For cultivator powerhouses, the God-Sealing List was nothing but chicken ribs.
Even if it were the genuine article—once you entered it, becoming one of the exalted Four Sovereigns or Five Emperors would indeed grant power comparable to that of a Golden Immortal.
But to someone like Jiang Yan, who had yet to ascend but already saw further, it was still nothing more than a gilded cage.
Golden Immortal was not his destination.
If one could climb higher, why would they settle for binding themselves to the God-Sealing List, losing freedom, unable to cultivate further, all just to serve as someone else's pawn?
Not to mention, this wasn't even the authentic God-Sealing List. Who knew how far this counterfeit could take someone?
But for ordinary mortals—those who would never touch the path of cultivation…
This was not just an opportunity. This was like gold bars raining from the heavens.
Step onto the God-Sealing List, and in an instant, one would gain the divine might reserved for cultivators.
What deal could be more profitable?
"Master, this God-Sealing List…" Furina bit her lip, speaking softly.
"Why does it sound so similar to my Heavenly Mandate: The God-Sealing Art?"
Jiang Yan smiled faintly.
"That's because the God-Sealing List was derived from the Heavenly Mandate: The God-Sealing Art itself—a manifestation of the authority of the Way of Kingship."
"When kingship bowed its head, a certain great power extracted that portion of authority and forged it into the God-Sealing List, its purpose being to anoint gods, assemble a Heavenly Court in haste, and suppress the Immortal Realm."
"Judging by the current traces, the one who created it should be the Jade Emperor, incarnation of the Celestial Thearch."
At this, Alice tilted her head in puzzlement.
"Wasn't it the Three Pure Ones?"
Jiang Yan let out a helpless laugh.
"How could you think the exalted Three Pure Ones would busy themselves with something so trivial?"
"Rather than waste their time on such distractions, they'd sooner be debating the Dao with the three Buddhas."
"The truth is, the Three Pure Dao Ancestors were always solitary figures. What you see as 'Daoism' is simply the later sects that walked the path of the Dao under their shadow."
"In the vastness of the Immortal Realm, one cannot survive without a great backer. Naturally, Daoist sects attached themselves to the Three Pure Ones."
"But how firm such an attachment truly is… well, that's another matter. After all, the Dao Ancestors stand among the mightiest even at the Great Luo level. To them, sects and followers are scarcely worth a glance."
The group nodded in dawning realization. Still, matters of the Great Luo were far beyond their reach. Knowing this much was already just widening their horizons—no need to dwell further.
For now, the key issue was still the God-Sealing List…
"Master."
Ningguang stepped forward, bowed deeply, her gaze resolute. She had already made up her mind to obtain the God-Sealing List.
"The one our Mount Shu holds… is it the genuine article?"
"Of course not." Jiang Yan shook his head lightly.
"This is but a supreme-grade spiritual artifact forged in ages past by the First Seat of Windreturn Peak. Though named the God-Sealing List, it is at most a counterfeit."
"Just like my Purifying Glazed Bottle."
"Yet even a counterfeit, at that level, remains a supreme-grade spiritual artifact. And bearing the name of the God-Sealing List, it naturally inherits part of its authority, though weakened."
"Moreover, it is not a singular piece."
"In the past, many disciples of Mount Shu came from royal lineages, some even kings themselves."
"You know as well as I—within the cultivation world, mortals are the majority. These royals feared their people would be unable to survive amidst cultivators. Distracted hearts cannot cultivate well. So, the First Seat of Windreturn Peak forged these God-Sealing Lists."
"With them, royals could exchange their national destiny for the sealing of divine guardians to watch over their kingdoms and protect their citizens."
"In a sense, it was a welfare granted by Mount Shu to its disciples."
At this, Cloud Retainer froze.
Her master of Windreturn Peak had been that strong?
Not only capable of forging a supreme-grade spiritual artifact, but even forging them in batches?
As the current eldest disciple of Windreturn Peak, she suddenly felt rather… inadequate.
The others, too, stole glances at her.
Big Bamboo Peak had already begun mass-producing pills. Windreturn Peak, on the other hand, still stumbled over basic artifact refinement.
They had thought forging artifacts was inherently difficult, and that few would ever succeed.
Now it seemed…
It wasn't that the peak was lacking—rather, it was her.
How could such looks escape Cloud Retainer's notice? Face darkening, she silently swore to devote herself to her craft, to one day slap all these doubters in the face.
Once she forged a spiritual artifact, none of them would see a scrap of her work!
"Though a supreme artifact, the God-Sealing List itself has no offensive power. The God-Beating Whip does, but it is designed specifically to target and enforce the God-Sealing List's authority."
"Thus, throughout history, only disciples tied to royal families valued it. For the rest, it was chicken ribs—tasteless yet a pity to discard."
"Bound by the limits of its grade, even if a kingdom's destiny was strong, at best it could seal a god equivalent to the mid-stage of Spirit Transformation."
Jiang Yan shook his head as he said this, clearly unimpressed.
But the others' eyes burned with desire.
Mid-stage Spirit Transformation …
How many of that realm did Mount Shu even have right now? Barely a handful.
If they could truly seal such a god, they could focus entirely on cultivation while their nations flourished securely behind them.
With the whip and list enforcing control, there would be no fear of rogue gods.
For the disciples present—many of whom still held positions as rulers or ministers—its importance outweighed all other artifacts on offer.
Even Tartaglia, the battle maniac, set aside thoughts of his Blood-Reversing Demon Blade.
With the God-Sealing List, he'd have no more worries.
He could tell which carried more weight.
"Master…" Ningguang steadied herself, bowed again.
"If we use Liyue's national destiny with the God-Sealing List, how many gods could be sealed?"
Having been among the first to join Mount Shu, and with Liyue having long tied its fate to the sect, Jiang Yan held considerable goodwill toward them.
He pinched his fingers in calculation, then spoke softly:
"Three hundred sixty-five righteous gods, each at least at the early Spirit Transformation."
"If you pursue quality over quantity, the highest would be one peak Spirit Transformation god, plus five late-stage ones."
Ningguang and the Qixing exchanged glances, eyes alight.
Liyue's national destiny was indeed formidable, to allow for so many.
And—aside from the adepti and Zhongli—the strongest in Liyue at present was Ganyu, merely at the peak of Spirit Transformation.
Yet with the God-Sealing List, they could summon another at the same peak level!
Liyue would never again have to fear calamity.
Of course, they weren't foolish enough to actually seal three hundred sixty-five gods.
Quantity was meaningless. In cultivation, quality reigned supreme.
A single peak-stage righteous god was more than enough to suppress any threat.
And as their national destiny grew, more could be sealed later.
Compared to Furina's Heavenly Mandate: The God-Sealing Art, which could seal even mountains and rivers, the list was weaker.
But for now, it was enough. The art existed only once.
"Master," Keqing stepped forward.
"How does one actually seal a god with it?"
Before Jiang Yan could answer, Alice eagerly cut in:
"I know! From my memories—Investiture of the Gods! Most of those sealed were great figures from the God-Sealing War."
"But usually… it was after they died, their true spirits drawn into the list."
Keqing's face stiffened.
"There were no living people sealed?"
"Uh…" Alice faltered. Back when she skimmed Investiture of the Gods, she only remembered the main highlights. When it came to details… she was blank.
Jiang Yan chuckled, shaking his head.
"Not necessarily."
"This list is not the original. It relies on national destiny. Even the genuine article doesn't demand that only the dead can be sealed."
"Here, since national destiny is the medium, the chosen must be meritorious to the nation—that is the prerequisite for recognition."
"For instance, Ningguang, Keqing—you both could be sealed. But I doubt you would want that."
Both immediately shook their heads.
What a joke.
One a supreme spirit root, the other a sword body—future limitless. Why bind themselves prematurely?
"Whether alive or dead, as long as the true spirit remains and the person has served their nation, they may be sealed."
"But after sealing, their life and death lie in the hands of the one holding the list and whip. They lose freedom."
"And bearing divine power through national destiny, they must fulfill divine duties—summoning rain, commanding thunder, and so on."
"Should they shirk their duties, the backlash of destiny and the list itself will fall upon them."
Hearing this, the group quickly understood.
To put it bluntly—it was a way for nations to create tireless civil servants.
Destiny grants the power, the gods do the work.
From one angle, it was still a great deal. Many mortals would never taste cultivation. To ascend in a single step—even bound by duty—was still gain.
As for those unwilling to shoulder responsibility?
Such people would never be acknowledged by national destiny in the first place.
They fell into thought.
Those already in Mount Shu—even outer or menial disciples—would likely refuse. Their aptitude might be low, but they still had freedom. Who would trade that for servitude?
Those outside Mount Shu… finding someone both worthy and recognized by destiny would be no easy feat.
Jean mentally reviewed the Knights of Favonius, even all of Mond's citizens—yet none seemed suitable.
Either they could already cultivate, or they'd never pass destiny's judgment.
Most Mondstadt folk valued freedom too much to shoulder divine burdens.
Jean's expression turned heavier.
Jiang Yan saw through their dilemma at a glance, and chuckled.
"Have you forgotten what I said?"
"The God-Sealing List cares not for life or death. As long as the true spirit remains, as long as the person served their nation, they can be forcibly sealed."
"So why fixate only on the living? Do your nations have no heroes in their histories?"
His words thundered through their hearts.
Especially the adepti like Xiao—their heads snapped up, eyes blazing with emotion as they stared at Jiang Yan.
If the dead could be sealed…
Then the fallen immortals could all return!
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