Chapter 219

【Turning an honest, self-reliant large-scale farming faction into a fervent external expansion force……You successfully remodeled the tractor into a tank!】

【He is passionately fond of slaughter, fervently pursues plunder, and every victorious return means blood and revelry!】

【The Sea of Blood seems to have become the Qin state, and you are a reincarnation of Shang Yang……】

【And how would "Duke Xiao of Qin" react to this?】

【Seeing all this, Jin Bing, who had long given up persuading you, couldn't help but ask again: "What next? Plundering will eventually run out of things to plunder—what will we do then?"】

【"Does the Immortal Way still need a future?"】

【You retorted: "It is literally the fire of the Immortal Way burning on living souls—does it really need to exist?"】

【"I command the Heavenly Court to eradicate the man-eating heretical paths across the Wasteland; this is making full use of things, not to seek a way out for the Immortal Way."】

【If the sages do not act, the End of the Dharma will never end—this is the core fundamental problem, so from the start you never thought the Immortal Way could survive!】

【Jin Bing remained silent for a long time, then bitterly asked: "In your eyes, are we… just dogs biting dogs?"】

【You calmly looked at him, gave no answer, yet it seemed as if you had answered everything……】

【Man-eaters are man-eaters for life; you never intended to spare anyone.】

【You understand Jin Bing's reasoning, but you have decided to be obstinately extreme: if the world is guilty, then the whole world shall be punished! Using tigers to devour wolves, dogs biting dogs—these are all your means of punishment……】

【"You should feel pleased."】

You thought for a moment, then again advised the disheartened Jin Bing: "Once I exterminate all cultivators in the Primordial Wilderness, everything will get better!"

"The heretical paths of the Four Wilds will leave none alive; once they are slaughtered, the Immortal Dao of the Primordial Wilderness will have only a few immortals left. When those immortals exhaust their spiritual energy, they will retain only the power of longevity, then serve as Heavenly Officials, letting the Heavenly Court eternally govern the mortals of the four directions."

"From then on, everyone in the world will be mortals, and with the Heavenly Court governing, would that not be an age of peace and prosperity?"

Your argument makes sense—at least you think it does: the Immortal Dao need not exist, while the vast multitude of mortals does need to exist; therefore, if we exterminate the Immortal Dao, the Primordial Wilderness will naturally usher in peace!

"You…"

Jin Bing wanted to speak but held back, for although your theory is bizarre, it is not without reason: since the Immortal Dao harms living beings, isn't exterminating it the answer? By human effort we could create a Primordial Wilderness without cultivators, fashioning a world belonging solely to mortals!

This idea differs from anyone else's conception, for no one dares to think thus… Everyone is a stakeholder in the reformist faction, merely wishing for immortals and mortals to coexist as harmoniously as possible; thus, even if man-eating cultivation is wrong, no one would abolish it.

But you are different—you are a 'revolutionary faction'; your interests have never aligned with those of the Primordial Wilderness cultivators. As a non-man-eater, you can certainly, without hesitation, destroy others' Immortal Dao for the sake of all living beings…

Leave the Primordial Wilderness to mortals—that is your supreme goal! Mortals' birth, aging, sickness, and death brook no interference from immortals!

This is the true decline of the Dharma! This is the true extermination of the Dharma!

"Once I have created a Primordial Wilderness inhabited solely by mortals, I will no longer concern myself with worldly affairs."

You solemnly smiled at him and said: "When the time comes, I will return the reins of government; you will remain the Heavenly Emperor, and a Heavenly Emperor just like the true Jin Bing, wielding supreme authority over the entire Primordial Wilderness—more glorious than the Golden Heavenly Emperor!"

Upon hearing this, Jin Bing couldn't help but stare blankly—he had not imagined you would plan this… After conquering the whole Primordial Wilderness, you would return the reins of government?

A sudden hope rose within him for no reason: this would naturally be a good thing, mortals governing mortals, life continuing as usual; although there would be no immortals using magic to help mortals survive natural and man-made calamities, there would likewise be no man-eating cultivation…

Perhaps that would not be bad?

In short, at present this is the only road left…

And after you reformed the Sea of Blood forces, this colossal war chariot of the Primordial Wilderness started up and began to run on its own, a process that required no pushing from you—they knew what to do.

Using the cultivators of the Four Wilds as consumables and expanding outward aggressively, Jin Bing's 'dream of restoring the Heavenly Court' instantly got on track!

At this rate and momentum, even if the Primordial Wilderness were to become countless times larger than antiquity, unification would not be far off.

Meanwhile, you also found time to return to your own Heavenly Court…

…

After 1,840 years as Heavenly Emperor, the Profound Heavenly Emperor, who had been away for hundreds of years, finally returned to his loyal Heavenly Court!

"Loyal! Faithful!"

"Great! Magnificent!"

Amid the enthusiastic cheers echoing throughout the Heavenly Court, you took your seat on the throne, gazing at the officials long unseen, and couldn't help but sigh slightly: serving as a behind-the-scenes power broker in the Sea of Blood certainly brings high rank and authority, yet openly you must always remain subordinate to that one person.

Better to be at home, where you can do as you please without worrying about anyone's face!

After sighing, you turned your gaze to the officials; the court's officials had clearly split into two factions, one led by the Yellow Robe Heavenly Master, who, as an elder from the earliest cavern-heaven of the Dragon, naturally deserved support in the eyes of the ministers.

The other faction was led by Jing Xin; they were newcomers promoted by Jing Xin to consolidate his own power, for Jing Xin joined late and is still a 'favored petty person'; although, thanks to your connection, he holds a high position, his foundation is shallow, so he naturally needs others to bolster him.

In your view, these two factions—one old, one new—each represent a portion of the Heavenly Court's influence, and partisan strife is surely commonplace.

But it doesn't matter; you don't care whether they feud or not, as long as you can strengthen the Heavenly Court's endeavors—let them fight, it's no problem, and indeed it might even spur them to greater vigor in their duties…

"Your Majesty, the border troops have frequently encountered people claiming to be from the Sea of Blood Heavenly Court; like us, they slaughter and plunder the righteous and demonic cultivators of the Western Wilds… In our view, this is probably not a blessing for the Heavenly Court…"

The Yellow Robe Heavenly Master solemnly reported these matters to you, for the interests of the two Heavenly Courts are conflicting; even if they have not yet clashed directly, change will inevitably arise in the future.

But you smiled and said it was no problem, then explained to them what you had seen and heard on this journey—especially that you had been enfeoffed as a prince by Jin Bing and, in fact, now controlled the Sea of Blood Heavenly Court!

The ministers were all bewildered, for the mythic figure of the Golden Heavenly Emperor still being alive is itself a shocking piece of news that shakes all quarters, let alone the fact that you have sidelined him and made him a puppet…

But thanks to the effect of your Blood God Son, everyone obeys your every word; since you have said as much, there is nothing left to doubt.

Thus, the cheers grew ever louder!

At this moment, you also told them: now that the two Heavenly Courts belong to one family, we ought to support the ruler and aid the state, and revive the Jin clan.

Therefore, from now on, everyone must strive harder to expand outward; sooner or later, the legend of the Heavenly Court will return to the Primordial Wilderness.

Revive the Heavenly Court, return to the ancient capital!

"As you command!"

…

Under your command, the two war machines opened fire at full blast, launching a war of unification toward the four directions!

After 3,680 years as Heavenly Emperor, the Golden and Profound Heavenly Courts together seized one‑thousandth of the Western Wilds.

After 6,500 years as Heavenly Emperor, the two Heavenly Courts together seized two‑thousandths of the Western Wilds.

…

After 89,000 years as Heavenly Emperor, the two Heavenly Courts seized one percent of the Western Wilds!

129,600 years, the Xuantian Emperor changed the era, restored the ancient mythic system, and it was called the "Human Calendar Beginning Era Beginning Meeting Beginning Fortune"!

In the Human Calendar, six epochs, four cycles, eight periods, the two Heavenly Courts occupied half of the Western Wasteland territory!

In the Human Calendar, twelve epochs, six cycles, twenty-four periods, the two Heavenly Courts occupied the entirety of the Western Wasteland!

After a full twelve epoch-meetings, you finally governed the vast, boundless Western Wasteland territory; with this you left the Western Wasteland, officially stepped onto the grand stage of the Primordial Chaos, and gained the ability to rewrite the course of heaven and earth history!

After confirming that the west, north, and south sides had all reached the limits of heaven and earth, you couldn't help but let out a long sigh: Heaven and earth... just how many times larger than antiquity are they...

Bullying the weak for twelve epoch-meetings, the places you passed were basically unstoppable; the time spent rushing was longer than the time spent actually slaughtering... Under such smooth conditions, it still took twelve epoch-meetings to finish scouting the Western Wasteland; this speed, if placed in antiquity, would be simply unimaginable!

And ruling such a vast territory, frankly, is really difficult; just letting a Xuan immortal fly through the Western Wasteland from end to end would take tens of thousands of years.

Therefore, you had no choice but to start from reality, dividing the jurisdiction into countless semi-independent regions, letting each govern its own side, normally each handling its own affairs, and communicating when needed.

You helplessly turned back the wheels of history; to a certain extent, you restored the feudal system that had been abolished since the end of the three clans...

Fortunately, the Blood God Son is strong enough; as long as you have the Blood God Son in hand, you never have to worry about them actually carving out separatist domains, so your anti-law decrees can continue indefinitely!

"Next, it's the remaining three wastelands..."

Thus, you gave orders to the two Heavenly Courts respectively, commanding them to advance into the Southern and Northern Wastelands.

In the Human Calendar, thirty-five epochs, nine cycles, nine periods, the Southern and Northern Wastelands each were occupied by one Heavenly Court; the lands they passed, just as in the old practice of the Western Wasteland: mortals each went their own way, handling their own affairs to feed and clothe themselves, while cultivators either killed or absorbed them, to rule this newly occupied vast region.

For this, you had no choice but to frequently teleport to the front lines, planting the Blood God Son for them, imprinting an absolute loyalty thought seal!

Labor is naturally laborious, but since you had already made up your mind early, you certainly wouldn't give up lightly... and next, only the Eastern Wasteland and the Central Province remain!

Naturally, there's not much to say about the Central Province; it's a utopia where cultivators and mortals coexist perfectly, its local customs and sentiments completely different from other regions, so this place naturally should be taken last.

And as for the Eastern Wasteland... the Eastern Wasteland holds special significance for humanity and the Heavenly Court!

The Eastern Wasteland is the cradle of humanity's birth and development; the Holy Mother Nüwa created humans and attained sainthood here, and the human chieftain Jin Bing established the egalitarian Heavenly Court here... thus, everyone in the Heavenly Court looks forward to the day of recovering the homeland.

Thus, in response to the wishes of your subjects, you issued an edict to the frontier armies of the Southern and Northern Wastelands: the Eastern Wasteland is the homeland of humanity, Mount Shouyang is the ancient capital of humanity; I and the Golden Heavenly Emperor both wish to return to Mount Shouyang as soon as possible, to offer sacrifices to heaven and earth there!

Upon receiving this edict, the frontier troops naturally became extremely excited, each wanting to be the first to storm Mount Shouyang, to restore the Heavenly Court to its ancient capital, and their fighting spirit soared.

In the Human Calendar, thirty-six epochs, eight cycles, nine periods, you respectively issued edicts to the frontier armies of the Southern and Northern Wastelands, ordering them to advance into the Eastern Wasteland!

In the Human Calendar, forty-two epochs, nine cycles, twenty periods, the Southern and Northern frontier troops victorious met at Mount Shouyang in the Eastern Wasteland!

The good news reached the Golden and Xuantian Heavenly Courts; your dragon face was greatly pleased, you immediately led the officials of both courts, together with Jin Bing, crossed space, and directly arrived at the Shouyang region.

The Eastern Wasteland frontier troops and all the enfeoffed lords had also prepared the ceremonial guard in advance at the foot of Mount Shouyang, jointly welcoming you two sages back to the ancient capital; all participants were smiling with joy.

In this period, the two emperors offered sacrifices to heaven and earth at Mount Shouyang, formally announcing: the Heavenly Court has returned to its ancient capital!

In the next period, the capital was moved to Mount Shouyang, the two Heavenly Courts united as one family, the Golden and Xuantian emperors held court together, jointly ruling the world.

……

(End of chapter)