Wei Mingyi was unaware of the overwhelming terror filling Lang Fengya’s heart.
After that small pitch for selling land, Lang Fengya left with a solemn expression. Wei Mingyi didn’t bother about it.
People scraping a living in the Wild Domain were no different from beasts of burden.
She sat pondering in the Daoist rite grounds of Yangchun Terrace. The disciples of Chongyuan Sect and Hidden Moon Sect still prioritized cultivation above all else; their own strength was the most crucial aspect. Although people traveled back and forth between the two locations, selling goods was ultimately inconvenient. There weren’t many trustworthy people. Assigning someone specifically to oversee sales would hinder their cultivation.
Perhaps she should commission the Spirit Heart Sect to refine a batch of automated sales puppets? Creating a vending machine wasn’t difficult. The key issue was not overestimating the moral character of the Nine Provinces’ cultivators, especially on the Wild Domain side. Many utterly wicked people hid in the Wild Domain to avoid trouble. The four top aristocratic families could still scare people off with their name, but “Chongyuan Sect” clearly lacked that intimidating power.
If placed inside Yangchun Terrace, the restriction array could serve a restraining function. But then she’d have to personally watch over Yangchun Terrace. She couldn’t just drop whatever she was doing every time someone came to see if they could enter, right? She had the golden finger to stack up her cultivation, of course, but she also wanted to work hard on her own. A two-pronged approach was the optimal choice.
Wei Mingyi’s thoughts drifted. She opened the System Shop and casually glanced at it. Unexpectedly, she actually found an Automated Sales Puppet—the Thousand Autumns Enterprise—priced at one thousand Achievement Points. Wei Mingyi now had over ten thousand points, so she could definitely afford this thousand. Yet at the first glance, she still couldn’t help clicking her tongue and cursing inwardly, “Why don’t you just rob someone!”
She had only spent a thousand Achievement Points to reclaim a Daoist rite ground in the Wild Domain. Was this pricing for a vending machine reasonable? Had the broken system been randomly assigning prices? Was it cheap when she was poor, and the prices floated up just as she got a little wealthier?
Wei Mingyi looked at the automated sales puppet’s description with a sour face. Upon seeing the words “Cannot be attacked,” she felt a bit better. The vending machine was in an invincible state. It didn’t need to be placed inside the restriction array; it could be positioned right at the edge. The vending machine included the main sales body, which in appearance was no different from a shop. Once prices were set, the stocked pills would automatically appear on the shelves. As long as the customer deposited an item of corresponding value, they could take the product. Outside the main body, there was also a Public Pavilion providing tables and chairs for people to sit, and a notice board outside the pavilion—probably for advertising.
Wei Mingyi no longer hesitated. Just the words “Cannot be attacked” alone made it worth buying. When placing the vending machine building, a pop-up window appeared, asking Wei Mingyi to choose among categories like Pills, Talismans, Artifacts, etc.
Wei Mingyi: “?”
She had wanted to praise the system for its generosity but had never expected this catch! So this vending machine was a “purist specialty shop,” not allowing mixed sales of other types?
Wei Mingyi was furious, but with a dark face, she still chose “Pills” and slapped it down outside Yangchun Terrace. The building was completed in the span of a breath. Wei Mingyi stocked some of the pills she carried, setting prices slightly higher than those in Cangwu City, but still lower than the Heavenly Dao Alliance’s. In addition to that, she left a large line of text on the Public Pavilion’s notice board: “LAND FOR SALE! Safe land in the Wild Domain! Interested parties, please submit a project proposal!”
She didn’t wait around beside it. After finishing these tasks, she turned and went back to Chongyuan Sect.
Shizun had said before that she would be her training partner. She couldn’t keep Shizun waiting too long.
Since the evil tide, Yangchun Terrace, the Fire Element Dwelling, and Chongyuan Sect had all become famous in the Wild Domain. Although the Daoists in the Wild Domain hadn’t received a response from Chongyuan Sect, they couldn’t help but keep their gazes fixed on Yangchun Terrace. Not long after the Thousand Autumns Enterprise was placed, Daoists started arriving—both scions of aristocratic families and rogue cultivators.
The two sides were not on the same path and couldn’t stand each other, yet at this moment, their expressions were identical. Looking at the Thousand Autumns Enterprise, they were utterly puzzled.
“What is this thing? A shop?” The family Daoist found it utterly absurd. Everything she used came from the Heavenly Dao Alliance; she never imagined someone would compete with the Alliance.
The rogue cultivator Daoist had heard more news. Ignoring the family Daoist’s confusion, she strode into the shop. Her gaze swept over the pills. Coincidentally, she was running low on Heart-Cleansing Pills. Following the instructions, she tried depositing the corresponding Pill Jade. As soon as the currency was submitted, the pill bottle from that compartment appeared in her palm. The Daoist opened the stopper, poured a pill into her palm, and brought it to her nose for a sniff. Her eyes lit up brightly. It was indeed a Heart-Cleansing Pill, and the quality was much better than what the Heavenly Dao Alliance sold!
A shifty-looking Daoist who had followed her in wasn’t so honest. Seeing no owner present in the shop, greed instantly filled his eyes. Refusing to pay even a single unit of Pill Jade, he directly reached out for the pill bottle on the shelf. He grabbed fiercely, but his hand never touched the bottle. All he heard was an extremely loud sound of bones cracking, as if he had slammed into an invisible barrier. The Daoist let out a miserable howl and violently flung his hand. His face alternated between red and purple. After circulating his spiritual energy for a cycle, his broken hand was restored to its original state.
This injury wasn’t much, but the many gazes cast his way made the Daoist feel deeply humiliated. Immediately, he let out a mad roar, furious beyond measure, wanting to smash the shop to pieces.
“Stop!” The first Daoist who had bought the pills came forward to dissuade him, but her cultivation was inferior to that of the brutish villain. She was instantly shoved aside. The villainous Daoist was used to being unrestrained; killing, arson, and plunder were nothing to him. He suddenly gathered a burst of energy and let out a loud croaking cry, like a toad. His entire body suddenly swelled, and surging magical power pushed outward, looking as if he intended to completely wreck the Thousand Autumns Enterprise.
An ordinary shop couldn’t withstand such a ruckus. The family Daoist outside clicked her tongue, adopting a look of watching the excitement. However, once the Daoist’s attack dissipated, the shop remained perfectly intact. Not only that, the force discharged by the Daoist suddenly accelerated and rebounded, pressing in on him from all directions, compacting his body into a pulp. The Daoist wasn’t dead yet. Terrified, he realized the shop’s strangeness. The puddle of blood and flesh wriggled, crawling towards the outside. Covered in gore, he didn’t notice bumping into the feet of a family scion. That scion merely furrowed her brows slightly, and a servant stepped forward, directly killing the Daoist.
A hush first fell over the crowd, followed by a flurry of whispers.
Needless to say, the shop was the work of Chongyuan Sect. Though the owner wasn’t present, the shop had its own divine peculiarity. No wonder it could survive the evil tide. It seemed they truly possessed heaven-commanding methods.
Compared to the shop, the Public Pavilion’s advertisement was somewhat inconspicuous. It wasn’t until someone casually glanced at it and exclaimed, “Land for sale!” that the surrounding Daoists shifted their gaze.
Selling land wasn’t strange, but selling it in the Wild Domain was rather extraordinary.
A few months ago, Daoists would have scoffed at the word “safe,” but now, knowing that Yangchun Terrace and the Fire Element Dwelling had stood firm in the evil tide, all sorts of thoughts crossed their minds. Even if they didn’t fully believe it, they were no longer in complete denial.
“Yangchun Terrace and the Fire Element Dwelling are uniquely blessed by heaven. Could there really be more Pure Lands like that in the Wild Domain? Over thousands of years, why has no one discovered them?” one Daoist spoke up. He only viewed Yangchun Terrace and the Fire Element Dwelling as anomalies. If it were true… his reason struggled to accept it. This would utterly overturn the long-standing belief that one couldn’t establish a foothold in the Wild Domain.
“Real or fake? But it must be very expensive, right?” The Daoist who spoke patted herself and sighed. “Half my Golden Core is already gone. I absolutely can’t part with the other half.”
…
Discussion continued, but for now, no one actually considered buying land.
The pills in the shop could be verified as real or fake with a small amount of Pill Jade. But what if this “land sale” was a colossal scam?
The expressions of the Daoists from aristocratic families were also much more serious. Having learned from the previous Daoist’s fate, they didn’t dare tear down the advertisement with their hands. Instead, they took out Shadow-Recording Stones. No longer caring about earning Merit Points in the Wild Domain, they recorded the images of the vicinity and all returned to The Lifeless Land.
The Heavenly Dao Alliance Encampment.
The order disrupted by the evil tide was rapidly restored, but some matters remained forever, becoming an indelible, heavily inked chapter that the world couldn’t ignore.
The Heavenly Dao Alliance Daoists were already focused on Chongyuan Sect and searching everywhere for related information. Now, hearing “land for sale,” they grew even more tense and solemn, hurriedly passing the news up.
Celestial Overseer Hall. This was a law hall located at the highest point in The Lifeless Land, the place where the four Ministers of the Heavenly Dao Alliance discussed major affairs. The four Ministers were titled the “Four Sages,” each coming from the Four Great Clans, though they were not the most powerful Grotto-Heaven Perfected Persons of the families, but rather Nascent Soul cultivators of slightly lesser ability. Grotto-Heaven Perfected Persons rarely walked the lands of the Nine Provinces; they remained hidden. The four Ministers naturally became the highest-status individuals in the Nine Provinces.
“What exactly is the origin of that Chongyuan Sect? Has it not been investigated yet?”
“There are extremely many sects named Chongyuan. After the Wild Domain affairs spread, even more sects changed their names, also calling themselves Chongyuan. How could a result appear so quickly?”
“What about the three sects of the master-disciple lineage? Any movements? Do they know anything?”
Voices rang out one after another. The figures seated behind the desks were as if shrouded in clouds and mist, appearing especially ethereal and otherworldly.
“The three sects are also investigating. This matter is unrelated to them.” After a few moments of silence, Daoist Wu from Spirit Mountain raised a question that weighed heavily on the hearts of the other three. “According to the information gathered so far, besides the grand array capable of withstanding the evil tide, there’s also a Spirit Vein inside. We don’t know where it was channeled from. Everyone, who do you think could achieve this?”
Initially, the Heavenly Dao Alliance members also thought a family Grotto-Heaven had secretly supported Chongyuan Sect, signaling Chongyuan Sect to make a name for itself. As the situation evolved, the Ministers returned to their families one by one to consult the Grotto-Heavens, but received a negative answer. None of this was related to the aristocratic families. Then was it the Jade Emperor Sect’s Grotto-Heaven, Ji Daoheng? Yet, as the sole Grotto-Heaven of the master-disciple lineage, she had to weigh the pros and cons; she couldn’t possibly do such a thing. Besides, judging from the Jade Emperor Sect’s subsequent reaction, it was clear it wasn’t related to Ji Daoheng.
Eliminating the known factors one by one, it wasn’t hard to arrive at an answer that stirred fear and terror in their hearts—in a place unknown to them, another Grotto-Heaven had emerged. And this new Grotto-Heaven was either powerful enough to disregard the Wild Domain, or possessed a special divine ability to suppress it. Most terrifyingly, this entity did not belong to the aristocratic families.
“Among the rogue cultivators and the master-disciple lineage, who is closest to Grotto-Heaven?” The Daoist from the Chen family asked. She looked towards the direction of the Heavenly Evolution Mountain Daoists and said, “Can Heavenly Evolution Mountain not deduce it?”
“If I say it, you’ll all be unhappy again.” The Heavenly Evolution Mountain Yu family Daoist’s voice was crisp.
The Spirit Mountain Wu Clan Daoist frowned and emphasized her words: “Fellow Daoist Yu.”
Daoist Yu shifted, the clouds and mist around her roiling. She stepped out from the hazy cloud qi. Fiddling with the string of copper coins at her waist, she spat out two words: “The Merciful Sword. Hmm, or to use a name you prefer, the Sword Devil.”
The faces of the remaining three indeed changed color at these words. Which one of them present hadn’t had a relative or friend killed by the Merciful Sword? “Wasn’t she dead?” The Chen family Daoist abruptly stood up, her voice unsteady. “Is this her handiwork in the Wild Domain?”
“I only said the Daoist most likely to achieve Grotto-Heaven is the Merciful Sword,” Daoist Yu said, a smile hanging on her face. She swept her gaze over everyone and said, unhurriedly, “Don’t forget, that person only practiced the sword. How could she create something like Yangchun Terrace? If she achieved Grotto-Heaven, the first thing she’d do is take our heads. Why go to the Wild Domain? Oh, and Fellow Daoist Chen, the Merciful Sword is missing, not dead.”
