Chapter 168: f.u.xi"s Deduction of the Eight Trigrams
Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
f.u.xi brought all the young ones to go fishing but the fish were slippery and also tricky little things. Once they noticed humans approaching, they would swim far away. Humans moved slowly in the water, so even if they fished for the entire day, they still failed to get enough to feed everyone.
So f.u.xi went to Liu Er for a solution and the latter pointed at a peach tree. When f.u.xi took a closer look, he found a spider web on the branch where an insect was stuck after trying to fly through the web. Realization dawned on him and he cried, "I see."
Just as he was about to leave, Liu Er said, "f.u.xi, fish are good sources of food, but they"ll be exhausted by humans one day. Your Human Tribe can use ponds to culture them instead. Since they multiply and grow quickly, your tribe will have endless fish to eat this way."
f.u.xi nodded, so he continued, "As for wild beasts, they"re enough to feed you well but they"re nevertheless finite in number. Your tribesmen often get hurt hurting as well. You should get them to catch some docile Wild Beasts and domesticate them. This way, you can raise them the same way you raise fish."
f.u.xi lowered his head and pondered over this seriously. He suddenly jumped up and slapped his thigh. He bowed at Liu Er and said, "I understand now, Master. I"ll go see to it now." He turned around and ran out of the cave.
Liu Er felt somewhat dispirited after seeing how quickly f.u.xi understood his advice. This was a method he had been thinking about for a long time, yet f.u.xi had to comprehend it in such a short time. f.u.xi was truly destined to be the Human Sovereign. If this continued, there would be nothing left for him to teach f.u.xi. It really wasn"t easy to be the Mentor of Human Sovereign. Had he known this earlier, he would rather endure Minghe"s scolding than come out here.
After f.u.xi left, he ran straight for his tribe. He collected many hemp ropes and tied them to form a large web. He then led several youngsters to the riverside and used the fishing net to catch ten times the number of fish as they did before. Now that they had caught numerous fish, they no longer had to hunt Wild Beasts every day.
f.u.xi also instructed his tribesmen to capture the docile Wild Beasts and raise them in the village.
After going through several failures, the humans finally managed to domesticate many wild beasts like cattle, sheep, chicken, ducks, and pigs. In the summer, they would go fishing. When they had additional fish, they would turn them into dry fish. In the winter, they would butcher their beasts. They no longer had to risk their lives hunting in the forest and their lives became better and better.
The rapid advancement of the tribe meant more and more surroundings tribe had come to them for shelter. f.u.xi"s fame was on the rise as well. In the following decades, he invented the xun (a traditional musical instrument made of pottery), harp, and cymbal. He also created folk songs, bringing music to the lives of his people. He also divided his territory into regions and a.s.signed officers to govern each one, providing guidance for the future social governance.
By the time he was 40, the entire Human Tribe had recognized him to be the sovereign. He ordered for a city to be built on a fertile land to be made into the capital. The other tribes followed suit and built their own cities. Since then, the Human Tribe became even more prosperous.
Liu Er, being f.u.xi"s mentor, was naturally well-known among the Human Tribe. The tribesmen even built temples to worship him and Minghe. Thanks to that, the 30 percent Luck of the Human Tribe belonging to Minghe was increased again. Even Liu Er received some Luck as well.
The changes in the Luck of the Human Tribe also piqued the attention of all the Sages. They were envious and even despised the fact that Minghe owned 30 percent of the Luck of the Human Tribe. But there wasn"t anything they could do as their preaching was restricted to the humans outside of the Coast of the East Sea. The Luck of the tribe within the place had always been unwaveringly constant and they had no way of interfering with it.
With all these changes, the Sages placed even more importance on the position of the Mentor of Human Sovereign. But they had a large number of disciples under them and it was difficult for them to choose their candidates. The only one who didn"t share this worry was Laozi. After all, he only had Xuandu under his tutelage.
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As time went by, the Human Tribe developed rapidly under f.u.xi"s guidance but problems followed as well. One day, an elderly tribe leader came to him for help and said, "Human Sovereign, a flood hit our tribe and washed away all our fish. Our domesticated animals aren"t mature yet. I implore you to send my tribe some food."
f.u.xi instantly agreed and ordered someone to send lots of food to the elder"s tribe. After the tribe leader left, he began thinking how he could protect the Human Tribe from natural disasters. He considered this for a long time before decided to turn to his mentor for help.
He arrived at his mentor"s place and immediately knelt down when he met him. Liu Er stopped him and said, "f.u.xi, you"re now the sovereign of the Human Tribe. Don"t bother with such courtesy. I"m not worthy of it."
f.u.xi made a bow. "Mentor, you"re incorrect. Without your guidance, I wouldn"t enjoy the prestige I do today. You"re definitely worthy of such respect."
Liu Er smiled and waved his hand, indicating for his disciple to take a seat. "Forget it then. What question do you have for me today?"
f.u.xi stood up and made another bow. "Ever since I became the Human Sovereign, I have tried my best to educate my tribesmen. Lately, I keep feeling that I"m close to completing my duties but lack a Fated Chance. That"s why I came to you today, mentor. In addition, the Human Tribe is plagued by constant natural disasters and the people are going through hard times. I also came to seek a solution."
Liu Er narrowed his eyes and began to predict the secrets of heaven. After a while, he turned around and smiled. "You"re right. There"s something you still have to do and it"s related to your question today. I"ll go and inquire about it for you. Go back and wait for my news."
Though Liu Er knew f.u.xi lacked one Fated Chance, he had no idea what it was. So he returned to the Blood Sea to seek Minghe"s advice. Minghe smiled to see him, knowing his intention. "I"m well prepared for this. Here"s f.u.xi"s Fated Chance, take it. You may leave now."
Liu Er was stunned to see the things that Minghe handed him. It was the Eternal Spiritual Treasure belonging to Emperor Jun of the Demon Tribe, the River Chart and the Inscription of the Luo. During the war between the Wu and Demon Tribes, the treasure was taken away by the Demon Master, Kunpeng. How did Minghe get his hands on it?
Though he had many questions in his mind, he didn"t ask any of them. He took the treasure silently and left for the Human Tribe. Minghe looked in the direction of the Northern Underworld, a mysterious smile growing on his face.
Liu Er returned to his Human Tribe after receiving the treasure and summoned the Dragon Scales cultivating in the mountains after some consideration. He put the River Chart and the Inscription of The Luo on its back. After giving it some instructions, he let it roam free.
There was a river called the Wei River that sat east of the newly-built capital that was connected to the Yellow River. When f.u.xi was idle, he enjoyed sitting by the river quietly. He also liked going there whenever he had to solve some troublesome problems. He could gain inspiration there.
After Liu Er left, a large number of tribesmen died from natural disasters. That depressed f.u.xi. Without knowing the changes in the rule of heaven and earth, his tribe wasn"t able to predict disasters and avoid them. Seeing his tribesmen suffer, f.u.xi became anxious and even impatient to wait for Liu Er"s return.
Just then, the surface of the Wei River changed drastically and a deep vortex appeared as if something was coming out from it. An Exotic Beast slowly emerged from inside the vortex. The beast cried and trod the surface of water toward him.
f.u.xi was unexpectedly unafraid. Instead, it crossed his mind that the Dragon Scales was the essence of the heaven and earth. It was horse-shaped but covered by dragon scales, giving it its name. It had red lines and a green skin, about 9-feet high. It also had wings so it could fly over waters. It was considered a Divine Beast.
The Dragon Scales came to f.u.xi and looked back at its own back. f.u.xi followed its line of sight and found two pictures. A name flashed in his mind: the River Chart and the Inscription of the Luo. He didn"t know he knew this but he could tell this was his Fated Chance.
After f.u.xi took the treasure off its back, the Dragon Scales went back to the water. He began to enlighten the charts and inscriptions. According to the inexplicable memory he just had, he knew this was the Magic Weapon that could predict the changes in the rule of the heaven and earth. It was exactly what he needed most now.
Taking the treasure, he walked quickly back to his tribe. He needed to figure out a way to avoid natural disasters as soon as possible.
The changes in the Rule of the Heaven and Earth in the treasure were endless. Not even f.u.xi could understand them in a short time. But he didn"t give up and studied them as he governed his Human Tribe.
f.u.xi finally enlightened the changes thoroughly after three years. By tracking the astronomical and geographical phenomena, he invented trigrams like the Force, Open, Radiance, Shake, Ground, Gorge, Bound, and Field. Together, they were dubbed the Eight Diagrams. He used it to predict the changes in the rule of the heaven and earth and human moral order.
f.u.xi used the natural phenomena like heaven, field, thunder, wind, water, fire, and mountain to represent the Eight Trigrams and explained everything through them. Once understanding these diagrams, one could predict the secrets of heaven, pursue good fortune, and avoid disasters. When he was done, f.u.xi walked out and announced, "The Human Tribe will not have any trouble from now on."
He then saw the River Chart and the Inscription of the Luo turn into a streak of light that flew toward the Yu River.
Now understanding that his mentor had sent the treasure, he didn"t care where they went. He was more concerned about the Eight Trigrams, so he summoned leaders from all the other tribes and showed them about his invention. He then ordered for the Eight Trigrams to be popularized in every tribe.