Legend Management Bureau Chapter 83

[ … words ]

“Do you believe me now?” Du Yu asked after having Zhan Qisheng step aside to rest. “This immortal cultivator can freely travel through the past and future. He was the one who told me that spiritual energy will vanish in the future.”

The crowd was forced to reevaluate Zhang Zhen’s earlier claims. They silently began to weigh their options. Would the spiritual energy of the world truly dry up one day? When that time came, how would they draw qi into their bodies? How would they cast spells?

“Zhang Zhen, what do you suggest we do then?” the bandits asked. “And what did the chief mean by splitting up earlier?”

“This next part is crucial,” Du Yu replied. “By splitting up, I mean dividing everyone in the stronghold based on the five elements: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Those with the same elemental affinity will form a group, making five groups in total. After that, we will find five mountain ranges brimming with spiritual energy and establish our own sects.”

Du Yu’s declaration left everyone staring with their mouths wide open.

“Establish sects for five-element spells?” A few restless bandits couldn’t hold back. “Zhang Zhen, just because you know how to eat, does that mean you should start an eating sect? This is completely absurd!”

“I know how to eat, but ‘eating’ won’t become a lost art. No one will ever need me to teach them how to do it. But five-element spells will fade away one day and will need someone to pass them down,” Du Yu explained. “For the first century or two, you only need to stay on your mountains and focus on cultivation to improve your realms. Once those hundred or two hundred years pass and the world’s spiritual energy begins to dissipate, making it difficult for people to learn spells, you can open your doors and start recruiting disciples.”

The bandits had never heard of such a thing. A profound silence fell over them.

“If you do this, not only will wealth pour in, but you will also earn the respect of the world. You’ll never have to worry about food or drink, and you’ll gain immense status. It’s infinitely better than joining the army.”

“A hundred or two hundred years… We’ll all be dead by then, won’t we?” someone suddenly pointed out.

“Exactly. With your current cultivation, you naturally won’t live that long, which is why you must dedicate yourselves to cultivating.” Du Yu glanced back at Zhan Qisheng before adding, “This immortal will periodically visit your sects to guide your cultivation methods. He will teach you how to draw qi into your bodies, all the way to forming a Nascent Soul, and perhaps even ascending to immortality. Although it’s a long and grueling process, it is absolutely a viable path.”

“Ascend to immortality…?” a few muttered under their breath. “But the path to immortality takes far too long… It’d be better to be conferred a title on the Investiture of the Gods and ascend overnight…”

“You are sorely mistaken!” Du Yu declared. “Being appointed as a ‘god’ is nowhere near as glorious as you think.”

He took a slow step forward and pointed at one of the bandits. “Brother, if you were suddenly ordered to weave textiles, would you be willing?”

The bandit looked confused but thought it over. “If there was silver in it for me, sure.”

Du Yu nodded and continued, “Alright, what if you weren’t given any silver, but instead granted eternal life as the God of Weaving, condemned to weave textiles for all eternity. Would you still be willing?”

The bandit froze. “Well, of course not! I still want to live a free and easy life!”

“Exactly my point!” Du Yu said. “There is a fundamental difference between a ‘god’ and an ‘immortal.’ A god is essentially a public official bound to the system, while an immortal is free and unfettered. Do you know what the most ridiculous ‘god’ I’ve ever heard of is?”

The bewildered crowd stared at Du Yu.

“The Protector of the Horses,” Du Yu revealed. “The Heavenly Court once tried to recruit a mighty figure from the immortal realm by giving him the title of tending horses for all eternity. All his skills and immortal arts were turned into an absolute joke. To the mortal world, he was indeed a ‘god,’ but what about to himself? What was the difference between him and a mortal stableboy? At least a mortal stableboy gets to rest and earns silver.”

The crowd gasped in shock. So that was how it worked?

Zhang Jian also committed this to memory. After all, this was invaluable experience. Once he became the Jade Emperor, if he ever encountered an untamable immortal powerhouse, making him the “Protector of the Horses” wouldn’t be a bad idea.

“If your cultivation reaches the heavens, you can become a ‘god’ if you wish. But if you don’t want to, you can travel the world with a jug of wine and become a carefree immortal!” Du Yu announced. “If anyone here wants to continue robbing houses and eventually be wiped out by the imperial army, stay here in Zhang Family Stronghold. But if you want to become a carefree immortal and live a life of absolute freedom, step into formation based on your five-element spells. Time is short, and we need to move on to the next step.”

It only took a brief moment of thought before the crowd sprang into action. After decades of robbing and pillaging only to inevitably die in the streets, the allure of becoming an immortal was simply irresistible.

In no time at all, the crowd divided into five distinct groups, each with around a dozen to twenty people. Du Yu naturally couldn’t see their elemental affinities, so he turned to Zhan Qisheng, who gave a slow nod of confirmation.

“Since that’s settled, it seems everyone has made their choice.” Zhang Jian nodded in approval. “We are all brothers of the same stronghold. I only have one demand for you: never kill a fellow disciple. You must all devote yourselves to cultivation and attain the Great Dao.”

“But… Chief, which group are you going with?” someone asked.

“My identity is special, so it wouldn’t be appropriate for me to join any of them,” Zhang Jian explained. “I will cultivate alongside this time traveler behind me. If fate allows it, we shall meet again in the Heavenly Court once we become immortals.”

Morale seemingly surged at those words. They forged a promise, a promise that would span thousands of years.

“One more thing…” Du Yu spoke up. “All five sects will need a sect leader. The rest will be appointed as elders and deacons. The sect leaders will be decided through your own votes.”

“Votes? What does voting mean?” someone asked.

“Of course you wouldn’t understand such high-tech concepts,” Du Yu replied. “Each of you will choose one person other than yourself to be your captain. This captain will lead you in your cultivation, so it is best to choose someone with profound cultivation, a kind heart, and a strict sense of justice.”

The crowd nodded in understanding. “So a five-element spell sect needs a sect leader too…”

“Another thing,” Du Yu added. “You will not call yourselves ‘Five-Element Spell Sects.’ That doesn’t sound prestigious enough. Your ultimate goal is to become immortals, so you should be called ‘Immortal Cultivation Sects.'”

Under Du Yu’s direction, the five teams quickly elected their captains. Du Yu checked with Zhang Jian and confirmed that these men were trustworthy.

“Zhan Qisheng, did you find those two people I asked you to look for yesterday?” Du Yu asked.

“I did. They weren’t far from here and set off last night. Also… there should be far more people arriving than you anticipated,” Zhan Qisheng said.

“More than I anticipated? Wasn’t it just the two of them?” Du Yu asked in confusion.

Before Zhan Qisheng could answer, a large procession approached the stronghold gates from afar. Looking closely, the group was a sea of colorful attire. Upon closer inspection, the dozens of approaching figures were all women. The two leading ladies, one dressed in white and the other in red, were the very same ones Du Yu had robbed a few days prior.

“The two of them are the leaders of Fire Cloud Villa, one named Bai Ling and the other Hong Ying. They have sixty disciples in their villa, all women, and all of them possess five-element spells. I spent an hour explaining our intentions, and they agreed after some consideration,” Zhan Qisheng explained slowly.

“Sigh… It sure is nice being handsome…” Du Yu muttered to himself.

“What did you say?”

“Nothing. I said you did a great job,” Du Yu retorted grumpily.

As the group of women approached, the entire stronghold of bandits fell completely silent.

“Sister, is this Zhang Family Stronghold really the place that man mentioned?” the woman in red asked the woman in white. “Everyone here looks like a thug.”

“It should be the right place. Let’s observe the situation first… Hmm?”

The two women had barely taken a few steps when they spotted Du Yu giving orders.

“Aren’t you that weird bandit from the other day?” the woman in red asked.

“Aha, yes, that’s me, ladies.” Du Yu hurriedly stepped forward to greet them. “I was the one who asked my friend to bring you all here this time.”

The two leaders eyed Du Yu suspiciously. “You said you were establishing sects dedicated to spell cultivation and that it would protect us women from the ravages of war. Is that true?”

“Not just one sect, but five.” Du Yu smiled. “I originally only wanted the two of you to come and balance out the sheer amount of men here, but I never expected you to bring so many people. This is absolutely wonderful.”

Without waiting for the two women to respond, Du Yu turned to face the crowd. “Brothers, although these women know some five-element spells, they are ultimately a vulnerable group in these chaotic times. Now that they are joining our sects, I only have two rules. First, you must protect them from harm at all times. Second, you must not lose to them in cultivation. Show them your manly spirit!”

The burly, unrefined bandits became surprisingly docile at the sight of such a beautiful scene. Some of the hulking men even blushed and lowered their heads, not even daring to look at the women.

“Very good,” Du Yu said. “You have two days left. Aside from the sect leaders, everyone else should go pack their valuables. The sect leaders need to stay and learn the foundational techniques of an immortal cultivator from the immortal behind me. This includes basic sound transmission, flight, and breathing techniques. Once you’ve mastered them, you will return and teach them to your disciples one by one. This way, even if the five sects are far apart, you can communicate using sound transmission, visit each other using flight, and continuously refine your cultivation with breathing techniques.”

“Sir… you truly are a divine being,” Zhang Jian whispered to Du Yu. “Your foresight and perspective are entirely different from mine. I can only see the present, but you can see a thousand years into the future.”

“I can only see a thousand years ahead due to special circumstances,” Du Yu replied.

Under his methodical direction, the entire stronghold sprang into action. The bandits’ demeanor was completely different from yesterday. They were no longer wild men just waiting to die in the mountains; they now had a purpose.

A golden age of immortal cultivation had just begun in this small bandit stronghold.