A hint of surprise flashed in Ye Lingyuan's eyes.
Zi Lingling grabbed his hand and said, "A woman's intuition!"
Alas!
The surprise in Ye Lingyuan's eyes turned to bitterness.
He knew Zi Lingling was comforting him.
But it was good like this, a beautiful blessing.
The two searched the Duanhun Cliff for another half day, and found nothing in the end.
"Ling'er, I want to go down and take a look!"
Ye Lingyuan stood at the edge of the bottomless cliff, lost in thought.
Zi Lingling shook her head and said, "Even if we want to go down, we have to clean up the mess outside first, right?"
Ye Lingyuan was stunned for a moment, and the reason that had been clouded by anger gradually returned to his mind.
Zi Lingling continued, "No matter what, the current situation in the Three Kingdoms of Tianqi and the Four Great Empires has a great karma with us.
Although those people deserve to die, many commoners are innocent. We must create a good living environment for them, so as not to fail your mission as the God of War, right?"
Ye Lingyuan nodded and said with a bitter smile, "Ling'er, do you know that I have never liked that high and mighty position? I just want to travel the world with you, and be together for a lifetime!"
Zi Lingling smiled and said, "I yearn for freedom just like you, but the burdens that are ours to bear, we must still carry.
However, if you really don't want to sit on that throne, I have a way."
Ye Lingyuan asked curiously, "What way?"
Zi Lingling took his hand and walked towards the bottom of Duanhun Cliff, saying, "We can do this..."
Three months later, Ye Lingyuan ascended the throne, and Zi Lingling became Empress. The Tianyuan Empire was established.
The vast territory that originally belonged to the Four Great Empires was divided into nine prefectures: Lingyuan Prefecture, Dongping Prefecture, Xile Prefecture, Nanfu Prefecture, Beikang Prefecture, Zhongyi Prefecture, Sixiang Prefecture, Xianhe Prefecture, and Rende Prefecture.
Among them, Lingyuan Prefecture was the capital of the Tianyuan Empire, located in the center of the entire territory.
Dongfang Prefecture, Xile Prefecture, Nanfu Prefecture, and Beikang Prefecture were located in the four cardinal directions of east, west, south, and north, respectively. Zhongyi Prefecture, Rende Prefecture, Xianhe Prefecture, and Sixiang Prefecture were located in the southeast, northeast, southwest, and northwest directions.
The eight directions were crisscrossed, resembling two concentric squares, guarding Lingyuan Prefecture.
Ye Lingyuan ordered the casting of nine great cauldrons, which were buried beneath the nine prefectures to suppress the imperial fortune.
Furthermore, teleportation arrays were established to connect the nine prefectures, making travel very convenient.
On the day the Tianyuan Empire was founded, spiritual energy surged in the heavens and earth, and seven-colored auspicious clouds descended from the sky. Various birds flew through the air.
Long'er, Xiao Hu, and Bai Ze also released their oppressive aura, causing all the beasts in the Tianyuan Empire to obediently prostrate themselves outside the eight prefectures.
The sounds of phoenix cries and beast roars lasted for nine days and nine nights, which was a true scene of a hundred beasts paying homage and a hundred birds greeting the phoenix.
At Zi Lingling's suggestion, Ye Lingyuan established four departments under the throne: the Department of Political Affairs, the Department of Supervision, the Department of Enforcement, and the Department of Military Affairs.
The Department of Political Affairs had eighteen elders, nine chief and nine deputy elders. Each of the nine prefectures sent one chief elder and one deputy elder. In addition, sixty-three representatives were selected, including those from various professions, and even nine common citizens.
These individuals were responsible to Ye Lingyuan and Zi Lingling from above, and to ordinary cultivators and commoners from below. They held voting rights on various political affairs and the power to formulate laws.
The Department of Supervision was responsible for overseeing the execution of all laws, as well as monitoring the personnel of the Department of Political Affairs to prevent embezzlement and deception, and supervising the enforcement by the Department of Enforcement.
The Department of Enforcement was responsible for enforcing the law. The objects of enforcement ranged from the Emperor, Empress, and the Department of Political Affairs and Supervision, down to ordinary citizens. Enforcement points were established in each prefecture.
The Department of Military Affairs was responsible for training the army and guarding the security of the Tianyuan Empire.
After all, at the borders of the empire's territory, there were still beast territories.
Of course, in addition to this, each prefecture also had chief and deputy prefectural lords. Under the prefectural lords, there were also prefectural departments of political affairs, supervision, and enforcement, whose functions were similar to the highest departments.
However, there was no Department of Military Affairs within the prefectures to prevent individuals from harboring selfish ambitions, building up private armies, and disregarding the lives of ordinary cultivators and commoners.
Martial arts were forbidden within the nine prefectures. Violators would be dealt with by special enforcement teams according to the severity of the offense. Those with lighter offenses would have their cultivation abolished, while those with more serious offenses would be executed directly.
It could be said that Zi Lingling, in order to be able to be a hands-off manager with Ye Lingyuan, had almost directly copied the management model of the Yan Kingdom before her transmigration, creating a nation where everyone was equal.
Thus, the Tianyuan Empire gradually stabilized.
By the time everything was on track, half a year had passed.
Zi Lingling and Ye Lingyuan entrusted the state affairs to the three departments, and then they quietly left the imperial capital, Lingyuan Prefecture.
They toured the other eight prefectures and confirmed that the common people were living peaceful and stable lives before they returned to Duanhun Cliff.
"Ye Lingyuan, why does it feel a bit wrong here?"
Zi Lingling stood at the edge of Duanhun Cliff, frowning and saying.
"This aura... why does it give this king a feeling of disgust?"
Ye Lingyuan also frowned.
Zi Lingling nodded and said, "Yes, but we didn't have this aura when we came here last time."
Ye Lingyuan suddenly looked to the east and exclaimed in shock, "Ling'er, look to the east quickly!"
Zi Lingling followed his gaze.
At some point, thin black lines, as thick as a finger, had appeared in the eastern sky.
The black lines intertwined, like a large net, as if trying to trap the Tianyuan Continent.
"What is that?"
Zi Lingling was also shocked.
Since ancient times, there has been the saying "purple energy coming from the east," and purple energy is also known as auspicious energy.
Therefore, when people saw the phenomenon of purple energy coming from the east, they couldn't help but kneel and worship, seeking blessings from heaven and earth.
But now, the east was covered by this black net, making Zi Lingling and Ye Lingyuan's expressions become solemn.
"Ling'er, I have a bad feeling!"
"Me too! That blackness makes me feel very disgusted."
Ye Lingyuan nodded.
"No, I'll still send a message to the Department of Political Affairs!"
After he finished speaking, he activated the audio-visual stone in his palm and said, "An unusual celestial phenomenon has appeared, seemingly inauspicious. You must remain vigilant at all times and have the Department of Military Affairs ready for battle!"
After speaking, he turned off the audio-visual stone.
"Ling'er, I feel that the phenomenon in the east is related to the bottom of the cliff. Let's go down and take a look!"
Zi Lingling nodded.
Ye Lingyuan embraced her waist, leaped lightly, and the two rapidly descended towards the bottom of the cliff.
Of course, Ye Lingyuan had mobilized his power of law, otherwise, if they had just jumped down like this, they would have been shattered to pieces.
"Ye Lingyuan, don't you feel it getting colder?"
Zi Lingling couldn't help but hug her arms. The cold here gave off a gloomy feeling.
Ye Lingyuan nodded and said, "Indeed, it is a bit!"
After he finished speaking, he tightened the hand around Zi Lingling's waist, and the two became even closer.