Longevity starts with choosing Hextech enhancement

Chapter 406 The Peace Conference of the Sea of ​​Compassion

The next two days were very interesting.

Right now, everyone except Xiao Chen and Zhang Shouquan has a lot of things to do.

However, two tea parties and two cocktail parties were held in succession.

The locations were all coincidentally set on the outskirts of the island.

The group dispersed, forming small groups, and enjoyed the different scenery while chatting and exchanging feelings.

After the initial getting to know each other and reminiscing about past hardships and present happiness.

In their conversation, everyone touched upon the future of the Ocean of Compassion to some extent.

This will inevitably include the upcoming peace conference and the various proposals that may emerge during the conference.

"Master Xiao, you don't seem very interested in this?"

Zen Master Fazhao reminded everyone, "Almost everyone has submitted their preferred proposals, and some have even submitted more than one."

“I heard from my senior that it seems you are the only one who hasn’t participated yet.”

"Because I heard that Layman Lüshuang will arrive tomorrow morning, the final deadline is tonight."

"If Mr. Xiao wants to participate, he should definitely not miss this opportunity."

This conference not only broadened the range of participants but also solicited opinions from all fourth-level cultivators in advance.

Even True Lord Lüshuang submitted three proposals through True Lord Yunwo.

The order will be roughly arranged by Zen Master Jingchen before the conference, and then the votes will be conducted in turn.

"Oh, everyone has submitted it?"

Xiao Chen was somewhat surprised by this: "I don't have anything to say myself, but I'm just curious about one thing. That is, Fellow Daoist Zhang actually participated as well?"

He had actually thought about this problem as well.

But I really couldn't come up with any suitable proposals.

First and foremost, it must be made clear that this is not a request for you to make a wish.

According to what Xiao Chen knows, all proposals must receive more than half of the votes in favor to pass; otherwise, it's as if they're just empty words.

Therefore, if he were to ask for tens of millions of spirit stones or dozens of fourth-tier spirit materials for free.

That would mean neither gaining majority approval nor receiving anything.

Of course, given Xiao Chen's current connections, if he asked for fewer spirit stones, perhaps no one would object.

But upon closer reflection, it's not worth incurring several favors for a small amount of spirit stones.

"I only saw Zhang Jushi come out of my fellow disciple's courtyard in the morning."

Zen Master Fazhao explained, "Therefore, I guessed that he might have gone to submit a proposal."

"But perhaps there's something else going on."

This certainly cannot be openly admitted; it must be personal speculation.

Xiao Chen didn't care about this statement. He was just more and more curious. Zhang Shouquan was also a rogue cultivator like himself. What kind of proposal could he possibly have?
However, there's no need to rush this matter; the outcome will become clear after the conference.

I strolled around the edge of the island and had a couple of cups of fourth-tier spiritual tea.

Xiao Chen then bid farewell to everyone and returned to the side hall to begin his cultivation, absorbing the spiritual energy from the tea.

Cultivation is no easy task.

Even absorbing a little bit of spiritual energy took him almost three hours.

However, spiritual tea also has one advantage: it can refresh the mind.

Even though Xiao Chen had been cultivating for half a day, he didn't feel tired at all.

Instead, it felt like I had just woken up from a long, restful sleep, leaving me feeling refreshed and invigorated.

If he could endure the monotony, he could continue cultivating like this for months or even years, which is what is commonly referred to as closed-door cultivation.

However, tonight is not a peaceful night either.

Then they heard footsteps approaching in the distance.

Then came three light taps: "Fellow Daoist Xiao, is it still convenient for us to talk now?"

"I have an urgent matter to discuss with you beforehand."

Ok?
Oh!
Upon hearing the person's voice, Xiao Chen blinked and immediately thought of the events of the night before last.

Immediately afterward, a thought popped into my head—could it be that there are more spiritual items to take?

So he immediately called out, "Has Fellow Daoist Heming arrived? Please come inside and talk!"

Xiao Chen can now distinguish the True Lords of the Daoist sect by their voices with a high degree of accuracy.

Of course, the other person has to speak normally too, not in a strained voice.

"Squeak~!"

Crane Cry True Lord pushed open the door with his left hand and walked in sideways, carrying a wooden tray covered with red silk in his right hand.

As soon as I entered, I took two steps forward and placed the items on the table.

Behind him followed True Lord Ziyang, who was responsible for turning back to close the door again.

"Haha, Fellow Daoist Xiao, you may have heard some rumors lately."

As was his habit, True Lord Crane Cry began with a preamble, then got straight to the point: "I know you don't like all that beating around the bush, so I'll get straight to the point."

"The previous invasion by the sea creatures was sudden, and they occupied many islands."

"Although the great demon has been driven away, some of the places that have been occupied for a long time have probably become no-man's lands."

"Many of these places contain spiritual veins, and it would be a waste to leave them empty."

“For example, Little Prajna Island in the north. My junior brother and I discussed it and felt it was a good place to go.”

"I came here tonight hoping to gain Fellow Daoist Xiao's vote of support at tomorrow's peace conference."

Wow, he's definitely being quite direct.

Xiao Chen understood immediately and realized why he had seen True Monarch Crane Cry traveling around and carrying out activities before.

So it turns out that Chongzhen Temple wants to share a fourth-order spiritual vein.

That makes sense. Although the area around the Sea of ​​Compassion is vast, fourth-order spiritual veins are indeed very rare.

Previously, the island where Chongzhen Temple was located was only supported by a third-order spiritual vein.

Normally, they can only increase the concentration of spiritual energy to sustain their cultivation by going deep into the core of the spiritual vein and using large-scale spirit-gathering arrays.

Although the spiritual energy concentration has been effectively increased thanks to the spiritual energy surge in the past two years, it is temporarily sufficient to supply the Nascent Soul True Monarch for cultivation.

But it still felt a bit cramped.

Moreover, for a prestigious Nascent Soul sect to have such cultivation conditions is indeed beneath its dignity.

"I'm afraid the other side won't agree, will they?"

Xiao Chen did not express his opinion directly, but instead asked, "I seem to have heard that several Arhats from the Little Prajna Temple broke through the blockade of the fish and escaped."

“There should still be people remaining in Pudu Temple today.”

"On the other hand, the other place seems to be completely deserted."

Strictly speaking, only the Kuji Temple suffered the worst, with not a single Arhat surviving.

It's practically a complete extinction of their lineage. Even if a few low-level disciples manage to escape death, it's unlikely they'll be able to rise again in the future.

If that's the case, why not choose the easier Kujakuji Temple instead of going north?

Hearing this, True Monarch Crane Cry showed no surprise, perhaps because he had heard similar questions before, or perhaps he had expected it.

He first nodded slightly: "Indeed, several disciples from the Little Prajna Temple did break through the encirclement."

"I even asked around and found out that they were originally stationed outside, responsible for guarding a fourth-tier spirit mine."

"Unexpectedly, things took an unexpected turn, and we were trapped inside a fourth-order formation by the school of fish."

"They held out for a while, but were forced to break through due to a shortage of mid-grade spirit stones."

"Fortunately, the distance was far enough, and there was a forward outpost from Lianhua Temple to provide support along the way, which is why I survived."

"It's a pity that the most talented disciple in the spirit mine and the head of the academy in charge of mining were trapped by a school of fish during the breakout and died."

"Those who survived in the end were all peripheral disciples, and their generation names were quite far back."

Heming Zhenjun said it was a pity, but there was no trace of sadness on his face.

He casually pulled out a spiritual contract from his sleeve and unfolded it: "This is a consent form with the handprints of the two Arhats who left here."

"Each person will receive a breakthrough spiritual item in exchange for a fourth-tier spiritual vein and permanent access to Little Prajna Island."

what?
A single breakthrough item sold a fourth-tier spiritual vein?

But Xiao Chen could understand. If it were an ordinary disciple, they might not be interested in rebuilding the temple and would care more about the spiritual items they could directly obtain.

Moreover, objectively speaking...

Even if the people sent to the Storm Sea are called back, it is impossible to expect that a few golden Arhats can protect a fourth-order spiritual vein that has lost its protective mountain formation.

The cultivation world is so vast; you never know which hidden corner might produce a Nascent Soul cultivator.

Unless you catch them in the act, things can get complicated.

In other words, this allows Chongzhen Temple to conduct a transaction at a low price.

That's not all!
Xiao Chen immediately realized that such a transaction with an ordinary disciple would not be recognized by the outside world.

Let alone ordinary disciples, even true disciples probably wouldn't be qualified to represent their sect in such a transaction.

However, if we can take advantage of this peace conference and directly pass this spiritual contract as a proposal...

That would mean that all the parties involved in the conference acted as witnesses.

This is what recognition truly means!

It directly resolves all legal issues!

"In that case, it really is a good opportunity."

Xiao Chen sincerely offered his congratulations: "Then I would like to congratulate your sect on your housewarming in advance."

"Don't worry about the vote, I will definitely raise my hand in favor."

Upon hearing this, True Monarch Heming smiled and said, "Thank you for your kind words, Fellow Daoist Xiao!"

"I knew it. With your righteous character, you wouldn't refuse."

"Therefore, I had prepared a gift in advance before I came."

As he spoke, he reached out and lifted the red silk covering the wooden tray on the table.

What was revealed was a small, earthen-yellow square that had been placed there beforehand, along with a spirit contract.

"When we shared spiritual materials last time in the Shallow Sky Sea, Fellow Daoist Xiao seemed to have a particular fondness for defensive spiritual materials."

Crane Cry True Lord introduced them one by one: "This item is called Earth Core Soil. It is most suitable for reinforcing defensive spiritual objects, or for adding earth-type artifact patterns to the outside of spiritual objects."

"I reckon Fellow Daoist Xiao should be able to use it."

"As for the spirit contract below, it's just an extra."

"I mainly wanted to ask fellow Daoists for help, as I wanted to express my gratitude, but I don't have enough spirit stones on hand."

"Therefore, one-tenth of the output from the Cold Iron Spirit Mine in the north will also be given to Fellow Daoist Xiao."

"It's not worth much money in total, just a small token of my appreciation. I hope you won't find it offensive."

Earth core soil is also one of the more well-known fourth-tier spiritual items.

Judging from its size, its value is even higher than the combined value of the previous four millennium-old mystic crystals, making it a truly valuable gift. Furthermore, Xiao Chen had also seen the cold iron spirit mine to the north on the sea chart.

And coincidentally, it was the same fourth-tier spirit mine that those disciples of the Little Prajna Temple had been responsible for guarding.

It is said that it can produce about one million spirit stones worth of fourth-grade cold iron ore on average each year, and one-tenth of that is 100,000 spirit stones.

On its own, its value is indeed not high.

But the advantage of this kind of thing often lies in its slow and steady growth.

Considering the average age of a Nascent Soul True Monarch, even if they live for six or seven hundred years, they can still earn a total of sixty or seventy million spirit stones.

The longer you live, the more benefits you will receive.

As an accompanying gift, it is by no means a small amount.

It's worth mentioning that this is a written contract that clearly states a guaranteed fixed percentage of profits.

Even if production falls short in a particular year, dividends must be paid out according to the guaranteed minimum amount first. If that's still not enough, Chongzhen Temple will need to take money from its warehouse to make up the difference.

In other words, if Xiao Chen needs cash in the future, he can use this spiritual contract as collateral to borrow money from other sects.

Alternatively, if the other party has sufficient funds, they could sell it directly for over ten million.

Of course, this may not be the case in the next few years, since after three years of hard work, everyone is not rich in cash.

At the same time, you can immediately see many places where you need to spend money.

In short, Xiao Chen once again obtained a fourth-tier spiritual item for free, and also received a fixed dividend with no time limit.

At the same time, Chongzhen Temple also successfully garnered a vote of approval.

It can definitely be described as a win-win situation!

After we finished getting down to business, the rest was just some pointless pleasantries.

After chatting for about half an hour, feeling that it was about time, True Lord Heming took his leave and departed with True Lord Ziyang.

Xiao Chen noticed that the direction they left in was different from the direction they came from.

It looks like they're going to visit the next place.

But that's not something he needs to worry about.

"It's actually a spirit contract from the north. There's no going back now."

Xiao Chen returned to the table and studied the contents of the spirit contract: "In that case, if they can't get the spirit mine in the north tomorrow, then I won't get any dividends."

"If we are willing to share more of it, that would really be a good way to unite the front."

However, in reality, True Monarch Crane Cry only prepared this one spiritual contract.

Because Chongzhen Temple has many disciples and the next generation, they consider the overall expenditure when making decisions.

Therefore, when dealing with Zhang Shouquan, they would rather offer two or three million spirit stones at once to negotiate than give him such long-term dividends.

Half-full is not acceptable, no discussion.

Another night has passed that many people haven't slept.

When dawn broke the next day, Xiao Chen looked at the white light shining outside the window and felt a little disappointed.

He then meditated and cultivated himself for a whole night, but surprisingly, no other guests came.

But it's alright if we don't sell any; selling three tickets is pretty good too.

As a man of his word, Xiao Chen got up and went straight to the Wuyou Temple.

By this time, thanks to the tireless efforts of many Buddhist disciples working day and night to repair the structure, a magnificent and elegant Guanhai Tower had been erected outside the gate.

That's right, this conference was not held inside Pudu Temple, but was deliberately brought to the outside.

Firstly, the Mahavira Hall, which was originally the most suitable place, is not convenient to use due to the evil energy.

Secondly, the original spacious Bodhi altar in the temple had been damaged in the battle.

Thirdly, this conference is extraordinary.

Although Pudu Temple is vast and has many well-preserved buildings, it would not be suitable for such a place elsewhere.

So they simply built a nine-story viewing tower outside the temple gate.

Although no-fly zone restrictions have not yet been set up upstairs.

However, Xiao Chen still chose to slowly walk from the first floor to the top, enjoying the different scenery along the way.

To be honest, when you compare them, you can see the most scenery by standing on the top floor and looking into the distance.

It evokes the idea of ​​"to see a thousand miles further, climb to a higher level."

Xiao Chen even saw sails slowly rising on the distant sea.

The spirit ship of Yuntao Sword Pavilion has arrived.

Now that everyone is present, the peace conference can proceed smoothly.

However, since True Lord Lüshuang was relatively inactive before, many newly promoted True Lords have never seen him.

Therefore, the process of introducing themselves to each other is naturally indispensable.

After recognizing each other, everyone proceeded to the top floor in an orderly fashion and took their seats at the pre-assigned tables and chairs.

Xiao Chen had counted the seats once when he was sightseeing before. There were a total of 24 sets of seats, which were arranged in a circle.

In the very center of the circle, there is a small square platform, about two feet high.

There was only one table on the stage, and four stacks of proposals of different heights were already laid out on the table.

By the way, it's worth mentioning that there are actually many cultivators qualified to enter the ninth level.

Not only fourth-level cultivators, but each cultivator can also bring up to three disciples with them.

Of course, there were no seats prepared for the disciples upstairs, so they could only stand behind their seniors and watch.

This group of people is actually quite important.

If nothing unexpected happens in the future, at least five fourth-level cultivators will emerge from among them.

Even if the others never break through to the next level, they can still gain considerable power within their own sect and easily become powerful elders.

Bringing them here is a way of witnessing and valuing them.

After everyone had arrived, Zen Master Jingchen of Pudu Temple slowly walked to the very center.

He doesn't have a seat; his task today is to act as the host in the middle.

After all, this place is right at the entrance of Pudu Temple, so he can be considered half a master here.

"Amitabha!"

Zen Master Jingchen first put his hands together in prayer and loudly proclaimed a Buddhist chant.

He also seemed to have intentionally incorporated some kind of technique.

Upon hearing this, all the Golden Core disciples present trembled, their expressions shifting from tension and excitement to relaxation and tranquility.

Even the other fourth-tier cultivators seemed to be slightly affected.

However, Xiao Chen felt nothing and could only speculate in his mind.

"Gentlemen, I am honored by your presence today. On behalf of Pudu Temple, I extend my greetings!"

Immediately afterwards, Zen Master Jingchen turned around and bowed to everyone.

Then he began to recount the sea creature invasion from the beginning: "Today we have gathered here together to celebrate a great victory!"

"Thinking back to three years ago...blah blah blah."

"In the most critical moment...blah blah blah."

"Finally, we achieved final victory and gained invaluable peace."

"That is why we are holding this conference today, in order to deal with all kinds of problems, whether they are accumulated in the past or currently faced, in a peaceful manner."

"This will eliminate unnecessary disputes and bring stability and prosperity to future generations."

This one conversation lasted almost two hours.

It wasn't until 2:45 PM that the lecture was finally finished.

Moreover, even this is a version that Zen Master Jingchen has repeatedly simplified.

Fortunately, none of the people present showed any impatience or said anything to spoil the atmosphere.

Xiao Chen, too, seemed to be listening attentively.

Although in reality, he had already been lost in thought for a long time.

This seemingly focused absent-mindedness could even be considered one of his special talents.

"Now, let's cut to the chase and get straight to the point."

Zen Master Jingchen finally picked up the first proposal: "The first proposal to be voted on today is one that I myself have put forward."

"Its main content is a supplement to the rules of the peace conference."

"If everyone agrees, all the following proposals will be voted on by the twenty-five people present, one vote each."

"All proposals must receive more than thirteen votes in favor and fewer than eight votes against to pass."

"If there are more than eight dissenting votes, the proposal will be postponed for further consideration, and the next proposal will be voted on first."

"Now, please raise your hand if you agree with this supplementary rule!"

After speaking, Zen Master Jingchen was the first to raise his right hand.

what?
Xiao Chen was somewhat surprised, as this was quite different from what he had vaguely known before.

Shouldn't it be either pass or oppose?

Why is there now another step that's been put on hold?

What surprised Xiao Chen even more was that most of the True Monarchs seemed to show expressions of surprise or astonishment in an instant.

But soon, they all raised their hands to express their agreement.

The Buddhist monks, in less than half a breath, all expressed their agreement.

Then it was the Taoist side, which, after a delay of about two or three breaths, also raised their hands in agreement.

In other words, this rule was likely added by Zen Master Jingchen on the spot without prior discussion.

However, it received unanimous support from everyone.

To be honest, Xiao Chen was a little puzzled.

It should be noted that although there were 25 people present, the Buddhist side, including the presiding monk Master Jingchen, only had 10 people.

Even excluding his and Zhang Shouquan's individual votes, the Taoist sect still had a total of thirteen members.

This means.

If they can unite and vote according to the rule of thirteen votes in favor without this additional rule, they can pass or reject almost any proposal.

However, this is where the interesting part comes in.

From the perspective of the overall interests of the Buddhist community, they would certainly agree to add the new rule of eight veto votes.

Moreover, one can realize that this is the optimal solution almost without thinking.

Surprisingly, the True Lords of the Daoist sect, after careful consideration, all raised their hands in support of adding a new veto rule.

They voluntarily relinquished and transferred some of their rights to the past.

Moreover, without prior communication or exchange, they almost simultaneously made the same choice.

(End of this chapter)