A Seed of the Dao
"For a long time, they have been hailed as the two great Golden Core sects of Yangseo Lake, ruling over this cultivation world. Their pride is incomparable to that of ordinary sects and clans. If we provoke them even slightly, they won't be able to contain themselves. In my opinion..."
As Gyeha's low voice continued, Im Jeseong's eyes shone with a bright light. He listened intently, sometimes chuckling, sometimes marveling at Gyeha's words. He did not even notice that his body was gradually leaning forward in anticipation.
Ever since Sangcheong Sang-in set foot in Yangseo Lake, there had been an endless stream of people trying to align themselves with him. Among them were many opportunists, but also quite a few who could be considered talented. Gyeha was one of them.
He possessed a slightly unstable middle-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation. At around a hundred and thirty years old, he was neither too young nor too old for a cultivator of that realm. In Yangseo Lake, he might be considered a talent, but in the eyes of a Golden Core cultivator who had experienced the wider world, he was merely mediocre.
The reason this 'ordinary' Gyeha could have a private audience with Im Jeseong, a Golden Core cultivator and the son of Sangcheong Sang-in, and offer him advice was, of course, due to Im Jeseong's favor.
Some said Im Jeseong cherished rogue cultivators with outstanding talent, others said Gyeha had offered him some precious treasure, and some even whispered that Gyeha had won his favor by offering his beautiful sister. There were many rumors, but none were confirmed.
In truth, the reason Gyeha could win Im Jeseong's favor was very simple. He was simply a smooth talker. Gyeha knew how to read Im Jeseong's mind and scratch his itchy spots.
For instance, even regarding the two great Golden Core sects currently being discussed.
On the surface, Im Jeseong seemed to value them as powerful local forces of Yangseo Lake, but in reality, he looked down on them with contempt. By his standards, these so-called two great Golden Core sects were nothing more than foolish frogs in a well, preening themselves in their tiny pond.
Was it not so? No matter how much they were called the two pillars of the human territory, in the end, they were useless trash that would have been trampled by the beast race long ago if not for the intervention of the Gakchung Clan. With such pathetic standing, what right did they have to act so arrogant...?
Of course, even if Im Jeseong felt that way, he never showed it openly, nor did he wish to go against his father's wishes. After all, if a matter could be resolved more smoothly, it was better to do so.
But now, the strategy—or rather, the scheme—suggested by Gyeha moved his heart. Making them bite each other to drain their strength beforehand seemed to have no downside whatsoever.
Although the Geumyang Sect had already submitted, Im Jeseong did not believe for a second that they harbored no rebellious thoughts. Therefore, taking this opportunity to test them would not be a bad idea.
"Not a bad idea," Im Jeseong murmured. "However, I worry that if the internal strife within the human territory intensifies, the external enemies might harbor vain ambitions."
"The Gakchung Clan has already had the Insect Mother step forward once, so they will not provoke us again. The beast race is even less of a concern. The Jansu Whale King's self-preservation instinct is well-known to anyone who matters; he will not be the first to make a move."
"What about the Yangseo Black Flood Dragon?"
"Did you not see him yourself, Senior?"
"Yes. I saw him."
Im Jeseong's eyes narrowed. He recalled the sky filled with briny clouds and the massive flood dragon descending through it. That majesty, that overwhelming pressure, had been highly impressive even to someone like him who had seen and heard much. He had wondered how such an entity could be crouching in such a small body of water.
"He was truly like a dragon. Incredibly arrogant. But that is precisely why I felt at ease."
To be arrogant meant having high standards. Therefore, they would not covet what others lusted after, nor would they cling to small gains; instead, they would look down on them. If moved by their own whim, they would not hesitate to do something outrageous, but conversely, if unmoved, they would not budge no matter how good the opportunity.
"For reasons different from the Jansu Whale King, he seemed like someone who would rarely make the first move."
"I share the same view, Senior."
The two agreed that there was no need to worry much about the two Demon Kings.
"Then what about the Thousand-Faced Ghost King?"
"He will certainly move if he sees an opportunity. But even if he moves, what can he achieve? At most, he will plot to take over a few water regions as before. Furthermore... if another ghost disaster occurs while the Geumyang Sect and Myeongseomun Sect are in the middle of their conflict, what will the people think?"
The corners of Im Jeseong's mouth curled up.
"First, they will resent the Cultivator Alliance. After that... they will blame the two sects for still being out of their minds, ignoring the greater cause."
"My thoughts are exactly the same as yours, Senior."
With the appearance of Sangcheong Sang-in, the conflict between the Geumyang Sect and Myeongseomun Sect, which had seemed to subside, flared up once again.
There were many rumors about what triggered it, but that did not matter. The two sects, which had once presided over the order of Yangseo Lake as competitors and partners, now viewed each other as absolute enemies, eager to bare their fangs at every opportunity.
They accused each other using several plausible pretexts, but such tedious bickering only caused fatigue among the public and failed to give either side an advantage.
Of course, the two sects did not clash only with words.
There were direct and indirect clashes all over the human territory, resulting in a significant number of casualties. If they were to measure their strength, Myeongseomun, which had one more Golden Core cultivator, seemed to have the advantage, but when the lid was opened, that was not the case.
In the end, although the two sects were growling fiercely at each other, they were not fighting with the determination to completely destroy one another.
If a sect was a household, a Golden Core cultivator was the elder of the house. An elder stepping forward meant they were prepared to completely ruin the other family, but at least for now, they did not dare to go that far.
Since the elders did not step forward, the main characters of the fight naturally had to be the children. And looking at the forces below the Golden Core realm—the children—the two sects were evenly matched, so the fight naturally became fierce yet sluggish.
"Sangcheong Sang-in... that cunning old man wants to see our blood."
The Golden Core cultivators of the two sects were no fools. They quickly realized whose hand had orchestrated this situation. But the frustrating part was that even though they realized it, they had no proper way to respond.
The fire had already been lit, and no matter how much they disciplined their sects, they could restrain immediate actions but could not suppress the hearts of their disciples.
"If you insist on squeezing out our blood to the very end... fine, I will give it to you."
Hahou Jang, the Sect Master of the Geumyang Sect, gnashed his teeth and swallowed his anger. The grand trend led by the Cultivator Alliance could not be resisted, and Sangcheong Sang-in's momentum was currently at its peak, so if he wanted it, they had no choice but to give it.
The blood of the disciples and the decline of the sect's prestige were painful, but they could be endured. After all, the foundation of the sect lay in the high-level cultivators of the middle and late Foundation Establishment stages, including himself. As long as they remained safe, they could restore the damaged dignity of the sect when the time came.
In any case, he—the Geumyang Sect—had already made a choice. Bending awkwardly was worse than not bending at all. If Sangcheong Sang-in wanted to tame them in this manner, there was no reason they couldn't play along.
Since you left us no retreat, it would not be wrong to say you brought this upon yourselves.
Hahou Jang imagined Je Rim-so, who was probably scowling just like him at this moment, and tried to soothe his uneasy mind.
The recruitment of painters continued to proceed smoothly. Since the human territory was in a state of commotion, it was easy to gather people little by little from here and there. Thanks to Han Cheongyu's Han family and Ju-hyeong's Hyeondobang being completely established, transporting the secured people to the Black Bridge Archipelago was not difficult either.
The secured painters were placed on a suitable island, much like Yeongi Island before, and managed by Hyeongu. Their number now exceeded five hundred.
Furthermore, the work of training the next generation had also begun. Unlike the painters who had been brought in indiscriminately as long as they were involved in the art of painting regardless of their cultivation level, the young children who had just begun to be trained on Painter Island were the focus of intensive cultivation.
Not only were they trained in the art of painting, but their cultivation as cultivators was also not neglected. Jekyeong's ultimate goal was to eventually raise one or two of them to the Foundation Establishment realm so they could paint Contemplation Paintings useful to him.
However, such a goal could not be achieved in a short time, and for now, they had to look at reality.
"Do you understand? A turtle. You must paint the magnificent turtle Yao Ancestors."
"Y-yes, Elder Hyeongu. But we do not know much about the Turtle Ancestors... If Elder Hyeongu could tell us a little, it would be of great help to our painting."
"Ahem! Then listen well. When it comes to the famous elders of our turtle beast race, we must first mention Lord Xuanwu. Also, Lord Futian Shengui, and..."
Hyeongu passionately spoke of the legendary ancestors of the turtle beast race. The human painters listened as closely as possible to Hyeongu's long-winded stories, not knowing how much falsehood and exaggeration were mixed in, and established their own perceptions of the 'Turtle Ancestors.'
It was a full month after Hyeongu's grand speech that they organized their minds and thoughts and began to paint in earnest. Painting took as little as a fortnight and as long as three months.
Hyeongu, who visited Painter Island today without fail, carefully appreciated the dozen or so paintings completed over the past few days, one by one. These paintings were not drawn by casually moving the brush; they were Contemplation Paintings that contained the painter's perception, understanding, and enlightenment.
Even if that understanding and enlightenment were shallow, Hyeongu did not look down on them in the least. He clearly remembered the Dragon Lord's words that these Contemplation Paintings could perhaps become a breakthrough for the beast race.
"Mmm."
Hyeongu unconsciously let out a low groan. At the same time, light returned to his eyes, which had been blank for a long time, and he emerged from a state he could not clearly describe.
Blinking once, he saw the exact same painting. It was a painting depicting a giant turtle with its four legs in the sea and its head supporting the heavens. Hyeongu's heart still pounded at that profound and majestic spirit. He did not know whether it was fear, envy, or pride.
Was the Heaven-Bearing Divine Turtle of old truly like this?
In truth, he did not even know if the Heaven-Bearing Divine Turtle actually existed. It was merely a story he had heard from an elderly clansman in the past. However... considering how that clansman used to ramble whenever he was bored, it was hard to assert that there was no nonsense among the stories he told.
But Hyeongu believed that the story of the Heaven-Bearing Divine Turtle was neither a lie nor nonsense. There was no other reason; he simply wanted to believe so.
A Divine Turtle should naturally possess the majestic spirit of treading upon the sea and supporting the heavens.
What was contained in the painting was a figure he had vaguely yearned for, a realm he wished to reach. Although the Dao Rhyme contained in the painting was shallower than a tiny puddle with only a few drops of water, it did not affect the resonance in Hyeongu's heart.
What if it was faint? A line drawn for the first time on a blank sheet of paper is not a simple line. It gave meaning to the meaningless white paper and awakened the realization that something could be drawn upon it. Whether this would become a splendid painting or a messy scribble in the future, only time would tell once he drew as many lines as he could and painted as much as he could.
At this moment, a Dao Rhyme so faint that it felt like an illusion quietly took root somewhere in Hyeongu's heart, without Hyeongu himself even realizing it.
Jekyeong, seeing Hyeongu's eyes sparkle as he praised the mysterious efficacy of the Contemplation Paintings, felt that the effect of visualization was even better than he had thought.
"It is just as the Dragon Lord said. The Contemplation Paintings will truly be a ray of light for our beast race's cultivation."
"Do not get too excited."
Jekyeong was cold. This turtle fellow was too excited. It was similar to a person who had never tasted anything sweet in their life tasting a few grains of sugar on their tongue and instantly losing their mind.
Right now, he spoke as if he could form a bloodline immediately if he just looked at a few more Contemplation Paintings, but once time passed and the excitement cooled down, he would realize that there was nothing so simple and easy in the world.
Judging by Hyeongu's reaction, visualization definitely had an effect. However, that effect would not be as great as the fellow was currently excited about. At best, it was at the level of sowing a single seed.
But whether that seed could sprout, and if it did, how far it could grow, no one would know until they checked it themselves when the time came.
They might be disappointed when the time comes, but even so, it is not bad.
Trying to completely catch up with the beast race's innate talent, the bloodline, with just a few visualizations was arrogant and greedy. In the end, everything is accumulation. Even if they fail countless times, if they can obtain something based on that, would that not be enough?
"Pay more attention to Painter Island."
"Yes."
Hyeongu was full of motivation. Even if Jekyeong did not ask, he seemed ready to take care of it with all his heart. Realizing that the cultivation of painters was deeply related to his own path of the Dao, greed had naturally arisen.
"What about the fellows below?"
"The Ha Yuseong brothers are doing well. It seems they have almost regained their former prestige."
Jekyeong had not only bestowed various Yao spiritual medicines upon them but had also brought human doctors to examine Ha Yuseong. Thanks to that, his body had recovered to the point where natural healing could be expected even without special care.
"However, Dragon Lord. Will you really not form a Blood Covenant with them? Even if we set Jo Gang aside, Ha Yuseong is..."
Hyeongu expressed his concern in a low voice.