The general smiled slightly, then turned sideways and said, "Everyone, please."
In the reed tents of the central army camp, there are colorful lights and an ethereal aura. The Taoist Master Gou Chen, wearing the Taoist robe of Miro Shenxiao, sits high on the auspicious clouds. A mysterious light shines behind his head, and many spiritual officials stand by below him. The majesty of the celestial being cannot be surpassed by this.
When Ao Qing and the others saw Daoist Master Gou Chen, they immediately bowed their heads and kowtowed reverently, saying, "Ao Qing of Chongjiang Dao State, accompanied by Crown Prince Ao Tian, Junior Minister Ao Jue... and others, pay their respects to Daoist Master Gou Chen."
"Stand up and take a seat." Gou Chen Dao Zun said with a smile.
Everyone hurriedly bowed to express their gratitude, and then a team of heavenly soldiers brought out sandalwood chairs and placed them on both sides of the reed tent. Ao Qing and others bowed again and sat down.
After everyone was seated, Daoist Master Gou Chen slowly spoke, "I follow the command of Daoist Master Zi Wei of the North Pole of the Central Sky to conquer the four kingdoms. However, numerous rivers of Nirvana intersect the land, making it difficult for our army to advance. Therefore, I have used my great power to reshape the terrain of this 630,000-li region, diverting the rivers that blocked our army's path and smoothing the path forward. I did not expect to alarm the Daoists of the Chongjiang Dao Kingdom. I am truly sorry."
Hearing Daoist Master Gou Chen's words, Ao Qing and the others hurriedly stood up and bowed, saying, "Daoist Master, your words are too kind. The Heavenly Court's conquest of the four nations is motivated by righteousness. Even the Nirvana River is a barrier. With just one decree, the entire Chongjiang Dao Nation will go all out to assist the Heavenly Army in crossing the river. How could we dare to ask Daoist Master to clear the way with his mighty power?"
Daoist Master Gou Chen smiled and said, "I thank the Daoist State of Chongjiang for their help, but my Heavenly Court has always been accustomed to doing things on its own. If there are mountains or rivers blocking our way, we will level them and fill them up. If there are sacred demons blocking our way, we will wipe them out. We will eliminate all evil and rebellious forces in the world and never seek help from others."
Ao Qing and the others were startled when they heard this. These words were not a thank you at all, but were clearly telling them that if Chongjiang Dao Kingdom dared to stand in the way of Heaven, it would be crushed and flattened like the plain passage that had been opened up.
Ao Qing gritted his teeth and immediately bowed his head, saying, "Your Majesty the Daoist Master Gou Chen, Ao Qing of Chongjiang Dao State and all the ministers above and below us feel the unstoppable might of Heaven. We now wish to surrender our entire nation. I wonder if the Heavenly Court will accept this?"
Then, Crown Prince Ao Tian and all the nobles knelt down and bowed to the Taoist Master Gou Chen, saying, "We are willing to return to the Heavenly Court."
The spiritual officials below were slightly surprised when they heard this. This was the first country to surrender to the Da Dao Ting.
Upon hearing this, Gou Chen Dao Zun burst into laughter. He looked at Ao Qing and the others and said, "If you are willing to surrender, my Heavenly Court will certainly accept you. I just wonder if you are truly willing to surrender?"
Upon hearing this, Ao Qing and the others hurriedly bowed and said, "We sincerely surrender and have absolutely no intention of deceiving others. Please judge for yourself, Taoist Gouchen."
Gou Chen Dao Zun said: "If you truly surrender, I will tell you that after you surrender, you will become ministers of the Heavenly Court and must receive the Heavenly Court's fruit position and official title. You will no longer be able to rule a country alone or dominate a region."
Upon hearing this, Ao Qing and the others said without hesitation, "We only seek to preserve our dragon race. We only hope that Heaven will grant us a place to thrive and reproduce, so that our race can continue to be passed down. We will be grateful to them. As for official positions, we dare not ask for them."
After hearing Ao Qing and the others' report, Gou Chen Dao Zun nodded and smiled, saying, "Since that's the case, you should go back and announce it to the people of the country. Present the surrender letter and other documents. Once these are submitted, Zhongtian Beiji Ziwei Dao Zun will issue an imperial edict, and our army will then march to Zuling City to accept the surrender."
Ao Qing and the others were delighted when they heard this, and immediately bowed and said, "We will obey your orders."
Ao Qing and others bid farewell to Gou Chen Dao Zun and returned to Zuling City. Three days later, a letter of surrender and a box of various documents about Chongjiang Dao Kingdom were delivered to Gou Chen Dao Zun's camp.
The Taoist Master Gou Chen immediately ordered the generals to send the surrender letter and the memorial book to Yuxiao City and present them to the Taoist Master Ziwei of Zhongtian Beiji.
Ten days later, the Daoist decree from Zhongtian Beiji Ziwei Daozun was delivered to the camp. This decree contained many contents, but in short, it contained three points:
First, accept the surrender of Chongjiang Daoguo.
Second, he conferred official titles on Ao Qing and all the people in Chongjiang Daoguo.
Third, Chongjiang Daoguo abolished the country name and merged the three states into "Zuling State".
Three days after receiving the decree, Gou Chen Dao Zun led an army of 100,000 to the city of Zuling, while Ao Qing led his wife, children, ministers, and clansmen to surrender.
Gou Chen Dao Zun read out the Dharma decree:
Ao Qing was granted the title of "Heavenly King" and was named "Heavenly King of Zulingzhou", ruling over the affairs of all living beings in Zulingzhou on behalf of the Heaven. He was also given the title of "Dragon King" and was named "Dragon King of Zulingzhou Dragon Clan".
Mrs. Ao Qing, Hu Yue, was granted the title of "Heavenly King" and was given the position of "Dragon Mother of Zulingzhou".
The prince Ao Tian was granted the title of "Lingguan" and the position of "Crown Prince of the Dragon Clan of Zulingzhou".
As for the former nobles, they were all granted the title of "Spiritual Official" and continued to serve under Ao Qing Dragon King.
At the same time, Gou Chen Dao Zun used the mighty power of 'Earth Authority' to make rich earth energy rise from the 500,000-li land of Zulingzhou, increasing the quality and age of all the immortal medicines, immortal herbs, immortal fruits, and precious materials grown in Zulingzhou by five times.
In an instant, the entire Zuling State was enveloped in extremely rich fairy fragrance. For a moment, all creatures in Zuling State were rejoicing, and hundreds of thousands of dragons were grateful, burning incense and paying homage to the heaven.
Afterwards, Ao Qing, the Heavenly King of Zulingzhou, issued an edict, ordering the establishment of temples and altars in various parts of Zulingzhou to worship the Great Heavenly Venerable Haotian and the various Taoist ancestors.
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