"You... you have selfish motives! You'll never master Spoken Law Follows this way."

"What selfish motives? I'm being completely sincere. The Sect Leader said that when you do something, you must face your true inner thoughts..."

...

The two young Taoists each clung to their own opinions.

Lin Bai, with his sharp eyes and ears, heard their conversation clearly. He glanced back, a slight smile playing on his lips.

Yes, that's exactly the effect I wanted. When everyone takes it seriously, even a false cultivation method becomes real. If they fail, they'll look for reasons within themselves. After all, only one person can ultimately master the Law. It's only natural for the selection criteria to be stringent when thousands vie for a single spot.

...

Not long after, the commotion caused by Lin Bai and Dao Xu alerted many people.

Players and Taoists alike gradually emerged to see what the excitement was about.

"Senior Brother?" Daojing looked at the raging Dao Xu, completely bewildered, and asked impulsively, "Have you regained your senses?"

"Daojing, you've come at the right time! Quickly kill this fiend! Otherwise, he will undoubtedly lead our Return to Dragon View to ruin," Dao Xu exclaimed, seeing Daojing as his savior. "Let alone whether he can defeat the Evil Five Sects, even the Heavenly Dao Sect wouldn't allow anyone to seize a sect subordinate to the Right Seven Sects!"

"Senior Brother, the world is so beautiful. We should remain calm, appreciate the sunrises and sunsets, and enjoy the world's prosperity." Dao Kong glanced at his Senior Brother, quickly scribbled on a piece of cardboard, and after a moment, held it up. "Senior Brother, stop making a fuss. The Law is the true path."

Due to the numerous preparations for the upcoming campaign, Daojing found it troublesome and temporarily gave up practicing Spoken Law Follows. Dao Kong, however, did not.

Whether he could master the Law was secondary; the key was that he felt he could temper his willpower by practicing Spoken Law Follows...

"To hell with your Law! Do you really think this brat will teach you all the secrets?" Dao Xu saw the cardboard sign, his nose practically twisting in anger. "In the end, you'll just be his stepping stones!"

"Keep trying to deceive everyone, and I'll make you streak naked before both armies on the battlefield," Lin Bai said calmly.

[Rage from Dao Xu; +1+1+1]

"Sect Leader, you've already helped him regain his senses. Why provoke him further?" Daojing looked at Lin Bai, puzzled, and shook his head. "I can help persuade him. If you are willing to contribute to this battle between Righteousness and Evil..."

"Elder Daojing, please don't try to persuade him anymore," Little White Fox interrupted Daojing, explaining, "Master is in the seventh stage of practicing Spoken Law Follows..."

"What is the seventh stage?" Daojing asked reflexively.

"To enrage the opponent with a single sentence." Little White Fox, true to Lin Bai's habit of answering any question, revealed this without a second thought of concealing it. I can't hold Master back.

"So that's how it is!"

Many Taoists who had been provoked by Lin Bai suddenly understood. They stopped trying to dissuade him and instead looked at him with admiration, pricking up their ears to memorize his words, hoping they could use them when they reached that stage themselves.

As for Dao Xu's feelings... being used by Sect Leader Lin to practice Spoken Law Follows is probably his honor, right?

...

Seeing his own disciples and grand-disciples abandon their support for him because of Little Fox's words, Dao Xu felt a tightness in his chest. He looked around; everything felt so alien, as if he were a monkey on display for a crowd.

He tried to control his emotions but couldn't, no matter what. Dao Xu's blood rushed to his head. "You bunch of fools! Ignorant of the disaster you're bringing upon yourselves! You'll all face retribution one day!"

"Dao Xu, at least they still have the chance to cultivate the Law," Lin Bai continued, unperturbed.

"Aargh!" Dao Xu cried out in agony, clutching his head as he squatted on the ground, furious, desperate, and as helpless as a child.

...

"Jade Young, we shouldn't oppose Lin, the Storekeeper, anymore," Lady Hua Xi said, her face pale. She swallowed, moistening her dry throat. "I think he's capable of anything. To become the Heavenly Dao, he's already gone mad."

"Mm," Qing Yu nodded. "Now I actually hope he becomes the Heavenly Dao sooner. Otherwise, if this continues, he'll surely become a great Devil's Head, a menace to the world. Why did the Righteous Door release him in the first place?"

"To confront the Descended, I suppose!" Lady Hua Xi sighed.

"The Descended weren't driven away by him, and it looks like the Cultivation World will be destroyed by him first," Qing Yu said, his face contorted in pain.

"Jade Young, let's cultivate the Love Principle!" Lady Hua Xi said suddenly, looking from Dao Xu to Lin Bai.

"Lin Bai said we are Puppets and cannot cultivate the Law," Qing Yu said.

"I don't believe what he said," Lady Hua Xi declared. "Let's try! We can't cultivate normally anyway. What if we can break free from Lin Bai's control by relying on the Law? After all, Lin Bai himself said that between heaven and earth, the Law is supreme..."

"Yes!" Qing Yu nodded firmly.

...

"Too cruel." Dragon Breath gulped and silently started a live broadcast. Lin, the Storekeeper, definitely held back in the Novice Village. Otherwise, given how ruthless he is with Dao Xu, I probably would have deleted my account and started over by now.

"..." Dumbelldore silently mourned having such a master. What happened this morning was my own fault. Who told me to walk right into the line of fire?

"If we reach that stage someday, who can we practice on?" I'm Not an Alt Account asked blankly. "Compared to provoking people, 'spreading warmth' is way too easy. I used to think the first stage of cultivating Spoken Law Follows was the hardest, but it turns out each stage is harder than the last!"

"We can only practice on NPCs. Players will get used to this; it'd be weird if they still got provoked," Crazy Man mused, silently watching the frenzied Dao Xu. "But practicing on NPCs is risky. Hidden Skills are definitely not easy to get. Can the server directly detect our emotional fluctuations? Isn't that like invading our brains?"

Dragon Breath gulped. "If the server can invade our brains, does that mean it can read, delete, or even alter our memories? Could the game company even kill us whenever they want?"

"..." Several Players froze simultaneously, exchanging uneasy glances. Their expressions were grim.

"They wouldn't dare!" said No.1 Sword Immortal.

"Maybe the game company judges our current emotions using brainwaves," I'm Not an Alt Account suggested. "Brainwave measuring devices can do that."

"It can't be like what they're saying on the forums, can it? That the game company wants to destroy the world this way, trapping us all in the game?" Iron-Headed Immortal exclaimed. "Suddenly, I don't feel like playing this game anymore."

"We're all just common people. I don't think it'll be an issue for us," Silver said. "If it were really that dangerous, the government would have stepped in long ago to stop the game company from growing this big. Maybe it's a new technology, first tested in games before being applied to other aspects of life. As for reading memories? I think in this world, there's not much privacy to begin with..."

"That makes sense," Crazy Man said with an awkward laugh. "Thinking about it that way, there's really nothing to be scared of."

"Exactly! It's just a game; there can't be that many conspiracy theories," I'm Not an Alt Account said, relieved. He gestured towards Lin Bai with his chin. "If we really did get trapped in the game, it might actually be a good thing for us. After all, we're pioneers, and we have such a powerful backer."

"Right, right! Let's just focus on playing. If the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up! So many corporations are preparing to enter the game, what do we have to fear?" Silver chuckled. "At least for now, I earn more in the game than I do in the real world. For that reason alone, I'm not quitting."

...

Silver was right. When it came to making money, the Beggar Gang was unparalleled. After all, Lin Bai's dazzling and audacious maneuvers made Players from other Novice Villages seem dim and lackluster in comparison.

Even a large organization like the Deer Mountain Group couldn't catch up to the Beggar Gang in a short period.

Entering a new world without a flagship product, how easy could it be to penetrate the market?

During these few comfortable days for Lin Bai, the Deer Mountain Group, leveraging its financial power, had taken control of a Novice Village. However, without a powerful protector like Lin Bai, developing solely through economic means was proving difficult.

「These days.」

The Deer Mountain Group had sent some core members to Yinmu City to learn from various Cultivation Sects around Zhen City. Their aim was to expand the Deer Mountain Group's influence in the Cultivation World. They deliberately publicized the perceived threat of Lin Bai and the Beggar Gang, trying to incite these sects to go to Qian City and confront Lin Bai. Alternatively, they hoped the sects would report the issues concerning Return to Dragon View to the Heavenly Dao Sect, thereby giving the Deer Mountain Group a chance to connect with the world's highest authorities.

However, these sects clearly didn't take the words of these Descended seriously. They were more inclined to capture the Descended, aiming to use them to increase their disciples' loyalty and enhance their own sect's power...

Faced with this, the Deer Mountain Group was at a loss.

Compared to the vast Cultivation Sects, their influence was minimal.

Moreover, they dared not send too many people into the Cultivation Sects. They faced the same problem as the Beggar Gang disciples: sects hidden deep in remote mountains and old forests were detached from the secular world. Leveling up within such a sect did little to aid the Group's overall expansion.

Once those Players' Levels increase, who knows how far ahead the Beggar Gang will be again!

Their rivals were soaring ahead while they were crawling like snails. The leaders of the Deer Mountain Group were incredibly frustrated. Why couldn't every Novice Village be assigned an aggressive NPC like Lin Bai?

Especially when news of Lin Bai's Qian City Cup emerged.

Advertisers, sponsors, and public attention were all rapidly drawn to Lin Bai. The key leaders of the Deer Mountain Group were driven nearly mad, wishing they could traverse mountains and rivers to sabotage the so-called Qian City Cup and utterly destroy the Beggar Gang's reputation...

"Continue lobbying the upper echelons of the sects. Use every means possible to get them to make a trip to Qian City, even if they arrive late." Lu Group· Lu President assigned the tasks with a grim face. "They must be made to realize the threat Lin Bai poses."

"President Lu, what if Lin Bai fails?" Lu Jiao hesitated before asking.

"Do you think that's likely?" Lu Group· Lu President scoffed. "Have we made any progress in recruiting from the Beggar Gang? Is anyone willing to join our group?"

"Some have shown interest," Lu Rong replied. "But most are still observing, and many are unwilling to oppose Lin Bai. President Lu, should we increase our offer?"

"No need. Just maintain contact," President Lu waved his hand. "The saying goes, 'The mountains are high and the emperor is far away.' Lin Bai is currently Like the Midday Sun; those recruits won't be of much use now. When we possess strength comparable to Lin Bai's and it's time to confront the Beggar Gang directly, that's when they'll truly be valuable."

...

The Beggar Gang acted quickly.

「That same day.」

Simple leaflets were distributed in large numbers.

News of the 'Qian City Cup' spread through every street and alley of Qian City.

Within half a day, the upcoming war between Immortals and devils became the talk of Qian City, hotly discussed by everyone.

The leaflets distributed by the Beggar Gang detailed the backgrounds, Taoist Law, and Martial Arts of the Righteous Five Sects and the Evil Five Sects. They also stated the reasons and objectives for the Righteous Door hosting the Qian City Cup...

For the first time, the typically aloof Cultivation World was reaching out directly to the common populace.

The Players from the Beggar Gang employed a rather playful tactic.

On the leaflets, they included a questionnaire titled: 'Vote for Your Ideal Cultivation Sect!'

The questionnaire featured a variety of peculiar questions, such as:

"If you were given a chance, which sect would you like to join?"

"Do you think Immortal Techniques should be popularized among the common folk?"

"In this war between Righteousness and Evil, who do you think will win?"

"If an Evil Sect attacks the city, would you feel safer under the protection of the City Guard Army, the Righteous Door, or the Beggar Gang?"

"In the future, for ranking competitions among Immortals, how much would you be willing to pay to watch?"

"Do you think the Hundred Flower Valley will join the war?"

"Do you think the Morning Yuan Sword Sect will participate in the war?"

...

The questionnaire offered rewards. Anyone who completed it and submitted it to the Beggar Gang's ballot boxes would have a chance to win an exquisite prize after the great battle.

Through this method, excitement for the righteous versus evil war was thoroughly ignited.

...

"That young rascal! Is he trying to hold my Qian City over the fire?" Guo Yuan's hair and beard bristled with anger as he slammed the table heavily. "He's going to throw the whole world into chaos!"

"City Lord, what should we do?" the Scholar asked with a wry smile.

"Mobilize the City Guard Army! Prepare the Destroy Immortal Artillery! Be ready to activate the city's defensive formation at any moment to prevent the Evil Five Sects from getting enraged and slaughtering the city. Let those bastards fight it out in the mountains and forests outside the city!" Guo Yuan ordered. "Close the gates and refuse all visitors. If the sect leaders of the Evil Sects come seeking an audience, tell them I am gravely ill and cannot receive guests. Help me grind ink; I must write a letter to Duke Zhenguo. This Lin Bai is beyond what the Commandery Princess and I can manage."

...

"Lao Gu, did we stir up too much commotion?" Crispy Rice asked Lonely Old Man. "Lin, the Storekeeper, won't blame us, will he?"

"Too much?" Lonely Old Man shook his head. "I think it's not enough! Crispy Rice, you need to understand the temperament of our Storekeeper Lin. If he can make something big, he'll never settle for small. Remember what he said? 'Cultivation offers no benefit to the common people.' He wants to promote the Righteous Door, make it down-to-earth, and integrate with the populace. Our Storekeeper Lin is very likely planning to shift the Righteous Door's development focus to the common people."

"The common people?" Crispy Rice was stunned.

"Yes, the common people," Lonely Old Man nodded. "The Cultivation World has always been aloof. For Storekeeper Lin's Righteous Door to break this mold, it must find a new path. I suspect Storekeeper Lin wants to ally with the Taiyi Country and bind them to his warship."