Immortality begins with meditation puppets

A one-day tour of the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom organized by Su Qing brought the conflicts between the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom and the Yuanshi Sect, as well as between the myriad realms and the Tianyuan native land, into the open.

After the representatives of each sect returned to their respective sects, the matter quickly spread throughout the myriad realms, causing a stir throughout the world.

Compared to this, even the Demon Buddha who was expelled from the Tianyuan Realm and was fighting against several seventh-order Dao Lords in the primordial universe has become a has-been and no one cares anymore.

Not caring about the Demon Buddha doesn't mean disrespecting the demons. The primary conflict in the heavens is still the life-and-death struggle between demons and living beings. However, at present, several Heavenly Demon Generals are hiding in the Demon Realm with their demons, and the only Demon Buddha hiding in the Heavenly Origin Realm has had his hiding place pierced by Su Qing's arrow. He is now being chased to the ends of the void by several seventh-order Dao Lords, fighting to the end of the universe. He has no time to come to the heavens to cause trouble for hundreds or thousands of years.

With the threat of evil spirits diminishing, the creatures' penchant for infighting resurfaced, and the conflict between the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom and the Yuanshi Sect served as the fuse.

In the vast void, in the Purple Mansion Realm where the Eastern King Sect is located, a group of cultivators are gathered together, engaging in lively discussions.

"This tiny Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom doesn't know how to respect the elderly and care for the young, nor does it understand the hierarchy of seniority. It's only been established for a short time, yet it dares to go against the great sects of the heavens like us? Have they been living too well these past years and want to go back to the days before the Tianyuan Restoration and suffer again!"

"I've disliked Su Qing for a long time. He's just a young punk who's only been cultivating immortality for a few years, yet he wants to be both the Human Emperor and the Heavenly Emperor. He's trying to seize the highest position of power."

"Alas, fellow Daoist, be careful with your words. If you're talking about the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, just say it. You can't drag Su Qing into it. Su Qing has made great contributions to the world, and more importantly, the Tianyuan Realm favors him. If we harbor any ill will towards him, we'll be targeted by the Tianyuan Realm as soon as we go there. There's absolutely no need for that!"

"Hey, isn't Su Qing the same as the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom? And isn't the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom just Su Qing? To strike a snake, you must strike its vital spot. Since we've made up our minds to target the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, let's not hesitate and worry about angering the Heavenly Origin Heaven and Earth. We should send the Supreme Elder to deliver a dimensional attack on the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom and kill Su Qing on the spot. Then, without a leader, the immortal kingdom will collapse on its own without us having to go through all this trouble!"

“Suppress Su Qing? This is something that my Eastern King Sect cannot do, dares not do, and is impossible to do.”

The reason we can't do it is because the one who has a direct conflict with Su Qing is the Yuanshi Sect. Our Dongwang Sect only cares about the puppet interests of his Su Group, and there is no need for us to fight for the Yuanshi Sect.

The reason we dare not do it is because Su Qing's luck is too strong. Even the Yuanshi Sect would have to think twice about the backlash from his luck if we were to become his enemy. Our Dongwang Sect has been disliked by everyone from ancient times to the present, and is not favored by heaven and earth. So we can't do something that would offend heaven and earth.

"It's impossible. A Supreme Elder at the seventh-tier Dao Lord level might not be able to deal with Su Qing. When he fought against the Reincarnation Demon in the Divine Realm, he used three seventh-tier puppets. Although he said that after these three seventh-tier puppets completed their mission, he could no longer reunite them, and that they were only for one-time use and could not be maintained for long, given his character, who can completely believe his words?"

"What did the sect leader and elders say?"

"The elders still want us to put pressure on the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom throughout the myriad realms, first launching a public opinion offensive to portray the Su Group and other industries of the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom as unscrupulous merchants."

They mobilized people from all walks of life to raise questions about whether intelligent puppets would one day replace cultivators, and whether the beast hides used to make battle armor were harming the demon race, in order to ruin the reputation of the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom in the heavens.

"Let's see how the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom reacts. If they're willing to compromise and submit to us, handing over the Su Group, then the Eastern King and Kaiyuan will be one family, and the two families can fight against Yuanshi together. If they're still unwilling, then we'll escalate the demands layer by layer until they agree!"

Zhongze Zhenjun reached out and grasped, already regarding the Su Group, the most valuable asset of the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, as his own.

After returning from the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, the Dongwang Sect immediately discussed this matter. The elders unanimously believed that this would be a once-in-a-millennium opportunity for the Dongwang Sect to catch up with the three major sects of the Dao lineage.

In the world of the heavens, the apparent strength of the Eastern King Sect seems to be almost on par with the three major sects of the Dao lineage. The Eastern King Sect has the seventh-level Dao Lord, the influence of the heavens is not lacking, and as for the sect's trump card, the Eastern King Sect can even bring out the coffin lid of the Eastern King and the Western Mother and make their ancestors proud.

But they are not inferior in any way, so why can't they catch up with the three major sects of the Dao lineage? Why have they always been just one step behind all these years, unable to catch up and surpass them?

After much deliberation, everyone felt that the real shortcoming was the lack of an industry leader status.

Among the three major sects of the Dao lineage, the Yuanshi Sect has the lineage of the Artifact Ancestor and is unparalleled in the art of artifact crafting. It is the undisputed leader in artifact crafting across the heavens. The magical artifacts crafted by its disciples are sold throughout the myriad realms. Some high-level cultivators who want to customize high-grade magical artifacts even take the initiative to come to them for help. As a result, the Yuanshi Sect has established an advantage in the heavens that the Dongwang Sect cannot match by relying on the art of artifact crafting.

The same applies to the Supreme Sect and the Spirit Treasure Sect. The Supreme Sect's advantage in alchemy is even greater than that of the Primordial Sect in weapon crafting. Countless cultivators seek alchemy and medicine from them, which is why the Supreme Sect has few disciples but enjoys a transcendent status in the heavens.

The Lingbao Sect is the leader of the sword path in all the heavens, the dream of all sword cultivators, the most beautiful white moonlight, and no one can surpass its ability to make magic swords. In addition, it also has remarkable achievements in the array path, and can accumulate reputation and increase influence in all the heavens and myriad worlds.

Only their Eastern King Sect, seemingly all-rounder, is actually incapable of anything. They have dabbled in arrays, weapons, alchemy, puppetry, talismans, armor, agriculture, painting, and other arts that rank among the top in cultivation over the years. Although they have made some progress, they have never reached the level of becoming industry leaders. Just as they are always one step behind the three major sects of the Dao lineage, they are also one step behind the three major sects of the Dao lineage in the development of these arts.

Now, this momentum is building. The Su Group of Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom possesses puppet resources that are currently the most sought-after items in all the heavens and myriad realms. There are puppets for subduing demons and exorcising evil, puppets for spreading knowledge and serving as masters, and puppets for seeking pleasure and igniting passion. These are all highly sought-after items that countless cultivators across the heavens would love to buy but cannot obtain. If the Eastern King Sect could utilize these resources, their influence would undoubtedly rise to a new level, and they might even be able to realize the dreams of countless generations of disciples, becoming a force on par with the three major sects of the Dao lineage!

"Su Qing, Su Qing, the Su Group that you've painstakingly built up will soon be under the Dong Wang family's name. This time, we don't just want the agency rights; we want the entire Su Group!"

Zhongze Zhenjun's eyes shone brightly as he murmured to himself...
······
A corner of the western square of Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom.

"The results are in. As previously announced, the Yuanshi Sect's recruitment of disciples this time only allows cultivators from the Kunlun Realm and the Tianyuan Realm to apply!"

"Really? That puts my mind at ease. To support my Shangyuan Shizong, my father works as a miner at Yao's Mining, my mother does odd jobs at Debao Canteen, and my sister works as a caretaker at Lingyu Club. The whole family supports me. If they cancel my application qualification because of my identity as a cultivator from Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, I don't want to live anymore!" "As expected of a great sect, you have a magnanimous spirit. Even though you have fallen out with Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, you haven't taken your anger out on the entire Tianyuan Realm. You are still willing to support the development of my Tianyuan Realm!"

"A great sect should have such magnanimity. Thinking about it this way, our Heavenly Lord Su did make a mistake this time. Even if we want to compete with all the heavens and myriad realms for benefits, there is no need to be in such a hurry. The problem of demons has not been solved yet, and we have already started internal strife. Our overall perspective is far inferior to that of the Primordial Sect!"

"Huh? Are you out of your mind? Daring to speak ill of Su Tianjun in the Far West City. There are eavesdropping puppets everywhere in the city. If they hear you, they'll electrocute you when there are fewer people around. You won't even know how you died!"

"Eavesdropping puppets? Didn't Su Tianjun say that he wanted to respect the privacy of cultivators and allow them to live with dignity? He had already accepted the supervision of cultivators and dismantled all the eavesdropping puppets in the city. Otherwise, I wouldn't have dared to speak out of turn!"

"Believe me or not, this is all just a trick by Su Tianjun to dispel cultivators' concerns and attract them to settle and develop in Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom. With his skill in making puppets, what he takes apart is only what he wants to show us. What he doesn't want to show us, we will never discover!"

Li Hanhuang was persuaded by the middle-aged cultivator in front of him, and walked home with a feeling of extreme self-reproach.

As an immigrant cultivator from the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom to the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom, his understanding of the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom and Su Qing was not as deep as that of the local cultivators. He did not know whether Su Qing was really the kind of person who was two-faced, saying one thing and doing another, and who had even installed eavesdropping puppets in the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom to monitor everyone in the country.

Regardless of whether he is right or wrong, he shouldn't talk about the rights and wrongs of such an important person. At this crucial moment when he is applying to the Yuanshi Sect, he is afraid that the Yuanshi Sect will not accept him, and he is also afraid that the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom will not release him. He can't afford to offend either side, so he should just be an honest person!

On the way back, passing by the seaside pier, he saw that the entire harbor was filled with treasure ship puppets built by the Su Group. These treasure ship puppets were all decorated with the flags of various sects, factions and forces. Li Hanhuang, who had been preparing for the exam and whose knowledge was at its peak, was able to recognize all the forces represented by these flags.

Dan Yuan Sect, Guang Han Sect, Beast King Sect, Black Earth Sect, Xuan Shui Sect... all of these are trading ships from major sects across the heavens. They are all vying to dock at the pier, eager to purchase supplies within the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom. Judging from the scene, it's as if the goods of the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom have suddenly become free overnight.

Of course it won't be free; in fact, the price has gone up!

Li Hanhuang understood why this situation had occurred; it was still the result of the conflict between the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom and the Yuanshi Sect.

Although the Yuanshi Sect has not done anything special to the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom so far, and the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom has not said anything strange to the Yuanshi Sect, both sides are currently restrained and calm. However, the Tianyuan native land and all the myriad worlds are already preparing for a fierce and crazy conflict in the future.

In recent days, major sects from all heavens have been arriving in Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom in ships laden with spirit stones, seeking scarce resources such as puppets, armor, and pre-prepared spiritual food. This is to ensure that if the myriad realms of the heavens impose sales or embargoes on Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom's products or raise boundary taxes in the future, they will still have goods to use and sell.

As for the price increases that the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom had to raise based on market conditions and its own production capacity, they didn't care at all. They would simply pass on these price increases to consumers in all the worlds once they returned.

"The most miserable are still those at the bottom. The actions of the powerful can instantly change the fate of countless people at the bottom. No matter what the outcome of the battle between the Yuanshi Sect and the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom is in the future, just look at the present. The cultivators at the bottom of all the heavens and myriad realms are already paying the price. The prices that will inevitably skyrocket in the future will surely reap all the hard-earned money they have earned through their hard work!"

Li Hanhuang, who came from humble beginnings, could not understand the thoughts and ideas of great figures such as the Kaiyuan Kingdom's ruler and the Yuanshi Sect Master, but he could empathize with the cultivators from the lower classes.

It is known that the bustling scene at the docks and ports now will have a significant impact on the lives of ordinary people in the future.

At least, if he were in the myriad realms, he would no longer be able to afford the Myriad Laws Master Puppet. The price of such a puppet in the myriad realms in the future may be a hundred or a thousand times that it is now!
"What am I thinking? What does the price have to do with the people at the bottom of the heavens? They weren't even qualified to buy such a sought-after puppet in the first place!"

With this thought in mind, Li Hanhuang felt sympathy for the cultivators at the bottom of the heavens, while also feeling a slight sense of pride in his own status as a Kaiyuan cultivator.

Thinking back, regardless of Su Tianjun's reputation in the myriad realms, everyone has seen what he has done in the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom.

Everyone is equal, and no distinction is made based on cultivation level; dignity is given to cultivators at the bottom.

Establish martial arts academies, free of charge or with a nominal fee, so that lower-level cultivators can receive guidance from renowned masters and have the opportunity to advance in their cultivation.

Support the various arts and crafts industries, prioritize supplying any cultivation-related creations to the domestic market, and provide consumption subsidies to domestic cultivators so that they can fully enjoy the benefits of their cultivation progress.

Provide ample employment opportunities and substantially improve the wages and benefits of workers in all industries, so that workers can have leisure time to cultivate themselves and gradually improve their professional skills and abilities.

He and his family benefited from all these events, which made Li Hanhuang waver in his decision to apply to the Yuanshi Sect.

While the Yuanshi Sect is indeed one of the three major sects of the Dao lineage and a sacred place of cultivation that all cultivators dream of, is it really worth it to give up one's household registration in the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom and settle in the Kunlun Realm just to enter this sect?

Which is more important, the identity of a disciple of the Yuanshi Sect or the household registration of the Kaiyuan Immortal Kingdom?
At this moment, Li Hanhuang was somewhat confused. His confusion was not about whether it was worth it or not; he was questioning his own Dao heart and trying to know what he truly wanted to pursue!
It is to follow the path of our predecessors, seeking the Tao and asking about immortality without being disturbed by the mundane world.

We must seek innovation and change, forging a path never before trodden! (End of Chapter)