Chapter 1225: I Withdraw

Hearing this, True Lord Peach Blossom cursed inwardly but dared not openly confront Zhongli Tianyu, as he was, after all, a classmate of Pure Yang True Lord.

The Divine Transformation cultivators then discussed the term limits for the positions of the Three Palace Lords. Since Ye Yun'e was being asked to step down, her ascension date would be the reference point, which happened to be around two Jiazi cycles, or 120 years.

"Isn't this too short for Nascent Soul cultivators?" Qingping raised an objection. If this rule were followed, Gongye Zhixu wouldn't have many years left either. Although their lineage had Lan Haitian as a reserve, he also had half of his background tied to Kunpeng.

When disputes arose, it was Chen Mobai's turn to make a decisive statement: "Let's tentatively set it at two Jiazi cycles. For Nascent Soul cultivators, the primary goal is to cultivate to Divine Transformation. Staying too long in the mortal world doesn't offer much benefit. Moreover, Nascent Soul cultivators are emerging in abundance in the Immortal Sect now; we should give more opportunities to the younger generation. If there's a shortage of talent in the future, we can act exceptionally and appropriately extend this limit."

As soon as Chen Mobai finished speaking, everyone nodded gently. Indeed, there were quite a few Nascent Soul cultivators in the current Immortal Sect. If the Three Palace Lords remained unchanged for several centuries, as in Lin Daoming's time, it would lead to stability but might also cause society to lose its vitality. Given that the Immortal Sect had already explored the external star rivers, it was still preferable to keep the populace ambitious and allow those with ability to have a chance to distinguish themselves.

After these broad directions were determined, the next step was to inform the Nascent Soul cultivators below. Basically, everyone was satisfied with this. The only one dissatisfied was Ye Yun'e.

Upon learning of her forced retirement, she immediately rushed to Five Peaks Immortal Mountain. She had diligently served as Qi Yuheng's secretary for over two centuries, finally ascending to the position of Kaiyuan Palace Lord. To be told that the rules had changed after barely a century was definitely unacceptable. Even if there was a past grievance with Pure Yang True Lord, there should be a legitimate reason for her to step down. She came to Qi Yuheng to seek justice.

However, upon reaching Zhixian Peak, Qi Yuheng directly informed her that he had initiated the proposal himself.

"Why!?" Ye Yun'e's face turned pale; she didn't understand why she was being abandoned.

As she was his old subordinate, Qi Yuheng provided an explanation: "Do you remember the first thing I told you when you came to Kaiyuan Palace?"

Ye Yun'e recalled for a moment, then nodded and replied, "Politics is about mutual compromise. To gain some things, you must sacrifice others." But Ye Yun'e couldn't understand why she had to be sacrificed. She hadn't gained anything!

"If you step down, your father will get an opportunity to achieve Divine Transformation. If you don't want to retire, I'll have Zhongli Tianyu retire in your place, and after he reaches Nascent Soul Layer Nine, this Divine Transformation opportunity will go to him." After Qi Yuheng succinctly explained the implications, he awaited Ye Yun'e's answer.

Ye Yun'e's expression shifted between cloudy and clear, but finally, she dejectedly lowered her head and uttered two words: "I'll retire." Ye Yun'e knew very well how rare the opportunity for Divine Transformation was in the Immortal Sect. To be able to secure Divine Transformation resources for her father, Master Beiming, through her retirement, was probably Qi Yuheng showing her considerable favor.

"If Beiming can achieve Divine Transformation, after I depart, he can also arrange for you to obtain a Startling Spirit Condensing Elixir. Only four pills were distributed this time; you can try to secure one from the remaining six." Seeing his old subordinate looking somewhat dejected, Qi Yuheng sighed and offered some comfort and guidance.

As expected, Ye Yun'e's eyes immediately lit up upon hearing this. If her father could achieve Divine Transformation, and then Pure Yang True Lord and Qi Yuheng departed, her regaining the position of one of the Three Palace Lords would be a simple matter.

"Thank you for your guidance, True Lord!" After happily descending the mountain, Ye Yun'e immediately began arranging her retirement. Before leaving office, she wanted to promote her husband further. Knowing her sacrifice, Qi Yuheng did not object and allowed her to use the interests of the Kunpeng lineage as leverage.

At the Kaiyuan Palace conference at the end of the year, Jiang Yuyuan was promoted to the new head of the Department of Arts and Culture. In the past, this would certainly have caused some controversy. However, because Kaiyuan Palace Councilor Yang Youyu (Master Yu Yi) became the Deputy Lord of Kaiyuan Palace, drawing the attention of all those unaware of the true situation, almost no one paid attention to this matter. And Yu Yi, who usually disliked such trivial matters, was full of energy and charisma during his inauguration speech, knowing that this was paving the way for him to receive a Startling Spirit Condensing Elixir.

After Yu Yi took office as Deputy Lord of Kaiyuan Palace, his first proposal was to limit the term of office for the Three Palace Lords. All Kaiyuan Palace councilors were astonished by this proposal, not understanding why she wanted to undermine the foundation of the Four Great Dao Academies. Naturally, the vast majority of councilors opposed it, and the proposal did not pass. But then, something astonishing happened: the Three Palace Lords actually jointly agreed and forcefully passed the proposal. Without any reason, they certainly wouldn't reform themselves. Therefore, many intelligent individuals quickly deduced that this was the will of the seven Divine Transformation Old Ancestors. This instantly motivated the Core Formation cultivators who had originally intended to simply pass their days in the Three Palaces. Under this term limit, as long as one could form a Nascent Soul, they would basically have the opportunity to serve as one of the Three Palace Lords.

Furthermore, a batch of Nascent Soul Fostering Pills newly refined by the Immortal Sect also began to be distributed to selected individuals. All qualified peak Core Formation cultivators started leveraging their connections, hoping to obtain one pill. However, this list had been determined much earlier by the four Divine Transformation lineages. Among them, the Artifact Dance lineage received three pills, which were given to Ming Yihua, Hua Zijing, and Meng Huang'er, respectively. The other three lineages each received two pills. One more pill was given to the Sea Domain, as a form of compensation. Within this distribution, because Ye Yun'e had retired, Qi Yuheng made the decision to give one of the Nascent Soul Fostering Pills to Jiang Yuyuan.

Night.

Chen Mobai used the Great Void Teleportation to arrive at Meng Huang'er's hilltop villa on Mount Chicheng, where he guided her on various matters concerning Nascent Soul formation. Besides the Nascent Soul Fostering Pill, he naturally also presented the "Nascent Soul formation gift package" he had prepared. Meng Huang'er, a mere Core Formation cultivator, felt she had no way to repay such kindness except to offer herself fully, overflowing with gratitude.

"Your foundation is still a bit weak; forming a Nascent Soul in one attempt will certainly not work. First, carefully observe your shortcomings through failure, and only after you have no doubts, make a concerted effort to break through." Afterward, Chen Mobai spoke about Meng Huang'er's Nascent Soul formation arrangements, and she nodded repeatedly. Her spiritual ground for Nascent Soul formation was in this very valley, at Chen Mobai's former residence. Six-level spiritual energy already flowed there, and with the grand formation Chen Mobai had set up and the supreme-grade spirit stones, no activity would emanate from within, whether the Nascent Soul formation succeeded or failed. Chen Mobai arranged three sets of Nascent Soul formation resources for Meng Huang'er. To give her confidence, he also said that he would prepare more after these were used up, emphasizing not to fear waste.

"You are so good to me!" Meng Huang'er was moved to tears after hearing this, feeling fortunate that back then, in the Artifact Dance Dao Academy, she had immediately recognized this outstanding man before her. Over the years, although she had also contributed much, she had received a return worth thousands of times more.

"You are my woman, of course, I'll be good to you." Chen Mobai gently patted the tearfully grateful Meng Huang'er in his arms and spoke softly, causing her to tremble uncontrollably.

After settling Meng Huang'er, Chen Mobai sent Ming Yihua into the Jade Peace Lesser Realm. As the future leader of the Artifact Dance lineage, Ming Yihua naturally did not disappoint Chen Mobai. He didn't even need the Nascent Soul formation resources Chen Mobai had prepared, succeeding effortlessly with just one Nascent Soul Fostering Pill. Furthermore, he consolidated his realm and emerged from seclusion in just half a year.

"These can be left for the future generations of the academy." After stepping out of the Jade Peace Lesser Realm, Ming Yihua, full of vigor, returned the Nascent Soul formation resources Chen Mobai had given him.

"Since I gave them to you, they are yours. If in the future you find a junior worthy of cultivation, give them to him." There was no reason for Chen Mobai to take back something he had given, so he refused with a smile. Ming Yihua, being straightforward, accepted them directly upon hearing this.

"How are Senior Sister Hua and Senior Sister Meng doing?" Ming Yihua, having succeeded himself, did not forget Hua Zijing and Meng Huang'er. After all, they were all from the Artifact Dance lineage, and if they succeeded, their lineage would have nine Nascent Souls.

"I have made all the arrangements, but whether they succeed or not depends on their own fortune." Chen Mobai said, adding that he had arranged Hua Zijing at Wangxian Peak and also provided her with a set of Nascent Soul formation resources.

And as the two were conversing, a silver light flashed. It was Cheng Xuan, who had received the news and teleported over. Seeing Ming Yihua enveloped in Pure Yang energy, he burst into laughter, greatly pleased. Soon, the news of Ming Yihua's successful Nascent Soul formation spread throughout the Immortal Sect. He was also the first to succeed from this batch of Nascent Soul Fostering Pills.

"The Artifact Dance lineage is flourishing like a raging fire, blooming beautifully!" In the Jumang lineage, Peach Blossom informed her master of this news, who couldn't help but exclaim.

"When the moon is full, it begins to wane; when water is full, it overflows. When Pure Yang and we leave, the Artifact Dance lineage, without a Divine Transformation cultivator overseeing it, will likely go from prosperity to decline," Peach Blossom stated.

"Let's hope so. How are the Three Uniques doing?" asked the human face on the peach tree bark.

"Still attempting to break through, but the outlook is not optimistic." Peach Blossom shook her head, looking somewhat helpless. If the Three Uniques could successfully achieve Divine Transformation, then she could leave with peace of mind.

"I hope he succeeds." After saying this, the human face on the peach tree vanished. Soon, Peach Blossom also left the island.

That day, Chen Mobai, who was guiding Ming Yihua in refining the Pure Yang Golden Lotus, suddenly showed a change in expression.

"Try it first. If you don't understand something, then ask me." After sending Ming Yihua away, Chen Mobai took out his phone. There was a pop-up window on it. The image was of a world gate, managed by Gui Bao.