Inside the room, Wei Yuan sat upright with solemn dignity, not the least bit intimidated in the face of these three formidable figures.
To his right was Bao Yun. Above her head still hovered that Exquisite Treasure Tree, though it had undergone a change: having seven branches in total, only one branch manifested at any given moment, which would fade after a brief while to be replaced by another, and then another in cyclical rotation.
Bao Yun did not speak a word, but Wei Yuan understood her meaning: this was considered a One-Wondrous Samsara Treasure Tree, displayed just for him to see.
Zhang Sheng sat in the center, holding a booklet of the Palace of Grand Beginning's sect laws and regulations, reading it minutely. Even cleaning up the sect required justifiable grounds; to be safe, it was still best to review the sect rules once more.
To the left was Ji Liuli. On the low table beside her stood a tiny red-robed figurine, roughly a chi tall, strikingly beautiful, lifelike, and so delicate it scarcely seemed a sculpture. But whence would a sculpture come in this place?
Looking closely, one would recognize her as Gong Yufeng, her face filled with terror. Suppressed under the Demon-Suppressing Pagoda, she was a mere tiny soul body, incapable of moving in the slightest.
Ji Liuli held a sheet of jade paper in her hand and was perusing it carefully, voicing admiration from time to time. Wei Yuan recognized this jade paper as well—it was something he had just acquired, inscribed with the method for refining the Seven Stars Reincarnation Body.
The more Ji Liuli read, the more impressed she became. "The seniors of Lanshen Palace were impressive indeed, coming up with even wilder tricks than I do! This cultivation method is not bad at all—no wonder it was kept so securely!"
Zhang Sheng remained impassive, though in truth he had also sent a thread of divine sense into the jade paper to ponder the Seven Stars Reincarnation Body alongside her. After Ji Liuli voiced a few praises, Wei Yuan saw yet another slender strand of divine sense probing into the jade paper. Needless to say, it was definitely Bao Yun.
Wei Yuan grumbled inwardly: *At your tender age, why are you reading such indecent stuff for no good reason?*
Zhang Sheng naturally read far faster than Wei Yuan. In the blink of an eye, he finished the entire text and mused, "Using such a method to resolve the repulsion between a soul and a possessed fleshly body is truly a stroke of genius. If used well, this method could serve as an escape route. It is just that the quality of the refined physical body seems difficult to control; one would likely have to forge many before obtaining a satisfactory vessel."
Ji Liuli said, "Those Lanshen Palace folks lacked vision. There are far too many impurities in incense aspiration power, so the refined quality naturally could not amount to much. If one replaces incense aspiration power with karmic luck, that problem vanishes, and the grade of the reincarnation body would rise by at least two tiers. As long as ample karmic luck is supplied, its future Dao Foundation will start at the Earth Tier at minimum."
Bao Yun added, "The seven spiritual items are also crucial, which this manual did not explain very clearly. But I believe that if specific spiritual items are merged in the correct sequence, it is very likely possible to forge a specific natural talent. If immortal materials are incorporated, it may even be possible for the reincarnation body to cultivate to the immortal tier."
The more Wei Yuan listened, the stranger it felt. Why were the three of them discussing this with such deadly earnestness, as though the Seven Stars Reincarnation Body were some upright, orthodox method?
After listening for a while, Wei Yuan could not help interjecting, "No matter how strong the reincarnation body is, once refined, doesn't it become the creator's puppet?"
Ji Liuli remarked offhandedly, "That is only because an extra Soul-Restraining Formation was added. Just remove it."
That simple? He had always thought becoming a puppet was an unavoidable part of it. But now, enlightened by Ji Liuli's pointer and giving it careful thought, it truly seemed to be the case, and removing the Soul-Restraining Formation was straightforward as well.
Wei Yuan thought he had read the Seven Stars Reincarnation Body several times himself, but when reading it, why had it never crossed his mind that there was a possibility of not turning into a puppet?
After discussing it a bit longer, the three unanimously decided to revise the method before submitting it to the sect; it ought to fetch quite a few merit points.
Having concluded the discussion on the Seven Stars Reincarnation Body, Zhang Sheng's gaze finally settled upon Wei Yuan.
Here it comes! Wei Yuan's heart tightened, and he swiftly rehearsed his prepared explanation in his mind once more. He estimated that Zhang Sheng would definitely ask what was going on with the hundred immortal swords. Then Wei Yuan could start from the first time the Great Shaman attacked, and attribute this course of action to the Shamans. In short, the enemy was too formidable, and he had merely acted on a sudden flash of inspiration out of sheer necessity.
Wei Yuan had read history thoroughly and understood deeply the essence of how great historical figures deflected blame. The deed was done, and that was undeniable, but as for why it had been done, there was ample room for narrative spin. In a word: push it onto others, push it onto objective factors, push it onto circumstances—at any rate, it was not that I wanted to do it, but that circumstances left me no choice. For instance, "the water was too cold," "my scalp was itching," and so forth.
To his surprise, Zhang Sheng's very first words were, "Did you do it intentionally or unintentionally?"
Wei Yuan was struck dumb, his rehearsed excuses flying completely out the window. Only then did he recall that this teacher of his also read history.
Wei Yuan had no choice but to say, "Intentionally."
Misdirection and evasion were acceptable, but lying to his teacher was out of the question; that was Wei Yuan's bottom line.
Zhang Sheng asked again, "Of all the Dao Foundations under heaven, why did you choose immortal swords?"
"Immortal swords are the most common, and the easiest to bait an alteration of heaven and earth. With any other Dao Foundation, I feared I could not trick them into it. Back then, the trump card given by the Immortal Monarch was already spent, and I had no idea when the sect's reinforcements would arrive, all while dreading the Shamans' blood curses. An alteration of heaven and earth kills no one; provoking an alteration of heaven and earth meant one less blood curse to face."
Hearing this, Ji Liuli was slightly moved.
Bao Yun's eyelids lifted slightly as she cast a glance at Wei Yuan, then lowered them again.
Zhang Sheng's third sentence was, "Manifest your Dao Foundation and let your master look."
Without a word, Wei Yuan manifested his Dao Foundation—naturally, only a small portion around the Jade Mountain.
Zhang Sheng's very first sight was the bright, flawless full moon in the sky, and his expression softened considerably at once. In cultivating the Myriad Aspects of Great Yin Moon Splendor, the supreme Aspect of Great Yin was naturally the full moon. Wei Yuan's moon was not only colossal, but also lustrous white like jade, with Great Yin power flowing dense as water; it could practically serve as a textbook model for cultivating this technique.
From this full moon alone, any accusation of slackening in cultivation could be dismissed.
What Zhang Sheng did not know was that on the side of the full moon facing Wei Yuan, the shadow was already so dense as to be tangible. Wei Yuan sat on one side, while Zhang Sheng, Ji Liuli, and Bao Yun sat on the other, so all three were looking at the far side of the full moon. The shadow within the moon had gathered entirely on Wei Yuan's side, leaving the three completely oblivious.
After looking at the full moon, Zhang Sheng looked down, and his gaze immediately froze. Ji Liuli was also looking at the tiny green sprout emerging atop the Jade Mountain, then glanced at Bao Yun.
Around the Jade Mountain, there was much more to see. On one side lay a hundred immortal swords, which was already known to everyone. Not far from the pile of immortal swords, several hundred cauldrons were piled together haphazardly. On the other side were over a hundred bells. Those were one thing, but on the ground beside a heap of stones, there were also over a dozen three-tiered pagodas.
These pagodas were crafted with crude technique, devoid of any aesthetic proportion; had they lacked one more tier, they would not even be called pagodas, but two-story pavilions.
Zhang Sheng looked up at the Nine-Layer Demon-Suppressing Pagoda overhead, then down at the three-tiered pagodas on the ground, and asked thoughtfully, "These pagodas of yours..."
"This disciple had some insights recently, so I tried my hand at it and forged a few small pagodas."
Wei Yuan's words could not be said to be entirely false. The pagodas held the charm of pagodas, and the bells held the intent of bells; this could not be faked. Even if one kneaded a stone pagoda into the shape of a sword, it would still remain a pagoda, not a sword. However, the Immortal Sword · False Sun contained the true intent of raging fire, and the stone cauldrons contained the Dao of golden light. By comparison, the bells and pagodas possessed only pure Dao charm, having not yet taken on any additional wondrous power.
At this point, Ji Liuli chuckled. "Wanting to learn my Nine-Layer Demon-Suppressing Pagoda? Isn't that simple!"
She rose and stepped to the edge of the Jade Mountain, reached down to pick up a small pagoda from the ground, and returned to her seat to toy with it in her hands. "I'll study this pagoda of yours first. Once I figure it out, I'll return it to you."
Wei Yuan wanted to stop her, but it was already too late!
Originally, his manifesting the Dao Foundation was merely projecting an image for everyone to see, not genuinely projecting the Dao Foundation into physical reality. Who could have known Ji Liuli would actually come over to pick something up—and actually carry it away! Now, in Wei Yuan's sea of consciousness, there was one fewer three-tiered pagoda.
"That is enough. Put your Dao Foundation away," Zhang Sheng said.
Wei Yuan immediately withdrew his Dao Foundation, terrified that if he were a moment slower, Ji Liuli would pick up something else. Eldest Senior Sister's hands were fast, something he knew from deep personal experience.
Zhang Sheng turned back to Ji Liuli. "Are you truly just taking it to study?"
"Truly!" Ji Liuli's eyes were clear and innocent.
"Nothing else?"
"Definitely not!"
"That had better be the case." Having warned Ji Liuli, Zhang Sheng turned to Wei Yuan. "According to the sect's customary practice, since Qingming has recognized you as its master, you are the master of this realm and may decide all matters for yourself. Though we are your elders and teachers, we can only offer suggestions; whether you heed them or not is entirely up to you."
Wei Yuan hastily said, "This disciple harbors no intention of acting independently. Everything is still for Master to decide."
Ji Liuli laughed. "All right, drop the false modesty! Your master is fine when it comes to fighting and killing, but asking him to govern a territory is asking far too much of him. It is not that he lacks the ability, but that he lacks the patience. How about this: I see you have already recruited some hands here. Summon the important and unusual ones, and we will discuss together what to do next."
"Is it really necessary to summon them?" Wei Yuan confirmed.
"It is. I need to see them."
A short while later, Xu Wan'er, Yun Feifei, and Xu Wenwu arrived at an open clearing below the main peak. Passing through an invisible barrier, the scenery before them suddenly shifted, revealing the four from the Palace of Grand Beginning.
The moment Xu Wenwu saw Bao Yun and Ji Liuli, his mouth fell open into an 'O' shape, his entire body stiffening as his mind was filled with only one thought: *How can there be such beauties? I... I truly followed the right enlightened lord!*
Wei Yuan gave him a nudge and said, "Go sit down." Then he did not forget to seal the man's mouth with a strand of Dao power. Zhang Sheng and Ji Liuli did not possess as good a temper as Wei Yuan; if Xu Wenwu blurted out nonsense, he might easily suffer a sudden demise.
Xu Wenwu dazedly walked over to his seat and sat down, not daring to raise his head at all for fear of catching sight of Bao Yun and Ji Liuli again.
Wei Yuan briefly outlined the current situation, as well as the plan to establish a new town and gather the surrounding population. Before his death, Xu Guanwen had revealed his collusion with the Shamans, intending to hand over several hundred thousand people of an entire commandery to them. Thus, Wei Yuan felt that the Shamans had already prepared for transporting captives, making the relocation of the surrounding mortals an urgent priority to prevent them from falling into Shaman hands.
Having explained the situation, Wei Yuan asked with hopeful anticipation, "Did the sect allocate any funds, provisions, or supplies?"
Xiaoyu and Bao Yun had both rushed here alone in great haste and had naturally brought nothing, so Wei Yuan was directing his question at Ji Liuli and Zhang Sheng. Ji Liuli spread her hands and said, "Don't look at me, I'm only responsible for fighting."
Wei Yuan had not placed any hope in Ji Liuli anyway, knowing that she had no money either. After all, of his debts, one million was recorded under this Eldest Senior Sister's name. Eldest Senior Sister once had money, only for it to be spent by Wei Yuan.
Zhang Sheng said, "The Patriarch granted supplies worth one hundred thousand immortal silver..."
Xiaoyu was rather surprised. The renowned True Monarch Xuanyue had only given one hundred thousand immortal silver? Were they here to pioneer a frontier, or to go on an outing?
However, he kept these thoughts to himself, as this was Sky Azure Hall's family business after all. Xiaoyu had not noticed it himself, but ever since seeing Zhang Sheng's fourth, nearly completed immortal sword, his attitude toward Sky Azure Hall had softened considerably.
Wei Yuan had just let out a sigh of relief when he heard Zhang Sheng continue, "...but I felt some of them were rather useless, so before heading here, I exchanged them all for magical swords."
*So Master, you brought only magical swords, is that it?* Wei Yuan was completely drained of the will to complain.
Yun Feifei and Xu Wan'er looked at each other in disbelief. But the ones opposite them were senior cultivators from the Palace of Grand Beginning; whatever they did was justified, so how could the two dare to butt in? Besides, both had just experienced Ji Liuli's methods, which could only be described as unspeakable—at any rate, neither wanted to experience them a second time.
Yet Bao Yun, Ji Liuli, and Xiaoyu did not feel there was any major problem with this. Wasn't having them present in person enough? What need was there for so many supplies? At most, one kept a few bottles of healing medicine, and if one were particular, a patch of ground for cultivation was all that was needed. Wei Yuan's Qingming domain had already begun to take shape, its spiritual energy richer than in many domains developed for a century, which was already more than sufficient.
As for supplies for mortals, that fell even further outside their consideration. What use were mortals during a war? The hundreds of thousands of mortals in this commandery, to say nothing of facing a True Monarch, would not even suffice to keep any random True Person of the Dharma Idol realm busy killing.
In comparison, Zhang Sheng bringing a few extra magical swords was far more practical.
Hearing up to this point, Xu Wenwu felt he simply had to say something. He had originally been a seasoned military enthusiast back home—though this so-called "seasoned" did not mean he knew much, only that he had started reading early—but aside from *The Art of War*, he still knew a thing or two more.
Chapter 131