Temporarily Suppressing the Vice Sect Master

Chapter 42: Temporarily Suppressing the Vice Sect Master [Seeking Votes and Follow-ups]

Unnamed Peak, inside the cave abode.

Looking at the fragrant spirit fish corpse on the plate, Qingxu silently recited in her heart.

'The suffering of living beings is nothing more than this. Thus, the preciousness of the Dao fruit of eternal life... I beg your pardon.'

Qingxu picked up a small piece of steamed spirit fish with her bamboo chopsticks and brought it to her lips, chewing it carefully. Her eyes immediately brightened a bit.

She then picked up a piece of fried fish skin and placed it between her teeth. With a crisp crunch, two large doors seemed to open behind her, revealing a colorful secret realm beyond.

When Li Ping'an brought the sweet and sour crispy carp, the doors that had only just cracked open were kicked wide open.

"Delicious!"

Qingxu didn't even look up, picking up pieces of fish meat one by one and saying happily, "Everyone on Colorful Cloud Peak is busy with cultivation, so not many people use such common food."

Li Ping'an took off his homemade apron and smiled as he poured some fruit wine for his Master.

"Master, common food has its own joys. Immortals are free from worldly dust, but they can still taste a hundred flavors, seek freshness, and enjoy smoothness. This is what is called pleasing oneself."

"Mmm," Qingxu said softly, "No wonder they always like to have snacks when they drink."

"Master, please enjoy. Your disciple had some insights while cooking and will go cultivate for a while. I'll clean the bowls and chopsticks later."

Li Ping'an walked to a corner, closed his eyes, and concentrated.

He was only cooking to make his Master happy; he didn't have much appetite himself.

Qingxu turned her head to look at her disciple a few times. When she picked up dishes later, she cleared out all the dishes on her side, leaving the other half neatly arranged.

Inside the Myriad Cloud Hall.

A group of old immortals surrounded twelve strangely shaped magic artifacts, discussing intensely.

Li Dazhi was sweating profusely, constantly explaining something, his lips almost smoking.

In a corner of the hall, behind a screen.

The Sect Master of Myriad Cloud Sect, Daoist Yun Mo, accompanied by three inner sect elders and two vice sect masters, was drinking and chatting with the sect masters of several allied sects.

These allied sect masters should have left long ago;

But they had all witnessed the marvel of the 'assembly line' production of magic artifacts and wanted to shamelessly curry favor, hoping to secure a future source of income.

The Sect Master of Myriad Cloud Sect, Daoist Yun Mo, now felt...

Regret, deep regret.

He had originally thought, what kind of tricks could a disciple in the Light Condensation Realm come up with?

He had simply wanted Junior Brother Dazhi's son to show off in front of the sect masters of several allied sects.

The more outstanding a disciple, the more prosperous the sect's future would be.

Daoist Yun Mo had never expected this.

Li Ping'an had pulled off a major stunt right from the start!

Seeing that the twelve magic artifacts could refine magic artifacts on their own, Daoist Yun Mo was certain—the world of artifact refining was about to change.

For ordinary magic artifacts, the biggest cost was 'manpower.' Artifacts needed Qi cultivators to forge them one by one, resulting in long production cycles and unstable quality.

If these twelve ugly-looking magic artifacts were replicated hundreds of times, combined with the spirit mine resources controlled by the Myriad Cloud Sect, they could produce ordinary magic artifacts continuously with very little manpower...

The Myriad Cloud Sect's grand prosperity was within reach!

A female sect master, who looked to be in her middle age, sighed, "Senior Brother Yun Mo, let's not beat around the bush. Just give us a word about this artifact refining matter. Whether it's feasible or not, at least give us a definite answer."

"Alas, Junior Sister, I dare not make bold claims."

Daoist Yun Mo said seriously, "This matter indeed requires careful consideration. I am not sure if this set of magic artifacts can be used, and the power of the ordinary magic artifacts like flying swords produced needs to be thoroughly examined.

"Please allow the Myriad Cloud Sect some time to prepare."

The Kuiyuan Sect Master, a burly man with a rough appearance, immediately began to exclaim, "Yun Mo! Your Myriad Cloud Sect is already so powerful now, you can't just leave us old brothers who are not doing as well behind, can you! We're not trying to take advantage of you! Name your terms!"

"Everyone, our sects have already established a contract to mutually aid each other in times of external threat. So many years have passed, and you still don't trust me?"

Daoist Yun Mo said in a deep voice, "Please wait for my news. If this path proves viable, I will certainly not forget our millennia-old sect friendship!"

The sect masters looked at each other, but none of them were willing to get up and leave.

"Sect Master Senior Brother."

Vice Sect Master Mo Yi suddenly said, "There are still many troublesome matters here, such as how to stably produce magic artifacts of above-average quality, how to sell these magic artifacts, and how to earn spirit stones while maintaining the reputation of the Myriad Cloud Sect, so that people don't speak ill of us.

"Junior Brother Dazhi has indeed made a great contribution to the sect this time..."

Daoist Yun Mo turned his head to look at Vice Sect Master Mo Yi, his gaze filled with unspoken meaning.

But Mo Yi changed the subject, ignoring the Sect Master's look;

Although he knew he was being too rash, he still spoke his mind:

"In my humble opinion, this matter is of great importance.

"The rewards can be made even more generous for Junior Brother Dazhi, but the subsequent artifact refining should, according to sect rules, fall under the purview of Cloud Nurturing Hall and be managed by the outer sect elders.

"This way, it won't delay Junior Brother Dazhi's cultivation. He's just reached the Origin Immortal Realm, and should prioritize his cultivation."

Sect Master Yun Mo closed his eyes, his expression growing cold.

Mo Yi smiled as he watched his senior brother, the Sect Master. Today, he was acting uncharacteristically, like an old, impetuous fool.

The atmosphere at the immortal feast became somewhat strained.

How could the sect masters of the visiting sects present not understand? Mo Yi was using their presence to subtly undermine the burgeoning reputation of Li Dazhi, the child of great fortune.

But these sect masters were genuinely puzzled.

Had this Mo Yi... been blinded by great fortune?

Their sect had finally produced a person of great fortune, someone whose cultivation was rapid, whose character was excellent, and who had made significant practical contributions to the sect. Instead of cherishing and supporting him, the sect's higher-ups were attempting to suppress him?

"Vice Sect Master Mo Yi!"

An inner sect elder frowned. "Several friendly sect masters are present. Let's discuss internal sect matters later!"

"Elder Sun, it's alright. Junior Brother Mo Yi is also considering the sect's interests."

Daoist Yun Mo raised his hand in a gesture, then continued:

"Fellow Daoists, you are not outsiders. You have deep ties with our Myriad Cloud Sect, so there's no harm in discussing these things directly.

"Then, according to Junior Brother Mo Yi's view, how should this lucrative business of earning spirit stones be shared with our friendly sects?"

Mo Yi smiled and replied, "That is for you to decide, Senior Brother Sect Master. My duty is only to handle the transmission of techniques to the disciples within the sect."

"Is that so?"

Daoist Yun Mo nodded slightly.

"Why don't we directly invite Junior Brother Dazhi over and ask him what he thinks?

"After all, this magic artifact and this method were devised by Junior Brother Dazhi and his father. Junior Brother Dazhi's opinion is the most important.

"Someone, please invite Junior Brother Dazhi here."

A steward outside respectfully received the order and quickly departed.

A short while later, Li Dazhi's voice could be heard approaching from outside.

"...The engraving and inlay steps are crucial. The preceding processes are essentially about melting the materials and using certain methods to bring out their inherent properties; this is the Dao of artifact refining, which all the sect elders understand.

"Engraving is the technical work and the core. I adjusted it dozens of times before I could barely succeed!

"From now on, as long as we master the core process, we will never lose spirit stones... I'm going to see Senior Brother Sect Master now, everyone wait for me to come back and chat!"

Li Dazhi wiped the sweat from his brow and hurried behind the screen.

His gaze swept over the assembled immortals, and he cupped his hands in greeting to the Sect Master, saying, "Greetings, Senior Brother Sect Master, greetings, fellow Daoists."

Daoist Yun Mo's eyes crinkled into a smile, and his voice became much gentler.

"Junior Brother Dazhi, please sit down and rest for a while."

"Ah, alright."

Just as Li Dazhi was about to take a seat at the end of the table, he saw his Senior Brother Sect Master beckoning him. Without ceremony, he sat down next to the Sect Master, rolled up his sleeves, and drank several large gulps of spirit spring water.

Even though the table was filled with renowned Heavenly Immortal realm experts from the Eastern Continent's cultivation world, Li Dazhi felt no restraint, acting naturally and freely.

The sect masters of the visiting sects also found Li Dazhi more and more pleasing to the eye.

While Li Dazhi was picking up food, an inner sect elder posed the question, 'How to share this good fortune with the friendly sects?'

Li Dazhi immediately smiled and said, "That's entirely up to Senior Brother Sect Master to decide. I've only been cultivating for a few years."

"If I tell you to speak, then speak."

Daoist Yun Mo held his wine pot and poured Li Dazhi a cup of wine, saying gently, "This item was made by you and your father, so you have the final say."

"Senior Brother Sect Master, that's not quite right," Li Dazhi replied.

"Ping'an and I essentially came up with an idea, a flash of inspiration.

"Those twelve magic artifacts are just samples.

"Ping'an and I have given this artifact refining method a name: 'assembly line.' Each artifact, from raw material to finished product, seems to float down a river, hence the name.

"To create a truly efficient assembly line and use it to earn spirit stones, we must rely on the sect for resource integration.

"Ping'an and I have calculated that using our assembly line, the cost to produce a common-grade spirit artifact, sourcing materials from the market town, would be twelve or thirteen spirit stones. But if our sect directly provides various ores, the cost can be reduced to six or seven spirit stones."

"Then, I'll take a bite... and then we can sell the ordinary flying swords currently sold in the market town for thirty spirit stones for fifteen or twenty spirit stones.

"What kind of profit is there in this?

"In the early stage, we'll go for low profit and high volume, expand the market, and put our Myriad Cloud Sect's mark on every magic artifact. Within a few years, rogue cultivators will trust our Myriad Cloud Sect's magic artifacts.

"There are too many complexities involved; I couldn't finish explaining even if I spoke for three days and three nights.

"However, there's one point, Sect Master Senior Brother, that Ping'an specifically asked me to tell you."

Daoist Yun Mo chuckled, "Just say what you need to, Junior Brother."

Li Dazhi said seriously, "The way we're doing this will actually cut off the livelihood of rogue cultivators who rely on refining artifacts. We must limit ourselves to profiting from only a few types of magic artifacts, like flying swords and flying needles, which have high consumption rates. We must leave them something to live on."

The surrounding Immortals looked at Li Dazhi with increased admiration.

Daoist Yun Mo's smile deepened, and he said generously, "If I don't entrust this matter to Junior Brother Dazhi, how can I rest easy!"

Vice Sect Master Mo Yi, standing beside him, nodded with a smile and said nothing further.

However, Li Dazhi continued, "Also, Sect Master, you mentioned the matter of friendly sects earlier."

An inner sect Elder beside him quickly signaled to Li Dazhi.

What had been said was enough. The Sect Master had made a decision, and the matter was settled.

Unfortunately, Li Dazhi didn't see the Elder's hint and continued to speak enthusiastically:

"Sect Master, I request that we establish a hall under Marvelous Cloud Hall specifically responsible for this business. It shall be called Casting Cloud Hall, specializing in the forging of magic artifacts.

"Our friendly sects and Myriad Cloud Sect support each other; our bond is deep. You told me before that we shouldn't forget them when there are benefits.

"However, this matter cannot be rushed.

"We need to get Casting Cloud Hall running first, see if this path is viable, and determine how many spirit stones we can actually earn. If we only make a pittance, it would be embarrassing to share.

"If Casting Cloud Hall does well, then we can gradually, in batches, establish branch halls in the mountain gates of our friendly sects.

"Friendly sects can integrate their spirit mine resources, and we will provide the key assembly line technology. For the spirit stones earned, we will only take a two to three-tenths share of the profit.

"There are countless rogue cultivators in the Eastern Continent; the coast of the Eastern Sea alone has over a thousand market towns. Our Myriad Cloud Sect can, at best, only capture half a percent of the ordinary magic artifact market.

"Only by uniting can we achieve our goals, Sect Master Senior Brother!"

Silence.

The immortal banquet was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Li Dazhi felt a little uneasy.

What had he said wrong? Or had he overstepped?

Aren't the sect masters remaining in Myriad Cloud Sect now all 'subordinates' of Myriad Cloud Sect?

For a sect to grow and become strong, in addition to having many experts and numerous external industries, allies and obedient subordinate sects are also very important...

"Hahahaha!"

Daoist Yun Mo suddenly threw his head back and laughed:

"With Junior Brother Dazhi in my Myriad Cloud Sect, why worry about not prospering! We'll do as you say! Even if this Casting Cloud Hall doesn't amount to anything in the end, it will only cost some spirit stones at most!

"Junior Brother Dazhi, please proceed with confidence!"

The burly Sect Master of Kuiyuan Sect suddenly stood up, "Fellow Daoist Dazhi! I'll toast you!"

"Ah, you're too kind, too kind."

Li Dazhi quickly stood up to greet him, finally feeling relieved.

This matter had actually succeeded.

A moment later, Li Dazhi made a hasty farewell and returned to discuss how to upgrade the 'assembly line' with the Elders.

Just as Li Dazhi rounded a screen, Elder Xiao Yue, dressed in a red dress, hurried towards him.

On the principle of not hitting a smiling face, Li Dazhi greeted her with a smile, but Elder Xiao Yue stopped him directly.

"Uncle-Master Dazhi!"

"Hmm?"

Li Dazhi blinked, his slightly chubby face showing a hint of curiosity.

A flicker of hesitation crossed Xiao Yue's eyes.

She knew that by handing the jade slip given by Li Ping'an to Li Dazhi, she would be officially severing ties with Vice Sect Master Mo Yi and his group, and the consequences were unpredictable.

But Xiao Yue was not narrow-minded;

Moreover, she now understood the value contained within these twelve magic artifacts.

"Uncle-Master Dazhi, this is a jade slip that Ping'an asked me to give you."

"Oh?"

Li Dazhi took the jade slip and glanced at it. Three dark lines appeared on his forehead.

This was bad!

He had forgotten all the 'Eagle Language' words Li Ping'an had asked him to memorize because he'd been drinking!

Li Dazhi cupped his hands, then ducked into a corner and took out a small notebook to compare them carefully.

The meaning here seemed to be... loudly...

Ping'an's intention was for Xiao Yue to be in charge of selling magic artifacts, but this needed to be announced loudly in front of everyone, and with great enthusiasm?

Li Dazhi found himself in a bit of a predicament.

How enthusiastic could he be?

This beautiful elder was young and pretty. Although she was two or three thousand years older than him, she looked like his grand-niece, and she even called him Uncle-Master...

Li Dazhi gritted his teeth, stomped his foot, and looked up with a shocked expression. He glared at Xiao Yue, strode forward, then spun around three times to the left and three times to the right.

"Oh my, oh my! You are truly a once-in-ten-thousand-years business prodigy!"

Xiao Yue watched Li Dazhi with a smile, feeling quite uncomfortable all over.

"Come! Follow me!"

Li Dazhi grabbed Xiao Yue's jade arm and, without further ado, dragged her behind the screen.

Xiao Yue frowned tightly. Just as she was about to push Li Dazhi away, a group of Heavenly Immortal big shots appeared in her line of sight.

"Sect Master!"

Li Dazhi shouted at the top of his lungs:

"My Casting Cloud Hall wants this Elder Xiao Yue! She will be in charge of selling magic artifacts!"

Vice Sect Master Mo Yi's smile remained, but the corner of his mouth twitched uncontrollably.

Daoist Yun Mo chuckled, "Even if you hadn't said it, Junior Sister Xiao Yue would be in charge of this matter. She is the lucky charm of our Myriad Cloud Sect!"

"Thank you, Sect Master!"

Li Dazhi released Xiao Yue's arm and cupped his hands at her, "Please take care of me, Elder Xiao, in the future."

Xiao Yue said softly, "It is Uncle-Master who should be taking care of Yue'er."

She didn't dare to look at Vice Sect Master Mo Yi, bowed her head, and took her leave, her heart filled with a myriad of emotions.

Li Dazhi walked back to the center of the main hall with his hands behind his back, humming a tune, and enthusiastically worked on magic artifacts with the elders.

After this Immortal Feast, the sect masters from several friendly sects left in satisfaction. On their way out, they all made a special trip to greet Li Dazhi warmly.

After seeing off the friendly sect masters, Daoist Yun Mo returned to his residence and summoned Vice Sect Master Mo Yi.

The two sat and stood, a moment of silence passing between them.

Daoist Yun Mo suddenly said, "Junior Brother, your cultivation has been stagnant for the past thousand years. You've been a bit lazy in your cultivation."

Mo Yi bowed his head and cupped his hands, sighing, "I was just about to tell Senior Brother about this today. I wish to enter closed-door cultivation for a period of time."

"Go ahead."

Daoist Yun Mo smiled, "Please have Elder Bi enter closed-door cultivation as well.

"During this grand competition, Kaiyun Peak made quite a few jokes, but the sect should treat all thirty-six peaks equally. I will arrange for Kaiyun Peak to have a few more Immortals join the Casting Cloud Hall to assist Junior Brother Dazhi."

"Sect Master's wisdom is profound."

Vice Sect Master Mo Yi bowed respectfully, not looking at Daoist Yun Mo, and turned to leave.

His retreating figure seemed to have aged by several thousand years in an instant.

Daoist Yun Mo looked up and sighed softly.

Yun Mo understood Mo Yi's personality very well. Before Mo Yi became the current Sect Master, he had already been an inner sect elder.

It wasn't that Mo Yi had suddenly become anxious today and, disregarding his dignity and reputation, publicly attacked Junior Brother Dazhi;

It was because Mo Yi knew that if this new spirit stone business fell into the hands of Junior Brother Dazhi, no one would be able to shake Dazhi's position in the sect from then on.

The moment just now was Mo Yi's only chance.

Alas...

Daoist Yun Mo cupped his hands in the direction Mo Yi had left, shaking his head and sighing.

Two days later.

Li Dazhi finally had some free time and left Myriad Cloud Hall. He supported his belly, rode a cloud, and headed straight for the cave abode of Li Ping'an and his disciple.