Candidate Selection

Amidst the grand commotion on this side, no one noticed the slight disturbance taking place at Mount Changming.

Thus, no one saw the sinister aura on the stone stele at Mount Changming suddenly grow stronger. It became denser and denser, gradually spreading until it nearly covered the entire stele.

Lin Xiao did not order the construction of Shuixiu Village at the foot of the mountain to stop.

After all, the subsequent construction of the city would consist mainly of the outer walls, drainage systems, and other large-scale projects. None of these would affect the layout of Shuixiu Village. The town wall could also serve perfectly well as the boundary dividing the inner city in the future.

The turtle shell for the trading center had already been finalized. They only needed to wait a few more days for the Yuan family's spirit stones to arrive before purchasing it. They had also contacted the imperial family regarding the blueprints for the city.

That left only two matters to resolve:

The trading center's administrator and its sources of goods.

After two years of steady trade with the three major sects, Lingxian Sect had gained a fairly good understanding of their basic needs. From there, they only needed to slightly expand the variety and quantity of goods available.

After all, if they spread the trading center's operations too widely at the beginning, there would not be enough of a market to support it.

At first, they could keep the matter relatively discreet by sending invitations to cultivators with good reputations and friendly relations with them, inviting them to take part in the trading center's first public opening.

As word of mouth and their supply channels gradually developed, they would also have time to improve their strength and expand their channels for buying and selling goods in the cultivation world.

Although the Yuan family's channels were still sufficient for the time being, once multiple sects from the mortal world gathered there and the spiritual resources in their hands continued to accumulate, the Yuan family's capacity would eventually prove inadequate.

The Yuan family was, after all, merely a Nascent Soul clan from a remote region.

Therefore, they would inevitably have to find a way to develop their own channels in the cultivation world.

As for the administrator of the trading center, however, Lin Xiao already had someone in mind.

It obviously could not be Qin Jianghe or Liu Yunan. The two of them already had more than enough on their plates. Adding the trading center to their responsibilities would likely leave them unable to handle everything.

That person was his elder brother, Lin Yun.

Although Lin Yun had never mentioned it to Lin Xiao over the past two years, Lin Xiao had noticed everything he had been doing.

Lin Yun had not only worked hard to study the four cultivation arts, but also frequently gone to help out whenever the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall or Finance Hall was overwhelmed with work.

Liu Yunan and Qin Jianghe had both told him privately that Lin Yun learned quickly and handled matters with great care. No matter what they explained to him, he could complete the task flawlessly after hearing it just once.

Clearly, he understood the work he was doing thoroughly and had his own ideas. He also knew how to adapt. Otherwise, if he merely followed their instructions mechanically, it would have been impossible for him to handle every task so well.

Lin Xiao had always known that his elder brother was exceptional.

However, when the sect had first been established, although everyone was family, Lin Xiao had not wanted to turn the sect into a dictatorship run by the Lin family. For that reason, he had not placed his own relatives in charge of any important departments.

He had also discussed this privately with his family.

Thus, although Lin Xiao had not arranged any important positions for his relatives over the past few years, they all understood him. While working hard to improve their cultivation, they had also followed others around and learned as much as they could.

Lin Xiao had told them before that this was only temporary.

As the sect continued to expand, there would eventually be many places requiring reliable and trustworthy people to manage them.

That time had now arrived.

Lin Xiao checked the disciple panel. Lin Yun's cultivation had already reached the peak of the Foundation Establishment realm, and he was only one step away from breaking through to the Core Formation realm.

That was more than enough for him to manage the trading center in the mortal world.

With that in mind, Lin Xiao went to find Lin Yun.

At that moment, Lin Yun was meditating in his room.

After witnessing Sun Yigao successfully break through to the Nascent Soul realm yesterday and comprehend his own Dao title, all the young people in their group had been terribly envious. After finishing Jiang Youfu's celebratory feast that evening, they had all returned to their rooms to focus on cultivation.

When Lin Xiao arrived, he saw that Lin Yun was completely immersed in his cultivation. The spiritual energy surrounding him was abundant, and he seemed to be on the verge of breaking through.

Not wanting to disturb him, Lin Xiao took a Spirit-Gathering Formation he had carved as a spare from his private treasury and set it down nearby. He then paid out of his own pocket, placing a thousand spirit stones inside to increase the concentration of spiritual energy produced by the formation by another level.

After leaving one of his sound-transmission talismans beside it, he quietly departed.

He had just been preparing to return to his room and cultivate for a while when the lock ring on his hand suddenly lit up.

Someone was contacting him through the lock ring.

Lin Xiao looked at the corresponding secondary formation mark and saw that it belonged to Sun Yigao.

“Yigao, what is it?” he asked, somewhat puzzled.

“Brother Xiao, something strange is happening at Mount Changming.” Sun Yigao sounded somewhat anxious. “I wanted to come over this morning to tell my master the good news, but the stele here was surrounded by sinister aura. I couldn’t enter, and I couldn’t contact him either.”

“What? I’ll be there immediately!”

Lin Xiao ended the call at once and rushed straight to Mount Changming.

Once he arrived, he did not need Sun Yigao to explain anything. At a glance, Lin Xiao saw that the stone stele engraved with the words “Mount Changming” had turned completely black and was entirely surrounded by sinister aura.

Frowning, he called out:

“Changming!”

Strands of white vapor suddenly emerged from the stele wrapped in sinister aura. The vapor gathered together, and Changming took form.

“Greetings, Sect Master.”

“Do you know what’s going on?” Lin Xiao asked, pointing at the stele.

Changming lowered his eyes and gave the stele a brief glance. Of course, he knew.

“Sect Master, there is no need to worry. Nothing has happened to Mount Changming, and the souls inside are safe as well.”

“It’s simply that one of the souls within has comprehended a secret art, which triggered an eruption of the sinister aura inside Mount Changming. Once he finishes casting the art, Mount Changming will return to normal, and entry will be possible again.”

“But rest assured, Sect Master. The eruption of sinister aura is confined entirely to Mount Changming. It will have no effect on the outside world, nor will it create any unusual phenomena.”

Hearing this, Sun Yigao’s worried heart finally eased somewhat.

He had never imagined that his master would comprehend a secret art.

When Lin Xiao heard that Senior Liao had comprehended a secret art, he was surprised, but at the same time, he found it perfectly reasonable.

After all, Senior Liao had once independently developed the Earth-grade, low-tier Soul Refining Art. That was not something an ordinary person could accomplish casually.

Not to mention that he had also comprehended his own Dao title.

Combined with his mastery of the four cultivation arts, Senior Liao had long since occupied the position of a research genius in Lin Xiao’s mind.

It was only natural that he would comprehend another secret art now!

“In that case, we won’t disturb Senior Liao while he cultivates his secret art. Let me know once he’s finished,” Lin Xiao instructed.

“Changming obeys.”

After the Little White Fox Changming replied, his form sank back into the stone stele.

Sun Yigao stared at the stele wrapped in sinister aura and said, “I wonder what kind of secret art Master is practicing this time. It actually managed to trigger an eruption of the sinister aura within Mount Changming.”

Seeing that he was still worried, Lin Xiao raised his hand and placed it directly on Sun Yigao’s shoulder.

“All right, stop worrying. Senior Liao always knows what he’s doing. We’ll just wait for his good news. Let’s head back.”