The Human Emperor Palace was revered throughout the Nine Provinces, its status transcendent. One of its duties was to mediate between the various powers to prevent death feuds among immortal cultivation factions, which would lead to widespread suffering and devastation. When one cultivated to the peak, a single thought could topple mountains and overturn seas.
If two such individuals were to fight to the death, the harm it would bring to the Nine Provinces Continent was imaginable. There was such a case in history. At that time, the old Human Emperor had passed away, and a new one had not yet emerged.
A conflict arose between an Ancient Sect and an Imperial Dynasty, which eventually escalated into an irreconcilable clash. The two sides went to war, striking without mercy, sweeping through half of the Nine Provinces. Any who dared to step forward and advise caution were jointly annihilated by the Ancient Sect and the Imperial Dynasty.
It was not until the new Human Emperor, Jiang Li, ascended to the throne, carrying the will of all living beings, that he slayed the Ancient Sect's Sect Master and the Imperial Dynasty Lord, finally quelling this Nine Provinces Slaughter Calamity. On the Nine Provinces Continent, Imperial Dynasties and sects stood in great numbers, competing with and promoting one another.
This was the policy set by the First Generation Human Emperor, and also the conclusion reached by successive Human Emperors through repeated deductions. Those who pursued immortal cultivation had a side that sought long life, but also a valiant and combative one. Blind suppression was not a long-term solution.
Cultivators needed an outlet for their conflicts. Therefore, the Human Emperor Palace did not suppress other factions; instead, it provided all sorts of assistance to encourage them to compete. It was precisely because of this that geniuses emerged endlessly in the Nine Provinces, without ever a generational gap.
And for this very reason, the number of nations on the Nine Provinces Continent was so great. The basic structure of the continent was composed of over a thousand small kingdoms and the Nine Great Imperial Dynasties. Only those with a national fate spanning ten thousand years, never declining, could be called a great nation or an Imperial Dynasty.
Jiang Li's hometown was located in the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty. It was just an inconspicuous little city within the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty, situated on a plain with no scenic mountains or rivers, nor any spirit ore veins or treasures.
If it weren't for the fact that it was Jiang Li's hometown, it was likely that even people from the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty wouldn't know of such a small city. In Jiang Li's memory, the strongest person in the small county town was merely at the Foundation Establishment Stage.
And Jiang Yixing, who once had the chance to break through to the Golden Core, was naturally considered an incredible genius. ... Jiang Li stood at the city gate, staring blankly at the Green City that bore no resemblance to his memory. The once short, moss-covered Green City had vanished.
In its place were towering city walls built from Refined Steel Stone and a gate large enough for any sized Exotic Beast Mount to enter leisurely. Young Wandering Heroes roamed the martial world, parents brought their children to bask in the Human Emperor's spiritual aura, and cultivators hoped for the Human Emperor's blessing to break through their bottlenecks.
All these reasons had caused the unremarkable Green City to become a low-key yet profoundly rich city from the moment Jiang Li became the Human Emperor. Even the guards at the city gate were cultivators at the Golden Core Stage. Because of this, the city gate was bustling with people coming and going, extremely lively.
Upon entering Green City, the first thing one saw was a massive bronze statue. The man in the statue had a dignified and imposing bearing, holding a long halberd and gazing in all four directions, like an Immortal God surveying the mortal realm. It was precisely Human Emperor Jiang Li.
He had originally thought his return would be a case of "smiling, they ask the guest from whence he came," where no one would recognize him. Jiang Li had only worn a straw hat, and beneath its shadow was his true face, identical to that of the bronze statue.
Who would have thought the reality was "who under heaven does not know him"? There were quite a few people worshiping around the bronze statue, and Jiang Li could even feel the Power of Faith emanating from it. He hurriedly used a magical art to change his appearance.
"Excuse me, may I ask where the Jiang Family is?"
Jiang Li casually grabbed a person and asked. The person looked quite old and walked at a leisurely pace. Of course, in terms of actual age, Jiang Li was older.
"You're not from around here, are you, young man? Everyone in Green City knows the Jiang Family is right in the very center of the city, next to the City Lord's Mansion."
The old man said with a smile, pointing with his hand, "It's over there." The old man had a thick accent that was difficult for non-locals to understand, but since Jiang Li himself was from Green City, it wasn't a problem.
"I heard that the Jiang Family used to be just a small family, located in a corner of Green City. Later, after Human Emperor Jiang ascended the throne, cultivators constantly came here to investigate the reason for his rise to power. The Jiang Family seized the opportunity, maneuvered things from behind the scenes, and became the largest family in Green City in one fell swoop."
"Although the Jiang Family didn't move their residence, as Green City expanded, their location gradually became the very center of the city."
The old man looked left and right, and seeing too many people around, he pulled Jiang Li into a corner and whispered, "There's a rumor that the Jiang Family controls all of Green City. They even have the final say on who becomes the City Lord."
"The Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty governs the state by law. How could such a situation exist?"
Jiang Li shook his head, refuting the old man's claim. The Great Zhou Imperial Family had profound knowledge in the Dao of Time and could trace back time itself, allowing the truth of any matter to be revealed.
He had met both the previous and current Great Zhou State Lords, and both were individuals who strictly followed the law, never overstepping their bounds. With such examples from above, those below should also abide by the law. Jiang Li had also traveled through Great Zhou, experienced its customs, and even had disputes with local powers.
When the government stepped in to resolve matters, they ruled based on facts, without any bias just because the other person held power locally. Among the Nine Great Imperial Dynasties, only the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty was particularly unique. It had bound its National Fate to its laws, governing the nation with legal statutes.
If the monarch knowingly allowed someone to violate the law without punishment, the National Fate would be affected. In severe cases, the National Fate might even crush the monarch to death! The other Imperial Dynasties all revered martial strength; their laws were things that could be trampled upon at will, either overtly or covertly.
He believed that the Jiang Family could influence the City Lord, but to say they could make anyone they wanted the City Lord, that was unreasonable. Seeing that the old man seemed to know a few things, Jiang Li continued to ask, "Then is the Jiang Family's Old Ancestor, Jiang Yixing, still alive? What's his cultivation level?"
"That I do not know."
The old man shook his head.
"But if you wish to visit the Jiang Family, it's best to wait two more days. It's currently the time for the Jiang Family's Ancestor Worship. The residence is sealed for nine days and they don't see outsiders. Today is the seventh day."
"To think I'd run into the once-a-decade Ancestor Worship. I don't know if my luck is good or bad."
Jiang Li chuckled. The Jiang Family did indeed have a tradition of Ancestor Worship, once every ten years. The original owner of his body had died at only eighteen and had only experienced it once.
The old man looked at Jiang Li strangely and slowly said, "I've heard from the older generation that the Jiang Family's Ancestor Worship was originally once every ten years. But ever since Human Emperor Jiang ascended the throne three hundred years ago, the Ancestor Worship has become more and more frequent.
It went from once every ten years to once every five years, and now it's once a year." The old man asked respectfully, "Senior, your cultivation level is..." To live for three hundred years, one's cultivation had to be at least at the Nascent Soul Stage.
Jiang Li smiled faintly and didn't respond to the old man's question. Instead, he thanked the old man and walked along the road to the Jiang Family Grand Residence. The Jiang Family's gates were tightly shut and an array was activated, indeed signs of a sealed residence for Ancestor Worship.
Although there was an array for protection and several Golden Core Stage cultivators guarding the four corners, it was still effortless for Jiang Li to enter if he wished. As the Human Emperor, he would naturally be welcomed by the entire Jiang Family. However, Jiang Li didn't want to do that.
He had no favorable impression of the Jiang Family to begin with. In the five hundred years since he left, he had never once returned.
Even so, the Jiang Family still had the gall to use his name to lord it over others in Green City, completely forgetting how they had once given the cold shoulder to and bullied the original owner of this body.
If he were to reveal himself now, the Jiang Family would probably be ecstatic to the point of flying to the heavens, and would seize the opportunity to publicize it wildly. Jiang Li casually cast a magical art to conceal his figure and swaggered into the Jiang Family residence.
(End of this chapter)