This day, King Zhou, following the ancestral teachings, went to Nüwa Palace to offer incense. King Zhou personally presented the incense and bowed respectfully, a gesture few in the world could withstand, and Nüwa was certainly among them.
After King Zhou offered incense, the palace suddenly lit up with golden light, and a fragrant aroma filled the air. Phoenix and luan songs arose, and as clouds swirled, a sacred image manifested.
King Zhou was shocked. Nüwa had appeared! Not to mention the kings of the Shang Dynasty for over two hundred *yuanhui*, nor even the Xia Dynasty's two hundred *yuanhui* and the Five Emperors' era, Nüwa Palace had never manifested before. Bafeng Novel.
"Humanity's Shang Prince Zi Shou pays respects to the Holy Mother!"
King Zhou bowed again.
Nüwa sat on a cloud bed and said with a smile, "Zi Shou, the heavens and earth are currently facing a great tribulation. The old dynasty falls, and a new one rises. Dynasties change, but the Dao endures. How will you choose?"
King Zhou's expression grew solemn. "Holy Mother, you are benevolent. Is there any divine decree to aid my Shang?"
Nüwa shook her head. "The rise and fall of human dynasties are determined by humanity's destiny. Moreover, regardless of who rules the land, it will ultimately be the human race's realm, and all human beings are the same in my eyes."
King Zhou's expression dimmed slightly. "It is Zi Shou who has been presumptuous."
Nüwa extended a finger, and a white light descended into the Tang Dynasty's territory. "I shall send you a woman as a consort. If you can protect the demon race and leave them a place to reside, this Saint might extend your Shang Dynasty's reign by a hundred *yuanhui*. If you cannot protect them, I will not intervene."
King Zhou felt a pang of bitterness in his heart, but he still said, "Thank you, Saint. Regardless of the will of heaven and earth or any divine being, Zi Shou will surely protect my Shang Dynasty's realm."
Nüwa nodded, and her sacred image vanished.
King Zhou's expression remained heavy, yet he still bowed and said, "I respectfully bid the Saint farewell!"
Beyond the Nine Heavens, in the demon realm, within Wa Huang Palace, Nüwa sighed. "By doing this, I have, after all, hurt this human king's heart."
Beside her, Fairy Golden Phoenix replied, "My Lady is a Saint, and Saints make no mistakes. My Lady is not only the Holy Mother of the human race but also the Saint of the demon race, not merely the Holy Mother of the Shang Dynasty. If my Lady aids the Shang, she loses her impartiality, and future kings for millennia will seek her help."
Nüwa nodded. "That may be so, but my heart is still uneasy. Let the Qing Qiu lineage restrain themselves and refrain from doing anything wicked.
Ling Zhu Zi should also descend to the mortal realm."
In the northwest border of the human race stood a tall and magnificent great pass. The hundred-zhang high walls were covered in sword marks and arrow holes, and even dried bloodstains could be found in the cracks. It was named Chen Tang Pass.
On the roof of the immense tower, atop the eaves that pecked at the sky, a handsome man leaned against a vertical long sword inserted into the rooftop, his hair fluttering in the wind. The northern wind, as it blew past this slightly weathered man, would bend and curve around him.
The man sat leisurely, his eyes slightly distant. In the distant northern void, countless demons lurked, greedily eyeing the human sustenance behind the massive city walls. Yet, not a single demon dared to cross the threshold, all because of the man on the pass.
In white robes, with a long sword, dark hair brushing the northern wind, his eyes fixed on the stars, his hands held the universe.
He was the Great Shang's foremost Sword Immortal, the guardian of the northwestern pass, the one who had slain thousands of demons: Li Jing, the commander of Chen Tang Pass.
"General! General! General! My wife has given birth!"
The echoing voice from the sky behind him reached his ears. He sprang up abruptly, his eyes blazing with an inexhaustible sword intent. The void split asunder by his sword, revealing yin and yang, and countless drops of blood bloomed upon the demons hidden within the void.
"Today, my wife gives birth to a child. A great joy! Let the blood of ten thousand fiends celebrate this occasion!"
With that, he turned and leaped off the city wall, entering his home.
"Li Jing!" Countless demons roared from the abyss, grinding their teeth.
As soon as he entered his home, he saw servants frantically tending to a very restless, large meatball.
His expression darkened. He reprimanded, "What is this? What sort of monstrous thing is this?"
A servant woman quickly replied, "Master! This is no monster, this is the child born of your wife!"
"What?" Li Jing felt his mind go blank. "Your wife gave birth?"
Just then, a nonchalant voice sounded. "What? You're not satisfied with the child I gave birth to?"
A young woman in a flowing purple-patterned immortal dress looked at Li Jing with captivating eyes.
Li Jing quickly changed his tune and smiled. "Of course, I am overjoyed that my wife gave birth. It's just, this meatball..."
Madam Chen's eyes widened. "Li Jing! Even if I gave birth to a monster, it's still my child. How dare you be displeased?"
As they spoke, the meatball suddenly unfurled like a lotus flower, revealing a small child in a red bellyband, who sat cross-legged and giggled upon seeing Madam Chen. "Mother!"
Madam Chen beamed. "Ah! Mother's little darling." She then quickly scooped him up, hugging and kissing him repeatedly.
Li Jing found this immensely strange, yet his deductions yielded nothing. Seeing his wife so delighted, he dared not say more.
His wife was the founder of Chen Tang Pass, a descendant of the former Human Emperor Xuanyuan, and the daughter of Chen Tian Shi, one of the thirty-six ancient ancestors of the human ancestral land. Her father had died at the hands of foreign races while establishing Chen Tang Pass. To avenge her father, she had come from the human ancestral land to battle demons. She met Li Jing, fell in love, and later gave birth to two sons, Jinzha and Muzha, who were taken in by the Chan School.
Her identity was illustrious, and she was beloved by the hundreds of millions of citizens within the Chen Tang Pass region, revered as Madam Chen.
The small child, held by Madam Chen, giggled and called out, "Father! Hug me!"
Though Li Jing harbored some reservations, he was, after all, the father. He set aside his prejudices and smilingly doted on the child.
As for the child being able to speak and walk so soon after birth, they were not surprised at all. After all, both parents were Great Luo Golden Immortals. If the child were like an ordinary infant, they would have found it strange.
The addition of a new child brought much celebration, and Li Jing's mood also improved considerably. However, a few months later, a Daoist priest arrived to take the child as a disciple.
It was Taiyi Zhenren, one of the Twelve Golden Immortals of the Chan School.
Taiyi Zhenren arrived at Chen Tang Pass, entered Li's mansion, and smiled upon seeing Li Jing. "Congratulations, fellow Daoist, on the birth of your young son."
Li Jing cupped his fists in salute. "So it is True Person Taiyi. Thank you, thank you. Have my two elder boys caused trouble while cultivating on Kunlun?"
Taiyi chuckled. "Not at all, not at all. Nephews Jinzha and Muzha are very intelligent and have already reached the Golden Immortal realm. It won't be long before they reach the Taiyi realm.
I have come today to accept a disciple."
"Accept a disciple?" Li Jing's voice grew stern. "Is it my third son, Nezha?"
"Precisely!" Taiyi stroked his beard.
"Absolutely not!"
Before the words could even fully form, Madam Chen interjected, "Your Chan School has already taken my two sons, and now you want to take my third son? I will not agree, no matter what."
Taiyi Zhenren's face showed a slight awkwardness, but he then smiled. "So that is Madam's thinking. In that case, I will only accept Nezha, but he will not cultivate on Kunlun. After formally acknowledging me as his master, he will return to Chen Tang Pass to cultivate. What do you two think?"
Madam Chen pondered. "If that is truly the case, then it is acceptable."
To be a disciple of a Saint naturally brought numerous benefits. Li Jing was an immortal cultivated by the Great Shang, not a disciple of the Chan or Jie Schools. However, he knew that the title of a Saint's disciple was far more valuable than that of a mere son of a border general.