Am I the only one who didn't ascend?

Chapter 526 Unwilling
Bustling city, the highest palace of the Temple of Heaven.

The dome that was once pierced by the bright light of the golden candle has now been covered by a huge piece of soft jade.

It's like Xinheng trying to remain calm after the chaos.

The Lord of Heaven, through the mouth of Wang Luo, made several indisputable declarations, and after putting an end to the entire Xinheng Rebellion, he left the world temporarily with the Queen Mother, who symbolized all the good in the world. Before leaving, he said to Wang Luo, "Come to Gaodian to find me after you finish the chores here", leaving behind a mess on the ground for future generations to clean up.

Cleaning up the mess in Xinheng was a tedious and annoying task, so Wang Luo was not interested in doing it himself. Based on the principle of proximity, he settled down in Gaodian directly, and then picked a few acquaintances to lead the formation of a post-disaster relief team to prepare all post-disaster matters in Gaodian.

Now that all the team members are in place, they are trying to patch up the broken situation of Xinheng with their enthusiasm. And Wang Luo himself is like a transcendent god in the classroom, wandering in the sky while others are working hard.

As a temporary dome, the soft jade on the high hall that can change shape and color as people wish comes from the famous Jinzhifang in Fancheng. Its refining formula and craftsmanship are the result of ten years of painstaking research by many Huashen craftsmen, and it is also the pinnacle of Xinheng Xiandao skills.

Even in the Immortal Alliance, whose national strength is dozens of times greater, this is a set of advanced technology that can be fully demonstrated. And if the Heavenly Court could have expanded the scale of the mortal test site a little more, not limited to Mingzhou, but expanded to Mozhou, Luzhou and even Jingzhou...

Wang Luo looked up and carefully examined the layer of jelly-like soft jade, as well as the hazy night sky behind the jade, and was lost in thought for a moment.

In front of him, several old men dressed as scholars, who were temporarily transferred from Fancheng Academy to the aftermath team, were sitting in a circle, arguing over the biggest problem at the moment, until their faces turned red and their eyes were bloodshot.

"No, no, the idea that the late emperor and the special envoy are the same person doesn't make sense at all! Which emperor would abandon his country and travel to the Immortal Alliance for decades just to 'get first-hand intelligence on the enemy'?! Moreover, the late emperor was already middle-aged when he passed away, but now he has rejuvenated. How do you explain this!?"

"It's the adventures of the Immortal Alliance! The right side of the sky is a chaotic and disordered place. People who have been there can turn from a man to a woman, not to mention regaining youth! What's so difficult about this?! Besides, we can use magic and elixirs to change our appearance. This kind of technical problem is not worth discussing at all! As for the motive, why not attribute it to the rebellion of the Heavenly Court, so the late emperor had to endure the humiliation?!"

"Everything is the fault of Heaven. Do you think Heaven is a garbage can? It is far-fetched to blame the civil strife on Heaven. Using the same excuse too many times will only make it less convincing. Use your brains!"

"Neither this nor that. Tuoba Tiancheng, besides repeatedly finding fault, have you ever contributed any constructive suggestions?"

"Ha, didn't you guys kick me out of the academy because you disliked me for being a smooth talker and having no power to discipline the subordinates?! Now you dislike me for being picky? Now I have been entrusted by the envoy to supervise you, and I have no obligation to give you advice. It is enough for me to just keep an eye on you!"

"Tuoba County Magistrate, the situation is urgent now. We must give an explanation to all citizens as soon as possible for the chaos in Fancheng and Dongdu. This is really not a good time to take revenge on personal grudges. The envoy entrusted you to supervise us in order to reach a useful conclusion as soon as possible. And if there is really no usable explanation, even an explanation full of loopholes is still an explanation."

"Tsk, besides the identity theory, is there any other explanation?"

"really……"

"Shut up and listen to me! It should have been my turn to speak a long time ago! I just have one thing to say: the father-son theory! I've said it before, now only the father-son theory is the correct theory. Explaining the Immortal Alliance envoy as the lost child of the late emperor can avoid many contradictions of the same theory. It can also allow him to legitimately take over the throne of Xinheng! And only by inheriting the throne can..."

However, before the old scholar could finish his words, he was interrupted by a cold voice.

"Your Excellency, the Duke of Feng requests an audience."

There was a hint of rust in the voice, which silenced all the passionate scholars present.

Because the owner of that voice is Yang Jiuzhong, the great general of the current court.

Although theoretically speaking, this general who planned the mutiny, killed the 18 immortal envoys beside the national teacher, and personally led an army of 100,000 to fight against Wang Luo should have been the biggest war criminal...

But since the late Emperor Gan Yinghua personally declared on the Qianxing Terrace in the East Capital that the Yang family was just enduring humiliation, then Yang Jiuzhong naturally became a meritorious official with no faults. Later, he was appointed as the deputy leader of the aftermath team. Now he personally led a group of elite soldiers to guard the high palace, providing a top-secret environment for the discussion in the palace.

In front of this Yang family member, no matter how flamboyant the scholar is, he dare not talk loudly about the succession to the throne... Although everyone knows that the Yang family's abdication is a foregone conclusion, how and to what extent they will abdicate are still unknown. These scholars were temporarily transferred to the aftermath team and held power, but this power was only temporary. If they offended the Yang family with inappropriate words during this period...

At the same time, Wang Luo couldn't help but come back to his senses when he heard Yang Jiuzhong's voice. He nodded and stood up: "That's right, I'll go out for some fresh air."

Yang Jiuzhong couldn't help but frown: "Sir, the range of the secret-guarding formation is limited. Once you leave the high palace..."

"It's okay. I will be careful about the volume when I talk to Duke Feng."

Yang Jiuzhong still hesitated: "But..."

"Then why don't you be the team leader?"

Yang Jiuzhong bowed his head helplessly: "I dare not... But please send two guards to follow with secret tents to prevent people with ulterior motives from taking the opportunity to spy on the top secrets."

"whatever."

After saying this, Wang Luo had already stepped outside the high hall.

When Nan Yingying, the Duke of Feng, saw Wang Luo, she immediately knelt down and saluted respectfully with meticulous posture.

Wang Luo smiled and said, "Don't worry. What I promised you before still counts. There's no need to act so serious and hypocritical."

Nan Yingying insisted on performing the etiquette of meeting the emperor, her posture like a slow dance, until the very end when she stood up straight and put on a relaxed smile.

"I know, but it just occurred to me that since I took over as Duke of Feng, I haven't performed this etiquette seriously, whether it was to the late Emperor Gan Yinghua, the current Emperor Gan Ai, or Yang Shijun... I have always acted casually, even in the Immortal Sacrifice. Now, while the title is still there, I might as well make up for this. After this, there should be no place where this etiquette can be used." "So, are you sure you want to go directly to the Immortal Alliance? You won't stay a little longer?"

"Sure, otherwise staying in Xinheng would only bring me troubles... I still don't fully understand what happened in Dongdu before. I have always treated the four southern counties as my own backyard, but at the critical moment, someone suddenly launched a massive blood sacrifice in the four counties, which not only caused great suffering to the people, but also almost completely broke my wish for all living beings, causing me to die on the spot. This is definitely not just the work of the Yang family, there must be many traitors born in the four counties. Then, according to common sense, I should go back to the four counties, kill the traitors who shamelessly harmed their compatriots, and then cover them with evil land so that they will never be reborn. However, who is a traitor and who is a loyal person, how can I tell? The people in important positions in the four counties were all people I personally identified and trusted. Choosing a traitor from them... is really a headache."

Wang Luo nodded and said, "In fact, Yang Jiuzhong gave me a list..."

Nan Yingying waved her hand and said, "Forget it, it's better not to watch it."

"Okay." Wang Luo didn't say much, and casually burned the list that concerned the lives of countless people.

Nan Yingying smiled and said, "Hehe, now I feel relieved... After all, the root cause of the tragedy in the four southern counties is the incompetence of me, the Duke of Feng. Because I practice the wish for all living beings, I often go deep into the people and often interfere in local government affairs. So I have always thought that I am not only diligent among the great masters, but even among the dukes and marquises. But in fact, when I was in power, I mostly acted on my own accord, and many decisions and deployments were supported by the overtime work of my capable ministers. When I was managing the four counties, the appointment and dismissal of personnel and other issues, it was not that there were no advisers around me to remind me, but I relied on my cultivation and vision and never took it seriously... Now I go back to settle the accounts, and even I think this is a kind of incompetent rage, which is too ugly."

Wang Luo said: "If you care so much about whether you look ugly or not, you are indeed not suitable for politics."

"Haha, the Lord Envoy really hit the nail on the head... So, I'll just let the matter of the four counties go. Anyway, the Nan family has many talented people. Without a Mahayana True Lord like me to pressure them, maybe it will allow truly suitable talents to come to the fore. So, I came here this time to say goodbye to the Lord Envoy. Then, if there is anything you need me to do, whether it is here or there, please feel free to tell me."

At this moment, Nan Yingying's expression was unusually serious, and the light in her eyes, which had been dimmed by injury, was rekindled.

Wang Luo shook his head: "You don't need to do anything. When the road is clear, you can go there by yourself."

Nan Yingying smiled and said, "Then I will put this matter on record and I will be at your service anytime in the future..."

As the laughter died down, Nan Yingying's figure gradually disappeared into the night. Obviously, she also saw that Wang Luo was not in the mood to talk at this time, so she did not stay for long.

Only after Nan Yingying left did Wang Luo sigh.

A Mahayana master... even a former Mahayana master who had regressed due to injury, was definitely not an easy person to deal with. Nan Yingying said she was disheartened and exaggerated that she had accomplished nothing, but in fact, it was just an excuse, she just didn't want to wade into the muddy waters of Xinheng.

She couldn't have known what happened on the Star-drawing Platform in the East Capital because of the flawless immortal law of the Lord of Heaven, but she couldn't have been completely unaware of it either. After all, a dignified Golden Immortal of Wonderful Law had died almost without any resistance under the Record of Exiled Immortals... And then, Wang Luo made several consecutive declarations in front of countless people. His words were almost absurd, but they instantly won people's hearts and convinced everyone. The magical power contained in this was obvious.

On that supreme stage, even the Golden Immortal who was close to reaching the ultimate realm of immortality could not protect himself. What was the difference between a mere Mahayana and an ant?
Nan Yingying has been a Mahayana master for hundreds of years and has the final say in the four southern counties. However, on the stage of Dongdu, she is just an extra who is in danger of losing her job every day.

Therefore, after escaping death, she obviously did not want to have anything to do with the existence of excessive heights anymore… As a Mahayana True Lord, such thoughts undoubtedly seemed a bit cowardly, but on the other hand, as a mere mortal, such thoughts were more appropriate.

Considering that she had made contributions before, Wang Luo did not bother about her current cunning and allowed her to retreat at the peak of her powers.

Without the Duke of Feng, dealing with the aftermath of Xinheng will indeed be a lot more troublesome, but... there are still some people who can't escape and can't retreat, so it's better to let them spend more time and effort.

Thinking of this, Wang Luo looked at the guards wearing black iron helmets and holding secret tents not far behind him, gestured to them, and then took off into the air and flew out of the city. The two soldiers hesitated for a moment, but did not dare to follow, and hurriedly reported the news to Yang Jiuzhong.

On the other side, Wang Luo flew over Fancheng for a while and arrived at the Qianxingtai in Dongdu.

The high platform that Zhang Jincheng had sealed with his life was no longer protected by any barriers - except for the tens of thousands of elite Qingqi soldiers guarding the city, no one was allowed to approach.

And on the Qianxing Platform, Zhang Jincheng, the heroic spirit in the picture, had also been waiting for a long time.

Unlike Nan Yingying and others, this heroic spirit not only witnessed the coming of the Lord of Heaven with his own eyes, but also has not forgotten it to this day.

The laws of heaven no longer have any power over the heroic spirits on the Ningyuan map.

"Lord Mountain Master..."

"Let's just cut some of the unnecessary formalities. How is the matter of Dinghuang's foundation stone being handled?"

"..." After a moment of silence, a spiritual body was once again formed on the platform. Zhang Jincheng still did not exempt himself from the etiquette and said to Wang Luo respectfully, "The foundation has been laid, and the smooth growth is far beyond expectations..."

"Oh, the foundation stone has been laid so soon?"

Zhang Jincheng said: "Xinheng has always been driven by the Heavenly Court, and everything has been run in accordance with the operation of the Immortal Alliance. In fact, it has the foundation of Dinghuang. Although the people worship the immortals in the Heavenly Court on weekdays, the Heavenly Court is high and out of touch with the ground, and even the immortal officials on duty rarely show up. Therefore, many times, the people's support is just to those agents who act in the mortal world in the name of immortals. Now that even the Lord of the Heavenly Court has chosen to reconcile with the Immortal Alliance and even completely withdrawn Liuliguang, it is actually like pushing the boat with the current to guide the people here to change their ways. No, it is actually pushing the boat with the current. Now that the domestic chaos has not been settled, most people in the eighteen counties have no idea what happened, but the foundation is still easy to fall, as if someone had already dug a ditch in the spiritual veins of the earth."

Speaking of going with the flow, there was a hint of self-mockery in Zhang Jincheng's tone.

"So, in the past six hundred years, Xinheng was nothing more than a pawn in a situation where people were sailing against the current. To the Lord of Heaven, two hundred million lives, no, even two billion lives in the mortal world, are probably not as valuable as the few Golden Immortals with Wonderful Magic that he killed here... Perhaps from the day we established our country, generation after generation of us have lived and multiplied here, developing civilization, and its value is only to become a stage for inciting rebellion to descend to the mortal world six hundred years later."

After listening to Zhang Jincheng's heartfelt words, Wang Luo was silent for a moment and said.

"Just spread your emotions to more people. Compared to the progress of civilization... the unwillingness to face the behemoth is the core motivation of Dinghuang."

(End of this chapter)