Confucian and Taoist scholar

The once demonic city of Yongding was no longer filled with smoke and miasma, nor was it as bustling as it had been.

The entire city became deathly silent, yet it seemed to be reborn, with seeds of hopeful civilization about to take root and sprout here.

Lu Zheng descended from the sky and landed lightly on the city gate, the very gate he had just stepped on, which was now free of any demonic creatures.

Nearby, some ragged survivors saw Lu Zheng, and a glimmer of light appeared in their cloudy eyes.

In their past lives, even the sun in the sky didn't bring them much warmth.

The young man before them, however, ignited a fire within them, a yearning for the future...

Lu Zheng said slowly, "Go to the city. Everything in Yongding City will belong to you. You will be in charge here."

Such words are difficult for these people who have suffered so much to understand and believe.

Many demons and monsters knelt on the ground, bowing to Lu Zheng to express their respect.

Lu Zheng said softly, "No one here is worthy of your groveling. I am not worthy, nor are the saints..."

"If a saint makes you bow down and kneel, then he is not worthy of being called a saint!"

"Get up, all of you. You don't need to kneel before anyone anymore!"

Lu Zheng's voice was calm, yet it carried an invisible power that filled the nearby people with strength, causing them to stand up from the ground involuntarily.

Everyone present was deeply moved. They had witnessed humiliation and death, and were accustomed to darkness and filth in Yongding City.

The powerful can trample and humiliate commoners at will, and a great demon can kill for pleasure if he is unhappy or too happy. Commoners are not even as valuable as dogs and horses...

Those in positions of power don't care how they live; they only complain that they don't bow their heads low enough or kneel respectfully enough.

No one wanted to see these lowly commoners stand up and even dare to stand tall.

However, the person in front of them, who could summon thunder and saints and stood tall and upright, brought them something different.

Many years later, when some of those present became powerful figures, traveling the world to uphold justice, they still could not forget the scene of seeing Lu Zheng in Yongding City...

Just then, Zhang Wencheng and his group came from a distance.

An Dingyuan excitedly approached Lu Zheng, full of curiosity, and asked, "Mr. Lu, which sage did you just invite?"

This was not only a question in his mind, but also a source of confusion for others.

Lu Zheng smiled slightly and said, "The Great Sage Equal to Heaven."

"The Great Sage Equal to Heaven!"

An Dingyuan was stunned, his eyes filled with disbelief.

He only learned about this Great Sage after arriving in Taiping Domain and hearing stories from some children.

Legend has it that it was a divine monkey born to fight against injustice and stormed the Heavenly Court...

When An Dingyuan first heard this story, he thought it was some kind of myth or legend and not to be taken seriously.

An Dingyuan exclaimed in surprise, "There really is such a Great Sage? But how did you manage to bring him out?"

In terms of ability, this Great Sage Equaling Heaven should be considered a Great Sage of the Demon Race or a Primordial Deity. He really couldn't believe that Lu Zheng was able to invite such a person. Shouldn't it have been easier to invite Confucian and Taoist sages?

Zhang Wencheng, who was standing next to him, thought he was well-read, but he had never heard of such an extraordinary Great Sage among the demon race before.

Logically speaking, since Lu Zheng was able to get the other party to manifest their divine power, they should be quite famous.

Seeing the surprised and puzzled looks on everyone's faces, Lu Zheng smiled and said, "There may be a Great Sage Equal to Heaven in this world, or there may not be. But throughout history, there has been no shortage of people like the Great Sage who dared to fight against injustice. As long as we learn from the Great Sage's spirit, then everyone can become the Great Sage Equal to Heaven..."

Upon hearing this, everyone's expressions changed. They were all intelligent people who were quite knowledgeable about cultivation, and they understood what Lu Zheng meant.

Lu Zheng was able to summon this Monkey King most likely because he himself possessed a powerful spiritual will, and then manifested this Monkey King...

This means that Lu Zheng's mental fortitude is comparable to that of a Saint Realm expert.

Comparatively speaking, cultivating such a spiritual will is far more difficult than invoking the will of a sage.

Some people thought to themselves, no wonder Lu Zheng didn't need to make much preparation for inviting the saint, and afterwards he seemed to be fine as if nothing had happened.

Lu Zheng's physique and soul were already strong enough to bear such immense holy power.

Previously, these prodigies from various major powers assumed that Lu Zheng was the same age as them and couldn't be much stronger.

Having gone through all this, they have truly broadened their horizons, and they admire Lu Zheng even more than before.

You should know, none of their elders had ever shown them such methods...

With a wave of his hand and a flick of his finger, he gained the power of a saint and easily annihilated a group of powerful figures, including experts at the Dao Inquiry Realm. What domineering power this was!

Lu Zheng just now was exactly how they dreamed of being.

Lu Zheng led his group into the city, and the nearby residents quickly followed behind, staying neither too close nor too far away.

It seemed that following Lu Zheng brought them peace of mind and filled them with anticipation for the future.

An Dingyuan followed Lu Zheng and whispered, "Now, we're probably going to be enemies with the most powerful forces in the Northern Region."

Although he didn't witness what happened in Yongding City, judging from the current state of the city, An Dingyuan estimated that everyone who deserved to die was dead, and all the forces he could offend had been offended.

Lu Zheng said calmly, "That day will come sooner or later. Since they are unwilling to change, then let me give them a push..."

"As for those who are my enemies, I have quite a few enemies, both overt and covert. Let's see if they have the strength to be my enemies."

An Dingyuan and the others had different expressions. They all said that they were young and impetuous, and before meeting Lu Zheng, they thought they were that kind of young people.

But now that I've met Lu Zheng, I realize that I still have a lot of room for improvement.

Lu Zheng turned to look at everyone and said, "You've all come from different places to gain experience. You can choose to leave at any time. I won't force you to do things that involve life and death. There are some situations where you don't need to get involved..."

Upon hearing this, An Dingyuan glared and said, "Oh dear, Mr. Lu, do you treat me like an outsider? I don't care what others do, but if you asked me to go through fire and water, I definitely wouldn't even bat an eye!"

An Dingyuan thumped his chest loudly, making a solemn promise.

Lu Zheng laughed and said, "It's not your turn to face mountains of knives and seas of fire yet. We brought you here to take over Yongding City. Didn't you say you've learned enough? Go do it! If you don't manage it well, you'll definitely see the real mountains of knives and seas of fire."

"Uh……"

Upon hearing this, An Dingyuan couldn't help but shrink back. He would rather face the trials and tribulations laid out by others than suffer Lu Zheng's punishment.

To be honest, An Dingyuan thought that Lu Zheng had killed so many demons and offended all those demon forces, yet he still wanted to take over this place and keep all the survivors. He was really too bold.

However, considering their backgrounds, even the top experts of those major demon kingdoms would probably be wary and might not dare to retaliate.

Moreover, judging from Lu Zheng's combat prowess, inviting the Emperor to his aid is as easy as drinking water or eating. Ordinary Dao-seeking experts are no match for him. How many experts can the top forces in the Northern Region send to target Lu Zheng?
Zhang Wencheng, who was standing nearby, said, "Leave this to us. You go and rest first."

Lu Zheng nodded and disappeared in a flash.

Having just gone through a battle, Lu Zheng had also suffered considerable losses and needed to recuperate.

We don't know what crises we'll face next.

Lu Zheng arrived at the top of the highest mountain in Yongding City, Lingshan, and sat down to rest quietly. He was also sensing the surrounding situation in case of any unforeseen events.

Zhang Wencheng then instructed An Dingyuan and others to begin their work.

This time, they came in small numbers, and managing such a large city as Yongding would not be easy.

Fortunately, there are still many survivors in the city, so we can always pick some people from among them.

Soon, everyone was assigned tasks and got to work.

Some went to gather and organize manpower, while others went to patrol and check the situation...

Having just experienced that apocalyptic scene, the surviving humans, demons, and monsters were all quite obedient and cooperative.

Some of the demons even had the identity of a great demon kingdom, but they were all terrified and dared not act recklessly. They did whatever they were told and did not even think of escaping.

Everything is proceeding smoothly.

After some time, someone flew in from a distance.

The commotion that just happened in Yongding City was quite significant, attracting the attention of some people in the surrounding area, who then came to investigate.

Upon seeing this, a young man who had come with Lu Zheng used magic to transmit his voice in all directions, informing the visitors.

"Yongding City has been taken over by Taiping Domain. Order is being restored in the city. All unauthorized personnel are strictly prohibited from entering!"

The young man stood suspended in mid-air, his brows furrowed in a cold stare.

If it weren't for needing these experienced people to act as messengers, he would have been willing to take matters into his own hands and fight.

The faces of the people who came to check the situation changed drastically upon hearing this.

Yongding City has been taken over by Taiping Domain? What's going on?

They had indeed heard that a peaceful region was rising in the south, but they never expected that it would even invade this area, which startled them.

Seeing the young man's aggressive demeanor, none of the newcomers dared to approach Yongding City. They merely gazed at the city from afar, wondering if the changes within the city were significant. How could the city have suddenly changed hands? Where were the powerful figures from the demon race who once ruled?
A flood of questions suddenly arose in my mind.

After observing for a while without discerning anything, a powerful demon asked the young man, "May I ask if those senior Dao-seeking experts from the demon kingdoms in the city are still there? Are they no longer in charge of this place?"

Upon hearing this, the young man said calmly, "They are probably already dead. All those in Yongding City who committed heinous crimes have been executed!"

How could this be! Everyone who heard it could not believe it.

Such news was too outrageous for them to accept.

Seeing that these people were unwilling to believe it, the young man chuckled and said, "There are still some survivors in the city. You can go and ask them. However, I see that you have a strong aura of evil on you. If you enter this city, you may not be able to leave unscathed..."

Some of the monsters immediately wanted to leave, thinking it best to just watch the excitement from the outside and not become part of the excitement themselves.

As a result, no one actually went into the city; some quietly retreated, while others remained at a distance to observe the situation.

Curious people came and went, and once it was confirmed that Yongding City had been taken over by people from Taiping Domain, the news quickly spread in all directions.

Some of the nearby monsters were so frightened that they abandoned their caves and fled, fearing that they would suffer the same fate.

……

In the royal city and palace of the Chaofeng Demon Kingdom.

Fengxuan was chatting with a kind-looking old man dressed simply in a garden.

The old man was Feng Xuan's biological grandfather, Feng Cheng, a powerful expert in the Dao Inquiry Realm, who held a highly respected position in the Phoenix Clan royal family.

Feng Xuan had only been back from the Taiping Domain for a few days. She was recounting her experiences there and was even thinking about having the Chaofeng Kingdom implement some policies to prevent its development from falling behind others.

Feng Cheng listened with a kind smile. Although he rarely participated in the governance of the Chaofeng Kingdom these days, he still found it interesting to listen to such matters in his spare time.

Feng Cheng said leisurely, "I heard that Lu Zheng has a very impressive background and plans to unify the Northern Region?"

Upon hearing this, Feng Xuan said softly, "I'm not entirely sure about his background, but I've never seen any powerful figures protecting him. He is indeed very capable and has many supporters and connections..."

"As for the unification of the Northern Region, I've also heard such rumors, but I don't know if they're true or not. He's a very busy man; I hardly ever saw him during my time in the Taiping Region..."

Feng Xuan paused for a moment, then said, "However, I think his ambitions probably extend beyond just the Northern Region."

Having stayed in the Taiping Domain for so long, how could she not see what Lu Zheng was pursuing? He was pursuing peace for the entire world, for the world to belong to everyone, and for a harmonious world to be governed by the Great Harmony.

Although such an ideal sounds unrealistic, the other party is really working hard to achieve it. Let alone the Northern Region, if he has the ability, Feng Xuan is sure that Lu Zheng would dare to challenge all the countries in the world.

Listening to Feng Xuan's description, Feng Cheng couldn't help but sigh, "Can a young person really achieve this on their own? Are there always some exceptionally talented individuals among the human race?"

In contrast, as the Phoenix Clan has grown generation after generation, the number of descendants with the bloodline of the Divine Phoenix has become increasingly scarce, and few of them have achieved great success.

Sometimes, Feng Cheng even wondered if it was because their clan valued the power of bloodline too much that their clan's development was becoming less and less advanced than that of the human race.

Despite possessing the bloodline of the divine phoenix, they could only live in a corner of the northern region, far removed from the center of the world.

While the grandfather and grandson were discussing the state of the world, a young man hurriedly came in from outside.

The newcomer was about the same age as Feng Xuan, but a generation younger than her.

Upon seeing the two, the young man said anxiously, "Grandpa Chengzu, Aunt Xuan, something terrible has happened! Grandpa Mingzu returned from outside, but he was injured by someone and is now seriously injured and unconscious..."

Upon hearing this, Feng Xuan's expression changed slightly. The young man's mention of Feng Ming was her great-uncle, one of the few elders in the clan who had cultivated to the Dao Inquiry Realm. It was said that Feng Ming had been cultivating in Yongding City for many years. How could he suddenly encounter such a predicament? He was a powerful expert who had reached the Dao Inquiry Realm. (End of this chapter)