I Am King Zhou, Human Emperor!

"Hang the corpse of the Spirit of the Qi Water River high for all to see, as a warning to others!" Zi Shou said solemnly.

Only then did the stunned ministers come to their senses, their eyes filled with fear as they looked at The King.

Though the ministers were not as ignorant as commoners, witnessing The King personally slay the Spirit of the Qi Water River still left them profoundly shocked.

That was one of the Immortals and Gods! And it had been killed just like that?

Shang Rong stood there blankly, unable to recover for a long while. Everything he had seen today had struck him especially hard.

When the Spirit of the Qi Water River's corpse was hung high in the air, it caused an enormous uproar among the people.

"Is that the Spirit of the Qi Water River? The King personally killed it?"

"Didn't you hear? The Spirit of the Qi Water River caused the Qi River to flood without permission, so The King executed it!"

"That was one of the Immortals and Gods! Aren't Immortals and Gods omnipotent? How could it have been slain?"

To countless commoners, the Spirit of the Qi Water River was a Deity, an existence they worshiped and even bowed before.

Immortals and Gods were omnipotent and possessed unimaginable divine power. How could they possibly be killed?

Yet the truth lay before them. The Deity they regarded as supreme had now been separated from its corpse.

The impact on ordinary people was undoubtedly immense, and their understanding of the world changed as a result.

So Immortals and Gods were not truly omnipotent!

So Immortals and Gods, like ordinary people, could die!

Indeed, once the Spirit of the Qi Water River had been beheaded and its corpse hung high, it seemed even more pathetic than an ordinary person!

Their reverence for Immortals and Gods was slowly fading, and the mindset of countless people had already changed.

Was an Immortal or God that could die like an ordinary person worth worshiping?

Was an Immortal or God whose corpse was hung high after death worth bowing before?

"Your Majesty personally slew the Spirit of the Qi Water River. This is truly cause for celebration!" Grand Tutor Wen said, his face full of gratification.

Although he was more surprised than anything by the king before him, that did not stop him from becoming more satisfied the more he looked.

How could he fail to understand the effect of such decisiveness—of personally taking action?

"I must trouble Grand Tutor again. The Mountain God of Taihang Mountain is equally beyond redemption!" Zi Shou said.

Logically speaking, with his current strength, he should have been incapable of killing the Spirit of the Qi Water River.

After all, it was a Deity appointed by the Jade Emperor. Its strength might not have been exceptional, but it should have surpassed the realm of mortals.

In other words, no matter how weak the Spirit of the Qi Water River was, it should still have been at the level of an Immortal.

He had only just entered the Four Extremes Secret Realm. The gap between him and an Immortal was enormous. Even if the Spirit of the Qi Water River had stood still, he could not have killed it.

But under Grand Tutor Wen's suppression, the Spirit of the Qi Water River was no different from a loach. Naturally, he could kill it with a casual stroke.

That was precisely why he had acted personally. Only if he killed it himself would it be fully justified.

He was the king of Great Shang, the current Human Sovereign of the Human Race. A Deity appointed by the Heavenly Court was killed, so what?

Not even the Jade Emperor, much less a Saint, would have any objection after learning of this matter.

"Please wait, Your Majesty. I shall bring the Mountain God of Taihang Mountain here at once!"

Grand Tutor Wen patted the Jade Qilin beneath him and, before the watching crowd, instantly soared into the sky.

In only a moment, Grand Tutor Wen returned and casually tossed a little kitten before the ministers.

Zi Shou looked closely. This was no kitten at all—it was clearly a White Tiger.

It was simply far too small, making it look like a little kitten.

Clearly, this was the Mountain God of Taihang Mountain. Like the Spirit of the Qi Water River before it, it had been suppressed by Grand Tutor Wen.

"Spare me! I am one of the Immortals and Gods appointed by the Heavenly Court. If you kill me, the Jade Emperor will surely be enraged!"

The Mountain God of Taihang Mountain had evidently learned that the Spirit of the Qi Water River had been slain. The moment it saw Zi Shou, it began begging for mercy.

However, perhaps because it already knew its fate, it could not help but threaten him even while pleading.

Zi Shou could not be bothered to waste words on the Mountain God of Taihang Mountain. His blade rose and fell, and the Mountain God of Taihang Mountain was likewise separated from its corpse.

After likewise hanging the Mountain God of Taihang Mountain's corpse high in the air, Zi Shou led the ministers in offering sacrifices to the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors.

This was only proper. Reporting today's events to the Human Ancestor left no room for anyone to object.

Of course, Zi Shou had other considerations as well. What had happened today was far from simple.

After all, it involved the Jade Emperor and the Heavenly Court. This matter could not possibly end so easily.

When the sky fell, the tall bore it up. For the Human Race, the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors were undoubtedly those "tall ones."

Offering sacrifices to the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors and reporting today's events was equivalent to preparing for any eventuality.

After settling everything, Zi Shou led the ministers back to Zhaoge, leaving behind countless chattering commoners.

There was no need to think about it. Once today's events spread, they would surely cause a tremendous stir.

According to Bi Gan, within Great Shang Territory, Deities were not uncommon among famous mountains, great rivers, and vast waterways.

The Human Race often offered sacrifices to these Deities and had even built temples for them, where incense never ceased burning.

Today, he had slain the Spirit of the Qi Water River and the Mountain God of Taihang Mountain. What would the other Deities do?

Would they become anxious and never dare act recklessly again?

Would the people grow less reverent toward Deities because of this? Would the incense offerings to those Deities be affected?

Moreover, Deities appointed by the Heavenly Court had been slain. As master of the Heavenly Court, how would the Jade Emperor react?

Everything would only become clear after the events of today had time to ferment.

As the central figure in this affair, Zi Shou returned to Chaoge City and immediately made his way back to the Inner Palace.

When he had personally slain the Spirit of the Qi Water River and the Mountain God of Taihang Mountain today, he had sensed that the Luck Torch had undergone some changes.

I didn't run into Su Daji today. Did she learn that Grand Tutor Wen has returned? Zi Shou thought to himself.

Since his first "chance encounter" with Su Daji, he had "run into" her seven or eight times in the Inner Palace during this period.

Every time, he had struggled for quite a while before barely managing to escape Su Daji.

If this continued, he truly did not know how long he could hold out. Perhaps one day, he would fall for it.

Yet today, he returned all the way to his sleeping chambers without Su Daji appearing even once.

On further thought, Su Daji had likely learned of today's events and was currently panicking.

Soon, Zi Shou returned to his chambers and entered the Hall of Heroes of the Human Emperors.

The moment he entered the Hall of Heroes of the Human Emperors, the first thing that met his eyes was the fiercely burning Luck Torch.

When he had first entered the Hall of Heroes of the Human Emperors, the Luck Torch had only been a tiny flame, appearing as though it could go out at any moment.

Later, after he issued the Edict of Self-Reproach, the Luck Torch burned more brightly, but it was still only a tiny flame.

However, as the Edict of Self-Reproach spread throughout Great Shang, that tiny flame gradually grew and no longer showed any sign of extinguishing at any moment.

As the Luck Torch burned ever brighter, his cultivation speed also grew faster, nearly doubling.

Without that, he could never have cultivated to the Four Extremes Secret Realm in such a short time.

This time, however, after he slew the Deities, the Luck Torch underwent an obvious transformation.

The original tiny flame had vanished, replaced by a ball of fire the size of a fist.

Moreover, the flames swayed in the wind and shifted through various forms, as if they were nurturing something.

This undoubtedly showed that his decision to kill the Spirit of the Qi Water River and the Mountain God of Taihang Mountain had been correct.

"When the Human Sovereign became the Son of Heaven, it was probably because the Heavenly Court ultimately overwhelmed the Human Race in the Heavenly War!"

Now that he was truly within the Investiture of the Gods Calamity, many matters were like flowers glimpsed through mist, just as with this incident.

Since transmigrating here, he had been eager to increase his strength, and the only threats he had guarded against were Xiqi and the Exposition Sect.

After all, those two had directly overthrown Great Shang, established Great Zhou, and caused him, King Zhou, to lose his life.

But after this god-slaying incident, he suddenly realized that the Heavenly Court was also an enemy rather than a friend.

Or, more precisely, between the Heavenly Court and the Human Race, one side was destined to overwhelm the other.

After the Canonization of the Gods, the Human Sovereign became the Son of Heaven. This undoubtedly showed that the Heavenly Court had overwhelmed the Human Race.

Once the Heavenly Court overwhelmed the Human Race, the Human Race's Fortune would inevitably drain away, weakening the Human Race.

The effects brought about by his god-slaying this time had changed the people's view of Deities, undoubtedly curbing the Heavenly Court's development.

The brighter the Luck Torch burned, the stronger his own fortune became. As the Human Sovereign, his fortune was already closely tied to that of the Human Race.

By killing the Spirit of the Qi Water River and the Mountain God of Taihang Mountain, he had effectively strengthened the Human Race's Fortune and benefited from it as well.

"The Luck Torch has changed, and I've actually gained another chance to draw a Myriad Heavens Treasure!"