Chapter 149: Unable to Wait

While Wang Li established his cozy home with his two Daoist companions within the Pure Yang Secret Realm, the outside world, unable to locate him, was practically on the verge of boiling over.

Countless gazes were fixed on Wang Li's condition, waiting for his divine soul to recover and for him to emerge from the tomb.

The commotion he had caused upon walking out previously was immense, directly undergoing the heavenly tribulation to ascend as a Celestial Immortal. Far too many people had witnessed it. Those who had waited for over a century rushed eagerly toward the Pure Yang Temple, only to find no trace of Wang Li. How could they not be anxious?

The establishment of the Transmission and Sacrifice Hall had consumed an enormous amount of manpower and material resources. Everyone's objective was crystal clear: first, to verify the existence of the collective willpower of all living beings; and second, to find a way to harness this immense power to break through the restrictions of the world's rules and pursue a higher level of power, rather than seeking breakthroughs by venturing outside the realm.

Better to be the head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix.

No one was willing to take risks by venturing into the unknown outside. If higher goals could be achieved within their own world, why leave?

Moreover, they knew nothing about the situation beyond their world. For the top-tier cultivators of the Heavenly Mystery Realm, the risks of leaving were simply too great, making a breakthrough within their native world the most desired outcome.

Wang Li had given them hope, and they were desperate to see the results of his experiment.

On the third day after the completion of the immortal cave, the bigwigs from several super sects came knocking.

They could not wait.

They urgently wanted to have a thorough discussion with Wang Li.

Naturally, Wang Li's peaceful and happy life being disrupted did not put him in a very good mood.

However, given that this concerned the grand scheme he shared with Old Master Sheng, he suppressed the resentment in his heart, carved out an independent spatial realm, and held a conference with the various grandmasters.

Wang Li spoke first: "That senior has already departed, and I am now taking over his arrangements. Do any of you have any objections?"

Cutting straight to the point, Wang Li deliberately distanced Old Master Sheng from the matter.

He wanted to test whether these powerful figures harbored any hidden agendas, and whether they would attempt to pressure him with their sheer influence.

True Monarch Sky-Eye stated: "Whether that fellow Daoist is here or not is of no concern to me. I only care about how effective the willpower cultivation method he left behind actually is, and what level it can achieve."

Mo Di nodded in agreement: "Old man shares the same sentiment. Can Daoist Friend make the cultivation method public?"

"I simply want to know whether our Ghost Deity Sect can utilize this willpower cultivation method."

"If this willpower does not conflict with our cultivation techniques, the Corpse-Taming Sect is willing to continue cooperating with the various sects in gathering the willpower of all living beings. If this power proves useless to us, we will withdraw and no longer invest in the Transmission and Sacrifice Hall."

Ji Tian and Daoist Xie Ke only cared about whether the willpower cultivation method suited them.

They were essentially holding out for a better offer. Maintaining the vast Transmission and Sacrifice Hall required no small expense, and if they couldn't reap any benefits, they would pull the plug immediately.

They would certainly not engage in thankless, unrewarding labor.

Wang Li did not sense any oppressive intent from them, which put his mind considerably at ease.

He began: "Let me first explain the characteristics of the collective willpower of all living beings. In essence, it is simply another form of manifestation of energy, sharing no fundamental difference from the spiritual Qi and primordial heaven-and-earth Qi that you all cultivate. It is merely that we previously lacked the appropriate methods to harness this energy, leading to a vast amount of it being wasted. That senior received your assistance while he was in this world, and this willpower cultivation method is his repayment to you all."

He glanced at Ji Tian and Daoist Xie Ke: "As for whether the power of willpower will clash with the secret arts of your two sects... the two of you need not worry. I will modify the technique according to the characteristics of your respective sects, allowing both of you and your disciples to freely cultivate using willpower."

"This includes demon cultivators and the demon race as well; they can also cultivate using willpower. In fact, as long as a being possesses sentience, they can endure the baptism of willpower."

"That is good to hear."

"With those words, this old man is reassured."

Ji Tian and Daoist Xie Ke nodded in satisfaction.

"That's all well and good, but I wonder if there are any restrictions on the cultivation method Daoist Friend is imparting?" Daoist Xie Ke asked.

"There are indeed some limitations," Wang Li explained. "The collective willpower of living beings cannot be absorbed directly; it requires collection and transformation before it can be utilized for cultivation."

"The Transmission and Sacrifice Hall and the Heaven's Pride Billboard together form a simple willpower absorption system. However, its efficiency is not particularly high, and it needs to be overhauled and redesigned."

"Yet, there is only one Heaven's Pride Billboard. How could it possibly suffice for so many of us?" Qiu Wanli raised his doubt.

King Dongshan also chimed in: "Does Daoist Friend have other ways to gather the willpower of all living beings?"

Wang Li waved his hand, signaling the grandmasters to remain calm.

"The reason the Heaven's Pride Billboard can serve as a bridge for absorbing and gathering willpower is that it inherently forms a part of the world's rules. As long as we figure out this specific component of the world's rules, we can mass-produce willpower-harvesting devices similar to the Heaven's Pride Billboard."

Wang Li continued: "Before those harvesting devices are completed, there are actually three items that can serve as mediums in the meantime."

"What three items?" the crowd asked with anticipation.

"The Pure Yang Alarm Bell, the Karma-Slicing Sword, and the Carefree Heavenly Scripture!"

Wang Li declared: "They also originate from the World Will. You may discuss among yourselves; if both the righteous and demonic factions are willing to contribute these three sacred artifacts, we can re-establish three additional willpower collection and conversion systems akin to the Transmission and Sacrifice Hall. I have calculated that, combined with the Heaven's Pride Billboard, these four systems will be sufficient to support one thousand True Immortal realm powerhouses and one hundred Celestial Immortal realm powerhouses."

"Additionally, cultivators below the Earth Immortal realm had best not come into contact with the collective willpower of living beings too early; it will entangle them in too much karma. Once the karmic entanglement becomes too severe, it will be exceedingly difficult to guarantee a smooth passage through the celestial tribulations."

"The matter of the three sacred artifacts and the allocation of willpower require you all to discuss privately. Once a consensus is reached, you may come find me again. I shall remain within the Pure Yang Secret Realm and will not leave for the next decade."

Wang Li prepared to adjourn the meeting after finishing his words, but Chihuang interrupted him.

"Daoist Friend, what about the demon race side? Sovereign Kun and the others also contributed a great deal to the construction of the Transmission and Sacrifice Hall."

Chihuang worriedly stated: "As far as I know, the demon race possesses no sacred artifacts. If we allocate a share of the willpower to them, a large number of demons will inevitably enter human territory, which will trigger numerous problems at that time."

"If we do not grant benefits to the demon race, Sovereign Kun and his peers will undoubtedly be dissatisfied, potentially sparking conflict between humans and demons once again."

"Has Daoist Friend considered how to resolve this?"

Wang Li chuckled: "So Daoist Friend was worried about the affairs of the demon race?"

Chihuang replied: "They exerted effort and even proactively showed goodwill toward humankind; we cannot simply act without integrity."

"Who said the demon race has no sacred artifacts?" Wang Li countered.

Everyone was momentarily stunned.

Was it not common knowledge that the demon race lacked sacred artifacts?

If the demon race possessed sacred artifacts, how could they have been marginalized by the cultivation world in the first place?

Wang Li stated: "The demon race indeed possesses no supreme sacred artifacts comparable to the Karma-Slicing Sword, the Pure Yang Alarm Bell, or the Carefree Heavenly Scripture. However, they do possess the favor and blessing of the World Will, which is quite enough to establish a set of willpower-gathering apparatuses there."

"I shall discuss this matter with the demon race separately; you all need not worry. Sovereign Kun is actually quite easy to talk to."

Upon hearing these words, the expressions of several grandmasters turned exceedingly strange.

Sovereign Kun was easy to talk to?

Wang Li must have been talking in his sleep!

Nonetheless, none of them bothered to remind Wang Li.

There were simply too many secrets shrouding Wang Li; it would be just right to let Sovereign Kun test the waters and probe his true depth.