Chapter 166: Mount Tai Dai Yu

"True Person Xu, this one is from Mount Tai!"

Xu Jia was surprised: "Didn't you say that our area is under the jurisdiction of Nanyue Mount Heng?"

"Mount Tai oversees the Five Sacred Mountains, and the Five Sacred Mountains in turn govern all the mountains, forests, and every living creature, monster, spirit, and water-based Earth Immortal under heaven..."

Just then, a female Immortal stepped out from the honor guard. She wore Immortal robes, had bright eyes and white teeth, and looked like a royal consort, with an extraordinary bearing.

"Let's get acquainted. I am Dai Yu, the left attendant Immortal official to the Origin Lord Bixia of the Mount Tai Five Sacred Mountains Prefecture."

Xu Jia saw that she did not possess the "quietness like flowers reflecting in water, movements like wind brushing against willows, elegance hidden in the corners of her brows and eyes, and gentleness revealed in her voice and smile."

"What a good name! This poor Daoist is Yushan Loose Practitioner Xu Jia!"

"Loose Practitioner Xu Jia? I don't think so!" Dai Yu smiled: "Have you forgotten what our Dong Yue Prefecture does?"

Xu Jia suddenly remembered: Dong Yue Prefecture is the Underworld! Didn't I descend to Luo Feng Mountain? How did it come under the jurisdiction of your You Du?

Is it all part of the same system? Xu Jia laughed and said: "So, this is... surely you aren't here to arrest me!"

"If you were wreaking havoc between the living and the dead, or committing evil, that would be certain. But since you have a connection with Huang Zhenren, I will still give him three parts of face."

"Is the connection with the one surnamed Huang that strong?" Xu Jia scratched his head. He had thought this guy was at most a snakehead smuggling people between the yin and yang paths. He didn't expect that even when things were exposed here, he could still give someone three parts of face.

"Alright." Xu Jia said: "At the very least, I have successfully opened up new territory; I wouldn't go about committing evil or wreaking havoc between the living and the dead."

"That is true. After all, you were about to attain the God Immortal fruit status in your past life. It is unexpected that your Daoist Practice has regressed so severely. The two who guided you were Golden Tripod Mysterious Flower Divine Palace Perfected Person and the Mount Tai Heaven-Equaling Benevolent Great Emperor. You are on record in our Eastern Peak Prefecture; after all, it is not easy to cultivate in the Yanfu lower realm, and Eastern Peak is in charge of the Demon Examination."

"Jin Ding Shen Gong? Isn't that the white ape who attained Didao?" Xu Jia associated "Qitian" with the monkey, feeling it was also a kind of Qitian Dasheng of the PDD.

"The past life has already dissipated." Xu Jia sighed: "I am just re-cultivating now. So, am I to be sent back to Zong Ling Qi Fei Palace? Or are you taking me back to the Five Sacred Mountains Prefecture?"

"Neither." Dai Yu said: "There are so many Yan Fu worlds; it is quite normal for a few transmigrators, rebirths, or extraterrestrial demons to appear. Furthermore, you have already registered, so you can be considered an underworld official. At most, this counts as a business trip for study."

"Now, it is about your deposition of the Yushan Mountain God, and the matter concerning the Longevity Sect."

"The Longevity Sect is not a native sect of your world; it is an evil god wanted by the Heavenly Court. How should I put it? Nan Hua Lao Xian, Nan Ji Lao Ren, or Bi Yan Zhenren, Zhen Yuan Di Xian, and Bu Tian Da Shen all come from the same lineage. They are all evil gods and evil sects of an anti-Heavenly Court organization."

"Aren't they just rebelling? How did it escalate to opposing Heaven?"

"Rebellion is opposing Heaven, because all dynasties are governed by Heavenly Mandate. As long as the Heavenly Mandate does not perish, the Heavenly Court will always stand on the side of the dynasty. They maintain stability and regularly hold national sacrifices..."

"But it is very clear now that it is not yet time for the Heavenly Mandate to change. These fellows are causing chaos for the sake of chaos. We divine beings have too many things to manage; it is impossible to look after every single Yan Fu world. Therefore, most matters are left to the cultivators of the local realm. However, these cultivators all want to avoid external affairs, feeling it has nothing to do with them. Coincidentally, you have a handle in our hands now, and it seems you are very eager to establish a sect, ascend to the Shangjie... to leave the Six Heavens of Desire and enter the true world of cultivation, or even the Immortal World, the capital of Bai Yu Jing."

"Is the Heavenly Realm that big?" Xu Jia had only assumed the Thirty-Six Heavens were a parallel structure, with each layer being a world.

"How to say? The Heavenly Realm governed by the Heavenly Court is very large. It is like layers divided by civilization. The Six Heavens of Desire are the lowest level, representing all mortal worlds."

"Of course, it is not to say that mortal worlds cannot produce Immortals. Those who can break through dimensions and ascend to the Shangjie are all geniuses." Dai Yu said: "Of course, you are half a genius. You failed, yet you didn't fail. The establishment of the Underworld is not easy to test into, even if it is just a small Xiaodifu governing five hundred mortal worlds." "Alright, alright! Say no more, it is easy to destroy my Dao heart!" Xu Jia sighed: "Let's focus on why you came here to find me."

Dai Yu said: "Our Lady intends to hand over all matters concerning monsters and spirits in the Jiangnan West Circuit to you. To be precise, it is to open a monster yamen to govern the various monsters. This is a lucrative position. In terms of official rank, it does not seem that high; the Five Sacred Mountains Prefecture provides a Fifth Rank status, but your primary position in the Underworld has been promoted to the Eighth Rank position of Sun Fire Official of the Left Naifan Mingchen Prefecture of the Central Plains Dongkong Qingling Palace."

"Do not think the Eighth Rank is low. In the Yan Fu mortal world, even if you cultivate to the limit, you can only obtain a Seventh Rank position."

Xu Jia thought: "What if I have the Longhu Mountain Celestial Master Register? I mean, what if I am ordained as a Celestial Master?"

"The Celestial Master Register is passed down by the Dao Ancestor and is only held by the Talisman sect, the Three Pure Ones Sect. This is an express lane to command Ghost Gods. It is also because we obey the Dao Ancestor's orders, not because we respect the Celestial Master. This thing only makes it easier for you to ascend to the Shangjie; cultivation still depends on yourself."

"Alright! Eighth Rank is not bad! And I can govern monsters and spirits, and open a yamen." Xu Jia was quite satisfied with this result.

"Then how does one ascend?"

"Through the Dharma Realm. Within the Dharma Realm are thousands of gods and Buddhas, and there are also the Ghost Gate of the Underworld and the South Heavenly Gate of the Heavenly Court. These are anchored in the Dharma Realm through myths and legends. In fact, if you can cultivate into a Yang Spirit, or have a method of wandering the Taixu, such as Free and Easy Wandering, you can also enter other worlds."

"You yourself have temples anchoring your past life. Through the Dharma Realm, you can achieve the travel of thoughts. But if you have not cultivated into a Yang Spirit and are merely a Yin Spirit, I still do not suggest spirit-wandering."

"If I had cultivated into a Yang Spirit, I could have ascended directly!" Xu Jia complained.

"That is only the lowest level. Do you intend to go to the Shangjie to be a Ghost Immortal and continue cultivating? Ascending with your physical body, or refining your form to reshape your body in the Shangjie—this is what you should pursue."

"I hope I don't fail the Demon Examination again this time!"

"So this ascension is equivalent to moving to another world? And the Demon Examination is equivalent to an immigration audit, or perhaps a job interview?"

Dai Yu thought for a moment: "Perhaps."

"In any case, all matters concerning monsters and spirits here are now under your jurisdiction. Previously, Grandmother held this position concurrently. Later, the Black Tiger Marshal under the command of Zhenwu Da Di also managed a portion, and the Twenty-Four Offices of the Thunder Department in the human world also managed a portion. But they managed evil monsters, specifically to strike them dead. Our Lady manages monsters that accept edification."

"Fine!" Xu Jia roughly understood what it meant.

"What about the official seal and the official Dharma robes?"

"There are none. You are attached to this. Your file is still in the Underworld, have you forgotten?" Dai Yu said: "But you can carve one yourself, and use the Five Sacred Mountains Talisman chart to make an official Dharma robe."

"However, the Yushan Mountain God, that is Chang Yu, you appointed him, didn't you? You have quite some nerve, exercising authority beyond your rank. The Lady said, the probation period is fifty years. Once fifty years have passed, let him be regularized."

"That counts as good news, since I had previously said it would be a hundred years." Xu Jia did not forget to joke.

"Alright." Dai Yu was unwilling to say more: "Cultivate well and ascend early, or ascend with your entire household. If you cultivate into a Heavenly Immortal, your nine generations can all follow you and ascend to the Shangjie."

(End of chapter)