Chapter 304: Preaching

Li Qi looked at Liu Junyi, who was making tea.

It had to be said that although this humble Young Master wasn't exceptionally handsome, his temperament was indeed very captivating.

Dressed in a green robe, with a jade pendant at his waist, ordinary black boots, and long hair smoothly combed and neatly tied into a ponytail with a hair tie, he exuded the aura of a scholar.

Only…

Were these two brothers?

It didn't seem wrong; they both had the surname Liu, so it wasn't strange to say they were family.

Just then, Liu Junyi looked up, and like Li Qi, he seemed a little surprised.

However, he quickly reacted, smiling at Li Qi and saying, “Ah, Young Master Li, I didn’t expect you to know my younger brother? This is truly fated; to make a friend like you, he truly has good foresight, as always.”

His voice was as gentle, soft, and unhurried as when Li Qi first met him, giving off a feeling of being bathed in a spring breeze.

The surrounding furnishings also matched his style; they were just ordinary household items, nothing flashy, and the tea wasn't particularly good, barely enough to quench thirst.

Li Qi immediately cupped his hands: “Brother Liu…”

He had just opened his mouth when he realized he couldn't use his usual address of 'Brother Liu,' because Liu Canzhi was already there, and there couldn't be two Brother Lius.

So he thought for a moment, changed his address, and praised, “Lecturer Liu, I also didn’t expect you and Canzhi to be clan brothers. This truly shows a prosperous family, with a strong tradition of scholarship, and two Imperial Academy students in one family.”

This was Liu Junyi’s position, Imperial Academy Lecturer, who assisted the Dr. Tai Xue and assistant professors, specializing in lecturing on classics.

“Haha, it has nothing to do with family tradition; it’s purely because my brother and I are smart,” Liu Canzhi, unrestrained, immediately burst into laughter, taking all the credit for himself.

Liu Junyi seemed accustomed to his clan brother’s uninhibited behavior and didn’t find it too strange; he simply smiled along.

After laughing, Liu Canzhi seemed to remember something. He immediately asked, “Oh, right, Brother Li, you haven’t told me how you met my elder brother yet. Quickly tell me!”

“There’s nothing much to say about this, but if Brother Liu wants to hear it, I can certainly tell you. Lecturer Liu and I met at the state banquet back then.”

Li Qi then recounted the situation from back then inside the carriage.

Liu Junyi, however, remained silent, just listening quietly as Li Qi spoke.

Li Qi naturally wouldn't boast or embellish anything; he simply recounted the events as they happened, without adding any personal opinions.

As Liu Canzhi listened, he suddenly clapped his hands: “Aha! You, Li Qi, when I asked about your background, you weren’t willing to tell me! So you’re a Young Master from Shaman God Mountain! No wonder you have Spiritual Tools refined by Shaman Dao!”

Li Qi stammered, unsure how to reply.

But Liu Canzhi didn’t seem to care much. He immediately urged Li Qi to continue, then, while excitedly commenting on both their performances, he drove the carriage along another small, outer path, entering the Imperial Academy.

This small path was quite secluded, and he didn’t know how he found it, but there was actually this loophole that allowed them to directly access the school’s back courtyard.

They continued from the back courtyard all the way to the academy’s main gate.

During this time, the three chatted casually, and the atmosphere was quite harmonious.

Upon reaching the front gate, Liu Canzhi stopped the carriage: “Alright, we’ve arrived. We are not participants in the讲道. Brother Li, you can get off here and walk through the front gate to reach the Dao field.”

“Thank you, Brother Liu. I really owe you a lot. If it weren’t for you, I’d probably be stuck outside until everyone dispersed,” Li Qi said with a bitter smile, expressing his gratitude to Liu Canzhi.

Liu Canzhi waved his hand: “Hey, what are friends like us saying such things for? The Shaman Dao Spiritual Tool you gave me was a huge help! I haven’t even thanked you yet, so why are you thanking me all the time?”

Liu Junyi also rose, performing a double-handed salute, which was a farewelletiquette: “I am not yet familiar with Young Master Li, but debating with Young Master Li, I know that your knowledge and talent are astonishing. I imagine the讲道 will not be difficult for you, but I hope it will still inspire you. My brother and I will wait for you here, and after it concludes, we can celebrate your success.”

“Yes, if my elder brother hadn’t mentioned it, I would have forgotten. After the讲道, Brother Li, you should be free, right? You must come to my house as a guest. You’ve traveled a long way and arrived in Chang’an alone for the first time; we should certainly fulfill our duties as hosts!” Liu Canzhi stood up happily beside him: “It’ll be a celebration for you, and you have to give me this Face, right?”

One of them was gentle and warm, the other boisterous and carefree, like water and fire, yet both were polite and well-mannered.

Li Qi secretly noted this, quickly returned the salute, and agreed.

Then, he got out of the carriage and walked alone towards the Dao field.

The place of the讲道 was at the main entrance of the Imperial Academy.

All the crowds surged from outside, squeezing around the Dao field in layers, making it extremely difficult, almost torturous, to enter from outside.

However, since Li Qi was walking out from within the Imperial Academy, it was naturally unobstructed.

When Li Qi emerged from the main gate, Mo Benglan and Li Lieqi were already standing in the Dao field.

Mo Benglan’s clansmen had returned to the crowd, eagerly anticipating their favored son’s performance. Mo Benglan had also tidied his clothes; now, impeccably dressed in luxurious attire, his Face even powdered, he looked like a Young Master.

Li Lieqi, on the other hand, was a bit rougher than him, but her back was straight, and she still wore sturdy pants, her legs strong and slender, her demeanor heroic, and her appearance not bad. Leading a horse ten feet tall, she was still very eye-catching.

However, as soon as Li Qi arrived, everyone’s gaze shifted to him.

Because he walked out from inside, even though he was actually the most plainly dressed person.

Although his appearance was handsome, it was within the normal range and not particularly astonishing.

His skin was a bit dark, which made him seem slightly less refined.

His clothes were just ordinary cloth, and because they were bought in Tang Nation, they were in the Tang Nation style, making him look like someone randomly picked off the street.

The two fellow students showed extremely surprised expressions towards Li Qi.

This person… lives in the school?

However, Li Qi didn’t pay attention to them. He walked to the center of the Dao field and smiled and nodded at Li Lieqi and Mo Benglan.

Li Lieqi knew that Li Qi had been looking troubled outside earlier, so she was very surprised: how did he come out of the Imperial Academy in such a short time?

Mo Benglan, however, was bewildered, but still politely gave Li Qi a slight nod. It was clear that this Young Master didn’t particularly want to engage with Li Qi; his attitude was very cold.

Li Qi didn’t mind any of that, nor did he converse. He simply sat down and waited for the讲道 to begin.

Just as Li Qi had settled down, he saw a Dr. Tai Xue step forward.

The Dr. Tai Xue, of the 正六品上 rank, was among the group who used to set examination questions for Imperial Academy students.

The Dr. Tai Xue coughed twice: “The three new students have arrived. Therefore, the讲道 begins.”

Li Qi was caught off guard.

He had expected some kind of opening ceremony, some grand welcome, but they just arrived and it started? Was it that simple?

Were they kidding?

Why were so many people gathered around then?

But the next second, Li Qi felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

The讲道!

The true讲道!

It wasn’t a demonstration of techniques, nor was it the performance of methods that Li Qi had done before,

But a direct manifestation of the Human Dao through practical display!

Then, the Dr. Tai Xue stepped out, and an incredibly resonant and unbelievable sound emanated from around him.

Yes, it wasn't communicated through words.

But a more abstruse, incredibly vast amount of information in the form of Dao Resonance!

As their voices sounded, an almost unbelievable stream of information rushed into Li Qi’s brain!

The Universe in the Human Dao’s eyes, the way this world should be, its origin, development, process, and even its future—countless pieces of information were condensed into one incomprehensible Dao Resonance after another.

Many, many things that could not be described in words were hidden within these Dao Resonances!

This was the讲道. This was the Dr. Tai Xue before him attempting to elucidate things that almost transcended the intelligence of Mortals.

A Mortal’s mind would be overwhelmed by these things.

It was like…

Mathematical formulas?

For example, the simple area formula reveals the relationship between a geometric shape’s side length and its area.

The famous E=mc², or the mass-energy equivalence equation, reveals the relationship between energy and mass.

To reveal the relationships between things is to unveil the mysterious veil of this Universe.

This was how Li Qi felt now.

Profound and abstruse Dao Resonances continuously expounded upon the relationships of all things in the Universe, as understood by the Human Dao.

The relationship between people, the relationship between people and objects, and the relationships between all things.

Most of the Universe’s appearance was described, regardless of whether Li Qi understood it or not.

Those overarching perspectives beyond localized scenes, whether the extremely tiny microscopic parts or the complex and diverse macroscopic parts, harmonized to form this world.

This was building from a high vantage point, describing this world from the highest perspective!

Li Qi immediately sat cross-legged, activating his True Knowledge Dao Resonance and ears simultaneously, beginning to listen and perceive the other party’s讲道.

The transformations of Heaven and Earth are boundless and endless.

This world is like a crucible of molten gold, constantly melting.

In ancient times, Sages cast and molded it into a vessel, forming a model for humanity, a framework, preventing it from deviating from the middle path.

This world is chaotic and disorderly, naturally inclined towards Chaos and conflict, like a pot of Chaos soup. It was the Sages who forged laws, rites, rules, and systems, becoming a model for humanity, establishing the best order for this world.

Bit by bit, the Dr. Tai Xue above began to explain the Universe as understood by the Human Dao.

Just as Heaven creates life and brings it to fruition in autumn, Sages gather and store it. When humans are born, their desires move and emotions prevail, so Sages educate and prevent them.

The more Li Qi listened, the more he felt that these Dao Resonances made a lot of sense.

But…

Despite the logic, Li Qi always felt something was off.

Something was wrong, something was amiss.

But he couldn’t pinpoint what was wrong.

However, this suspicion made Li Qi open his eyes, no longer immersed in the讲道.

With his mind restored, he glanced around.

First, his two fellow students.

Both Li Lieqi and Mo Benglan were utterly entranced, completely absorbed in the讲道.

Presumably, in their hearts, countless doubts were dispelled, previous confusions unveiled, and they gained insight into innumerable things.

But Li Qi was different; he couldn’t accept many of the Human Dao’s explanations of the world. This讲道 was useful to him, but not that useful.

Li Qi looked further back.

He saw the hundreds of thousands of people behind him, who had been pushing and shoving, all quietly sitting down, listening attentively to the讲道.

However, some people were truly listening, while others were just anxiously trying to listen, but couldn’t understand at all.

There were also some who were dejected, and even some who got up and left directly.

Leaving at this point was easy, because everyone had stopped pushing and were quietly listening to the Dao, so one could simply walk past them.

Nearly seven-tenths of the people couldn’t understand, but only a very small number left.

Even if they didn’t understand, they seemed to force themselves to stay, even if they were already sweating profusely.

After all, the Dao Resonance being transmitted contained answers to countless questions; as long as one could understand its meaning, it could fundamentally help them resolve difficulties in their cultivation.

But the讲道者 didn’t seem to care about any of this; he just kept narrating countless complex pieces of information, repeating these Dao Resonances.

Regrettably, in Li Qi’s opinion, the讲道者 himself didn’t seem to understand what was being conveyed within these Dao Resonances.

It was like a middle school student writing an essay, mechanically piling up various advanced terms and ornate phrases, ultimately rendering the entire article unreadable. Not only could others not understand it, but perhaps even they themselves didn’t know what they were talking about.

At this moment, Li Qi suddenly recalled the ancient classics of Buddhist scriptures he had read.

Those were… truly profound words with great meaning.

Through ordinary text, using the least information-dense method, they could outline the Great Dao.

Everyone who read these classics could derive their own understanding, and most of it could be directly applied in practice, serving as guidance for their Dao path.

There was nothing strange about them, nothing that contained any great Dao or divine mystery; just a few lines of text, a few thousand characters, easily copied and replicated by even Mortals…

But it was precisely such things that could still provide guidance and inspiration to Li Qi, a seventh-rank Cultivator.

One could only wonder what kind of wise person wrote them.

These were probably the masterpieces of advanced Cultivators.

And the Dao Resonance before him, seemingly lofty and imbued with a mysterious charm, felt off to Li Qi no matter how he listened. Compared to those ordinary classics, the讲道 before him lacked something.

However, these thoughts were only for a moment.

In fact, just as Li Qi was distracted, looking around, no longer listening to the Dao, and had just turned his head to look at the crowd—

Suddenly, a Ruler descended from the sky, aiming to strike his head!

The Ruler was silent and traceless, appearing out of thin air.

But Li Qi possessed True Knowledge Dao Resonance. Although silent, this thing seemed to be pulled down by something, and Li Qi caught the movement of this pull, reacting immediately!

Li Qi instinctively resisted, directly extending his hand and throwing a powerful punch at the Ruler. This punch contained the Qi of the earth, heavy and hard, directly meeting the Ruler.

It struck with a thud.

Li Qi’s mind suddenly went blank.

Something, through his fist, drilled into his mind!