The First Demon of the Chan Sect
Chapter 456 - 143: A Thousand Words Complete, The Choice of the Sovereign

Chapter 456: Chapter 143: A Thousand Words Complete, The Choice of the Sovereign

"Boom!"

Regardless of Shi Huang’s current state, the Ninth Level Heavenly Tribulation arrived as scheduled.

Columns of thunder and lightning descended from the sky, all the purple rays connecting together, shrouding the world in a hazy purple qi that dazzled the eye. This was a world belonging to thunder and lightning, purple Divine Thunders everywhere; every inch of space exploded with brilliant light, capable of obliterating everything.

Staring intently at the Divine Thunders slashing down from the sky, Shi Huang’s heart was bleeding: "Decades of effort now in vain, does the Heavenly Dao truly wish to sever the Human Clan’s legacy, to block the prosperity of the Human Clan? I hate, oh how I hate!"

"We must endure, we must endure..."

Not far away, a group of cultivators from the Sacrificial Pavilion watched on, all of them silently cheering for the Human Ancestor Shi Huang in their hearts, hoping he would withstand this tribulation.

The Cycle surrounds the heavens; the Heavenly Dao is incomplete, thus nine is the ultimate number. If one survives the ninth layer of Heavenly Thunder, the clouds will disperse, and the lightning will vanish; the Human Clan shall flourish. If not, one’s body and Dao will perish, and the Thousand Character Human Literature will be but a pie in the sky.

Therefore, all forces across the Huaxia Land were watching this last layer of Heavenly Thunder.

"Hum!"

At this life and death moment, suddenly a purple qi came from the east, and a golden bridge flew over from the distant East Kunlun. Following the bridge was a quake that shook heaven and earth, completely shattering the space within a radius of five li; all the dark clouds were blown away, and the columns of thunder and lightning dissipated into nothingness.

"What’s going on?" Shi Huang, who was awaiting his fate with closed eyes, bulged his eyes out. The extreme swings were too torturous!

Standing afar, Ling Chen and Luo He watched with bright eyes, their bodies trembling with excitement.

"Brother, is it that thing?" Luo He asked in a trembling voice, swallowing hard.

Ling Chen narrowed his eyes, saying, "No doubt about it!"

Suddenly, Ling Chen pointed to the eastern Heavenly Vault and cried out, "Eh? Brother, look to the east..."

"Hum!"

Suddenly, in the East Pole of the Heavenly Vault, a myriad of purple qis rose, clouds swirling and steaming, reaching above Shi Huang’s residence in an instant. The Golden Bridge shimmered, and a slender figure in black and white appeared seated upon an Exotic Beast, coming into view.

In a moment, the figure became clear. It was none other than the Taiching Daoist Venerable, Lord Lao Zi of the Great Monad.

On East Sea Penglai Island, Li Qingming pointed at Laozi in the Water Mirror in front of him and laughed loudly, "See? I told you the fish would take the bait!"

Wang Shu, frowning her delicate nose, asked with confusion, "Qingming, how did you know the Upper Qing Saint would take action?"

Li Qingming, putting the fish that was on the hook back into the Lotus Pond, replied, "Master Laozi is the Human Sect Master. If Taoism is to flourish, it must leave behind its scriptures in the world. What Shi Huang is doing now is a magnificent feat to develop the Human Clan’s civilization. If it fails this time, who knows how many years it will be before the Human Clan sees the emergence of writing again. How could Master Laozi not be anxious?"

Wang Shu pondered for a long moment, gently nodding her queenly head, "What if the Taiching Saint does not take action?"

Li Qingming shrugged helplessly, "If he doesn’t take action, then I will have to! In the end, he is my disciple, and I must ensure his complete safety, mustn’t I?"

"This..." Wang Shu suddenly didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

...

At this moment, in the sky above Chen Capital, witnessing the Upper Qing Saint before him, Ling Chen’s figure flashed, pulling Luo He along as they flew over and bowed deeply, "Disciples Ling Chen and Luo He pay respect to the Ancestral Master, wishing Ancestral Master eternal peace and longevity!"

The cultivators from the Sacrificial Pavilion who were watching, as well as Shi Huang who was suspended in mid-air, also came back to their senses and bowed in unison to Laozi, "We pay respects to the Taiching Saint, may the Saint live forever without aging!"

Laozi gave a light smile, his grand hand gently sweeping across, lifting them up with a gentle force and softly saying, "Mm, rise, no need for formalities."

Everyone stood up in unison, their eyes filled with joy as they looked at Laozi.

Laozi addressed Shi Huang not far away, proclaiming loudly, "What you have done is beneficial to the Huaxia people; you should not be hindered by heavenly thunder. There is always a glimmer of hope under the Heavenly Dao, and this old man’s assistance is also out of desire not to see the Human Clan’s legacy severed! Shi Huang’s act, pivotal to the state, shall be recognized as the progenitor of human culture!"

"Hum!"

After Laozi spoke, the entire Cangqiong trembled once more, all the clouds and haze dissipated, and Heaven and Earth returned to clarity as everything manifested.

At the same time, Shi Huang also shook intensely. Something in his mind seemed to explode, and he unconsciously began to brandish the wooden hairpin in his hands. The Thousand Character Human Literature, which had been dispersed by the Heavenly Thunder, was once again inscribed by Shi Huang. With each character he inscribed, he meticulously explained its pronunciation and meaning.

As Shi Huang moved, the entire Huaxia Clan and even All Heavens and Myriads of Worlds followed their reading. For a moment, the call of the Human Clan resounded throughout Huaxia Heaven and Earth and all the worlds.

Its voice was so immense, it reverberated across the Cycle of Heaven!

Shi Huang held a wooden hairpin in his hand, tracing through the Void with it, each character round and perfect, a total of a thousand characters — not one more, not one less. The Thousand Character Human Literature collided and communicated with each other, emitting Divine Light, flawlessly spreading throughout Heaven and Earth.

As the saying goes, "The Great Dao has fifty, Heaven evolves forty-nine." Heaven and Earth are inherently incomplete, hence Shi Huang spent a full nine days to evolve these thousand characters to perfection.

"Boom!"

After Shi Huang successfully passed the Heavenly Dao’s trial, and once again condensed the Thousand Character Human Literature. Underneath the clear night sky, suddenly thunder cracked again.

Above the Heavenly Vault, a Merit Cloud of auspicious gold, a thousand zhang in circumference, leisurely floated over.

As the cloud arrived above Shi Huang, it divided into three parts. Two smaller strands of the Merit Cloud, each only dozens of zhang wide, one shot towards Laozi, who received it. Another streaked straight into the wooden hairpin in Shi Huang’s hand, becoming an Acquired Merit Treasure known as the "Historical Emperor’s Pen." As for the remaining approximately ninety percent of the Merit Cloud, it poured down like a torrent, directly entering Shi Huang’s body.

Instantly, Shi Huang’s Daluo Golden Immortal cultivation that had been at a standstill surged wildly, breaking through the shackles of his cultivation and reached the Quasi-Saint Realm.

Heavenly Dao sensed this, luck graced his soul. Shi Huang, holding the pen in one hand, looked up to the sky and declared, "I am Human Ancestor Shi Huang, today blending runes into characters, totaling a thousand. Henceforth, I shall open the legacy of civilization for the Human Clan! I beseech Heaven and Earth to bear witness!"

Suddenly, auspicious clouds gathered from all directions in Heaven and Earth, colorful rays fluttered, purple aura surged, and Golden Lotuses hung in the midair, a plethora of miraculous signs!

A group of human solemnly prostrated, chanting loudly, "Great virtue of Human Ancestor Shi Huang!"

Xuanyuan, who had always been paying attention to the dynamics in the southeastern corner of Chen Capital from within the hall, curled his lips into a contented smile, muttering to himself, "My Huaxia Clan shall prosper at last!"

...

In the time that followed, Shi Huang spread the characters among the Human Clan. With the aid of writing, humans dispensed with the cumbersome Tao Runes, abandoning the most primitive knotting and pictogram record-keeping. Everything that needed to be recorded seemed naturally inherited.

Throughout these years, Xuanyuan, as a disciple of the Saint and a disciple of Jie Sect, and following the stabilization of the Huaxia Clan, promoted Taoist teachings vigorously, building Three Pure Daoist Temples in the capital and several other major provinces. Moreover, as Cultivation was quite common at that time, the Huaxia people gradually accepted Taoism.

Under Xuanyuan’s leadership, the wheels of history finally began to turn, and agriculture, technology, and productivity developed rapidly, marking the Huaxia Clan’s official progression into an agricultural civilization.

Thus, another ten years passed and the Human Clan was thriving beyond compare. The capital bustled with people coming and going, the sounds of hawkers echoed ceaselessly.

The same was true for all other provinces, and Xuanyuan’s prestige continued to rise, now no less than Emperor Fu Xi and Earth Emperor Shennong.

At this moment, Xuanyuan suddenly felt a premonition that his time of Merit completion was near, and his days left among the Human Clan were numbered. Hence, he followed the example of Emperor Fu Xi and Earth Emperor Shennong Shi, seeking within the Huaxia Clan for a Great Sage who could inherit his position as Sovereign.

Yet, after many years of searching, although occasionally encountering the capable and virtuous, ultimately none were the saviors of their time.

As his cultivation deepened day by day, Xuanyuan knew he was not far from becoming Taihuang. Reluctantly, he convened all the civil ministers and military generals in the capital’s great hall to discuss the succession of the next Human Emperor.

Jizhou, capital great hall.

Over a hundred years had passed, yet Xuanyuan remained as dashing and graceful as ever. Seated on the dragon throne, he looked around at his subjects from all sides and said, "To all officials, I have reigned for over two hundred years now, the response from Heavenly Dao is growing more and more intense, I fear the day of my ascension is not far off. You should select a new ruler early to lead the Human Clan!"

"Your Majesty, our Huaxia Clan is flourishing, and the Nine Provinces abound with talent. I believe that as long as we search diligently, we will definitely find a virtuous successor!" Yu Hao stood up and respectfully said.

Xuanyuan frowned slightly, saying, "This matter needs to be dealt with as soon as possible!"

"Yes!"

All the ministers promptly took their leave to carry out the command.

More than ten years passed like this, Xuanyuan mobilized his ministers to search through the Huaxia Nine Provinces, but they never found anyone fit to ascend as the Human Emperor. However, Xuanyuan now felt that his ascension to Taihuang would occur in three years.

Left with no alternative, Xuanyuan could only choose the relatively more virtuous and talented Zhuanxu as the next Sovereign.

It should be noted that Zhuanxu was Xuanyuan’s grandson, the son of Chang Yi. Born near Ruoshui and residing in Qiongsang, his mother named Nv Shu, was impregnated one night twenty years ago when the starlight in the Cangqiong beamed down into her belly, from which Zhuanxu was born and was named Gaoyang.

Originally, Xuanyuan had no wish to pass the Sovereign’s position to Zhuanxu. After all, when Xuanyuan took over as Human Emperor, there was the incident involving Jiang Ke. But after searching through the Nine Provinces, only Zhuanxu had a reputation for virtue among the Huaxia people, coupled with Xuanyuan’s own lingering awe, he believed Zhuanxu would indeed be able to hold firm the position as Sovereign and lead the Human Clan even better.

With no other choice, Xuanyuan could only pass the position of Sovereign to Zhuanxu. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it at Qidian. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)