Chapter 61: The Backlash of Killing the Goose That Laid the Golden Eggs

The news about Dong Shen naturally spread far and wide. However, Dong Shen managed to flee quickly, having already resigned from his official position and left the Capital on the very day the incident occurred. No one knew where he went.

It was only known that he exited through the southern city gate.

With him gone, there was nothing anyone could do. By the time the news spread the next day, it was impossible to locate him. Who knew where he vanished?

Thus, the matter lost its significance and became nothing more than a topic of idle gossip over tea.

As for what had happened, according to rumors from the Hanlin Academy, Dong Shen resented the fact that Immortal Fuyao only read miscellaneous books while ignoring the classics of ancient sages. He then took a copy of “Discourse on the State” to Wende Hall. The subsequent events were easy to guess.

Most people found this rather amusing. After all, Chen Xiyi was an immortal—likely even older than the sage who wrote “Discourse on the State”—and his knowledge was probably vast enough to encompass heaven and earth. To risk one’s future for such a trivial matter was truly a case of being blinded by power and ambition.

If he had actually presented the book, it would have only brought him humiliation.

As for why Chen Xiyi preferred reading miscellaneous books, people came up with their own explanations: the sacred texts in Wende Hall were simply beneath his notice, and he found miscellaneous books far more interesting.

Had it been anyone else, they would have been harshly criticized by scholars, officials, and literati notorious for their sharp tongues. However, Chen Xiyi’s reputation was well-established and deeply rooted, causing even these outspoken intellectuals to refrain from making careless remarks.

Everyone hoped to obtain the secret of Immortality from Chen Xiyi.

As for trying to force him through moral coercion?

Anyone with a bit of influence knew about the events in Lingqu City. If anyone dared to attempt coercion, they would be risking their lives—Chen Xiyi was not one to tolerate such tactics. If you dared to complain, he would not hesitate to kill.

Moreover, even if you wanted to try, the current Emperor Li, Wang Li, would have to approve.

If everyone in the world achieved Immortality, how could his throne remain secure?

If anyone dared to use such methods to stir up trouble, the first to act would not be Chen Xiyi, but Emperor Wang Li and his court officials.

They were the ruling class, and they wanted to remain rulers forever. If too many people gained Immortality, their share of power would diminish.

…

In Yongning Palace, Chen Xiyi closed a book. He no longer read in Wende Hall; since few people were interested in these miscellaneous books, he used his privileges to move them all to Yongning Palace.

He finished reading all 1,372 volumes and found them quite satisfactory, though he wished there were more.

For Chen Xiyi, reading was possible around the clock. He only needed to lie in bed for one minute at 23:59 to fulfill his need for sleep—sleep was merely a transition, not a necessity.

This was why he could read so efficiently.

The more he read, the more enriched Chen Xiyi felt. He even found traces of the Shanhe Sect in these miscellaneous books, which excited him even further.

Over the past half-year, he acquired considerable specialized knowledge from this collection.

For instance, he studied medicine, geography, Feng Shui, Formation Arrays, and more. Though it took him nearly half a year, he managed to become proficient in all of them. While there were 1,372 volumes, many contained only a couple thousand words, with the longest being around fifty to sixty thousand words. So, most of his time was spent learning rather than just reading, though the sheer number of books made it seem more impressive.

Of course, being proficient was one thing; applying this knowledge effectively required practical experience. At this stage, he was essentially engaging in armchair strategy.

As for Dong Shen? That incident had occurred over half a year ago and was long forgotten.

During this time, he also collected many books from the common people, though he had not yet found the time to read them.

‘More importantly, why has the cooling speed of the Cycle Function decreased?’

Logically, over half a year, the cooldown should have been nearly complete. Yet, it had only progressed from one-third to halfway, with half of the progress bar still remaining.

He had no idea what the underlying principle was.

Could it be that the cooldown was designed to increase over time?

Upon first thought, that seemed like a real possibility.

Of course, over the past half-year, he had not only been reading but also used his status to acquire vast amounts of resources. Describing him as having struck it rich would be an understatement—he essentially secured a steady supply of ordinary resources for the future. He even managed to accumulate a thousand TNT with triple Enchantment, which was quite extravagant.

However, he only produced a thousand of them. He did not make more, as it would be unwise to invest all his resources into one thing. He saved the rest to use as capital for other Modules.

Yet, by relentlessly exploiting Dali in this draining manner, he significantly weakened the nation’s strength.

After all, constantly taking without giving back would inevitably lead to high consumption.

However, this had not caused much unrest in the Capital. While Chen Xiyi squeezed the country dry, the Capital thrived on the scraps left behind.

Recently, however, resources had become scarcer. Chen Xiyi checked the Game Log and noticed that supplies were steadily decreasing with each delivery.

It seemed the exploitation had been too excessive, and Dali was struggling to recover its vitality.

Wang Li and others noticed this as well and appeared intent on shifting the burden to foreign tribes.

In other words, while Chen Xiyi consumed Dali’s national strength, the losses had to be recouped from neighboring countries. Continuously oppressing their own people was unsustainable.

Unfortunately, the Imperial Court was mired in debates. After all, waging war required money and provisions. Food was not an issue since Chen Xiyi did not demand it, but funds were genuinely scarce. Thus, no clear plan had been established yet.

‘Shifting the conflict is a good approach, though it might be a bit late.’

Chen Xiyi looked at the map. After zooming out, he noticed a large gathering of people in the south. If they were ordinary folks, it would not matter, but these individuals all had the prefix “Rebel” attached to their names.

‘Could it be that my excessive exploitation over the past half-year has driven the people to rebellion…’

Chen Xiyi was taken aback. Upon closer inspection, there were at least a thousand white-name NPCs with the “Rebel” prefix, and the number was still growing.

However, this development was recent, and the Imperial Court likely had not received the news yet. Alternatively, the rebels might have acted swiftly, seized the area, and blocked information from leaking out. Otherwise, how could there be so many of them?

Regardless of the circumstances, one thing was clear: the Imperial Court needed to suppress these rebels. If they were allowed to grow, his already dwindling resources would face even greater challenges.

As for those NPCs? What did they have to do with him, a Player? He did not know them, and they were not familiar to him.