Chapter 114

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Chapter 114: Creation Spirit Master

"It’s not like there’s no protection at all," said the Nascent Soul Stage cultivator.

"If a demonic cultivator were to destroy your sect, our Elder Council would use the total amount of spirit stones you’ve paid in taxes over the past ten years to hunt down that demonic cultivator or their forces."

"This way, they’ll think twice before attacking your sect."

"Actually, the central continent is much more peaceful now than it was thirty thousand years ago. The truly ruthless demonic cultivators don’t dare to cause trouble here anymore."

After hearing this, Xu Fan felt a bit more reassured.

"I understand," Xu Fan nodded.

"Good that Elder Xu understands."

"Since the taxes have been collected, I won’t trouble you further."

"Farewell."

The Nascent Soul Stage cultivator prepared to leave.

"Wait, Senior, I have one more question," Xu Fan quickly said, wanting to clarify everything while he had the chance.

The Nascent Soul Stage cultivator, who had just stood up, sat back down. He wasn’t in a hurry, so a little chat was fine.

"Senior, my Hidden Spirit Sect wants to remain a hidden sect. Will the Elder Council leak information about us?" Xu Fan asked.

Last time, the swordsman in green, Shi Zhan, probably got information about the Hidden Spirit Sect through the Elder Council.

"Oh, you want to be a hidden sect? That’s easy. Just make a note with me here."

"I’ll report it to headquarters, and from now on, the Elder Council won’t disclose any information about your sect."

"Last time, I thought your newly established sect might need talent like that swordsman, so I recommended him."

"If he caused any trouble, I apologize," the Nascent Soul Stage cultivator said with a cupped fist.

"Haha, no need to be so serious, Senior."

Once Xu Fan confirmed the hidden sect status, the Nascent Soul Stage cultivator left.

"An Elder Council with 56 respected elders—this Protection Fee is quite clever."

"A ten percent fee isn’t too bad," Xu Fan said, stroking his chin.

Xu Fan thought that if a sect or force tried to dominate and expand endlessly, trouble would come quickly.

But if they grew strong and left other regions as training grounds for future recruits, gathering resources in waves without being too greedy, they could last a long time.

"The ‘harvesting vegetables’ method is great. No matter which sect rises or falls, the Elder Council always benefits the most," Xu Fan mused, realizing the wisdom behind the Elder Council’s creation.

"Master, what does ‘harvesting vegetables’ mean?" Xu Yuexian asked.

"It’s like a vegetable that keeps growing back after you cut it," Xu Fan explained simply.

"Oh, I see."

"Master, when we get stronger, we should join the Elder Council and harvest other ‘vegetables’ too," Xu Yuexian said.

"Haha, by then, we’ll have ascended to the Thousand Worlds," Xu Fan laughed, realizing the central continent’s stability relied on the Elder Council’s policies.

The cultivation world has never been peaceful. Even when Xu Fan was at Que Tian Gate, he often heard of sects being destroyed or demonic cultivators slaughtering entire cities.

"Once we reach the Thousand Worlds, we’ll set up a platform to harvest vegetables," Xu Fan said as he stood up and headed to the artifact crafting room. He still had three spirit pearls to refine, crucial components for the sect’s grand formation.

"Master, there’s something I’d like to discuss with you," Xu Yuexian said quickly.

"What is it?"

"Well…" Xu Yuexian pulled out the communication artifact she had bought when they first arrived on the central continent.

"The signal here is too weak. Could you make it stronger, Master?" she asked with a pitiful look.

"A stronger signal just means you’ll spend more on those flashy but useless things," Xu Fan replied.

"That’s not true! Look, Master."

With a wave of her hand, Xu Yuexian projected a dazzling image into the air, showcasing exquisite artifacts designed for female cultivators, particularly clothing that even Xu Fan had to admit looked stunning.

"These are incredibly powerful artifacts. I’d like to buy one or two," Xu Yuexian said.

"Seems like I’ve been making the same style of artifacts for you lately. Don’t worry, next time I’ll make them more beautiful," Xu Fan said with a hint of a smile.

"You’re the best, Master!" Xu Yuexian said, her expression turning adorably sweet.

"You just want to spend spirit stones. Once I finish refining the spirit pearl components for the sect’s grand formation, I’ll help you with this," Xu Fan said.

"Thank you, Master!"

Ten days later, after Xu Fan completed refining the thirty-six giant spirit pearls, he made a special trip to Lin Sen Fairy City to study the signal frequency.

For most artifact masters, connecting to a signal source they didn’t create themselves would be a challenge, but for Xu Fan, it was child’s play.

A day later, he crafted a large signal amplifier using spirit iron collected from the lakebed, which significantly cut costs.

Once the signal amplifier was complete, Xu Fan idly browsed through the messages on it. Though the speed was comparable to 3G, it was mostly used for sending news or advertisements.

"Not very interesting," Xu Fan muttered.

After a while, he set the communication artifact aside and headed to the secret base at the edge of the island.

The underground secret base had now expanded to over ten thousand square meters, with several production lines running, especially the one for Spiritual Energy Armor. Over a thousand tool puppets were dedicated to forging alone.

Since the first order for Spiritual Energy Armor was delivered, orders had poured in, pushing production capacity three years ahead. Reluctantly, Xu Fan set up two more production lines.

He had initially planned to capitalize on the momentum and develop Type Two precious artifacts for the Spiritual Energy Armor, but Pang Fu advised against it, warning that taking on too much could cause problems for the Hidden Spirit Commerce.

"Can’t handle the pressure? Seems like no matter the world, the same principles apply," Xu Fan muttered as he observed the production lines.

"Vine," Xu Fan called.

"Master, I’m here," an electronic voice responded.

"When will the spirit iron shell production line be ready?"

"In six months."

"Good. It should be set up alongside the sect’s grand formation," Xu Fan said. Soon, the cannon defense system for Hidden Spirit Island would be complete, and with precious artifact-level shells, even Transformation God cultivators wouldn’t stand a chance.

"By the way, are there any talents in artifact crafting or alchemy among the children?" Xu Fan asked. The entire sect was monitored by Vine, making it easy to spot gifted children.

Moreover, the hundred children were in a free-range state; apart from learning the Five Elements Technique, everything else was optional.

"There are five disciples with alchemy talent and three with artifact crafting talent," Vine replied.

"Good. I’ll personally teach them," Xu Fan said.

Then Vine added, "Among these hundred disciples, there’s one named Zhou Kailing, who has the talent of a Creation Spirit Master."

"An unexpected joy," Xu Fan thought.