Chapter 321

Regardless of whether Li Li Boqian was bragging, Zhao Xing decided to believe him.

Who on earth would go to see Emperor Jing for no reason!

However, when he began to learn the Pang Yuan Feng Art, Zhao Xing truly started to believe it.

The top-tier level of the Pang Yuan Feng Art involved four secret techniques: the Hou Hou Bian Art, the Di Li Art, Rune Dao, and Array Formations.

Moreover, they were all uniquely created by Li Li Boqian, yet Li Li Boqian claimed this was merely the foundation.

"Four types of top-tier, seventh-rotation level secret techniques—are these really just the 'introductory' level of the *Pang Yuan Feng*?"

Zhao Xing began to believe that Old Man Li really wasn't bragging!

The four great secret techniques of the top-tier Pang Yuan Feng level were, respectively:

Top-tier external cultivation Hou Hou Bian Art: "Morning-Calling Yellow Ear Transformation"!

Top-tier Di Zang Art: "Thirty-Six Paths of the Local Origin"!

Top-tier Rune Art: "Five Divine New Runes"!

Top-tier Array Formation: "Heaven-Burning Origin-Locking Array"!

Runes and arrays, naturally, were to be learned later.

The first to be learned was the Hou Hou Bian Art.

"The name you gave this external cultivation Hou Hou Bian Art is quite elegant," Zhao Xing said. "What 'Morning-Calling Yellow Ear Transformation'? This is clearly just a 'Chicken-Dog Transformation'!"

"Look at Wu Cheng's Pig-Luo Art; the name is so grounded."

"Why would our Tian Shi Sect need to be so grounded?" Li Li Boqian said righteously.

"The names you give the Di Li Sect's spells are so concise—directly calling it the 'Thirty-Six Paths of the Local Origin.' How plain! You did that on purpose, didn't you?"

"Hahahaha." Li Li Boqian's little scheme was seen through, and he burst into laughter. "Less nonsense, hurry up and practice."

"In four years, you have to go to the Dragon Court, and you'll be delayed for another twenty years."

"Got it!"

The Morning-Calling Yellow Ear Transformation actually consisted of two parts: one was the Morning-Calling Transformation, and the other was the Yellow Ear Transformation.

To put it plainly, it was the 【Chicken Transformation Art】 and the 【Dog Transformation Art】.

The two could even switch between each other—from chicken to dog, or from dog to chicken.

Li Li Boqian was worthy of being the Grand Minister of Agriculture; this art he created, because it added the method of switching between chicken and dog, had its power increased by another notch.

If the target was turned into a chicken and it still couldn't kill the opponent, one could make the opponent undergo Hou Hou Bian again, crossing from chicken to another species.

This could cause double damage.

"The internal cultivation Hou Hou Bian Art can be comprehended on one's own, but the external cultivation Hou Hou Bian Art requires finding targets to practice on. What have you prepared for me?" Zhao Xing asked.

"People, of course." Li Li Boqian led Zhao Xing to a wide building on the grassland.

"Look, this is the Autumn Official, the 'Minister of Justice'."

Zhao Xing and Li Li Boqian lowered their clouds and landed on the ground.

In front of the building, a Second Rank official was waiting. On the front of his official robe was embroidered a desolate forest, crossed iron rulers, the sun, and the moon, while on the back was a single beast.

The Great Zhou's Autumn Official, the Minister of Justice, was equivalent to the Ministry of Justice of later generations, but its duties were broader than the Ministry of Justice, including military affairs and the judiciary, not just criminal punishments.

Whether one broke the law and which law was broken was all up to them; it even involved the compilation and execution of military law.

Therefore, this Junior Minister of Justice named "Wu She" was also a man holding great power.

Wu She had slightly dark skin, a square face, and a mark on his forehead that looked like an eye; this was the Law Eye.

His ears were wide, and the auricle had six obvious depressions that could fold in different directions; this was the "Six Ears."

The Law Eye and Six Ears were both spells that led directly to the ultimate.

Legend had it that if a Minister of Justice cultivated the 【Law Eye】 and 【Six Ears Heavenly Hearing】,

not only could they hear heartbeats and see situations ten thousand miles away, hearing movements ten thousand miles away, but they could also emit destructive rays.

However, this was just a legend. If one truly reached that level, it wouldn't be an ultimate spell, but a "Divine Ability." At Wu She's waist were two iron rulers (resembling the appearance of thin swords), one named "Justice" and the other named "Equality."

The Equality sword was slightly larger than the Justice sword, proving the direction this person cultivated.

The Equality sword appeared to be only one, but it was actually eight-in-one.

It could unleash the "Eight Directions Equality Law Domain."

As long as Wu She unleashed it, those who entered the law domain and were above Wu She's level would be pulled down to the same level as Wu She.

Then Wu She could use the Justice sword to hack people.

A complete Grand Minister of Justice in the era of spiritual energy should also carry a pet baby—a Law Beast—as well as the divine artifacts 【Heavenly Prison】, 【Heavenly Gate】, and 【Immortal-Binding Chain】.

However, the power of this profession also fluctuated with the rise and fall of the dynasty.

Without a unified dynasty of national destiny, the Minister of Justice profession would just be in the gutter.

"Wu She pays respects to the Grand Minister of Agriculture." Wu She bowed to Li Li Boqian, then nodded to Zhao Xing, "Marquis of Divine Might."

"Lord Wu." Zhao Xing cupped his hands and bowed.

"Wu She," Li Li Boqian said, "Are the prisoners ready?"

Wu She pushed open the building behind him, and immediately the sound of chains clanking came from inside: "There are a total of 1,450 prisoners inside."

"Among them, 1,100 are Fourth to Sixth Rank, all death-row prisoners."

"150 are Third Rank death-row prisoners, and 150 are Third Rank serious criminals."

"10 are Second Rank death-row prisoners, and 40 are Second Rank serious criminals."

The reason for this division was mainly because death-row prisoners could be tossed around at will; even if Zhao Xing accidentally practiced them to death, it wouldn't matter.

Because they were going to be executed anyway; it was just waiting for the underworld portal in Fengjing, Tianyong Prefecture, to open for a unified execution, so that the underworld souls wouldn't have a chance to make a comeback and take revenge on Great Zhou.

Serious criminals could either die or not.

Their sentences were basically imprisonment until death; if they volunteered to participate and become Zhao Xing's practice targets, they could reduce their sentences by a certain amount.

This process might lead to death, but there were always some people who didn't want to be imprisoned until death and fought for this opportunity.

Zhao Xing glanced at them and found that most of these people had some alien bloodline.

They were basically from vassal states of Great Zhou, such as the Water Tribe.

Last time, when "Boyi" rebelled in the Dragon Court, many tribes in the West Sea were implicated; they were arrested and executed. There were even prisoners in the Life Palace Realm, though Zhao Xing didn't need to use First Rankers for practice.

"Good, that's enough." Li Li Boqian smiled, "Wu She, you did very well."

"Thank you for the praise, Grand Minister of Agriculture." Wu She bowed stiffly.

"From today on, you are responsible for assisting Zhao Xing in his cultivation."

"Yes."

Time passed, and in the blink of an eye, a year and a half had gone by.

Zhao Xing came to a beast shed, which was divided into three cages: one group was chickens, one group was dogs, and one group was pigs.

When Zhao Xing entered the beast shed, it was immediately a scene of chickens flying and dogs jumping, with fat pigs rooting around.

"Cluck cluck cluck!"

"Woof woof!"

"Oink oink!"

In their eyes, a very human-like fear appeared.

"Now I have all three: chicken, dog, and pig."

"In the future, combined with the Pig-Luo Art, I can cause triple Hou Hou Bian damage... this is too insulting."

Zhao Xing looked at the chaos in the building and couldn't help but feel a sense of accomplishment.

Mastering the Morning-Calling Yellow Ear Transformation in a year and a half—this speed could be said to be very fast.

"Transform!"

Zhao Xing spat out golden light, which filled the entire building, and then the scene of chickens flying and dogs jumping, and pigs rushing forward, changed.

"Cluck cluck cluck? I turned back into a human?"

"Woof! Damn, who are you? Why are you hugging me?"

"Get lost! Don't lie on me—"

"Oink oink oink—"

Because it was impossible to wear clothes when performing the Hou Hou Bian Art, the scene before his eyes was truly eye-stinging.

Some, even after turning back into humans, were still staring at each other and barking like dogs.

Others were lying together naked, or bumping into each other, slapping and knocking each other to the ground.

Because for a moment, they couldn't adapt to this change.

"Alright, your mission is over." Zhao Xing waved his hand, and a pile of clothes flew up from behind the door,

landing in front of everyone.

"Put on your clothes, walk out, and follow the Junior Minister of Justice."

Wu She, who was waiting outside the door, was also quite surprised.

Because Zhao Xing had finished practicing in just a year and a half.

Originally, he had prepared for it to take ten or eight years.

He didn't expect it to be so fast.

"Grand Minister of Agriculture, didn't you say the Hou Hou Bian Art is very difficult to practice?" Wu She looked at Li Li Boqian.

Li Li Boqian was also a bit surprised, and he pulled Zhao Xing aside.

"Kid, why do I feel like your cultivation talent has become even stronger?"

Zhao Xing's cultivation speed was fast when he was Fourth or Fifth Rank, and he comprehended spells very quickly.

But when he reached Third and Second Rank, the difficulty of the spells he learned kept climbing, yet he was still this fast!

Mastering an intermediate spell in a day is considered a peerless genius. But for this peerless genius to practice advanced spells, the speed would drop significantly.

And then to top-tier spells, the speed would be even slower!

This is the normal situation.

As the level of the Art and Dao increases, talent will show a diminishing effect.

Yet, this diminishing effect didn't happen to Zhao Xing!

Li Li Boqian was naturally surprised!

"This speed is rare in others."

"For me, it's normal." Zhao Xing said with a grin, "I am the Saint Son of the Three Sects, with great destiny upon me;

it's normal to be a bit faster."

"Hahaha, you really know how to gild your own lily." Li Li Boqian burst into laughter.

There were actually many factors for Zhao Xing being this fast.

The first key point was that the second layer of the Yan Shen Dongyan Jue was completed, with 500,000 divine thoughts deducing; the learning speed naturally couldn't be slow.

The second key point was Zhao Xing's biggest gain in the Dragon Court—spiritual energy.

"The Five Elements Spiritual Liquid stored in the body has formed seven spiritual lakes! They are true spiritual lakes formed after spiritual energy liquefaction, not just a name."

The transformation brought to Zhao Xing by the Five Elements Spiritual Liquid was astonishing.

Since coming out in the 16th year of Da Zhi, his true self, from inside to outside, was almost every moment in spiritual energy.

Whether it was the Life Palace or the Seven Souls, Zhao Xing's true self had a thin layer of spiritual energy shield on the body surface, making his internal and external circulation entirely a spiritual energy environment.

"Because I understand how to use spiritual energy, I can say that half of me has entered the 'spiritual energy version' in advance."

"The missing other half stems from the limitations of the Heavenly Rules of the Xuanhuang World," Zhao Xing thought to himself.

However, with so much spiritual liquid, he only took a tiny bit for personal cultivation.

Because his goal was ascension, not dominating the Xuanhuang World.

Hegemony was not his pursuit; once the thousand-year lifespan was over, he would turn into dust, so what was the point?

According to the experience of his previous life, one person could not ascend; this was also a characteristic of the ascension version: it required teamwork to leave the Xuanhuang World.

Therefore, what appeared in history were all legends of ascending Divine Dynasties; there were never any legends of individual ascension.

Zhao Xing knew his goal, so his Pure Origin Space accumulated a large amount of spiritual energy, but he didn't dare to waste it; even the absorption and use of spiritual energy were all recycled.

Although he possessed a lot of spiritual energy individually, it wasn't enough to complete the goal of ascension.

Possessing such vast spiritual energy resources, Zhao Xing could fully create 500,000 Second Rank grass-man clones, and the clones would possess 70% of the true self's strength.

But he didn't do that, because there was no war in the late period of Emperor Jing, and there was no demand; creating clones to explode combat power was a waste.

He didn't even plant many plants in the Pure Origin Space; he purely used a small portion of spiritual energy to raise his cultivation talent.

Unlike Liu Liu Tianning's personality, he wanted to use every resource reasonably!

Even if a tiny portion was consumed, the changes in himself were huge.

Zhao Xing sent clones to Li Li Boqian to practice Pang Yuan Feng, and it only took three years to fully master two of the four great secret techniques.

"Morning-Calling Yellow Ear Transformation is an external cultivation Hou Hou Bian Art; you are indeed fast at learning it. I heard you send a batch of True Dragon Essence Blood to Ling Ling Tianchen every twenty years?" Li Li Boqian asked.

"Yes." Zhao Xing nodded. This secret was known to very few people; even within the Xuantian Academy, only a few people knew, but Li Li Boqian was the Grand Minister of Agriculture, so he was naturally qualified to know.

"Ling Ling Tianchen hasn't made a move so many times; it seems he intends to use the *Ancestral Dragon Transformation* as a secret weapon." Li Li Boqian laughed heartily, "It's really interesting. He takes the True Dragon Essence Blood you contributed and the Ancestral Dragon Transformation you created,

to fight Liu Liu Tianning—hahaha."

The competition mechanism for the candidates of the three sects had now gone halfway.

Liu Liu Tianning and the candidates of each sect had fought five times, and soon the sixth Dao Field cut-off and sitting-and-discussing-Dao would take place.

However, Wang Wang Tianzhi and Ling Ling Tianchen had never made a move, and the two candidates of the Di Li Sect had also not moved.

It wasn't that they had to fight nine matches, or even the tenth.

As long as one fight convinced the other, that was enough. The most critical match was the third year after the next emperor ascended the throne.

The two from the Tian Shi Sect and the two from the Di Li Sect were all accumulating strength, preparing to deal with that final battle.

Among them, Wang Wang Tianzhi was still secretly undergoing special training, which was arranged for him by Li Li Boqian.

Ling Ling Tianchen, because of Zhao Xing's *Ancestral Dragon Transformation*, had been in deep cultivation.

Coincidentally, there was also one in the Di Li Sect who was carefully pondering the mysteries of the 【Kun Origin Hoe】. Because Zhao Xing's true self was in seclusion, the Kun Origin Hoe was placed in the She Shen Hall, and one of them had gained some insight and was researching a secret technique with great power.

Li Li Boqian laughed because Ling Ling Tianchen and the one from the Di Li Sect really had a certain possibility of threatening Liu Liu Tianning.

This situation was exactly caused by Zhao Xing.

Otherwise, with Ling Ling Tianchen's *Kiss Transformation*, there wouldn't be much room for improvement, and he would have long gone to the Dao Field to fight Liu Liu Tianning a few times to test the waters.

"You've increased the difficulty for Liu Liu Tianning." Li Li Boqian was overjoyed, "Does he know about this?"

Zhao Xing said: "I don't know, but even if he did, he probably wouldn't care."

Would Liu Liu Tianning fear others surpassing him?

Impossible; he would rather hope that Ling Ling Tianchen and the others were stronger.

Only then would winning be an accomplishment!

The two chatted for a while, and after Wu She left, Li Li Boqian began to teach the *Thirty-Six Paths of the Local Origin*.

"This art is one of the foundations of Pang Yuan Feng; it has no aggressiveness, and if cast alone, it can't compare to the Earth-Hidden Returning Origin."

"It is mainly to cooperate with the Five Divine New Runes and the Heaven-Burning Origin-Locking Array to carry out closed-loop utilization of the origin energy between heaven and earth."

"It shouldn't be difficult for you to learn. After you learn it, I will explain it in depth together with the Five Divine New Runes and the Heaven-Burning Origin-Locking Array."

"Yes." Zhao Xing listened quietly.

He originally had a solid foundation, and whether it was the Thirty-Six Paths of the Local Origin or the external cultivation Hou Hou Bian Art, he learned them very quickly.

Another year and a half passed, and Zhao Xing mastered the second secret technique, 【Thirty-Six Paths of the Local Origin】.

"The Emperor grounded you for four years; it seems it wasn't without benefits. You can concentrate on comprehending spells." Li Li Boqian smiled, "If it were in the past, with your clones running around everywhere, dispersing your energy, how could it be this fast."

"However, there is only half a year left before the Dragon Court opens. The Five Divine New Runes and the Heaven-Burning Origin-Locking Array will consume a great deal of your mental energy,"

"so let's wait until you come out to learn them."

The Five Divine New Runes and the Heaven-Burning Origin-Locking Array were completely two new paths; Zhao Xing was starting from scratch, which was not easy at all.

Zhao Xing also gave a bitter smile; he had also read the contents of the two secret techniques, and just looking at them made his head big. Hearing Li Li Boqian say this, it seemed that these two secret techniques would inevitably lead to hair loss.

"I originally said I would never research mechanical arrays, but it seems I ended up planting a flag after all."

The 60th year of Yong Zhi, at the Peak of Qitian, early spring.

The imperial edict posted at the Peak of Qitian suddenly ignited and turned into ashes.

A figure emerged from the stone, stretching his waist toward the sea of clouds in front.

"The four-year period has arrived; please, Dragon Emperor, return to your throne." Zhao Xing twisted his mouth.

Seeing that the day of Old Man Jing's death was getting closer and closer, he was happy!

Now he had to run to the Dragon Court for another ten or twenty years; by the time he came out, Emperor Jing would probably only have twenty years left to live.

Pretty good!

Zhao Xing's mood brightened.

"Meow~"

In a building behind the mountain peak, three figures darted out.

They were the Mountain Cat, Cang Mao, and the Upside-Down Sheep.

"Woof woof~" Cang Mao wagged its tail.

"Baa~" The Upside-Down Sheep was smiling.

The Mountain Cat stood on the stone, looking like a tiger.

It could no longer be called a cat; purple-black fur patterns flickered, and every move it made had an aura of a king.

Now, the Mountain Cat, Cang Mao, and the Upside-Down Sheep were all over 130 years old, all reaching the Third Rank; the Mountain Cat was even 140 years old.

The Cang Mao dog and the Upside-Down Sheep had both fully entered their peak period, reaching the peak of the Third Rank.

They themselves had strong bloodlines, and they had eaten a lot of dragon meat and drunk a lot of dragon blood, changing their bloodlines. At this time, they were still far from dying of old age; the Mountain Cat was even stronger because it ate more and better.

"I won't take you with me this time; go to the Spirit Mountain and ask for it yourself." Zhao Xing said softly, "You cannot enter the Heavenly Destiny Realm normally like the human race, nor can you be favored by the rules of the Dragon Court like the dragon race in the Dragon Court."

"However, I will find an opportunity for you."

The dragon beasts in the ancient land of the Dragon Court, the Baboke insects in the Southern Barbarian King Court, the snakes in the Great Snake Kingdom, etc., all had special national destiny blessings, and advancing was relatively simple.

Great Zhou, however, didn't have such a situation; although there were officials bestowed upon exotic beasts, Third Rank was the limit.

After all, even humans lacked the baptism of national destiny, so how could it be the beasts' turn?

Unless it was a divine beast like the Phoenix or the Heavenly Destiny Chen Xuan Bird descending to the world, which itself carried the destiny of heaven and earth, it could bring an increase to Great Zhou.

However, when the spiritual energy tide appeared in the era of Emperor Wu in the future, it would be easy.

"Great Peng Transformation!"

Zhao Xing transformed into a Golden-Winged Great Peng.

Now his *Kunpeng Transformation* had also been cultivated to the top-tier perfection.

Originally, transforming into a Great Peng meant white wings, but now they had transformed into golden wings.

The speed was also much faster than before; it only took two quarter-hours to fly from Qitian Mountain to the entrance of the Lingxu Blessed Land.

At the entrance of the Lingxu Blessed Land, the Life Official Ji Si was quietly waiting on a dragon boat.

Suddenly, a golden light flew out from the brilliant blue light gate.

Ji Si looked up, only to see the fading golden light, and when she looked down again, the clouds and mist on the deck dispersed, revealing a tall and straight figure.

"Zhao Xing." Ji Si revealed a faint smile, "It seems your Great Peng Transformation has improved again."

Ji Si hadn't had time to open the dragon boat's barrier, but Zhao Xing had already drilled in, and the barrier was still intact!

"Lord Ji, you flatter me; I have only made small achievements." Zhao Xing cupped his hands.

The Great Peng Transformation's innate secret technique, besides the Great Peng spreading its wings, used the Xun Wind to accelerate. It also added two more innate secret techniques:

One was "Void World Shuttle," which could ignore the vast majority of energy-type barriers.

The second was Feather Transformation Escape, using the feathers containing mysterious power all over the body as the price to teleport directly ten thousand miles away.

If he used the Feather Transformation secret technique, Zhao Xing would be severely injured, and even his feathers would turn white; it could be said that unless it was a last resort, he must never use this move.

If the King of King Tianyan were here, Zhao Xing would definitely say a few more words to introduce the specific effects of the innate secret technique.

However, Ji Si was here, so Zhao Xing didn't want to get close to this ruthless person.

This person, after a hundred years of comprehension, had completely developed the cash-on-delivery version of the Time Letter!

In the 25th year of Yong Zhi, Ji Si had happily run to the Peak of Qitian to report the good news, saying that she had a share of the credit.

Zhao Xing didn't dare to accept this credit at all.

He was afraid that this guy would develop more functions.

Now it was just communication between Life Officials, but if a cash-on-delivery version that wasn't restricted by profession was created later, that would be too much.

He wasn't afraid of Ji Si writing letters to him, but that would attract too much hatred.

Zhao Xing had to stay away from Ji Si, lest he be implicated when someone hacked him later.

"Does the Marquis of Divine Might have anything else to prepare?"

"No."

"Let's go."

Unlike the last time when he and the King of King Tianyan were chatting and laughing on the way to the East Sea, there was very little communication between Zhao Xing and Ji Si.

Ji Si no longer called him "Chen'an" like when they first met, because Zhao Xing was now a Third Rank Spirit Mountain Envoy with the strength of the peak of the Heavenly Destiny Realm!

Zhao Xing didn't take the initiative to express closeness, and Ji Si could feel it. She could only handle official business.

The journey was silent until they reached the East Sea in May of the 60th year of Yong Zhi.

There was a slight difference from last time; this time the Heavenly Dragon Gate didn't appear in June, but in August.

Zhao Xing had plenty of time, unlike last time when he arrived just in time; this time he arrived at the East Sea three months early.

The East Sea today was also very different from the past.

First of all, the three major Water Tribe chieftains no longer took turns holding the position of Commander of the East Sea Army.

Emperor Jing abolished the "Water Tribe Xuanwei Office Rotation System" established during the era of Emperor Wen.

The position of Commander of the East Sea Army became a competitive position.

After the reform, Bai Yunwu was the first Commander of the East Sea, but the imperial court sent a large number of human military generals in,

filling the middle-level positions.

At the same time, the quota for civil and military officials entering various departments of the East Sea from the Bishui Dao Academy every year was reduced. Originally, as one of the ancient divine sects, the Bishui Dao Academy held a considerable number of recommendation quotas.

Dao students who graduated from the academy could directly become officials, meaning that in the past, one could become an official just by passing the academy's graduation exam.

It was the same now, but the quota had been significantly reduced.

It was expected that the Dao student system would be cut sooner or later, but this matter would have to be left to Emperor Wu to do; Emperor Jing had already done enough.

The changes regarding Princess Princess Youruo were also very obvious.

Originally, Princess Princess Youruo was the core high-level member of the Bishui Dao Academy and also a candidate for the next Dean of the Bishui Dao Academy.

However, she had now changed from a Vice Dean with real power to an Honorary Dean, and would gradually move away from the center of power of the academy.

In addition, regarding Princess Princess Youruo's family property, the Zixiao Islands, as well as many shipping lanes, fleets, and military forces.

Because the Princess was recuperating in Fengjing, they were managed by the Imperial Clan Office.

They would also be gradually returned to the management of imperial court officials year by year, if nothing unexpected happened.

If Princess Princess Youruo wanted to return to live in the East Sea, it would only be when Emperor Wu ascended the throne, and the premise was that she had to find a reason,

to formally hand over most of her power to Emperor Wu.

Yong Zhi lasted a total of 98 years; Emperor Jing still had 38 years to finish these things.

"Marquis of Divine Might, this is the list of high-grade officials for this time." Ji Si handed over a confidential list.

Zhao Xing didn't need to remember the middle-grade ones, but he still had to pay attention to the high-grade ones.

Zhao Xing took it and browsed through it quickly.

Compared to the last time, the list of 1,500 high-grade officials this time had undergone significant changes.

Normally, high-grade officials would participate in the Dragon Court development continuously, otherwise the costs invested earlier would be wasted.

The reason for the big change this time was mainly because 400 high-grade officials died last time!

With many people dead, they naturally had to fill in some new ones.

"Hmm?"

Zhao Xing suddenly saw many familiar names.

Besides Long Xiao, Xia Jing and Chen Chen Shijie also appeared on the high-grade list.

"Xia Jing participated as a Grand Martial Instructor of the Shenwu Academy."

"Old Chen was recommended through the internal selection of the Kun Origin Academy."

"It seems Xia Jing and Old Chen haven't slacked off these years." Zhao Xing thought to himself.

After he obtained the Dragon Emperor Code, the danger of entering the ancient land of the Dragon Court was greatly reduced.

If the exploration of the ancient land of the Dragon Court was a life-and-death game before, now it had become a welfare game.

Since it was a welfare, the 1,500 spots were particularly precious.

Zhao Xing hadn't said a word, and Xia Jing and Chen Chen Shijie had entered entirely by their own ability.

"And there's Lu Bang, the Nong Zheng of the Taicang Academy during the Ten Suns Cave Heaven period, and Mi Fei, who was an official in the Gui Xu Cave Heaven; did they also become beneficiaries of the Qing Miao Art?" Zhao Xing looked at the resumes of Lu Bang and Mi Fei.

Lu Bang originally knew Liu Liu Tianning, and his age was about the same as Liu Liu Tianning's.

Lu Bang had also participated in the shelter creation plan Zhao Xing had in the late stage of the Liang Wang rebellion, and his official career was smooth afterward; he was now a Third Rank official.

Mi Fei was reminded by Zhao Xing to Liu Liu Tianning, and in the 30th year of Da Zhi, he was excavated to the Shangluo Academy, and then entered the two blessed lands managed by the Shangluo Academy as an official.

Mi Fei now was not a Third Rank official, but his cultivation had reached the Third Rank.

"In my investment list, only one person became a Third Ranker, and that is Yun Yi, and he entered the branch of the Shenwu Academy."

"Yun Yi is now holding a position in the Zhao Shi Cave Heaven, as a Assistant Regional Commander of the Zhao Shi Army; those who can become one of the Ten Great Sword Immortals of Pinghai Prefecture indeed all have strange encounters."

Since leaving the Ten Suns Cave Heaven, Yun Yi had been an official in many places. His talent was outstanding, and although it was difficult to be promoted during the Da Zhi and Yong Zhi periods, he had been promoted to the Fourth Rank, but his cultivation had already reached the peak of the Third Rank.

He was in the same batch as Xia Jing, recommended by the Shenwu Academy to participate in the exploration of the ancient land of the Dragon Court.

"However, that's just Yun Yi; the others still need to grow." Zhao Xing thought to himself.

"Besides them, among the old acquaintances, there are also Ye Ye Yukong, Shen Luowang, Bai Yunwu, Tang Yinglong, and Ao Tian."

"Tong Jin, Ji Ji Mengjun, Jiang Chuan, and Xiao Huang didn't come in again." Zhao Xing looked at the list. "Mission accomplished, no need to come again."

He could guess that these people came in with missions, which was to do dirty work for Emperor Jing.

"Hmm? Wang Ji and Han Bing also entered the middle-grade list?" Zhao Xing didn't need to remember the middle-grade list, but he still glanced at it.

Wang Ji, the mechanical master who had spent a long time with him in the Ten Suns Cave Heaven and on the battlefield, and Han Bing, the Minister of Agriculture, were both on the list.

"Do you want to go see them?" Ji Si asked.

"No need." Zhao Xing shook his head.

If he went to see Xia Jing and Old Chen, they might be thought to have received special care, or someone might take the initiative to take care of them. Wouldn't that negate their efforts?

If he wanted to take care of them, it wouldn't be at this time; in short, wait until Emperor Jing was gone.

"Regarding the Dragon Court, I wonder what your plans are after you go in?" Ji Si asked. "Is there any hope of letting Yin Xiu annex neighboring countries and become the hegemon of the East first before planning slowly?"

"The Guting Kingdom is not suitable for starting a war now; accumulate strength first." Zhao Xing shook his head.

He had told Emperor Jing before that it was impossible to unify the Dragon Court, so how could he go back on his word and agree now?

"As for plans, I want to find some treasure-grade plants in the Dragon Court." Zhao Xing said.

In August of the 60th year of Da Zhi, Zhao Xing entered the ancient land of the Dragon Court again.

Because he had the Dragon Emperor Code, he could enter fixed locations like those dragon kings like Bai Yunwu, and the location was no longer random.

So he reappeared in the ancient land of the Dragon Court, which was inside the Guting King City.

The moment he landed, Zhao Xing felt a sense of induction.

Through the Dragon Emperor Code, he sensed the situation of the dragon race in the Guting King City.

"In the Guting Kingdom, there is another dragon king?"

Excluding Yin Xiu and Yin Li, inside the King City, there was actually another new dragon king!

"Could it be that Yin Xiu awakened a dragon king? Didn't I tell him to keep a low profile?"

Zhao Xing looked around and found that compared to a hundred years ago, there were significantly more leader-level dragon races in the Guting King City.

Dragon turtles everywhere were dragging boatloads of materials, flying toward the Fuming Divine Hall, obviously preparing for war.

"Could it be that he didn't listen to me in the hundred years I was gone?"

Zhao Xing immediately performed the Ancestral Dragon Transformation and broke directly into the Guting Palace.

Inside the King City.

Dragon King Yin Xiu had an excited look in his eyes.

"My King has come!"

Swish~

As soon as the words fell, outside the palace, a five-clawed golden dragon appeared.

Clouds and mist swirled, and the dragon head poked out from the clouds, looking down.

"Yin Xiu!"

"My King." Yin Xiu lay respectfully on the ground.

"Why is there another dragon king in the Guting Kingdom? Did you awaken him on your own?" Zhao Xing's tone was unkind, "I told you to accumulate strength, but I didn't tell you to awaken a dragon king."

"King, 'Hoge' was not awakened by me; it was his time to wake up."

"In the days you were gone, I only annexed two pieces of land and did not launch a large-scale war." Yin Xiu seemed a bit aggrieved.

Didn't he just annex two pieces of land from a neighboring country?

"Present the records of the Guting Kingdom for the past hundred years." Zhao Xing roared, thunder flickering around his body.

If Yin Xiu lied, he would have to show the capabilities of the Dragon Emperor Code to knock him down a peg.

"Ang—" Yin Xiu let out a soft groan, and immediately a large number of stone carvings flew over, with many murals and symbols flowing on them.

It not only recorded the changes of the Guting Kingdom over the past hundred years but also the changes of the entire Dragon Court.

After Zhao Xing browsed through it quickly, his aura weakened slightly.

Yin Xiu didn't lie; he indeed didn't take the initiative to launch a war; those were provocations from neighboring countries, and he fought back passively,

occupying two pieces of land.

In the hundred years, the changes in the ancient land of the Dragon Court were not big.

"You did well." Zhao Xing spat out the Dragon Emperor Code and performed the Enfeoffment Decree, sending a bit of divine power to Yin Xiu, which was better than nothing, but to Yin Xiu, this was a kind of affirmation.

He excitedly invited Zhao Xing to visit his achievements over the past hundred years, but Zhao Xing didn't have much interest.

He just exhorted Yin Xiu not to be in a hurry to claim hegemony, and must accumulate more food, expand strength, and wait for the opportunity.

"Xiu, I want to explore some secret places. If someone in the King City comes to find you with a token with this pattern,"

"you must try your best to satisfy his requirements."

"Ang~" Yin Xiu responded respectfully.

Zhao Xing finished the process explained by the imperial court and then broke through the air.

Last time he came, he didn't find the treasure-grade plant troops he wanted; one was that time was too late, and the other was that the Pure Origin soil couldn't bear the transplantation of treasure-grade plant troops.

But this time it was different. After a hundred years of development, the level of Zhao Xing's Pure Origin soil could be called the best in the world: "My Pure Origin soil has reached the ninth level, which is already the limit below the Rule Realm."

"The five elements characteristics, excluding wind, fire, wood, and metal, have all entered the limit of the second stage."

"Earth veins, ninth stage."

"Spiritual energy spring, ninth stage."

"Wild vitality, seventh stage."

"Surging fire, sixth stage."

"Four-pillar metal stone, fourth stage."

"Violent wind, sixth stage."

"Twin thunder pool, ninth stage."

Now, the seven spiritual lakes of Zhao Xing accumulated the most of water, earth, wood, and metal spiritual liquid.

As for wind, thunder, and fire, he also accumulated quite a lot, just far less than the first four.

The reason why some hadn't reached the limit was mainly limited by his own comprehension of the Dao, as well as his own cultivation.

The characteristics of the soil involved the perfection of the Heavenly Rules; Zhao Xing being able to reach the full second stage was already due to the huge spiritual energy bonus.

But just talking about the breadth of the Pure Origin soil and the vastness of the Pure Origin Space, he could be sure that no Minister of Agriculture could compare with him; even Liu Liu Tianning couldn't.

"This is enough for me to transplant treasure-grade plants." Zhao Xing thought to himself. "The soil characteristics are boosted to the full second stage with spiritual energy; even rare treasures can be transplanted."

"Not to mention I have seven spiritual lakes supporting me; excluding big spenders like the Cloud-Touching Vine, there is nothing I cannot plant."

Old Man Liu inherited the foundation of the Shangluo Academy, and Zhao Xing still couldn't compete with him for it.

But he could find treasure-grade divine trees for himself.

"Old Man Liu practices the *Heaven and Earth Seed Soldier Art*, and at the First Rank Realm, he cultivated the Four Seasons Divine Splendor Dao Field; this is entirely the credit of treasure-grade soldier types."

"If I can find multiple treasure-grade divine trees, I can choose a stronger *Soldier-Using Divine Art* to practice,"

"and when I reach the First Rank, my Four Seasons Divine Splendor Dao Field might be able to beat him up."

As the leader of the Shangluo Academy, the treasure-grade plant troops Liu Liu Tianning inherited were far more than Xu Xing's.

Zhao Xing estimated that in a few decades, Liu Liu Tianning would be able to cultivate the *Heaven and Earth Seed Soldier Art* to a deeper level and fully exert the power of the divine trees.

At that time, Liu Liu Tianning would possess the combat power of the Rule Realm!

Not a normal super-first rank, but relying on ancient trees, he could possess super-first rank combat power.

Zhao Xing wanted to realize his plan of unifying the three sects, so he certainly couldn't sit and wait for Old Man Liu to die to inherit it.

He only had a hundred years more lifespan than Old Man Liu, so how could he wait?

If it was determined that the Emperor Wu dynasty could manually revive spiritual energy, he couldn't wait.

If he couldn't wait, then he could only surpass Liu Liu Tianning and then ask Liu Liu Tianning to abdicate!

Become the Grand Minister of Agriculture, unify the three sects, integrate resources, and complete the ascension during the era of Emperor Wu!

Once in the universe version, that would be like a bird flying in the high mountains and a fish leaping in the vast sea!

"But if I want Old Man Liu to abdicate, I mainly have to convince the supporters behind him. How can such power be privately transferred? I must win openly and honestly."

"However, Old Man Liu didn't go crazy in this life, so I'm increasing the difficulty for myself."

"If I want to surpass him, every step must be more solid than his, otherwise, if I spar and fight with him, it will be a stalemate, and neither will be able to win."

Zhao Xing could fully imagine that the match between him and Liu Liu Tianning, if the advantage wasn't a bit bigger, and both practiced the Ten Thousand Laws Grass-Man, would be a stalemate that couldn't be decided even after a hundred years.

"If Li Li Boqian wasn't bragging, his Pang Yuan Feng Art could be a great help to me."

"I also have an advantage in the Yan Shen Dongyan Jue, and if I practice the top-tier arts of the Tian Shi and Di Li sects, winning against Old Man Liu will be stable." Zhao Xing pondered his future plans.

However, a ten-thousand-foot building rises from the ground; right now, he had to first gather the treasure-grade plants to unleash the Four Seasons Divine Splendor Dao Field,

before he could talk about asking Old Man Liu to abdicate.

"Spring treasure, nothing but bamboo. I remember that treasure-grade bamboo can be found in these two places in the ancient land of the Dragon Court, but I don't know if there are any changes in this life."

After multiple transmissions, Zhao Xing arrived at the central Dragon Court area, and then performed the Ancestral Dragon Transformation, flying rapidly toward an inner sea.

After seeing this sea, Zhao Xing transformed into a human form and began to scan with his Heavenly Eye, looking for reference points.

"In the later Dragon Court, after the spiritual energy tide, the terrain changes a lot. Logically speaking, I have been flying for half a year, and I should have reached the central area of the 'Mingyao Sea'; after all, the Mingyao Sea of the later generations is much larger than it is now."

"Split!"

Searching alone was too slow, so Zhao Xing stopped immediately and began to release the clones in his body.

"Swish swish swish swish swish swish swish~"

Thousands of clones began to emerge, performing the Ruler of the World to fly in all directions.

The true self was carefully sensing the vision of the clones.

The Dragon Court was very large, and the Mingyao Sea was also very large. After Zhao Xing arrived at the Mingyao Sea for half a year, and then searched with clones for another half a year,

he still only searched half of the ocean.

During this period, there was still nothing to show for it, but Zhao Xing didn't give up.

One year later.

Suddenly—

In the vision of a certain clone, a dazzling golden color suddenly appeared.

"Stop!"

Zhao Xing immediately stopped the rest of the clones and zoomed in on the vision of the clone in the North Sea.

Only to see a golden pillar of light in front reaching straight into the clouds. Looking closely, one could find the inner circle of the golden pillar of light,

with seven colors constantly circling and rising.

"Found it!" Zhao Xing immediately showed a happy expression, and his true self flew rapidly toward the North Mingyao Sea.