Chapter 290: Cultivating the Supreme Body, Zhao Xing's Second Phase Plan

Terrified hares race through the tumultuous season,Snow flutters down in the third month of spring.Bare trees stand alone in the cold wind,No sign of spring's return, no hint of green.

It was clearly the height of spring, yet outside YouShui County, there was no trace of green. Hares bounded through the dry grass, constantly searching for food, their cries of hunger echoing. One particular hare’s eyes glowed red, its fur split open, revealing streaks of blood. Its body suddenly expanded, and sharp spikes and scales sprouted from the fissures. Its fangs elongated, and with a sickening crunch, it impaled a nearby companion. Its hind legs twitched uncontrollably in the creature's gaping maw. It swallowed its companion whole with an upward gulp.

Its red gaze swept over the surrounding hare群. This monstrous life form began to slaughter its own kind. In just fifteen minutes, the entire hare群 had vanished. All that remained was an upright monster, five meters tall, with black spikes on its back, blue scales on its arms, and red fur on its chest.

"Zi Kong!" It roared, looking up at the sky. Its red pupils suddenly reflected a purple light descending from the heavens. The light traveled at an incredible speed, arriving in an instant. The mutated creature, unable to dodge, was struck by the purple light and immediately collapsed, leaving a smoking crater in the ground.

A figure descended at the edge of the pit. Ling Tianchen glanced at the deep crater, where a humanoid creature with purple wings lay dead, bleeding from all seven orifices. Confirming that Purple-Feather King, who guarded the Weak Water Passage, was dead, Ling Tianchen didn't look a second time. Instead, he turned his attention to the bizarre creature nearby. After surveying the scattered hare fur on the ground, Ling Tianchen reached into his sleeve, tore open the monster's abdomen, and then shook his head slightly. He had killed the Purple-Feather King guarding the Weak Water Passage, but inadvertently caused an anomalous climatic change in YouShui County.

Ling Tianchen extended a finger, and golden light shot into the surrounding void. "The three energies of Jue Yin return to normal, and the Shaoyang phase fire follows the host, reverting to its original state."

With a soft hum, a vibrant glow flowed between heaven and earth. The ground trembled gently, and a surge of green vitality was born, as if nothing had happened. Ling Tianchen stroked his beard and nodded, "The restoration of the twelve guest-host energies to their original state is truly a testament to natural talent!" The method he used to calm the climatic anomaly was based on the guidance from Zhao Xing's "Treatise on the Six Energies of the Great Zhou Heaven and Three Yin and Three Yang." The status of Zhao Xing's treatise rose once again in Ling Tianchen's estimation. As a leading figure in the Climatic Anomaly sect, no one understood better than he the impact this treatise would have on the司农 of the sect.

Before long, three beastly figures—a flying serpent, a soaring dragon, and a fiery phoenix—approached Ling Tianchen. Upon landing, the three beastly figures transformed into human form.

"Dean, King Xuan is dead."

"Good." Ling Tianchen nodded, pulling a scroll from his robes. "Distribute the Heavenly Marquis Decree to all branch academies."

"From this day forward, all司农 of the Climatic Anomaly Institute within our Profound Heaven Academy are to immediately join the official resistance forces in their vicinity. All armies, factions, and territories controlled by King Liang, as well as his allies, are to be targeted."

"For any branch academy members currently serving under King Liang's command or in his service, if they leave his faction before June and perform meritorious deeds, their status as a rebel will be expunged, and past transgressions will be forgiven."

"Should any refuse to repent, the deans of each branch academy and the Enforcement Institute are ordered to immediately begin purging their ranks."

"Understood!" The three individuals behind him respectfully accepted Ling Tianchen's Heavenly Marquis Decree. In their hearts, Ling Tianchen was akin to a宗主! These individuals were a self-cultivating group specially permitted by the Grand Ancestor, representing the Profound Heaven Academy's own legacy power. They could disregard the Grand司农 Li Boqian's orders, or even those of the imperial court, but they would absolutely obey Ling Tianchen's commands! Even Li Boqian had to seek Ling Tianchen's opinion before issuing a Heavenly Marquis Decree. Of course, this premise applied only to those who were not officials and who had self-cultivated without imperial court appointments. If one were an official, then the laws of the imperial court still had to be obeyed.

Loyalty to the monarch? That concept did not exist! At this time, traditional rites did not restrict people's thoughts; there was no saying that a minister must die if the monarch ordered it. The seventy-two academies had made an agreement with the Grand Ancestor when they first joined the Great Zhou. Among them, the original ten ancient divine sects had even more lenient conditions because their joining contributed to the growth of the Great Zhou's national destiny. If they were to leave, the Great Zhou's national destiny would significantly diminish. Of course, if they were to leave the nineteen states, they would not fare as well as before. Overall, the relationship between the Profound Heaven Academy and the Ji royal family was mutually beneficial. The Profound Heaven Academy was loyal to its own ideals and could sacrifice for the world and its people, but the Ji royal family could not force them. The attitude of these groups towards the royal family can largely be summarized in one sentence: "If the monarch treats his ministers as limbs, the ministers will treat the monarch as their heart; if the monarch treats his ministers as dogs and horses, the ministers will treat the monarch as strangers; if the monarch treats his ministers as dirt, the ministers will treat the monarch as enemies."

The three individuals used their Climatic Anomaly methods and swiftly departed. Ling Tianchen, transforming into a giant bird, flew towards the neighboring county near YouShui County. In that area, there was a large expanse of Weak Water. As司农 of the Climatic Anomaly sect, the group led by Ling Tianchen could enter the Weak Water unharmed, and even use it against their enemies. Their defense of the passage was akin to one man holding off ten thousand, requiring no reliance on divine weapons.

In a secret chamber of the Li Huo Daoist Academy in Mingyue Prefecture, King Tianyan declared the operation over but did not allow Zhao Xing to leave the circle beneath the compass. "Your original fate and heavenly secret shielding became ineffective during the turmoil in early February," King Tianyan said. "Now, I will re-shield you."

"Once completed, your rank on the Heavenly Fortune Golden List will significantly decrease, and the displayed information will be minimal, making it almost impossible for anyone to pinpoint your location."

"Yes," Zhao Xing obediently listened. He had no desire to be on that wretched list. For him, it served no purpose other than attracting assassins. Gaining fame was not achieved in this manner. The Heavenly Fortune Golden List and the Creation Disk were similar in nature; they could not be widely publicized, and all information on them was confidential. Since it was confidential, it naturally would not be widely known.

With a hum, the black and white energies on the compass descended from Zhao Xing's true body. Golden inscriptions flickered faintly within the two streams of energy, then completely vanished.

"Alright, your ranking has dropped to 9,800th," King Tianyan said, removing the compass from above Zhao Xing's head.

"My Lord, I have a question."

"Speak."

"I've done so many things before; haven't they already been made known to others? Will concealing it now still be effective?" Zhao Xing asked.

"The past is the past, and now is now. From this moment on, as long as you don't dismantle King Liang's stronghold, your ranking won't..." Zhao Xing didn't know why King Tianyan stopped speaking. He looked up to see King Tianyan frozen in place.

"What's wrong?"

"Your ranking has risen again," King Tianyan exclaimed in surprise. "What's going on?"

"Stay still," King Tianyan said, placing the compass back to hover above Zhao Xing's head. "I need to investigate."

King Tianyan left the secret chamber and went to another room. He first contacted King Luo. "Luo, my operation here is finished, but Zhao Xing's ranking on the Golden List won't go down. Do you know of any major events that have occurred recently?"

"Yes," King Luo said, pulling over Ji Anning from the Imperial Provisioning Department. "Let Anning King tell you."

"Cousin, I suggest you sit down and listen," Ji Anning chuckled.

"Why?"

"I'm afraid you'll be too shocked to stand," Ji Anning still smiled playfully.

"Why are you wasting words? I'm in a hurry, speak quickly!" King Tianyan was somewhat impatient with this younger brother.

"Alright, here's what happened," Ji Anning said. "When Zhao Xing was ambushed, Profound Heaven Academy, Shangluo Academy, and Kunyuan Academy all received the message."

"That's normal," King Tianyan nodded. Sima Yunhai and Pang Yuanzhen were both in Mingyue Prefecture handling disaster relief. Zhao Xing's true body and clones had retreated so many times; they surely would have detected something abnormal.

"What happened next was not normal," Ji Anning continued. "Because at that time, Zhao Xing was being pursued."

"Therefore, the three great academies dispatched powerful forces to carry out emergency countermeasures!"

"How powerful?"

Ji Anning flipped through the scrolls. "The Imperial Provisioning Department's records show that Ling Tianchen, Dean of the Climatic Anomaly Institute of Profound Heaven Academy, led fifty-nine people, including professors of classics and honorary vice deans, to the Weak Waterway, where they killed Purple-Feather King, Xuan-Boot King, and three hundred high-ranking generals guarding the waterway."

"Hmm?" King Tianyan was stunned. "You mean these people belong to—"

"Exactly. This is the Climatic Anomaly Institute's own strength. They are all powerful individuals who self-cultivated. The imperial court merely opened a door for them. You can think of them as ancient elders, sectarian protectors, or grand elders."

"You're not suggesting that their actions were specifically for Zhao Xing, are you?" King Tianyan was taken aback. Frankly speaking, even His Majesty's orders might not be able to command this group of people. In reality, Emperor Jing had to mobilize these individuals through Li Boqian, who would then coordinate their movements. This was also why, for thousands of years, the Ji royal family had continuously placed their descendants into the seventy-two academies, striving to make Ji family members important figures.

"Don't be too surprised, it's not over yet," Ji Anning said. "Afterward, Ling Tianchen issued the Heavenly Marquis Decree."

"He notified all branch academy deans in Pinghai and Lvliang Prefectures."

"He called upon the司农 of the Climatic Anomaly sect to join the resistance forces, and also urged those who had gone astray—hmm, those who were forced or reluctantly accepted appointment—to rise up and atone for their sins through meritorious service."

"What?!" King Tianyan was stunned. The Climatic Anomaly method could greatly weaken the erosion of the Black Dragon's destiny. If the司农 of the Climatic Anomaly sect wanted to leave King Liang's faction, they truly had a way, and it wouldn't even cost much. Climatic Anomaly, climatic anomaly, people transform into another species, and their destiny naturally changes drastically! At this point, in the state of Climatic Anomaly, only a fourth-rank sacrificer is needed to strip away the Black Dragon's destiny! The Climatic Anomaly method is powerful here, not just for the Black Dragon's destiny, but for the imperial court's destiny as well. If the Ji royal family oppressed them too much, this group of masters could simply leave! If one place doesn't welcome a master, another will! And they wouldn't suffer much harm at all. Therefore, throughout history, the Grand司农 has always had to first win over the Climatic Anomaly sect; if this force was not brought under control, the authority of the Grand司农 position would be incomplete. During Emperor Wu's reign, Mi Fu encountered this situation. He was appointed Grand司农 by Emperor Wu for only a few months before being removed. Firstly, Mi Fu opposed Emperor Wu's extravagance and his costly wars that exhausted the people. Secondly, Mi Fu couldn't control the Climatic Anomaly sect, lacking Liu Tianning's strong hand.

"This is absolutely maddening! I only went into seclusion for a few months, how did this kid become like this?"

"What exactly did he do to make Ling Tianchen personally intervene?" King Tianyan asked.

"The 'Treatise on the Six Energies of the Great Zhou Heaven and Three Yin and Three Yang'!" Ji Anning said.

"Explain it clearly," King Tianyan didn't understand what that meant. He was an official and indeed knew a lot about司农, but it wasn't deep enough for him to understand a profound treatise.

"I don't actually understand either," Ji Anning shrugged. "The intelligence agents of the Academy assessed it as: 'With this treatise, it could establish a sect in ancient times.'"

"In the present, it can also have a significant impact on the司农 of the Climatic Anomaly sect, benefiting everyone."

King Tianyan gasped, taking a sharp breath. Ji Anning's words made him understand. This was the Climatic Anomaly Saint Son, for heaven's sake! If Ling Tianchen did nothing, his ancestors would grab him by the neck in the underworld and demand, "You scoundrel, why didn't you save him? Why didn't you save him, huh?" This might sound exaggerated, but King Tianyan felt it was close enough. You're not being asked to gamble with the survival of an entire sect, just to save someone. If Ling Tianchen couldn't even make that decision, he wouldn't be worthy of leading the Climatic Anomaly sect.

"Cousin, don't be too surprised," Ji Anning flipped another page. "Do you know what Kunyuan Academy did?"

"You scoundrel, stop holding back, speak quickly!"

"Meng Kun of Kunyuan Academy arrived at Youyou Commandery in Lvliang Prefecture around寅时..."

"What, how is that possible?!" King Tianyan interrupted. "From Daoyuan Prefecture's Kunyuan Academy to Youyou Commandery in Lvliang Prefecture, that's at least two million li. How could Meng Kun arrive at寅时? Did he open a new ancient underground tunnel?"

"Cousin is brilliant, you guessed it right," Ji Anning chuckled. "The 'Tongming Ancient Path,' which was not fully excavated during the Dingxin era, was opened by Meng Kun and his team in just one hour."

"He dispatched fifty nine-rank supreme earth dragon drilling ships and simultaneously ordered the thirteen saints, Xiao Zhe, to activate the Earth-Penetrating Divine Vessel, bringing fifteen 'Myriad Mountains,' heavy siege engines, with them."

King Tianyan was speechless. Listening to Ji Anning, not only King Tianyan, but even King Luo couldn't help but sigh, "Meng Kun is a master at excavating war fortifications. We even cooperated during the middle of the Dingxin era, but I never knew he became so capable." The ancient underground tunnels were left behind by the Ascension Dynasty, utilizing extremely profound techniques of earth and geomancy. However, few ancient underground tunnels survive today; throughout history, they were either destroyed or buried, making it difficult to reopen them. From Daoyuan Prefecture to Lvliang Prefecture! Meng Kun arrived at his destination in just two hours from the start of the operation. This efficiency truly shocked King Luo.

"King Liang's eldest grandson, Prince Xi, was captured, and his army of 500,000, along with over a hundred lower third-rank experts, were turned into 'earth cakes'."

"Did Ji Han just watch?" King Tianyan still found it somewhat incredible.

"Of course he didn't just watch. He prepared to go to the rescue at the first moment," Ji Anning said. "However, before he even mounted his beast, he was captured by Xu Xing outside Quan Palace."

King Tianyan's eyes widened, his expression even somewhat anxious. "That old madman has also taken action? Luo, Anning, you must stop him!" Xu Xing, leader of the Self-Nature sect and Dean of Shangluo Academy, possessed five top-tier Dharma bodies. King Tianyan and he were from roughly the same period, which was why Xu Xing had such a profound impression on him. The main reason was that Xu Xing's speed in achieving great success in the second layer of the Divine Derivation Art ranked among the top three in this dynasty. Before Liu Tianning appeared, five top-tier Dharma bodies were the limit, and Xu Xing's glory was unmatched. Xu Xing's rise to power was also very violent; he literally fought his way up. Through countless battles of the Grand Dao, he slaughtered all his opponents! Emperor Jing, known as ruthless in the eyes of aristocratic families, couldn't bear to watch any longer. He had to directly intervene in the election at that time, making Xu Xing the Dean early on. How could things continue if he kept killing? "I still need people, don't I?" King Tianyan also knew some little-known facts: Xu Xing had once done some unsavory things for Emperor Jing, and during the Dingxin reforms, the deaths of many tough characters were inextricably linked to Xu Xing. For seven generations of Grand司农, none were from the Self-Nature sect. Was it because the leaders of the Self-Nature sect were not strong? No, it was because they were too crazy! During Emperor Wen's reign, let alone that; even Emperor Jing dared not appoint a Self-Nature sect leader as Grand司农.

"Stop him? How do we stop him?" Ji Anning said with a bitter smile. "With his disciples and grand-disciples being assassinated like this, Xu Xing only killing a thousand or so people is already him showing restraint."

"Only His Majesty can make him stop. Fortunately, Xu Xing hasn't taken further action yet, and it's said that Ji Tao wasn't even killed."

King Tianyan let out a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness, thank goodness, only a thousand or so." As someone who knew Xu Xing's secrets, King Tianyan truly felt relieved. After all, he was old now, and his temper wasn't as fierce as when he was young. In his younger days, Xu Xing loved to play the "burn everything to the ground, Heaven and Earth perish together" move. But King Tianyan was still very afraid. Xu Xing was over 780 years old and didn't have much longer to live; if he went mad, the situation would truly be difficult to control. After all, the imperial court still wanted to minimize the impact of the King Liang incident. If it came to a point of using violence to quell violence, the Great Zhou's destiny would surely be damaged. The Eastern and Southern Wilds, and the aquatic tribes, were still eyeing them covetously. King Tianyan and other high-ranking officials of the Ji royal family naturally did not wish for the world to fall into such chaos. Listening to Xu Xing's mobilization, King Tianyan realized his palms were sweating.

"Following Profound Heaven Academy, Kunyuan Academy and Shangluo Academy successively issued similar internal decrees," Ji Anning said. "Cousin, Luo, that's the situation."

"I still have a point of confusion," King Luo asked. "Profound Heaven Academy acted because Zhao Xing produced treatises that impacted the Climatic Anomaly sect and could even calculate the strength cycle of the military realm passages."

"Shangluo Academy acted because of Liu Tianning and the 'Treatise on Self-Nature and Heavenly Matters'."

"What was Kunyuan Academy's reason?"

King Tianyan was also puzzled. King Luo had voiced the same question that was in his heart. Yes, what was Kunyuan Academy’s reason?

Zhao Xing quietly waited for King Tianyan in the room. He waited for a full seven days. Seven days later, King Tianyan re-entered the room.

"You've returned," Zhao Xing said, rising from meditation. "May I leave now?"

King Tianyan looked at Zhao Xing silently, a hint of helplessness in his eyes. "This… still needs further discussion."

"Ah, why?"

King Tianyan retorted with a touch of exasperation, "Why? Don't you have any idea?"

Zhao Xing looked somewhat bewildered. "This subordinate truly doesn't know what I've done."

King Tianyan tossed a scroll to him. "See for yourself. I never knew you had accomplished so many great things."

Zhao Xing opened the scroll and saw a summary of intelligence. It primarily recorded the actions of key figures from the three factions.

April 29th,寅时, Kunyuan Academy, Meng Kun, and the Thirteen Saints...

As Zhao Xing read, he was also somewhat surprised. He had only intended to borrow a bit of momentum. The result was a Category 12 hurricane! Zhao Xing didn't know what to say. He had already greatly overestimated, or rather, underestimated, the impact of the two treatises he had written. A half-step across eras, when applied to specific factions or events within that era, could lead to immeasurable consequences. Years later, perhaps no one would remember King Liang's rebellion, but classics would endure!

At this moment, Zhao Xing couldn't help but recall the assessment in Gucheng. He was fortunate he had been cautious enough then not to write anything earth-shattering. Now that he had written it, with his own strength and talent, he was capable of bearing these things, and the benefits outweighed the drawbacks.

King Tianyan, seeing Zhao Xing's expression, knew that Zhao Xing wasn't intentionally hiding anything. After all, he had mentioned writing treatises before, but King Tianyan, King Luo, and even Zhao Xing himself, had all underestimated the impact.

"Alright, I'm not blaming you," King Tianyan said. "Tell me, what's going on with Kunyuan Academy? You haven't published any treatises on the Topographical sect, have you?"

Zhao Xing shook his head. "I can confirm that I haven't. The content of 'Self-Nature and Heavenly Matters · Topographical Chapter' is about using plants to manipulate topography; it only barely touches upon it." Classics of the Topographical sect like "Return to the Houtu" and "Return to the Ksitigarbha" also touched upon the Self-Nature sect, but they wouldn't be revered by the Self-Nature sect as their own classics. Didn't the Climatic Anomaly sect's classic "Seasonal Edicts" have an impact on topography? Yet, it wouldn't be considered a work of the other two sects.

"Then what is it for? You can't be Meng Kun's illegitimate son, there's a generation gap there."

Zhao Xing said helplessly, "Perhaps it's because I promised Master Meng that I would write an essay for him to review later."

"That's possible?" King Tianyan was also enlightened.

"It should be so," Zhao Xing nodded. He hadn't expected Meng Kun to be so hardcore, but he couldn't find any other reason.

"My Lord, what should we do now?" Zhao Xing asked. The scroll also detailed other changes within the past seven days. For example, King Liang publicly declared on May 4th that he was unaware of the assassination attempt. It was the strategian 'Gu Wenhe' who acted without authorization. After discovering that Gu Wenhe had colluded with outsiders and practiced forbidden arts, he ordered Gu Wenhe's execution. There was no choice; King Liang was calling for support from various factions. If Zhao Xing and Liu Tianning could be eliminated silently, that would be ideal. Once the matter was exposed, someone had to take the blame. Although everyone knew what was going on, the facade had to be maintained. The life of a second-rank ritual cultivator. Ling Ruochen and Meng Kun were just one faction among them. Even if not to restore the司农's power, he still had to show it to other neutral forces.

King Tianyan stared at Zhao Xing's head for a moment, as if looking into the future. After a while, King Tianyan pondered, "I can shield your true body's heavenly secrets, but you cannot move around recklessly for a while."

"Let your seven-star fated souls merge into one. At most, you can only send out your clones to handle some logistical tasks."

"Yes," Zhao Xing nodded. He understood that King Tianyan was thinking for his benefit. The current conflict was too high-stakes; continuing to be high-profile might not be good for him.

"All three factions have expressed the same sentiment to me," King Tianyan said. "They don't want the imperial court to assign you any more dangerous missions, like assassinating King Tianxia. You can't do things like that anymore." King Tianyan was also under immense pressure. If Zhao Xing died under his supervision, Liu Tianning would go mad, and if Liu Tianning went mad, Xu Xing would go mad too. This would greatly interfere with His Majesty's plan. But some things can be done but not spoken. His Majesty's plan belonged to the category of things that could not be openly discussed.

"Even with Profound Heaven Academy, you no longer need to work with Hu Yang on the treatise of cave-heaven numerology. You can leave all of that to Hu Yang and his senior brother."

"Meng Kun originally wanted to send experts to pick you up, but the journey is too long, and there are too many variables, so King Luo and I rejected it." As long as Zhao Xing's true body was not in danger, Meng Kun and Xu Xing didn't care. As for Profound Heaven Academy, as long as Zhao Xing didn't continue to participate in calculating the cycle time of the military realm passages, a single clone of Zhao Xing would only have the strength comparable to a third-rank initial stage. Operating in Pinghai Prefecture, his influence would be much lower and irrelevant to the overall situation. With so many third-rank experts, one more Zhao Xing wouldn't make much difference, and one less wouldn't matter either. The three factions and King Tianyan and King Luo would rather Zhao Xing do nothing than exhaust his future. Zhao Xing quickly understood this and listened quietly.

"Your true body now has two places to go."

"One is to return to Chongming Prefecture, to stay in the Star Palace or the Princess's Mansion, both of which are absolutely safe." King Tianyan said, "The second is to go to Profound Heaven Academy in Tianyuan Prefecture, which is also absolutely safe. As for the reason, I cannot say too much." The reason he could not say too much was that Li Boqian was there. However, King Tianyan did not know that Zhao Xing had already met Li Boqian, but he was silenced and could not speak of it.

"What are your thoughts?" King Tianyan asked. Zhao Xing thought for a moment and said, "This humble subordinate chooses to return to Chongming Prefecture and cultivate in the Star Palace of the Military Realm Secret Domain."

"As for my clones, I choose to send them all out."

"This subordinate still wishes to do something for the imperial court and for the people of the world."

King Tianyan praised, "Your intention proves that Luo and I did not misjudge you."

"I will also convey these words to Xu Xing, Meng Kun, and Ling Tianchen."

"Your true body will return with me then."

"Yes."

Zhao Xing's true body quietly departed, returning to Chongming Prefecture with King Tianyan. He resigned from his position as Transfer Envoy of Tianhe Prefecture and withdrew all his clones from Tianhe Prefecture. This made Yao Yuanchun, He Zhengchen, Wu Xuan'ying, Zhang Ping, and others somewhat reluctant. Originally, King Tianyan had planned for him to withdraw even his clones from Mingyue Prefecture, to disappear completely for a while. But Ye Yukong expressed a strong request: "King Tianyan, no!"

"Let Zhao Xing stay a few more months, just five months—no, three months!"

King Tianyan smiled, "That depends on Zhao Xing's wishes, whether he is willing to leave a clone behind to help you."

Ye Yukong immediately looked at Zhao Xing eagerly. Zhao Xing found it amusing. High-ranking martial artists or ritual masters, due to differences in talent, already had significant differences in their understanding of the Dao. The same top-tier method could vary greatly in the hands of different people, just as with the first layer of the Divine Derivation Art: Zhao Xing could derive 49,999 strands, while an ordinary genius might not even be able to differentiate ten thousand. Different understandings of the Dao determined the strength and weakness of a method. Ye Yukong was undoubtedly a top-tier genius. His sword dao had surpassed "mastering the true meaning of the Five Elements Sword Dao" and reached the stage of "distorting rules." A second-rank Heavenly Fate realm master, who comprehended the destiny of heaven and earth, could only grasp the means of "distorting rules" after many years in the second rank. Ye Yukong was also a sword expert capable of influencing the rules of heaven and earth, yet he feared official duties like a tiger.

"Then I shall obey the Prefectural Lord's order." Zhao Xing bowed. King Tianyan had deliberately thrown the choice to him, wanting to solidify this favor from Ye Yukong. Having worked for so long, he should see the good deed through to the end. Leaving a clone here to help Ye Yukong wait for the Prefectural Lord's replacement, Zhao Xing estimated Ye Yukong would remember him for life.

"Good, good," Ye Yukong grinned. "It will be the same as before. You submit the document, and I will stamp it."

In Mingyue Prefecture, two clones ultimately remained. One was in the official service office, and the other continued the previous disaster prevention and relief efforts. Before leaving, Zhao Xing brought the Golden Body of True Monarch Tianyang back to Tianhe Prefecture.

"Grandmaster, I must leave now. Your disciple cannot remain here for the time being to listen to your teachings," Zhao Xing bowed. His true body was entering the Star Palace, so there was naturally no need to waste True Monarch Tianyang's divine power. Although his clones would continue to be active, they couldn't invite the Grandmaster to possess them.

"I am aware of your affairs," True Monarch Tianyang smiled. "Grand-disciple, remember to find me in Fengjing, Tianyong Prefecture, after everything is over. You must fulfill your aspirations; don't miss this great reward I have for you."

"Yes, thank you, Grandmaster." Zhao Xing rose and added another stick of incense for True Monarch Tianyang.

True Monarch Tianyang took a deep breath, nodded contentedly, and said, "Go now."

"Your disciple bids farewell."

On May 10th, Zhao Xing's true body and numerous other clones returned to Bixian Commandery in Chongming Prefecture with King Tianyan. Since they were already in Bixian Commandery, they had to visit the Princess's Residence. In the scroll King Tianyan gave him, Princess Youruo also played a very important role. Of course, even without that, he wanted to go home and see his family.

"Honored Teacher's Wife," Zhao Xing respectfully bowed in the Yonghua Palace.

"Not bad. This assassination wasn't in vain; you've matured somewhat," Princess Youruo smiled as she looked at Zhao Xing.

"Thank you for your concern, Honored Teacher's Wife."

"To cause such a stir in the three great holy lands of司农, even to the extent of dispatching the Earth-Penetrating Divine Vessel, you are truly unique among the young generation of司农."

"Now your reputation is even greater than your teacher's."

Princess Youruo's words were not an exaggeration. After this incident, Zhao Xing's reputation was resounding within the mid-to-high level circles. "The New Chapter of the Treatise on Self-Nature and Heavenly Matters" and "The Treatise on the Six Energies of the Great Zhou Heaven and Three Yin and Three Yang" would spread even wider in the coming time. King Liang essentially gave Old Master Zhao a free advertisement. This brought even greater prestige than governing a prefecture.

"You flatter me, Honored Teacher's Wife," Zhao Xing humbly said. "My teacher can move freely in turbulent situations; I am far too inferior to him."

"You will surpass your teacher one day," Princess Youruo said. "This is what your teacher personally said."

"Alright, don't stay here with me. Go see your family."

"Yes."

Watching Zhao Xing leave, Princess Youruo sighed.司丞 Liu Wanliang walked out from the side hall. "Why the sigh, Your Highness?"

Princess Youruo languidly said, "Ah, once people mature, happiness becomes rarer."

"The current Zhao Chenan is not as fun as he was a decade ago."

"Haven't you noticed his demeanor becoming more and more like Liu Tianning's?"

Leaving Yonghua Palace, Zhao Xing hastened to the Star Palace, a secret domain of the Military Realm. The moment he entered the Star Palace, several entries appeared on Zhao Xing's system panel.

"Affected by the divine artifact 'Creation Disk,' your fate no longer fluctuates. Current fate level: Derivation Six."

"The Star Palace is a crucial area for officials. My fate no longer fluctuates. The 'Mandate of Heaven' influence has disappeared, and Five-Finger Destiny, Observation Method, and Turtle Shell Divination have returned to normal."

King Tianyan merely led Zhao Xing to the Star Palace and then vanished again. He had many things to attend to; with Zhao Xing's true body now safe, he naturally went about his own affairs.

"Dream." Zhao Xing closed his eyes and entered the memory palace within his dream.

"Events are unfolding more smoothly than I imagined. My prestige has now exceeded my initial expectations," Zhao Xing mused. According to his past life's experience, his current range of prestige had already reached the provincial level. And he had leaped over the stages of being a novice and having a small reputation, directly reaching the level of being renowned.

"Purely in terms of gaining prestige from King Liang, my current goal has been achieved."

"Continuing to boost this sudden fame will only backfire."

"Appearing in the sight of top-tier experts once or twice is enough." Zhao Xing was not naive enough to believe that with the three great holy lands making such a move, King Liang had conceded and would no longer target him. He dared to rebel; why would he fear these things? It was merely a matter of self-interest. If Zhao Xing continued to be conspicuous and interfered with King Liang's grand plan, King Liang might personally devise a plan.

"The initial stage of the rebellion, reaching this point is enough."

"Next, I shouldn't pursue fame, but begin the second stage of the plan: accumulating favors." Zhao Xing reviewed names in his memory palace.

The second stage, also known as the rescue stage! "In the early stage of the rebellion, the feudal lords responded, primarily through other uprisings. King Liang's main legions did not engage in widespread slaughter."

"However, within a year of the Heavenly Fortune Golden List being activated, he couldn't sit still. The effect of his call for feudal lords to convene was worse than expected. If he didn't personally take action, this momentum would weaken."

"To use the small against the large, the momentum must be swift. If he doesn't seize this initiative with successive actions, he will undoubtedly fail. King Liang himself is well aware of this."

"He will call upon the feudal kings to complete the alliance, and then he will have to leave Pinghai Prefecture. That's when the great slaughter will begin, and even prefecture capitals will no longer be safe," Zhao Xing observed the list. "The people I need to save are those who would originally have survived; otherwise, I wouldn't have remembered them, and it wouldn't cause me to reappear on the Heavenly Fortune Golden List."

"In this situation, I'm practically collecting favors!" His current lists included future prime ministers, future second-rank masters, and future heads of major mechanical device departments. There were martial artists, ritual masters, ritual cultivators, sacrificers, agricultural officers, weavers, dancers, musicians—

"These people I'm saving are currently in their insignificant stages, but during Emperor Wu's reign, each held important positions."

"In Pinghai Prefecture, I estimate I'll save at least half of the high-ranking officials and powerful individuals from Emperor Wu's time with this one sweep."

"And quietly saving people can also solidify the reputation I've already established." Zhao Xing divided his reputation into "sudden fame" and "later fame." Sudden fame was what he had achieved in the past two months, suddenly filling the sights of mid-to-high-level officials and astounding them. Later fame was what he intended to build next. It was like after an earthquake; initially, everyone focused on the disaster and aid. Later, through data review, they discovered that someone had actually built many sturdy schools, protecting countless students. It wasn't obvious at the time, but it spread wider and wider later.

"Although I currently have ninety-nine clones, it's far from enough," Zhao Xing thought to himself. "I must quickly break through the threshold of a thousand Dharma bodies with the Strawman technique."

"Otherwise, relying solely on this current manpower won't be enough, and I can't do this alone."

"Building targeted shelters and establishing corresponding medicine depots—this is also better done with others."

"It's early May now. From this moment on, I will focus entirely on studying the Ten Thousand Dharma Clones."

"As long as I can possess one top-tier Dharma body, I'll have thousands of effective clones, fully utilizing the effects of the Divine Derivation Art."

Zhao Xing opened his eyes. He immediately went to the Star Palace's resource vault. The Star Palace's secret domain held many cultivation resources. This secret domain, accessed through the Chongming Prefecture entrance, was a small world, and it was not lacking in high-level resources. And all of these, King Tianyan allowed him to use freely. Zhao Xing had not only broken historical records but could also discover the correct cultivation method for the first layer of the Divine Derivation Art. Let alone a few resources, even if King Tianyan had to give his life, if it could help Zhao Xing, King Tianyan wouldn't bat an eye.

With a rustle, Zhao Xing entered the treasury and, like a swarm of locusts, swept up a large pile of chests. When he flew out, it was as if he carried a small mountain on his back.

"The Soul Devourer Dharma Body, one of the seven supreme Dharma bodies, is the foundation of all top-tier Dharma bodies," Zhao Xing thought, sitting cross-legged on the Star Platform. Liu Tianning's past teachings began to surface in his mind. "Once mastered, I can immediately possess thousands of clones, and each one will be able to cast top-tier spells."

"My second layer of the Yin-Yang Self-Nature Sutra needs to be fully comprehended."

"The true meaning of the Five Elements must reach the third-rank true meaning."

"At the same time, I must thoroughly understand the Eighteen Soul Devourer Dharma Body diagrams."

Zhao Xing's true body immediately began to cultivate. Meanwhile, the dozens of clones remaining outside also gathered together. The first person he contacted was Xia Jing.

"Brother Xia, where are you now?"

Xia Jing's unshaven face soon appeared in the earth mirror. "In Linhai Commandery of Datong Prefecture, Brother Zhao, are you well? I just heard you were assassinated, but you managed to scheme and kill several high-ranking individuals? Even Yushanzi died."

"Your information is quite timely," Zhao Xing chuckled. News transmission these days wasn't as fast as in the past. That Xia Jing could know the inside story so quickly showed his father's connections.

"I'm fine, but it's not convenient for me to do anything too attention-grabbing anymore," Zhao Xing said. "Now, I, your brother, want to do some small things. Do you want to participate?"

"It might not show any results in the short term, nor will there be much credit. It might even be a thankless task."

"Hahaha, you, Zhao Chenan, have 'small things'?" Xia Jing laughed.

"Perfect, brother. I'm currently leading a group of people on guerrilla attacks everywhere, and I feel like there are many opportunities for merit, but I'm like a headless fly."

"Don't ask me if I'll do it, just tell me when, where, how many people, and what kind of people you need."

"No matter how big or small the matter, I, Xia Jing, will see it through to the end!"