Bombarding Cultivators with Cluster Artillery

Demon Palace.

In the midst of flaming red molten gold vines, a young man in green robes sat cross-legged, with a monk standing before him looking uneasy.

”Uncle Master.”

Monk Fa Zheng said with a stiff scalp, ”Those who were greedy and perverted justice have all been dealt with. These ungrateful things, Tushan Dojo has already given them so much, yet they still weren’t satisfied!”

”Only, only...”

His voice trailed off.

Jiang Ding watched him quietly.

”Only the former master of the Law Enforcement Hall, Liu Hongshao, a Late Foundation Establishment Cultivator, has escaped.”

Monk Fa Zheng wished he could burrow into the ground, ”More than twenty of us besieged him, yet he still sensed it in advance, abandoned everything and fled, leaving only his family behind.”

”Perhaps...”

He made a sinister expression.

”I will not practice guilt by association.”

”There’s no need to feel guilty, friend Fa Zheng. It’s your first time handling the affairs of the dojo, and some omissions are inevitable.” Jiang Ding smiled faintly. ”Just dock half a year’s salary. All the disciples involved shall be treated the same.”

Indeed, he felt somewhat disappointed.

If Li Qingyun were here, even if he did not act personally, he would not let a mere Late Foundation Establishment Cultivator escape.

”Yes!”

”Uncle Master!”

Monk Fa Zheng let out a sigh of relief and, with a fierce look on his face, said, ”This thief was able to escape in advance, there must have been someone tipping him off, a crony. Give me three more months, and I will surely root them out!”

”Maintaining the stability of the dojo is of utmost importance.”

Jiang Ding was noncommittal.

”And that Elder Huang.”

Monk Fa Zheng reported, ”That elder did not leave but rented a Triple Grade Inferior Cave Dwelling within Tushan Immortal City for secluded cultivation and has not left since.”

A Triple Grade Superior Spiritual Vein could accommodate several Post-Golden Alchemists for cultivation; the remaining spaces were made into cave dwellings for rent.

Past renters usually were Foundation-building cultivators facing breakthrough bottlenecks, and they often rented short-term.

The cost did not require Low-grade Spirit Stones, as high-grade Spirit Stones or Triple Grade Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasures were acceptable.

”Treat him normally, and it is forbidden to use any underhanded methods to monitor him.”

Jiang Ding closed his eyes and entered a state of cultivation.

”Yes!”

Monk Fa Zheng sighed in relief internally and bowed to take his leave.

Conflicts among Golden Pill cultivators were not for them to involve themselves in.

...

Within the room.

Jiang Ding opened his eyes as the Zhou Tian cycle within his body reached its end, the electromagnetic mana gradually calmed, the tumultuous Heavenly Earth Spiritual Qi around him settled, and the Bluegold Large Tree’s branches and trunk contracted, transforming into a Flying Sword that flew into his forehead.

He opened the door. Red firecracker fragments littered the ground, along with various melon rinds, fruit peelings, and snack plastic wrappers.

This could not be cleaned up; it mustn’t be done before the sixth day of the New Year.

Otherwise, it would be sweeping away the fortune and wealth.

”Another New Year...”

Jiang Ding sighed faintly.

His home was empty, and his Divine Sense swept over, finding his grandmother’s and uncle’s places several kilometers away just as vacant.

Today was his sister, Jiang Yuan’s, engagement day.

The location was a large villa next to the library in the center of Rongcheng City, where his mother, grandparents, uncle, Lin Yuanwang, and others were all gathered.

The atmosphere seemed to be very festive and lively.

One of the most important moments in a woman’s life.

Within the range of Divine Sense.

Divine Sense retracted, from beginning to end, never once directed towards that area.

Jiang Ding’s Divine Sense connected to the Xianmen Library, where a vast array of books flashed by, covering Cultivation Methods, Formation Methods, Magic, and various other disciplines—the collective lifework of many generations of Xianmen’s remarkable individuals, all available for free reading.

”Classics-grade practice methods can be imparted to cultivators from the Outer Realm...”

Jiang Ding murmured as he searched within the library.

Monk Fa Zheng’s ability to handle affairs had brought him many displeasures.

Being confined to one place was still bearable, but if he were to step into the wider cultivation world, he basically couldn’t get anything significant done.

If he didn’t want to be busy with this and that every day and let it hinder his own cultivation, then he must have his own direct power.

Gathering resources and intelligence, suppressing minor unrest within his territory.

It would be best if it also had the ability to rely on Formation Methods to defend itself during times when he was severely injured or in closed-door cultivation.

Given his current weak state, the ability to conceal was also a must, able to disperse into various places in the cultivation world when necessary, so as not to be caught all at once.

When assembled together, it should have the capability to deploy an Army Formation... Cultivation Methods in the direction of the Sword Dao have the strongest teaching capability in this regard...

Requirements floated up in his mind, and key words appeared one after another in the search bar.

”The ’Heaven Light Shining Sun Sword Canon,’ majestic and upright, capable of condensing a strand of Heaven Light Shining Sun Sword Qi within the Elixir Field, matched with the Heaven Light Shining Sun Flying Sword, is sharp and peerless, and the Cultivation Method greatly enhances both light control and Qi Concealment.”

Thirty-six people could form a Small Heaven Light Shining Sun Formation, and Late-stage Qi Practicing cultivators could fight against those at the Foundation Establishment level when in formation; thirty-six Late Foundation Establishment cultivators could fight against a Golden Pill Alchemist.

The operation of an Army Formation is difficult, it must be led by True Disciples from the Nine Great Immortal Sects, and each disciple must either be a Dual Spiritual Roots Cultivator or a Three Spiritual Roots Cultivator with outstanding comprehension, and also receive elite Immortal Path education from the inner ranks of the Nine Great Immortal Sects, and then through selection, eventually take shape.”

”This combination?”

Jiang Ding was stunned for a moment, repeatedly reviewing, ”This perfectly meets my requirements; it even considers aspects that I hadn’t thought of, comprehensive and detailed, leaving me with no room to propose any changes.”

Of course, the fact that thirty-six elite Foundation Builders could fight against a Golden Pill was something that only True Disciples leading elite Foundation Builders from the Nine Great Immortal Sects could accomplish; that wasn’t something he considered realistic.

The Foundation Builders of Tushan Dojo, including Li Qingyun with whom he had once worked, were not qualified to stand alongside the inner elites of the Nine Great Immortal Sects, let alone the True Disciples.

This was the gap resulting from innate talent, Immortal Path education, and Cultivation Methods.

It was perhaps conceivable to hope for three hundred sixty, or a hundred and eight, Foundation Builders to fight against a Golden Pill, but that too would require at least hundreds of years of exploration, training, and finally, a possibility of success would emerge.

”If a Dari Swordsman presided over the Army Formation or influenced key personnel, the difficulty of the formation would be greatly reduced.”

Subsequently, he came upon such a statement.

”I understand the rationale behind this combination now.”

Jiang Ding’s expression stiffened.

Flipping to the end of the Cultivation Method, indeed.

”One of the Taoist Soldiers’ inheritance Cultivation Methods from the Great Sun Sword Pavilion, all the methods of the Great Sun Sword Pavilion are influenced by the Dari Swordsman, with the entire sect centered around the Great Sun Sword Dao.”

”This doesn’t seem to work for me, there are traces of the Great Sun remnants in that world, and their power is not small.”

Jiang Ding flipped through the subsequent Cultivation Methods, most were similar; Xianmen had no demand for this, not actively developing such things.

”I’ll have to modify it then, at least the parts for Qi cultivation and Foundation Building need significant changes, shifting towards matching my direction.”

After pondering for a long time, Jiang Ding still spoke this way, unwilling to give up.

With the capability of the Central Array Spirit Computer and Xianmen Science Institute, it would be possible to keep the essence of the practice method while changing it completely, making it unrecognizable to anyone, and without lowering the quality of the method.

After all, there were significant differences between him and the Dari Swordsman, and the method was not entirely suitable to begin with.

And he was only considering the Qi cultivation and Foundation Building parts from a Classics-grade practice method anyway; with a heap of Spirit Stones and library points spent, it should be possible to get it done within a year or so.

”Ding ling...”

Jiang Ding looked up, it was a call from Zhang Junsheng, which he clicked to answer.

”There are some leads on the Great Sun Golden Core Secret Method,” said Zhang Junsheng on the screen, his face wan and weary, as if he hadn’t rested for many years: ”During this period, many people have come to work for free in my lab, which is good, but they tend to beat me up now and then, and many I can’t even fight back against, which is not so good...”