Zhao Zheng spoke for a long time about his ideas, which shook Qin Ran to the core. In fact, it could be summed up in one sentence... He wanted to change the sect's cultivation of immortals to the dynasty's cultivation of immortals.
He wanted to gather the spiritual energy of the Land of Immortal Legacy and redistribute it through the dynasty. This was just like a great government gathering the country's resources and distributing them according to certain rules.
If spiritual energy was a kind of resource, and if the dynasty was strong enough, it could indeed be done.
An idealist deserves admiration. A capable idealist is terrifying. And a capable idealist with extremely high motivation could make the whole world tremble.
It took Qin Ran a long time to recover. He realized that he had finished the tea in his cup... He looked up at Zhao Zheng and felt only terror.
"Your Majesty!" He spoke respectfully, "It is indeed feasible to use formations to gather spiritual energy... Your combat plan is also flawless. Unifying the six countries before the sects react, then building formation bases in the land of the six countries, and finally activating the great formation to plunder spiritual energy and have it under your control. By reaching this point, those cultivation sects would naturally fall under your control as well.
"But...why did you tell me? I'm just a minor Golden Core cultivator, unable to help or hinder you."
"No," Zhao Zheng shook his head. "Brother Qin, you are very capable. You have knowledge and foresight, able to see through my layout and plans. You are adept at pill refining, formation building, and teaching. Your cultivation is high, yet such knowledge of pill refining and formation building is rare. You are very talented. Why not join me and realize this great dream together?"
So...
Qin Ran thought, was this an olive branch? Or a plot to entrap him?
"What if I refuse?" he asked.
Zhao Zheng glanced across at him. Sitting there was the Xuanqin High Priest.
"I do not fear death," said Qin Ran.
...He was just a clone.
The High Priest smiled and asked, "Is it because you are just a clone?"
Qin Ran's heart skipped a beat as he looked at the High Priest.
This master at the Divine Transformation realm had not uttered a word earlier when Zhao Zheng spoke to him, as if he did not exist. Now that he spoke, his tone and demeanor felt familiar to Qin Ran. "Try sensing your original body," the High Priest said.
Alarmed, Qin Ran hastily tried to connect with his original body... Indeed, there was no response.
"Although exquisite, your clone has a Primordial Spirit as its core," the High Priest said. "I don't know how you obtained this technique, but as someone at the Divine Transformation realm, I understand Primordial Spirits and clones better than you.
"You thought being a clone made you unafraid of death. But I can sever your connection to your original body and even kill your original body through you."
Qin Ran recalled how a cultivator in black had greeted his clone with a bow, killing it instantly and nearly affecting his original body.
Now he felt true fear.
Taking a deep breath to suppress his fear, he looked at the High Priest, then Zhao Zheng, and suddenly understood: "A clone? You're not Zhao Zheng?!"
"No, I am Zhao Zheng," Zhao Zheng smiled and explained to Qin Ran, "It took me five hundred years to find this way of building a cultivation dynasty. Hence, two hundred years ago, I returned to the Land of Immortal Legacy and established Xuanqin... For two hundred years, I comprehended this completely - how to build a cultivation dynasty. Only then did I begin planning with a clone."
So the Xuanqin Emperor and the Xuanqin High Priest were the same person.
Having learned such a shocking secret, Qin Ran fully understood now that he only had two options today - join them or die. He knew too much for Zhao Zheng to let him live.
Resigned to his death, Qin Ran completely relaxed. Tapping his fingers lightly on the tea table, he said, "Before I die, I have three questions left."
"Go ahead," Zhao Zheng nodded.
"First..." Qin Ran asked, "Why don't you start from Xuanqin? Transform Xuanqin into a cultivation dynasty first, gain sufficient strength, then steadily expand outward?"
Zhao Zheng replied, "The spiritual energy of just Xuanqin would be insufficient for the dynasty to contend against even a large sect. It would also expose me too early, allowing other major sects in the Land of Immortal Legacy to ally against me. But the Land of Immortal Legacy is relatively remote and independent. If I can integrate the whole place at the right moment, I will obtain a dynasty of supreme power, able to handle external enemies then."
"A dynasty of supreme power, could it also have masters at the Realm of Ascension?"
"Dynasty, empire, celestial dynasty. And at the celestial dynasty stage, it would be comparable to the South Ridge Immortal Sect."
Qin Ran understood. He nodded and asked again, "Second, you know I have some grasp of formations. So I understand the manpower and resources required for such a grand formation are immeasurable. It cannot be completed in a short period... During this time, how will you guard against the sects?"
"I have arrangements for that..." Zhao Zheng replied, clearly unwilling to elaborate.
Seeing that, Qin Ran moved on, "Third, although I'm just a clone, I know myself very well. When I cannot defend Wuyi City, when I die accidentally, when all is irredeemable, I will do something extreme."
As he spoke, he took out a porcelain bottle from his cosmos pouch and placed it on the table. "This pill is called the Death Pill. If I throw one of these into the moat of Mo City, come morning you'll see a city full of corpses. So you may win, but your armies in North Chu will die; your people in Xuanqin will be killed by the Death Pills I've secretly left behind. What will you do then?"
Zhao Zheng's expression changed slightly. "How many of such pills do you have?"
"As many as I want - I refined them myself," Qin Ran said candidly.
After long silence, Zhao Zheng finally said, "You don't want to die or serve me, so name your terms."
"I'm very awed by your plans, very respectful of your character. I didn't think there could still be someone like you in this dog-eat-dog world." Qin Ran said,
"I really want to join you, but thinking of the endless challenges that would follow this grand endeavor makes me feel tired. I'm just a shut-in, such pioneering work can only be done by people like you.
"So I don't want to hinder your plans. Equality for all, immortality for all, all living freely like dragons - that is what I want to see. No wonder the Cloud Heaven Sect supports you, you really are remarkable.
"But I also cannot let you destroy North Chu..."
"So I have to shamefully use this Death Pill to negotiate terms with you. Please spare North Chu. I will have North Chu help you build the necessary formations within its borders. How about that?"
...Qin Ran's clone disappeared from his perception after that. Three days later, his original body in Wuyi City received a message from the clone:
"Xuanqin is withdrawing its troops!"
end. Thus one must continue to cultivate, and become a saint or great emperor, in order to prolong one's life. Chen Xia, however, completely reversed this. Since his transmigration, he has gained immortality, and also a system that awards him with attribute points for every year he lives. Thus between the myriad worlds, the legend of an unparalleled senior appeared. "A gentleman takes revenge; it is never too late even after ten thousand years." "When you were at your peak I yielded, now in your old age I shall trample on you." - Chen Xia
+【Epic Battles!】 "Your Highness, they say Linxi Temple is miraculous. Won’t you make a wish?" "A wish? It should be making wishes to me." "That may be so, but since you’re already here..." "..." "Fine. Then grant this princess a consort to play with." "He must be obedient, devoted, and utterly infatuated with my body—so much so that he’d kneel and kiss my feet." "Your Highness, that’s not a consort. That’s a dog." "Then add clever, witty, heroic, ambitious yet pragmatic..." "Hmm, that’s enough for now. I’ll add more later." After tossing out these words half in jest, Princess Anle departed the temple—only to catch a fleeting glimpse of the Bodhisattva statue smiling at her. Meanwhile, Yang An, fresh out of university, was having a very bad day. Good news: He’d transmigrated into another world with a cheat granting tenfold combat power. Bad news: He’d immediately fallen into the clutches of a certain villainess. Good news: Said villainess possessed peerless beauty and royal status. Bad news: She was absolutely monstrous!!! In the frozen wilderness, Yang An knelt beneath Qin Guo’er’s feet, drenched in sweat despite the cold. Desperately clutching her porcelain-perfect foot—the very one poised to crush his throat—he could only think: How do I survive this?! Need answers NOW!
reezy rom-com) Good news: Jiang Liu is quite the ladies' man. Bad news: He’s lost his memory. Lying in a hospital bed, Jiang Liu listens to a parade of goddesses spouting "absurd claims," feeling like the world is one giant game of Werewolf. "Jiang Liu, I’m your first love." "Jiang Liu, you’re my boyfriend—she’s your ex." "Jiang Liu, we’re close friends who’ve shared a bed, remember?" "Jiang Liu, I want to have your baby." The now-lucid Jiang Liu is convinced this must be some elaborate scam... until someone drops the bombshell: "The day before you lost your memory, you confessed your feelings—and got into a relationship." Jiang Liu is utterly baffled. So... who the hell is his actual girlfriend?! ... Before recovering his memories, Jiang Liu must navigate this minefield of lies and sincerity, fighting to protect himself from these women’s schemes. But things spiral even further out of control as more people show up at his doorstep—each with increasingly unhinged antics. On the bright side, the memories he lost due to overwhelming trauma seem to be resurfacing. Great news, right? So why are they all panicking now?
u Chenyuan transmigrated into a female-oriented novel about a real and fake heiress, becoming the CEO elder brother of both. Unfortunately, the entire Lu family—including himself, the CEO—were mere cannon fodder in the story. Determined to save himself, Lu Chenyuan took action. The spoiled, attention-seeking fake heiress? Thrown into the harsh realities of the working class to learn humility. The love-struck real heiress? Pushed toward academic excellence, so lofty goals would blind her to trivial romances. As for the betrayed, vengeful arranged marriage wife… the plot hadn’t even begun yet. There was still time—if he couldn’t handle her, he could at least avoid her. "CEO Lu, are you avoiding me?" Mo Qingli fixed her gaze on Lu Chenyuan. For the first time, the shrewd and calculating Lu Chenyuan felt a flicker of unease.
