Chapter 119: A Reluctant Intervention

After Shun ascended to the throne, he made significant contributions to the human race. However, heaven is unpredictable, and soon after, violent storms began to plague the Great Desolation. This exacerbated the already recurring flood problems among the humans to such an extent that if they remained unresolved, the people would be unable to survive or labor.

Shun was at a loss regarding this sudden deluge. At this critical moment, a human minister named Gun stepped forward, proposing a series of strategies to control the floods.

Shun was overjoyed upon hearing this, believing that Gun was destined by heaven to resolve this disaster. He defied the opinions of others and entrusted the heavy responsibility of water management entirely to him.

Gun, naturally feeling duty-bound, packed his belongings and set out with a large group of experts to begin the great undertaking of flood control. He adopted the method of containment. After obtaining some "breath-soil" (a divine substance left over from when Nuwa created humanity) from the lower reaches of the Yellow River, he began building massive dikes throughout the Great Desolation to block rivers and store water, constructing numerous reservoirs for the people to use for irrigation.

However, although this provided temporary relief, it was not a long-term solution. Reservoirs eventually fill up, and dikes eventually fail under pressure, leading to breaches. Consequently, the floods were not suppressed; rather, the threat to humanity grew more severe. Each time the water broke through the dikes, it resulted in a horrific catastrophe.

...

Meanwhile, such a significant event within the human race naturally stirred the Holy Land of Humanity. Since it threatened the survival of the entire human race, representatives were sent to report to the Human Sovereigns and Ancestors, hoping they might have a solution.

Upon learning of the situation, the Suiren Clan and others dared not delay and immediately summoned Fuxi, Shennong, Xuanyuan, and Zhuanxu to discuss the matter. The gathering of three Human Ancestors and six former Human Sovereigns was an unprecedented display of power, which greatly excited the human minister who had come seeking help.

However, after Fuxi performed a brief divination with the River Chart and Luo Book, he poured a bucket of cold water on their hopes without hesitation.

"This flood is a natural disaster ordained by Heaven, a test of the perfection of the Five Emperors. We must not intervene. If we do, the Heavenly Dao will surely descend with an even more terrifying catastrophe to test the Five Emperors, or else they will never reach completion..."

The Suiren Clan and the others calmed their minds to divine the situation themselves, but they arrived at similar conclusions and were left speechless. After all, everyone present cared deeply for the human race; watching them suffer while doing nothing was difficult to bear.

"I have a daughter named Mi Fei, who is currently the deity of the Luo River appointed by the Celestial Court. I shall send word for her to assist the human race... I hope this will allow them to suffer fewer disasters," Fuxi suggested after some thought.

"That is all we can do," the others agreed with a nod.

...

Meanwhile, the other Sages naturally perceived the essence of the matter through the heavenly secrets. This led them to quietly speculate, as the previous Human Sovereigns had emerged without any traceable signs. Now, it was essentially certain that the final Human Sovereign would be the one to resolve the flood.

But who would it be? Gun?

Thinking of this, several Sages were tempted to act, but news soon arrived from the human realm.

Gun had been beheaded by Shun for failing to control the floods.

"Not Gun?"

Upon receiving this news, many of the Sages frowned. Who could it be then? Helpless, the Sages could only do as they had before, each dispatching their disciples to the human realm to "cast a wide net."

...

At this time, after executing Gun, Shun and his ministers were at a total loss regarding flood control. Finally, a minister proposed asking the Dragon Race to intervene and stop the torrential rain from the heavens, reasoning that if the source were cut off, the floods would naturally recede.

Shun pondered this and followed the suggestion, dispatching a human elder to the Dragon Race to request the Dragon King to stop the rain. Although he was unsure if the Dragon Race could solve the flooding, it was a sliver of hope worth testing.

The elder arrived at the East Sea and soon met with the Dragon King, Ao Ming.

"I am an envoy of the human race, representing the Human Sovereign to pay my respects to the Dragon King."

"What brings a human envoy to the Dragon Palace?" Ao Ming asked, not daring to be slighted. After all, the Great Desolation was now dominated by the human race, and everyone knew they had produced a Sage.

The elder sat at Ao Ming's invitation and took a sip of wine, but with the weight of the human crisis on his heart, he had no interest in the songs and dances of the aquatic beauties. He bowed and said straightforwardly, "Dragon King, I have come to request that you intervene to stop the relentless rain falling upon the Great Desolation."

"This matter..." Ao Ming frowned slightly. He pondered his wording before saying, "To be honest, Envoy, this rain is sent by Heaven and has nothing to do with my Dragon Race, so we have no way to stop it..."

The elder frowned and tentatively asked, "Then, can the Dragon King at least intervene to alleviate the suffering caused by the floods?"

"This..." Ao Ming was conflicted. Recalling how the Dragon Race had lost many clansmen helping Xuanyuan secure the throne without receiving any benefits, he made up his mind. Naturally, he could not refuse outright, so he made an excuse: "The Dragon Race is under the jurisdiction of the Celestial Court. Without an imperial decree, we cannot act recklessly; otherwise, if the Heavenly Emperor were to blame us, none could bear the consequences..."

The elder had no choice but to depart. Upon returning, he reported everything that had happened. The ministers then suggested that Shun send an envoy to the Celestial Court to request that the Heavenly Emperor order the Dragon Race to act. Even if they couldn't end the flooding, it would at least reduce the damage.

Shun nodded in agreement, and the elder set off again, flying toward Mount Buzhou.

...

Nowadays, Mount Buzhou was inhabited by the God Race, populated by countless Great Luo Golden Immortals. The elder slowed his pace, not daring to be presumptuous, and arrived trembling before the Southern Heaven Gate.

"Who are you, and why do you trespass at the Celestial Court?" the gatekeeper general barked, stopping him.

The elder looked up and saw that the guards were both at the late stage of the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm. His heart skipped a beat, and he quickly bowed. "I am an envoy of the human race, here to seek an audience with the Heavenly Emperor."

The guards exchanged glances; although they looked down on a mere early-stage Great Luo Golden Immortal, they did not dare to ignore an envoy of the humans.

"Wait here, I shall report this."

"I am much obliged," the elder bowed.

...

Before long, Li Tian received the envoy in the Lingxiao Palace. After the traditional kowtows, the elder hesitated before asking tentatively, "The human race is currently ravaged by floods and in dire straits. I beseech the Heavenly Emperor to take pity on us and dispatch help to resolve this disaster. We shall be eternally grateful..."

Seeing the immense power of the Celestial Court, the elder had changed his mind, hoping the Court itself would intervene. Surely, with such power, it would be simple?

"This tribulation is ordained by Heaven. In time, a hero will arise to solve this flood. The Celestial Court finds it inconvenient to intervene," Li Tian replied, looking at the elder. He was surprised by the request, but it did not stir him much.

"Come, issue a decree!"

"Yes, Heavenly Emperor!"

"Order the Dragon Race to assist the humans and minimize the losses from the floods!"

"Understood!" The official recorded the decree and handed it to the elder.

Having received the decree, the elder dared not say more; after all, this was his true objective, and his previous request had merely been a trial.

Soon after, Dragon King Ao Ming received the decree. After questioning the messenger, he felt a headache. The humans had actually gone to the Heavenly Emperor? If he had known, he would have used a different excuse.

But it was too late. Even if he were unwilling, he had no choice but to comply. He did not have the courage to question the Heavenly Emperor's decision, and besides, he wouldn't have to do the work himself.