Chapter 241: Chapter 130: All Under Heaven
「Yongshan County.」
At the entrance to Dongcheng Market, two constables shooed away the crowd gathered around the public notice board and pasted a notice, sticky with glue, right at the top.
"What’s this all about?"
A middle-aged man carrying a fish basket asked.
The constable on the left explained casually, "The Northern Yunhai Grassland belongs to the empire now. The Court has issued a decree to relocate some of the southern population to the north. All emigrants will be given land, farming tools, and housing."
"How does the relocation work?"
"You have to move as an entire household. Some families will be assigned and organized by the County Government, while others can register to go voluntarily."
Most of the people asking questions were able-bodied men around thirty years old. The women and the elderly just listened. They were tempted by the offer, but felt helpless to act on it.
This back-and-forth continued for about fifteen minutes. Just as the constables were growing impatient, a pillar of dark green light suddenly shot up from the mountain forests north of the county. The glowing aura emanating from the pillar expanded outward, quickly blanketing the entire county town.
A wave of comfort washed over everyone touched by the glowing aura.
"It’s the immortal from the Liu Mansion, casting magic!"
North of the county town stood an estate with courtyard walls that rivaled the town’s own fortifications. The plaque above the main gate bore two words—Liu Mansion. This was the estate run by Liu Zixiu’s family.
At this very moment, on the mountain behind the estate, a pillar of dark green light shot toward the heavens from the center of the vast forest, shining with exceptional brilliance.
The light originated from a Dao Field hidden in the dense forest. Near the treeline, there was a pavilion. A complete Spirit Gathering Array was centered around the pavilion, and at the heart of that Spirit Gathering Array was another, fixed Array.
At the core of the Array sat a Kun Cultivator with hair that was half-white. It was Liu Ling.
She was attempting to achieve a breakthrough using the Essence Wood Technique!
Liu Shuang hovered in the air above the pavilion, her hands a blur as she performed a Spell. A continuous stream of Wood Spirit Qi surged from her, suppressing a humanoid, faceless Spiritual Creature in the Inspiration Realm.
This was the Wood Spirit that Liu Ling had subdued. The method she had chosen for her breakthrough was, surprisingly, forceful suppression rather than appeasement.
Farther away, Wang Ping watched with a placid expression as Liu Shuang suppressed the Spiritual Creature.
"Will she succeed?" Yu Lian asked worriedly, sensing the frenzied Spirit Body. She had watched Liu Ling grow up, after all.
Wang Ping considered for a moment before answering, "Theoretically, yes. But this way, she’ll have to periodically suppress the Spirit Body until she has fully assimilated it. Otherwise, she risks being assimilated herself."
"It’s better than exhausting her lifespan and waiting to die!"
Yu Lian said firmly.
Wang Ping turned his head to look at Yu Lian. She immediately sensed his gaze, met his eyes, and asked, "What is it?"
"With the Liu Family’s current wealth, as long as there were no issues with her own cultivation, they could have easily supported her until she advanced to the Third Realm. She would have been reborn then."
"You haven’t even advanced to the Third Realm yourself," Yu Lian pointed out pragmatically.
"..."
Wang Ping fell silent. He pointed a finger, and a Blessing Talisman materialized. It streaked through the air and disappeared into Liu Ling’s body. Then, he and Yu Lian returned to the Mountain Peak Dojo.
「One month later.」
Liu Shuang came to the Mountain Peak Dojo in person to report the good news: Liu Ling had successfully advanced.
But Yu Lian reminded Liu Shuang, "You have another disciple. Don’t forget about her. She’s at a critical point in her closed-door cultivation right now; don’t let her get distracted."
"Yes!"
Like Liu Shuang, Zhao Yu’Er practiced the Wood Gathering Skill. This Cultivation Technique didn’t require much money or resources, but it was an extreme test of one’s temperament. If one’s state of mind was right, advancing was as easy as drinking water.
After Liu Shuang left, Yu Lian slipped into the currents of Water Spirit Qi and observed Zhao Yu’Er from a distance. She was deep in meditation, her mental state appearing very stable.
Afterward, she took to the air and flew to Shen Xiaozhu’s new Dao Field.
Shen Xiaozhu’s Dao Field was built directly east of the Wood Spirit Array, similar in style to Wang Ping’s own small courtyard. Outside the courtyard was another Spirit Gathering Array constructed from Spirit Wood, with a young locust tree sapling planted right in its center.
"Xiaozhu..."
Yu Lian watched Shen Xiaozhu practicing a new Magic spell, then descended from the clouds to land beside her. "Sanhua, Zuo Xuan’s companion, dragged a newborn kitten back from somewhere. Its eyes aren’t even open yet. It’s a little girl, and she has great spiritual potential. Prepare a gift for tomorrow. We’ll go and politely ask for her to come back with us and be your Spirit Pet."
"Does Master know?"
"He will in a moment. I’ll have him write a formal letter of request first. As for Sanhua, I’ll speak to her. She’ll definitely listen to me."
"..."
Shen Xiaozhu fell silent. Yu Lian’s plan sounded a bit dubious at first, but upon reflection, it was actually quite thorough.
"What are you practicing?"
"The ’Grass and Wood Soldiers’ technique."
"Stop practicing that. It’s much easier to learn after you’ve reached Foundation Establishment. Your master was the same way. Before he reached Foundation Establishment, he couldn’t learn it no matter what."
"Oh!"
「Mountain Peak Dojo.」
Wang Ping had just finished programming a puppet with the instructions for refining Power Pills when he suddenly sensed something and glanced in the direction of Yu Lian and Shen Xiaozhu. Puzzled, he tossed two copper coins for a divination.
Everything seemed fine.
...
Time flew by, and soon it was the 19th Year of Jianwu.
Before the New Year, Yuan Zheng’s disciple, Wu’an, brought Wang Ping the first batch of True Essence Pills to come out of the Alchemy Room. They were all of the highest quality.
"I also refined a batch of Healing Pills. The success rate was as high as forty percent," Wu’an said, handing over a porcelain vial.
Wang Ping took it and poured out an Elixir. It was purple, and the aura within it was sharp and potent. Its primary use was to heal external wounds. It had some effect on internal injuries and the Qi Sea, but it was limited.
The Elixir that could truly heal internal injuries and the Qi Sea was the Nine Revolutions Pill, but that required a Third Realm Alchemist to refine.
However, the Healing Pills were more than sufficient for Qianmu Temple’s needs.
"How are your preparations coming along?" Wang Ping asked Wu’an after examining the Elixir. ’I still haven’t given him the payment for improving Shen Xiaozhu’s innate talent,’ he thought.
"I still need some more time," Wu’an replied, lowering his head.
Wang Ping stared at him. He didn’t need Yu Lian to point it out; he could guess what was going on. ’Yuan Zheng must have heard that I’m preparing to advance to the Third Realm, and since his own disciple’s advancement is still a ways off, he’s having him wait until after I’ve formally broken through to claim his payment.’
"Alright. When you’re ready, you can come find me at any time." Wang Ping didn’t call him out on it. Their relationship was mutually beneficial for now.
「After the New Year.」
Zhang Xinghuai came to visit Wang Ping again, and this time he brought some extraordinary news.
"Emperor Jianwu plans to settle the old accounts in the Northwest Region during his final years. This is an opportunity we can make a play for..."
"What kind of play?" Wang Ping had already guessed what Zhang Xinghuai was thinking.
"Settling the old accounts in the Northwest Region will create new ones. This new ledger is a prize, and I think we can fight for a piece of it."
Wang Ping chuckled. "You have a big appetite. Are you aware that there are two Lords in the Northwest, and one of them belongs to the True Yang Sect?"
"Everything is negotiable."
"What do you have in mind?"
"Regarding this... the Xiao Shan Lord will definitely have Daoist Zi Luan seek you out. Because of your connection to Princess Xia Yao, combined with the academy’s influence at Court, we can manipulate things a little and control who gets chosen as the Imperial Envoy to the Northwest Region. If a military coup were to happen, we could even control who is appointed commander. We can pass on the position of Imperial Envoy, but the role of commander is absolutely critical."
"You want to become a warlord?"
"It’s not what I want. It’s what *they* will think."
