Three days later.
Lu Yang carefully contemplated the gains from his recent cultivation.
"Not bad, it was indeed effective!"
"Previously, it was for the cultivation method, so I directly tormented them. But now, it's different; killing them outright would be too wasteful of resources."
After all, Foundation Establishment True Persons could cultivate independently. For instance, this time, although True Person Xiuxin had fiercely battled with him to the point where her Dao Foundation became unstable, she would recover in a month or two at most, without harming her foundation. By then, he could repeat the process, achieving sustainable resource exploitation.
This was even beneficial for his pursuit of gold!
"[Pomegranate Wood] is a transformation of wood, pure gold yet belonging to wood, bearing abundant offspring. The inner chamber glows, so my cultivation aligns with its fundamental imagery!"
Of course, this was merely a coincidence.
Lu Yang chose [Pomegranate Wood] as his target for seeking gold in this lifetime purely for the sake of his Dao path.
Thinking of this, Lu Yang turned back.
He saw that True Person Xiuxin had already regained consciousness.
As for Yun Miaozhen, she had been watching until just now.
"Alright, both of you get up."
Lu Yang extended his hand to pull up True Person Xiuxin, who offered no resistance and leaned into him, nearly lying entirely on his body.
Then, Lu Yang conjured a spiritual fire to evaporate all traces at the scene, cleaning up thoroughly. Only then did he look at the master and disciple pair with satisfaction and nod.
"What happened between us today, you must completely forget."
"Also, stop what you're doing regarding Yun Miaoqing. From now on, you must be united as sisters."
Yun Miaozhen and True Person Xiuxin both nodded.
Seeing this, Lu Yang felt a sense of accomplishment. Regardless of the process, at least this time, he had done a good deed, right?
'I truly am a good person!'
Thinking of this, Lu Yang looked at True Person Xiuxin again: "Tell me about the recent movements of the Sword Pavilion, and whether the Holy Sect has any major actions in Jiangbei?"
He needed to confirm the timing.
At present, Yun Miaoqing had not yet fallen into the Holy Sect. Lu Yang could only judge that the time of this life's restart was not far from his first anchor point. ɽÀƝȯΒËŜ
'It might even be the same time, just in a different place.'
'After all, judging from Yun Miaozhen's actions, she was already setting up a scheme for Yun Miaoqing to be captured by Holy Sect disciples, then reduced to a human-shaped cultivation method point-reading machine.'
At this thought, Lu Yang heard True Person Xiuxin softly say:
"The Sword Pavilion is currently mobilizing personnel, with the Third Elder, True Person Dangmo, preparing to attack the Ten-Thousand-Man Pit, aiming to uproot this wonder."
"Oh?" Lu Yang raised his eyebrows upon hearing this.
Jiangnan Ten-Thousand-Man Pit!
'If I remember correctly, this Ten-Thousand-Man Pit was established by the Holy Sect after winning the Dao-seizing War and entering Jiangnan, later seized by the Sword Sect.'
The loss of the Jiangnan Ten-Thousand-Man Pit directly triggered the Holy Sect's "Substitute Death Yin Puppet Bubble." As a result, the Holy Sect released news that the Sect Master True Person personally acted to reclaim the Ten-Thousand-Man Pit and reached a peace agreement with the Sword Pavilion, leading to all Qi Refining disciples being ruthlessly exploited.
At the time, it didn't seem like much.
But now, looking back, Lu Yang realized there were many hidden issues. The biggest problem was the so-called Sect Master True Person personally acting!
'The Holy Sect's True Person personally entered Jiangnan to reclaim the Ten-Thousand-Man Pit?'
'Impossible!'
'Although the Ten-Thousand-Man Pit is important, it's ultimately just a wonder like the Kingdom of Qing, merely a chess piece used by Golden Core True Persons for strategic layout.'
For a mere chess piece, would the chess player personally enter the game?
This was akin to when Chong Guang destroyed the Kingdom of Qing, and the Dao Court Emperor personally led the northern expedition—something that could never happen.
As for releasing news specifically to exploit the disciples? That was even more unlikely. The Holy Sect's contribution points were entirely prepared for Qi Refining talents, useless to Foundation Establishment True Persons. Using contribution points to exploit them made no sense; at most, it was an incidental move.
Unless—
'There was something in that Ten-Thousand-Man Pit even True Persons coveted, but it was discovered early by the Sword Pavilion and seized, leading to its capture?'
At this thought, Lu Yang showed a contemplative expression.
Considering the final result of the Holy Sect and Sword Pavilion choosing to negotiate, neither side seemed to have suffered losses; the Sword Pavilion might have even gained a slight advantage.
'There's a secret behind this!'
Lu Yang's eyes flickered, but he quickly calmed down. It was impossible for him to go personally; his goal for this life had long been set.
He aimed to develop quietly, then astonish everyone!
'Hold on, use the Dharma Body to gather resources externally, then nurture the Immortal Spirit Body in one go until Foundation Establishment is complete, and then seek gold directly!'
For this, he needed many white gloves.
'The talent of [Puppet on Strings] is perfect for this. Let True Person Xiuxin go to the Jiangnan Ten-Thousand-Man Pit and see what secrets lie there.'
Thinking of this, Lu Yang looked at the two women again.
The next second, with a clap, he disappeared from the spot, while True Person Xiuxin and Yun Miaozhen suddenly shivered.
"Hiss—!"
The two women's bodies trembled slightly, instinctively examining themselves, but felt nothing amiss. Their eyes were clear when they looked at each other.
".Miaozhen."
After a moment of silence, True Person Xiuxin suddenly shook her head: "Let's postpone the matter with Miaoqing. I have decided to accept the sect's summons."
"I will soon head to the Jiangnan Ten-Thousand-Man Pit."
"Miaoqing's matter can be handled after I return, how about that?"
Yun Miaozhen showed no change in expression upon hearing this and nodded: "Miaozhen understands; everything follows Master's orders. Miaoqing's matter can be dealt with anytime."
True Person Xiuxin nodded slightly: "Good."
From beginning to end, neither of them noticed anything unusual, not even a change in personality, yet they still made the decision Lu Yang desired.
Hidden in the dark, Lu Yang saw this and nodded in satisfaction.
"Just in case, test for a few more days."
"After confirming that [Puppet on Strings] is fine, let True Person Xiuxin call all her friends over, set up a nest, and then I will control them one by one."
Although [Puppet on Strings] had cultivation restrictions and could only control cultivators with lower cultivation than his, as long as he accumulated slowly, the potential of this talent would become increasingly terrifying in the later stages!