I Am King Zhou, Human Emperor!

How could Kong Xuan be an ordinary man if he could evade his perception and silently transport him to the outskirts of Chaoge City?

But at this moment, he was already trapped—if he didn't fight it out, where would his dignity be left?

Since he had no way out, Taiyi Zhenren could only give it his all.

Raising a hand and pointing, a treasure materialized—his mountain-guarding artifact, the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover.

The next moment, flames soared to the sky as nine fire dragons coiled, swooping up and down, spewing blazing inferno from their mouths.

This was no ordinary flame, but Samadhi True Fire—overwhelmingly domineering, capable of scorching the heavens and boiling the seas.

Taiyi Zhenren pointed again, and the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover shot through the air, hurtling toward Kong Xuan to trap him.

By deploying such a treasure, he had held nothing back, a clear testament to how seriously he regarded Kong Xuan.

At this moment, Kong Xuan remained expressionless as five rays of light emerged behind him—cyan, yellow, red, white, and black.

When the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover descended, a flash of red light swept out, and the cover instantly fell into it.

Taiyi Zhenren was utterly shocked—in that instant, he completely lost all connection with the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover.

It was like a stone sinking into the sea; no matter how he called out, the cover gave no response at all.

What kind of divine ability was this? In one exchange, it had snatched away his mountain-guarding treasure?

Before he could recover from his shock, a yellow light swept toward him. He had no power to resist and was pulled into the radiance.

On the other side, Kong Xuan and Taiyi Zhenren vanished in an instant, leaving only Zi Shou and Li Jing behind.

"Who your third son will take as his master ultimately depends on your own thoughts—This Lonely One will not force it," Zi Shou said.

Of course, Li Jing's current stance would directly determine how he treated him in the future.

"This matter is entirely up to The King to decide," Li Jing replied.

He had come to see clearly: today, between Taiyi Zhenren and The King, he had to make a choice.

"Good! Then let the outcome of this battle decide—whoever wins, your third son will take as his master!"

A satisfied smile appeared on his face. Li Jing had not disappointed him; he had made the right choice.

As for who would win or lose? Was there even any suspense?

In just a short moment, Kong Xuan reappeared, and in his hand was Taiyi Zhenren, completely immobilized.

Li Jing's face was full of astonishment. One of the Twelve Golden Immortals of Chanjiao—not only defeated, but defeated so quickly?

At this moment, Taiyi Zhenren was equally dumbfounded. He himself had no idea how he had lost.

He was one of the Twelve Golden Immortals of Chanjiao—how could he have lost so fast?

A flash of light, and his supreme treasure, the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover, was gone?

Another flash of light, and he was suppressed?

Was this not too absurd?

Throughout the entire primordial world, there were indeed many reclusive great powers, some of them truly terrifying.

But for a random unknown powerhouse to appear and defeat him so swiftly?

"The victor is decided. It seems, Daoist, that you and this child have no master-disciple fate," Zi Shou said.

There was no suspense at all. If Kong Xuan couldn't suppress Taiyi Zhenren, that would have been the real surprise.

"Hmph! I am outmatched, so I have nothing to say!" Taiyi Zhenren said with a grim expression.

Defeated in a single exchange—what more could he say?

"In that case, Daoist, take care. I won't see you off," Zi Shou said with a smile.

At his signal, Kong Xuan released his suppression of Taiyi Zhenren.

Taiyi Zhenren turned and left. Having lost all face here, he had no desire to stay.

He made his way toward Qianyuan Mountain, but as he walked, he suddenly felt something was off.

His coming to take a disciple was not as simple as it seemed on the surface—it also concerned the great calamity to come.

Now, without having taken a disciple, how was he supposed to explain to his master?

At this thought, he nearly wanted to rush back to Chaoge City and snatch his disciple away.

But recalling that Kong Xuan, he wisely chose to yield.

He couldn't win—absolutely couldn't win. What good would going back do?

With that, he could only turn and head toward Yu Xu Palace on Kunlun Mountain.

Arriving at Yu Xu Palace, he immediately sought an audience with his master to report what had happened in Chaoge City.

Unexpectedly, his master had just departed into the vast chaos and was not in Yu Xu Palace.

Left with no choice, Taiyi Zhenren could only first seek counsel from the Twelve Golden Immortals of Chanjiao.

No matter what, losing his own face was a small matter, but the face of Chanjiao must not be lost.

Besides, Nezha was destined to be his disciple—no one could change that!

"Your Majesty, my third son has yet to be named. Would Your Majesty bestow a name upon him?" Li Jing said, his face full of anticipation.

After the initial shock had passed, his heart was now brimming with joy.

Who was Kong Xuan? He didn't truly know.

But being able to effortlessly suppress Taiyi Zhenren, one of the Twelve Golden Immortals of Chanjiao, meant his cultivation was surely extraordinary.

Moreover, this Kong Xuan was the Grand Preceptor of Great Shang—how exalted was his status?

That his child could become his disciple was something Li Jing, as a father, could only wish for.

"Your eldest son is called Jin Zha, your second Mu Zha. Let the third son be called Nezha!" Zi Shou said.

Nezha was still the same Nezha, but his fate had already begun to change.

On the way back to the palace, Kong Xuan asked, "Your Majesty, why did you let Taiyi Zhenren go?"

If His Majesty hadn't given prior instructions, Taiyi Zhenren would already be dead, never to leave Chaoge.

"Taiyi Zhenren is a personal disciple of a Sage. If killed, the trouble would be immense!"

Seeing the disdain on Kong Xuan's face, he could only shake his head inwardly.

How could he not know that Chanjiao's greatest trait was protecting its own? Strike the junior, and the senior would come.

If Kong Xuan killed Taiyi Zhenren, Yuanshi Tianzun, that Sage, would likely act personally.

No matter how strong Kong Xuan's cultivation was, before a Sage, he was still but an ant!

"The Daoist arts I excel in are not suited for that child to cultivate," Kong Xuan said.

Though he wasn't of the Demon Race, he was a Primordial Being, and his methods of cultivation differed greatly from those of the Human Race.

Of course, the main reason was that, by nature, Kong Xuan truly didn't want to teach a three-year-old child.

"That's not difficult. Just hold the title of master; I will personally teach Nezha!" Zi Shou said.

He naturally knew that Nezha had deep ties to Chanjiao and was fated to become a third-generation disciple of that sect.

But regardless of whether Taiyi Zhenren or Chanjiao would let the matter rest, Nezha was now in Chaoge City.

Raised from childhood, instilled with the right values—when the time came, would Nezha still obey Chanjiao's manipulation?

Coincidentally, after unlocking the second layer of the Human Emperor's legacy, he had gained one more chance to pass on a heritage.

What kind of person would Nezha become, taught by him from a young age and receiving the Human Emperor's inheritance?

The next morning at court, preparations for the Imperial Expedition were complete, and Zi Shou directly issued his decree.

He would command the main army himself, with Kong Xuan and Li Jing accompanying the campaign. Prince Yin Jiao would oversee the state, and Grand Tutor Wen Zhong would assist in governance.

After court, he set out lightly equipped, marching swiftly with Kong Xuan and Li Jing toward the North Sea.

Yet, during the send-off, many ministers found it strange—why was there a three-year-old child by the King's side?

That child was naturally Nezha. Since Zi Shou was heading to the North Sea, how could he leave Nezha behind in Chaoge City?

No need to think twice—if Nezha stayed, by the time he returned to Chaoge, the boy would have long been whisked away by Taiyi Zhenren.

Compared to the rest of Great Shang, the North Sea was remote, harsh in environment, and fierce in custom.

Compared to the Four Lords of Great Shang, the Seventy-Two Route Lords of the North Sea were merely minor lords.

Yet these minor lords had kept Grand Tutor Wen campaigning for over a decade, only barely pacifying them in the end.

Zhang Guifang was also a seasoned battlefield commander, yet he suffered a great defeat in the North Sea, allowing the Seventy-Two Route Lords to seize territory and press their advance.

How could mere Seventy-Two Route Lords of the North Sea possess such great ability?