Chapter 288: Five Elements Sect

All factions were closely monitoring the imperial family's reaction, but unfortunately, several days had passed since the Embroidered Uniform Guard approached Hua Changxi, and the imperial side still showed no response.

"Do they intend to let this matter drop?"

The Embroidered Uniform Guard were the imperial family's private troops; for Hua Changxi to act against them was undoubtedly a public slap in the face to the imperial house. Was the imperial family really not going to pursue this?

By the twenty-seventh day of the eighth month, the Embroidered Uniform Guard arrived at the Medical Bureau once again, notifying Hua Changxi to report to the Northern Town Guard Command three days later to discuss matters regarding cultivators entering the capital. Only then did all factions confirm that the imperial family truly had no intention of holding Hua Changxi accountable.

In response, many people felt deeply disappointed.

"What a pity!"

Xia Zhen felt great regret; Hua Changxi's displayed strength was even greater than he had imagined. He had originally hoped to use this confrontation between her and the imperial family to further probe what trump cards she held, never expecting the domineering and unparalleled imperial house to choose appeasement instead.

In contrast to the disappointment of the various factions, Hua Changxi actually breathed a sigh of relief.

She certainly did not wish to confront the imperial family directly, even though she commanded the Zhu Que Army.

Just as she had said, once certain matters began, their subsequent trajectory and the manner in which they would conclude were beyond anyone's control.

Deploying the Zhu Que Army was by no means a good thing for her.

Managing a single Dantian Secret Realm already kept her somewhat overwhelmed; once the Zhu Que Army was mobilized, the involved aspects would only multiply, and the affairs she needed to handle would snowball, growing larger and larger.

At that point, her time for cultivation would be infinitely compressed, which was absolutely not what she desired.

Although acting to teach the Embroidered Uniform Guard a lesson was somewhat impulsive, Hua Changxi did not regret it. Kindness invites bullying, just as a gentle horse invites riding; she needed to appropriately bare her claws.

However, exposing her strength ultimately triggered her sense of crisis, making her realize that the cards in her hand were still too few.

Before this, she had felt that having four strongholds—the Shennong Hall, Mount Wuzhi, the Lingguang Hall, and the Dantian Peak—was quite satisfactory, but now that her opponent had become the imperial family, comparing herself to them instantly made her realize her accumulation was truly insufficient.

Moreover, apart from the Dantian Peak and Shennong Hall, which she participated in managing, she had left Mount Wuzhi and the Lingguang Hall to operate on their own; if a real crisis arose, the assistance they could provide would be very limited.

This direct confrontation with the imperial family served as a reminder to Hua Changxi: it was time to properly get Mount Wuzhi and the Lingguang Hall functioning.

Fortunately, her cultivation had currently stalled, freeing up a portion of her cultivation time.

Mount Wuzhi was manageable; with An Ze and An Ran overseeing things, she could simply replicate the management model of the Dantian Peak.

However, managing the Lingguang Hall gave her a headache.

Although the Zhu Que Army currently numbered only over six thousand, it was still an army, and where did she have any experience managing military forces?

Lacking experience, she could only follow the path of borrowing references.

Matters concerning the Zhu Que Army could not be discussed with outsiders, as it was one of her trump cards; thus, Hua Changxi could only draw inspiration from the management models of the Demon-Suppressing Army and the Demon-Quelling Guard, which she had access to.

The rank system for the soldiers of the Demon-Quelling Guard was: General → Assistant Regional Commander → Garrison Commander → Myriarch → Battalion Commander → Company Commander → Squad Leader → Soldier Guard.

The promotion path was very simple and clear, obvious at a glance.

Hua Changxi had wanted to adopt it directly, but to be on the safe side, she visited the Lecture Hall and, during a casual chat with an instructor who was formerly a retired soldier of the Demon-Suppressing Army, inquired about their soldier management system.

Upon learning that the Demon-Suppressing Army also followed the management model of General → Assistant Regional Commander → Garrison Commander → Myriarch → Battalion Commander → Company Commander → Squad Leader → Soldier Guard, she was genuinely surprised.

"It seems this management model can be directly applied."

Having prior experience planning the Dantian Secret Realm, Hua Changxi skillfully began planning the operational schemes for Mount Wuzhi and the Lingguang Hall.

Hua Changxi intended to establish a Five Elements Sect on Mount Wuzhi, which would better maintain order on the mountain.

The Five Elements Sect would be divided into six departments: Personnel, Logistics, Mission Hall, Merit Hall, Lecture Hall, and Law Enforcement Hall.

The disciple promotion path was: Apprentice → Outer Sect Disciple → Inner Sect Disciple → Personal Disciple.

After establishing this management model, Hua Changxi immediately teleported to Mount Wuzhi, summoned An Ran and An Ze before her, and explained to them both the plan to establish the Five Elements Sect and its organizational structure.

Upon hearing Hua Changxi's words, both An Ran and An Ze showed expressions of delight on their faces.

As spiritual qi continued to recover, more and more people became cultivators; due to the scarcity of training grounds, Mount Wuzhi had become the first choice for cultivators seeking trial and experience.

With more cultivators arriving, conflicts followed; if not for the fact that Qingzhou fell under the jurisdiction of the Prince of Dong'an, and that the Prince of Dong'an owed the Fairy a favor and helped suppress some of the covetous ambitions, Mount Wuzhi would certainly have been extremely turbulent.

Although they did recruit some cultivators, lacking an official public title meant that in the eyes of outsiders, they resembled the martial artist gangs of the past.

Now that the Five Elements Sect was being established, it would surely attract more and better cultivators to join them.

Shan Ling and Xiao Song had unknowingly gathered nearby; upon hearing that Hua Changxi intended to build the Five Elements Sect, Shan Ling jumped up and down with joy: "Fairy, you have finally seen reason."

With a formal sect stationed here, they would certainly be able to recruit more disciples; with more disciples, the incense would burn brighter, Mount Wuzhi would naturally flourish, and he could advance to become the Mountain God of the Five Elements Mountain even faster.

Seeing that Shan Ling now appeared as a child of five or six years old, Hua Changxi patted his round head and smiled: "You have grown up again."

Shan Ling leaned against Hua Changxi, behaving very affectionately, his eyes squinting into slits with laughter: "As the Fairy grows stronger, I grow stronger along with her."

Hua Changxi looked at Shan Ling: "The Five Elements Sect has just been established, and everything is still in the exploratory stage; since I am often away, you must keep a close watch for me."

Shan Ling puffed out his chest: "Rest assured, I will."

Hua Changxi then asked: "By the way, what is the highest realm of the demonic beasts on Mount Wuzhi?"

Cultivating the Blood Refining chapter of the "Nine Transformations Mystic Art" required demonic beast blood; prior to this, she had not paid much attention to demonic beasts.

Shan Ling replied: "Golden Core Realm."

Hua Changxi asked: "Are there no Nascent Soul Realm demonic beasts?"

Shan Ling answered: "Mount Wuzhi is the Fairy's cultivation ground; demonic beasts dare not assume human form on human territory. In the past two years, several demonic beasts at the peak of the Golden Core Realm have secretly left Mount Wuzhi."

He paused for a moment.

"Fairy, do you wish to take spirit pets?" he asked, becoming excited on his own.

"The Five Elements Sect must have several mountain-guarding demonic beasts; beasts raised on Mount Wuzhi will surely be more loyal. Fairy, I know of a few peak Golden Core Realm beasts in the mountains with decent bloodlines; would you like to take them?"

Hearing this, Hua Changxi immediately became interested; she handed the Five Elements Sect planning documents to An Ze and An Ran for them to review first, then took Shan Ling and Xiao Song to find those demonic beasts.

As a peak Nascent Soul Realm cultivator, Hua Changxi's perception of every corner of Mount Wuzhi had become increasingly precise; however, surveying each location required spiritual sense, and since her spiritual sense was not strong, probing everywhere would consume too much energy. Thus, she could only follow Shan Ling on a tour through Mount Wuzhi to locate all five demonic beasts.

At the foot of the Middle Finger Peak, a Golden Eagle, a Five-Colored Deer, a Jade Python, a completely fire-red Bee Queen, and a Black Ape lay trembling before Hua Changxi.

Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth—the spiritual root attributes of these five demonic beasts collectively covered all Five Elements attributes.

This was Hua Changxi's first time dealing with demonic beasts; unsure of how to gauge her approach, she looked toward Shan Ling.

Seeing this, Shan Ling immediately grinned and said to the five demonic beasts: "This is the Fire Lotus Fairy."

Upon hearing this, the bodies of the five demonic beasts instantly trembled.

The Fire Lotus Immortal, the Mountain Lord of Mount Wuzhi!

At this moment, the five demons were filled with immense regret.

Driven by greed for the dense spiritual energy within Mount Wuzhi, and believing that cultivators' cultivation speed could not match that of demonic beasts, they assumed that even if the Mountain Lord returned and discovered them, her cultivation base being lower than theirs would leave her powerless. Thus, they stayed on, clinging to a fluke.

Had they known that the Fire Lotus Immortal was so powerful, capable of immobilizing them with a single glance, they would have died rather than remain on Mount Wuzhi.

Mountain Spirit: "The Immortal wishes to establish the Five Elements Sect and requires several mountain-guarding demonic beasts. Are you willing to acknowledge the Immortal as your master?"

Upon hearing these words, the five demonic beasts breathed a collective sigh of relief; at least they were not to be killed.

"We are willing."

Seeing how readily and decisively the five demonic beasts agreed, Hua Changxi was slightly surprised.

The Mountain Spirit explained: "In the world of the demon race, the strong are revered, and the weak have no choice but to submit."

After hearing this, Hua Changxi nodded, then immediately had the five demonic beasts sign spirit pet contracts.

Once the contracts were completed, the Mountain Spirit grinned and offered congratulations: "Now that you are the mountain-guarding demonic beasts of Mount Wuzhi, you may advance and assume human form here in the future."

Knowing they would not die, the five demons relaxed slightly. The next moment, seeing their master wave out five bottles of pills seemingly intended for them, they quickly stepped forward to accept them.

Hua Changxi: "These are Grade Three Beast Essence Pills I refined for fun. Taking them should aid your cultivation."

The five demons knew little about human pills. Tentatively opening the bottles, as the rich fragrance of the pills wafted into their noses, faces of all five lit up with ecstatic joy.

"Thank you, Master, for bestowing these pills."

Once certain that Hua Changxi would not enslave them without reward, much of the reluctance in the five demons' hearts dissipated.

Hua Changxi: "Guard Mount Wuzhi and the Five Elements Sect well for me, and I will not treat you poorly. At the very least, you will never lack for pills."

She paused.

"Even helping you purify your bloodlines is not impossible."

Hearing this, the five demons immediately expressed their loyalty with great excitement.

A demonic beast's bloodline determined the ceiling of its cultivation; the higher and purer the bloodline, the further and higher one could go.

Since the five demons were too massive to take to the Outer Mountain, Hua Changxi spent a little more time bonding with them before departing with the Mountain Spirit and Xiao Song.

For the next two days, Hua Changxi remained on Mount Wuzhi, discussing the specific details of managing the Five Elements Sect with An Ran and An Ze.

On the thirtieth day of the eighth month, as the first light of dawn broke, Hua Changxi teleported back to the Danyuan Secret Realm.