51: Threat? That's too simplistic! I'll just use my power to intimidate them!

Under the unquestionable "decree" of the Old Ancestor, True Monarch Zi Wei, Lin Chen officially became the first and most exalted Saint in the history of the Purple Cloud Holy Land.

He was arranged to stay in the Sect's Forbidden Ground—the Holy Sons Palace, which floated above the sea of clouds at the peak of Purple Cloud Peak, second only to the Old Ancestor's "Star-Gazing Secret Chamber."

Inside a closed-door meditation room within the palace.

Lin Chen sat cross-legged, his mind sinking into the System panel as he carefully tallied his gains from this trip.

【 host: Lin Chen 】

【 Cultivation: late Golden Core stage 】

【 Core Cultivation Technique: Archaic Dragon-Elephant Art (30,000 dragon elephant particles condensed) 】

【 Divine Ability: Moonlight Divine Pupils, Hand of Space, Affinity with Ten Thousand Demons (Awaiting Activation) 】

【 Trump Card: Nine Heavens Divine Thunder (Used) 】

【 Loyal Servants: Luo Bingli (Early Nascent Soul Stage), Blood Moon Wolf Queen (Early Golden Core Stage) 】

【 Offspring: 2 (In gestation) 】

【 Offspring Info 1: Offspring with Lin Xiaoya (Moon Spirit Body), expected to be born in seven months, talent initially assessed as 【 Earth Rank High Grade 】! 】

【 Offspring Info 2: Offspring with Su Mei (Mystic Yin Demon Body), via "Ripening" mode, expected to be born in one month, talent initially assessed as 【 Heaven Rank High Grade 】! 】

Looking at the magnificent data on the panel, Lin Chen was filled with satisfaction.

In just a few short months, he had soared from the Late Foundation Establishment Stage to the late Golden Core stage! With 30,000 dragon elephant particles, his pure Physical Body strength was enough to shake a Mid Nascent Soul Stage expert! Furthermore, he had gained two female servants at the Golden Core and Nascent Soul stages, as well as two unborn "super babies" with extraordinary talent!

But Lin Chen did not relax in the slightest. He knew his greatest trump card, "Nine Heavens Divine Thunder," had been used, and that the unfathomable True Monarch Zi Wei did not simply "favor" him. He had to truly reach the Nascent Soul stage as soon as possible!

While lost in thought, the door to the meditation room was gently pushed open. Lin Xiaoya walked in cautiously, carrying a bowl of freshly brewed spirit porridge.

"Young Master, you've been in closed-door cultivation for a day. Drink something to warm your body first." Her small face carried the unique, gentle radiance of a mother-to-be.

"Thank you for your hard work." Lin Chen looked at his first woman, his eyes filled with tenderness. He reached out and pulled the little girl into his arms, placing one hand gently on her slightly protruding lower abdomen. Feeling the little life connected by blood, an unprecedented sense of satisfaction and responsibility welled up in his heart.

"Young Master..." Lin Xiaoya leaned her head against his shoulder happily and whispered, "Sister Ziyan came by earlier. She said that the Elders who were disrespectful to you in the Sect seem to have been getting very close to the deposed Former Sect Master recently."

"Oh?" A hint of coldness flashed in Lin Chen's eyes. It seemed some dogs remembered the beating but forgot the pain.

Just then, a knock on the door, filled with "respect," came from outside the palace.

"Saint, this old servant, on the orders of the Council of Elders, has come to deliver your new season's tribute resources and your cultivation plan for the next three months."

It had arrived! A cold arc appeared at the corner of Lin Chen's mouth; he knew the "show of force" from those losers had finally come. He comforted Lin Xiaoya, tidied his robes to restore a calm and relaxed demeanor, and opened the palace door.

Standing outside the door were Elder Wang and several attendant Disciples holding jade boxes. She wore a fawning smile, but a flash of imperceptible mockery and schadenfreude flickered in her turbid old eyes.

"Saint, your talent is unparalleled; you are the Qilin child of our Sect for ten thousand years. The Elders in the Council of Elders have been worrying themselves sick over your future." She signaled for the Disciples to present the "tribute resources" and handed a Jade Slip to Lin Chen with a "concerned" tone, "According to the plan, for the next three months, you must—refine your Physical Body under the ten-thousand-foot waterfall at Reflection Cliff for three hours every day at the hour of the Rabbit; go to the Alchemy pavilion to study Alchemy for two hours at the hour of the Dragon; go to the Scripture Pavilion to memorize classics at the hour of the Horse..."

She rattled off a long list of "fulfilling and correct" cultivation arrangements. Lin Chen laughed after hearing it, and Luo Bingli, who was following behind him, instantly sank her face—this "perfect plan" translated into only one sentence: everything was arranged clearly from morning till night, not even giving him a chance to interact with other female Disciples! Was this a cultivation plan? It was clearly disguised house arrest!

Facing the seemingly "respectful" but actually mocking arrangements of Elder Wang, Lin Chen laughed. He did not fly into a rage as the other party had expected; instead, he slowly took the Jade Slip, read it carefully from beginning to end in front of her, and finally nodded with a "praising" smile.

"Not bad, the plan is thorough and detailed. It's clear that the Seniors of the Council of Elders have indeed gone to great pains for me, this Saint."

Seeing Lin Chen's appearance of "gladly accepting," Elder Wang felt even more triumphant and contemptuous in her heart. (Hmph, just a man who has never seen the world; he's scared into obedience by a little display? Saint? Nothing more than that.)

She cleared her throat, preparing to exert more pressure, but Lin Chen's next words made her smile stiffen.

"However..." Lin Chen changed the subject, his smile meaningful as he looked at her, "The plan is good, but did Elder Wang forget one thing? I, Lin Chen, have never liked being disturbed during my cultivation. If something unpleasant happens in the Sect during the three months I am in closed-door cultivation—for example, if the Former Sect Master Yun Yun has an accident while going down the mountain for training, or if some Seniors in the Council of Elders are too 'overworked' and accidentally suffer Qi Deviation. Tell me, when the Old Ancestor comes out of closed-door cultivation and asks, who should be held responsible? Me, who was in closed-door cultivation, or you, who were in charge of the big picture outside?"

Boom—!!!

Although these words were calm and breezy, the naked threat struck Elder Wang's heart like a thunderclap from the Nine Heavens! Her face turned deathly pale, and fine cold sweat seeped from her forehead. She finally understood that the man in front of her was no fool; he was a vicious dragon that would eat people without spitting out the bones! He was clearly telling them: you had better behave, otherwise, Yun Yun would be your fate!

Watching Elder Wang's pale old face due to fear, Lin Chen knew the heat was just about right. He couldn't just suppress them; he had to win over and divide them. His expression changed back to "kindness," and he stepped forward to kindly help up the woman who was almost about to kneel, saying in a "heart-to-heart" tone:

"Oh my, Elder Wang, it was just a joke, why are you so scared? Actually, I am the most reasonable person. You Elders have made great contributions to the Sect, but the future of the Sect ultimately depends on more energetic young people, doesn't it?" He changed the subject, threw the "cultivation plan" Jade Slip aside, and took out another prepared Jade Slip from his storage ring.

"It just so happens that I have some small ideas about the development of the Sect—for example, most of the Sect's resources are concentrated in the Council of Elders and Core Disciples, while the vast number of Outer Sect and Inner Sect Disciples only get scraps, which is not conducive to long-term development. I was thinking, can we reform it a little? For example, cut 30% of the resources that the Council of Elders doesn't really use and invest it all in the cultivation of the bottom-level Disciples?"

He looked at Elder Wang's completely petrified face and smiled even more "harmlessly": "Elder Wang, if I were to announce this proposal, do you think the bottom-level Disciples, who make up 90% of the population, would raise both hands in support?"

An open conspiracy! This was the most vicious and undeniable open conspiracy!

(In the Star-Gazing Secret Chamber)

True Monarch Zi Wei was lazily reclining on the ten-thousand-year warm jade cloud bed. In front of her floated the ancient "Star-Gazing Treasure Mirror," and the mirror surface clearly reflected everything in front of the Holy Sons Palace. At first, when she saw Elder Wang and the others looking for trouble with Lin Chen using the "cultivation plan," a flash of imperceptible playfulness flickered in her gentle and beautiful eyes—she also wanted to see how this little guy, whom she had forcibly pushed to the position of Saint, would deal with the old forces of the Sect after losing her protection. Would he compromise, or would he use brute force like he did on the Arena Platform?

However, Lin Chen's performance caused the Dao Heart that had been like an ancient well for hundreds of years to surge with monstrous waves for the first time! When she heard him threaten Elder Wang with "Yun Yun's accident" and "Elders suffering Qi Deviation," the jade hand holding the teacup paused abruptly, and true astonishment flashed in her gentle, beautiful eyes for the first time.

(Hmm? Interesting. He actually knows how to use 'beating the grass to scare the snake' to deter old foxes? His Heart-Nature is not bad, but it's a pity he's too green. This kind of threat won't work on old guys who won't shed tears until they see the coffin.)

She took a light sip of the spirit tea, still maintaining the posture of controlling everything.

In her view, although Lin Chen's response this time had some small cleverness, it was ultimately inferior. However, when she saw Lin Chen change the subject and throw out the "small idea" of "cutting 30% of the Council of Elders' resources to subsidize the bottom-level Disciples," and heard his last question, full of "harmless" smiles but vicious to the extreme—"Do you think those Disciples would support this decision?"—!

"Pfft—!!!" Even with her supreme Dao Heart at the Late Nascent Soul Stage, she could not help it at this moment. The thousand-year Enlightenment Spirit Tea she had just drunk was uncontrollably sprayed out! The gentle, tranquil, and beautiful face that seemed as if it would never have ripples for the first time completely lost its composure. In its place was a complex expression mixed with shock, horror, disbelief, and a trace of endless admiration!

(An... open conspiracy?!)

(This little bastard... he... he actually used this kind of 'drawing the firewood from under the pot' and 'borrowing strength to strike' open conspiracy?!)

(This... a man can actually think of such a move?!)

She stared blankly at the youth in the mirror who had played Elder Wang and that group of old foxes in the palm of his hand with just a few words, forcing them into a dilemma where they had to swallow their pride. Watching his calm and breezy, yet irritatingly smug smile that seemed to have everything under control, she suddenly began to laugh uncontrollably, laughing until her body trembled, and a trace of crystalline tears overflowed from the corners of her eyes.

"Good! Very good! What a great open conspiracy! What a great 'drawing the firewood from under the pot'! What a great use of the world's momentum to pressure these few incapable fools of mine!"

The way she looked at Lin Chen completely changed. It was no longer the "appreciation" of an Elder looking at a Junior, nor the "scrutiny" of an investor looking at a "potential stock," but a kind of—weightiness, wariness, and endless excitement that only a chess player has when seeing another chess player of the same level or even higher!

(I... I really didn't bet wrong!)

(This child's scheming and methods are a hundred, a thousand times more terrifying than his brute strength!)

(A man who has been discriminated against by this world for ten thousand years...)

(Actually possesses the imperial statecraft capable of overturning the pattern of the entire world!)

She slowly wiped the tea stains from the corner of her mouth and sat up straight again.

(This man...)

(He must be mine!)

(No one can think of snatching him from my hands!)