Ming Dynasty, New Rome, and Infinite Divine Machine

"I have an idea, but I don't know how to execute it - to cure the disease, of course I need to take medicine."

"Take medicine? How do we make a country take medicine?"

"Of course the country can't take medicine, the country has no mouth. But the king is guilty - the destiny and the king are one. In ancient times, the emperor had the custom of drinking Tusu wine to drive away the epidemic of the four seasons. When the emperor drank Tusu wine, it represented the whole world drinking it."

He pointed to the east: "This is Yang, and the other side is Yin. Yin and Yang complement each other. This disease is endless. I'm afraid it won't be cured."

"Then why don't we just find this king and give him the medicine?"

"However, I think the root of Japan's illness is that it is at a loss of direction. There is no real monarch here, and the heaven, earth and people are depressed, so there are two problems. I think the key to the problem lies here. We must clarify the righteousness of heaven and earth here to eliminate the root of the disease. And the king of the world is none other than the Son of Heaven. It is because the blessing of the Son of Heaven did not bless this place, and it is because the Edo Shogunate pretended to obey but actually disobeyed, that this 'doubt' has become the root of the disease of being at a loss of direction. I think we have to invite the real Son of Heaven back."

Then he added: "Well, if necessary, we may have to give him some medicine."

Chapter 1199 Final Solution

"You mean, I have to find Tianzi and let him get sick, and then give him medicine?"

"No, no, no." Ao Zang waved his hand and said, "Of course I don't mean that. No matter how you treat the disease, you can't joke with the emperor's body. But from another perspective, Lord Shang Tian, ​​the current emperor is not happy with me, and went to the extreme north to retreat. Isn't this also a disease?"

"Is there such a saying?"

"I think this is the method Xu Fu wants to tell you. You didn't see through it, maybe because this incident left too deep an impression on Xu Fu, so he thought it was enough to stop. But for later generations, it is not so easy to think directly - the First Emperor that Xu Fu served was touring the world and looking for immortal fate everywhere. Of course, this was meant to shock the ancient lands of the six kingdoms, but Xu Fu himself understood that the First Emperor was already a little crazy at this stage."

"He means that the rapid decline of the Qin Dynasty is related to the Emperor's impatience?"

"From the perspective of a Taoist priest, this is the case. In the Book of History, Hong Fan, Jizi once told King Wu of Zhou that there is no qi. There are five kinds of seasonal climates: rain, sunshine, heat, cold and wind. Jizi said, 'When it is solemn, the rain will come' - solemn and graceful, orderly and harmonious. The solemn qi is the virtue of a king. When the solemn qi is manifested, there will be a sweet rain. This is the key to heaven and earth, and it is the interaction between heaven and man. The emperor is the 'great lord of all gods', and all the heavens are under the jurisdiction of the emperor. Now the emperor is not happy with his throne, the qi of the four seasons is not harmonious, and naturally there will be monsters rampant."

"Well," Shangluo shook his head. "I think even according to this theory, the problem is mainly on Japan's side. Because the emperor did not actually manage or rule this land. We all know that the Edo Shogunate pretended to obey but secretly disobeyed - the 'Mitoku' who lived in 'Onoko' burned newspapers at the grave to fool the ghosts. The 'Mitoku' of 'Onoko' was actually the 'Emperor' of 'Ducheng'."

"That's it." Ao Zang suggested, "The aura here is not harmonious because the emperor's benevolent wind has not blown here. As long as we invite the emperor here, set an example and clear up the rules in this land, the aura of the disease will naturally subside."

"It was actually solved in such an indirect way. Is this really reliable?"

"Of course it's reliable. The emperor's imperial aura can deter all evil spirits, and the emperor's generals can serve as door gods. Inviting the emperor over, that would of course be the final solution."

"Wait, I'll make a phone call." Shangluo pressed the cloud and went to a location with better signal.

"Hello Shangluo?"

"Good morning, Your Majesty. Is my senior brother available to answer the phone now?"

"How can it be such a coincidence? He started his retreat yesterday and told us not to disturb him. But it's okay." Yang Jing replied, "He hasn't been bothering me for a while. If you need anything, just tell me. He left all his sword seals with me before he went into retreat."

"Oh, this is troublesome." Shangluo told the queen about the situation here.

"This is really a task that only he can accomplish."

"That's right. As long as the emperor comes here, we can solve the problem immediately. The disaster caused by Xu Fu can also be subdued by the emperor. But if the emperor is not here, then we will find another way."

"Do you have any ideas?" Yang Jing asked. "I want to hear the truth - is there a simple and quick way? If it costs a lot and people have to die, then it's not a good idea."

Shangluo could only shake his head: "I can solve the problem. But... to be honest, I called you and there is really no simple and quick way to solve the problem. I'm really sorry."

"It's not your fault. He wasn't there when he should have been, but he was busy with something. That's his problem. You've already figured out the problem. It's a matter of national importance, and it was just one step away from being solved. All it took was for him to show up. But it couldn't be solved because of his personal reasons. That's his fault alone."

If all the people are guilty, the blame lies with me. I am guilty, and I cannot blame all the people.

The thundering voices of Yao and Shun still linger in my ears. In theory, all the sins in the world can be attributed to the emperor alone - in fact, the problem and solution here are based on this logic.

Invite the emperor here, this is the final solution. But if the final solution is not available——

"Then I'll take my leave. Maybe there are other ways. I'll think about it."

"Hey, wait, don't hang up yet." Yang Jing thought for a moment, "What is your specific requirement - does he have to go in person? Or does he just need to have the aura of an emperor?"

"In fact, this seems to be related to ancient magic and metaphysics. According to the connection between heaven and man, as long as the emperor is here, he can tame the earth veins of a country."

"Ah." Yang Jing's voice was unusually calm. "How about this? Before the emperor left, he left a sword mark here. With the scepter in your hand, you can represent the emperor. With the sword mark here, you can act as the emperor."

"Ah, this, does this conform to Zhou Li?"

"Even according to Zhou Li, the emperor cannot appear in every place in the world. He is not the invincible Wang Lingguan who can appear at any time. If you want to borrow the emperor's energy to subdue the earth veins, then you should be able to hold the sword seal. If you need it, I will send it to you right away."

After hanging up the phone, Shangluo looked at Ao Zang: "Okay, the problem is solved. The emperor himself cannot come, but I have a solution. King Ao Zang, the current shogun, has he ever come to pay tribute?"

"He himself has never set foot on the Red Country of Kinai. It has always been like this. The shogunate has always been closed to the outside world and maintained a minimum of diplomacy. Of course, the shogun himself cannot come to express his gratitude. So, what are you going to do?"

"Now that we have the Emperor's Sword Seal in hand, we can complete the matter - I will formally, completely, and fully enthrone the Shogun as the King of Japan, making him a true vassal, and then let him tame his own land and water."

Shangluo’s final solution was to carry out the entire enthronement ceremony in its entirety.

"Ah" Suddenly, he understood something -

【Ah, I figured it out! No wonder the emperor said before that the legal system of the vassal states must not be abolished. If it is abolished, I'm afraid this place will explode. If it becomes a no-man's land, these bad spirits may explode along with the national dignity of this place and shatter it. But as long as the princes are enfeoffed, they can solve their own problems and not cause trouble to the court. Then the question is, where is the shogun? 】

"In Chiba Palace," Ao Zang covered his forehead, "I went to catch him. I wanted to bring him here to perform the ritual. Now it's good. It seems that old Xu Fu had predicted our prediction a long time ago."

[If you want to subdue the earth veins, you have to capture the shogun. Xu Fu has long realized the key, so now if you want to capture the shogun, you have to subdue the earth veins first, right? Okay, okay, everything is fine. Shangluo, I think you can prepare the doomsday weapon, this place is hopeless. ]

"Tsk tsk tsk, if it really doesn't work." Shang Luo looked up at the sky, "Actually there is another way - I can do it myself."

Chapter 1200 Xu Fu's Purpose

Chiba's ammunition was being consumed every moment, but the shrimp soldiers and crab generals of the Dragon Palace were endless. The mirage creations like a tide rushed towards the seawall of Chiba City along with the tide itself.

Originally, this move was a trump card. The shrimp soldiers and crab generals mixed in the tide were like a rainstorm plus a landslide turning into a mudslide. Originally, this trump card, combined with the extremely powerful king's teacher, could produce a destructive force that could crush everything in its path. However, the treasure of the Dragon Palace produced a wonderful chemical reaction with Shangluo, which greatly weakened the power of the mirage.

This was a result that neither Shangluo nor the Dragon Palace had expected. If the two sides had coordinated, it would not have been impossible to create a mudslide again. However, there was always a gap between the two sides - mainly because the goals of the court and the Dragon Palace in this action were subtly different.

The purpose of the court was to obtain Xu Fu's golden elixir, and then eliminate the threat of the remnants of the First Emperor in the future. Although the First Emperor might not pose a threat to the court, no one, including Shangluo, was willing to take this risk. After all, let alone the First Emperor, even the Taizu Gao Emperor of this dynasty, the ancestors of the Zhu family could cause a huge political earthquake if they were alive, not to mention the First Emperor himself.

The imperial court can be promoted to the heavenly court without assistance. Any complications at this time will only create uncertainty. At this critical juncture, any risk is unacceptable.

The purpose of the Dragon Palace was even simpler - they just wanted Xu Fu to die, and then after Xu Fu's death, they would take back the boys and girls who should have belonged to the Dragon Palace, as well as their "interest", which was 8000 million people.

At the beginning, everything went smoothly, and the royal army really advanced to Edo. Although the Dinghaishenzhen used to control the clouds was transferred to Shangluo in the middle, it still belonged to the royal army, so it was not a big problem. However, after Xu Fu retreated again and again, the court and the Dragon Palace in the royal army finally had a disagreement in interests. Because when Xu Fu was divided into several parts, the "Xu Fu" that the court and the Dragon Palace wanted was different.

The imperial court wanted Xu Fu, who was good at making elixirs, and the Dragon Palace wanted Xu Fu, who had young boys and girls.

"I say, King Ao Zang." Shangluo and Ao Zang stood side by side in the clouds. "Now that I think about it, this old man has some skills. It would be a dead end to fight against us. But when he cut himself open and it was like cotton that could not be broken, the battle situation became tense instead."

"Only if one does not contend, no one in the world can contend with him. It is foreseeable that if a pre-Qin alchemist like Xu Fu led the army, it would turn out like this."

“Tsk tsk tsk.” Shang Luo shook his head. “It’s a pity that his plan encountered absolute power—the Emperor’s Sword Seal will soon be in my hands.”

"The Emperor's temple divination, how can this old Taoist priest rival the Emperor? The Emperor's sword and seal will arrive soon, right?"

"It will arrive in a few hours, very soon. But I have been concerned about one thing since the beginning - Xu Fu has been guiding my actions all the way. Including this time's call for the emperor's sword seal, it was also his decision to induce me to make. He also repeatedly mentioned the 'emperor's jade seal' to me along the way. I wonder if this old guy wants the royal teacher to bring the emperor's sword seal. Is there any intention."

Suddenly, when he heard the word "Xi", a strange look flashed in Ao Zang's eyes - although it was fleeting, it was still captured by Apollonia, who was as sharp as a camera and was really carrying a camera.

[Hey! Shangluo, there was something wrong with his expression just now!] Apollonia hurriedly reminded.

"I also discovered that it seems to be related to the jade seal." Shangluo thought for a moment and asked, "King Ao Zang, this xi..."

"Ah?" Ao Zang's forehead tightened, and sweat almost squeezed out of his pores.

"Have you ever tried this West Lake Vinegar Fish? I heard that the West Lake Vinegar Fish in some places is not very tasty. But I heard that West Lake Vinegar Fish was originally a very sophisticated and elegant dish. Why is the West Lake Vinegar Fish delicious in some places and not in others?"

"Ahaha, you're talking about West Lake vinegar fish." Ao Zang breathed a sigh of relief. "There are some particularities to this West Lake vinegar fish - but it's not complicated. First of all, the seasoning must be correct, but seasoning is not enough. The key is still the fish. There is a secret to choosing fish."

"Eh? Is there really a secret?" On the question of fish, Shangluo was almost distracted by the ancestors of fish/the ancestors who ate fish. With half interrogation and half doubt, he looked at Ao Zang:

"So what's the secret to this [West] Lake Vinegar Fish?"

"You have to use longevity fish, which is an elegant name for lean fish. In short, to make good West Lake vinegar fish, you have to let the fish enter a state of fasting, eating wind and drinking dew. You can't feed it any bait, and you have to reduce its body fat. This is because the human body is very sensitive to the smell of geosmin, and geosmin tends to accumulate in fat. So as long as you raise the fish so that it doesn't starve to death in a short period of time, then starve it to death so that it metabolizes the fat, and feed it with clean water to prevent it from taking in more geosmin, you can raise fish without odor. If you use such fish to make West Lake vinegar fish, it will be delicious."

“So that’s how it is”

"So the key is that you can't eat West Lake vinegar fish near West Lake, let alone eat the fish in West Lake. Because West Lake is an artificial lake, it is too shallow, and the fish in West Lake will easily become fishy. If you want to eat it directly, you still have to go to the mountains, reservoirs, and places with clear water to find fish. If the water quality itself is very good, then I'm afraid you can raise delicious fish without losing weight."

"So that's how it is! Then King Ao Zang, do you think there is a Dragon King in West Lake?"

"???" Ao Zang's face suddenly changed again. He had realized that he was being watched, but he still pretended to be careless. "Why did Shang Tianjun suddenly ask this? West Lake is an artificial lake. There is no Dragon King in it."

"Ah, so that's how it is. So you mean there is a Dragon King in the natural lake, right? In that case, the Dragon King of Dongting Lake must be very ancient and very powerful, right?"

[In the third year of the reign of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, when he was touring Dongting Lake, there was a storm on the lake. The Emperor threw the imperial seal into the water, and the storm subsided. Legend has it that eight years later, someone suddenly presented the imperial seal to the Emperor on the side of the road. But] At this point, Apollonia also understood:

[It turns out that Xu Fu kept talking about the imperial seal because he wanted us to ask the Dragon Palace for it! ]

"So, Your Highness Prince Ao Zang." Shang Luo looked at him, "The real imperial seal is in Dongting Lake, right?"

Chapter 1201 Jade Seal

"Yes," Ao Zang bowed his head slightly, "but also no."

"How to say?"

"The so-called imperial seal must have a process of transmission, right? The imperial seal that was passed from the First Emperor to the Second Emperor and then lost after countless years is indeed not in Dongting Lake. This was presented to the First Emperor by someone on the roadside. The earliest imperial seal, the one that the First Emperor threw into Dongting Lake to quell the flood, is indeed in the hands of the Dragon King of Dongting Lake."

"I thought so!" Shang Luo suddenly realized, "So after a long journey, this is what Xu Fu meant. He wants me to settle accounts with you, right? He is telling me to find the exact location of the Imperial Seal, right?"

"Shang Tianjun! This demon is deliberately trying to create discord between the imperial court and the Dragon Palace!"

"Hmm," Shangluo touched his chin, "So the seals that the First Emperor dropped into the lake and the seals that were picked up later were two seals, right? Then the process was like this: the First Emperor's seal fell into the lake, and the Dragon King of Dongting Lake came to ask: which one did you drop, the gold seal or the silver seal?"

"Stop talking, please stop talking! We know we were wrong!" Ao Zang bowed and said, "But I really didn't know it was so crucial. If I knew the imperial seal was related to this operation, I would have brought it in advance. I would never have dared to hide it even if I was beaten to death! I really didn't know that Xu Fu, this evil man, would embarrass the court here."

"Forget it." Shang Luo waved his hand. "We'll talk about the imperial seal later. Getting the imperial seal from the Dragon King of Dongting Lake must be troublesome, right?"

"No trouble. As long as the Lord of Heaven gives the order, I will go get it right away. It just takes some time."

Dragon Palace has always been like this. Because Ao Zang was not the first generation of Dragon King, he sometimes did not "tell everything he knew, and tell everything he knew", but there were many things he was not so clear about.

Shangluo didn't really care whether the Dragon Palace had its own little secrets - he didn't need the Dragon Palace's absolute loyalty. Everyone has their own little secrets, just like everyone has their own bank account, there's nothing wrong with that. He basically treated the Qigong practitioners the same way. For example, he didn't ask where Fu Yuanshan's sandbags came from.

Shangluo only cares about one thing - whether you actually work hard when you are asked to, and whether you act insincerely in action.

From this point of view, although the Dragon Palace does have some secrets, and sometimes wants to do some business, it has never been vague when it comes to contributing. They fight whatever Shangluo asks them to fight, and take whatever Shangluo asks them to take.

This is what the court required of the tributary states. After all, the court could not control everything. As long as they were loyal and dedicated to the king, there would be no problem in principle. Things that were beyond the principle could be big or small.

Now Shangluo knew that there was no need to spend effort to find the imperial seal, as it was in the hands of the Dragon Palace - although it was not the Dragon Palace of the East China Sea, the Dongting Lake Water Palace was also a vassal of the Dragon Palace of the East China Sea.

The rule here is that a vassal of a vassal is still a vassal. All land under heaven belongs to the king, and all the people in the land are his subjects. As long as the emperor issues an order, the water palace of Dongting Lake must hand over the jade seal.

However, the core of the problem is no longer the jade seal - the jade seal is used to complete Xu Fu's mission. But Shangluo now just wants to see how many heads Xu Fu has.

"This old guy doesn't speak human language at all. He has ulterior motives in every sentence. This kind of yin-yang person is what I hate the most."

"That's right!" Ao Zang clapped his hands fiercely, "Compared with Xu Fu, our Dragon Palace is simply loyal beyond words! Heavenly Lord, you are absolutely right!"

"You have indeed been consistent in your actions. So, let's put the matter of the jade seal aside for now, and you can discuss it with Dongting Lake later. This time, I am going to chop off Xu Fu's head with a sword."

[Great!] Apollonia also cheered, [What I hate most is the Riddler! He tells so many riddles, he should have been chopped off long ago!]

Victoria suddenly said quietly, "Apollonia, your blood pressure is rising again."

【Nonsense, how can you see my blood pressure? 】

"Oh. I knew it the moment I heard it. Because Apollonia hates being called stupid the most. She must be very angry that she still didn't see the clues after being hinted by the old fox for 2000 years."

[Ahhh! That old fox, I want to cut off his internet connection! Once he is caught and thrown into the imperial prison, he won't be able to access the internet for a day!]

"Yes." Shangluo nodded and said to Ao Zang, "So, I don't think Dragon Palace is responsible this time. After all, the request for the jade seal came after the action was taken, so it doesn't count as you knowing about it and not reporting it."

"Thank you, Lord."

"Here is a question for me - why didn't you present the imperial seal to the court before?"

"There is a reason for this, this is really a reason, because the jade seal is not actually in the hands of the Dongting Lake Water Palace. Do you remember the little gift I gave you before? It is those treasure maps. Yes, although it is indeed in Dongting Lake, the jade seal has sunk to the bottom and has not been salvaged. The treasure map that records the location of the sinking at that time is indeed in the Dongting Lake Water Palace. But after we go there, we will also salvage it."

"You just let that thing sit there?"

"Well, it may be that the recognition of 'ownership' is different on the shore and in the sea. People on the shore will feel that only when they have it in their pockets are they theirs. But we believe that as long as it sinks to the bottom of rivers, lakes and seas, it belongs to the Dragon Palace or other water palaces. It is fine as long as it sinks there, there is no need to bring it to the warehouse. It's like the porcelain at home, whether it is placed in the living room or in the study, there are different ways to display it."

As he spoke, he also bowed his head and said, "Now that the court needs it, we must present the imperial seal."

"Isn't this against the rules?"

"It is indeed against the rules. According to the Dragon Palace's rules, if you fall into the water, you belong to the Dragon Palace - but the Dragon Palace's rules are only the rules of the sea after all. The orders of the Heavenly Court are far above the Dragon Palace's own small rules. So as long as you, the Heavenly Monarch, have a request, there are no small rules that cannot be broken."

"Then, I'll wait for you to present your treasures."

Shangluo hadn't said anything yet - the Emperor had sent out a fleet to slay the dragon as a vent of anger, probably because of his grudge against the aquatic creatures. At least in this respect, the Emperor and Xu Fu had the same goal.