In the beginning, he was ranked alongside An Shigeng as a spoiled brat.

Chapter 595 National Title: Great Qin; Imperial Title: Dragon Emperor

At this grand ceremony, the Zhang family was merely a guest family member.

Therefore, Zhang Yuan, along with the young Zhang Sheng, sat in the guest elder seats with Master Ziyang, and the Zhang family was ranked first!

It's not just the Zhang family's strength and status that's remarkable; today, the Zhang family has truly stolen the spotlight.

The Feast of Universal Harmony, the Giant Fish of the Deep Sea, the Jadeite Mine Presented by Bian He...

Zhang Yuan's massive physique, especially when seated at the head of the table, exuded an aura of supreme authority.

Even the Dragon Tiger Mountain, the Yin-Yang School, the Taoist Heavenly Sect, and the Buddhist sect all felt no remorse when they looked at Zhang Yuan, the leader of the sect.

This was also a deliberate arrangement by Qin Shi Huang.

After all, no sect would be willing to submit to the other if it were in the top position.

The Zhang family not only carries significant weight but also maintains good relations with numerous sects, meaning that, on the surface, all the major sects have to give the Zhang family some face.

"Junior Duan Yu greets Uncle!"

As an envoy of Dali, Duan Yu had naturally met Zhang Yuan and was also impressed by Zhang Yuan's physique.

Ten years have passed, and Zhang Yuan now weighs more than twice as much as before.

"So it was Prince Duan! It's been almost ten years!"

"Indeed, Uncle is still as dashing as ever, even more so than before."

The Duan family of Dali has always been a partner of the Zhang family.

The cooperation between the Zhang family and the Duan family of the "480s" has never ceased over the years, even amidst the chaos of war on the Kyushu continent.

Resources such as raw stones, mushrooms, and spices were transported to Ghost Street by sea and then dispersed; gold was no exception.

Therefore, although Dali was a small country in the southwest, its national strength was constantly increasing.

“Amitabha, this humble monk Jinlun greets Benefactor Zhang.”

"So it is Your Majesty, I pay my respects!"

Looking at the Golden Wheel Dharma King, the newly appointed Dharma King of Tibet, who had reached the pinnacle of enlightenment.

Back then, when Zhang Xiaoshan massacred the five major esoteric Buddhist holy sites of Tibet, the Golden Wheel Dharma King was in seclusion practicing the "Dragon Elephant Prajna Gong" and thus escaped the calamity.

It is impossible to be without hatred.

But the Golden Wheel Monk was a highly accomplished master of Tantric Buddhism, and he knew that he couldn't afford to offend the Zhang family now!

Just the Zen Master Juexin beside Zhang Yuan, and the Mad Lion Iron Warrior guarding the congratulatory gifts outside, were both peerless masters, and they possessed the kind of attribute suppression that could crush him with one hand.

He now possesses the power of nine dragons and nine elephants, thanks to the Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique.

However, in terms of power, the Demon-Subduing Golden Body of the Wedding Dress Divine Skill is no weaker than his, and in terms of the domineering nature of true qi, it is far superior to his. In addition, the various mysteries of the Wedding Dress Divine Skill completely suppress his current Nine-fold Dragon Elephant Skill.

Even if he reaches the tenth level, he can only contend with the two at most, and is still far from being their match.

Moreover, the Zhang family also has several Grandmaster-level combatants.

···

"His Majesty is here!"

Until Qin Shi Huang appeared, Zhang Yuan remained the center of attention.

All the powerful families, foreign delegations, and imperial nobles were all vying for the Zhang family's attention.

Boom! Boom! Boom...

The twelve-gun salute "cannons" purchased from the Zhang family, while outwardly resembling large cannons, were actually only capable of firing fireworks.

Especially during the Imperial Ceremony, the thunderous roars and the fireworks exploding in the sky caught everyone's attention.

This symbolizes the imperial martial arts!

At the same time, Qin Shi Huang looked at the huge fish skeleton below, and even after hearing that the fish skeleton was twenty-three zhang long, he was still extremely shocked.

At Qin Shi Huang Zheng's feet stood a bronze cauldron, ten feet tall, used for sacrificial offerings to the six domestic animals!

"The Zhang family is very kind!"

Qin Shi Huang nodded and looked at the sacrificial offerings below: livestock, fine wine, jade discs...

According to the arrangements made by the Yin-Yang School and Zhang Xiaoshan, this was not just a simple sacrifice to heaven, but a real worship of heaven and earth to condense dragon energy.

Indeed, all of this was secretly planned by Zhang Xiaoshan and Donghuang Taiyi.

Although Zhang Xiaoshan was not attending the grand banquet, it was impossible that he was merely standing by and watching. Rather, he was plotting something with Ying Zheng and Donghuang Taiyi.

Dragon Ball!

There are eight dragon balls in the world. Qin Shi Huang knew that Zhang Xiaoshan had two and the Golden-Faced Buddha had three.

Aside from the other three, one is in the Imperial Treasury, and the whereabouts of the other two are unknown. After all, if you obtain the Dragon Balls but don't have the strength to show them, it would be tantamount to courting death.

However, Qin Huangzheng was unable to use the Dragon Pearl after obtaining it, so he sought advice from Zhang Xiaoshan.

Although Zhang Xiaoshan coveted the Dragon Pearl, he couldn't possibly steal it directly from Ying Zheng and become an enemy of the empire.

Now is not the right time, and besides, Zhang Xiaoshan really doesn't care about the original Dragon Balls right now. So he came up with a way to evolve the Dragon Balls—

Dragon spirit!

Now that the existence of dragon energy has been confirmed, and Qin Shi Huang is not a person of 'destiny', the only way is to refine the dragon pearl into a real 'dragon pearl', similar to the method of refining dragon veins.

Immediately, Qin Shi Huang summoned Donghuang Taiyi to confirm the possibility.

Upon hearing Zhang Xiaoshan's method, Donghuang Taiyi not only did not refuse, but also strongly encouraged it, thus creating a situation of cooperation among the three parties.

"In ancient times, Bian He presented a piece of jade to the emperor. I would also like to see what kind of peerless jade is hidden in the raw stone mine."

Zhao Gao!

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Zhao Gao stepped forward and looked at Tie Zhan with curiosity. He believed that Zhang Xiaoshan would definitely have left a backup plan.

Moreover, if it were a direct confrontation, the Mad Lion Iron Battle's skill would be far more domineering than his.

"Commander Tie, how should this raw ore be broken down? Should it be shattered directly, or...?"

"Use diamond wire to cut it directly in half from the middle!"

Zhao Gao was naturally familiar with the ten-foot-long diamond thread, so he nodded.

The two men channeled their inner power into the diamond thread, allowing them to directly separate even the raw ore, which was made of refined steel.

"First, divide it in half!"

One person holds one end, pours in their energy, and slides it across!

The smooth, silky texture was so effortless that, if one didn't know the two individuals' backgrounds, one might mistake the raw stone before them for a clay imitation.

Then, the two separated the raw stone, and a bright green mirror surface appeared before everyone's eyes.

Those who know about jade gambling can hardly believe their eyes when they see the cross-section in front of them.

This huge piece of raw jadeite, apart from the surface layer of stone, contained a complete, enormous piece of jadeite inside, without any visible flaws or gaps.

"A huge surge... Ah!"

"Shut up, you little brat!"

Seeing the boy being scolded by his grandfather, everyone understood that in this solemn and grand occasion, if the boy made a fuss, even ten heads wouldn't be enough to cut him off.

However, Qin Shi Huang merely glanced at it and said calmly:

"General Li, there's no need to blame the young general."

Even I, the Emperor, know that this emerald green cross-section is a top-quality jadeite. The young general is right; it's just a matter of significant price increase!

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement; it was indeed something worth celebrating.

"continue!"

continue?

Upon hearing this, Zhao Gao looked at the emerald green cross-section before him. This was already a significant increase; he hadn't expected the Iron Battle formation to continue...

However, since Qin Shi Huang did not stop him, he naturally did not try to dissuade him either.

To everyone's astonishment, just like a chef dissecting tuna, in a short time a huge block of raw ore was broken down into dozens of translucent green jadeite stones.

These jadeite rough stones are at least of the icy spring green variety, and the closer to the center, the better the texture and the greener the color, reaching the level of the imperial green variety of the glass type.

In the very center is a piece of imperial green jadeite, about the size of a palm and a large bowl!

"continue!"

"His Majesty?"

This time, Zhao Gao did not take action, but instead looked at Qin Shi Huang.

Looking at that bowl-sized piece of imperial green jadeite, it's clear that this is the highest grade of jadeite, comparable to mutton fat jade from Hetian.

Wouldn't it be a waste to dismember it like this!

"continue!"

Qin Shi Huang spoke without any expression, and Zhao Gao dared not be negligent.

At this moment, everyone stared expectantly, wondering what kind of peerless treasure was hidden inside this last piece of jade.

After all, if the Zhang family wanted to reach the level of Bian He offering jade, even ordinary dragon stone wouldn't be enough.

After some manipulation, only a piece of jade the size of an egg remained!

Looking at the jade in front of me, its texture has reached the legendary Dragon Stone variety, and it contains a faint sense of vibrant green. It feels cool to the touch.

"His Majesty!"

Zhao Gao quickly presented the jade to Qin Shi Huang Zheng.

Looking at the jade dzi bead before him, Qin Huangzheng nodded in satisfaction and chuckled softly:

"As expected, Young Master Zhang has a discerning eye and knows that such a rare jade is hidden in the raw stone mine."

He then looked at the jadeite rough stones, and then at Fusu and the others, saying:

"These jade stones are leftover materials, but they are still quite valuable. Let each of you take one."

"Thank you, Father!"

Upon hearing Qin Shi Huang's instructions, the princes were overjoyed.

Even Fusu was captivated by that palm-sized piece of imperial green jadeite.

Compared to ordinary imperial green jadeite of the glass type, the raw stone nurtured by the spiritual energy of dzi beads is more translucent and verdant than ordinary imperial green jadeite!

Hu Hai selected a few large pieces of scrap material from the middle, and then the other princes began to choose.

As imperial princes, they were not favored by Qin Shi Huang like Fusu and Huhai. Their living expenses were only average, even though they could be described as extravagant compared to ordinary people.

Therefore, seeing the remaining material of this peerless jade, which is also top-grade jadeite, one could easily spend more than a thousand gold coins.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty, on the arrival of the precious jade!"

"Everyone is safe!"

Faced with everyone's congratulations, Qin Shi Huang was not very happy; it was just another Suihou pearl.

It's just icing on the cake on this day of the Imperial Ceremony!

"The empire continues the fortunes of the previous dynasty and maintains the continuity of the Later Zhou dynasty."

I, Ying Zheng, inherited the wishes of my ancestors and unified the three great empires of Song, Tang, and Ming, bringing an end to a chaotic world that had been divided for a thousand years... My achievements surpass those of the Five Emperors and my virtue is comparable to that of the Three Sovereigns.

Now, the Later Zhou dynasty has changed its name to 'Qin,' and I, the ruler, have been given the title 'Dragon,' thus laying the foundation for an empire that will last for ten thousand generations!

Chapter 596 Sacrificing to Heaven and Earth, Evolution of the Dragon Pearl

Offering sacrifice to Heaven!

Officials on one side of Qin Shi Huang's throne recited prayers to Heaven, while a group of mysteriously dressed shamans, holding magical implements and performing the Yu Step, danced around the Nine Provinces Cauldron.

This elaborate and ancient sacrificial ceremony continues the tradition of ancient tribal shamans worshipping the heavens, and the masters invited are also from the Yin-Yang school, who worship the heavens according to the shamanistic methods recorded in the classics.