Putting Everything to Good Use

Ji Liuli opened the barrier and said to Xu Wenwu, "Go on about your work for now. We will discuss this further." When Xu Wenwu left, his head was still spinning. One moment he felt he hadn't explained something well, and the next he resented himself for not putting more effort into his studies back then. If only he had memorized a few more formulas, wouldn't he be fawned over by everyone right now, living the high life? After Xu Wenwu departed, Zhang Sheng asked Wei Yuan, "You are the lord of this realm. What do you decide?" Wei Yuan pondered for a moment and said, "This man is of great use. Although he is utterly unlearned, the world he came from is inherently a mortal realm. To build a mortal realm into something so prosperous—there are simply too many things we can learn from it. In my view, just knowing what they did is a tremendous harvest; as for how to achieve it, we can figure that out ourselves. By comparison, a few formulas are of little consequence." Bao Yun also said, "I agree. In Li Bai's era, the mortals there were actually not much different from ours here; whenever a natural disaster or human calamity struck, they died in droves. But by Xu Wenwu's era, it had changed completely. Even ordinary people could choose what they ate at will, and getting too fat would even invite ridicule. Xu Wenwu is merely from a common household, yet his everyday food and goods were already far better than those of wealthy mortal households in our world. The transformation between the two is well worth looking into." Xiaoyu said, "I agree with that as well. But that Xu Wenwu is utterly unlearned, knows nothing when asked, and is extraordinarily long-winded on top of that. What do we do about that?" Ji Liuli said, "How about we sacrifice him to the heavens?" "Sacrifice him to the heavens?" Wei Yuan was startled. "Just exchange him for another otherworldly visitor," Ji Liuli said. Seeing their confusion, Ji Liuli explained, "Xu Wenwu is an otherworldly visitor after all, and that is where his greatest value lies. If Yun'er and I guessed correctly earlier, and their realm has gradually stagnated or even been destroyed outright, then if we sacrifice Xu Wenwu to the heavens—using him as bait and karmic luck as the fishing line—we can reel in someone from across the myriad heavens and worlds who shares a similar destiny. Perhaps the next one we catch will be a learned scholar. Oh, or as they call it on his side, a top student." "That... sounds a bit difficult, doesn't it?" Wei Yuan said. "It's very difficult for others, but not for my Hall of Heavenly Secrets. When the time comes, I'll ask the Patriarch to step in and lay down the Grand Array of Celestial Shen and Shang, then place Xu Wenwu right in the middle of it. All the fish in the vicinity will be lured over, and maybe we can hook several otherworldly visitors in a row. A one-for-one exchange is already an advantage, and every extra one we get is pure profit." Zhang Sheng nodded. "A good method." "Putting everything to good use," Xiaoyu added. A headache throbbed behind Wei Yuan's brow. Seeing Xu Wenwu's fate about to be sealed, he couldn't help but inwardly curse the fellow for being so thoroughly disappointing. If only he had memorized a few more chapters of formulas and spent less time reading storybooks back when he was studying, how would he have ended up facing a sacrificial altar? At the very least, they should squeeze every last drop of what he knew out of him before sacrificing him to the heavens. Wei Yuan had no choice but to bite the bullet and ask, "He is still of some use to me. Is there a way that wouldn't take his life?" Ji Liuli shook her head. "It's a sacrifice to the heavens; the emphasis is on the sacrifice. Sparing his life would be rather difficult." At this point, Bao Yun spoke up. "I also think this man still has some use. If nothing else, what he saw and heard in that world is exceedingly valuable. As for his long-windedness, I have my own ways of dealing with it. Leave him to me." "Fine then. Once he's outlived his usefulness, we'll use him for the sacrifice," Ji Liuli conceded a step. Bao Yun then asked Wei Yuan, "What is his daily schedule right now?" "Watering the trees, loosening the soil, and then exercising the horses for two hours." Bao Yun nodded. "Very well. Other than that, all his remaining time belongs to me." "Done," Wei Yuan agreed without a second thought. Wei Yuan pondered for a moment, then added, "Even after we extract everything he saw and heard, there will likely still be many obstacles to realizing them in our world. Some things might not exist here. Furthermore, I noticed another detail: their world's divisions of time, weight, length, and so on are far more precise than ours. They must have ways of dividing things down to the finest degrees." "We can divide them too..." Zhang Sheng began instinctively, then abruptly cut himself off. Wei Yuan continued, "I think it is necessary to invite people from the Hall of Heavenly Secrets, the Hall of Heavenly Craft, the Monastery of Creation, and the Hall of Xuanming to study this together. As for the Hall of Heavenly Secrets, Eldest Senior Sister is already here, so what we need now are disciples from the other three places." Ji Liuli glanced around and said, "This place is utterly impoverished, while those three places are dripping in wealth. They won't necessarily be willing to come. So we have to figure out a way to trick a few over first. Anyone with favors to call in, use them now!" As Ji Liuli said this, she kept looking at Bao Yun and Xiaoyu. Xiaoyu immediately spoke up, "I don't have many friends. Sister Bao had better do it! She has plenty of flies buzzing around her." Bao Yun wasn't offended and said, "Wouldn't people from other sects be inappropriate?" Zhang Sheng said, "Better not." Bao Yun said, "Then I'd better wait until we truly have no other choice. Anyone I invite would bring a fair amount of trouble. As Xiaoyu just said, they're all flies." Zhang Sheng hesitated for a moment, then said, "I can try reaching out to Yu Zhizhuo from the Hall of Heavenly Craft. Perhaps he would be willing to come, or at least send a capable disciple over." Ji Liuli was slightly surprised. "You can actually get that fellow to move?" "I can only say I'll try." "Then hurry up and write a letter!" Ji Liuli immediately assigned the task to Zhang Sheng. Then she added, "It's a pity that Xu Henshui went off to the Eastern Sea, or else we'd have someone from the Monastery of Creation. Now we'll have to find someone else." Xiaoyu said, "I have a clan brother in the Hall of Xuanming. Perhaps I can ask him to come once." "The Hall of Jianmu specializes in spiritual plants and spiritual pets. Should we find someone from there as well?" Bao Yun suggested. Wei Yuan said, "No hurry on that. Qingming provides a special boost to spiritual plants, which is enough for now." After discussing for a long while, the group roughly determined their next steps and dispersed to attend to their respective tasks. A short while later, having just finished watering the trees, Xu Wenwu returned before Bao Yun. Bao Yun stood up and said, "Follow me." She led Xu Wenwu toward a secluded spot, arriving moments later before a stone hut at the base of the peak. This stone hut was square, its material neither brick nor wood, but a seamless blend of earth and stone, without the slightest visible seam. Bao Yun had just casually refined it. The stone hut was not large, measuring only one zhang square. Inside stood a table and a chair, both likewise made of stone. The ceiling glowed with a soft light that illuminated the interior brightly. Xu Wenwu searched for a long time without finding where the lamp was, and could only sigh at how wondrous this world truly was. Was this completely blocking off his path to improving candles and inventing electric lightbulbs as well? Bao Yun pointed to the brush and paper laid out on the desk. "Write down everything you saw and heard in that world on this. You may write whatever you wish. However, no repetition more than three times." "How much do I need to write?" "Thirty thousand words each day. Until you finish, you may not rest, nor eat or drink. So you had best focus on writing." "Thirty thousand words!" Xu Wenwu exclaimed in shock, pointing at the sheet of jade paper. "Isn't there only one sheet of paper here?" "Once one page is filled, the next page will naturally appear. Write with peace of mind; you won't run out of space." "But..." Bao Yun cut him off. "If you fail to finish in a day, it rolls over to the next. If it accumulates to the point where you can't finish no matter what, or if we decide that what you write isn't interesting, then we'll use you as a sacrifice to the heavens." Xu Wenwu's voice trembled. "What does 'sacrifice to the heavens' mean?" "Don't you know how the Shamans sacrifice to the heavens? However they sacrifice, that is how we will sacrifice." Xu Wenwu was terrified and pleaded repeatedly, "You can't do this to me! I want to see Big Brother—no, the King! He would never let you do this!" Bao Yun smiled faintly and said, "This was his intention. He just felt embarrassed saying it to your face, so he left it to me to carry out." Xu Wenwu stood dumbfounded on the spot, murmuring, "Indeed, the imperial family is the most heartless of all; accompanying a sovereign is like walking alongside a tiger..." Bao Yun cut him off again. "Hurry up and write, or else you won't be eating today." However, after casting a glance at Xu Wenwu's midriff, Bao Yun added, "Skipping a couple of meals wouldn't hurt, either." With that, Bao Yun pushed the door open and stepped out, shutting it behind her. The moment the door closed, it melded seamlessly with the wall. Xu Wenwu was left all alone in the room. Xu Wenwu suddenly launched a flying kick, stomping with all his might against the spot where the door had been, only to be bounced right back. The stone hut didn't even shudder, as if it had merely been kicked by a mosquito. Xu Wenwu then looked at the window, which was only one chi square, and finally gave up any thought of escaping. Squeezing through that window was not something he could pull off by merely skipping a couple of meals. He had no choice but to give up hope, pick up the brush, and bury his head in furious writing. But after just two lines, Xu Wenwu already found it hard to bear. For one thing, his handwriting was an absolute eyesore; for another, his arm and hand were aching. He began to wonder: should he invent a keyboard to use first? That was his true weapon of choice, the trusty arm he had once wielded to blast people in all directions.