5: Chapter 5 A Single Thought Saves the World

"If I use the giant sword left by the Cultivator as the Otherworldly Artifact and trace the Ascension ceremony around it..."

"...then can I ascend to the world where those two Cultivators are?"

Shen Moyan conceived a bold idea in his heart... Time flew by thereafter.

Shen Moyan began to implement his own plan.

Having lived two lives, he remained unperturbed by everything.

At 16, due to Shen Moyan's interference, the Righteous vs. Demonic War broke out early. Shen Moyan entered the Alliance, disguised himself as a recluse living in the mountains and forests, and with absolute strength, overpowered the masters of all the Schools to become the Alliance Leader.

Shen Moyan, with his exquisite disguise techniques and unparalleled Lightness Skill in the world, served as the Alliance Leader while feigning cooperation with Ren Wuchang to jointly plot Ascension, playing both sides.

On the final battlefield, Shen Moyan decisively struck against Ren Wuchang, using his head to lay the foundation for his own prestige.

Afterwards, he searched within the Alliance for his trusted aides from his previous life, rebuilding his power base.

At 17, Emperor Taikang summoned him to the capital, attempting to appoint him as Grand Preceptor, the teacher of the Crown Prince. Shen Moyan calmly accepted.

Then, Shen Moyan imitated the handwriting of the reigning Emperor Taikang and sent a letter to the northern tribes, filled with mockery of the barbarians, infuriating Baturu.

As the Great Qǐ Kingdom had just experienced the chaos of the Demon Cult, the intertwining of opportunity and rage caused Baturu to launch the war ahead of schedule.

However, this time, Shen Moyan did not rush to aid General Zhenbei. Instead, he waited until the other had fought to exhaustion and died in battle before leading the Martial Forest Volunteer Army to the northern border.

Possessing Peak cultivation this time, Shen Moyan expended no effort, simply slapping Baturu to death.

Afterwards, he followed his actions from his previous life, driving out the barbarian Tartars and restoring the prestige of the Great Qǐ Kingdom.

During this period, his confidants left in the capital began spreading rumors, promoting the plane apocalypse theory.

They spread rumors saying that Demon Cult Leader Ren Wuchang's initial declaration of war against the Five Mountains and Ten Sects had hidden reasons; the Ascension ceremony he set up was intended to leave this world.

Because villains were in power, the entire plane was about to suffer divine punishment. Only a destined great man could save the world from peril.

The theory of the plane spread throughout the entire world. For a time, the nobility in the capital were panic-stricken.

The idea of the divine right of kings shattered, ignorance was first broken. Hidden dragons across the land grew restless, and rebellions under the banner of salvation sprang up everywhere.

Under Shen Moyan's arrangement, rumors of the 'Supreme Martial Artist as Savior' theory began circulating throughout the Great Qǐ Kingdom.

This theory held that Shen Moyan, the Supreme Martial Artist, was the one truly mandated by heaven. His supreme strength, eradication of the Demon Cult, and expulsion of the Tartars were the best proof.

Upon hearing this, Emperor Taikang flew into a rage and intended to lead the imperial guards to surround and kill Shen Moyan. However, Shen Moyan single-handedly shattered the army, terrifying the emperor into complete incontinence.

At 18, with the change of imperial power, Shen Moyan led the Martial Forest forces to quell the disturbances across the land.

At 20, relying on his strength and prestige, Shen Moyan became the absolute dictator within the Great Qǐ territory, changed the dynasty, and established the national title as Great Yan.

At 21, under Shen Moyan's governance, the Great Yan Kingdom began to recuperate. The people's taxes were greatly reduced, and the prestige of him, the Martial Emperor of Great Yan, grew higher each day.

At 25, seeing the world had recuperated sufficiently, Shen Moyan finally began to truly execute his plan: building up strength and reserves, and preparing a great army.

That same year, the three armies of Great Yan marched north into the wilderness to exterminate the barbarians.

The Martial Emperor of Great Yan personally led the army, while the capital's affairs were left to his Trusted Ministers.

Victory reports from the front lines came frequently. For a time, the Martial Emperor of Great Yan's status in the hearts of the common people rapidly transformed, gradually becoming deified.

At 27, Shen Moyan sought out Feng Shui Master to investigate whether underground caves existed in the northern border region.

Because in his previous life during the world's destruction, the northern border region suffered the least damage; perhaps underground Caverns could avoid catastrophe.

At 28, Shen Moyan was overjoyed, finally finding a large natural cavern.

At 29, Great Yan moved its capital to the northern border wilderness.

Due to years of fermentation of the apocalypse theory and the approaching deadline, the common people within the Central Plains were not particularly surprised. Coupled with their personal worship of Shen Moyan, seventy percent of the populace followed the capital move.

Regarding Shen Moyan's attitude, those aristocratic families and powerful nobles remained unmoved, all believing he was mad and sneering at his decisions.

For this capital relocation, Shen Moyan only brought his confidants and important officials.

Anyway, the fewer people the better. He felt nothing if these parasitic, idle gluttons died.

He wanted to persuade the Five Mountains and Ten Sects to leave with him, but was refused.

The Central Plains are the root of the Martial Forest. If one leaves the root, how can it still be called the Martial Forest?

Regarding this, Shen Moyan did not force the issue. He only forcibly conscripted some Disciples who had obtained the true teachings of the Five Mountains and Ten Sects to accompany him.

At 35, the Martial Emperor of Great Yan successfully forced the capital relocation with his confidants and people, settling the timber, books, and weapons brought from the Central Plains on the Ulan Grassland.

At 36, a small city was built within the northern border Caverns. However, due to the extreme cold of the north, many people could not acclimatize, fell ill, and died. Furthermore, Shen Moyan discovered the cavern space was limited and could not accommodate too many people.

At 37, Shen Moyan announced that any people who wished to return to the Central Plains could leave, and he would not stop them.

At 38, Shen Moyan learned that a new regime had long been re-established in the Central Plains, with the national title Great Liang.

At 39, the four million people of the Great Yan Kingdom barely adapted to the nomadic life on the grassland.

At 40, Shen Moyan, finding the Caverns insufficiently deep and too few in number, drove the people to dig downwards, adding several more Caverns.

At 41, Shen Moyan went to the new dynasty and forced the reigning Emperor of Great Liang to open the granaries and transport grain to the Great Yan Kingdom in the north. From then on, the Great Liang Kingdom would deliver a batch of provisions to the Great Yan Kingdom in the north every year.

At 42, Shen Moyan extensively cultivated crops like Yellow Chives that grow in darkness, established Insect Pupae Breeding Bases, simulating whether people could barely fill their stomachs living in sunless caves.

Shen Moyan stockpiled all provisions in the Caverns. While meditating to enhance his Internal Energy, he silently awaited the arrival of that day.

At 70, he calculated the timing accurately and had all the people of the Great Yan Kingdom hide deep within the Caverns.

Three days after hiding in the Caverns, even Shen Moyan, hundreds of meters below the surface, heard that majestic Dao voice:

"Gao Sheng! You despicable villain! You actually used an Array Treasure to mobilize the heavenly lightning of a minor plane to strike me!"

"Fellow Daoist Zheng Quan, you flatter me. Compared to your All Beings Spirit Refining Grand Array, my methods are still somewhat lacking."

"Enough talk! If you want to fight, then let's fight!"

Now, the cavern he was in shook violently.

The light of the torches reflected on everyone's faces; the people's fear gradually gave way to reassurance.

After the storm passed, some brave souls stepped out of the Caverns to check the situation outside.

They saw the vast grassland had turned into a desert; the scattered, distributed hills had been leveled by powerful air currents.

Right! This Martial Emperor of Great Yan's decision was right!

Standing on the scorched earth, Shen Moyan finally breathed a sigh of relief, the cold sweat in his palms slowly drying.

He had gambled correctly.

The northern border was very far from the Central Plains, and they were in underground caves. They had finally managed to avoid that world-ending calamity.

Crack—

A faint, crumbling sound came. Shen Moyan's expression changed drastically.

"Get out! The Caverns are going to collapse!!"

He used his True Qi to amplify his voice, making his command quickly spread through several Caverns.

Boom!—

The torches were extinguished, the passageways collapsed.