Film and Television: The Villain's Life Begins with Joy of Life

Chapter 99 of Joy of Life (End)

The ninth year of the Qingli reign was the third year of the imperial court's reforms.

Fan Xian returned from his mission to Dongyi City, bringing back the good news of Dongyi City's submission.

After the battle at Mount Dadong, Si Gu Jian dragged his crippled body back to Dongyi City. He stubbornly refused to die and pondered the future of Dongyi City, leaving behind as many arrangements as possible in an attempt to slow down Emperor Qing's pace of unifying the world.

This grandmaster considered many things, far into the future, even placing his hopes on the future and making the worst-case scenario plans.

As a result, half a month later, instead of Emperor Qing restoring order to the capital and ruling the world, he was met with the unbelievable news of Emperor Qing's "death".

How could he not know whether Emperor Qing was dead or not?

Upon seeing the intelligence, he was disheartened, thinking that the intelligence system of Dongyi City had been completely destroyed by infiltration.

As more information came in, he suddenly realized something was wrong.

A fifth Grandmaster has appeared in the world! The youngest Grandmaster ever!

He was even more hidden than Emperor Qing, and he was also Emperor Qing's son!

He found it hard to believe and continued to gather intelligence.

Then it was discovered that Emperor Qing had indeed "died," during the few days he lingered on his deathbed when he returned to Dongyi City.

At that time, all sorts of rumors about Mount Dadong and the Grandmaster were circulating all over the world, including some outrageous rumors.

However, Si Gu Jian quickly sorted out the closest clue to the truth from the messy information.

Emperor Qing was defeated and taken away by his son, the fifth Grandmaster, on his way back to the capital.

This is absolutely outrageous.

Others may not know, but Si Gu Jian knows just how difficult it is for two grandmasters to determine a winner.

Given Emperor Qing's temperament, the fact that he disappeared after being defeated and was willing to die shows just how devastating his defeat was.

He thought that after he and the others were deposed, Emperor Qing would be invincible, but unexpectedly, an even more invincible being appeared.

In the following months, Si Gu Jian researched Zhou Cheng's life through various channels.

He discovered that the new emperor of Qing Kingdom was not as power-hungry and aggressive as the previous emperor, but rather acted in a more unpredictable and capricious manner.

He believed he could leave behind methods to scheme against Emperor Qing, but he had no confidence in dealing with Zhou Cheng.

He sent a letter to Northern Qi, but by then Ku He had already died. He could only contact Zhan Doudou and express his hope to secretly unite with Northern Qi to buy time and space to fight against Qing.

However, the response from the Northern Qi was ambiguous, neither agreeing nor rejecting.

This reaction itself is an answer.

An answer that disappointed him.

He hoped that Dongyi City could exist independently as a city-state, but compared to the safety of the people in the city, he had no choice but to compromise.

He was somewhat relieved, relieved that Grandmaster Zhou Cheng was not like that kind of bloodthirsty tyrant.

Before his death, he entrusted Dongyi City to his eldest disciple, Yun Zhilan, and left behind his last words.

Just as he was dying, Shadow also left Chen Pingping's side, left the Qing Kingdom, and came to the old city he had left twenty years ago.

Si Gu Jian saw the shadow, giving the shadow the opportunity to draw its sword.

A sword strike that condensed all of Shadow's true essence, a lifetime of hatred, and a lifelong obsession—it was an unprecedentedly glorious strike, a strike that completely surpassed the limits of the ninth rank.

With only half of his body remaining, Si Gu Jian used his only remaining hand to extend a finger to block.

The shadow's sword successfully pierced Si Gu Jian's fingertip, causing the invincible grandmaster to bleed.

Shadow was deeply hurt, but Si Gu Jian looked at his half-brother with a complex expression, his eyes showing a hint of relief and acceptance, and said softly, "Not bad."

The shadow retreated sadly, and three days later, Si Gu Jian passed away suddenly.

Yun Zhilan, who was in charge of Dongyi City, knew very well that he was just a swordsman and far from being a qualified politician.

He took charge of Dongyi City solely to fulfill Si Gu Jian's final request.

He thought that day would come soon, but he waited for three years.

When Fan Xian arrived in Dongyi City on Zhou Cheng's orders, Yun Zhilan readily agreed.

Because Si Gu Jian's instructions to him were that Dongyi City could be destroyed, but the people of Dongyi City must be safe and sound.

The mission to Dongyi City went much more smoothly than Fan Xian had imagined.

When Fan Xian left Dongyi City, he also brought back the Four-Look Sword Technique for Zhou Cheng.

Zhou Cheng was quite satisfied with Dongyi City's pragmatic approach.

He didn't have the idea that he had to unify the world, nor did he feel that everything had to be under his rule.

The reason for taking over Dongyi City was simply that Dongyi City was caught in the middle between Qing State and Northern Qi, hindering the deep integration of the two countries.

He certainly didn't want to be stopped halfway through a trip to the border between the two countries with the women in his family, only to be asked for a toll.

One year after Dongyi City submitted, in the tenth year of the Qingli era, the Northern Qi followed the example of the Qing Kingdom and implemented a parliamentary cabinet system.

The resistance Zhan Doudou faced during its restructuring was far greater than that Zhou Cheng faced during his restructuring.

However, Zhou Cheng had already sent more than a dozen ninth-rank swordsmen from the Sword Pavilion in Dongyi City to Zhan Doudou's side.

After killing one group and then another group of opponents, the parliamentary cabinet system was fully implemented in Northern Qi within a year.

It was only at this point that the people of Qing and Qi were shocked to discover that the hundreds of thousands of troops stationed along their border had quietly withdrawn without their knowledge.

They can cross national borders and travel freely between the two countries without hindrance.

Many people belatedly realized that these two great powers, who had been locked in a decades-long standoff and were like fire and water, had unknowingly moved towards unification and integration.

In the twelfth year of the Qingli era, Zhou Cheng's thirteenth child was born.

Now, looking at the little life being brought out of the delivery room, he has become almost numb to the joy of the addition of a new member to the family.

Once the women around him had fully developed their bodies, he stopped controlling them and got them pregnant one after another.

The first few years were fine, but later the babies came too often, and he got a little scared, so he had to go back to using protection.

You have to understand that in modern society, someone his age would just be a recent graduate starting his career, but here, he is already the father of thirteen children.

He did the math in his mind: if he continued to have children without restraint, in another ten or twenty years, his bloodline would be so numerous that he wouldn't be able to remember all the names.

For the next two years, the world remained calm and peaceful.

However, on this day, Zhou Cheng heard an unusual notification.

[Negative emotions from San Shi +999!]

Sanshi, naturally, refers to Master Sanshi, who is currently the chief priest of Keimyo Temple in Kyoto.

Upon seeing this message, Zhou Cheng knew that what was bound to happen had finally arrived.

In addition to presiding over the sacrifices at the temple, the Qingmiao Temple also had the responsibility of communicating with the temple.

This temple that communicates with is not the temple in Kyoto, but the real temple in the far north.

As for how to communicate, it naturally involves communicating with the temple messengers.

Emperor Qing's negative emotions followed closely after Master Sanshi's.

Zhou Cheng sighed inwardly.

He had been on the throne for nearly seven years, and Emperor Qing had endured it for almost seven years.

Emperor Qing reigned for decades, and there were quite a few people in the capital who remained loyal to him.

Despite Chen Pingping's best efforts to prevent infiltration of Taiping Villa over the years, he still couldn't avoid it.

Of course, this wasn't because Chen Pingping lacked ability; it was purely because he intentionally indulged him.

After placing Emperor Qing under house arrest, the only thing in the entire Joy of Life world that could pose a threat to him was the temple in the far north.

The Far North Temple itself is a military museum left behind by a highly advanced civilization.

The mission of the artificial intelligence it contains is to preserve human civilization and guide human progress.

However, at some unknown time, the AI ​​in the center of the temple came to a cold conclusion: human civilization must be permanently frozen in the age of cold weapons in order to prevent the extinction of mankind and the recurrence of historical tragedies.

Therefore, the temple has always sent temple messengers, namely bio-engineered robots like Wuzhu, to intervene in the development of human society.

Anything that could advance human civilization from feudalism was to be stopped and destroyed by the temple messengers.

The reason Ye Qingmei died back then was not only because of Emperor Qing's scheme, but also because she crossed the red line of the temple.

It was only because the temple messenger intervened and held back Wu Zhu that Ye Qingmei died alone and helpless in Taiping Villa.

Now that Zhou Cheng has reformed the system and implemented a parliamentary cabinet system in Qing and Northern Qi, this undoubtedly violates the operating rules of the temple.

Therefore, he had always been secretly vigilant and monitored everyone who might establish contact with the temple's messengers.

Master Sanshi was one of his key targets.

It was time to see Emperor Qing once every three months again.

Over the years, he has met with Emperor Qing about once every three months, suppressing his true energy while also catching up with old friends.

That day, he entered Taiping Villa as usual, seemingly without any precautions.

Just as he was about to infuse Emperor Qing with his true energy as usual, Emperor Qing's kingly true energy suddenly erupted, its domineering aura seemingly about to burst the entire space.

Emperor Qing had somehow recovered to the status of a Grandmaster. Although he was not at his peak, he was still a true Grandmaster.

As Emperor Qing made his move, two screens inside the hall exploded with a deafening roar. Before the shattered wood fragments even hit the ground, two lifeless figures darted out like ghosts.

Two temple messengers, each wielding a dark alloy iron shovel, thrust straight at Zhou Cheng's back from the left and right!

Zhou Cheng suddenly turned around.

Ignoring Emperor Qing's attack from behind, he used both hands simultaneously, his five fingers like iron pincers, to grab the two iron spikes that were piercing his chest.

The iron shovel trembled violently in his palm, emitting a dull grating sound, but it could not advance even an inch further.

"boom!"

A powerful burst of energy exploded from behind, and Emperor Qing's palm, imbued with the true energy of the kingly way, landed solidly on Zhou Cheng's back.

The black dragon robe with gold patterns shattered instantly, pieces of fabric flying everywhere, revealing the straight back beneath.

"You unfilial son! Has your prophetic ability foreseen this day?"

Emperor Qing's excited voice rang out from behind.

He almost couldn't help but want to let out a long howl.

He felt so stifled and repressed!

Seven years! A full seven years!

For more than two thousand days and nights, he endured and lay low, all for this day!

The blue bricks beneath Zhou Cheng's feet shattered with a deafening roar. The forces from three directions collided, tore, and dissipated on his body. The earth-dragon-like impact caused the entire pavilion to shake violently. The beams and pillars groaned under the unbearable weight, and the roof tiles fell in a rustling sound.

Each temple messenger is equivalent to a grandmaster, and Zhou Cheng was now being ambushed and besieged by three grandmasters.

Emperor Qing seemed to have already foreseen the scene of Zhou Cheng's blood being spilled on the spot.

However, before the aftershocks of the impact had subsided, he suddenly saw the two temple messengers he had finally managed to contact vanish into thin air without warning!

Zhou Cheng slowly withdrew his hand, leaving the Emperor Qing's palm strike still lingering on his back.

Since his battle with Emperor Qing years ago, when he discovered that the system space could even store true qi, he has experimented with more uses of the system space.

Finally, he concluded that the system could contain any non-living entity, whether tangible or intangible, as long as it could be captured by his mental perception, it could be stored in the space.

Temple messengers, though outwardly indistinguishable from ordinary people, are ultimately just intelligent bio-robots and cannot be considered true intelligent life forms.

When his true energy touched the two temple messengers, the two bio-mechanical robots, comparable to grandmasters, were rendered powerless and stagnated in the system space.

"Father, I have provided you with good food and drink for seven years, treating you exceptionally well. Yet you repay kindness with enmity, showing no appreciation for my good intentions. This robe is embroidered with gold thread; do you know how much of the people's hard-earned money wasted by your slap!"

Zhou Cheng turned around and looked at Emperor Qing. There was no anger, no murderous intent, only calmness.

Emperor Qing was so startled that he took a step back.

"How is this possible? How are you alright? I clearly hit you!"

Emperor Qing cried out in disbelief. The temple messenger had suddenly vanished. He didn't know what kind of sorcery Zhou Cheng had used, but his full-force palm strike, imbued with the true energy of the kingly way, was undeniably real and had truly struck Zhou Cheng.

He couldn't believe that his opponent was completely unharmed after he struck with all his might.

"Why would anything happen? Father, I became a Grandmaster at the age of sixteen. Now, so many years have passed, do you think I've only remained stagnant?" Zhou Cheng said calmly.

"What do you mean?" Emperor Qing asked incredulously. "Could it be that you have surpassed the Grandmaster level? Impossible! The Grandmaster level is the pinnacle here; there cannot be a realm above it!"

Seeing the Emperor Qing's loss of composure, Zhou Cheng offered no explanation.

The pinnacle of the Joy of Life world is indeed the Grandmaster.

Even with the system, he couldn't find a path beyond Grandmaster.

The reason he was still able to make progress was mainly due to the compatibility and control effect of the Hundred Refinements True Qi.

After Fan Xian brought back the Four Directions Sword Technique from Dongyi City, he collected all four martial arts techniques in the Joy of Life world that could reach the Grandmaster level.

Because the system could store true energy, after much consideration, he risked trying to break through the domineering true energy and rebuild it.

He first experimented with the little finger of his left hand.

He shattered the meridians in his little finger and nourished it with domineering true energy. After many attempts, he finally succeeded. Even without meridians, his little finger could still absorb and circulate true energy.

Over the next two years, he gradually shattered the meridians throughout his body, starting from his palms and moving to his arms, finally cultivating his domineering true qi to a state of perfection, transforming it into true kingly true qi. From then on, he was no longer restricted by meridians and could store true essence indefinitely.

He uses the Hundred Refinements True Qi as his foundation, supplemented by the simultaneous cultivation of the Four Great True Qi. Whether in offense or defense, as long as his True Qi is sufficient, his strength, while not equivalent to that of the Five Grandmasters, will not be weaker than the combined strength of the Four Grandmasters.

Emperor Qing's full-force palm strike landed on him, but after being weakened by the five great true energies, the result was that he felt suffocated for a moment.

"Father, I'm sure you've grown tired of spending these years with Ye Qingmei. I've found you a better place, but before that, you still need to be punished for your wrongdoings."

After saying that, Zhou Cheng raised his hand and pressed down on Emperor Qing with a palm.

A terrifying and indescribably powerful burst of true energy erupted forth, like a cloud in the sky.

Over the course of seven years, Fan Xian had already brought all four classic Chinese novels to this world. Emperor Qing, imprisoned in this secluded courtyard, spent his time mostly reading. He had read *Journey to the West*. Therefore, his current feelings were like those of the Monkey King facing the Buddha's Five Finger Mountain.

With nowhere to run, Emperor Qing roared and charged forward.

The next instant, he burst out a mouthful of blood mist, and his whole body flew out, smashing half of the pavilion to pieces, with wood and stones flying everywhere.

Zhou Cheng still did not kill Emperor Qing.

However, as punishment, he dragged Emperor Qing out of the ruins and crippled both of his legs.

Upon returning to the palace, Zhou Cheng ordered the execution of Master Sanshi, without even bothering to determine the charges.

Three months later, a huge and majestic treasure ship set sail from Danzhou and headed straight for the other side of the sea.

Zhou Cheng grew tired of the tedious task of monitoring Emperor Qing. He chained Emperor Qing, but wasn't he also chaining him? Therefore, he found an excellent place for Emperor Qing to go.

He packed Emperor Qing, along with Li Chengqian, Li Chengze, the former empress, and some concubines who were willing to leave with Emperor Qing, and arranged for them all to be put on a ship and sent directly to the Western Continent.

Once he arrived in the Western Continent, he could let these people stir up trouble as they pleased, it would no longer concern him.

In any case, he has basically squeezed all the value out of this group of people.

People like Li Chengqian and Li Chengze were imprisoned during the best years of their lives, and were not even allowed to have children.

In the first few years, they still had some spirit and energy, providing him with emotional support in some way. But now, they have become almost like zombies.

After all, they were his own blood brothers, so he still gave them dignity and a chance to start their lives anew on another continent.

The reconstruction of Taiping Villa was completed, and the Imperial Guards who were originally stationed there were all withdrawn.

Zhou Cheng summoned Fan Xian, and the two descended into the secret chamber in the middle of the lake. After many attempts, they finally opened the so-called "secret chamber."

"The Forbidden Gate".

That was a laboratory left behind by a peak civilization.

From the remaining documents and images, they gained a complete understanding of the truth behind the extinction of this peak civilization.

The truth was not too surprising to Zhou Cheng.

In short, they are a group of Celestial Dragons who stand at the pinnacle of civilization and are unwilling to accept their short lives of only a hundred years or so, and they want to pursue immortality.

In their pursuit of immortality, they invested in the research and development of various biological and medical technologies.

The "memory digitization" technology that created Fan Xian is one such example, but it's the kind that's been swept into the trash heap.

The reason why this technology is looked down upon by the Celestial Dragons is mainly because memories, once digitized, can be copied.

Just like Fan Xian, if his digitized memories were copied ten times and implanted into ten cloned embryos, once the embryos grew, the ten people would be exactly the same in both body and memory.

They all believe they are Fan Xian, but are they really Fan Xian? Are they really the original Fan Xian?

of course not!

The "Celestial Dragons" do not believe that the self that grows up after being digitized is still the same self. This involves the issue of the "id". Therefore, although the "digitization of memories" was a great success, it was not valued and was even discarded like trash.

What they care about is the immortality of the "id," not the immortality of memories and cells.

Under this stubborn belief, subsequent experiments gradually tended towards evolution, allowing humanity to evolve on its own.

To allow humanity to evolve to the point where the physical body can absorb and utilize high-energy substances, thereby increasing physical strength, preventing decay, and even evolving a transferable "soul".

Using the entire Earth as a testing ground, under the guise of war, they began to modify the Earth's environment and select humans with evolutionary potential.

That so-called nuclear war that supposedly destroyed human civilization was actually an experiment to modify the environment.

After all, with the technology of a peak civilization, the efficiency of nuclear weapons in killing people is ridiculously low.

The experiment started off smoothly, but it soon veered off course in a direction they had not anticipated.

Their alteration of the Earth's environment triggered a domino effect, causing changes in the Earth's magnetic field and orbital shifts, ushering in the Ice Age.

At extremely low temperatures, all life activities almost come to an abrupt halt.

Those who could escape Earth did so immediately, while those who couldn't escape or were still observing and waiting were gradually wiped out by the long Ice Age.

After the extinction of a peak civilization, countless millennia later, some modern humans who were once exhibited in museums and played the role of "apes" were revived by artificial intelligence.

Thus, the current restart of civilization came about.

The truth about the Forbidden Gate affected Fan Xian far more than it affected Zhou Cheng.

Zhou Cheng wasn't particularly affected, simply because he had a system.

His mindset and his perspective are different from Fan Xian's.

The next few decades were decades for Zhou Cheng to enjoy the world.

The states of Qing and Qi were united, and the Western Hu and many smaller states were peacefully unified amidst a chorus of voices celebrating their achievements.

In the end, Haitang Duoduo could not escape Zhou Cheng's wicked hands.

The favor that Ku He did for her ultimately failed to save her.

The holy woman of Northern Qi gave birth to a daughter as her first child.

Years passed.

Zhou Cheng did not deliberately promote the development of civilization. He himself already enjoyed the greatest privilege and the greatest enjoyment, and had no motivation to promote social progress.

As for improving people's lives...

He's not a liar, so there are some things he won't say.

Seventy years have passed in a flash.

Even though Zhou Cheng was an invincible grandmaster, he could not withstand the erosion of time.

He was very old and frail, like a withered tree.

Just a few days ago, Haitang Duoduo also left him.

He lived too long, so long that he suffered too many times, but thankfully, he made it to the end.

He kept his promise, his promise to his woman, and that he would be the last to leave.

Haitang Duoduo was the last woman he took as a concubine, and also the youngest and the one with the highest martial arts skill.

Other beauties had already begun to fade away more than a decade ago.

Fortunately, most of his women died of old age, leaving him with almost no regrets.

As for why it's "almost," it's naturally because of that bitch Li Yunrui.

Li Yunrui only stayed by his side for twenty years.

Twenty years later, when Li Yunrui saw that the woman beside him was still in her prime, while the fine lines at the corners of her own eyes could no longer be concealed, this woman who had been strong-willed all her life finally understood what the most terrifying and cruel thing in the world was.

Having learned of Ye Qingmei's existence, she was able to reconcile with her.

But time is the one thing she can't reconcile with.

Over the years, she had wielded immense economic power over the vast empire and truly reached the pinnacle of power within the cabinet.

She thought that with her own abilities, she could stand confidently by that man's side even when she grew old.

But after being away from lies for too long, she lost the ability to deceive herself.

She had to admit that, compared to power and ability, what she was most proud of, what she was most proud of, and what supported her the most was her beauty.

A beauty that can captivate men, a beauty that can make even the most powerful man in the world fall in love with it.

When her beauty faded, her power and ability could no longer support her pride, and then her life collapsed.

So on an ordinary, unremarkable night, she put on her most exquisite makeup, wore her most gorgeous dress, and looked at herself in front of a full-length mirror for a long time. In the end, without disturbing anyone, she chose to leave quietly.

Zhou Cheng, a man who was invincible and believed he could not be injured by any opponent, was injured without warning on that ordinary, unremarkable morning.

He was badly injured.

His true energy, comparable to the vast ocean, possessed the power to withstand natural disasters. He didn't exert any effort, not even the slightest bit of it. That was the first time he realized there was anything in this world that could harm him after he had achieved great success in martial arts.

And that thing will hurt him again and again in the years to come.

Zhou Cheng had already properly explained everything he needed to say and do to his children over the past few decades, so he simply left behind a letter.

When he quietly left the vast royal villa on the outskirts of Beijing, no one knew that this god, who had stood at the pinnacle of the world for over eighty years and was worshipped by countless people, had no intention of returning.

Zhou Cheng originally wanted to go find Fan Xian, but then thought better of it.

Let that old geezer Fan Xian continue to watch over his children and talk about Lin Wan'er.

He bestowed the Heavenly Dao True Qi upon Fan Xian shortly after ascending the throne. Although Fan Xian ultimately failed to break through to the Grandmaster level, given his martial arts prowess, living to be a hundred years old shouldn't be difficult for him.

Over the past ten years or so, every time they met, Fan Xian would talk about him because he had lived so long.

Zhou Cheng went to the far north alone to search for the temple, without even looking for Wu Zhu.

He is a grandmaster, and he has a long life ahead of him; he can afford to waste it.

There is system space, and there is no worry about food supplies.

After spending two months wandering the far north snowfields and enduring the polar night, he finally saw daylight and the temple.

The temple is indeed full of science fiction elements, with many weapons on display, but unfortunately, they are mostly empty shells.

The temple is controlled by artificial intelligence, so it is naturally very hostile to intruders like Zhou Cheng. However, the temple's last two bio-engineered robots were thrown into the system space by him decades ago, so the artificial intelligence can only protest when it projects them.

Zhou Cheng found the place where Ye Qingmei had lived in the temple and saw the traces she left behind.

He interacted with artificial intelligence and learned a lot more.

The temple contained not only weapons, but also a wide array of other artifacts. Compared to the most advanced civilizations, these might all seem like ancient relics, but for Zhou Cheng, much of the technology within still surpassed his understanding.

After spending a month in the temple, Zhou Cheng basically lost interest in the exhibits.

He thought of the most precious things in the temple.

"There should be another spaceship here," he thought to himself.

The artificial intelligence naturally wouldn't tell him the whereabouts of the spaceship, but Zhou Cheng knew that the spaceship should be underground in the temple.

Over the past month, he had gained a fairly clear understanding of the temple's architecture and structure. Despite numerous warnings and attempts by the artificial intelligence to prevent him, he still managed to locate the spaceship.

As a masterpiece created during the peak of a civilization, this spaceship beneath the temple possesses the capability for interstellar travel.

In the original novel, Fan Xian's daughter, Fan Xiaohua, accidentally activated the spaceship's autopilot system, leading them all the way to the Zuotian Star Region.

In another starry sky, another Fan family continued its legacy.

After studying it for a few days, Zhou Cheng had a basic understanding of the spacecraft's operating system.

In the world of Joy of Life, this was his last remaining curiosity.

He did not hesitate.

Soon, the spaceship, which had been silent for countless years, started up again, breaking through the temple and soaring into the sky.

Through the spaceship's projection, he saw the planet beneath his feet, but only for a moment before the outside world was already pitch black.

I don't know how much time has passed.

On Earth, in a second-tier city in China, in a bare, unfinished apartment with only white paint, a young man suddenly appeared and slowly opened his eyes.

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