Stop it, Taoist, Your Fight almost Ruins the DAO!

"Miao Zi, let\'s get going. We need to rest up."

Yi Chen rolled up his sleeves and beckoned Little Miao, ready to enter the city.

The queue to get into the city stretched in several long lines; it took the time it takes to drink two cups of tea before it was Yi Chen\'s turn.

The guards at the city gate were not friendly, their noses and eyes conveying their disdain, with two lines between their brows that might have been from frowning.

"Where\'s your entry permit bamboo token? Come on, hand it over quickly, don\'t waste my time," barked the guard fiercely.

"I don\'t have one."

"So, you\'re a stinking outsider, huh? Yo, you\'ve come to Wujang Prefecture to beg? The entry fee is one liang of silver."

Hearing the guard\'s words, Yi Chen\'s fists involuntarily clenched tighter.

The local city guards were way too rude.

In Longjiang Prefecture, they were quite polite; when Taoist Yi Chengzi entered the city, they even gave him two liangs and one qian of silver. But here in Wujang Prefecture, it felt like highway robbery.

Clearly, the female hero who entered just before him was charged only five qian of silver.

This, I cannot tolerate.

Yi Chen\'s brows furrowed, and he released a hint of the pressure unique to a cultivator of the Qi Refinement Realm.

Soon enough, there would be a garrison officer coming forward to give this guard a stern lesson in proper behavior.

That guard, unknowingly foolish or not, stepped back after sensing Yi Chen\'s aura. Perhaps embarrassed by losing face in front of everyone, he said with a mixture of menace and cowardice:

"Don\'t try anything funny, this is Wujang Prefecture, not some backwater place, you seriously think you can just..."

Smack!

A slap landed on the guard\'s face.

Two teeth fell to the ground.

The slap did not come from Yi Chen.

If it had been Yi Chen, with his strength in this day and age, he could have already served the dishes….

A garrison officer suddenly descended from a city tower like his backside was on fire, and contrary to Yi Chen\'s expectations, this man had mana fluctuating around him—though it was an external path mana awakened through unorthodox methods, and his cultivation seemed to be around the middle stage of refining the spirit.

But a cultivator guarding the city gate? Wujang Prefecture truly... indulged in luxury.

Indeed, it was worth being ranked the second largest city in Jiangbei Circuit.

"Father...."

Experience more content on empire

"Father what father.... I\'ve told you many times, call me commander."

"Commander Zheng."

The garrison officer stopped the guard who wanted to speak further with a fierce glare, then his face instantly changed to a sunny smile as he clasped his hands together and respectfully spoke to Yi Chen:

"I had no idea I was in the presence of Taoist Yi Chengzi, ranked 98th on the Dragon Tiger List. Please forgive my oversight."

Yi Chen\'s eyebrow arched. He had heard of the Dragon Tiger List, developed by the Da Yue dynasty to acknowledge cultivators under the age of fifty who were making headway. The list was amended every one to three months as needed.

On the surface, it signified that those listed were champions with the spirit of dragons and tigers, with boundless prospects.

The underlying purpose, however...

Was, of course, to divide the cultivation world.

Fame and fortune, how many can escape its lure?

Even True Monarchs can\'t escape the vicissitudes of time.

So-called cultivators are just stronger humans after all.

They possess all the desires of humans, even more intensely at times, because they seek much more.

But that\'s just one aspect.

Secondly, there\'s a significant benefit to being listed.

For clans, why should the world\'s most talented individuals join their ranks? Simple, the Dragon Tiger List is the most prestigious live advertisement.

"We have so many adept young masters, proving we have strong teachers and nurture talent."

This kind of effect where the strong get stronger is terrifying. If you don\'t compete, others will, and you\'ll be left to slowly bleed out and decline.

Organizations always complement individuals.

For an individual, there are also significant advantages to being listed.

For disciples of sects, it\'s a way to catch the eye of senior sect members and gain access to more resources.

For free cultivators, it\'s a chance to attract the favor of senior masters, greatly increase exposure; at the very least, you might, for example... \'be captured under the list for marriage,\' and shorten your training by thirty years. A grin from the Dragon King could tie you to a potential future?Nôv(el)B\\\\jnn

Ever since its inception, the Dragon Tiger List has seen free cultivators make the list and eventually be taken in by senior masters into their sects.

How to be listed?

Purely through competition; ranking by deeds, not cultivation level.

This overt list was initially resisted by the major forces.

But can human effort reverse the course of destiny?

Even though everyone knew the dirty thoughts of the imperial dynasty, they couldn\'t help but throw their lot in with the list, fueling hidden currents and igniting ghostly fires.

But if there\'s one force in the cultivation world capable of compiling and releasing this list with the power and sufficient intelligence, it\'s gotta be the imperial dynasty.

Therefore, later on, all powers, however reluctantly, went from initial refusal to understanding, and finally to actively vying for a spot on the list.

That\'s the epitome of complaining but complying....

That\'s also how the Da Yue dynasty fully leveraged its advantages, utilizing its vast traffic pool to provide all sects with a grand entrance to traffic, filtering the cultivation world for everyone.

Not every one listed might be a seed of a True Person or True Monarch, but if you can\'t even make it onto the Dragon Tiger List, ninety-nine percent of the time you\'re a worthless specimen, not worth cultivating.

The Dragon Tiger List was pioneered by the Great Ancestor of the Da Yue dynasty, Emperor Yue Wuji, and is a reflection of the high art of ruling by the imperial dynasty.

The list comprises one hundred and eight individuals.

One list kills three scholars, successfully realizing the strategic purpose of a dynasty—to stir shit around the world at the lowest cost...

There are plenty of crafty moves, such as during the period when Taoism and Buddhism were in conflict, with Taoism on the decline and Buddhism on the rise, the Da Yue Dynasty quietly tilted the Dragon Tiger List a bit towards the Dao Sect, increasing the number of listed Taoist practitioners, covertly transfusing blood to the Dao Sect with a lot of hype.

The message conveyed to the world was roughly:

Dao Sect is fierce, so badass, everyone hurry over.

The message conveyed to the Dao Sect was:

Buddy, you gotta toughen up, push harder!!!

————

When Buddhism declined and Taoism rose, the Da Yue Dynasty\'s leaders had a quick shift in their eyes and again tilted the Dragon Tiger List towards Buddhism a bit, increasing the number of Buddhists listed, and began carrying the litter for Buddhism.

The message conveyed to the world was roughly:

Buddhism is fierce, so badass, everyone hurry over.

Even though Buddhism is slightly on the decline now, they are willing to spend their savings to cultivate newcomers. Look, the Dragon Tiger List has one-third more Buddhists than Taoists; if you don\'t go, are you even human?

I even want to treat myself to a set...

The message conveyed to Buddhism was:

Bro, you gotta toughen up, beat them up, brother I\'m behind you, it would be best if you guys turned your brains into dog brains.

————

What\'s an offshore balancer? This is an offshore balancer.

One can never let the east wind overpower the west wind, or the west wind overpower the east wind, allowing one side to get too big.

Unless both of you die together...

Otherwise, if there comes a time when even small moves on the Dragon Tiger List can\'t reverse the decline, the Da Yue Dynasty will personally step in to assist the weaker side, calling everyone to remain calm and restrained and to resolve disputes through friendly negotiations—it wouldn\'t be so fantastical.

By crazily stirring shit through the Dragon Tiger List and other means, constantly adding sand, turning small enmities into big ones, over time every major sect and noble family will have grievances against each other, making it even harder to unite against the supremacy of the dynasty.

Before they can unite, they have to fight among themselves first.

Expecting the righteous and evil to put aside their differences is as magical as the Black Wood Cliff forming an alliance with the five major sword factions, Shaolin, and Wudang, to shoulder to shoulder attack the imperial court.

Sect Hierarch Ren Wo Xing, holding hands with the Shaolin Abbot, the Wudang Leader, and the heads of various sects, drinking blood wine, swearing blood oaths.

"My dear brothers, do you not think that this imperial throne is meant for celestial beings? How can Da Yue\'s mediocre Confucians be worthy of it?"

"Today I, Ren Wo Xing, am willing to stand shoulder to shoulder with all the brothers. I am ready to risk my life and dare to pull the emperor off his horse."

—At Black Wood Cliff, listen to what Ren Wo Xing says!

Is such a fantastical scene possible?

Ren Wo Xing joining forces with the heroes of the righteous path, desperately attacking the capital, such a scene, even Liu Cixin would think The Three-Body Problem isn\'t sci-fi enough.

This is the art of ruling.

A dynasty is not only about fighting and killing; it needs conspiracies and schemes as well.

Through various means of stirring shit, causing divisions, and differentiating, one can secure a seat in the dynasty and create the pattern of one superpower with multiple strong contenders.

This is also the situation formed by multiple forces calculating, guarding, and playing games against each other.

Consider the great Yuan Dynasty of my previous life, which expanded the territory of the Kingdom of Flowers to an unprecedented extent. Simple fight and kill tactics, lacking a sophisticated system design, didn\'t it still fall apart in the end?

The Da Yue Dynasty did it very well, displaying the style of a leader.

Later on, finding the Dragon Tiger List to be very effective, the dynasty launched the Fengyun List, with 72 listed people, age-unrestricted, and only the strongest in the True Person Realm could be listed, as well as the True Monarch List, with a total of 36 people.

The influence of these two lists was not as great as that of the Dragon Tiger List.

No other reason, but interests dictate.

Not to mention the lack of benefits for the main clients, it\'s easy to be targeted, shunned by everyone like snakes and scorpions.

Therefore, these two lists are just for fun; it\'s common for them not to be updated for a year or a decade. Generally, only martial fanatics would vie for these kinds of lists.

"When did Taoist join the Dragon Tiger List?" Yi Chen furrowed his brows. The garrisoned officer immediately understood and pulled out a small booklet from his chest, handing it over.

The cover was inscribed with the characters for Dragon and Tiger, printed exquisitely, and adorned with illustrations.

Yi Chen took a look inside.

On his designated page, it read:

Taoist Yi Chengzi, hailing from Fengyun County, a small town, adept in the Pure Yang arts, emerged from Longjiang Prefecture, killed the Red Brothel Madame\'s mount, the demon insect, thus Bai Xiaosheng of Da Yue ranked him 98th.

"Taoist, once you make it onto the Dragon Tiger List, who in the world wouldn\'t recognize you?" said the garrisoned officer obsequiously as he stood to the side.

Yi Chen: "..." Damn it, whoever wants to be on that crappy list should go for it. What will he do with such rubbish popularity? It\'s more trouble than it\'s worth, and he has no plans to take a master again.

Resources skewed towards his sect?

Turns out, he\'s already the sect leader. Oh, never mind then.

Yi Chen closed the booklet with a dark face, deftly pocketed it as naturally as slipping away a lighter.

The garrisoned officer before him bore a strong resemblance to the city guard, and Yi Chen wasn\'t blind—it was quite reasonable for him to pocket a booklet from someone who looked like that.

The garrisoned officer was perceptive; seeing Yi Chen\'s move actually made him breathe a sigh of relief. In a considerate tone, he said, "Taoist, for a cultivator like you, we have a special gate for you to enter and leave the city."

"A person of your caliber doesn\'t need to queue up with ordinary people."

There are eight great city gates in Wujang Prefecture.

Four gates are for common people\'s travel.

Four gates are for cultivators\' passage.

Yi Chen, being new to the place, was not aware of this rule, which is why he had been hassled by the second-generation guard.

Declining the garrisoned officer\'s earnest offer to lead the way, Yi Chen stepped into Wujang Prefecture.

He did not delve into the relationship between the garrisoned officer and the guard.

Using the back of his head, he could guess the relationship accurately—a typical case of nepotism, marital collusions, or the nephew fetching water for the indulgent uncle.