A Pawn's Passage-Chapter 539: Pistol and Ideas

Qi Xuansu did not rush to leave. “Although I’m quite satisfied, you still need to explain how exactly this Dragon Painting Pistol is better than the Divine Dragon Pistol. My shot just now didn’t even touch a single hair of yours. It’s still far inferior compared to the Staff of Merit.”

Yao Pei placed the Grade-B Series One Dragon Eye Bullet she caught back on the table. “Firing the Dragon Eye Bullet involves energy loss. The most common Green Bird Pistol has an energy loss of around 40%. In other words, when a Dragon Eye Bullet is fired at full strength, only 60% of its power is retained, while the remaining 40% is lost in the form of various flashes and residual energy.

“The Divine Dragon Pistol is said to be the most compatible with the Dragon Eye Series ammunition because it reduces energy loss to only 25%. This means that a fully powered Dragon Eye Bullet can retain 75% of its strength. Compared to the Divine Dragon Pistol, the Dragon Painting Pistol takes it a step further, achieving 90% efficiency, even surpassing the long-barreled Sun-Shooting Rifle.

“Additionally, due to the immense power of the Dragon Eye Series ammunition, the specialized gunpowder used generates enormous chamber pressure when fired. The greater the amount of gunpowder, the higher the chamber pressure. If the barrel is too thin or made of fragile material, it won’t withstand the pressure and will rupture, just like a cannon. The larger the caliber, the more gunpowder required, leading to thicker and sturdier barrels.

“Since it’s a handgun, its barrel cannot be thickened indefinitely like a heavy artillery piece. Instead, material improvements are necessary. In this regard, the Divine Dragon Pistol has already made advancements, allowing it to withstand the chamber pressure of the Grade-A Series Nine Dragon Eye Bomb. The Dragon Painting Pistol takes this even further. It can endure the power of the Grade-A Series Seven Dragon Eye Bomb, which is the absolute limit for a handgun. Anything above that, like the Grade-A Series Six Dragon Eye Bomb, requires a cannon to fire.

“The Grade-A Series Eight Dragon Eye Bomb can wound Heavenly Beings, while the Grade-A Series Seven Dragon Eye Bomb is lethal. If you had used the Grade-A Series Seven Dragon Eye Bomb just now, I wouldn't have dared to stand still even with my Staff of Merit.”

Qi Xuansu sighed. “It truly is an amazing weapon, but it’s also a money-eater. It’s ridiculously expensive!”

Yao Pei reminded him. “As far as I know, Madam Qi’s Seven Treasure Pavilion also deals in military arms, including the Dragon Eye and Phoenix Eye Series ammunition. Not to mention the Grade-A Series Seven Dragon Eye Bomb; I think she can even procure the Grade-A Series Three Dragon Eye Bomb.”

Qi Xuansu was unsurprised and simply shook his head. “Even if Madam Qi is running a business for Immortals, it has little to do with me. She’s incredibly stingy...”

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Perhaps the effects of the Dreaming Death had not completely worn off yet, because Yao Pei unexpectedly smiled and remarked, “My father once said that Madam Qi has been obsessed with wealth since she was a child.”

Only then did Qi Xuansu take his leave.

Yao Pei watched as Qi Xuansu left, yawning as if drowsy. She gradually returned to her usual listless demeanor.

After returning to his residence, Qi Xuansu remembered his niece’s repeated mockery and considered reading books on music, chess, calligraphy, painting, and antique appraisal to avoid future embarrassment.

However, he found such subjects irrelevant to cultivation, utterly uninteresting, and impossible to focus on. They were also not required studies during the Upper Palace training.

In the end, he picked up a copy of Annotations on the Holy Xuan. Naturally, it was not the original, only a copy. Qi Xuansu did not share Sun Hewu’s peculiar obsession with reading only originals, nor did he have the means to do so.

Such books were equally dull, yet they were more beneficial to Qi Xuansu’s future career. According to Sun Hewu, Qi Xuansu’s superior—Sage Donghua—was an extremely pragmatic individual. Trying to win favor with Sage Donghua was futile, and merely enduring hardships with diligence would not suffice. One had to rely on genuine skill and tangible achievements.

To produce results, one naturally had to understand their superior’s mindset. It was said that Sage Donghua greatly admired the fifth-generation Grand Master. Annotations on the Holy Xuan was precisely one of the Grand Master’s works.

Besides, even if favoritism did exist, how could someone of Qi Xuansu’s age possibly compete with the aristocratic disciples who had been immersed in such teachings since childhood?

Aligning his ideological perspectives was indeed a form of catering to his superior’s preferences. This was perhaps the true meaning of understanding one’s superior.

The following half-month passed without incident.

During this time, Qi Xuansu felt he had gained much. Aside from progress in his swordsmanship, the key lay in subtle shifts in his mindset. To claim that he had transformed into Zhang Yuelu within such a short span would be nonsense. However, the lessons from the Deputy Palace Masters and instructors had given him a rough understanding of how the Daoist Order sustained itself and how it operated.

From this, Qi Xuansu realized that there were only two paths to advancement. One was the path taken by the sixth-generation Grand Master—becoming an Immortal before the age of 50, making the position of Grand Master almost within reach. The other path was far more arduous—climbing step by step, accumulating experience and merits, and engaging in intricate political maneuvering.

Qi Xuansu admitted to himself that he lacked the talent of the sixth-generation Grand Master. Thus, he had no choice but to follow the second path. This meant he could no longer cling to his past mindset. He needed to adjust and transform his mentality accordingly.

He could no longer view the Daoist Order and his role within it from the perspective of a wandering Daoist or a low-ranking Daoist. Instead, he had to adopt the mindset of a high-ranking Daoist.

Looking at the entire Daoist Order, there were approximately 3,000 fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist masters, at most 500 third-rank Youyi Daoist masters, and an even stricter limit on second-rank Taiyi Daoist masters. With only 108 ordinary Sages, 36 Omniscient Sages, and counting those who had retired to seclusion, held nominal titles without active duties, or abstained from participating in the Golden Tower Council meetings, there were at most 200 second-rank Taiyi Daoist masters. Adding the scarce first-rank Tianzhen Daoist masters and Spirit Guards who were at the third rank and above, the total barely reached 4,000 individuals.

It was precisely these 4,000 individuals who determined the future course of the Daoist Order.

Low-ranking Daoists would complain and lament that their treatment was poor and their power was minute. But correspondingly, their responsibilities and obligations were also minimal.

But high-ranking Daoists were different. They enjoyed the best treatment and wielded the greatest power, so they naturally bore the heaviest responsibilities and obligations.

If one day, the sky above collapsed, it would be the tall ones who must hold it up. It would make no sense for the tall ones to stretch their heads to enjoy the sunshine and rain, but when the sky fell, they shrank their heads and expected others to bear the burden. There was no such reasoning. The tall ones in the Daoist Order were the high-ranking Daoists.

Now, Qi Xuansu had successfully joined the ranks of the 4,000 high-ranking Daoists. If he wished to enter the ranks of the 500, the 108, the 36, or even the supreme 4 individuals, he must change many of his perspectives.

The Daoist Order was not an inexhaustible gold mine, nor was it a hen that laid golden eggs without needing food, drink, or rest. The many Daoists were not chives that, once harvested, would simply regrow.

After rising to a high position, even if one thought mostly of themselves, they must also consider the bigger picture for the Daoist Order and for others. If one only cared about personal gain, how to make money and indulge, how to advance further, or how to pass down wealth and honor, then where would the future of the Daoist Order lie?

People had to have some ideals and beliefs.

The training started on June 15. In the blink of an eye, a month passed. It was now July 15, the Zhongyuan Festival, one of the Three Great Festivals of the Daoist Order.

On this day, the Wanxiang Daoist Palace organized a celebration. Both the Upper Palace and the Lower Palace gathered at the scenic Star Observation Deck. This mountain was not high, but it boasted a vast, unobstructed view of the large Xingye Lake, where flying ships took off and landed. Under the moonlight and starlight, the lake’s surface shimmered dreamily.

In the dim evening twilight, the students of the Wanxiang Daoist Palace called out to their friends and ascended the Star Observation Deck one after another to celebrate the Zhongyuan Festival together.

There were no seating arrangements on the terrace. Some students plopped themselves on the ground, others brought their own mats, and the more affluent ones even prepared wine, snacks, and other refreshments.

Tonight, nearly a thousand people ascended the mountain, and they were all seated in neat rows.

In the prime viewing area with the broadest view, the high-ranking Daoists were distinguished from the others, separated by an invisible line that no one dared to cross.

At the forefront sat an elderly man with white hair and a white beard, dressed in an azure hechang, seated cross-legged in a relaxed posture.

The elderly man was none other than Sun Hewu, the Acting Wanxiang Daoist Palace Master. Seated beside him were two exceptionally young fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist Masters—one male and one female. They were none other than Yao Pei and Qi Xuansu.

Yao Pei, with her half-lowered eyelids, looked like a withered piece of wood. She showed not the slightest interest in the celebration and seemed like a completely different person from when she plotted the heist of the Staff of Merit.

The old Sage gazed at the shimmering Xingye Lake in the distance and said to Qi Xuansu beside him, “Back then, the Great Sage of the Li family came to Wanxiang Academy under the decree of the Holy Xuan to visit the Grand Libationer of the Confucian School. The two of them admired the moon here.

“At that time, the Grand Libationer Sikong quoted a saying from Cabinet Minister Xu of the previous dynasty. ‘What an unbearable burden it is to depart from the Nine Heavens and bear the Mandate of Heaven. How heartbreaking it is to rule the Four Seas and grieve for the people.’

“This was originally used to describe an emperor, but the Grand Libationer Sikong used it to describe the Holy Xuan. Unexpectedly, his words became a prophecy, as the Holy Xuan later truly bore the Mandate of Heaven and ruled over the Four Seas. What are your thoughts on this?”

Qi Xuansu thought for a moment and replied, “Good, good, good.”

“In what way is it good?” Sun Hewu probed.

Qi Xuansu answered seriously, “The words sound good, the phrasing is good, and the meaning is good.”

Sun Hewu was both amused and exasperated. “Did you just make this up? Kid, have you read this story somewhere before and are just parroting someone else’s response to brush me off?"

Qi Xuansu coughed lightly and said, “It does seem familiar. Perhaps I have read it in some book.”

Sun Hewu lost interest and turned to Yao Pei, only to find her as unresponsive as a rock. She was even worse than Qi Xuansu.

The old Sage let out a long sigh. “The two of you combined still don’t measure up to Qing Xiao.”

Qi Xuansu had no objections. After all, he viewed Zhang Yuelu as family, so it did not matter who ranked higher or lower. He was not at a loss either way.

As for Yao Pei, she seemed not to have heard this remark at all and remained completely indifferent.

The elderly Sage felt as if he had punched a cotton pillow. His enthusiasm was completely deflated. Frustrated, he simply decided to ignore these two altogether.

Meanwhile, thousands of kilometers away in Jade Capital, the very person the old Sage had been speaking of was traveling with her master, Sage Cihang, to Yuqing Palace to attend the Zhongyuan Festival celebration.