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

Chapter 999 The Emperor's Golden Face Was Scratched

A sudden, earth-shaking tremor struck, and the deities who were making connections in the underworld of Mount Tai cried out in panic, "What's happening? Why is the underworld of Mount Tai shaking? Is the earth dragon turning over? This is Mount Tai, the underworld!"

They were still able to stand up.

Inside the towering, ghostly building, resembling a fantasy cyberpunk world, ghosts, gods, and the dead all felt their legs go numb and lost their balance as the building swayed.

Many judges were flustered and fell to the ground, wailing and crying out.

Some unlucky individuals have even been thrown from towering skyscrapers.

"Earthquake! Earthquake! The Taishan Underworld is shaking! It's going to collapse! Everyone run!"

Some of the dead ghosts were shouting and yelling, and they even took advantage of the chaos to flee in all directions.

Only then did the shouts of the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak drift over from afar: "The Taishan Underworld, all the marshals and officials of all levels, mountain gods and land gods, all those who possess land rights, immediately activate your divine seals and stabilize the earth veins and mountain ranges where you are located."

The underworld of Mount Tai was shaking, and naturally, the human realm of Mount Tai was also affected.

However, the scale of the tremors was far less than that in the underworld.

"Ahhh, an earthquake! It really is an earthquake! Run! Oh no, the roof beams are going to collapse! Watch out, my head! Blood is flowing! Someone's dying!"

"That damned Magistrate He, who has spent his whole life lying and deceiving the people, has finally told the truth today. Don't push and shove, the corridor outside is full of people, if you push any further you will break down the door."

The devout men and women who had previously ignored the advice of the constables and disregarded the imperial notices at the temple gate were now terrified and rushed out of the hall, crowding together in a jumble.

One person was exclaiming in surprise, another was cursing, and there were also cries and howls of pain.

The scene was not only chaotic, but also exuded a sense of despair, as if the end of the world had arrived.

Some honest people listened to the bailiffs and left the construction area early, standing in the wide square or by the roadside.

The ground shook, and they were a little unsteady on their feet. While feeling flustered, they were also extremely relieved.

"Hehe, these ignorant country bumpkins! They don't even know that the imperial court has an Imperial Observatory, and they don't know what the Imperial Observatory does, do they?"

As for other matters, court officials might be talking nonsense.

But natural disaster warnings are a matter of great importance to people's livelihoods; when has the imperial court ever spoken nonsense?

A middle-aged man in a brocade robe, though he fell to the ground with a thud, had a smile on his face.

He had been to Xianyang and seen the world.

Knowing that the previous notices were only posted by Magistrate He, the content of the notices had nothing to do with him.

That was an order directly from the Celestial Master of Xianyang!
The Celestial Master of Xianyang is an immortal; how could he possibly make a mistake?
“But this is Mount Tai, specifically the Dai Temple at the foot of Mount Tai!” A young master from the Tian family stood beside him.

He was a descendant of the royal family of the former Qi state, and he was worldly-wise and knowledgeable about the inside story.

"If it's going to rain, it's going to rain; if a mother wants to remarry, it's going to rain. If the earth dragon of Mount Tai turns over, can the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak hold it back?"

The wealthy man in brocade robes, holding his children who had come to offer incense, sat calmly on the ground, his face showing no sign of panic.

"The Yellow River still has the River God, so it will still flood as usual."

Of course, I'm not saying that the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak is useless.

Look, even the Imperial Observatory has come to notify us, which means it's at least a yellow-level earthquake. But when the earth's veins reached Mount Tai, they only caused the ground to tremble slightly, making us unsteady on our feet. There was no collapse of the mountain or cracking of the earth.

What's the reason?
This is, after all, Mount Tai, the pillar of heaven.

Even a great deity like the Eastern Peak Emperor, unable to contain the power of the earth's veins, would not allow the people of Mount Tai to suffer such heavy casualties.

"That being said, today's earthquake is indeed unusual." A martial arts immortal stood up and looked around. He saw that several buildings in the distant Dai Temple had collapsed to varying degrees.

“In the past, there were very few earthquakes in the Taishan area, especially in the Dai Temple, which was almost unaffected by earthquakes.”

It's important to know that many of the main halls inside have existed for hundreds of thousands of years.

Or rather, the magnificent Dai Temple of today was gradually expanded over the past hundreds of thousands of years.

Everything was fine before, but now it's the end of the year, and many people come to worship the gods. Could it be that the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak failed to detect the earthquake?

Young Master Tian exclaimed, "How is this possible? The Astronomical Observatory Master, who is thousands of miles away, predicted the earthquake that occurred in Mount Tai. How could the Lord of Mount Tai be completely unaware of it?"
In any case, the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak could not possibly be inferior to the Celestial Master of the Imperial Observatory.

The middle-aged man's expression shifted, as if he wanted to say something but held back.

Judging from his constantly contorted expression, he must be enduring a lot of pain.

The immortal martial artist was not as shrewd as the wealthy man. He immediately blurted out what he was thinking: "If the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak had foreseen this, would he have allowed his own temple to collapse and his own believers to be crushed to death by bricks in his own temple?"

The middle-aged man nodded repeatedly.

Someone spoke for him, and he finally got to say what was on his mind. He felt much better, and his contorted face calmed down.

Young Master Tian also agreed with what the Immortal Warrior said.

In fact, many people around were whispering and saying the same thing.

But he still refused to believe it, "Could it be that the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak is really inferior to the Celestial Master of the Imperial Observatory? How could that be?"

"Perhaps everyone has their own expertise; the Emperor is not good at detecting disasters."

Even the martial artist himself didn't believe these words when they were spoken.

The divine duties of the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak already encompassed ensuring favorable weather and relieving disasters.

Not to mention that earthquakes are geological disasters.

Is it not the duty of the Lord of Mount Tai to control the land of Mount Tai?

Just as the human-immortal martial artist was struggling with his decision, "Whoosh whoosh whoosh~~"

Several figures darted out of the Dai Temple.

They were all martial artists, capable of scaling walls and leaping over crowded streets, bypassing the main gate and jumping over the wall to escape.

In the past, they would never have dared to be so reckless.

This is the sacred and majestic Dai Temple, which is not to be desecrated in the slightest!
They don't even mention that the true gods enshrined in the temple will constantly manifest their power.

The abbot of the temple was himself a Taoist who had achieved mastery of Qi cultivation.

Even the immortal martial artists had to be obedient, respectful, and polite in front of that group of old Taoist priests.

But now that the temple is starting to collapse and the abbot is shouting in panic, what are they still worried about?
"Brother Wen, Brother Haishen, over here!" The Human Immortal Martial Artist recognized several familiar faces and quickly waved and called out.

"Ah, Brother Shan, you've come to the Yue Temple to worship the gods too. I didn't see you before."

"It's the end of the year, time to pray to the gods for blessings," the human immortal martial artist said casually, then asked, "What's the situation inside? The earthquake didn't seem too serious, so why have several main halls collapsed?"

“I feel the earthquake struck directly beneath the main hall of the Dai Temple, and the closer you get to the main hall, the stronger the tremors,” Brother Wen said.

The sea cucumber said, "Indeed, I saw it with my own eyes. The statue of the Eastern Peak Emperor was knocked askew by a beam, and a large patch of the golden skin on his face was scratched off. The Emperor has lost face!"

"Shh, this is the Dai Temple. The Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak is here. Don't talk nonsense!" The middle-aged man was terrified and dared not listen.

“I’m not lying, it’s true, the idol really did have its face painted.”

The sea cucumber spat out a mouthful of saliva, "I'm not afraid of the Eastern Peak Emperor hearing this!"
I even wanted to ask him face to face, "Even the yamen runners know that Mount Tai is about to be overturned by a dragon, and they even posted notices at the city gate more than an hour in advance. How come the Lord of Mount Tai is so clueless?" "You lunatic, how dare you blaspheme the Great Emperor in front of the Dai Temple? Do you really want to go to the underworld to see the Great Emperor?" The rich man pulled his wife and children away from these lunatics.

"Tch, you ignorant old bastard! The Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak can't even protect his own statue, what's the use of worshipping him? — Oh crap, the gods are out! Run!"

The sea cucumber was halfway through its story when it suddenly caught a glimpse of golden light flying out from the temple ahead.

Thinking of his outrageous words, he shuddered in fear and turned to run down the mountain.

Brother Shan hesitated for only a moment before not following immediately, and then he saw that the golden light had indeed transformed into a series of deities.

However, the gods did not pursue those who blasphemed; instead, they used their divine powers to clear away debris and rescue injured believers.

In fact, the earth's energy is mainly released in the underworld of Mount Tai. The earthquake intensity around Mount Tai is not great, and the duration is not long.

As stated in the notice at the city gate, the scale was small and the intensity was low; the people had nothing to worry about. Simply leaving the buildings would ensure no injury.

At most, some of the old houses will collapse.

Just fifteen minutes later, the people in the county town forgot about the slight tremor and continued their daily lives.

Even the Dai Temple returned to normal after half an hour.

The abbot even encouraged the devout men and women to stay, continue listening to the sutras, and continue offering incense and prayers.

Indeed, there are guests who come from afar and cannot go home quickly, so they can only stay in the temple with a belly full of doubts, worries, complaints and other negative emotions.

The most affected are the underworld of Mount Tai.

However, the Taishan Underworld is quite large, like an aircraft carrier encountering a Category 8 typhoon. The ship shakes violently, but the damage to the ship itself from the wind and waves is very minor.

The greater impact is on the psychological level.

"Your Majesty, the Taishan Underworld has returned to normal. Several ghost messengers were injured in a fall, and dozens of wandering souls have escaped. The officials have already gone to search for and capture them."

The area around Mount Tai is also fine.

The underworld trembled violently, but the ground only shook slightly. More than five miles away from Mount Tai, there was little to no tremor.

Only Dai Temple

Marshal Wen looked up and cautiously glanced at the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak.

Huang Feihu's face was as cold as frost, and his lips were tightly pressed together.

"Dai Temple is located in the epicenter. Several dilapidated halls collapsed, a scholar with shallow fortune was crushed to death, and more than a hundred people were injured. The impact is very bad." Marshal Wen's voice was so low that it was like a mosquito's buzz.

"That damned Yu Fengxian! It must be her. She deliberately leaked the earth's vein power into Mount Tai!" Marshal Ironhead roared angrily.

Marshal Meng looked at the Emperor with a puzzled expression and asked, "Your Majesty received Yu Fengxian's golden book ahead of time, so why are you still in such a sorry state?"

Marshal Kang gently touched his arm and gestured with his eyes, signaling him not to ask any more questions.

The bodyguards and chief judge around him were puzzled, but they could see that Huang Feihu's face was ugly.

They all pricked up their ears but lowered their heads.

Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Marshal Wen took the initiative to smooth things over, saying, "Today's earthquake was somewhat strange and should have nothing to do with Yu Fengxian. She doesn't have that ability."

"It must be related to Yu Fengxian. You Gongcao Shen saw that barbarian Sha Manzi," Tie Tou exclaimed.

Marshal Wen glared at him.

Huang Feihu slowly spoke, asking, "Who saw her, when and where did they see her, and what was she doing?"

Tie Tou said, "Tian Guixin saw it. Should we call him over?"

Huang Feihu nodded slightly.

A moment later, Gongcao Tian Guixin arrived at the Divine Realm Hall, knelt on the ground, lowered his head, and whispered, "I did not see Yu Fengxian at 'this time'."

When I was clearing the collapsed temple and rescuing the believers trapped inside, I saw the scene from 25 minutes earlier.

Yu Fengxian floated in mid-air outside the Dai Temple, more than thirty feet above the ground.

His eyes were fixed on the direction of the main hall of Dai Temple, and he was laughing very smugly and heartily, like a weasel that had stolen a chicken.

However, she seemed to have noticed Chen's spying.

I didn't see her until half an hour later, but she glanced in my direction and then immediately disappeared.

Huang Feihu's face was ashen, his right hand was clenched into a fist, and veins were throbbing on his forehead.

Iron-Headed Marshal was still shouting, "Did you hear that? Yu Fengxian is still laughing triumphantly."

She stood outside the Dai Temple, looking at the Great Emperor's Temple and laughing wildly. Who was she mocking?
"I would never believe she didn't do it on purpose."

"The earthquake hadn't happened two quarters of an hour ago, had it?" Marshal Meng asked doubtfully.

"That's why I said she did it on purpose! She guided the flow of the earth's energy, knowing that the chaotic evil would be released near Mount Tai and the Dai Temple," Tie Tou analyzed.

"Even His Majesty didn't know, how could she have known in advance?" Marshal Meng said.

Huang Feihu finally couldn't hold back and shouted, "It's not that I didn't notice the abnormality, it's just that this is the first time I've encountered such a strange way of transmitting earth veins, and I was caught off guard."

If I had been more cautious and summoned the mountain gods and local deities beforehand to stabilize the 'base' of Mount Tai, the Dai Temple would have at most swayed a few times.

"How hateful!" He clenched his fist tightly and slammed it on the table. "I was careless and underestimated her!"
Her control over the power of the Celestial Master rested entirely on her mind, and her skills were truly divine.

Previously, the Golden Heavenly King was unable to detect the direction of the earth's vein power.

Now, I too have made a careless mistake.

It is not that our divine power is inferior to hers.

We hold the power over one mountain, but she holds the power over the entire land.

In terms of the depth of her authority, she is far inferior to us; in terms of its breadth, we are not as powerful as she is.

Seeing that the Emperor was speaking freely, Marshal Wen no longer held back and immediately asked the question that had been bothering him: "If the earth's power is to be released from Mount Tai, it must first flow into the earth's veins and then erupt."

This is a long process.

Why did the outbreak happen so suddenly?

The Great Emperor had sensed the earth's veins were unusually weak just moments before, but the next moment they erupted with tremendous force, catching even the mountain gods and local deities off guard.

Huang Feihu's square face shifted between light and shadow. After a long while, he finally said in a hoarse voice, "She must have created a new Celestial Master technique. You... send the Talisman Envoy to find the Golden Heavenly King. Mount Hua is close to Xianyang; have him send someone to find out more."

Yu Fengxian is ruthless and decisive in her actions. If she's laughing triumphantly today, she'll definitely want to continue laughing tomorrow.

The vast land of Kyushu stretches for tens of thousands of miles, where countless chaotic and malevolent forces await their release.

If that scoundrel diverts all the earth's energy to Mount Tai, my Mount Tai underworld will never have peace!

We must first understand her techniques before we can find a way to control them.

(End of this chapter)