The Transaction

Seeing the two Daos displayed before him, Xuanqing quickly realized what was happening. “You reincarnated in the Land of Dao Destruction in the lower realm?” Immediately after, a keen light flashed in the chairman’s eyes as he stared at Yaoguang. “What did you discover?!” “Your eyes are as sharp as ever, Chairman. I indeed came from the Land of Dao Destruction.” Yaoguang offered a polite compliment before responding at an unhurried pace, “Naturally, I am willing to share these secrets with you and maximize their value—allowing us to transcend our current strata in one leap and charge toward supreme Level 20 clearance. Before that, however, I hope to secure your support, Chairman.” “Supreme Level 20 clearance.” Hearing those words, Xuanqing instead quickly regained his composure. “You’re not trying to tell me you found the very thing we’ve been searching for all along in the Land of Dao Destruction, are you?” He fixed his gaze on Yaoguang. “It’s not as if there are no methods to grasp both the Path of the Void and the Path of Time simultaneously. For instance, the technique of two souls in one body, the technique of soul division, or even borrowing the power of the Lord of Yuanxi can accomplish it. How can you guarantee that mastering both Daos proves you truly made a discovery in the Land of Dao Destruction?” “There is still no Immortal King on the Path of Time, right?” Yaoguang asked. Xuanqing gave a slight nod. “The marvel and profundity of that path far surpass the Path of the Void.” Saying so, he added with a hint of emotion, “In truth, if not for the fact that the Path of the Void is omnipresent, it would not have been so easy for us to break through it as one of the Supreme Grand Daos either. These Daos have already moved beyond the realm of ‘physics’ into the domain of ‘metaphysics.’ The Lord of Yuanxi’s progress in deciphering them has been exceedingly slow, and when the Lord of Yuanxi is slow, it means our entire race of immortal spirits is slow.” Yaoguang understood this well. The Grand Dao of Time was called the most difficult Dao to cultivate. While its inherent difficulty to comprehend was one factor, the critical reason was that the Lord of Yuanxi had insufficient data to completely decipher it. It was just like how other industries could rely on machines and external assistance, whereas this field could only be operated manually, naturally resulting in vastly inferior efficiency. However… “What if I say that as long as I am given enough shares in the Path of Time, I will become the first Time Immortal King since our conquest of the Ancient Immortal Realm began?” Yaoguang asked with a smile. “The first Immortal King of the Path of Time?!” Xuanqing stared at Yaoguang. If he could truly accomplish that… He would only need to upload all his experiences of becoming an Immortal King to the Lord of Yuanxi’s database, and there would be a very high probability of raising his clearance to Level 19. After a moment, Xuanqing still said calmly, “An Immortal King of the Path of Time likely wouldn’t be enough to push your clearance to Level 20, would it? Much less raise my clearance level alongside yours.” “If the first Immortal King of the Path of Time isn’t enough, what about the Path of Spacetime?” Yaoguang said. “Furthermore, the Three Thousand Grand Daos are fundamentally a single whole. Every Dao can resonate with adjacent Daos. However, such resonance typically involves core Daos stirring ordinary Daos, or Supreme Grand Daos stirring core Daos; lower-tier Daos cannot stir higher-tier Daos into resonance. But if I can fuse space and time into one, wouldn’t that Dao’s tier surpass the Grand Dao of Destiny and the Grand Dao of Karma to a certain extent?” He said placidly, “When that time comes, I will wield the power of spacetime to breach the Gate of Karma and the Gate of Fate. Wouldn’t such a feat be enough to elevate both our clearances to Level 20, Chairman?” “The Grand Dao of Spacetime!” Xuanqing drew a deep breath. When the Time Dao Ancestor and the Void Dao Ancestor combined their powers, the resulting might had been capable of threatening several Level 20 Sovereigns. If Yuxiao truly managed to master the power of the Grand Dao of Spacetime, striving for Level 20 clearance would no longer be an idle dream. Moreover, using the Grand Dao of Spacetime—formed by fusing the two Supreme Grand Daos of Time and the Void—to trigger and shatter the Gate of Fate and the Gate of Karma was genuinely feasible. With that thought, Xuanqing stared intently at Yaoguang. “You obtained the legacies left behind by the Time Dao Ancestor and the Void Dao Ancestor in the Land of Dao Destruction? And used that opportunity to rapidly restore your clearance to Level 18?” He could not help but ask immediately, “What exactly are those legacies?” Yaoguang smiled without speaking, offering no reply. Seeing this, Xuanqing regained his composure. Confidential information of this caliber was valuable enough to elevate a Level 17 immortal spirit to Level 18. Had the roles been reversed, he would never share it lightly either. Furthermore, the Immortal Realm had direct contact with the Lord of Yuanxi. Even if he wanted to make a move against Yaoguang, he would only invite punishment from the Lord of Yuanxi, potentially having his account erased entirely. Therefore, everything he did had to follow the rules. “Chairman, all you need to tell me is whether you wish to cooperate with me, invest in me, and join me later in shattering the Gate of Fate and the Gate of Karma. If you don’t believe me, or if you are unwilling, I will turn around and leave immediately.” Yaoguang asked in a manner that appeared to await his final decision. Xuanqing hesitated. He did not know how many cards Yaoguang held in his hand. Yet… Just the cards he had shown so far were enough to tempt any chairman of a major conglomerate. If Xuanqing did not cooperate, plenty of chairmen from other conglomerates surely would. That Yuxiao had sought him out first… was likely out of consideration for their pleasant relationship in the Creation Group over the years, as well as his familiarity with the group’s inner workings. Once he realized this, a smile appeared on Xuanqing’s face. “I am very interested in this partnership. But… how exactly are we to cooperate? And what do I need to do?” “Shares in the Path of the Void and shares in the Path of Time,” Yaoguang answered directly. “Once I become the Spacetime Immortal King and shatter the Gate of Fate and the Gate of Karma, you will be my greatest benefactor, and we will advance to Level 20 clearance together.” “Immortal King!” Xuanqing sucked in a breath of cold air. This Immortal King Yuxiao… He certainly dared to name his price. To become an Immortal King required one thousand shares in the Path of Time and one thousand shares in the Path of the Void, making two thousand shares in total. Even for him, the chairman of the Creation Group, gathering such a sum was by no means an easy task. However… “I can agree, but we must sign an agreement witnessed by the Lord of Yuanxi. Furthermore…” Xuanqing said in a deep voice, “this plan must proceed under my leadership. In other words, if an opportunity arises to ascend to Level 20 clearance, I must have priority.” “I can sign an agreement granting you priority if an opportunity to ascend to Level 20 clearance arises, but how the plan is executed must remain under my direction.” Yaoguang shook his head. Then he continued, “The greatest obstacle to my plan is Immortal King Tianyu. With his heart set on becoming the Void Dao Ancestor, he will inevitably stop at nothing to prevent the birth of a new Void Immortal King like me. That is precisely why I need your help. Otherwise, if I were to grind it out alone, I would still become the Spacetime Immortal King eventually—if ten thousand years isn’t enough, thirty thousand; if thirty thousand isn’t enough, one hundred thousand; if one hundred thousand isn’t enough, then three hundred thousand or a million years.” He looked up slightly, gazing at the two grand gateways in the firmament that resembled the sun and the moon. “Even if the Nine Great Groups unite right now, completely destroying the Ancient Immortal Realm is no simple matter. Time is on my side.” Listening to this, Xuanqing had to admit that Yaoguang had a point. Having obtained the secrets within the Dao Destruction Star Domain, Yaoguang’s clearance was likely not far from Level 19, and he had also taken up cultivation of the Grand Dao of Time. If he truly chose to hold out, he could indeed endure until he became a Spacetime Immortal King wielding Level 19 clearance. If he then displayed his capabilities, he might even win the backing of other board directors, depose Xuanqing from the chairman’s seat, and take his place. Being able to cooperate with him now and securing a promise of priority for ascending to Level 20 clearance was already the optimal outcome. As long as he could truly raise his clearance to Level 20, what did it matter if he handed over all the interests of the Creation Group, or even the entire Ancient Immortal Realm, to Yaoguang? Wasn’t that the ultimate goal of his venture into the Ancient Immortal Realm in the first place? With that thought, Xuanqing agreed, “Fine, just as you said. Let us discuss the details further. We must sign an agreement for every single clause under the witness of the Lord of Yuanxi to safeguard both our interests.” “Agreed,” Yaoguang replied. The two then engaged in a fierce debate over the division of interests. After arguing for three whole days, they finally arrived at an outcome acceptable to both. The core of the arrangement was that Xuanqing would provide him with the Dao shares needed to become an Immortal King of both the Path of Time and the Path of the Void. Once Yaoguang became the Spacetime Immortal King, Xuanqing would assist him in traveling to the Gate of Fate and the Gate of Karma, protecting him to prevent anyone from interfering while he attempted to comprehend and breach the two portals. In return, Yaoguang guaranteed that once his clearance reached Level 19 and peaked at the apex of Level 19, all subsequent upgrade points would be prioritized for Xuanqing to help him achieve his final transformation. As for returning Yaoguang to the board of directors… In the face of these interests, that hardly mattered. After all, even after returning to the board, Yaoguang would not heavily interfere in the Creation Group’s development. Moreover, he had originally been a member of the Creation Group’s board and had only been gone for three thousand years. Becoming an Immortal King was merely a matter of time, so he would naturally face little opposition. Under the witness of the Lord of Yuanxi, the two signed each of these agreements. Once they had left the spiritual signatures of their immortal spirits on every clause, Xuanqing finally said with a smile, “A pleasure doing business with you. Now, I look forward to Director Yuxiao’s performance.” “I promise you, Chairman, that when I become the Spacetime Immortal King and head toward the Gate of Fate and the Gate of Karma, I will deliver a colossal surprise to you,” Yaoguang replied with a smile as well. “Haha, then I shall look forward to that day.” Sensing the sincerity in Yaoguang’s tone, Xuanqing beamed. “When you met with your accident back then, I moved quickly to snap up quite a few shares in the Grand Dao of the Void. Combined with what I originally held, I can currently allocate three hundred and eighty-eight shares of the Grand Dao of the Void, along with ninety-one shares of the Grand Dao of Spacetime. I will have the vessels brought over right away to hand them over to you.” Vessels. That meant native cultivators! The reason native cultivators were allowed into the Creation Group and favored and promoted by its upper echelon was, in the eyes of all immortal spirits, precisely so they could serve their purpose at moments like this. He simply did not know whether they would be an Immortal Venerable of the Path of the Void, or over a dozen Void Immortals.