Chapter 621: The Greatest Emperor of All Time
"Nineteen? A nineteen-clawed fortune golden dragon? How can this be? How does it have nineteen claws?" Li Si exclaimed in shock.
Li Si's astonishment was understandable. In all the imperial dynasties, the fortune golden dragon had at most nine claws. Only at the celestial dynasty level did the fortune golden dragon's claws double to eighteen, transforming into a court projection and nurturing the gods' images in the heavens.
But this completely overturned Li Si's understanding. Nineteen claws? How could a newly ascended imperial dynasty form a nineteen-clawed fortune golden dragon?
Li Si's eyes flickered with uncertainty, struggling to suppress his overwhelming shock.
On the Celestial Pavilion,
Zhongshan held the Fang Tian Jade Seal. The red pearl that suppressed the nine dragons on the seal was emitting a faint red light, alternating between bright and dark shades. The bright red signified vibrant life, while the dark red hid profound death.
The red pearl seemed to have a mysterious connection with the nineteen-clawed golden dragon. Through the Fang Tian Jade Seal, a part of Zhongshan's spirit seemed to merge with the dragon.
The nineteen-clawed golden dragon swam through the sky, as if taking Zhongshan's spirit on a majestic flight. A sense of domineering satisfaction erupted from Zhongshan's spirit, and the golden dragon suddenly radiated countless rays of golden light, illuminating the world.
"Roar~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"
As Zhongshan reveled in the moment, the nineteen-clawed fortune golden dragon roared again, shaking the heavens. This roar created colorful clouds in the sky, dazzlingly bright.
The dragon's formidable horns emitted billions of lightning bolts, piercing through the heavens, connecting with the celestial mechanisms.
A powerful aura descended.
"Long live the Emperor, long live the Emperor, long live the Emperor!"
"Long live the Emperor, long live the Emperor, long live the Emperor!"
Cheers echoed from all around the Celestial Pavilion.
The nineteen-clawed fortune golden dragon descended, coiling itself. Its immense body, spanning nineteen thousand zhang, formed a massive dragon mountain.
The shell that had nurtured the fortune golden dragon spread out once more, covering the Celestial Pavilion with countless layers of fortune, creating a misty, cloud-like backdrop for the enormous dragon.
Its horns pointed skyward, exuding extraordinary fortune.
Everything seemed to be over, but at this moment, more fortune inexplicably gathered above the Celestial Pavilion, layer upon layer, increasing the fortune even further.
From a distance, Li Si's eyes widened again.
"Where is this fortune coming from?" Li Si muttered, utterly incredulous.
Simultaneously, in the underworld, outside the Forbidden Zone, the Great Zong Dynasty.
In front of the Undying Hall of the Great Zong Dynasty, a grand platform was erected, mirroring the one in the living world. Officials knelt in reverence.
Today marked the Great Zong Dynasty's ascension, and everyone stood respectfully.
Zhongshan stood on the platform, observing the boundless fortune. Unlike other dynasties' ascensions where fortune increased, the fortune here was mysteriously decreasing, lessening more and more.
The officials felt a growing sense of unease. Was this an ascension or a decline?
Was this an ascension to an imperial dynasty, or a regression to a mere kingdom?
Despite their infinite doubts, no one dared to ask.
Zhongshan watched as the fortune slowly decreased, a look of satisfaction flashing in his eyes.
The fortune of Zhongshan's dynasty was different from that of a typical imperial dynasty. While other dynasties ascended through a celestial imperial seal, Zhongshan used his own seal. The fortune of other dynasties still belonged to the heavens and earth, bestowed by them. However, Zhongshan's fortune was entirely his own, deeply imprinted with his mark. This was the marvel of the "Creation of the Celestial Court."
The Great Zong Dynasty, in both the yin and yang realms, was essentially just one entity, a single person, hence it did not ascend twice. Zhongshan's fortune was naturally capable of being divided between the two realms.
Now, Zhongshan was transferring this fortune back to the yang realm. Under the suppression of the fortune golden dragon, he was securing the imperial title, and simultaneously, using the dragon's fortune to create another golden dragon avatar in the underworld.
The fortune continued to diminish until it was almost entirely gone, leaving the officials in a state of shock.
"Whoosh..."
As if reaching a turning point, an endless amount of fortune suddenly reappeared, growing more and more, eventually forming a massive spherical fortune.
"Roar~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"
With a dragon's roar, a fortune golden dragon identical to the one in the yang realm was born, its roar resonating throughout the world.
"Long live the Emperor, long live the Emperor, long live the Emperor!"
"Long live the Emperor, long live the Emperor, long live the Emperor!"
As the crowd cheered, the fortune golden dragon slowly coiled, forming a massive dragon mountain over the city of Changjing.
In the yang realm, below the Celestial Pavilion,
Li Si was left speechless. The sudden reappearance of the fortune was already bizarre, but it disappearing again so quickly? Zhongshan's dynasty might be small, but it was incredibly peculiar.
On the Celestial Pavilion, Zhongshan stood on the high platform, not yet finished.
Staring at the stable fortune in the sky, Zhongshan suddenly shouted:
"The national religion is the Great Ming, let infinite merit arise~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"
Many of the onlookers were puzzled by his declaration.
Infinite merit? What's that? Aren't you a dynasty? Aren't you supposed to be collecting fortune? Why suddenly talk about merit? Merit was something collected by sects and holy lands. How could an imperial dynasty be involved in merit?
In the headquarters of the Great Ming Sect, at the Great Ming Temple, in the location where Mud Bodhisattva had left a stone altar during his feng shui setup, a nine-story giant tower, the Spirit Resting Tower, appeared out of nowhere.
The Spirit Resting Tower suddenly radiated golden light, illuminating the already golden sky even more brightly. Suddenly, from within the tower, an infinite amount of merit burst forth.
Merit, though similar in color to fortune, was distinctly different.
The golden yellow of fortune carried a radiant nobility, an imperial majesty that spread across the world. The golden yellow of merit, however, carried a heavy sense of simplicity and purity.
It was like the difference between the emperor's robes and the monk's robes. Though both were yellow, any discerning eye could instantly tell which was which.
Endless merit burst forth from the Spirit Resting Tower. A large portion of this merit had been reclaimed from the Blissful Pure Land, and much more existed even before that reclamation. This merit, refined by the Spirit Resting Tower, had become extremely pure.
The immense merit, comparable in quantity to the fortune, spread out below the fortune layer, separated by a distance of ten zhang, creating a dual-layered sky.
The enormous nineteen-clawed fortune golden dragon, appearing somewhat dissatisfied, shifted its body, its dragon eyes glaring as it exuded an overwhelming aura. Zhongshan's eyes narrowed, and a powerful will surged towards the golden dragon. Feeling Zhongshan's discontent, the golden dragon reluctantly settled back into its coiled position.
The numerous onlookers were stunned. What was this? Two layers? It seemed so unconventional and strange.
Apart from Zhongshan and his son, everyone else showed expressions of confusion and uncertainty. What was the Great Zong doing?
Of course, Zhongshan did not yet have the ability to send merit to the underworld, so that would have to wait.
In the distance, Li Si frowned deeply, muttering to himself, "Fortune? Merit? Has Zhongshan also discovered it? The Eternal Sacred Platform? It must be from that time. This Zhongshan is truly not a simple person!"
In front of the Hall of Longevity, atop the high platform,
Zhongshan closed his eyes slightly, feeling the boundless fortune descending upon him, and even the significant merit accumulating on him. However, these two enhancements seemed to counteract and diminish each other.
The sensation was very peculiar. Before the merit descended upon him, Zhongshan felt his cultivation speed had increased by forty times, a significant boost.
To understand this, a mid-level position equated to ten times the cultivation speed, while a high-level position was a hundred times. Zhongshan was well aware that his forty-fold increase was mainly due to the red pearl on the Fang Tian Jade Seal, which seemed to possess immense power.
However, with the merit now upon him, the initial forty-fold increase was reduced to thirty-fold. The merit and fortune were counterbalancing each other, making Zhongshan the sacrificial point. Yet, Zhongshan had no regrets.
Compared to his grand vision, what did an additional tenfold speed matter? Besides, with his Eight Extremes Heavenly Tail, a short-term increase in cultivation was not something Zhongshan worried about.
Opening his eyes gently, Zhongshan took a deep breath.
"Heaven and Earth mandate, mid-level, the Great Zong Empire! Arise~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"
The Great Zong Empire! Arise!
At this moment, Zhongshan declared to the world that the Great Zong Empire was officially established, firmly standing on the land of Shenzhou. The imperial endeavor, the empire's foundation, was now laid. Zhongshan had achieved the empire's legacy, henceforth known as 'Emperor Zhongshan.'
"Long live the Emperor, long live the Emperor, long live the Emperor!"
"Long live the Emperor, long live the Emperor, long live the Emperor!"
In both the underworld and the yang realm, the Great Zong Empire was simultaneously established. Zhongshan had achieved the ultimate imperial legacy.
The first emperor of both the yin and yang realms, the first emperor to have both fortune and merit in his empire, the first emperor with a nineteen-clawed fortune golden dragon... so many firsts, unprecedented, making Zhongshan the Greatest Emperor of All Time!