Ten thousand I am across the heavens

Fang Yuan's proposal essentially meant that the Ghostly Demon Lord would work for him for free. All the main combat units he had painstakingly produced would ultimately be divided in half with the other party. The two engaged in fierce negotiations over this ratio, with Fang Yuan completely prepared to end the talks on bad terms. As a result, even when the Ghostly Demon Lord tried to lower the price, he easily crossed Fang Yuan's bottom line, leading to a complete breakdown in negotiations.

Ultimately, this ratio was restored to about half. However, it limited the types of troops that could be controlled to a certain extent. In this way, Fang Yuan could not take away the most elite troops all at once, and even if he took away a large number of troops, he could leave behind the core power of the Ghost Demon Lord.

The plan itself was largely sound. However, the two faced significant technical challenges. The main issue was that the backdoor couldn't be too obvious. Otherwise, if the enemy exploited it with their superior technology, it would be disastrous. Their hard-earned army could be easily controlled by the opponent through a backdoor. Such a scenario would be a huge embarrassment.

Therefore, the type of backdoor must be carefully chosen, precisely chosen, and only Fang Yuan can utilize it. This allows for the creation of a sufficiently complex password as the key to unlock the backdoor. This is only the first layer of security; if it were merely a password, it could be cracked sooner or later given enough time. The second layer of security is the dynamic verification of the soul's state. This is somewhat like digging a hole for oneself. Because if the soul suffers irreparable damage during this period, it may be unable to complete the dynamic verification of the soul, preventing the backdoor from being triggered.

But this kind of insurance is necessary. Information they gleaned from the past indicates the existence of hidden masters within history, who have never made a move, only to suffer a severe backlash when those who interfere in history appear. These individuals clearly share the same origins as the Shanhe Republic and possess incredibly advanced technology.

Both suspected that the Shanhe Republic was a puppet regime established by these people. In order to brainwash the people of the Shanhe Republic, they could gradually release the advanced technology they possessed, disguising it as rapid technological progress under their system. This would allow them to push forward their collectivist system that suppressed individual freedom, making the benefits of technological progress appear to be solely due to the superiority of their organizational model. By using facts, they could deeply implant the corresponding ideas into everyone's minds.

They even imagined that if they could travel back in time with advanced future technology, they could also follow this path. They envisioned walking the same path that the Republic of Mountains and Rivers had taken, leaving the Republic of Mountains and Rivers with no way to go.

By releasing technology bit by bit, the seemingly gradual and rapid leaps in technological advancement can naturally win people's hearts. People will only look at how reality develops, and will not consider the real principles. Even if they vaguely feel that the underlying principles are wrong, they will still blindly believe in the reality they see with their own eyes.

At least for now, in their minds, the Invisible Guardians are a dangerous organization that has existed in history for a long time. They secretly interfere with the course of events, possessing completely unknown purposes, attempting to maintain an extremely delicate balance in this world, and not allowing any time travelers to change the course of history. It's as if they have truly transcended history and no longer influence the river of fate.

These people are probably extremely skilled. If they find an obvious loophole, the price the Ghost Demon Lord will have to pay will be so severe that it will be unacceptable.

The incredibly complex encrypted time capsule, supported by the Ghost Demon Lord's immense computing power, withstood the fierce attacks from the front lines of the Mountain and River Republic. It was finally successfully created. This time, they planned to use the Spring and Autumn Cicada to project the time capsule into the most distant past possible—a time when the Ghost Demon Lord was still relatively weak. Only in this way could they maximally alter the course of history. The Ghost Demon Lord was also gambling. He was gambling that he could achieve the status of a Venerable without any special advantages. Even with special advantages, he could still achieve the status of a Venerable, and perhaps even surpass them.

Doing so would actually be very risky. For the Ghostly Demon Lord to become a Venerable, it's not just about personal ability; it also requires a great deal of luck. Every peerless genius has reached this point through countless coincidences. No one's journey is smooth sailing; everyone encounters various hardships and obstacles. Everyone experiences near-death experiences several times in their life. A little bad luck could mean certain death.

The Ghostly Demon Lord is gambling that, with his cheat-like abilities, his path will be smoother and more stable. Even if his luck isn't as good as before, he can still steadily achieve the status of a Venerable, becoming the Ghostly Demon Lord who will shake the world.

Even with his confidence, he didn't project his memories back to before he became an immortal. Because even the most confident being knows that before immortality, one is nothing more than an ant. If Fang Yuan hadn't been born so late in the past, and if he hadn't projected his memories back to when he had just begun cultivating, there simply wouldn't have been enough time or room to maneuver. He wouldn't have chosen to send his memories back so far in the past, since there are always things he himself isn't entirely certain about.

Moreover, the Ghostly Demon Lord's current conditions are actually worse than Fang Yuan's. He can only bring back extremely limited memories and extremely limited technology. Even if he had a cheat code, it wouldn't be an outrageous, heaven-defying one. This means that if he were placed before becoming an immortal, his original growth path might have been completely different due to the cheat code. Finally, because he stood out from the crowd, he was caught up in the struggle between some powerful figures and died prematurely.

In contrast, the survival rate increases significantly after becoming an immortal. Although the struggles between immortals are still like raising poisonous insects, their strength and survival abilities have reached a new level. Most of the time, no one dies. Top-tier immortals can no longer enslave poisonous insects as easily as they enslave mortals. At this stage, if one doesn't court death, living to a ripe old age is not a problem. Of course, deliberately courting death is an exception. However, the Ghostly Demon Lord still has some confidence in himself. He has acquired a cheat code and has the guaranteed state of an immortal. He won't do any worse than his past self.

[To be continued]

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