Chapter 33: Chapter 21: Great Zhou—3
Translator: 549690339
“Trends?”
“Heaven’s might?”
Before the middle-aged Confucian scholar could speak, a light laughter was heard from outside the door.
The storyteller looked towards the source of the sound and saw a Taoist man in green robe, an old monk with white eyebrows, and a ragged old beggar carrying nine hemp sacks. The three men walked side by side into the brothel, approaching the storytelling stage.
The green-robed Taoist held a banner inscribed with Iron Mouth Divine Judgment and said with a light chuckle, “It’s too early to say who holds the great momentum!”
The white-eyebrowed old monk nodded and said, “Heaven has eyes, the cycle of karma is inevitable, and retribution will come!”
The ragged beggar. with batches all over his clothes. shook his head and said grimly, “They say the Martial Ancestor of Great Zhou had breadth of spirit as vast as the sea, and he established martial arts across the world, a Peerless Master of extraordinary martial virtues. But why did he exterminate all the Sects back then, not even sparing our Beggar’s Guild?”
“Could it be…”
The old beggar glared at the storyteller, “The prosperous age of Martial Path in Great Zhou cannot tolerate us ragged mendicants, feeling that we are an eyesore to His Majesty the Martial Ancestor?”
With sarcasm and insinuation, one could tell the newcomers bore ill intent.
“Beggar’s Guild?”
“Ha!”
But the storyteller was fearless, standing with his hands behind his back, he sneered and said, “Whatever you are, others may not know, but don’t you know yourselves? Cheating, misleading, even harming and exploiting to the extreme, shocking to the eyes. If we were to tolerate you, where would the majesty of national laws stand?”
“Hehe!”
The old beggar just sneered, his expression unchanged and still appearing nonchalant, “The victor becomes king, the loser a bandit, if you say it’s so, then it must be!”
“The king prevails by following the way of the king, the bandit fails by following the way of the bandit!”
The storyteller stood with his hands behind him, facing them with stern brows, “Therefore, the likes of you shall forever be defeated bandits!”
“Smooth talker!”
This time, the old beggar did not retort. Instead, it was the middle-aged Confucian scholar who stood up, anger in his voice as he said, “Back when that tyrant raised his army, seeking to take over the world, our Confucian Gate did its utmost to assist him, with many Great Scholars fortifying his realm. Yet, he turned and eradicated our Confucian teachings, a tyrant unmatched in all of history.”
“What a joke!”
The storyteller laughed, “You so-called rotten scholars know nothing but to form cliques for selfish purposes, to struggle for power and profit. When the country was in decline, you quickly switched allegiance to the new dynasty to continue enjoying wealth and luxury, touting ‘carrying a basket of food and a jar of drink to welcome the king’s troops.’ You are nothing but spineless, Great Zhou was established on martial might, why would we need you to fortify our realm?”
“You…!”
“Shut up, shameless old scoundrel!”
With a cold interjection, cutting off his words and paying no more attention to the middle-aged Confucian scholar whose face had turned ashen, the storyteller turned his gaze to the green-robed Taoist and white-eyebrowed old monk, “What act are you putting on, what specter are you trying to cast?” “The Way of Heaven is unfeeling, humanity has its biases!”
The Taoist Man in green spoke indifferently, “That tyrant trod the path of iniquity, trampling on ethical norms, destroyed our Sect teachings, and with malicious law and butchering sword suppressed human nature, he will be reviled by the people, and rebellion will arise in a flash!”
“Malicious law?”
“What a joke!”
The storyteller laughed coldly, “Great Zhou was founded on martial might and law as its core, even if the emperor breaks the law, he faces the same punishment as commoners. Over the past two hundred years, three emperors and seven kings of the royal family have put themselves under the law, willingly submitting to execution. How is this considered a malicious law?”
The green-robed Taoist also sneered, “Defying human nature, doing the opposite of what is right, if not malicious law, then what? Li Qing Shan may suppress it momentarily, but can he suppress it for eternity? Human hearts harbor self-interest by nature; him going against this nature, not to mention the people of the world, perhaps even his own Li Family are filled with resentment, hoping for his death.”
The storyteller’s brows knitted together in anger as he exclaimed, “Human nature, human nature, if only there weren’t so many of you promoting such reprehensible human nature! To call this Sect teaching and let the likes of you enlighten the common folk, I fear the world would never again see a bright and clear Qiankun, nor a radiant sun and moon!”
“You…”
“Enough already!”
The Taoist wanted to continue arguing but was interrupted impatiently by the old beggar, “Why say so much, just uproot this nest of the emperor’s hounds to avoid prolonged trouble.”
“The trend has been set, there’s no need to hurry.”
The middle-aged Confucian scholar shook his head, his eyes fixated on the storyteller on the stage, noting his reactions, “It’s been two hundred years, that tyrant’s Demon skills should have run their course, he should be dead by now,
“Whether he is dead or not doesn’t matter.”
The old beggar also smirked, “He suppressed the world for so many years, so many people wish him dead. Let me tell you, for us to have achieved this extent of influence today, there are many within the court lending us a hand, even members of his Li Family have contributed considerably!”
The Taoist Man in green stepped forward, “Those who follow the way will be aided, those who lose it will lack support. That tyrant, through his malicious actions, has already triggered a world-wide rebellion. With your level of cultivation, why sacrifice yourself for him? Better join us in this grand undertaking. Once we succeed, we can share the techniques for the tyrant’s everlasting life; wouldn’t that be wonderful?”
“Humph, a bunch of frogs at the bottom of a well, on the verge of death and still clueless!”
The storyteller snorted coldly, “Come at me together, let’s see how much you’ve improved over the years!”
In the midst of his words, the aura of True Gang emerged powerfully, pressing the atmosphere to an extreme edge.
“Hmm!”
The green-robed Taoist’s eyes sharpened as he surveyed the surroundings; the audience that had been sitting below the stage had vanished without a trace, causing his heart to sink. Immediately, he said to the other three, “Attack, let’s make it quick and decisive!”
“Good!”
“Kill! ”
“Pawns of the emperor, meet your doom!”
Upon hearing this, the three moved decisively, launching their attacks towards the storytelling stage, joining forces to besiege the storyteller..