What does the lore mention about the Monster Kingdom?
They're called Monsters, but they're not the hideous, evil, blood-drinking monsters of folklore. No, they're something greater.
See, the philosophy of the Great Dao and the greater Three Thousand Worlds starts from the enlightenment of the Ten Thousand Spirits.
Humans represent one spirit, and while they may be one of the earliest spirits, also known as the Primordial Spirits, they're not alone up there.
Thanks to humans, a humanoid camp was established. That aside, the monster camp also exists.
Oh, and this camp is governed by a few Primordial Spirits just as well.
For example, dragons.
Not the slithering snakes or the crawling lizards, but genuine, world-ending-calamity type of dragons.
One can say that the racial conflicts of the ten thousand races boil down to some petty conflicts as old as the universe itself.
When parents fight, their kids are automatically on opposite sides.
This explains it all.
The wise and mature parents might show some level of restraint and act all dignified, but the children can't wait to have a go at it.
They're just waiting for an opportunity to show off, smack some faces, and go back home with some bragging rights.
Mingyuan wanted to provide the Monster Kingdom of the mortal realm with this opportunity.
…
Tiandu Rainforest.
Mingyuan arrived at the periphery of the vast land of wildlife. He waited outside the forest's borders for weeks if not months until the twelve moons of Ashveil lined into a crescent.
He had to use his understanding of fate to determine the timing of the intersection between the two realms.
One step beyond the borders, and he entered the true Tiandu Rainforest, also known as Tiandu, the Imperial Capital of the Monster Kingdom.
"Human!"
A deep, resonating voice boomed from the sky. Clouds parted as a white Winged Kirin descended, golden clouds at its hooves and flowing mane.
As he descended from the sky, he shrank in posture and slowly transformed into a human.
"A Nascent Soul brat? You're quite bold," said the Kirin. As a beast with a gentle temperament unless provoked, he didn't fly into a blind rage upon discovering a human.
In fact, he was rather intrigued.
How did a human appear outside the imperial city out of nowhere?
Guards patrolled the earth and sky around the city for tens of thousands of kilometers, a Nascent Soul cultivator can't sneak all the way here.
As such, he was genuinely curious.
Mingyuan raised his hands in a surrendering gesture and said, "Uh, I found this place by accident? I honestly just walked my way here… no need to be so scary…"
The Kirin, now a man with white hair and golden eyes, touched his chin and began to contemplate.
In all honesty, he could indeed confirm that this young human had accidentally arrived here. The presence of spatial disturbances hadn't escaped his senses.
If he had to guess, their Tiandu Continent had probably intersected with another continent.
Since he became aware of such information, he should immediately report to the Monster Court.
However, this also meant a war was on the horizon. Their experts would do anything within their power to find the point of intersection, expand on it, and secure a stable channel for the army to march.
He slowly kneaded his forehead in exasperation and sighed. "What a headache, I'd rather lie down and sleep. War is troublesome."
The Kirin spoke his unfiltered thoughts because for one, he didn't care that a human would hear; and two, his stance on such matters was an open secret.
He put on a charmingly kind smile as he waved a hand, letting the wind and clouds carry Mingyuan as the two sped to the heart of the capital.
Since he couldn't block it, he might as well earn some contribution points from this incident.
He noticed a spatial disturbance, and after further inspection, he found a human on the verge of death in the spatial turbulence.
He saved the human, healed him, and discovered the connection to another realm.
Yes, this is exactly how it went.
The Kirin nodded to himself and conveyed his thoughts to Mingyuan, hoping he'd cooperate and play along.
Mingyuan agreed readily, as he didn't dare refuse. At the moment, he was nothing more than a captive.
However, he knew this wouldn't last long as this generation of the imperial family nurtured an ambitious Crown Prince.
Mingyuan felt the irony.
Monsters hate humans but they take their form, govern based on human standards, and they slowly move far from ferocity and towards civility.
He looked up at the sprawling buildings and magnificent architecture of the city.
He wasn't sarcastic or trying to find fault in the way beasts did things. After all, the ancestors of humans didn't know how to live in a civilized society from the get-go.
Human history wasn't lacking in brutality, barbarism, ignorance, or tragedy.
The first steps of evolution towards a functional civilization are awareness and intelligence.
For survival and efficiency, developing a civilization is inevitable. This touches upon the higher secrets of existence that Mingyuan learned through Liu Tianji as a proxy.
This broadened his horizons and opened up his thought process. He made a mistake at first by shackling himself to Lu Xuan, mainly blindsided by his identity as the protagonist.
However, the novel's perspective was too narrow, and since he was now in reality and not some fictional spinoff, he could not afford to tunnel vision himself.
This world is far too dangerous and Lu Xuan, as a reincarnated Dao Lord, is under too much scrutiny.
Maybe this isn't much now in the lower realm, but once they're ascended to the Immortal Realm with a deep history of politics, schemes, and slaughter…
Mingyuan can't afford to enter the scope of some powerful existences and organizations yet.
But here's the problem, he can't afford to lose his investments in Lu Xuan either.
It would take a final push to cross the threshold into having a connection of Yellow Fate with Lu Xuan, and that 8x feedback multiplier to cultivation and comprehension is too valuable to give up.
Well, as long as he doesn't act against Lu Xuan or his loved ones, things should be fine.
He could even help from the shadows and leave subtle clues about it.
Hm, the best form of laziness is to build an organization and become an off-hand boss.
In his prison cell, Mingyuan sat crossed-legged and seriously considered the matter.
He cooperated with the interrogation and spilled everything he knew about the Ashveil Continent that someone on his level would know.
Well, he sold out the Qin Dynasty that borders the Tiandu Rainforest.
Honestly, it felt less like an interrogation and more like an interview.
Soon, two women in maid outfits, white tiger ears, and long fluffy tails stopped by the cell.
"His Highness summoned this human," one of them said.
The guards, noticing the presence of the White Tigeresses, immediately stood to attention.
The current Crown Prince was a White Tiger, elevating the status of the white tigers in the Monster Kingdom.
Unlike humans, the Crown Prince of each generation in the Monster Kingdom is bloodline-based. The offspring with the highest purity bloodline ascends as the next ruler.
And their whole race rises along with them.
Seeing the maids, Mingyuan smiled.
An ambitious, fierce, fearless tiger.
Serving by this person's side wouldn't be easy or relaxing in the least.
"How terrifying," Mingyuan murmured, though his smile stretched even wider.