Yuan Miao Great Sage gazed upon this unknown world. Mountains rose high and seas stretched vast. The Ten Continents and Three Islands were but mere fragments of the Inner Mountains and Rivers, yet even so, they were immense. After all, this was an ancient blessed land of immortals, and countless places were like it.
As for the Outer Mountains and Rivers, how laughable and pathetic, barren and weak. Yet, it was the source of all myths, the birthplace of the Inner Mountains and Rivers.
The Inner Mountains and Rivers had to grudgingly acknowledge this ancestor. Without the existence of the Outer Mountains and Rivers, the expansion of the Inner Mountains and Rivers would cease, and its spiritual energy would gradually dissipate.
Of course, the Outer Mountains and Rivers would not be destroyed. That weak realm, though barren and laughable, was "imperishable through all tribulations" and "the dwelling place of all Daos."
Therefore, many in the Inner Mountains and Rivers had speculated that the true secret of the birth of the Great Dao, and the core principles of cultivation in the Three Realms of the Upper Truth, were actually hidden within the Outer Mountains and Rivers. The imperial might of a dynasty was a magnificent Great Dao capable of enfeoffing true gods.
That act of enfeoffing true gods, condensing wishes and manifesting as red clouds, was a state that countless cultivators yearned to achieve! It was the highest fruit of Taoist cultivation! Yet, through normal cultivation, even in the Inner Mountains and Rivers, no one could cultivate themselves to the state of manifesting red clouds.
Except for one particularly powerful divine position, which could refine elixirs and manifest red clouds, but it had now been stolen.
As for the Outer Mountains and Rivers, no one knew where this Great Dao of enfeoffing gods originated or why it appeared!
Of course, although this Great Dao was infinitely powerful, the operation of all its rules depended on the powerless mortal emperors. Moreover, this Great Dao always seemed rather unintelligent.
Ascending to the Void Refining realm, its peak was called Ascended Immortal. After Void Refining came Dao Integration, where the human heart transformed into the Heavenly Heart, completely attaining the immortal fruit, called True Immortal. This realm was known as [Heavenly Heart Returns]; merging the primal and the void to become True Dao, this was the Primordial Chaos realm, called Heavenly Venerable.
Ascending was the sixteenth realm, Heavenly Heart the seventeenth, Primordial Chaos the eighteenth, and after that came the Three Realms of the Upper Truth.
Zhuangzi said, "The sage has no name, the divine has no merit, the ultimate has no self." These three states corresponded to the depth of one's comprehension of the Great Dao.
To truly reach the Three Realms of the Upper Truth, the Great Dao and spiritual essence of both the Inner and Outer Mountains and Rivers must complement each other.
This was also why many people were very concerned about the dynastic changes in the Outer Mountains and Rivers, even going so far as to personally intervene and manipulate them. This was because the Great Dao of the dynasty was the easiest to complement with masters above the ascended realm!
Of course, among all the dynasties that had been manipulated, the Song Dynasty was the most disappointing, holding the legitimate succession but lacking ambition.
"The passage of time in the Outer Mountains and Rivers is too slow. Ten thousand years have passed in the Inner Mountains and Rivers, yet the Outer Mountains and Rivers have barely reached eight hundred years."
"A dynasty every two to three hundred years, and ten thousand palaces have turned to dust!"
Ancient legends often spoke of seven days in the mountains being a thousand years in the world.
The Inner Mountains and Rivers was the true great world, while the Outer Mountains and Rivers was like that mountain peak.
The powerful in the Inner Mountains and Rivers had ample time to cultivate, but the cultivators in the Outer Mountains and Rivers were not so lucky. Ascension depended entirely on luck, and reaching the peak of Pure Yang was already an extraordinary feat.
Those three peculiar divine positions were all manifestations of the wishes of Song Dynasty emperors. Yuan Miao Great Sage needed them to operate the Song Dynasty's Great Dao, and they also needed Yuan Miao Great Sage to help them regain control of the mountains and rivers and descend.
The actions of the marquises, dukes, generals, and ministers of the Outer Mountains and Rivers in their struggle for the world were, for the most part, a joke in Yuan Miao Great Sage's eyes. Most people were unaware that they were actually puppets.
"A dynasty changes every two to three hundred years, and ten thousand palaces have turned to dust!"
Yuan Miao Great Sage sighed.
Was the Yang world the Outer Mountains and Rivers, and the Yin world not the Outer Mountains and Rivers?
They were all the same. The Song Dynasty hid in the shadow of the Ming Dynasty, making arrangements since the time of Emperor Zhenzong of Song. They feared death and the loss of their ancestral foundation, which was why the idea of wish-based resurrection arose.
In this way, even if the Song Dynasty perished, it could hide in the shadow of the new dynasty. When the dynasty changed, it would be a great opportunity. However, when the Ming Dynasty was first established, the Song Dynasty's timing was not ripe, and they dared not act.
At that time, these three divine positions had not yet been nurtured.
At that time, there was a master in the Yang world who was only half a step away from ascension.
"Master, then in that case, the Great Dao of the current Ming Dynasty is not complete?"
"A part of it was stolen and is in the Song Dynasty. Our help to the Song Dynasty is also a form of observation, because the part of the Great Dao they stole and took away with wishes has shown signs of gradually growing into a complete Great Dao."
Everything they were planning now was to gain more benefits when the great trend of the unification of the Inner and Outer Mountains and Rivers arrived!
"The Great Dao is invisible. Master, how do you observe it?"
Yuan Miao Great Sage explained:
"By observing the operation of their imperial might and whether it can influence each other. The current imperial might of the Song Dynasty can actually influence the spirits of the Ming Dynasty, which is very different from the past."
"Although it is the Yin realm of the Outer Mountains and Rivers, it has also been promised that if a master capable of ascension appears and unifies the Yang world, they can enter the Inner Mountains and Rivers and become an immortal dynasty."
"But this time, the Song Dynasty's plan has failed again."
"Instead, the Ming Dynasty's performance has been more outstanding."
"I believe that very soon, very soon, masters from the Inner Mountains and Rivers will find a way to contact the Ming Emperor, persuade him, and bestow treasures."
The treasure bestowed was a drop of "Heavenly Marrow," an supreme essence. Many people in the Outer Mountains and Rivers had already obtained Heavenly Marrow and were utilized and driven by the great powers of the Inner Mountains and Rivers.
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Of course, in the Inner Mountains and Rivers, there was also a Ming Emperor. However, that emperor, who had seized the position of "Taishang Laojun," was currently being pursued and intercepted by other masters. It was unlikely he could send dreams to his descendants...
Yuan Miao Great Sage thought to himself.
He was unaware of the matter of Elder Lei Xuan coming to the present world.
Of course, Emperor Jiajing himself was an extremely selfish person. He cared not whether Emperor Wanli would be persuaded and become a lackey for some people in the Inner Mountains and Rivers!
Because as long as he, Jiajing, was alive, no matter how the Great Ming went astray, it would always be his!
But...
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On the twenty-third day of the sixth month in the twenty-fifth year of Wanli, during the fourth watch.
Emperor Wanli was sleeping groggily when he suddenly heard someone calling his name. He mumbled in his sleep, denouncing the other party as rebellious and arrogant. However, someone soon pushed him. This extremely offensive act immediately startled Emperor Wanli awake.
"Emperor Wanli, you may not recognize me..."
"What demon is this! Damn it, taste my sword!"
Due to the mental strain of the past few days, Emperor Wanli had seen too many demons. Having just obtained the Jingzhen Sword and heard Old Zhang's warning, he dared not let go of this precious sword. Now, being called by a master from the Inner Mountains and Rivers in a dream, he was so frightened that he drew his sword and slashed!
I am fond of killing gods in my dreams!
This sword paid homage to Wei Zheng and also to Cao Cao!
The Jingzhen Divine Sword unleashed its sword energy, and a cold light slashed out, cleaving the spirit and form of that master from the Inner Mountains and Rivers into pieces, causing him to dissipate directly within the imperial palace of the Outer Mountains and Rivers!
"Eh, I hit it? What did I cut?"