Creating Heavenly Laws

Chapter 739

"The rebels have broken in!"

"Run!"

"Why run? I’ve heard that wherever the righteous army goes, order is well-maintained. As long as we don’t resist, we’ll be fine."

The mysterious death of the Great Feng Emperor could not be concealed in the end.

In an instant, the capital's garrison fell into chaos. No matter how loyal they were to the Great Feng Dynasty, they needed hope to keep going.

Now that the emperor was dead—and at such a critical moment— most of the soldiers began to believe that the Mandate of Heaven had abandoned the Great Feng Dynasty.

Moreover, Lin Yuan made his move within the capital, entangling most of the Dao Masters, while the army stationed outside launched a sudden assault.

This capital city, which had been cultivated for over seven or eight centuries by the Great Feng Dynasty, collapsed with a thunderous crash.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh!

One by one, Dao Seekers were the first to enter the city.

As Evolvers on the path, their individual strength was overwhelming. Being the first to step into the city, they could quickly seize control of the situation.

As for the Dao Masters? They waited outside the capital, ready to provide support at any moment.

Even with Lin Yuan’s cultivation efforts over the past seventy years, fewer than two hundred Dao Masters had been trained, and some were still needed to suppress the already conquered provinces.

The Dao Masters were a core foundation, and could not be risked in entering the capital easily.

Even if the gates had fallen, who could be certain there weren’t traps laid inside capable of killing a Master?

No matter how powerful a Dao Master was, they were still mortal at the core. A broken arm could cause severe injury, and if the heart or head were destroyed, death was absolute.

No matter how strong one's mental power, without the support of the physical body, it would dissipate quickly.

Outside the palace.

A large group of armored generals stood in high spirits, staring at the grand and magnificent palace not far away.

The entire journey now seemed like a dream in retrospect.

It had gone too smoothly.

So smoothly that it was almost unbelievable.

Historically, to overthrow a dynasty required a staggering price.

Countless waves of rebels would have to die before the dynasty's foundation was finally exhausted.

Let alone a dynasty like Great Feng, which was at the peak of its power. As long as the emperor didn't make a fatal mistake, its downfall was nearly impossible.

The Great Feng Dynasty had complete control over all provinces.

There was practically no room for rebellion.

Even a third-rate force like the Red Lotus Sect, which only had ordinary Dao Seekers overseeing it, had been swiftly wiped out by the Dao Suppression Division’s schemes—let alone any other slightly more conspicuous rebel groups.

There was no space for survival.

Yet ever since the ‘uprising’ began, everything had gone incredibly smoothly. They hadn’t faced any real resistance.

And in the blink of an eye, they reached the capital.

Originally, they had thought that breaking into the capital would be a brutal battle.

After all, when the Great Feng court realized it couldn’t hold out, it had recalled all its strength to the capital.

Combined with the capital’s original foundation, it was one of the strongest forces in the world.

But at that very moment, news came that the Great Feng Emperor was dead.

And at the critical moment, all the city’s Dao Masters were tied down.

The external army needed only a single charge to break into the city.

"Did we just overthrow Great Feng?"

One rugged general muttered to himself.

"It wasn’t us."

A middle-aged scholar glanced at him and shook his head, saying, "It was the Lord."

"The Lord overthrew the Great Feng Dynasty. We just followed him."

The scholar added.

Upon hearing this, none of the other generals objected, for once.

To be in their position, one naturally needed good judgment.

Since the rebellion began, everything had gone smoothly without facing any real resistance.

Why?

Wasn’t it all thanks to the Lord orchestrating everything behind the scenes?

Without him, they wouldn’t have even escaped their own provinces, let alone reached the capital.

From the founding of the Great Feng Dynasty, strict measures had been placed on local military forces like theirs.

If one province rebelled, neighboring provinces would immediately dispatch troops to blockade them.

Meanwhile, the capital would take overall command to suppress the uprising.

This all but eliminated any chance of success.

Unless the Great Feng Dynasty was in total decline and had lost control of the provinces.

But that clearly wasn’t the case yet.

Moreover—

Right after they arrived outside the capital, they heard that the emperor was dead.

If this had nothing to do with the Lord, who could believe it?

The emperor died not earlier or later, but precisely when the decisive battle was about to begin?

One could say, in this ‘uprising’ that overthrew the Great Feng Dynasty, it was the Lord who delivered the decisive blow.

With him present, even if it weren’t them—just a dog on a leash could’ve overthrown Great Feng.

Without him, even if their army was ten or a hundred times stronger, there was no way they could have stormed the capital so easily.

"Where is the Lord now?"

Another general looked up.

After breaking into the capital, they had quickly seized control of the city.

And then waited outside the palace for the Lord to arrive.

Breaking into the city was one thing; entering the palace was another.

Only the latter symbolized the true end of the Great Feng Dynasty's rule.

And that kind of accomplishment—they dared not claim.

Honestly, everyone felt they hadn’t contributed much to this ‘uprising.’

Not because they were incapable, but because they hadn’t even had the opportunity to act.

"Let’s just wait."

The middle-aged scholar glanced at the others and waited patiently.

Without the Lord, no one dared enter the palace on their own.

On a certain street.

Lin Yuan walked in deep thought.

After killing the Great Feng Emperor, he had searched the palace thoroughly, confirming there was no second hidden emperor.

Then he went to the city walls and struck down the many Dao Masters guarding them.

This allowed the external army to charge in smoothly.

After all this was done, Lin Yuan didn’t regroup with the army.

Instead, he walked quietly through the streets of the capital.

His immense mental power enveloped the surrounding kilometers, taking in every detail.

Even though he had slain the Great Feng Emperor, the trial in this time-loop world was not yet over.

Lin Yuan quickly deduced that the one he killed was likely not the true emperor, but a puppet.

This puppet was clearly created by the real emperor; otherwise, it would have been impossible to fool the court’s civil and military officials, and so many royal relatives.

Without the real emperor’s consent and cooperation, how could such a switch happen?

There were so many Dao Masters in the palace—they weren’t blind.

There was no way the real emperor could’ve been silently replaced.

Which meant, the real Great Feng Emperor was still alive.

This time-loop test came from the Supreme Rules and was absolutely fair.

It stated that slaying the Great Feng Emperor would complete the trial.

That meant success was guaranteed.

The goal wouldn’t change midway.

"Why would the emperor deliberately train a puppet to replace himself?"

Lin Yuan pondered swiftly.

Historically, it was true that emperors sometimes trained puppets to appear in their stead during court sessions.

But those were always during times of turmoil, when dynastic power was weak, and the emperor needed to avoid assassination.

But before the uprising, the Great Feng Dynasty was at its peak. Even if Lin Yuan had tried to assassinate him, based on the timelines he’d observed, he would most likely have failed.

Under such circumstances, there was no need for the emperor to train a puppet.

He was absolutely safe—so why raise a double?

And even if he did, he wouldn’t stay far from the puppet, in order to maintain control.

Yet Lin Yuan had just scoured the palace and nearly the entire capital and found no trace of a second emperor.

In other words, the true emperor was likely not even in the capital?

To raise a puppet identical to oneself, then not keep it under control and even leave the capital?

Wasn’t he afraid the puppet would become the real emperor?

In fact—

Based on the intel Lin Yuan had gathered over the past 40–50 years,

This puppet emperor was no different from the real one.

He had full control of the military and government.

That’s why Lin Yuan didn’t hesitate to kill him on sight.

"The real Great Feng Emperor raised a puppet, disappeared, and let the puppet rule in his stead?"

Lin Yuan’s expression turned strange.

Could it be the real emperor didn’t want to be emperor anymore?

But if that were true, he could’ve just abdicated and chosen a successor from the royal line, right?

Why go to such lengths?

If the puppet ever seized true power, he would surely harbor the intent to eliminate the real emperor.

Unless—

A thought flashed in Lin Yuan’s mind.

Unless the real emperor already knew someone wanted to kill him.

That’s why he pulled off such a seamless shell game, leaving a puppet to draw attention while he vanished.

"Is this the real difficulty of the time-loop trial?"

"Did the other side already know I was coming to kill the emperor?"

Lin Yuan concluded this was the only logical explanation for the puppet situation.

"And the real emperor predicted he couldn’t beat me, so he didn’t even try to resist?"

Lin Yuan speculated further.

Otherwise, why wouldn’t the emperor put up any resistance and instead flee the throne altogether?

Abandoning the Great Feng throne and handing the ninety-nine provinces over to a puppet?

Such decisiveness wasn’t something ordinary people had.

"I’ve been monitoring the emperor’s daily life for the past 40–50 years, so the puppet switch couldn’t have happened during that time. Meaning it must’ve happened even earlier."

"And training such a near-identical puppet couldn’t be done quickly. It would take at least 20–30 years."

"Adding that to the previous 40–50 years, we’re looking at 70–80 years. That matches when I first arrived in this time-loop."

Lin Yuan stopped walking.

A string of illusory text appeared before his eyes, a timeline.

This was the timeline of the puppet emperor he had killed.

In this time-loop world, the suppression of the cosmic laws was severe.

Lin Yuan couldn’t simply invoke someone’s name and track them through karmic ties to observe their timeline.

Only by forming a significant karmic bond could he view their timeline.

For example, since he was related to his third uncle, he could see his uncle’s past and future.

And since he had personally killed the puppet emperor, a significant karmic tie had been formed between them.

Due to the time-loop world’s constraints, the karmic tie took time to form. It had only fully materialized now.

Lin Yuan began examining the puppet emperor’s past timeline.

The puppet was dead, so no future timeline existed.

Only the past could be viewed.

【One year ago, intelligence came from the Dao Suppression Division—the cause of the unrest in the ninety-nine provinces has been found. It all stems from the Blackwind Fortress within Black Mountain. Kill them. These traitors must all die.】

【Ten years ago, that new concubine brought into the palace a few days ago... what a delightful taste.】

【Twenty years ago, when will I become a Dao Master too?】

【Thirty years ago, those old ministers in court deserve to die... no, calm down. I’m the Emperor now. I must not lose my temper.】

【Forty years ago, almost no one can tell whether I’m the real Emperor anymore.】

【Fifty years ago, Master found me and had me replace him... and his identity—he's the Great Feng Emperor. I’ve become Emperor?】

【Seventy years ago, if it weren’t for Master taking me in, I, a beggar, would've frozen to death long ago. I must repay him in the future.】

The puppet emperor’s past unraveled, each event displayed as text before Lin Yuan’s eyes.

Though incomplete—this timeline viewing ability was still greatly limited, Lin Yuan had still seen enough to understand what he needed to know.

"As expected... a puppet emperor."

Lin Yuan’s expression grew a bit more serious.

“The real Great Feng Emperor vanished fifty years ago. The puppet’s training began seventy years ago—that’s the same time I arrived in this time-loop world.”

A strange look flickered across Lin Yuan’s face.

He had just arrived in this world, and at that exact moment, the real emperor began training a puppet?

Too much of a coincidence.

If the real emperor had known in advance someone was coming to kill him, and that he had no chance of stopping it, he should’ve begun preparations a few years earlier. Why start precisely when Lin Yuan arrived?

If the emperor found out at the exact moment Lin Yuan arrived, even if he knew resistance was futile, he would still have hesitated a little, not immediately begin training a puppet.

Perhaps coincidence played a part, but Lin Yuan still felt it was too suspicious.

"Unfortunately, I have no direct connection to the real Great Feng Emperor. I can’t form a karmic bond, so I can’t view his timeline."

Lin Yuan shook his head slightly.

He could view the puppet emperor’s past because he had killed him, forming a significant karmic tie.

But the real emperor had disappeared fifty years ago.

At that time, Lin Yuan, though stronger than ordinary Dao Masters, absolutely didn’t have the strength to storm the Great Feng palace.

Even if he had known back then what would happen today, he couldn’t have done anything to form a bond.

Even now, Lin Yuan had only entered the palace thanks to Lin’s army holding off enemy forces.

"But it’s not a total loss."

"At the very least, I now know the real Great Feng Emperor is still alive, hiding somewhere in this world. I just need to find him."

Lin Yuan thought to himself.

Then took a step forward.

In front of the palace.

Countless generals and scholars were still waiting patiently.

Until Lin Yuan’s figure finally appeared.

"Greetings, my Lord!"

All of them instantly dropped to one knee, respectfully addressing him.

The more they replayed this entire 'uprising' in their minds, the more they realized how terrifying Lin Yuan truly was.

Throughout history, dynasties fell only when they were at their weakest.

But the Great Feng Dynasty had been toppled at its peak.

And the one behind it all—was Lin Yuan.

With his efforts alone, he had orchestrated the downfall of the entire ninety-nine provinces, step by step dragging the dynasty into the abyss.

Even though everyone present were trusted confidants, they couldn’t help but tremble at such methods.

"Rise."

Lin Yuan glanced at the palace not far away and said casually.

He had already been inside—there was nothing to be curious about.

"Did the army disturb the civilians while entering the city?"

Lin Yuan asked.

This ‘uprising’ had always targeted only the emperor.

He had no real ill intent toward the common people. In fact, he had issued strict orders: when conquering cities and territories, they must minimize any harm to civilians.

Even the small nations around Great Feng had been infiltrated by Lin Yuan’s influence, and had done nothing to exploit the chaos.

"Reporting to the Lord—the soldiers did not harm a single hair."

One general immediately answered.

Mainly because the battle had gone far too smoothly.

"My Lord, Great Feng was unjust. You should establish a new dynasty and unite the world once more."

A strategist immediately spoke up.

This was inevitable.

Toppling the old and founding the new, a natural course of action.

It was also necessary to prevent further unrest from spreading.

"Hmm."

Lin Yuan nodded.

Now that the real emperor was missing, he still needed to rely on the full resources of the world to search for his whereabouts.

"Have you thought of a name for the new dynasty?"

The strategist asked tentatively.

"The name?"

Lin Yuan pondered for a moment.

“Let’s call it Great Yan.”

During his third transmigration, he had descended into a world ruled by divine weapons and became the Crown Prince of Great Yan.

Now that he was founding a new dynasty, he might as well reuse the name to save himself the trouble.

"Great Yan… Good. Then Great Yan it is."

The generals exchanged glances, spirits lifted.

With Great Yan’s founding, they would all become founding officials.

Afterward, Lin Yuan issued a series of orders to stabilize the situation in the newly founded dynasty.

Not only had he experienced being emperor in his third transmigration, but among the collected knowledge of human civilization, there were countless lessons from dynastic rule.

To Lin Yuan, founding a new empire was something he could now do with ease.

"One more thing."

Lin Yuan looked at the generals and strategists.

"From now on, search for all people and objects related to the remnants of Great Feng. I want to personally review every single lead."

This order was aimed at the real emperor who had vanished fifty years ago.

Unless he had truly secluded himself from the world, then even hiding in some corner of the realm.

He would inevitably have some kind of contact with the outside world.

Whether it was acquiring supplies or other necessities, as long as any exchange occurred, clues would be left behind.

Thus, there was always a chance of finding him.

Once Great Yan was established, Lin Yuan would found an intelligence agency dedicated solely to tracking down the real Great Feng Emperor.

"Yes."

Everyone nodded immediately.

They weren’t surprised that Lin Yuan wanted to eliminate the remnants of the old dynasty.

Every ruling emperor had done the same.

First, to eliminate future threats.

Second, because by the time rebellion broke out, it usually meant irreconcilable hatred already existed—deep-seated grudges, perhaps.

The Great Feng Dynasty had fallen.

The Great Yan Dynasty had risen.

For the ordinary people of the ninety-nine provinces, this regime change hadn’t caused much disruption—because it had happened so quietly.

Lin Yuan had spent seventy years meticulously weaving this plan, fully infiltrating the Great Feng Dynasty from top to bottom.

The transition of power across the provinces had been exceptionally smooth—just as he’d expected.

Most commoners had only just heard of the rebels, and by the very next day, learned that a new dynasty—Great Yan—had already been founded.

The first year of Great Yan.

The Founding Emperor ascended, reigning over all beneath the heavens.

Inside the palace.

Lin Yuan’s white-haired third uncle stared blankly at the lavish palace halls before him.

Beside him, Lin Yuan stood, smiling.

"This..."

The old man fell into silence, his expression filled with disbelief.

The Great Feng Dynasty had really been overthrown.

And the son of the former sect leader had founded a new empire called 'Great Yan'?

This... this...

The old man looked uneasy.

Even though he had long known that Lin Yuan was destined for greatness, but to topple Great Feng?

And establish a new dynasty?

"Young Lord, am I dreaming?"

He murmured.

"Of course not."

Lin Yuan smiled brightly.

In this looped world, this third uncle was the only one he could still call family.

"It’s the first year of Great Yan now."

Lin Yuan said with a smile.

"Right… the first year of Great Yan. I’m not dreaming."

The old man grinned. "Who would've thought that I, Lu San, would live to see the day our Young Lord founds a new empire."

"Shame my elder brother can’t see this..."

His expression dimmed. The “elder brother” he spoke of was the former leader of the Red Lotus Sect, Lin Yuan’s father, in this body’s past life.

If it hadn’t been for the former sect leader sacrificing his life to hold off the Dao Suppression Division’s Dao Seekers, neither he nor Lin Yuan would have escaped.

"Once I break free from this time-loop, I may try to 'revive' everyone."

Lin Yuan thought to himself.

Though he wasn’t certain he could.

After all, this time-loop world existed under the control of the Supreme Rules.

Whether the lives within it truly counted as having existed—no one knew.

Even the Thirteenth-Rank Time Beings he had encountered had no means of reviving the dead from a time-loop.

Everything experienced in a looped world—was but a dream.

Those ancient time beings had all cultivated for countless eons, and were long detached from emotions like familial love.

But Lin Yuan was different.

He had only stepped onto the path of evolution not long ago.

He still valued those emotions.

If reviving people from the looped timeline was something that could be done easily. he would truly consider it.

One month later.

Lin Yuan's third uncle passed away.

There was nothing Lin Yuan could do about it—even though he did everything he could to guide and nourish his uncle’s vitality,

His third uncle simply couldn’t match Lin Yuan’s perfect mastery over qi and blood.

To live to nearly one hundred and thirty years old was already extraordinarily rare.

“All those I could call family or old friends… are gone now.”

Lin Yuan silently reflected. “Only you remain—Great Feng Emperor.”

Now, in this world, the only person Lin Yuan still considered a connection to his past was the real Great Feng Emperor.

Two months later.

Beneath the former Great Feng capital.

Here lay the most concentrated earth-fire pit in all ninety-nine provinces.

A sacred site dreamed of by all weapon forgers.

Before the rise of Great Yan, this place had been controlled by the previous dynasty.

Now, it was tightly sealed off by the Imperial Guard.

The former forgers stationed here knelt trembling in fear.

Just then, a lone figure stepped slowly into the chamber.

It was Lin Yuan.

“Greetings, Your Majesty!”

“Greetings, Your Majesty!”

All the forgers kowtowed, fearful and trembling.

“Stand up.”

Lin Yuan didn’t make things difficult for them. He swept his gaze across the surroundings.

“I recall that all of Great Feng’s stockpile of Primordial Divine Metal was kept here, yes?”

Primordial Divine Metal—known as the hardest metal in the world—was the material the founding emperor of Great Feng had intended to use to forge the Nine Cauldrons.

And due to the metal’s extreme hardness, melting it took considerable time. A piece the size of a fist could take a century to fully liquefy.

Thus, every time a small amount was collected, Great Feng would immediately send it to this earth-fire pit to begin melting it—so that one day, when they gathered enough, they could quickly forge the Nine Cauldrons.

“Your Majesty, I don’t know...”

The lead forger’s teeth were chattering.

“Since I took over this fire pit, I’ve never seen any Primordial Divine Metal.”

“Is that so?”

Lin Yuan swept his eyes over the man. As the two formed a karmic link, he began viewing the man’s past timeline.

Confirming he wasn’t lying, Lin Yuan continued asking, “Who was in charge here before you?”

After founding the Great Yan Dynasty, Lin Yuan began thoroughly investigating every trace in the palace connected to the real emperor.

Through one timeline after another, he soon noticed something:

The complete disappearance of all Primordial Divine Metal.

That’s right—

Every last piece of Primordial Divine Metal collected by Great Feng had vanished without a trace.

“It... it was my grandfather.”

A relatively older forger gathered his courage to speak.

“Your grandfather… where is he now?”

Lin Yuan asked.

“He vanished. Seventy years ago, my grandfather suddenly disappeared.”

The forger answered truthfully, “I was still young at the time. I only learned of it from my father. But not long after… my father disappeared too.”

“Seventy years ago?”

Lin Yuan’s eyes narrowed.

Combined with other information he had gathered, he could now be almost certain.

The disappearance of all Primordial Divine Metal was connected to the true Great Feng Emperor.

Because the timeline of the metal’s disappearance aligned perfectly with the time the real emperor began raising the puppet: seventy years ago.

At that time, all the forgers working in this pit had disappeared as well.

It wasn’t until thirty years ago that the fire pit reopened, and new forgers were assigned.

Moreover, by the imperial decree of the founding emperor, no one other than the current emperor was authorized to move the Primordial Divine Metal.

“What did the Great Feng Emperor forge… using so much Primordial Divine Metal?”

Lin Yuan silently wondered, countless possibilities flashing through his mind.

And with those speculations, he began to see the true emperor in a whole new light.

Back in the palace, Lin Yuan immediately issued another order:

A nationwide reward, anyone who found large pieces of Primordial Divine Metal would be granted a noble title and rewarded with ten thousand gold.

At the same time, Lin Yuan personally set out, traveling across the land in search of the metal’s whereabouts.

The disappearance of the metal, taken from the fire pit, was undoubtedly the work of the real emperor.

There was a deep connection between the two.

If the missing Primordial Divine Metal could be found—

Then perhaps, so could the Great Feng Emperor, who vanished fifty years ago.

Time passed quietly.

In the blink of an eye, eighty years went by.

...

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