question to novel readers

 MDLFinale:

wu zhu say "if fan xian dies, the qing kingdom falls"

Wow! Guess Wu Zhu was deeply hurt from YQM incident and was hell bent on destroying the entire kingdom if anything happens to his favorite pupil.

Yes, In that first conversation between chen ping ping and Wu zhu, they speak about different things.  Wu zhu asks chen if he wants to kill the empress dowager. Chen responds and says he doesnt have any evidence she was involved in YQMs death. 

Wu zhu then says " if either of us find anything,  regardless of what fan xian thinks, i will do it" 

The only reason the emperor is alive is because wu zhu doesn't know he's responsible for YQM. 

Both the emperor, chen pingping and Fan xian in the novel know wu zhu will kill everyone if fan xian dies, which is why the emperor wants to get rid of wu zhu, he can't truly control fan xian if he's afraid of killing him. 

"Both the emperor, chen pingping and Fan xian in the novel know wu zhu will kill everyone if fan xian dies."

Wu Zhu is the person we always want to be our guardian and well-wisher. 

"That's why he's among my favorites."

Definitely, many are here rooting for him to be with FX and stay by his side forever as an uncle, master, and friend. 

This is what was missing in JOL2

The sharp head of the pencil never landed on the snowy white paper. After exhausting all ideas to finally escape the watch of the court and come to this little courtyard, Fan Xian had already, without a doubt, thought clearly about the orders he should give. In the end, he still placed the pencil down. Once anything landed on paper, it became a potential leverage and flaw.

you can check my comment under my review. I wrote in length details about the divine temple :)

 Katelyn Arshi:

Can someone please describe the trip to divine temple in details? What did FX find? Thanks in advance.

revised 6:34 pm, June 6

Total  super spoiler per your request, to best of recall and quick scan of chapter 726 et.seq.: 

First, explanation of what the Devine Temple is. It is a military/artifacts  museum built by a past human civilization that wiped itself out by nuclear wars.   The museum builders built it to protect/control future civilizations from wiping itself out again, primarily by limiting technological growth in the new civilization.  The builders implanted AI holograms/programs to fulfill that mission, and recruited people from the new civilization to act as emissaries for the Temple to interact with the new human race. The temple also had a few ”home-grown” humans (perhaps from from selected DNA from its civilization). FX’s mom was one of those humans. The builders also programmed the creation of enforcers, powerful androids like WuZhu with special abilities, to kill anyone who jeopardized the Temple’s mission. With the  passing of 100,000 years and more, the Temple has run out of emissaries and Wu Zhu is the last enforcer who had returned to the temple to try to get his memory restored. It is in this setting that FX, DuoDuo and 13th Wang came to the temple. 

Now, the story:  Following the failed first rebellion against the Qing Emperor, in which FX is made all but a cripple, FX gathers Haitang Duoduo and 13th Wang ( a 9th level disciple given to him by Si GuJian of Dongyi), and begins a long trek of at least 6 months to find the divine Temple ( to find Wu Zhu), which is far to the north of northern Qi (think arctic zone and 24 hour nights).   During the long journey, which is directed by FX because only he knows the way, Haitang Duoduo (using KuHe’s techniques) nurses a very badly injured FX backed to moderate health (semi-restored meridians), often having to huddle with FX under a shared blanket to give FX much needed body warmth.

After  an arduous trek that even compromises the health of 13th Wang and DuoDuo, they eventually reach the divine temple.  They have to wait for the temple, high up the mountain , to appear after the long  arctic winter  night and when it does,  they must climb the hundreds  of steps to reach its massive 67 feet high doors.  FX deciphers the wording on the temple gate and finds that it is a military museum from a past civilization on Earth.  Fx gains  entry by talking to the silent door and asking “what does the temple want?”

The response comes by way of the door opening slightly to allow FX and the others to enter. They walk onto a wide open indoor snowy empty plain and is greeted by a bird. The bird soon turns into a AI hologram/being left behind by the museum builders to interact with visitors. It turns out that the Temple needs more emissaries so the Temple is trying to recruit FX and the others.  While FX negotiates/debates with the Temple hologram to stall and gain time, DuoDuo and 13th Wang (“DD and 13th)  go look for Wu Zhu.

Negotiations are at an impasse (deliberately by FX) when DD and 13th return with a large black box which they believe contains WuZhu. Suddenly, the temple entity shouts a targeting order and Wu Zhu springs out of the box at lighting speed towards Fx and stabs  him, but not fatally because at the last second FX shouted something that stopped Wu Zhu from delivering a fatal blow.  Wu Zhu has not recovered his memory and  has been instead re-programmed as an enforcer.

FX, DD and 13th quickly retreat, running back down the mountain. The next day, a very weak FX goes up the mountain again, carried by 13th,  because FX knows he needs Wu Zhu to beat the emperor. DD is ordered  to stay behind because she cannot do anything against Wu Zhu,  Upon reaching the temple, they smash open the door and Wu Zhu responds by flying toward FX, his iron spear pointed at FX.  FX does not move but instead  repeatedly shouts his mom’s name. This stops Wu Zhu ‘s iron spear 1 inch short of piercing FX,‘s adam’s apple.  And there they stay, affixed for a nite and day, while FX tells WZ repeatedly about him and his mom, hoping to jar WZ’s memory. All the while the iron spear stays less than 1 inch from his throat.  FX is so hoarse he is spitting blood. 

 DD comes up the mountain after a day and a half despite orders to stay away. DD tells 13th, “ If he is going to die here, I have to see him die.”  (Dang there is more love in that little statement than the rest of the book!)

So, as FX is forestalling WZ’s killing thrust, DD and 13th go into the Temple and realize there is no one left. It is a vacant building. Whereupon they proceed to smash up everything in the buildingl  With that, there is nothing left to tie WZ to the temple and he decides to go down the mountain with FX. 

On the way back, Wu Zhu slowly recovers fragments of his memory but is not even close to when he was in Danzhou with the young FX. They return to Northern Qi and Qing where they recover from their injuries before Fx starts his 2d rebellion against the Qing emperor, this time with still memory-challenged Wu Zhu ( but who now nonetheless remembers he hates the palace and the man inside)  taking the lead and a female sniper lending a hand. 

Ok. I see. Thank you @Period_addict

 Katelyn Arshi:

Can someone please describe the trip to divine temple in details? What did FX find? Thanks in advance.

 SoloHan:

I rewrote my earlier  spoiler post into a total super spoiler post above. I was curious about my recall, so I skimmed the relevant  9 chapters to check my memory. It turns out I was only about 80% correct. So I have corrected it and added in a lot more detail.  It is a bit of a read, but a lot lot shorter than 9 chapters. 

Thank you. I really appreciate your efforts. I find their world so interesting. I wonder if there's  any room or chance for a sequel?