Chapter 673

After brief deliberation, Lie Shan Shi decided, summoning both to Chen Du to personally question and observe them for a time, to see who would be the human race's sovereign. He then issued an edict, sending messengers to both places to announce his intent.

When the edict reached Jiu Li, Chi You was overjoyed, quickly summoning his eighty-one brothers, instructing them to govern the Jiu Li tribe well after his departure. Thereafter, Chi You and Xuanyuan remained in Chen Du.

After years of observation by Lie Shan Shi, he hesitated. He truly had the human race's best interests at heart, while Xuanyuan and Chi You each had outstanding qualities, making a final choice impossible for him.

Time flew by, and Chi You grew increasingly anxious. He began hoping Lie Shan Shi would soon attain the Dao and take his place, so the human race would fall into Xuanyuan's hands. But Xuanyuan had not made any major contribution to the human race, so Chi You planned to then raise an army, attack Chen Du, slay Xuanyuan, become sovereign himself, and fully work for the human race's welfare.

Also sharing Chi You's view was Lie Shan Shi's adopted son Yan Ju. In Chen Du, Yan Ju had long disliked Xuanyuan's arrogant swagger, often speaking ill of Xuanyuan before Lie Shan Shi. But Lie Shan Shi understood Yan Ju's intentions and did not take his words too seriously. He knew the selection of the human race's sovereign should be based on contribution to the human race, not on backing or forming cliques. Over the years, Lie Shan Shi had observed Yan Ju's actions and felt deeply disappointed in this adopted son.

However, time waits for no one. A flash of regret crossed Lie Shan Shi's eyes; his time among the human race was nearing its end. Just then, Ye Qin appeared above Chen Du!

Instantly, the entire human race spontaneously knelt on the ground, shouting 'Human Ancestor'. Ye Qin nodded, glanced at Lie Shan Shi. This Earth Sovereign, to whom he had devoted all his heart and blood, undoubtedly contributed the most to humanity among the Three Sovereigns!

Therefore, Lie Shan Shi deserved Ye Qin to step forward and announce his achievements before the human race: 'Silence! Lie Shan Shi of humanity has great merit to humanity! His contributions are ten items!'

Having said that, Ye Qin paused, glanced at Lie Shan Shi, and saw he was quite composed. He then nodded and continued: 'First, using bow wood for the bow's arc and mulberry wood for the arrow! Lie Shan Shi reformed bows and arrows, improved hunting tools, benefiting the world.'

'Second, he simplified the Eight Trigrams into sixty-four hexagrams! Lie Shan Shi derived from Fuxi's Eight Trigrams to the sixty-four hexagrams, making them more flexible for use in human life.'

'Third, he taught the people to farm and plant the five grains! Lie Shan Shi invented the five-grain planting technique, freeing humanity from famine and leading it toward an agrarian society, realizing the ideal that food is heaven for the people.'

'Fourth, he carved wood into plowshares and shaped wood into plow blades! Lie Shan Shi created agricultural tools, facilitating the planting of the five grains.'

'Fifth, he established markets at noon, trading then withdrawing! Lie Shan Shi opened the human market, promoting trade and meeting humanity's livelihood needs.'

'Sixth, he processed hemp into cloth, making clothing! Lie Shan Shi wove hemp rope into garments, freeing humanity from the primitive garb of animal skins and leaves.'

He cut paulownia to make a zither, using silk for strings; Lie Shan Shi created a five-string zither, rejoicing with the people, celebrating abundant harvests, adding joy to humanity—this is the seventh……He measured the four directions, established standards; Lie Shan Shi created the units zhang, chi, cun, giving humanity a standard of measurement—this is the eighth. He tasted a hundred herbs, transmitting medical cures; Lie Shan Shi traversed the Divine Farmer's lattice, personally tasting a hundred herbs, finding for humanity disease-resistant methods—this merit is worldwide, this is the ninth. He first built the Ming Hall, establishing dwellings on the earth; pitying humanity like birds without a fixed abode, Lie Shan Shi first built the Ming Hall, letting humanity dwell in peace and prosperity—this is the tenth. He set up markets at noon, trading then withdrawing; Lie Shan Shi opened the human market, promoting trade circulation, satisfying humanity's needs—this is the fifth. Ye Qin spoke leisurely, enumerating Lie Shan Shi's ten great achievements one by one.

At this moment, many great beings in Honghuang heard this and were shocked; these achievements were not accomplished by magic power but were genuine deeds benefiting humanity! In other words, they were bona fide merit!

The great beings all began to speculate how profound Lie Shan Shi's merit truly was. Some even boldly guessed, could humanity be about to give birth to another sage? Thinking of this, some great beings couldn't help but feel a chill.

First there was Ye Qin, now there is Lie Shan Shi; if Lie Shan Shi truly becomes a sage, who among humanity would dare provoke him lightly?

'After reviewing Lie Shan Shi's merit, in accordance with the decree of the Supreme Pure One, sect leader of the Way of the Cut, he is hereby ennobled as Earth Sovereign, given the honorific Shennong, and his dojo is set in the Fire Cloud Cave beyond the Thirty-Three Heavens.' Ye Qin's voice rang out again, spreading throughout Honghuang!

Thus, Lie Shan Shi's merit is complete!

Suddenly, a vast cloud of merit descended from beyond the heavens! Seeing this merit cloud, all the great beings were astonished! The amount of merit was actually more than three times that of Fuxi!

Countless great beings secretly pondered, could humanity truly be about to produce another sage? This amount of merit is only one-tenth less than Nüwa's merit in creating humanity; attaining the Dao and becoming a sage seems imminent!

For a moment, Honghuang fell silent, all cultivators' gazes focused on Ye Qin and Lie Shan Shi.

Although Lie Shan Shi is a disciple of Zhao Gongming of the Way of the Cut, how could there be no contribution from Ye Qin? People couldn't help but let their imaginations run wild…… Perhaps only Ye Qin in all of Honghuang could nurture such talent as Lie Shan Shi! After all, Fuxi was a disciple of the Great Law Master Xuandu under Laozi of the Human Sect, yet his heavenly merit is still less than one-third of Lie Shan Shi's!

Gazing at Lie Shan Shi's merit surging like a tide, Ye Qin felt no surprise, thinking this was all natural. In his view, if Lie Shan Shi did not receive such merit for his achievements, that would be astonishing!

Moreover, half of this achievement also comes from Ye Qin's efforts. Consider these past hundred-odd years, he has exhausted his energy to assist Lie Shan Shi; if he still cannot obtain vast heavenly merit, then the heavenly Dao of Honghuang would be blind!

At this moment, Laozi and Nüwa also felt shocked; earlier, Lie Shan Shi had paid them respects, but they dared not accept it. Now they understood the reason: Lie Shan Shi's merit was already sufficient to attain the Dao.

Heavenly merit divides into three parts: one part, about forty percent of the total merit, directly falls into Lie Shan Shi's body; another part, about fifty percent of the total merit, actually flies toward Ye Qin! The remaining part, i. e., ten percent of the total merit, is further divided into three shares, two of which fly to Penglai Island, while the last share transforms into countless portions that fall upon those who assisted Lie Shan Shi.

At this moment, the Honghuang world was utterly tranquil.

All who witnessed this strange scene felt shocked!

Lie Shan Shi's having so much merit is actually entirely due to Ye Qin! Just look at the five portions of merit flying directly to Ye Qin—it's obvious.

Terrifying! The heavenly merit Ye Qin obtained is actually greater than that of Lie Shan Shi, the protagonist! This shows that half of the achievements Ye Qin just listed for Lie Shan Shi's contributions to humanity were actually done secretly by him, or were his secret guidance of Lie Shan Shi!

No wonder he is the fourth ancestor of humanity—such selfless dedication! No wonder humanity could rise in a short time and become the lord of Honghuang!

However, what astonished everyone was that Ye Qin, seeing the heavenly merit fly toward himself, did not take it but instead gave it all to Lie Shan Shi!

'Just give it to Lie Shan Shi like that?!'

'That's heavenly merit, you know!'

'You don't want it? You could give it to us!'

At this moment, countless people's eyes burned with envy and their hearts heated; gazing at this scene, they shouted inwardly without cease, while also looking enviously at Lie Shan Shi.

Meanwhile, as ninety percent of the heavenly merit entered Lie Shan Shi's body, he felt his body grow lighter. At the same time, his soul seemed to ascend, and after a moment, his soul transformed into a primordial spirit.

Lie Shan Shi's cultivation realm surged forward leaps and bounds! From the initial Refining Spirit to Return to Void, he directly broke through to Heavenly Immortal!

Then came:

Golden Immortal……

Taiyi Golden Immortal……

Great Luo Golden Immortal……

Half-Step Sage……

Lie Shan Shi's breakthrough to Half-Step Sage did not elicit astonishment from the great beings, for they all knew that Half-Step Sage was far from his limit!

Sure enough, after a moment, Lie Shan Shi broke through to the peak of Half-Step Sage! This is exactly the highest cultivation ever attained by the Heavenly Sovereign Fuxi!

However, the aura on Lie Shan Shi's body continued to rise sharply!

Seeing this, all the great beings of Honghuang knew that Lie Shan Shi's chance to attain the Dao and become a sage was ninety-nine percent.

Lie Shan Shi is about to attain the Dao!

Ye Qin gazed curiously, as did all the cultivators of Honghuang; everyone waited in silence!

At this moment, aside from certain heavenly Dao sages, everyone hoped Lie Shan Shi would become a sage! For if Lie Shan Shi becomes a sage, it would mean that even without Hongmeng Purple Qi one could attain sainthood!

If Lie Shan Shi becomes a sage, he will have pointed out a path to sainthood for everyone!

This is the reason Ye Qin bestowed the heavenly merit upon Lie Shan Shi! He believed that ninety percent of heavenly merit was sufficient for Lie Shan Shi to attain the Dao and become a sage through merit!

But at the same time, a hint of doubt arose in his heart…… Compared to heavenly Dao sages, aside from merit, Lie Shan Shi seemed to lack something crucial!

That is Hongmeng Purple Qi!

Then, in the absence of Hongmeng Purple Qi, could Lie Shan Shi still become a sage?

Ye Qin sensed the changes in Lie Shan Shi's body, glanced at him, and immediately knew what cultivation level he had reached.

He looked forward to Lie Shan Shi with anticipation; at this moment, Lie Shan Shi was his test subject, his trial for breaking into the sage realm! He himself was not far from the sage realm, and now being able to let Lie Shan Shi take the vanguard was, for him, a fortunate circumstance—perhaps he could find the secret to sainthood from it!

Lie Shan Shi—no, now he should be addressed as Shennong—his aura grew ever stronger, nearly touching the threshold of the sage realm! Yet whenever he occasionally emitted a sage-like aura, his cultivation would abruptly stop, with no further increase.

Ye Qin stared fixedly at Shennong, silently wondering in his heart: Could it still not work?

Heavenly Dao's merit continued to pour down upon Shennong, yet his cultivation level seemed bound by an invisible shackle, stagnant.

Has the Heavenly Dao's merit lost its effect on his cultivation growth? Ye Qin's heart filled with confusion.

He recalled the scene of Hou Tu attaining sagehood, and couldn't help but doubt: Why could Hou Tu achieve sagehood through merit, while Shennong could not?

Ye Qin fell into deep thought, gradually realizing a truth: Relying on Heavenly Dao's merit to become a sage was likely a delusion. Hou Tu's experience in attaining the Dao showed that only Great Dao's merit could truly help one achieve the sage's path.

So, without external aid, how else could one attain the Dao? Ye Qin fell into deep thought again. Whether Heavenly Dao's merit or Great Dao's merit, they are ultimately external things. A Heavenly Dao sage is constrained by the Heavenly Dao, making further cultivation difficult, let alone keeping pace with it. Likewise, a Great Dao sage is constrained by the Great Dao, unable to surpass its limits.

Only Primordial sages—those Primordial Great Luo Golden Immortals who attain the Dao through their own strength—can break free from the bonds of Heavenly Dao and Great Dao, possessing infinite possibilities!

Ye Qin had obtained merit several times, yet he resolutely gave it up each time—for this very reason. He knew deeply that only relentless self-improvement could lead to the true pinnacle.

At this moment, Shennong raised his head, his gaze firm as he looked at Ye Qin: "Thank you, Fourth Ancestor, for bestowing merit upon me; alas, Shennong is lacking and has not reached the sage realm." Saying this, he waved his hand, gathering all the Heavenly Dao merit that could not raise his cultivation: "Since I am the Earth Emperor of the human race, I should seek blessings for humanity!"

"Heavenly Dao above, I, Shennong, wish to exchange the merit in my hand for equal fortune of the human race! May the human race's fortune flourish eternally, blessings and longevity boundless!" Shennong's voice echoed between heaven and earth.

Hum!

The Heavenly Dao seemed to sense Shennong's sincerity; the merit in his hand vanished instantly, and at the same moment, the human race's fortune mysteriously increased greatly.

At the same moment, a cluster of firewood on the human race's ancestral mountain suddenly burst into dazzling light, illuminating the entire Honghuang world!

"That is… the firewood of Suiren! The first spark of the human race!" someone exclaimed.

This spark is deeply rooted in the human race's fortune; as long as the fortune does not fade, the spark will burn forever.

The human race also noticed this change; they felt the influence of the human race's fortune, their bodies becoming healthier and stronger, illnesses quietly fading away. This scene occurred for every member of the human race!

"Fortune everlasting, blessings and longevity boundless!" the human race shouted in unison, their voices echoing throughout the Honghuang world.

"Long live the Fourth Ancestor, long live the Earth Emperor!" cheers rose and fell; Ye Qin saw countless vow power converging toward him, and he smiled with satisfaction.

Shennong also sensed the presence of incense vow power, and he looked at Ye Qin somewhat at a loss.

Ye Qin smiled and said to him: "As the Earth Emperor, I have seen all that you have done. Since you sincerely think for the human race, I will bestow upon you a great fortune!"

Saying this, Ye Qin flew into the sky, looked in all directions, then took out the Eight Scenes Palace Lamp, an innate spiritual treasure he had never used before. He extended a hand toward the sky and seized it; instantly, all the incense vow power flying toward him was firmly grasped in his hand.

Next, he pointed at the Eight Scenes Palace Lamp; all the incense vow power instantly gathered within, and the previously extinguished wick was instantly lit.

Ye Qin descended and handed the Eight Scenes Palace Lamp to Shennong: "Use this as a vessel to contain all the human race's incense vow power. My vow power is already within it; try absorbing it all and see if your cultivation can rise."

Shennong promptly did so, and instantly his half-sage cultivation began to increase again!

Boom!

After a tremendous roar, a brand-new sage stood upon the Honghuang Dadi! And this sage was none other than the human race's Shennong!

Ye Qin watched this scene and nodded: "You can enter the sage realm by consuming incense vow power. However, the consumption speed is somewhat fast; what you must do next is store the incense vow power in the Eight Scenes Palace Lamp for emergencies." (End of chapter)