Cultivation: When you take things to the extreme

Chapter 582 - 356: Heavenly Venerable

"This..."

Hearing this, Fairy Qingluan also showed a hint of murderous intent on her face, and she turned to look at Star Lord Yuling, who was collapsed on the ground.

Struck by her gaze, Star Lord Yuling woke up in shock, ignoring the pain of his primordial spirit, he propped himself up and said, "Qing, Qingluan, no no no, Fairy, this is indeed my fault, but I did protect your life, please consider our past friendship and spare my life..."

"Humph!"

Fairy Qingluan snorted coldly and flicked her sleeve, knocking him back down to the ground, then said to Xu Yang, "This person has enslaved me for a thousand years and even applied a beast-transformation spell to erode my spirit wisdom. Killing him a thousand times, ten thousand times, would hardly quench my hatred!"

Xu Yang nodded, "Then what does fellow Taoist think should be done?"

"This..."

Fairy Qingluan hesitated for a while before finally lowering her head and saying, "It’s still up to the Taoist Master to decide."

Although her heart was filled with hatred, she knew the current situation was critical, Xu Yang surely had plans, and it would not do to ruin the overall situation for personal vengeance.

Xu Yang smiled and turned his gaze back, "Then how about we place restrictions on him and make him a slave?"

"Brilliant!"

Fairy Qingluan’s eyes lit up and she repeatedly praised, "This person has Integration-level cultivation and a future hope for Mahayana, and is also skilled in beast taming.

As long as restrictions are placed on him, he can be made to serve us, let him also taste what it is to be a beast of burden, a servant and a slave, and when necessary, he could even be used as a bargaining chip to exchange for our Academy Monks."

"..."

As these words came out, Star Lord Yuling turned even paler, collapsed to the ground, but was powerless to refute.

"Then it is decided,"

Xu Yang smiled, waved his sleeve, and took the man into custody for the time being.

The living are always more valuable than the dead!

Therefore, regarding prisoners, Xu Yang rarely committed acts of killing. After all, the productivity of the living always exceeds that of the stiff and clumsy corpse refining and the dim-witted underworld ghosts.

Not only this person, but after the Ascension of Wandao School, there will inevitably be conflicts with the powers of the Heavenly Court and the Earth Immortal Realm, and a batch of prisoners of war will be captured.

What to do with these prisoners?

Kill them to vent anger?

That would be such a waste!

The best course of action is to repay them in kind, and then through re-education labor, to select those who have repented to join the Scholar’s Palace system, to strengthen our own power, just as he did previously in the Divine Martial World.

The leader should not start wars in anger, nor should the military engage in combat from indignation!

As a leader, one must prioritize the bigger picture and the overall interest, not indulge in personal vendettas.

Of course, Fairy Qingluan, having been treated in such a way, even if she were to carry out a killing spree to vent anger or personally slay the chief culprits, it would be within reason, and Xu Yang would not stop her, as long as in future battles, for other captives, no connection is made.

Execute the ringleaders, punish the accomplices, use re-education to harness their strength – this is the royal way!

Fairy Qingluan also understood this principle. Although her heart was extremely enraged, she still handed the decision-making power to him, the Taoist Master.

This was also the norm for Academy Monks, to be passionate yet rational, to have personal feelings but not abandon the public good.

...

Having dealt with this, Fairy Qingluan looked back at Xu Yang, and tentatively asked, "What does the Taoist Master intend to do next?"

Xu Yang smiled, "Does Fairy have any desire to return home?"

"Return home?"

Fairy Qingluan was startled, then she realized, "Does the Taoist Master mean to leave the Earth Immortal Realm and return to Wandao School?"

Xu Yang nodded, "That’s right!"

"But..."

Fairy Qingluan showed hesitation, "The Yuan Spirits in the Lower Realm are dormant, the Five Turbidities Evil Age prevails. Although they rely on the false cultivation methods, is it not difficult to support the likes of us?"

"Ha!"

Xu Yang laughed, "One day in the heavens is a year on earth. There’s always a discrepancy between the Upper Realm and the Lower Realm. Over twenty thousand years have passed; the changes have been vast, like heaven and earth turning upside down. Fellow Taoist’s concerns can be set aside."

"Is that so?"

Fairy Qingluan was taken aback and then nodded, "Then I will follow the Taoist Master’s words. However, in that Fake Dao Heavenly Court, there are still Academy Monks. How does the Taoist Master plan to rescue them?"

Xu Yang shook his head, sighed softly, and said, "The time is not right; we cannot act rashly. They must endure a little longer."

The Ascension cultivators of Wandao School are treated in two ways in the Heavenly Court. One is like Fairy Qingluan, a member of the Demon Race with extraordinary lineage and talents, who are taken by the powerhouses of the Heavenly Court as mounts or Spirit Beasts.

Though they lose their freedom, they barely get by without worries about food and clothing, and with their long lives, they can afford to wait.

Another kind, like True Monarch Changrong, cultivators of the Human Clan with mediocre aptitude, who are even less regarded in this Upper Realm. Furthermore, due to the leakage of the Heavenly Mechanics Methods and Spirit-Treasure Mech Armor, they were subjected to soul-searching by the higher-ups of the Heavenly Court.

After the soul-searching, they were not freed but imprisoned in the palace, toiling as servants, engaged in talisman making and alchemy. Under the pressures of labor, their cultivation was severely delayed, and many have already passed away sitting in meditation, with the remainder growing old and weary.

Compared to Fairy Qingluan, these people’s predicaments were far tougher, and more in need of his rescue.

But there was no help for it; being imprisoned in Heavenly Court, unlike Fairy Qingluan who still had the opportunity to descend to the Lower Realm, Xu Yang had no chance and could not possibly storm the Heavenly Palace or tough it out against the various Calamity Immortals of the Heavenly Court.

But that’s for now; the future holds many possibilities. Who knows, he might just stir up some trouble in the Heavenly Palace!

...

With this matter settled, Xu Yang did not linger any longer. He began preparing to break the void and return to the Earth Immortal Realm.

The spatial stability of the Earth Immortal Realm is much greater than the Lower Realm. Normally, only Calamity Immortals can directly breach the void and roam through chaos. Others, even Mahayana cultivators, can only descend to the Lower Realm by using the Ascension Platform.

But Xu Yang was clearly out of the ordinary.

In over six thousand years, "Xu Qingyang" of the Divine Martial World, aside from researching various arts, divine powers, and the Dao of the Void, had also deepened his understanding of the Void Stele and the Temple of War God, which is why he was initially able to use the "Sleeve Universe" to obtain Cloth Sack Arhat’s Qiankun Cloth Bag.