Current State of the Outer Realms

In the Sacred Flame Realm, Shen Shuibi is making books.

She was guiding the Child of Destiny, as Li Qi had instructed.

Although the name is quite peculiar, it's called "Gaga".

It sounds pretty bad.

He used to be called Bai Gaga, but now he has abandoned the surname bestowed upon him by the immortals and reverted to his name as a member of the Sacred Flame Tribe.

Shen Shuibi has been closely following the progress of this Child of Destiny in recent days.

He has now gathered a group of young members of the Sacred Flame Tribe who share the same goal as him. They have established themselves as kings of the mountains, maintaining order in the three small towns and gradually building their own order.

However, he always feels somewhat inadequate these days.

According to the Ninth Rank Classification Method, he is not even in the top rank.

Such strength is far too inferior. Even in the Sacred Flame Realm where heroes are rising at this moment, it is pitifully weak and can only be said to have barely escaped the ranks of the weak.

Therefore, Shen Shuibi's plan was to make the other party stronger.

Gaga practices martial arts, Shen Shuibi plans to have him find a secret manual during an adventure.

As for the contents of the secret manual...

It's still in production. We'll age it a bit later, making it look like an ancient heirloom, and then we can give it to him.

It's almost finished.

However, just at that moment, a message popped up on Shen Shuibi's terminal.

She was startled and hurriedly put down her work to take out her terminal.

After a few operations, the messages on the terminal disappeared.

She hung up.

The rabbit broke out in a sweat and hurriedly dialed again.

She had only been using the terminal for a few days and hadn't had time to become proficient at operating it.

The main point is that this thing is not controlled by Technique Method, but rather by touching the projection formed by the illusion.

If it were Technique Method control, the rabbit would learn it in a flash, but it was the memorization of hand gestures that troubled her.

On the other side, Li Qi looked at the terminal with a puzzled expression.

Huh? Yu'er hung up on herself?

Is she taking a shower?

That's not right. Her Immaculate Body should have been restored. Compared to her body, everything except distilled water is contaminant. She's actually cleaner than water, so there's no need for her to take a bath.

But they called back immediately.

Li Qi answered the call immediately.

On the other end of the terminal was a flustered Shen Shuibi.

"H-how is it? Did you get through? Can you see me? Li Qi, Li Qi?" Shen Shuibi anxiously patted the camera from all sides, as if it would do some good.

"I can see it, I can see it, don't take pictures randomly, that's an enlargement." Li Qi quickly stopped him.

If you zoom in any further, you won't be able to see the face anymore.

"Oh, oh... Li Qi, you've finished your exams? How did you do?" Shen Shuibi made a hand Hand Seals and used Technique Method to calm herself down, regaining her composure almost instantly.

A facade of calm.

"The results haven't come out yet, but... they should be alright." Li Qi didn't know how his grades should be judged.

The written test score should be good.

Actual measurement...

The Three Lives Ancient Mirror exploded, and his examiner died. Does this mean he did well or poorly on the exam?

Let's wait and see what Tang Kingdom decides.

"That's good. You should have no problem with the Imperial Academy exam. By the way, why did you suddenly call me? You're back now? Do you want me to pick you up from Douxiu Six?" the rabbit asked immediately.

Li Qi himself had no way to travel from Douxiu Six to the Sacred Flame Realm, since he did not have the ability to travel between realms.

No, it's not that there isn't any, but at his speed, it would probably take him several hundred years to fly from Douxiu Six to the Sacred Flame Realm.

In comparison, Shen Shuibi only needs three days.

Li Qi is far from having the ability to explore beyond the realm; if he wants to go to the Sacred Flame Realm, he needs Shen Shuibi to come and pick him up.

"No need. I won't be able to come for the next two months. I need to study hard at the Imperial Academy and solidify my cultivation," Li Qi said.

"Stabilize your cultivation?" The rabbit tilted its head, somewhat puzzled.

However, she immediately realized what she meant, her eyes widened, and she leaned forward. "You... you're a seventh-rank?"

"Yeah, I encountered something... I don't know if it's fortuitous opportunity or a dangerous situation." Li Qi nodded and said with a wry smile.

This is not Versailles, but a genuine concern.

He was genuinely scared.

"Tell me, how could this be... How long have you been in the eighth rank? How is this possible? What exactly happened?" Shen Shuibi's face was full of surprise and confusion.

That's impossible, something's not right.

In just a few months, he went from the Subordinate Eighth Rank to the seventh rank.

Is this reasonable?

Shen Shuibi had never even heard of such a thing.

Although she was born a seventh-grade immortal, that was because she was a spirit nurtured by a second-grade Law Treasure.

Li Qi is just a mortal.

Although Rabbit knew that with Li Qi's talent and background, advancing to the seventh rank was practically a certainty, the prerequisite was that he would slowly accumulate experience over several decades.

You can't find anyone in the whole world who went from the Subordinate Eighth Rank to the seventh rank in just a few months, can you?

"This all started before..." Li Qi didn't feel happy at all. He helplessly began to tell Shen Shuibi about what had happened after he came back.

From the moment I returned, through the exams, the practical tests, and finally the assassination attempt and the Three Lives Ancient Mirror incident.

Li Qi trusted Shen Shuibi so much that he even revealed the reason behind his speculation about the Three Lives Ancient Mirror's ability to rewind time.

The rabbit listened attentively, occasionally taking notes.

Her expression turned serious as she listened to the whole thing.

"The Mara of Self-Transformation... has appeared again. This is indeed a difficult decision." Shen Shuibi pondered seriously.

Soon, she gave Li Qi some advice. "Whether it is the Mara of Self-Transformation or some other mastermind, it is something that the two of us cannot resist. The only good news is that you have the support of the Wushen Mountain, which will make them hesitate to take action."

"Therefore, there is no need to worry too much about this matter. If the mastermind behind this wants to make a move, it will be difficult for the two of us to put up an effective resistance. We might as well pretend that they do not exist, remain unchanged in the face of all changes, and honestly improve our own strength."

Hearing Shen Shuibi's suggestion, Li Qi nodded helplessly.

To be honest, this is the only way.

"As for the Three Lives Ancient Mirror..." Shen Shuibi glanced at Li Qi as she said this.

She was well aware that Li Qi was an Outer Dao, but she had previously thought that Li Qi came from some other world.

But now, even a third-grade Law Treasure that traces Li Qi's past back to his energy overload and self-destruction, and even back to the edge of the universe's expansion, has failed to trace it back to Li Qi.

Where exactly does Li Qi come from?

Is this heretical Outer Dao really that far away?

However, there's no need to ask that. It doesn't matter where it came from. So Shen Shuibi continued, "The Three Lives Ancient Mirror is already broken. It's estimated that the chaotic light of the universe has even messed up cause and effect, making it impossible to trace it further. This clue ends here. If you want to investigate, you'll probably have to go back to the Imperial Academy Chancellor, but that's not something you or I can get involved in. We should wait until the Dali Temple comes to question you and then subtly inquire. Perhaps we can find out something that way."

"Yes, that's what I think too. The assassination can be put on hold. The most urgent matter right now is the Sacred Flame Realm, which is why I came to find you," Li Qi said.

"I see. Then let me tell you about what's been happening in the Sacred Flame Realm lately." Upon hearing this, Shen Shuibi immediately got to the point, very concisely.

Li Qi wanted to exchange a few pleasantries, but seeing that the rabbit had already gotten into the work-related conversation, he didn't say anything. So he listened quietly to see what had happened in the Sacred Flame Realm in the short time that had passed.

Shen Shuibi began to narrate:

It turned out that a major upheaval had broken out in the Sacred Flame Realm right after Li Qi left that day.

The Sacred King seemed indifferent, so the seventh-rank Sacred Flame Tribe below began a civil war to vie for the right to speak after the immortals left.

"They are mainly divided into two factions, just like the two factions you predicted, Li Qi."

"The leader of one faction is named Pan Si, who is a seventh-rank official. He also has a younger brother who is another seventh-rank official. They are loyal supporters of the Immortal Sect. They have switched to the Divine Path Method and believe that the immortals will eventually return. They think that the Green Mountain God is the strongest in the world. When he returns, all the other traitors will be exterminated."

As she spoke, Shen Shuibi began to describe this school in detail, and simply called them the Immortal Sect.

It turns out that the Green Mountain God came here not only to change traditions, but also to have the divine way completely refine this heavenly Heavenly Dao, turning this place into his Divine Kingdom, inhabited by his believers.

The area where Pan Si lived was the focus of the Green Mountain God's past missionary work. He himself had received many Divine Miracle from the Green Mountain God and had long since abandoned his original traditions to become a loyal follower of the Green Mountain God.

With the help of the Green Mountain God, his younger brother also successfully advanced to the seventh rank through the Divine Path Method, which further strengthened his faith.

As the leader of the Immortal Sect, he quickly encompassed two-thirds of the world, restored order, maintained stability, quelled internal strife with his own power, and used divine laws, or 'faith,' to regulate normal production and life within his territory. He even had the resources to build a large army.

It can be said that although he was from the Immortal Sect, the fact that the Sacred Flame Realm did not suffer greater losses is largely due to him.

However, he was not doing this for the sake of the common people. According to Shen Shuibi, Pan Si believed that the Sacred Flame Realm was the divine Divine Kingdom of the Supreme God, so he needed to do everything in his power to protect it.

All the property and people here belong to the Green Mountain God, and he is the Green Mountain God's steward, the vice-ruler of the Divine Kingdom, the right hand of the god, responsible for protecting his property when the Green Mountain God is not around.

In contrast to the two-thirds of the country being peaceful and prosperous, the remaining third of the Sacred Flame Realm was in chaos, with demons running rampant.

To put it simply, this region can be called a 'land of no morality'.

There is also a seventh-rank Sacred Flame Tribe who controls this area. His name is Jin Peng. He has been fighting against the Immortal Sect and, as a seventh-rank member, he has protected this area from being invaded by the army.

However, this place is rife with corruption, infighting, and the resulting economic hardship.

Most of the Sacred Flame Tribe here are forced to band together for survival, forming small organizations such as tribes and villages. They fight their own battles and rarely join forces.

This place is far more chaotic than the Immortal Sect's territory.

But he was powerless to stop the chaos.

Because in order to govern these things, the military force of the seventh rank can only violently suppress them and prevent a real civil war from starting, but it cannot build anything.

Violence is merely a tool, but tools require guiding principles.

What should one use a sword for?

This Sacred Flame Tribe named Jin Peng did not know or understand that the reason he was doing this was simply because he was unwilling to accept the rule of the immortals and refused to surrender.

He didn't want the path of immortals, but he himself couldn't come up with a viable path.

Because, within his territory, countless paths quickly split into countless factions, and all sorts of ideas emerged one after another, creating utter chaos and filling the Sacred Flame Tribe with doubt about the world.

Some doubted the immortals, some doubted tradition, and some doubted both, wanting to forge a new path. Besides these major disagreements, there were also many minor disagreements.

If we return to tradition, should we retain the good things from the immortals? Which should we keep? Which should we discard?

In the area of the Child of Destiny where Shen Shuibi is located alone, there are dozens of schools of thought, many of which are extremely erroneous. Even those who support tradition will have various disagreements over trivial details.

Such confused thinking is bound to affect more practical operations. If you support one thing and I support another, and we can't reach an agreement, then we can only fight our own battles, making the whole environment extremely chaotic.

This situation is extremely detrimental to governance and makes it even more impossible to stabilize the situation.

Confusion in thought will inevitably lead to confusion in action. For ordinary people, life here is far less comfortable than it was in the Immortal Sect.

After explaining the specifics, Shen Shuibi sighed, "Given the current situation, it's hard to say that the traditions of the Sacred Flame Realm are better. If we want to support the traditions, then we have to get involved violently, but in that case, what we're actually doing is no different from what the Green Mountain God did."

Li Qi nodded. Of course, he knew that the traditions of the Sacred Flame Realm could not possibly be better than the divine ways of the world.

The Shinto is a very complete social system that can guide production and determine social positions. It is a method that has been developed for a long time in the world and is a tradition of the Sacred Flame Realm. Moreover, it is a fragmented one, so it is impossible for it to win. This is only natural.

Then, Li Qi said, "Of course it's different. I won't spread Shaman Path or Human Path here. The path of the Sacred Flame Realm still has to be walked by the Sacred Flame Realm itself. We have to let them try. It may be very chaotic now, but in a few decades, we can get rid of the dross and retain the essence. I'm not afraid of chaos, I'm afraid of a lack of vitality, so that these Sacred Flame Tribe don't even dare to have novel ideas."

"You're not going to preach?" Shen Shuibi asked in surprise.

"There's no need. The Sacred Flame Tribe's natural way is the most suitable way for them to generate Holy Flame. Forcibly spreading it here using Shaman Path will only cause many problems," Li Qi said.

The Sacred Flame Tribe still needs to find its own path; this can be considered Li Qi's payment for their Holy Flame power.

If you've taken their sacred flame, then let their own traditions and paths remain.

Even if the people of the Sacred Flame Realm think Li Qi is talking nonsense and talking to himself, that is the truth.

This is 'positive'.

"Good, it's good that you've made a decision." Shen Shuibi nodded.