Chapter 244

鈥淭he Imperial Seal?鈥�

Ye Guhong was slightly shocked. After a moment of thought, he frowned and said, 鈥淚sn’t that the one carved from the He Shi Bi by the First Emperor? Hasn’t it been lost for a long time?鈥�

Hong Ye shook his head and whispered, 鈥淭his treasure has been passed down in an orderly manner. It is clearly recorded in history books that after the Qin Dynasty was destroyed, it was obtained by the Han Dynasty. When Wang Mang usurped the Han Dynasty, he demanded the Imperial Seal. The Empress Dowager threw the Imperial Seal on the ground, breaking one corner, and it was repaired with gold. Later, Emperor Huai of the Jin Dynasty, Sima Chi, was captured by Liu Cong of the Former Zhao Dynasty and obtained the seal, which was then obtained by Shi Le of the Later Zhao Dynasty. Shi Le engraved the words 鈥淗eaven’s Mandate for the Shi Clan鈥� on the side of the seal. With these few distinguishing features, it is extremely easy to tell apart.”

Ye Guhong thought to himself that this monk had never seen a fake antique for sale, and people like this kind of goods with distinguishing features.

But listening to him talk about it as if he knew it inside out, I do admire him a little. I praise, 鈥淚 didn’t expect the young master to be so knowledgeable.鈥�

Hongye’s face turned slightly red, and he shook his head and said, 鈥淚 dare not accept your praise, actually after obtaining this seal, I have studied the classics and consulted many great scholars, and only then have I gained some knowledge.鈥�

Ye Kuhong secretly praised his openness and asked, 鈥淚n that case, the seal that the young master obtained is indeed the authentic one?鈥�

Red Leaf nodded and elaborated: 鈥淭wenty years after Shi Le carved the seal, Ran Wei obtained it, and it was later tricked away by a general of the Eastern Jin Dynasty and returned to the Sima family. It was obtained during the Southern Dynasties of Song, Qi, Liang, and Chen, and the Sui Dynasty unified the country. The seal was obtained until the country fell. Empress Xiao fled with it to the northern nomads of the Turkic Empire. In the fourth year of the Zhenguan period, Li Jing attacked and Empress Xiao and Yang Zhengdao, grandson of Emperor Yang, returned to the Central Plains, and the jade seal then passed into the hands of Li Tang. Towards the end of the Tang Dynasty, Zhu Quanzhong seized the seal and established the Later Liang Dynasty, which was in turn seized by Li Cunxu, who established the Later Tang Dynasty with the jade seal. When the Later Tang Dynasty fell, the last emperor, Li Congke, immolated himself in the Xuanwu Tower, and the jade seal passed from one dynasty to the next, until it disappeared. It was not until the reign of the previous dynasty’s Emperor Zhe that a farmer unearthed it in his fields and presented it to the imperial court. Emperor Zhe ordered 13 grand scholars to examine it from all angles and confirm that it was indeed the imperial jade seal made by the first emperor.

Ye Guhong listened with great interest. Hong Ye continued, 鈥淚n the first year of the Jing Kang reign, Bianliang was conquered by the Jin Kingdom, and the Imperial Seal of the Dynasty and the two emperors, Emperor Huizong and Emperor Qinzong, were both taken away by the Jin Kingdom. Until more than 50 years ago, someone in Dadu sold the jade seal to the world. It was obtained by the prime minister, Bai Yan. Bai Yan then ground down the so-called jade seal, along with all the seals of previous dynasties seized by the Mongols over the years, and distributed them to the princes and ministers to carve their personal seals… Haha, what do you think of Bai Yan’s move, Master Ye?鈥�

Ye Guhong laughed and said, 鈥淚s the young master testing me? Well, the Imperial Seal is a symbol of the legitimacy of the Chinese dynasty. The Mongols were an ethnic minority ruling China, and if they obtained the Imperial Seal, they could proclaim that they were destined to rule, which would be extremely advantageous to their rule. So Bo Yan was probably a fool to have ground down the characters and given it away.鈥�

He continued, 鈥淏esides, if he had ground down so many seals, why did he wait until he had the so-called Imperial Seal of the Nation before he did so? Furthermore, if someone had obtained the Imperial Seal of the Nation, they would have received a huge reward no matter to which powerful person they presented it. Only a complete idiot would sell it in the street, and what a coincidence that it happened to be sold in the Yuan Dynasty capital. I think Bo Yan’s performance in this scene was really sloppy.鈥�

Red Leaf applauded and laughed, 鈥淒isciple Ye, you really have a keen eye! In fact, there is a thin piece of paper in the silver box, written by Song Dynasty Grand Tutor Zhang Shijie, which clearly states the cause and effect. It was a young eunuch who accompanied Emperor Huizong on the northern hunt. He was quite loyal and righteous, and also extremely talented. During the decades in the country for decades, painstakingly honing his extraordinary skills. He had wanted to protect the two emperors and return with them, but when he had perfected his martial arts, the two emperors had already died of old age. The eunuch had no choice but to force his way into the Jin palace, seize the imperial jade seal, kill his way out, and return to the Southern Kingdom. 鈥�

Ye Guhong could not help but praise, 鈥滲rave!鈥�

Hongye sighed, 鈥淯nfortunately, at that time, the Southern Kingdom had been in a state of relative peace for many years. The monarch and his officials indulged in pleasure and had no desire to recover the land. Even though they had obtained the jade seal, they were afraid that the Jin Kingdom would use this as an excuse to attack, so they did not dare to make a sound and secretly hid it in the palace…until the Battle of Yishan. Grand Tutor Zhang Shijie and Chancellor Lu Xiufu, fearing that they could not escape, buried it in the ground of the imperial palace, set fire to the palace, and hoped that the descendants of the Han family would luckily unearth it, cultivate peerless martial arts according to the secret manual, and then find a wise ruler with the jade seal to help them expel the Tartars and restore China.

Ye Guhong said in amazement, 鈥淪ince you have the fate to unearth the silver box, it shows that heaven is on your side. Why don’t you cultivate your own abilities and recruit your own army, instead of doing someone else’s wedding dress?鈥�

Hong Ye let out a bitter smile, and was about to speak when she heard Mie Jie say, 鈥淏ecause this set of martial arts is indeed formidable, but if anyone practices it, they can no longer become the emperor.鈥�

While the two were talking, Mie Jie had already read through the secret manual, and now she heard the two discuss it, so she chimed in.

Ye Hongye heard the meaning in her words and hurriedly said, 鈥淓ven with your level of insight, you cannot solve the first level’s puzzle?鈥�

Mie Jie blushed slightly and shook her head, saying, 鈥淭his martial art is truly extraordinary. If you say it is fair and square, it is actually not bad. It is truly like the vast sky, reaching high into the heavens. It is full of all kinds of fantastic ideas that make people marvel. I have seen a lot of martial arts in my life, and I can say without exaggeration that this secret manual is the best!

Ye Guhong was moved. Apart from Zhang Sanfeng, no one else could match the high standards of Jie Jue.

Not to mention the Jiuyang Gong, the Sword Demon Jade Book alone already carries extremely advanced martial arts ideas, but according to her tone, it is even inferior to this Sunflower Secret Manual.

However, after praising it for a while, Mie Jie frowned and said, 鈥淭he approach of this martial art is extremely orthodox, and it is not an exaggeration to say that it is the orthodox Taoist martial art. You must know that most of the family’s advanced martial arts follow the right path, and the slower you progress, the faster you will make progress in the later stages. However, life is limited, and even if you don’t wait until the later stages to practice, your lifespan will be limited before you reach it. Even the Quan Zhen Gong of the Quan Zhen ancestors, according to what Zhang Zhenren said, is difficult to escape from this rut.”

Hongye nodded repeatedly.

Mie Jie revealed a longing look and said, 鈥淏ut this martial art is very different. If you practice it according to the method, and according to my shallow deduction as a poor nun, I’m afraid that one year of cultivation will be enough to achieve what it would take ten years to achieve with other martial arts. Then after a few decades, it will be equivalent to someone else cultivating for hundreds of years. With such an unprecedentedly profound martial art, the limit of life may not necessarily be unable to be broken. Then the young monk Hongye’s so-called transcendence into sainthood and becoming a fairy or Buddha is also not impossible. It’s just that…鈥�

Mie Jie paused for a moment after saying this, and then suddenly shook his head: 鈥淚t’s just that there are no real shortcuts in this world. Lone Hong, and the young monk, remember this: if we want to go to the capital, then taking the official road is naturally much safer and more convenient. This official road is like an ordinary peerless skill. But if you want to be fast, then you have to take a straight line, climbing mountains and crossing rivers. This is the fastest! However, although it is fast, the mountains are high and dangerous, there are wild animals and poisonous snakes, and the water is powerful and full of hidden dangers that could swallow a boat or a turtle. The dangers of the road are multiplied many times over. This secret manual is this direct path over the mountains and through the water.鈥�

Red Leaf looks enlightened: 鈥業 see! What you said is really true. So these wild animals and turtles are…鈥�

鈥漈hey are the demons of lust!鈥�

鈥淭his technique is based entirely on trickery. It stimulates the most sensitive points in the body, and once it is activated, internal heat builds up, desire boils over, and the mind is overcome by demons. If you are not careful, you will fall into the clutches of evil, your energy will dissipate, and you will feel like you are walking on a rugged trail in the mountains, and you will feel like you have drunk a few too many cups of spirits.鈥�

Speaking of lust and desire, Mie Jie blushed slightly, then suppressed her emotions and said, 鈥淭he young monk just said that this technique was created by an eunuch, so it couldn’t be more reasonable. No man could have thought of this energy flow, and no woman could have thought of it either. Only a man who is neither man nor woman, a eunuch, could have thought of it.鈥�

鈥淪o this first level…鈥� Hong Ye sighed with a sad face.

Mie Jie rolled his eyes and said, 鈥淪o the first level is to become an eunuch! Women can’t do anything about it, and the only way for men is to become an eunuch. Of course, it can’t be just any eunuch; they must have the right bone structure and talent, otherwise it will be difficult to achieve anything even with training.鈥�

Ye Guhong laughed and said, 鈥淚 see! But you are a great man, and since you have extraordinary bone structure and talent, you can achieve anything by practicing martial arts. Even if this martial art can achieve even better results, why bother?鈥�

鈥淣ot necessarily.鈥� Mie Jie shook his head and said softly, 鈥業f you really practice to the realm of immortals, defy your innate abilities, and regenerate severed limbs, it may not be impossible. But this is really too risky, so you don’t even need to think about it, Lone Eagle.鈥�

After saying that, he threw the book to Hong Ye without any reluctance: 鈥漎ou little monk don’t want a wife anyway, so you can try it. By the way, where did you put your jade seal?鈥�

Hongye was stunned, then bitter. I’m not your disciple, you don’t care, right! But she said, 鈥淭he jade seal is too precious, so I hid it under a big tree in the back of the temple.鈥�

Mie Jie said with justification, 鈥淚t’s good that it’s hidden safely. After the poor nun and her disciple have settled an important matter, they will go to Nan Shaolin to ask you to get it.鈥�