Above the Great Dao

Chapter 1225 571: Chivalrous Spirit

Chen Shi opened this ledger, and saw that it recorded the grievances of millions of Yin Souls, who prayed to Lady Houtu before their deaths to take revenge on an Immortal named Yin Fenglou, cursing him to fall into reincarnation and be unable to ascend.

The ledger documented the causes and effects of the event. In the Spirit Platform Realm, in a place called Fengyu Country, a great flood occurred one year. The Court ordered Yin Fenglou to take relief silver taels and the precious Heavenly Plow to the downstream area to provide disaster relief and to clear water channels.

By then, Yin Fenglou was already a Great Cultivator in the Tribulation Crossing Realm. Lacking enough confidence to undergo the Tribulation crossing, he dared not initiate the Heavenly Tribulation. However, upon gaining the precious Heavenly Plow, he had a plan.

He willingly triggered the Heavenly Tribulation and used the power of the Heavenly Plow to resist it, eventually succeeding in crossing the Tribulation. However, the precious Heavenly Plow was also destroyed in the Heavenly Tribulation.

Knowing he had made a grave mistake, Yin Fenglou dared not go to the disaster area, and instead fled with the disaster relief silver taels.

After his escape, the downstream dike burst, causing millions of civilians to be engulfed by the floodwaters, becoming sustenance for the fish and shrimp. Countless families were torn apart, Fengyu Country's national fortunes ended, the nation destroyed, and finally fell into the hands of foreign enemies.

However, Yin Fenglou persevered beyond the Ascension Realm and astonishingly harmonized and ascended to the Earth Immortal Realm.

Countless dead souls, before reincarnating, formed this ledger with their strong obsession, demanding that Yin Fenglou pay the price.

"Godmother, why are you giving me this ledger?" Chen Shi was puzzled.

Lady Houtu smiled and said, "Of course it is for you to settle the score."

Chen Shi asked, "What do I need to steal this time?"

"Steal Yin Fenglou's life!"

Lady Houtu stated, "I am Divine, and cannot arbitrarily take the life of an Immortal not within my jurisdiction. But you are different. You are also an Immortal, and can eliminate him, avenging the people of Fengyu Country."

Chen Shi said, "Before, when we settled accounts, we only stole Earth Treasure Spirit Roots from those Immortals, without killing them."

Lady Houtu nodded slightly, "But this time, I wish for Your Majesty to kill."

Chen Shi tucked the ledger into his chest and said, "I accept. Once I reach the Ascension Land and if I find Yin Fenglou, I will strike him down."

Lady Houtu looked at him with a gentle smile and suddenly said, "Your Majesty, do you know what I admire most about you?"

Chen Shi looked at her, puzzled.

Lady Houtu smiled and said, "You have chivalry."

"Chivalry?"

"Indeed. Most Gods and Immortals lack chivalry, including the high and exalted Immortals. They pursue the ethereal Dao, skillfully calculating gains and losses, manipulating human minds, and controlling the Human World. They have made themselves unlike humans. Gods are even more so, being trapped by the Divine Dao, they can only satisfy people's prayers and cannot meddle in many injustices."

Lady Houtu solemnly stated, "But you, Your Majesty, are different. When you were a child, you witnessed the Zhao family committing murder in Huangyang Village and rushed forward in anger, no matter how powerful the opponent was. You were angered by your own cut Divine Embryo, felt empathetic to the oppression of the weak, and vowed to eliminate the Thirteen Families, removing the tumor for the world. Due to the Heavenly Venerate allowing the Primordial Worm to cause trouble, you were determined to destroy it. Your actions are not like an Immortal, but like a heroic chivalrous person."

Chen Shi asked, "What is a heroic chivalrous person?"

Lady stated, "To challenge prohibitions with martial force, not adhering to justice in doing so, believing in one's words and fulfilling actions. Fulfilling promises sincerely and not valuing one's life, but rushing to the aid of those in distress, living or dying, is what I call a heroic chivalrous person."

Chen Shi laughed heartily, shaking his head, "Godmother, I do not have chivalry; you are the one with chivalry. As the revered Earth Mother, enjoying the incense offerings of both humans and Ghost Gods, you wield great power. Even without heeding the prayers of lone ghosts and wild spirits, you would remain unscathed. Yet, you recorded their prayers, turned them into a ledger, and did all you could to speak for them, making the wrongdoers pay. That is true chivalry!"

Lady chuckled, "Your Majesty, these things were done by you, not I. For the sake of these lone ghosts and wild spirits, Your Majesty went so far as to offend True Immortal Golden Immortals, yet without claiming credit, isn't that also chivalry?"

Chen Shi laughed, "Godmother, we both have chivalry in our hearts. Even the Black Pot has chivalry! Let's not argue about this."

Lady Houtu said, "I've noticed that lately, resisting the Ascension' rosy clouds has become increasingly arduous for you. Are you about to ascend soon?"

Chen Shi nodded, looking troubled, "These days, I have been suppressing the rosy clouds of Ascension trying to draw me in, but the force of drawing me in grows stronger, showing signs of tearing me apart. I worry that by continuing to resist the rosy clouds, their power might rip me in two. However, after I ascend, the absence of a True King on the West Bull New Continent might lead to chaos again."

Lady Houtu said, "Are you worried about new Thirteen Families arising?"

Chen Shi's face was solemn, "Human nature is selfish, it's inevitable. Even within the current True Dynasty Court, though Zhuge Jian, Yu Tiancheng and others have fighting spirit, in the face of power, they too may one day succumb to decay."

Lady Houtu laughed, "Even the Mysterious Bird Heavenly Court was subject to decay. Even the earlier Heavenly Emperor's Court was like that. In the Huaxia Divine Continent, dynasties rise and fall. Didn't these Divine beings foresee that the courts and heavenly courts they founded would one day decay?"

Chen Shi sought her guidance, "What did they do?"

Lady Houtu smiled, "If they had figured it out, they wouldn't have been overthrown. You can't do it either. This power, this wealth, will ultimately gather around a small number of people, and the situations you create will eventually decay. Even if you do not ascend, you cannot change this process."

Chen Shi murmured, "Laozi said, 'The way of the heavens is to take from the surplus and give to the lacking. The way of humanity is to take from the lacking and give to the surplus. Thus, the great Dao of the Mortal World is that the strong will remain strong, and the poor will get poorer. But we should mix the Heavenly Dao and Human Dao together. While enforcing the Human Dao in the Mortal World, we should also enforce the Heavenly Dao, take from the surplus to give to the lacking, reduce the strong to support the weak."

He invigorated himself, smiling, "Godmother, perhaps this is the solution."

Excited beyond measure, he hurried out: "I'll find Lord Hu, discuss this matter, and see if we can draft a system for it!"

Lady Houtu laughed and said, "Hurry along, Lord Hu has come to find you over a hundred times!"

Lady Houtu watched him leave, her gaze falling on the Black Pot.

The Black Pot was cultivating the Great Wilderness Ming Dao Collection amidst the Ten Thousand Great Mountains. It stood upright, refining this cultivation technique of the Heavenly Venerate to the extreme, its muscles robust, moving like lightning, mastering various Daoist skills seamlessly, resembling a battle fanatic.

For the past two years, this large black dog had been eating Immortal Pills daily, making its coat shine jet-black, with muscles and bones fiercely growing beneath, showcasing explosive power. Though it was a Huo Dou, it emitted an aura of Immortal Demon, possessing the skills of a Ghost Monster, truly exceptional prowess.

"This dog is already more powerful than most Heavenly Immortals!"

Lady Houtu exclaimed.

She had watched Black Pot's progress, noting it was even more diligent than Chen Shi. Chen Shi wasn't always cultivating, sneaking in moments of laziness when he could, but Black Pot seized every opportunity to train, refining its body with the Thunder Eight Techniques, polishing its Daoist skills with the Great Wilderness Ming Dao Collection, advancing swiftly.

"I wonder when it will surpass the other dog?" Lady Houtu pondered.

She withdrew her gaze, checking on Wu Qi's situation.

For over two years, Wu Qi's bones had largely recovered. In the Pill Furnace, the surface of the white bones began to slowly develop thin membranes and blood vessels.

"Using Dan Dew to reshape the physical body is a treatment even Taiyi Golden Immortals don't have. With this revival, not to mention anything else, just the physical body will be comparable to a Taiyi Golden Immortal."

Lady Houtu repeatedly praised, laughing, "Wu Qi, oh Wu Qi, His Majesty has exhausted his resources to save you. How will you repay him?"

But she also knew that Chen Shi's rescue efforts for Wu Qi weren't for Wu Qi's gratitude, but to repay Wu Qi's battle against the Heavenly Venerate.

Wu Qi's fight with the Heavenly Venerate was an act of righteous valor. Chen Shi admired his deeds, therefore he was determined to bring him back to life.

Chen Shi returned to the Mortal World, arriving at Xinxiang Imperial City, feeling slightly unfamiliar as he looked at the Imperial Capital before him.

He hadn't returned for two years, and the capital had become extraordinarily prosperous. The Ministry of Industry, following the Heavenly Court's specifications, had built a massive gateway, connecting to the Little Heavenly Realms. This gateway was built atop Dejiang, where ships continuously sailed from Dejiang through the gateway.

And the other side of the gateway was not Dejiang, but the Little Heavenly Realms.

Chen Shi gazed through the gateway into the Little Heavenly Realms, seeing numerous gateways already established; the other side of these was the provincial capitals.

Through the Little Heavenly Realms, trade caravans traversed between provinces, engaging in commerce and exchange.

Nowadays, the refined Little Heavenly Realms had grown much larger and more stable than before, so even with trade from the Fifty Provinces passing through, it would not become crowded.

"The court seems to have money now, a lot of money..."

Chen Shi arrived at Wenyuan Pavilion, finding Hu Feifei slumped over the desk in deep sleep, surrounded by a mountain of memorials that almost buried her.

Chen Shi didn't wake her but sat quietly reading through the memorials.

After a long time, Hu Feifei awoke, startled to see Chen Shi, hurriedly paying respects to the True King.

Chen Shi laughed and said, "Feifei, there's no need for such formality between us. Please sit. I saw the memorials you corrected. This year, the Ministry of Rites will open an special examination, restarting the imperial exams, with far more content than before, including traditional cultivation techniques, spells, and swordsmanship, as well as crafts, forging, architecture, breeding, sacrificial refinement, and more. Why is this?"

Hu Feifei replied, "The imperial examination selects officials, not fighters. It aims to choose individuals who can govern the Human World. Thus, according to the Six Ministries, it needs officials for the Ministry of War for warfare, the Ministry of Rites for education and ghost god rituals, the Ministry of Revenue for finance and trade, and the Ministry of Industry for forging magical treasures, firearms, and constructing palaces, among others. These are the talents the court and people need, hence these are included in the examination."

Chen Shi nodded slightly, sharing his insights gained at Lady Houtu's, discussing with Hu Feifei late into the night at Wenyuan Pavilion. Together, they devised many regulations, which Hu Feifei recorded one by one.

As they walked out of Wenyuan Pavilion, it was deep into the night, the moonlight cool as water.

Chen Shi escorted her to rest, Hu Feifei gazing at the full moon in the sky, suddenly bursting into laughter.

Chen Shi laughed and asked, "What is it, Feifei?"

Hu Feifei chuckled and said, "I laugh because when we first met, we were asleep in Mr. Fu's private school, lying beside each other, gazing at each other. The moonlight outside was perfect, yet we did nothing. I feel ashamed to be a fox spirit, failing my ancestors."

Chen Shi laughed heartily, and once the laughter subsided, he said, "Feifei, I must go—ascend to the Earth Immortal Realm."

Hu Feifei's body quivered slightly, asking, "Will you return?"

"I will return, definitely."

Hu Feifei watched him walk away, quietly reaching out for his hand, hesitating just before touching it, and withdrawing.

"Feifei, oh Feifei, I truly have failed my ancestors," she thought to herself with regret.