I was the Heavenly Emperor in ancient times

Chapter 48 The First Cycle
Li Jun had been observing Youdu.

It seems that quite a few people outside the area know about this place, but they call it the Great Netherworld.

All.

This title has had a special meaning since the beginning of the capital city of the emperor. Youdu is naturally not qualified to be called Youdu. It is a name that the people of Yujiang and the mountains and seas in Youdu have given on their own.

Naturally, this also represents their idea of ​​replacing the Western Mother and the capital of the Emperor.

Although Yu Jiang was taken away by Li Jun and has not been released, the entire Youdu is still in operation.

It seems that whether the other person is present or not doesn't seem to have any impact.

Through observation, he discovered the characteristics of this land of mountains and seas and its strange inhabitants.

Although these people still possess human consciousness, many of their customs and ways of life have undergone tremendous changes compared to humans.

To put it simply, their birth, aging, illness, and death are completely different from those of humans.

Of course, this is the most obvious point. There are many other subtle differences between him and others that Li Jun has not yet discovered.

The first point.

Li Jun discovered that the next generation in this mountain and sea kingdom was born through oviparous birth, and the children born were very unusual, possessing characteristics of otherworldly beings.

Secondly, the way they age is completely different from that of ordinary people.

Mortals grow old with the passing years, but their aging is more like being gradually alienated to an irreversible state due to the influence and erosion of the demon god Xuanming.

Regarding their eating habits, Li Jun discovered that they no longer ate human food, but instead ate the food brought by the dead.

Moreover, they can also get sick if they eat the wrong things or in the wrong way.

Their illnesses are also different from those of ordinary people; they are all kinds of strange and peculiar diseases, such as a part of the body that is difficult to recover, or the growth of some strange organs.

Finally, they talked about their deaths.

These people did not die in the human sense; at least their bodies did not die when they died, but their consciousness as human beings completely disappeared, turning them into something like a vengeful ghost or monster, either sinking into the Northern Sea or wandering in the Netherworld.

In the city of Youdu.

As Li Jun walked down the street, those strange beings who had transformed into shadows or had dragon heads on their heads immediately bowed and worshipped him upon seeing him.

The feeling was similar to worshipping the demon god Xuanming, or even more revered.

With the appearance of the bluebird, these people had vaguely guessed Li Jun's identity.

"That was the emperor who killed Zhulong."
-
Li Jun stood on the rocky shore of the island. The strange rocks around him looked like many demons and monsters gazing at the distant sea, making his figure appear sinister as well.

He seemed to be waiting for something.

The sea in front of Li Jun was black, and the sky above him was also black, with only a ray of light coming from the aurora borealis at the celestial pole.

The light flashed, like thunder in the sky.

But after looking at it for a while, it feels like some kind of eerie totem or witchcraft pattern imprinted on the clouds.

"coming!"

A wave rolled in, and Li Jun looked down into the water.

Then they saw one after another appearing in the black waters of the Northern Sea. They were not fish; at a glance, they were clearly human figures.

But these "people" remained motionless, like one "corpse" after another, heading towards Youdu Island.

The way these "corpses" floated in the black waters of the Northern Sea was also very strange. They were neither washed to the surface by the waves nor sank to the bottom. They just floated in the middle of the water, between the surface and the bottom.

Moreover, each one was facing upwards, either with its eyes open or closed, looking at the sky.

This is what Li Jun was waiting for; he also knows where these shadows came from.

They come from various places in the Western and Northern Wilderness. Since the appearance of Zhulong, these ghosts have begun to appear and wander on the wild land.

The northwestern part of the Great Wilderness may also be the ancient world of the entire wilderness.

Today, these ancient ancestors and all living things are affected by this force, and they can no longer peacefully return to dust.

As time goes by, more and more people will transform into vengeful ghosts after death, heading towards the northwest.

At first, they seemed to unconsciously traverse the wilderness little by little, only to arrive at the shadows at the foot of Zhangwei Mountain.

Now, they begin to cross Zhangwei Mountain, arrive at Beiming, and then plunge themselves into the cold, icy black water.

With the birth of Youdu, these spirits, like corpses, were once again pushed here by the icy waters of the Northern Sea.

At this moment.

Beneath the black hill on the island of Youdu, one after another, strange beings from the mountains and seas descended from the heights, retrieving these vengeful spirits from the icy, bone-chilling waters of the Northern Sea.

These people were the strange beings with black upper bodies and dragon heads. Because they lived at the foot of the black hills, they called themselves the people of Xuanqiu, distinguishing themselves from the red-legged people in the city.

They stripped the clothes and accessories off those spirits completely.

Some of the spirits appeared to have died in battle, still holding weapons, which were also taken away by them.

Li Jun watched this scene unfold, observing how the items taken from the spirits were indistinguishable from real objects, and how they were being taken back by the people of Xuanqiu.

Only now did people realize the unusual situation here.

"This is the Netherworld."

Perhaps because this place is still located in the northern part of the Great Wilderness, and even more so because the other end is directly connected to the human world, it is often difficult for people to realize that this place does not belong to the human world.

In this place, yin and yang are reversed, and these illusory and ethereal things have become real, and the dead are just like the living.

When Li Jun saw this scene, he understood why this Youdu City was so rich beyond his expectations. At first, he thought it was because Yu Jiang had ruled the area, but now he realized that was not the case.

This may also be a characteristic of the ancient wilderness, where the human world and the underworld were not yet completely separated, and humans, gods, demons and ghosts lived together in one place.

At that moment, the people of Xuanqiu seemed to have discovered something and gathered together to discuss something.

"No, we can't put this together."

"His body was cut into several parts and separated."

"You must have offended someone."

"Is such a severe punishment intended to condemn him to eternal damnation after death?"

It's obvious at a glance.

Some spirits died with their bodies incomplete, and could not be pieced back together.

So the incomplete spirit was thrown into the Northern Sea by the people of Xuanqiu, where it endured the extreme cold in the black water.

It's puzzling what they've come all this way for—is it just to be forever plunged into that frigid, dark water?
Thinking about it this way, the people of Xuanqiu did a good thing.

Although they took away the belongings of these spirits, they still managed to retrieve them from the Northern Sea.

Li Jun: "What are you doing?"

The people of Xuanqiu replied, "We bring nothing into this world and we take nothing out of it."

Li Jun wasn't asking about them taking the dead people's belongings; he was asking why these people were here to guide these wandering spirits.

Li Jun: "Why do you do this?"

The people of Xuanqiu said, "These spirits carry too much clutter; we must ensure they enter the Yellow Springs clean."

Li Jun then asked, "Whether they can enter the Yellow Springs or not, what does it have to do with you?"

The people of Xuanqiu said, "The demon god Xuanming established himself in the Northern Sea so that the souls of the dead would gather here and be sent to the Yellow Springs."

The people of Xuanqiu seemed to have explained it, but they didn't understand why the demon god would do this, just as they didn't understand the fundamental meaning of why they were doing this.

However, Li Jun vaguely sensed something.

After Zhulong died, the demon god Xuanming, although possessing only one-third of Zhulong's power, still instinctively continued the things that Zhulong had done in the past.

For example, turning a person into a ghost when they die.

Furthermore, they sent the spirits to the underworld and recorded their information.

It's just that the demon god Xuanming only has a portion of the power. He will instinctively do many things, but he is not Zhulong after all, so he cannot do many things perfectly. Therefore, the gaps are filled by these strange people from the mountains and seas.

However, these people of Xuanqiu and Chijing, like the demon god Xuanming, instinctively operate according to the rules of the demon god Xuanming, maintaining the order created by Zhulong in the past, without knowing why they are doing so.

They became the maintainers of this special cycle of reincarnation, the maintainers of the thousands upon thousands of puppets under the instinctive control of the demon god Xuanming, like busy worker ants in an anthill.

Busy and bustling, yet unaware of why or where the root cause lies.

He asked, "Do you all naturally know that you need to come here to guide the souls of the dead, and naturally know how to send them to the underworld?"

The people of Xuanqiu whispered among themselves, but replied, "That is indeed the case."

Then, those spirits were bound by the people of Xuanqiu and driven into the city.

These spirits were all in a daze, letting them do as they pleased.

After entering the city.

The barefooted men were already waiting inside. They had prepared a sacrificial site in the city, and rows of torches had been erected along the roads that led through the city. After the spirits entered, the barefooted men blew a gust of wind.

"call!"

Flames appeared on the bodies of these ghosts.

Some appear on the top of the head, some on the shoulders, and some on all three.

Li Jun: "What is this?"

The other party replied, "The living person has yang fire in their body, which must be extinguished."

Li Jun asked again, "Why?"

They replied, "We delight in consuming the fire of life, and only by extinguishing these fires can they enter the Yellow Springs."

Li Jun then asked what the reasoning was, but faced with his probing question, these bare-legged people could not explain why.

Many of their actions seem to have a reason, but upon closer examination, they seem to be completely beyond their own control.

At last.

These bare-legged people transformed into bizarre forms with human heads and dragon bodies, wandering through the city and constantly devouring the yang fire from these yin spirits.

After these spirits passed through the city, they had completely transformed into a yin state, and no trace of human presence could be felt.

Then, these bare-legged people carried them into the rear of Youdu.

This time, after those spirits fell into the Black Water of the Northern Sea, they did not float in a state of neither rising nor falling. Instead, they were like heavy stones, heading directly to the bottom of the Black Water.

Li Jun followed these spirits to the rear of Youdu and watched them sink into the Northern Sea.

At this moment.

He saw the gate to the underworld.

It is hidden in the deepest part of the Northern Sea, at the end of the boundless darkness of the Northern Sea and the end of life and death in the human world.

Here, he saw the very first cycle of reincarnation.

At this point, Li Jun finally had a sufficient understanding of the secret techniques of this mountain and sea kingdom, and he also found the Gate to the Underworld he was looking for.

Youdu proved that the secret techniques of Yujiang's Mountain and Sea Kingdom were feasible, and a true cultivation system appeared in this world, giving mortals the means to borrow power from both demons and monsters.

Furthermore, this method can be sustained and replicated.

Demons are changing mortals, and mortals are also changing demons. Demons are changing the world and creating rules, and mortals are building a kingdom of mountains and seas under the power of demons.

"almost."

Having completed all of this, Li Jun prepared to enter the Gates of the Underworld.

But before that, he had another thing to do.
-
The fertile plains of yesteryear.

The capital city under the emperor's rule.

"I've heard that the Azure Bird of the Emperor has appeared in the Northern Sea."

"Really?"

"Is it the Western Mother?"

"It is not the Western Mother, but the true Emperor's Bluebird, the Demon God Bluebird."

"What is that demon god doing in the Northern Sea?"

"I heard that it ate the demon god Xuanming."

Some news cannot be stopped. The image of the Bluebird appearing in the Northern Sea, spreading its wings to tear through the sky and devouring the demon god Xuanming could be seen from thousands of miles away.

Even in the most remote and desolate place in the Northern Sea, there are always people who witness it firsthand.

Unlike other demon gods, the Azure Bird holds a special significance, at least in the capital city.

The news of the Bluebird's appearance spread like wildfire among the various districts and tribes of the capital, and naturally, it was eventually associated with another name.

"The Emperor has appeared in the human world."

"The one who took away the Great Witch Yujiang and the Blackwater River before was probably the Emperor."

"It has only been a short time since the Emperor beheaded Zhulong at Zhangwei Mountain, and now Yu Jiang, who comes from the Ximu clan, is stirring up trouble with the help of the demon god Xuanming. This generation of Ximu has become so weak."

"..."

When the people in the city talked about the emperor, they would naturally look at the altar in the capital city and gaze into the deeper palace.

The Western Mother has always been known as the Imperial Witch, but at this moment the Emperor has descended from the Heavenly Realm to the mortal world, yet he has not come here to see the Western Mother. Does this mean that the Emperor does not acknowledge this generation's Western Mother?

Or rather, it is that the Western Mother Clan has lost the favor of Heaven and Earth.

People's hearts were unsettled, and even the entire Ximu clan was gripped by panic.

In recent days, the sacrifices to the Emperor have become more and more frequent, reflecting the panic among the Ximu clan.

Within the palace.

This generation of Xi Mu has removed her mask, and looks like just a young girl.

All the shamans and leaders of the Ximu clan gathered in the hall, making a ruckus. This chaos showed that the current Ximu clan leader was out of control.

“It must be Yu Jiang who angered the Emperor.”

"The Emperor killed Zhulong back then. Now Zhangwei Mountain and Beiming have become like this. It's all because of the incompetence of my Ximu clan!"

“When Heaven sends down calamities, we must offer sacrifices, and we must offer sacrifices to Heaven and Earth in the most solemn way in order to obtain the Emperor’s forgiveness.”

How should the sacrifice be performed?

"Offering three thousand human sacrifices will surely be enough..."

"We, the Ximu clan, have never performed human sacrifices before!"

"No, no, no..."

Some people said that three thousand human sacrifices were cheaper than three thousand cattle and sheep, but others immediately objected.

In the end, no conclusion was reached, and everyone left on bad terms.

As they dispersed, everyone said this.

"Tomorrow we will hold a sacrificial ceremony to consult the heavens."

"Please ask the Western Mother to divine whether it is permissible to offer human sacrifices."

Inside the palace, the current Empress Dowager sat quietly.

They left the hall after dark and headed towards the altar.

To the east of the altar, there is also a row of large houses, which house various sacrificial vessels that have been passed down from ancient times.

Every time a sacrifice is held, the Queen Mother of the West would prepare here before taking the stage.

The room is not only filled with jade artifacts, but also with stone carvings and murals related to sacrificial rites from the ancient Da Li and Shao Li eras. This is also a kind of inheritance, with the methods of sacrificial rites being passed down from generation to generation.

These murals depict scenes of Kunlun Mountain when it was still intact, including sacred peach trees and the appearance of divine stones on the mountain.

What's even more remarkable is that it features the Emperor's Shadow.

The Ximu clan was one of the few clans that was able to truly see the Emperor's face. Many members of the clan personally went to the summit of Kunlun to worship the Emperor. Although these people have long since passed away, some of their knowledge has been passed down.

Looking at the imperial image that had been traced, Xi Mu couldn't help but ask.

"Has the Emperor truly descended upon the world?"

At that moment, the peach tree in the mural suddenly came to life, and peach blossoms began to fall from the tree.

A figure appeared inside the house, accompanied by peach blossoms and a gentle breeze.

The first time I saw this generation of Western mother.

Li Jun suddenly understood why Shao Li would choose such a young child to be the next generation's Western Mother.

In fact, when Shao Li chose her, she had only just learned to walk.

He said, "You and Shao Li look a lot alike when you were little."

In those final years, Shao Li must have been reminiscing about her childhood, about the days she spent under that big peach tree, atop Kunlun Mountain.

Perhaps in her eyes, the other person is a reflection of herself; by choosing this child, she can return to her childhood.

Reliving old dreams.

Looking at Li Jun, Xi Mu understood who was in front of her even though it was just a single sentence.

"The Western Mother Clan's Emperor Shaman".

"Meet the Emperor of Heaven."

(End of this chapter)