Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 532: The Seventh on the Ranking of Heaven

The sea breeze gently caressed Zhao Changhe’s face as he leisurely lay on the deck. He gazed at the blue sky and drifting white clouds, sipping from his wine gourd. Despite the fact that this journey was fraught with looming danger and uncertainty, this voyage also offered a rare sense of tranquility—perhaps that was what set this journey apart from all the others.

It was a pity, though, that he could not sail alongside Chichi.

She had directly departed from the Langya port, while Zhao Changhe had no such luxury and needed to head south to Ningbo. Their purposes for venturing to sea were different, though their destination may ultimately be the same. Zhao Changhe’s goal was to peer into the secrets and movements of the Sea Tribe from the shadows. Traveling together with Xia Chichi would draw too much attention, placing them both under the Sea Tribe’s watchful eye and thereby hindering his ability to maneuver freely. Furthermore, it would reveal the collaboration between the Four Idols Cult and Zhao Changhe—a fact best kept in the dark.

It was much better for one to remain overt and the other covert. This way, they were granted much greater operational flexibility. It was just a shame that he could not enjoy a carefree, audacious voyage with Chichi.

What Zhao Changhe did not know was that Xia Chichi was still copying scriptures throughout her entire voyage, with no end to the task in sight... Perhaps Venerable Vermillion Bird agreed with Xia Longyuan’s assessment that Xia Chichi lacked tranquility, so she deliberately made Chichi hone her patience and look for some inner peace.

The Tang Clan’s ship, meanwhile, had a legitimate reason for setting sail.

In the recent discussions on transitioning from river and canal transport to maritime transport, Tang Wanzhuang had actually opposed the proposal, claiming that it was an inappropriate time to be carrying out such an upheaval. Most of the Tang Clan, however, supported the idea. Even Tang Buqi, for once, did not follow his aunt’s lead, as this proposal massively benefited the clan’s interests. Who cared if it was not the right time or detrimental to broader affairs? Who else shared his aunt’s single-minded devotion to the empire and concern for the world? They were an aristocratic clan, after all.

Tang Buqi, of course, found himself promptly beaten back to Gusu by his aunt.

Though the canal trade was suspended due to disruptions caused by the Cao Gang, the Tang Clan had long been experimenting with maritime trade, albeit on a small scale. One such venture had been with Penglai[1], a small island nation located on Seasky Island, which they had visited sporadically.

Upon his return to Gusu, Tang Buqi immediately set about arranging a new round of voyages to Penglai. He had expected his aunt to be angry, but to his surprise, her letter said, “Changhe is heading out to sea; make arrangements accordingly.”

At that, Tang Buqi could only sigh inwardly in frustration, unable to articulate the whirlwind of emotions.

We’re planning to establish maritime trade, and you oppose it. But now that your boy-toy Zhao Changhe wants to go to sea, suddenly it’s perfectly fine? It’s only now that you see us as useful, huh? Now you can show off to your lover, saying that everything was arranged in advance, eh?

So, by the time Zhao Changhe came to request a ship, Tang Buqi’s expression was as sour as it could get, and he could barely muster any enthusiasm to speak with Zhao Changhe.

Lying on the deck, Zhao Changhe could not help but smile as he recalled Tang Buqi’s sulky, begrudging demeanor.

“Young Master Zhao, the sun is about to set. The winds pick up at night; it’s better to come into the cabin,” called out the Tang Clan captain from below deck.

The captain’s name was Tang En[2], a name that would suit the protagonist of a traditional Chinese fantasy story, and it seemed equally fitting in a maritime context. He was a servant born into the Tang Clan, with over twenty years of experience at sea. He was very knowledgeable, having been to Seasky Island before. This time, the trip had a legitimate purpose of maritime trade, similar to Li Sian’s job, which helped conceal Zhao Changhe’s presence.

Zhao Changhe smiled and said, “If the ship fears no storm, neither do I. I must say, I didn’t anticipate the Tang Clan’s vessels to be this formidable.”

This was a true ocean-faring vessel. Zhao Changhe did not know much about tonnage or other technical details, but it was definitely large and very stable, giving him an innate sense of reassurance. A smaller fleet followed behind. The amount of profit each shipment could generate must be substantial, which may have been why Tang Buqi dared defy his aunt.

Tang En smiled, replying, “We’re quite fortunate. Last year, the Gusu[3] was still under construction. She had her maiden voyage just this past spring, and now she’s being put to official use.”

Zhao Changhe asked, “How do you navigate? With a compass?”

“It’s more complicated than that... We use a combination of tools, primarily a sextant, along with a compass, to determine the altitude of celestial bodies. We also need to observe the stars, wind direction, tidal changes... Without a good ten years of experience working aboard a ship, it’s unwise to blindly head out to sea. At best, you would only dare sail along the coastline.”

Zhao Changhe nodded thoughtfully, letting out a sigh. “The gulf between disciplines is indeed vast.”

The sigh, however, was not so much about the gap between martial arts and seafaring but rather a reflection on his own past. He used to be a humanities student, and it was quite ironic that in this dawning age of maritime exploration, he could not even begin to pose as an expert. Even the locals’ navigational experience and nautical sciences could put him to shame.

The Tang Clan was not even at the forefront of this discipline; the Wang Clan was likely even more advanced in these pursuits.

His thinking had evidently diverged far from what was considered modern. Just recently, he had been chided by the blind woman about materialist dialectics... Even when it came to maritime matters, his thoughts were dominated by medicinal materials, martial arts, and secret realms, whereas Tang En and his crew were concerned with spices, tree resins, precious metals, and new crop seeds. Their minds were on entirely different wavelengths.

Even in an era dominated by martial pursuits, civilization was inexorably advancing. He had simply paid too little attention to these facets, and had allowed himself to become absorbed by the martial arts mindset. n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Zhao Changhe felt a little embarrassed. He had once prided himself on reading the Spring and Autumn Annals, after all...

He tried to find a justification for his martial arts mindset, and asked, “So, are there pirates?”

“There didn’t use to be as many a while back; we’d just run into some occasionally. But in recent years, they’ve been on the rise. They don’t appear near the coast; rather, they mostly lurk around the remote islands in the open sea.” Tang En pointed behind them. “We are a fleet of several thousand, though, and we’ve even got plenty of powerful bows and crossbows. We’ve got nothing to fear.”

Zhao Changhe noticed something amiss. “Huh? Why has the number of pirates been increasing in recent years? Is it because maritime trade has become more frequent, or are there more fishermen venturing into the open sea?”

“We haven’t increased our activities, but I can’t speak for others,” Tang En responded. “Maritime trade is highly lucrative, but it’s not something just anyone can do. Ships that are capable of long-distance maritime trade are rare, and a single disaster could mean losing not just your profits, but your life. If anyone has indeed ramped up their maritime activities, it would most likely be the Wang Clan. Perhaps it’s this wealth they’ve accumulated in recent years that gave them the confidence to rise in open rebellion...”

Indeed, the Wang Clan’s rebellion must have had some economic motivations behind it, a factor that Zhao Changhe realized he had not considered much in the past.

He pondered aloud, “So, in other words, the pirates mainly pose an obstacle for the Wang Clan? Is it possible there’s an organized effort behind it, specifically targeting them?”

“We really don’t know,” Tang En said. “Miss Tang did analyze it, though. If there is an organization, it could only be tied to one person...”

A name surfaced in Zhao Changhe’s mind.

The figure ranked seventh on the Ranking of Heaven, Dragon King Hai Pinglan.

Whether it was his name or his nickname, everything about him suggested that he was someone who made his living on the sea. But, interestingly enough, his rise to prominence had occurred almost entirely on land, and he had had no apparent connection to the sea. [4]

Hai Pinglan had once been third on the Ranking of Heaven, and he had even been the ruler of a southern faction, earning the title of Dragon King not for any seafaring exploits but due to his victories in naval warfare along the Yangtze River. However, he was later defeated by Xia Longyuan, who was ranked seventh at the time, which led not only to his displacement to the seventh rank but also to the collapse of his kingdom. He fled alone, disappearing without a trace.

After that, Xia Longyuan quickly ascended the ranks, challenging and defeating the second-ranked Timur and the first-ranked Great Shaman Bo’e, leaving them in the dust while he claimed the summit. The later stages of his journey saw his strength grow even further, as he began to clash with the barbarian gods of the Grasslands. It was the period of his absolute dominance, a story that read like a true protagonist of a martial epic.

In contrast, Hai Pinglan became nothing but a mere footnote, lost in the narrative of Xia Longyuan’s triumphs. His whereabouts were unknown for over thirty years, as if he had vanished from the world entirely. If it were not for the fact that the Tome of Troubled Times had never removed his name, the world would likely have assumed he was dead by now.

If Hai Pinglan had indeed fled to the sea, it would make sense. Given his level of power, leading a powerful pirate organization was entirely within the realm of possibility. The puzzling aspect, however, was that he should logically be aligned with the Wang Clan in their efforts to rebel against the Great Xia—so why would he be hindering them instead?

This hypothesis, therefore, remained dubious.

In fact, the Demon Suppression Bureau’s reports on overseas activities contained an alternative theory: it suggested that the nation of Penglai might have even been established by Hai Pinglan himself.

One conjecture portrayed him as a king, while the other suggested he was a pirate—the disparity between the two was rather significant.

When Xia Chichi went on her first voyage, she also attempted to uncover information about him but found nothing. The king of Penglai was reportedly surnamed Yuan, with seemingly no connection to Hai Pinglan. Of course, if Hai Pinglan had deliberately changed his identity to avoid detection by Xia Longyuan, it would not be surprising.

Zhao Changhe found himself rather intrigued by it all. Among these overseas forces, whether they be pirates, small kingdoms scattered across the sea, or even the Sea Tribe’s mermen, there was not a single mention of them in the Tome of Troubled Times. Even Miaojiang had entries in the Ranking of Earth, yet there has not even been a mention of a hidden dragon emerging from the seas.

Could it really be that their levels of cultivation are just too low? That seems unlikely. It makes more sense for the Tome of Troubled Times to simply have deliberately chosen not to include them, perhaps due to some unstated reasons.

He wondered what manner of martial artists and martial arts awaited across the oceans.

As these thoughts occupied his mind, the sun began to sink beneath the horizon, with its last rays still casting a fiery glow along the meeting of sea and sky. The far-off ocean turned resplendent in its golden reflection.

Several sails appeared on the distant horizon as a fleet of ships cut through the waves, drawing ever closer.

Tang En’s expression changed dramatically. “How can there be pirates here?”

1. Penglai (蓬莱) is both an actual place, though this is unlikely to be what is being referred to here, and a fabled abode of immortals. ☜

2. The surname is the old surname 唐 (coincidentally the same as Soul Land’s protagonist Tang San), while the given name is 恩 (meaning “favor, kindness, grace”). It’s a name that sounds very classic, masculine, and steadfast. ☜

3. They named the ship after the Gusu province of the Tang Clan. ☜

4. The surname 海 means “sea,” while the given name 平澜 literally translates as “flat waves,” a bit of a poetic contradiction. Moreover, there is an old legend about the Dragon King living on the bottom of the sea, and any Chinese reader would instantly make the connection. ☜