Peace was never won through charity!
Through ninety thousand years of trials and tribulations, coupled with the lessons of his past life, Lu Qingshan understood this truth down to his bones.
When others accused you of oppressing them, you had better truly be oppressing them!
When others claimed you possessed weapons of mass destruction, you had better truly possess them.
Otherwise, your end was bound to be miserable!
Casting those thoughts aside, Lu Qingshan began checking his harvest from this reward...
[You have bestowed the soul secret method "Eye of the Void" upon your disciple, triggering a thousandfold rebate. You receive the secret method "Analysis of the Soul—Volume One".]
Analysis of the Soul?
Last time, he had received the fragmented secret technique Analysis of Heavenly Thunder, but this time it was Analysis of the Soul, and seemingly the complete first volume.
It seemed a thousandfold rebate was on a completely different level from a hundredfold rebate.
"Analysis of the Soul."
Judging by the name alone, it was bound to be extraordinary.
In the universe of Devouring the Star, there was an unspoken rule: the simpler the name of a secret method, the more terrifying its power often was.
Take, for instance, *Time and Space Essays*.
Or *An Overview of Time*.
Titles that sounded like middle school textbooks were instead astronomically valuable, priced so high that even an invincible Undying King could not afford them.
As Lu Qingshan absorbed the data, the colossal deluge of information strained even his soul as a Domain Master.
The first volume of Analysis of the Soul alone contained 3,172 soul secret methods...
*Heart Soul*.
An enslavement secret method.
By drawing upon the power of Heart Soul, one could enslave a living being with minimal consumption of soul energy. Where an ordinary soul enslavement technique—such as Hu Yanbo's Soul Imprint—might allow someone to enslave ten targets, Heart Soul could enslave twenty, virtually doubling the capacity.
*Thousand Threads Soul Tempering*.
Cultivating this could expand the soul and temper the willpower. Inspecting it closely, Lu Qingshan found that cultivating Thousand Threads Soul Tempering could cast a practitioner into illusionary realms to live out entire lifetimes, refining the soul and tempering the willpower amid the illusory fabric!
*Palace of the Soul*.
A defensive soul secret method that constructed an ethereal palace within the soul. Anyone attempting a soul attack would first have to breach the defenses of this palace! Once mastered to a profound depth, the palace would become exceptionally impregnable, rivaling the protection of a precious treasure and driving illusion specialists to utter despair!
*Soul Shaker Technique* and *Soul Destroyer Technique*—these two were offensive secret methods. They could only be executed after strengthening the soul and willpower through Thousand Threads Soul Tempering... Relying on soul attacks, their effects were unpredictable and ghostly, though the risks were considerable.
By the time he finished reviewing all the information, half a month had passed, and a smile surfaced on Lu Qingshan's face.
The harvest this time was simply tremendous.
Even after breaking through to the Undying realm in the future, he would never lack soul secret methods to cultivate.
*However, the risks of cultivating soul secret methods are not low. Even though my inherited methods are complete, I must still proceed with caution. Before cultivating other soul secret methods, I should try this Thousand Threads Soul Tempering first.*
*This is the foundation of all secret methods. Only with a powerful soul and willpower can I easily wield the others.*
"Nesethes, set a timer for ten days. In ten days, no matter what happens, wake me up!"
Lu Qingshan still took precautions.
Although the description claimed the risk of cultivating Thousand Threads Soul Tempering was relatively minor, a tiny fraction of individuals with weak willpower could become hopelessly lost in endless illusionary cycles of samsara. In the end, even if they woke up, countless years would have slipped by, and their physical body might even perish before their soul...
"Thousand Threads Soul Tempering..."
Following the technique's instructions, Lu Qingshan constructed a world of reincarnation. Everything arose from the mind...
The mind was the world.
A luxurious conference room.
On the presentation stage, a refined man in glasses was speaking in front of a large screen.
"Let us warmly celebrate the outstanding achievements of our Tengke Company's Big Entertainment project!"
"This year, we developed a total of 136 IPs, including 106 film and television adaptations, 20 animated adaptations, and 10 game adaptations..."
"Most of these projects achieved spectacular results. Thirteen film and television or animated projects surpassed one billion views, and seven IPs consistently ranked among the top ten in viewership across online platforms."
"In a single year, the Big Entertainment project generated 22.7 billion in profits, while indirectly boosting the estimated value of the company's other IPs by 18.9 billion."
...
"Next, please give a warm welcome to the greatest contributor to our Big Entertainment project... Mr. Yang Yunyun, who will now take the stage. In addition, Mr. Yang Yunyun will be promoted to General Director of the Big Entertainment project and Vice President of Tengke Pictures!"
Basking in glory, Yang Yunyun stepped onto the stage and began recounting his illustrious achievements.
Below the stage, however...
Lu Qingshan wore a look of utter disbelief.
*Why?! I was the one who proposed this Big Entertainment project at the headquarters meeting last year! Over this past year, I poured my heart and soul into it, traveling on business everywhere without taking a single day off. I personally negotiated and spearheaded more than half of those 136 projects! Why is he being called the greatest contributor?!*
*Why wasn't my name even mentioned at this celebration?*
*Didn't they promise that I would be the director of the Big Entertainment project?!*
...
"Lu Qingshan, you're just a small-town test-grinder from the countryside who got lucky and entered a prestigious university. You dare compete with me for a position? What a joke... A lowlife like you, I can ruin any chance you have of rising again with a single word."
"You even dared to expose this online... Heh, looks like you prefer punishment to persuasion!"
"Get lost, you stray dog... Once you leave Tengke, there won't be a single place left in this entire country to take you in!"
...
Within the illusionary cycle, Lu Qingshan chose to go abroad and join a world-renowned corporate giant.
Ten years later, he returned and acquired Tengke Company, which had been hollowed out by executive corruption.
Yang Yunyun, the man who had once trampled on his dignity without restraint, was thrown behind bars, his face awash with remorse as his sentence was read aloud.
"Heh... So this is the illusionary cycle conjured by Thousand Threads Soul Tempering. How fake. The underdog's revenge only happens in novels... It's meant for fools!"
*Again!!*
In the twentieth year of the founding of Great Qian, the nation enjoyed peace and prosperity.
Crown Prince Lu Qingshan had no interest in statecraft and was obsessed with martial arts... Displeased with the Crown Prince, the Emperor of Great Qian intended to choose another heir to the throne.
Across the entire Great Qian dynasty, the drama of nine princes vying for the throne played out in thrilling spectacle! Only the Crown Prince remained in his palace, cultivating day and night without pause!
In the twenty-sixth year of the founding of Great Qian.
In the rear garden of the Crown Prince's palace.
Lu Qingshan turned and walked away. The boulder he had struck with a single palm shattered into dust with a boom just as he took a few paces!
In the twenty-seventh year of Great Qian, the Emperor fell gravely ill and passed away seven days later.
The Crown Prince ascended the throne, and the fierce succession struggle among the nine princes became a laughingstock overnight!
...
Later historical records noted: Emperor Taizong of Great Qian had indulged in martial arts in his early years, neglecting state affairs. When Emperor Gaozu passed away, Taizong succeeded him. Emperor Taizong waged war relentlessly, wiping out the Xiongnu, pacifying Western Xia, and subduing Annan... The surrounding minor states trembled in fear, arriving one after another at the imperial court to pay tribute and revere Great Qian as the Celestial Empire.
...
"Heh, conjuring a martial arts cultivation manual in a dynasty without martial arts, and even practicing it to the level of Transformative Force—isn't that just bullying the locals? No wonder the old emperor died so quickly, and no wonder the barbarians on all four borders submitted in terror!
"In the end, it's nothing more than an illusion!"
His consciousness slowly returned to reality.
"Nesethes, how much time has passed?"
"Master, there are still a few hours before the ten days are up. I was just getting ready to wake you!"
Lu Qingshan nodded.
"This Thousand Threads Soul Tempering truly carries little risk, yet its tempering effect on the soul and willpower is remarkably potent. I can even feel the speed of my soul's metamorphosis accelerating noticeably."
"If I continue cultivating Thousand Threads Soul Tempering, I won't even need ten years. In roughly six years, my soul will complete its transformation, and breaking through to World Master will have no obstacles left!"
Chapter 65