Chapter 657: Three Out-of-Town Friends Who Don’t Know the Great Zhou’s Rules
Emperor Shun is a legendary figure in the Immortal Realm. As the immortal most proficient in the Dao of time, his whereabouts are as elusive as the Dao Ancestor’s—impossible to find.
Some immortals recall that when they were very young, an immortal patted their head and bestowed the secret of longevity. After they themselves became immortals and drank with Emperor Shun, he laughed and said, “I patted your head when you were a kid. Come, let me pat it again.”
Some immortals recall encountering a fortune-teller in their youth who predicted with uncanny accuracy that they would definitely become immortals in the future. Later, they discovered that fortune-teller was Emperor Shun.
Other immortals recall meeting a visitor from beyond the heavens in their childhood. The visitor said, “Remember to pay back the money. If you don’t, I’ll keep pestering you from childhood to adulthood.”
Emperor Shun went to an underground gambling den in the Immortal Realm to place bets, causing the casino owner to lose everything, down to his last pair of underpants.
Since then, all gambling dens have posted signs saying “Emperor Shun is forbidden entry.” Once Emperor Shun’s trace is detected, they directly close for three days.
If you can’t beat him, can’t you at least hide from him?
Everyone held their noses, treating Emperor Shun with courtesy and welcoming him with smiles, terrified he might spill some secret or other.
In front of Emperor Shun, there are no secrets.
The Primordial Ancestor once tried to capture Emperor Shun. Each time, he coincidentally arrived a few seconds late, allowing Emperor Shun to escape.
For the Primordial Ancestor, who is proficient in the Dao of time, this was a supreme humiliation. What coincidence? Emperor Shun must have calculated everything and escaped leisurely!
“What vigorous national fortune!” The moment they entered Great Zhou, the three men felt its extraordinary national fortune. Truly worthy of being the most powerful among the nine great imperial dynasties.
Methods to condense national fortune are widespread across the myriad heavens and worlds, but one as vigorous as Great Zhou’s was something the trio were witnessing for the first time.
“And so, the Human Sovereign Jiang came and went from the Underworld as he pleased, even receiving a grand welcome from the Ten Yama Kings lining the path, such magnificent pomp…” A vigorous, full-voiced storytelling sound came from a teahouse, catching the trio’s attention.
The three entered the teahouse and found many people there to listen to the storytelling, with not even a place to sit.
Wuhán spotted a table, threw the people sitting there out of the teahouse, and took their seats. The onlookers were furious but dared not speak up.
The current segment being told was “Human Sovereign Jiang’s Three Trips to the Underworld in Search of His Past Life” from *The Biography of Human Sovereign Jiang*.
“The Ten Yama Kings are strong indeed, but compared to Human Sovereign Jiang, they fall somewhat short. Human Sovereign Jiang toured the Underworld, with the Yama Kings personally giving him a tour.”
“Living people going to the Underworld? These Nine Provinces folks really know how to boast. Ignorance breeds fearlessness,” the Snake-eyed Man sneered. What kind of place was the Underworld? A living person who goes there becomes a dead person, with no hope of returning to the world of the living. Not even the son of a Primordial Chaos and Limitless Immortal was an exception.
“…Facing the sixteenth Ascension Tribulation, the same heavenly tribulation the Dao Ancestor faced when he became a Primordial Chaos and Limitless Immortal, Human Sovereign Jiang gave a slight smile. He executed the move ‘Universe Within Sleeves.’ His sleeves encompassed heaven and earth. No matter how vast your cultivation, you could not escape from within his sleeves. Thus, the sixteenth Ascension Tribulation was collected into Human Sovereign Jiang’s sleeve…”
“There was a second round to the Ascension Tribulation, its power even more terrifying, as if it could shatter heaven and earth itself. The residual light of the thunderbolts could blind eyes; even immortals were not qualified to spectate…”
“What kind of person is Human Sovereign Jiang? How could he possibly take such an Ascension Tribulation seriously? He is a sword cultivator who stands alone at the pinnacle of the swordpath. With one sword, he splits the heavens, making the very sky tremble in fear…”
“A brilliant sword light illuminated the great thousand worlds, like a guiding beacon giving direction to all living beings in the darkness. All beings bowed in worship, chanting the mighty name of Human Sovereign Jiang…”
The three men listened to the storyteller’s wildly exaggerated tale, sneering repeatedly.
“Just a storytelling tale, can’t be taken seriously. If he were that powerful, why wouldn’t he come to the Immortal Realm to make his mark, instead of holing up in this tiny Nine Provinces?”
They were all immortals who had ascended from the Underworld to the Immortal Realm.
When Wuhán said this, he didn’t lower his voice. The people nearby heard it clearly and felt very uncomfortable, casually retorting with sarcasm.
“Human Sovereign Jiang is invincible. Why would he need to ascend to the Immortal Realm? Why would a true powerhouse need to change places to develop? Wherever Human Sovereign Jiang is, that is the strongest world!”
“Bragging shamelessly,” Wuhán felt that the people of Nine Provinces all had a kind of thinking that didn’t know the immensity of heaven and earth. They didn’t revere heaven, didn’t revere immortals. This was very bad.
Just as Wuhán was about to take action and kill someone, a commotion arose outside the teahouse.
“It’s them! They hit people in public, threw us out of the teahouse!”
The people Wuhán had thrown out had found the government office and brought officers to arrest Wuhán.
“Arrest me?” Wuhán stood up, cracking his joints, looking at everyone as if they were already dead.
The Snake-eyed Man and the Tiger-striped Man remained as steady as Mount Tai, sitting and waiting for blood to flow like a river.
Playing the pig to eat the tiger was also a bit of fun when coming to the Underworld to investigate.
Killing a few people was nothing; the Netherfire Immortal Lord wouldn’t flip out over that.
…
“One bowl of Great Yong board noodles, add two eggs, make them flavorful, extra chili peppers, I can handle the heat.”
Outside the teahouse, at a noodle stall, a customer arrived and ordered noodles with practiced ease.
“Customer, your noodles are ready. There’s garlic on the table, help yourself.”
The customer took a bite of the chili pepper—spicy and fragrant. His eyes lit up. “Boss, this Great Yong board noodle flavor is really authentic!”
“Of course! My ancestors for eight generations have been people of Great Zhou. Absolutely authentic!”
Seeing the customer knew his stuff and business was slow, the boss sat down to chat.
“You look unfamiliar, customer, not from around here, are you?”
“My name is Zhou Li, from Qingcheng.”
“From Qingcheng? A fellow townsman of Human Sovereign Jiang! What brings you here?”
Jiang Li pointed to the teahouse next door. “I have three friends who came from out of town. I’m worried they might act rashly and don’t understand Great Zhou’s rules, so I came specifically to remind them.”
“That’s not easy.”
“Tell me about it. Can’t they just be quiet for a while? I just got back from a business trip to another world, hadn’t even had a bite to eat, and ran into this kind of thing.” Jiang Li took a bite of egg and complained.
Jiang Li leisurely finished his board noodles, drank the soup, wiped the red oil from the corner of his mouth, stood up contentedly, and walked toward the teahouse.
…
“Arrest me?” Wuhán was about to use his immortal power to punish these mortals who didn’t know the immensity of heaven and earth. He threw a punch, but his fist felt as weak as a mortal’s, something even a Foundation Establishment stage officer could block.
“What’s going on?!” Wuhán was greatly shocked. His immortal power had actually been sealed without him noticing!
The Snake-eyed Man and Tiger-striped Man wouldn’t just watch their companion get arrested. They shouted loudly, attempting to mobilize immortal arts to act, only to find their immortal power completely gone, vanished to who knows where.
“Daring to attack officers! What enormous nerve! Take all three of them away, back to the yamen for trial!” The officers subdued and arrested the three.
“Do you know who I am? Filthy mortals have no right to touch my immortal body!” The Snake-eyed Man lost his composure, shouting and yelling. In his heart, he was terrified, not knowing what had actually happened.
Their pride stemmed from this immortal power. Now that the immortal power had vanished and their immortal bodies had turned mortal, how could they not be afraid?
Even the usually steady Tiger-striped Man grew uneasy. The waters of Nine Provinces were too deep; he still hadn’t figured out where the problem lay.
Could it be that Nine Provinces had law suppression that would suppress the level of outsiders?
The officer clicked his tongue. These three were actually pretending to be crazy and acting stupid.
Were they trying to use the “not guilty by reason of insanity” exception to avoid punishment?
Quite knowledgeable about the law.
Jiang Li, smiling cheerfully with his hands clasped behind his back, went to the yamen to watch the commotion.