206: Fourth Generation: Overlord (102)

However, this decision was not without risks.

Xu Yuan knew clearly that although the four of them had luckily escaped after the failed assassination of Yuwen Shang, a grudge had already been formed.

As a powerful figure within the Xuandu Dao Sect and the head of the Yuwen Noble Families, would Yuwen Shang simply let it go?

Returning to Great Shang meant stepping back into the open. It would not be difficult for the Yuwen family to track him down, and the Great Shang Imperial Dynasty would very likely be dragged into a storm far beyond its capacity to withstand.

"The risk... is indeed enormous."

A hint of gravity flashed in Xu Yuan's eyes.

In his current state, with his severe injuries unhealed and suffering from hidden Dao injuries, if Yuwen Shang were to come personally, or dispatch several experts at the Late Golden Core Stage, Great Shang would likely be unable to resist.

However, he had no other choice.

"My Foundation in this life lies in Great Shang, in the Imperial Dao!" Xu Yuan's gaze was firm. "The Imperial Dao Golden Core shares its fate with the nation."

"As long as Great Shang exists, my Dao Foundation remains, and the support of the National Fortune persists. Although my strength is damaged, I still have room to maneuver, and there is even the possibility of using the National Fortune to heal and plan slowly."

"But if I abandon Great Shang, flee to distant lands, and hide my tracks, it might seem safe, but in reality, it is severing my own Foundation!"

"Without the nourishment of the National Fortune, I fear my injuries will be difficult to suppress, the hidden Dao injuries will accelerate, and a decline in cultivation will be inevitable!"

"By then, let alone exploring a new Dao, I might not even be able to survive for a few more years!"

More importantly, Xu Yuan had not yet given up on pursuing the Fruit Position in this life.

Previously, Li Beichen had said that there were two ways to achieve the Fruit Position True Person: one was to contend for the Dao and seize the position, and the second was to open up a new Dao.

After witnessing the might of a Fruit Position True Person with his own eyes, Xu Yuan did not think he would be a match for the Overlord Fruit Position True Person in this life, so he intended to explore a 'new Dao'.

And the Foundation of this new Dao lay precisely within this vast Great Shang territory of billions of miles and its trillions of common people! It lay within this surging National Fortune and the glorious civilization!

Thinking of this, Xu Yuan no longer hesitated.

He concealed his aura, transformed into an inconspicuous streak of light, and carefully flew towards the direction of the Great Shang Imperial Dynasty.

Several days later, Xu Yuan quietly returned to the Imperial Capital.

His return was not publicized; he only summoned a few absolutely core ministers, briefly explaining that he had gained insights during his seclusion and needed long-term quiet meditation to contemplate. He instructed them to remain in charge of all court affairs and not to disturb him unless it was a matter of national destruction.

Subsequently, he went deep into the Forbidden Ground of the Imperial Palace and began a long seclusion.

This seclusion was different from previous ones.

Xu Yuan was not just blindly cultivating to increase his cultivation—in fact, troubled by the hidden Dao injuries, his cultivation could hardly make any progress.

Xu Yuan devoted most of his energy to two things:

First, to utilize the vast National Fortune to nourish his Dao Foundation and suppress the hidden injuries.

Xu Yuan sat at the core of the Dragon vein, guiding the National Fortune of the entire Great Shang to flow slowly around his body. With the vitality of the glorious National Fortune and the warmth of the people's faith, he continuously nourished his damaged Meridians and Golden Core, dissolving that stubborn "Order punishment" Dao injury.

The process was slow and difficult, but it managed to stabilize his injuries, preventing them from worsening.

Second, and more importantly, was to begin attempting to explore that elusive "new Dao".

"In this life, I walk the Imperial Dao, gathering National Fortune, controlling the mountains and rivers, walking the path of an Overlord, and ruling over all the people."

"If I want to open up a new Dao, it must not completely overlap with the existing branches of the Imperial Dao; otherwise, I will still be unable to escape the suppression of the Fruit Position."

"I must... find another way!"

Xu Yuan's Divine Sense sank into the vast ocean of Great Shang's National Fortune, feeling the faith, Power Of Will, joys, sorrows, lives, and deaths of the trillions of people... feeling the rise and fall of the Dynasty's Luck, the operation of laws, and the changes of civilization...

Gradually, a vague and unprecedented idea began to take shape in his mind.

"The Imperial Dao rules the mountains and rivers, formed by gathering momentum. Its core lies in 'centralization' and 'Order', using the emperor's will to command all forces. In essence, it is still a top-down control."

"Then, does there exist a Dao that is bottom-up?"

"Not relying on the emperor's personal grand strategy to forcibly gather and control, but originating from the gathering, evolution, and sublimation of the power of the living beings themselves?"

"Is it a... living Dao that originates from the people, is born from Luck, and grows through change?"

Xu Yuan thought of the light of hope that erupted in the eyes of the children of humble families after Great Shang implemented new policies, the focus of craftsmen in workshops studying their skills, the clear sound of children reading in schools, and the booming commercial vitality in the markets...

These all seemed to contain a power different from the traditional Imperial Dao, a power more vigorous, varied, and full of infinite possibilities.

This idea was extremely bold, and even seemed like pure fantasy to the people of this world!

Since ancient times, only the weak have obeyed the strong; how could there be any logic in the strong serving the weak?

But Xu Yuan was different.

Deep within his Soul was branded the knowledge and thought patterns from another world.

In that world, he had seen how the power of the collective could create miracles, how the sparks of civilization could set off a prairie fire, and he had seen the infinite potential contained within "people" themselves.

"Paths are walked by people. Since there is no precedent in this world, then I... shall be the one to open this path!"

He no longer hesitated and began to put his ideas into practice.

This process was far slower and more difficult than he had imagined.

He sat at the core of the Dragon vein, his mind connected to the vast National Fortune, attempting to use his own Imperial Dao as a guide, but not to "command" or "extract", but rather like a patient gardener, carefully "observing", "listening", and "guiding".

He "saw" that the National Fortune was like an ocean, containing billions of thoughts, wishes, joys, sorrows, separations, and reunions.

There was the simple Power Of Will of farmers praying for favorable weather, the enterprising spirit of scholars studying hard to achieve fame, the focused spirit of craftsmen studying their skills to pursue perfection, and the vitality of merchants rushing about for profit to promote circulation...

These forces were originally scattered, weak, and even conflicted with each other, but under the framework of "Great Shang", they were invisibly gathered and organized by laws, culture, and customs, forming the massive National Fortune that supported the Imperial Dynasty.

He attempted to promulgate some subtle policies aimed at "encouraging innovation", "promoting exchange", and "ensuring fairness", not to directly strengthen national power or consolidate rule, but to observe whether these policies could act like a catalyst to stimulate those "positive", "active", and "creative" factors within the National Fortune, causing the National Fortune itself to undergo some kind of "qualitative change".

However, the results were often frustrating.

Most attempts were like stones sinking into the sea.

An imperial decree encouraging craftsmen to innovate might stir up some ripples locally, with a few workshops making Breakthroughs, but for the vast, smoke-like National Fortune as a whole, this change was negligible and almost imperceptible.

A policy promoting regional commercial circulation might make a few trade routes more prosperous, but the overall "activity" of the National Fortune did not see a significant increase.

It was as if he were facing a boundless ocean; throwing a pebble into it, it was hard to even stir up a decent ripple.

What's more, sometimes the execution of policies would go astray, or touch upon existing interest structures, triggering a backlash, which instead caused local fluctuations in Luck and the breeding of resentment, running counter to the "activation" effect he expected.

He had to expend more energy to adjust and balance, like walking a tightrope over a bottomless abyss.

Time passed year after year.

The hidden injuries within Xu Yuan's body were maintained in a state of not worsening under the nourishment of the National Fortune, but his cultivation remained stagnant.

And his exploration of the new Dao progressed so slowly it was despairing.

Countless days and nights, he immersed himself in that vast deduction, attempting to construct a theoretical framework and Cultivation Technique that could describe and guide the self-evolution and sublimation of "civilizational Luck", but every time he felt he had touched a glimmer of inspiration, he found even deeper fog ahead.

This was practically opening up an unprecedented sea route; with no star chart, no compass, relying entirely on intuition and groping, the difficulty was far beyond cultivating known Cultivation Techniques step by step.