Chapter 9: The Second Step

The original San Ding Men was founded by Qu Yi on Tianfeng Star, together with the demon cultivator Wei Yan and Qing Wu Gui. As soon as San Ding Men was established, it gradually conquered the Bai Mo Mountain Region in the South Demon Continent of Tianfeng Star. Qu Yi then took control of several demon cultivators one by one, secretly dominating the South Demon Continent, before leading 3,000 cultivators northward to sweep through the North Immortal Continent.

At that time, Qu Yi knew that San Ding Men had caused chaos on Tianfeng Star and would inevitably attract scrutiny from various major sects. So he ordered Wei Yan to scatter the members of San Ding Men across different parts of the cultivation world to hide. Subsequently, the disciples of San Ding Men went to various smaller planets in the cultivation world, secretly building their influence there.

To this day, San Ding Men, which originally had only 3,000 members, has expanded its influence to all the smaller planets in the cultivation world. Its members carry out various activities on these planets and have essentially established a foothold on each of them. Qu Yi still keeps Wei Yan in charge of San Ding Men in secret.

After controlling the merger of the seven major sects, Qu Yi sent all the powerful members of the merged San Ding Men to various planets to carry out cleanup operations. He also instructed Wei Yan to send the existing members of San Ding Men to various planets to monitor changes there. Wei Yan faithfully carried out Qu Yi’s orders, dispatching some of the members hidden on smaller planets to medium and large planets to keep an eye on developments.

Undoubtedly, the Tribulation Stage elders active on large planets, the Fusion Stage elders on medium planets, and the Divination Stage enforcers on smaller planets none of them noticed that, while they were busy eliminating various forces, there were unseen eyes constantly watching their every move. Everything was unfolding quietly.

…

Five years passed in no time. All the planets in the cultivation world were now completely under the control of San Ding Men, and all heretical sects and forces had been eliminated. The Tribulation Stage elders, Fusion Stage elders, and Divination Stage enforcers sent by San Ding Men firmly controlled the situation on each planet. The sects on these planets also unified their names, all becoming San Ding Men.

In the cultivation world, there was only one sect—San Ding Men.

With the situation stabilized, the biggest mystery in the entire cultivation world now was: who exactly was the leader of San Ding Men?

Apart from the leaders of the seven major sects in the cultivation world and the members of the existing San Ding Sect, no one else in the cultivation world knew who the leader of the San Ding Sect was. The cultivators across the cultivation world waited quietly. Meanwhile, on Liu Pan Star, one of Qu Yi’s avatars, Jin Zun, had already arrived at Tai Yuan Mountain. At the mountain top, Tai Ming, Ying Hua, Jin Xiong, Cang Huang, Qing Long, Tu Long, and Shui Long—these seven people had already stood there early on to welcome Jin Zun’s arrival. “Master!” they called out in unison. Jin Zun smiled faintly, nodded, waved his hand, and sat down on the ground. Smiling, he said, “All seven of you have done well. In just five years since the establishment of the San Ding Sect, it has successfully unified the cultivation world.” Smiles appeared on the faces of the seven, and they immediately replied, “Master, it is because of your guidance that we were able to accomplish such a great feat.” Jin Zun smiled again and continued, “All seven of you, I now give you a task. Since the San Ding Sect has unified the cultivation world, it’s time to establish some rules. First, all the planets in the cultivation world must be strictly classified into large planets, medium-sized planets, and small planets. From now on, small planets can only accommodate ordinary people as well as cultivators in the Qi Introduction stage, Foundation Establishment stage, and Golden Core stage. Medium-sized planets should accommodate cultivators in the Yuan Ying stage, Exit from Body stage, and Divided Spirit stage, in addition to those who grew up on the planet itself and are below the Golden Core stage. Large planets should accommodate cultivators in the Fusion stage, Tribulation Crossing stage, and Great Vehicle stage, in addition to those who grew up on the planet itself and are below the Divided Spirit stage.” After hearing this, the seven, including Tai Ming, looked at Jin Zun in shock. They never expected Qu Yi to want to ‘confine’ the cultivators of the cultivation world. “Master, but some powerful cultivators need certain cultivation materials and must go to other planets. What should we do?” Tai Ming immediately thought of a situation and asked directly. The other six also looked at Jin Zun in confusion. Jin Zun glanced coldly at Tai Ming, making him tremble, before relaxing his expression and saying with a faint smile, “You just need to follow my instructions. As for these concerns you have, I will issue more rules later to resolve such issues.” “Yes, Master.” The seven, including Tai Ming, were filled with fear and did not dare to ask further.

Jin Zun ignored the distress in the hearts of the seven and continued, “Implementing this first rule will certainly be difficult, but it is absolutely unacceptable for any cultivator to break free from it. Any cultivator at the Yuan Ying stage or above on a small planet, or at the He Ti stage or above on a medium-sized planet, must be killed without hesitation. Now, you seven must convey this first rule to all the elders, patriarchs, and law enforcers so that they carry it out.”

Tai Ming and the other six exchanged glances before responding together, “Yes, master.”

In the cultivation world, every planet is filled with numerous sects, intertwined factions, and complex interests. Naturally, cultivators of all levels may travel to various planets, and each planet likely has cultivators of different levels.

Now, Qu Yi’s attempt to strictly classify planets as small, medium, or large and restrict the movement of cultivators will undoubtedly face immense resistance across the cultivation world. After all, it would be extremely difficult for cultivators to relocate to new places and rebuild their networks of interests.

All seven realized these difficulties. Although they knew what would likely happen on various planets—another bloody suppression—they were preoccupied with their own survival and dared not plead for those cultivators. Their enthusiasm turned cold as they strictly followed Jin Zun’s orders.

What these seven didn’t expect was that Jin Zun’s order was actually the second step in Qu Yi’s plan to unify the entire cultivation world.

The first step was to merge the seven sects into the San Ding Gate, thereby seemingly unifying the cultivation world. The second step was to strictly control every planet and every cultivator’s movements, so as to solidify the San Ding Gate’s rule.

As for the third step, it could only be taken after the second step was completed.

Jin Xiong fell silent for a while before suddenly asking, “Master, the cultivators in the cultivation world are very curious about who the leader of the San Ding Gate is. Can we reveal your name now?”

Tai Ming and the other five also looked at Jin Zun with eager eyes.

Jin Zun smiled faintly and shook his head. “It’s not the right time yet. The next step will be when the cultivation world learns that I am the leader of the San Ding Gate.”

After hearing this, Tai Ming and the others sighed.

Jin Zun understood why they sighed. It wasn’t to avoid accusations that the seven had sinister plans. Instead, they were under great pressure as they tried to forcibly unify the entire cultivation world.

However, Jin Zun wouldn’t reveal right away that Qu Yi was the leader of the Three Tripod Gate. Qu Yi had a poor reputation in the cultivation world before—after all, he had been wanted by the entire cultivation community for a while. If people in the cultivation world learned that Qu Yi was the leader of the Three Tripod Gate, it would surely lead to protests and even resistance. To avoid trouble, it was better not to disclose Qu Yi’s identity for now.

Therefore, Jin Zun could only ask those seven to bear this pressure temporarily.

“Alright, you seven go and carry out the second step. You have two years. I’ll meet with you again in two years,” Jin Zun said with a smile before teleporting away.

Two years was enough time for cultivators of various levels to migrate to other planets. Moreover, the original members of the Three Tripod Gate had already been stationed on each planet, and any developments there would be reported to Wei Yan immediately, who would then pass the information on to Qu Yi.

Thus, Qu Yi was confident that the second step would also be completed smoothly.

Tai Ming and the other six stared blankly as Jin Zun left. They exchanged helpless smiles before going their separate ways to carry out their tasks.

※※※

While Jin Zun was meeting with Tai Ming and the other six, Qu Yi also issued orders to Wei Yan through a communication token.

Wei Yan was to inform all the original members of the Three Tripod Gate to closely monitor each planet. If any cultivator’s cultivation level didn’t match that of the planet, or if the elders sent by the Three Tripod Gate—those in the Tribulation Phase, Convergence Phase, or Enforcement Phase—engaged in corruption, it had to be reported.

Of course, as soon as Qu Yi learned from Wei Yan that there were cultivators on a certain planet who weren’t following the rules, he would immediately send people to massacre them on a large scale, ensuring strict control over the completion of the second step.

※※※

Tai Ming, Ying Hua, Jin Xiong, Cang Huang, Qing Long, Tu Long, and Shui Long returned and announced a decision to the cultivation world.

The planets in the cultivation world were divided into large, medium, and small sizes. Apart from the original cultivators on each planet, those in the Great Vehicle Phase, Tribulation Phase, and Convergence Phase could only live on large planets, while those in the Division of Consciousness Phase, Departure of Body Phase, and Nascent Soul Phase could only live on medium planets. Cultivators in the Golden Core Phase, Foundation Establishment Phase, and Qi Attraction Phase could only reside on small planets.

Once this news was spread, it immediately sparked intense discussions in the cultivation world.