Ch 92: The Malevolent Monster Just Wants To Farm

Juling Shen instinctively suspected that Jiang Lin had done something to stop the blade. But when he looked closely, he saw that the Third Prince was bound by the Immortal Binding Rope, standing quietly with an air of resignation, as if he had given up on resisting.

Noticing Juling Shen’s gaze, Jiang Lin even tilted his head slightly and asked in confusion, “Juling Shen, what’s wrong?”

Due to his injuries, Jiang Lin’s complexion was pale and weak, almost sickly. However, when he raised his eyebrows and glanced around, there was a gentle warmth in his gaze, like the first thaw of spring melting the snow.

Juling Shen sighed inwardly at the sight of the Third Prince’s striking appearance. What a shame that such a beautiful being was about to meet his end.

Without saying anything, Juling Shen frowned and personally went to report the strange occurrence to the Jade Emperor.

Soon, the God of Fate arrived to investigate, quickly identifying the source.

He reported to the Jade Emperor in shock, “Your Majesty, the people of Chentang Pass are praying for the Heavenly Court to spare the life of the Third Prince of the Dragon Clan. They are doing so voluntarily, in the various temples throughout Chentang Pass.”

“Hmph!” The supreme deity on the throne was enraged.

Those mortals were in his temples, yet they were praying for a dragon, a creature unrelated to the Heavenly Court.

“Ignore them!”

“But…” Juling Shen hesitated, “Your Majesty, the willpower of those mortals is preventing my blade from falling.”

He was unable to carry out the execution.

In Chentang Pass, months had passed since Jiang Lin was taken away by the celestial soldiers.

The situation had improved considerably since that rain, and the people of Chentang Pass understood who had saved them. Knowing that the Third Prince was captured by the Heavenly Court for committing a grave offense, they prayed daily for his safety.

In a modest courtyard in Chentang Pass, Huaiyin and the other three demons, disguised as ordinary mortals, watched the willpower pouring in from all directions.

Having practiced the Nine Spirits Technique with Jiang Lin, they could now see these wishes as well.

Huaiyin exclaimed joyfully, “Master is doing well. The wishes of the people of Chentang Pass have saved him.”

Qingluo clapped her hands. “It wasn’t in vain that we worked tirelessly day and night in Chentang Pass to spread the word about Master’s sacrifices.”

As she spoke, she looked over at the drowsy Xiao Pu and gave him a strong hug. “Especially Xiao Pu. You’ve worked so hard during these days.”

Xiao Pu, whose true form was a dandelion, had the innate ability to create duplicates of himself. Over these past days, he had produced hundreds of copies, each taking on the guise of storytellers in the inns and tea houses of Chentang Pass. They spread the tale of “Chentang Pass abandoned by the heavens, suffering a three-year drought, and the compassionate Third Prince bringing rain to save the people.”

They emphasized Jiang Lin’s contributions to Chentang Pass while highlighting the cruelty of the Heavenly Court, stressing that the Third Prince would likely face severe punishment.

After this relentless, daily “brainwashing,” even the most selfish of rogues couldn’t help but feel uneasy, finding themselves praying during their idle moments for the kind-hearted Third Prince to be spared by the heavens.

Each tiny wish, carrying the hopes of its owner, gently drifted up with the wind to the Ninth Heaven, arriving beside the one they sought to protect, shielding him from the descending blade.

The Jade Emperor had long been adept at utilizing the fortune of the human race, reaping immense benefits from it. But he had never considered that one day, this same fortune would obstruct his will.

The Heavenly Court was unable to deal with a mere Third Prince of the Dragon Clan!

All the gods below were waiting for him to issue an order.

The workings of fortune were known to the sages and to the Jade Emperor and Queen Mother, but the ordinary gods were unaware. They merely thought there was something strange about the Third Prince or were shocked for the first time to see that mortals could possess such power. But they didn’t worry too much; the omnipotent Emperor would surely deal with this audacious little deity.

For once, the Jade Emperor found himself in a difficult position.

He understood well the importance of mortals.

While these mortals were indeed weak, and a single thought from a god could annihilate an entire city, no god would dare to act so rashly.

Anger simmered within him: a mere Chentang Pass could gather such an immense amount of willpower.

Although this willpower might not significantly affect the Heavenly Court, it was enough to save the life of the Third Prince of the Dragon Clan.

“Your Majesty?” Juling Shen cautiously called out to the Jade Emperor.

The Jade Emperor’s stern voice resounded from above, “Considering the Third Prince’s youth and his defiance of the Heavenly rules out of concern for the people, spare him from the death penalty. Exile him to the Abyss of Desolation!”

Juling Shen was momentarily stunned but quickly acknowledged the command and left.

He returned to the execution platform, where Jiang Lin was still standing quietly.

Juling Shen sighed and said, “Third Prince, congratulations! The Emperor has pardoned your death sentence.”

Jiang Lin didn’t believe the Jade Emperor would let him off so easily. He asked, “If it’s such good news, why the sigh?”

Juling Shen replied, “The Emperor has decreed that while you are spared the death penalty, you cannot escape punishment. You will be exiled to the Abyss of Desolation to reflect on your actions.”

Jiang Lin understood.

The Abyss of Desolation was rumored to be in the first layer of heaven. It was a place devoid of spiritual energy and teeming with desolation, where only the most heinous of beings were imprisoned. Even the most powerful gods, once inside, would become as powerless as ordinary mortals.

Gods, who were accustomed to being high and mighty, could hardly bear such a fall. It was said that many gods had gone mad within the Abyss of Desolation.

Moreover, while entering the Abyss was easy, leaving it was nearly impossible. Without a special pardon from the Heavenly Court, Jiang Lin would likely never escape once he was sent there.

That’s why Juling Shen had sighed: such prolonged torment could be worse than a quick beheading.

Yet Jiang Lin remained calm, slowly adjusting his sleeves. “If that’s the case, Juling Shen, please lead the way.”

His composure at this moment made it hard for Juling Shen not to admire him. But admiration was all he could afford to feel; he dared not show any favor toward a god whom the Emperor despised.

In the mortal realm.

Huaiyin’s expression changed. “The decision has been made. Master has been sent to the Abyss of Desolation.”

Yin He remarked coolly, “The Abyss of Desolation is not a good place.”

Qingluo breathed a sigh of relief. “Fortunately, Father anticipated this and made preparations.”

Although there were some complications along the way, the fact that the most promising young dragon of the Dragon Clan had been exiled to the Abyss of Desolation meant he was effectively crippled, leaving the Jade Emperor in a good mood.

The situation in Chentang Pass, which had originally been a setup for Jiang Lin, was restored to “divine favor.”

It was said that on that day, the Dragon King of the East Sea personally manifested in the Dragon King Temple, bowing to the people of Chentang Pass to thank them for saving his son’s life.

Only then did the people of Chentang Pass realize that their prayers had been heard by the heavens. Although the Third Prince had been spared from beheading, he was still cast into the Abyss of Desolation.

It is said that even gods cannot escape from that place!

The people couldn’t help but feel a sense of guilt and sorrow.

At the same time, they also felt a strange sense of pride in knowing that they had somehow managed to save a god’s life. Naturally, this also fostered a special affection for the Dragon Clan.

Those who had personally experienced these events would tell the story throughout their lives, often recounting it to young children during idle moments.

These young children grew up knowing that there was once a Third Prince of the Dragon Clan who defied the Heavenly Court’s laws to bring rain to the people of Chentang Pass, and who was ultimately spared because of the prayers of those same people, though he was now suffering in the Abyss of Desolation.

Such a small tale took root in their hearts, making them feel closer to the Dragon Clan than to other gods.

The high and mighty gods of the Heavenly Court, basking in the worship of the entire human world, naturally did not care about the slight loss of faith from Chentang Pass.

In the blink of an eye, decades had passed in the human world.

The legend of the Dragon Prince, instead of fading away with time, spread even further.

In Chentang Pass, some people even built a separate temple to honor the Third Prince.

The Dragon Clan also began to appear more frequently in people’s lives.

The Heavenly Court did not relax its surveillance of the Dragon Clan, but seeing that they had done nothing outrageous besides being a bit more active, they did not intervene further.

That year, a great joy occurred in the capital city of Zhaoge.

The queen had given birth to a prince!

The emperor was overjoyed and personally named the prince “Shou.”

On the day of the prince’s full moon celebration, Emperor Yi hosted a grand banquet in the palace, celebrating with his ministers and the entire kingdom.

After the feast, Emperor Yi went to the queen’s chambers to see the now-sleeping prince.

The queen, a gentle-looking woman, smiled as she gazed at her son in the swaddling clothes and said, “Shou has your features, Your Majesty. He will surely grow up to be a brave and extraordinary man.”

Emperor Yi, in high spirits, replied, “This is my heir. He will carry on my dynasty for thousands of generations!”

Both had drunk, and feeling tired, they soon fell asleep.

Emperor Yi had a dream.

In the dream, he arrived at a beautiful place, beside a mist-covered, jade-green lake, where a celestial being in green robes sat.

The celestial being had a lovely appearance and an air of nobility.

Emperor Yi was not afraid; instead, he asked, “Who are you, divine being, and why do you enter my dreams?”

At that time, the boundary between gods and mortals was not so clearly defined. The gods of the Heavenly Court often appeared in the mortal world to gain the faith of humans.

As the emperor of humanity, Emperor Yi had encountered many gods.

For the first time, Jiang Lin saw such thick, rich fortune surrounding a human emperor.

This person was clearly an ordinary man with no divine abilities, yet he was enveloped in such intense fortune that Jiang Lin found himself unable to harm him—even if he tried, he was certain none of his powers would have any effect on this man.

Jiang Lin suddenly understood why, in the myths of the Investiture of the Gods, when King Zhou offended the sages, they could not punish him directly but instead sent demons to gradually erode the Shang dynasty’s fortune.

Even the most powerful gods only fought on the battlefield; none dared to assassinate King Zhou.

Humanity was on the rise, and the human emperor was the focal point of that fortune.

Jiang Lin bowed respectfully to Emperor Yi, who accepted the gesture calmly.

As the human emperor, at this time, his status was equal to that of the Jade Emperor of the Heavenly Court.

Before him stood Emperor Yi, whose newly born son was Emperor Xin, the last ruler of the Shang dynasty.

—Also the last human emperor in history.

The Zhou dynasty, with the support of the Heavenly Court, seized the world. To express their gratitude and sincerity, they began to call themselves “Sons of Heaven.” From then on, all mortal rulers referred to themselves as the “Sons of Heaven.”

From that point, humanity was considered inferior to the Heavenly Court, and the Heavenly Court entered its most glorious era, benefiting from this fortune.

“I have come to congratulate Your Majesty on the birth of an heir,” Jiang Lin said.

Emperor Yi smiled slightly. As a father, hearing any blessing for his son at this time would make him happy.

But the next words from this green-robed god made Emperor Yi’s expression change: “I have also come to see what the last king of the Shang dynasty looks like.”

Emperor Yi’s face darkened, and the heavy purple aura of the emperor’s fortune bore down, making it difficult for even someone as strong as Jiang Lin to breathe.

Even the dreamscape crafted by Jiang Lin with the power of the Jade Space began to show signs of collapsing.

“How dare you speak such madness!”

Jiang Lin met Emperor Yi’s gaze directly and said, “Why be angry, Your Majesty? I am here to help you.”

“My name is Ao Bing.”

He introduced himself, causing Emperor Yi’s anger to subside slightly. “So you are the one, the Third Prince of the East Sea Dragon Clan, who defied the Heavenly Court to bring rain to the people of Chentang Pass?”