I run a casino in the immortal realm.

Zeng Feng's giant airship disappeared completely into the sky.

The oppressive atmosphere on the main peak plaza of the Qingyun Sect was instantly broken.

"This is outrageous! They just take two billion spirit stones like they're nothing, do they think they're easy money?!"

The Second Elder was so angry that he trembled all over.

"We need another three thousand elite troops! We just lost over two thousand men in Blood Soul Valley. If we send another three thousand, the Azure Cloud Sect won't even have enough disciples to guard the mountain gate!"

Another elder loudly echoed.

Xu Zhengkun stood there, silent. He turned around, looked at the agitated crowd, and coldly uttered two words: "Disperse."

The voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable authority. The disciples and deacons in the square exchanged glances, and in the end, they could only lower their heads and disperse.

Xu Zhengkun turned and walked into the main hall of the peak. Su Chenyuan and several core elders followed closely behind.

The palace doors slammed shut.

Xu Zhengkun walked to the center of the main hall, raised his right hand, and punched the purple-gold stone pillar next to him.

"boom!"

The incredibly hard purple-gold stone pillar was instantly covered in cracks, and pebbles fell down in a flurry. Blood seeped from the back of Xu Zhengkun's hand, but he was completely unaware.

"Sect Master, please calm your anger."

Su Chenyuan stepped forward and whispered words of comfort.

"Calm down?"

Xu Zhengkun turned his head, his eyes bloodshot: "I really want to order the activation of the sect's protective formation and fight the Xuantian Sect to the death! But I can't."

He took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

"Our strength doesn't allow it. Zeng Feng brought four Nascent Soul cultivators here only as a warning. The Xuan Tian Sect's foundation is too deep. Just one of the Grand Elders, Qin Cang, with his Nascent Soul Great Perfection cultivation, could wipe out our entire Qing Yun Sect by himself. How can we resist?"

The hall was deathly silent. Everyone knew the cruel truth: in the world of cultivation, might makes right.

The Xuantian Sect is the absolute overlord of the Southern Wilderness Region. In their eyes, the Qingyun Sect is just a goose that lays golden eggs.

Su Chenyuan sighed and asked, "Sect Master, we've paid the 2 billion spirit stones, but what about the 3,000 elite troops? Where are we going to conjure up 3,000 people in half a month?"

Moreover, it would require a thousand Foundation Establishment cultivators and five Golden Core elders. If the entire sect's resources were poured into this, the Qingyun Sect would be utterly destroyed.

Several elders looked at Xu Zhengkun, their eyes filled with anxiety.

Xu Zhengkun walked to the sect leader's throne and sat down. He took out a clean white silk handkerchief from his storage ring and slowly wiped the bloodstains off the back of his hand.

"Who said we were going to send our own disciples?"

Xu Zhengkun countered with a question.

Everyone was taken aback.

Su Chenyuan frowned slightly: "Zeng Feng's decree clearly states that he requires the Qingyun Sect to send troops. If we are perfunctory, the Enforcement Hall will definitely use this as an excuse to make trouble."

"What he wants are people, combat power. As long as it's under the banner of our Qingyun Sect, what difference does it make who goes?"

Xu Zhengkun threw the blood-stained handkerchief on the table, a cold smile curling at the corner of his lips: "That brat Yifei caused such a commotion in Tianmo City, it certainly served as a reminder to me."

Upon hearing Zheng Yifei's name, Su Chenyuan's eyes flickered.

"Yifei once told me something before he left: 'If something can be solved with spirit stones, then it's not a problem.'"

The Second Elder looked puzzled: "What does the Sect Master mean?"

"Spend money, hire people."

Xu Zhengkun uttered four words.

He stood up, walked to the sand table of the Southern Wilderness in the center of the main hall, and pointed to the location of Xuantian Market.

"What is the Southern Wilderness Region least lacking? It's rogue cultivators. Those low-level rogue cultivators will risk their lives in the Demon Beast Forest for a few low-grade spirit stones. They lack cultivation techniques, resources, and spirit stones, but they certainly don't lack a worthless life."

Xu Zhengkun traced a line across the sand table, his voice rising in intensity: "Pass on my order! Immediately utilize all pages of the *Qingyun Daily* to issue a 'Recruitment Order for Exorcising Demons and Defending the Righteous Path' to the entire Southern Wilderness!"

"As long as you are willing to join the Qingyun Sect's volunteer army and go to the front lines of Blood Soul Valley, Qi Refining stage cultivators will receive a settlement allowance of 500 low-grade spirit stones and a monthly military pay of 200; Foundation Establishment stage cultivators will receive a settlement allowance of 2,000 spirit stones, a monthly military pay of 1,000, plus a mid-level Yellow Rank cultivation technique!"

"If they die in battle, the compensation will be doubled and paid directly to their families. All spirit stones will be paid on the spot, without any delay!"

Upon hearing this, a collective gasp filled the hall.

"Sect Master, how many spirit stones will this cost?"

The second elder, who was in charge of finances, quickly calculated in his mind, his expression changing slightly: "Three thousand people, the resettlement fees alone are a huge sum, plus the monthly expenses, it's simply a bottomless pit!"

"Are we short of money?"

Xu Zhengkun interrupted him.

The second elder opened his mouth, but no words came out.

The Qingyun Sect is indeed not short of money right now.

In the past two years, the speed at which the Qingyun Sect has amassed wealth can only be described as terrifying.

As the premier gambling den and entertainment center in the Southern Wilderness, Mirage Casino generates millions of spirit stones in net profit every day.

The Qingyun Daily monopolized public opinion, and various chambers of commerce lined up waving spirit stones in order to get their articles published in the newspaper.

In addition, the logistics system covering half of the Southern Wilderness region generates an astronomical figure in commissions from the daily shipments.

Two billion spirit stones would be a devastating blow to other sects, but for the Qingyun Sect, it would only be a minor setback.

"Money can be earned back, but if people are gone, the foundation of the sect is broken. We have plenty of spirit stones now, but we lack time."

Xu Zhengkun's tone was somewhat agitated.

A glint of light flashed in Su Chenyuan's eyes: "Sect Master's 'money paves the way' strategy is indeed brilliant. A generous reward will surely attract brave men. As long as we offer enough spirit stones, let alone three thousand people, even thirty thousand, those rogue cultivators will scramble to sign up."

The Xuantian Sect needs cannon fodder, and rogue cultivators are cannon fodder too. As long as the numbers and cultivation levels match, Zeng Feng can't find any fault with them.

"Not only that."

Xu Zhengkun sneered: "We also need to publicize this in a big way, package this team as the 'Southern Wilderness Righteous Path Loose Cultivator Volunteer Army,' so that the whole world knows that it is our Qingyun Sect that provides the money and the loose cultivators that contribute their strength to fight against the demonic path."

If Qin Cang dares to make things difficult for us at this time, he's slapping the face of all the rogue cultivators in the world.

The elders nodded in agreement, their eyes rekindling with hope.

"As for the five Golden Core elders..."

Xu Zhengkun looked at Su Chenyuan: "Fifth Elder, you are most familiar with the situation in Blood Soul Valley. I can only ask you to make another trip. While you recuperate there, I will send people to deliver spirit stones and spirit medicines to you regularly."

"You'll lead the team. I'll also select four high-level magic treasures from the sect's treasury and hire four rogue Golden Core cultivators as guest advisors. As long as the money is right, there's bound to be some old monsters nearing the end of their lifespan who want to leave something for their descendants willing to lend a hand."

Su Chenyuan clasped his hands in a deep fist salute: "This old man will certainly not fail in his mission."

The meeting set the tone, and the Qingyun Sect's massive war machine immediately sprang into action.

The elders acknowledged the order and withdrew to arrange the recruitment matters.

Only Xu Zhengkun and Su Chenyuan remained in the main hall.

Xu Zhengkun walked to Su Chenyuan's side and patted him on the shoulder: "Fifth Elder, come with me."

The two walked to the depths of the main hall, where Xu Zhengkun cast an extremely complex spell, and the ground slowly cracked open, revealing a stone staircase leading underground.

Su Chenyuan followed Xu Zhengkun down the stone steps. The passage was inlaid with fist-sized luminous pearls on both sides, illuminating the ground as bright as day.

After walking down for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the view suddenly opened up.

This is an extremely large underground cavern, with an area equivalent to ten main peak plazas. At the center of the cavern, an underground spiritual vein radiating rich spiritual energy is firmly locked by an array.

Su Chenyuan's pupils suddenly contracted.

Inside the cave, three thousand teenagers sat cross-legged in neat rows.

The oldest of these boys was no more than fifteen or sixteen years old, and the youngest was only a little over ten. They were all dressed in black, tight-fitting martial arts uniforms, and were breathing exercises with their eyes closed.

The dense spiritual energy formed small vortexes above their heads.

Su Chenyuan swept his divine sense across the area, and his heart was filled with shock.

These three thousand youths were all at least at the fifth level of Qi Refining! Among them, the first few dozen had even reached the ninth level of Qi Refining, just one step away from Foundation Establishment!

"Sect Master, this is...?"

Su Chenyuan's voice trembled.

"This is the future of the Qingyun Sect."

Xu Zhengkun looked at the young man below, his eyes gleaming with fervor: "Two years ago, when Yifei proposed the three major industry plans, I began to lay the groundwork."

"The Xuantian Sect has always treated us like dogs, feeding us until we're slightly fattened up before draining our resources. If we want to survive and truly stand up, we must have our own foundation."

Xu Zhengkun pointed at the boys: "These children are all orphans that I secretly collected from ordinary towns and villages all over the Southern Wilderness. They are extremely talented, have no ties, and are absolutely loyal to the sect."

I provided them with the best cultivation techniques and the finest elixirs, allowing them to cultivate day and night in this underground spiritual vein.

"Half of the spirit stones earned from mirages and daily newspapers were spent on them."

Furthermore, all two thousand-plus elite disciples you arranged to return are housed in the secret base in the back mountain, where they are being trained at great expense; they are all potential Golden Core cultivators.

Su Chenyuan took a deep breath. He finally understood where the Qingyun Sect's huge cash flow had gone.

Xu Zhengkun turned to look at Su Chenyuan, his gaze sharp: "Fifth Elder, patience is painful, but it is a price that must be paid. Xuantian Sect wants money, I will give it; they want people, I will buy them."

"What we need to do is use spirit stones to buy time. At most, in twenty years, all of these children will have reached the Foundation Establishment stage, and all of the other two thousand will have reached the Core Formation stage. At that time, we will have the strength to break free from the control of the Xuantian Sect."

Su Chenyuan looked at Xu Zhengkun and felt a deep sense of awe.

The sect leader's usual forbearance and concessions were all for the sake of this grand "Hidden Dragon Plan".

"I understand."

Su Chenyuan bowed deeply: "Even if it costs me my life, I will fight on the front lines to buy enough time for the sect."