Читать книгу Elinor. The Deserted Valley. Book 1 - Mikhail Shelkov - Страница 40

The Ulutau rarely left their native land. There was no point, as their country supplied their every need. Blue sky, blooming glades, fresh mountain air, deep water rivers and lakes, forests full of game, and fertile fields.

This region was awarded to the ancestors of the Ulutau, who came from the lands of the Itoshins. The country of the mountain people was peaceful, beautiful, and plentiful, while every day we fought for survival in the Ito empire. Terrible demons came from the fog, bringing death and destruction from the most sinister place of the Dead Land the Path of Horror.

There was a legend that one day, a young man named Tau fell crazy in love with the Emperor’s daughter, who was called Tsvetsho. Myth says that Tosho’s daughter was the most beautiful woman in the world, and Tau was an entrusted Emperor’s udoğan who often visited his palace. He asked the Emperor for Tsvetsho’s hand, but the Emperor became furious. Despite the fact that he was a very brave udoğan, he did not want his immortal daughter to be given to a simpleton. Since then, the Emperor forbade the men of the Itoshin people from looking at her.

He was going to execute Tau, but the brave young man admitted his guilt for betraying the empire and its sacred Code. Tau asked the Emperor to spare his life in order to try to pass through the Path of the Horror, which had not yet been conquered by anyone. Either perish there or atone for his crime by a great feat. Touched by the nobility of the young man, the Emperor granted him forgiveness and ordered him to find a settlement if he found suitable land beyond the Path of Horror. Several brave, young, strong men and women decided to support Tau, for they were also impressed by his noble impulses and brave heart.

Tau and his comrades went through the Path of Horror and found themselves in a beautiful land, which they called Ulu (Mountain, Majestic Mountains). In the mountain canyons, he managed to repel an ancient relic called the Demon Flesh, which gave the pioneers on the Path an unprecedented power and helped them not to go mad with fear.

Now a mature man who had seen and experienced a lot, Tau rethought his life. He realized everything that happened to him was not an accident. Unrequited feelings, his fall from grace, forgiveness, a path to nowhere, a sense of fear and the attainment of fearlessness, comprehension of power and, finally, a mountain valley made for life.

Even as an Itoshin, Tau heard stories about the Valley of the Ancestors and the morals that reigned there. The stories were about people who lived in contentment and welfare, and were primarily concerned with prosperity instead of their souls. They lived in freedom, not knowing that in the north, the Itoshins were defending the right to this life with a weapon.

Tau did not want his country to follow this same path. Therefore, for the sake of the life of his people, he laid a special teaching of the eternal path, aimed at improving their inner world. The sage Tau himself pondered the Flesh of the Demon and the power inherent in the relic. And he asked himself: can one gain power and absolute fearlessness in oneself without using the artifacts of antiquity? After all, if such artifacts stored true power in themselves, then this power could be obtained from outside as well! The people of Ulutau have since given themselves to eternal self-development and gaining power through constant meditation, tempering body and spirit, and self-contemplation.

Once, a huge bird flew into the mountain country. When she approached Tau, he saw a letter attached to the bird’s foot. Much to Tau’s surprise, the message was written by Tosho! The Emperor wrote that he had a wonderful dream where Tau created a city in beautiful fertile lands, and Tosho sent his birds out to find this land. The Emperor blessed the work of Tau as correspondence began between the Emperor and Tau, and, later, his successors.

Sage Tau died in deep, deep old age. His body was burned and ashes scattered all over his land, so that the soul of the sage became part of this country. Eventually, new sages began to interpret the teachings of Tau in their own ways. They did not deviate from the foundations laid by their great teacher, but began to build their own schools, each of which became separate settlements. And it was masters who led the schools.

The people of Ulutau started families, raised children, plowed the land, and engaged themselves in hunting and fishing, but devoted all their spare time to self-development. Each school lived as a separate community led by a master who was responsible not only for the spiritual development of his pupils, but also for their way of living. Each master assigned himself to an entrusted disciple who became a master after the death of the teacher.

And in the Bright Palace of Tokana sat Ino-to, a wise old man, who could interpret the teachings of Tau better than all others. Chosen by the masters of all schools, Ino-to did not have any power because the concept of power was absent in the country of the Ulutau. Even the masters didn’t impose their will on the disciples, but only helped them on their life journeys. If the master himself strayed off his path, he could always ask for advice from Ino-to the Wisest.

The Bright Palace eventually lost its own school and became the abode of Ino-to, who spent all his time there in constant meditation. Representatives of schools made regular pilgrimages to the Palace, monitored his condition, cleaned up, used archives and libraries, but never settled nearby. There was no violence, murders, or robberies in the Ulutau country, because the inhabitants of the Celestial Plateau strived for self-improvement, and human vices were alien to them.

Master Nao was a pupil of Master Mao in the School of the North Slope. After the death of Mao, he headed the school. At the time, he just turned six times six years. Nao managed it with dignity, instantly earning love and respect among the pupils. Martial arts and the ability to handle the sword were an indispensable part of his teaching, while so many schools began to practice meditation without perfecting their bodies.

Nao was as strong in spirit as in body, well-knit, incredibly courageous and mobile, and no one in the mountainous country could match him!