Empty Theory

The two drank and chatted. Before long, Zhao Gua walked over carrying a thick stack of books.

"Quick, lend a hand. This is too heavy."

Su Mu was surprised. Exchanging a glance with Bai Ze, he quickly stepped forward to help.

"Brother Zhao, could all of these be..."

"Of course not."

Su Mu immediately breathed a sigh of relief. Before he could speak, Zhao Gua continued, "These are only the ones I have already organized. There are still some unorganized ones. I will bring them next time."

Su Mu was instantly stunned, and he noticed Bai Ze also had a wry smile.

This guy would have been a perfect keyboard warrior on Yuan Xing.

The two helped Zhao Gua move the books inside, finding an empty table to display them, and then each picked up a volume to read.

A book was about one to two hundred pages thick, with complex content, but both Su Mu and Bai Ze were cultivators, so they read extremely fast. Before long, they had finished a pass.

The books were mostly filled with strange tales of ghosts and anecdotes of demons that Zhao Gua had collected. Not only did they describe the appearance of the monsters in detail, but they also included simple strategies to deal with them.

It was clear that Zhao Gua had put a lot of effort into this book.

"Brother Su, what do you think?"

This book had cost him a lot of effort. Although he had met with obstacles everywhere, he was still very confident.

Having heard too many empty rejections from bookstore owners, he now wanted to hear evaluations from cultivators like Su Mu.

"Brother Zhao's idea is indeed not bad, and the writing is quite amazing. To write terrifying demon stories so interestingly is impressive, but..."

Su Mu praised him first, then looked Zhao Gua up and down, hesitating for a moment before continuing, "This book is too thick. The printing cost is a bit..."

"Printing cost?"

Zhao Gua was a bit bewildered, not quite understanding, but Bai Ze had already realized.

Leaving the content aside for now, the thickness of this book alone was enough to deter most people.

After all, most scholars read to take the imperial examinations, studying the words of the sages and learning methods to govern the country. The rest also focused on academic research.

Sách vở quý giá, gia đình bình thường không có nhiều tiền nhàn rỗi để mua loại truyện dân gian như của Triệu Quát.

Generally speaking, ordinary commoners were lucky to have some surplus grain throughout the year. At best, they could only save three or four strings of coins a year. They would absolutely not do something as luxurious as buying bizarre ghost stories.

Those who wanted to read couldn't afford it, and those who could afford it didn't need it. No wonder the bookstores didn't want to take Zhao Gua's business.

After all, bookstores would not do business at a loss.

Hearing their explanation, Zhao Gua came to a sudden realization, but his face showed some difficulty.

He had naturally considered this issue, which was why he had compiled similar stories and tried to shorten them; otherwise, there would be even more.

If he continued to cut, this book might become neither prose nor verse.

"Brother Zhao, is this book of yours intended for ordinary people?"

Su Mu's eyes shone as he looked at Zhao Gua.

Zhao Gua nodded. "Naturally. Currently, demons are rampant. Cultivators and martial artists can protect themselves, but aren't those who die and get injured all commoners?"

"If that's the case, why did Brother Zhao use classical prose throughout?"

Su Mu flipped the book to the story of the scholar and the snake demon, saying, "Brother Zhao's story is indeed interesting, and things like realgar are relatively common. But have you ever thought that not all ordinary commoners can read so many words?"

Zhao Gua fell silent. He stared at the book in front of him for a long time, then suddenly stood up and bowed respectfully to Su Mu.

"Brother Zhao, what are you doing?"

Su Mu quickly stood up to stop him, but Zhao Gua was extremely determined and did not budge.

"Brother Su's words are like a sudden enlightenment."

Zhao Gua's face was filled with shame as he continued, "I prided myself on the high concept of this book, not inferior to our predecessors. The content is witty and does not follow the beaten path. Yet, I didn't expect it to be mere empty theory, a useless thing!"

Su Mu said solemnly, cupping his hands, "Brother Zhao, you speak too harshly. Even the wisest can make a mistake. These classical references are complex; a small oversight is normal."

"Sigh..."

Zhao Gua sighed, holding the book in front of him with a dazed expression.

He had originally chosen classical prose to reduce the length. If he changed it to vernacular, the length would be even greater, making it even harder to circulate among the commoners.

Thinking that his proud work could not play its role, and unable to think of a solution, Zhao Gua couldn't help but feel frustrated.

"I say, Old Zhao, if you can't think of anything, just don't think about it. If you ruin your head, your father will come to fight me."

Seeing Zhao Gua grow more depressed, Bai Ze patted his shoulder hard, shaking the empty wine flask in his hand. "Just in time, we're out of wine. Let's go to the Yiwei Residence for a drink. Who knows, we might get some inspiration?"

"Hmph~ indeed. Being too obsessed makes it easy to lose sight. We might as well get drunk."

Patted by Bai Ze, Zhao Gua quickly got over his block. He was about to call Su Mu when he noticed Su Mu holding a book in one hand and using wine to draw something on the table with the other.

Bai Ze leaned over to look and was surprised to find a fierce tiger with slanted eyes appearing on the table, pouncing as if to attack. In front of it, a person was entangled by a tiger demon, looking fearfully at the charging tiger.

"Old Su, you even know how to draw? Impressive, even I don't know how."

"Senior Brother flatters me. I merely drew randomly, just capturing the likeness."

Su Mu was now at the peak of the Spirit Refinement Realm, having initially stepped into the Void Return Realm. His control over himself had reached a subtle level. Although he had never learned to draw, he could still capture a likeness.

As for the prototype, it was naturally the tiger demon that Su Yang had transformed into.

However, he was not showing off.

"Brother Su, could it be that you intend to..."

Sure enough, Zhao Gua guessed Su Mu's intention. He grabbed the book from Su Mu's hand and compared it with the drawing on the table. His eyes suddenly lit up.

"Brother Su's great kindness is something Zhao Gua will never forget. If this Shanhai Zhi can truly achieve my wish in the future, half the credit will belong to Brother Su."

Zhao Gua set down the book, bowed to Su Mu once more, and then, without explaining to Bai Ze, rushed out of the house and rode away.

"Has he lost his mind?"

Zhao Gua's strange behavior left Bai Ze completely baffled. He turned his head to look at Su Mu, only to find Su Mu smiling to himself, with no intention of explaining.

"Hey, will someone tell me what on earth just happened?!"

Seeing Bai Ze's frantic state, Su Mu tossed the book in his hand over, then gestured toward the drawing on the table. He picked up another book and continued reading.

Bai Ze caught the book. Seeing the story of "The Tiger's Guide" inside, he came to a sudden realization, finally understanding what riddle the two were playing.

If ordinary commoners didn't know many words, then there was no need for so much text.

A picture and a few lines of text would suffice!