After entering the grand formation, Turtle Jiuxiang quickly lost consciousness.
When he finally woke up, he found himself inside the River God's Palace, where he was appointed Prime Minister Turtle by River God Honghong, becoming the chief steward of the underwater palace.
Upon taking office, Turtle Jiuxiang worked diligently and conscientiously. He had forgotten that he was trapped within an illusion, believing everything to be completely real.
Just like that, a hundred years passed.
During this time, he was nourished by power, and he grew increasingly convinced that joining the River God's Palace had been a wise decision. Over the years, various incidents occurred, including rogue demons causing chaos and river floods threatening the realm. Turtle Jiuxiang assisted Honghong with all his might, handling every situation with utmost tact and appropriateness.
Yet, his cultivation realm remained perpetually stuck at the peak of Refining Void to Integrate with Dao. Due to various bottlenecks, he had never been able to break through to the Immortal Realm.
However, after three hundred years, a new situation arose.
The seventh-generation grandson of the Dragon King of the East Sea had attained the fruit of a True Dragon Immortal, and he coveted the divine position of the River God of the Aolai River. Consequently, the Golden Immortal Realm prime minister of the East Sea Dragon Palace secretly met with Turtle Jiuxiang. He promised him a Three-Turn Golden Pill bestowed by the Heavenly Court, on the condition that Turtle Jiuxiang act as an insider for the Dragon Palace in the Aolai River, and secretly plant a taboo immortal artifact inside Honghong's bedchamber within the River God's Palace.
Turtle Jiuxiang, who had long despaired of ever becoming an immortal, hesitated for a moment before accepting the Three-Turn Golden Pill without the slightest reservation.
Not long after, heavenly soldiers and generals from the Heavenly Court appeared, discovering demonic artifacts hidden in Honghong's bedchamber. Accused of colluding with demons, Honghong was stripped of her divine position and sentenced to be executed upon the Execution Platform.
Meanwhile, the Aolai River welcomed a new river god—the Dragon King's seventh-generation grandson.
Having swallowed the immortal pill, Turtle Jiuxiang finally broke through to the Human Immortal Realm. Then, amidst roaring laughter, he materialized outside the formation of the Aolai River, only to be met by the icy gaze of the Cold Silkworm, Li Qi.
"Turtle Jiuxiang, you fail!"
Only then did Turtle Jiuxiang realize that he had been undergoing a trial within the River God's Illusion. Yet, in pursuit of the Immortal Realm, he had betrayed the River God, who had always treated him well, selling her out without a second thought.
He was destined to fail this trial!
"Leave the Aolai River. I do not wish to see you here again!" Li Qi's voice echoed directly in his mind.
A flash of murderous intent had briefly risen in Li Qi's heart toward Turtle Jiuxiang, but he ultimately let it go, realizing the timing was inappropriate. Turtle Jiuxiang was capable and familiar with the Aolai River; if he turned hostile, he could certainly cause trouble for Honghong.
Yet, every action of this turtle during the illusion had been witnessed crystal-clear by both Li Qi and Honghong.
Turtle Jiuxiang understood why. He bowed respectfully and said, "This minor demon will obey!"
In his heart, he already understood the reason for his failure. Although cautious, he had been far too utilitarian, ultimately losing his mind to the temptation of power.
Another reason Li Qi was willing to let him go was that, barring external forces and given his current state of mind, Turtle Jiuxiang could never possibly attain immortality on his own. In terms of growth potential, Turtle Jiuxiang posed little threat, and his cleverness had its limits.
Li Qi now understood that becoming an immortal required not only painstaking effort, resources, and comprehension, but an ironclad will. Turtle Jiuxiang might appear shrewd, but he was easily corrupted by self-interest and intoxicated by power, possessing an extremely fragile will. With such a frail will, the sheer heavenly might faced during a heavenly tribulation would be enough to crush him to death.
"Let me, Big Shell Three, take the trial next!"
After Turtle Jiuxiang retreated in dejection, a crab demon with the cultivation of the Late Stage of Refining Qi to Transform Spirit stepped forward. Demons lacked formal culture, so his name was casual and crude.
Upon entering the trial formation, he found himself designated as a general of the River God's Palace. In the illusion he experienced, he similarly faced warfare, temptation, and even the eventual collapse of the River God's Palace. In the end, this crab-headed, human-bodied fellow named Big Shell Three actually escorted Honghong's "daughter" all the way through a desperate flight, ultimately dying under the sword of an immortal while protecting his master.
When this crab demon emerged, Li Qi made his announcement.
"Trial passed! You are granted the position of Water Mansion General, along with cultivation techniques and a stipend of incense fire. Your master, the River God, is just ahead; go and claim your reward from her!"
With a wave of his hand, Li Qi forestalled the crude fellow's attempt to blurt out the mechanics of the illusion test, cutting straight to the verdict and the reward.
Hearing that the crab demon Big Shell Three had not only secured the position of general but also gained cultivation techniques and an incense fire stipend, the surrounding water demons immediately grew stirred up. So it really was possible to pass, and the trial held no hidden traps after all!
One after another, they eagerly volunteered to take the test.
Even as ordinary soldiers, the Water Mansion provided cultivation techniques and stipends for the River God's army. However, Li Qi's advice to Honghong was that quality mattered far more than quantity—she would rather cultivate a few strong individuals among the shrimp soldiers and crab generals than amass a horde of useless foot soldiers.
Li Qi was able to roughly gauge the aptitude of a water-clan demon cultivator based on age and cultivation level. Only those with decent aptitude and demonstrated loyalty within the illusion were permitted to enter the River God's Water Mansion as soldiers or generals, or even be appointed to specific official posts.
As for those who showed unwavering loyalty but lacked talent in cultivation, Li Qi would ask whether they were willing to serve as attendants or maids in the River God's Palace. Though servants and maids received only basic cultivation methods and meager stipends, the advantage was safety.
Weaker water demons with insufficient potential—such as clams, snails, various insects, and fish—voluntarily joined the River God's Palace for safety once their loyalty was verified, becoming maids and servants. In the Aolai River, they had been mere prey for larger demons, living a precarious life from day to day. Within the River God's Palace, although their status might be low and they would serve others, their safety was guaranteed.
Other water demons arrived belatedly, one after another. They too took part in the trial, which lasted for nearly thirteen days before finally concluding.
In the end, those who passed the primary trial and were willing to join included four hundred fish demons, over three hundred shrimp demons, more than a hundred crab demons, fifty snake demons, and thirty turtle and insect demons. Nearly all of them possessed a cultivation base at or above the second stage of Refining Qi to Transform Spirit.
The post of Water Mansion Chief Steward ultimately went to a turtle demon of the Mysterious Pattern Gua Turtle breed. In the illusion, this turtle had demonstrated unwavering loyalty and proficiency in divination, which would prove to be a tremendous asset to Honghong.
The divine palace was ultimately divided into five water armies. One army garrisoned the center of the palace, while the other four took turns patrolling the entire Aolai River to maintain order.
Meanwhile, the top-tier demon cultivators at the Peak of Refining Spirit to Return to Void served as honored patrons within the palace, their primary task being to deal with powerful external threats.
Honghong bestowed specialized military formations upon all five water armies. These formations could amplify the collective strength of an entire division, allowing their united forces to contend with high-level powerhouses.
Furthermore, among those whose loyalty had passed the test, Li Qi helped Honghong select nearly five hundred demon cultivators ranging from the Refining Essence to Transform Qi Realm to the Refining Qi to Transform Spirit Realm to serve as servants and maids. Their main duties were domestic.
Li Qi also had Honghong plant spiritual herbs in the underwater areas near the palace and within the grotto-heaven of the water mansion, while establishing mines wherever spiritual mineral deposits existed. Protected by the water army, these mines were to be worked by the laborers.
The resources of the entire River God's Palace were centrally managed by the River God. Since Honghong's inheritance included artifact-crafting techniques, all equipment for the water army would be forged and distributed by the palace itself. Tasks such as artifact crafting and medicine refinement would be carried out by the palace's honored patrons, who would also be taught the respective methods.
Li Qi taught Honghong a fundamental principle: the distribution of resources and personnel appointments must be firmly kept in her own hands, never delegated to others.
Following this selection, the River God's Palace possessed military force capable of patrolling the entire river. With servants and maids, daily chores were taken care of. With spiritual herb gardens and mineral mines, they secured a decent income.
In this manner, the preliminary operational framework of the entire River God's Palace was successfully established.
Additionally, Li Qi instituted a rule that all demon cultivators within the Aolai River must provide tribute to the River God's Palace or execute missions issued by it. However, this rule could not be enforced just yet; otherwise, it would provoke a massive backlash. It could only be implemented on a small scale and tested out after Honghong's position as River God was thoroughly consolidated.
Once the order of the entire River God's Palace was established, Honghong and Li Qi entered a state of arduous seclusion cultivation.
What Honghong would have to face next was how to deal with the Heavenly Court and the forces of the East Sea Dragon Palace. How to handle this would depend entirely on their reactions.
Li Qi advised her to proactively submit a formal memorial, which could be accomplished through the power of incense fire. However, how the other side would respond remained to be seen.
In the world of gods and immortals, nothing moved very quickly; everyone needed time to cultivate, so they still had a long wait ahead of them.