The Empress's No.1 Lackey-Chapter 307 - 270, The Magician seeks not to contend, thus no one in the world can contend with him; the Martial Artist must contend, hence in the world there is no rival.

The steward was extremely meticulous in his work, strictly following Zhao Douan's orders, and the books he purchased piled up into a small mountain.

In most of these books, the sections recording the Grand Ancestor Emperor might only contain a few sentences.

Zhao Douan didn't mind at all and immediately began to read and chew over the content.

In a daze, it was as if he had returned to his past life, crazily cramming for exams at home before a test.

Over the next few days, Zhao Douan hardly left his house, declining all external work.

He did not seek out Mr. Hai again, and he also let go of all his responsibilities at the government office.

Day in and day out, he immersed himself in reading and thinking in the study, even eating and sleeping there.

He seemed possessed.

By the third day, Zhao Douan called the old steward again, requesting a large amount of brushes and ink.

Unexpectedly, he began to paint without any prior warning.

Zhao Douan had never formally studied painting and had no plans to learn, but he locked himself in the room, laid out the paper, and freely splashed ink and sketched.

Soon, the floor was covered with completed paintings, leaving no room to set foot, so he threw them all out.

"Mom, what's happening to Big Brother? Suddenly locking himself up, he's reading and painting, and sometimes he just sits in the room with unkempt hair, staring blankly at the air, motionless. When I brought him food earlier, it was as if he didn't even recognize me... Could he have gone mad from practicing?"

In the courtyard, beneath the cool pavilion.

Zhao Pan, anxious and worried, came to her mother's side.

From there, the study not far away could be seen, its doors firmly closed.

It had already been a week since Zhao Douan had secluded himself.

The atmosphere in the Zhao family had also become somewhat heavy and oppressive.

You Jinhua sat on the pavilion bench, with many paintings that had been brought out spread across the stone table in front of her.

The scenes depicted in the paintings were warrior battles, drawn with rough and clumsy technique.

If Mr. Hai were here, he would recognize at a glance:

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Each of these paintings was a true battle they had observed during the days he had taken Zhao Douan to watch.

This accumulation of experiences was finally surging forth now, propelling Zhao Douan step by step closer to that mysterious realm.

"Don't talk nonsense, how could your eldest brother go mad?"

Her stepmother spat out, her expression more worried than that of her daughter:

"Didn't that old gentleman from the palace come to visit our home before? He said everything was fine and told us not to disturb your eldest brother."

She was referring to Eunuch Hai.

The old python-robed eunuch had visited their home once during this period.

Upon learning of Zhao Douan's secluded madness, he smiled contentedly, did not disturb him, and walked away with a spring in his step.

Zhao Panqiu's eyes flickered with concern:

"But that old gentleman only glanced from a distance; he didn't even enter the house."

You Jinhua bit her lip, undecided as well. After thinking, she urged her daughter:

"Why don't you go to the Imperial Court and find Lord Ma, talk to him and see what he says."

As a woman ignorant of official affairs, You Jinhua did not know Eunuch Hai's status and only knew him as someone from "the palace," thus she did not trust him completely.

However, she placed great faith in the government office where her stepson worked and its chief.

Zhao Pan nodded and hurriedly made the trip.

The message she brought back was that Ma Yan had listened carefully to her account and, smiling, said:

"There's no need to disturb him; it's a good thing."

Thus, the anxious mother and daughter had no choice but to suppress their concerns, hoping for the eldest son to recover soon.

...

Time trickled by.

During the period of Zhao Douan's secluded heart refinement, the atmosphere in the Capital was akin to "oil boiling over a fierce fire."

The date for the Buddhist and Taoist contest was drawing nearer.

The city was also buzzing with excitement; the inns of the Capital were nearly all fully booked, filled with people from out of town who had come to witness the grand event.

The imperial guards, led by the Imperial Court, were so busy they hardly touched the ground, constantly dealing with the conflicts that could break out at any moment in the city.

And as the fervor climbed, details about the approaching contest between the Buddhist and Taoist factions gradually leaked.

Naturally, people's eyes were still focused on the contenders.

Because the rules specified that young disciples from the Divine Chapter Realm were to compete, with both realm and age as thresholds, the candidates were not difficult to guess.

From the side of the Heavenly Master Mansion, the hottest candidate was Priest Jin Jian.

Gongshu Tianyuan, as a senior brother, was not incompetent, but his main focus on the "Artisan God" path did not favor the rules of the contest.

And the other disciples of Old Heavenly Master Zhang Yan Yi did not meet the age and realm requirements, so they did not come back to join the commotion.

On the side of the Divine Dragon Temple, the one who attracted much attention was a little monk named Tian Hai.

...

In the deepest part of the Heavenly Master Mansion.

In the courtyard of a solitary household,

Gongshu Tianyuan, donning a dirt-stained priest robe, pried open the gate.

Before him stood a massive and mystical banyan tree.

With the arrival of autumn, the banyan's vast and lush canopy turned golden yellow overnight, shining bright like fire.

Yet not a single leaf withered and fell.

Beneath the tree, the Old Heavenly Master, tall with narrow eyes and brows, still reclined in his rocking chair, holding the Heavenly Book Jade Scroll, perusing it for what must have been the countless time.

"Master," Gongshu Tianyuan stood ceremoniously and bowed, "I can't find my junior sister."

Zhang Yan Yi appeared indifferent, as if the competition that concerned the honor of the Heavenly Master Mansion was of no concern to him, and asked with a smile:

"What do you need her for?"

Gongshu Tianyuan, filled with anxiety:

"Disciple has thought of a way, I have inquired about the situation at the Divine Dragon Temple. As the saying goes, 'know your enemy and know yourself, and you'll never be defeated.' It should be my duty as her senior brother to exert effort, but regrettably, I truly am not adept at competing. There is always a limit on the number of Suppressing Objects and Magic Artifacts that participants can bring to such competitions.

Alas, I cannot bring all my treasured Suppressing Objects... so the least I can do is to give more advice to my junior sister."

He rambled on before saying mysteriously:

"Disciple has heard that Tian Hai, the little monk from Divine Dragon Temple, has already reached the Worldly Realm, yet he is deliberately suppressing it, which is quite malicious. Clearly, he's lying in wait for us."

Zhang Yan Yi scolded with a frustrated tone:

"How many times must I teach you? There is no strife in the great Dao, only Martial Artists like to fight. We Magicians, who seek the path of cultivation, if we want to go far, must not let our minds dwell on others. Just focussing on oneself is the strongest form of 'competition.'"

With a lift of his hand, he drew two lines on the ground, one long and one short; they did not intersect but ran in parallel, and explained:

"Buddhist and Taoist practices are like these two lines. To go further, one only needs to concentrate on cultivation to surpass others."

Gongshu Tianyuan made no sound but stealthily stretched out his boot and shortened the longer line a bit, muttering:

"Disciple thinks this way is more effective."

"...Get out."

Zhang Yan Yi said irritably.

"Oh." Gongshu Tianyuan scampered off.

Once he had gone, the giant banyan tree with its golden color swayed and a vague human face appeared.

A ghostly voice echoed:

"Do not be angered by the younger generation. When he matures, he will understand this principle."

"The sagely person does not contend, and thus no one in the world can contend with them."

Zhang Yan Yi suddenly recited a phrase he remembered from a casual conversation with Zhao Douan, and lamented:

"Mr. Zhao is even younger, yet he has already uttered such words. Unfortunately, his cultivation is too shallow, and he ended up choosing the path of martial arts, which has delayed his natural talent."

The golden banyan tree chuckled:

"Moving forward as a Martial Artist requires one to not hide nor shy away from conflict.

Exactly the opposite of the tranquility and non-contention of Daoist practices. What do you think—is he a contentious or non-contentious person?

Since Zhao Douan associates with Gongshu Tianyuan, they must share similarities in temperament."

Zhang Yan Yi fell silent for a moment, then sighed:

"I understand that he may not be suited for the path of a Magician, but... let it be."

The Old Heavenly Master closed his eyes.

The Buddhist-Taoist competition was in two days; he had no time for other thoughts.

...

In the Imperial Palace, within the Empress' bedroom,

Xu Junling visited the palace again today, seeking to play with his imperial sister.

Xu Zhenguan took some time to accompany her in playing Go to ward off boredom.

"Imperial sister, what exactly is the story with Tian Hai, that little monk from Divine Dragon Temple? Although I've heard of him, I don't know much. His reputation doesn't seem that great."

Xu Junling inquired with curiosity:

"Rumor has it that he was born with a vertical third eye between his eyebrows, which terrified his parents so much that they abandoned him. He was later picked up and raised by a monk from a temple. A passing Mage from the Divine Dragon Temple noticed the boy had a highly intelligent nature and took him back to the Divine Dragon Temple.

The abbot, Master Xuan Yin, also showed great interest in this young man and called his vertical eye the 'Compassionate Eye,' claiming that the boy was born with the ability to discern the good and evil in people's hearts.

This young man, they say, has a temperament quite different from other monks—rather defiant, disliking meditation and spending most of his days traveling outside, punishing the wicked and promoting righteousness. Often he resorts to force to subdue evildoers... His hands are stained with quite a few lives, and within the Buddhist community, he is not very well-liked."

On the other side,

Xu Zhenguan, draped in her casual attire, sat with an air of relaxed regality, striking a sharp contrast with the Little Princess.

A cascade of pitch-black hair framed her picturesque face as the Empress smiled.

Holding a piece of Go, her gaze drifted towards the Divine Dragon Temple:

"How would I know?"

——

Laying the foundations—breakthrough next chapter.