Arrangements

Atop Hundred Refinings Peak, Yaoguang leafed through a thick dossier in his hands. "The Ten Immortal Sects, the Six Demon Sects, the Six Buddhist Temples, the Nine Demon Immortal Lineages, the Three Immortal Martial Sects, the Ten Direction Ancestral Gods, the Four Great Celestial Dynasties..." These were the prominent legacies across Beihai Star. Unlike factions where a single Dao Lord led a mere handful of disciples, every one of these powers possessed tens of thousands of disciples and occupied vast expanses of land on an immense scale. The Heavenly Dao Sect was one of the Ten Immortal Sects, yet it was by no means the strongest. The most formidable among them, the Sanqing Sacred Hall, had three Dao Lords living in the same era. Judging by the Heavenly Dao Sect's thirteen Void Shattering figures, the Sanqing Sacred Hall was estimated to have more than thirty Void Shattering experts among its ranks. The same held true for the Six Demon Sects. Even while bordering both the Heavenly Dao Sect and the Taiyi Immortal Sect, the Shadow Moon Sect had waged a fierce and impressive war against the Heavenly Dao Sect. The number of Void Shattering supreme elders within their ranks was definitively greater than ten. Well, after the demise of Demon Lord Bahuang and Demon Lord Darkness, whether they could maintain a count above ten was difficult to say. However, the defining characteristic of demonic cultivators was rapid progress before Dao Integration, even if their chances of actually achieving Dao Integration were exceedingly slim. Presumably, the Shadow Moon Sect's Void Shattering demon cultivators still exceeded ten. If that was true for just the Shadow Moon Sect, then combining all Six Demon Sects together made it easy to assemble eighty to a hundred Void Shattering demon cultivators. As for the remaining Nine Demon Immortal Lineages, their Void Shattering demon sovereigns would be even more numerous, easily reaching triple digits. In addition, there was the God race, as well as various lesser powers and extraterritorial factions... *Gathering fifteen to twenty [Demon Hunting] targets won't be difficult, as long as...* He cast a glance at the Wuji Sword, which had begun to take rudimentary form. *...I am strong enough.* *** "Sect Master." Wan Liugui's voice drifted in from outside the formation. As Yaoguang opened the array, the Void Piercing Battle Immortal walked inside and presented a file. "These are all the properties of the Lu Family and the Li Family in Nandu as well as across the Southern Domain. They have handed everything over as congratulatory gifts for your ascension as Lord of the Southern Domain. In addition, they have also yielded their operations in Tongxuan Spiritual Liquid and Longevity Fruits." "Mm," Yaoguang acknowledged. Those two families were certainly sensible. They had essentially handed over all the assets they had spent hundreds of years cultivating in the Southern Domain as an apology gift. "Assign the Tongxuan Spiritual Liquid and Longevity Fruit operations to the Ling Family and the Chi Family," Yaoguang said, deciding the future of both clans with a single sentence. "Yes, I will notify them to come at once," Wan Liugui replied, a trace of envy rising in his heart. With those two enterprises as their foundation, the two families would bring in an annual revenue of at least tens of millions of Pure Yang Great Pills. Such yields could support eight or ten Void Piercing cultivators without the slightest trouble. As long as the two families maintained these operations and waited a few thousand years, their clans would inevitably produce Void Piercing cultivators one after another. Whenever a prodigiously talented younger generation emerged, reaching Void Refining would be a certainty. Of course, progressing from Void Refining to Void Shattering demanded an immense investment of resources, and this single resource point alone would fall short. Yet as long as they continued to thrive in the Southern Domain, rising along with the domain's burgeoning prosperity, their revenues would also increase in step—until the day arrived when they possessed enough wealth to nurture a Void Refining cultivator all the way to Void Shattering. "Also, invite Wu Changfeng over for me." "Understood." Wan Liugui bowed and withdrew. Before long, Wu Changfeng arrived at Hundred Refinings Peak, one step ahead of Chi Yu and Ling Ruogu. "Sect Master." "Mm." Yaoguang handed a jade talisman to Wu Changfeng. Wu Changfeng inspected it and quickly caught on. "Is this the monitoring station system developed by Warden Moye? Although it isn't particularly sophisticated and demands substantial capital investment, its advantage lies in its superior fault tolerance." "Indeed," Yaoguang nodded. Wu Changfeng was truly well acquainted with the affairs of the Southern Domain. Yaoguang brought out another piece of jade. "Take a look at this as well." Wu Changfeng reached out with his divine sense. This time, within mere moments, astonishment washed over his face. "An upgraded version of Moye's monitoring station system? No! There is already a fundamental difference between them! Moye's monitoring stations relied entirely on overwhelming numbers to surveil the surrounding area. However, we share a border spanning four provinces with the Shadow Moon Sect. The required surveillance zone is far too vast; fully monitoring it would demand an astronomical amount of manpower and material resources. Yet your system..." He looked up at Yaoguang. "It drastically increases the efficiency while reducing the required construction time, and the accuracy is enhanced a hundredfold... Even Void Shattering experts who suppress their auras won't be able to conceal themselves, so long as they are living beings... If I am not mistaken, does the core of this system stem from a soul-type Dao art?" "Correct. I used the scouting Dao art Light of the True Spirit as the core of the system and developed it further around one of my talents," Yaoguang said. "Through my talent called 'Lord of All Spirits,' I can sense individual spirit artifacts. By embedding these spirit artifacts into the monitoring stations, they form sensory nodes. Then, using a soul-type Dao artifact as a relay station, my Dao art Light of the True Spirit can radiate across the entire border." "This... would likely require a massive quantity of spirit artifacts, which means a heavy financial drain... Moreover, every station will require personnel for maintenance... which means manpower consumption..." Wu Changfeng ventured cautiously. "Consider it creating employment opportunities," Yaoguang said with a smile. "As for finances... I am not short on funds right now. I only want to forge the Southern Domain into a truly secure haven." "The Southern Domain!?" Wu Changfeng's heart trembled. "Indeed. We will ensure that anyone who sets foot in the Southern Domain can be rooted out instantly if they commit an offense, and face severe punishment. Over time, naturally, no one will dare commit evil within the Southern Domain anymore." Yaoguang paused, then added, "Of course, we will first test it in the four border provinces. Only when the method proves viable will it be rolled out across the entire Southern Domain." Wu Changfeng drew a sharp breath. If Yaoguang's plan could genuinely be carried out, the entire Southern Domain would unquestionably become the safest place on Beihai Star. And in a chaotic realm like Beihai Star, an exceptionally secure haven... It would practically become a paradise in everyone's eyes, drawing a never-ending stream of cultivators to settle down. Their arrival would bring manpower, wealth, and expertise. Given time, the heights the Southern Domain could reach were staggering to imagine. "Therefore, I intend for you to travel to the four border provinces with a batch of spirit artifacts to oversee the construction of the foundational monitoring stations," Yaoguang said, adding, "Being near the border is naturally perilous, especially since we have just slain two Void Shattering demon lords and five Void Refining peak masters from the Shadow Moon Sect. You are the only one suited for this task." "Thank you for your trust, Sect Master. I will spare no effort to establish this monitoring system at maximum speed." "Good," Yaoguang nodded. "First construct the border stations. When the time comes, I will send you the Dao artifact that will serve as the network's central hub." With that, he brought out a spatial artifact. "This is the first batch of spirit artifacts." Wu Changfeng accepted the artifacts with a solemn expression. After a brief pause, he seemed to recall something. "Sect Master, does our monitoring system have a name?" "The original intent of our system is to detect demonic cultivators infiltrating our Southern Domain, and later it will serve to apprehend any cultivators committing evil within our borders—striving to ensure that heaven's net is wide and coarse, yet lets nothing slip through. Therefore... let us call it the Skynet system," Yaoguang said. "Skynet." Wu Changfeng gave a firm nod, cupped his hands, and turned to depart with the artifacts. Watching Wu Changfeng leave, Yaoguang turned his thoughts toward the potential flaws in the Skynet system. His Lord of All Spirits talent possessed the ability to remotely perceive artifacts he had forged. In other words, every spirit artifact served as an extension of his vision. Furthermore, he cultivated soul-sensing Dao arts such as Light of the True Spirit... The core of the Skynet system lay in leveraging this talent alongside Light of the True Spirit so that every monitoring station functioned as an observation node, with Light of the True Spirit serving as the method of surveillance. However, the power of Light of the True Spirit channeled through Lord of All Spirits was limited. He would need to forge a Dao artifact harmonized with Light of the True Spirit to boost its output. Once interconnected into a network, it could achieve comprehensive surveillance over an entire region. Moreover, the artifact spirit of the Dao artifact could handle some of the warning functions, freeing him from having to maintain constant surveillance through Lord of All Spirits. When this system developed into its later stages, a single Void Piercing cultivator paired with a single Dao artifact would basically be able to monitor several provinces. Eight or ten Dao artifacts, combined with millions of spirit artifacts, would complete the deployment across the entire Southern Domain, placing the territory firmly under surveillance. Such an expense would be unbearable for others, but to him, it meant little. Security and stability were far more paramount than financial expenditure. *Once the conditions are ripe in the future, an order will be issued: anyone born in the Southern Domain or entering it must leave behind a spiritual fluctuation. That will make the Skynet system's surveillance even more complete, allowing every living being residing in the Southern Domain to be tracked immediately.* Yaoguang knew that such a measure would provoke discontent among many. Cultivation was a deeply private affair, and many were fiercely protective of their personal boundaries. When the time came, the choice would be theirs to make. He merely needed to ensure that he possessed enough power to enforce his will. Shortly thereafter, Chi Yu and Ling Ruogu arrived at Hundred Refinings Peak. Upon learning that Yaoguang was entrusting the operations of Tongxuan Spiritual Liquid and Longevity Fruits to them, they were naturally overjoyed. Following that, Yaoguang made further arrangements for the responsibilities of others. At the same time, he once again distributed massive stores of exchanged pills among the cultivators of the Nine Cauldrons Sect, ensuring that their cultivation would continue to advance by leaps and bounds. Perhaps their talents could not be considered extraordinary across Beihai Star, yet a nurturing environment could bestow an exceptionally high rate of success. Much like students living in a rural village compared to students living in a nation's capital, the disparity in environment was enough to directly erase minor differences in raw intellect. One month later, Yaoguang concluded all his arrangements. The turbulent aftermath of the battle that had slain two Void Shattering and five Void Refining demon cultivators of the Shadow Moon Sect gradually drew to a close. And Yaoguang threw his remaining energy into refining the Heavenly Demon Origins. From time to time, he would also refine and improve the Heavenly Capital Dragon-Slashing Formation, while setting aside moments to nurture the Wuji Sword. Under these circumstances, in the blink of an eye, another fifteen years flew by.