Chapter 181 — The Taixuan Canon of Calculation

In Shen Mu's contingent there was no Director of the Imperial Academy besides himself, an Erudite of the Grand Academy; Pei Wujiu's reasoning was that Shen Mu, being an Erudite of the Grand Academy and holding high office, ought by rights to lead a contingent of scholars on his own. The several scholars assigned to Shen Mu, though every one of them had come up through selection and stood among the finest of the Scholars' Lodge, were far outmatched by the scholars chosen from the Princes' Garden's Divine Ability Lodge. The Grand Academy was a forest of the strong, and men of formidable skill were plentiful there; that Pei Wujiu had sent Shen Mu to lead a contingent into the field was plainly a settling of private scores under cover of public duty.

The scholars who followed Shen Mu to the front for training were all acquaintances of his: Shen Wanyun, the monk Yunque, Yue Qinghong with his wolf slave in tow, Si Yunxiang, and Shen Yu besides. But Shen Yu was a scion of the Shen clan of the capital, backed by deep connections; he sought out Pei Wujiu, said a word to him, and had himself transferred out of Shen Mu's contingent into another led by a Director of the Imperial Academy, dodging Shen Mu's squad of the doomed. Shen Mu finished refining a furnace of Crimson Fire Spirit Pills and stretched his back.

These past days he had done nothing but refine pills, so that the dragon qilin would not go hungry at the front; he had had no leisure to go and see those scholars. The monk Yunque sought out Shen Wanyun, Yue Qinghong and the rest and took counsel with them: "This time the Grand Libationer has had Erudite Shen lead us out for training, and into rebel country at that.

By my reckoning we go and do not return -- death is certain. There is not a single Divine Ability adept among us! " Shen Wanyun shook his head.

"There is one. " The others turned to look at him. Shen Wanyun said calmly, "These past days I have been suppressing my cultivation realm.

You may set your minds at ease: at any moment I can break through and become a Divine Ability adept of the Six Harmonies realm. " Yue Qinghong said, "I have heard that these rebel sects are already gathering in the south, meaning to drive the power of Jingping Kingdom out of the south for good. Many sects and powers that once moved near the capital have vanished without a trace.

The Dragon-Taming Sect, for one, has moved south. Everything south of the Yong River is now rebel ground through and through! With all the rebellious sects and factions gathered there, how many Divine Ability adepts must there be? One adept like you would be of no use whatsoever.

" Shen Wanyun frowned.

"Erudite Shen has far too little experience of the jianghu. How old is he? How many times has he walked the wide world?

With him leading us, the omens are more ill than good; even if my cultivation were higher still, there would be nothing to be done about it. Junior Sister Si, you have said nothing all this while -- what is your view? " Si Yunxiang smiled shyly and said nothing. The rest fell silent. The monk Yunque sighed. "Better we go to the Tower of Heavenly Records and pick out one or two life-saving Divine Abilities. Who knows -- they may come in handy.

" At last the day of departure arrived. Before the Hall of the Grand Academy several hundred scholars gathered; the Directors of the Imperial Academy reviewed their own columns one by one; then tower ship after tower ship came flying in and settled before the hall, and each Director led his contingent aboard his own vessel. "Erudite Shen, have you not hired a ship? " Pei Wujiu walked over, all smiles.

"The road is long this time.

If you mean to walk it, it will take you a dozen days or more.

You are an Erudite of the Grand Academy -- surely you would not begrudge even this little money? " Shen Mu, calm and unruffled, smiled.

"I thank the Grand Libationer for his concern. I am so poor that all I have left is money, and so I paid a high price to hire a fast ship; it will be here shortly. The pill furnace aboard it I refined myself -- it is a quick one. " Shen Wanyun and the others exchanged glances, thinking, "A miser, as expected -- he even refines his own pill furnaces.

It must be a little boat.

But that he actually knows artifact forging? He has never once set foot in the Hall of Divine Craft -- where did he learn to forge? " There was a Hall of Divine Craft in the Grand Academy, where one studied the refining of artifacts and treasures; its Directors also held office in the imperial court, and it was Directors of the Hall of Divine Craft who filled the key posts at the Imperial Shipyard and the Ordnance Yard.

Since entering the Grand Academy, Shen Mu had never once gone to the Hall of Divine Craft; there was no way he could have learned the arts of forging and casting. Before long the tower ships rose one after another and sailed off from the Grand Academy. The monk Yunque and the others waited until they were sick with anxiety, when suddenly a battered, ramshackle tower ship came lurching through the air and settled, swaying, before the Hall of the Grand Academy.

"Our ship has arrived! " Shen Mu said with a smile. Shen Wanyun, Yunque, Yue Qinghong and the others frowned deeply.

The ship was riddled with holes and leaking wind on every side; its mast had been hacked off, and there was not even a sail. Onto the deck came a burly fellow stripped to the waist, savage of face -- plainly no good man -- his whole body covered in tattoos. He waved to Shen Mu and laughed aloud: "Brother Shen!

Late, I'm late! " Shen Mu went up with Snow Fox and the dragon qilin in tow, smiling.

"A day or two late is no matter. What has happened to your ship? When I saw it last it was in fine shape -- how has it come to this in a few days?

" "Don't ask.

I ran a cargo trip, and then I ran into that brazen woman from the Three Marvels Fort. She loosed her bugs on me, and I was going too fast and plowed right into the swarm -- it nearly turned my treasure ship into a sieve. " Fan Yunxiao glanced at Shen Wanyun and the others and chuckled.

"Gentlemen scholars, when you take up your official posts in the future, be sure to look after our humble little house. We have gone straight lately, you know. " Yunque muttered, "With the ship in this state, it won't simply come apart in midair, will it?

" Shen Mu had the same misgiving; this Cloud-Chasing pirate ship was in truth too badly damaged, and looked ready to fall to pieces at any moment. "It won't, it won't! " Fan Yunxiao pledged grandly, thumping his chest.

"My brothers reinforced the hull with runes long ago -- it is solid as can be. Brother Shen, when you have the leisure, would you build me an iron-hulled ship? Refine a couple more furnaces for me, and use dark iron for the hull -- wood is really too brittle.

" Shen Mu pondered. "That would cost a great deal of money.

The dark iron alone would be no small expense.

Can your house produce so much? And do you have drawings?

" Fan Yunxiao rubbed his hands vigorously.

"These years I have been robbing folk all over. . . pah, pah -- doing business all over, and I've put by a good sum.

My whole fortune together should be enough to forge an iron-hulled ship. As for drawings, those are hard to come by. .

. Gentlemen, please come aboard. We can talk once we are on the ship. " They boarded the vessel.

Yue Qinghong looked about: the crew were every one of them tattooed and murderous-looking; some bore long sword scars, some were missing a nose or an eye, and killing intent hung about them all -- plainly no good men. The battered ship rose slowly into the air and crawled out of the capital like an old ox dragging a broken cart. At this sight the company grew even more downcast.