NOVPUB"Not to practice the True Method, not to comprehend the great Dao."
"Constantly reciting the classics of the sages, implementing and embodying them, one gains the reliance of the people and responds to the Heavenly Human, thereby cultivating a breath of Haoran Qi within the heart."
"This Qi can whip a foolish ruler above, and comfort the people below; it can eradicate the evil of licentious temples and sacrifices, and suppress the sinister and heterodox paths."
"Strategizing for the nation and its people, acting on behalf of heaven."
"Only not adept in strategizing for oneself..."
In his mind, the classics of the sages recalled from the scholar’s memories swiftly crossed.
Wang Ba reflected thoughtfully:
"So it is... The Qian Royal Clan has controlled the cultivation resources of Huangji Continent for years, causing dissatisfaction among the cultivators and an endless emergence of sect cultivators and rogue cultivators opposing the Qian Dynasty."
"These scholars are actually crucial tools used by the Qian Royal Clan to govern the entire Huangji Continent."
"Although these scholars lack Daoistic protection, they can cultivate Haoran Qi with the so-called classics of the sages, thereby resonating with certain rules between heaven and earth. Combined with the Mechanical Techniques in the cities that specially suppress ordinary cultivators, they secure and appease the region, allowing the Qian Royal Clan to conserve their mental strength to focus on cultivation."
"With a limited lifespan and no means of self-defense, these scholars, even if they wished to rebel against the rule of the Qian Royal Clan, simply couldn’t manage it... Most crucially, this method of the scholars does not require the Spiritual Root, yet it enables mortals to indirectly grasp some rules of heaven and earth, possessing great power; naturally, mortals flock to it."
"The Qian Dynasty has painstakingly managed to control a continent with the force of one nation, supporting the entire Royal Clan."
"If this were combined with the Dao of True Martial, the Qian might be even more impregnable... Even so, the disappearance of the Qian Royal Clan has not impacted the normal operations of these cities."
However, this is normal, as the Qian Royal Clan originally had no interest in managing affairs; they have always been high above, overseeing the entire Huangji Continent.
It has always been these scholars managing the mortals on behalf of the Qian Royal Clan, so the existence of the royal family naturally doesn’t affect the various cities below much.
This also significantly broadened Wang Ba’s horizons.
He vaguely felt that the governance model of Huangji Continent was similar to that of the Little Cang World within the Nine Continents.
The will of the Little Cang World was like the Qian Royal Clan, and these cultivators, like those scholars.
"Could the Little Cang World also have an existence similar to the Qian Royal Clan?"
"Furthermore, does the will of the Little Cang World act purely on instinct like a mindless creature, or does it possess Spiritual Wisdom?"
Such thoughts unavoidably arose in his mind.
But these thoughts had just surfaced when he quietly dismissed them.
These were not yet his concerns; he should not dwell on them or expend his energy on these endless, unverifiable black hole issues.
Instead, he became increasingly interested in these scholars’ method of cultivation.
"Although these scholars do not understand the rules of heaven and earth, nor do they understand the Dao Intention of cultivators, the process they use Haoran Qi to exploit the power of heaven and earth is actually their way of utilizing Dao Intention."
"They themselves do not realize how precious their method is. However, falling into the hands of someone like me, who already has some understanding of Dao Intention, changes everything."
As he pondered this,
a voice suddenly came to his ears:
"...Yin God? Yin God?"
Wang Ba quickly reined in his abundant thoughts, with a calm expression, and looked up towards the Jackal-headed God and several others nearby.
They were also looking back at him with some puzzlement, and the Bag God murmured,
"Yin God, have you discovered anything?"
Wang Ba gently nodded and said plainly,
"The cultivators coordinating the guardianship of this place have all gone to the core of the Dragon Transformation Pool, so no other cultivators have appeared in this city. It’s likely the same in the cities further back."
"Gone to the Dragon Transformation Pool? No wonder."
The Jackal-headed God and other deities suddenly realized.
If the homeland cultivators of the Qian who were guarding this place were also present, with the augmentation and suppression of the Dragon Transformation Pool, it might not be possible to breach this city by flooding alone.
"We should wait here and send those cultivators who pay tribute to us to scout ahead,"
the Jackal-headed God contemplated briefly and then voiced this strategy.
This immediately received approval from the other deities.
Using the Incense Fire Dao cultivators as scouts was most cost-effective, as they grew plentifully like leeks and could not refuse.
Wang Ba considered this and did not object.
He casually examined the crossbow mechanism in hand and was unexpectedly familiar with the Talisman patterns used on it.
Subconsciously, he quickly committed these Talisman patterns to memory.
"This is an unexpected fortune; understanding it thoroughly might even add a Divine Pattern to me."
Since he started cultivation, the moment he comprehended the Divine Pattern Rites, he had already transformed all his accumulations into 211 types of Divine Patterns. By his estimation, there were still many more Divine Patterns to discover, but obtaining new ones was not so simple.
Of course, given his current strength, adding one Divine Pattern wouldn’t significantly enhance him, only add to his foundation.
Perhaps only when he accumulated a peak stage of Divine Patterns would there be a special transformation.
As he contemplated,
waves of intense impact vibrations and sounds came.
The deities chatting leisurely were all interrupted by this disturbance.
"It seems we’ve encountered homeland cultivators."
The Pot Stove God’s eyes shone fiercely.
"It must be, this place is quite hostile to us, the Well God and River God probably also wouldn’t dare to act rashly, let’s go and see for ourselves!"
