Chapter 141: Purple Qi Luck
Chapter 141: Purple Qi Luck
There was a brief period of calm inside the Hall of Fate.
It wasn’t because Xu Changsheng was too handsome, but because these veteran immortals were all observing him. The usual enthusiastic pleasantry routine didn’t fit here.
It suited Xu Changsheng, the Calamity-Bearing Human King, even less. In a way, the current Calamity-Bearing Human King was a huge problem; anyone who got involved with him would face misfortune.
So, all the World Guardian True Immortals quietly observed, waiting for the Herb Gatherer to speak. They’d assess Xu Changsheng based on his responses.
Just as expected, once Xu Changsheng’s gaze had swept around the room, Xia Xiaowan spoke.
“Fellow Daoist Changsheng, it’s a long-held wish to meet you. I am Xia Xiaowan. I was once a Lost Ghost Immortal who mistakenly entered the Five-Tone Ruins. There, I gained the Herb Gatherer’s inheritance, and now I’m considered half a guardian of this realm. We invited you here today to offer you one of the positions as one of the Twelve Major Deities. Are you willing?”
“A place among the Twelve Major Deities? Aren’t they all filled? That doesn’t seem right,” Xu Changsheng replied with some doubt. Simultaneously, in the Mortal Realm, Li Si sneered inwardly. These bastards actually want to take my seat as one of the Twelve and give it to Xu Changsheng. Heh!
“It’s like this,” Xia Xiaowan explained. “Earlier, the World Guardian True Immortal Muan fell to demonic corruption, leaving a position vacant. The situation was urgent, and to prevent the Fortune of Heaven and Earth from dissipating, I had to temporarily assign a Cultivator in the Golden Core Realm to fill that deity role. I had to personally bear most of its burden. However, many fellow Daoists now propose that this rightful deity position be given to you instead, Fellow Daoist Changsheng. What are your thoughts?”
“Is that so? If I’m not mistaken,” Xu Changsheng frowned, “that Golden Core Realm Cultivator is called Li Si, correct? What a coincidence, I’ve met him a few times. Taking his divine position from him like this doesn’t sit well. Additionally, my cultivation isn’t sufficient to bear the weight of the Fortune of Heaven and Earth. We mustn’t make matters worse by forcing it.”
Xia Xiaowan sighed. “The situation is critical. The greater good must come first. You are the Calamity-Bearing Human King now, Fellow Daoist Changsheng. You urgently need the position as a Righteous God of Heaven and Earth as a support. Otherwise, the human Fate you’ve gathered in the Mortal Realm might not last three months.”
“As for insufficient cultivation, that’s not an immediate problem. As the Herb Gatherer, I can suppress the bulk of the Fortune of Heaven and Earth for you first. The smaller portion can be directly available to you in the Mortal Realm for protection and enhancement.”
Her words not only stunned Li Si listening from the Mortal Realm, but the other World Guardian True Immortals present were also left speechless. Previously, the Demon Tribe True Immortal Feng Qianli had asked to borrow some Fortune of Heaven and Earth. Xia Xiaowan had refused without a second thought. Yet here, for Xu Changsheng, she was essentially granting permission to mobilize vital Heavenly Fortune.
This was just damn unfair.
Earlier, Chisongzi, Feng Qianli, and others had fully supported stripping Li Si’s deity position and using Xu Changsheng as their shield. They couldn’t back out now without looking even worse.
So, everyone now stared intently at Xu Changsheng. They hoped this man truly was the humble gentleman he seemed to be, incapable of shady dealings, and would decline outright. Better yet, they hoped he’d do like that Li Si—keep the empty title but gain none of the real benefits.
This wasn’t mere pettiness on their part. They knew the immense dangers the Calamity-Bearing Human King would soon face. One misstep, and he’d fulfil his calamity and perish.
Damn it! If they’d known this was a way to obtain vast amounts of Fortune of Heaven and Earth, why were they stuck here as World Guardian True Immortals? They should have gone to the Mortal Realm to be Calamity-Bearing Human Kings!
That Heavenly Fortune was the ultimate hard currency, usable even in the Land of Infinite Vastness!
Sadly, they also knew how immense the authority held by the Herb Gatherer Xia Xiaowan truly was. Calling her the Ghost Heaven Emperor of this Mortal Realm wouldn’t be an exaggeration. Anyone daring to misappropriate her Fortune of Heaven and Earth would face dire consequences.
Moreover, it wasn’t even a possibility. Before the foundational rules collapsed completely, no one could just take Heavenly Fortune. They needed legitimate reasons and matching merit.
Instantly, all eyes locked onto Xu Changsheng. Zhao Qingxie watched him too, though her thoughts differed from the others. In such a serious setting, why did everything feel so absurd?
Sigh, I must be beyond saving, she thought.
For a full three seconds, Xu Changsheng seemed to agonize. His gaze was utterly sincere, his expression completely open. Finally, he gave a long sigh. “If that’s the case… I can only apologize to that fellow Daoist in advance. I shall explain myself if we meet someday. To preserve Heaven, Earth, and all life, what is one death for Xu Changsheng?”
Damn it!
Everyone was bitterly disappointed. Xia Xiaowan, however, didn’t mind. As the Calamity-Bearing Human King, Xu Changsheng rightfully deserved this deity position.
Before this, she’d placed some hope in that interesting Li Si making a splash in the Mortal Realm. If he could have established a kingdom based around Kaoshan City, leveraging the Blackwater River’s advantages, it would have been perfect. She could have then fostered him as the Calamity-Bearing Human King.
Sadly, worthless mud cannot hold up a wall.
Fortunately, this Xu Changsheng had emerged from nowhere!
Indeed, this was the true Child of Destiny favored by Fortune.
Dispensing with further talk, Xia Xiaowan immediately exercised her authority, transferring Li Si’s divine rights as a Major Deity directly to Xu Changsheng’s Idol of Fortune.
BOOM! Instantly, Xu Changsheng’s previously few-meter-tall Idol of Fortune violently swelled to a staggering thirty thousand meters! Was this really the effect of a Calamity-Bearing Human King plus a Righteous God of Heaven and Earth?
Everyone was stunned. Even Xia Xiaowan paused for a beat. Was this… too smooth? No, it can’t be. It must be mere illusion. This must truly be Heaven’s will. The formal investiture rites for a deity weren’t even needed; the transfer occurred the moment she willed it.
Well, if that was the case, there was no point holding back.
With a casual effort, Xia Xiaowan directed roughly one-fifth of the Fortune of Heaven and Earth straight to the Mortal Realm, linking it with the Yunhua Law Seal. Hmm, not directly bestowed onto Xu Changsheng, but now available for his controlled use; a certain amount could be expended.
BOOM.
Within the Hall of Fate, Xu Changsheng’s Idol of Fortune shrank by one-fifth.
Yet, it remained vastly larger than those of the other World Guardian True Immortals.
Therefore, Chisongzi and the others, who’d intended to use this matter to stir trouble, could only obediently seal their mouths. Xia Xiaowan, this Ghost Immortal Herb Gatherer, operated at unfathomable depths.
Unfathomable indeed.
Just how much Fortune of Heaven and Earth had she been holding back?
If there hadn’t been this Calamity-Bearing Human King Xu Changsheng, would she have kept hoarding it until the bitter end?
Instantly, Chisongzi, Feng Qianli, even Tianjizi, contemplated having their disciples vie for human kingship.
Because Xu Changsheng, as the Calamity-Bearing Human King, would inevitably come to a bad end. Wherever he went, calamity followed. The moment he died, they’d need a second Calamity-Bearing Human King.
Hmm!
If I only had a hundred portions of Purple Qi Luck, mused one inwardly, what need would there be to guard this blasted world? Wouldn’t it be far sweeter to just bolt as a deserter straight to the Land of Infinite Vastness?
As for Li Si in the Mortal Realm, he was utterly stunned. Xia Xiaowan had said one-fifth of the Fortune, but whoa, the Yunhua Law Seal now registered a sudden influx of a full one thousand portions of Purple Qi Luck!
This time, however, the Fate Forge remained silent.
Li Si dared not even think of hoarding it. This 1,000 portions of Purple Qi Luck were earmarked for the Calamity-Bearing Human King – indelibly stamped and sealed. Tampering would invite instant calamity.
Even though he was the Calamity-Bearing Human King himself.
The nature of it was fundamentally different.
So, how to use this 1,000 portions of Purple Qi Luck?
For now, it probably just worked passively. If that Big Fly tried ambushing him, calculating his whereabouts, cursing him, or bearing him ill will, it likely wouldn’t work anymore.
Li Si could probably just stand there, and Big Fly wouldn’t dare attempt to possess him.
It was the same principle earlier.
Back then, Big Fly could possess Mi Zhou’er. So why hadn’t it targeted Jiuxuanzi, who was right beside her?
Precisely because Jiuxuanzi, as a World Guardian True Immortal, directly commanded Heavenly Fortune that completely suppressed invasive threats like Big Fly.
In that instant, countless thoughts raced through Li Si’s mind. Meanwhile, back in the Hall of Fate, his own Idol of Fortune, representing his identity as the Kaoshan Patriarch, shrank with a swishing sound, shrinking all the way back down to nine inches tall.
Crucially, Xia Xiaowan seemed completely unaware of the 100 portions of Purple Qi Luck stolen earlier by the Fate Forge.
Evidently, that was impossible… Unless, perhaps that stolen 100 portions was never officially recorded…
“Thank you for your trust. Esteemed seniors, I must depart promptly,” Xu Changsheng said within the Hall, cupping his hands in a final graceful salute. His form dissolved into green smoke, returning to his Idol, which instantly faded back to the Mortal Realm.
Ignoring whatever thoughts lingered with the World Guardian True Immortals, Li Si became immensely busy. The title of Calamity-Bearing Human King was no joke.
Calamity-Bearing meant the inevitable disaster couldn’t be escaped. Whether delayed a month or three, it would come.
That 1,000 portions of Purple Qi Luck might slow it, but it couldn’t stop it entirely.
Because he needed to produce concrete, tangible results. Only with a solid foundation of mortal presence could he truly support the burden of Fate.
For instance, if a plague suddenly wiped out 400,000 of his 500,000 people? Be sure – the destined calamity would strike instantly. He wouldn’t just die; he would die more horribly than anyone, utterly annihilated both body and soul.
Therefore, action was essential!
Li Si initiated transmissions and began micromanagement on a grand scale.
First, he focused on the Blackwater River basin. Within the area covered by the Yunhua Law Seal, he designated three cities as core development bases.
The central one was Kaoshan City, currently settled by 20,000 people and the most advanced, boasting one Water God deputy and one Mountain God deputy.
Six hundred miles upstream on the Blackwater River lay Blackwater City. This city housed fifty thousand souls, surrounded by four towns.
Li Si unleashed a barrage of Divine Decrees:
Order the residents of all four surrounding towns to begin migrating towards Blackwater City without delay.
Command the Governor and Temple Priests of Blackwater City to immediately start building an outer district beyond the city walls.
He wasn’t worried about delays or insincere obedience. Under the control of the Land Deed Seal, their minds were an open book. As a last resort, he could always deploy the [Jiuxuan Spirit Response Deduction Method] to eavesdrop on their thoughts. Anyone truly defiant would be dispatched instantly.
Stern measures were necessary in chaotic times.
After the heavy stick, came the carrots. Several cycles of reward and strict oversight later, the chain of command down to the common people became obedient.
After all, the ruler they obeyed was an actual Deity.
Of course, cramming an extra twenty thousand people from the towns into Blackwater City posed huge logistical problems.
Li Si’s solution was brutally simple:
Everyone cultivates!
The first four volumes of the Floating Cloud Sect’s cultivation technique – freely distributed.
The first four volumes of the Lanshan Sect’s cultivation method – freely disseminated.
Combining the True Cultivator system (offense-focused) with the Spirit Cultivator System (defense/support-focused) provided a shield and a spear. As long as exceptionally powerful Evil Spirits didn’t show up, these should ensure basic safety for normal production and living.
Simultaneously, Li Si remotely commanded the Water God, Cheng Tianhao. He ordered him to personally lead his fleet north on the Blackwater River. Cheng Tianhao’s mission: transport essential supplies, share Kaoshan City’s developmental experience, and crucially, help establish a City-Encirclement Great Array capable of protecting an area of fifty square kilometers around Blackwater City.
And one equipped with its own Formation Anchor Core, naturally.
What? They didn’t have a suitable Formation Anchor Core? Ha! Wasn’t the Yunhua Sect’s Xu Changsheng silently overseeing everything?
Li Si was bending heaven’s will to his purpose now. A single person commanding four Nascent Souls! His capabilities were soaring to ludicrous heights. With his Creation Nascent Soul laboring, he could refine one Heaven-Simulating Array Anchor Core per day – akin to what the Floating Cloud Sect had relied on. Possessing that, even facing up to five Nascent Soul-level Evil Spirits simultaneously held far less terror.
The core principle: The human population MUST NOT decrease unnecessarily.
It took Li Si half an hour to streamline affairs in Blackwater City through dozens of Divine Decrees, ensuring all tasks were being diligently followed. Immediately, he transmitted his consciousness downstream along the Blackwater River. Five hundred miles below Kaoshan City lay Reed City.
Here too, he had established a minor deity presence. Without preamble, another storm of Divine Decrees commenced:
Order the residents from all three surrounding towns to migrate and consolidate their communities around Reed City. This would yield an estimated population of fifty thousand for the consolidated settlement.
Three days later, Water God Cheng Tianhao’s fleet would arrive. They would deliver vital supplies, establish trade links, and eventually help construct their own City-Encirclement Great Array.
These three cities centered on the Blackwater River basin would give Li Si a core population base of roughly 140 thousand. This region had the greatest ease of consolidation, precisely because Kaoshan City served as its mature backbone.
Kaoshan City’s ecosystem was running smoothly now, reliably producing surpluses. Li Si hardly needed frequent Divine Blessings to maintain prosperity spreading downstream. With Kaoshan City driving growth, both upstream Blackwater City and downstream Reed City would rapidly improve. Within one to two months, each city should have at least:
– One Nascent Soul Realm master cultivator
– Five Golden Core Realm experts
– Fifty Foundation Building cultivators
– Ten Thousand Qi Refining Level cultivators
Combined with their City-Encirclement Great Arrays, self-sufficiency would become perfectly achievable.
However, the western territory of the Pure Land posed a significantly greater challenge.
This region lacked anything equivalent to the crucial artery that was the Blackwater River. There was no navigable waterway to bind disparate settlements together.
Example: Greyrock City. Hundreds of miles north of it stretched a vast desert. Only one small town existed nearby. Truly, the heavens were high and the emperor far away here.
The saving grace was that Greyrock City had the backing of the Jiuxuan Spirit Sword Sect. Li Si only needed to supply them one Formation Anchor Core to deploy their City-Encirclement Great Array. Supplementing that with Soul Cultivation System manuals should ensure reasonable future development. If emergencies arose, Li Si could always act as an emergency delivery agent (“express courier”).
South of Greyrock City, another eight hundred miles down, lay Eastflow City – a major settlement housing seventy thousand people. Originally, a sizable river flowed here, feeding into the Blackwater River as a tributary. That river was gone now.
The Mist Demon King’s devastating blow had created a colossal crater which severed the riverbed.
This potentially prime development site was ruined.
Worse, deep within that monstrous crater lay something profoundly dangerous emanating palpable malice. Extremely troublesome.
Li Si faced a stark choice: eliminate that menace, or relocate the entire population of Eastflow City elsewhere.