Looking at Chu Xue's curious expression, Ye Lin pursed his lips, finding it difficult to say anything. If he told the truth, he had no doubt Chu Xue would split him in half.
"Nothing, Master. It's just to test if my Dao Heart is firm or not."
"Oh, that's rather boring. You performed well today."
"Starting tomorrow, you will be the true decision-maker of the Qingyun Sect. From now on, the direction the Qingyun Sect takes will rest on your shoulders. Have you thought about how you'll do it?"
The two walked towards Du Peak, Chu Xue leading with her hands behind her back, and Ye Lin following.
"Currently, the Evil Demons are causing trouble, and those major powers are also extremely restless, looking as if they want to break away from my Qingyun Sect and go it alone."
"So, I think we should start by targeting a few major powers, completely subduing them, and then bringing them under our control."
"Only after completely subduing these major powers can we annihilate the Evil Demons with the least cost."
Upon hearing this, Ye Lin articulated his thoughts one by one.
"That's a good idea, but none of these powers are easy to deal with. How difficult would it be to completely subdue them?"
Chu Xue sighed slightly. Every power had a Golden Core Stage Cultivator overseeing it, and the combat power of Golden Core Stage Cultivators absolutely could not be used. Once Golden Core Stage combat power was used for forceful suppression, what would follow would likely be an even more intense backlash.
Once a Golden Core war erupted, the situation would truly be irreversible.
"Master, to subdue them, we don't need to suppress them forcefully in the open. As long as we seize what they need for their daily Cultivation, over time, they will naturally submit to us, even becoming our dogs."
"Besides, this way, they wouldn't dare to go to war with us, right?"
After Ye Lin finished speaking, Chu Xue's eyes sparkled. What was most important for Cultivation? Resources. And as long as the resource supply to the major powers was cut off, over time, those powers would fall into chaos on their own, without the Qingyun Sect needing to act.
At that point, they could then make their move.
"What if they're pushed too hard and attack my Qingyun Sect?"
Chu Xue asked. Of course, the Qingyun Sect wasn't afraid of the attacks from those major powers, but it would be a headache. It was important to know that among the three major Sects and Four Great Families, there were Golden Core Stage Cultivators present. Combined, even the Qingyun Sect wouldn't dare to be careless.
"Master, we can take on one power at a time, like boiling a frog in warm water, slowly wearing them down."
"If they're pushed too hard, my Qingyun Sect can justifiably suppress them. Moreover, the relationships between the major powers aren't very good."
"If the Li family is pushed too hard and wants to rebel, then we only need to face the Li family's power. The other powers won't intervene at all."
"As for the major powers cooperating with each other? That's even more impossible. At least for now, they don't have the guts to openly cooperate against my Qingyun Sect."
Ye Lin said softly. Although there were Golden Core Stage Cultivators in the major powers, they were all old antiques with one foot in the grave, forbidden to act unless the Sect faced a life-or-death crisis.
This also meant they couldn't cooperate. Once they attacked the Qingyun Sect, whose Old Ancestor would lead the charge? What if during the battle, all their Old Ancestors survived, but only my family's Old Ancestor died?
Furthermore, the Qingyun Sect openly had two Golden Core Stage Cultivators. Once a fight broke out, they could at least take down the Golden Core Stage powerhouses of two major powers. So, it was destined that they couldn't cooperate and go against the Qingyun Sect.
"So, what do you plan to do?"
Chu Xue turned and looked at Ye Lin, speaking softly.
"We can start with the Saint King Sect. The Saint King Sect controls over a dozen small powers, providing it with a continuous stream of resources. We just need to send people to subdue those small powers."
"At that time, we'll directly cut off the Saint King Sect's resource supply. If they don't act, that's fine. Once they do, we can directly suppress them."
"Because openly, these small powers are under the jurisdiction of my Qingyun Sect. We are just subduing our own powers. If the Saint King Sect acts, it's declaring war on my Qingyun Sect."
"This way, we just need to repeatedly use this tactic, and even if those major powers see it, they can only swallow their bitterness."
Upon hearing this, Chu Xue nodded. What Ye Lin said boiled down to four words: 'divide and conquer.' We openly target you, and you don't dare to intervene, only able to watch helplessly.
Moreover, to the outside world, the Qingyun Sect would be in the right.
"Good. Tomorrow, during the Sect meeting, you can propose this idea."
Chu Xue nodded. Ye Lin's plan was feasible. This way, the Qingyun Sect could easily bring these major powers back under its control without losing a single soldier, re-establishing the Qingyun Sect's dominant position.
"I understand."
Ye Lin nodded in response.
Arriving at his residence, Ye Lin sat cross-legged on the bed.
"Once this order is issued tomorrow and implementation begins, I can start preparing to Breakthrough to Foundation Establishment Peak."
Ye Lin murmured. As long as he Breakthrough to Foundation Establishment Peak, he would be one step closer to the Golden Core Stage.
"Last time I consulted the ancient texts, I accidentally saw an introduction about the Golden Core Stage."
Ye Lin pondered in his mind.
A Qi Training Stage Cultivator's Dantian contains Qi, a Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator's Dantian contains liquid, and a Golden Core Stage Cultivator's Dantian contains a Golden Core.
A Golden Core Stage Grand Cultivator has a lifespan of a thousand years. This is what is meant by 'a Golden Core swallowed into the belly, my fate is mine, not heaven's.'
"The ancient texts recorded that the Golden Cores of Cultivators in the ancient era were all Seven-Colored Golden Cores. Once a Seven-Colored Golden Core was condensed, its power was immensely formidable, capable of being unrivaled among peers."
"However, the method for condensing the Seven-Colored Golden Core was to transform the Acquired Spiritual Qi within the body into Innate Spiritual Qi."
At this point, Ye Lin felt a bit troubled. Currently, the Cultivation world predominantly uses Acquired Spiritual Qi, and Innate Spiritual Qi has become extinct.
And even the Spiritual Qi within Top-Grade Spirit Stones was only extremely close to Innate Spiritual Qi; it was far from reaching the standard of Innate Spiritual Qi.
Innate Spiritual Qi could only be found in some ancient Secret Realms, and the Innate Spiritual Qi required to condense a Golden Core was an immense amount.
"Where am I supposed to find such a vast amount of Innate Spiritual Qi?"
Ye Lin was a little speechless.
"Forget it. First, I'll Breakthrough to Foundation Establishment Peak. With my Life Panel helping me, perhaps I can find that Innate Spiritual Qi."
"Oh, right. Now that I'm a Saint, gathering the Qingyun Sect's Luck, I wonder what my current panel looks like."
Name: Ye Lin
Cultivation: Foundation Establishment Stage Late Phase
Fate: Green (Incomplete)
Fate Principle: 【Ordinary】 【Divine Comprehension】
Destiny: Stops at Golden Core Stage Early Stage, ultimately killed by Evil Demons.
Recent Opportunities: None
【Ordinary】: Like a normal person, nothing special.
【Divine Comprehension】: Extraordinary Comprehension Ability, extremely fast at comprehending various Cultivation Techniques. For the same Cultivation Technique, others need three months, while you only need a few days.
"Green Fate? But it's still incomplete. It seems my Luck isn't enough. As long as I seize a few more Opportunities, it should transform into a true Green Fate."
Looking at his Fate, Ye Lin nodded with satisfaction. It was finally not the black Fate from before. This green Fate looked much more pleasing to the eye.
In a blink of an eye, a day passed.
"Today, I need to attend the Sect meeting."
Ye Lin opened his eyes, tidied up his residence, and walked towards the Inner Sect Grand Hall.
Some important meetings were held in that Sect Grand Hall.