Chapter 156: Solidifying His Name as an Immortal Monarch
To most capable people across the Divine Land, the immortal god who appeared under the name Monarch was nothing more than shock, followed by a faint unease at how abruptly the world had shifted.
But for the owner of the nine tails lounging within this magnificent hall, it was far more than surprise.
Because Monarch had ascended with Fusang as his foundation.
And Fusang was the divine tree of the eastern dawn, where the sun rises and the moon retreats, a symbol of first light and the solar cycle. It carried a portion of the Authority of the sun itself.
Which meant it sat directly on the path she had been pursuing.
"Is this a contingency left behind by those departed immortals?"
The woman's lips curved slightly, a smile that carried neither warmth nor sincerity.
"No. If it were them, they would not be so blatant. They loved seals, veils, and the kind of restraint that only the strong call virtue."
Her golden eyes narrowed, and the air in the hall tightened, as if the very concept of "silence" had gained weight.
"Hmph. Those bastards tricked me into hindering the Tang's fate, then went back on their word and suppressed me."
A second voice snapped out immediately, harsh and contemptuous.
"Shut up. Wasn't it because you went too far? Which of the things you did did they ask you to do, Su Daji?"
A third voice followed like a blade drawn without warning, cold and cutting.
"Do not mention that name to me, Bao Si."
The argument continued, sharp enough to make even the shadows feel uncomfortable.
Yet the hall contained only one figure.
The voices did not come from hidden attendants, nor from spirits lurking behind curtains.
They came from her mouth.
More than that, they came from the nine tails unfurled behind her. Each tail swayed with a will that was both her own and not her own, as if every strand of fur remembered a different era, a different throne, a different ruin.
"What is there to argue about with yourself?"
The main body yawned lazily, as if bored by the noise she had created.
Her tone was light, almost amused, and that casualness made it worse.
"But you are right about one thing. It was not easy for this concubine to merge all nine tails and seize primordial power."
Her eyes slid sideways, glinting like coins in lamplight.
"I will not give up so easily."
The nine tails housed multiple personalities.
They were her, yet not her.
They were derivatives, offshoots, identities that had once walked as separate calamities and now returned to the same flesh. Demon consorts who toppled dynasties, demon kings who drowned provinces in chaos, great demons that could stand beside top ranking divine beings without lowering their heads.
Now that they had returned, the presence they manifested was undeniably terrifying.
So even with Donghua's sudden appearance, she felt no fear.
At most, a faint wariness.
"Besides," she murmured, and her smile grew a shade more playful, "it is interesting."
"The aura of this Donghua feels connected to that primordial existence that appeared in the vast frozen lands of the North not long ago."
Her gaze sharpened.
"Or rather, the probability is high that it is the same existence."
After all, how many primordials could the world still hold?
A tail flicked, and a frivolous voice rose, light and sing song, like a child suggesting a game that would end with blood on the tiles.
"Ehhh ya ya. Then next, why don't we play with him a little?"
The nine tails swept up.
The woman rose slowly, hips shifting with deliberate ease. Her dark robe hung loose, half concealing her, half inviting the eye. As she moved, fair skin flashed beneath the fabric, and her legs emerged from the hem, bound in black silk that outlined every curve with merciless clarity.
Outside the window, a fine drizzle fell.
It reflected against her soft orange hair, making it gleam like fire seen through water, like a sun refusing to be extinguished.
She looked outward.
Her red lips curved into a charming arc, and her eyes caught the faint glow beyond the rain.
The first light of dawn.
The rising sun.
…
The divine light that had burned across the sky flashed and vanished.
The Mystery that had nearly scorched the Mystic Eyes of countless observers receded in an instant, as if it had never existed.
And yet, when they looked at the sun again the next morning, they all felt it.
Something had been added.
The East Sea rolled as it always had.
Waves surged, mist drifted, and the ships of those seeking immortality rose and fell with the wind. The danger from earlier was gone, leaving only trembling relief.
Dragon blood diluted quickly into the vast ocean. The blood of a jiao dragon, a demigod that stood close to true divinity, was still insignificant compared to the sea's endless depth.
The sailors exhaled, then all of them bowed toward the Fusang Tree still swaying before them, offering thanks with the sincerity of people who had stared death in the face and found their throats still intact.
Strands of human faith flowed upward like thread drawn by an unseen hand.
It gathered on the tree.
It gathered on Rowe, who stood beneath it.
Rowe merely glanced at the flow, then calmly merged it into the sword in his hand.
He loosened his grip.
The sword remained suspended in mid air.
After absorbing humanity, it gained a trace of spirituality.
Or perhaps it was closer to divinity, the human element that a god must carry if it wishes to be named.
Red light bloomed.
"From now on," Rowe said, voice steady, "I shall call you the Pure Yang Sword."
He stepped back half a pace.
At the same time, the robe hanging from his shoulders shifted.
In a blink, it transformed into wide sleeved Hanfu, dark blue at its base, edged with white jade trim. A crown bound his black hair neatly. His features remained the same, handsome and sharp, yet the temperament he wore changed, becoming undeniably aligned with this land.
Before, he could still be read as foreign.
Now, he blended in so completely that it felt like the world itself had accepted him as part of its scenery.
Rowe chuckled softly.
"Donghua."
He tasted the name once, then nodded to himself.
"This name is good."
Not because of the increased solar Authority it granted.
The power of a Sun God, an Emperor, was at most equivalent to a high ranking chief deity, a God King level existence. For a primordial like Rowe, the increase was negligible.
Even if no Donghua Emperor had existed before, and even with Fusang as his foundation, this was not like the usurpation of Yahweh after the Void Spirit's acknowledgment.
Because he was Donghua.
In this world, the title originated from his existence at this moment.
But what Rowe valued was never the surface power.
It was the destiny that might be hiding behind the name.
Donghua, Donghua Emperor, was a well known immortal deity in later ages. A being both god and immortal, with exalted status. And there was also the myth that after his Dao dissipated, he reincarnated as the Pure Yang Patriarch, Lu Dongbin.
Rowe naming his sword Pure Yang carried that yearning.
He wanted the line of destiny to exist.
He wanted to carve a chance for death into his own name.
With every step, he needed to leave himself as many possibilities as possible.
"Are you playing with me again?"
Consort Yu finally snapped.
She surged forward, grabbed Rowe by the collar, and yanked him close.
Her fur trimmed coat flared with the motion. Long black hair spilled down her back. Her delicate face was filled with indignation, chest rising and falling hard enough to make the air feel restless.
"Fusang Tree. Donghua. You…"
She bit down on the rest.
Her expression shifted rapidly, indignation turning to frustration, then helplessness, then an almost reluctant realization.
She released his collar with a huff.
"Hmph. Never mind. It's annoying."
"This place wasn't mine to begin with. Do whatever you want."
Her lips pouted, disdain returning like armor.
"It's not mine. It was never mine. So why am I sad and angry?"
She turned her face away.
"If you want it, take it."
So you still know it was not yours.
Rowe chuckled.
"Do not worry. This place is mine now, but I can truly lend it to you."
"You can stay as long as you like."
"Do I need you to tell me that?"
Consort Yu snorted, tossing her hair back. Small canine teeth flashed.
"You could not drive me away even if you tried."
Her eyes narrowed.
"But if you dare disturb me while I'm sleeping again, then I'll definitely make you regret it."
"As you wish."
Rowe laughed outright.
Consort Yu was fierce.
She truly was.
It was just that her threats toward Rowe carried almost no weight, which made her look like a kitten baring claws at a mountain. Adorable, if the kitten were also an ancient calamity.
"That… Emperor? Emperor?"
A small, timid voice sounded from the side.
Xu Fu raised her hand slightly. She had been watching everything, eyes wide, breathing shallow, as if afraid blinking might cause the scene to vanish.
"You can call me Donghua, or you can call me Rowe."
Rowe looked over and smiled gently.
After all, she was his first witness.
His first anchor in the Divine Land.
She deserved a little special consideration.
"How can that be?"
Xu Fu gathered her courage, voice still trembling, but stubborn.
"The Emperor is the Emperor."
Rowe's expression softened, then he asked suddenly, as if only now remembering.
"Speaking of which, why are you seeking immortals?"
It was strange.
Until now, Xu Fu had not asked him or Consort Yu for anything. She had not demanded elixirs, secret arts, talismans, or blessings. She had simply come as if meeting them alone was enough.
"Seeking immortals is to seek immortals," Xu Fu answered, confused.
"What else could it be for?"
Rowe fell silent.
This child might be even duller than Consort Yu.
He glanced sideways.
Consort Yu met his gaze with suspicion and wariness, as if she could feel the rudeness forming in his thoughts.
But even she found it strange.
Ordinary seekers of immortality always had desire behind their eyes. They sought arcane arts to step onto the immortal path, pills to ascend, or the promise of eternal life.
They admired the path, not the immortal.
Xu Fu seemed backwards.
Not only did she ask for nothing, she even leaned forward, sincerity almost painful.
"If you need my help with anything, I will definitely help."
Even Consort Yu was at a loss.
Her earlier ill will toward the girl thinned and faded.
Faced with such a naive child, who could truly hate her?
Consort Yu disliked humans because of their endless desire.
Xu Fu's desire was strange, almost empty.
"We do not need your help."
Rowe flicked his sleeve.
"On the contrary, I will give you something."
He took out an item and crouched slightly, lowering himself to Xu Fu's eye level. Xu Fu only reached his chest, even with the hat.
He held it out to her.
A black and white jade bi shaped like a yin yang.
"This is…"
"A reward."
Rowe rubbed her head through the hat.
It was a reward.
But it was also a wedge.
It was a key.
An ability he had not used in a long time, perhaps because he had not needed it until now. As the Key of Heaven, he could create keys, physical anchors that connected meaning to existence.
This jade bi would be the first object Rowe left in the Divine Land.
A trace proving he had been here.
And Xu Fu, holding it, would be under the protection of the Donghua Emperor.
"Mm…"
Xu Fu's face flushed. She wanted to take off her hat so he could touch her properly, then felt the thought was too bold and immediately clenched her hands tighter.
So she only hugged the jade bi like a treasure.
Rowe withdrew his hand.
"Go now. Your companions are still waiting."
Xu Fu hesitated.
"Emperor, will we meet again?"
"Of course."
Consort Yu huffed.
"Hmph. Do not disturb me when I'm sleeping next time, or I'll really eat you all."
The pairing of a gentle Emperor and a temperamental fairy felt strange, but Xu Fu only nodded hard.
"I will definitely come find you both again in the future."
"And I will bring lots and lots of gifts."
Xu Fu returned to the ship.
The group of seekers left the Fusang Tree full of excitement, loaded with gains. Even though the others had not seen immortals with their own eyes, they had witnessed the dragon slaying sword and the divine tree taller than the sky.
That was enough.
They felt as if the gods had favored them simply by letting them live to tell the story.
"They will come back next time."
Rowe watched the sailboats drift away.
"But that will probably have to wait until Great Qin is established."
Consort Yu breathed out, inexplicably relieved.
"They are finally gone."
She always felt uncomfortable around crowds.
Then she froze.
"Hm? You…"
Rowe had already sat down cross legged beneath the Fusang Tree.
His posture was upright.
Faint light spilled from him, swirling like a nebula.
"Cultivating immortality," Rowe said seriously.
"Since I'm called Emperor, I should at least practice a little to match the identity."
He lifted a finger slightly, as if tracing a line in the air.
"Speaking of which, this is what I simulated by measuring that girl's mana circulation frequency."
He paused, then added with mild dissatisfaction.
"It feels crude."
Consort Yu stared.
"…So you could not do it before?"
Then why were you so confident earlier?
It was one thing for seekers to fail to gain a method, but for their method to be learned by an immortal on the spot was ridiculous.
Xu Fu was studying Daoist arcane arts. Fangshi methods, derived from Huang Lao thought and early techniques. Exquisite in foundation, but she had not truly touched the immortal path yet.
So yes, it was rudimentary.
Consort Yu tilted her chin, returning to pride.
"Heh heh. If you really want to learn, you can come to me."
"Whether it is Huang Lao secret arts or Qi cultivation methods created by ancient true immortals, I remember them all perfectly."
Her lips curled.
"If you want to learn, I can teach you."
"You beg…"
She stopped.
Because the aura around Rowe changed.
Layers of mana surged and swirled around him, circling like a nebula.
The crude method he derived from Xu Fu transformed instantly.
It deepened, refined, and expanded, becoming profound in a way that did not feel like a human lifetime's work.
In no way inferior to the techniques created by the ancient true immortals Consort Yu spoke of.
For an instant, Rowe became an immortal.
His human form resonated instinctively with the planet, as if he had transformed into a Stellar Spirit in the same breath.
Then, the next second, he abolished it.
The resonance snapped.
The method collapsed.
The power dispersed.
Consort Yu's vermilion lips parted, the words she had been about to say choking in her throat.
Rowe only opened his eyes again, calm, thoughtful.
"It still feels off."
One could only admit it.
With a machina god of primordial specification supporting him, Rowe's calculation ability had reached a level that even ordinary supreme gods could not match. Any method that entered his hands could be innovated in an instant, pushed toward a path that pointed at the primordial.
Even if that possibility remained tiny, it was terrifying.
But for Rowe, it offered no real improvement.
It was only decoration.
A finishing touch.
And it was not what he wanted.
What he wanted was something else.
"Cough. Cough."
Consort Yu's voice turned unnatural.
A faint blush rose on her cheeks. She coughed softly, crossed her arms over her chest, and tried to compress her composure back into place.
"This… this is only a trivial level."
"What is a Qi cultivation technique? I also know methods long forgotten."
Her eyes slid aside as if she were speaking casually, but her tails twitched like they were gossiping behind her back.
"Great Old One methods that were prevalent during the Xia Dynasty…"
Xia Dynasty.
Great Old Ones.
Rowe's heart stirred.
His head snapped toward her, sharp enough to cut.
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