Cultivation is just so scientific! Chapter 1530 - 811: News (Part 2)

"Why didn't you inform me about such a crucial issue?" Grandmaster Hu demanded, his tone mixing agitation with faint irritation.

That sharp rebuke carried profound worry, catching Li Shiming off guard for an instant.

"What crucial issue? Isn't the sect's triumph the most important thing?" Li Shiming replied, utterly baffled.

"Did you schedule a duel with Master Ren Mu of the Central State Commerce?" Grandmaster Hu cut straight to the point, eyeing Li Shiming's condition closely.

"Ah, you're talking about that. Master Ren Mu and I held back; we only tested each other's abilities lightly!" Li Shiming caught on to what Grandmaster Hu meant and clarified with a grin.

To him, it had just been a casual test of skills, far from an intense clash.

Both parties restrained their power, keeping the exchange at a controlled and secure pace.

"Did you overcome Master Ren Mu?" Grandmaster Hu pursued the question.

"No one else was around when I faced Master Ren Mu—how did Master learn the outcome?" Li Shiming blurted out in surprise, unable to hold back his counter-question.

"Word from the Central State Commerce is circulating that you issued a challenge to Master Ren Mu and emerged victorious!" Grandmaster Hu revealed.

"It was meant to be a discreet duel—how did word get out?" Li Shiming grumbled, shaking his head in bewilderment.

He had no idea that Master Ren Mu, in an effort to settle the grudge with the Central State Commerce, had personally disclosed the results of their confrontation.

This move aimed to show the different groups in the Central State Commerce just how powerful Li Shiming was in battle. If any group resisted Master Ren Mu's push for peace upon his return, they could dispatch their own top cultivator to confront Li Shiming head-on.

Master Ren Mu stood as the mightiest Nascent Soul Stage expert in the Central State Commerce. Even if rival groups wanted to challenge Li Shiming, they lacked a superior cultivator capable of beating him.

Furthermore, as a business-focused entity, the Central State Commerce wouldn't risk antagonizing a strong foe over old grudges, since that could threaten their very existence.

"I never imagined your power reached such heights. You should have let me know sooner, allowing the Ten Thousand Beast Sect to gain extra advantages!" Grandmaster Hu grasped the meaning behind Li Shiming's statement, accepting the win against Master Ren Mu, and sighed while shaking his head.

"Did everyone come back because of this?" Li Shiming glanced at the other prominent cultivators and inquired.

"This truly counts as a huge development. You might not yet grasp its impact on the Ten Thousand Beast Sect," Master Ding remarked with a beaming smile, his cheeks glowing with excitement.

"Possessing the might of a top-tier great cultivator ensures no major power's offshoot dares to encroach on the Ten Thousand Beast Sect's stakes across the Dongqi Continent!" Master Chai chimed in.

"Shizhen, after our group talked it over, we've agreed that from now on, great cultivator resources will focus on you first. You're the only one here with a real shot at reaching the Mahayana Realm, our one chance to lift the Ten Thousand Beast Sect into superpower status!" Grandmaster Hu declared with grave seriousness.

Li Shiming stood truly shocked by his master's declaration. Resources for great cultivators on the Dongqi Continent were already limited. Despite claiming three-quarters of Dongqi, the Ten Thousand Beast Sect still strived to nurture several great cultivators.

Channeling those resources solely to him would prevent fostering additional great cultivators; it might even hinder the current ones from growing stronger.

He met the eager gazes of every great cultivator, sensing their profound devotion to the sect. For them, the dream of turning the sect into a superpower mattered more than their own progress.

Producing a Mahayana Realm powerhouse would elevate the grand sect, the Ten Thousand Beast Sect, to superpower level, letting it join the fierce struggles for major powers' gains.

"I appreciate your kind intentions, but I've got my own methods for gathering cultivation resources and won't need the sect's support!" Li Shiming bowed deeply and shared his thoughts with the great cultivators.

Grandmaster Hu along with the rest of the great cultivators held firm to their view, and following multiple exchanges, they finally settled on a decision.

The sect's great cultivator resources would split into parts, distributed among them, with Li Shiming getting three portions, and the rest going toward training emerging great cultivators.

The Ten Thousand Beast Sect spent two months securing full command over three-quarters of the Dongqi Continent's lands.

Lately, Li Shiming had focused on stabilizing his power while gearing up to boost his fighting ability.

Master Luo Pei's five mid-stage golden corpses remained under the care of his clone, Li Yuanba.

Li Shiming possessed plenty of materials for alchemy and planned to craft late-stage golden corpses right away.

Right now, he held five top-notch great cultivator corpses, each from superpower great cultivators he'd defeated across the years.

The remaining great cultivator corpses, of somewhat lower caliber, he had put on hold.

His criteria were a bit selective, but that was unavoidable given his elevated strength, and he didn't demand peak performance from late-stage golden corpses anyway.

He sought late-stage golden corpses with growth potential, even though pushing them further proved challenging, yet from certain ancient records, he uncovered a stage surpassing golden corpses.

Flying Night Demon marked the level beyond golden corpses, comparable to a supreme force among human cultivators.

This stage appeared only in writings, since he'd never encountered a Flying Night Demon in the cultivation realm.

Yet because the Flying Night Demon was documented, Li Shiming pondered giving it a try.

After all, he had abundant corpse refining supplies, all collected by his clone, Li Yuanba.

Besides, should the late-stage golden corpse fall short after refinement, he could pass it to his clone, Li Yuanba, who could still make use of it.

Naturally, creating a late-stage golden corpse demanded more than a quick effort; it called for thorough setup.

Using his ties with Master Liu Ziyun, Li Shiming requested a set of spiritual items from the Central State Commerce.

This set of spiritual items served the purpose of forging late-stage golden corpses, drawn from a forbidden text called the 'Prohibited Book of Xuan Yin Yaksha' on corpse refining.

His clone, Li Yuanba, had acquired this technique. Plenty of cultivators in the Central State recognized Li Yuanba's expertise in corpse refining, which stemmed from the Sword Intent Chongxiao Pavilion where he earned it through trades.

The 'Prohibited Book of Xuan Yin Yaksha' outlined a way to boost a golden corpse straight to Flying Night Demon, making it a key treasure in the Sword Intent Chongxiao Pavilion's inner library.

While studying the 'Prohibited Book of Xuan Yin Yaksha' section on Flying Night Demons, Li Shiming saw that the odds of raising a corpse to Flying Night Demon were incredibly slim, stemming not just from the complexity but also because it needed all fifth-grade materials.

Even with his broad learning and riches, beyond two spiritual treasures he forged using fifth-grade materials, he'd never laid eyes on actual fifth-grade materials, much less the exact fifth-grade ones for corpse refining.

His own-made spiritual treasures had advanced via unique artifact methods, having nothing to do with fifth-grade materials.

That said, the 'Prohibited Book of Xuan Yin Yaksha' approach for late-stage golden corpses involved fourth-grade materials, which were valuable yet within his grasp.

Of course, the 'Prohibited Book of Xuan Yin Yaksha' would act only as a guide. He planned to weave in his special methods during the corpse refining and add the Heavenly Person Cave Heaven Golden Corpse Core.

Standard golden corpses, even at late-stage, barely met his expectations.

He favored either skipping it entirely or pursuing absolute excellence.

Great Cultivator Liu Ziyun had fretted that Li Shiming might skip asking for his aid. The moment Li Shiming stated his needs, he tapped his network without delay, swiftly securing even the scarcest goods for delivery to the Dongqi Continent.

The set of spiritual items showed up together with the dragon and phoenix line late-stage fourth-grade resources, signaling friendly overtures from the Central State Commerce.