Chapter 202: The Hundred Schools Grand Gathering Begins

"It is said that the divine abilities possessed by the various Sages all originate from [Seeing Heaven and Seeing Dao]. They are profound and unfathomable, beyond all comprehension. By the way, do you know what divine ability our Confucian Sage possesses?" Zhao Cheng asked.

Li Shun shook his head, pretending to be ignorant while putting on an expression of curiosity.

Zhao Cheng sighed with emotion. "The Confucian Sage's divine ability is called [Threefold Self-Reflection]. It can rewind the events of an entire day, reversing the flow of time."

"Reverse the flow of time? The Confucian Sage can actually accomplish something so inconceivable?" Li Shun's face was filled with shock, as though he found it difficult to believe.

Zhao Cheng nodded slightly and sighed. "The divine abilities of the various Sages all possess the power to overturn heaven and earth. Ordinary people can hardly comprehend even the slightest part of them."

"Seeing Heaven and Seeing Dao is like directly facing the source of the Great Dao. Every law and principle becomes as clear as a mirror. The various Great Daos are all laid bare before one's eyes. What one can comprehend from them depends entirely on one's aptitude and destiny."

"Thus, there are three difficulties in this Grand Gathering. The first is finding the Tongtian Divine Mountain and climbing to its summit. The second is that after Seeing Heaven and Seeing the Dao, you must truly comprehend something from it. As for the third difficulty."

"It is also the most crucial point."

Zhao Cheng pointed at the primordial wilderness map spread out before them, his expression solemn.

"In the primordial wilderness, humanity was weak, no different from livestock waiting to be devoured. After you descend, there is a very high chance that you will face attacks from other races."

"Most of them will have absolutely no reason for attacking you. It will simply be because you are human. Demons, Wu, Yao, and even various spirits and monsters have long been accustomed to treating humans as food. Therefore, the journey to the Tongtian Divine Mountain will also be the most perilous part."

"This primordial wilderness map was drawn by our Confucian predecessors during countless previous expeditions. It is neither complete nor particularly detailed, but it is sufficient to roughly indicate the direction. Once you enter the illusionary realm, your first priority should be determining your location and whether there are any explored Tongtian Divine Mountains nearby. If you are fortunate enough to descend directly near one, you will save yourself a great deal of trouble, and your chances of successfully reaching the summit and comprehending the Dao will increase considerably."

"If you are unlucky enough to descend in an unknown region... then you will have to explore it slowly on your own."

"However, even if you gain nothing, it does not matter. Completing even a portion of this map would already count as a great contribution."

Zhao Cheng explained every detail without leaving anything out.

After pondering for a moment, Li Shun asked again, "Disciple still has a few questions."

"After we enter the illusionary realm, what is the ratio between the flow of time there and in the real world?"

"And how long will this journey through the illusionary realm last?"

Zhao Cheng looked at Li Shun with considerable approval.

"Being able to realize this issue shows that your perception is quite sharp, Tuizhi."

"The flow of time within the Primordial Wilderness Illusion varies according to the scale with which it is opened. The more power gathered from the Hundred Schools, the more complete and detailed the Primordial Wilderness that is constructed, and the faster the flow of time becomes. The duration of the illusionary realm's opening in Great Qian is fixed. It can only remain open for ten hours."

"According to past experience, the amount of time experienced within the Primordial Wilderness Illusion ranges roughly from thirty to one hundred days. This time, the number of schools participating and the caliber of their disciples both rank among the highest in previous assemblies. Therefore, we estimate that the illusionary realm should last around one hundred days."

Li Shun was quite astonished upon hearing this.

"Ten hours in reality, yet such a long period of time passes within the Primordial Wilderness Illusion?"

Zhao Cheng gave a wry smile.

"Otherwise, why would it be called an 'illusionary realm'?"

Perhaps recalling something, the smile suddenly vanished from Zhao Cheng's face, replaced by a somewhat distant expression.

"If we are talking about other worlds in reality, the ratio between their flow of time and that of Great Qian may not be this great. Yet ratios of tenfold or even several dozen times are nothing unusual. Ever since the Primordial Wilderness shattered and fell apart, the differences between the various worlds have become truly immense."

Zhao Cheng merely brushed over this matter with a single remark.

However, based on the changes Li Shun had observed in Zhao Cheng during this period, a thought suddenly stirred within him.

'Could it be that Zhao Cheng, like me, has also traveled to other fragmented worlds? It's just that the world he visited did not maintain a one-to-one ratio of time with the world of Great Qian...'

Since this matter had nothing to do with the Hundred Schools Grand Gathering, Zhao Cheng clearly had no intention of saying more, and Li Shun did not press him.

After a day's rest and preparation, the following day, the fourth day of the third month, the Hundred Schools Grand Gathering officially began.

The foot of Mount Dai had already been heavily sealed off by Great Qian's Black Armored Army. Unauthorized persons were forbidden from entering.

Under the guidance of their elders, disciples from the various schools followed the mountain paths and climbed the steps upward.

The crowd was divided according to their respective schools, moving in small groups, each clearly distinct from the others.

With Zhao Cheng's introduction, Li Shun also met the two other Confucian participants in this assembly.

He Wanbai and Xu Tingshen.

Somewhat to Li Shun's surprise, both of them were exceptionally humble and friendly.

When Li Shun saluted them, both politely returned the courtesy.

He Wanbai in particular, who was the Left Chancellor's junior fellow disciple, showed not the slightest trace of arrogance.

If anything, his expression was somewhat restrained.

Had Li Shun not received Kong Zhao's guidance beforehand, he probably would not have been able to discern his true depth at all.

"The Legalists are still as impatient as ever, rushing ahead at the first opportunity."

Zhao Cheng gazed into the distance at the figures along the mountain path and gave a disdainful snort.

The elder of the [Responsibility for All Under Heaven] lineage, named Chang Yan, also smiled.

"Everyone wants to get off to a good start. Throughout the years, whichever school reaches the summit first has always achieved rather good results during the Grand Gathering. Naturally, the Legalists are unwilling to fall behind."

Zhao Cheng scoffed.

"There is no basis for that whatsoever. It's nothing more than self-consolation. Our Confucians, on the other hand, insist on bringing up the rear until the very end."

Chang Yan clapped his hands in praise.

"This too has become a tradition preserved over the years. Slow is fast!"

The group followed behind the main crowd, steadily making their way up the mountain.

Climbing Mount Dai once again, this time alongside disciples from the Hundred Schools, gave Li Shun a completely different feeling from the lonely ascent he had made that day.

At the very least, it was much livelier.

"Walking up the mountain also serves as a preliminary adaptation. After all, once you enter the Primordial Wilderness Illusion, you won't be able to fly either."

When they reached the mountainside, Chang Yan looked at the three participants and said with a smile.

Li Shun was stunned.

"You can't fly within the Primordial Wilderness Illusion?"

"What? Your Uncle-Master Zhao didn't tell you?"

Chang Yan looked at Zhao Cheng in surprise.

Zhao Cheng slapped his forehead.

"There have been so many things to deal with that I nearly forgot about this."

He then added, "The Primordial Wilderness Illusion constructed by the Hundred Schools is still located within the boundaries of Mount Dai. As such, it will likewise be affected by certain restrictions."

"Strictly speaking, it is not that flying is completely impossible."

"Rather, you need a period of adaptation before you can completely break free of the flight restriction caused by the seal."

"The amount of time required varies from person to person. But even for the slowest, two or three days should be enough to adapt."

Zhao Cheng explained patiently.

Chang Yan then transmitted another point that required special attention.

"However, when climbing the Tongtian Divine Mountains within the illusionary realm, it is best to climb on foot."

"If you fly directly toward the summit..."

"There is a certain chance that you will remain unharmed. But there is an even greater chance that you will invite disaster upon yourself."

"At the very least, every Tongtian Divine Mountain we have explored so far requires one to climb it personally, measuring its height with one's own footsteps."