Chapter 912 Violating the Laws of the Immortal Dao
Under the observation of the judges, the three days of the first phase of the evaluation quickly passed.
The cities controlled by the trainees, along with the establishment of new Law Edicts, became thriving and prosperous.
And after these three days, the performance of each trainee was almost exactly as the judges had predicted.`
Lie Jinghong, with absolute technical strength and his Dharma Realm background, ranked first in both the diffusion speed of the Law Edict True Domain and the Thought Tide amplification, receiving a grade 2 Law Edict potential evaluation.
Di Xuan ranked closely behind, with a grade 3 Law Edict potential evaluation.
As for Zhang Yu, who had shocked all the judges during the review process with his blank Law Scroll and Expiration Date Law Edict, he did not show any outstanding performance throughout these three days.
The Expiration Date Law Edict, the Law Edict established by Zhang Yu… seemed to be separated from all the Material Humans in the miniature city by a barrier, making it difficult for them to influence each other.
Whether it was the diffusion speed of his Law Edict or the Thought Tide amplification, Zhang Yu ranked dead last in everything, hardly resembling the performance a third-generation Law Edict should have.
It was under these circumstances that the second phase of the evaluation officially began.
Fa Liuyuan, who was watching this scene, thought to himself, “As these three days passed, the gap in Thought Tide amplification… between Zhang Yu and the other trainees has grown wider and wider. By now, it’s already a difference of heaven and abyss.”
“Now, what exactly do you plan to do?”
The fourth day of the formal Law Establishment. At midnight.
Zhang Yu suddenly opened his eyes. “The second phase has finally begun.”
It was also at this moment that Zhang Yu could feel that the force that had originally sealed him and the entire miniature city away had now completely vanished without a trace.
At the same time, the miniature city below also bustled with activity, as countless miniature people left the city in all directions.
Zhang Yu knew that in the implanted memories of these miniature Material Humans, the cities across the entire landmass were interconnected and had always maintained economic and trade relations in the past.
As for the three days of being sealed, it was regarded as common sense by the miniature people, and no one dwelled on it.
Now, with the end of the seal, the flow of traffic, trade, and information in all the cities resumed. The countless miniature cities across the entire landmass… were once again connected as a whole.
At the exact moment the seal ended, with a single thought from Zhang Yu, the Grotto-Heaven force emerged behind him.
Countless puppet strongmen surged wildly out from the Immortal Grotto-Heaven, shooting off in all directions like lightning.
Zhang Yu understood very well in his heart that this starting day of the assessment’s second phase… was the most dangerous day of his entire assessment.
“Just as second-generation Law Edicts can suppress first-generation Law Edicts, third-generation Law Edicts can suppress second-generation Law Edicts. The massive technological gap causes the outdated previous-generation Law Edicts to directly lose their effectiveness when facing advanced technology.”
“And between third-generation Law Edicts, unless there is a massive disparity, they originally shouldn’t be able to suppress each other.”
“But as it happens, my Law Edict Expiration Date can hardly receive any Thought Tide amplification before being coordinated with other Law Edict Domains.”
“That is to say… my Law Edict’s strength is currently the lowest here, and it is highly likely to be suppressed the moment it encounters another.”
“Right now is the moment my Law Edict is at its most fragile and most unsafe.”
Facing this danger, Zhang Yu knew his most pressing matter was… gathering intelligence.
At this moment, Zhang Yu’s figure flashed, and he had already left the miniature city beneath his feet.
After entering the second stage, with the lockdown ended, the trainees were now able to move freely.
It was just that the vast majority of the trainees would not move casually at this moment, but instead put their whole hearts… into seizing every second to fully expand their Law Edict True Domains.
Messages sent by the puppet strongmen emerged before Zhang Yu’s eyes, and he quickly gained an understanding of the surrounding situation.
“While the others are putting all their effort into expanding their Law Edict True Domains, I need to first scout out the intelligence on the entire map, especially the distribution of Law Edicts on this landmass, and then find the most suitable place for my own development.”
Zhang Yu thought to himself, “Right now, on this entire continent, apart from the cities occupied by the trainees, there are still a large number of miniature cities that have not yet been covered by the trainees’ Law Edicts.”
“If the first stage was about cultivating Law Edicts within the miniature city assigned to oneself.”
“Then the upcoming second stage will first usher in a race to grab land.”
“All the trainees will do their utmost to expand the size of their Law Edict’s True Domain, gaining the compliance and recognition of more Material Humans. Then, they will be able to obtain a higher Thought Tide amplification, making their own Law Edicts stronger and spreading them even faster.”
Zhang Yu had already made his decision regarding this.
“I need to find the most suitable place on this entire continent for my development right now.”
“First, the population and cities must be dense enough.”
“Secondly, it must be far enough away from the others.”
“Especially far enough away from people like Lie Jinghong and Di Xuan…”
Zhang Yu understood in his heart that the other trainees… even if they encountered someone else’s Law Edicts, they wouldn’t be afraid. Most people’s Law Edicts had no conflict with one another, and there might even be situations of uplifting and enhancement.
However, for his own Law Edict in the early stage of this second phase, if he didn’t want to suffer suppression… then he absolutely could not encounter the Law Edict True Domains of the other trainees at this moment.
In the next instant, Zhang Yu’s Void-Refined Primordial Spirit shot out like lightning.
“The puppet strongmen can only observe the positions of the other trainees and roughly estimate the locations of their Law Edict Domains.”
“I still need to dispatch the Void-Refined Primordial Spirit to more accurately observe the hidden Immortal Qi, and subsequently observe the coverage areas of the various Law Edict Domains.”
“And apart from the basic map information…”
In the time that followed, Zhang Yu’s 64-fold thoughts operated and powered at full capacity, controlling the Void-Refined Primordial Spirit and the puppet strongmen… deploying them across the entire landmass.
“The content of everyone’s Law Edicts, the operational information of everyone’s Law Edict True Domains.”
“And the living data of countless living beings under each Law Edict True Domain… gather it all for me.”
In the blink of an eye, Zhang Yu had seen the situations in city after city through the observation of countless puppet strongmen.
He saw the countless conflicts between humans and artifacts, and the waves of unemployment under the “Artifact Spirit Human Rights”…
He saw the endless make-up classes under “One Certificate, Temporarily Certified”…
He also saw the countless crowds worrying over the taxes for permanent certificates under “Once certified, always certified”…
Zhang Yu understood in his heart that these sufferings, these pressures, these crises… would be the best nourishment for his new Law Edict.
He could already imagine that in those blank cities not yet enveloped by Law Edicts, when the miniature humans inside saw the changes brought by the new Law Edicts through the Spirit Realm, the Dharma Realm, and various other channels, how deeply they would disapprove of them.
And the more they disapproved of the new Law Edicts, the more they would support and approve of his “Expiration Date Law Edict” when they encountered it.
Fu Ji laughed: “Hahahaha, excellent! The more those guys stir up trouble and use their Law Edicts to scourge the common people, the more afraid and terrified those Material Humans who haven’t yet been enveloped by their Law Edicts will be. And the more they will support our Expiration Date Law Edict after encountering us.”
Auspicious God said, “Boss Fu Ji has great foresight! Just let them be as miserable as possible. The more miserable they are, the more the remaining people will support our Law Edict!”
Watching Zhang Yu’s actions, Fa Liuyuan thought to himself, Shifting positions to avoid being suppressed by the Law Edicts of others? The idea is right, but just doing that isn’t enough.
As long as time goes on, all the miniature cities across the entire land will eventually be covered by the other trainees’ Law Edicts.
Relying solely on running away won’t work, because in the end, there will inevitably be nowhere left to run.
Fa Liuyuan frowned slightly and looked at the status of the other trainees.
Just as Zhang Yu was rapidly moving and shifting positions, almost all the other numerous trainees were seizing the time to spread their Law Edicts.
In Yue Qinglan’s city, as the Minimum Lifespan Law Edict continued to expand, more than half of the city had already been enveloped within it.
Job seekers fled in all directions, desperately trying to escape the coverage of this Law Edict.
Employee A: “I don’t want to live this long!”
Employee B: “So long! Who can afford to live that long?”
Company Leader: “Not a single one of you is allowed to die!”
Yue Qinglan let out a long laugh: “Well said!”
“I shall increase your lifespan!”
With a single command from Yue Qinglan, the power of the Law Edict violently activated, and countless employees were dragged away to have their lifespans forcibly extended.
Companies united, sending their employees into the area covered by the Law Edict.
Relying on the Law Edict’s influence on the Thought Tide, the more people obeyed, the more they agreed, so the number of people agreeing with the “Minimum Lifespan” skyrocketed.
Yue Qinglan could feel that more and more people in the entire city were supporting her.
The surging Thought Tide was like layers of waves, constantly uplifting her Law Edict, accelerating the expansion of her True Domain.
“Who dares speak of dying early?”
“Who dares speak of suicide?”
“With me here! All the common people in the world must live vigorously and well!”
Yue Qinglan suddenly stretched out her palm, as if she wanted to turn the Law Edict True Domain… into a giant palm, holding the entire city in it.
And in the judges’ observation, the population percentage covered by Yue Qinglan’s Law Edict True Domain was constantly rising.
0.52%!
0.53%!
In the judges’ office, on a giant light screen, with the start of the second phase, a ranking containing all the trainees had already emerged.
And along with the rise in the data of Yue Qinglan’s population percentage, her ranking also sprinted upwards, having already reached 7th place.
With Yue Qinglan going all out, this number would take 100% population percentage as its ultimate goal, launching waves of charges towards the first place ranking.
“Keep pushing forward.”
Yi Yaosheng, a judge from the pharmaceutical company, thought to himself, “At least push into the top five for me! Yue Qinglan, do not disappoint the heavy investment placed upon you.”
One day later.
The city beneath Cang Juehuan’s feet had already been completely covered by his Law Edict yesterday.
At this very moment, more and more Material Humans and artifact spirits were migrating to other cities.
Simply because as more and more artifact spirits obtained human rights, the number of job seekers in the entire city skyrocketed, subsequently bringing about wave after wave of unemployment.
However, due to the effects of the Law Edict, the more everyone obeyed, the more they agreed with it, and no one felt that there was anything wrong with this.
“Artifact Spirit Human Rights are the general trend! If I don’t resign, who will?”
“Let’s go to places where artifact spirits don’t have human rights yet; it will be easier to find jobs there.”
In order to find work, the unemployed had no choice but to leave the city and head to other miniature cities on the continent.
Meanwhile, in the Spirit Realm and Dharma Realm, news regarding Artifact Spirit Human Rights was spreading more widely.
Cang Juehuan could feel that, every single moment… countless artifact spirits were swarming over, just to arrive at his city and obtain human rights within his Dharma Realm True Domain.
“I bestow human rights upon you!”
With a point of his finger, Cang Juehuan unleashed the surging power of the Law Edict, granting human rights to the countless artifact spirits that came before him.
As artifact spirits continuously poured in, the unemployed population turned into an Unemployment Tide migrating outward.
Cang Juehuan’s Law Edict True Domain, which had already covered the entire city… spread outward like wave after wave of turbulent tsunamis, carrying the terrifying Unemployment Tide.
Meanwhile, under the observation of the judges, as Cang Juehuan’s Law Edict True Domain continuously expanded, the population it enveloped also experienced explosive growth.
1.56%!
At this moment, Cang Juehuan ranked 6th on the population percentage leaderboard.
Day 3 of the second stage!
The number of cities enveloped by Kuang Zhiqian’s Law Edict had already reached three!
Within these cities, there were people everywhere taking a gamble to increase their work efficiency. Even within major companies, it was now a requirement to gamble on every work task.
Relying on the Dharma Realm, countless cultivators gambled while they worked. The more they wanted to work, the more they wanted to gamble; the more they wanted to gamble, the more they wanted to work. They even went so far as to pay to work overtime and pay to gamble.
Kuang Zhiqian could feel his Law Edict True Domain continuously expanding. The population under its coverage was wildly increasing and skyrocketing with every passing moment.
“What would my ranking be now…?”
“Top five?”
“Or perhaps… top three?”
Kuang Zhiqian felt like a warrior sprinting on a running track. The powerhouses ahead of him, whom he was relentlessly chasing, were most likely Di Xuan and Lie Jinghong.
“Kuang Zhiqian… 5th place.” Bu Yuangui glanced at Kuang Zhiqian’s ranking, then continued looking further up.
“The gap with 4th place is getting bigger and bigger.”
“It is not that Kuang Zhiqian is too slow. With the Thought Tide amplification, he is actually getting faster and faster.”
“The gap is widening because the top four are simply too fast.”
Bu Yuangui swept his gaze over the names ahead and thought to himself, “4th place, Bu Yingshu, 3.07% of the population.”
“3rd place, Di Xuan, 3.21% of the population.”
Over Bu Yuangui’s 3 days of observation, Bu Yingshu and Di Xuan… not only possessed formidable technical strength, but they had also pinpointed each other’s locations at the very first moment, and then… joined forces!
Like Zhang Yu, they didn’t spread their Law Edict immediately; instead, they chose to change locations.
Targeting the center point between them to meet, they overlapped the two great Law Edict True Domains of “Once Certified, Temporarily Certified” and “Once Certified, Always Certified”.
“If you can’t afford the tax for a permanent certificate, go take the exam to get certified.”
“Those with money don’t need to prepare for exams; they can pay to buy a permanent certificate and pay the permanent certificate tax.”
Bu Yuangui sighed, “These two great Law Edicts, whether rich or poor… have already included all groups of people without any omissions.”
“As long as one has cultivation and a Realm Certificate, they must abide by these Law Edicts and acknowledge these Law Edicts.”
“Mutually beneficial and mutually uplifting, their natural spreading speed and the growth of their Thought Tide amplification all far exceed those of ordinary people.”
“But…”
The 6th day of the second stage.
When Bu Yingshu and Di Xuan’s Law Edict True Domain spread wildly along the way, their Thought Tide amplification grew stronger and stronger, their spreading speed became faster and faster, and their population percentage had already broken through 10%.
Bu Yingshu had already observed it right in front of the expansion of their Law Edict True Domain.
A massive area, city after city… all enveloped by multiple layers of Law Edict True Domains.
Bu Yingshu frowned. “That is…”
On the other side, Di Xuan also observed this scene and said, “It’s Lie Jinghong’s Law Edict True Domain, as well as those guys uplifting him.”
The more Bu Yingshu observed, the more alarmed she felt. She suddenly discovered that in almost every direction her Law Edict True Domain could expand into, Lie Jinghong’s Law Edict was present.
Originally, she felt that she and Di Xuan were already very fast, but Lie Jinghong ahead seemed…
Without hesitation, Di Xuan and Bu Yingshu continued to expand their Law Edicts, instantly plunging their True Domains headfirst into Lie Jinghong’s territory.
Their “Once Certified, Temporarily Certified” and “Once Certified, Always Certified” did not conflict with Lie Jinghong’s “Dharma Realm Obligation”, so they didn’t have to worry about obstruction.
But upon entering it, over the next few days… as their True Domains continued to expand, they still couldn’t see the end of Lie Jinghong’s territory.
It was as if the other party was a runner far ahead of them; even if they sprinted with all their might, they still couldn’t catch a glimpse of his back.
“Second place, 17%…” Fa Liuyuan watched this scene and thought to himself, “Moreover, the gap with those behind is continuing to widen. This is no longer a gap in the content of the Law Edicts, or even in Law Edict techniques.”
“This is a gap brought about by a qualitative change.”
Fa Liuyuan looked toward Lie Jinghong’s position and saw… an endless stream of hidden Immortal Qi surging out from his body.
This heavenly chosen from the Dharma Realm Dao Lineage, who had been evaluated as having second-class potential, was actually producing an endless supply of hidden Immortal Qi at this moment.
Furthermore, it was hidden Immortal Qi that had been modified by him, capable of being used to form Lie Jinghong’s Law Edict True Domain and expand the domain’s range.
“If others are harmonizing hidden Immortal Qi to grow their True Domains,”
“Then he is directly producing and manufacturing his own True Domain.”
“The efficiency naturally cannot be mentioned in the same breath.”
Fa Liuyuan sighed in his heart, “Is this the ability of the legendary ultra-high-danger Dao Seed…?”
“Being able to create something out of nothing, using one’s own magic power to simulate and generate any known energy — this is an ultra-high-danger ability that could theoretically shake the foundation of Kunxu, trigger a Financial Tsunami, or even cause a Great Tribulation.”
Fa Liuyuan knew that the “any” in the definition of the other party’s ability truly meant any energy they had ever absorbed.
And this could be said to have already violated the fundamental laws of the Immortal Dao.
“That’s exactly why it is called an ultra-high-danger Dao Seed ability. It belongs to the derivative rule changes brought about by the Dao Seed and Dao Lineage.”
“This is also a characteristic of ultra-high-danger Dao Seeds; every single one of them can trigger a change in heavenly principles and violate the laws of the Immortal Dao.”
On the other side, Bu Yuangui commented, “Lie Jinghong has top-tier innate talent, a top-tier background, and top-tier investments. In addition to the uplifting he received for his Dharma Realm Obligation Law, theoretically, his Law Edict can be uplifted by any Law Edict of the Myriad Laws Sect.”
“Besides that, with his heaven-defying ability, Lie Jinghong should have originally been the designated number one in potential for this generation.”
“But right now, he is only ranked second.”
Bu Yuangui looked at the name ranked first, then glanced at Fa Liuyuan, a hint of profound meaning flashing in his eyes, “Truly unexpected.”
“Did the Reformist Faction actually hide such a person?”
Day 10 of the second phase.
Lie Jinghong’s Law Edict Domain was still continuously expanding forward at a speed far exceeding everyone else’s, like a heaven-devouring and earth-swallowing tsunami intent on encompassing all living beings within it.
But no matter how Lie Jinghong’s True Domain surged, advanced, sprinted, or chased, it simply could not catch up to the Law Edict True Domain that was similarly expanding ahead of him.
And this situation… had remained exactly like this ever since he encountered the other party three days ago.
“Tai Yuebai…”
Various information about Tai Yuebai flashed through Lie Jinghong’s mind, along with what he had learned after crashing headlong into the other party’s Law Edict Domain… the content of the other party’s Law Edict.
“It’s not the money distribution he promoted during training, but Dual Rest?”
“What immense audacity.”
However, what surprised Lie Jinghong the most was not the content of the other party’s Law Edict.
“Why can he… also expand his True Domain by producing hidden Immortal Qi just like me?”
Lie Jinghong was not the only one shocked and surprised. As more and more trainees noticed Tai Yuebai’s Law Edict Domain expanding at an astonishing speed, an increasing number of people also realized… Tai Yuebai was producing hidden Immortal Qi.
And under the gaze of numerous trainees, after chasing for three days and three nights, Lie Jinghong finally couldn’t hold back and asked his question.
“Tai Yuebai! Why are you also able to create hidden Immortal Qi?”
Looking at the Dharma Realm Projection before him, Tai Yuebai said indifferently, “Lie Jinghong, did you want to say… this is a unique ability of your [One Qi Swallows the Universe]?”
Lie Jinghong’s gaze narrowed: “How do you know this name?!”
Tai Yuebai said with a proud face, “The reason is very simple, and you should be clear about it too. That is…”
“I also possess this Dao Seed Ability.”
Hearing Tai Yuebai’s words, some people looked confused, while those who knew about Dao Seeds, especially those who knew about the ultra-high-danger Dao Seed in Lie Jinghong’s possession, were full of shock.
Since he had to expose his ability during the Law Establishment Ceremony, Tai Yuebai hadn’t planned to hide it any longer. At this moment, he spoke openly, “Are you wondering why I can possess the same Dao Seed Ability as you?”
“The answer is also very simple.”
“I can replicate Dao Seeds.”
Hearing this, Lie Jinghong’s heart shook again: “Replicate?! You… have the Book of Dao Seeds?!”
Tai Yuebai gave a slight nod and said with a look of arrogance, “That’s right.”
At the same time, he thought to himself, “It’s a pity that what I possess is not the Book of Dao Seeds but the Book of Seed Theft. A difference of one word, but worlds apart.”
He understood in his heart that compared to the stealing of the Book of Seed Theft, the replication of the Book of Dao Seeds was more acceptable to people.
“Anyway, those who can tell won’t say anything, and those who would speak up can’t tell the difference. The Book of Dao Seeds is my best cover.”
And since the matter was out in the open, Tai Yuebai no longer hid anything. Instead, he declared proudly, “Dao Seeds don’t have copyrights, so replicating them isn’t illegal.”
“To tell you the truth, out of all the trainees, you aren’t the only one whose Dao Seed I’ve replicated.”
“I should also thank you all. Otherwise, how could I have reached the peak and looked down upon the masses?”
“My Law Edict potential will be above all of yours!”
Meanwhile, over the past few days, Fa Liuyuan had been constantly monitoring the changes on Zhang Yu’s end.