Conferred God: Started from Swallowing the Heaven-Repairing Stone

But this is not a big problem. As long as the Chan Sect is given time, even if it cannot catch up with the Jie Sect, it can still become the second largest power after them.

In terms of cultivation environment, the area near Kunlun Mountain is far superior to that of the East Sea, which is an advantage of the Chan Sect.

The only advantage of the Jie Sect is that it started earlier and had more time to develop. Other than that, it has no other advantages.

Therefore, in terms of potential, as long as the Chan Sect opens up its recruitment of disciples, it will be no less than the Jie Sect, and may even be stronger.

……

Even the most stubborn Sage Taiqing and Yuanshi Tianzun came to their senses and had to take on many disciples, which shows that even sages could not withstand the pressure brought by the involution.

In this situation, if people don't want the entire fortune of education to fall into the hands of others, they have no choice but to humble themselves and fight for it.

Wasn't this precisely why Yuanshi Tianzun destroyed the Jie Sect? Everything else is just an excuse; only self-interest matters.

When Yuanshi Tianzun came to his senses, he began to recruit disciples widely, which meant that the two of them had embarked on the same path.

On this track, the Jie Sect holds an early advantage. If it isn't eliminated, or even severely damaged, then with the Jie Sect blocking its way, the development of the Chan Sect will undoubtedly become increasingly difficult as time goes on.

Fortune is finite; a race can only hold one dominant force. The Jie Sect has already gained momentum, while the Chan Sect is just getting started.

It goes without saying what Yuanshi Tianzun, unwilling to be second to anyone, would do: taking action against the Jie Sect was inevitable.

Initially, he may not have intended to completely destroy the Jie Sect, but he certainly aimed to severely damage it. As for how things unfolded afterward, that's another matter entirely.

This is true for most things. Even saints can only decide when to begin, but when to end is not up to them.

……

The claim that Yuanshi Tianzun followed the example of Tongtian Jiaozhu and began to recruit disciples is not unfounded; the tens of thousands of Qi cultivators practicing Taoism on Kunlun Mountain are proof of this.

They cultivated themselves in the Kunlun Mountains, learning the methods passed down by the Primordial Celestial Venerable, listening to the teachings of the Primordial Celestial Venerable, and being under the management of the Primordial Celestial Venerable.

In this situation, even if Yuanshi Tianzun vehemently denies it, he cannot change the fact that all these people are his disciples.

Therefore, in fact, it is true that Yuanshi Tianzun recruited many disciples, even if he himself did not admit it.

Among these disciples, Shen Gongbao was the most outstanding. He attained the status of a Golden Immortal after only a little over a thousand years of cultivation.

If the world hadn't suddenly changed, transforming the Taiyi Golden Immortal into the mythical Taiyi, he probably wouldn't have needed ten thousand years to cultivate to the Taiyi Golden Immortal realm.

In contrast, there was Jiang Ziya, the least talented among all the disciples of Yuanshi Tianzun. Even a pig, after cultivating Taoism on Kunlun Mountain for over a thousand years, could attain immortality.

But Jiang Ziya was different. Even after cultivating under the tutelage of Yuanshi Tianzun for a thousand years, he still could not become an immortal, which shows how poor his aptitude was.

Jiang Ziya and Shen Gongbao were just two of the many disciples of Yuanshi Tianzun. There were countless others like them in Kunlun Mountain.

They were all under the jurisdiction of the Antarctic Immortal, the chief disciple of the Primordial Celestial Venerable.

In the Chan Sect, the Antarctic Immortal's status was similar to that of Zhao Gongming in the Jie Sect; both were senior disciples of the outer sect, managing the outer sect on behalf of their masters.

It is not hard to see from this that, in the later stages, even Yuanshi Tianzun, who deeply despised the Jie Sect, began to unconsciously emulate the Jie Sect's management model.

This is also evidence that Yuanshi Tianzun yielded to reality. Since he was already emulating the Jie Sect, it's impossible for him to have such high standards for recruiting disciples; he must have already opened his gates wide and recruited many disciples.

This is reality. Even sages, in order to gain more fortune, have to go against the philosophy of the Dao Ancestor, abandon the principle of "better to have none than to have bad ones" that they have adhered to for many years, and start to recruit disciples on a large scale.

It is precisely because of this that, for their own benefit, even though they knew that the appearance of the demon race was actually very much in line with the Dao Ancestor's ideals, they had no choice but to turn a blind eye.

To admit this is to admit that they have all abandoned the Dao Ancestor's ideals and chosen to go against the Dao Ancestor's teachings.

They can do such things, but they cannot admit it.

But Ao Bing broke this agonizing unspoken rule. Everyone was speechless and felt awkward.

At this moment, whatever their true thoughts, they could only outwardly support Ao Bing's words. He had already invoked the Dao Ancestor to intimidate them; what could they say if they didn't want to betray their master and ancestors?
Of course, even if everyone was dissatisfied, they had to admit that Ao Bing was right. The appearance of the demon race was indeed more beneficial than harmful to the Xuanmen, stabilizing the precarious Xuanmen and preventing it from splitting or even falling apart.

However, the appearance of the demon race has made them more cautious when recruiting disciples. They can no longer just accept anyone as they had imagined, prioritizing the transmission of knowledge and the continuation of fortune.

Without demons, it's fine to be good enough. Even if the disciples aren't outstanding, it won't do any harm. They can just be used as cannon fodder. They'll always find a use for us.

But with the demons involved, things can't be left like this. If the disciples aren't good enough, they might really be possessed by the demons.

If it were just a few disciples being possessed by demons, that wouldn't be a big deal; it would be acceptable. Even the direct disciples of saints can stumble, let alone their disciples. As long as the probability of something going wrong isn't high, it's normal.

However, if a large number of disciples were to be possessed by demons, the problem would be much more serious. At best, their fortunes would plummet; at worst, the entire lineage would fall into demonic ways and become members of the demonic path.

If that happens, the loss will be enormous. Not only will we lose all our luck, but all our hard work over the years will also go to waste and benefit someone else.

Even if he doesn't completely collapse from this setback, it will be very difficult for him to recover. It's hard to say whether he can return to his peak, let alone go any further.

Therefore, under the threat of the demons, they need to be cautious when recruiting disciples. They can't afford to be careless; if they recruit a group of incompetent disciples who are later possessed by the demons, then everything will be over.

With this in mind, everyone had a deeper understanding of Ao Bing's earlier statement that the appearance of the demon race was more beneficial than harmful to the Xuanmen sect.

Indeed, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages; this forces them into a fierce competition. Anyone who dares to slack off, recruit disciples without restraint, and frantically expand their power to plunder more fortune will surely meet a terrible end.

If no one wants things to end up like that, they have no choice but to get caught up in the infighting and frantically improve the quality of their disciples, lest they be unable to defeat the demons and be possessed by them.

In this way, wouldn't it align with the Dao Ancestor's philosophy of survival of the fittest and valuing quality over quantity? Naturally, the strength of the Xuanmen would become stronger and stronger.

This applies not only to the Xuanmen (Taoist sect), but also to the Western Sect, the Demon Clan, and the Asura Sect. Those who don't want to fall into demonic ways have no choice but to compete fiercely and strive to improve the quality of their disciples. Thinking of this, the gods couldn't help but feel that this wasn't entirely a bad thing. They would all benefit from the Xuanmen's strengthening. Although not as much as they themselves, something was better than nothing.

"Trouble!"

At this moment, if we were to ask who had the most complex feelings, it would certainly not be the Sage Zhunti, who was forced to remain silent by the crowd, but rather the group of powerful figures from the human race.

Now, the powerful humans were all dumbfounded. They felt that Ao Bing's creation of the demon race was aimed at them.

Given the current situation in the primordial world, the group most vulnerable to possession after the emergence of the demon race is the human race.

The reason is simple: in the entire prehistoric world, the human race is the most mixed, with the best and worst, and the standards for both the upper and lower limits are extremely absurd.

The highest potential can even rival that of an innate deity. But the lowest potential is truly worse than a dog.

What's most disheartening is that within the human race, there aren't many geniuses who have reached the pinnacle; the majority are mediocre. While they're far from reaching the lower limit, this very fact makes them the most vulnerable to being seduced and manipulated by the demons.

Those who reach the upper limit are completely unafraid of demons, and demons dare not provoke them. As for those at the lower limit, even if they willingly offer themselves to demons for possession, they wouldn't even give them a second glance.

The demons aren't stupid. Why would they possess other beings? Do they think their talents are too high, so they possess other beings to balance things out?
In this situation, the most attractive targets for the demons are undoubtedly those who are neither here nor there.

Unfortunately, this type of person makes up the largest portion of the human race, accounting for 70-80% or even more of the population.

They would find it difficult to resist the allure of the demons. Therefore, if the demons were to launch a large-scale invasion, the human race would inevitably bear the brunt and suffer the greatest losses.

Based on this, it is indeed understandable that the human race felt that Ao Bing was targeting them.

However, the human powerhouses only thought about it and didn't take it seriously. Ao Bing had no reason to do so; he was the successor of the Human Saint Emperor and a member of the human race.

What benefit would it bring him to the human race? Not at all, it would only be detrimental. Don't forget, Ao Bing's core group is of human-dragon lineage; very few are truly from the dragon race, the majority are transformed humans.

In other words, their interests are aligned with Ao Bing's. Ao Bing's targeting of the human race is essentially targeting himself, which is completely unnecessary and without reason.

Thinking of this, and considering Ao Bing's previous actions, the human powerhouses realized that Ao Bing must have some deeper meaning behind his actions, but they just hadn't figured it out yet.

Having figured this out, the group wanted to ask, but after glancing at the surrounding situation, they felt the timing wasn't right. So they could only suppress their doubts for the time being and wait until this matter was over before privately consulting Ao Bing.

"Fellow Daoists, if you have come here for matters concerning the Demon Realm and the Demon Race, then you can now return to your seclusion in peace."

"It's already quite clear that the existence of the Demon Clan is more beneficial than harmful to the Xuanmen, so you don't need to worry too much."

"As for your concerns about the split within the Xuanmen, there's even less to worry about. Even without the Demon Clan, I have other ways to strengthen the unity within the Xuanmen."

"Please allow me to keep this a secret for now. You will know once you have cultivated to the level of a Grand Luo Golden Immortal."

Seeing that the human powerhouse had something to say to him, Ao Bing had no intention of continuing the conversation, so he ended the topic and told everyone to go back to their seclusion.

The world is vast, but nothing compares to their success in cultivating to the level of a Grand Luo Golden Immortal. Even if they have doubts, they can ask after they break through.

Even if they ask now, it's useless. If they don't have the strength, who will pay attention to them?
"That's how it should be."

The gods clearly understood this as well, realizing that Ao Bing was right; for them, achieving the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm was indeed the most important thing right now. Everything else could be put aside for the time being.

After nodding to Ao Bing, everyone left. Only Xi Huang and Hou Tu Niangniang stayed behind; the former for matters concerning the human race, and the latter for matters concerning the witch race.

"Please wait a moment, Your Majesty. After I finish discussing the matter of the human race with Emperor Xi, I will go to the Pangu Temple to discuss the matter of the Wu tribe with Your Majesty."

Between the Witch Clan and the Human Clan, it was clear that the Human Clan was more important to him. Therefore, Ao Bing nodded to Houtu Niangniang and arranged to meet her at another time.

Although she was stood up, Houtu Niangniang was not dissatisfied because Ao Bing showed great sincerity, saying that he would personally visit the Wu tribe later.

Given Ao Bing's current status and strength, his personal visit is a great honor for the Wu Clan. What could Houtu possibly complain about?

“I know what Xi Huang wants to ask me. That’s right, it’s what you think. I feel that the human race’s development is a bit slow, so I’m going to push the human race a bit.”

After Houtu left, with no outsiders around, Ao Bing stopped bothering with riddles and spoke directly to Xi Huang. He truly didn't believe that Xi Huang couldn't guess his intentions.

In terms of wisdom, Ao Bing must admit that he is far inferior to Xi Huang. It is only because he comes from a later era that he has the advantage of foresight and is able to stand on the shoulders of predecessors like Xi Huang, which makes him appear wiser than them.

But that's how it appears to outsiders. Ao Bing himself knows his own situation. After years of training, his wisdom has indeed improved considerably, perhaps comparable to people like Xi Huang, but surpassing them is impossible.

Therefore, he never underestimated Xi Huang and the others, nor did he believe that his plans could be kept from them.

Q: Why couldn't others stop him even though they knew about his plan? Because many things cannot be stopped simply by knowing them.

"I can see that you are indeed dissatisfied with the development speed of the human race, so you are preparing to use the demon race as a weapon to force the human race forward with a strong sense of crisis."

Xi Huang nodded, admitting that he had seen through Ao Bing's thoughts. In fact, he had even predicted almost everything Ao Bing would do next.

Humanity's progress lies in becoming more civilized. Humanity is currently in a transitional phase from primitive to civilized society.

Old bad habits must be abolished one by one, and we should enter an era of etiquette, using etiquette to regulate the behavior of everyone and make the entire human race more civilized.

This is the path that the human race will take next, and the person who will promote the system of rites has already been found by the human race: Ji Dan, the fourth son of the Marquis of Xibo.

These were talents as outstanding as Jiang Ziya; both men, one skilled in martial arts and the other in martial arts, stood at the pinnacle of their era.

The human race's idea is undoubtedly good. Following their steps, the human race will inevitably grow steadily and become stronger step by step.

However, in Ao Bing's view, they were still too conservative; this pace of development was too slow. (End of Chapter)