Chapter 339: Chapter 227: First Life, a Chaotic Dynasty, a Wife of Humble Origins, and Cultivating Martial Arts to Guard the Nation

Lu Mingyuan looked at the map with great satisfaction.

But he noticed that something was off about Yun Qinghe’s mood.

After all these years of living together day in and day out, his bond with Yun Qinghe had grown incredibly deep. They could talk about anything.

Aside from not having a physical marital relationship, they were no different from a normal cohabiting couple.

He could sense even the slightest change in her state of mind.

Yun Qinghe said with a somewhat dazed expression, "Lu Mingyuan, do you think I’ll die before you?"

"Why would you say that?" Lu Mingyuan found it baffling.

Yun Qinghe’s gaze sharpened. "You’re about to break through to the Middle Fifth Grade. And what about me?"

"I can only live as a Mortal in this world. I spend my days embroidering, reading storybooks, and strolling through the neighborhood. A life like this is certainly pleasant, but after a while, it becomes truly meaningless. Most importantly, how many years do I have left?"

Lu Mingyuan understood. She was worried about her short lifespan and the prospect of dying of old age.

"Why don’t you practice martial arts with me?"

He didn’t have any better ideas, so he could only try to comfort her.

"It’s useless. I’ve tried," Yun Qinghe said, her tone defeated. "After reaching the Bone Marrow Cleansing Realm, without the aid of a Spiritual Object, it’s nearly impossible for this body of mine to open the Ren and Du Meridians. My meridians are like narrow, winding goat paths. My talent is just too poor."

"You’re a Martial Dao genius, so your Cultivation is naturally fast. But whether I try the path of a Martial Artist or a Qi Cultivator, I can’t break through to the Middle Fifth Grade. If I can’t break the shackles of the Lower Seven Realms, I have no way to significantly increase my lifespan."

For some reason, Lu Mingyuan felt that Yun Qinghe’s Daoxin had undergone a massive change.

She had an air of world-weariness, as if she had already seen the future.

It was precisely because Yun Qinghe had always been so brilliant and stunningly talented.

She seemed to know everything about everything.

When she felt it was impossible to achieve her goals given her current situation, she would fall into this kind of despair.

She simply understood too much and saw things too clearly.

If she knew that practicing martial arts could lead to enlightenment and ascension, she would definitely strive for it.

But some things are impossible to achieve, even with one hundred percent effort.

It wasn’t a matter of effort.

This was reality.

Her Daoxin hadn’t shattered on the spot. Instead, years passed, and even though she had achieved nothing, she calmly accepted this outcome and continued to live peacefully. In terms of mentality, she was already stronger than most.

Lu Mingyuan was silent for a moment before saying, "You can’t just give up because you think you know the ending, right?"

"Just because a story is destined to have a bad ending, does that mean people stop fighting with all their might?"

Lu Mingyuan tried his best to comfort her. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

At the same time, a cold sweat broke out on his back.

’Could everything happening right now be a test from the Grand Thousand Canglan Map?’

’Yun Qinghe is also facing her own trial.’

’Everyone in the map is facing their own trial.’

’After entering the map, this is unavoidable.’

Lu Mingyuan took a deep breath. "Besides, growing old in the map probably doesn’t mean you’ll really die. As long as you can hold on to your true self, you should be able to get out safely."

"I hope so," Yun Qinghe said, her expression bleak.

Lu Mingyuan didn’t know what to say next.

He could only let Yun Qinghe overcome this hurdle on her own.

He had obtained what he needed. His top priority was to break through to the Middle Fifth Grade.

「In the years that followed.」

Just as the history books described, faced with the powerful Great Zhou, Lu Mingyuan waged campaigns in all directions for the Great Yan Country. He chose to gradually annex the surrounding nations to strengthen his own.

Along the way, he journeyed over mountains and across rivers, searching for Celestial and Earthly Treasures in Blessed Lands and Grotto Heavens.

These places were either guarded by powerful Cultivators or protected by Spirit Monster True Gods, making his quest fraught with difficulty.

Fortunately, Lu Mingyuan’s talent was sufficient. Even without the help of a Heaven and Earth Spiritual Object, he still broke through to the Sea-Viewing Realm.

At that time, the man who would become the Grand Ancestor of Great Yan was still one of the Dukes and Kings. He greatly admired the young General.

Thus, in the tenth year of the Flame Country’s founding, King Yan bestowed upon Lu Mingyuan the rank of Marquis.

His title was Marquis Qilin.

He became one of the few to be successfully ennobled as a Marquis before the age of twenty.

Lu Mingyuan also finally found his first Thousand Treasures Level Heaven and Earth Spiritual Treasure: the Ten Thousand Year Old Snow Mountain Golden Cicada.

The Snow Mountain Golden Cicada was guarded by the Tianshan Snow Clan. Lu Mingyuan obtained it only after exerting immense effort, and the price was marrying the daughter of the Snow Race.

Lu Mingyuan had no choice but to agree.

Using the power of the Golden Cicada, he successfully broke through to the Dragon Gate, the heavenly chasm that stumped ninety percent of all Martial Artists.

「In the Sixteenth Year of Yongming.」

The Great Zhou’s Observatory, while observing the stars, discovered the phenomenon of Mars lingering near Antares—a celestial sign that all the officials regarded as an inauspicious omen.

A five-hundred-year cycle of Reincarnation had ended, and the Celestial Mandate was over.

On this day, a star fell in the Capital Region of Great Zhou, causing a million casualties.

It was seen as an omen of the dynasty’s demise.

At the critical moment, the Crown Prince of Great Zhou, Zhou Yunqing, stepped forward and stopped the stellar catastrophe. Using the disaster as a pretext, he raised the banner to "cleanse the monarch’s side," received the approval of the court officials, and formally ascended to the Emperor’s Throne.

He became the new Emperor of Great Zhou.

He changed the era name to Changding.

The Celestial Mandate of Great Zhou waned with each passing day. In his tenth year in this world, Lu Mingyuan finally cultivated back to his former realm. He entered the Tenth Realm, the Vajra Realm, and rose to the position of National Guardian General, becoming a rising star general of the Flame Country.

Civil and military officials, the people of the Flame Country, and enemy soldiers alike all revered and feared the Great Yan War God.

The Flame Country unified the Six Continents, swept away the other nations, and began an all-out war against the Great Zhou on the opposite shore, vying for the Celestial Mandate of the Central Plains.

Lu Mingyuan was appointed Supreme Commander and led the three armies toward the border.

To consolidate his power and sweep away the gloomy and decadent atmosphere in his country, the new emperor, Zhou Yunqing, personally led his troops to confront this star general from the Flame Country.

The two nations faced off. On the battlefield, dust swirled, and the soldiers stood grimly with their armor and weapons.

From dozens of miles away, Lu Mingyuan finally saw the face of the current Emperor of Great Zhou, Zhou Yunqing.

"Sixth Brother, long time no see."

Now that he was the Emperor, Lu Yunqing was clearly much more confident than before. His eyes shone brightly. He wore a black Emperor’s Robe, his imperial crown gleamed with Red Gold, and he was suffused with Dragon Qi.

He, too, was speaking via voice transmission.

Lu Mingyuan wore the iron Qilin Breastplate, with a red-eyed golden tiger head on his shoulder. A large red cape flowed behind him, and a long golden plume adorned his helmet. He looked equally imposing. Beside him, a banner with the character for "Yuan" flew high.

"You seem quite pleased with everything you’ve done."

Lu Mingyuan transmitted his voice coolly.

Lu Yunqing smiled. "I have already ascended the throne. Isn’t that proof enough that my Dao is the correct one?"

"Sixth Brother, stop being so obstinate. The Emperor’s Dao is the right path."

Lu Mingyuan snorted coldly. "So what you’re thinking now is the same as what you thought in the outside world? I think you’re the one who’s deluded now. You treat human lives as if they were grass, resorting to any means necessary. How does that make you any different from Prince Jin?"

Lu Yunqing gave a faint smile. "And what about you, Sixth Brother? Haven’t you also killed many of my Great Zhou’s soldiers? Don’t you think you’re being a bit sanctimonious?"

Lu Mingyuan shook his head. "The Celestial Mandate of Great Zhou is finished. The various nations are at war, and countless people on Great Zhou’s borders have already starved to death. The people of the world yearn for peace. I only wish to restore a place of stability for them.

"When states rise, the people suffer. When states fall, the people suffer."

"You are only making the nation’s fortunes worse."

He walked the pure Martial Dao, so his conscience was naturally clear.

Seeing that he couldn’t persuade the other man, Lu Yunqing said with a blank expression, "Right or wrong, let’s decide it with victory and defeat."

"With pleasure."

Lu Mingyuan drew his saber.

In an instant, Saber Qi surged to the heavens, reaching the sky and forming massive Celestial Sabers. With eight hundred thousand soldiers following him, his Martial Dao destiny reached an unprecedented peak, and Lu Mingyuan’s Cultivation soared.

He quickly broke through to the Twelfth Realm.

He ascended to the very pinnacle of the Martial Dao—the Celestial Human Realm!

At this moment, Lu Mingyuan discovered something.

Everything before him moved as slowly as a turtle or a snail, slowed down considerably. He had undoubtedly entered a state of slow motion.

’So this is what the Twelfth Realm feels like. It feels so real...’ Lu Mingyuan thought to himself.

...

(The first life’s development will be more detailed. The trials of the following lives will be much faster and glossed over.)