Immortality: Starting with a grave, I'm invincible when burying corpses.

In the western part of the Yin-Yang Domain, at the Longyue Marquis's residence.

The extraordinary celestial phenomenon of ascension to immortality covered an area spanning thousands of miles, and everyone living on this land witnessed this rare spectacle, a sight unseen for centuries.

A milky white halo transformed into a vast ocean, covering the sky, with a towering phantom standing tall in the heavens…

Ordinary people didn't know what had happened and thought it was a divine intervention, but the knowledgeable members of the Mu royal family, like Marquis Longyue, knew the truth.

Not long ago, an unknown being ascended to the position of a terrestrial deity.

The significance of terrestrial immortals in the Nine Realms, and in the Great Spirit Empire, is self-evident.

Considering the obvious literary phenomena in the sky, Marquis Longyue could easily guess the "truth" of the matter.

Judging by the time, there is only one literary expert who would appear within the territory of the Marquis of Longyue's mansion at this moment.

Qin Ge, the Grand Scholar and leader of the Great Harmony Sect.

Marquis Longyue knew better than anyone that Qin Ge had disliked these Mu clan lords for a long time and had many suspicions about them.

Over the years, Qin Ge has repeatedly suggested to His Majesty that the power of these feudal lords be restricted and that their actions in the Yin-Yang Domain be thoroughly investigated.

Qin Ge's journey across the vast ocean to the Yin Yin Domain likely stems from his intention to investigate the current state of the Yin Yin Domain.

From this perspective, Qin Ge's ascension to the realm of terrestrial immortals at this moment is undoubtedly an extremely bad thing.

But Marquis Longyue also knew that the so-called immortals and gods were all extremely indifferent beings.

It's better to resolve conflicts than to let them fester. All sorts of contradictions arise simply because there's not enough mutual benefit involved.

If there's any problem that can't be solved, it must be because they haven't given enough.

The several terrestrial immortals who later emerged from the Yin Yin Domain could be won over by local forces, and Qin Ge of the Da Tong Dao could also be won over by these Mu-surname royal families.

If the benefits are right, it's not impossible to bring this newly crowned terrestrial deity into their faction.

In this way, the Marquis of Longyue's lineage can be considered to have a real backer.

As for the despicable things they did and the few ordinary people who died, who would care?

In truth, he also preserved the last bloodline for those places that were wiped out, allowing their surviving offspring to become members of the Marquis's household and have the possibility of transcending social classes.

What an honor! He achieved a leap in social class in one step. These lowly commoners should be grateful to him!

With these thoughts in mind, Marquis Longyue led his direct descendants to wait in front of the manor's gate early in the morning.

Time passed slowly, and the convoy's silhouette appeared on the horizon.

As the dragon-horse neighed, a cloud of dust rose up on the official road, obscuring the view of Marquis Longyue.

The road in front of the Marquis's mansion is paved with marble and is cleaned every day. While it may not be dusty, it is always neat and tidy, making it a pleasing sight to behold.

However, upon learning that Qin Ge was coming to visit the Marquis's residence, Marquis Longyue immediately issued an order to make the road in front of the residence indistinguishable from the official road.

It is the dust that makes one appear honest and upright.

Even if you can't fool anyone, you have to at least put on a good show in terms of appearances.

"Whoa whoa whoa—"

Seeing the carriage stop ten steps away, Marquis Longyue stepped forward decisively, his face crinkling with smiles, intending to express his respect to this newly ascended terrestrial immortal.

One step, two steps, three steps...

Marquis Longyue stopped abruptly, almost unable to maintain his fake smile.

The young man in white stepped down from the carriage and gave him the same smile as always.

"My lord, how was your day?"

The voice was both familiar and unfamiliar. In every day in the past, whenever Marquis Longyue met Zhuang Sheng in the Marquis's mansion, Zhuang Sheng would ask this question.

Over the years, Marquis Longyue had long since grown accustomed to Zhuangzi's greeting, simply considering it a way for the young man to express his respect.

The moment he saw the boy clearly, countless thoughts flashed through Longyue Hou's mind.

He wanted to question the boy about why he was on Qin Ge's carriage.

But when Marquis Longyue caught a glimpse of the other officials looking at the boy out of the corner of his eye, his heart sank completely.

No! This isn't the way they look at an ordinary teenager; it's more like they're looking at a certain belief.

This kind of gaze was also seen by Marquis Longyue a long, long time ago.

Fifty years ago, when His Majesty Mu Yong sat in the palace, shining like the sun over the entire empire, this was the kind of look that shone in the eyes of these younger members of the Mu family.

The Marquis of Longyue's intuition told him...

He's doomed.

If it weren't for the excellent royal education he received in Qing'an Prefecture, Marquis Longyue would have already lost his composure on the spot.

He forced a smile and asked Zhuang Sheng in a tone that was as befitting his status as possible.

"Zhuang Wen, didn't you go to the mine? Why did you come back with Scholar Qin? Now that you're back, hurry up and stand here with me. Scholar Qin is a big shot in the court, with extraordinary talent. We must not neglect him."

Even though he tried his best to suppress it, the tension in his words was still clearly perceptible.

Looking at Marquis Longyue, at the familiar people behind him, and at the solemn Marquis's mansion where he had lived for ten years, Zhuang Sheng responded in the gentlest tone.

"The vengeful spirits in the mine told me that if I don't settle the score with Lord Hou from ten years ago, I will never have peace of mind in this lifetime."

The voice was gentle and calm, as if they were having a casual conversation, but it made Longyue Hou's heart leap into his throat.

Under his tense gaze, Zhuang Sheng touched his heart and spoke again.

"I don't know why God gave me another chance, but I know that my ideals have not yet been realized, the world I long for has not yet arrived, and there are still so many things I need to do."

I cannot sleep peacefully, nor can I feel guilty because of the Marquis. In this vast world, there are far too many people trapped in the mire.

They are all waiting for me, waiting for me to lend them a hand, so that they can see the sun rise again and have a chance to fight for a future…”

His body trembled more and more as he watched the milky white halo ripple around Zhuang Sheng, and the heart of the Marquis of Longyue sank to the bottom.

"You're not Zhuang Wen, so who are you?"

Zhuang Sheng shook his head in denial in response to the Marquis of Longyue's questioning.

"Your Excellency is mistaken. As you can see, I am Zhuang Wen, but besides the Zhuang Wen that Your Excellency knows, I have another name."

"Another name?" The voice of the Marquis of Longyue became increasingly urgent, his two hands, hanging in his sleeves, clenched tightly together, revealing obvious fear.

"Zhuang Sheng, a schoolteacher of little renown."

"A schoolteacher?" Upon hearing this name, Marquis Longyue was momentarily bewildered until he caught sight of the Datongdao officials looking at him as if he were a god, at which point he suddenly remembered.

The founder of the Datong Dao was a teacher, and he often appears as Master Zhuang in the Datong Dao's classic texts.

……

Despair gripped his heart. Looking at Zhuang Sheng a few steps away and his family members behind him who had sensed the change in atmosphere, Marquis Longyue took a deep breath and stepped forward to stand in front of his wife and children.

"Master Zhuang, what happened ten years ago has nothing to do with anyone else in the Marquis's mansion. If you want revenge, come at me alone."

Seeing the way the Marquis of Longyue was behaving, Zhuang Sheng shook his head.

This action made Marquis Longyue even more anxious. In front of his wives and children, he knelt on the ground and begged Zhuang Sheng.

"Master Zhuang! In these ten years, the Marquis's mansion has never mistreated you, and my wife has loved and cared for you as if you were her own son. Do you really intend to disregard past affections and drive us to our deaths? You are a sage of literature and the founder of the Great Harmony, the most upright and kind person in the world. How can you be so unable to distinguish right from wrong?"