Chapter Seven: Years Gone By, System Activation

“Alright, you may leave now.”
“Keep a close watch on the Green-Robed Pavilion, the Sun and Moon Sect, and the Ming Cult.”
“Also, keep an eye on the Taiping Prince’s Mansion. If they show any intention of meddling with the frontier military funds, report back immediately.”
“Yes, my lord!”
The shadowy figure nodded solemnly.
“Any new leads on rare treasures from around the world?” Zhu Jin Zhen inquired again. He seldom pressed on other matters, but regarding rare and exotic treasures, nearly every fortnight, regardless of results, he would always ask.
“My lord, none at the moment.”
“Very well, you may go.”
“Yes!”
The shadow seemed to dissolve into the darkness and vanished swiftly.
Zhu Jin Zhen tilted his head to gaze at the sky, once more yearning for the return of his system.
“It’s been five years, system, I miss you,” he muttered, recalling the time five years ago when his system first appeared, bestowing upon him an unbelievably generous novice gift package.
Three hundred thousand Heavenly Strategies, two hundred thousand Azure Cloud Armors—
all part of the initial system newcomer’s package.
Additionally, he had been granted the swordsmanship talent of Ren Piaomiao from the Thunder World, along with his ethereal sword technique.
This was the true reason Zhu Jin Zhen, at eighteen, became the Land Sword Immortal, single-handedly defeating the heavenly pillars of the Mongol and Liao nations—the likes of Basiba, Sihanfei, and Yelü Wudi.
The martial arts world was deep and complex, but compared to the Thunder World, it was relatively simple.
Especially given the current state of the nations in this martial arts realm, they were utterly outclassed when compared to the Thunder World where Ren Piaomiao resided.
On top of that, there was the gourmet tablecloth from the Doraemon world included in the system’s novice gift package.
[Gourmet Tablecloth: A futuristic item from the Doraemon world. Simply call out the food you desire, and it will materialize endlessly, providing infinite supply. P.S.: If the tablecloth does not have a record of the food, place one on it to register.]
Four years ago, during the Mongol-Liao siege, the Heavenly Strategies and Azure Clouds, along with the Twelve Guards of Shaanxi, fought fiercely to the death.
Countless heroic souls were buried on the battlefield.
Since that day, Zhu Jin Zhen had relentlessly gathered all manner of rare and powerful elixirs and fruits—century-old red fruits, five-hundred-year-old snow lotuses from Tianshan, millennium-old spiritual ginseng, and the like.
He spared no expense to obtain them.
Thanks to the infinite supply capability of the gourmet tablecloth, Zhu Jin Zhen had gone to extremes, hoarding what was considered priceless century-old red fruit by the warehouse-load.
At the beginning, middle, and end of each month, the Heavenly Strategies, Azure Clouds, and Great Snow Dragon Cavalry all collected large shipments from his Su Prince Mansion, packed in crates.

Other nourishing elixirs and rare fruits were also supplied in near-limitless quantities.
This was why Zhu Jin Zhen commanded a million-strong army, governing Shaanxi with an iron fist, to the point where the people knew only the Su Prince and not the emperor.
Lost in memories, Zhu Jin Zhen felt a twinge of melancholy. With a wave of his hand, a brightly colored napkin appeared on the stone table in the pavilion.
“I feel like drinking. Materialize two bottles of Hundred-Flower Brew for me.”
“And some barbecue as well.”
With a flash of light, the gourmet tablecloth spread before him shimmered, and the Hundred-Flower Brew and barbecue he requested materialized instantly.
The gourmet tablecloth then vanished before his eyes.
If not for the brew and barbecue remaining, the whole scene would have felt like an unreal dream.
Only Zhu Jin Zhen knew he had stored the gourmet tablecloth within his system space, and only then could he truly feel that he indeed possessed a system.
Reflecting on his “golden finger,” he sighed quietly: “Over the years, I’ve tried killing so-called protagonists, wooing heroines, and altering storylines. I’ve slaughtered the martial world within Shaanxi repeatedly, nearly wiping it out.”
“Could it be that you’ve really…?”
“System?”
Ding—
[Super God Sign-In System upgrading... Upgrade time: three days.]
Zhu Jin Zhen shuddered, nearly spitting out the Hundred-Flower Brew he was drinking. Despite years of self-cultivation, he couldn’t help but reveal an ecstatic expression. “No way, it’s alive?”
[Ding! System has come back online.]
[Detected host’s grievances and eager anticipation. Upon upgrade completion, the host will receive a five-year sign-in grand gift package.]
The system’s continuous notification sounds seemed to confirm to Zhu Jin Zhen that this was no illusion—it had truly returned.
Moreover…
“Five years of silence, and it immediately starts upgrading upon return? Could it be because of me…” A trace of extreme surprise flashed in Zhu Jin Zhen’s eyes, but no further information was available to guess.
All he knew was that his system was fully alive again.
Finally, he would be free from the constant anxiety of some ancient monster leaping out from the shadows at any moment.
He saw the system’s prompt: the upgrade would take three days, and only then would the answer be revealed.
He had waited five years; three days was no problem!

...

Elsewhere, outside Lanzhou City.
Under the cover of night, an old man and a young boy arrived from afar.
“You have witnessed Lu Xiaofeng, who can wield all kinds of weapons between two fingers.”
“I have taken you to meet the Sword God Ximen Chuixue of Wanmei Manor, the Sword Saint Ye Gucheng of the South Sea Flying Immortal Island, and the Old Sword Saint Feng Qingyang of Mount Hua.”
“The world’s greatest swordsman, Xue Yiren.”
“These are all peerless swordmasters at the pinnacle of the sword path.”
“But you can forget them all.”
“You must remember this one person!”
“Because no matter how strong these swordmasters are, no matter how great the fame of Sword God Ximen Chuixue, no matter how proud and unyielding Sword Saint Ye Gucheng is, before them all stands the unparalleled Sword God Xie Xiaofeng. Before him, in the era of Sword Saint Feng Qingyang and Xue Yiren, there was Yan Nantian, and even before him, the Sword Demon Dugu Qiubai.”
“And not to forget the old bastard Yi Jifeng who lives in seclusion.”
“This person is different. He is not just one among them; he is the first among all sword users since the inception of swordsmanship—unprecedented, unparalleled, and unmatched.”
The old Taoist, holding the boy’s hand, spoke solemnly.
“Su Prince, Zhu Jin Zhen?”
“The legendary one who single-handedly repelled the land immortals of the Mongol and Liao continents...” The boy trembled with excitement. He had heard countless legends of the Su Prince in Lanzhou. Before him, the so-called Sword Gods and Sword Saints were mere mortals of the martial world, and those peerless celestial phenomena were nothing but jokes.
Even the so-called land immortals, said to be close to celestial beings and regarded as gods among men, were insignificant.
Countless legends about the Su Prince circulated throughout the world.
In recent years, as the Su Prince’s reputation grew, there were even rumors that Zhu Jin Zhen was the reincarnation of a heavenly emperor, a belief shared by a large portion of the populace.
After all, a young prince of eighteen who could rival two land immortals was hardly an ordinary noble. Such claims of divine reincarnation were more convincing.
Mainly because... they lacked face.
They had trained and cultivated their paths all their lives, yet they could not compare to a youth who had just ascended to the throne. It was like a reminder that their lives had been wasted.
At least with this status, they could feel somewhat better inside.