At that moment, Tai Lingxuan realized.
The terrifying presence before her, which had been enough to overwhelm and destroy everything, was nothing more than an illusion!
Therefore, shattering it took only an instant.
In reality, she was not that powerful.
Her sect was not that prosperous.
But she still had her dear disciple, and she still had the things she valued…
She still had… him!
In that broken dream, within the illusory construct built from past expectations, only he was so clear and so real…
Currently, within the Sumeru Sea of Consciousness, inside the Small World.
Gazing at the illusory yet incredibly familiar image of the young man standing with his back to her, Tai Lingxuan could not help but sigh softly, her face flushing crimson.
The core of her Small World… was the image of Chen Yuyang.
He was her world…
‘Yuyang is truly something else. Why would he be curious about this? How can I possibly say such things out loud?’
At this moment, outside the mountain gate, the elder from the Qiankun Sect responsible for delivering the compensation had already arrived.
She had kept him waiting for 15 minutes, which was about enough.
Thinking this, Tai Lingxuan went forward to meet him.
“Elder Song, I hope you have been well.”
Tai Lingxuan cupped her hands with a calm expression, though her chin was tilted slightly upward, showing a hint of arrogance.
The other party did not wish to talk much either; delivering compensation was a humiliating task for him.
“The agreed-upon compensation is all here. Please have a look, Sect Master Tai.”
Elder Song used spiritual power to float a storage ring and a spiritual contract before Tai Lingxuan.
Tai Lingxuan merely nodded.
With a flick of her fingers, she tucked both into her sleeve without even a glance, her tone remaining indifferent.
“Thank you for the trouble, Elder Song. Light tea has been prepared inside. If you are weary from the journey, why not sit for a while?”
Elder Song wore a stiff smile, though resentment was hidden in the depths of his eyes.
However, facing this woman who was countless years younger than him yet had already reached the Great Ascension Realm, he dared not act out despite his emotions.
Cupping his hands politely, Elder Song forced a smile and said, “Sect Master Tai is too kind, but the sect has important matters to attend to. I shall not disturb you further.”
“Very well.”
Tai Lingxuan nodded.
In truth, she had not prepared any tea at all.
If the other party had actually accepted the invitation, she would have had nothing to offer him.
The elder turned and left quickly, looking as if he had just been granted a grand amnesty.
Once his figure had completely disappeared beyond the mountain gate, the calm and composed expression on Tai Lingxuan’s face instantly vanished.
She rushed back to her room, set up several restrictive barriers with a wave of her hand, and only then did she excitedly take out the storage ring with trembling hands.
As spiritual power was injected into it, the storage ring lit up.
Following that, perfectly shaped spirit stones tumbled out of the ring, piling up in the center of the room.
In just a short moment, they formed a small mountain of high-grade spirit stones.
And this was not even everything inside the ring.
Feeling the dense spiritual energy that was almost physical hitting her face, Tai Lingxuan was momentarily dazed.
She stared blankly at the mountain of spirit stones, her heart racing.
“1.6 million… high-grade spirit stones…”
Tai Lingxuan murmured to herself, her voice carrying a hint of uncontrollable excitement.
1.6 million high-grade spirit stones!
Tai Lingxuan had never even dreamed that she would one day possess such a massive fortune.
One had to realize that when the sect was rebuilt at this location, the total cost had only been around 200,000 high-grade spirit stones.
Now, the compensation from the Qiankun Sect alone amounted to 1.6 million!
Tai Lingxuan took a deep breath, trying her best to calm her racing heart, but the surge of ecstasy could not be suppressed.
She stepped forward slowly, reaching out with trembling fingers to pick up a handful of spirit stones.
They felt warm and smooth, containing pure and dense spiritual energy.
The jade-like stones, the size of pigeon eggs, rolled through her fingers and back onto the pile, creating a crisp clinking sound.
To her, that sound was incredibly melodious.
‘Is this… is this what it feels like to be wealthy?’
While Tai Lingxuan was still caught up in her excitement, a voice suddenly sounded behind her.
“Master, how do you intend to handle this sum of spirit stones?”
Tai Lingxuan’s body stiffened, and she spun around abruptly, looking behind her in surprise.
She saw Chen Yuyang standing at the doorway, though she didn’t know when he had arrived.
‘Didn’t I set up barriers? How did he enter so silently?’
Chen Yuyang had a smile on his face.
He knew what Tai Lingxuan was surprised about, but he didn’t mind and had no intention of explaining.
He was currently testing a long-buried treasure of his.
Now it seemed that although the item had been tucked away for a long time, its effect was just as good as it had been years ago.
Even at such a close distance to his Master, while she was completely off-guard, it perfectly concealed his presence and fluctuations.
There hadn’t been a single sound when he passed through the multiple layers of barriers.
Although Tai Lingxuan was surprised, she felt more embarrassed than anything else.
Her greedy, overjoyed expression must have been seen by this boy.
At the thought, a faint blush crept onto the woman’s face.
She turned her head away guiltily and forced a cough to maintain her composure.
“When… when did you come in? You don’t even know how to knock.”
Chen Yuyang walked closer, his gaze sweeping over the mountain of spirit stones as if he were looking at a pile of ordinary rocks.
He said calmly, “I saw that Master looked like she was in a hurry, so I thought something was wrong and came right in.”
After a pause, Chen Yuyang noticed Tai Lingxuan’s growing embarrassment, and the curve of his lips widened.
However, he didn’t say anything more.
It was normal for his Master to be excited seeing so many spirit stones for the first time.
When he had first come into a massive fortune, his reaction had been even more exaggerated than hers.
However, 1.6 million high-grade spirit stones… while this number might be astronomical to his Master now, it was actually quite trivial to him.
Still, with this startup capital, many things could proceed smoothly.
“Anyway, have you thought about what to use it for, Master?”
Tai Lingxuan furrowed her brows and began to think seriously.
“Maybe we should build a magnificent Great Hall first…”
Hearing this, Chen Yuyang rolled his eyes and said speechlessly, “Master, what kind of obsession do you have with a Great Hall? Although it wouldn’t even cost several tens of thousands, the Hehuan Sect is currently in a development phase. Every stone must be used where it counts most.”
“Master, you are now a Great Ascension Realm expert. There are only about twenty such experts in the entire North Domain. Based on this alone, people will flock to join our sect in the future.”
Tai Lingxuan blinked, appearing to realize that her own idea was somewhat childish compared to Chen Yuyang’s.
Her face reddened slightly.
Chen Yuyang continued, “If you don’t have a better plan for these spirit stones for now, Master, why not let me handle the arrangements?”
“You’ll handle them?”
Tai Lingxuan was taken aback.
Her brow furrowed as a flash of hesitation appeared in her eyes.
Was it too reckless to hand over such a massive sum of money to a 15-year-old boy?
Chen Yuyang ignored her hesitation.
He pulled over two chairs from the corner of the room and sat down.
“Sit down, Master. I’ll give you a simple breakdown of my plan.”
Tai Lingxuan sat as instructed, her eyes fixed on the youth.
“First, out of these 1.6 million high-grade spirit stones, we will keep 200,000 as a foundational reserve. We won’t touch it unless it’s absolutely necessary,” Chen Yuyang began.
Tai Lingxuan nodded.
“As for the remaining 1.4 million,” Chen Yuyang paused before continuing, “we will take 100,000 to hold a banquet.”
“A banquet?”
Tai Lingxuan was stunned again, almost thinking she had misheard.
“What kind of banquet costs 100,000 high-grade spirit stones? Isn’t that a bit too…”
“A banquet to host the experts of various sects and to announce to the world that you have reached the Great Ascension Realm,” Chen Yuyang interrupted her, his gaze sharp.
“100,000 stones isn’t that much.”
“We will send invitations to all the major sects, from the top-tier great sects down to medium-sized ones with some influence. Regardless of whether they come, we must ensure everyone knows that you, Tai Lingxuan, are a Great Ascension Realm expert!”
“Additionally, we’ll release word that you will be giving a lecture on the Dao during the banquet. I believe an alternative path to the Great Ascension Realm will be very attractive to those stuck at the peak of the Body Integration Realm or other Great Ascension Realm cultivators seeking progress.”
“Ultimately, it doesn’t really matter how many people show up,” Chen Yuyang shrugged.
“The main goal is to get the word out so the entire Realm of Cultivation in the North Domain knows your name. That is the first step.”
“After that, we will open the mountain for six months to recruit disciples…”
At this point, Chen Yuyang paused and looked up at Tai Lingxuan.
“Speaking of which, Master, is your Hehuan Jue fully restored now?”
Tai Lingxuan was startled by the question but immediately nodded, a proud smile appearing on her face.
“There are no major issues anymore. I had already deduced most of it before, and after breaking through to the Great Ascension Realm, those last few obscure points naturally became clear.”
“Good.”
Chen Yuyang nodded.
If his Master’s technique still had flaws, he had planned to step in and help, as it directly concerned the foundation of the Hehuan Sect’s future development.
It was naturally for the best if she could complete it herself.
“Next, we recruit,” Chen Yuyang continued.
“The entry requirements must be strict. They shouldn’t be lower than the eight great sects. Quality over quantity; for the first batch, we will only take 100 people.”
“Disciples should be elite, not numerous,” Chen Yuyang emphasized.
“If there are too many, you won’t be able to teach them all yourself, and our current resources wouldn’t be able to support them all anyway.”
“To train these 100 disciples into talents… if we set the Nascent Soul Realm as the preliminary threshold for qualification…” Chen Yuyang did a quick calculation.
“The total cost will be roughly 800,000 to 900,000 high-grade spirit stones.”
“Furthermore, the Hehuan Sect cannot just spend without earning; we can’t just sit and eat away our resources.”
Chen Yuyang changed the subject.
“After deducting the aforementioned expenses, the remaining spirit stones can be used to set up some industries. As for what specifically to do, you can decide that yourself, Master. I won’t interfere too much.”
Tai Lingxuan listened quietly, nodding repeatedly.
Chen Yuyang’s plan was simple, but it was organized and clear.
He had essentially outlined the development framework for the sect’s next ten years.
It was certainly far better than her own lack of ideas and planning.
“Very well. In that case, we shall proceed according to your arrangements, Yuyang.”