With that, tears streamed down his face. Ziya knelt down and said, "I am deeply grateful for your favor and hold the position of prime minister. How dare I refuse your command? To betray your words would be disloyalty."
As I was discussing this, His Highness Ji Fa suddenly entered the palace to pay his respects. King Wen was delighted to see Ji Fa and said, "My son's arrival has fulfilled my wish." Ji Fa then completed his greetings.
King Wen said, “After my death, my son will be young and may listen to others’ words and recklessly wage war. Even if the emperor is not virtuous, he must not act rashly and become known as a minister who murders his ruler. Come here and acknowledge Ziya as your father, and listen to his teachings morning and night. Listening to the prime minister is listening to me. Please ask the prime minister to sit down and bow to him.”
Ji Fa asked Ziya to turn around and immediately bowed to him as his adoptive father. Ziya kowtowed before the bed and wept, saying, "I have received Your Majesty's great kindness. Even if I were to give my life and die, it would not be enough to repay even a fraction of Your Majesty's grace! Your Majesty, please do not worry about me. You should take care of your health and you will recover soon."
King Wen said to Zi Fa, “Although the Shang dynasty is immoral, I am a subject and must faithfully fulfill my duties, without overstepping my bounds and leaving a bad name for posterity. If I can love my brothers and have compassion for all people, I will have no regrets even if I die.”
After thinking for a moment, he added, "Seeing good without being lazy, doing righteousness without hesitation, and rejecting wrongdoing without dwelling on it—these three are the way to cultivate oneself and the general principles for governing the country and bringing peace to the people."
Ji Fa bowed again to receive the mandate. King Wen said, "I have been unjustly favored by King Zhou, and I can no longer face His Majesty to offer honest advice, nor can I expound the Eight Trigrams to enlighten the people!" After saying this, he died at the age of ninety-seven and was posthumously named King Wen of Zhou. This was in the middle of winter of the twentieth year of King Zhou of Shang.
That year, the ministers elected Ji Fa as the supreme ruler, enthroning him as the King of Xiqi, and continued the campaign to overthrow King Zhou.
Ji Fa was very happy, indeed very happy. Ten years had passed. How many decades does one have in a lifetime? This time, King Zhou was tyrannical, and the whole world rebelled against him. His father, Ji Chang, was dead, and his elder brother, Boyi Kao, was long gone. He could finally laugh out loud.
King Wen had died, and King Wu had just ascended the throne. Wen Zhong then led his army to conquer him. The events that followed were not entirely the same as those in the original text, so I will not go into details here.
Meanwhile, the Ten Heavenly Lords set up the Ten Deadly Formations, which rendered the Chan Sect cultivators who came to aid the Western Qi army powerless to break through. Yao Tianjun paid homage to Ziya, but was saved by Yang Jian, who came to aid Western Qi. Speaking of Yang Jian, there is more to say.
After Yang Jian rescued his mother, Liao Zhen ordered him to go down the mountain to seek opportunities in the prehistoric world to overcome the great calamity. Yang Jian did not understand at first, but later he learned about the Investiture of the Gods calamity. He was a little worried at the time, but thinking of his master's arrangement, he thought that there would be no major problem. So he cultivated in Guanjiangkou, waiting for the right time to go down the mountain to complete the calamity.
At the time when the Four Demon Generals were causing trouble, Yang Jian received the true teachings and came down from the mountain to help Xiqi. He killed the Four Demon Generals. Later, Yao Tianjun worshipped Ziya's soul, and it was only with Yang Jian's help that Ziya's soul was able to be retrieved.
After the monks of the Chan Sect broke through the first six formations, Zhao Gongming, who had been brought by Shen Gongbao, came to help. As the eldest disciple of the outer sect of the Jie Sect, Zhao Gongming naturally came to assist. He arrived riding a black tiger and said: "Cultivate morality in the mysterious world, refine the primordial spirit in the vast universe."
Tiger and dragon roar and gather at the cauldron of wind and clouds; black and rabbit maneuver in the morning and evening.
Five escapes and three eliminations are mere games, moving mountains and overturning seas are discussed casually.
He once held the secrets of heaven and earth in his palm, and wandered freely in a pair of straw sandals.
The convergence of the five elements is a rare occurrence, and the gathering of the three flowers at the crown signifies eternal youth.
Its fame spreads far and wide at the foot of Mount Emei, but how many have actually reached Mount Luofu?
Since becoming the Imperial Tutor, Zhao Gongming has devoted himself to cultivating Taoism, and his cultivation level has become quite profound, even surpassing that of the second-generation disciples of the Chan Sect. He has already reached the rank of Great Luo Golden Immortal. However, since Guang Chengzi obtained the rank of Great Luo Golden Immortal by relying on the merits of Shang Shi in the past, no one in the Chan Sect has been able to achieve such a feat.
When Ziya met Gongming, he bowed and asked, "Fellow Daoist, from which famous mountain do you come? From which cave do you reside?" Gongming replied, "I am Zhao Gongming from Luofu Cave on Mount Emei. You broke my six formations, relying on your Daoist arts, and harmed my six friends. I am truly heartbroken! You even hung Zhao Jiang's reed boat high, which is utterly hateful! Jiang Shang, I know you are a disciple of Yuxu Palace. Today I will descend the mountain and surely settle things with you!" With that, he raised his whip and struck at Ziya. Seeing that the attack was unstoppable, Ziya hurriedly retreated. Nezha quickly stepped forward to block him, but he was no match for Gongming. Then Huang Tianhua and Lei Zhenzi came to defend him, but they were also no match for him.
Yang Jian, witnessing this, secretly praised Zhao Gongming's skill. However, his own cultivation was only at the early stage of the Yi Golden Immortal realm, and he knew he was no match for Zhao Gongming. He secretly released his slender waist, which, taking advantage of Zhao Gongming's inattention, bit his neck, tearing his robes to shreds. The others quickly launched a counterattack. Zhao Gongming, helpless, turned and led his tiger back to camp. Grand Tutor Wen, seeing Gongming's defeat, hurriedly went to comfort him. Zhao Gongming said, "It's alright." He quickly took out a magical medicine from his gourd and applied it, instantly healing him completely.
The next day, Zhao Gongming, wielding his tiger, fought again. Huanglong Zhenren, also hot-headed, was generally disliked by the others in the Chan Sect. Having witnessed Zhao Gongming's defeat against Yang Jian and his group the previous day, he assumed Zhao Gongming was easy to deal with and naturally wanted to gain merit. He rode his crane forward and shouted, "Zhao Gongming, you are here today because you are also listed on the 'Investiture of the Gods,' you deserve to be wiped out here!" Zhao Gongming was enraged and raised his whip to strike. Zhenren quickly met him with his sword. Whip and sword clashed. Before many exchanges had passed, Zhao Gongming unleashed his Dragon-Binding Rope, snatching Huanglong Zhenren away. Chijingzi, seeing Huanglong Zhenren captured, shouted, "Zhao Gongming, how dare you be so rude! Listen to my words: 'Understanding the mysteries beyond the mortal realm, one becomes self-satisfied and forgets the means. Knowing the path to immortality beyond the mortal world, one becomes a carefree and ageless immortal. Lead and mercury, produced from the primordial, reverse the sun and moon to match the heavens and earth. Clearly pointing to the wonder of non-birth, yet the mortal heart cannot relinquish it.'"
Chi Jingzi, sword in hand, attacked Gongming. Gongming's whip technique was swift and agile. After three or five exchanges, Gongming took out an object called the Yin-Yang Pearl, of which there were two. Gongming unleashed this treasure in the air, surrounded by yin and yang colors, capable of both offense and defense. With a single sweep, he knocked Chi Jingzi to the ground. Just as Zhao Gongming was about to strike Chi Jingzi on the head with his whip, Guang Chengzi stepped aside and shouted, "Wait until you hurt my Daoist brother! I'm coming!" Seeing Guang Chengzi's fierce approach, Gongming hurriedly met him. The two fought, but before they could exchange a single blow, Gongming again unleashed the pearl, knocking Guang Chengzi to the ground. Dao Xing Tianzun rushed to stop Gongming. Gongming unleashed this treasure repeatedly, injuring five immortals... Yu Ding Zhenren, Lingbao Dafashi, and the other two were defeated and retreated to Lupeng.
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