Swallowing the Stars: The System Bound the Wrong Person at the Start

Inside the study of the Luoyang mansion.

Time flies, and more than a year has passed in the blink of an eye. Since the day he met Wu Zetian, Chen Yang bought a quiet mansion in Luoyang City and waited patiently for the birth of his clone.

During this year, Wu Zetian's extraordinary aging caused a great uproar in the Tang Dynasty. Faced with the shock of her former officials and descendants, she decisively announced that she had been blessed by the god Pangu and had been able to regain her youth, and ordered the spread of the Pangu belief throughout the country.

Chen Yang occasionally used his soul power to sense Wu Zetian's every move. Wu Zetian knew that her current identity would eventually "die," and that she would be reborn as the "Queen Mother of the West," the mistress of Yaochi in Xikunlun. Therefore, Wu Zetian strictly adhered to Pangu's decree, never altering the original course of history, but secretly observing those "seeds" with outstanding wills—her daughter Princess Taiping, her maid Shangguan Wan'er, and the famous minister Di Renjie.

Chen Yang was always very satisfied with Wu Zetian's forbearance and scheming. Wu Zetian's willpower was absolutely top-notch.

During that year, Chen Yang was not idle either. He had He Xi imitate the virtual universe and create a virtual world called "Virtual God Realm".

Under the deduction of the "Heavenly Book," the ultimate treasure and computer of the galaxy cluster, the Virtual God Realm is more realistic than the virtual universe, perfectly simulating even the stress response and psychological impact of facing death. The current Virtual God Realm is a one-to-one replica of Earth's landscape, except that it is not spherical, but a vast continent. In addition to Earth's landscape, Chen Yang also added many fantastical places: the Shushan Islands floating in mid-air, the Kunlun Mountains enlarged and integrated into Qionghua Mountain, and the Penglai Wonderland deep in the sea, among other mythical paradises.

This continent was named "Shenzhou" by Chen Yang.

In addition, Chen Yang erected three tall towers in the Penglai Wonderland.

The first is the Will Tower, which uses the "Heavenly Book" to simulate the oppression and pain of will, specifically designed to temper one's will. Currently, it has six levels, ranging from planetary level to immortal level. The Venerable level, which is above the immortal level, cannot be constructed due to insufficient data.

The second is the Tower of Reincarnation, a real illusory world. Those who enter will have their memories blocked by the "Heavenly Book" and will experience reincarnation after reincarnation in the illusion. After the reincarnation ends, the memories will be blurred, and only the insights gained will remain.

The third is the Trial Tower, a complete replica of the killing field in the virtual universe, where opponents can be set at will. However, due to a lack of data, it can currently only simulate the entry-level of the ten elements of law, which is Chen Yang's current level of law comprehension.

……

Race: Pangu Clan (Origin)

Age: 2 (under two years old)

Sex: Male

Height: 200cm

Realm: Ninth level of the Eternal Star (Martial Artist, Spiritual Master)

Pangu - Avatar: Abandoned (Title: Heavenly Emperor)

Race: Pangu Clan (Origin)

Age: 1 (less than one month old)

Sex: Male

Height: 180

Realm: Planetary Level 1 (Martial Artist, Spiritual Master)

Pangu - Clone: ​​Huang (Title: Human Emperor)

Race: Pangu Clan (Origin)

Age: 1 (less than one month old)

Sex: Male

Height: 180

Realm: Planetary Level 1 (Martial Artist, Spiritual Master)

[General Data of the Main Body]

法则：金3%、木3%、水3%、火5.8%、土3%、风3%、雷3%、光3%、时1.2%、空2.3%

Power multiplier: 100

Body amplitude: 1

Mind power amplitude: 100

Soul Amplitude: 1

Treasures: Divinity (Supreme Treasure), Heavenly Book (Supreme Treasure), Soul Bead (Special Supreme Treasure), Fiery Demon Blade - Ten Thousand Blades (Tier 5, Upgradeable), Emperor's Halberd (Tier 5 Battle Halberd), Xuanyuan Sword (Tier 5 Longsword), Sky Boat (E9-class Spaceship)

Secret Techniques: Thirteen Fiery Demons (Immortal Top-Tier Attack Secret Technique), Skywalking (Immortal Top-Tier Movement Secret Technique), Demon Seed of the Dao Heart (Venerable Top-Tier Soul Secret Technique)

Pangu Clan Member: He Xi (Title: Grand Elder of the Pangu Clan)

Race: Pangu Clan (Angel Branch)

Gender: Female

Height: 178

Realm: Level 9 of the Eternal Star (Martial Artist, Mentalist, Mechanic)

Treasures: Royal Mandate (Tier 5 Weapon), Star Mandate (Tier 5 Psychic Weapon), Celestial Base (E9-class Warship)

Secret Techniques: Destiny (Immortal Top-Tier Attack Secret Technique), Starfall (Immortal Top-Tier Attack Secret Technique), Great Light Divine Mantra (Venerable Ordinary Soul Secret Technique)

Power multiplier: 100

Body amplitude: 1

Mind power amplitude: 100

Soul Amplitude: 1

Divine Source Currency

Jade: 0

Gold: 3451

Silver: 25671827

Copper: 2563718687

Iron: 6781

Inside the study, He Xi lightly tapped her fingertip, and a virtual panel emitting a pale blue halo was projected into the air.

Chen Yang looked at the detailed data on realms, laws, and treasures on the panel, but his gaze finally fixed on the glaring "age" column, and his lips twitched involuntarily.

"He Xi, your panel is incredibly detailed, down to the height, cultivation level, and understanding of laws—it's all perfect." Chen Yang pointed at the panel, rubbing his temples in exasperation. "But what's with the 'two years old' and 'not even a month old'? Am I, the dignified lord of the Pangu Clan, supposed to travel the universe at this age?"

Upon hearing this, He Xi's exquisitely beautiful and aloof face displayed an extremely innocent expression, yet a glint of cunning flashed in her pretty light blue eyes. She tilted her head slightly, her long silver hair cascading down like a waterfall, and explained earnestly, "Pangu, this is not my mistake. You were just born last year, and if we count from birth as one year old, you are indeed only two years old now, not even two years old yet."

Upon hearing this explanation, several black lines immediately appeared on Chen Yang's forehead. He took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to crush the panel, and pointed at the words on it, saying, "'Two years old' usually means someone still wearing open-crotch pants and unable to speak properly? And 'less than a month old'... that's an infant still drinking milk in swaddling clothes! You expect me, a two-meter-tall, ninth-level Hengxing powerhouse wielding the Flaming Demon Blade, to pretend to be 'two years old'? And why don't you even have an age field?"

"But Pangu," He Xi maintained her elegant demeanor, her eyes gleaming with the rational light of both a mechanic and a mentalist, though the occasional glint of cunning in her gaze revealed that she was definitely doing it on purpose—no wonder netizens in her past life called her "Mischievous Xi": "From a time perspective, I simply recorded your age as it is, without adding any exaggerated artistic embellishments. As for the 'less than a month old' clones, they were indeed only recently born, and the data is absolutely accurate."

"As for my age, it's too vague. I have all the data and memories of another universe's Tianji Wang Hexi, but I was only activated by Pangu for a little over a year, so my age should also be one year old. It's too abstract, so I ignored my age."

Chen Yang was speechless for a moment. Looking at He Xi's calm and refined face, he suddenly realized that arguing with a top-level sage connected to a galaxy cluster's celestial computer was futile.

"Fine, fine," Chen Yang waved his hand and sighed, "Change the age field to 'unknown' for me, or just ignore it like you did. I don't want to see this 'two-year-old' display again."

"Received, Pangu. Modifying the panel display... Modification complete." He Xi nodded slightly, and with a light tap of her fingertip in the air, the age item on the panel instantly disappeared.

Chen Yang nodded in satisfaction, his gaze returning to the design of the three towers, his expression gradually becoming solemn: "Now that the framework of the Void God Realm has been set up, it's time to let those 'seeds' chosen by Wu Zetian come in and taste the flavor of reincarnation and the tempering of will."

"Furthermore," Chen Yang's fingers tapped lightly on the desk, making a crisp sound, his gaze becoming incredibly profound, "He Xi, inform Wu Zetian that she no longer needs to follow the historical timeline I passed on to her. Let her reshape the entire land of China according to her own ideas. Those who deserve bloodshed should be bloodshed, and those who can be saved should be given a chance. I want every Chinese person to be like a dragon."

"Luo Feng? When I need you to appear, your appearance is inevitable. No matter how history changes, you will still appear. Because I will definitely reach the Hunyuan realm, and when I reach that realm, my thoughts will be certain. And Luo Feng, whom I have nurtured, will definitely not be inferior to the original character; his existence will be indelible."

……

Meanwhile, deep within the Mingtang Hall of the Luoyang Imperial Palace.

Few candles were lit inside the hall; only a few ever-burning lamps flickered in the dim light, casting a long and lonely shadow of Wu Zetian as she sat on the dragon throne. She was quietly gazing at the scroll of silk on the table, symbolizing the map of the Tang Dynasty, and pondering how, under the name of "Queen Mother of the West," she could gradually instill the belief in the god Pangu into the very marrow of those stubborn aristocratic families without touching the foundations of the empire.

However, in the next instant, He Xi's majestic and sacred voice suddenly exploded in the depths of her soul without warning.

"I am the Great Elder of the Pangu Clan. I hereby convey Pangu's command: You no longer need to follow the original historical process... Those who deserve bloodshed should be bloodshed, and those who can be saved should be given a chance. Pangu wants a Chinese nation where everyone is like a dragon."

Wu Zetian's pupils suddenly contracted, and her previously steady breathing abruptly stopped. In her phoenix eyes, which were usually calm and still, it was as if a golden sun had been ignited in an instant, bursting forth with a dazzling light that made one's heart tremble.

"No longer following... the original historical course?"

She silently pondered those words in her heart. For the past year, she had lived like a puppet on a string with a pre-programmed script. Even though she had regained her youth and possessed supreme divine power that transcended the mortal realm, she still had to carefully suppress her true nature to conform to the so-called "unalterable historical process."

She watched as those corrupt aristocratic families sucked the blood and flesh of the common people, and watched as children from poor families struggled in the quagmire of the imperial examinations, only able to follow the script and secretly leave behind a few insignificant "sparks".

The feeling was like a god wielding a giant axe that could split the heavens, but being forced to mend a tattered garment.

But now, the god Pangu has personally torn this garment to shreds.

"Everyone is like a dragon..." Wu Zetian murmured these four words in a low voice, hoarse yet carrying an extreme, suppressed fervor. At this moment, her faith in Pangu had completely sublimated from piety to the level of fanaticism.

An indescribable pleasure surged through her body, rushing straight to her mind. She slowly rose to her feet, her alluring and slender figure radiating boundless charm, her long fingers gently caressing the cold armrests of the dragon throne. At this moment, she was no longer the "Wu Zetian" who needed to balance the court, bound by etiquette and history, nor was she the "prisoner of history" who only knew how to preach in secret.

She is now the agent of Pangu's oracle, the one who will soon reshape the backbone of China, and the master of the Yaochi lineage of Xikunlun under Pangu's command—the Queen Mother of the West.

"Let those who deserve bloodshed be bloodshed..." The corners of her mouth curled up little by little, and that smile was breathtaking in the dark hall. It had both the iron-blooded ruthlessness of an ancient empress and the ultimate release of breaking free from shackles.

She thought of those old officials who, relying on their seniority and ancestral privilege, dared to outwardly obey her but inwardly defy her; she thought of those powerful clans who seized land and forced countless people to sell their children. In the past, for the sake of the greater good, for that damned predetermined course of history, she could only reprimand and demote them.

But now, Pangu says, it is permissible to kill.

"Ha ha ha ha……"

A deep, hearty laugh echoed through the empty hall. Wu Zetian raised her head, looking at the golden dragon coiled atop the hall, her eyes no longer filled with confusion or restraint, only with a raging fire that would consume everything.

"Issue my decree."

When she spoke again, her voice had completely shed its gentle pretense, transforming into a thunderous sound carrying the supreme majesty of mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

"Summon Di Renjie, Shangguan Wan'er, and Princess Taiping to the palace for an audience immediately!"

"Order the Left Imperial Guard and the Right Imperial Guard to immediately seal off the mansions of all the major aristocratic families in Chang'an and Luoyang. Tell those old fogies that I give them three hours to hand over all their land, private armies, and embezzled account books. Anyone who disobeys will have their entire family executed, leaving no one alive!"

As imperial edicts, each carrying a strong stench of blood, flew out of the Mingtang like snowflakes, Wu Zetian sat back on the dragon throne. She closed her eyes, sensing the impending storm of bloodshed outside the window, and the boulder in her heart called "history" was finally shattered.

Since God desires that everyone in China be like a dragon, then she will be the sharpest blade to utterly shatter this corrupt old world.

The imperial edict emanating from the Luoyang palace swept through Chang'an like a gust of wind carrying icy glaciers from the heavens.

Three hours is but a fleeting moment, a mere shift in the sun's shadow, for this ancient capital that has stood for hundreds of years. But for those deeply entrenched and self-proclaimed noble families, it is the countdown to their descent from the clouds into the depths of hell.

As the last rays of the setting sun were swallowed by the horizon, before the curfew bells of Chang'an City had even rung, the armored torrents of the Left Jinwu Guard and the Right Yulin Army had already silently flooded Zhuque Street like a black tide.

There was no imperial decree, no scouts, only a suffocating silence and the sound of heavy, uniform footsteps.

"Bang--!"

A deafening crash shattered the tranquility of Chang'an. In the south of the city, the once bustling Cui family mansion of Qinghe had its vermilion gate, a symbol of unparalleled glory, shattered by the Imperial Guard commander, who kicked it and his men to pieces. Amidst the flying splinters, dozens of heavily armed Imperial Guards surged in like wolves, their gleaming swords reflecting a chilling crimson hue in the torchlight.

"Wu... Wu Zhao has gone mad! She actually dared to slaughter the aristocratic families!" The head of the Cui family rushed out of the inner hall with disheveled hair, clutching an ancestral scripture tightly in his hand, and roared with bloodshot eyes, "I am a veteran of three dynasties, how dare you—"

Before his roar could even finish, a cold blade flashed across his neck.

Blood splattered like a fountain onto the carved beams and painted rafters, the warm blood meandering down the precious mahogany pillars like a venomous snake. The head that had once been filled with Confucian classics and political intrigue rolled onto the bluestone slab with a gurgling sound, its eyes still holding disbelief, fear, and astonishment.

"His Majesty was bestowed the divine title of 'Queen Mother of the West' by the god Pangu. The Cui clan of Qinghe defied the divine decree and is to be exterminated along with their entire clan." The leading general expressionlessly flicked the blood from his blade, his voice icy and devoid of any inflection. "Search! Farmland, private soldiers, account books—leave nothing!"

The piercing screams, desperate cries, the sound of shattering porcelain, and the dull thud of weapons piercing flesh intertwined to form a lament for a bygone era.

It wasn't just the Cui family of Qinghe. The Lu family of Fanyang, the Zheng family of Xingyang, the Wang family of Taiyuan... those powerful clans that had left a deep mark on history and wielded considerable influence in the imperial court all met their inevitable end on this night.

Deep within the Wang family mansion in Taiyuan, an elderly patriarch with white hair knelt before the ancestral tablets, tears streaming down his face as he kowtowed: "Ancestors above, your unworthy descendants are incompetent and have failed to safeguard our century-old legacy... This Wu Zetian, with words of gods and ghosts, seeks to sever the roots of our Chinese gentry!"

However, all that answered him was the cold blade of the Imperial Guards. The old man didn't even have time to glance at the flickering candlelight before being slashed down before his memorial tablet. Blood stained the plaques inscribed with "Benevolence, Righteousness, Propriety, Wisdom, and Trustworthiness," a stark irony.

Meanwhile, in the Mingtang Hall of Luoyang.

Wu Zetian sat quietly on the dragon throne. The hall was unlit, with only the occasional flashes of lightning illuminating her exquisitely beautiful yet cold face. Her eyes were closed, as if listening to a grand symphony.

She could almost clearly sense the desperate pleas and resentment that erupted from the people who had been exploited and enslaved by those corrupt families as they were destroyed.

"Everyone is like a dragon..." Wu Zetian slowly opened her eyes, her phoenix eyes swirling with a breathtaking golden divine light. Her voice was as soft as a lover's murmur, yet it exuded the supreme majesty of ruling the world. "The parasites of the old era, use your flesh and blood to pave the way for the birth of the new era that Pangu desires."

That night, the blood of Chang'an stained half the sky red.

Those once-arrogant private armies of powerful clans were as fragile as paper toys before the well-equipped Imperial Guards, secretly blessed by He Xi with the "Heavenly Book." The embezzlement ledgers hidden in secret compartments, the letters plotting rebellion, and the shady rosters of private soldiers were all unearthed, piled up in the courtyards of various mansions, and reduced to ashes by towering fires.

Flames shot into the sky, illuminating the thick clouds above Chang'an.

When the first rays of dawn pierced the darkness and shone upon the ravaged city of Chang'an, this ancient capital finally ushered in a new life.

On Zhuque Avenue, the arrogant scions of noble families who wouldn't even glance at commoners were gone. In their place were carts of gold, silver, and land deeds escorted by the Imperial Guards, as well as a long list of the heads of the powerful and wealthy who had been beheaded and displayed in public.

The people of Chang'an cautiously peeked out from under their doors, watching as those powerful figures who had once oppressed them and suffocated them were now dragged like dead dogs on the muddy streets.

An unprecedented sense of awe and reverence took root in their hearts.

In the following six months, the entire country of China was swept up in a wave of purges and reforms. Under He Xi's intervention, all evils had nowhere to hide, all land was confiscated and nationalized, and then land was redistributed according to population, with land taxes exempted.

One after another, reform policies that truly benefited the people were promulgated, and primary schools, middle schools, universities, and even the highest doctoral academy began to be built all over the country.

Another book on body training, titled "Basic Body Training," was printed and distributed to every citizen, claiming it to be a method for strengthening the body passed down by the god Pangu.

The policies that benefited the country and its people, which were transmitted from Chen Yang, were forcibly implemented by Wu Zetian with absolute force, and all the old forces and remnants who tried to resist were crushed into dust.

People all over China know that the woman sitting in the Mingtang Hall in Luoyang has truly fulfilled her promise—

She cleaved through this cannibalistic old world, spilling the blood of the high-ranking nobility onto this land called China.

The current Wu Zetian is no longer an ordinary empress, but a goddess personally appointed by the god Pangu—the Queen Mother of the West.

Inside the study of his residence in Luoyang, Chen Yang felt the surging faith and aspirations from across the entire land converge into his divine essence, which was then instinctively refined and transformed into pure divine energy.

Chen Yang watched as the divine energy on the panel surged wildly. Many people who originally lived at the bottom of society benefited from the policies of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and their faith in the god Pangu increased rapidly. There were even countless fanatical believers.

Chen Yang's eyes gleamed brightly, and a satisfied smile appeared on his lips.

"This Wu Zetian is indeed a woman of great courage and decisiveness. With her managing the Pangu clan for me, I don't need to worry about anything."

"He Xi, prepare to open the Void God Realm." Chen Yang picked up his teacup, his gaze lingering on the rising sun outside the window. "The first batch of 'seeds' should enter the arena."

"Within three years, we will bring all the Chinese people into the Void God Realm."

This happened on the land of China, while in the distant cosmos, Chen Yang's clone, Huang, who had set off into space three months earlier, was about to enter Qian Yuan Star, an administrative star in the Qianwu Universe.