Craftsmen had never seen the timber from Outer Heaven Divine Mountain; some were as short as a dozen zhang, while others towered over thirty zhang. Some were like black iron, ringing with a clear sound upon being struck, while others were as translucent as crystal, seemingly carved from Crystal Jade.

After a complete round of inspection, the craftsmen were all somewhat stunned and carefully returned to report to Shi Feiyang, "If we were in Central Earth, whether pine, cypress, elm, birch, oak, teak, or phoebe, I'd know these woods like the back of my hand—their temperament, texture, grain—and know which wood should be sun-dried, which should be kept in the shade, which can be used for hulls, which can be made into masts. But now, with these timbers provided by the State Preceptor, I have never seen them before, let alone know how to use them to build ships... For this... please forgive me, State Preceptor."

Shi Feiyang had anticipated this and was not in a hurry, instructing them to first familiarize themselves with these woods. There was not only timber but also various metals; all needed repeated experimentation to become accustomed to.

Leaving the craftsmen in Jinting Mountain, he then went to the city that never slept, where Jin Xunu and Yuan Hua, leading a hundred officials, came out to greet him.

Shi Feiyang first inquired about the governance of the court during his years away. Both Jin Xunu and Yuan Hua had managed it well. Jin Xunu, serving as the Heavenly Official, represented the principle of "governing by non-action." He didn't directly involve himself in state governance; instead, he was in charge of observing the Heavenly patterns, establishing the calendar, and according to the calendar, creating the rites.

Rites set the expectations before an action, instructing the people on what they should do; laws come into play after, punishing those who do wrong.

The real governance, based on the calendar, was led by Earth Official Yuan Hua and her team.

Though Yuan Hua came from an unusual background, she loved to "wash the monkey and crown it," especially after being subdued by Shi Feiyang, becoming increasingly like an old scholar, fond of reading various books. She knew the Four Books and Five Classics by heart, dressed in Confucian robes, donned the Confucian cap, did things meticulously, and even strictly, often reciting the four verses from Hengqu: "To set one's heart for Heaven and Earth, to dedicate one's life for the people, to follow the sage's lost teachings, to establish peace for all millennia."

Using Crystal Jade, she also refined a ruler and used it to discipline; the one who received the most beatings was the little monkey that used to follow her, who over the years, had grown into a big monkey, and from that little monkey evolved into a monkey-headed humanoid, its palms and head frequently smacked by her ruler.

Shi Feiyang discussed the matter of trading with Central Earth, instructing Yuan Hua to assign dedicated personnel to operate the fleet. Anyone from Outer Heaven Divine Mountain who wished to trade with Central Earth could apply to her, and once approved, they could take the ships out to sea.

Among this, the biggest issue was that of currency.

The crux lay in the fact the citizens of Outer Heaven Divine Mountain found no use for silver or Copper Coin.

In fact, the "silver standard" system that was established in the middle and later periods of the Great Ming had a fatal flaw: the domestic production of silver in the Ming Dynasty was insufficient and had to be imported from overseas, while overseas trade was held in the hands of local capital groups...

Shi Feiyang decided to mint a new "Immortal Coin," planning to overthrow the current "silver coin," first secure the entire Great Ming Dynasty's "right to mint coins," then redistribute, cooking up those big landowners, high bureaucrats, and large merchant groups in one fell swoop!

Shi Feiyang selected a Jade Mountain, which he quarried, initially taking ten thousand jin, casting spells to cut and fashion them into jade Bi with a diameter of about an inch, each having a hole in the center.

This jade was extremely hard; steel could not leave a mark on it. Shi Feiyang placed them in the treasure furnace that he used to refine the Five-Colored Divine Sand, burning them with the Five Elements True Fire for forty-nine days until their surfaces melted. He then cast spell after spell, each jade Bi showing patterns—four Talisman on the front and nine dragon patterns on the back—then infused them with Five Element Spiritual Energy, and continued to refine.

After a hundred days, the jade Bi were complete, each translucent, with five-colored clouds swirling within.

These items contained five streams of Five Element Spiritual Energy, which Cultivators could extract for their Cultivation. The four Talismans on the outside were derived from the Circulation Golden Talisman representing the days of the Winter Solstice, Summer Solstice, Vernal Equinox, and Autumnal Equinox used by the Emperor.

Shi Feiyang named this currency the Nine Dragon Coin and then proceeded to refine smaller Six Dragon Coins, Three Dragon Coins, and Single Dragon Coins, all with an exchange ratio of ten.

That is to say, one Nine Dragon Coin could be exchanged for a thousand Single Dragon Coins. He intended to exchange one Single Dragon Coin for one tael of silver.

The mold was set, and Shi Feiyang sent his demon soldiers to quarry jade from the mountains for casting.

The furnace he used was hollowed out from an entire mountain peak, which afforded an immense space. They first smelted one hundred thousand Nine Dragon Coins, followed by a million Six Dragon Coins, ten million Three Dragon Coins, and a billion Single Dragon Coins.

One Single Dragon Coin was to exchange for one ounce of silver. However, in Central Earth, one ounce of silver could not be used as the smallest currency unit.

He then took the leaves of the Qiantian Fire Bamboo, a specialty from the Outer Heaven Divine Mountain, to make leaf coins. He directed Yuan Hua to set up a new department solely for the minting of money, called Outer Heaven Treasure Notes. One treasure note was equivalent to one Single Dragon Coin, one note could be exchanged for ten dimes, one dime for ten cents, and one cent was roughly equivalent to ten Copper Coins.

The production of the treasure notes was left to Yuan Hua to complete, and Shi Feiyang no longer intervened, only setting the corresponding rules.

Once the currency was made, it needed to first circulate on the Outer Heaven Divine Mountain.

Shi Feiyang first announced that ministers would be paid their wages in Single Dragon Coins. Beyond their existing wages, they would also receive a bonus of ten years' salary.

Next, he had Yuan Hua purchase in large quantities from the citizens, items inclusive but not limited to nuts, Spiritual Medicine, merfolk silk, pearls, gemstones, Crystal Sand, metals, as well as various specialties from the mountains and seas.

Since the founding of his nation, Outer Heaven Divine Mountain had entered an era of peace, with myriad species growing freely and reproducing rapidly. The "population" had greatly increased, and the registered citizens numbered more than three million. Now, with a large amount of currency spread among the populace and hearing that the Dragon Emperor was leading them to trade in Central Earth, those interested began to inquire with Yuan Hua about the specifics.

Shi Feiyang explained to them in detail. Those who met the requirements submitted formal applications, totaling eighty-five.

Shi Feiyang looked through them one by one, selecting from them. First among the Merfolk Clan, the Shan family was a large clan skilled at spinning silk.

Merfolk silk was famously mentioned in the literature of ancient times in Central Earth. This assuredly had to be approved, destined to become a renowned specialty product of Outer Heaven Divine Mountain in the future.

Next was another family from the Merfolk, the Lan family, which specialized in growing corals—more like cultivating them, but since corals resembled trees, it was termed growing. This, too, was fine.

Then there was the Clam Clan Zhen family, a large clan of Outer Heaven Divine Mountain that bred pearls. They could cultivate White Pearls, Black Pearls, Purple Pearls, Yellow Pearls, Green Pearls, and even Five-Colored Pearls.

Amidst such a variety, Shi Feiyang selected twenty families, asking them to prepare their products and to send clan members who could cultivate into human form. Once the ships were built, they would go with him to trade in Central Earth.

Apart from these private trades, Shi Feiyang also had Yuan Hua organize an official caravan, which collected twenty million kilograms of grain.

Since falling from the Spiritual Space Immortal Realm, Outer Heaven Divine Mountain brought with it a large number of animals and plants from the Immortal Realm. Combined with those weakened by the Aurora Fire in past generations and introduced by accident, they interbred, resulting in a complete mess.

After founding the nation, Shi Feiyang, to ensure his subjects were well-fed, changed their nature of consuming each other. He had Yuan Hua introduce crops from outside, like rice, wheat, and beans, crossbreeding them with the local plants, thus cultivating many new high-yield varieties... The main reason being the favorable local climate, abundant sunshine, high temperature, moisture, and the absence of disasters such as strong winds and hail. Even a mere cucumber plant could grow as thick as an arm and stretch over ten yards long. Rice and wheat could yield five harvests a year, producing an extremely abundant supply. Altogether, twenty million kilograms of rice, wheat, beans, and the like, covering thirteen varieties.

Shi Feiyang instructed Yuan Hua to continue collecting various types of seeds to plant and improve.

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