Journey to the West: I have Nine Golden Crows Inside Me
Chapter 1056 - 763 The drawbacks of the City God system

Chapter 1056: 763 The drawbacks of the City God system

Fate Divine Dao was said to be fate, but in reality, it was the fate of a nation, combining the power of countless people to establish a great nation and thus condense its fate.

The stronger the nation, the stronger its fate, and therefore, the greater the strength of the gods conferred by it.

Incense Fire Divine Path, on the other hand, did not require the establishment of a nation, mainly relying on faith. As long as people were willing to worship, this path could continue indefinitely.

"Unparalleled Divine Ability!"

Having finished the Emperor’s Divinity Enshrinement Technique, Jiang Chen’s heart was filled with shock. This divine ability was truly crucial for him, and its intricacies perfectly complemented the Incense Fire Divine Path.

Jiang Chen had a premonition that if he could integrate the Incense Fire Divine Path with the Fate Divine Dao, he could create a stronger, more perfected Divine Dao.

At the same time, he might achieve what neither the Ancestor of Soldiers nor King Wen had accomplished with the new Divine Dao.

"If I integrate the method of Fate Enshrinement recorded in the Emperor’s Divinity Enshrinement Technique into the Incense Fire Divine Path, then I will have the ability to confer gods."

Jiang Chen had long known about the flaws of the Incense Fire Divine Path, the most significant of which was in the area of conferring gods.

The gods conferred by the Fate Divine Dao, as long as one was willing to expend fate, could instantly create a great expert. However, this was not the case with the Incense Fire Divine Path; the gods it conferred could not immediately possess great power and needed a process to become stronger.

The Aspiration of All Beings was incredibly powerful, containing the various thoughts of countless living beings. Only naturally-born Incense Fire Divine Spirits could easily bear it.

The gods consecrated later, faced with the overwhelming Aspiration of All Beings, could only slowly refine it to maintain their minds and not lose themselves to the impact of willpower.

Thus, the gods conferred by the Incense Fire Divine Path could not immediately possess great power like those of the Fate Divine Dao; they needed a process to get stronger, to alleviate the aftermath of the impact of the Aspiration of All Beings.

Of course, the Fate Divine Dao was not without its drawbacks—consecrating gods required the consumption of fate, and the more powerful the god consecrated, the more fate needed to be consumed. However, gathering fate was not as simple as collecting the Aspiration of all beings.

Therefore, the Fate Divine Dao rarely conferred gods and would not easily confer powerful gods. Moreover, the gods born of fate needed to absorb more fate to advance.

However, fate was the most coveted treasure in the Prehistoric World, the most coveted object Between Heaven and Earth. How difficult was it to compete for it? One could tell just by looking at the gods listed on the Investiture of the Gods. After countless years, their cultivation hadn’t advanced an inch, which indicated the difficulty of competing for fate.

By simply comparing, one could see the advantages and disadvantages of the two paths. Although the Fate Divine Dao had a high starting point, its path to advancement was extremely difficult. Without sufficient fate, even enduring for millions of years might not necessarily lead to progress.

The starting point of the Incense Fire Divine Path might be low, but because willpower was easier to obtain than fate, their path to advancement was smoother. As long as they earnestly protected the people, with the passage of time, their divine power would naturally grow stronger.

Moreover, the difficulty of largely conferring gods through the Fate Divine Dao restricted the number of gods, but the Incense Fire Divine Path did not have this concern—they could confer as many gods as they wanted. Of course, whether they could grow, that was another matter.

"Adopt the strengths and compensate the weaknesses, that is the right principle!"

It seems that the Incense Fire Divine Path far surpasses the Fate Divine Dao, with a clear path to advancement and numerous quantities, but in reality, this is not the case.

Under normal circumstances, the beginning of the Divine Dao of Fate might just be the endpoint for many Gods of Incense, and even, it might be a realm they could never reach in their lifetime.

Cultivation is not a simple matter.

Therefore, merely comparing the two’s differences is meaningless. Drawing on each other’s strengths to offset weaknesses is indeed the most appropriate path.

"By integrating the Incense Fire Divine Path with the Divine Dao of Fate, we could address the low starting point of the Incense Fire Divine Path, and at the same time, we could solve the difficulty of promotion within the Divine Dao of Fate,"

Jiang Chen pondered in his heart how to perfectly merge the two paths. This was a major project. He needed to combine the strengths of both paths so that the new Divine Path would possess all the advantages of both the Incense Fire Divine Path and the Divine Dao of Fate. This was not something easily achieved.

In Jiang Chen’s conception, the new Divine Path, while solving the low starting point of the Incense Fire Divine Path through the Investiture of the Gods by Fate, would also draw on the Aspiration of All Beings as the source of power, thus solving the difficulty of promotion within the Divine Dao of Fate.

With Fate as the base and Willpower as the step for promotion, this Divine Path, formed through the integration of the Incense Fire Divine Path and the Divine Dao of Fate, is the most complete Divine Path.

"The city god system that I have envisioned fits perfectly with the concept of the new Divine Path, and it could be tested with this."

A thought struck Jiang Chen, and he thought of the Incense Fire Divine Path system he was currently testing at Cang Mountain. He hadn’t found any issues with it before, but now, by combining it with the Divine Dao of Fate, he discovered significant flaws in the city god system he had created.

Normally, the choice of a city god should be a member of the Human Race who had made significant contributions to the Human Race during their lifetime. Such a person, greatly loved by the populace, would easily be accepted as a city god if appointed.

Otherwise, appointing a stranger as a city god without a period of adjustment, how could he gain the trust of the local people?

The foundation of the Incense Fire Divine Path lies in the word "trust": when all beings trust in a god, the god exists; when they do not, the god naturally ceases to exist.

From another perspective, the Incense Fire Divine Path is based on the foundation of turning the false into the true. Originally false, but becoming true as more people believe it.

Being beneficial to the people during their lives and being appointed as a city god after death is good both for the deceased and the population. The deceased becomes a city god and achieves eternal life, while the populace gains the protection of the city god and live better lives; isn’t it perfect for everyone?

However, the souls of mortals are weak and find it hard to bear the massive infusion of the Aspiration of All Beings, turning them only into the lowest level of gods. However, how could a city god who is meant to protect a region be weak?

Initially, Jiang Chen had assigned disciples of the Shangqing Palace as city gods, and hadn’t considered this issue. However, now, he suddenly realized that the city god system was to be rolled out across all humanity, ultimately relying mainly on mortals, with cultivators as support.

Thus, the problem of powerless city gods had to be solved. Otherwise, a group of powerless city gods presiding over regions might directly become fodder for demons.

When divine cultivation reaches a certain stage, the rules of the Heavenly Dao spontaneously emerge within the cultivator’s body, which is highly beneficial for all cultivators. Therefore, it can be imagined that if the city gods are powerless, they might attract much covetous attention.

And the Divine Dao of Fate could just address this shortcoming of the city god system.

Those who had rendered great services to the populace during their lives would naturally receive corresponding Fate and Merit after death. By appointing them as city gods using the Emperor’s Divinity Enshrinement Technique, their Fate can be transformed into power, allowing them to grow in the shortest amount of time.

ps: Staying up late results in a nosebleed, will update during the day tomorrow.