Chapter 98

In the depths of the mundane world, the primordial energy is often the thinnest. After staying in Qingxuan for a long time, Chen Lian found it hard to readjust to the human world. The qi he cultivated daily was merely used to renew his body and maintain its purity.

This is why cultivators often hide in the mountains and avoid the mundane world, unless their cultivation techniques require them to venture into it.

The mundane world is unsuitable for cultivating qi, but it is suitable for refining the heart.

The law is created by the heart. If one attains supreme wisdom, a single flower or leaf can become a world, unrestricted by the secular or the celestial realms.

The Great Wei Dynasty governs a vast territory spanning thousands of miles, making it one of the larger countries even in the Yuan Continent. The surrounding countries, though numerous, are no more than a thousand miles wide and far less powerful than the Great Wei, thus they must pay homage to it regularly.

Although cultivators are powerful, they rarely interfere in the rise and fall of human dynasties. The imperial power is tied to the hearts of countless people, so the emperor has the dragon aura, and every word and action carries authority. The saying "thunder, rain, and dew are all the emperor's grace" originates from this.

Even clay statues in the human world, when worshipped for a long time, can become divine, let alone an emperor worshipped by millions, whose benevolence and authority have been deeply ingrained in people's hearts since ancient times.

If an emperor is virtuous and commands the hearts of the people, even deities and Buddhas would be reluctant to oppose him.

From some records, Chen Lian knew that certain ancient sage emperors, though they did not practice sitting meditation or cultivating qi, could eventually transcend the great universe without calamity.

For a country as vast as the Great Wei, a change of dynasty is a significant event, yet it did not affect most of the provinces.

The emperor of the Great Wei Dynasty was originally surnamed Zhao. However, the previous emperor was weak and ill, so the empress took control. After the emperor's death, the empress ruled as regent and was revered as the "Holy Empress."

The Holy Empress, still unsatisfied, deposed her son from the throne at the beginning of the year, became the emperor herself, and changed the national title to "Great Zhou."

The empress ruled for thirty years, with her policies widely implemented and her influence deeply rooted in the court and the country. Therefore, even though the dynasty changed, it did not cause significant turmoil.

However, the three western provinces, including Qingzhou, rebelled under the leadership of a member of the imperial family.

Female emperors are not uncommon in this world. Among the myriad of countries, some only pass the throne to women or allow both men and women to inherit it.

However, in the history of the Great Wei Dynasty, this was the first time, and even in the previous dynasty, the most that happened was a regent empress who would eventually return power to a wise and enlightened emperor when she grew old and weak.

Despite the Holy Empress's efforts to eliminate many members of the imperial family during her thirty years of rule, the vastness of the world meant that some still remained or were in hiding.

People always have the侥幸心理 of climbing the social ladder, and the three western provinces, far from the capital, were led by the Duke of Qinghe, a descendant of the Great Wei's founding emperor's elder brother.

The Duke of Qinghe led a rebellion, and for a time, the momentum was so great that it seemed to shake the imperial court.

However, the Holy Empress, though a woman, made decisions far better than any ordinary man. She sat in the capital, mobilized the three armies, and quickly crushed the Duke of Qinghe's rebel forces in less than a month, demonstrating her swift and decisive actions, which may have been premeditated.

On his return journey, Chen Lian found Qingzhou much more desolate than when he left. Armies, whether rebels or imperial forces, always bring suffering to the people. Even if they claim to have strict discipline, the people still suffer.

Moreover, the rebel forces were not well-disciplined, which is why they were quickly defeated. The escaped rebels brought even more suffering to the people, though not to the extent of "no roosters crowing for a thousand miles," Chen Lian often heard cries of distress.

All he could do was eliminate the escaped soldiers and bandits who took advantage of the chaos, like weeding out weeds.

This was actually his first time truly killing, but he felt no particular emotion. With his state of mind, even a sea of corpses and rivers of blood would not disturb his peace. He would not feel fear, disgust, or nausea like ordinary people.

The road he walked was the one that the old Lord Chen had built to facilitate trade.

Chen Lian appeared unhurried, but he moved as swiftly as a cloud, swiftly traveling along the trade route.

Even so, he did not neglect to help the people.

If most cultivators encountered such situations, they might ignore them, as the world is vast and injustices happen all the time. It would be impossible to address them all.

Chen Lian was not a sword hero who would right all wrongs, but he could not turn a blind eye either.

Qingzhou was in sight, the city walls still standing, but the people were few and far between.

When he quietly entered the city and reached the Chen family's residence, he saw only ruins.

Although Chen Lian had expected this, seeing it still made him feel a pang of sorrow.

He remembered the old man who had eagerly hoped he would inherit the family business and the young woman who had often disapproved of him. He could still see the old man's wrinkles and the fine hairs on the young woman's earlobes.

He was not heartless, and he felt some sadness, but if he had to do it again, he would still choose to seek immortality without hesitation.

The sense of satisfaction he felt from helping the people earlier now seemed like a great irony.

He was not wrong, but he was indeed guilty.

A piece of talisman paper appeared in the air before him, landing in his left hand. He broke the skin on his right index finger with his thumb, drawing a bloodline. Without stopping the bleeding, he used his blood as ink and his finger as a brush, swiftly drawing a blood-colored cloud pattern on the talisman paper.

With a slight movement of his left hand, a paper crane flew out, bowed to Chen Lian, circled the courtyard, and then flew off in a certain direction.

Chen Lian's expression became solemn, and he followed the paper crane, his wide sleeves like wings, lifting him into the air. However, ordinary people could not see him, as he used an illusion to conceal his form.

The paper crane carried a bloodline, and if any of his blood relatives were still alive, it could detect their aura and lead him to any survivors of the Chen family.

******

Qingxiasan was the private property of the Chen family. Since Chen Lian left, no one had taken care of the Qingxiao Temple on the mountain.

In recent years, commerce in Qingzhou had flourished, and many villagers at the foot of the mountain had moved to the town, where they earned more by working than by farming. This led to the abandonment of the villages at the foot of the mountain.

Until two years ago, the last family moved away, turning the area into a desolate wilderness.

Even the fact that this mountain belonged to the Chen family was forgotten.

The stone steps leading up the mountain were overgrown with wild grass, almost unrecognizable. Several landslides had destroyed many of the steps.

Few knew that there was once a path up the mountain leading to a temple.

The paper crane landed on a pile of collapsed walls, and Chen Lian's figure appeared, moving closer and stopping. He walked behind the walls and saw a little girl, covered in mud, crouching in a corner.

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