Chapter 47: Chapter 47

Every time Odd Zhuo heard mention of the demon rampage from six years ago, he couldn’t help shuddering. At the annual meeting every year, a few of his drunk superiors would keep insisting that he perform the Sky-Parting Sword. The shadow cast by the psychological burden in his heart was already higher than the sky and deeper than the sea…

Therefore, when Secretary Sun Dakang brought up this old incident, Odd Zhuo could almost guess what his next words were going to be.

Sure enough, this old leader with quite the character glanced at him, his mouth tilted upward slightly in a smile. “I heard that Deputy Director Zhuo’s Sky-Parting Sword is a unique ability. Why not perform it on the day of the spirit sword exchange meet?”

“…”

For a long while, Odd Zhuo was silent, saying nothing.

At the regular meetings in the past, when the drunk old leaders had asked him to perform, it had been very easy for him to find a good reason to decline. After all, they were just a group of befuddled drunkards. However, for the man sitting in front of him now to make such a request, he really couldn’t find any reason to refuse…

On one hand, he didn’t dare to.

On the other hand, he truly wasn’t capable of doing it… all these years, he had spent so much time privately studying this Sky-Parting Sword, but until now, he had nothing to show for it…

“Hm, is there a problem?”

Seeing that Odd Zhuo had said nothing for quite a while, Sun Dakang smiled faintly. “If it’s really inconvenient, just pretend I didn’t say anything, I also only said it on the spur of the moment. I just thought that as a previous senior of No. 60 High School and now the role model most young people look up to, if you can show your ability and talent at this type of public event, it would definitely be a tremendous encouragement!”

“…Old leader, don’t misunderstand, that wasn’t what I meant. I…”

“Ah, if that’s not it, then that’s good.” Sun Dakang swiftly responded, directly cutting off Odd Zhuo before he could finish his sentence.

Odd Zhuo had been going to ask if he could perform something else — even smashing rocks on his chest would be preferable to the Sky-Parting Sword!

However, Sun Dakang’s firm and resolute attitude made him completely give up on this idea.

…This time, he really, really couldn’t escape!

Odd Zhuo sighed secretly in his heart and sincerely felt that this was a real headache.

He was now in a very difficult situation and had no way to back out. If he did well enough and pleased Secretary Sun Dakang, maybe he would be promoted — he could then say farewell forever to prostituting himself as Deputy Director, a position he had already held for so many years, and head toward a new life; however, if he didn’t do well, he knew very clearly in his heart that he really would be saying goodbye to this position…

“It really isn’t easy to hold this position at such a young age.”

“…”

As he spoke, Sun Dakang suddenly stood up and solemnly patted Odd Zhuo on the shoulder, scaring Odd Zhuo so much he almost fell off the chair.

“I know you may have your concerns. You must think yourself too young, you don’t want to show off in front of experts and you want to keep a low profile since tall trees attract the wind ¹ , am I right?”

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“…”

“Let me tell you a story from the ancient cultivation battlefield,” said Sun Dakang.

Odd Zhuo perked up and raised his head.

“That year, it was the last battle before the founding of our nation, the Battle of Shimen…”

Currently, what the vast majority of young people had heard about the ancient cultivation battlefield was all just legend. This history, which had been sealed away for many years, wasn’t something that could be found in junior or high school teaching materials. It was only at university level that students gained some preliminary understanding of it. Odd Zhuo hadn’t specialized in history when he was in university, but he still had some basic knowledge of “The Battle of Shimen ² .”

That battle… was really too famous.

As Secretary Dakang recounted the story, there were crystalline tears in his eyes, as if he was recalling many things. “When the battle happened that year, we were besieged by seven demon gods with towering might that had come through the Gate Between Worlds. Together with the current Minister of the Ministry of National Defense, Shi Yuliang, we were able to fight back and held fast outside the Stone Doors of Dagu Mountain.”

Odd Zhuo listened quietly with wide eyes. Not everyone had this type of opportunity to listen to a firsthand account of history.

“They were demon gods… they had monstrous, godly might and nomological powers, bleeding the world of color and frightening the people. Even the sun was forced to sink under their pressure. From hundreds of li away, you could see that exceptional, magnificent blaze above the Stone Doors…

“The chief of the demon gods was strong. His whole being glowed with every move he made, and all of heaven and earth reverberated with just one wave of his hand. Minister Shi Yuliang fought with all his strength, but in the end was no match for the enemy. However, this was already the final battle, the Battle of Shimen. We had been charged by our seniors to hold and defend the gateway; even at the cost of defeat, we refused to yield even a single inch!”

Deeply absorbed in listening, Odd Zhuo’s mood was swept up with the old Secretary’s retelling. He could already imagine the terrifying scene on the ancient cultivation battlefield, with the fires of war soaring, and godly might pressing down on them.

And now, the old Secretary standing before him and telling him this story, who looked like a middle-aged man but was already an immortal living fossil… he was a man who had walked step by step out of that era and witnessed the advent of a new scientific one…

This conversation revealed a profound sense of age which made Odd Zhuo feel as if it had happened lifetimes ago.

“In the end, our strength was spent and we fell in front of the Stone Doors. Minister Shi was the only one left standing. He set his godly blood on fire, and at the cost of sacrificing the zhizungu ³ inside his own body, he summoned the divine Gaoxiao Qin ⁴ and played a divine song which gave us strength! It also empowered him to his fullest potential… in the end, he beheaded all the seven demon gods! He held the Stone Doors! And laid the foundation for the establishment of Huaxiu nation…”

“But Minister Shi in the end did survive…” said Odd Zhuo.

The old Secretary smiled. “That’s right! He survived. At that time, even his tombstone had been erected and his entire body had already been buried. Only god knows why this guy’s pet bird Xiao Hong threw a blade of god grass on his burial mound, renewing and nourishing his life force. In the end, he climbed out of his own grave. Don’t you think it’s hilarious…”

Odd Zhuo: “…”

In this world, there really were very few people who could call that old Minister “this guy.”

“After hearing this story, what have you learned?” Sun Dakang asked, looking at Odd Zhuo.

The old Secretary hadn’t told this story in vain. The story’s conclusion was very important. Odd Zhuo had mixed emotions in his heart after hearing it. “Old Secretary used this story to tell me that I should exercise willpower and perseverance in whatever I do, and to never give up until the last moment. I should learn from Minister Shi Yuliang, and respect his tenacious life force. Right?”

“…You think too much.”

Secretary Sun rolled his eyes. “What I want to tell you is to hurry up and show off whatever talent you have. Don’t hide it — don’t be like Minister Shi and hide your ultimate move, only waiting until the last moment to use it. In the end, he almost died! You’re not Ultraman! As soon as an opportunity for you to show off presents itself, if you can do it, just do it! Don’t regret it after you’ve lost your chance!”

Odd Zhuo: “…”