Chapter 96

"Four Spirits Chen Tian Mirror?" Feng Ye repeated it twice: "The two characters 'Four Spirits' are the names of those four, which we cannot use easily! As for 'Chen Tian,' 'Chen' means time, and can also indicate the meaning of the primordial time, which is acceptable. As for the character 'Tian,' let's use 'Guang' instead, making it 'Zhou Guang.' It also corresponds to the Sun God's light."

"Chen Guang Treasure Mirror? Then it's up to you, after all, it's your spiritual treasure, and if you like it, that's fine!" Yuan Kui said indifferently, then picked up the Dingshai Pearl, "You have already combined the Dingshai Pearl, so let's change the name 'Dingshai' as well. Let's call it 'Zhenhai'!"

Zhenhai Pearl? How ambitious, is he planning to suppress the four seas? Feng Ye thought to himself.

Suddenly, Yaoyang Child came with a heavenly decree, "Greetings, Great Lord. Just now, a heavenly envoy delivered a heavenly decree from the Heavenly Court, which seems to be from Lord Fuxi to be handed over to you?"

"Fuxi?" Feng Ye suddenly felt a premonition, and before he could take the decree, Yuan Kui snatched it and read it aloud:

"Hereby, Feng Ye Long, who oversees the operation of the heavens and the earth, and assists in the transformation of the four seasons, has the merit of subduing the Fire Crows and saving the people, and upholds the virtue of fire, is hereby appointed as the Southern Emperor, overseeing the eight heavens of the southern domain, and will reside in the Shenxiao Mansion to assist the Great Emperor Taihao in managing all affairs of the thirty-three heavens!"

Feng Ye's face stiffened, and he snatched the decree from Yuan Kui, seeing a line of small print below. Feng Ye immediately understood why it was directly handed over to him rather than read out. It read:

"I sent you to subdue the Fire Crows, but you ran back to the Fire Cloud Cave to be lazy and even refined your own spiritual treasure. How leisurely! Get back to the Heavenly Court quickly, there are many things to do!"

Yuan Kui was chuckling, but when he saw Feng Ye's gaze, he feigned seriousness, "Ahem, I suddenly remember I have something to do by the Yellow River, so I'll leave first! Fellow Daoist, please take your time, no need to see me off!" With that, Yuan Kui disappeared in a flash.

Feng Ye hesitated for a moment, then summoned Feng Zhong, "That Emperor really doesn't want me to get close. Looks like I have more work to do!"

Feng Zhong shook his head, "That's because Lord Fuxi and Master have a good relationship. Otherwise, he wouldn't have given you the position of an emperor directly!"

"You really know how to talk, standing up for him. Who is your master, anyway!" Feng Ye flicked Feng Zhong's forehead.

"Fine, I'll go once, but your cultivation will be delayed again. Here, I'll store my understanding of the Heavenly Dao in your mind. When the time comes, you can slowly comprehend it!" Feng Ye tapped Feng Zhong's forehead, transmitting his understanding of the Heavenly Dao.

Receiving the vast understanding of the Heavenly Dao, Feng Zhong quickly sat down to organize his divine consciousness. Feng Ye, seeing this, instructed Yaoyang Child to take care of him and then directly used the escape technique to enter the Heavenly Realm.

Although the Heavenly Court now had a few great deities joining and gradually regained some popularity, the Heavenly Realm was vast, and even if someone were to guard it completely, the ten thousand heavenly soldiers and generals might not be enough.

Feng Ye used the red light escape technique, entering the thirty-three heavens as if no one was there, with no one coming to stop him. In no time, he arrived at the Lingxiao Treasure Hall. Seeing Fuxi alone, he directly burst in, throwing the heavenly decree on the imperial desk, "Explain, Your Majesty! What's this about the Southern Emperor?"

"Oh, now the Heavenly Court is gradually getting back on track, and the chaos of the laws caused by the war between the witches and demons is almost over. You don't need to run around anymore, so you can stay in the Heavenly Court to help me! The original divine position is no longer suitable, so the position of the Southern Emperor, assisting in the governance of the thirty-three heavens, is more appropriate!"

Fuxi continued, "A few days ago, the Primordial Heavenly Sovereign of the Three Pure Ones came and discussed the structure of the Heavenly Court with me. Below the Heavenly Emperor, four imperial positions were established, overseeing the thirty-two heavens in four directions. The Western Emperor is held by Gouchen, the Northern Emperor by Ziwēi, and the Earth Mother oversees the underworld, with a high status, as one of the four imperial positions, only responding to orders, not summonses, and is on par with the Heavenly Emperor. As for the remaining position, it is the Southern Emperor of Longevity!"

"Why do you need to give me an imperial position? You could use it to win over others, right?" Feng Ye frowned.

"The Southern Emperor has a very special status among the four imperial positions, assisting in the governance of the thirty-three heavens. If I give it to someone else, I wouldn't be at ease. As for you, it's nothing. When Huatian returns, you can simply abdicate, hang the seal, and retire with me! During this time, you can enjoy the position, can't you?"

Enjoy? What a joke! Feng Ye cursed in his heart.

You know, starting a business is much harder than maintaining it. Think about it, later, the Jade Emperor could indulge in pleasure in the Heavenly Court, while Fuxi, even now, doesn't have a single maid by his side, and the vast Lingxiao Hall is desolate, with only Fuxi himself there, reviewing documents, which is evident.

"Holding this imperial position, you can do some good deeds for yourself, which will also accumulate merit. That's it, this matter is settled, no room for argument." Fuxi waved his sleeve and handed Feng Ye a Qiankun bag, "This is the token of the Shenxiao Mansion, the seal of the Southern Emperor, and other configurations. You can look at them when you get back. Also, go to the Chilong Office to get some celestial children and maidens. I have specially prepared five hundred for you, which should be enough!"

"Chilong Office? Are your former subordinates already in office?" Feng Ye couldn't help but ask, but seeing Fuxi buried in his documents, he shook his head and left.

...

The Shenxiao Mansion, or the eight heavens of the southern domain, was sparsely populated. The sixteen heavens in the northwest had at least been brought under control by Gouchen and Ziwēi, while the southern heavens, without any control, were naturally more chaotic.

Feng Ye picked up the token and opened the Shenxiao Mansion, only to be dumbfounded. How can one word "chaos" describe it? The place was filled with documents and gold silk. Fortunately, this was the Heavenly Court, so there was no dust or dirt, and it didn't look too dirty.

Feng Ye reached out and picked up a piece of gold silk to read. Wasn't this a document already reviewed by Fuxi? Why was it here? He picked up another document, which was also reviewed by Fuxi. After flipping through them for a while, Feng Ye finally understood.

It seemed that Fuxi's intention was for him to redo what he had already done, to reread everything. So, the so-called assistant to the Heavenly Emperor, the Southern Emperor, was essentially a secretary. The reviewed documents needed to be categorized and the drafts kept, right?

Feng Ye looked at the pile of documents filling the entire palace and couldn't help but shudder. He needed to find someone, someone to take the fall, no, to help him organize these documents.

The Chilong Office, right? He would go there to find some help!

Actually, at this time, the four imperial positions did not have as much power as they did later. The myriad thunder and myriad spirits, the nine luminaries and the heavens, and all that had not yet appeared.

The current Heavenly Court, following the ancient institutions, had the two great emperors Gouchen and Ziwēi responsible for the stars, the north and south poles, the three dimensions of heaven, earth, and humanity, and the human wars. In addition, Gouchen was responsible for training the heavenly soldiers and generals, maintaining the dignity of the Heavenly Court and intimidating the wicked.

The Earth Mother, as one of the four imperial positions, was essentially a compensation for the witches. She didn't need to do anything, just enjoy a high position, only responding to orders, not summonses, and only controlled the underworld, acting as a powerful vassal.

If we were to compare it to the structure of a later court, Gouchen would be the military leader, the general, responsible for the Heavenly Court's military power. Ziwēi would be the second-in-command of the three realms, like a crown prince, managing everything, with power just below the Heavenly Emperor. The Earth Mother would be a vassal on par with the Heavenly Emperor, though not involved in affairs, but with a very high status.

The Southern Emperor, then, would be the chief civil official, the prime minister, assisting the emperor in managing all major affairs.

Which of the four positions—vassal, crown prince, general, or prime minister—is the most tiring? Obviously, it's the prime minister.

The crown prince, while the emperor is in power, naturally has nothing to do, as he needs to guard against usurpation. The general, without war, is naturally at ease, just responsible for training the troops. As for the vassal, she doesn't care about the Heavenly Court, and the Earth Mother is busy with the underworld.

Only the Southern Emperor is tragic, as he has to oversee all the daily affairs of the Heavenly Court, and the documents need to be reviewed and stored, with drafts kept for future reference.

In short, it's about power distribution. The Three Pure Ones, who lead the Daoist sect, naturally don't want a powerful Heavenly Emperor like Emperor Di Jun and Taiyi. If that were the case, the positions of the Three Pure Ones would also be shaken.

Therefore, the Ziwēi Emperor was given the power to control the stars, Gouchen the Heavenly Court's military, and the Southern Emperor of Longevity the management of the thirty-three heavens, which is enough to hollow out the Heavenly Emperor. The reason Fuxi came out to temporarily take the position of the Heavenly Emperor is that the Three Pure Ones wanted to establish the Heavenly Court's system before Huatian returned. When Huatian returns, he can only be a puppet, just responsible for stamping the seal.

Fortunately, Feng Ye went to the Chilong Office to get people, and it went smoothly. Fuxi was considerate and had already prepared the people.

Feng Ye returned to the Shenxiao Mansion with five hundred people. Among these five hundred, three hundred were Yellow Turban Warriors, who could handle daily tasks, guard the palace, and patrol the eight southern heavens. However, patrolling and guarding should be the responsibility of the heavenly soldiers and generals, so he would need to go to Gouchen to get more people later.

Of the remaining two hundred, one hundred were Golden Boys and Jade Girls. He didn't need such a grand entourage, so he assigned them to be Water and Fire Children, to take care of the immortal herbs.

The other fifty were celestial maidens. They were quite good-looking, but Feng Ye didn't have the time to watch them perform dances and songs. He sent them to work as well.

The last fifty were quite good, all virtuous people who could help him manage the Shenxiao Mansion. In the future, they could be granted divine positions, which would also be a blessing.

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