Daojun, start from Penglai foundation building

"Thirteen years have passed through spring and autumn, I've roamed the heavens with my sword in hand and the breeze at my back."

"Sharpening the cold blade with purple lightning, it cuts down all evil gods and demons."

As the clear and melodious Taoist chanting filled the air, the young Taoist priest, wearing a bamboo hat and simple clothes, rode away from Lonely Mountain.

On the lonely mountain, a sword mark that tore apart the mountain god's temple has appeared in front of it.

The sword mark was extremely long, stretching three hundred feet from front to back. It not only split the mountain god temple in two, but also killed the evil mountain god with a blue face and fangs enshrined in the temple with a single sword stroke.

As for the divine registers and titles left behind after the fall of the mountain god, they have also disappeared without a trace. Only the melodious sound remains, echoing through the mountains and forests. The villagers in the nearby villages can't help but sigh, "Truly worthy of being called the Immortal Jiang who punishes evil and promotes good!"

Jiang Sheng earned his reputation as the Immortal Jiang, who punished evil and promoted good, in this world.

A vast continent, with mountains and rivers, ten kingdoms, tens of thousands of villages, and hundreds of cities.

Jiang Sheng stayed in the mountain village for three years, barely managing to refine some of the medicinal power of the Vast Sea Crimson Gold Dates. After gaining some basic self-defense capabilities, he left the mountain village and began his travels.

Over the course of ten years, Jiang Sheng traveled through mountains and rivers, visiting villages and towns. He witnessed many benevolent gods protecting the local people and ensuring good weather and abundant harvests, as well as many evil gods oppressing the good and greedily indulging in their desires.

Jiang Sheng doesn't pay much attention to benevolent gods, but he won't let any evil gods go unpunished.

It wasn't that Jiang Sheng genuinely enjoyed playing tricks like punishing evil and promoting good, but rather that he needed the divine registers and positions of these evil gods to nourish his own Judicial Heavenly Lord Seal.

This continent was created by the Great Emperor Huangtian himself. Because it was created by the Great Emperor Huangtian, a divine emperor who held the Dao, even though this world is not as vast as a small thousand world, its status is extremely high, enough to accommodate Mahayana beings.

Looking across the heavens, only the small world created by the Pure Yang Great Power has such wonders; otherwise, where can one find a world that is small in size but of extremely high status?

Judging solely from the potential and foundation of this world, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call this realm a middle-thousand world.

Before it was used by the Heavenly Emperor as a testing ground, this continent was the place where the Heavenly Emperor trained divine officials and generals; it was the Heavenly Emperor's private world.

Therefore, the order of this world not only reveres the divine way, but the entire system is perfectly aligned with the divine way. It can be said that the divine way is the only supreme authority, and the system is extremely rigorous, with no gaps in the laws and restrictions.

Jiang Sheng hadn't gained much insight before, but as he stayed in this world longer and saw gods on every mountain peak, land deities in every village, and even dragon kings in every stream and well, he realized how deeply this world was influenced by the divine way.

It can be said that everything in this world is under the surveillance of the divine way, and it is difficult to evade the divine way's observation if one tries to do something underhanded.

This is a world where the divine is supreme, and the will of heaven and earth and the laws of the world not only worship the gods, but also greatly suppress the paths of immortals and Buddhas.

Therefore, Jiang Sheng cannot easily attack benevolent gods, but evil gods are different.

The evil god only receives incense offerings but has no merit. Jiang Sheng's sword strike not only brings joy to heaven and earth but also increases his own merit and fortune, allowing the seal of the Heavenly Lord of Justice to be gradually unsealed. Jiang Sheng naturally welcomes such a good thing.

Riding on his blue-maned horse, Jiang Sheng weighed the divine talisman in his hand, a smile on his face: "The divine talisman of the Black Wind Mountain God, another red-rank talisman. If I swallow this talisman, the Judicial Heavenly Lord Seal should be restored to the gold-rank talisman, and my cultivation will also be able to advance to the Nascent Soul stage."

During his three years in the mountain village, Jiang Sheng ate many magical fruits, such as the Vast Ocean Crimson Gold Dates, the Seven-Aperture Glazed Fruit, the Bright Light Empty Gold Fruit, and the Emerald Jade Melon Fruit…

There's also the Heavenly Lake Golden Dragon Grass, and the Sun, Moon, and Star Fruits of the Undying Banyan Tree…

With so many immortal fruits in his stomach, even though Jiang Sheng could only rely on his physical body to gradually refine the immense medicinal power within these fruits, three years were still only enough to restore him from having no magical power to the Foundation Establishment level.

It wasn't that Jiang Sheng couldn't refine the medicinal power of those immortal fruits, but rather that this world didn't allow those who cultivated the immortal path to break through to higher realms so easily.

After all, this world was created by the Great Emperor of Heaven, and everything here is in accordance with divine authority. Without a divine rank, it is impossible to increase one's cultivation level.

In this world, one's cultivation level is linked to their divine position and rank.

The fact that Jiang Sheng, a person without any divine status, could have reached the Foundation Establishment stage is already due to the outstanding medicinal power of the immortal fruit and Jiang Sheng's own extraordinary luck and merits.

After his cultivation level returned to the Foundation Establishment stage and then stagnated, Jiang Sheng realized that he could no longer stay in the mountain village and rely on eating immortal fruits to restore his strength. Instead of watching the fierce battles outside the mountain, he had to give up his plan to continue hiding in the mountain village.

How could a plan devised by a Great Emperor at the Dao Realm have such obvious flaws?
Being able to recover some strength by relying on the immortal fruit is already a blessing from the Great Emperor; relying entirely on the immortal fruit to reach the end is nothing but wishful thinking.

Although Jiang Sheng's plan to gain the power of the Upper Three Realms by eating immortal fruits and then sweep away all his enemies to seize the first place failed, it does not mean that he will obediently enter the path of the gods.

Jiang Sheng is an immortal, not a god. If he tries to climb and struggle within the divine system, he will only be shackled and his true nature will be restricted. Jiang Sheng is unwilling to do things that can only follow the will of heaven and drift with the tide.

The purpose of cultivating the Dao is to be free and unrestrained. If one puts another shackle on oneself for the sake of so-called realm and cultivation, what benefit is there in the Dao heart and true nature?
Just to be a compliant subject to the will of this world?
Jiang Sheng is a sharp sword. If a sword is constantly tempered and honed, it will not become sharper, but will only become dull and rusty.

Fortunately, there is always a way out. As Jiang Sheng regained some of his magical power, the Judicial Heavenly Lord Seal also broke free from its seal. At this time, Jiang Sheng discovered that the Judicial Heavenly Lord Seal seemed to have some unique enhancement in this world.

With the initial unsealing of the Heavenly Emperor Seal of Justice, Jiang Sheng, who originally only had the early stage of Foundation Establishment cultivation under the restrictions of heaven and earth, naturally advanced a small level and reached the middle stage of Foundation Establishment.

This made Jiang Sheng realize that even if he did not enter the path of divinity, as long as he still possessed the Judicial Heavenly Monarch Seal, he could continue to improve his cultivation.

In this way, they would not be subject to the divine restrictions of heaven and earth like the creatures of this world, nor would they be confined to a single place or city like those divine cultivators.

The restoration of the Judicial Heavenly Lord Seal is also very simple. Just find a deity and feed the Judicial Heavenly Lord Seal its divine duties and talismans, and the Judicial Heavenly Lord Seal will be able to break free of its shackles, and Jiang Sheng's cultivation will be able to recover accordingly.

Over the course of ten years, Jiang Sheng had slain countless evil gods, and the Seal of the Heavenly Ruler of Justice had absorbed countless divine offices, finally reaching the point where he was about to break through to the Golden Edict level.

He fed the Black Wind Mountain God's divine register and divine authority to the Judicial Heavenly Lord Seal, watched as the Judicial Heavenly Lord Seal swallowed the divine register and divine authority, analyzed the rules of heaven and earth, and watched as the Judicial Heavenly Lord Seal became more and more lustrous, as one after another invisible shackle between heaven and earth shattered with a bang.

In the next instant, an aura far surpassing the previous one burst forth from Jiang Sheng's body. A thousand-foot-tall divine figure, formed from countless spiritual energies, stood on the earth amidst the mountains and fields.

The divine being was handsome and dignified, holding a magic sword in one hand and a jade seal in the other. His eyes were like lightning, and there was a blue-black mark between his brows that resembled a heavenly eye. He was truly awe-inspiring and had an extraordinary aura.

Now, Jiang Sheng's cultivation has recovered to the Nascent Soul Realm, and the Judicial Heavenly Monarch Seal is also a Golden Edict of rank.

Meanwhile, the Divine Emperor of Shenxiao, who had been the first to obtain a divine position and was developing rapidly, was still striving to find an opportunity to elevate his divine authority to the Red Gold Divine Edict…

Amidst the chaotic rocks and barren mountains, one can see golden and blue light shining everywhere.

A group of mountain gods and local deities mobilized rural ghost soldiers and incense-burning gods to besiege this chaotic rocky mountain. They were also the mountain gods who besieged the chaotic mountain, the Divine Emperor of Shenxiao.

It must be mentioned that Shenxiao Emperor developed rapidly at the beginning. In just a few years, he merged the divine positions of Mountain God, Earth God, and River God into one, thus obtaining the Red Edict position for himself.

However, after gaining the power of the Purple Mansion, the life of the Divine Firmament Emperor did not become much easier. This was because the Divine Firmament Emperor had made too many moves in the past few years, revealing his ambition. The surrounding mountain gods and local deities had already united to suppress the Divine Firmament Emperor, and at one point almost brought down the Divine Firmament Emperor, who was advancing rapidly.

After several suppressions and sieges, although the Divine Firmament Emperor failed to advance further, he had honed his power, while the surrounding mountain gods and land gods were exhausted.

In the mountain god temple of Luanshi Mountain, the Divine Emperor of the Red Edict stood with his hands behind his back, coldly looking at the mountain gods and local deities hidden behind the scenes: "Hmph, let you be arrogant for a while longer."

"Once my divine weapon is forged, you will all be reduced to ashes!"

The Divine Emperor was not unaware that his rapid progress had aroused the jealousy of others, but he did not care.

The Divine Firmament Emperor had long prepared a backup plan, using incense to temper the Dao soldiers. Now, he only needed to temper the Dao soldiers into an array to wipe out these mountain gods and local deities in one fell swoop, thereby elevating his own status to the Red Gold Edict and achieving the power of the Golden Core!

The Divine Firmament Emperor believed that no one was faster than him in this trial!

"Liu Yuan and Tian Yun, people from small realms, possess only luck but are ignorant of the vastness of heaven and earth. They are nothing but wasted efforts and become nothing more than withered bones in a tomb."

"Qingyu and Pushe, one a demon and the other a Buddha, even if they are Mahayana practitioners, how can they resist the laws of heaven? If they don't enter the divine path, they won't make any progress. If they do enter the divine path, it will be a death struggle. Don't worry too much about them."

"As for those who are merely frivolous and unambitious, lacking any real drive and content with a life of leisure, they are unlikely to amount to much..."

Commenting on the various prodigies and Daoists in the seventh level, the Divine Firmament Emperor said arrogantly: "As for Penglai Lingyuan... it would be better if he hadn't encountered me. But since he has, I will let him know what the divine path is and what an emperor is."

“Young people are arrogant and conceited, and it takes the help of elders to help them overcome their pride and impetuosity…” As the Divine Firmament Emperor spoke, he raised his hand and slowly made a grasping motion, as if he were holding the pulse of this world: “There is a rumor that the Heavenly Emperor’s cave heaven was torn from the laws of a certain fallen emperor’s cave heaven.”

"In any case, this is a world governed by the divine; everything must follow the divine order and obey the laws of heaven..."

"Immortals, Buddhas, demons, or monsters?"

"How can we overcome the advantage that lies with us..."

As Shenxiao Emperor spoke, he closed his eyes and sensed the incense power within his divine domain. Soon, he would be able to wipe out these rural deities in one fell swoop.

Meanwhile, in another city, Emperor Liuyuan sat in the City God Temple, overlooking the city's boundaries and a vast expanse of thousands of miles.

Emperor Liuyuan was draped in a red and gold robe, wore an official hat, and held a jade tablet, clearly displaying his rank and status.

After thirteen years of arduous work, Emperor Liuyuan has diligently and tirelessly progressed step by step, and is now the City God, possessing the Golden Elixir Daoist cultivation.

The next goal of Emperor Liuyuan is to become the City God of the capital.

The City God of a prefecture is of extraordinary status, equivalent to the mountain god of a famous mountain or the dragon king of a rushing river. These are all titles of the Golden Edict and the cultivation of the Nascent Soul stage.

Only by reaching the position of City God could Emperor Liuyuan plot to obtain the position of the Underworld Emperor through the Golden and Azure Edict…

Compared to the Divine Firmament Emperor, the Liuyuan Emperor undoubtedly took extremely steady steps.

As for the Heavenly Fortune Emperor and the Spring and Autumn God, they now each have the status of having a Red Edict and a Red Gold Edict.

In fact, during these thirteen years, the various prodigies and Daoists never slackened.

Miyin has already taken the lead in creating a golden body and building a Buddhist temple to advance her status. Mijian and the others are also making similar progress.

The Golden Lion Demon Lord occupied several mountains and commanded all beasts, becoming the mountain god of the Three Mountains; the White Armor Demon Lord, on the other hand, only occupied one mountain and developed slowly.

The Demon Lord Qingyu entered the harem of a country through a talent show, intending to seize the position of empress and then replace the king; while Venerable Pushe entered the court to preach Buddhism, which earned him the respect of the king and led to his being rewarded.

The Immortal Lord of Floating Clouds, pretending to be a carefree hermit, established a Taoist temple, attracting officials to offer him alms, while the Taoist Master Duoming continued to live as a carefree immortal.

The Demon Lord Yingtian was the most imaginative. He entered a prince's mansion and revealed his true form to the prince at night, making the prince ecstatic and believing that he had a divine mandate. He then bestowed upon the prince a divine title, waiting only for the prince to succeed in his rebellion so that he could seize the fate of the country and become the God of the Azure Edict...

Unbeknownst to them, several decades had passed in this world.

Over the decades, some of the ten kingdoms were preparing to unify the world, some had Buddhist temples everywhere with chanting, some were constantly at war with their neighbors, and some were embroiled in internal strife.

Unbeknownst to many, a number of rather resounding names have emerged in the world.

There was a mountain god named Luanshi who occupied the land of the prefecture and county, and his incense offerings were countless. He was known as the First Mountain God.

A city god rose from the countryside, gradually developing his power to become a local underworld emperor, commanding countless ghost soldiers and generals, and was revered as the King of Hell.

A great demon ravaged the mountains and fields, gathering beasts and birds, and roaring for tens of thousands of miles, calling himself the Great God of the Mountains.

Some Taoist priests can summon wind and rain to protect a nation, earning the title of Supreme Celestial Master; others are monks who propagate Buddhism to enlighten a region, becoming guardian kings of the country…

The geniuses of all realms have been vying for prominence, developing their talents over decades. Now, they have all gained momentum and are subtly vying for power across ten kingdoms, preparing to compete for the divine positions and offices in the upper three realms.

Over the same period of several decades, Jiang Sheng continued to travel around, avoiding those divine realms and dojos that were clearly occupied by geniuses from all sides. He simply experienced the hardships of the human world and eliminated evil gods and ghosts along the way.

Unbeknownst to many, in this chaotic world of ten kingdoms at war, Jiang Sheng's title changed from the original "Jiang Zhenren who punishes evil and promotes good" to "Jiang Shenxian who saves people from suffering."

Having traveled to various countries over the decades, Jiang Sheng is well aware of which geniuses and Daoists exist in each country, and which are at the Mahayana level.

However, Jiang Sheng had no intention of seeking them out, and they dared not easily provoke him. After all, there had been instances over the years where people tried to kick Jiang Sheng out of the game because they thought he hadn't obtained his divine office, only to be killed by Jiang Sheng with a single sword strike.

Gradually, in addition to being known as the God of Saving People from Suffering, Jiang Sheng gained another nickname: Jiang the Sword Immortal Who Slays Demons and Eliminates Evil.

Moreover, Jiang Sheng's current rank of Golden Green Edict does not necessarily reflect his actual strength.

On this day, as Jiang Sheng entered the Central Plains, he enjoyed the scenery of the Central Plains along the way.

A premonition also welled up in Jiang Sheng's heart: the time should be about right.

Just as Jiang Sheng was halfway through his travels in the Central Plains, a group of soldiers rushed over: "The Celestial Master heard that Immortal Jiang is traveling in the country and has specially ordered us to come and invite him."

"The Celestial Master is currently behind us and will arrive shortly. We hope the immortals will not make things difficult for us."

The officer seemed polite, but his words were full of threats.

However, Jiang Sheng was not annoyed and quietly waited for the arrival of the Celestial Master of the Central Plains, Immortal Lord Fuyun.

Before long, a large number of officers and soldiers escorted a ceremonial palanquin.

On the ceremonial carriage, Immortal Lord Fuyun laughed and said, "True Lord, you have been hiding your identity for decades, which has made this old man search for you with great difficulty."

"Who would have thought that you, True Lord, would never establish a territory, but instead choose to travel the world?"

"May I ask, True Lord, what have you gained from your travels throughout the four corners of the world?"

After realizing that Jiang Sheng had not obtained a divine position, Immortal Lord Fuyun was noticeably more relaxed and was even able to chat and laugh with Jiang Sheng.

As he laughed, Immortal Lord Fuyun sensed Jiang Sheng's genuine Nascent Soul Realm cultivation and stared at the faintly visible Dharma Image behind Jiang Sheng. His expression turned extremely solemn: "A True Lord without a divine rank or position, how could he have such cultivation today?!"

Originally, Immortal Lord Fuyun thought there were many rumors circulating in the martial arts world, and moreover, with his current level of cultivation, he could easily overpower all the other geniuses. However, he did not expect that Jiang Sheng's cultivation was even higher than his own!
What surprised and puzzled Immortal Lord Fuyun the most was that Jiang Sheng's aura was the purest Xuanmen immortal energy, without any divine energy whatsoever. How did he manage that?!

However, there is no answer to the question of Immortal Lord Fuyun in the short term.

Jiang Sheng chuckled and drew his sword: "Immortal Lord, you should ask that question outside!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the intent of the Three Calamities and Destruction lingered on the magic sword, and the majestic sword light that soared into the sky suddenly burst forth with a chilling gleam.

Surprised and doubtful, Immortal Lord Fuyun made a move, only to be suppressed by Jiang Sheng. In just three breaths, his divine office was shattered and his divine rank was taken away.

Amidst the astonished and bewildered expression of Immortal Lord Fuyun, Jiang Sheng, after obtaining his divine office and talisman, somehow completed something. A dazzling celestial light descended, transforming into a cloud staircase leading to the heavens.

Amidst the celestial rainbow light, a golden talisman and jade book floated before Jiang Sheng in full view of everyone: "Your Majesty, Jiang Sheng of the mortal realm punishes evil and promotes good, relieves suffering in all directions, possesses great supernatural powers, and has immeasurable merits."

"By special imperial decree, he is hereby conferred the title of: Divine Lord Who Saves from Suffering and Punishes Evil, True Man of Azure Thunder Pivot, with the rank of Azure Edict, and shall swiftly ascend to Heaven!"

For a time, the people and deities of the Central Plains all looked at Jiang Sheng with utmost awe and worshipped him.

Bathed in the golden light of the heavens, Jiang Sheng smiled and ascended to heaven, leaving only the lingering echo of his Daoist voice:
"After a hundred years of cultivating the Dao, the will of the people to punish evil and promote good is fulfilled."

"Seeking out the cries of suffering, saving the demons and monsters, the sword's light vanishes and evil is silenced."

"The four divine lords once feared me, and the demons and Buddhas of the eight wastelands avoided my trace."

"Now I have received a decree from the Heavenly Emperor, and shall reside in the Celestial Palace, known as the Ancestor." (End of Chapter)