Chapter 100: The Divine Farmer Governs the Age

"Mm." Li Tian smiled, then beckoned to the official standing by his side. "Issue the decree."

"Yes."

The official bowed, produced the imperial decree that had been prepared in advance, looked toward Mi Fei below, and read aloud: "An edict from the Heavenly Emperor: Mi Fei, daughter of the Human Sovereign Fuxi, is exceptionally intelligent and compassionate toward the people. She is hereby appointed as the Goddess of the Luo River, to be honored with the status of a deity!"

As the words fell, the decree transformed into a stream of golden light and settled into Mi Fei's hands.

Looking at the shimmering golden scroll in her grasp, Mi Fei was stunned into a momentary daze. Did I just meet the Heavenly Emperor and the Heavenly Queen who created the human race? And I have been appointed as the Goddess of the Luo River? What is happening?

"This is a gift for you."

Watching the bewildered Mi Fei, Nuwa could not help but smile. With a gentle flick of her finger, a multicolored silk ribbon—a primordial spiritual treasure—flew straight toward Mi Fei and wrapped itself around her waist.

"This is..."

Feeling the profound power contained within the multicolored ribbon, Mi Fei knew it was no ordinary object. Snapping back to her senses, she hurriedly knelt to bow, but Nuwa waved her hand to stop her.

"There is no need for such formalities with us, Mi Fei," Nuwa said kindly.

"Thank you." Mi Fei looked up at Nuwa, feeling somewhat overwhelmed for a moment, yet Nuwa’s smile was so affable that it filled her with an inexplicable warmth.

"Alright, you may return to the lower realms now."

Seeing that Zong Bu in the lower world was on the verge of finishing off the monster in the Luo River, Li Tian said with a smile.

"Go on." Nuwa also nodded with a smile, watching until Mi Fei’s figure disappeared before turning around.

"What do you think? Should we have a beautiful daughter of our own?"

Li Tian took two steps forward, gently embraced Nuwa, and asked softly, inhaling the faint, elegant fragrance drifting from her hair.

Nuwa was taken aback; she had never truly considered this question before.

...

"Princess, where did you just go?"

In the lower realm, Zong Bu had just narrowly defeated Bingyi and was preparing to search for Mi Fei when she suddenly appeared out of thin air before him. He was startled, but upon realizing it was her, he was overjoyed and hurried forward to ask.

"Let's go back and talk about it."

Mi Fei herself was still somewhat muddled and did not know how to explain, so she brushed the question aside.

"Very well, Princess!"

Zong Bu nodded. He had only asked offhandedly, so hearing this, he did not press the matter. As long as the princess was safe, that was all that mattered; otherwise, he truly would not have known how to answer to the Human Sovereign.

...

Time flew, and in the blink of an eye, more than a dozen years passed. Jiang Shinian had grown to the age of twenty.

Upon reaching adulthood at eighteen, he had begun to awaken the memories of his past life. Although he did not recover everything, it was enough to restore his essential nature as a kind-hearted man.

On this day, during the harvest season, Jiang Shinian stood upon a giant rock outside the tribe, watching his clansmen haul in carts of grain harvested over the year. His mind began to turn. He noticed that different grains yielded different results when planted. Some matured once a year, others twice; some were easy to grow, while others were difficult to cultivate, requiring constant watering and fertilization.

"Is there not a type of grain that matures twice a year, yields a high harvest, and is easy to grow?"

Once this thought took root in Jiang Shinian's mind, it became an obsession. He began spending his days in the fields, observing the growth and harvest of various crops, and frequently consulted experienced farmers, asking in detail about the pros and cons of each.

However, after a long time, he still had not found such a perfect grain.

Jiang Shinian’s activities did not escape the notice of Duobao, Xuandu, and others who had been lurking around the Jiang tribe. Upon learning that Shennong was searching for a specific type of grain, they became interested and used their divine powers to search far and wide.

Ultimately, it was Xuandu who found a grain known as the "Five-Colored Nine-Ear Millet." After he presented it to Jiang Shinian, the man was overjoyed.

After thanking Xuandu, Jiang Shinian found an open patch of land and planted the Five-Colored Nine-Ear Millet to see if it was truly as easy to cultivate as Xuandu had described.

Before long, the millet grew into a lush, green expanse, much to Jiang Shinian's delight. Once it matured, he calculated the yield and discovered it was far higher than any other grain currently grown by the human race. Overjoyed, he pioneered the cultivation of the Five-Colored Nine-Ear Millet within the Jiang tribe.

A few years later, word of the grain spread to surrounding tribes, and soon, the entire human race began to cultivate it.

Meanwhile, Jiang Shinian's reputation grew ever wider. Everyone began calling him "Shennong," meaning the "Miraculous Farmer," and his original name, Jiang Shinian, was slowly forgotten.

...

Not long after, Fuxi heard of Shennong’s reputation.

Upon learning that purple clouds had surrounded him at birth, he knew that this man was likely the next Human Sovereign.

Fuxi immediately sent someone to bring Shennong to him. He asked several questions regarding the planting of crops, to which Shennong responded fluently. Seeing this, Fuxi asked further questions about managing a tribe, and Shennong’s answers again impressed him.

Delighted, Fuxi remained cautious and did not pass on his position immediately. Instead, he kept Shennong by his side to observe his character and ability.

Years passed, and Shennong did not disappoint. He gradually accumulated significant prestige among the humans, second only to Fuxi.

Fuxi was greatly pleased and chose an auspicious day to pass the position of Human Sovereign to Shennong.

However, after the ceremony, Fuxi did not receive the expected descent of merit from Heaven. After a brief calculation of the celestial secrets, he realized that there were to be three Human Sovereigns, and that the Heavenly Dao would only bestow merit once all three had taken their positions.

Understanding this, Fuxi did not mind; it would happen sooner or later regardless.

After giving his final instructions to Shennong, he departed with Houtu for the human holy land in the Yellow River basin. As for his daughter, Mi Fei, because she had been appointed as the Goddess of the Luo River, she remained to preside over those waters; fortunately, the Luo River was not far from the Yellow River, so it was of little consequence.

...

Thus, the human race officially entered the era of Shennong's rule.

As for what followed, Li Tian did not pay much attention. It was nothing more than the tasting of a hundred herbs and the compilation of the "Shennong Classic of Materia Medica."

Truth be told, Shennong's tasting of the hundred herbs was extremely dangerous, as the prehistoric world contained all manner of flora, some of which could even poison a Great Golden Immortal to death.

But then again, Shennong had several Quasi-Sages standing behind him—and they were all Quasi-Sages with prominent backgrounds, at that.

...

On this day, Li Tian quietly descended from the Heavenly Court once more.

The time was approaching for the birth of the Yellow Emperor, Xuanyuan.

In many versions of prehistoric legend, Xuanyuan was the reincarnation of the primordial spirit of the giant turtle that Nuwa had beheaded to support the heavens. However, as there was no such "mending of the heavens" in this reality, there was naturally no reincarnation of a giant turtle.

Yet, Xuanyuan had to exist.

After deep contemplation, an idea took root in Li Tian's mind.

He only wondered if this idea would actually work.