Li Dao Xuan sat quietly before the sandbox, his gaze fixed on the miniature world within, where the city walls of Shengjing were being devoured by roaring flames that climbed higher and higher as if they intended to swallow the sky itself.
This time, he had truly done nothing at all, not a single intervention, not even the slightest invisible push, and he forced himself to hold back that old, troublesome habit of meddling as he simply watched everything unfold.
And he kept watching like that for days.
He saw the rise of the New Ming, saw the People's Congress grow steadily from something tentative into something firm and dependable, and saw the new generation of scholars nurtured by the Gao Village Family begin to spread across every walk of life, quietly but powerfully shaping the direction of the entire nation.
The country was moving forward toward a better future with confident, unhesitating steps.
Yet as he continued to watch from the outside, he gradually felt that something was missing, something subtle yet impossible to ignore, like a faint hollow echo lingering in the back of his mind.
The feeling reminded him of something from long ago, back when he had quit World of Warcraft after playing it for ten years, when his account had already reached the maximum level, every piece of equipment worth collecting had been obtained, and every dungeon had been cleared so many times that even repetition had lost its meaning.
The guild he had built with his own hands had already become the strongest on the server, flourishing under the management of several capable vice leaders, which made leaving feel wasteful, yet staying felt equally unnecessary, because whenever he logged in, he would find himself standing there with nothing left to do.
Then a thought surfaced in his mind.
There had always been players like that, those who no longer chased progress but instead returned to low level areas, sitting quietly at places like Crossroads or climbing to the peaks of Redridge Mountains just to watch the rivers and sunsets of Azeroth stretch endlessly into the horizon.
They were no longer playing the game.
They were simply living inside it.
Li Dao Xuan's fingers tapped lightly against the edge of the sandbox as a faint smile appeared on his face, because he suddenly realized that he could do the same.
A god should not exist solely to save the world, because he also had the right to enjoy the very world he had helped create, and that thought alone felt unexpectedly liberating.
With that decision made, he reached into the sandbox and gently picked up a mass produced Dao Xuan Tianzun body, placing it into a quiet, uninhabited mountain valley, and then casually added a simple scholar's robe beside it.
The moment he activated the connection, his consciousness dropped into the world.
The first thing he did after arriving was glance down at himself, only to immediately frown at the overly flashy outfit he was still wearing, which looked exactly like the young noble hero costume worn by Yang Kang in the 1983 version of The Legend of the Condor Heroes.
Without hesitation, he removed it and changed into the plain scholar's robe, then took out a folding fan and snapped it open with a crisp motion, studying his reflection for a moment before nodding slightly in satisfaction.
Even so, a problem quickly came to mind.
His face was far too recognizable within the Dao Xuan Tianzun liberated territories, which meant that he would be identified almost instantly if he walked around like this, and that would ruin the entire experience.
Without getting up, he reached out across space, extending his hand directly into the main fortress of the Gao Village Family, then into Gao Yiye's home, where he grabbed a piece of cloth before withdrawing his hand again.
He tied the cloth across his face and examined the result.
A masked scholar, somewhat mismatched and even a little absurd, yet effective enough that no one would ever associate him with Dao Xuan Tianzun.
Satisfied, he finally stepped out of the empty valley.
He had entered this world countless times before, yet never in such a state of ease, with no mission weighing on his mind, no urgency urging him forward, no one waiting to be saved, and no problem demanding his attention, so he simply walked along the official road without any clear destination, allowing the landscape to unfold naturally before his eyes as he wandered.
The mountains stretched wide, rivers flowed like silver threads, and the land felt as beautiful as a painting, which gradually lifted his mood until he realized that he did not even know where he was anymore, yet for once, that uncertainty did not trouble him.
Before long, a small town appeared ahead.
It was not particularly prosperous, but it happened to be market day, and the streets were filled with lively energy as vendors called out their goods, customers bargained loudly, and children darted through the crowd, creating a warm and bustling atmosphere.
Li Dao Xuan walked into the town at an unhurried pace, blending naturally into the flow of people until his attention was caught by a small roadside stall where a young girl was selling boiled water caltrops.
That single detail was enough for him to guess his location.
"Jiangnan is fair, its beauty once familiar to me. At sunrise, river flowers glow redder than fire, and in spring, the river water turns green like orchids."
He recited casually, almost as if speaking to himself.
The girl immediately brightened and leaned forward with a cheerful smile.
"Young master, that is such a beautiful poem," she said, her tone lively and persuasive, "and a refined mood like yours would pair perfectly with some freshly boiled water caltrops, which will surely taste even better right now."
Li Dao Xuan could not help but laugh.
"That sales pitch really landed right on me, didn't it," he said with amusement, shaking his head lightly, "fine, I will buy some."
He slipped a hand into his sleeve, quietly opening the hidden storage compartment along his arm before taking out a silver ingot and handing it over.
"Keep the change."
The girl jumped in surprise and waved her hands quickly.
"Oh no, young master, I cannot accept such a large piece of silver," she said nervously, "this would not be buying water caltrops anymore, this would be like buying me as well."
Li Dao Xuan chuckled softly.
"Buying you is not an option," he replied, "this is the New Ming, and Dao Xuan Tianzun does not allow human trafficking."
The girl laughed.
"That is true," she said, nodding, "the People's Congress already made that decision clear, and they even said it was a rule set by Dao Xuan Tianzun from the very beginning, so no one dares to break it, even though he has already ascended and has not appeared for quite some time."
Hearing this, Li Dao Xuan's mood lifted even further.
He peeled open a water caltrop and placed it into his mouth, where its simple, clean flavor spread gently, bringing with it a quiet sense of satisfaction.
However, that calm did not last long.
A sudden commotion erupted ahead.
Several rough looking men pushed through the crowd, their movements arrogant and disruptive, instantly causing people on both sides of the street to step aside in avoidance.
One old farmer was too slow to move and was kicked to the ground, spilling the vegetables from his basket as he hurriedly bent down to pick them up, only for one of the thugs to deliberately step on a vegetable and grind it into the dirt with his foot.
"Old fool, watch where you are going," the man sneered.
Li Dao Xuan's expression cooled as he stepped forward and positioned himself between the farmer and the thug.
"This is the New Ming," he said calmly, "how can people like you still bully civilians?"
The thug looked him up and down with a smirk.
"Where did this masked scholar come from," he said mockingly, "judging by your accent, you are not from around here, are you?"
"I am not," Li Dao Xuan replied lightly, "so what?"
The thug laughed loudly.
"Then you clearly do not understand the rules here," he said, "on this street, everyone calls us grandpa."
Li Dao Xuan tilted his head slightly.
"That sounds quite arrogant," he said, "are you not afraid of the local officials?"
The thug let out a cold laugh.
"The official is my uncle."
Li Dao Xuan nodded as if in realization.
"I see," he said, "then your uncle must be an old Ming official who slipped into the new system while pretending to behave."
The thug burst into laughter.
"You figured it out, so why are you still standing here instead of running?"
Li Dao Xuan closed his fan slowly.
"Having someone backing you does make you feel invincible," he said, "but do not forget that your uncle is not the greatest authority under heaven, because above you, there are still those who watch."
The thug's smile turned disdainful.
"You really are ignorant," he said, "Dao Xuan Tianzun already ascended after the first People's Congress and has not appeared since, so whether he will ever return is uncertain, and you think that name can scare me?"
For a brief moment, Li Dao Xuan said nothing.
Then he calmly removed the cloth covering his face.
The thug glanced at him without concern.
"What, you think showing your face will scare me," he said dismissively, "even if you look decent, compared to me you are still…"
Before he could finish, one of his companions suddenly dropped to his knees.
The thug froze.
"What are you doing?"
The kneeling man trembled as he tried to speak.
"Dao… Dao… Tian…"
The thug frowned, then turned back to look again, and this time his expression changed instantly as recognition struck him, causing his legs to give out as he fell to his knees as well.
Li Dao Xuan let out a soft sigh.
"Go to labor reform," he said calmly, "your uncle can decide the duration, and afterward, he should resign and return home to retire."
With that, his figure rose into the air and vanished in an instant.
The entire street fell silent for a brief moment before everyone, from the girl selling water caltrops to the old farmer and the surrounding vendors and townspeople, dropped to their knees and looked up at the sky.
"Dao Xuan Tianzun, protect us!"