Divine Transcendence

Chapter 337: Persuade

Yuan Ming looked at them, feeling the surge of faith from their bodies, and nodded slightly.

"Everyone, please rise."

"Thank you, Dark Moon God, for your grace," the followers chanted in unison as they stood up.

Although Yuan Ming had seen many grand scenes, this sight of thousands chanting together still made him feel somewhat uneasy. He took the initiative to ask, "My messengers, Xu Che and Zuo Qinghui, said you have something to discuss with me?"

Qiao Sabei quickly stepped forward and said, "We trouble you, Dark Moon God. We are truly fearful. Everyone is a bit uneasy. We don't know if you have any orders or arrangements for us in the future that we need to follow."

"I have already eliminated all the cultivators overseeing this place. You are now free to go home. I don't need you to do anything for me. If you must do something, just recite my name a few times each day," Yuan Ming said.

However, upon hearing his words, most of the mortals did not react with the expected joy. Instead, they looked at each other with a bit of confusion on their faces.

Bai Qi hesitated for a moment but then gathered his courage and said, "But Dark Moon God, this is our home. If we leave here, where can so many of us go? Is there a place that can support us? Moreover, where would we even find such a place?"

"Oh, so that's the issue. Don't worry, I've already made arrangements. I will take you to a safe place where you can settle down. Of course, you can also decide to stay or leave on your own; I won't stop you," Yuan Ming said, somewhat enlightened.

Yuan Ming waved his hand, signaling them to rise. He then instructed Bai Qi and the others to gather some food and hold a simple celebration for the mortals here. After the celebration, they were to count the people, pack their belongings, and move to the giant flying boat used for transportation in the mine. They were also to allocate some people to move the ores from the mine.

Afterward, Yuan Ming, along with Xu Che and Zuo Qinghui, left amidst the cheers of the mortals.

"Master, there are still quite a few spirit beasts here. During the previous battle, the cultivators from the Returning to Origin Sect didn't have time to use them. They are all locked up now. What should we do with them?" Xu Che asked as they walked.

"See if there are any powerful or rare ones and send them to the flying boat. For the rest, ask the cultivators here if anyone wants them. If not, release them. There are still many unmined veins here, and the Returning to Origin Sect will definitely come back. We can't leave anything for them," Yuan Ming said.

While the mortals and cultivators at the mine were celebrating, a yellow light emerged from the desert hundreds of miles away.

As the light dissipated, Fang Dafu and another middle-aged cultivator appeared. The middle-aged man looked ordinary, with long hair and no beard, but he had a blood-red mark on the back of his neck.

"Earlier, the situation was urgent. I had to forcibly drag you away. Please forgive me, young master," the middle-aged cultivator said, bowing to Fang Dafu.

Fang Dafu regained his composure and shook his head. "It was chaotic at the time. Uncle Ding, you saved me, which was no easy feat. Let's not talk about this. Where is Elder Hai? Where should we go to meet him?"

Uncle Ding was Elder Hai's trusted aide, having been by his side since childhood, always loyal and unwavering.

Upon hearing Fang Dafu's question, a hint of sadness flashed in Uncle Ding's eyes. "Young master, please accept my condolences. The master was betrayed by his own disciple. I'm afraid you will never see him again."

Fang Dafu was stunned, his expression shifting from disbelief to shock and confusion, and finally to a touch of sorrow.

He wanted to refute, but he had seen Elder Hai's dire situation with his own eyes. Uncle Ding, being his father's trusted aide, would never joke about such matters.

He opened his mouth but found his throat dry, unable to say a word. His vision blurred, as if covered by tears, but when he wiped his eyes with the back of his hand, they were dry.

Since he could remember, he had lived with his mother, harboring hatred for the father who abandoned them. But when his mother passed away, and his often-cursed father came to find him, he wanted to vent his anger. However, seeing the pain and sorrow in his father's eyes as he looked at his mother's memorial tablet, he found himself unable to say anything, just like now.

Uncle Ding stood by, waiting for a long time, seemingly giving Fang Dafu time to vent his emotions. Seeing no reaction, he reminded, "Young master, if I may be so bold, you should quickly return to the sect's base, report the situation at the Yanlin Mine, and seize the assets left by the master before the news spreads, to prevent others from taking them."

Fang Dafu took a deep breath and shook his head at Uncle Ding. "They won't allow a bastard like me to inherit those assets."

"The master only has you as his child. As long as you are willing to acknowledge your ancestry, they will have to accept it," Uncle Ding advised.

"Uncle Ding, there's no need to persuade me. I won't change my name, and I don't want to get involved in the Hai family's affairs. You don't need to follow me anymore or call me young master. Thank you for saving me today. I will find a way to repay you in the future," Fang Dafu shook his head.

Uncle Ding was silent for a moment, then asked, "Young master, as an outsider, I shouldn't interfere in your family matters, but I must speak my mind. You feel the master owes you and your mother, but hasn't he done enough over the years to make up for his past mistakes?"

"Even if you still hate the master, he sacrificed so much for you and was killed by traitors. Don't you want to avenge him? Can you bear to see the family business he built over half his life taken by those who looked down on you and your mother?"

Fang Dafu fell silent, pondering for a long time before sighing deeply. "What should I do?"

"First, you must return to the family and acknowledge your ancestry, changing your surname back to Hai. Then, I will arrange trustworthy people to help you take over the master's assets. You can also place some of your own people, but this will only ensure temporary safety. You must quickly form your Golden Elixir to secure your position. The master has already collected most of what you need for this, but a few items are still missing, which you will need to find yourself," Uncle Ding said quickly.

He then took out several storage bags and spirit beast bags. "During our escape, I managed to bring out some rare items and all the successful experimental subjects from the master's residence. These experimental subjects are powerful and can protect you until you break through."

Fang Dafu accepted the storage bags and spirit beast bags, opening them to find that one of the experimental subjects inside was Shi Chuan, whom he had captured earlier.

He didn't mind, putting away the storage bags and spirit beast bags. He glanced in the direction of the mine, his gaze distant as if looking at his past. Then, he turned around, took out his flying artifact, and flew towards the Returning to Origin Sect's base with Uncle Ding.

The next day at noon, the giant flying boat, loaded with a large amount of ore and thousands of mortals, slowly flew out of the mine.

After the celebration, the other cultivators at the mine dispersed. Now, only Zuo Qinghui and Xu Che remained by Yuan Ming's side on the flying boat.

Zuo Qinghui and Xu Che were also the ones controlling the flying boat, while Yuan Ming sat in the quiet room, counting the spoils from slaying Elder Hai.

There wasn't much of value in Elder Hai's residence, and his storage bag contained little of interest.

There were quite a few spirit stones, about sixty to seventy thousand, along with two jade slips, some elixirs, spiritual materials, and several cultivation books.

Most of the cultivation books were related to demonic beasts, with a few miscellaneous ones about elixirs and battle formations.

Battle formations are a special type of formation that uses cultivators as core nodes, combining their powers to attack with extraordinary force.

The Returning to Origin Sect is renowned for this technique in the Central Plains, and Yuan Ming had seen its power during the battle in the mine.

However, the disciples stationed at the mine were not as skilled in using battle formations as the core disciples, so they didn't shine in the battle. But this didn't mean the formations were worthless.

Yuan Ming carefully studied these books.

His Corpse Control ability could currently control up to twelve corpses. If he could combine them with battle formations, they might become even more powerful.

As he read, Yuan Ming realized that battle formations come in various forms but ultimately focus on the coordination of spiritual power and spellcasting, requiring both to work together to unleash their power.

One book mentioned a concept for a body cultivation formation, but it was only briefly touched upon and not very clear.

The corpses controlled by the soul crow couldn't circulate spiritual power or cast spells, so they couldn't use battle formations.

It seemed that using battle formations would have to rely on corpses controlled by split souls. Yuan Ming was a bit disappointed and put the book down. But then, an idea struck him. What if he used the soul crows to form a battle formation, using soul power instead of spiritual power, and had them simultaneously use their Crow Cry ability? It might enhance the power further.

He envisioned several formation methods in his mind but decided to wait until they returned to test them, as he worried that experimenting with such an offensive ability on the flying boat might affect the mortals below.