Infinity, starting from eternity

Chapter 563 Inner Sage, Outer King! Inner King, Outer Sage? The Establishment of the Sage King Party!

"That crown prince is a big problem."

Yang Susu looked somewhat solemn. Ever since she enrolled in school, the Crown Prince had been constantly on her mind, to the point that she was practically sick of hearing about him.

The Crown Prince's prestige within the Heavenly Academy was immense. Several other saints within the academy had also formed factions, but they were either subservient or trying to curry favor; there was no question of confrontation.

"Even the leaders of the Heavenly Realm have publicly praised the Crown Prince on multiple occasions. This guy can be considered the heir to the Heavenly Realm Academy!"

The Saintess of a Hundred Flowers nodded in agreement, "Back then, I never even considered becoming a saint. The competition was too fierce. If the Heavenly Leader didn't step down, how could any saint possibly rise to the top? It was like an immortal emperor who outlived countless princes and grandsons, and the saints went through several cycles of change."

"But the Crown Prince is different. The Heavenly Leader is genuinely interested in passing the throne to him, which is why he is so influential in the academy and has such a powerful presence in both the Abundant Continent and the Western Continent!"

"His talent is indeed very strong, he's a reincarnation of a god, but I'm not bad either!"

The Saintess of a Hundred Flowers revealed a hint of arrogance. She died at the age of fifteen, which can be described as a genius. She definitely has the potential to become a saint. She can advance to the legendary level within a certain number of years and complete the tasks assigned by the academy.

But after understanding the situation, she had no such idea at all.

Elders and students are two separate systems. Students are expected to make contributions, no matter how strong they are. Elite and core students work hard to become saints. Saints collect resources, win over elders, and eventually ascend to the throne as the leader of the academy, dominating the entire academy.

Elders, though seemingly inferior to saints in status, enjoy all the benefits and are equivalent to regional ministers. Students even have to bow to them, demonstrating their immense power.

The Saintess of a Hundred Flowers was very proud and didn't want to be pointed at by the elders. She didn't want the position of Saint, so she became an elder directly, and later the Grand Elder, holding a very high position within the academy.

Now possessing the power of a legendary fifth transformation, even the Supreme Elders cannot do anything about her; only the Heavenly Leaders are qualified to deal with her.

“No matter how biased the Heavenly Leader is, he shouldn’t target me for this matter,” the Hundred Flowers Saintess said hesitantly. “I think so…”

"After all, the crown prince isn't his son!"

“That’s hard to say.” Li Ping’an chuckled. “The Crown Prince isn’t his son, but he greatly admires the Crown Prince’s mother. Otherwise, why do you think he would disregard his status and let the Crown Prince create such a mess at the Heavenly Academy?”

All I can say is that sycophants are invincible; even a Heavenly Leader can't compare to Feng Baiyu.

The two have some similarities, but Feng Baiyu is not as useless as he seems. Putting aside his identity as the reincarnation of Shakyamuni Heavenly Lord, he is also a Saintess Xiaohuang, who is a pampered woman in the Undying Realm and a Void Immortal Realm cultivator.

The two are worlds apart; even a dog would shake its head at the sight of such a high-ranking leader.

"You knew about this? Heavenly leaders are forbidden from killing people!" The Hundred Flowers Saintess was somewhat surprised; Li Ping'an had changed quite a bit since emerging from seclusion this time.

"The Heavenly Leader is nothing, and the Crown Prince is nothing either."

Li Ping'an said leisurely, "This world is very large. The Abundant Continent is just the lowest-level flat continent with a round sky and a square earth. Not to mention the Heavenly Rank, there are not even many Great Saints."

"The Heavenly Leader is called the Heavenly Leader, but the academy has never produced a Heavenly Leader in history. The Heavenly Leader is just a beautiful dream!"

The saints of the bountiful continent are nothing but frogs in a well!
Li Ping'an's words were casual, yet they still shocked the three people in front of him. Just how great was his magnanimity that he didn't even put the Heavenly Leader and the Crown Prince in his eyes?

"It seems you've finally remembered the past! You must come from a higher plane. Although you were as weak as an ordinary person when I saw you, I could sense that your essence was absolutely extraordinary!" The Hundred Flowers Saintess recalled an event from the past.

Li Ping'an descended from the sky, and in a daze, he seemed to see a heavenly kingdom, with countless immortals and near-gods. He fell from the sky, passing through layers of space, and landed on the bountiful continent.

Who can know the shock that the Saintess of a Hundred Flowers felt at that moment? It was beyond words.

When Li Ping'an fell, a rainbow-like life essence was absorbed by the Hundred Flowers Saintess and merged into her body, making it impossible to find.

But from then on, her cultivation progressed by leaps and bounds, breaking through to the legendary level, and comprehending the laws as easily as eating and drinking.

Even the Holy Maiden of a Hundred Flowers has recently had some vague insights, and her qigong circulation has inexplicably changed, transforming into another type of qigong.

Although she didn't know the specific level, she felt that it was definitely no weaker than the techniques of the Heavenly Leader and the Abundant Saints; it might even be a Heavenly-level Qi Gong, or stronger.

"Senior Brother Li comes from a higher plane?!" Yang Qi's body trembled, his face showing considerable surprise. "Could it be the Suspended Mountain?"

He thought of his mother. Yang Zhan had mentioned it to him. It was a plane far beyond the Bountiful Continent, and his mother was a princess of the demon race. For some reason, she was weak and gave birth on the Bountiful Continent.

A variety of thoughts arose in Yang Qi's mind, and he was shocked. He never expected that his senior brother Li, his future uncle-in-law, was also a visitor from a higher plane.

Li Ping'an responded quite readily.

"do not know."

"My memory has not fully returned."

It wasn't that he was pretending; he genuinely didn't know.

His reincarnation seems to have encountered significant problems; it's definitely not just one or two reincarnations, and it's even questionable whether this current body is unique.

It is very likely that he was reincarnated and split into millions of parts, scattered throughout the world.

He claimed to have the constitution of a reincarnator, which was true, but in reality, he couldn't sense the true self deep within the cycle of reincarnation, like the Gulu Beast deep within Princess Biluo's soul.

Otherwise, Li Ping'an would never have allowed the two patriarchs of Fengyun to come out; he could have simply crushed them with one hand.

There's no need to keep the Heavenly Academy; it will perish along with the Crown Prince faction.

"What are higher planes like?" Yang Susu murmured. As cultivators, none of them did not yearn for a higher world.

The people she cares about all seem to have some inexplicable connection to higher planes, and even she herself is one of them.

The Flower Saintess resolved her doubts.

"Higher planes are just a general term; in reality, they are vastly different. Above the continents are planets, and giant continents billions of miles in size distort spacetime and take on a spherical shape."

"The largest planetary plane is trillions of miles in size! It can bear the will of the celestial beings and operates with its own independent laws of heaven and earth!"

"Beyond the planets lies the star field, containing trillions upon trillions of planets. We are in the Four Desolate Star Fields, an ancient and vast world."

"Above are the ultimate goals of cultivators: the Immortal Realm, the God Realm, and the Hell Dimension, the homeland of demons, but the specifics are still unknown."

"The Nine Yang Immortal Qi that we have gathered here comes from the Immortal Rank plane, but it has been weakened considerably. Otherwise, it would be impossible to absorb and refine it; it would be melted instantly!"

Li Ping'an is the most qualified to speak on this matter. The fifth-level immortal realm is equivalent to ascending to heaven once. How is it possible that someone in the mortal realm can absorb the immortal energy of the thirty-third-level immortal realm?

That level of immortal energy is so powerful that even a shattered immortal might not be able to absorb it, and would instantly explode and die. The same goes for mortals; an entire star field could be melted away by it.

"I know something about the Suspended Mountain. It's a powerful demon clan force in the Four Desolate Star Regions, traversing countless planets and renowned for its might!" The Hundred Flowers Saintess exclaimed. "If you are truly connected to the Suspended Mountain, crushing the Crown Prince and the Heavenly Leader is no different than crushing an ant!"

"The Suspended Mountain is so powerful?!" Yang Qi was shocked. His mother came from such a powerful force, but how could she appear on the Bountiful Continent? What exactly happened back then?
"Alright, there's no need to count on these things."

Li Ping'an shook his head. He was certain that he had nothing to do with the Suspended Mountain, and even the master of this vast star field, the Taihuang Heavenly Immortal Realm, might not be.

"If we want to deal with the Crown Prince, we have to rely on ourselves. As long as we are strong, we will have nothing to fear."

"there is always a solution to a problem."

A sharp glint flashed in Li Ping'an's eyes. "If that leader is so foolish, then the name of this academy can be changed. What a waste of such a good name."

"What Senior Brother Li said makes sense."

Yang Qi seemed to agree. After breaking through to the Life-Seizing Realm, his confidence increased greatly. The awakened Hell Furnace could now unleash its full power, allowing him to grow rapidly.

At that time, who in this world will be able to defeat us?

He continued, "The Crown Prince is powerful and domineering. We alone are probably not enough to deal with him. The Heavenly Academy has suffered under the Crown Prince for a long time. I think we can make use of him."

"I feel we can establish a political party to compete with the princelings, not only in terms of strength and public support, but also to seize territory!"

Yang Qi was a wise man. He knew that the Crown Prince's strength lay not only in himself, but also in the massive supporters who rallied behind him.

"Oh? What are your thoughts?" Li Ping'an's eyes flashed, and he sighed inwardly, wondering if Yang Qi had finally chosen this path.

The way of gathering the masses may not be particularly noticeable in other fantasy worlds, but it has a profound impact in the world of Saint King.

The mortal realm is alright, but in the realm of gods, it is all about destiny. Without establishing an empire and refining destiny for cultivation, even the supreme gods seem weak and powerless, just a rogue cultivator. It wouldn't be surprising if they were killed by the supreme gods of a great empire at any time.

"The Heavenly Academy has a guiding principle: inner sagehood and outer kingship. A gentleman should cultivate saintly virtue and lead others with the demeanor of a king."

Yang Qi spoke up, “Although the Heavenly Academy has many problems, some of its principles are applicable. However, the Crown Prince, as well as many saints, elders, and even the Heavenly Leader, have misinterpreted the will of the sages. We are here to set things right.”

"Why don't we call ourselves the Holy King Party?"

Perhaps influenced by Li Ping'an, Yang Qi only now conceived the idea of ​​establishing the Holy King Party, his eyes gleaming with determination. "How about it!" he asked.

"Inner Sage, Outer King? The Sage King Party?"

"Good name!"

Li Ping'an pondered the matter carefully, then suddenly smiled and said, "Speaking of this concept of inner sage and outer king, I've thought of a counterexample."

"An inner king, an outer saint!"

"This is a distorted interpretation of the truth. It advocates that a nation's political parties should be strict with themselves internally, suppress the lower classes, and be open and gentle externally, adopting a peaceful approach to coexistence and appease other countries. It is believed that this will allow them to remain independent and at least avoid being attacked, and is called an external sage!"

Yang Qi frowned. "Who came up with this crooked idea? How can a country be governed by exploiting its own people and pandering to foreign countries for development? If this continues, won't the people become spineless cowards?"

"Our Holy King Party will absolutely not do such a thing!"

He said it with absolute certainty.

Inner sage, outer king; inner king, outer sage!
A single word makes all the difference!

The former establishes the morality of its citizens, demands themselves the virtues of gentlemen and saints, promotes independence and self-reliance among all people, makes the country prosperous and strong, takes a tough stance against foreign aggression, suppresses those who do not submit, and promotes the implementation of benevolent rule.

If this continues, the world will be changed, and a true utopian society, an era where everyone is like a dragon, will arrive!
The latter is simply the behavior of rulers protecting their own interests, suppressing the lower classes, and enslaving their minds; no matter how good their words are, they are all just empty talk.

If a country is spineless in its dealings with foreign powers and its citizens live in constant fear, bullying the weak and fearing the strong, it is doomed to perish.

Yang Qi immediately realized, "It seems that Senior Brother Li is pointing this out to me. This 'inner king and outer saint' is clearly the principle that the Crown Prince is implementing. He even offered the Holy Ancestor Dynasty the Five Arts of Exhausting the People and colluding with the people of the Western Continent. He is truly malicious!"

Li Ping'an laughed loudly, "So it is said that the Bountiful Continent produced a young hero like you, who turned the tide! The divine lightning from the heavens created you!"

"Senior Brother Li, you flatter me. You are the one who has descended from heaven!" Yang Qi said modestly. He already knew part of Li Ping'an's background. His arrival from a higher plane was much more convincing than that of the Crown Prince.

"I wonder if the Holy King Party can invite you to join."

"That's natural."

Yang Susu immediately spoke up, and Li Ping'an nodded in agreement.

The Saintess of a Hundred Flowers, going with the flow, said, "If you all join, then I'll join too."

She had also formed a political party in her youth and competed fiercely with her classmates, so she could understand Yang Qi's thoughts.

And so, the Holy King Party was established. This great party, destined to influence the past, present, and future of the Holy King Great World, appeared silently in the human world at this moment.

The Holy Maiden of a Hundred Flowers was appointed as the Supreme Elder, Yang Susu as the Grand Elder of Law Enforcement, and Li Ping'an as the leader of the Student Party.

Yang Qi was appointed as the Holy King.

He was beaming with pride, “Brother Li, you are wise and have unique ideas. You are perfect to be the leader of the student party and to educate others. Even the old scholars of the Holy Ancestor Dynasty are not as good as you.”

"For a political party, military force is important, but ideology is even more important!" Yang Qi's decision to hand over this position to Li Ping'an demonstrates his extreme importance to the party.

“I understand.” Li Ping’an nodded. “However, the few of us alone probably cannot support a party system, let alone fight against the princelings.”

"That's good. I have a few friends in the outer courtyard. I can invite them to join the Holy King Party together," Yang Qi said excitedly. He had kept his word.

But the establishment of the Holy King Party was just the beginning. Yang Qi left the academy again without stopping, partly to avoid the Crown Prince, and partly because he was close to the might of the Great Sage and could not afford to be careless.

On the other hand, he was recruiting talent—those he valued. In Yandu City, his stronghold had long been taken over by the Holy King Party, combining theory with practice.

All of this was done remotely by Li Ping'an, and it had a significant impact.

"Cherish Yang Qi as he is now!" Li Ping'an exhaled, his voice filled with emotion.

This Yang Qi still possesses the youthful passion of his younger days, making him infinitely better than the Holy King.

At least for this moment, Yang Qi is truly devoted to the people, wanting to overthrow the Crown Prince and bring light to the people of the Holy Ancestor Dynasty.

(End of this chapter)