Chapter 1258: The Forty-First Cultivation University: Mingdu University

Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong plunged into its Immortal Dao research with full force.

All manner of projects and engineering works were set up in extremely short order; citizen cultivators who had been temporarily demobilized threw themselves into research, production, and teaching everywhere—setting down their guns they were ordinary citizens, working in every trade and profession, switching between occupations seamlessly.

Jiang Ding also temporarily retired from the military.

He returned to his old line of work in education, taking charge of planning for Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong's forty-first university with a cultivation department—Mingdu University.

The Jiuling Realm was being built up by Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong as the standard for a mother realm.

This unprecedented Mingdu University was one example: it was the first time Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong had established a cultivation university outside the mother star, and it was unwilling to treat the Jiuling Realm like the many Minor Thousand Worlds, handing it over to be managed and produced by the various natives.

The many intelligent beings originally living within the Jiuling Realm—the remnants of the Horned Demon Imperial Clan and the rest—would be relocated out of the Jiuling Realm one after another and resettled in other Minor Thousand Worlds.

However, Mingdu University also differed from other Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong universities in that it only admitted students over a hundred years old, or transfer students, and offered only graduate-level courses and above.

This was to ensure citizens' sense of belonging to the mother star.

Citizens could not be allowed to grow up in the Jiuling Realm from childhood and thereby develop a sense of belonging to it stronger than to the mother star—that was not permitted.

Jiang Ding stood within a seventh-tier spiritual vein, beneath the Shenmu Shenmu Futianrong.

Mountains upon mountains, forests, rivers rose from the ground at the sweep of his will, forming all manner of classrooms, plazas, school gates, student cave-abodes and dormitories at every level—in the space of a single thought they were already complete.

However, this was only a shell.

The internal cultivation-room arrays, classroom arrays, and all the various teaching and research instruments naturally could not be generated in a single thought—that was work for others.

"Go ahead and do it—follow the specifications of Qingfeng University, and meet the needs of all the projects currently under research."

Jiang Ding instructed.

"Yes, Principal!"

A large group of Soul Transformation cultivators around him bowed and answered, then led numerous Nascent Soul cultivators away.

As Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong became a Dao Merging-level power, the requirements for instructors and professors at every university rose with the tide.

Generally speaking, at top-tier universities no one below Soul Transformation could teach; unless some Nascent Soul cultivator was truly a once-in-an-age prodigy, at most they could hold a teaching-assistant position.

A far cry from a few thousand years ago.

"Jiang Ding, you brat—you're actually a principal now."

Master Master Dinghai remarked with some feeling.

After awakening he had also achieved Soul Transformation; every principal of Qingfeng University had been the most outstanding talent of Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong over the past several hundred years, so his advancement to Soul Transformation was no surprise—especially after Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong gained a Zhong Senior Qian Shi Gao Jie.

Around them, Master Canghai Canghai Tianjun, Chengyang Canghai Tianjun Zhang Zhang Junsheng, Siyan Canghai Tianjun and several others

were all present; they had long been the elite of the education sector, rich in experience, and now were also in charge of this area.

"Teacher flatters me."

"I'm only standing in temporarily, to keep the newly advanced Soul Transformation cultivators from being unconvinced."

Jiang Ding smiled: "After a while, I may be transferred back to the Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong mother star to take over from Li Hai Zhen and rotate in guarding Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong. When that time comes I can recommend you to the committee for the position of Mingdu University principal—it's a very good post, you can accumulate credentials here bit by bit and keep an eye on Void Refinement."

"Though I'm not sure the committee will approve it—after all, your record is, uh, ordinarily outstanding."

Master Master Dinghai's credentials were indeed a bit thin.

Less than six hundred years since advancing to Soul Transformation, he was still a greenhorn among Soul Transformation cultivators.

Dayang Dayang Tianchi was to serve as Mingdu University principal.

No one had any objections—he was a venerable old-timer; countless Soul Transformation cultivators saw him the way little children see their teachers, respectful and reverent from the heart.

One might even say that with Dayang Dayang Tianchi, one of the nine members of the Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong Council, serving as Mingdu University principal, this was a downgrade in rank—expressing Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong's emphasis on the newly born Mingdu University, adding luster to Mingdu University rather than the other way around.

That was Dayang Dayang Tianchi.

Master Master Dinghai, on the other hand, would likely draw a lot of objections—after all, a great many truly outstanding Soul Transformation cultivators had their eyes on this position, and the name "Dayang Dayang Tianchi's teacher" wouldn't frighten them off.

Forget being Dayang Dayang Tianchi's teacher—even if some distant teacher were still alive today, if one's strength wasn't enough they'd still snatch the post without hesitation.

"Mingdu University principal?"

"Can I really do it?"

Master Master Dinghai was a little lacking in confidence.

Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong was now brimming with talent—over a thousand Soul Transformation cultivators, among whom gathered all the geniuses and heroes of Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong's history, with heaven's proud sons and monstrous talents beyond counting.

His past record was not bad, but among these people it was utterly unremarkable.

"Give it a try."

"At worst it's a bout of tempering, with great benefit for your Dao path going forward."

Jiang Ding consoled him.

Apart from Master Master Dinghai, Jiang Ding also successively made arrangements for Siyan Canghai Tianjun, Master Canghai Canghai Tianjun, Chengyang Canghai Tianjun and the others—mostly as lecturers and professors in their respective specialties; this posed no difficulty, their abilities being fully sufficient.

In fact, this was one of his Soul Transformation-stage avatars.

His true main body was still cultivating within Dayang Dayang Tianchi, and with his divine sense entered the network was participating in a military conference led by Yuan, discussing the strategic situation after the eight great powers of the Badaxian Sect had fully recovered.

"Should we strike covertly and cripple the outstanding potential cultivators of the Badaxian Sect, such as Lord Dingding Canghai Tianjun?"

"These people have a chance at Void Refinement."

Senior Wanji Zhen-zun said coolly

in a low, swift voice, proposing: "The Badaxian Sect possess the inheritance of Dao Merging grand arrays. If given ten thousand years to accumulate talent, with Void Refinement cultivators advancing and Soul Transformation cultivators advancing, and with great powers refining Dao Merging-level military-formation heavy weapons, they could possibly assemble Dao Merging-level Dao soldiers."

"These Dao soldiers could threaten our strategic security."

"Better to cripple them first—at least delay the appearance of their Dao Merging Dao soldiers; this level of loss wouldn't be enough to make the eight great powers turn hostile."

The several members of the Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong Council around them thought for a moment.

"No."

Yuan shook his head slightly: "If we cannot openly defeat the great powers and slay them, it's better not to use such underhanded means—it's too petty."

"Unless all our Soul Transformation cultivators never go out again, otherwise they can retaliate in kind."

"... That is true, I suppose."

Senior Wanji Zhen-zun thought for a moment, then yielded and stopped insisting.

"Great Sun, three hundred and fifty-seven years from now, the task of guarding the Mother Star for the next millennium — how about entrusting it to you?"

Looking toward Jiang Ding: "The Nine Spirit Realm has a better cultivation environment, more advanced and complete research instruments in every respect, and Harmonization-level computing power to assist. The conditions are generous, so it wouldn't be fair to let Master Canghai bear the loss alone on the Mother Star all this time."

"Furthermore, keeping a single cultivator stationed in one place indefinitely carries the risk of fostering independence, and does not conform to the Immortal Gate's rules and regulations."

"The next millennium is Senior Wanji, and the one after that is Zhenjun Shenji… Apart from me, who must guard against Great Power sneak attacks, the other nine will rotate once — a nine-thousand-year cycle."

The Immortal Gate's rules and regulations have always been to never fully trust any single cultivator, including Yuan, and never entrust life and death to an individual's moral conscience — even though Master Canghai Zhen-zun is utterly dependable.

"I obey the order."

Jiang Ding had no objections.

One could see that, although the eight Great Powers had not yet fully returned, the Immortal Gate was no longer afraid, holding little wariness toward this Anti-Immortal Gate Alliance of varied intentions — even though they might possess a greater overall strength than the Immortal Gate itself.