Chapter 71: Chapter 7: Twenty Years in Retrospect
Hearing Lin Yuan’s words, Emperor Liu Shi was momentarily stunned in place.
He had anticipated various answers, the more normal ones, to plead on behalf of the Seventh Princess.
Or to widen the selection scope, attempting to prevent the Seventh Princess from becoming a ‘Divine Weapon Bearer’.
The more ruthless response would be approval of Emperor Liu Shi’s actions.
As a member of the royal lineage, sacrificing for the nation was nothing out of the ordinary.
But Liu Shi had never expected Lin Yuan’s answer to be this.
No need to cultivate a Divine Weapon Bearer.
Give me time, and I will surpass the Divine Weapon Bearers.
It must be known that behind every ‘Divine Weapon Bearer’, stands a Divine Weapon.
And within the Central Plains Thirty-Six Kingdoms, Divine Weapons are heaven itself.
To surpass a Divine Weapon Bearer is akin to surpassing a Divine Weapon itself.
Such Against-Heaven’s expressions, once spread,
would likely make the Greater Yan Dynasty, the focus of the entire Central Plains Thirty-Six Kingdoms.
At that time, the court would be shaken, and Lin Yuan’s position as the crown prince could not even be guaranteed.
Of course, Emperor Liu Shi, as Lin Yuan’s father, naturally would not let these words escape.
“Yuan’er… truly has grand aspirations…”
Emperor Liu Shi remarked with admiration.
If Lin Yuan were already in his thirties or forties, having witnessed the might of a Divine Weapon,
such declarations would surely make one seem ignorant of the immensity of heaven and earth.
The existence of a Divine Weapon is something those in high positions are all too aware of.
But Lin Yuan was merely six years old.
A six-year-old child’s impractical aspirations, what of it?
When Emperor Liu Shi was six years old, he too wished to bring down the sun from the sky.
“However, Yuan’er, such words should just be said to your father and no one else.”
“Don’t ever mention it to others, not even to your closest servants.”
After his praise, Emperor Liu Shi warned him.
As the crown prince, one must be careful with words and deeds, and with the affection Emperor Liu Shi had for Lin Yuan,
no matter what Lin Yuan did, there was always room for redemption, the only exception being matters related to Divine Weapons.
“I understand.”
Lin Yuan glanced at Emperor Liu Shi.
He clearly knew that the latter hadn’t taken his words seriously at all.
This was something Lin Yuan had anticipated.
He wasn’t surprised at all.
Following that.
Emperor Liu Shi made small talk with Lin Yuan for a few more sentences.
Then he stood up and left.
Watching the receding figure of Emperor Liu Shi,
Lin Yuan’s eyes remained calm.
With the methods at his current disposal,
if he revealed strength surpassing that of a Martial Saint,
it was highly likely that he would earn Emperor Liu Shi’s trust.
But such an act came with great risk.
Mainly because Liu Shi was the Emperor of the Greater Yan Dynasty,
the ‘spokesperson’ for that Nation-Protecting Divine Weapon.
Was there some kind of methodology infused in him, capable of sensing something?
The moment Lin Yuan revealed his strength, he might alarm that Divine Weapon,
leading to irreversible consequences.
It must be known that Divine Weapons fed on the Human Race.
The stronger the human’s strength and the more vigorous the vitality, the more ‘delicious’ they were to Divine Weapons.
Those with Innate strong souls were even considered ‘feasts’ by Divine Weapons, being bound by the title of Divine Weapon Bearer and savored slowly.
And in terms of vigorous vitality and a strong soul,
who in the Central Plains Thirty-Six Kingdoms could compare with Lin Yuan?
It could be predicted that once Lin Yuan’s aura leaked,
it would certainly drive the Greater Yan Dynasty’s Divine Weapon mad.
And it might not just be the Divine Weapon of Greater Yan,
but the Nation-Protecting Divine Weapons of the other thirty-five kingdoms, which would ‘awaken’ in unison.
To partake in Lin Yuan, this ‘feast’ together.
Therefore…
Ever since learning of the ‘Divine Weapons’,
Lin Yuan had been minimizing the frequency of his interventions as much as possible.
Even if he needed to take action, he had to do so far away from the Divine Weapon Ancestral Grounds and people like Emperor Liu Shi who had been close to Divine Weapons.
It wasn’t that Liu Shi would betray his own son,
but some matters were simply beyond his control.
Perhaps he was unaware of what had transpired within him.
…
“Having fully integrated this world’s cultivation system into my Martial Tao, my current realm surpasses that of a ‘Martial Saint’.”
“Let’s call this realm ‘Martial God’ then.”
Lin Yuan sat cross-legged, silently contemplating.
The realm of Martial God has already broken free from the shackles of the flesh,
and has achieved incredible feats in the aspect of ‘divinity’.
The Tai Chi Yin and Yang paths transform into grinding wheels, constantly refining one’s own ‘divinity’.
If placed in the Main World, the realm of Martial God would roughly equate to the Third Rank’s second to third segments.
Lin Yuan’s cultivation system—
uses the physical body as the foundation,
the way of Taiji as the framework,
and the Main World’s thousands of evolution paths as the flesh.
Now, by further integrating the perfect Body Refining Method of this world, it’s like drawing upon all the advantages of the cultivation systems across various worlds.
“However, advancing further from here will not be so easy.”
Lin Yuan opened his eyes and thought to himself.
Having arrived in this world for merely six years, Lin Yuan had already stepped into the realm of Martial God.
Mainly relying on the accumulation from before his travels, if not for the time wasted integrating the perfect Body Cultivation Method of this world,
Lin Yuan could have entered the Martial God realm one or two years earlier.
But these advantages only go so far.
The road ahead would require Lin Yuan to continue exploring on his own.
Even with Against-Heaven’s Understanding, future cultivation efficiency could not possibly exceed that of the first six years upon his arrival.
“I have a hundred and sixty years to stay during this travel, and only six years have passed, take it slow.”
Lin Yuan closed his eyes and continued his cultivation.
The Divine Weapon is visible, Lin Yuan remains hidden.
As long as Lin Yuan does not rashly expose himself, the Divine Weapon will be unlikely to discover his strength.
And Lin Yuan, with his Against-Heaven’s Understanding, grows stronger every moment.
No matter how great the shackles and bottlenecks, it’s only a matter of spending more time.
…
As the Greater Yan Dynasty cultivated new ‘Weapon Masters’,
the situation amongst the Central Plains Thirty-Six Kingdoms stabilized once again.
In dealings with other nations, the Greater Yan Dynasty regained its confidence.
With external threats gone, only internal governance remained.
Emperor Liu Shi was not a muddled emperor.
Furthermore, with Lin Yuan’s occasional reminders, the national strength of the Greater Yan Dynasty continued to grow.
Especially since Lin Yuan took the initiative to increase trade with other nations, opening up many trade routes.
The people of the Greater Yan began to prosper.
As a result, Lin Yuan also received the support of many citizens; at least Lin Yuan’s actions allowed the people to see that the Greater Yan Dynasty could flourish for at least another generation.
Throughout history, there have been many emperors who were ‘the tiger father and the dog son’, leading to great rises and falls in dynasties.
And Lin Yuan was clearly quite capable and politically astute.
He was fully capable of taking over from the old emperor.
The ministers of the court also held Lin Yuan in high regard.
After all, the Grand Tutor had admitted in front of Emperor Liu Shi that he was inferior to Lin Yuan.
What could he do afterward to salvage his own face?
The only option was to praise Lin Yuan enthusiastically.
It wasn’t that he was incompetent.
It was that Lin Yuan was too monstrous.
If you’re so capable, you try taking over.
At first,
there were actually a few ministers who objected.
What can a child of a few years do to reach the sky?
Grand Tutor, you’ve really grown old.
It’s time for you to go home and rest.
But these few ministers were left speechless in front of Lin Yuan,
mocked to the point where they couldn’t utter a word.
After this incident,
and with Lin Yuan displaying some of his skills in front of other court officials and exercising both grace and might on several occasions,
his prestige naturally rose.
Emperor Liu Shi observed Lin Yuan in silence, the color of approval on his face becoming harder to conceal.
When it came to the art of controlling people and maintaining balance, his son seemed to have an innate gift.
The work he put into pacifying the ministers back in his day had not been easy.
This certainly related to the manner in which Emperor Liu Shi had come to power, but consider how young Lin Yuan still is.
Time passed.
And so,
twenty years went by.