Chapter 517
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Chapter 517: Zhang Ran
Outside Xia Palace
This place had truly become a sacred ground for martial arts, with a large number of commoners coming every day to learn martial skills. With the development of Xia Kingdom, a group of wealthy commoners had emerged, including small landowners, craftsmen, and small traders. Their wealth was sufficient to allow their children to practice martial arts.
As more people learned martial arts, they practiced together outside Xia Palace every day, creating a strong martial arts atmosphere.
Lin Jiang also appeared occasionally to teach and share some tips with the people.
One day, when Lin Jiang appeared outside Xia Palace, he was warmly welcomed.
Lin Jiang scanned the crowd and saw a man who looked shocked. He found him familiar and invited him into Xia Palace.
"Why, no greeting for me?"
"Five Elements Sect disciple Zhang Ran greets Ancestor Lin."
"Indeed, the descendant of Senior Brother Zhang."
"Yes, Zhang Shuhua from the Zhang family."
Zhang Ran had planned to reveal Zhang Wanjing’s identity, but since Lin Jiang had already spoken, Zhang Shuhua did the same.
"When did you wake up?"
"Fifteen years ago."
"How are things on the Qing State side? Are there many people waking up?"
"Qing State is no more, and I have seen over ten people waking up."
"Tell me about what happened after you woke up."
"Yes, Ancestor Lin."
Zhang Ran said and then recounted his experiences.
Zhang Ran, a descendant of the Zhang family of the Five Elements Sect, was highly valued by Ancestor Shi Yuntang. He had reached the Nascent Soul cultivation level and had traveled north to Qing State to sleep. In Qing State, there were over two thousand cultivators sleeping, scattered in over a dozen places, and even if they were in the same place, they were separated from each other.
Zhang Ran woke up fifteen years ago. Upon waking up, he found that he had lost all his cultivation and spiritual power no longer existed in the world. At first, he was very panicked and thought about waking up other people, but he couldn’t activate Lin Jiang’s preset method and could only leave the sleeping place.
The situation outside was very unfamiliar to Zhang Ran. The changes over thousands of years had transformed the environment of Qing State significantly, so much so that he couldn’t even find basic reference points.
Feeling lost, he had to take things one step at a time. Along the way, he met other awakened cultivators. There were only four power sources among the sleepers in Qing State. Besides the disciples of Wangxian Sect, he was familiar with Lin family and Zhonghang Sect. From them, Zhang Ran learned about the current situation.
The awakened ones had already been appointed as leaders of various tribes. However, Zhang Ran still remembered the Five Elements Sect, as his upbringing in the Zhang family taught him to prioritize the sect.
However, Zhang Ran couldn’t find the way to Yun State. Unable to fly and with the environment drastically changed, he was lost. It wasn’t until five years ago that he chanced upon a tribe and heard about a powerful kingdom in the south. Finally, he got a route and headed south.
Zhang Ran encountered many dangers before reaching Xia Kingdom. He had been staying in Xia Kingdom for several months before finally locating the capital.
"Ancestor Lin, how long have we been asleep?"
"More than thirty thousand years."
"Ah."
"Haven’t I explained it before?"
"This, this…"
Zhang Ran was at a loss for words at first, although Lin Jiang had told him that he could extend his lifespan by a hundred times by entering a deep slumber, he found it hard to let go. Over thirty thousand years had passed, wouldn’t the Five Elements Sect have long been wiped out?
"Is it hard to accept?"
"Ancestor, our Five Elements Sect…"
"If my Lin family is gone, what about you?"
Lin Jiang mentioned that the Xia Kingdom’s territory was only about ten thousand miles in diameter. His troops had almost explored the entire Yun State before, and other areas were similar, consisting of primitive forests and tribes.
"Have you calmed down?"
Seeing that he was struggling to accept it, Lin Jiang waited for fifteen minutes before asking again.
"Apologies to Ancestor Lin."
"In the northern Qing State, my Xia Kingdom’s reputation has spread?"
"The reputation is huge."
"Oh, how so?"
"Ancestor, in the past, the cultivators who entered Qing State were all at least at the golden core level. They were all talented cultivators. Even those with ordinary skills knew a bit about managing disciples. But now the Dao is no longer present, the spiritual energy is depleted, and their knowledge is useless. They can only bully ordinary people and become tribal leaders."
Zhang Ran sighed. Not everyone can quickly accept the transition from being a cultivator to an ordinary person. Even if they do, most of their skills are useless.
What can they do? Cultivate, make pills, talismans, items, and formations. But are these skills useful now? Except for a few Spiritual Farmers who can directly benefit, most people’s skills are useless.
So, as he traveled south, over such a long distance, he only encountered tribes, not a single country. And the further south he went, the greater Xia Kingdom’s reputation became.
Because Lin Jiang supported the young warriors who ventured out, they usually didn’t go alone. They brought with them Xia Kingdom’s advanced culture, advanced technology, making Xia Kingdom known as the Divine Kingdom among other tribes.
Lin Jiang heard this and burst into laughter. He was satisfied with this result. This was what he wanted – to take advantage of the vacuum in Immortal Language cultivation, allowing the rise of the Huaxia Language, perhaps even replacing it in the future.
"Ancestor Lin, the language and writing of the Xia Kingdom…"
"I invented it myself."
"Ah, Ancestor Lin, you are truly talented."
"Zhang Ran, considering our relationship, your ancestor Zhang Wanjing is my teacher, and you can be considered my great-grandson. Would you be interested in staying?"
"Ancestor Lin, I…"
"You have seen the situation outside, the cultivation world has disappeared, and we don’t know when the spiritual energy will recover. It’s better to focus on the present. If we work together, you can help me with some matters. I can provide you with land, people, and wealth. Perhaps you can continue the legacy of the Five Elements Sect. I have tens of thousands of literate people here, it’s much easier than teaching them one by one on your own."
"Ancestor Lin thinks so, so the disciple will stay."
Zhang Ran thought Lin Jiang was right. He knew how primitive and foolish those people were. Teaching them would probably cost his life. On the other hand, things were different here with Lin Jiang. There were many enlightened individuals, giving off a sense of civilization.
"I’ll take you to rest. First, learn Xia language for three months and then we’ll talk again."
Lin Jiang said. When you’ve learned it, you can’t call Ancestor Lin anymore. You have to call Your Majesty.
······
Three months passed in the blink of an eye, Zhang Ran spent three months studying in Xia Kingdom. During these three months, he had learned the Xia language and dialect, improved in martial arts, and effortlessly reached the realm of perfection.
"Your Majesty."
"Zhang Ran, how is your learning going?"
"I have no problem reading and writing."
"Haha, that’s good. What position did you hold in the Five Elements Sect before?"
"I rose to the rank of Internal Affairs Hall Master, starting as a junior officer and later taking on other responsibilities as my skills advanced."
"Have you specialized in Pill, Talisman, Item, and Formation?"
"No, it seems like none of my Zhang family members have this talent."
"Alright, then you shall become a prime minister in Xia Kingdom, being in charge of all the important matters."
Lin Jiang said that he trusted the Zhang family’s values, and that Zhang Ran had experience in managing.
"Your Majesty, um, Zhang Ran is new here…"
"I have the final say in Xia Kingdom."
"Yes, I understand."
"Off you go, all arrangements will be made later."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Zhang Ran said that three months would be enough time for him to accept reality and do well in the mortal kingdom.
Soon, Zhang Ran took office, and some people in Xia Kingdom were not happy. Lin Jiang handled the situation with ease.
Lin Jiang gave Zhang Ran the title of Duke, along with a large piece of land and even a few thousand slaves. He quickly became a popular figure in Xia Kingdom.
Zhang Ran quickly took over the prime minister’s duties. While he may not be good at farming, managing people as a steward was his specialty. He had been doing this for hundreds of years in the Five Elements Sect.
With Zhang Ran’s help, Lin Jiang found things much easier. He had more time to think about the future.
"When will the spiritual energy recover?"
After much thought, Lin Jiang sighed deeply. It had been over thirty thousand years since the disappearance of spiritual energy. Although he had been awake for almost a hundred years, there was still no sign of its recovery. Sometimes, Lin Jiang felt anxious.
"The lives of the common people are so difficult, mortals have it tough."
After becoming familiar with the affairs of Xia Kingdom, Zhang Ran couldn’t help but sigh at the difficulty faced by ordinary people.
He understood that while Xia Kingdom appeared to be prospering, the process was actually very challenging. Over the past few decades, many people had died, with deaths occurring almost every day, and not all in a peaceful manner.
However, because of this, he admired Lin Jiang even more. They both woke up during the age of cultivation, but Lin Jiang’s achievements far surpassed others. Like fireflies next to the sun and moon, Lin Jiang was highly regarded by Ancestor Shi Yuntang back then.
