Chapter 267: Fight the enemy

As soon as the two sides met, they immediately began to dispute the manner in which the Rites appeared.

This kind of dispute was unlikely to be resolved through words.

Therefore, the magical arts of both sides became the method to determine victory.

Then, around Li Qi, his understanding of 'Rites' emerged.

Systems and rules began to cover the 'Water' that had previously enveloped him.

When Yu was a ruler, he held a plumb line in his left hand and a compass in his right, so his movements were harmonious, his actions were firm and beneficial, the tools he made were sturdy, his actions conformed to the Rites, and his words formed systems—this is what is called Rites.

"A gentleman who treats me with such insolence here is without Rites!" Li Qi shouted!

Words have power.

In ancient times, when Cangjie created writing, grain rained from the sky and ghosts cried at night; it was just like that, and Li Qi had also demonstrated such power before (see Chapter 155).

He was accusing the Tang Nation of being without Rites towards him, and thus, his magical arts gained power.

Since they were without Rites, the previous Restrictions naturally loosened, and Li Qi simultaneously gained freedom, expanding it to Liu Junyi's side.

Li Qi's methods were far more violent than 'Water,' resembling heavy chains rising up, preventing Liu Junyi from making any move!

This move caused many of the onlookers to stand up in surprise.

Such a move is not something a Shaman should master; this is a human Dao method!

How did this Young Master of Shaman God Mountain learn it?!

However, at this moment, Liu Junyi on the other side softly said, "Rites are the foundation of governance, the core of unity, used to align and correct things, to clarify the actions and practices of the body. Why should they oppress others?"

Rites are meant to restrain oneself, not to compel others.

Liu Junyi stated directly that Li Qi, who spoke of Rites repeatedly, used the method of spiritual words to bind others, which was already a low-level approach.

As his words fell, Li Qi's surging Domain of rules immediately split open, and a crack appeared beside Liu Junyi, making it impossible to approach him in the slightest.

Rites are meant to restrain oneself; mistaking Rites for rules and laws is incorrect, and it shows Li Qi's complete lack of understanding of Rites!

Li Qi fell into deep thought; this time, there was genuine pressure.

Because he had not prepared for the opponent's statement, meaning he had not anticipated that anyone would say such a thing.

In other words, this suddenly appearing green-robed Confucian scholar was indeed an evenly matched opponent for him.

Moreover, the opponent's words and actions were consistent; even the 'Water' that had previously bound him merely surrounded him like water, causing no discomfort.

Li Qi, by using more ferocious chains to block the opponent's movements, had instead put himself in a position where he had nothing to say and was difficult to counter.

Li Qi fell into thought, falling silent for a moment, only able to ponder how to break the opponent's words.

And around the green-robed Confucian scholar, a gentle breeze blew and water rippled, making people feel involuntarily restrained in his presence.

This is like how people are generally relaxed when walking on an ordinary street.

But if one enters a luxuriously decorated and exquisitely furnished room, people generally become very cautious, fearing they might do something wrong; this is like a 'room of orchids and irises.'

As long as one uses Rites to restrain oneself, one can become like an orchid or iris, and then the people around you will naturally be influenced and restrained by Rites.

This is the Dao of a gentleman in handling affairs.

This was Liu Junyi's answer to Li Qi.

Evidently, Li Qi did not agree with this point, but he temporarily couldn't find a way to refute it.

Given some time, he should still be able to figure it out, but... now, in public, he didn't have much time.

But the more he thought, the more 'Water' surrounded him, and the harder it became for him to break free.

One must know that it's not enough to just come up with a counter-argument; one also needs to create a magical art based on it and apply it in practice to truly win.

Li Qi was silent for about five seconds, his brain working frantically, when suddenly—

Yan Ke stood up.

Then, he gently said, "Rites arise in three ways: the principle of Rites arises from the Great One, the affairs of Rites arise from Sui Huang, and the names of Rites arise from the Yellow Emperor." His statement, "the principle of Rites arises from the Great One," is universally understood; however, his statements, "the affairs of Rites arise from Sui Huang, and the names of Rites arise from the Yellow Emperor," are contradictory.

"Its body has two aspects. One is the material body, which refers to the fact that all things, whether noble or humble, high or low, small or large, refined or simple, each have their own essence. The second is the body of Rites, which refers to the holy kings establishing laws, embodying all these things, so that the high and low, noble and humble, each find their proper place."

Yan Ke's answer broke the silence.

The meaning of his words was also very simple: he briefly expounded on his viewpoint and pointed out that the origin of Rites is not singular, that both of them were speaking partially, and moreover, Rites themselves are divided into two methods, material and bodily, which cannot be conflated.

As he spoke, everyone's gaze turned towards him again.

Yan Ke was very handsome.

If the Liu Junyi in front of them was like a straight, elegant green bamboo, noticing him would bring a sense of peace, but if one wasn't particularly focused, it would be hard to notice him.

Then, Yan Ke was like a tree full of magnolias, fragrant and spreading its scent for miles, making it hard to ignore him even if you tried.

Compared to Yan Ke, Li Qi was far inferior in both temperament and appearance.

Therefore, when Yan Ke stood up, one could feel that the surrounding atmosphere seemed to change.

But this timely support gave Li Qi ample time to complete his thoughts.

Immediately after Yan Ke finished speaking, Li Qi added: "Morality, benevolence, and righteousness cannot be achieved without Rites. Teaching and correcting customs are incomplete without Rites. Resolving disputes and distinguishing lawsuits are not settled without Rites. The order of all living beings is not established without Rites. Arranging court and governing the army, administering officials and enforcing laws, their authority cannot be exercised without Rites. Prayers, sacrifices, and offerings to ghosts and spirits are not sincere or solemn without Rites. Therefore, Rites exist in all things, and also in ritual law; the two are integrated, and all scriptures and Dao transmissions have their respective Domains, with minor and major differences in names, which is not surprising!"

The two united, one speaking after the other, successfully suppressing Liu Junyi.

Following the principles in their words, corresponding magical arts naturally formed from their hands.

The 'Water' surrounding Liu Junyi abruptly split into two halves.

The surrounding area of more than ten miles, which had been sectioned off by the Qing of the Honglu Temple, also split into two halves.

Just like Yin and Yang.

Yin and Yang Taiji, also known as Yi, the two sides of Rites manifested here, with Li Qi and Yan Ke each controlling one side, drawing a clearly defined Yin and Yang diagram in the surrounding area.

There was a division into left and right, like an army's left and right flanks, each having its own part and not intermixing.

Now it was Liu Junyi's turn to frown.

But at this moment, someone nearby shouted angrily, "Is it not shameful to fight two against one?!"

Originally, it was just an accusation against Li Qi and Yan Ke's ganging up, but the Great Shaman of Shaman God Mountain above heard this and snorted coldly, actually responding!

The Great Shaman leaned his head, propping his face with one hand, and said, "If having support is shameful, then what about your previous rotation of twenty-odd people against Li Qi?"

"How about this: since this is originally a conflict between Shaman God Mountain and the Tang Nation, and some even sought outside help, then let's go all out. You can also participate, how about it?"

The Qing of the Honglu Temple knew he was in the wrong and did not respond, as he had indeed called for outside help.

The Great Shaman's response silenced the others below.

But soon, other Confucian scholars stood up to support Liu Junyi!

Someone stood up and shouted, "The eras are disparate, and what is said varies; the apocrypha are chaotic and contradict each other, moreover, they are troublesome and useless. How can one talk about division? Let us now disregard them! Preserve it with uprightness, and incorporate it into virtue and righteousness!"

After he finished speaking, Li Qi and the others' segmented formation was suppressed somewhat, and at the same time, it bought Liu Junyi some time!

Liu Junyi looked at the supporter and nodded gratefully; it was clearly very helpful to him.

However, Bo Yue stood up and spoke of his most proficient subject, the Yi Jing: "Indeed, Rites span heaven and earth; at their root lies the beginning of the Great One, from origin to end. In their embodiment, they represent human desires, drawing upon the six Qi above and following the four seasons below, imbuing clarity and turbidity, changing with the Yin and Yang. How can they not be divided and distinguished?!"

With Bo Yue joining in, the other Tang Nation people no longer held back, and a dozen or so stood up in quick succession!

Someone loudly told Li Qi, "Young Master, you are learned and well-versed, knowing the present and understanding the past, but you must know that examining the statutes of previous generations is for referencing the gains and losses of the current era. Each records what they have seen and heard. They are compiled and gathered, categorized by type, but must never deviate from the original scriptures or overly alter their fundamental meanings."

Someone refuted Yan Ke, "To say Rites have two origins is unbelievable; in my opinion, Rites have three origins: Heaven and Earth are the origin of life; ancestors are the origin of lineage; and ruler and teacher are the origin of governance!"

Someone else began to expound their own view: "All Rites begin with simplicity, are perfected by refinement, and end in joyous harmony. Therefore, the most complete Rites fully express both emotion and form; next, emotion and form alternately prevail; and below that, emotion returns to the Great One. Heaven and Earth unite, the sun and moon shine, the four seasons are in order, the stars move, rivers flow, all things prosper, likes and dislikes are regulated, joy and anger are appropriate. When applied below, they bring compliance; when applied above, they bring clarity. With myriad changes, they remain undisturbed. How can they vary because of individuals?"

Immediately, the scene descended into chaos. Views from dozens of ancient texts such as "Shi Ji," "Six Arts," "Guang Ya," "Li Yun," "Gu Li Jing," "Luo Gao," and many more were brought forth. Countless essays, philosophical thoughts, and famous sayings of ancient sages were invoked.

Without a certain level of foundation, just these words alone would be enough to cause a headache.

These words were already profound, each sentence needing careful consideration to understand its meaning. Now, they came pouring in like a string of pearls, accumulating thousands of lines in the blink of an eye!

Along with these words, countless magical arts appeared, exerting different effects, crashing down like a tsunami towards the several Young Masters of Shaman God Mountain!

Thousands of words, each needing to be refuted.

Thousands of magical arts, each needing to be broken.

Failing to receive them meant losing, and losing badly. No matter how strong the Young Masters were, this was an attack launched simultaneously by several hundred Rank Eight cultivators. Although it wasn't a death match, the sheer quantity could overwhelm someone!

Most of these words could be easily handled by Li Qi and Yan Ke, but there were simply too many.

Two-digit addition and subtraction are simple, but what if you had to do a thousand problems in a short amount of time?

Facing the words and magical arts surging like a tidal wave, the three Young Masters exchanged glances.

Bo Yue immediately sat cross-legged, then waved both hands, and two Formation Plates flew out, one in each hand, saying, "I'll be responsible for categorizing and matching your principles and magical arts."

Li Qi took a deep breath, mobilizing the memories in his mind: "I'll be responsible for refuting."

Yan Ke nodded: "I'll be responsible for the magical arts."

The three had an unspoken understanding and quickly reached an agreement.

Bo Yue placed the two Formation Plates at the very front, quickly dismantling words and magical arts, classifying and organizing them. In an instant, he completed the collation of countless data, arranged them in order, marked them, and then provided these sounds and magical arts separately to Li Qi and Yan Ke.

On Li Qi's side, countless sounds simultaneously rang in his ears.

These were all sounds transmitted by Bo Yue.

These low murmurs, like waves crashing before Li Qi, stunned his mind in just an instant.

Fortunately, these sounds were all marked by Bo Yue, so he wouldn't mishear them.

He took a step back, then stood firm.

True Knowledge Dao Resonance fully activated!

All his senses were focused on the sounds!

Bo Yue had already sorted them for him; he didn't need to distinguish whether a segment of speech was mixed with other words.

With the help of True Knowledge Dao Resonance, he quickly clarified each sentence, then made a response and packaged it to send to Bo Yue.

Bo Yue received the message and then used his Formation Plate to emit sounds, transmitting them into the sea of people opposite.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Yan Ke was facing an endless barrage of magical arts.

Countless chaotic yet profound powers swirled around him; these were all magical arts created based on the principles of ancient sages.

Like thunder exploding, ripples spreading, suddenly, countless magical arts began to gather power, layer upon layer, the magical power of countless spells twisting together, each layer building momentum for the next, converging and crashing towards Yan Ke.

In an instant, the sky and earth seemed to darken, and then the sound of wind roared, as if there were no solid front ahead, sweeping all before it!

Fortunately, Yan Ke didn't need to simultaneously think about refuting and figure out how to break the magical arts.

All he had to do was break these magical arts.

Yan Ke began to dismantle them.

The weakness of each magical art, the foundation of each magical art.

He didn't have Li Qi's True Knowledge Dao Resonance, so he couldn't fully understand the existence forms of these magical arts.

But he also had his own method.

When Yan Ke was still at Rank Nine, he took it upon himself to guide the people of an entire miniature heaven and earth, and he was adept at handling subtle details.

Moreover, that miniature heaven and earth also had a very rare, peculiar cosmic light.

He took out that miniature heaven and earth and gently tapped it.

The Restriction placed on it by the Great Shaman unfolded, revealing a strange fluctuation from the miniature heaven and earth, which had been compressed to the size of a thumb.

Yan Ke's speed was accelerated.

No, it wasn't that his speed increased, but rather that his time developed a differential speed with his surroundings.

Using this difference, he had more time to deal with these magical arts.

The three worked together, facing an encirclement by hundreds of people!

But at this moment, outside the crowd, Liu Junyi stopped.

He did not join the encirclement.

The Qing of the Honglu Temple's face darkened, and he said, "Junyi, why did you stop?"

Liu Junyi performed the Disciple's salute, bowing with cupped hands, and replied in a respectful tone, "This is not a life-and-death struggle; how can one take advantage of another's predicament? There are already thousands of people attacking; what difference does one more of me make?"

"You can see that any one of them would only be an even match for you. Now that the three of them are tied up, if you make a move, victory is assured," said the Qing of the Honglu Temple.

However, the latter sentence had no sound, only ringing in Liu Junyi's mind, clearly a secret telepathic message, which even the Great Shaman opposite had not detected.

Liu Junyi glanced at Zhong Minglou, who was still idle.

"The other side still has one person. Intervening now would only result in a draw. Moreover, this is just a sparring match; leading a group to encircle is not the act of a gentleman."

The Qing of the Honglu Temple was so angry his nose was crooked.