Courtyard House: Time Traveler Not Yet a Ghost

He Damin's discovery of the change in fortune was purely accidental.

That day, he was a guest at the Qingyun Sect, enjoying tea with the sect leader on the Cloud-Viewing Platform. The platform was built atop Qingyun Peak, with a bottomless abyss below. Clouds swirled like cotton wool in the valley, occasionally revealing the sharp tips of dark rocks. Above them stretched an endless blue sky, as blue as a freshly washed cloth, with a few white clouds drifting lazily by. The sect leader, a ruddy-faced, plump man wearing a Taoist robe embroidered with Qingyun patterns, toyed with a purple clay teapot in his hand, pointing to the distant mountains and rivers, and said with considerable pride, "Senior He, look at this vast expanse; it is all within the sphere of influence of my Qingyun Sect. Those dynasties are merely tools for us to manage mortals."

He Damin held his teacup; the tea was the Cloud Mist Tea, unique to the Qingyun Sect. The emerald green leaves unfurled in the water, releasing a fragrant aroma. His gaze swept across the sea of ​​clouds, landing in the direction of the capital cities of those dynasties. From such a distance, mortals couldn't see them with the naked eye, but he was a cultivator, his eyesight exceptional. He saw pillars of fortune rising from the cities of mortals, some as thick as buckets, others as thin as chopsticks, their colors varying—some bright yellow, some tinged with red, and others hazy gray. Strangely, half of this fortune didn't remain within the dynasties, but instead flowed like streams into a great river, meandering and flowing towards the various sects. The stronger the sect, the more fortune flowed, like a greedy child greedily devouring its share.

"Sect Leader, why is the fortune of those dynasties flowing to our sect?" He Damin took a sip of tea and asked casually.

The sect leader chuckled twice, his fat face trembling. "Senior He, you may not know this. Which dynasty in this world wasn't built up with the support of a sect? When an emperor ascends the throne, our sect must give his approval and bestow upon him the imperial seal. Any major events in the court, such as wars or reforms, must be discussed with our sect first. They use our sect's cultivators as national protectors and rely on our name to stabilize the people. Naturally, half of their fortune should be shared with us. This is the rule, and it has been like this for tens of thousands of years."

He Damin nodded and didn't ask any further questions. But in his heart, it was like a pot boiling over, with thoughts bubbling up. So this is how the world works. Sects are like big landowners, and the dynasty is their tenant. They have to pay half of the grain (luck) they grow as rent.

Back in the valley, He Damin gathered his disciples under the old pomegranate tree in the courtyard. The tree was quite old, its branches and leaves lush and verdant, providing ample shade in the summer. The twelve disciples, young and old alike, sat cross-legged on the grass, their backs ramrod straight, waiting for their master to speak. Lin Feng was the most clever, his eyes blinking rapidly; Tie Zhu was the strongest, like a small iron tower; Hai Ling'er was the only female disciple, pretty and thoughtful.

"Do you know what the most powerful force in this world is?" He Damin asked, pacing back and forth in front of them with his hands behind his back.

Lin Feng was the first to raise his hand and answer: "Master, it's the sects. Like the Qingyun Sect, the Canglang Holy Land, the Qinglian Holy Land, and all those other sects, big and small. They have many disciples and many experts."

"And what about the imperial dynasty?" He Damin asked again.

Tie Zhu scratched the back of his head and said in a muffled voice, "Imperial Dynasty? Isn't the Imperial Dynasty just an appendage of the sect? I heard from the people in the town down the mountain that even the emperor has to listen to the sect and send them a lot of good things every year."

He Damin nodded and stopped walking. "That's right. The dynasty is just a vassal of the sects, and half of their fortune is taken by the sects. So they will never grow up and can only depend on others and be at the mercy of the sects."

Hai Ling'er seemed thoughtful, then asked softly, "Master, do you mean...we should go help the Imperial Dynasty?"

"It's not about helping," He Damin waved his hand, then suddenly slapped his thigh. "I want to establish a sect! A sect that truly belongs to us! One that doesn't rely on the dynasty's fortune, and doesn't depend on any power. We'll be in charge ourselves, independent and self-reliant, and we can look down on the world with pride!"

The disciples looked at each other, somewhat bewildered. Establishing a sect? That was no joke. They needed a mountain gate, right? They needed cultivation resources, right? They needed disciples and inherited cultivation techniques. Although the He family had lived in this valley for several years, with food and drink, and their cultivation had been improving, they were still far inferior to those large sects with thousands or even tens of thousands of disciples and thousands of years of history.

"Master," Lin Feng frowned, "are we strong enough right now? Look, there are only twelve of us..."

He Damin smiled, squatted down, and patted Lin Feng on the shoulder: "Not enough. But we can take it slowly. We're not in a rush, we'll take it one step at a time. You have to eat one bite at a time, and walk one step at a time."

He walked to the pomegranate tree, reached out and touched the rough bark, looking at the towering tree: "From today onwards, you must cultivate even more diligently. When you all have the strength to stand on your own, to refine pills, forge weapons, and set up formations on your own, then we will establish our own sect!"

Upon hearing this, the disciples' eyes lit up, and they responded in unison, "Yes, Master!" Their loud voices startled several sparrows in the tree, causing them to flutter away.

In the days that followed, the valley became quite lively. The disciples were working like they were on steroids, each one giving it their all. Lin Feng toiled day and night in the alchemy room, the furnace hissing and steaming, the fragrance of pills filling the entire valley—sometimes a bitter medicinal scent, sometimes a sweet fruity aroma. Tie Zhu clanged and banged away in the weapon-refining workshop, his hammer swinging like a windmill, sparks flying everywhere; sometimes, you could hear him straining and pounding away in the middle of the night. Hai Ling'er buried herself in studying formations, her table piled high with yellow paper and cinnabar for drawing talismans, drawing one after another, leaving scraps of paper scattered all over the ground. He Damin watched all this, his heart filled with sweetness. But he also knew that the disciples' hard work alone wasn't enough. The sect needed a mountain gate, spiritual veins, and a solid foundation. All these things had to be prepared in advance. In fact, he had already chosen a location in his mind.

In the central part of the Xuan Tian Continent lies a mountain range stretching for thousands of miles, called Tianzhu Mountain. He had visited that place once before during his travels; the spiritual energy was so dense it seemed to permeate the air, and even a single breath felt incredibly refreshing. Moreover, the terrain was treacherous, with peaks rising higher and higher, like pillars firmly planted in the ground, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack—truly a feng shui treasure land for establishing a sect. However, this excellent location remained unclaimed, as several surrounding sects were eyeing it, vying for it fiercely, and none succeeded, leaving it unclaimed. He Damin decided to establish his sect on Tianzhu Mountain.

He greeted Chen Xueru, and the two of them, riding the wind, soared into the sky in a flash. The scenery below rushed past, and the mountains and rivers shrank rapidly. After flying for most of the day, they finally arrived at Tianzhu Mountain. Standing atop the highest peak, they looked down at the rolling mountains, like waves, with clouds and mist swirling in the valleys. When the sun shone on them, they shone golden—a truly beautiful sight. He Damin was filled with excitement and boundless pride.

"Xue Ru, what do you think of this place?" He turned to ask Chen Xue Ru beside him.

Chen Xueru, dressed in a plain white dress, stood in the mountain breeze, her hair swaying slightly. She looked around, nodded, and her eyes sparkled: "What a wonderful place. The spiritual energy is much denser than in our valley. Look over there, there's even a spiritual spring. The terrain is also treacherous, with only a few narrow paths leading up; it's truly easy to defend and difficult to attack."

"This is it!" He Damin slapped his thigh and descended from the sky, starting his work on the mountaintop. He was going to set up a super array to protect the entire Tianzhu Mountain. He took out a large pile of array flags, array plates, and spirit stones, running around the mountain peak, planting array flags in specific locations, burying array plates, and embedding the glittering spirit stones into the cracks in the rocks. The array's range covered the entire mountain range, its base using the spiritual veins of Tianzhu Mountain itself, and its core a palm-sized black array plate he had personally crafted, covered with densely packed runes. After working for a full day and night, the array was finally complete. He channeled a stream of true essence into the core, and with a "hum," the entire Tianzhu Mountain trembled. The sky darkened instantly, dark clouds rolled in, lightning flashed, and the surrounding spiritual energy surged into the mountain like madmen, forming visible vortexes of spiritual energy. Cultivators within a radius of a thousand miles sensed this powerful fluctuation and flew out of their homes to look towards Tianzhu Mountain.

Standing atop the mountain, He Damin channeled his true energy, projecting his voice far and wide: "This place already has an owner! I am He Damin, a rogue cultivator. From this day forward, Tianzhu Mountain is the location of the He family sect. All irrelevant people, retreat immediately, lest you bring trouble upon yourselves!"

The sound was like thunder, making the ears of many low-level cultivators ring. A few, skeptical and confident in their abilities, tried to seize territory and charged into the mountain on their flying swords. He Damin glared at them, casually waved his hand, and without using any powerful magic, the cultivators were sent flying hundreds of miles away with their swords, crying out in pain. They were completely disoriented and never dared to approach again. From then on, Tianzhu Mountain remained peaceful, and no one dared to provoke it again.

With the mountain gate in place, the next step was to build the buildings. He Damin pulled things out of his Yin-Yang Space, a bottomless pit filled with all sorts of treasures he had collected over the years. Large blocks of bluestone, sturdy redwood, sparkling glazed tiles… a huge pile of them. Standing atop the mountain, he formed hand seals and chanted incantations. The building materials seemed to have grown legs, flying up and assembling themselves on the mountain peak with a clanging sound. In just a few days, the halls were completed. The main hall was the most magnificent, towering over ten zhang high, with carved beams and painted rafters, and two dragon-carved stone pillars standing at the entrance. Next to it were side halls for the disciples to live in; there was also a scripture pavilion, which would later store cultivation techniques and secret manuals; alchemy rooms, weapon forging rooms, array formation halls, and talisman halls, all built according to the disciples' specialties; behind them was a spirit plant garden, specifically for growing spiritual herbs; and a beast taming garden, for raising docile demon beasts. In any case, whatever other sects have, their He Family Immortal Sect must have too; nothing can be missing. He Damin also transplanted many spiritual plants from the original valley, such as hundreds-year-old ginseng and he shou wu (Polygonum multiflorum), as well as that old pomegranate tree, which he dug up and planted in front of the main hall. He also went to the Demon Beast Forest to capture some low-level demon beasts, such as snow-white jade-faced foxes that look like little rabbits, and groundhogs that guard the house, all of which he raised in the Beast Taming Garden to let them reproduce on their own.

The disciples also moved from the valley. Standing in the brand-new sect, looking at the tall halls and neat courtyards, their eyes widened, and tears welled up in their eyes with excitement. Lin Feng touched the newly built alchemy furnace in the alchemy room, his hands trembling slightly; Tie Zhu looked at the gleaming tools in the weapon-refining room and chuckled; Hai Ling'er ran to the spirit plant garden, looking at the lush green spiritual herbs, and happily spun around.

"Master, what's the name of our sect?" Lin Feng ran over and asked, his eyes shining.

He Damin thought for a moment and decided that the simpler the better: "Let's call it the He Clan Immortal Sect. It's simple, direct, and everyone will know it's from our He family."

The disciples all nodded, agreeing that the name was quite good. The He Clan Immortal Sect was officially established from this day forward.

With He Damin becoming the patriarch, he no longer needed to manage specific affairs; his role was simply to guide the disciples and guide them in the overall direction. Chen Xueru became the matriarch, overseeing the sect's logistics, cooking for the disciples, mending clothes, and so on. Everyone affectionately called her "Grandma Xueru." The disciples also had their own responsibilities: Lin Feng managed the pills, Tie Zhu managed the magical artifacts, Hai Ling'er managed the formations and talismans, and several other disciples were responsible for recruiting new disciples. Although they hadn't recruited many yet, they were at least setting up the framework. Although the He Clan Immortal Sect was newly established and had few members, it was well-organized inside and out, already showing signs of becoming a major sect.

But He Damin hadn't forgotten his true goal. Establishing a sect was only the first step; what he truly wanted was to build an empire—an empire belonging to souls like his, reincarnated from China. Those who, like him, came to this world carrying memories of Earth, needed a home of their own, an independent empire free from sect control. Only then could they truly establish themselves in this world, and pass on the civilization of China, instead of being assimilated by the sectarian culture of this world.

So, as soon as the sect's affairs were settled, he went to find Li Zhi.

Three hundred years have passed, and Li Zhi is no longer the carefree prince who spent his days loafing around in the palace. Thanks to the "Lying-Down System" and the occasional secret guidance and resources from He Damin, his cultivation has reached the Great Ascension stage, making him one of the top experts in the entire Li Dynasty and the de facto ruler. The old emperor has long since retired from official duties, and all the officials, high and low, obey him. However, he has never declared himself emperor because he knows that as long as he remains under the sect's control, being emperor is meaningless; he would merely be a puppet, constantly subjected to humiliation.

He Damin flew directly to the capital of the Li Dynasty, swaggering into the palace and arriving at the imperial study. Emperor Gaozong (Li Zhi) was reviewing memorials, dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe, his hair tied back with a jade hairpin. He looked much more mature and dignified than before. He looked up, saw He Damin, paused for a moment, then smiled and quickly stood up: "Senior He, long time no see! What brings you here to see me?"

He Damin sat down in the chair opposite him, and a maid quickly brought tea. "You knew all along that I was secretly observing you?" he asked, taking a sip of tea.