NOVPUBChapter 731 -680: The Great Celestial Master’s Surprise
According to Lin Rui’s intention, he actually wanted to review the accounts, clear up the calculations, and figure out why the trading volume and tax revenue this time were so high—more than double his expectation.
However, whether it was Yu Huaxuan or Han Baxian, both advocated for returning to Luojing City as quickly as possible to report the matter to the gods.
Even the Grand Steward of the Inner Court was also eager to return to the capital swiftly.
Lin Rui had no choice but to comply with their wishes, instructing the accountants to prepare duplicate account ledgers and load them all onto Yu Huaxuan’s Eight Dragon Flying Carriage.
Just as he finished directing the group and stepped out of the main hall, he saw Fei Yunlai dressed in a seventh-rank official robe, kneeling by the roadside in a defeated OTZ pose of despair.
——This fellow did have an official post in the Great Song Star Port Governor’s Mansion.
After Lin Rui was appointed as Minister of Commerce and Starport Governor, the Court Cabinet had deliberated and granted him nearly 7,000 official posts, of which 180 were ‘interpreters’ and ‘trade advisors.’
Abiding by the principle of keeping benefits within the family, Lin Rui gave Fei Yunlai a seventh-rank post as ‘Chief Interpreter’ in the Governor’s Mansion, letting this penniless man earn an additional salary.
But what’s with this guy? He looked as if his parents had died.
Lin Rui glanced sideways at Wang Tianwu, his eyes carrying a question.
Wang Tianwu struggled to restrain his laughter, squinting and motioning: “Old Fei gambled again. He borrowed money to place a huge bet in an underground casino in Luojing, wagering 8 billion that you’d win in one move.”
Lin Rui froze upon hearing this: “Didn’t he make a reasonably smart bet this time? Since he won, why does he look like this?”
“That casino got smashed, apparently by Kou Xuanwang.”
Wang Tianwu couldn’t hold it in anymore; he snickered gleefully: “The house claimed all the money was taken by Kou Xuanwang, they can’t compensate anything—can’t even pay a penny—only refunding one-third of the principal.”
Lin Rui immediately gave Fei Yunlai a sympathetic glance but quickly raised an eyebrow: “Kou Xuanwang’s gambling ethics are indeed questionable, but he wouldn’t outright rob people. That house seems unreliable. Hmm~ a casino daring to take a bet from Kou Xuanwang is probably not a legitimate one either.
Old Fei, take my warrant and pick out two Ninth Realm, four Eighth Realm, and eight Dragon Transformation teams from the Port Control Department. Go bring that house’s people back and interrogate them thoroughly until they cough up all the money they owe Old Fei.”
The Port Control Department is a new agency established by the Great Song Imperial City Department, currently under Lin Rui’s command as Starport Governor.
Given the court’s significant attention to the Star Port, the department housed many experts.
However, Lin Rui reckoned that once the account records were handed in, the court’s level of concern would likely escalate even further.
Lin Rui casually wrote a warrant and tossed it to Fei Yunlai: “Old Wang, cross your blades and help him too! Damn it, it’s one thing to scam people, but to hit us at home?”
Fei Yunlai’s face flushed red, his heart filled with both shame and gratitude.
The 8 billion federal coins were no small amount to him—nearly a year’s salary.
Wang Tianwu’s face fell, thinking, “Why is Fei Yunlai losing money suddenly linked to me?”
Moreover, judging by the boss’s tone, he intended to have the house compensate Fei Yunlai, meaning Old Fei could end up profiting.
Wang Tianwu was quite unpleased, but when he remembered Old Fei owed the boss several billion, he suddenly understood.
Lin Rui was already too lazy to deal with these two clowns and left with Xianyu Yan and Shangguan Tianyi, boarding Yu Huaxuan’s flying carriage.
Ji Xueying was supposed to accompany them, but she needed to stay with Han Xian’er for a few days to help her adjust.
Ji Xueying had a pure and upright demeanor; anyone could tell she was a straightforward, kind-hearted girl. With her petite stature and endearing presence, she easily won others’ favor, making her the ideal candidate to comfort Han Xian’er.
What Lin Rui didn’t know was that at this moment, in the Divine Palace above Luojing City, the Great Celestial Master had already received Yu Huaxuan’s flying book spanning 300,000 miles sent by Han Baxian.
Han Baxian had expressed his intention to return to the Divine Palace to report in person but had already sent the flying book ahead to inform the Great Celestial Master of the findings.
The Great Celestial Master looked at the figures in the flying book, momentarily stunned: “Forty-eight million taels of Divine Gold! Equivalent to 4.8 billion taels of Magic Silver?”
There were some small amounts left over, but the Great Celestial Master couldn’t bother counting them.
He stared blankly at the clouds sky ahead, then let out a sigh: “Fortuitous!”
Previously, the Great Celestial Master didn’t pay much attention to the Great Song Dynasty’s tax revenues.
The state of the dynasty, good or bad, had little to do with the Divine Palace or the divine figure.
If the Great Song fell into decay and the court became beyond salvation, it would simply mean replacing one ruling family with another—what harm would it do to the Divine Palace?
The more sordid and corrupt deeds the Great Song Royal Family committed, the more legitimate it would be for the divine intervention to eradicate the royalty when the time came for a celestial upheaval.
Even if the Purgatory Three Gods’ army invaded the surface during the dynasty’s twilight, the Divine Palace had ways to expend human lives to resist them.
The Purgatory Three Gods might command demons, but so could the divine figure. The palace held cultivation methods capable of hastening the creation of demon armies—within days, millions could be raised to battle against Purgatory.
As long as enough population was preserved to keep the Heavenly Curtain from collapsing, the dynasty’s downfall wouldn’t matter, and other four continents could still maintain order.
Once Purgatory was worn down to exhaustion, the divine figure could strike and annihilate them in one fell swoop.
However, this time, the Purgatory Demon Tide seemed unusually suspicious, and the arrival of Outer Heaven Demons added significant uncertainties. 𝒏𝙤𝙫𝒑𝙪𝙗.𝙘𝒐𝙢
Whether it was the Purgatory Three Gods or the Purgatory Demon Army, they were far stronger than decades prior.
The Three Gods had no reservations about bringing in anything that could bolster their strength to break into the surface.
This made Purgatory’s acceptance of Heavenly Demon items substantially higher than the surface—by magnitudes.
The Great Celestial Master even sensed the divine figure’s will; the divine figure would not allow the Great Song Dynasty to fall!
This might be tied to the expansion of the Heavenly Curtain, which, in merely two or three centuries, could extend to major Heavenly Demon Origins in the Tianji World.
But should war erupt, causing a decline in population, the Heavenly Curtain’s spread would inevitably retract significantly.
It might also involve the Root, as the increasing pull from it since mid-last year suggested Purgatory Three Gods might feel further compelled to invade the surface.
Thus, over the past year, the Divine Palace had taken an unprecedentedly serious stance, urging the Great Song Divine Envoy Department and Court Cabinet to prepare for war.
Yet, centuries of accumulated corruption in the Great Song couldn’t be reformed overnight.
This unexpected windfall brought by Lin Hao was, therefore, invaluable.
The Great Celestial Master thought Lin Hao was indeed deserving of his prior support and the divine figure’s emphasis.
Both the Great Celestial Master and the divine figure were well aware that Lin Hao harbored major secrets, possibly even being an Outer Heaven Demon himself.
But Lin Hao’s tangible efforts against Outer Heaven Demons and the Demon Sect had brought genuine improvements to security around Luojing.
Comparing these gains to the silver Lin Hao had brought to the court, his dubious identity seemed insignificant.
In the divine figure’s eyes, all beings below demigod level were akin to ants, even those deemed ‘Longevity.’
Outer Heaven Demons, too, were fated to become its subjects and sheep.
The divine figure’s true enemies were only the Abyss entities and a few gods nearing transcendence outside the Heavenly Curtain thanks to unique cultivation methods.
Inclusivity across worlds and dominion over ten thousand realms were the nature of the divine figure. How could it genuinely fear or guard against heavenly demons?
The Great Celestial Master rose and turned towards the Divine Sky Hall.
Today, Yu Huaxuan and Lin Hao would enter the hall to report, and the divine figure’s consciousness would inevitably awaken and descend. Preparations had to be made in advance.
As the Great Celestial Master instructed priests to clean the halls and light the incense favored by the East Abyss, the Emperor and the First Divine Envoy, Luo Wangshu, gradually arrived.
The Great Celestial Master turned, casting a sidelong glance at the three: “Are you aware of today’s Starport tax revenues?”
He folded his hands behind his back and sighed: “Forty-eight billion taels of Magic Silver! Equivalent to two and a half percent of the Great Song’s land tax, and one and a half percent of its head tax. I recall the divine figure’s decree instructing the court to prepare six months of military resources? The shortfall in military funding is about one hundred billion, isn’t it? This showcases Marquis of National Guardianship’s dedication to the dynasty and earnest efforts!”
The First Divine Envoy and Luo Wangshu exchanged glances but remained silent.
The Emperor furrowed his brows slightly, his expression complex.
He detected the sarcasm in the Great Celestial Master’s tone.
Head tax, or the poll tax, was set at one tael of Magic Silver per registered male citizen annually, with about 620 billion men on record across the Great Song. Yet only half could meet their tax obligations yearly.
Land tax, initially at 290 billion taels of silver during the dynasty’s founding, had long since plummeted to 192 billion, despite farmland multiplying fivefold. This decline stemmed from unchecked noble land grabs and tax evasion, yielding the current mess.
Meanwhile, the Starport’s opening day revenues alone surpassed 48 billion taels of Magic Silver, amassing over 100 billion when including prior land and permit sales.
Though today’s numbers were inflated by attention-grabbing efforts from Heavenly Demons and weren’t representative of long-term trade volumes, even scaling it down to one-thirtieth would represent an astronomical regular income.
The Emperor particularly minded the Great Celestial Master’s subtle critique. He recalled how previous emperors stealthily manipulated land taxes, gradually losing control as administrative corruption snowballed, shattering accountability.
Attempts to reform tax laws had recently seen scapegoats punished—thousands executed—but only 20 billion silver restored.
Yet those who truly deserved disciplinary action remained untouchable, forcing resolve within the dynasty precariously fragile.
Learning his ancestors were active within Purgatory added to the Emperor’s cynicism, plunging him into ambiguity.
The Starport revenues only served to deepen his conflicting emotions.
The Great Celestial Master smiled faintly as divine aura appeared overhead, commanding attention: “The divine figure has awakened; all shall await its judgment.”
By now, Lin Rui had reached Luojing.
Located less than ten thousand miles from the Star Port, Yu Huaxuan’s flying carriage surged with radiant energy, crossing this span in mere two hundred breaths, arriving at the Divine Palace promptly.
The Eight Dragon Flying Carriage landed directly in front of the Divine Sky Hall.
As the group descended, the Divine Sky Hall bell tolled, a divine thought bursting forth from the heavens and enveloping the hall in its overwhelming majesty, sweeping through the palace entirely.
Lin Rui and company froze and steadied their expressions, recognizing the arrival of the East Abyss deity.
Yu Huaxuan, resolute and solemn, led the group up the Divine Sky Hall’s steps and into the grand chamber.
