When two blossoms bloomed, each told its own tale.
While Yu Chen followed the Nüwa Sovereign in learning the art of mending the heavens, Yi Yin, having returned to the Central Plains, also rebuilt his intelligence network.
Just as he had seen in the future, Dajia maintained the image of a wise sovereign for ten years, gathering the Shang Dynasty's power into his own hands. His cultivation rose steadily, and he began relying on his strength and authority to indulge his desires and revel without restraint. He also began promoting and demoting nobles and officials at will.
Holding the King-Subduing Golden Whip, Yi Yin was one of the few individuals in the Shang Dynasty not suppressed by Dajia's national fortune and destiny. After observing him at close range, Yi Yin was startled to discover that Dajia was actually undergoing tribulation.
He used the surging seven emotions and six desires to rise up, tempering divine power within his heart.
For the Shang Dynasty, this could also be considered a good thing.
Now that the Five Directional Gods had withdrawn to Firecloud Heaven, humanity's influence in the Heavenly Realm had greatly diminished.
It was far more difficult for the Shang Dynasty than it had been for the Xia Dynasty to retain sovereignty over its sacrifices while preserving its own status.
One could see as much from the fates of several sovereigns before Dajia.
Yi Yin even suspected that, had the Jade Purity Dao and the Highest Purity Dao not stood at the forefront after the Shang Dynasty's founding, Dajia might not have been able to sit securely in his current position at all.
If Dajia could strengthen himself, it would greatly benefit both the stabilization of national fortune and the preservation of sovereignty.
In the end, Yi Yin chose the future he