Immortality begins with meditation puppets

"Great Evolution Divine Lord, please take your time. Your divine arts are as profound as creation itself, and your Dao is mysterious and wondrous. I greatly admire you and wish to request that you stay in my Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom for a while so that I may have the opportunity to receive your teachings. I would not dare to let you stay in vain, for there are many vacant temples in the temple district of my Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom. You may choose one, erect a statue, and paint it, and it can temporarily serve as a temple for Great Evolution Divine Lord. Once the temple name is established, professional incense burners will arrive on the same day, and a professional faith-spreading team will be there to promote your divine name among the immortals. Within a month, you will have incense offerings coming in, and you will certainly not be at a loss..."

With the outcome decided, Su Qing immediately spoke up, intending to recruit the Great Evolution Divine Lord.

Today, the Yuan Dynasty is rich in resources and spiritual energy is abundant. To say something that would make the previous generation of cultivators feel sad, even if the current generation of cultivators did nothing but absorb spiritual energy every day, they would still be faster than the previous generation who worked hard to earn money and consume pills to cultivate.

The current shortage of talent in the various immortal kingdoms is due to the resurgence of spiritual energy. As spiritual energy recovers, many ancient secret realms have emerged in the various immortal kingdoms. These ancient secret realms are full of high-level resources, and cultivators need to go there to explore and develop them. Coupled with the external environment where evil spirits are rampant, the talent gap in the various immortal kingdoms is getting bigger and bigger.

In order to gain an advantage in future competition, each immortal kingdom has come up with powerful policies to attract cultivation talents, especially those from the heavens.

Among them, the Immortal Qin Martial Kingdom, shamelessly taking the lead, attracted the largest investment in the myriad realms by claiming the status of the legitimate heir to the ancient Human Dao Imperial Court. The Primordial Sect and its affiliated sects settled in this Immortal Kingdom, bringing it numerous extraterrestrial resources, ancient inheritances, and even cultivation talents. With this assistance, given time, it is not impossible for the Immortal Qin Martial Kingdom to unify the Central Plains, become the hegemon of the Central Plains, and then covet the four realms to rebuild the Human Dao Imperial Court.

Besides the Yuanshi Sect, the second most popular sect in the heavens, the Lingbao Sect, ended up in the first immortal kingdom of the Eastern Wilderness—the Xuanyuan Immortal Kingdom. This immortal kingdom also claimed to be the legitimate dynasty and denounced the Xianqin Martial Kingdom as a hypocrite, not the legitimate one. Regardless of whether the Lingbao Sect truly believed it or not, the Xuanyuan Sword Sect, which ruled the immortal kingdom, was established by a disciple of the Lingbao Sect who had left behind in Tianyuan. The two sects had been in frequent contact for many years, so it was only natural for the Lingbao Sect to fall into this immortal kingdom. They also joined the Xuanyuan Sword Sect in cursing the Xianqin Martial Kingdom for being shameless, and the Yuanshi Sect, which had fallen into the Xianqin Martial Kingdom, was also criticized by them.

Aside from these two sects, most of the demon races in the heavens choose the Kingdom of Ten Thousand Demons. This immortal kingdom is now teeming with powerful demons, and it has some of the splendor of the ancient demon races. A small portion of the Phoenix and Luan bird clans have settled in the Kingdom of Ten Thousand Demons, while the majority have settled in the Fire Phoenix Immortal Kingdom. This shows that the Phoenix clan is noble, while the Luan bird prefers quiet and does not want to collude with the other demons in the Kingdom of Ten Thousand Demons.

The Penglai Immortal Kingdom was delighted to welcome the entire Eastern King Sect to its territory. However, the cultivators of this sect were arrogant and extremely ambitious. It was unclear whether Penglai had invited helpers or invited its ancestors. But judging from the current situation, the addition of the Eastern King Sect, whose prestige in the heavens was second only to the Yuanshi, Lingbao, and Taishang sects, immediately boosted the prestige of the Penglai Immortal Kingdom. They began to proclaim to the outside world that Penglai had been the hegemon of the Western Sea since ancient times. Of course, they did not forget to mention the name of the legitimate dynasty. After all, everyone is human, and whose ancestors were not from the dynasty?
There's not much to say about the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom. As the direct lineage of the Styx Daoist tradition, sects like the Zhutian Yuantu Sect and the Blood River Sect, which revere the Styx Ancestor, have all flocked to the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom. The Subduing Dragon and Tiger Sect, which had just become a powerful figure a few years ago, hadn't even had a chance to accumulate enough power before losing its position due to the arrival of these powerful figures from all over the heavens. Now, within the Styx Sect, its power ranks outside the top thirties, and this is only because sixth-tier powerful figures from all over the heavens are blocking its way at the Heavenly Gate. Once those people return, Subduing Dragon and Tiger will be... The ranking within the sect might be pushed out by more than a hundred places. The Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom isn't as shameless as other immortal kingdoms. Instead of claiming to be the legitimate dynasty, it raises the banner of rebuilding the Nine Netherworld and reshaping the Six Paths of Reincarnation, hoping to make up for the regret of its ancestor in ancient times. He lost to the Lord of Reincarnation in the competition for the Netherworld, and now his disciples are serving him. They want to realize his long-cherished wish in this great era. Whether it is actually realized or not is another matter. With this banner in hand, whenever there is a secret realm of the Netherworld in Tianyuan, the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom will definitely get involved.

The Ksitigarbha Buddha Kingdom, with its Ten Thousand Buddha Cave, the burial place of ancient Buddhas, was promoted as a selling point, attracting many Buddhist cultivators from all over the heavens. However, after a period of time, the Buddhist cultivators realized that the Joyful Sect, which ruled this immortal kingdom, was not a legitimate Buddhist sect and were unwilling to associate with it. Many went elsewhere. Some Buddhist cultivators, indulging in the five vices of wine, meat, wealth, and anger, took a liking to the Joyful Sect and were no longer willing to go to the legitimate Buddhist kingdom. This Buddhist kingdom claimed to be a legitimate Buddhist sect, but its infamy was so great that none of the immortal kingdoms of Tianyuan recognized it.

The Bodhi Buddha Kingdom, the Landa Buddha Kingdom, and the Suspended Buddha Kingdom are all orthodox Buddhist kingdoms in the Tianyuan Realm, dedicated to rigorous cultivation. Therefore, after realizing the true nature of the Joyful Sect, various Buddhist sects from all over the world scattered across these three kingdoms. Among them, the Bodhi Buddha Kingdom, which occupied the former Demon Tree Evil Kingdom and rebuilt itself from scratch, should have the weakest talent attraction. However, it has hired a Dharma-transmitting Arhat at a high salary. The Arhat Xiong Er, who is proficient in ancient Buddhist teachings, teaches and transmits the Dharma in this immortal kingdom once every ten years, which has greatly increased the competitiveness of this immortal kingdom. It already has a million Buddhist cultivators and is showing a trend of taking the top spot in Buddhism. The great righteousness of this immortal kingdom needs no further explanation. Just the phrase "for Tianyuan, all the ancient Buddhas perished in the Western Desert" is enough to make other forces in Tianyuan have no face to compete with it for profit.

The Desire Demon Immortal Kingdom, claiming to be the sole remaining branch of the Heavenly Origin Demonic Path, attracted demonic sects from all the realms to join it. The Rahu Sect, the Joyful Union Sect, and the Blissful Paradise Sect are particularly noteworthy. Among them, the Rahu Sect was once a leading force in the demonic path, leading the charge and enjoying a period of great glory. However, due to its overly high-profile actions, it was severely defeated by the Primordial Sect, in conjunction with other ancient forces. Since then, it has never recovered its former glory. Even after its resurgence in the realms, it has struggled to regain its former prominence. Not only is it still suppressed by the Primordial, Spiritual Treasure, and Supreme Sects, but even rising stars like the Eastern King Sect can keep them in check. Furthermore, the business this sect conducts throughout the realms is primarily dealing with demonic cultivators. Their old ways were nothing but burning, killing, looting, and plundering, making them universally hated throughout the heavens. The Joyful Union Sect and the Blissful Paradise Sect had slightly better reputations than this sect, but even those were only slightly better. One was abducting innocent women to be used as alchemical vessels and sold throughout the heavens, and the other was selling their bodies to swindle money from others. In short, neither of them were good sects, and those who were good were not allowed to join these three sects. Shi Lijing had been working hard for many years with the Desire Demon Immortal Kingdom to whitewash the Demon Sect and bring it to the right path. With the arrival of these old accomplices from the underworld, all their years of hard work would likely be lost. Whether this was a blessing or a curse for the Immortal Kingdom was unknown. Shi Lijing was already overwhelmed with worries and had no intention or ability to declare righteousness to the outside world or compete with other countries for interests.

Although the people coming to the Desire Demon Immortal Kingdom were not what they wanted, at least some people came. The worst off was the Punishment and Slaughter God Kingdom. Gao Erqiang came from a poor background and had no ancestors or connections in the heavens. He couldn't attract any of the high-quality talents in the heavens. He could only offer various preferential policies to increase his attractiveness. This approach was effective. For example, second-tier sects in the heavens, such as Peach Blossom Sect and Guangxian Sect, all settled in this god kingdom and spread their branches, contributing to the construction of the god kingdom. It was difficult for Erqiang and the god alone to control these foreign forces. If this continued, it was not impossible for them to lose power and even usurp the throne.

While others were flourishing and striving upwards, Su Qing, as the founding emperor of the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, couldn't afford to fall behind in this competition. His first move was to raise the banner of imperial legitimacy. Since anyone could wave that banner, Su Qing figured he might as well do it. And it didn't come away empty-handed; it actually attracted remnants of the former human dynasty. The Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, though newly established, was full of new energy, evoking memories of their homeland. Of course, no one revealed that the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom was simply a land of many wonderful things, a place for enjoyment, making them reluctant to leave. The slogan of prioritizing all arts and crafts was also proclaimed. The Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, valuing talent in these arts and crafts, attracted a large influx of professionals from all over the heavens. Support was provided for them to build factories and start their own businesses, promoting the development of the immortal kingdom's arts and crafts industries while also creating employment opportunities for the people of the far west.

Besides, the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom also has no shortage of appeal to the major sects of the heavens. With his status as the sect master of Taiyi Sect, the entire Taiyi Sect, whether they agree or disagree, can only rely on the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom. Otherwise, would Su Qing really dare to hold up the portrait of the ancestor, point at the ancestor, and shout at them: "Ancestor above, do you want to change your ways and split the sect?"

The Snail Emperor Sect's joining was beyond Su Qing's expectations. Initially, he thought the sect valued his impeccable character and favorable policies of the Immortal Kingdom, which explained their rejection of other Immortal Kingdoms' offers and their preference for Kaiyuan. However, after several discussions with the Snail Emperor Palace's leader, True Monarch Caihua, he learned that the sect had learned of his creation of a Creation-type puppet and his understanding of Creation Runes. They considered him a successor to their patriarch, and according to them, if Su Qing joined the Snail Emperor Sect now, he would immediately become a true disciple, with all the sect's resources at his disposal. Breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage makes one an elder, and advancing to the Void Refinement stage makes one a sect leader. No wonder this sect, which produced a Dao Ancestor in ancient times, has a much larger magnanimity than the Taiyi Sect. Even though Su Qing, the number one potential stock in the heavens, was the sect leader of the Taiyi Sect, there were still discontented and discordant voices within the sect. Yet, the Snail Emperor Sect was eager to make him their sect leader. Unfortunately, the sect had too many responsibilities. Although they had abundant resources and beautiful cultivators, Su Qing only wanted to take advantage of them and didn't want to take responsibility. He politely declined Fairy Caihua's generous invitation and only interacted with the Snail Emperor Sect under the guise of cooperation.

Although not a demon, the title of Heavenly Emperor still carries significant weight among the demon gods. In ancient times, the Heavenly Emperor allowed demon gods to serve under him. However, with the Heavenly Emperor absent today, among the various immortal kingdoms of Tianyuan, only the Ten Thousand Demon Kingdom, which recruits soldiers under the banner of the Demon Ancestor, who is also the Heavenly Emperor, is able to establish a connection with the Heavenly Emperor. In addition, due to his foresight, the immortal kingdom has long planned a temple area, which allows demon gods to build temples, burn incense, and spread their faith, thus solving their worries and naturally increasing its attractiveness.

The acceptance of the Wu tribe was more like a form of poverty alleviation and relief. During the ancient calamity, the Wu tribe fought fiercely, resulting in the complete annihilation of the pure-blooded Wu tribe in Tianyuan. There was no Wu tribe force left in the heavens. However, there were still several Wu tribes in Tianyuan. These tribes, like the Jiuli tribe that had previously wandered in the Yunshan and Yumo Immortal Kingdoms, were not doing well. Considering that he had mastered the Great Wu True Spirit, obtained the Dao patterns of the Jiuli and Xingtian Wu tribes, and wielded the Xingtian Blood Axe, and had received too much kindness from the Wu tribe, Su Qing asked Yao Fei to recruit Wu tribes from all over Tianyuan to develop in Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom. He personally paid for them to buy mines so that they could have income. Fearing that they would squander their resources, he also assigned puppets such as the Ten Thousand Law Master and the Boxing Instructor to care for the next generation. In this way, with two measures, now without Yao Fei's shouts, Wu people from all over Tianyuan were scrambling to come to Tianyuan. Everyone knew that a Wu Saint had emerged among the Wu people, who could lead the Wu people to a good life with wine and meat.

Thus, with its existing industries as a foundation, the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom has the resources and manpower support of the two ancient Daoist lineages, the Snail Emperor Sect and the Taiyi Sect, plus a small number of powerful but formidable demon gods, and the witch people who are currently a financial burden but have great potential. Taking advantage of hosting the Heroes' Assembly, its current and future development is highly anticipated.

The promising future of the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom still needs more talent, and the Great Evolution Divine Lord is the old god chosen by Su Qing!

He had already witnessed the abilities of this deity. If he hadn't cheated, with his ability to deduce divine arts, he could have easily placed in the top three, if not won the championship. Such a talent, if he were to settle in the temple area and spread the Dharma among the gods, would not only promote the growth of the existing gods, but also attract other gods from all over the heavens to settle in the temple. This already made Su Qing very envious.

Considering that this deity originated from the Ancient God Realm, a realm that has always been closed off among all the heavens and myriad realms, and is the most restrained realm in this wave of development of the Heavenly Origin Realm, if we can pry open the closed gate of this realm from the Great Evolution Deity and bring those ancient gods who served the Ancient Heavenly Court and all have unique skills and specialties to the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, Su Qing simply cannot imagine how far the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom can go in the future!
When asked about Su Qing's invitation, the Great Evolution God Lord's first reaction was to refuse.

These days, he has refused invitations like this several times. There are quite a few immortal kingdoms that offer more favorable conditions than Su Qing. For example, the Penglai Immortal Kingdom is not only willing to prepare a huge number of guaranteed believers for the ancient gods, but also willing to share the worldly divine positions so that the ancient gods can change their divine positions in Tianyuan and become gods again in this world. However, the Great Evolution Divine Lord remains unmoved.

There are many reasons, but the biggest one is that although the Heavenly Emperor feared they would perish in the battle at Tianyuan, he sent them to the heavens under the pretext of guarding against the Thirteen Demon Realms to seek a living. However, this mission has been steadfastly carried out by the ancient gods of the Ancient God Realm to this day. Now, with the myriad realms in turmoil because of Tianyuan, and the Thirteen Demon Realms also making frequent moves, the Ancient God Realm cannot abandon its duty and follow the cultivators of the heavens to Tianyuan for wealth and power. They only want to complete the last mission given to them by the Heavenly Emperor and protect all living beings one last time; that would be enough for them. (End of Chapter)