Divine Transcendence

Chapter 212: I am the author

"Speaking of which, Brother Yuan’s cultivation aura seems to have thickened a lot. Could it be that there has been a breakthrough in his cultivation?" Wu Lu looked Yuan Ming up and down and said.

"Brother Yuan is being modest. I tried to break through the Foundation Establishment stage by taking Foundation Establishment Pills, but unfortunately, I failed. It’s better not to mention it. What are your plans next?" Yuan Ming sighed.

"I have some things to take care of, and I’ll be quite busy for a while. We may not have much time to meet again, and we’ll have to go our separate ways." Wu Lu smiled and said.

"It seems that Brother Wu Lu has encountered the God of Wealth on this journey and gained quite a bit." Yuan Ming joked with a smile.

"The same goes for you, Brother Yuan. What are your plans?" Wu Lu raised an eyebrow and asked with a smile.

"I plan to stay in the city for a while and then return to Da Jin in the south. From then on, we may not easily meet again." Yuan Ming said.

"This time the mission in the Biluo Cave will take a while. I am also physically and mentally exhausted. I plan to leave the south and go see the scenery in the north where you are." Wu Lu smiled.

"You want to come to the Central Plains?" Yuan Ming asked in surprise.

"Yes, I have always been fascinated by the coastal areas recorded in the travel notes of the knights, and I want to see what is meant by ’the rocks collapse and the clouds break, and the waves roll up thousands of heaps of snow!’" Wu Lu nodded.

"Brother Wu Lu likes the rocky coastal areas where the waves crash, rather than the sandy beaches with sunset coconut shadows. It’s not possible to go to the south, you have to look for it in the north of the East Sea." Yuan Ming analyzed subconsciously.

"I already have a destination in mind. After I’m done here, I plan to go to the city of Haiyan in Yueguo. Brother Yuan is also heading north to Da Jin, so why not travel with me?" Wu Lu said.

Yuan Ming thought for a moment and remembered that the city of Haiyan was located in the territory of Huazhou in Yueguo, near the East Sea.

"I won’t go. If I go to Da Jin, it will be a detour to go through the territory of Yueguo, which is not a good choice." Yuan Ming said.

"That’s a pity." Wu Lu sighed.

"How long will you stay there, and do you have any plans to come to Da Jin?" Yuan Ming asked.

"It’s hard to say. The journey is long, and it will take months just to travel there. I should stay for a while after that. Haha, I won’t go to Da Jin. The place is much deeper than Yueguo. I remember that Huazhou is not far from Da Jin. If Brother Yuan is interested, you might as well come to Haiyan City to meet me?" Wu Lu thought for a moment and said.

"Okay." Yuan Ming thought for a moment and nodded.

After a few more pleasantries, the two of them drank a few more cups and then bid farewell to each other.

Yuan Ming came to the Heiyan City Market this time without any urgent matters. His main purpose was to ask the Master of Fire Refining to help him refine a pair of inner armor with the accumulated materials before leaving. In addition, he had two old acquaintances in this market that he wanted to meet.

Compared to his previous visit to this market, Yuan Ming’s mood was much lighter.

Although he had a purpose, none of them were urgent matters. Yuan Ming rarely felt so relaxed, and he strolled through the market with the mindset of a tourist.

In fact, since regaining all his memories, Yuan Ming was not really at ease. There were some doubts about the amnesia that had been resolved, but more doubts had emerged in his mind.

Lin Junsheng was clearly his childhood playmate. Although they were not as close as he and the Little Emperor, they were still considered close friends. He couldn’t understand why Lin Junsheng would harm him.

In his memory, after Lin Junsheng suddenly attacked him, he said, "Yuan Ming, don’t blame me. I have my reasons." Yuan Ming still had some guesses in his mind, but there was no evidence at the moment, and they were just guesses.

Returning to Da Jin, returning to the capital, would inevitably lead to a bloody battle.

As Yuan Ming walked through the bustling streets, his gaze was suddenly drawn to a quaint shop sign not far away, and his steps came to a halt.

"Heiyan Bookstore."

He muttered to himself, a smile appearing on his lips, and he turned into the bookstore.

"A bookstore is just a place that sells ordinary books, and there are no martial arts or cultivation books for sale. If it were the old Yuan Ming, he probably wouldn’t come in, or even notice this shop."

But things were different now. After regaining all his memories, some of his old habits and instincts had taken control of his body once again.

So when he smelled the ink of printed books, he instinctively stopped.

When he was young, he was already well-versed in the classics and various teachings of sages, not because his parents forced him, but because he naturally loved reading.

Even compared to some civil official families, General Yuan was more open-minded and did not limit Yuan Ming’s reading choices.So much so that when he was ten years old, he had already read "Jinping Lan" and "Shitou Lu", which were criticized by many Daoist scholars as "contrary to the norms, harmful to the customs", and what he knew and saw was far from what ordinary people could compare.

Therefore, during the Great Jin Dynasty, Yuan Ming had the habit of visiting bookstores. This "Heiyan Bookstore" was not large in size, and there were not many books hidden inside. There were only bookshelves on both sides of the store, filled with books of different sizes and categories.

This bookstore was obviously not very popular, with no customers inside, only a clerk leaning on the counter with his hands supporting his head, looking drowsy.

Seeing Yuan Ming come in, the clerk only raised his eyelids and glanced at him, without even the intention of coming up to greet him.

Yuan Ming didn’t care, it was just a habit. He planned to come in and take a look, try his luck, and if he could find some rare ancient books, he would buy them.

If not, he would just leave after taking a look around.

The cultural development of the Southern Frontier was lagging behind, and it was incomparable to the Central Plains region. Even in the bookstore, this was very evident.

Yuan Ming casually flipped through a few books, and found that the paper used was of mixed quality and not uniform.

Some of the better ones were made of bark paper as the main material, with thick and sturdy paper that was flexible, but also somewhat rough and inconvenient for writing.

The next level used white hemp paper, made from materials such as flax and hemp, with a paper surface that was not smooth and had a lot of fiber bundles, making it easy to absorb ink, but also had the problem of thick paper and a lot of impurities.

If these were placed in the Central Plains, they would all be considered substandard paper for books.

According to the customs of the Great Jin Dynasty, at the very least, a finer and thinner white cotton paper would be used, and the normal paper used would be the twisted Xuan paper, which was not only thin, but also more durable.

After flipping through several miscellaneous books, Yuan Ming found that they were all written in the Southern Frontier script, and the content was just some miscellaneous records, which made him feel uninterested. With a brief glance, he was about to leave.

Just then, his gaze was suddenly drawn to a single bookshelf near the counter.

There were about ten books with gilded covers, delicately bound, and they were obviously different from the other casually placed books, as if they were nobles dressed in gorgeous clothes in a slum.

"Bring me those books to take a look," Yuan Ming walked up and said.

"Sir, you have a good eye. These books are all passed down from the Central Plains, each one a classic that cannot be found elsewhere," the clerk rubbed his eyes, turned his head to take a look, and said as he brought the separate bookshelf over.

Yuan Ming was speechless. This clerk probably didn’t even understand what "classics that cannot be found elsewhere" meant, and was just shamelessly trying to deceive him.

When the clerk brought the bookshelf over and laid out the few dozen books, Yuan Ming was dumbfounded when he saw the titles of these books.

"Shitou Lu", "Jinping Lan", "Dongxiang Ji", "Yupu Yuan"... they were all indeed classics. It was a pity that they were only favorites of a certain type of people. If they were seen by Daoist scholars, they would probably be accused of "harming the customs and spreading obscene materials".

However, he couldn’t blame the clerk. These books were well-made and beautifully printed, but they were all written in the Central Plains script. As a young man from the Southern Frontier, he naturally couldn’t recognize them.

Just as Yuan Ming was about to leave, he saw a book among these books that was a little different.

He picked up the book and took a careful look. The text on the cover was in the common script of the Southern Frontier, but the paper used inside was actually the "Yunhua Paper" specially supplied by the Great Jin Dynasty.

Yuan Ming couldn’t help but narrow his eyes and was stunned.

"Children’s Stories... Isn’t this the children’s stories I wrote when I was young? How did it spread to the Southern Frontier and get translated into the Southern Frontier script?" Yuan Ming was extremely surprised.

He quickly turned to the back cover of the book, and there he saw a seal in the Central Plains script:

"Tianming Book Society."

It was the book society he and the young emperor Liu Tianming had jointly established, although it was privately owned, it could use the royal paper, and not only published children’s stories, but also comic books, all of which were of excellent quality and well-received throughout the Great Jin Dynasty.

However, Yuan Ming was always responsible for the creation and didn’t care about the profits.

The printing and publishing matters were arranged by the shopkeeper of the book society, and he didn’t know that his book had been published in the script of the Southern Frontier.Seeing Yuan Ming staring blankly at the "Childish Tales," the shop assistant thought he was interested in the book and immediately began to enthusiastically introduce it: "Esteemed guest, you truly have an excellent eye. This ’Childish Tales’ compiles thirteen independent stories, specially translated into our Southern Border script. It became a sensational hit upon release, not only beloved by children but also providing a unique experience for many adults. Over a thousand copies were brought over from the Great Jin with difficulty, and they sold out quickly. The one in your hands is the last in stock."

"This book... sells that well?" Yuan Ming was somewhat incredulous.

"Let me put it this way, in the entire bookstore, the only one that can compete with it is ***. To be honest, I am also a loyal fan of this book, and my favorite story is the one about the hamsters holding a meeting," the shop assistant said, patting his chest.

Yuan Ming held the book and looked at the shop assistant in surprise.

"Don’t doubt it, sir. I truly believe that the person who wrote this book has an extraordinary mind, full of imagination, and is certainly no ordinary individual," the shop assistant praised sincerely.

At that moment, Yuan Ming, holding his own book and listening to the man’s flattering words, felt an inexplicable surge of spirit.

"This feeling of being praised is really not bad at all," Yuan Ming thought to himself, feeling a wave of satisfaction.

However, he couldn’t possibly reveal to the other person that he was the author of the book; that would be akin to showing off as a saint in public.

While it might be more exhilarating, it could also lead to being regarded as a madman or a swindler.