Chapter 497

This time for the ancestral rites, Zhang Jian simultaneously prepared a grand Heaven-worship ceremony.

At this time he is the Holy King, and as the Human Emperor, the natural objects of worship are no longer the myriad gods of heaven and earth, nor the various Heavenly Emperors in ordinary sacrifices.

But rather the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth in the unseen, and the myriad Holy Emperors of the human race.

This is also not without the purpose of announcing merit.

Announcing to heaven and earth, and to the ancestors, that he has attained the fruition of the Holy King's Dao, and if one wishes to win him over, it is best to lay out one's chips early……

When there are flowers to be plucked, pluck them straight away; do not wait until there are no flowers left to pluck in vain!

In the grand Heaven-worship ceremony, besides Zhang Jian this Holy King, there are also the civil and military officials of the court, the leaders of the feudal lords of the Five Continents, and thousands upon thousands of feudal lords from the various provinces.

Besides proclaiming the Holy King's civil governance and martial prowess, Zhang Jian naturally also wishes to display his own 'martial power'.

But now that the world is unified under one rule, even the barbarian regions' demon tribes and the ancient rare species of the Xihe Prefecture have sent strong ones to show submission, so he naturally cannot resort to force.

The best way is naturally to expound the Dao, to expound the Dharma.

However, considering that most high-level cultivators usually respect might rather than virtue.

The Holy King's expounding of the Dao and Dharma by Zhang Jian is also divided by occasion, divided by audience, and explained accordingly.

For most of the time, it is to manifest the Holy King's divine power as the main focus.

Only when facing a portion of the staunch supporters of the Great Xia Dynasty will Zhang Jian give a targeted explanation to the crowd on the subtleties of the Great Dao, resolving the doubts of the myriad immortals and gods!

For example, the Taiyin Immortal Maiden, the Patriarch of the Dongshen Teaching, the Deyang Ancestor, the Baiqiu True Immortal, the Kanglong True Immortal, the Lingyou True Monarch, the Guihong True Monarch, and others who joined his retinue of high-level cultivators and true immortals from the very beginning.

The magnificent Heaven-worship ceremony shook the azure heavens and the Five Continents' seas.

The vast incense of the myriad people rushed straight to the azure heavens, and in the Holy King temples of the Five Continents' seas, the myriad ancient sages and the golden bodies of the ancient Holy Kings likewise manifested corresponding omens, while also acknowledging Zhang Jian's status as Holy King.

For a time, the dragon qi and imperial qi coiling around the Eastern Suspended Divine Prefecture continuously expanded, rising by another level in succession.

With the acknowledgment of the myriad ancient Holy Kings and ancient sages, the Dao lineage of the Great Xia Holy King possesses greater legitimacy.

The title of the Holy King lineage of the Zhang clan of the Eastern Continent is also truly deserved.

Such a grand spectacle was sensed by the immortals and gods within and without the Zhou Mountain Realm.

The Holy King's Heaven-worship, such a grand array, is rare in ancient and modern times, excessively astonishing.

After the Heaven-worship ceremony, Zhang Jian successively announced that he would hold a Great Xia Trade Fair for one month, with the venue set in the accompanying capital, Shenjing City.

For a time, this made Haojing City bustling with activity.

In the Ancestral Temple.

After the Heaven-worship ceremony, Zhang Jian then led the many members of the imperial clan to simultaneously hold a grand ancestral rite.

In the ancestral shrine, the incense flourished.

On each and every spirit tablet, endless incense divine power coiled.

This time, for the ancestral rites, Zhang Jian and the Western Palace Empress Bai Liying stood at the very front.

Beside them were the Noble Consort Ji, the Noble Consort Yun, and the Virtuous Consort Meng.

Next came the Crown Prince Zhang Zhao, the Yi clan, and the Prince of Nan'an Zhang Yi who had rushed back, the Prince of Xing Zhang Xian, the Prince of Anping Zhang Chang'an, the Princess of Nanyang, and the many other princes and princesses.

Under each of the three consorts were two to three princes and princesses.

These princes and princesses have all reached adulthood and have mostly embarked on the path of cultivation; as for the few who are eccentric, have not taken up cultivation and are growing old, or have encountered mishaps, their cultivation stalls before the Foundation Establishment realm.

Others are the grandsons of the third generation, and the great-grandsons of the fourth generation.

As for the fifth, sixth, and seventh generations of imperial descendants, there are also not a few.

In the Ancestral Temple, there are indeed nearly hundreds of people in scale.

The accumulation of over a hundred years since attaining the Holy King has finally caused the Zhang clan of the Eastern Continent to begin to flourish, to branch out and spread, and the incense to never cease.

Zhang Jian stood to one side, gazing at each and every youthful imperial clansman, or those in their thirties standing firm, or even those with aged visages performing the rites, his eyes unusually calm in their depths.

These many imperial clansmen are all those he personally witnessed being born, and even growing up.

Gazing at their growth, it always gives him a sense of time flying by.

But when the occasions are many, Zhang Jian will also gradually collect his thoughts.

Not because he is indifferent, but because witnessing these clansmen from youth to old age, he still has time and will still feel some sighs.

At this time he finally understands the old ancestors of those true immortal clans, or cultivation clans.

Becoming an old ancestor, sometimes it is not necessarily pleasant.

But his Dao heart is firm, like jade and like iron, these changes merely add a part of the foundation for his Dao heart's growth, and besides this, there is nothing else.

After the many imperial clansmen completed the ancestral rites, they then departed the Ancestral Temple in single file.

The Western Palace Empress Bai Liying, and the other three consorts also need to seize the time, to absorb and digest the great aura on their persons, transforming it into substantive benefits.

The consorts also clearly understand that such opportunities are hard to come by.

After Zhang Jian the Holy King completes his Dao, there may not be such a good opportunity again in the future.

Not only the consorts, but also the princes who are cultivating.

This is the best period for the Zhang clan of the Eastern Continent to accumulate its foundation.

Perhaps after several thousand years, this batch of cultivating princes will become the backbone of the Zhang clan of the Eastern Continent, or elders, or even the clan's venerable pillars.

In the Ancestral Temple.

Soon it became tranquil, and Zhang Jian stood alone, wearing a vermilion imperial robe; he cultivated through fire virtue, and the Great Xia Dynasty likewise belongs to the orthodox fire virtue.

"Forefathers and ancestors, now the Zhang clan of the Eastern Prefecture has multiplied to this extent, the imperial clan spreads throughout the Five Continents, and now it can also be considered a Holy King clan; this body of mine has ultimately not disappointed your expectations, Father Emperor, Mother Empress, your expectations; you who have knowledge in the springs below, should also feel comforted!"

At this time Zhang Jian stepped forward, also taking nine stalks of ritual incense, lighting them, and inserting them into the great cauldron.

Zhang Jian gazed upon this scene with his eyes, and at this time he could clearly sense that his Dao heart's obsession had again become complete at this moment, his Dao heart rounded and fused, accompanied by his innate primordial spirit expanding at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Within the primordial spirit's depths, in the inner source immortal light, rings of law appeared one after another.

Within a hundred years, the rings of law condensed within his body even surpassed what other true immortals obtained in millions of years.

Hundreds of rings of law intertwined, ring within ring, as if rounded and fused into a magnificent map of the Great Dao.

Deep within the Great Dao Diagram, a flat Dao fruit gradually took shape.

That was the embryonic form of the Taiyi Dao Fruit.

It was born from the laws of the State and Immortal Dao, independently nurtured, as if it had formed its own heaven and earth, transcending the Dao itself.

He had already touched the threshold of the Taiyi realm.

In less than a hundred years, he had pushed his cultivation to this point—the role of the ancient sage-king's status had been immeasurably great.

Holding the position of the Human Emperor's status, he was as if constantly merging with the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth; this state, though inferior to the fixed 'sudden enlightenment' state of ordinary immortals, yielded astonishing gains.

However, this state also consumed the sage-king's great fortune and qi.

But even without deliberate maintenance, such astonishing progress would still occur.

That the ancient sage-king could sweep aside an era is thus understandable.

At this moment, another obsession in his Dao heart was fulfilled, and the law-ring currently condensing gained another layer.

"One hundred and five rings!"

Zhang Jian carefully sensed that, in his perception, his Dao fruit was gradually being sealed by the law-rings.

Once fully sealed, it would surely help him completely enter the Taiyi realm and attain the body of a Taiyi immortal.

Zhang Jian remained calm, not surprised by this progress.

He knew that, after attaining the sage-king Dao fruit, achieving Taiyi was inevitable—and he even hoped to reach the true numbers of Taiyi before the ancient sage-king's term ended.

This was a unique opportunity and great fortune belonging solely to the ancient sage-king.

……

In the Ancestral Temple, the sacrifice soon began.

Mountain-like piles of gold and silver ingots were moved out by Zhang Jian and sent into the depths of the great cauldron at the temple's center.

The quantity of gold and silver ingots he prepared this time amounted to nearly one Qiankun Ring.

The piled-up quantity resembled a vast mountain range.

After all, achieving the sage-king's great undertaking was a feat unparalleled in history; he had, after the ancient sage-king's achievements, labored for a hundred years to integrate the power of the Five Continents, and he believed he would gain a satisfying reward.

In his eyes, a Qiankun Ring's worth of gold and silver ingots poured in, and Zhang Jian felt he had not yet reached his limit.

Yet this already approached ten times the quantity of the previous sacrifice!

This change made Zhang Jian's eyes brighten.

Fortunately, he had prepared in advance.

At that moment, he took out another Qiankun Ring and directly applied the spatial displacement technique, moving part of the gold and silver mountain into the firelight.

What made Zhang Jian's eyes tremble was that another tenfold amount of gold and silver mountain was burned to ashes, yet he had still not reached his limit.

"Looks like we're going to strike it rich this time!"

In the depths of Zhang Jian's eyes, a fierce divine light shone.

As he turned with a thought, without hesitation, he continued to fill part of the gold and silver mountain from the third Qiankun Ring, knowing that filling nearly one-fifth would gradually reach the sacrifice's limit.

Zhang Jian casually took out a treasure circulating with the laws of Immortal Dao.

It was a treasure map, its interior filled with spacetime, reincarnation, life and death, yin and yang, and other great Dao powers—as if it could penetrate all heavenly reincarnations, strike down all living beings, crush them, and return them to the cycle of heaven and earth.

This was Zhang Jian's refined first-rank immortal treasure, the Map of Heavenly Reincarnation.

Zhang Jian believed this sacrificial offering should again increase the satisfaction of the 'Ancestors'.

Gazing at this immortal treasure in his hand, which turned into blue smoke and vanished in the sacrificial fire, his eyes slightly smiled.

Immediately, he glanced once more at the ancestral shrine, then prepared to step out of it.

After the Heavenly Sacrifice ceremony ended, he still had many trivial matters to handle.

The Great Xia Dynasty now spanned halfway across the Five Continents and their seas, including many island nations, with vulgar things too numerous.

Zhang Jian also did not disdain these vulgar things.

Every decree issued by the Great Xia Dynasty concerned the livelihood of millions of people—this was also within his authority.

When the people's 'satisfaction' increased, the upper limit of his sage-king Dao fruit would continually rise.

After he abdicated, it would also become his most precious experience—Zhang Jian naturally would not be lax.

For this, he even used the Dream-Walking the Grand Void Technique, directly manifesting many spirit bodies to garrison various regions, personally entering the mortal world to summarize experience, and from all sides resolving the Five Continents' people's clothing, food, shelter, and travel, comprehensively enhancing the foundation of all beings in the Zhou Mountain Realm.

Hope to help these people go from merely living to living better!

……

Zhang Jian became busy.

Deep in the Heavenly Realm, within the magnificent immortal abode.

'Qingxia Daoist' was also in frantic preparation.

From a hundred years ago, upon learning that the person performing sacrifices in the lower realm had attained the status of sage-king, 'Qingxia Daoist' had been everywhere contacting, taking the initiative.

Besides entering the Three Sovereigns Heavenly Realm to spread the news of auctioning the Yin-Yang Treasure Mirror, she also actively communicated with her main body to retrieve the harvest from this trip into the innate relics.

The last item was of utmost importance to 'Qingxia Daoist'.

Otherwise, she would not dare remain in the Daoist hall.

She was truly worried that Zhang Jian, at this time, performing ancestral sacrifice, would leave her only able to declare 'bankruptcy'!

Fortunately, after decades of planning, she had finally completed many arrangements.

The Three Sovereigns Heavenly Realm had also officially spread the news of auctioning the Yin-Yang Treasure Realm, and the following events would rely entirely on her main body and her allies.

By the Two Realms Pool.

At this moment, the 'Qingxia Daoist' sitting in meditation had her beautiful eyes twitch; she wore a blue immortal robe, her long hair only loosely bound by a jade hairpin; as her gaze lifted on the cloud-bed, her soft, long hair swayed like a drifting ocean, her tall figure rose, and on her exquisite, beautiful jade-like face appeared a hint of helplessness.

After waiting so long, this day had finally come.

This time, the other party had actually managed to 'restrain' their temper.

In the moment of thought, 'Qingxia Daoist' first employed a secret method to control the Two Realms Pool.

She knew that this time the scale of the sacrifice must be enormous, requiring her to first stabilize the Two Realms Pool, lest it collapse and trigger an omen, alarming other immortals and gods.

As she cast her spell, rolling incense-fire golden light condensed into form from the depths of the Two Realms Pool.

The scale of the gathered incense-fire golden light was such that even 'Qingxia Daoist' seeing it felt her heart startled and her spirit shaken.

With a wave of her hand, countless milky-white rays of light permeated it, forming illusory visions of magnificent incense nations.

This was the incense-god domain secret method she derived from her great power.

Given the scale of the previous sacrifice, she condensed vision after vision of incense nations; filling one such vision was roughly equivalent to one hundred million flawless incense.

At this moment, however, in the nine-colored pool water, a violent golden light torrent surged forth and instantly plunged into her incense-god domain secret method; in the blink of an eye, one incense nation became filled and perfected with incense-fire golden light, transforming into a golden nation.

That was one hundred million flawless incense.

'Qingxia Daoist' gazed upon this scene, her expression solemn, while simultaneously activating her incense-god body to its fullest to begin absorption; instantly behind her appeared a circle of magnificent incense-fire golden light, within which seemed to take shape an incense nation.

But this was only the beginning.

Immediately followed the second, then the third incense nation turning golden; thereafter, the flawless incense gathered ever more amidst roaring sounds.

'Qingxia Daoist' tensed her face; after the tenth incense nation was filled and perfected, her expression had already grown somewhat numb.

And after a hundred incense nations were filled and perfected, even with 'Qingxia Daoist's' state of mind, she felt her primordial spirit and Dao heart tremble slightly.

This scale of sacrifice was too terrifying.

Even for a Daoist, such wealth was no less than overnight riches.

In the depths of her wondrous eyes, she also felt indescribable delight.

With this incense sacrifice, her incense-golden body, in a period of time, would then possess the foundation to once again assault the Great Calamity of Annihilation.

The sacrifice had not yet ended.

Approaching the filling and perfection of one hundred ten incense nations, it barely came to a halt.

One hundred ten billion flawless incense.

Gazing upon those golden nations, even 'Qingxia Daoist' at this moment felt her heart surge with emotion.

Whether these flawless incense were refined into cultivation, magical power, or alternatively into incense-type divine arts of cultivation, they were precious resources; this incarnation of hers would soon be put to use.

At critical moments, it could completely serve as a trump card!

And at this time, the sacrifice had not yet ended.

From the depths of the Two Realms Pool, primordial Dao sounds circulated, thread after thread of primordial divine light flew forth, resonating with the heavenly-earthly great Dao laws in the depths of the void.

Shortly after, a primordial Dao chart flowed forth from the depths of the boundless great Dao heavenly sound; wherever it passed, the incense-god domain that 'Qingxia Daoist' had employed shattered inch by inch, turning to dust.

That such magnificent divine power still burst forth, 'Qingxia Daoist' instantly had her eyes light up.

"At the very least, it is a middle-grade primordial merit and virtue spiritual treasure!"

Middle-grade primordial merit and virtue spiritual treasures and low-grade primordial merit and virtue spiritual treasures are entirely different concepts.

Moreover, observing the grade of this primordial merit and virtue spiritual treasure, it is also likely not as simple as just entering that level!

With a raise of her hand, she cast a divine light that enveloped that magnificent great Dao heavenly sound; shortly after, a divine light flew down into the depths of her palm.

"The Chart of Heavenly Reincarnation? Actually possessing six primordial divine prohibitions?"