Big Data Cultivation
Chapter 901 - Chapter 901 Chapter 901 Talking about Compensation (2nd

Chapter 901: Chapter 901: Talking about Compensation (2nd Update) Chapter 901: Chapter 901: Talking about Compensation (2nd Update) Any Daoist Sect has its own tenets to uphold.

Dong Zenghong didn’t think the Spirit Gathering Array was bad, but the strength of the Ghost Valley Sect lay in strategy. Without its own uniqueness, simply knowing how to cultivate, how would Ghost Valley differ from other Daoist Sects?

Therefore, the destruction of the Destiny Plate dealt him a considerable blow. It was fortunate that he was the Heir of Ghost Valley, able to control his emotions fairly well; another person might not have been able to bear it.

“The Ghost Valley doesn’t prioritize cultivation…” Feng Jun pondered for a moment, roughly understanding the other’s meaning.

Although he didn’t agree with the viewpoint, he still asked without changing his expression, “Then what do you want?”

“What do I want?” Dong Zenghong pondered and then shook his head with frustration, “To tell you the truth, I also don’t know what I should want, it’s really somewhat difficult… If it’s not too much trouble, can you tell me what other options I might have?”

Feng Jun smiled, “I have many good things, really a lot, and in fact, I’m not lacking in Magical Treasures at all, which might be different from what you think… I can’t possibly tell you everything.”

After pausing for a moment, he continued, “I am quite curious though, since you say the Ghost Valley doesn’t prioritize cultivation, can you tell me how old Patriarch Wangchan lived to be?”

Dong Zenghong was stunned for a moment before shaking his head, “The Patriarch definitely achieved success in cultivation, but he is most famous for his strategy.”

“Now you are being obtuse,” Feng Jun shook his head disapprovingly, “Let me put it this way, an old person doesn’t necessarily have strong strategy, but one who cannot live long, no matter how strong their strategy, they lack experience… Strategy and cultivation are not opposites.”

Dong Zenghong nodded swiftly, “The senior speaks the truth, I agree with this point.”

Seeing that he was receptive, Feng Jun continued, “Living longer allows one to see further… If one’s intelligence isn’t too deficient, and the higher one’s Cultivation Level, the deeper one sees into everything.”

“I don’t quite agree with that,” Dong Zenghong shook his head, “If the Cultivation Level is too high, then one can’t stay well-grounded, aloof from mortal affairs, unable to savor the myriad states of life, where would strategy come from?”

Feng Jun’s eyes widened, “Being grounded doesn’t necessarily equate to strategy, and you’re still divining destiny… What does that have to do with the myriad states of the world? Let me tell you, if your Cultivation Level is higher and you can live a bit longer, it would also greatly benefit the legacy of the Ghost Valley Sect.”

Dong Zenghong tilted his head in thought and slightly nodded, “The senior criticizes rightly; I’ve been too extreme. But thinking of trading the Destiny Plate for a mere Spirit Gathering Array and five Spirit Stones… it doesn’t sit right with me… Spirit Stones run out eventually.”

Feng Jun snorted, “As if the Destiny Plate wouldn’t lose durability, do Magical Treasures last forever?”

Dong Zenghong’s eyes spun around, “If I wanted my own little world… would that be too much?”

“I want my own little world too,” Feng Jun rolled his eyes, “How about this, I’ll look again and see if I can find you a Storage Talisman… adding to what I’ve already agreed to, that’s all there is.”

“Storage Talisman…” Dong Zenghong repeated softly, not saying anything more.

Feng Jun glanced at him, “Mount Meru contained within a finger ring, isn’t that also fate? It wouldn’t be appropriate for you? I might not even possess one.”

He turned to see what the Stone Ring, which had absorbed the Destiny Plate, would become. If the effect was good, giving him a Storage Talisman would be fine. If there wasn’t any significant improvement, the Spirit Gathering Array plus five Spirit Stones would already be fair compensation.

After all, he was quite innocent in the matter–how could I have known that your Ghost Valley’s Destiny Plate would explode?

“Then… that’s all we can do for now,” Dong Zenghong spoke lacklustrely.

Feng Jun looked at him and felt a twinge of sympathy, “Hasn’t the Ghost Valley Sect’s Cultivation Technique been passed down?”

Dong Zenghong was a Martial Cultivator, now only a High-Rank Martial Warrior, not even a martial master.

Hearing Feng Jun’s question, he shook his head, “There are Cultivation Techniques, but Dao Cultivators don’t engage in Qi Refinement; it’s really rather dull. And if one does engage in Qi Refinement, it requires a substantial amount of resources and takes a long time. Rather than that, it’s better to be a Martial Cultivator…”

“The Ghost Valley Sect is different from other Daoist Sects; what they cultivate is worldly engagement… After the Patriarch, no one pursued the Cultivation Path.”

Feng Jun fell silent for a moment, finally speaking, “Have you ever considered what the ultimate pursuit of a Cultivator is?”

Dong Zenghong blinked twice, thoughtfully responding, “Are you implying… longevity?”

Talking with the Heir of Ghost Valley really saves effort; a casual hint and the other party grasps the implication.

But then he sighed and gave a wry smile, “But it’s still that same question, who can achieve immortality?”

The heirs of Ghost Valley are all individuals of startling talent, truly not so easily misled.

Feng Jun smiled and stood up, “Humans live but a mortal span; plants live but a season. Without trying, how can one be content? Moreover, even if the quest for immortality fails, lengthening one’s life is still good, you should consider it well…”

Dong Zenghong was a clever man, but the cleverer one is, the more prone they are to overthinking. Hearing these words, he instantly froze: That’s right, how could I only think about devising strategies that shake heaven and earth without ever considering… the possibility of pursuing immortality?

In fact, all heirs of Ghost Valley are presented with this option, but in the past, everyone subconsciously chose to live a life of immediate satisfaction.

However, in reality, although the Ghost Valley Sect claims engagement with the world, its tangible achievements are few–certainly more than other Daoist Sects, but in principle, each generation’s heir should be able to display their sanctity before others.

Thus, most heirs of Ghost Valley quietly faded into obscurity. Within the scope of the Daoist Sects, quite a few Ghost Valley heirs managed to make small achievements, but their fame was confined to the sect, and it was hard to become known throughout the world.

Simply by that result, the Ghost Valley Sect’s engagement with the world couldn’t really be considered successful.

Dong Zenghong’s thought was, since most heirs engaging with the world didn’t achieve much success, why should I necessarily pursue it?

If I don’t insist on engaging with the world, then casually cultivating some Daoist arts is fine, so why stick with being a Martial Cultivator?

Of course, he wasn’t so easily swayed, and now was just slightly shaken.

It wasn’t until he saw Feng Jun walk out the door that he snapped back to reality, hastily chasing after him, “Eminent one… where are you going?”

His Destiny Plate was destroyed, and the Spirit Stone was shattered to pieces. Up to now, he had gained nothing. Seeing the other party ready to leave, he was genuinely anxious–what about the promised Spirit Gathering Array, you wouldn’t leave without providing it, would you?

Of course, he didn’t dare ask that outright, so he could only ask indirectly, “Would you like me to arrange transportation?”

Feng Jun glanced at him, “I’m going to find out if I can get a Storage Talisman. Sigh, this is really frustrating… Oh right, you should also think about where you plan to place the Spirit Gathering Array.”

Dong Zenghong was speechless and could only watch him leave helplessly–indeed, he didn’t dare to step forward and stop him.

He rushed back to his room, grabbed his mobile phone, and quickly dialed Feng Tianyang’s number, but inside he couldn’t help lamenting: No matter how strong the strategy, if the martial power is lacking it’s all in vain!

Feng Zhizhang was in the middle of a meeting and rejected his call, only to see the other party persistently redialing as if driven mad.

Thankfully, it was only a provincial meeting. After rejecting the call three times, and seeing the fourth incoming call, Feng Tianyang silently excused himself from the meeting and answered the phone, “Zenghong, what’s the matter, why such urgency?”

Dong Zenghong replied dejectedly, “Lao Feng, it’s over, my Destiny Plate exploded…”

After listening, Feng Tianyang also couldn’t help clicking his tongue, thinking how unlucky Dong Zenghong was.

But regarding Feng Jun’s integrity, Feng Zhizhang still highly affirmed, “Rest assured, in your eyes a Spirit Gathering Array is a treasure, but that person truly does not care. Such a lofty individual in the Detachment Phase… I helped him inquire about the Kunlun Sect Gate, and he even promised to give me a set of Spirit Gathering Array.”

“He also promised you a set?” Dong Zenghong was suddenly shocked, “Then isn’t this Spirit Gathering Array becoming less valuable by the minute?”

“You sure dare to say it!” Feng Tianyang snorted discontentedly, “If you’re brave enough, go to Wudang Mountain, Dragon Phoenix Mountain, or Mount Qingcheng and say that, and see if they don’t take care of you!”

Dong Zenghong was just speaking off the cuff, mainly because the heirs of Ghost Valley were accustomed to standing out. If the item wasn’t unique, they would feel it wasn’t perfect.

Then he realized that he was getting carried away, “Mainly because I had never considered the Cultivation Path before, I’m inevitably a bit surprised now. Anyway, the esteemed one still plans to give me five Spirit Stones, and even if I don’t need them, they’ll be enough to pass on to future generations.”

“That’s right, Spirit Stones are the real hard currency,” Feng Tianyang supported the idea, but he was still concerned about another matter, “I mean, Zenghong, where do you plan to place the Spirit Gathering Array?”

How smart was Dong Zenghong? He replied with a smile, “Lao Feng, you’re overthinking it. I definitely won’t place it near Mount Taibai, I won’t compete with you for business, nor will I go in the Kunlun direction… Do you have any good suggestions?”

“My suggestion… Just don’t place it near the Imperial Capital, the esteemed one doesn’t fancy the Imperial Capital,” Feng Tianyang pondered for a moment, then suddenly remembered something, “By the way, the esteemed one has enhanced the Earth Vein Technique, you’d better find a place where the Earth Vein is abundant, the Spirit Gathering Array will work better there.”

Dong Zenghong was startled again, “He actually knows the Earth Vein Technique?”

“How rare!” Feng Tianyang laughed, “That’s a paramount ascetic individual, you shouldn’t feel that only the disciples of Ghost Valley can be proficient in these techniques, my advice… you really shouldn’t underestimate him.”

“The Earth Vein Technique…” Dong Zenghong pondered…

Feng Jun left the Dong family’s residence purely to take stock of his gains that day. After walking out the gate of the Dong residence, he hailed a cab and headed straight for Chang’an City.

On the way, he couldn’t resist unwrapping the wrist guard from his left wrist, then broke into a smile–the imprint of the Stone Ring on his wrist had gone from one to two, and the edges of the two stone rings overlapped, forming a contiguous double ring pattern.

Another change was that the imprint on his wrist turned orange.

When he first absorbed the Stone Ring, the mark on his hand was dark green. Later, due to absorbing too much Spiritual Energy, it confusingly became bright red, and now it had turned to orange… What did this imply?