"Alas, I never thought that even a saint would do such a despicable thing."
Looking at the spirit bead in Li Daoyi's hand, Zhen Yuanzi sighed.
"A sage? Don't you know what kind of person Yuanshi was before? So what if he became a sage? His nature is hard to change." Kunpeng said disdainfully.
“If he wants to play, he has to ask me if I agree,” Li Daoyi said.
“You two know what I’ve done. It’s not too late to change your mind now, but once the great calamity begins, it will be difficult to escape,” Li Daoyi said to the two men.
Upon hearing this, Zhen Yuanzi burst into laughter.
“Fellow Daoist, do you think I am the kind of person who is afraid of death? The Heavenly Dao is ruthless. I have seen through it all over the years. Now I have been stuck at the Quasi-Saint level for many years, unable to move forward. The Heavenly Dao will not allow it, but I do not believe it. I will fight for it and die without regrets.” Zhen Yuanzi said.
“Alright, that’s what I think too. I’ve been feeling stifled for so many years, and now that I finally have this opportunity, I’d rather die than live a life of humiliation,” Kunpeng quickly replied.
Just then, Li Dao looked out the window and saw a streak of rainbow light flying in.
"Hey, why is this guy back?"
After saying that, Li Dao waved his hand, and the spatial door on the ninth floor was opened.
The rainbow light flew straight in.
"Kong Xuan!" Kunpeng exclaimed.
The one who arrived was Kong Xuan, who had left Chaoge earlier.
"Why is it you guys?" Kong Xuan was also taken aback.
"Haha, so it's Kong Xuan." Zhen Yuanzi laughed.
The group was naturally familiar with each other, especially Kunpeng.
It turns out that Kong Xuan had been reassigned by Emperor Yi and was returning to Sanshan Pass to hand over his duties. The person who succeeded him was Deng Jiugong. This name may be unfamiliar, but his daughter is very famous. She is Deng Chanyu, the female general in the Investiture of the Gods. She is incredibly skilled at playing with the Five-Colored Stone, and even Nezha has suffered at her hands.
"General Kong, you're back so soon?" Li Daoyi said.
"Yes, I'll come back immediately after I finish giving the instructions, since the new king's coronation will be coming soon," Kong Xuan replied hastily.
"On the way here, I have already seen many envoys from various vassal states heading towards Chaoge," Kong Xuan continued.
"I wonder if the four great marquises will come," Yin Shou said with some worry.
"Don't worry, we haven't completely broken ties yet. To silence public opinion, they will definitely come," Li Daoyi said.
As the appointed day drew near, Chaoge City was transformed. Every household had its doors adorned with black bird banners, and the streets were swept clean every day. Rumors had spread from the palace that the new king would grant a general amnesty upon his ascension to the throne and exempt the people from taxes for three years. These were tangible benefits, and the common people were naturally overjoyed.
At this time, tents were everywhere outside Chaoge City, all belonging to the entourages of the feudal lords. These people were naturally not allowed to enter the capital at will. Of course, Emperor Yi was not stingy and had prepared various supplies in advance. After all, guests from afar were welcome, and all supplies were provided by the royal city, which greatly demonstrated Chaoge's rich resources.
On this day, the area outside the city gates became lively. Yin Shou, Wen Zhong, Bi Gan, Shang Rong and others waited at the gates early in the morning because today was the day the four great marquises were to arrive. It was unclear whether the four had planned it or it was just a coincidence, but they all arrived on the same day.
“Madam, you didn’t really need to come,” Yin Shou said as he rode his horse toward the carriage.
“That’s my father. We haven’t seen each other for ten years. How can I, as his daughter, not welcome him?” Jiang Rou’s voice came from inside the carriage.
"Hmm." Yin Shou nodded. He knew that this was the last time Jiang Rou would greet Dongbo Hou Jiang Hengchu as his daughter. After he ascended the throne, their identities would be switched, and Dongbo Hou would have to pay his respects to his daughter when they met again.
Gradually, a procession appeared on the official road in the distance, with apricot-yellow banners bearing the large character "Ji".
"It turns out that the Marquis of Xibo arrived first," Wen Zhong said.
Then Shang Rong nodded to the musicians behind him, and the musicians who were already prepared immediately began to play. This was a privilege reserved for the four great marquises.
The surrounding common people and the followers of the feudal lords also peeked out, looking on with curiosity. Many people wanted to see the famous Marquis of Xibo.
Soon, the procession arrived at the city gate. The curtain of a carriage was lifted, and an elderly man of about sixty years old stepped out. Although he looked somewhat old, he was very energetic. This man was none other than Ji Chang, the Marquis of Xibo.
After Ji Chang got off the carriage, he turned around and called out to the carriage. A young man of about seventeen or eighteen years old jumped out of the carriage as well.
"Haha, I'm late, I've kept you all waiting." Ji Chang turned around, cupped his hands, and walked towards the crowd.
"Ji Chang pays his respects to the Crown Prince." Immediately afterwards, Ji Chang bowed to Yin Shou.
"No, Your Excellency, please rise quickly," Yin Shou said hastily.
Ji Chang then greeted the group and pulled the young man behind him up.
"This is my second son, Ji Fa. Ji Fa, quickly pay your respects to the gentlemen."
This seventeen or eighteen-year-old youth was Ji Fa. He was handsome with delicate features and an extraordinary demeanor, which immediately earned him nods of praise from Wen Zhong and the others.
At this moment, inside the Zhutian Tower, Li Daoyi and his three companions were standing by the window watching. Although they were still quite far away, their strength allowed them to see the situation at the city gate clearly.
Since the other three marquises had not yet arrived, Ji Chang and his entourage, led by Bigan, entered Chaoge City first and went to the pre-prepared post station to rest.
Upon entering Chaoge City, the young Ji Fa was filled with curiosity. He had never left Xiqi since birth, and seeing such a magnificent city, he was immediately overwhelmed.
"Father, what building is that? It's so tall!" Ji Fa asked as soon as he saw the Tower of All Heavens.
"Haha, Second Young Master, that's Zhutianlou, the best restaurant in the city," Bigan laughed.
"The Tower of All Heavens, so this is the Tower of All Heavens. I've heard of it in Xiqi before," Ji Fa said excitedly.
At this moment, Ji Chang also looked at the Tower of All Heavens with curiosity. When he came last time, this tower didn't exist yet.
Soon the group arrived at the foot of the Tower of All Heavens. Looking up, they felt that the tower was so tall that it seemed to reach the clouds, and they couldn't see the top of it at a glance. It was very magical.
Although Ji Fa really wanted to go in and take a look, he knew it wasn't the right time, so he reluctantly continued walking forward.
At this moment, Li Daoyi, who was upstairs, waved to Ji Fa and the others who were leaving, and a mysterious energy flew towards them.
"Buzz..."
Suddenly, purple energy emanated from Ji Fa's body. This purple energy, emitting a purple light, soared into the sky. While others could not see this purple energy, the people upstairs all saw it.
Just now, Li Daoyi used the power of destiny within Chaoge to trigger the dormant destiny within Ji Fa.
"Wow, this kid has such a strong aura of luck," Kong Xuan exclaimed in shock.
"Strange, how can a mortal possess such abundant fortune?" Zhen Yuanzi exclaimed in surprise.
"Fellow Daoist, what's wrong with this kid?" Kunpeng asked.
“Didn’t you guys notice? His aura is on par with Yin Shou’s,” Li Daoyi said.
"What? You mean, this is also the destiny of the Human King?" Zhen Yuanzi asked.
Li Daoyi nodded.
"I understand now. This child is the chosen one, the future king of men." At this moment, Kong Xuan seemed to have thought of something and nodded slightly.
"General Kong, you are absolutely right. Ji Fa is the future chosen one and an important figure in the Investiture of the Gods. It can be said that the Investiture of the Gods revolves around him." Li Daoyi nodded.
“I understand. Changing dynasties is indeed a good method that can be used. A massacre requires the sacrifice of countless lives, and nothing is more effective than changing dynasties,” Zhen Yuanzi said.
"I'll go kill him right now," Kong Xuan said, his eyes turning cold.
"Don't."
Li Daoyi stopped Kong Xuan.
“Killing them won’t help. The Marquis of Xibo has hundreds of sons. If one dies, another will naturally take his place. Even if you kill them all, the eight hundred lords can still find one of them at will.”
“For them, who is king is not important; what matters is that the other party is obedient and willing to be a pawn,” Li Daoyi said.
"Sigh..." Kong Xuan sighed deeply.
"Don't worry, since I'm getting involved, how this Investiture of the Gods is played out is not up to them."
"Besides, now is not the time. Doing too much will only alert them. Don't rush, we will definitely give those people a big surprise in time," Li Daoyi said with a smile.
The three of them exchanged glances and nodded.
As they were talking, Li Daoyi suddenly seemed to realize something, and thought to himself that something was wrong. He quickly looked towards the direction of the palace.
"What's wrong?"
“Mengmeng, this child is in the palace now,” Li Daoyi said.
"Isn't she often at the palace?" Zhen Yuanzi asked, puzzled.
“You don’t know, Mengmeng has an ability: she can devour luck. Once she encounters Ji Fa, this child will probably not be able to resist,” Li Daoyi quickly said.
"Wait a moment, I'll go and bring her back."
After Li Daoyi finished speaking, he disappeared. He couldn't let Mengmeng cause trouble. If Ji Fa's luck was damaged at this time, it would definitely be discovered, and that would be very troublesome.
Behind the royal palace is the Garden of Rare and Exotic Animals, where Emperor Yi kept rare birds and animals, many of which were presented as tribute from various places.
Today, the entire animal park was filled with smoke and chaos. Two small figures were chasing each other happily in the park, while the rare animals scattered and ran away.
Some servants stood outside with worried expressions, watching the frightened beast run around, and couldn't help but smile bitterly to themselves.
Inside were Mengmeng and Yin Jiao.
"Jiaojiao, look! I caught a tiger!"
Mengmeng was standing on a tiger that was more than ten times her size, showing off.
"Boss, you're amazing! I only managed to catch one rabbit," Yin Jiao said enviously.
"Hehe, let's go, let's take it out and bake it first," Mengmeng said with a grin.
"Huh? It's roasted?" Yin Jiao was taken aback.
"Yeah, otherwise why would I catch it?"
"No way! My grandpa will beat me up!" Yin Jiao was on the verge of tears. He never expected that Mengmeng would want to eat these rare beasts.
"Hmph, I'm not afraid at all," Mengmeng said, tilting her head back.
"You're not afraid, you have a celestial being protecting you, but I'm not." Yin Jiao felt numb all over at the thought of being beaten.
Just then, Mengmeng, who was standing on the tiger's head, exclaimed in surprise.
"oops."
Yin Jiao looked over and saw that Li Daoyi had appeared out of nowhere, grabbed Mengmeng, and leaped into the air, disappearing in an instant.
"What's going on?" Yin Jiao, who was carrying the rabbit, looked completely bewildered.
"roar…"
Now freed from Mengmeng's restraints, the tiger on the ground glared fiercely at Yin Jiao.
"Ah... Help!" Yin Jiao snapped out of her daze and ran out of the garden shouting.
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