Chapter 450: Chapter 33 Hanhai Dragon King
“Spreading the ‘path’ was ultimately Wang Sheng’s final goal.”
Suddenly the influx of stray spiritual power in the Spirit World proved that the effect of this spreading of the path was unexpectedly good; numerous Martial Artists were ignited with a passion for cultivation, aspiring to become saints and ancestors.
Among them was Yan Tian of the Yan Family, who had become a Master of Destiny at just over a hundred years old. His talents were peerless, and he understood even better what Zhu Xiao had spoken about.
“See if we can buy some properties within the coverage of the Spirit World and settle down.”
The authorities in Datong did not interfere with where they settled. After hearing Zhu Xiao’s teachings and understanding the function of the Spirit World, he had made up his mind that it had to be within the Spirit World.
“Great Ancestor, are we really settling here? These areas are not nearly as prosperous as the places we chose before.”
In recent years, Shuzhou had developed somewhat, but it still fell short compared to other prosperous areas.
Yan Tian glanced at the speaker, a younger family member.
“If you weren’t a junior, I would beat you senseless,” his vision was lacking.
Since the Great Ancestor had spoken, the people of the Yan Family could only take the resettlement funds from Datong and look for properties, but clearly, they were not the only family thinking this way.
Countless Grandmaster and Great Grandmaster families had the same idea.
Some commoners, enlightened by Datong, were not Martial Artists, but they had a basic sense of judgment. They knew the more valued by the strong, the more precious it was, so apart from a few, there were generally none for sale.
Moreover, Datong’s authorities cracked down on coercion, making it difficult to buy properties.
The Yan Family was strong, but Datong would never let them take too much, the money left in their hands was nothing compared to the local major clans.
“Great Ancestor, what should we do?”
“What to do? We’ll build huts and live in them!”
He did not plan to leave this place, even if he had to live in thatched cottages, he would not leave.
The Spirit World was too significant.
The core areas in the future would definitely be anything but simple; perhaps they would become the center for all Martial Artists worldwide, a true Holy Land of Martial Arts, and staying now would be greatly beneficial.
Other Martial Artist Families could think of this too, many of them moved their families here from far away, planning to settle.
Eventually, many families who could not buy properties simply banded together, forming villages and towns.
This even led to what became known as the famous “Martial Artists’ Migration to the West” in Datong, with a profound impact.
In such a scenario, the one who benefited the most was Wang Sheng.
“Martial Artists gathering, I hadn’t even anticipated this effect.”
With strong Martial Artists gathering, he was now gaining almost double the stray spiritual power daily. Initially, he wondered why, until Huangtian told him about it.
“Senior Zhu’s speech was indeed very attractive; if it weren’t inconvenient for governance here, we might even consider moving the capital of Datong here,” said Huangtian, who had come to see Wang Sheng again after integrating other dynasties into the official structure.
They discussed some reforms.
Of course, most of the talking was done by Huangtian, with Wang Sheng listening.
Wang Sheng gave no opinions.
“The country is yours, do as you wish, just make sure there are no major mistakes; minor ones are normal.”
Huangtian was a bit helpless as he hadn’t expected his teacher to be so non-interfering, but he wasn’t discouraged. He was here for a more important reason.
“Teacher, I plan to establish a large academy in the Three Counties to recruit and train talented individuals from all over. What do you think?”
This matter was of great importance to him; when he was educated by his teacher, he had heard him say that education concerned the future of a country and needed attention.
After taking office, he understood this even more deeply.
Thus, after developing some strategies, he came to seek his teacher’s approval.
Wang Sheng’s interest was piqued immediately upon hearing Huangtian’s words.
Establishing an academy in the Three Counties meant they could naturally gather Martial Artists from all over, even the most outstanding ones, without waiting for the Spirit World to expand.
Wasn’t this a good method to earn spiritual power?
And cultivating Martial Artists was also one of his plans; his interest was instantly piqued.
“Show me your plans.”
Seeing Wang Sheng’s interest, Huangtian immediately presented a document.
The content of the document was actually very detailed, such as establishing sub-campuses in various regions, with the best eventually coming to the main campus, and policies for resource subsidies for outstanding ones were included.
Of course, there were things it hadn’t considered.
“Have you thought about how much this would cost? Just the resource gifts for the outstanding ones would be a huge expense each year.”
“Please enlighten me, teacher!”
“A mission system. Even though it’s an academy, the students are all Martial Artists; the academy can serve as a platform to collect various commissions, providing a channel for students to obtain resources.”
A channel to obtain resources was something many Martial Artists could only dream of.
“This could significantly reduce expenses, and also allow students to gain experience. Of course, you’ll need to plan out the difficulty of the tasks.”
Huangtian noted these things down, knowing he was right to seek advice from his teacher.
They might have figured these things out slowly, but with suggestions, they could avoid detours.
Huangtian and his companions did well. Besides the task system, Wang Sheng only offered a few suggestions, neither too big nor too small.
“Those are roughly the concerns, and you have done a comprehensive job. However, one thing you need to be aware of is that where there are people, there are rivers and lakes of contention, but the academy is different. Students can compete under the academy’s arrangements, but oppression is unacceptable, and forming cliques is strictly prohibited, understand?”
Huangtian was somewhat curious.
“You’ll understand later.”
Wang Sheng did not elaborate further. His main reason for saying this was to prevent the emergence of factions within the academy and the subsequent bullying of newcomers.
He had seen it occur in many novels he had read about academies, where stronger students would monopolize resources from weaker ones, justifying it as survival of the fittest and legitimate competition.
Monopolizing resources when martial artists needed them the most was nonsensical, wasn’t it?
However, he couldn’t guarantee that such a situation would not arise, so he merely gave a simple reminder.
It was good as long as Huangtian took note of the advice.
After their discussion, Huangtian left Qingshan Village, satisfied with the feedback, planning to immediately start organizing not only the Martial Arts Academy but also the Cultivation Academy.
If managed well, both cultural and martial academies would be the cornerstone of Datong’s future.
During this time, Zhu Xiao’s path in body cultivation also became well known.
Body cultivation from the first to the ninth layer corresponded with the first to the ninth grade of martial artists. After the information spread, many quickly switched their paths.
“Some people indeed have a talent for body cultivation and achieve success, but others face brutal failures as if they have no talent at all for cultivation,” Zhu Xiao reflected with a sigh.
Changing one’s cultivation path didn’t always lead to good results, and many martial artists suffered significant losses.
“It’s their own choice. You’ve already explained the consequences; they can’t blame others.”
He, who controlled the Spirit World, understood clearly. Some people were purely arrogant, giving no thought before switching paths, naturally leading to dire results. Such people would not achieve good outcomes even without switching paths.
“Cultivation is a path that, compared to the base population of the Human Race, ultimately only a few can embark on.”
Cultivation consumed resources of heaven and earth. Even though Datong imposed no restrictions, not everyone could cultivate.
Wang Sheng did hope that everyone could become a martial artist, providing him with a vast amount of spiritual power, but he was well aware that this was merely a wishful thought, unlikely to be realized.
Both were just expressing their thoughts and didn’t dwell on them overly, as long as the things they cared about proceeded smoothly.
Whether it was transmitting teachings or the operation of the Spirit World, everything went smoothly.
Half a year passed, and the new year of the fourth era arrived.
After attending the annual conference, Wang Sheng gazed into the distance, toward the location of the once First Dynasty.
“The Spirit World of the First Dynasty has already shrunk to a third of its size; it looks like it will completely disappear soon!”
During that half-year, the dynasty collapse plan proceeded smoothly, and more and more dynasties were integrated under Datong’s rule, transforming Datong into a vast nation, unimaginably large.
Though true governance required much more effort, the current achievements were also encouraging.
The influx of martial artists to Datong, all from various dynastic royalties, not only decreased the Spirit World of the First Dynasty but also allowed him to gather more spiritual power.
He was perhaps the biggest beneficiary.
The stronger Datong grew, the more he harvested from his Spirit World.
The harvested Pure Spiritual Power, apart from ensuring the operation of the Spirit World, was naturally used for cultivation.
“Half a year’s time, my Spiritual Body has been reflected more completely, reaching thirty percent progress. Perhaps it won’t be long before I can enter the sixth stage.”
A smile appeared on Wang Sheng’s face; had he not arranged everything for this moment?
“It’s a pity reflections require not only spiritual power but also Qi-Blood. If I could harvest Pure Qi-Blood Power too, my progress could be even faster.”
He quickly came to terms with it though.
“This pace is already much faster than anticipated, and it’s good enough.”
The Spirit World was an unexpected fortune; even this much was satisfying to him.
“Once the Spirit World of the First Dynasty completely disappears and everything is on the right track, that will be when I harvest the most… I wonder how far the integration has progressed. Recently, I’ve had a bad feeling. I hope there are no surprises… Let’s find someone to inquire!”
…
Meanwhile, despite the New Year’s season, countless people in Datong were still busy at work integrating dynasties.
In one such dynasty, the Hanhai Dynasty near the coast.
The Hanhai Dynasty, belonging to a different continent, was integrated late.
The workload for the people from Datong was enormous, but it was also nearing completion, expected to finish before the next year’s end.
“Finally it’s ending. Next year we can spend New Year’s at home!”
“Isn’t that the truth!”
As they chatted, they were oblivious to a dark shadow that had slipped into the Imperial City, seeking out Datong’s Spirit Cultivators…
Upon hearing this news, Wang Sheng naturally caused Huangtian to place great importance on it. Half a month later, news came back.
In the Hanhai Dynasty, including the Border Army, the Taiping Sect, and hundreds of thousands of common people from the Imperial City, had all vanished without a trace.
The Demon Beast, Hanhai Dragon King, wreaked havoc far and wide, and even the Jade Talisman could not fully suppress it!