The Dharma Form represented a person's spirit and will, embodied through the manifestation of the Yin and Yang Qi.
Changsun Wuchou gave a slight smile and greeted him, but the fox Dharma Form edged closer to Li Guanyi, as if probing.
It was uncertain whether it was some kind of observational skill.
However, as the fox approached the young man, the bronze tripod trembled, and the Dragon and Tiger Dharma Forms attacked, with the Red Dragon's tail still on the tripod. Yet, diamond-shaped scale armor was wrapped around the fox's neck, and the White Tiger pounced up in pursuit.
Clearly still only two immature Dharma Forms, they forcefully tore a large swath of the fox's essence, causing the fox to retreat in fear.
Somehow, a slight instinctual panic suddenly surged within Changsun Wuchou's heart.
This emotion, one he had never experienced in his solitary travels in the Western Regions, made the ancient technique of probing the opponent's essence he had learned seem ineffective. The results of his probing were an abyss of darkness, with the young man in the dark blue robe standing there, as still and dangerous as a deep forest tiger, who slightly bowed and said,
"I am Li Guanyi."
"I have seen Mr. Changsun."
Changsun Wuchou looked at the young man, slightly furrowed his brow, and immediately suppressed the unease in his heart, nodding with a smile.
"Indeed, a young hero."
Li Guanyi watched Changsun Wuchou leave.
He then turned and entered the Xue Mansion, with the Red Dragon and White Tiger bringing back the torn essence of the fox. The bronze tripod seemed to light up with flowing lights, but this fox did not qualify to enter the tripod. There was a patch that lit up and then dimmed, and the fox's essence completely dispersed.
The Red Dragon and White Tiger Dharma Forms absorbed a portion each.
Both brightened, both appeared stronger than before.
As Changsun Wuchou was led to Wind Listening Pavilion, Xue Daoyong personally welcomed him. Changsun Wuchou hurried forward and bowed profoundly, addressing him as Mr. Xue. The white-haired Xue Daoyong caught up and helped him up, patting his shoulder while chiding, "My nephew, what are you doing?"
"Being so formal?"
They looked at each other and smiled, everything was said without words.
Changsun Wuchou stood up as invited by Xue Daoyong to come inside and sit down for a few cups of tea. Changsun Wuchou smiled and said, "You must already have received the letter from brother Xue that I sent earlier, right? I am here today for that very matter."
When the Breaking Cloud Sky-shattering Bow first sounded, Xue Daoyong was reading that very letter and smiled, saying,
"Naturally."
Changsun Wuchou spoke softly, "The descendants of the Dangxiang people are in the Western Regions now. Tu Yu has occupied their area, and you opened the road for us. We sold salt and iron weapons to the Dangxiang people, and now that the Dangxiang people have weapons, their Left Prince happened to die suddenly."
"They have already started fighting with Tu Yu."
"It has indeed stabilized the border for both Ying Country and Chen Country."
"Old man, that truly was a masterful move."
"Earned tenfold profit and let the Dangxiang people block Tu Yu for Chen Country."
Xue Daoyong replied, "Although I am a merchant, when General Yue left and the border faced trouble, I also had to use my own methods to secure the border. Sadly, I am just an old man now, no longer able to ride into battle..."
Changsun Wuchou smiled in agreement.
Xue Daoyong asked, "How are the Dangxiang people?"
Changsun Wuchou replied, "They are fiercely brave."
Xue Daoyong drank a sip of tea and flipped through the trade documents, remarking lightly,
"We can still help for a while longer, until the time comes when we are sufficiently capable of balancing Tuyuhun."
"Afterwards, it will be up to my esteemed nephew to continue selling weapons and iron salt to the Tuyuhun people."
Changsun Wuchou looked at the elder before him, aware of the bloody implications behind his words, and said, "Mr. Xue earns money himself, yet he also stabilizes the border. It's just a pity that in the Western Regions, Tuyuhun and the Dangxiang tribes will continue their endless strife."
Xue Daoyong laughed and replied, "Your esteemed nephew is also serving the aristocratic families of Longxi. Isn't that the best scenario?"
The two laughed as they raised their cups to drink tea, the liquid in the translucent jade-like porcelain swallowing down like the vast expanse of the Western Regions. Xue Daoyong said, "Alien tribes consider sword and horse as their farming tools, often raiding the borderlands, which I have witnessed."
"Those not of our race must have different hearts."
"For Central Plains, a chaotic Western Regions is a good Western Regions."
Changsun Wuchou did not discuss anything with this elder who had experienced a chaotic era from a young age and seen the alien tribes invade from the south. He simply smiled and said, "We have finished discussing the transactions here. Here is the latest scroll of the world's territories, should Mr. Xue wish to discuss the world's transactions further."
He took out a scroll made of cowhide, but the elder laughed and said, "There's no hurry."
"Today, I wish to presumptuously ask if one more child can observe," the old man inquired.
Changsun Wuchou smiled and responded, "It seems the Xue Family has found a reliable support."
"If Mr. Xue desires, the younger generation naturally has no objections."
He had traveled alone in the Western Regions, which currently were largely under Tuyuhun's control, but that vast area was too expansive. Groups like the Dangxiang and Tiele people still remained, struggling to resist. Although Changsun Wuchou was a traveling merchant, he represented the aristocratic families of Longxi behind him.
In collaboration with Elder Xue's eldest son, they were enough to influence the major trends in this region.
He had seen many young heroes, each of the three sons of the grand aristocratic family where he resided was outstanding.
The Xue family, after all, thrived on trade; he, on the other hand, managed them effortlessly.
The door opened, and with it came a burst of chilling murderous air.
Changsun Wuchou's usually restrained eyes opened slightly wider as he observed a young man in a blue shirt enter. At that moment, Li Guanyi had a leather belt around his waist, a knife on his hip, and one hand held the Su Ni Bow. A blue crane auspicious cloud headband prevented sweat from entering his eyes, a calm demeanor with a gaze that already possessed the tranquility of a martial artist.
Changsun Wuchou sat up straight.
It was him.
Xue Daoyong gestured the young man to sit and proudly pointed at him, "Li Guanyi from Jiangzhou."
"My family's Qilin'er!"
He then pointed at Changsun Wuchou in front and said, "Descendant of the Right Brave Guard General from Ying Country, currently serving the Duke outside the border, that aristocratic family is vast, personally introduced by Nephew Changsun here."
As Changsun Wuchou looked at Li Guanyi, he smiled and gestured with a crossed-hands salute:
"Duke Longxi, second son of the Li Family with the Ji surname, subordinate to Erlang."
"Son of Daying's Right Brave Guard General."
"Nephew of Daying's Master of Ceremonies, legitimate son of Changsun Family, pleased to meet you, young master."
This was the interaction of noble families in this era.
Indicating one's background, the aristocratic family, and the Duke Li with the surname Ji meant that this lineage's ancestors had been granted the land of Li as their surname by the former Great Emperor of Central State, but their heritage carried the Ji surname, a royal surname granted by the Emperor.
Li Guanyi did not have such a foundation, merely responding with a crossed-hands salute,
"I had already met you earlier, Mr. Changsun."
"I am Li Guanyi," he said.
Mr. Changsun smiled in response.
He took out the map, spread it on the table. It showed not only Ying Country and Chen Country but also the Tuyuhun region in the Western Regions, the northern Turks, the northeastern Qidan and Rouran, and Wuluo Hou, covering vast mountains, rivers, cities, and villages in great detail.
Xue Daoyong waved his hand, and all the windows in Wind Listening Pavilion were closed. Thirteen fist-sized Luminous Pearls illuminated the surroundings as Mr. Changsun introduced the current situation of the world, pointing to the Western Regions. "At this moment, the Western Regions are in chaos. With Mr. Xue's maneuvers, the Dangxiang people are eager for revenge."
"To protect the civilians, General Yue was captured. The Yue Family Army is positioned at the border, confronting the Tiger Barbarian Cavalry. Meanwhile, the Great General of Ying Country has led his troops north to face the Iron Futu of the Turks across the border passes, to prevent those starved Turkic cavalries from charging south and invading Central Plains."
"The world is largely at peace..."
Li Guanyi quietly sat there, watching the two discuss the world's currents, scrutinizing the scroll that outlined routes from Chen Country to Ying Country, memorizing it clearly in his heart, yet his gaze was fixed on this map, where the teachings of General Xue echoed incessantly in his mind.
He could actually understand what Mr. Changsun and Xue Daoyong were discussing.
The Great Shang strategized for the nation.
Mr. Xue had used silver to disrupt the Western Regions and stabilize the border.
No wonder he was so pleased the day he spoke of strategizing for the Great Shang, for the world, for enduring peace.
He thought I was his confidant.
But where do I possess such great ambition?!
I'm just pretending, after all.
Caught in wild thoughts, Li Guanyi's mind was filled with the teachings of General Xue and began to clear up. Mr. Changsun, noticing the young man, smiled and pointed to the map on the table. "Young sir, how do you think the situation in the world might change?"
Li Guanyi looked at the world, remembered the teachings of General Xue, and instantly made his judgment.
He had habitually picked up the pen beside him.
He turned it over and pointed on the table.
"Here."
Mr. Changsun and Xue Daoyong looked.
The Western Regions?
"With the border in corruption, Ying Country confronting the Turks, and Tuyuhun free from rear worries, if it were me..., I would not let the Dangxiang people fight a fire with Tuyuhun at this moment."
The young man sat quietly there, his demeanor serene yet profound.
He was still young, an air of academia lingering in his eyes.
Yet, in a fleeting moment, it seemed as if the world's greatest general sat behind him, clad in black armor, Civil and Military Sleeves hanging down, his finger pinching a chess piece, the world in front of him.
As Li Guanyi raised his hand, it was as though the Martial God too traversed five hundred years, his finger landing on the map.
"Let Dangxiang hold back, showing weakness to the enemy; Tuyuhun would want to seize the opportunity of the standoff between Ying Country and the Turks to move south and take over the Heavenly Land to compensate for their weaknesses; at this time, if Dangxiang suddenly strikes in, Tuyuhun will be thrown into chaos."
"The aristocratic families outside the border of Ying Country will not miss this chance; they must advance."
"At this moment, suppose a General, leading Elite Cavalry, emerges from the border of Chen Country."
"Then they could sweep through Tuyuhun's lands, Chen Country, Dangxiang, and Ying Country sufficient to tear this lord of the Western Regions apart, dividing their territory into three."
"......."
Li Guanyi snapped back to reality, realizing he was not in a secret realm, withdrew his hand, feeling a bit ashamed. "Armchair strategists, just grand talk, I've made you laugh."
Luckily General Xue was not here; otherwise, his forehead might bear a few more characters of censure.
Xue Daoyong said, "Such military strategy is truly like the military texts left by our ancestors."
Mr. Changsun also started to laugh. "Ha ha, young brother, what you said makes sense. For someone your age, that's pretty good."
Mr. Changsun and Xue Daoyong exchanged glances.
They both mentioned that Li Guanyi's ideas were naive.
Yet they alone spotted a flicker of alarm in each other's eyes.
That night, when Li Guanyi left the Xue Mansion, he went to bring his aunt back with him; meanwhile, Mr. Changsun rested outside, Xue Daoyong looked at the map of the world's situation, silent for a long time, said, "Is it truly a Martial God incarnate? His strategies are still naive, lacking many details, truly crude."
"Yet they soar as high as a wild horse, like a buck's horns tangling."
"It's as if he completely doesn't understand the basics of Military School, yet he has top-tier insight."
"Who taught this person? Could it be that they skipped the basic rules and started directly with military strategies?"
The elder looked at the secret letter on the table, a message from the court ordering him to face Yue Qianfeng, the elder sighed, "Being a player in the game, one also becomes a chess piece, an unavoidable fate, Yue Qianfeng?"
The elder sighed, "I truly do not wish to clash with General Yue's war generals."
......."
Mr. Changsun was writing a letter.
It was addressed to the second son of Duke Longxi.
It was all about the landscapes and the human touch, yet he paused at the end of the letter.
Using the script of the Xianbei from beyond the borders, he wrote:
"... I am ordered here to discuss the matters of the Western Regions with the Xue family, hoping to temporarily pause the attack of the Dangxiang people, collaborating with Chen Country to break Tuyuhun's dominance. I have encountered a young man whose judgment on the Western Regions and situation coincidentally matches yours, and his age is the same as yours, his name… Jiangzhou, Li Guanyi."
Though addressed to the second son, the letter specifically stated in it,
"Miss Second, you might find this interesting."
The letter was tied to the claw of a Flying Eagle, which soared away. By a day and night's rapid flight, by the next sunrise, it had reached the lands beyond the border, Duke Longxi, the Li Family of the Ji surname traditionally guarded this place, a Flying Eagle cried out, this letter fell.
As the sun rose, a bird invisible to the naked eye caught the letter.
Flapping its wings, its feathers brimming with firelight, a regal and unparalleled Phoenix bathed in the rising sun descended.
It landed on the shoulder of a thirteen-year-old girl.
The girl had phoenix eyes, a vertical red mark on her brow, a stature of Dragon and Phoenix, exceptionally handsome.
On her shoulder, a naturally occurring Phoenix Dharma Form appeared lazy.
She read through the letter.
Raised her eyebrows.
"... The same as my judgment?"