Chapter Ninety-Four: The White Turtle Bearing the Book

At last, my elder brother has been born.

In the Heavenly Court, Nuwa looked down toward the place in the mortal realm where Fuxi lay, and she too let out a long breath of relief.

Li Tian felt much the same. Twelve years before he was born; even he could not help but grow anxious for Fuxi.

“Fuxi is destined to be the Sovereign of Mankind. By rights, he ought to have a teacher to guide him onto the proper path at once. What do you think?”

Nuwa frowned slightly. “Elder brother is of our generation. If someone were to become his teacher, would that not make them our senior?”

“That is true,” Li Tian said with a nod, and set the matter aside. “Let us keep watching. If anything goes wrong, we will step in and guide the way.”

“Mm.”

...

By then, the people of the Huaxu tribe had followed the purple aura of the Human Sovereign to the banks of the Yu River. Even from a great distance, they could already smell a mysterious, fragrant scent in the air.

When they drew near and saw Huaxu, who had just given birth, they were all astonished.

Some of the elders remembered that ten years ago they had said Huaxu was carrying a monster, and they could not help feeling deeply embarrassed. Yet the human race at that time was still simple and honest. Everything had been for the tribe’s prosperity, so no one harbored any ill intent.

“Daughter.”

The Huaxu chieftain came hobbling over on his cane, trembling with age.

“Father.”

Huaxu’s eyes reddened at once. After all, they had not seen each other for nearly ten years.

“Is this... my grandson?”

The chieftain looked at the infant in Huaxu’s arms, surrounded by a violet glow, and asked tentatively.

“Yes.” Huaxu nodded. Looking down at the child in her arms, her gaze was tinged with complexity, though far more than that was a deep and boundless tenderness.

“Has he been given a name yet?” the chieftain asked.

“Not yet.”

“Then...”

The chieftain paused, preparing to name the child himself. Seeing this, Li Tian in the Heavenly Court stirred his thoughts, subtly influencing him.

“Let him be called Fuxi.”

“Fuxi... Fuxi?” Huaxu repeated it softly a couple of times, then nodded as well, accepting the name.

The other elders of the Huaxu tribe, hearing this, also praised it as a fine name, using their approval to hide their own embarrassment. Huaxu glanced at them, but said nothing, which only made the elders breathe easier.

They did not know what those two words truly meant. Across endless ages, Fuxi had always been known to the world by another title: the Xi Emperor.

And so Fuxi returned with the others to the Huaxu tribe.

Because of the auspicious radiance that surrounded him at birth, people treated him as a sign of blessing, as a gift from the heavens to the Huaxu tribe. And Fuxi did not disappoint them.

By the third day he could speak, by the fifth he could walk, and by the seventh he could hold a brush and write characters, astonishing and delighting countless people, who all praised him as a genius bestowed by heaven.

Yet as a child, Fuxi was also exceedingly mischievous. Some of his pranks were so amusing that even Nuwa in the Heavenly Court could not help laughing out loud when she saw them.

Li Tian found it rather strange as well. To watch a man who had remained stern and disciplined for untold years suddenly become small again, playful and impossible to contain, was an indescribably peculiar feeling.

Time flowed on, and in the blink of an eye Fuxi had grown to the age of eighteen.

Li Tian saw that the moment had come. He summoned a godly being whose true form was a white turtle, handed him the River Diagram and Luo Book, and ordered him to assume his true form and go to the Luo River to await the arrival of the Xi Emperor.

The white turtle was somewhat puzzled, but did not dare ask further. He answered at once and descended to the mortal realm.

As for the River Diagram and Luo Book, even if someone gave him three times the courage, he would not dare covet it.

...

That day happened to be the very day Fuxi came of age at eighteen. Yet instead of staying with everyone else, he had gone off alone to the banks of the Luo River.

He always felt as though something there was calling to him.

Splash.

The moment Fuxi reached the riverbank, the surface of the Luo River suddenly changed. A whirlpool slowly formed in the water, as if something were about to rise from it. As he focused his gaze, he saw a colossal snow-white turtle slowly emerge from within the whirlpool.

The great turtle’s entire body was covered in strange, glowing runic patterns. At a glance, it was plainly no ordinary creature.

And yet, for some inexplicable reason, Fuxi did not feel afraid. Instead, he instinctively walked toward the white turtle.

The white turtle raised its head and looked at Fuxi, then glanced at its own back. Fuxi followed its gaze.

There was a strange book resting there.

The River Diagram and Luo Book?

As Fuxi looked at the odd book upon the white turtle’s back, that name flashed through his mind. He did not know how he knew it, but he knew this volume must surely be the River Diagram and Luo Book.

“Is this for me?” Fuxi asked.

The white turtle nodded. Seeing this, Fuxi relaxed, stepped forward, and took the River Diagram and Luo Book from its back.

“Hm?”

The instant his fingers touched the Luo Book, a sudden sense of intimacy welled up within him, followed by a vast flood of memories.

“I was Fuxi all along.”

Receiving those memories, Fuxi understood his former life. Recalling all the things he had done in these years, he could not help but laugh in spite of himself.

“Go back and report to the Heavenly Emperor.”

“Yes, Xi Emperor.”

The white turtle took human form, nodded lightly, and flew back to the Heavenly Court.

Seeing that, Fuxi shook his head.

“From this day forward, Fuxi shall be the Fuxi of the human race.”

...

After returning to the Huaxu tribe, Fuxi changed completely from his former manner and became mature and steady.

The people found it astonishing, but did not think much of it. They all praised him for having grown up and become sensible. Fuxi, of course, only smiled and let it pass.

For a very long time after that, Fuxi used the River Diagram and Luo Book to calculate the weather for the people of the Huaxu tribe and help them avoid misfortune and seek fortune.

Gradually, he amassed tremendous prestige within the tribe.

After the old chieftain passed away, he was unanimously chosen to become the new chieftain of the Huaxu tribe.

Once he became chieftain, Fuxi naturally took on the duties of leadership as well. Under his efforts, the Huaxu tribe soon grew stronger and more prosperous.

Through repeated observation, he discovered that when close kin among the human race coupled with one another, the children born to them were generally far duller than ordinary people. After much thought, he established the laws of human relations: uncles and nephews, cousins and siblings, aunts and sisters — henceforth, no close relatives were to marry within the tribe.

This measure quickly bore fruit, and the surrounding tribes all began to imitate it. Little by little, the name of Fuxi began to spread throughout the entire human race. Soon, even the three current leaders of mankind had heard of him.

When they first heard the name Fuxi, the three men of Youchao, Suiren, and another leader were all greatly surprised. After all, ordinary humans might not know who Fuxi was, but the three of them certainly could not fail to know.

“Some time ago, I heard that the Xi Emperor had been reborn into our human race. Could it be...” Suiren said uncertainly.

After all, the name of a great power was not something just anyone could claim.

“That is indeed possible,” Youchao said with a nod.

After that, the three of them discussed Fuxi’s matter at length. After weighing the matter from all sides, they decided to bring Fuxi over and have him join the leadership of the entire human race.

After all, the whole human race was nominally under the rule of the Heavenly Court. Although the Heavenly Court did not in practice interfere with governance, they could not possibly slight the revered Xi Emperor of the past.

What was more, Fuxi’s abilities were excellent, and he had also established the laws of human relations, earning merit for the human race.

Thus, on an auspicious day, Youchao and Suiren personally went to the Huaxu tribe with the others and found Fuxi.