Chapter 721: Yin and Yang

Seeing that a huge fight was about to break out, Chu Liang quickly slipped back to Silver Sword Peak.

There was no denying that slaying an eighth-realm demon king was an achievement worthy of being recorded in history. Over the past few thousand years, only a handful of human cultivators had managed to do so. So even if his esteemed teacher was carrying a giant snake corpse to clog up the flow of the spring at Jade Sword Peak, Old Wang likely wouldn’t dare to come out and face her.

Back then, Di Nufeng had been furious for months over Wang Xuanling’s slaying of an evil flood dragon in the East Sea. Now, with such a huge achievement under her belt, she would likely boast about it for years to come.

She was undeniably strong but also incredibly skilled at holding grudges.

Back in his small hut, Chu Liang finally felt a sense of stability. The past few years had been a whirlwind, full of tumult and uncertainty—like being tossed around by a storm. It was only here, in the quiet of his hut, that his heart could finally find peace.

However, now he understood that this peace did not come without a price. It was thanks to Venerable Wen Yuan, the Four Guardian Elders, Daoist Yan, the grand peak master, the peak masters, and the other reliable seniors who had created this safe haven for all the disciples of the sect.

Without them, everything that had been built with that safe haven as its foundation would crumble. Even the seemingly prosperous Red Cotton Peak he had established would be easily torn down.

The reason they had enjoyed these peaceful years was because others had borne the burden for them, forging ahead in silence.

And from this moment on, Chu Liang too would have to bear that burden. He would face the brutal storms of the immortal realm head-on. Venerable Wen Yuan’s words about the harsh reality were not exaggerations—they were the truth.

For example, when an unknown hidden realm was first discovered, it was always the cultivators at the Dao Attainment Realm who explored it first. They mapped everything out before allowing the other disciples to enter. By then, most of the risks could be controlled.

To secure enough resources for the sect, seventh-realm and eighth-realm experts had no choice but to venture into dangerous hidden realms or even the Divine Ruins. These were unavoidable risks.

Cultivation power was the key to tackling such responsibilities. What Chu Liang needed to do now was to focus on stabilizing his cultivation power.

Having jumped directly from the fifth realm to the seventh, he was still unaccustomed to controlling the power of his new cultivation level. Although he had managed to slay a seventh-realm cultivator using the Violet and Azure Twin Swords, it didn’t mean he was strong—it only meant the swords were.

As he converged the Dao essence of Severing the Void Great Dao, the first thing he felt was the powerful surge of sword intent. For a long time, he had never truly considered himself a sword cultivator, as he had been fighting with the power of the dragon god. And when he was proving his understanding of the Severing the Void Great Dao and ascending the seventh realm, he realized that his understanding of this Dao of the Sword was not deep enough.

When Chu Liang had the time, he could seek guidance from Senior Aunt Yan. She was the Dao Master of the Cloud of Determination Great Dao, but the three Great Daos of the Sword were interconnected, so her mastery of Severing the Void was unlikely to be lacking.

Besides, Senior Sister Jiang treated her as though she were her mother, so it would be beneficial for Chu liang to build a relationship with her in advance...

After stabilizing his comprehension of Severing the Void, he turned his attention to the knowledge seed of the Great Dao that Baize bestowed to him—the Great Dao of Yin and Yang.

It was one of the Great Daos closest to the essence of the Heavenly Dao, so even a mere seed of the Great Dao of Yin and Yang contained profound Dao essence. Chu Liang had to meditate on it for a long time before he could truly grasp its meaning.

In a narrow sense, "Yin and Yang" referred to the fundamental dual energies of heaven and earth. More broadly, they represented the two opposing yet complementary forces that formed the world. If someone were to cultivate the Great Dao of Yin and Yang to the highest level, they would have the power to create all life-forms.

For this very reason, Baize’s path of advancing to the ninth realm would undoubtedly be a challenging and arduous one.

Fortunately, Chu Liang possessed the Golden Cores of both the Lesser Yin and the Lesser Yang. That granted him a deeper affinity with the Great Dao of Yin and Yang, making the process of comprehension somewhat easier.

A long time passed before he was finally stirred from his meditation. It was due to Lin Bei calling out to him from outside.

"

Heheheh!

" Lin Bei’s hearty laughter rang out as he knocked on the door. "Chu Liang, I brought back some specialty fruits from the Eastern Regions—Flowing Sea Fruit."

"Oh?" Chu Liang chuckled, raising an eyebrow. "Am I the only one getting this, or did you bring them for everyone?"

"Huh?" Lin Bei paused, feeling a little confused.

...

"You’re not usually this thoughtful. You even brought something for me this time. Normally, when you come to Silver Sword Peak, not only do you come empty-handed, but you’d even take some of Golden-Furred Hou’s food when you leave," Chu Liang remarked.

"What are you saying..." Lin Bei replied, chuckling awkwardly. Then he added, "Your Golden-Furred Hou never had food to begin with. It always mooches off Little Baize. Now that Baize’s mother has woken up, Golden-Furred Hou doesn’t dare mooch anymore, and it's been starving, howling every day. It was even lying by the door of Red Moon Pavilion today."

"Alright, alright," Chu Liang muttered, feeling a little embarrassed when Lin Bei mentioned this. He took a moment to shake off the lingering emotions from his meditation on the Great Dao of Yin and Yang, then he looked back at Lin Bei. "Alright, speak up. What do you need from me?"

"

Heheheh...

" Lin Bei chuckled and said, "I really can't hide anything from you. I do have something to discuss with you. It’s about my two friends on Flame Mountain Island in the Eastern Regions..."

It turned out that Lin Bei had come to Chu Liang because of the Hall of Construction.

When the members of the diabolical sect attacked Mount Shu, the Feng-grade buildings on Red Cotton Peak displayed their true power, safeguarding the life and property of the mountain. News of this spread within the Circle of Immortal Friends, and soon, everyone in the immortal cultivation realm became aware of the charm of Mount Shu Sect's Hall of Construction.

No one would be surprised if they found out that the enchanted buildings were as sturdy as the Feng-grade buildings. After all, such buildings could not be built on a large scale.

However, the buildings that the Hall of Construction built were different. They could indeed be built on a large scale, and this had already been proven on Red Cotton Peak.

Two places had been attacked on the same day. Despite suffering a severe attack, Red Cotton Peak remained mostly unscathed. In contrast, the City Lord’s residence in Taotie City had been completely demolished by the Mount Mang rebels, and the whereabouts of Huyan Dong and his son remained unknown. This created a stark contrast between the two commercial districts.

𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

Without a safe home, what was the point in having all the money in the world? The money would just end up being someone else's!

Especially now, with the world in chaos, the tragedy in Taotie City served as a warning to many sects. Even a sect in the Terrestrial Ten was not safe.

The Flame Mountain Island in the Eastern Regions was one of the many sects that felt unsafe.

Their sect leader had an idea.

Since the buildings on Mount Shu are so sturdy, maybe we can ask them to help build a few in their territory as well?

"I have connections in Mount Shu!" the sect leader of Flame Mountain Island exclaimed.

He quickly contacted Lin Bei, who then hurried to the Hall of Construction to inquire about the request.

After all, according to past traditions, the Hall of Construction only served the disciples of the Mount Shu Sect. Even the large-scale renovation project of Red Cotton Peak had remained within Mount Shu’s boundaries. Going out to build houses for others—even if it was a paid job—would be a breach of tradition. Depending on one’s perspective, this matter could be seen as either trivial or significant.

The five juniors in the Hall of Construction didn’t dare make the decision themselves, so they sent Lin Bei to ask Chu Liang.

"The sect leader of Flame Mountain Island is indeed a good brother of mine, and he’s got plenty of money," Lin Bei said. "Of course, he knows this is a tricky situation. It’s not something that has to happen, and even if it doesn’t work out, he won’t hold a grudge..."

"Tricky? How can this be tricky?" Chu Liang’s eyes lit up as he listened to the explanation. "This is too easy! If he’s your friend, then he’s my friend! We are all brothers."

"It's doable?" Lin Bei grinned upon hearing this. "That’s great! I’ll send him a reply right away. How much per house? Let’s set a clear price upfront."

Chu Liang replied, "If we’re building for outsiders, we can’t charge per house."

"Then by what?" Lin Bei asked, feeling puzzled.

"By square meters," Chu Liang said in a serious manner. "And it depends on the location. Even if the houses use the same materials, the price has to vary based on the area. If there are a lot of orders, we could even build a... residential district—that way, it could be cheaper per unit.

"But of course, the communal areas have to be included in the shared costs too..."