Volume One, Chapter 5: Zhu Youjian Ascends the Throne, Sending a Grim Warning in the Courtroom!
“I’m waiting for you. If you’ve got the courage, then come! I, Zhu Youjian, as the Sage and Trustworthy Prince, the future emperor, how could I fear a mere immortal?”
Zhu Youjian wore an expression of calm indifference.
With the backing of the Great Sage Equal to Heaven and the system, Zhu Youjian truly feared no school of thought or philosophical faction!
As long as time permitted, he could harness the power of the nation’s fortune to elevate the Great Sage’s combat prowess to the pinnacle of transcendence.
At that moment, the Great Sage would be invincible across the world!
Moreover, through the system, he could summon numerous mythological figures, easily overwhelming all schools of thought and the foundations of any kingdom!
As for the present?
He had already devised a plan!
Then, Zhu Youjian issued a cold shout, his voice imbued with boundless authority and majesty.
“The late emperor was betrayed and assassinated by the eunuch faction. I, Zhu Youjian, the only younger brother of the late emperor, the Sage and Trustworthy Prince!”
“Today, by the will of Heaven, I shall execute the eunuch faction. Those who do not cease at once are traitors and shall suffer the extermination of their entire clans!”
With these words, the entire Forbidden City seemed to tremble.
The imperial guards present all lowered their weapons.
The Trustworthy Prince before them was no longer the weak noble bullied by others but the wise monarch destined to become the Sage and Trustworthy New Emperor.
Wang Cheng’en was the first to shout, “We beseech His Highness the Trustworthy Prince to ascend the throne immediately! Long live the Emperor! Long live! Long, long live!”
Seeing Wang Cheng’en take the lead in proclaiming him emperor, all the princes and ministers quickly knelt, raising their voices in unison.
“We beseech His Highness the Trustworthy Prince to ascend the throne! Long live the Emperor! Long live! Long, long live!”
“His Highness the Trustworthy Prince, please ascend the throne!”
The voices rose and fell, echoing through every corner of the Forbidden City.
Zhu Youjian gazed resolutely at the majestic dragon throne before him.
In an instant, a feeling as if separated by worlds surged in his heart.
From this day forward, he would be the emperor ordained by Heaven, wielding supreme authority.
Today, he would personally open a new chapter of sage rulership!
...
The ceaseless flow of fortune recognized Zhu Youjian, as if it were a mysterious convergence of paths.
Dressed in dragon robes and crowned, Zhu Youjian sat on the dragon throne, his gaze piercing, his voice resounding through the heavens.
“I, Zhu Youjian, now receiving the Mandate of Heaven, succeed the great dynasty, ascend the throne as Emperor, with the reign title Chongzhen!”
“From this day forth, I swear to purge treachery and corruption, restore the court’s order, and revive the glory of sage rulership! All loyal subjects of the Sage and Trustworthy dynasty must join in this grand undertaking!”
With the imperial edict issued, the Middle Kingdom was shaken to its core.
Throughout the four seas, the people rejoiced, and the hearts of all citizens turned loyal.
Officials from all regions pledged allegiance to the new emperor, of course also to demonstrate loyalty and sever ties with the eunuch faction.
Within the Forbidden City, bells and drums rang in unison, accompanied by ceremonial music.
Listen!
These drumbeats and bells herald the age of Chongzhen!
It has arrived!
...
[Ping!]
The system notification sounded in Zhu Youjian’s mind.
[Host has successfully ascended the throne as emperor, destined by Heaven. Reward: 200,000 fortune points.]
[Current national fortune value: 315,000.]
[Please continue to strive to strengthen the Sage and Trustworthy dynasty!]
Within the Forbidden City, a scene of bustling activity unfolded.
Young eunuchs meticulously cleaned the bloodstains off the floor.
The imperial guards busied themselves moving the corpses.
Inside the Hall of Heavenly Compliance, Zhu Youjian sat solemnly upon the dragon throne.
Wang Cheng’en stood at the center of the hall, solemnly reading aloud the crimes of the once-powerful eunuch faction members.
“Supervisor of the Eastern Depot, Xu Xianchun, cruelly persecuted the loyal and righteous. His crimes are heinous; he has now been executed!”
“Deputy Minister of the Imperial Stables, Cao Qincheng, abused his power for personal gain and is now punished by law!”
“Minister of War, Cui Chengxiu, wielding military power recklessly, engaging in corruption and treason by secretly colluding with enemy states, deserves death a thousand times over; he has now been duly executed!”
Following this, the core members of the eunuch faction had their crimes read one by one.
With every accusation, a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard would bring forth a bloodied severed head for the ministers to inspect.
The atmosphere in the hall grew increasingly grave; civil and military officials knelt silently, not daring to breathe loudly.
Some ministers who had previously colluded with the eunuchs were so frightened they fainted on the spot.
A cold wind swept through the cracks of the hall, causing the already terrified officials to shudder.
They knew this was the new emperor’s ruthless warning.
A message to remind them not to harbor false hopes!
Not to dare challenge the imperial authority!
Had Zhu Youjian simply ascended the throne by the usual succession, these Donglin faction ministers would never have taken the seventeen-year-old boy emperor, who possessed no cultivation, seriously.
After all, with the eunuch faction defeated, the Donglin faction ruled supreme.
A young emperor without any foundation in court could hardly make waves.
But therein lay the key!
Zhu Youjian’s ironclad methods in ascending the throne were witnessed by all officials.
He first executed the once-powerful Wei Zhongxian, then confronted the immortal sect,
and personally severed the heads of the eunuch faction members!
This decisiveness and ruthlessness truly intimidated them!
Especially when their eyes glanced at the Great Sage, Sun Wukong, lying in the arms of several beautiful palace maids, eating fruit.
This monkey was truly fierce; with just one word from Zhu Youjian, he dared to kill anyone!
No one knew where the Chongzhen Emperor had found this inscrutable monkey who possessed such formidable power.
Minister of War Cui Chengxiu and other eunuch faction members, seeing themselves cornered, instigated a mutiny at the Left Army Commander’s headquarters involving over ten thousand troops from the Brave Cavalry Right Guard, Dragon-Tiger Guard, and Gallant Guard.
However, under Sun Wukong’s iron staff, these rebels were crushed like ants.
Zhu Youjian on the dragon throne said nothing, quietly stroking his chin and observing everything within the hall.
His silence only deepened the fear among the ministers; they had no idea what the new emperor was contemplating or what his next move might be.
Could it be... that he intended to kill again?
The ministers remained unaware, but Zhu Youjian’s consciousness had already immersed itself within the system.
“Ping! Host has slain eunuch Zhou Yingqiu, reward: 500 national fortune points.”
“Ping! Host has slain eunuch Xu Xianchun, reward: 3,000 national fortune points.”
“Ping! Host has slain eunuch Cui Chengxiu, reward: 5,000 national fortune points.”
...
With the eunuch faction’s downfall and the system’s prompts ringing out, his national fortune value snowballed to 410,000.
Hearing these notifications, a cold smile curled on Zhu Youjian’s lips.
It seemed this world could be held in one hand!
He opened his system’s marketplace and gazed at the dazzling array of goods and options, his heart full of anticipation.
With 410,000 national fortune points, he should be able to exchange for many valuable items.
First, he looked at the option to enhance Sun Wukong’s cultivation.
The system stated that national fortune points could raise the cultivation of summoned mythological figures; Zhu Youjian even considered elevating the Great Sage’s cultivation directly to transcendence.
If Sun Wukong’s cultivation reached transcendence, he would no longer need to worry about the sages of various schools of thought.
However, when he saw the system’s price for cultivation upgrades, his mouth twitched involuntarily.
“Sun Wukong, a legendary mythological figure, of supreme roaming rank; each rank increase requires 50,000 national fortune points.”
“To break through from the Carp to Dragon stage to Transcendence requires 5,000,000 national fortune points?!”
Faced with such an exorbitant price, Zhu Youjian shook his head helplessly.
His financial resources were limited~
Then, he turned to other options.
[Draw Mythological Figure: each draw consumes 200,000 national fortune points; draw level unknown.]
[The function to specify and exchange mythological figures and treasures unlocks after accumulating 1,000,000 national fortune points.]
[Lucky Draw: each draw costs 20,000 national fortune points; rewards range from common, rare, epic to legendary.]
Zhu Youjian pondered, “System, is there any option to directly enhance my cultivation?”
Relying solely on Sun Wukong’s cultivation was insufficient; he needed to strengthen himself as well.
At this critical moment, he urgently required a cultivation boost!
After all, until he broke through to the ‘Break to Build’ realm, the Great Sage could only remain for three days. Once the time expired, he would be temporarily unsummonable.
No matter how strong Sun Wukong’s cultivation was, it would be useless then.
[No. However, host can attempt the lucky draw. The draw holds infinite possibilities and may yield cultivation-enhancing treasures or powerful cultivation techniques.]
“Twenty thousand national fortune points per draw, all depends on luck... System, give me a ten-draw!”
Zhu Youjian promptly chose the ten-draw.
Since Sun Wukong could only remain for a little over a day, he needed to reserve 200,000 national fortune points for emergency draws to summon mythological figures.
Better to be prepared!