Shi Feiyang arrived at the eternal city just as the battle had ended, and the Demon Clan's armies continued to pour in without cessation. The vanguard had already captured the enemy city, while the troops with the weakest Dao Level, still led by Xuan Turtle, were thousands of miles away.

When Shi Feiyang and his disciples descended from the sky, the myriad demons looked up and cheered jubilantly, welcoming the Black Dragon King.

The Black Dragon King ushered Shi Feiyang into the eternal city's Taiming Palace and brought the defectors and captured prisoners to the palace gates, asking him how they should be dealt with.

"Register all those who've defected with the Little Merfolk and Red Snake," he said, "and kill those prisoners who refuse to surrender."

The Black Dragon King set off to carry out the commands, while Shi Feiyang meticulously examined the Taiming Palace.

The eternal city was originally an Immortal Palace in the sky, consisting of a vast complex of buildings similar in style to those in the Bright Realm, all made of crystal jade but even grander and more majestic. The city itself was not very large, with a width of thirteen li, almost sixty times the size of the ancient Imperial Palace.

After Qian Kang took over, he set up an Immortal Array, allowing only himself, his wife, his disciples, and serving slaves to enter or leave, living a life akin to that of an emperor.

Now, with both the eastern and western continents under his control and the entire Outer Heaven Divine Mountain within his grasp, the establishment of the Demon Kingdom was naturally set on the agenda.

He had long envisioned a blueprint; during his treasure hunt in Central Earth, when he had met with the human emperor, he had already begun planning the foundation of this nation.

He decided to separate "sacred" and "kingly" roles: the Bright Realm's Five Bright Immortal Mansion as "sacred," focusing on cultivation and understanding the Dao, and the eternal city's Taiming Palace as "kingly," handling state affairs.

His royal palace and ministers' residences were all within the eternal city, and he planned to build another outer ring of walls for the citizenry. These walls would be thirteen zhang high and 1,200 li in circumference; those who were granted permission and became "citizens" would live within the city, while the "wild citizens" would reside outside.

He drafted his plans and assigned roles to his disciples, directing them and the accompanying demons. Red Snake and Xuan Turtle were responsible for registrations and records, while the Black Dragon King and the Divine Merfolk gathered stone debris and sand, fired up a kiln, and constructed a new Furnace of Eight Diagrams over thirty zhang high.

Shi Feiyang, with his disciples, recollected the Heavenly Stars' debris and refined the Five-Colored Crystal Sand to fortify the city walls and renovate the eternal city.

First, he organized the earth's energy veins, creating nine mountain ranges and five major rivers, which combined to form a "Nine-Five" number, with nine being a yang number and five a yang position—the supreme position of yang in yang!

He demolished the original city walls of the eternal city and reconstructed them using Five-Colored Divine Sand. He dismantled the foundation of the palaces inside, rearranged and combined them, and built many new structures for the inner city.

Then he built that circle of outer city walls, according to the principles of Yin Yang, Five Elements, and Eight Diagrams, constructing buildings for special purposes in various locations as the outer city.

At the northern tip of the eternal city was a bay, directly facing the forty-seven islands of Little Antarctica. Every year during the Winter Solstice, when the Aurora Fire weakened, it was most noticeable here, and outsiders would break in from this location.

Shi Feiyang moved a mountain peak here, casting the Golden Court at its summit and the Silver Palace beneath the water. He used the force of Thunder and Lightning Magnetism to connect them, forming an array that reacted whenever the Aurora Fire weakened. He planned to delegate subordinates to guard this location in the future.

While his disciples constructed the eastern continent, Shi Feiyang flew back to the western continent. Recently, disciples from Zhenyue Palace had used the Cosmic Spirit Shuttle to shatter the earth's energy veins here, and he had to cast spells to level and reconnect them, allowing the Dragon Vein's energy to flow again.

Aside from the original five rivers, he created four more, resulting in nine mountains and nine rivers, which made the "Nine-Nine True Number," distinguishing it from the opposite shore and underscoring the difference between "sacred" and "kingly."

By the time construction was completed on both sides, several months had passed.

Palaces were easier to build than to win over hearts, and the hearts of demons were especially tough to conquer!

According to records by Red Snake and Xuan Turtle, the number of followers under his command had already exceeded three hundred thousand. Coordinating such a vast force to live harmoniously together, without internal strife or conflict, was a formidable challenge.

From what he observed through the Heavenly Treasure Mirror, many demons had already pledged allegiance to the Black Dragon King, Divine Merfolk, Xuan Turtle, and Red Snake, each recognising their respective leaders as elder brothers. Some of their same kind, like snakes, turtles, and dragons, even claimed kinship, and within just a few months, nearly all dragons were calling the Black Dragon King their ancestor.

Humans mostly sought refuge with Deng Bagu, excavating channels and burrows in hopes of bribing her with various treasures.

Deng Bagu, overwhelmed by the persistence, retreated to the deep mountains for secluded cultivation. As a result, they began to "corrupt" Xiong Man, Lin Han, and Shi Sheng, trying every means to please them — presenting Xiong Man with beautiful flowers, giving Lin Han a variety of attractive shells, and offering Shi Sheng numerous intriguing toys.

There were those with conflicting natures, fighting and killing each other, minor cases being duels and severe cases leading to clan exterminations.

Such was plentiful and varied.

Eventually, Shi Feiyang set a date and gathered over three hundred thousand subordinates outside the city in a bay to the southwest. Earlier, he and his disciples had moved many mountain peaks there, and using Five-Colored Divine Sand, they created a continuous Jade Mountain spanning dozens of miles, naming it "Taishan," with three peaks known respectively as Sun Essence Peak, Moonlight Peak, and Star Spirit Peak.

Shi Feiyang ascended Sun Essence Peak. His disciples, humans, and transformed beings all climbed the mountains, gathering close. Those with large forms stayed at a distance. For example, Yuan Dun, stretching over a hundred yards in length, flew with a group of Dragon Species at the same altitude as Divine Peak. Meanwhile, members of the Water Clan in the bay in front of the peak showed off energetically before the king, puffing air into clouds and lining up waves like mountains. Some sprayed towering water columns hundreds of yards high, and others created mirages of mountains, vibrant with dragons and fishes in fantastic array.

Shi Feiyang spoke loudly, his voice carrying for miles, publicly announcing the establishment of a dynasty named "Universe."

Following that, the first matter he addressed was the distinction between humans and demons.

What exactly defines a human or a demon? How should humans and demons coexist? And how should demons interact amongst themselves? With conflicting natures, natural predators, or dietary overlaps, should they still eat each other? Since they were now fellow nationals, why would they consume each other? If not, and if every species listed as food became nationals, wouldn't his kind starve to death?...

With such diverse types of subjects under his command, complex contradictions arose. If these were not resolved, chaos would ensue, even if his absolute authority temporarily ensured harmony. Should he retreat or leave for more than three to five years, he would return to widespread disorder.

Therefore, defining what humans and demons were was crucial and needed to be clarified first.

Shi Feiyang's definition was that beings evolved from primates could be called humans, and similarly, those evolved from dragon, turtle, and snake species were also considered humans.

Next was to clarify the distinction between humans and animals. Why were these considered humans and others not, even if they possessed wisdom and human forms?

Shi Feiyang's answer lay in the exploration of the Dao: "Ancient sages, starting from the self-fertilizing royal ancestors, have pursued the Great Dao, which is the origin and essence of all things. Understanding and adhering to the Great Dao constitutes virtue. The distinction between humans and beasts starts here! Heaven has its time, Earth its wealth, those who share with humanity possess benevolence. Those who share in human joys, sorrows, preferences, and distastes exhibit righteousness.

The difference between humans and beasts lies in morality, benevolence, righteousness, and propriety. The Three Emperors and Five Kings have painstakingly differentiated humans from beasts, curbed beastly natures, and promoted humaneness. Conversely, savages and beasts strive to drag humanity back to bestiality, sharing in the beastly nature!"

His audience of over thirty tribes listened intently, some understanding, others not, but all strived to remember.

In essence, the ancients in China endeavored to separate humans from animals, identifying their differences based on morality, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and fidelity. This concept was not unique to Daoism or Confucianism but was universally recognized. Without these qualities, one would be considered a beast, a brutal insult.

Then, he elucidated how to determine human nature: "Observe the way of Heaven, hold to the actions of Heaven, and establish the way of Heaven to define humanity."

One method of observing the way of Heaven involved monitoring celestial movements like the sun, moon, and five planets to devise calendars. These observations summarized the changes between heaven and earth, with major shifts every ten degrees in the heavenly cycle and minor shifts every five days in the earthly cycle. Predicting these natural changes facilitated auspicious actions and averted calamities.

Each change defined a festival, wherein the communities collectively prepared to "survive the tribulation." Without a calendar, unpredictable tribes and states often perished under natural changes, potentially leading to total annihilation.

Even if they survived by instinct like animals, the casualties remained severe, with low survival rates for the young. Additionally, without the ability to cultivate and store ample food, the population couldn't develop, making the rise of a glorious civilization impossible.

Shi Feiyang then issued the "Dragon King Calendar." His intention wasn't to be unconventional or use the calendar to demonstrate orthodoxy, but because the climate here in the Outer Heaven Divine Mountain differed from the outside. The sun was always at zenith, the moon invisible. During the winter, when the five planets appeared slightly above the horizon, their starlight's magnetic resonance emitted various colors, and their cycles also differed from those in Central Earth.

In Central Earth, the sun rose and set against the backdrop of the Twenty-Eight Constellations, known as the Yellow Path. Here, to the naked eye, the Yellow Path was a pinpoint aligned with the Earth's axis extending into space, with only surrounding shadows moving.

Thus, he spent several days documenting the sun's movements and the changes in the celestial stars here, creating the "Dragon King Calendar." Each year he marked four critical points: the weakest Aurora Fire marked the Yin Yuan Festival and the strongest sunlight marked the Yang Yuan Festival, with temperature differences reaching at least fifty degrees.

High temperatures were trivial forState approved Dao Level but not for ordinary creatures like turtles, lobsters, crabs, Merfolk, and fish people. During the intense heat, they swam to cooler regions to escape the heat, but with insufficient food, they had to return for reproduction once it cooled.

The calendar determined the festivals, and the festivals established the customs, incorporating rites, music, law, and all manifesting in civilization.

Finally, Shi Feiyang decreed: "Anyone who possesses morality, righteousness, and adheres to rites, music, and laws, and follows the human path among the Three Powers of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity, is considered 'human' and thus my subject. My subjects receive my protection; I harness the essence of Heaven and Earth to nourish them, regulate Yin and Yang to aid all beings. My subjects shall not be harmed or slaughtered without cause; if guilty, they are to be judged by officials according to public law, not subjected to private punishment."

"Those who lack morality or righteousness, or indulge in killing, cannibalism, incest, indecency, or corrupt the law, whatever form they take, are considered beasts and can be slain!"

These were the principles of nation-building. The specifics of what rites, what laws, and how the rules should be devised and implemented would be determined later.

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