Chapter 56: Hongjun’s Philosophy of Governance

Mount Jade Capital, Palace of Purple Clouds.

Having borrowed the immense merit from slaying the Demon Ancestor Rahu, the Dao Patriarch Hongjun devoted himself to six thousand great epochs of cultivation. At last, his merit was perfected, and he returned to the realm of the Primordial Chaos Demon God, becoming the first Great Dao Saint of the Primal World.

Gazing at the Creation Jade Disc in his hand, Hongjun recalled a matter of significance. Though the Creation Jade Disc was now in his possession, it was not his innate spiritual treasure, but rather a relic of Pangu. By a twist of fate, it had come into his hands.

“Since I relied on the Creation Jade Disc to return to the realm of the Primordial Chaos Demon God, I am now entangled in karma with the Primal World. At this moment, I must find a way to resolve it.”

“Moreover—”

“The Primal World was formed from the fall of Pangu, containing mysteries that surpass the three thousand primordial demon gods. Should I further comprehend the profundities of the Primal World, perhaps even I might advance yet again!”

Thus, Hongjun swiftly conceived two intentions, two aims.

The first was to resolve the karmic debt owed to the Primal World for assisting his enlightenment, and to address, in passing, the karma arising from the rupture of the western ley lines.

The second was to utilize the origin of the Primal World to seek a path of further advancement.

Both aims were beyond reproach.

Had it been Emperor Cang who first attained the Dao, his foremost thoughts would doubtless have been these same two points; no one could be an exception.

...

Once Hongjun had made his decision, he immediately began divining, seeking to use the power of calculation to discern the current state of the Primal World, in order to lay plans to his own advantage.

It was not long before information concerning the alliance of the three factions in the Primal World flooded into his mind.

Hongjun furrowed his brow deeply.

By rights, the alliance of the Heavenly Court, Ancestral Sect, and Divine Court—three great powers united to suppress the land of the Primal World and reduce its strife and slaughter, bringing an age of peace—should have been even more conducive to Hongjun’s rule, granting him ample time to comprehend the primal origin.

Yet the reality was otherwise.

Hongjun’s later actions in merging with the Dao, and his series of measures, made clear his philosophy of rule, which consisted of two principles.

The first was non-interference; one might call it non-action, or simply laziness.

One must understand: a figure as grand as Hongjun, though he had reached such heights of cultivation, still had much room for progress. He undoubtedly needed to devote vast time and energy to pursue his own path. Though he wished to glimpse the mysteries of the primal source and Pangu’s power through the governance of the Primal World, who would willingly squander their efforts on the administration of such a vast world?

So.

Hongjun’s thinking was simple: first, to possess power—the supreme authority over the Primal World; second, not to bother with its governance. Authority could realize many things, but he would not overextend himself, for it was too exhausting, and he had his own Dao to cultivate!

This, then, was the non-action of Dao Patriarch Hongjun.

Thus, to achieve this, he had to maintain stability.

The second tenet of Hongjun’s philosophy of governance was stabilizing the world!

Only when the Primal World was stable and firmly under his control could Hongjun enjoy enough freedom to busy himself with his own affairs.

First, non-interference.

Second, stability.

Such was the true desire of Hongjun’s heart, the core of his rule...

Yet, the current alliance of the three powers, though it seemed to maintain stability and adhere to his philosophy, was in fact quite the opposite.

Hongjun’s policy for maintaining stability began with the principle: all beneath me.

Perhaps it was due to the experience with Demon Ancestor Rahu. Hongjun, together with four other demon gods, had united to oppose Rahu—ultimately, the other four perished, and only Hongjun survived.

Not only that—he also shattered the western ley lines in the process!

This deeply impressed upon Hongjun the grave danger posed by the emergence of experts in the Primal World of equal rank to himself. Should such beings clash, the very heavens and earth might be rent asunder.

Even though the Primal World was wrought from Pangu’s passing and the fusion of three thousand primordial demon gods’ corpses, it might not withstand such devastation.

Therefore.

A thought flashed through Hongjun’s mind: a way to resolve this crisis and keep the Primal World securely within his grasp, free from calamity.

This strategy was: all beneath me.

In other words, the Primal World could give rise to supreme experts, but these must remain beneath Hongjun, neither surpassing nor equaling him.

“Simply ensuring all are beneath me is not enough; the Primal World is vast and full of mighty beings. I am often in seclusion, with neither the leisure nor the desire to manage its affairs!”

Hongjun frowned deeply, concluding that it was necessary to find several administrators—subordinates to himself—who would in turn govern all beings beneath them, thereby achieving even greater stability.

One could say, then, that Hongjun’s philosophy of rule was non-interference and stability, with the practical implementation being: all beneath me.

This was not because Hongjun was incapable or lacking in talent—on the contrary, his gifts were unrivaled and his wisdom peerless through the ages!

Yet, one must admit, Hongjun was exceedingly lazy.

Especially regarding the affairs of the Primal World, unless the very heavens and earth were crumbling, he would not be moved to act, for it was far too troublesome, and he was truly very busy!

...

On the surface, the alliance of the three powers appeared united in preserving the stability of the Primal World.

But their approach ran counter to Hongjun’s philosophy.

The key premise of Hongjun’s stabilizing principle was non-interference: he himself should not govern, but rather, those he appointed as overseers would subdue all others.

But what the alliance was doing—

If the Heavenly Way of the Primal World could not rapidly mature and reach perfection, then merge with Hongjun, the alliance’s suppression of the land would accumulate a vast amount of Daoist merit. The more merit amassed, the greater their power would become. Though they could not, like Hongjun, transform into a Primordial Chaos Demon God, they would still be formidable beyond measure.

Hongjun calculated with his fingers.

On the Ninth Heaven, Emperor Jun and the Eastern Emperor, having overseen the cycles of sun and moon during the earlier Dragon-Phoenix Cataclysm, had acquired boundless merit, possessing at least five clusters of three-colored merit clouds.

They gained two more for establishing the Heavenly Court.

The creation of the Dao Jade Slip and the Heavenly Stele brought nearly another cluster.

The founding of the Celestial Academy yielded as many as three clusters.

Although the two had once used a cluster of three-colored merit clouds to cultivate the supreme innate spiritual root, the Solar Divine Vine, when the vine ultimately became a supreme spiritual root, it, too, conferred great merit, effectively restoring the consumed merit.

If these two continued to suppress the Primal World for another thirty thousand great epochs, the accumulated merit might well reach the level of seven-colored merit clouds. With such merit, even if they could not become Great Dao Saints, not even a Heavenly Dao Saint could claim certain victory over them.

If this continued, even Hongjun himself began to sense danger—how much more so would others?

As for the Ancestral Sect, it need not even be said!

With such endless Daoist merit and a profusion of mighty beings, how could the Primal World remain stable?