Chapter Seventy-Five: Do Not Sacrifice the Greater Good for Minor Gains

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It was not that Lin Qingyun was unaware of this news; in his previous life, Lin Kunshan had briefly mentioned it under duress, but the circumstances then were quite unusual. About half a year later, a bloody ritual erupted in Hanze, and soon after, the Heavenly Demon Sect and other cult organizations rapidly expanded. This marked the beginning of foreign forces probing and invading.

That entire region seemed to have been devastated; when Lin Qingyun sought Lin Kunshan for retribution in his previous life, what used to be the Stick Nation—now Hanze—no longer existed.

Regardless, this was at least a clue Lin Qingyun had never investigated before. Moreover, the bloody ritual six months later was exceptionally brutal. Although it was exposed eventually, the Heavenly Demon Sect seized the opportunity to grow, and even after Lin Qingyun became powerful, they attempted multiple assassinations.

The Heavenly Demon Sect inherited the legacy of extraterrestrial demons. Even though a century had passed since the revival of spiritual energy and no distant forces could yet cross the worlds directly, certain special souls of extraterrestrial demons began to exert influence.

They cultivated a batch of followers, constantly seeking ways to summon those foreign demons. When the time came to kill Lin Qingyun, the demonic clan was among the main forces.

As ancient star-space teleportation arrays gradually activated, these extraterrestrial demons could communicate more easily with their followers, transmit cultivation techniques, channel power through blood rituals, and influence Earth. They were the earliest pioneers.

“Is that all?” Lin Qingyun responded as if he’d just heard a joke.

“Compared to your previous investigations, this is already a directional clue,” Lin Kunshan said, having sent people to investigate, though it was like searching for a needle in a haystack.

He told Lin Qingyun now, partly hoping Lin Qingyun would help search, but absolutely did not want him to interfere with his own grand plans.

“Guess how many useful things I know that surpass yours? Never mind, I don’t have time to waste anymore. Don’t expect me to cover up for you; you’d best handle your explanations and control the boundaries. Goodbye.”

He didn’t ask for more information or delve into Lin Kunshan’s investigations; even if he were to learn more, Lin Qingyun would check for himself.

At this stage, the necessary mud had already been slung; continuing further would be pointless. Now that there were benefits to be gained, Lin Qingyun simply withdrew.

“That’s it—let’s stop wasting resources and effort. Let them ferment what’s left as they please.” This troublesome affair had dragged on for nearly a full day.

Chao Ge and Chu Qing were in another room. Since ordinary communicators were insufficient, they had set up professional equipment and were busy.

“We’re stopping now? That’s letting them off too easily, you know. We could keep stirring things up,” Chao Ge said, poking his head out, still excited.

“Alright,” Chu Qing replied immediately.

“Making more trouble won’t change much. This isn’t the final battle. If we keep spending effort and energy here without concrete results, it’s meaningless. Let this be a rehearsal before the real war—there will be plenty of chances later, whether against local forces or outsiders. You two should hone your skills in this area.”

Lin Qingyun smiled, “Besides, my dear uncle just gifted me a small island and a message. If you’re free, you can organize gatherings on the island. You’re welcome to visit anytime.”

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“My parents also have islands, but they’re too far away. This one’s more convenient, right next to Haicheng.”

“Impressive—rich people are truly different. A casual gift, and it’s an island. With this gift, he has something to show for himself. Honestly, if you hadn’t accepted, he’d have a hard time clearing his name this time,” Chao Ge said, growing accustomed to Lin Qingyun’s wealthy ways.

He knew Lin Qingyun didn’t care about just another island.

“Whether he clears his name or not doesn’t really matter. He’s stuck in that position and cares too much, or perhaps he has other motives. Otherwise, there’s no real harm.”

“The ultimate ownership isn’t tied to this. Rather than getting mired in endless disputes with them, we should focus on ourselves. Think about it: if we’d kept tangling with Zhang Baole or Zhang Xueyi, what would we have achieved?”

“Now look—our cooperation with Haicheng University has reached new heights in no time. If we estimate the value of our industries, it’s already astonishing. As the next phase develops, our operations here will only grow larger.”

“Some issues must be dealt with, but there’s no need to obsess over them. Progress is the real principle; strength is the foundation of everything. Not just in business, but in cultivation as well—you must maintain this balance.”

“We’re currently in a period of rapid growth in every aspect. Strength increases, and making money is the key. If it ever comes down to it, we can deliver a fatal blow—whether he clears his name or not, we’ll deal with him just the same.”

Lin Qingyun wasn’t just addressing this incident; he wanted Chao Ge and Chu Qing to deeply understand his philosophy.

While netizens heatedly discussed Zhang Xueyi’s remarks about Lin Qingyun, some saw Zhang Xueyi’s bounty as the real allure. In this era, there were plenty of mercenaries and monster-hunting teams; bounty hunters thrived in chaotic regions, living off rewards.

Official bounties were rare, but Zhang Xueyi offered much, and many realized that if they could capture Xie Zhiqiang alive and deliver him to Zhang Xueyi, they could demand even more.

The price was enough to tempt not only high-level cultivators at the Heart Resonance stage, but even many below the fourth level of the Cloud Ascension stage.

Xie Zhiqiang, a freshman ranked in the top ten of the battle charts, possessed high-grade magical tools. With a heavy bounty placed, many began searching for him around the border.

Logically, Xie Zhiqiang was young, one-armed, accompanied by his sister. Although they left the country a few days early, searching nearby should not have been difficult—especially since Zhang Xueyi’s bounty could drive individuals and small factions mad.

But soon everyone discovered that Xie Zhiqiang and his sister had vanished as if off the face of the earth.

Of course, Earth was now filled with chaotic areas, even monster-infested mountains. If they hid inside and didn’t come out, finding them would indeed be difficult.

Some sympathized with Xie Zhiqiang, but the world always moves on, and unless directly affected, even the biggest events are just idle talk.

Lin Qingyun ignored the outside affairs. When Professor Qian Shanmang emerged from seclusion, Lin Qingyun discussed their partnership again.

Their cooperation was expanding, with new projects added and previous industries growing like snowballs. Professor Qian led Lin Qingyun to negotiate further with Principal Hong.

This time, Lin Qingyun didn’t just present pill recipes—although there were a few formulas for the Cloud Ascension stage—but more importantly, he shared ideas for developing the entire pill industry chain.

Both Principal Hong and Professor Qian were deeply shocked.

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This was absolutely the work of a master, formed from years of experience, a blueprint for reforming the entire industry.

As Lin Qingyun put it, these were things his parents left behind, which had not yet been implemented in the Lin Pharmaceutical Group. Of course, Lin Pharmaceutical Group was no longer a one-man show; he had no say there now.

Upon hearing this, Principal Hong and Professor Qian completely understood; in fact, Lin Qingyun didn’t even need to explain.

Recently, the Lin Pharmaceutical Group’s family feud had become a headline sensation, known across the land. The drama played out in countless versions, and even people like Principal Hong and Professor Qian were avidly following the gossip.

What Lin Qingyun brought out could propel the entire industry forward, and some aspects might even indirectly accelerate the development of related fields such as artifact refinement and formations.

Originally, Lin Qingyun’s plan was to gradually take control of the Lin Pharmaceutical Group and promote these ideas through Grandmaster Chifeng and Li Xiaobo, but only when his strength was sufficient to protect himself.

Yet by chance, he connected with Qian Shanmang, cooperated with Haicheng University, and soon realized that, by leveraging the university to run school enterprises, he could stay behind the scenes completely.

Initially, when dealing with Li Daoze, others knew about his cooperation with the school.

But for subsequent collaborations, Lin Qingyun took deeper precautions, managing his shares and interests through an offshore holding company, leaving everything else to Haicheng University.

Haicheng University believed Lin Qingyun was guarding against Lin Kunshan, and with his parents as shields, they had no suspicions and fully supported him.

As a result, Lin Qingyun no longer needed to develop step by step; he could now boldly extract more resources. It seemed like simple profit-making, but in truth, he was accelerating the world’s progress.

The Heavenly Demon Sect, the ever-emerging foreign cultivators, divine beasts, and demon clans would soon bring war. In the later stages, confronting the struggle for survival, those few decades would rival a century of past progress.

Now Lin Qingyun was determined to push things forward ahead of time. By advancing alchemy, he could simultaneously accelerate artifact refinement, formations, and other fields.

Principal Hong and the others didn’t know Lin Qingyun’s deeper motives, but they were already overjoyed.

From their perspective, if Lin Kunshan hadn’t schemed to seize the Lin Pharmaceutical Group and drive Lin Qingyun out, then these discoveries from his parents would surely have gone to the family company.

Their school was the lucky beneficiary. They could already foresee that, with the next wave of rapid development, thousands of soon-to-graduate students could be retained.

With equal benefits, staying with the school enterprise was naturally more attractive, though previously its scale was limited and high-level needs were few. Now, those constraints were gone.

Based on recent discussions with Lin Qingyun, the demand for talent would soon be endless—the more, the better.

There was much to discuss, and negotiations lasted three days. Throughout that time, Lin Qingyun paid no heed to outside events. Once everything was settled, he began closed-door alchemy practice.