In the forest, Immortals flew to and fro in the sky.

To construct the Spiritual Network, Sun Wukong had Immortal Zhenyuan bring all the Immortals from Huaguo Mountain.

Demons did not come over, for they found it hard to resist the Spiritual Energy.

The Immortal of Colossal Spirit placed the Immortal Stone onto the node.

"Immortal, where did these Immortal Stones come from?"

He asked Immortal Zhenyuan, "Why do I feel a sense of familiarity?"

"Of course you're familiar."

Immortal Zhenyuan thought to himself, those were Sun Wukong's hairs.

This secret was known by few, Sun Wukong was a naturally nurtured Spiritual Object, and after becoming an Immortal, every part of him was a treasure.

"Don't ask what you shouldn't, keep moving."

Immortal Zhenyuan started to construct the node, instructing the Immortal of Colossal Spirit to continue bringing over Immortal Stones.

The Immortal of Colossal Spirit turned and flew back to the valley.

The Immortal of Colossal Spirit was also one of the Immortals who had sought refuge at Huaguo Mountain, the reason being—he did not want to keep opposing Sun Wukong.

The Immortal of Colossal Spirit thought that in a few hundred years, Sun Wukong and the Heavenly Palace would surely clash again.

He did not want to face Sun Wukong in opposition, it was too disheartening.

The Water Moon Fairy stood in the valley; she was interested in the Spiritual Network, but was more intrigued by the Spiritual Spring.

"This is the essence of heaven and earth."

The Water Moon Fairy stared at the light, piercing through the essence of the Spiritual Energy.

It was a pity her Jade Purification Bottle was not with her; otherwise, with a simple conversion, she could have acquired much sweet dew.

"This is no ordinary Spiritual Energy."

Next to the Spiritual Spring, after a detailed examination, Lord Lao Zi of the Great Monad reached the same conclusion: "This is the essence of heaven and earth."

"The essence of heaven and earth?"

Sun Wukong frowned slightly, "What's the difference from Spiritual Energy?"

"It is born from the interweaving of Yin and Yang, and it can promote the birth of life."

Lord Lao Zi of the Great Monad replied, "The essence of heaven and earth here is very special, even Immortals would become pregnant if they absorbed it."

"You have found a good place."

Lord Lao Zi of the Great Monad praised, "This is probably the essence of heaven and earth left over from a great calamity."

"A great calamity?"

"The last great calamity."

Lord Lao Zi of the Great Monad nodded, "When the lifespan of heaven and earth passed, some essence would recondense together."

In fact, he had seen this kind of essence in the last great calamity.

Sun Wukong was not too interested in this, he was more eager to solve the problem, "Is there a way to resolve the pregnancy issue?"

"I happen to know one."

Lord Lao Zi of the Great Monad said, as one of the few Immortals who remained from the last great calamity and once a Pioneer of Hongmeng, naturally, he had a way to solve this problem.

Therefore, Sun Wukong entrusted the Spiritual Spring to him with peace of mind.

At this moment, Emperor Donghua flew back with the Water Virtues Star Monarch.

"Emperor, Star Monarch."

Sun Wukong approached and asked, "Have you figured it out?"

He had sent Emperor Donghua and the Water Virtues Star Monarch to investigate the geographic surroundings.

Emperor Donghua gave a glance to the Star Monarch, who immediately spread out the map they had made on the ground.

"This mountain range is eight hundred li."

The Water Virtues Star Monarch explained.

The mountain range where the Spirit Vein was located spanned eight hundred li, with very few humans scattered around, yet belonging to no country.

"Eight hundred li?"

Surprise filled Sun Wukong's eyes.

This length was nearly that of the Flame Mountain.

"If we continue to extend outward, there are thousands of li filled with mountains and forests, with hardly any plains."

The Water Virtues Star Monarch continued.

Sun Wukong looked at the map, "What is to the east?"

He pointed to the east, where there was a place marked with a circle.

"That is the West Liang Woman Country, with a journey of more than a month for mortals from us, and a few hundred li to the east of the West Liang Woman Country, there is the Tongtian River."

The Water Virtues Star Monarch responded, "Across the Tongtian River and a few hundred li further, there is a Kingdom of Chechi."

He introduced the situation to the east to Sun Wukong.

Sun Wukong secretly marveled at the vastness of the Western Continent where territories were sparsely populated; a span of several thousand miles only harbored West Liang Woman Country.

The territory of West Liang Woman Country was very small. If their borders were to extend all the way to Tongtian River, they could possess hundreds of thousands of square miles of land.

"What about the west?"

Sun Wukong inquired about the situation to the west.

"Three hundred miles away from the border of the mountain ranges lies the Kingdom of Jisai,"

replied the Water Virtues Star Monarch. "Though it's near the mountains, it's still nearly a thousand miles from us here."

"That will do,"

Sun Wukong couldn't help but think.

The continuous mountain ranges, seen as inhospitable by mortals, were perceived as potential land for development in his eyes.

After discussing the southern and northern territories, he eventually outlined an eighty million square mile Immortal Country bounded by Tongtian River and the Kingdom of Jisai.

Emperor Donghua and Water Virtues Star Monarch were both stunned.

"Great, Great Saint..."

Water Virtues Star Monarch asked in a daze, "Do we need to be that vast?"

"I hope that in a hundred years, this place can accommodate a population of fifty million,"

Sun Wukong declared.

Even if Immortals have the power to move mountains and overturn seas, the mountains are still an obstacle; the larger the territory of the Immortal Country, the better, as it wouldn't be able to sustain such a large population otherwise.

"Fifty million?"

Water Virtues Star Monarch gasped in shock. "Great Saint, are you joking?"

In the Four Great Continents, the most populous, the Han Dynasty, currently has only about twenty to thirty million people.

"Why do you need so many people?"

Another voice questioned.

Sun Wukong turned his head and saw Water Moon Fairy.

"For scale,"

Sun Wukong answered.

He knew in his heart that as reforms continued to deepen, industries would become more and more specialised. Huaguo Mountain had completed its first reform, but it could not undertake a second—simply because there weren't enough people.

The Immortal Country must have a sufficient population to carry out successive reforms and to produce detailed divisions of labor.

Sun Wukong did not know how many reforms could be accomplished in a hundred years, nor the specific number of people required, but at least they had to prepare for a population of fifty million.

"Great Saint, forgive my frankness,"

said Water Virtues Star Monarch. "It's simply impossible."

Not to mention the population, their food production couldn't reach that target either.

"In any case, let's work towards this goal first,"

Sun Wukong remarked indifferently. "Only a true great nation can change the entire Western Continent."

Only with a large enough volume can a significant magnetic attraction force be generated.

"But Great Saint..."

Water Virtues Star Monarch, suppressing his shock, continued, "By setting Tongtian River as the boundary, you have also included West Liang Woman Country within it."

"It's okay,"

Sun Wukong nodded. "By encompassing the Female Country within our borders without entering their territory, it does not count as meddling in their governance."

Water Virtues Star Monarch was at a loss for words.

Sun Wukong then had him take a group of Immortals to notify the surrounding nations.

"What are you planning to do?"

After Water Virtues Star Monarch left, Water Moon Fairy asked Sun Wukong, "What do you want the Western Continent to become?"

"Let all beauty be extolled, celebrate the beauty within everyone, share beauty with all, and strive for universal harmony,"

Sun Wukong said, followed by a shake of his head. "That's just an ideal, but one must still attempt it…"

Water Moon Fairy slightly furrowed her brows, deep in thought.

Several days later, Lord Lao Zi of the Great Monad constructed an Array over the Spiritual Spring, altering its properties so that it would no longer cause pregnancy.

Sun Wukong brought over other Demons from Huaguo Mountain.

Among the first batch was Lady Rakshasa.

"Great King,"

Lady Rakshasa spoke upon seeing Sun Wukong for the first time. "My home is nearby."

Sun Wukong was taken aback before it dawned on him.

So, this really is Flame Mountain!

No wonder it has been burning for so long—it turns out there is Spiritual Energy beneath it.

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