and everyone focused their gaze.

“To establish the heart for Heaven and Earth…”

Just as these soldiers were puzzled, many surviving scholars in the area were in tears.

“This is… this is… a Saint inscribing Heaven and Earth?”

“But there are no Saints in the world. Could Minister Wang have made a breakthrough in Yu Province? I haven’t heard anything!”

“It doesn’t seem like a Saint has arrived; rather, it’s like… I don’t know what it is.”

“Let us not overthink, but carefully comprehend; it will be of great benefit to our future literary path!”

“But this ghost domain…”

“Heh, with such principles at play, how can this ghost domain still exist? Just watch its arrogance, just watch its destruction…”

Inside the academy.

Qin Chuan was still comprehending the Heavenly Heart—

He didn’t know if Master Zhang Zai’s ‘Four Maxims of Hengqu’ would be enough. If not, he could bring out something like the ‘Song of Righteousness’…

But judging by Bixi’s actions and the commotion in the void, it should be enough, right?

Just as he thought of this, the chanting in his ears grew stronger.

Qin Chuan didn't know the reason for this chanting, but he could clearly feel that—each time the sound grew stronger, the chains in the void became weaker.

‘Crack!’

A snapping sound, like a hallucination, rang out.

Simultaneously with the snapping sound, a chilling female voice full of murderous intent reached everyone’s ears:

“Who dares to offend my Great Zhou!”

At this moment, Bixi reappeared in mid-air and rapidly solidified.

It no longer looked listless; instead, it was full of vigor.

Its dragon head pointed at Qin Chuan, looking as if it greatly appreciated him.

Then, as if remembering something, its dragon body circled briefly above Qin Chuan’s head.

Just like before, the scene outside the city reappeared before Qin Chuan’s eyes.

Commandant Cui and the surviving soldiers and scholars were carried to one side, and a team of doctors came forward to treat them.

Nearby, hundreds of people dressed in Confucian robes surrounded the dark red area.

Characters in regular, clerical, and seal scripts filled the sky, imprinting themselves upon every inch of the dark red region.

Nearby, banners obscured the sky, and a murderous aura permeated the air.

Countless armored soldiers stood ready!

Looking out, the raised banners displayed the names of the armies—

Divine Strategy, Black Armored, Phoenix Grace…

In front of the armies, several people were conversing, and Qin Chuan even saw a familiar face among them.

—The fat elder of the Chen family he had seen before.

It seemed to be… Chen Honglin?

Chen Honglin sighed, “This perception barrier has finally been lifted. Such a large Qiao City, gone just like that… The Emperor is already furious!”

The general beside him cupped his fists and said, “Elder Patriarch Chen, this matter came so suddenly, we were truly unprepared! I heard Minister Wang is already rushing here. Please help…”

Chen Honglin quickly waved his hand, “No, I can’t afford to provoke him! You find someone else to intercede.”

With that, he turned his gaze to mid-air, seemingly meeting Qin Chuan’s gaze.

“With the divine dragon’s assistance, inscribing the principles of Heaven and Earth… Although I don’t know who you are, with this enviable opportunity and immense merit… Would Your Excellency be willing to talk through the night?”

Qin Chuan thought to himself, “Who would want to talk through the night with you?”

The next moment, the light and shadow before him dispersed, and he returned to the appearance of his cubicle in the academy.

Bixi was also gone…

It was then that Qin Chuan realized.

He was still taking the provincial examination…

“Oh no! I don’t know if I can finish it…”

Qin Chuan made up his mind, summoning the spirit he once had for catching up on holiday homework—

One pen, one person, one night, one miracle!

(PS: This year has truly been unlucky. A few days ago, my relationship went sour, and just now I had a bad fall, spraining my ankle, cracking my phone screen, and now I’m limping, grimacing in pain… Never mind, no more idle chatter!

If things don’t improve tomorrow, I’ll go to the hospital for an X-ray. If time is tight, there might be two updates at 19:00. (If I can do three, I’ll still try my best for three.)

Well, that’s it—from the unlucky Firefly, who is offending the Grand Duke of Jupiter this year.)