Chapter 199: A Peerless Self-Governing Man

In an instant, the spiritual energy within Li Shun surged wildly.

The Gate of Heaven that had stood before the threshold of Spirit Resonance upper-tier suddenly vanished.

Everything fell into place naturally. Li Shun successfully completed his breakthrough.

“Thank you, Senior.”

Although he was inwardly astonished, Li Shun immediately bowed once more in gratitude.

“Come. Let us watch the sunrise over Mount Dai.”

The black-clothed man turned his gaze toward the horizon again.

Li Shun pondered for a moment before striding over to stand beside him.

At this moment, a crimson sun was struggling to rise above the horizon.

All things seemed to have been ignited, bathed in a layer of golden radiance.

The light drove away the deathly silence of the night, and heaven and earth once again regained the vigorous vitality of daytime.

Li Shun sensed an incomparably vast and pure vitality erupting with the arrival of daylight.

It felt completely different from the life force forcibly drawn forth through the Verdant Wood Summons Art.

The vitality summoned by Verdant Wood Summons was a law. It belonged to the natural order, a form of life that stood in correspondence with death.

But the vitality heralded by this sunrise represented the state of all things as they moved and evolved.

The beginning of all things, bursting forth with life and awaiting their emergence.

“Longevity.”

A word suddenly surfaced in Li Shun's mind.

The first state of the Twelvefold Longevity Methods possessed an uncanny resemblance to what he was witnessing now.

“Longevity.”

At almost the exact same moment, as if by coincidence, the black-clothed man spoke the same word.

Alarm bells immediately rang in Li Shun's heart.

Having previously received guidance from Elder Wei, Li Shun had learned that whenever he controlled a puppet, he should only divide off a small portion of his consciousness, just enough to operate it.

The rest of his consciousness remained hidden within the Fangcun space.

This prevented stray thoughts from being exposed and others from seeing through his intentions.

Now, standing atop Mount Dai and having inexplicably encountered this mysterious and unfathomable man, Li Shun became even more cautious.

He reined in his thoughts even further and maintained an appearance of utmost respect.

“There is no need to be so nervous. Although you do not know me, I know you.”

The black-clothed man's next words caused Li Shun's mind to tense up once more.

“Duan Jiuzhang. Yunguan County.”

However, the man's tone suddenly shifted, temporarily easing some of Li Shun's vigilance.

So this person actually knew Duan Jiuzhang.

“Duan Jiuzhang has praised you more than once. Now that I have seen you myself…”

The black-clothed man did not finish his assessment.

He merely continued watching the sunrise in the distance.

Li Shun did not act rashly. He likewise maintained his silence, quietly watching the magnificent sunrise.

Only after the crimson sun finally leapt above the horizon and the Great Qian world welcomed a new day did the black-clothed man speak again.

Yet this time, he suddenly asked a completely unrelated question.

“What do you think of the Nine-Rank Official System the imperial court has recently introduced?”

Li Shun had carefully considered this matter when discussing it with Kong Zhao earlier.

Thus, he did not need much time to think before answering honestly.

“Eight parts depend upon Heaven, two parts upon the people. The intention is good, but I fear this reform may not last for long.”

The man's expression remained unchanged.

Li Shun continued, “Throughout Great Qian, officials are strong while the people are weak. To govern officials through the people is to use the weak to govern the strong. It goes against the natural order.”

“It may work for a time, but not forever.”

“In my view, the reason this policy can be implemented at all is entirely because of His Majesty's will. His Majesty is strong enough to suppress the voices of every official beneath Heaven with ease. Compared to His Majesty, the entire bureaucracy is weak.”

“Thus, the essence of the Nine-Rank Official System is still the same principle of the strong governing the weak. It merely puts on an outer garment that completely contradicts its nature. The result is inherently contradictory, like a castle built in the air. It cannot possibly last.”

The man nodded.

“There is some truth to that.”

“Then let me ask you another question. Why, exactly, are officials strong while the people are weak?”

“If the people were stronger than the officials, would that mean the reform could succeed?”

Li Shun was about to answer, but suddenly found himself at a loss for words.

This question was simply too complicated and profound.

If one were to expand upon it, it could easily become a lengthy treatise of tens of thousands of words.

But seeing the black-clothed man waiting patiently for an answer, Li Shun pondered for a while before finally giving a concise response.

“If the people become stronger than the officials, then they are no longer the people. They become officials. Using the people to govern officials is inherently a paradox.”

“Unless…”

Li Shun fell into deep thought for a long time, but ultimately did not continue.

He merely shook his head.

“Countless sages of old have tried to find a solution, yet none succeeded. It is not something I am capable of understanding.”

Another long silence descended upon the summit of Mount Dai.

“Duan Jiuzhang did not misjudge you.”

“You are clearer-headed than most people, and your understanding is sufficiently deep.”

“They believe that by rushing to implement this Nine-Rank Official System, they can reverse the position of the people…”

The black-clothed man let out a cold laugh.

“If it were truly that simple, things would be easy enough to solve.”

Li Shun said nothing.

He had already vaguely realized that this black-clothed man and Duan Jiuzhang seemed to belong to the same organization.

In an instant, Li Shun could not help but think of the piece of paper Duan Jiuzhang had previously given him, upon which a single character had been written:

[People (民)]

“Still, failure is not necessarily a bad thing. At the very least, they can learn from it.”

“They are all far too optimistic right now.”

The black-clothed man shook his head slightly, speaking more to himself than to Li Shun.

Li Shun did not know the full circumstances and did not dare to interject recklessly.

He simply kept his mouth shut.

“I came to Mount Dai to watch the sunrise today on a sudden whim. No one else in this world knew about it.”

“Yet I never expected to encounter someone else.”

“That is what I dislike about this.”

The black-clothed man raised his head and glanced at the sky, letting out a cold snort.

“I wanted some peace and quiet by myself. Yet they insisted on arranging someone to disturb me.”

“Fortunately, you are not particularly annoying.”

As the black-clothed man spoke, he explained what had happened.

Only then did Li Shun understand.

“Since we have already met…”

The black-clothed man's figure gradually faded.

He looked at Li Shun, his long hair suddenly fluttering in the wind.

At that instant, Li Shun suddenly had a strange sensation.

It seemed as though the entire Mount Dai beneath his feet was trembling faintly.

A moment later, the black-clothed man's figure shattered and completely disappeared.

Only then did Li Shun realize, to his astonishment, that the restriction preventing flight on Mount Dai seemed to have ceased affecting him.

Li Shun narrowed his eyes and cautiously tested it.

His feet rose from the ground.

He floated into the air.

Nothing unusual happened around him.

He remained completely unharmed.

“Not only can he ignore Mount Dai's restriction himself, he can even casually remove the restriction from me?”

“Just what level of strength does this black-clothed man possess?”

Li Shun was deeply shaken.

A moment later, as though suddenly awakening from a dream, he hurriedly called out, “Senior, I still do not know your honored name!”

Unfortunately, his voice merely echoed across the silent mountain summit.

There was no response.

Li Shun remained silent.

Recalling everything that had happened throughout the night, he felt as though he had experienced a dream, something utterly unreal.

For no apparent reason, he had sensed the Gate of Heaven of a realm breakthrough.

He had been guided onto the path leading up Mount Dai.

And then, in the end, he had encountered this mysterious and unfathomable black-clothed man.

“Was it the will of Heaven?”

Recalling the black-clothed man's words just now, Li Shun could not help raising his head and gazing toward the vast sky.

For ten thousand miles, the heavens were clear as if washed clean.

The azure firmament stretched boundlessly.

Deep and unfathomable.

After a long while, Li Shun finally shook his head.

He then flew gracefully down the mountain.