Chapter 252 The Seventy-Sixth God

When Wei Yuan excitedly clasped the Crouching Tiger waist tag, the merit points flashed across his brow.

Then the slight smile on his lips completely froze.

The section representing merit points was still empty. Even killing minor demons and capturing painted skin slaves earned him three points, but the slaying of numerous evil gods in the Huai River region didn't leave him with a single point.

The Crouching Tiger waist tag showed no change whatsoever.

Then Wei Yuan discovered the difference.

The section representing the Records of Strange Powers and Chaotic Gods was glowing faintly.

With a slight thought, Wei Yuan called forth the Records of Strange Powers and Chaotic Gods, and a scroll flew out from the tightly rolled collection, slowly unfurling before him. It was initially blank, but then the shape of a river emerged from the left side, with kneeling commoners praying and offering sacrifices on the riverbank.

A person sat cross-legged above the river, wielding water as a sword, felling spirits and monsters that dared to call themselves gods.

A line of text appeared beside it.

《Records of Strange Powers and Chaotic Gods · God Chapter Seventy-Six》

The evil god of the Huai River caused chaos, and Si Li Xiaowei (Director of Retainers) Wei took action to kill him and restore order to the world.

Then, more text appeared, and the Records of Strange Powers and Chaotic Gods floated beside Wei Yuan, prompting him to write his name. It was then that Wei Yuan realized that his slaying of the Huai River god with the power of Wuzhiqi had not been converted into merit points, but instead recorded by the Crouching Tiger token as an entry in the 《Records of Strange Powers and Chaotic Gods》.

Moreover, it was categorized under the God Chapter.

Based on his previous understanding of the Crouching Tiger token, this wasn't a measure of merit, but a qualification.

The qualification to exchange for top-tier inheritances and treasures.

The most obvious choices were the Dragon Tiger Mountain's Twin Dragon Tiger Swords.

And the magical artifact inheritances from various eras.

It wasn't enough to simply have merit points to exchange for them; one had to accomplish something significant enough to be autonomously recorded by the Crouching Tiger token. The Crouching Tigers of past generations didn't want their treasures to be disgraced in the hands of later generations. It was a kind of selection process. Even the Crouching Tigers of ancient times couldn't always accomplish such great feats.

Wei Yuan exhaled, looking at the newly appeared record in his hand.

This kind of qualification was undoubtedly more valuable than mere merit points.

He reached out and wrote his name, Wei Yuan, in the blank space on the side of the record. However, the Crouching Tiger token didn't register it. After thinking for a moment, he converted his name into seal script, following the ancient writing style, and wrote it on the record.

The characters glowed, then the light faded, and the record closed.

Suddenly, the Crouching Tiger token opened, and as the record flew into the Han Martial Treasury to be preserved, an object shot out towards Wei Yuan. The latter was no longer the inexperienced youth he once was and reacted instinctively, catching the object in his hand. It was cold to the touch, with a faint ringing sound. It was a sword.

The strange activity on the Crouching Tiger token disappeared.

Only the sword remained in Wei Yuan's hand.

It seemed that after recording the record, he had received this object as feedback.

Could it be that this sword had passed through the hands of many Crouching Tigers?

Was it a kind of inheritance that could be accessed upon reaching a certain level?

Wei Yuan was curious and examined it carefully. The sword wasn't a broadsword like the Han swords used by military generals, or even a four-sided Han sword-like war sword. The blade was slender and sharp. Wei Yuan drew the sword, and the blade was still chillingly cold. Then, faint talismanic characters lit up on the back of his hand.

Wei Yuan sat down cross-legged, and a scene appeared before his eyes.

Moonlight Shadow.

At the same time, wisps of blue light climbed over the sword, entangling themselves on the back of his hand.

This was indeed an inheritance.

...

After the Moonlight Shadow supernatural power stabilized, Wei Yuan saw an ancient city. In a majestic and simple academy, a young man was lecturing, occasionally mentioning astronomy, geography, and the apocryphal texts of the Yellow River and Luo River, all with great proficiency. Wei Yuan looked up and saw that the place was large and densely populated.

There were at least several hundred people listening to his lecture.

Almost all of them were older than the young man.

It was a grand and awe-inspiring sight.

Those around him couldn't see him, and they listened with rapt attention. Wei Yuan found a quiet place and listened quietly. After a full hour, the lecture ended, and the young man descended with his books. The hundreds of students all respectfully paid their respects as if to a teacher.

The young man, however, only returned half the courtesy.

Wei Yuan saw that the clothes he was wearing were the same as those of the listeners.

All of them were students.

But clearly, it wasn't simple that these people learned from him, and the scene followed the young man's actions. Wei Yuan slowly followed behind him, seeing his calm and gentle expression, his impeccable manners in dealing with people. He had a sword at his waist, the very one that had appeared from the Han Martial Treasury.

The young man finally met up with another person. That person had lively eyebrows and looked a bit older than the lecturing youth. His skin was bronze, and his face was full of vigor. Seeing the white-robed youth, he smiled and teased, "Fu Han, your reputation is growing! Hahaha, even the instructors at the Imperial Academy have to admit your talent."

The youth called Fu Han smiled wryly and said, "Zhong Sheng, please don't make fun of me."

Zhong Sheng chuckled and spread his hands, saying, "How is this making fun? You are a descendant of the Marquis of Liu, young and promising, well-versed in Confucianism and Daoism, and knowledgeable in astronomy and geography. More than a thousand scholars follow you. I'm just stating the facts."

The white-robed youth was speechless.

Zhong Sheng put an arm around his friend's shoulders and laughed, "Let's go, let's go. It's rare that you have free time. I'm two years older than you, and I still have my elderly mother to take care of. I'll have to leave Luoyang soon. Let's have a good gathering today."

Zhong Sheng was clearly poor. Even though he had entered the Imperial Academy due to his family background, he could barely make a living here. Asking someone out was beyond his means. When the youth blinked his eyes and shamelessly looked at his friend, the white-robed youth had no choice but to honestly take out his money pouch. Zhong Sheng was overjoyed, spending all the money in the pouch to buy wine and meat. His family was poor, so they simply went out of the city.

At this time, the Han Dynasty was powerful, and the area around the capital, Luoyang, was naturally safe.

They found a mountain, avoided the spring outings, and sat on a high slope, from which they could see the prosperity of Luoyang in the distance. Zhong Sheng sighed contentedly, placing the wine and dishes on the rock. He knocked open the mud seal of the wine jar, tilted his head back, and drank, exclaiming how wonderful it was.

The white-robed youth poured the wine into a cup and drank, being ridiculed and teased, only shaking his head with a smile.

As they ate and drank, Zhong Sheng burped from the alcohol and looked at the distant prosperous capital, sighing, "I have to go back soon. I still have an older brother at home, so I can't enter the court first. Besides, my younger sister hasn't grown up yet, and my mother is getting old. It's not like you, whose talent is already known and will surely rise to great heights."

The white-robed youth took a sip of wine and said calmly, "But I don't like these..."

Zhong Sheng asked in surprise, "What's not to like?"

The youth replied, "The Confucian strategies for governing the country can't achieve longevity and can't answer the mysteries of life and death."

Zhong Sheng scratched his head and said, "Longevity? How many emperors throughout history have sought immortality, and which one succeeded?"

"A true man should make unparalleled achievements in this world and be granted nobility and high office. If you seek longevity, why not follow the ancients and search for the immortal flower on West Kunlun? The elixir of life in the Classic of Mountains and Seas? They should be able to solve your problem."

The white-robed youth said, "That's because you don't know, Zhong Sheng. The ancient gods haven't manifested in the world for a long time. The kylin and the bo beast were already things of Confucius's time, and West Kunlun hasn't appeared for a long time, nor has it responded to sacrifices. It's as if those gods that existed in ancient times have all disappeared."

"On the contrary, demons and mountain spirits are becoming more and more numerous, seizing incense offerings."

Zhong Sheng thought for a moment and said, "Didn't His Majesty also enfeoff mountains and rivers as gods?"

"It's enough to have these mountain and river gods responsible for regulating the earth's veins."

The white-robed youth shook his head again and said, "What is born from heaven and earth and comes from West Kunlun are celestial gods; while the imperial decrees of the human world can only be called earth spirits, not gods."

"They are born with the fortune and sacrifices of the human dynasty, linked to the fate of the country, sharing both glory and disgrace. When the dynasty is strong, they can naturally summon wind and rain, but when the dynasty declines, how many of these earth spirits can survive? Even if they survive, how many can receive sacrifices again?"

"If the new dynasty enfeoffs other beings, wouldn't the original earth spirits become illicit deities?"

"They can only do things that add to the splendor, but can't provide help in times of crisis, so what's the use? If a dynasty collapses, they can't resist demons and evil cultivators. It's even possible that these earth spirits that the dynasty once enfeoffed will fall into the path of demons."

Zhong Sheng took a swig of wine and said, "The ancient celestial gods have disappeared, and you look down on those enfeoffed by the dynasty."

"So what do you want to do?"

The white-robed youth stood up, looked at the distant capital, and exhaled a mouthful of wine, saying, "The celestial gods are not of our race, so we cannot rely on them, and the earth spirits follow the imperial mandate, rising and falling with the dynasty!"

The refined youth spoke with a grand spirit and soaring ambition.

He pointed to heaven and earth and said, "Then why can't we, the people of the Divine Land, create our own order, not celestial gods, not earth spirits, but descendants who can all summon wind and rain, subdue demons and eliminate evil, passing it down from generation to generation, protecting our people of the Divine Land from harm!"

Zhong Sheng was stunned, then suddenly burst out laughing, "Zhang Ling, you're having a pipe dream!"

The white-robed youth blushed and sat down, saying, "Whether it can be done is still unknown."

Zhong Sheng suppressed his laughter, feeling that his friend was drunk and talking nonsense, so he said, "Then how will you accomplish this great task? Even if you can live longer than ordinary people like your ancestor, the Marquis of Liu, can you do such a thing?"

The youth replied, "Sons and grandsons, endlessly. I will establish a sect and recruit disciples widely."

Zhong Sheng said, "Tsk, disciples, but the Imperial Academy isn't cheap now, and private schools also cost money."

Zhang Ling said, "Then I won't need to pay tuition."

Zhong Sheng said with a chuckle, "Then you can't do it either. What will you eat when you establish a sect? Even if you can dig wild vegetables, they won't fill your stomach."

The white-robed youth thought seriously and said, "Then how about joining for just five pecks of rice?"

Zhong Sheng was dumbfounded, then suddenly burst out laughing, his stomach hurting. Later, he realized that his friend didn't seem to be joking and rubbed his stomach, saying, "Okay, okay, I'll give you that, but how can this, *pfft*, Five Pecks of Rice Cult, tell whether future disciples are good or bad? By then, you'll be long dead."

Zhang Ling said, "It's simple. You and I both have registers, so I'll compile something similar to the household register, and call it a *lu*, to prove identity."

"Only by obtaining this legal register can one mobilize the power of this formation."

Zhong Sheng opened his mouth and said, "Are you serious?"

Zhang Ling said calmly, "Yes, I've decided to leave the Imperial Academy soon. The celestial gods have already left, and the earth spirits will rise and fall with the dynasty. But even if the dynasty collapses, the cities built by the previous generation can still be used and can still resist foreign enemies and bandits."

Zhong Sheng's smile faded, and he said, "What if other Qi refiners also learn your method..."

The white-robed Zhang Ling replied, "The Great Wall of Qin wasn't built by his power alone. There were also the Great Walls of other states during the Warring States period, which eventually became a vast ten-thousand-mile structure. If the various sects of Qi refiners in our Divine Land work together, even if West Kunlun has left the world, we can still build a vast Great Wall that is difficult to see with the naked eye to resist foreign demons."

Zhong Sheng clicked his tongue and scratched his head, saying, "But that's too difficult. You won't be able to succeed in your lifetime."

Zhang Ling sighed, "Perhaps. After people die, their souls return to the universe, and their cultivation can build this invisible Great Wall. Maybe there will be no progress for a hundred years, and nothing will be gained for three hundred years, but I believe that after a thousand years, this ten-thousand-mile city will surely be built, protecting the people of our Divine Land, and with a single talisman, we can summon wind, rain, thunder, and subdue foreign demons."

Zhong Sheng looked at Zhang Ling's serious appearance and laughed loudly, "As expected, a pipe dream!"

Zhang Ling took a swig of wine and said, "Don't talk about me, what about you? After returning home, will you wait for an opportunity to enter the court as an official?"

Zhong Sheng fell silent and said, "My father is a historian, but I don't want to be a historian. Before those old men retire, I can only assist them. Heh, I don't want to."

He tilted his head back, took a swig of wine, and suddenly stood up, pointing to Luoyang in front of him and shouting, "A true man has no other ambition, but should follow Fu Jiezi and Zhang Qian, who made meritorious contributions in foreign lands to obtain nobility. How can I spend my time with pen and ink for long!"

His voice was impassioned, but a woman's laughter came from across the woods. It turned out that others were on a spring outing, and they vaguely heard the voice criticizing him for talking big. The youth's face turned red, and he sat down awkwardly. Now it was the white-robed Zhang Ling's turn to be stunned, and he suddenly pointed at the youth and laughed, "Ban Zhong Sheng, how come you're also daydreaming here?!"

Ban Zhong Sheng gritted his teeth and said, "You wait, I will surely be granted nobility one day!"

The white-robed youth smiled and nodded.

Signaling for him to continue speaking, he was listening.

Ban Zhong Sheng was furious, pointing to the vast sky and roaring, "Be granted nobility!"

"I want to be granted nobility!"

"And not a noble title named after a fiefdom. Such noble titles are passed down from generation to generation, and there will be countless more in later generations. A true man should do it like the Marquis of Champion, being granted nobility for merit, making unparalleled achievements, and having a distinguished reputation, so that even after a thousand or ten thousand years, when people mention this title, it can only be me, Ban Zhong Sheng!"

The white-robed youth finally laughed heartily, "Daydreaming!"

People passing by on their spring outing heard the youths' voices and only chuckled. This was Luoyang, the prosperous Central Plains. The youths of this city could dream whatever they wanted. Dreaming was originally the privilege of young people. They left without putting it in their hearts.

The two youths lay drunk on the hillside, spending the night there.

The next day, the two youths, experiencing their first hangover, rolled around on the hillside, their heads aching.

They almost fell down the mountain.

Their faces were pale.

When they left, Zhang Ling took off his sword and handed it to Ban Zhong Sheng, saying, "This is a promise."

"Do you still remember what you said yesterday?"

Ban Zhong Sheng took the sword, wore it at his waist, and reached out his hand, saying frankly, "I, Ban Zhong Sheng, will surely make our Great Han strong again, so that wherever the sun and moon shine, wherever the mountains and rivers extend, all will be our subjects!"

"As long as I am here, that will be the Great Wall of the Western Regions."

Zhang Fu Han smiled and said, "I will go to various places to cultivate. If possible, I will reshape an order for our Divine Land that is no less than the age of gods. If one generation doesn't succeed, then countless generations will. This vast Great Wall will eventually be built. My Great Wall will not be inferior to your 'Great Wall'."

"Hahaha, you're destined to lose."

"That's not necessarily true."

The youths slapped hands and parted, laughing and heading towards their respective fates. They never saw each other again in their lives. When the elderly Ban Dingyuan passed away, what he entrusted to the next generation was the Western Regions, which relied on the Central Plains of the Divine Land as if it were their mother, and the fifty-odd states that submitted to the Great Han.

The sword in his hand pointed forward—

Ten-Thousand-Mile Nobility, Ban Dingyuan.

Unparalleled throughout the ages.

And in that year when the flowers of Luoyang bloomed and all the children and youths were singing the praises of Marquis Dingyuan, Zhang Ling completed his three years of alchemical refinement. In that year, the Dragon Tiger Qi actually came from one person.

Then the Celestial Master entered Shu.

Felling mountains and destroying temples, he opened the lineage of the Daoist gate, calling himself Zhang Daoling.

That sword was now here. The sword in Wei Yuan's hand slowly dimmed, and his eyes were dazed. The past scene ended again. The Marquis of Dingyuan, who had once established the Protectorate of the Western Regions, and Zhang Daoling, who had established the two-thousand-year-old Celestial Master lineage, were actually the same age and had crossed paths in that era.

A talisman appeared on the back of Wei Yuan's hand.

It was the *lu* of the Zheng Yi Meng Wei Dao—

The first *lu*.

Representing the ability to cast spells, to invoke the power of heaven and earth, representing the rules and order that generations of true cultivators had built for the Divine Land with their cultivation, no less than the age of gods, representing the invisible Great Wall that soared above the sky, representing the most romantic miracle that the first Celestial Master had dreamed of for a thousand years.

The foundation of the talisman system of the Divine Land, a unique great supernatural power that has spread for more than two thousand years.

The core reason why the transcendent order of the Divine Land has always been maintained, and why any foreign divine system can only try to steal and assimilate, but cannot start a divine war.

Neither celestial gods nor earth spirits.

But the most vast dream that the humans on this ancient land, generations of true cultivators, share together.

Its name is—

Heaven!

All my disciples, upon receiving the *lu*, can cast spells, summon the power of heaven and earth, and establish the righteous Dao of the Three Heavens.

Zheng Yi Meng Wei.

Gifted by Zhang Daoling.

Ban Dingyuan's promise.

The *lu* is complete.

...

Dragon Tiger Mountain · Celestial Master's Mansion.

An old Daoist was dozing off.

On the highest level of the generational records.

Below Zhang Daoling's name, the original hidden *lu* text emerged. This was the identity record representing the conferred Daoist, and that hidden talisman slowly transformed, eventually taking shape as somewhat crooked clerical script—

Wei Yuan.

Listed alongside Zhao Sheng and Wang Chang.

On the mountain, a young Daoist was playing and passed by, being grabbed to recite the scriptures. Some Daoists were leisurely making zithers, and some were lying in front of the lotus pond, dozing off. No one noticed that in the lotus pond, an ancient lotus seed from more than two thousand years ago was slowly sprouting.

Just hidden in that magnificent lotus pond, unremarkable.

ps: One of the functions is to perfect the talisman system

Alternate world, and the Eastern system is set up without a true sense of heaven. After all, if there really are heavenly gods, then many things are not easy to explain, but instead choose the original mythology, ancient gods.

In the end, it is a story of people, a story of heroes.

Historical records say that Ban Chao had great ambitions, was unconstrained by trivial matters, and was born in 32 AD.

Zhang Daoling was once at the Imperial Academy and was born in 34 AD.