If you don't give up, I'd like to be your adoptive father.

Chapter 1462 Great Qin Efficiency
After reminding the heroes to be wary of a potential counterattack from the Qin Dynasty and giving them a final pep talk, the East China Sea Anti-Qin Alliance meeting came to an end.

Liu Ji had previously thought that after the meeting, he could stay in the Dragon Palace and continue to communicate with the heroes of China.

He traveled through time more than two hundred times, always actively joining one side, and had already discussed what he wanted to say beforehand.

Since there was no need to stay in the Dragon Palace and his own family had encountered trouble, Liu Ji decided not to stay any longer.

He received a gift from the Dragon King from the Thirteen Chief Stewards, and was then escorted away from the East Sea by the Swift-Walking Guard.

"The situation is urgent. We can no longer travel slowly in a carriage as we did before."

Outside the East Gate Harbor, Liu Ji, carrying a large bundle, pointed to the green horse in Xiahou Ying's hand and said, "This is a divine steed. Even with the three of us riding on its back, it can still move as swiftly as the wind."

If it gets tired along the way, use the art of horsemanship to become one with the horse and transfer our inner strength to it.

Xiahou Ying said, "Brother Ji should really ask the Dragon King for a 'Flying Dragon Cloud Chariot,' which can enter water without getting wet, soar lightly into the air, be as swift as a whirlwind, and travel on human roads like an ordinary carriage, as fast as lightning."

He looked at the large bundle on Liu Ji's back with some regret and some disdain. "He sent several hundred catties of gold and silver jewelry, which may be worth 100,000 gold coins. But riding a horse with it is heavy and troublesome. It's a complete burden."

Liu Ji lightly jumped up and straddled the horse's back, saying, "Didn't you notice? From beginning to end, you haven't seen a single Dragon King, not even the Dragon King's prince."

"The Dragon King hasn't even shown up, nor has he offered me any treasures. Whom can I ask for the flying dragon chariot?"

Xiahou Ying led his horse westward and asked, "Why hasn't the Dragon King shown himself at all? This is such a good opportunity to make friends with the hidden dragon of the Divine Land!"

Liu Ji said, "The Dragon King has just not made a public appearance, not that he has not seen the hidden dragon. Even I almost obtained a true dragon's fortune. I don't know how many people have secretly met the Dragon King, received great benefits, and formed deep friendships with him."

He paused, then lowered his voice and said, "Didn't you hear what Liu Dekuai said? None of the Yakshas from the Dragon Palace who followed Qianlong to see the Dragon King survived."

I reckon I'm like Li Zhong, I didn't even say a word before being killed by the Dragon King's glare.

"What does this have to do with the Dragon King not making a public appearance?" Xiahou Ying asked, puzzled.

Lu Wan's heart skipped a beat, and she asked in surprise, "Could it be that the Old Dragon King is worried that Grand Tutor Yu's demonic thoughts are parasitizing them, and that seeing them will cause him to suffer Grand Tutor Yu's curse?"

Liu Ji nodded slightly, "The Dragon King might really be thinking that way. Killing someone would save him from being cursed by Grand Tutor Yu, intimidate everyone, and give Qianlong, who was humiliated by the 'rumors,' an explanation. It's a win-win situation."

He then added, "But he's extremely ruthless and has a dark heart."

Once they entered the flat road, Xiahou Ying mounted his horse. He sat in front, Lu Wan squeezed in the middle, and Liu Ji sat on the horse's rump behind.

"Brother Ji, did you see Master Fuqiu when you left the Dragon Palace? He promised to help you, has he gone back on his word?"

Liu Ji said helplessly, "I tried my best to wink at him, hoping that he would use the technique of separating the two worlds to have a secret talk with me, just like before."

But he ignored me, and I don't know what that means.

However, the immortal kept his promise. Since he had said that I would help him if I performed well during my time travel.

They shouldn't go back on their word.

Lu Wan said with a strange expression, "Brother Ji, are you stupid? Only immortals don't value promises."

The immortals only boast of their virtue; in reality, they don't even care about their heavenly oaths, as everyone on earth knows.

“Master Fuqiu is a virtuous immortal, unlike those celestial masters of the Qin Dynasty,” Liu Ji said.

“Among the Celestial Masters who broke their oaths, Qiu Mingzi and Ye Jiutian were also great immortals. Moreover, Fuqiu Gong himself said that he cultivated the Heavenly Way and respected the Great Way, and was not so attached to the morality of humanity,” Lu Wan said.

Liu Ji shook his head and said, "Now I actually understand those treacherous Taoist masters a little better."

As Master Fuqiu said, immortals are not human, but immortals.

Immortals follow the path of immortality, while humans follow the path of humanity and respect the morality of humanity.

For immortals, destiny is of utmost importance. They also value human ethics and morality because, at this time, humanity is the dominant force in the universe.

If one day humanity ceases to be the dominant race in the world, and another race takes its place.

The other race has its own moral code.

Just like the different ethics and morals of the human race, the demon race, and the witch race.

At that time, the human ethics and morality of the human race were worthless in the eyes of the immortals; they only regarded actions that conformed to the morality of the 'protagonists of the new world' as righteous.

Even the heavens have changed their minds. Human ethics and morality remain the same, but the main characters in the universe have changed.

In the past, those who acted in accordance with human ethics and morality were rewarded with merit; now, however, human ethics and morality no longer meet the new protagonist's standards of good and evil. Continuing to do the same things will not only bring no merit, but will also be considered a grave sin by Heaven.

Lu Wan paused for a moment, then murmured, "Just thinking about that scene makes me feel chilled and terrified."

Liu Ji sighed, "Don't fantasize about scenarios that haven't happened yet. Just look at the current reputation and situation of the demon and witch races in Shenzhou."

They were merely following the old customs of their own race, and were therefore feared, rejected, and regarded as demons by us humans.

Once humanity loses its status as the protagonist of heaven and earth, the human ethics and morality that were once praised by the heavens and the gods will surely become worthless.

They are the same as the current demon and witch races.

The human race will be mocked and humiliated by the new protagonists of the world, and slandered as 'evil'.

Even the 'sages of humanity' who follow human ethics and morality can degenerate into 'demons and monsters' and 'heretical paths'.

They are not just making baseless accusations or deliberately slandering others.

According to their own race's morality and reasoning, our human race's behavior, which is praised as virtuous, is indeed very 'outlier'.

Those who are different are considered evil or demonic.

These words and this level of thinking were things Liu Ji would never have said or even imagined before.

Fuqiu Gong was very frank and openly showed the heroes of China the differences and connections between the Way of Immortals, the Way of Humanity, and the Great Way.

Liu Ji has grown so much; other heroes of the land are no less impressive.

Lu Wan hesitated and said, "Mortals cannot live forever; once they do, they become immortals. Once they enter the path of immortality, they pursue the Great Dao."

Once humanity ceases to be the mainstream of the Great Dao, the Immortal Dao abandons humanity and reveres the new 'mainstream Dao'.

Isn't this just being stubborn and blocking both ends?

To uphold humanity, our elite human race must possess strength and wisdom; to put it bluntly, they must cultivate immortality.

He cultivated immortality but no longer respected humanity; instead, he respected the Way of Heaven.

Liu Ji pondered and said, "I once heard the old Taoist Wuyazi say that the way of gods is the basis of the way of humans."

The Heavenly Court belongs to the realm of immortals and gods, and is therefore heavily reliant on the human realm, so it naturally has to uphold the human realm.

In addition, there are unconventional immortals like Grand Tutor Yu, who are not so devoted to the Way of Heaven.

"Our human race should not lack elites who uphold humanity."

Lu Wan glared and said, "So, Grand Tutor Yu is really a good person?"

Liu Ji said, "Whether it's good or bad depends on one's stance. She's currently protecting the tyrannical Qin Dynasty, not humanity, so she might not be considered an elite member of the human race."

And we now represent the Mandate of Heaven; she must be an utterly wicked demon.

—But if I ever had the chance to become a king or emperor, I would definitely erect a monument to her and write a biography, so that all my ministers would learn from Grand Tutor Yu's spirit. If all my ministers were like Zhao Gao, how could I live in peace?

However, Grand Tutor Yu is a bit too domineering. We can only learn from her spirit, not her domineering nature. A subject should be loyal, humble, and obedient, not more domineering than the monarch.

Well, Liu Ji's mind has always been very clear.

In Xiaoyu's previous life, Liu Bang became emperor and forgave many of his enemies who were deeply hated by him but were loyal to their lord.

For example, Kuai Che, and Ji Bu.

There was a man named Ding Gong, a minister of Xiang Yu, who secretly released Liu Bang, allowing Liu Bang to survive. Logically speaking, Ding Gong had saved Liu Bang's life, but Liu Bang used the excuse that "Ding Gong was disloyal for letting me leave" to have him executed in public.

Five days later, in Zhongyangli, outside the village.

"Father, I'm so sorry..."

Liu Ji knelt down with a thud and burst into tears, facing the direction of his hometown.

"Grandpa didn't die; he was just arrested by the constables," Tang Li sighed.

Liu Ji was still wailing, "But today is different from the past! If I get caught this time, I'm afraid I won't survive!"

"No, if the court wants to kill Taigong, they will behead him in public in Pei County as a warning to others."

But on the third day after Taigong was captured, he was taken away by a troop of scouts. It is said that he was taken to Xingyang. "Tang Li said.

"Bred to Xingyang?" Liu Ji was stunned. "Does that mean I'll be torn apart by five horses or sliced ​​into a thousand pieces in Xingyang, in front of the whole world? Father, you'll die such a terrible death!"

He had cried until his tears ran dry, and now he was crying in vain.

"They shouldn't be subjected to a thousand cuts, at least not now. There's a notice posted at the city gate that the imperial court is asking you to surrender yourself to the authorities, which will spare your family from death and reward you with an official title."

As Tang Li spoke, he took out a piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to Liu Ji.

When Liu Ji opened it, he found that it was indeed a notice signed by Prime Minister Li Si.

The above content is quite extensive, not only advising him to turn back from the wrong path and not be deceived by the "sinful immortal," but also briefly introducing the East China Sea Anti-Qin Alliance.

The Dragon King of the East Sea, Fuqiu Gong, and Danhua Shangdi of Xiaoyoudongtian directly named and publicly criticized them.

"This notice was posted in early July? We hadn't even started our time travel yet!" Liu Ji asked in surprise.

Tang Li said, "It was indeed posted on the eighth day of the seventh month. My grandfather was arrested by the magistrate of Pei on the seventh day of the seventh month. The proclamation to the people was issued on the ninth day of the seventh month."

The proclamation details your mistreatment of the hundreds of millions of people in this small world.

Liu Ji was shocked. "They even wrote down exactly what we did in the Lesser Thousand Worlds, in their proclamation to the people? But we had only just transmigrated back then."

"There are no detailed details, but the proclamation states that you traveled to the Lesser Thousand Worlds, possessed the bodies of the heroes there, wreaked havoc, and caused widespread suffering and death among the people."

Tang Li's expression turned strange. "Those quasi-Great Luo Immortals are too wicked. Using such evil arts to cultivate your experience in rebellion is against human ethics and morality!"

Let alone the common people's disgust and fear, even I felt my scalp tingle when I heard it.

“It wasn’t possession, and we didn’t harm millions of people,” Lu Wan quickly explained. “We are true reincarnations.”

Those smaller worlds are projections of the Central Plains world.

The Central Plains were experiencing a great calamity, and so were they.

Whether or not we travel through time, turmoil and great calamity will still occur.

—This isn't much different from what's said in the proclamation to the people! At least I can't tell the difference.

Tang Li muttered to himself, but said aloud, "Let's not talk about the proclamation to the people for now. The proclamation concerns all the rebel kings in China, let them worry about that. Let's just talk about Old Master Liu!"

He looked at Liu Ji and tentatively asked, "Brother Ji, what should we do now? If you insist on rebelling, I'm afraid Grandfather's life will be in danger."

Liu Ji asked, "Where is Lord Xiao? Is it convenient for him to come see me now?"

Tang Li shook his head and said, "Lord Xiao has been transferred away, and Cao Can has also left Pei County."

Even your retainer Han Xin was forcibly taken away by the Eastern Navy Legion.

In short, all those in Pei County who were close to you were reported by the Pei magistrate and then investigated by the Marquis of Hunhai.

Now, even your father-in-law, Master Lü, has taken his family and disappeared somewhere.

“How dare Pei Ling, an outsider, be so rebellious and crazy? Does he not want to live?” Lu Wan said angrily.

Tang Li sighed, "Pei Ling just wants to live, that's why he's frantically trying to kill Brother Ji."

Pei Ling and Brother Ji didn't get along well to begin with.

Previously, when Brother Ji fled to Mangdang Mountain, he had already captured his sister-in-law and great-grandfather.

Lu Gong and he were old friends, but even his plea for mercy was to no avail.

It was only after Lord Xiao sought out the elders and gentry of Pei County to jointly vouch for Brother Ji that the outsider, Pei, was forced to release his sister-in-law and grandfather under pressure.

Now that Brother Ji has become a wanted traitor by the Xingyang court, the magistrate of Pei County must take responsibility!

The imperial court not only sent a special envoy, but the Marquis of Hunhai of the Eastern Navy also mobilized 20,000 elite troops to Pei County.

They took down Pei Ling right then and there.

Only by going to extremes will the Marquis of Hunhai let him go, and only then will the imperial court continue to trust him.

In order to survive and keep his official position, that old dog betrayed everyone in Pei County and Fengyi who was connected with Brother Ji.

Even Fan Kuai has taken his family to Mangdang Mountain.

Liu Ji's expression was grim. "Where has Lord Xiao been transferred to?"

"Lord Xiao went to Pengcheng, probably to serve in the army of Marquis Hunhai. He had no choice; the Xiao family is a large family, and he dared not refuse."

Cao Shen wanted to run away, but Lord Xiao persuaded him to stay.

As the group was talking, they heard footsteps approaching from a distance.

Tang Li's expression changed, and he whispered, "Brother Ji, you can't go back to Zhongyangli, and you can't get close to Peixian either. Let's hurry and go to Mangdang Mountain!"

He had long ago gone to Mangdang Mountain with Liu Ji to become a bandit.

The main purpose of this trip down the mountain was to intercept Liu Ji halfway and inform him of the changes in Pei County.

"Who's here?" Liu Ji gripped the short sword at his waist.

Tang Li pressed down on his arm and said quickly, "The Marquis of Hunhai has returned to Pengcheng, but he left behind the Marquis of Kuaichuan, as well as ten generals and five thousand soldiers."

The Clippers commander reorganized the Pei County garrison, bringing the total number of personnel to 20,000.

The "Sea Dragon Army" of 3,000 men was stationed in Zhongyangli alone, while Fengyi City, less than 30 li away from Zhongyangli, had 10,000 men.

"The Clippers' leader and his ten generals are all top-tier military commanders skilled in warfare and formations."

(End of this chapter)