I Am King Zhou, Human Emperor!

He naturally dared not be negligent, preparing to devote himself wholeheartedly to spreading this cultivation method throughout the army.

Having arranged all matters and left Zhang Guifang to handle the aftermath in the North Sea, Zi Shou formally led the army back to court.

At the same time, the Battle of the North Sea was spreading across the Great Shang at lightning speed, shaking the lords of the realm.

"I hear many lords have rebelled, and right at this moment, The King went to the North Sea!"

"Originally, there weren't many rebellious lords, and the various garrison commanders were suppressing them, but now it's getting worse!"

"If this continues, more and more lords will rebel, and the realm will surely fall into chaos!"

For the common folk of Chaoge City, the lords' rebellion was no secret.

Over the past month, this matter had become a hot topic of idle conversation.

The Great Shang had eight hundred lords, and if the smaller ones were counted, the number exceeded a thousand.

At the start, the number of rebellious lords was small, and they were all minor lords with extremely limited strength.

With the garrison commanders suppressing them, these minor lords should have struggled to stir up much trouble.

But at this moment, The King stubbornly insisted on launching an Imperial Expedition to the North Sea.

With The King absent from Chaoge City, the situation within the Great Shang's borders suddenly grew delicate.

To make matters worse, the rebellious lords, who should have been swiftly crushed, were still alive and well.

Not only alive and well, but it was said that several garrison commanders had suffered defeats while suppressing these rebels.

The King's Imperial Expedition to the North Sea, coupled with the failure to suppress the rebellious lords, sent the situation in the Great Shang spiraling downward.

Some lords who had long harbored discontent suddenly saw an opportunity and raised their banners of rebellion.

Two or three lords rebelling today, five or six tomorrow—it became a common occurrence.

In no time, it seemed all the lords of the realm had rebelled, throwing the entire Great Shang into uproar.

If not for Grand Tutor Wen holding down Chaoge City and commanding with steady resolve, even the hearts of the people there might have been lost.

But clearly, many realized that if this continued, the situation would only worsen.

Especially now, with bad rumors spreading about The King's Imperial Expedition.

Some said The King had suffered a crushing defeat in the North Sea, with heavy losses to the army, and the Seventy-Two Route Lords of the North Sea had seized the region.

Others claimed The King had lost the battle, not only suffering heavy casualties but also being gravely wounded himself, perhaps on the verge of death.

Even worse, some said the army had been defeated by the Seventy-Two Route Lords, and The King had fallen into their hands.

It wouldn't be long, they whispered, before the Seventy-Two Route Lords marched on Chaoge City with The King in tow.

Such gossip grew more rampant by the day. Grand Tutor Wen personally intervened to trace the source of the rumors.

But the effect was minimal—the rumors didn't diminish; instead, they multiplied.

For a time, the entire Great Shang was adrift in stormy waters. Even with Grand Tutor Wen holding Chaoge City, stability was no longer assured.

This was evident from the growing number of lords choosing rebellion and the slow progress of the Three-Year Plan.

Chaoge City was gripped by fear. If the heart of the nation was so unsettled, the rest of the realm was surely worse.

But on this day, a lone rider galloped in, not dismounting at the city gates, racing straight toward the Royal Palace.

"Victory in the North Sea! Victory in the North Sea! Victory in the North Sea..."

Shouting at the top of his lungs as he spurred his horse, the vast city of Chaoge erupted into noise.

Countless faces showed astonishment. What had they heard?

Victory in the North Sea?

Did that mean all those rumors were false?

The King had been on his Imperial Expedition for only a month, and he had already won a great victory in the North Sea?

The entire city of Chaoge boiled over. Countless people buzzed with discussion, and the worry on countless faces vanished in an instant.

On that day, the news of the North Sea victory and the execution of the Seventy-Two Route Lords first spread through Chaoge City.

But this was clearly not the end. The news swept through the Great Shang like a hurricane.

"Victory in the North Sea? King Zhou won? How could the Seventy-Two Route Lords of the North Sea fall so quickly?"

"Only a month passed—those Seventy-Two Route Lords were utterly useless!"

"It's over! With the North Sea victory, King Zhou returns to court on the crest of triumph. Which lord would dare rebel now?"

The news of the North Sea victory spread across the Great Shang at breakneck speed. Hearing it, some rejoiced while others grieved.

For those loyal to the Great Shang, the North Sea victory was undoubtedly tremendous news.

With the Seventy-Two Route Lords of the North Sea no longer a distraction, the rebellions within the Great Shang's borders suddenly seemed insignificant.

After all, with such a wise and mighty king, what were a few rebellious lords?

The precarious situation was instantly reversed; the Great Shang was no longer teetering in the wind and rain but stood as firm as Mount Tai.

For the rebellious vassals, the great victory at the North Sea was nothing short of a thunderous calamity, leaving them lost in a daze for a long time.

Originally, King Zhou's Imperial Expedition had seemed to them a foolish move, no different from courting death.

Now? King Zhou returned to court in triumph, and they instantly became clowns jumping about.

Without a second thought, with the North Sea victory, King Zhou's prestige within the Great Shang's borders would surely soar even higher.

More importantly, the North Sea victory had fully proven King Zhou's capability.

With such a wise and martial King Zhou, which vassal would not fear him?

King Zhou didn't even need to act personally; under the encirclement of the army, these rebellious vassals were already grasshoppers after autumn.

Whether joy or sorrow, for everyone, King Zhou's pacification of the North Sea rebellion in less than a month was far too swift.

Swift to an unbelievable degree, catching everyone off guard, and completely reversing the situation within the Great Shang's borders.

Though Zi Shou had not witnessed these circumstances firsthand, he could guess a thing or two.

He had left Chaoge City for a month, yet he was thoroughly informed of the situation within the Great Shang's borders.

This was thanks to Grand Tutor Wen, who daily compiled reports from within the Great Shang and transmitted them to the North Sea via Daoist methods.

Within the Great Shang, the vassals who were going to rebel had mostly already done so; those who hadn't yet wouldn't in the short term.

At this point, it was time to close the net; waiting any longer held little meaning.

For this reason, he had taken Li Jing and Nezha to leave the North Sea first and return to Chaoge City.

Next came the task of dealing with those rebellious vassals, which was no easy matter.

It wasn't that the rebellious vassals were particularly strong, but that behind them were Deities involved.

This was no longer merely a vassal rebellion; it also involved the gods and immortals of the Heavenly Court, much like the North Sea rebellion.

"Heavenly Court? Gods and immortals? It's time they learned what the rules of humanity are!" Zi Shou said coldly.

This time, his target was not just those rebellious vassals, but also to establish the rules of humanity.

Vassals? Gods and immortals?

Within the Great Shang's territory, if you're a dragon, coil up; if you're a tiger, lie down!

He would tell everyone that no matter who they were, within the Great Shang, they must abide by the rules of humanity!

Within the Hall of Heroes of the Human Emperors, the Luck Torch blazed fiercely, and the image of the Phoenix bathing in flames grew ever clearer.

Zi Shou sat cross-legged in the great hall, appearing lost in thought, already immersed in deep cultivation.

A single drop of special essence blood allowed him to pierce through the All Heavens and Myriad Realms, traverse the river of time, and cycle through reincarnation across the ages.

However, though his Primordial Spirit was currently in reincarnation, his physical body was undergoing obvious changes.

Even within the Hall of Heroes of the Human Emperors, the essence of heaven and earth was exceptionally abundant, far surpassing the outside world.

This was thanks to the Luck Torch; as it grew stronger, Zi Shou's cultivation speed increased further.

The essence of heaven and earth surged in, overwhelming and boundless, continuously merging into his body.

Zi Shou's entire body radiated a shimmering treasure light; the essence of heaven and earth was refined into pure essence, tempered into divine essence, strengthening himself.

After Proving Dao and Becoming Emperor, all Five Great Secret Realms within humanity were perfected, and he embarked on the path of transformation toward a Red Dust Immortal.

He did not need to reverse live nine lifetimes, but instead undergo nine transformations, like a divine silkworm shedding its skin—each time a qualitative leap.

He had already transformed once, living out a second life in reverse, and was now undergoing the transformation to live out a third life.

Suddenly, Zi Shou's physical body changed; his blood energy withdrew, and his flesh began to decay.