Building a sect from scratch.

Chapter 337 Joining "Eternal Righteousness"?
The Jade Emperor paused mid-sentence, making Dai Min somewhat uneasy. After a moment of hesitation, he couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"

The Jade Emperor looked at Dai Min with a complicated expression and said, "It's like this. Our Taiyin Sect is quite different from other sects. We are formed by small groups of people and towns, and we divide our settlements and build cities based on these groups."

"Sheyi?"

On Earth, the "sheyi" was a basic social organization in ancient China. Its nature, organizational form, the class relations it reflected, and its role in social production all evolved with history. However, it is undeniable that this model existed before the Spring and Autumn Period, although at that time, "she" and "yi" were separate entities.

"She" refers to villages before the Spring and Autumn Period, also known as "village she" or "li she".

This is because the deity worshipped in villages and communities was called the "She Shen" (社神), which was actually the earth god, and in terms of function, it was roughly the guardian deity of the village and community. The place where the She Shen was worshipped was called "She" (社), so villages before the Qin Dynasty were called "She".

Back then, there were no terms like "rural area" or "village/township." At most, larger areas were called "yi" or "li" depending on the local culture and customs.

It wasn't until the Qin state achieved its seven great victories and established a unified empire that the basic social organization system of ancient China was formally established: five families formed a "wu", ten families formed a "shi", one hundred families formed a "li", ten "li" formed a "ting", and ten "ting" formed a "xiang".

However, with the passage of time and social changes, by the Tang and Song dynasties, "sheyi" no longer referred to villages, but rather to a kind of folk organization. This organization was usually associated with commerce, class, and religion, somewhat resembling a martial arts sect in modern Chinese novels.

In ancient China, the term "she" referred to a place of worship or even a deity. A prime example is the well-known phrase "jiangshan sheji" (江山社稷), where "she" refers to the land god. Even in modern society, in neighboring countries that are well-off and deeply influenced by Chinese culture, "she" still retains the meaning of "place of worship," as in the term "shrine."

Therefore, even when private societies called "Sheyi" emerged in China during the Tang and Song dynasties, they were local private organizations formed for the purpose of sacrificial rites.

Over the centuries, this development gradually abandoned its original purpose of worship and evolved into something akin to a "collective society," which later became known as a community. Of course, in modern society, it is prevalent in schools and has a more modern name: club or association.

Because it has always existed in the cultural heritage of China, even players who have only a vague understanding of the term "sheyi" can roughly grasp its meaning and further develop it into a substitute for similar organizations such as guilds and associations in other games.

After all, in "Ten Continents Chronicles", the community system is indeed much more powerful than the guilds or associations in other games. Its functions, such as construction, management, operation, and even enacting laws, taking care of the people, and issuing policies, have allowed many people to experience the responsibilities and burdens of a real manager. It has also made many people realize that the "I can do it" they once thought was actually "I really can't do it".

However, while the concept of "she" (社) exists within the Guixu Realm, the combined concept of "sheyi" (社邑) is less clear. This is especially true in places like the Arctic Flowing Continent, which have been isolated from the outside world for nearly a thousand years, with vastly different information and cultures, making it even more difficult to accurately understand the meanings of these later-emerging terms.

"It's basically an organization, like your clan? Except we don't share the same surname as the people in the same community; we're united by joining the same community,"

The Jade Emperor patiently explained, “Therefore, different communities govern different places, which are the cities they have built themselves. Of course, many communities with smaller power and scale are not yet capable of building cities, but the disciples we accepted this time to investigate the Sword Sect's affairs are basically from the same community, called ‘Eternal Righteousness.’” At this point, the Jade Emperor deliberately paused to give Dai Min time to digest what he was saying. After a few seconds, he continued, “Therefore, we have a request.”

With their hopes of escaping in the hands of others, how could Dai Min possibly have any objections to what the Jade Emperor said? He quickly nodded and said, "Speak freely."

The Jade Emperor finally revealed his true intentions: "If you all are truly able to leave, please settle down in Wuwang City first... By the way, Wuwang City is the main city of the Righteous Spirit Endures in the Community."

Dai Min secretly breathed a sigh of relief, his face filled with gratitude: "This is only right. It is only right that the entire clan should support you!"

"No, no, no, please don't misunderstand. What we mean is that we simply ask you all to settle in Wuwang City for a while. Relocation later is fine!"

As the Jade Emperor spoke, he read Nietzsche's lengthy discourse in the team channel to Dai Min: "And don't worry, Wuwang City doesn't collect agricultural taxes, only personal income tax. That is, the money that ordinary people earn from buying and selling, running businesses, or doing other work. The tax rate is very low, and it's tiered, with the lowest being only five percent... half a percent, and the highest not exceeding thirty percent! Moreover, there is no need for military service, and there is no mandatory conscription policy. All recruitment by the government is not only voluntary, but also clearly priced and paid in silver..."

The Jade Emperor kept rambling on and on, while the players in the team chat were also having a great time.

Huang Zhucao exclaimed in astonishment, "Wow! Are our community regulations this detailed?! That's amazing! I've never paid attention to that before!"

Guantangbao, however, knew some details and said, "Governing a city is normal! And to be honest, there are quite a few NPCs around here now! Last time we bought a large batch from Fulu Shou, our club president had to add several night schools to finish the literacy classes, and they're probably still learning about flower language right now!"

Wu Ke couldn't help but interject, "Why do these rules and regulations sound so familiar to me?"

Guantangbao replied, "Because this is the simplified version of the system in our country now. Oh, it's been simplified a lot. Basically, everything that's not really there has been deleted. Our president said she'll slowly modify and add to it. I don't know where she got her competitive spirit from. She said it can't be too different from Chang'an City. She even asked Er Gou for the complete set of Chang'an City rules and is modifying them one by one!"

Huang Zhucao gasped, "Hiss! My god, that's an enormous amount of work! I heard that the various criminal laws and regulations of Chang'an City were designed by a legal expert that Er Gou specially hired!"

Just as the players were chatting away, Dai Min, having listened to the Jade Emperor's long speech, finally asked while he was catching his breath: "So, all the Liuzhou people who left the Land of Divine Punishment must join your 'Eternal Righteousness' community?"

"puff--"

The Jade Emperor nearly spat out a mouthful of blood—how on earth did this genius achieve such a corporate-level understanding?!