If you die, I will be able to inherit your cultivation.

Zhou Ming sat cross-legged inside the cave in the western mountains and began to continue studying the array jade slip left by Liu Jun.

The night wind howled outside the cave, and the cave was pitch black inside. His mind was completely absorbed in those intricate and profound array patterns.

Meanwhile, the events in Fengdu City began to unfold at an astonishing speed during the very night Zhou Ming was in seclusion, meditating and comprehending.

The messages carried by eagles spread out from Fengdu City, crossing the Gobi Desert and hills of Liangzhou, the plains and mountains of Youzhou, and the border to the heartland of Dayuan and Dayan.

Within a thousand miles of Liangzhou, spies from various factions received secret reports almost simultaneously.

The contents of the secret report were brief but explosive.

An immortal has appeared in the world and has chosen three disciples to be granted immortality.

He who wins the world wins first place, he who is bravest in the army wins second place, and he who is unparalleled in wisdom and strategy wins third place.

Three paths, three tickets to immortality—these were laid out clearly before the entire world.

Wherever the news spread, various forces reacted differently, but without exception, no one could remain silent any longer.

The first to stir were the warlords and outlaws who lived on the front lines of the Three Kingdoms.

In western Liangzhou, the bandits entrenched at Qishan Pass mustered all their troops that very night.

Taking advantage of the moonlight, they launched a surprise attack on two neighboring county towns, expanding their territory eastward by a full hundred miles overnight.

Their reasoning was simple and brutal: to conquer the world, they first had to eliminate their rivals.

The same scene was playing out simultaneously in dozens of counties surrounding Fengdu City.

Large and small forces were like spinning tops being whipped by the same lash, all shifting from a state of dormancy to a frenzied attack.

The fierce generals vied to volunteer for battle, eager to make a name for themselves as the bravest warriors in the army.

Meanwhile, strategists secretly joined the various feudal lords' courts, offering advice and strategies in an attempt to outwit their rivals and seize the third ticket to immortality.

Within Youzhou, the news also reached Yongning City at lightning speed.

Su Mingyue sat in the study of Haitang Garden, holding the secret report that Qiuju had just taken from Xinying's leg in her hand, and read it word by word.

She remained silent for a long time, placed the secret report on the table, picked up her teacup, and took a sip.

A deep, dark current surged in her eyes.

That's ambition, that's discontent.

It was the oppressive feeling of having fought bravely and bloodily for a year, only to have all the plans disrupted by a group of Blood Refining Realm warriors who crawled out of the cage and his father who had come back from the dead.

Now, the immortals have promised that whoever unifies the world will gain immortality.

This added the most fatal temptation to her path to becoming emperor.

She didn't need anyone to tell her how dangerous the temptation was; she just needed to know that she absolutely couldn't let anyone else take this opportunity away from her.

At the same time, Su Yongning also received the same secret report in the northern border army camp.

The old marquis's reaction was more direct than his daughter's.

He slammed the secret report on the table, stood up abruptly, and immediately mustered a troop of personal guards, riding straight towards Yongning City.

However, to Su Mingyue's surprise, less than three hours had passed since she put down the secret report from Fengdu City.

Another piece of news struck Yongning City like a thunderbolt, catching her completely off guard.

The reservoir in the ravine west of Yongning City suddenly collapsed last night.

The reservoir was drained completely overnight, exposing the bottom, which had been submerged, to the summer sun.

Villagers living nearby mustered their courage and went down to the bottom of the reservoir after daybreak, hoping to see if there were any fish that had been washed down by the current that they could collect.

What they saw was not a fish, but a huge rock.

The boulder was perfectly round and weighed tens of thousands of kilograms. It stood firmly in the silt in the center of the reservoir, as if it had been thrown down from the sky by an unseen giant hand.

Eight large characters are carved on the stone surface, each character several inches deep, with strokes as sharp as iron hooks.

"The sun and moon shine brightly in the sky, and the earth is in harmony with virtue."

Su Mingyue put down the secret report, and a moment of absentmindedness appeared on her usually calm and composed face.

The sun and moon shine brightly in the sky.

Bright.

Kun Yuan He De.

Kun represents the earth, the mother, and the virtue of gentleness and compliance.

Harmony and virtue are the interaction between heaven and humanity, and virtue matching heaven and earth.

It goes without saying who these eight characters refer to.

First, a divine phoenix appeared in the world, descending from the sky on the night she returned to the city to be welcomed.

Now, another giant rock has emerged from the water, having broken through the dam the night before she received the message from the immortal.

Two hints, two divine interventions, all point to the same person.

Is fate on my side?

The thought popped into her head almost uncontrollably.

But she immediately shook her head, suppressing the thought.

She already knew that Zhou Ming was behind the previous appearance of the Divine Phoenix, so what about this time?

Could it be that guy's doing too?

But upon calm reflection, this is almost impossible.

Zhou Ming went to the Endless Forest half a year ago and has not returned since; there has been no news of him.

Furthermore, that was a boulder weighing tens of thousands of kilograms, its volume comparable to a small mountain.

Even if you pick out the ten or so strongest warriors from the Blood Refining Realm.

Don't even think about moving this stone from somewhere else intact, let alone silently stuffing it into the very center of the reservoir.

Moving such a huge rock would leave tracks, logs, and rope marks along the way, requiring at least dozens of people to work together, and it would be impossible to do so without alerting anyone.

Given her control over Yongning City, she believed that no one could escape her spies.

There is no other explanation but divine intervention or a miracle.

Besides, the immortals have already come out to take on disciples, so it's not unacceptable for a miracle to occur.

While Su Mingyue was pondering repeatedly in the Begonia Garden, the area around the dam had already been completely surrounded by people.

The first to arrive were the villagers at the bottom of the ravine, followed by government officials and spies from the city who had come on horseback after hearing the news.

Then came more and more well-meaning people, gathering in ever-growing groups.

People stood on the edge of the dried-up reservoir bottom, looking up at the massive boulder weighing tens of thousands of kilograms that stood in the very center of the silt.

Looking at the eight sharp, knife-carved characters on the stone surface.

At first, there was silence, hesitation when exchanging glances, and a cautiousness that knew the answer but dared not speak it aloud.

Until someone in the crowd said something very softly and cautiously.

"Young Marshal."

These two words were like a spark that had fallen into a haystack.

"When the sun and moon are high in the sky, isn't that the character 'bright'?"

"The sun and moon shine brightly in the sky, Su Mingyue?"

"Kun Yuan He De, Kun represents the earth, the mother, and the virtue of gentleness and compliance. He De means the interaction between heaven and humanity, and virtue matching heaven and earth. Isn't that what it means..."

Someone gasped, swallowing the rest of their sentence.

Since ancient times, we have only heard of male emperors ascending the throne, and never of a woman becoming emperor. Is this really the will of Heaven?

The onlookers looked at each other in dismay, some rubbing their eyes to try and see if there were any traces of someone chiseling the words on the stone.

Some people pinched their thighs, wondering if they were still dreaming.

The news was so explosive that everyone present felt their brains couldn't keep up.