Traveling through countless heavens, an immortal being

The majestic Mount Tai rises high, and the mountain path is teeming with people, shoulder to shoulder. Countless tourists are climbing and descending the mountain, including not only Chinese but also a considerable number of foreign visitors. Watching them panting and taking selfies as they climb the mountain, Li Er couldn't help but recall his experience of training at the Lu Mansion in his previous life.

In the blink of an eye, two lifetimes have passed; time is a cruel mistress...

……

How majestic is Mount Tai! Its verdant peaks stretch endlessly across Qi and Lu. Nature has bestowed upon it divine beauty, dividing day and night with its presence.

My heart swells with the rising clouds, my eyes follow the returning birds. I will surely climb to the summit, and survey all the mountains below.

……

Beside the "Five Sacred Mountains Supreme" stone carving, Lear rode his blue ox and disappeared from sight, sighing in admiration.

"Du Fu's poems truly capture the essence of the mountains, each line directly expressing his feelings. Now, looking down from Jade Emperor Peak, it is indeed worthy of the words of Shi Jie from the early Song Dynasty: 'Of all the mountains, only the Five Sacred Mountains are truly majestic.'"

Unlike Lear, the blue ox was not at ease; it always felt there was some danger on the mountain.

"Master, am I sick? I keep feeling terribly stuffy," the blue ox panted heavily, its eyes wide open as it warily surveyed its surroundings, as if there were some ancient ferocious beast on the mountain.

Lear knew what had happened to the blue ox.

The Jade Emperor Peak of Mount Tai has been the site of many deities since ancient times. Although no deities or spirits reside in the statues of these temples, the abundant incense offerings over thousands of years have imbued this mountain, where emperors have performed the Fengshan ceremony and where the underworld has been located, with a divine aura. It was already quite unexpected for Lear that a mount like the Green Ox, which was somewhat blessed, could descend upon this mountain. If it were any other mountain spirit or monster, it would have been reduced to its original form and fled before it even reached the mountain.

As Lear sensed the countless unclaimed incense sticks scattered across the mountains, he raised his hand and pulled out a trace of the true spirit of the old City God of Heyang County, whom he had saved in the previous world, from the mouth of the dragon-headed walking stick.

"Old City God, you have exhausted your spiritual energy in Heyang County, leaving only this little bit of true spirit. I forgot to release you to ask for an official position in the Heavenly Dao. Now, there are no incense offerings on Mount Tai. I, on behalf of Heaven, hereby declare that you shall be conferred a divine title in this realm."

As Lear spoke, he taught the blue ox to ride the clouds and fly high into the sky, revealing its form. As Lear rode the blue ox and manifested its divine power in the clouds, a vast expanse of ethereal purple mist began to appear in the east, making Lear, with his white beard and purple robe, appear as sacred as Lao Tzu, who was leaving Hangu Pass in the west.

……

The sky was clear and the weather was fine.

On the mountain path near the Jade Emperor Temple at the summit, a group of young men and women walked together, chatting and laughing. Ye Fan, dressed in casual clothes, walked alone at the back, occasionally turning his head to look at the mountain scenery.

He didn't want to come, but his classmates warmly invited him, saying that it had been a long time since graduation and they wanted to have a good get-together. Plus, he had nothing to do at home, so he went hiking with his classmates out of boredom.

……

The group quickly arrived at Jade Emperor Peak. The female students scattered to find places to take photos, while the male students gathered in twos and threes to explore this ancient temple built by imperial decree during the Ming Dynasty. Ye Fan followed behind a tour group, listening to the tour guide tell about the history of this ancient temple and Mount Tai.

……

"Look over here, tourists! This stone tablet is an ancient relic. The inscription on it clearly tells the story of Mount Tai's status in ancient times. The summit of Mount Tai was originally the Dengfeng Terrace. Starting in the Ming Dynasty, the emperor ordered the construction of a Taoist temple..."

Everyone can go into the Jade Emperor Hall to offer incense and pray for the safety and well-being of their families…

……

As Ye Fan listened to the tour guide's explanation, he casually looked up at the sky and saw the boundless purple aura coming from the east, and Li Er, a white-bearded, white-haired man sitting on the back of the Azure Ox.

Ye Fan stared at the sky, momentarily stunned, and stopped following the tour group.

He stood at the entrance of the main hall, blocking the tourists behind him. When Ye Fan stood there, the other tourists were unhappy. They were all here to travel, so what was the point of blocking the entrance?

Several older tourists, unable to bear the scorching sun, were about to enter the main hall to cool off when they discovered Ye Fan blocking their way. Enraged, they stepped forward to shove him.

"Young man! Young man? I said, young man, please move aside!"

"Hey kid, what are you looking at?! You won't go into the hall or move aside! You're just getting in the way!"

They shoved each other a couple of times, and seeing that Ye Fan was still looking up at the sky without moving, they also looked up at the sky.

"This young man! Are there gods in heaven? I'd like to see..."

The elderly people glanced at the sky, then knelt down and began kowtowing. The other tourists in the courtyard were bewildered, and the tour guide turned pale at the sight. Several security guards from the scenic area, who were resting under umbrellas at the entrance, quickly walked over.

Just then, all the palaces and temples on Mount Tai with bells and drums started ringing on their own, and the melodious sounds of bells, chimes, and drums resounded throughout the sky above Mount Tai.

Several young men and women taking photos nearby keenly observed that before these elderly people knelt down, they glanced at the sky, looking up curiously.

……

"Oh My God……"

"A deity! A deity! Mom, I saw a deity!"

"May the gods bless me, may the gods bless me to become rich, let me become rich..."

"The one riding the blue ox looks like Laozi! Grandpa Laozi, Grandpa Laozi! Please grant me the elixir of immortality!"

"Oh my god!!!"

"Oh! This is amazing! Bob! Dear Bob~ Quick, take a picture of me!"

Other domestic and foreign tourists who were touring the courtyard looked up at the sky in small groups and exclaimed in amazement.

Some people were praying in various poses, while others were busy taking photos.

The security guards and tour guides at the scenic area also noticed the unusual phenomenon in the sky and joined the prayer procession.

The Jade Emperor Temple was thrown into chaos in an instant.

……

After the three chimes of "dong~", "dong~", "dong~", all the various bells and drums that were playing on their own on and off the mountain stopped.

The vast purple aura stretched endlessly like ocean waves, and the sunlight shining through it made the entire Mount Tai appear exceptionally majestic.

All the unclaimed incense sticks stored in the statues of gods in various palaces and temples on Mount Tai gathered into the sky, forming auspicious five-colored clouds that hung above Lear's head. Lear held the Investiture of the Gods in his left hand and a point of spiritual light that could not be ignored even under the illumination of various colors in his right hand, and spoke.

The resounding sound, like the grandest bell, echoed throughout Mount Tai. Tourists both on and off the mountain, upon hearing the sound and witnessing the scene, involuntarily looked up at the sky and prostrated themselves in worship.

"I, Li Er, today on behalf of Heaven, proclaim the imperial edict! I hereby bestow upon the title of the Great Emperor of Mount Tai, the Heavenly Emperor of Benevolence and Sagehood!"

The workings of creation are chaotic and boundless, yet through the responses of Heaven, their wondrous aspects are numerous…

Beginning with the primordial chaos, it directly reveals the myriad phenomena, grasping yin and yang, existing within existence and non-existence...

Virtue is vast, its balance is constant, and its karmic retribution is manifest, right there atop Mount Tai…

I, a humble Taoist, hereby proclaim on behalf of Heaven, that the City God of Heyang be enthroned and assumes office! I hereby bestow upon you the title of the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak, the Heavenly Supreme and Benevolent!

May you bring blessings to this region, oversee good and evil, teach that good and evil deeds will be clearly rewarded, guard the Eastern Heaven, and command all the gods!

The decree has been issued; you shall obey it!

After Lear finished speaking, he threw the last bit of spiritual light from the old City God in his right hand down onto the statue in the Jade Emperor Hall. The spiritual light merged into the statue, and the hall shone brightly.

The statue on the throne quickly transformed into the appearance of the old City God. The 12-tassel crown on his head became a 9-tassel crown, the 9-inch jade tablet in his hand became a 6-inch one, the bright yellow 12-dragon imperial robe he wore became a cyan 9-dragon imperial robe, and the gold-painted cloud shoes on his feet became black shoes.

The transformed statue stood up, descended from the sky, walked out of the main hall, and knelt respectfully before Lear, who held a jade tablet in his hand.

"Your subject Su Min bows in gratitude to the Dao Ancestor for the imperial decree. I will certainly do my utmost to govern this region, so that the people within my territory may be spared from disasters, enjoy favorable weather, and live in peace and happiness. Your subject bows again."

Lear stroked his beard and smiled, raising his right hand and pointing to the sky. The five-colored auspicious clouds above his head quickly condensed into a large, warm-textured white jade seal with a unicorn-shaped knob.

He raised his hand and pointed downwards, and the great seal quickly fell into the hands of the newly born Eastern Peak Heavenly Emperor.

Su Min held the imperial seal in one hand and the jade tablet in the other, bowed to the sky, and then slowly walked into the hall, ascended into the air, and sat back on the throne.

Li Er nodded slightly, raised his right hand and brought it down, turning some of the vast purple energy into raindrops that fell on the people praying for blessings on and below the mountain. Only then did he withdraw the purple energy and slowly disappear.

…………

When the crowds on and below the mountain saw that Lear had disappeared from sight, some went straight down the mountain, while others quickly climbed up, wanting to enter the main hall to pray for blessings.

Jade Emperor Temple. In the courtyard, near the steps leading to the main hall, an elderly couple with white hair were talking.

……

"My dear, the immortal has departed. It's raining. Let me help you down the mountain and we'll go back."

"Old woman, I want to go into the main hall to pray."

"But your legs..."

"It's alright, we're already at the entrance of the main hall, we should offer our prayers."

"Then slow down."

The old woman helped the old man up the steps. As they entered the main hall, the old man looked at the statue of the deity behind the incense table, whose appearance had changed, and knelt down with tears in his eyes.

"Old man, what's wrong? Don't scare me!"

"My dear wife..."

"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

"My leg...it's healed..."

"Really? Old man, you're so kind!"

"This is great! Thank you, Laozi! Thank you, Emperor Taiyue! This bone cancer has cost my family so much money... I never expected this to happen... Waaah!"

The old man and woman knelt under the incense table, embracing each other and weeping bitterly.

This old man wasn't the only one to have been cured of the disease.

Anyone whose body was touched by the raindrops formed from the purple aura felt light and healthy, their usual fatigue vanished, and all the discomfort caused by various illnesses disappeared.

The numerous tourists, both on and off the mountain, burst into tears of joy.

"Mom, I don't want to continue treatment anymore, sob sob... I'm cured..."

A young girl calling her family

……

"Thank you Laozi for your blessings, thank you the Great Emperor for your blessings."

There are elderly people who were physically weak due to age-related diseases but have now recovered their health.

……

"Holy crap... is this still Earth?"

There were also young people like Pang Bo and Ye Fan who, having witnessed the divine intervention and blessings, were still in shock and dumbfounded as their worldview crumbled.

……

Lear, still high in the sky despite his concealed form, stroked his beard as he looked at Ye Fan standing in the courtyard. The boy's aura was too strong.

Li Er stared for a while, then looked up at the sky. He saw the huge coffin, bound by nine thick chains, flying through the air and heading straight for the top of Mount Tai. He shook his head.

"Certainly"