Spirit Vessel-Chapter 4: A Discussion Regarding Soldiers

“The human physique cannot be compared to a phoenix’s body. The phoenix, as a fetus, already has spirit energy. Once it is born, it already has the strength to burn the sky and scorch the ocean. One flap of the wings can destroy a large mountain. As for a human, one must start off with a solid foundation before he can begin the cultivation path.”

“Currently, I am no longer the sect master of the royal phoenix race; now, I am only a regular human being. If I want to change my physique, I have to start training the 'Immortal Phoenix Physique.' Once the grand completion is achieved, I can live for ninety-thousand years. Even after death, my body will not decay.”

“The biggest advantage of the 'Immortal Phoenix Physique' is that it can change the innate constitution of a human, making it more powerful and refined.”

Unfortunately, the “Immortal Phoenix Physique” was very difficult to cultivate; even Feng Feiyun, in his past life, with the body of a phoenix as a base and the ninth level of Heaven’s Emergence, couldn’t reach grand completion. It was an accurate reflection of the degree of challenge it was to cultivate.

In the present, Feng Feiyun could only start from scratch, once again, step by step on the road of torturous cultivation. It was the only way to survive, for this world was a place where the strong bullied the weak; if one doesn’t want to be eaten alive, then one has to be the strongest.

In his mind, Shui Yueting’s beautiful figure emerged again. Now, she was a goddess among the Saints, but he was only a weak, humbled mortal.

If another meeting were to occur, she would not recognize the current Feng Feiyun, for her pride wouldn’t allow her to even glance at a tiny and ordinary human.

With this thought, Feng Feiyun stopped in his tracks. He took a look at the strange pedestrians around him and saw that they all had black hair, black eyes, and yellow skin. These weren’t demons in human form, but they were actually humans.

Feng Feiyun had always cultivated in isolation in the depths of the Phoenix Mountain, so his knowledge of the human world was non-existent.

As for the foreign architectural style, he appreciated the antiquitic aura. The wooden balcony and the roof cornices decorated with engravings of birds. Each of the houses was a unique work of art.

The cultural atmosphere was strange to Feng Feiyun as well, stimulating his curiosity. His mind was filled with questions, he mumbled: “It seems like the Spirit Vessel had brought me to the other end of the world or a different world completely.”

His current location was at the Spirit State city. In the span of a few thousand miles, Spirit State city was the oldest and biggest city. It oversaw the surrounding towns, and it had over ten million inhabitants.

Spirit State city was only an average ancient city within the Jin Dynasty. From Feng Feiyun’s knowledge, the Jin Dynasty was a whole world; it was extremely vast without boundaries. There were at least ten thousand cities that resembled the size of Spirit State city.

As for what was outside of the Jin Dynasty, he did not know. A normal human’s knowledge was naturally limited.

“This Young Master Feng was a person who only plays around, awaiting his own death. His knowledge was too little; nine parts of ten are related to women, and the remaining part is related to drinking and partying. I am the dignified Patriarch of the Demon Phoenix Race; why did my soul fuse with such a scum?”

“Ugh, what is the point of complaining? This guy is me now. I will have to accept my fate.”

Feng Feiyun reluctantly accepted his situation with a sigh.

If he wanted to quickly adapt to the new environment, he had to widen his knowledge. He would have to know this world before he could adapt to it.

“The library in the Feng’s mansion has a world map and other geographic findings; I can go take a look at them.”

Feng Feiyun changed his direction back towards Feng’s mansion and increased his pace.

Feng Feiyun’s background was quite extraordinary. His father was the governor of Spirit State city. He was in charge of not only the ten millions people in the city but also the dozen surrounding counties. Each year, officials everywhere entered Spirit State city to bribe him with treasures and money.

One could say that Feng Feiyun’s father was the king of this corner, reigning over the surrounding thousand miles and millions of citizens.

He was the only son of the governor; thus, no matter how many maidens he had ruined, no one dared to say anything. Even when someone refused to accept the unfairness, they were arrested and beaten to death by the guards. To not obey the young master was the same as not obeying the governor.

Feng Feiyun’s house was the Feng mansion, and it was the governor’s office of Spirit State city. Surrounded by magnificently decorated pillars, high walls with many gardens, the nine entrances and nine exits along with the five hundred servants and maids made it seem like an imperial palace.

Even though Feng Feiyun was the second generation’s master without any talents in martial arts or literature, his dad, Feng Wanpeng, was an exceptional character well versed in both fighting and the arts.

Twenty years ago, Feng Wanpeng was third place in the Jin Dynasty’s annual literary competition. He was well versed in literary works, thus, the library of the Feng mansion had collected more than one hundred thousand books including ancient literature, martial arts manuals, strange information, geographical history, and Buddhist scriptures…

Feng Feiyun did not like reading since he was young; he didn’t even know all of the characters.

This was his first time being in the library’s pavilion. In front of his eyes were ancient books, writings on bamboo strips, and even pretty copies rewritten by human hands. His heart was filled with excitement, wondering why he had never went to such a place before.

“Young Master, the master had said to not let you into the library. If you ruin his collection, the master will be thunderously furious; then everyone will have to suffer from his wrath.”

“Young Master, you cannot read any of the books here! It is not too late to get out! Otherwise, once the master finds out, we will all be clubbed to death.”

Four pretty young maids in charge of monitoring the library surrounded him. All of them were wearing pretty cloth robes decorated with clouds. Their ages ranged from sixteen to twenty, and their faces resembled pretty flowers; their skin was silky smooth. All were young and beautiful girls.

The girls were begging Feng Feiyun as if they thought he was going to burn down the whole library. Although they acted respectfully toward Feng Feiyun, inside, they looked down upon him. He was only an idiot without any talents in literature or martial arts. If his dad was not the governor, then he wouldn’t even be comparable to a beggar.

Young Master Feng was illiterate before, but the present was not the same as the past. Although he was not an extreme expert in literature, having lived for one thousand years, his accumulation of knowledge was frighteningly large; it was not something mortals that could only live for dozens of years could compare to.

“So as long as I can read, I can stay here?”

Feng Feiyun was very observant, he saw the contempt in the maiden’s eyes.

“If the young master can really read, the lord would be ecstatic. Of course, then, you can stay here as long as you want… Except right now, you can’t even write your own name…”

The pretty faces of the four maidens laughed.

Feng Feiyun randomly picked an ancient book with a hard cover; outside it, there were three words written in a strong and powerful manner. He was glad to see these letters, although there were some differences compared to his previous life, they were similar enough for him to understand.

Literature was the first sign of culture. Each world had their own unique cultures, and this was why their written systems were different. If there were similarities in the written language, then it meant that his past world and this one was still within the same sphere.

Feng Feiyun could breath easier now; it seemed like Spirit State city was still in the same world as his old one even if it was in a different corner. Sooner or later, he could meet his old friends and enemies again.

”Regarding Soldiers.”

“Soldiers deaths are graceful. They are chess pieces on the battlefield, placed in particular formations. It is the job of the commander to lead and give effective commands…”

Feng Feiyun opened the book in his hand and started to recite it loudly while nodding his head as if he was absorbing and appreciating the content. He understood the importance of these profound military writings from past sages; there was much wisdom to be departed with from it outside of just combat and war.

For example, if a formation was properly executed by a great general, its effects would be greatly amplified. As for another, even with the lowest of soldiers; if one could utilize them correctly, they could even defeat a great expert.

“Regarding soldiers: one must emphasize the soldiers above all else; they must travel together as a unit with a clear direction. Only then, will an army become undefeated in battles after battles.”

The four beautiful maids stared widely at Feng Feiyun with their eyes. They were at a loss for words; they were surprised to the point of forgetting to inhale, this was truly a strange phenomenon.

This Young Master Feng, outside of knowing how to play with women, still knew these words?

This Young Master Feng, a person like him, could read “Regarding Soldiers”?

The four were shocked for a moment before they quickly ran outside the pavilion in clamor:

“Young Master Feng can read now, Young Master Feng can read now!!”

“Oh dear heavens! Young Master Feng is so formidable! of course he, naturally, can learn how to read!”

“Go bring this news to the master now, hurry, hurry!”

***

Feng’s mansion became chaotic; all of the servants and maids were in hysteria from the news. It was even more exciting and hectic than the New Year’s holiday.

Feng Feiyun couldn’t stop himself from smiling. It was only knowing a few words, was it worth causing such a commotion? If he was to completely recite some ancient scrolls, wouldn’t that scare some people to death?

Putting “Regarding Soldiers” back to the shelf and closing the door to the library, the room regained its original tranquility.

Feng Feiyun read a book containing geographic findings from the great sages that had tread the earth.

“The Five Kingdoms Atlas.”

“A Geographic Lecture on the Jin Dynasty.”

“World’s Outlook.”

After finishing these books, Feng Feiyun had a better understanding of this world. The Jin Dynasty had been established for six thousand years. The absolute royal power and strong heritage of the rulers could not be underestimated. From north to south was a distance of forty-eight thousand miles; east to west spanned seventy-four thousand miles. Its total populace exceeded one hundred billion.

This was an enormous human kingdom. A dynasty that had lasted steadily for six thousand years implied that its inner and hidden strength was outside the realm of imagination. Such a dynasty would contain many powerful sects, royals, and different clans. In the end, even the governor of the Spirit State city was a minor official in the grand scheme of things.

Alongside the Jin Dynasty were four other dynasties. Their areas and populations were not lower than the Jin Dynasty; all five, together, were referred to as the “Five Kingdoms.” Surrounding these five kingdoms were other smaller countries, numbering in the hundreds. All of them were tributaries to the five kingdoms, and their populations were only around a few million.

However, according to the “World’s Outlook” book, even the Five Kingdoms were only a small corner of the continent. There were few records regarding what was outside of the Five Kingdoms; there were only vague concepts of the beyond.

“This world is too vast; Spirit State city is but a drop of water in the sea; a grain of sand in the desert.”

“Seems like, right now, my only choice is to cultivate. As long as I become stronger, then naturally, I will be able to expand my horizons and step onto the world stage, to re-embark on the road towards immortality, and, to once again, stand at the pinnacle of the world.”

Feng Feiyun returned the books to their original shelves. The old Feng(Phoenix) Feiyun had died. From now on, everything in my past was now unrelated to me.

“I am Feng(Wind) Feiyun, the young master of the Feng Clan, the most evil, wealthy son of Spirit State city who is feared by everyone.”