Chapter 68

Ji Shen now also feels very regretful. He figured it out: this problem amounts to just one strike—Zu Long's realm fell after he took four strikes, and they need to rely on luck to bear it. If they take these three strikes, will they lose their lives!

If he had objected then, wouldn't he have received one less strike? After all, he indeed had not acted for personal gain, abused authority, or violated the Way of the Three Powers in regulating water.

But he didn't object then, and now there's no room for objection.

Seeing the gazes of the remaining gods turn toward him, Ji Shen felt his teeth about to shatter. As the highest-ranking among those present who had not yet been punished, he could only disperse his aura and step forward.

"Please."

Ji Shen clasped his hands before the Water Controlling, God-subduing Staff.

The Water Controlling, God-subduing Staff showed no hesitation; spiritual light immediately wrapped around it, it was lifted high and came down heavily!

Upon receiving this strike, Ji Shen spat divine blood straight onto his face, his robes showed specks of blood, his expression full of disbelief—he knew it would be heavy, but he hadn't expected it to be this heavy.

Before he could react, the second strike fell down.

Ji Shen's life instantly became as fragile as gold paper; his back split open, flesh torn, and his robes turned bloody.

When the third strike came, the Water Controlling, God-subduing Staff hesitated for a moment, but ultimately still fell.

Ji Shen's realm immediately became unstable; his whole body swayed on the verge of collapsing, but he barely managed to steady his stance and said:

"Ji Shen accepts the lesson."

He then walked slowly to Zu Long's side, gazing at him with astonishment, then his eyes moved to Zu Long's wound, taking a reluctant glance.

Then, like Zu Long, he barely managed to stand upright, avoiding a disgraceful appearance.

The remaining Three Rivers Water Gods turned their gazes to the Eternal Water God, their looks seemingly saying, 'The first two who suffered were the Eastern Primordial Divine Saints; now it's your turn.'

Although they clearly knew they couldn't escape, they still wanted to delay the punishment a bit, after all, perhaps their spiritual power would run out later.

Although the hope is slim, one can still imagine it.

Seeing that the six had not moved, Qi Yan said:

"Next."

The Eternal Water God had no choice but to step forward and say:

"Please."

The Water Controlling, God-subduing Staff came down heavily; with one strike, the Eternal Water God's true form was revealed, all four arms broken.

After two strikes, its finger bones separated, flesh and blood blurred.

On the third strike, the Eternal Water God's realm became unstable; he nearly fell out of the Luotian Esteemed God, and actually fell asleep right there.

Qi, helpless, could only gesture with his eyes, indicating that the other two Western Primordial Divine Saints should help her down.

Ji Shen felt doubtful—receiving the same three strikes, with cultivation levels barely different, why such a big difference? He unconsciously looked to Qi for an answer.

Qi gave no explanation, simply waiting for the next person to step forward.

Bing Yi stepped forward voluntarily and said:

"Please."

After the three strikes, his condition resembled Ji Shen's—serious, but he could barely manage to stand.

After waiting for several water gods to finish their ordeal, the injuries varied in severity; the worst was the Ganges River Water God, the lightest were Ji Shen and Bing Yi.

The Western Primordial Divine Saints' injuries were generally severe.

Seeing their doubts, Qi spoke up to explain:

"This is based on a comprehensive assessment of your level of involvement and speed of restitution to determine responsibility and punishment."

Everyone suddenly understood; Bing Yi was relieved that Hongjun had arrived first at his place, so although he had participated, he was ultimately the first to quell the situation.

Ji Shen, however, felt helpless; he had not participated, the flood impact was smallest, yet he was also the last to resolve it on the Eastern Continent—if Hongjun had not helped, the first to resolve it should have been him.

He merely lamented his bad luck; as long as it got resolved, that was ultimately a good thing.

A Dao resonance sounded between heaven and earth, a golden light transformed into golden auspicious clouds drifting over.

Everyone looked toward that golden auspicious cloud; the merit golden cloud arrived.

The merit golden cloud split into four parts; the largest part, about seventy percent of the total, fell into the Divine Water Subduing God Staff, staining it with a hint of gold.

The second largest part fell onto Qi's body, about twenty percent of the total, becoming part of Qi's merit golden wheel.

The remaining ten percent split into two parts, falling onto the observing Nüwa and Taiyi; everyone was momentarily bewildered.

Taiyi and Nüwa were the same; at this moment they wished to disappear on the spot, because earlier they had been pleased that no one noticed them.

Yet they never expected merit to have a share for them; upon feeling it, they realized this was the merit allotted to the witnesses who first received punishment for violating the three powers of the divine path, as their authority manifested.

From now on, the authority of the divine path must not be abused; it must conform to the responsibilities of the three powers of heaven, earth, and humanity, must not be violated, and this incident shall serve as the standard for the prohibition.

In the Dao Chang, all the gods who had not yet entered the Heart of the Pool Pavilion saw the merit golden light, thinking the matter was over, and their minds relaxed considerably.

At that moment, a visiting card was thrown into the Heart of the Pool Pavilion; Qi reached out and caught it, and upon contact it turned into flowing light and vanished.

Another auspicious cloud drifted in the sky.

"Qi, respectfully welcome the Great God Hongjun."

"The matter here is settled; I, a poor Daoist, also have some affairs that need to trouble a fellow Daoist—I suppose Fellow Daoist Qi should already know."

Hongjun had just arrived when he sensed the atmosphere seemed off, and he looked around.

Even with his cultivated state of mind, his complexion began to turn strange.

Things seemed not quite right; according to his understanding, shouldn't it have been enough for Qi to just scold them once?

How could all these top-tier gods now be heavily wounded, to the point that even he could not possibly defeat so many top-tier great gods unscathed?

Besides, there is still the Ancestral Dragon present; with the boost of fate, its strength is now not much inferior to his.

Hongjun's expression shifted slightly, he grew wary in his heart, yet he could not just leave on the spot; he could only wait quietly for Qi's response.

"Great God, I understand the circumstances of your arrival; please wait a moment, and I will inform you of the recent changes in the water patterns of Cloud Dream Marsh."

"Good."

Hongjun said with a smile.

Soon after, Qi took out a jade slip, which recorded the recent changes in the water flow of Cloud Dream Marsh and some predictions for the future, and handed it to Hongjun.

After receiving it in his hand, Hongjun crushed it to reveal its contents, letting the gods watch.

Although Zulong and the others were severely wounded, they still endured the intense pain in their bodies and primordial spirits, striving to remember it, for this was the most important gain of this journey.

Of course, it was also the only gain.

In this flood disaster, Zulong suffered the greatest loss; the Four Seas' water energy was depleted, he also encountered calamity, his body was severely injured, and his realm fell.

But this matter is over, and he truly became the Lord of the Primordial Waters, for when Qi said it, no one objected.

When the penalty for dereliction of duty as Lord of the Primordial Waters was imposed, no one stepped forward to bear it; naturally, after this incident, no one will deny his status as Lord of the Primordial Waters.

This can also be considered a gain despite not being a gain, after all, whether they acknowledge him or not, this fact already exists; now it's merely placed out in the open, reducing any future risk that might arise.

After the matter was settled, Qi did not keep them longer; after apologizing, he asked them to leave.

Of course, the gifts they brought were still kept, but they were not reported to the Heart-of-the-Pond Pavilion.

Ps: After finishing work tomorrow, I will start my vacation, store up five chapters, and prepare for release!

As usual, I ask for votes and support.

(End of chapter)