CHAPTER 259: CHAPTER 254 TRANSMISSION HALL! DIVINE SKILL: MIRROR FLOWER WATER MOON!_1

The Insect External Incarnation was responsible for tallying the harvest, while Jia Ren, unable to wait any longer, took the Technique Demon Pill Alchemy Recipe and returned to Qingzhu Island to refine Elixirs.

Having just obtained a large amount of Corpse Demon Sect resources and with an abundance of Spiritual Medicine, he could use them to improve the Proficiency Level of the Technique Demon Pill.

The higher the quality of the Technique Demon Pill, the better. He didn’t want to encounter problems while practicing the Star God Art and suffer severe negative effects. It would be best to refine Elixirs of Master Level or above before consumption.

With abundant resources at his disposal, he could afford to be extravagant.

"Island Master, Star Pole Island has just been established and requires your guidance."

Before leaving, the Insect External Incarnation handed over the Magic Artifacts used to contact the three Deputy Island Masters of Star Pole Island.

「In three days’ time,」 Star Pole Island established its regulations and then contacted him.

The Insect External Incarnation arrived at the largest island, Wanling Island, which was officially renamed Star Pole Island.

The three Deputy Island Masters experienced great power for the first time and tasted the flavor of authority.

Keen to make their mark, they rallied the islanders to start work on constructing the Sect.

In addition to Cultivators, the Qunxing Archipelago was home to many ordinary people, numbering seventy to eighty thousand, most of whom made their living on Wanling Island and other large islands.

Bustling figures could be seen everywhere on Star Pole Island, with a large number of ordinary people recruited to work alongside Cultivators in building the Sect, presenting a scene of bustling activity.

"Island Master, you’ve finally arrived!"

Upon seeing the arrival of the Insect External Incarnation, the three Deputy Island Masters promptly abandoned their tasks and hurried over to show their loyalty.

"There’s no need to make such a fuss; Star Pole Island doesn’t need to be too grand. A Foundation Establishment Cultivator can be a master of one island, holding the position of Steward on Star Pole Island and staying on their own island on a day-to-day basis."

The Qunxing Archipelago was a mixed bag; forcibly gathering everyone together would only make it easier for problems to arise. Divided rule also allowed for a period of adjustment and room for buffering.

"Divided rule on the Qunxing Archipelago grants too much freedom and power. It’s not conducive to unifying the power of the Sect Master..."

"Shut up and just do as the Island Master says."

One of the Deputy Island Masters, who had voiced his concern, wanted to rebut this, but he was interrupted by the other two.

"Gather the Foundation Establishment Cultivators of the Qunxing Archipelago. I have important matters to discuss with them."

As Island Master Xingji, Jia Ren still didn’t know how many Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining Cultivators there were on Star Pole Island...

「Half an hour later,」 over fifty Foundation Establishment Cultivators from the Qunxing Archipelago, including Zhang Peng Peng, had gathered, each with a look of unease on their faces.

Among the Foundation Establishment Cultivators on the Qunxing Archipelago, less than half were Loose Cultivators. Many were Foundation Establishment Cultivators who had caused trouble in other Sects and fled here for refuge. There were also some who were notoriously... Bizarre Cultivators. There were not many of good nature.

The Insect External Incarnation didn’t mind, for he had absolute strength to suppress the Qunxing Archipelago. He commanded five Golden Core Level Flying Stiffs and over ten thousand Corpse Refiners. Moreover, his achievements included slaying Golden Core cultivators and repelling the Corpse Demon Sect. Though not a Golden Core cultivator himself, he was superior to Golden Core Cultivators by a significant margin.

He sat commandingly in the temporarily constructed main hall, his gaze sweeping over the more than fifty uneasy Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

"I don’t care what your identities were before. From today on, you are part of Star Pole Island."

"Anyone who dares to betray Star Pole Island, I will pursue them to the ends of the earth and sea."

The Insect External Incarnation issued a warning to deter them and to make his stance clear. Relying on threats alone wasn’t enough; they would ultimately be disjointed without cohesion. To ensure Star Pole Island had a cohesive force, what was more important was having shared interests, understanding that managing Star Pole Island well would bring more benefits.

"I have just obtained the resources of the Corpse Demon Sect and need to deal with them."

"I’ll leave this matter to you Stewards to take care of."

"You will act as my agents in selling Magic Artifacts, Elixirs, Demonic Beast Materials, Talismans... You may all take a share of the profits, up to thirty percent..."

This was the classic tactic: a rebuke, followed by a reward. After all, if you want others to work for you, you have to offer benefits.

Receiving thirty percent of the profits wasn’t easy; there were three tiers in total. The third tier required no threshold and received ten percent of the profits. At the second tier, after selling ten thousand Spirit Stones’ worth of goods, subsequent profits would be twenty percent. At the first tier, after selling one hundred thousand Spirit Stones’ worth of goods, subsequent profits would be thirty percent.

"A fifty percent deposit is required to take the goods. The remaining balance can be settled later."

Jia Ren didn’t fully trust the people of Star Pole Island. With them paying a fifty percent deposit, even if they absconded with the treasures, his losses wouldn’t be too great. The treasures of the Corpse Demon Sect were being sold on consignment and would not be priced too high; there would be profit for them to make.

Everyone looked at each other in disbelief, seriously questioning their own ears. They felt that Star Pole Island was more like... a merchant guild.

It was understandable that Xu Yi, having killed many Corpse Demon Sect disciples, would want to sell off a large number of Magic Artifacts and Elixirs. Selling at normal prices would yield at least a ten to twenty percent profit. How could they pass up a deal that could so easily earn Spirit Stones?

Each Foundation Establishment Cultivator tentatively took treasures worth between one thousand and ten thousand Spirit Stones. In this way, a large quantity of Demonic Artifacts and Elixirs were handed out, netting Jia Ren over one hundred thousand Spirit Stones in initial payments.

"Star Pole Island can’t be without a Transmission Hall. The Cultivation Techniques and Secret Techniques of the Corpse Demon Sect will be introduced to Star Pole Island and can be borrowed using Sect contributions."

"For each Cultivation Technique and Secret Technique not already on Star Pole Island, depending on the grade, you can exchange it for three to ten equivalent Secret Techniques and Cultivation Techniques from our collection..."

Jia Ren had founded Star Pole Island with the initial idea of contending with the ’Corpse Demon Sect’ and disposing of Magic Artifacts. However, not long ago, a new idea had sparked in his mind.

The Cultivation Techniques and Secret Techniques of the Foundation Establishment Cultivators on Star Pole Island! Seizing them by force definitely wouldn’t work; that would only alienate them. What’s more, he might only end up with incomplete or flawed Cultivation Techniques and Secret Techniques. The solution was the Star Pole Island Transmission Hall—an exchange offering several equivalent-ranked secret techniques and cultivation techniques for each one submitted! All he had to do was release most of the Corpse Demon Sect’s secret techniques and cultivation techniques, offering them in exchange for the techniques held by other cultivators. The Loose Cultivators of the Qunxing Archipelago mostly had incomplete inheritances and no avenues to purchase cultivation techniques or secret techniques. How could they possibly miss such a golden opportunity? The Corpse Demon Sect certainly possessed secret techniques they desired. If they wanted to obtain them, their only option would be to exchange secret techniques not yet present in the Transmission Hall. This move would make them willingly hand over their cultivation techniques and secret techniques. They would even proactively search for more techniques and cultivation methods on behalf of Star Pole Island! Over time, the collection of inherited knowledge on the islands would grow richer and richer. And as the Island Master, the number of cultivation techniques and secret techniques he could choose from would continuously increase. As the creator of Star Pole Island’s rules, the contribution points required for exchanges... naturally wouldn’t be a concern for him!

"The secret technique treasury of the Corpse Demon Sect? Three to ten times the same rank of secret techniques?"

All Foundation Establishment Cultivators’ eyes shone brightly at this tangible benefit.

How could the cultivation techniques and secret techniques of ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivators possibly compare to those of a thousand-year-old Sect? This was an excellent opportunity to compensate for their deficiencies in cultivation techniques and secret techniques!

Many people were willing to join Star Pole Island; aside from being forced onboard, their other motivation was to seek these cultivation techniques and secret techniques.

"This special treatment is only available at the initial opening of Star Pole Island. Once this period is over, the highest exchange rate will be three techniques of the same rank."

As a qualified capitalist, Jia Ren knew exactly how to quickly empty their pockets and extract every last one of their cultivation techniques and secret techniques.

"I am willing to contribute to Star Pole Island’s Transmission Hall! I wonder, what cultivation techniques and secret techniques are available for exchange?" a cultivator asked eagerly.

Jia Ren took out the Transmission Jade Slips he had prepared earlier, which recorded ninety-nine percent of the secret techniques of the Corpse Demon Sect and most of the secret techniques and Spells he had learned. Those not included in the records—meaning the Cultivation Techniques, Spells, and secret techniques he hadn’t learned—could be exchanged for three to ten times the equivalent secret techniques and Cultivation Techniques from his list.

The Star Pole Hall became abuzz with activity, as a Foundation Establishment Cultivator eagerly inscribed Jade Slips, offering up his privately-held Cultivation Techniques and secret techniques, which he’d never revealed before...

「In just half a day,」 a vast number of previously unrecorded secret techniques and powerful Spells were collected.

Secret techniques and cultivation methods that people used to beg ardently for, spending fortunes in Spirit Stones without success, were now being eagerly presented right before his eyes. They feared that if they were even a step too slow, someone else would beat them to it, submitting the same secret technique first and causing them to miss this golden opportunity. If the same Cultivation Techniques, secret techniques, and Spells were registered on the record, the ones you held would no longer be worth as much...

The increase in Cultivation Techniques wasn’t significant; the over fifty Foundation Establishment Cultivators practiced common techniques, yielding only thirteen Foundation Establishment Cultivation Techniques. The cultivation limit of these techniques was Foundation Establishment Completion, without a subsequent Golden Core Chapter.

However, the secret technique Jade Slips gave him a considerable surprise.

Divine Skills? Jia Ren wondered if he had misheard.

The Jade Slip contained the record of an incomplete Divine Skill: Mirror Flower Water Moon.

"This is a Divine Skill Jade Slip I obtained while exploring an Ancient Cave Dwelling with others," the cultivator explained, "but unfortunately, this Divine Skill is incomplete..."

Divine Skills were powerful abilities that only Golden Core Cultivators could cultivate; they were beyond the reach of those at the Foundation Establishment Stage. Only the Water Moon part of Mirror Flower Water Moon remained, with the Mirror Flower part lost, rendering it somewhat useless. Mirror Flower Water Moon was a complete Divine Skill; Mirror Flower was its beginning and Water Moon its end. Since the Mirror Flower part was missing, this Divine Skill was uncultivatable even if acquired for free, rendering it of little practical value.

The exchange of secret techniques offered by Star Pole Island greatly tempted the cultivator, and after some hesitation, he still brought forth this Divine Skill. Exchanging an unusable, incomplete Divine Skill for usable secret techniques seemed like a guaranteed win, no matter how he looked at it.

"Ten top-notch secret techniques," Jia Ren declared. He was not stingy, presenting the highest reward. Paying dearly for a horse’s bones was a way of showing commitment – he welcomed all comers for secret techniques and Divine Abilities.

Unfortunately, aside from the incomplete Mirror Flower Water Moon, no other Divine Skills appeared.

Once the collection of secret techniques for the Transmission Hall was complete, a total of thirty-six new Spells and seventy-four entirely new secret techniques were acquired, a harvest far exceeding expectations.

Star Pole Island appointed one Island Master and three Deputy Island Masters, with nine Elders below them, establishing the Five Halls of Formation, Alchemy, Magic Artifact, Talisman, and Corpse Refinement. Duties and authority were delegated, letting each functional division govern itself. Rules and rewards were established, building a system unique to Star Pole Island.

"The future of Star Pole Island will depend on your efforts, fellow Daoists," Jia Ren announced to the newly appointed personnel.

Within three days, everyone had left Star Pole Island with smiles on their faces. Previously, they only regarded Star Pole Island as a temporary force against the Corpse Demon Sect, but now, they truly felt a sense of belonging. In any power structure, the privileged class was never too poorly off.

"It’s finally over... What a hassle!" Jia Ren thought as the administrative work concluded. The scramble for positions and authority had been a noisy affair. After joining Star Pole Island, they all expected to gain more power. The positions of the three Deputy Island Masters were not very stable, as they had only Foundation Establishment Early Stage strength. If they hadn’t been the first to pledge loyalty, it would have been impossible for them to secure the position of Deputy Island Master. While the Island Master was present, they wouldn’t show their ambitions. However, when it came to the distribution of power, they struggled to secure useful positions and were almost sidelined.

Rivalry over others’ authorities was fierce, but the position of Island Master remained unshakeable. Without Xu Yi, the Qunxing Archipelago might have already perished, and there would be no Star Pole Island as it is today.

Jia Ren didn’t care much for power; he didn’t want to waste his energy on power struggles and daily trivialities. In his absence, the three Deputy Island Masters could act on behalf of the Island Master, managing Star Pole Island together.

"It’s best to leave the management of Star Pole Island to others. I’ll just be a hands-off leader, focusing on the overall direction."

"As long as I possess absolute strength, I don’t need to fear being sidelined by others."