The Truth Hidden Behind the World

The young lady came running.

As she ran, sunlight pierced through her delicate hair, sparkling in the air.

Her footsteps echoed along the corridor.

The sound was urgent and excited.

"Sir! Sir!" The princess stopped in front of Xu Xi, excitedly waving papers in her hand, some torn from ancient texts, others freshly copied.

"Sir, everything you asked for is here."

"I asked everyone I could."

"This is all there is!"

Wu Yingxue handed the thick stack of papers to Xu Xi.

Her red and white fitted martial attire and delicate but sturdy light armor accentuated her fiery liveliness.

"Thank you for your hard work, Yingxue."

"Hehe, I'm just glad I could help, sir."

Xu Xi walked to the back of the room, laying the papers on the table one by one, while the young lady stood curiously beside him, watching as he performed operations she couldn't understand.

The lighting in the room was perfect.

Neither too bright to affect observation,

Nor too dim to make things unclear.

As Xu Xi spread out the papers, they revealed pages recording the history and mythological stories of the Great Qin.

Following Xu Xi's instructions,

They were all personally collected by Wu Yingxue.

Some came from various state academies, others transcribed from local folk tales.

The content was chaotic, varied, with little apparent connection between pieces.

Wu Yingxue couldn't understand any of it, nor did she grasp the significance of Xu Xi's actions.

But she believed

That following sir's words would never be wrong.

Sir had never deceived her.

So whatever sir said, she would do.

"Sir, what exactly are you planning to do with these?" Wu Yingxue asked curiously, peering over as Xu Xi's finger traced across the pages.

"I'm looking for the truth," Xu Xi didn't hide his intentions.

The oddities about Great Qin, about the emperor, and about the mysterious Ten Thousand Mountains,

Reminded him of the previous magic world.

In the magic world, the gods fabricated false histories to harvest human faith. By the same logic, Great Qin might be concealing something as well.

That hidden truth behind everything

Might be the key to unveiling it all.

While it might not change the course of war, it could help Xu Xi understand where to go next.

Xu Xi patiently explained to the young princess why this mattered and the irregularities about Great Qin.

"Yingxue, have you ever seen the Emperor of Great Qin?"

"Not really any impression..."

Wu Yingxue pursed her lips, frowning in thought: "Throughout my life, I've rarely seen that dog of an emperor, though my royal father often went to the palace. Beyond that, I don't know much."

The girl's tone was harsh, gritting her teeth.

As if she wanted to grab her spear

And stab the Great Qin Emperor a thousand times.

"Is that so," Xu Xi pondered thoughtfully as he continued examining the pages.

Sunlight gently fell through the window lattice, casting a glow on the indoor walls, illuminating tiny dust particles floating in the air. Amid the dappled light and shadow, Xu Xi sat down.

He sat in the wooden chair, holding papers with his left hand and a brush with his right.

While reading the contents on the papers,

He used the brush to note down key elements.

Xu Xi had long known that Great Qin's history was watered down, and he knew that folk mythology passed down orally often deviated from facts.

However,

No matter how false, no matter how far from reality, the core of stories remains unchanged.

For instance, in the widely known tale of humans enduring long periods of demon invasions before establishing Great Qin, there was a key element:

The demon invasions came first, then Great Qin was established.

Remove Great Qin's self-glorifying embellishments,

What remains

Is the truth Xu Xi needs.

"The history of demons dates back very far... Compared to the demons I've seen, those in local mythology are clearly more diverse and powerful."

"In contrast, Great Qin's history is too brief."

"As a supernatural dynasty, as the first human dynasty in history, Great Qin's establishment is less than a thousand years old."

Speaking to himself,

Quickly recording,

Thanks to his previous experience handling government affairs, Xu Xi wrote quickly, soon extracting many key elements.

But these elements were mixed with truth and falsehood, requiring further verification.

"Yingxue, help me."

"Yes!"

...

[You begin to investigate the truth of the martial world]

[The emperor's strange reactions make you suspicious of Great Qin's nature and the nature of the Ten Thousand Mountains]

[You are ninety percent certain that the Great Qin Emperor is either a traitor collaborating with demons, or perhaps a demon himself wearing human skin to rule over humanity]

[After silent consideration, you decide to seek the world's truth]

[You have the girl collect historical records from various places, as well as oral folk tales of ancient myths from village residents]

[You hope to use these as breakthrough points to find humanity's true history, as Great Qin, being less than a thousand years old, couldn't possibly have created such an intricate martial arts system based on blood energy]

[You persist in searching...]

[You persist in investigating...]

[You gain some understanding of history]

[You keenly notice that in myths passed down across various regions, different kinds of information appear frequently, whether about vast boundless worlds or godlike beings with mountain-moving strength]

[In these myths, humans weren't demon fodder, but protagonists of the world, with demons being just one of many opponents]

[Compared to the cruel reality, compared to the current reality of being surrounded by the Ten Thousand Mountains]

[These myths seem as beautiful as fiction, like beautiful fantasies created by suffering people on the brink of death]

"These records... can't be fully trusted."

"They differ too much from reality, with no corresponding points."

"Perhaps they really are just fantasies, rather than accounts based on fact."

[You distrust the history fabricated by Great Qin, but also dare not trust these outlandish myths, fearing misleading information]

[You continue browsing pages, constantly comparing and searching]

[In other myths, you see familiar terms, about azure dragons swooping down to devour people, swallowing thousands in one gulp]

[This is a myth from Jiangdao Prefecture, recording that in ancient times an azure dragon descended, devouring humans with brutal bloodthirst, feared by all]

[Surprised, you examine this paper about the azure dragon repeatedly]

[You discover a key point: in this myth, there is no mention of the Great Qin dynasty, nor any of its territories]

[Similar to other myths you've read before]

[This myth about the man-eating azure dragon describes an entirely new great world, far larger than the thirteen prefectures]

[Previously, you dismissed this as imagination, but this time the azure dragon described is one you've actually seen in reality, albeit not in its true form]