Chapter 60 Part 2

Those who had reaped benefits didn’t believe the items in their hands held any danger. It wasn’t that they wanted to resist the “Wild Domain Restriction Decree” outright, but they believed the decree should only target the easily uncontrollable masses below. As for themselves, there would be no problem.

“Are all things harmful? Can a method of differentiation be found?” Wu Weiye’s face was dark. Within Spirit Mountain, those obstructing the “Wild Domain Restriction Decree” were also the elders of the Nine Veins.

“Fellow Daoist Chen, what do you say?” Yun Wuxiang turned her gaze towards Chen Shifei of the Shifang Celestial Palace.

Chen Shifei said, “We must still wait for some time.” If the Grotto‑Heaven Perfected Ones intervened, it would be easier. But the Perfected Ones were all in seclusion, and even when messages were sent in, there was no response. Matters like these had to be handled by them.

“Doesn’t the Shifang Celestial Palace boast that there is nothing it cannot refine? Are you unable to research it, or are you just not putting your focus on it?” Yu Zhiyi cupped her cheek in her hand and asked casually.

Chen Shifei’s gaze instantly became like cold arrows, piercing straight towards Yu Zhiyi with her mocking smile. She said indifferently, “Does Fellow Daoist not go to calculate the Wild Domain, but wants to calculate my Shifang Celestial Palace instead?”

“Who told me Fellow Daoist is close by, while the Wild Domain is far away?” Yu Zhiyi replied with a leisurely, smiling expression.

The Shifang Celestial Palace was divided into three veins. One was “Sky-Mending Art,” with the 【Heart Sutra of Mending Heaven】 as its root scripture, deeply cooperating with the Cloud Realm, specializing in reshaping root bones and reforming Dao embryos. Another vein cultivated curses, arrays, and talisman techniques for exorcism, with the 【Supreme Three Caverns True Scripture】 as its foundation, engaging in much exchange with Heaven Evolution Mountain. The final vein cultivated the 【Taiyi Evil-Expelling Essentials】, related to artifact refining, specializing in researching ways to counter Wicked Wraiths. Originally, this last vein was the foundation of the Shifang Celestial Palace. But over the past thousand years, one could clearly see the Shifang Celestial Palace’s focus shifting towards the “Sky-Mending Art.”

“Yu Zhiyi!” Chen Shifei abruptly shot to her feet, her voice ice-cold. Behind her, an exquisite device rotated, as if ready to strike at any moment.

“What’s the use of yelling at her?” Wu Weiye, growing impatient, directly threw her saber into the center. With a thunderous boom, the blade hummed. “Is this Wild Domain Restriction Decree a total ban, or does it tear open a gap?”

“Asking this question, Fellow Daoist actually already has the answer, don’t you?” Yun Wuxiang said. “My Cloud Realm can manage it, but Spirit Mountain, Fellow Daoist Wu, will you kill an elder?”

Wu Weiye fell silent.

“How did the Cloud Realm manage it? Let’s learn a bit, shall we?” Yu Zhiyi spoke again.

The hall grew even colder and still.

How did the Cloud Realm manage it? Because the Cloud Realm had only one decision-maker, and it was someone who allowed no one to defy her. She didn’t care about blood relations, direct lines, branch lines, or adopted lines—in her eyes, there was no difference.

There were only two types of people in the Cloud Realm: those who obeyed, and those who were dead.

The Heavenly Dao Alliance encountered difficulties in pushing the “Wild Domain Restriction Decree,” and the Three Sects faced the same issue.

But the Three Sects didn’t care too much. After all, it was the Heavenly Dao Alliance who had proposed it. Even if the Three Sects were stuck and not handling it, the Heavenly Dao Alliance would eventually come to clean it up themselves.

Their gaze was still fixed on Yangchun Terrace.

“What does the Chongyuan Sect mean by this?” Liu Yuqi of the Pure Clean Sect said, fuming with rage. Although the land purchase had been completed, she still hadn’t been transferred back to the faction. She unwillingly remained stationed here. Her mood was already foul, but seeing the price the Chongyuan Sect had publicly announced made her so angry her face turned ashen. “If they understand righteousness, why didn’t they just give it away for free?”

These words caused the Jade Emperor Sect Daoists, who had originally harbored some discontent in their hearts, to stop speaking. They looked at Liu Yuqi with strange expressions.

Because raising the banner of righteousness wasn’t exclusive to Yangchun Terrace; they did it too. So should they also give away all their own possessions for free?

“That residence has already been tested by the Evil Tide. I believe paying a Heaven-tier artifact for it was worth it,” Zhang Tianxin of the Heavenly Origin Sect said calmly.

“Easy for you to say. That artifact was Heaven-tier! It’s not like herbs, which might still be found deep in the mountains. For artifacts of that level, without a Grotto‑Heaven intervening, how could one be obtained? Moreover, its efficacy is number one under heaven. If used when stepping into the Grotto‑Heaven realm— then—”

“Fellow Daoist Liu!” Zhang Tianxin cut her off. Watching Liu Yuqi grow more agitated as she spoke, she couldn’t help but shake her head. She said indifferently, “If that’s the case, it’s my Heavenly Origin Sect that suffered the loss. If Fellow Daoist Liu thinks it’s so priceless, then first send over the compensation you owe my Heavenly Origin Sect. Don’t forget, the residence doesn’t belong to just one family; it’s shared by all three sects.”

With these words, Liu Yuqi instantly fell silent.

Seeing this, Zhang Tianxin gave a cold laugh and said no more.

Though the topic was abruptly cut short, some unwilling individuals still spread certain opinions outward. They compared the residence to the Lifeless Land, saying the Heavenly Dao Alliance only charged some rent and didn’t demand they pay to buy the land outright. Ultimately, they branded the Chongyuan Sect with the label of “selfish.”

Wei Mingyi: “?”

The Lifeless Land was on the front lines of resistance, but at the end of the day, it was still within the scope of the Pure Domain. Could that compare to a residence in the Wild Domain? Moreover, the Lifeless Land was jointly defended by all Daoists. The residence she’d sold was an invincible safe house! Fortunately, there were still many in the Wild Domain speaking up for the Chongyuan Sect; otherwise, Wei Mingyi would have added countless “zeros” after the price.

But such grievances, Wei Mingyi was unwilling to endure.

She directly posted a “Blacklist” on the Public Pavilion. Any Daoist who had slandered the Chongyuan Sect was listed on it and forbidden from buying anything from them.

She also put out a reporting box. If anyone could catch a Daoist slandering the Chongyuan Sect and provide proof through an image capture, they could get a slight discount when buying land in the future.

Perhaps the Three Sects and the Heavenly Dao Alliance also employed such methods, but they wouldn’t put them out in the open.

Wei Mingyi didn’t care about that. The System wanted her to build Prestige, and ultimately, it all came down to real power; it didn’t require her to become a great compassionate and merciful sage whose Buddha-light illuminated the entire land.

When she became the strong, there would naturally be great Confucian scholars to defend her.

Late September.

Tan Lianxin, having finished clearing the Wicked Wraiths in the Changbai Hills, came again.

Ostensibly to express thanks, but actually to continue probing whether the Chongyuan Sect intended to recruit subordinates.

After serious consideration, Wei Mingyi couldn’t resist the temptation of adding two hundred Achievement Points monthly and ultimately agreed.

She was only a bit puzzled and asked, “Why is the Perfected One so urgent?” Jialan Dao might be inferior to the Three Sects, but it wasn’t a small sect that could be crushed by someone’s single finger.

Tan Lianxin sighed. “The Sect Leader’s lifespan is almost up and she will soon pass away in meditation. And the inheritance of my Jialan Dao comes entirely from the Wild Domain.” They really had few roads left to take. Choosing to attach themselves to the Chongyuan Sect was actually just a desperate gamble. As for what the Chongyuan Sect could bring them… it couldn’t be worse than the Three Sects, right?

For thousands of years, countless sects had faced the brutal question of survival or extinction. Jialan Dao, like its predecessors, had reached its end. The implementation of the Wild Domain Restriction Decree accelerated the speed of its demise, but Tan Lianxin didn’t want to give up just like that.

If she had already been corroded by the Wicked Wraiths, and there was no cure, she would be willing to discard her cultivation method. But now they had no abnormalities; it was only a faint possibility, yet they were asked to waste their cultivation bodies—wasn’t that forcing them onto a road to certain death? A human life was only a hundred years. Once the cultivation body was scattered, they would turn to dry bones. She would rather come to the Wild Domain and fight the Wicked Wraiths to the death.

The evil consequences brought by the Lin Province Incident were no different from the sky collapsing and the earth caving in.

Although it hadn’t collapsed onto the Chongyuan Sect’s head, Wei Mingyi was still moved by the plight of Jialan Dao and those other sects.

Without any surprises, a group of people would be expelled to the Lifeless Land. Although they also carried the Heavenly Merit Ledger on them, unlike the Daoists who came to the Lifeless Land voluntarily for training and cultivation, they would be unable to set foot on the Lifeless Land again or return to their homeland.

Wei Mingyi understood the Heavenly Dao Alliance’s motives, but she didn’t believe this “one-size-fits-all” approach was right. Were things obtained from the Wild Domain inherently bad? If all cultivation methods held anomalies, the System Mall would have long flagged the Dao manuals from the Wild Domain with prominent warnings.

The Lin Province Guo Clan had obtained those things a hundred years ago. Perhaps only items from that timeframe were of a higher danger level. The Heavenly Dao Alliance should be making an effort to create something to appraise them.

Or perhaps this was also a method of “purging” by the Heavenly Dao Alliance? The more Wei Mingyi thought about it, the more she felt it was possible. She didn’t believe this “one-size-fits-all” could truly bring “equality for all beings.”

Chongyuan Sect Main Hall.

Su Xuanjing, Hua Xiaozhu, and Wu Chongyun, whom Wei Mingyi had forcibly dragged over, were seated on meditation cushions for the council.

Everyone already knew about the Wild Domain Restriction Decree, but they never intended to follow it, nor did they want to interfere.

“Are we going to expand? Over in the Wild Domain?” Wei Mingyi asked seriously. Previously, they had merely sold land and gathered the herbs needed to detoxify her Shizun. Though she had set out the “Thousand Autumns Enterprise” vending machine, she rarely interacted with the entities in the Wild Domain, nor did she make much use of the Wicked Wraiths there for cultivation. Now, with Achievement Points enough to buy cultivation buildings, there was even less reason to head to the Wild Domain.

There were two choices before them: one, to remain the mysterious land-seller; two, to form a power that could stand defiantly against the Heavenly Dao Alliance and the Three Sects. Wei Mingyi’s heart wavered. It wasn’t that the Chongyuan Sect wouldn’t expand, but was now too early?

“With the Wild Domain Restriction Decree out, those unwilling to discard their cultivation methods can only flee into the Wild Domain. And they won’t be able to return to the Lifeless Land when the Evil Tide erupts,” Su Xuanjing frowned.

Wei Mingyi nodded, but this point could be solved by selling land. She nudged Wu Chongyun with her elbow. Wu Chongyun glanced at her lazily and said, “The Heavenly Merit Ledger is not, in fact, something belonging to the Heavenly Dao Alliance.”

Wei Mingyi nodded.

She had learned earlier that the 【Heavenly Merit Ledger】 was left behind by some Ancient Sage who had plucked the Dao Fruit, and had become a law enveloping the Nine Provinces. One automatically gained it upon entering the Wild Domain. In the Lifeless Land, the Heavenly Dao Alliance operated a Merit System, where Daoists used good deeds to exchange for cultivation resources. But this Good Deed merit—

“What use does the Heavenly Dao Alliance have for Good Deed merit? What benefit is there?” Wei Mingyi asked. Merit was just a set of numbers, but cultivation resources truly existed. It was akin to exchanging killing Wicked Wraiths for benefits, but the Wicked Wraiths weren’t killed for the Heavenly Dao Alliance’s sake; it was the duty of the Nine Provinces’ Daoists.

Wei Mingyi’s question also puzzled Su Xuanjing and Hua Xiaozhu. They had never considered this before, only knowing it as “customary.”

Wu Chongyun lowered her eyelashes. After a long while, she finally said, “Penglai Purple Qi and Ninth-Grade Divine Sand must be gathered by Grotto‑Heaven Perfected Ones. Where do they gather it, have you ever wondered?”

“Hmm? Beyond Heaven?” Wei Mingyi answered. There was such a saying, anyway. But since Shizun was asking this way, her eyes suddenly lit up. “Could it be related to Good Deed merit?”

Wu Chongyun: “Taiyi’s Legacy Treasure, Good Deed is the key.”

“Then why doesn’t the Heavenly Dao Alliance forcibly seize Good Deed merit? Why do they still allow people below to trade it among themselves?” Wei Mingyi asked again. If it was such a good thing, she hadn’t seen the Heavenly Dao Alliance plundering it with brute force.

Wu Chongyun said, “Because Good Deed merit is useless in the hands of ordinary people. Only the Grotto‑Heaven realm can touch those laws, condensing it into a key.”

This matter was only known to a very few who had the potential to reach the Grotto‑Heaven.