Chapter 13: The God of Wisdom and Immortality
After the princes’ longevity ceremony concluded, the butterflies resumed their discussion on state affairs. The central topic was clear: the Phoenix Emperor should abdicate.
This was no great matter. The Phoenix Emperor had always been more of a symbol than a ruler. The princes had long agreed on transferring power. After all, the Phoenix Emperor never involved itself in governance, quietly cultivating its strength. Its true value lay in being the strongest warrior.
Many could govern, but only one could fight.
The delay in abdication was due to their waiting for the awakening of the Seer. Liu Jun had no objection to this; their Phoenix Emperor was indeed long overdue to step down.
The natural successor was Die Lvxian.
During Liu Jun’s absence over the years, Die Lvxian had managed the various valley territories with meticulous care and, together with several marquises, expanded their domain, earning great merit.
“This is a heavy burden. You will guide the future of our butterfly clan, bearing its rise and fall, its honor and shame. Are you prepared?” The Seer’s voice echoed through the Butterfly Hall.
“I am ready,” Die Lvxian replied, having long prepared himself.
...
Time passed swiftly; a month later, Die Lvxian ascended the throne. He was truly a man of action.
His partner, Die Lvxixin, was a capable helpmate, continually assisting in handling various affairs.
After his coronation, he set about implementing measures beneficial to the people.
First, the five great marquises ceased their campaigns and instead took residence atop the Cangwu Tree.
This sacred tree granted longevity, extending their lives as rulers.
The Amber Phoenix Butterflies bestowed wisdom upon those nearby.
Liu Jun’s low energy consumption slowed their aging.
Under the new emperor’s vigorous promotion, these two became the nation’s twin totems, symbols of supreme divine power and faith.
Faith could unite the spirit of a people.
To explore the transformations of divine relics, they continued to use the divine magic carpet to mutate the butterfly clan, attempting to evolve their bloodline and delve deeper into the path of the four butterfly clans’ metamorphosis.
As for the deaths this caused?
In Die Lvxian’s eyes, sacrifice was necessary for the race’s development.
Just as the Seer once left some clan members to endure the harsh winter, securing the survival of others.
Now, they needed to advance further, requiring much trial and error and integration.
Being vigilant in times of peace was essential to the species’ continuation.
Though the butterfly clan appeared prosperous, it was not strong.
The leading five marquises possessed second-tier combat strength, roughly equivalent to five small dinosaurs, while the rest remained weak, constantly preyed upon by various natural enemies.
Death.
Experiments.
Death.
They even experimented with slain middle-spined dragons, attempting to fuse the weak butterflies with the powerful dragons.
No matter the cost, everything in this era was moving toward improvement.
---
Every so often, Liu Jun and the Phoenix Emperor would traverse the routes of the great flower gardens, flying along the way to bestow blessings on newborns.
The phoenix butterflies opened their wisdom to them.
The Seer extended their lives.
Along roads paved with blossoms, a retinue of butterfly guards rode in ornate carriages, shaded by splendid radiant umbrellas, stepping on the divine magic carpet, listening to the world with divine ears.
As they passed by, the golden canopy of the radiant umbrella cast sunlight-like brilliance, drawing a long rainbow across the sky.
...
In the eastern garden, within a cave—
“Yes, yes, weave it like this.”
“Interlacing horizontally and vertically...”
“Remember, the butterfly knot is our clan’s emblem, wisdom entrusted to us by the Seer. Every clan member must learn to weave it.”
With the surge of psychic energy, soft silken threads emerged from the cicada pupae, weaving knots in the air, interlacing horizontally and vertically.
In the cramped tree hollow, the young Insect Thirteen sat patiently weaving butterfly threads with his mother, learning various knotting techniques—the heart knot, cross knot, double coin knot...
The silk threads had many uses.
They could craft fine silk scrolls for nobles and marquises.
They could make butterfly cage sedan chairs, provide winter insulation for the common folk, or be fashioned into silk thread traps...
Moreover, they represented the fashionable rope art culture cherished by the beauty-loving butterfly clan—a symbol of their elegance and allure.
A butterfly skilled in weaving was more favored by potential mates.
Weaving was also the means of survival for Insect Thirteen’s family.
Since the fourfold butterfly transformation, four surnames had emerged, and Insect Thirteen was among the first to receive a name.
Suddenly, a roar like a mountain quake echoed outside.
Countless phoenix butterflies fluttered their wings and flew out of the tree hollow.
“The God of Wisdom has come!”
“The supreme king who grants us wisdom! Please awaken the wisdom within this year’s children!”
“Ah, those are the three treasures gained from the divine trials!”
“This world truly has gods! It is said the Origin God created all things and left various divine trials!”
“I don’t believe in other gods. The Seer and the Phoenix Emperor are our gods.”
...
Insect Thirteen and his mother hurried outside, gazing at the divine chariot glowing with golden light, slowly approaching in the sky.
The butterfly guard corps fluttered like stars, gathering into a soft, silk-like galactic ribbon, escorting the massive divine butterfly cage carriage.
Insect Thirteen marveled, “So beautiful!”
“Child, come receive your secondary enlightenment of wisdom.”
“You are now an adult.”
His mother quickly set aside her weaving and flew out the door, speaking with reverence:
“The Phoenix Emperor brings the brilliant colors of wisdom, awakening us from ignorance, teaching us to use tools and conquer beasts.”
“Bone spikes, spears, traps, poisons... these are the powers of wisdom, the sole weapons for the weak to overcome the strong.”
Insect Thirteen nodded and swiftly caught up with the advancing procession.
Following the joyful clansfolk, they danced the sacrificial dance, fluttering their delicate, multicolored butterfly wings in rhythm, creating harmonious butterfly sounds while chanting great poems.
---
“We possess a fragile body that the wild wind can carry away.”
“We have a delicate constitution that succumbs to the winter’s cold.”
“Great and profound gods, you have scattered wisdom upon our people.”
“O gods, we thank you for your radiance.”
“The Phoenix Emperor awakens the newborn’s spirit; the Seer grants longevity in old age, standing guard over our home at the thresholds of life and death.”
...
Thousands of butterflies rustled and shouted hoarsely, their voices forming a sea within the flower fields.
On the butterfly carriage, the Phoenix Emperor occasionally drew back the curtains, his expression solemn and dignified, nodding to his faithful subjects.
The Phoenix Emperor’s low wisdom spread, his moderate wisdom inspired.
Wherever he went, the people’s minds brightened noticeably.
“Ah, the Phoenix Emperor looks at me! A revelation of wisdom!”
Among the butterflies, Insect Thirteen was filled with joy.
“I feel my wisdom growing. Great gods, is this the mighty power gained by passing the divine trials?”
“Divine relics!”
Insect Thirteen murmured, his eyes shining with anticipation.
He longed to become a hero who passed the trials, to possess divine relics, to receive his people’s worship, and to lead his clan forward.
His eyes radiated the colors of dreams.
Nearby, the chief guard clearing the way for the butterfly carriage noticed this and said, “Hey, little insect butterfly, you want divine relics too?”
“I dare not,” Insect Thirteen startled, nervously twisting in midair without wings, nearly losing balance and falling.
“Don’t fall.”
The chief guard quickly lifted him with psychic energy and said solemnly, “There’s no such thing as dare or not dare.”
“The Phoenix Emperor grants us wisdom and also the power to think.”
“To think well and desire the future—this is the nature that wisdom brings. All this is the will of the gods.”
“The gods will not stop your progress; they will bless your growth, for before becoming gods, they were heroes who protected us!”
“Ah! May I?” Insect Thirteen excitedly fluttered about, surprised the chief guard did not reprimand him but showed such kindness.
No.
This was the gods’ mercy.
Bathed in the wisdom’s light from the heavens, Insect Thirteen felt himself intoxicated—lost in dreams, immersed in the exhilaration of awakening wisdom.
“It is because we are intelligent that we find joy, laughter, sorrow, dreams, and ambition.”
The guard’s voice was solemn and unwavering.
O gods.
Insect Thirteen gazed at the two towering figures—those grand existences who bestowed wisdom and delayed aging—showering their blessings from the heights.
...
Liu Jun sat quietly in his sedan chair, listening intently to the conversation between Insect Thirteen and the chief guard.
“Gods?”
“The marquises who once followed us have now become emperors, and we who pioneered this era have been elevated, deified into gods.”
He looked down upon the devout butterflies below, who prayed earnestly to the sky, humming their hymns.