The Last Sentinel

"Scholar Ye, please!"

Outside the Zhenwu Hall, Huang Jin pushed open the palace gate, stood with his hands in his sleeves, and smiled warmly.

Ye Feng cupped his hands in greeting and stepped into the Zhenwu Hall.

Inside the Zhenwu Hall lies a hidden paradise, where mountains and waters meet and heaven and earth merge. This is not a grand hall at all, but a mountain and water paradise unfolded by spatial folding technology!

The palace was built against the mountain, with vermilion pillars standing tall.

The dome inside the hall is painted with the constellations of the heavens, with the sun, moon and stars arranged in a staggered pattern, subtly reflecting the principles of the universe's operation.

The ground is paved with ancient blue-patterned stones, smooth and clean like a mirror.

Plain-colored banners hung on both sides, fluttering gently in the wind.

The fragrance of sandalwood wafted through the air, its smoke swirling around the beams and pillars. The surroundings were utterly silent, except for the pervasive Taoist aura, which exuded solemnity and reverence.

Given this environment, it would be perfectly reasonable for a celestial being to appear.

What Ye Feng really wanted to ask was about Sentinel Lin Qilin, Luo Ji, and Pangu's doubts.

Moreover, Ye Feng believed that Jiajing could answer these questions.

As Lu Xun once said, the real secrets are not in the martial arts world or the evil path, but in the towering towers of the prestigious schools and the pinnacle of worldly power!

As the ruler of the empire, Jiajing witnessed five thousand years of development of the planet. There was no reason why he wouldn't know about Luo Ji, Pangu, and the others!

The Jiajing Emperor is the true hidden boss of the carbon-based civilization, an existence that knows everything!

Just as Ye Feng was filled with anticipation and trepidation, a faint and distant voice came from behind.

"Practice until your body resembles a crane, and you can read two volumes of scriptures beneath a thousand pine trees."

"I came to ask the question, but there was nothing more to say; the clouds are in the blue sky, and the water is in the bottle."

Ye Feng looked up and saw a celestial crane soaring through the clouds above his head, gracefully landing.

On the back of the crane, a Taoist priest, dressed in an imposing royal dragon-patterned robe, with a flowing beard and blurred features, appeared leisurely.

Ye Feng instinctively knelt down and respectfully said, "Your subject Ye Feng pays his respects to the Emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty..."

Just as Ye Feng knelt down, a powerful force of the Five Elements supported his knees, freezing him in mid-air.

This powerful force made Ye Feng feel like an ant trying to shake a tree, or a mantis trying to stop a chariot!

What exactly was Jiajing's cultivation level?

What does it mean that he won't let me kneel?

At that moment, the deep, ethereal voice of the middle-aged man rang out, "Scholar Ye, as a compiler in the Hanlin Academy, is extremely learned and must be well-versed in the principles of heaven and earth. So, I ask you a question: Do immortals truly exist?"

This problem completely stumped Ye Feng.

If you're not Jiajing, can't you just play by the rules?

How am I supposed to answer your question?

If I say that immortals do not exist, then you, who have cultivated immortality to the point of mental illness, would be guilty of deceiving the emperor.

If I were to say that immortals exist, how would I find one for you? I can't exactly follow Xu Fu's example and send three thousand boys and girls eastward to all the heavens and worlds!

Just as Ye Feng fell silent, Jiajing's gentle and melodious voice echoed throughout the vast mountain and water cave.

"Following the natural order leads to becoming a human, going against it leads to becoming an immortal; the mystery lies in the reversal of roles."

"To evade fate and avoid cause and effect, all kinds of shackles bind the true self."

"Following the will of Heaven and accepting the consequences of karma, I finally know who I am today."

"Once you attain enlightenment and see your true self, what fear is there of the old shackles?"

"The shackles of this world are but a dream, formless, shapeless, and without self."

As Ye Feng listened to Jiajing reciting poetry, he suddenly felt a sense of powerlessness.

This emperor was a complete riddle-teller; he wouldn't speak a single word unless he was using cryptic language.

A clear, cold cry of a crane echoed as Jiajing landed in front of Ye Feng. Amidst the misty clouds, Jiajing's features were obscured; all that could be seen was that this ruler of the Ming Empire, though no more than nine feet tall, exuded an exceptionally imposing aura, giving one the feeling of mountains pressing down before them.

Looking at Ye Feng, who remained bowed, Jiajing said leisurely, "Is it that you don't know how to answer, or that you dare not answer? Answer according to your heart, and I will pardon you!"

Ye Feng bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I believe that immortals do not exist, or rather, immortals exist in all the heavens and myriad realms, but not in our universe."

Jiajing waved his sleeve and said, "Immortals are ethereal and illusory, but Bolsheviks are real. The path of immortality may disappoint you, but Bolsheviks will never. Abandon all delusions about the path of immortality and other great laws of the heavens, raise high the red banner of Bolsheviks, and steadfastly follow the path of Bolsheviks!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Feng abruptly stepped back, beads of sweat the size of soybeans spilling from his forehead, his heart racing at its limit!

What did I hear?

A feudalist leader, an emperor who spent his life cultivating immortality, taking elixirs, and refining pills, personally spoke of Bolshevism and the firm path of a red society!

Emperor Jiajing, Zhu Houcong, did you pick up the wrong script?

You should be playing the emperor's role, not the role of a Red Army soldier like me!

However, Ye Feng was greeted by a gentle, large hand—the hand of Jiajing.

On Jiajing's blurred face, a pair of dark eyes shone with sincerity, friendliness, and boundless warmth. He slowly uttered four words, "Hello, comrade!"

Ye Feng trembled to the extreme, his whole body shaking violently like a sieve. He stared at Jiajing in disbelief, as if he had seen a ghost.

Only four words remained in Ye Feng's mind: Hello, comrade!

He...he called me comrade!

He was Jiajing, he was Zhu Houcong, he was the emperor of the Ming Dynasty for five thousand years, he was the head of feudalism!

But... but he called me comrade!

At this moment, countless mysteries in Ye Feng's heart were solved.

Zhu Houcong had met Pangu, Zhang Beihai, Luo Ji, Yun Tianming...

Zhu Houcong even knew everything that happened in his hometown, including the fall of the Qing Dynasty, the rectification of historical errors, and the arrival of the Red Era!

The Ming Dynasty has always existed!

The Ming Dynasty has always existed!

In the desolate universe, the Ming Dynasty gazed silently at its increasingly distant homeland.

Ye Feng shakily raised his right hand and shook hands with Jiajing's left hand, his lips trembling as he said, "Hello, comrade."

"Haha!" Jiajing laughed, gently patting Ye Feng's shoulder with his right hand. "You seem much more capable than the previous Sentinel. Lin Qilin ultimately suffered from congenital deficiencies, yet he rejected my advice and finally reached that point. It's truly remarkable!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Feng completely lost his composure. His eyes welled up with tears, and he couldn't utter a single word. Only four golden characters appeared above his head, referring to him as a "homeless dog."

At this moment, the chat group completely exploded.

Hongmeng's First Deepest Affection: What did I see? A feudalistic leader, an emperor, was actually lecturing me on communist principles, telling me to believe in materialism and steadfastly follow the path of scientism! The contrast is too stark! This reminds me of a photograph of an emperor giving a salute…

Immortal God of Law: Jiajing, that old thief, is indeed well hidden. On the surface, he cultivates immortality, but in reality, he is exactly the same as Ye Feng. They are both absolute believers in materialism and are realist powerhouses!

A sixteenth-realm warrior: A simple "hello, comrade" is worth a thousand words, completely controlling this incredibly capable and intelligent hexagonal warrior! In terms of manipulating people's hearts alone, Jiajing truly deserves to be called a top-level feudal leader. This move is too brilliant. Look at Ye Feng's appearance; he's completely under his control!

Great Love Immortal King: Did you see that? This is what you call imperial strategy! Capable of being both human and ghost! Capable of being both immortal and Bolshevik! To be a person like Jiajing, who wouldn't be impressed!

Wuji Demon Lord: What nonsense are you all spouting! Can't we talk about something meaningful?! This Jiajing actually met Sentinel Lin Qilin, so does that mean Sentinel Lin Qilin entered the myriad realms with Jiajing's help? Does that mean that as long as Ye Feng follows Jiajing, he can also follow in Lin Qilin's footsteps, find us, and bring us home?

Hongmeng's First Deepest Affection: Yes, that's possible! Jiajing is very likely the major shareholder behind Sentinel Lin Qilin's establishment of the All-Heavens Club and chat group! If Jiajing passes on the Sentinel's affairs to Ye Feng, Ye Feng can unlock the group management privileges, succeed as the group administrator, and restart the All-Heavens Transmigrators Club!