Within the Central Hall of Void Land, Yang Kai sat in the seat of honor while Yue He stood behind him. Though she was already a Sixth-Grade Open Heaven cultivator, she still maintained the posture of a handmaiden, standing off to the side and pouring tea for Yang Kai.
Below, Chen Tianfei and Lu Xue sat to his left and right. Having heard of Yang Kai's return, the two had naturally hurried over to pay their respects. The number of Open Heaven Realm cultivators in Void Land was truly sparse — aside from Yue He at Sixth-Grade, there was only Lu Xue at Fifth-Grade, Chen Tianfei at Fourth-Grade, and Guo Ziyan at Third-Grade. These were all the Open Heaven cultivators Void Land currently possessed.
Of course, there was also Black River, who was bound by the Loyalty Register, but Yang Kai had left him stationed outside the Star Realm to guard the stability of both the Star Realm and the Demon Realm.
There was also Zhu Jiuyin, the Sacred Spirit Heavenly Moon Demon Spider. This woman's strength was far from ordinary. Having emerged from the Great Ruins Realm some time ago, her power should have recovered considerably, but what her current state truly was, no one knew.
Inside the hall, Bian Yuqing's voice echoed as she reported to Yang Kai on Void Land's developments and changes over this period. In truth, there hadn't been much change. Yang Kai had brought six hundred thousand people from the Star Realm, and the vast majority of them were still in closed-door cultivation. The various Great Emperors and Pseudo-Emperors had all received a portion of cultivation resources and needed time to refine them, so no significant results would be visible in the short term.
However, this meant that the consumption of cultivation resources was enormous. Though Void Land's coffers were deep, there were already signs of strain. After all, sitting idle and eating through one's reserves would eventually drain them dry. This had already been evident when Yang Kai had departed previously, and the situation had only grown worse since.
In short, Void Land's expenditures were substantial. Before leaving, Yang Kai had handed virtually all cultivation resources over to Bian Yuqing for distribution. Now, after hearing the figures she reported, precious little remained, and it would likely all be consumed before long.
Having finished discussing expenditures, Bian Yuqing continued, "However, compared to what's being spent, Void Land's income is also fairly decent."
Yang Kai raised an eyebrow, his interest piqued. "Oh? Tell me more."
Bian Yuqing turned to look at Chen Tianfei and smiled faintly. "Allow me to inform the Sect Master that Void Land's greatest source of income right now is likely the Gourd Vine that Mr. Chen has been tending. That Gourd Vine truly lives up to its reputation as a sacred medicine — it can essentially be harvested once every month for Yin-Yang Five Elements Force. Not only are all elemental attributes present, but the quality consistently reaches Fifth-Grade, making it enormously valuable. Most remarkably, the resources all originate from the same source. If a single disciple could refine an entire set of Fifth-Grade resources from the Gourd Vine, the results might be quite unexpected."
Yang Kai nodded slightly. When he had first seen that Gourd Vine in the Great Ruins Realm, he had a vague sense that if any sect obtained it, it would become a cornerstone of their standing. Now it seemed he had been right.
"A-Fei, you've worked hard." Yang Kai nodded toward Chen Tianfei.
Chen Tianfei hastily rose to his feet, declaring that it was no trouble, though his face glowed with pride. In truth, tending the Gourd Vine was tedious work, and harvesting the Yin-Yang Five Elements Force wasn't exactly something to boast about, but being able to show his face before Yang Kai made him genuinely happy. Though he had been compelled to inscribe his name in the Loyalty Register, placing his life and death under Yang Kai's control, after this period of time he had come to realize Void Land's terrifying potential. This place was incomparably better than Red Star. Though it was still in its nascent stage, given enough time, Void Land would surely make a name for itself across the land.
His cultivation level wasn't particularly high, but his eye for discernment was razor-sharp, and he firmly believed this. One could say that even without the Loyalty Register's restraint, he would not leave Void Land. This place held a vast and promising future, and by staying here, he would rise with the tide. Where else could he find such an opportunity?
Furthermore, remaining at Yang Kai's side meant rapid growth in strength. To this day, he still couldn't figure out how Lu Xue had been able to advance so quickly to Fifth-Grade after accompanying Yang Kai on a single trip. After all, Lu Xue had been Fourth-Grade Open Heaven just like him — one could even argue his own foundation was deeper than hers — and yet it was Lu Xue who had advanced first.
Setting Lu Xue aside, even Guo Ziyan had advanced to Third-Grade!
He had previously tried to probe Lu Xue for information in indirect ways, but she had kept her lips tightly sealed, and he had failed to learn anything. Still, he was not discouraged. He believed that as long as he could earn Yang Kai's trust, the day would come when he would uncover the truth.
There was one more thing: he was currently responsible for harvesting the Gourd Vine's resources. Once he advanced to Fifth-Grade in the future, wouldn't the harvested resources include a share for him?
Fifth-Grade resources were enormously valuable — a single portion was worth one to two million Open Heaven Pills, and a complete Yin-Yang Five Elements set came to nearly ten million. Yang Kai's generosity toward his subordinates over this period had not gone unnoticed. He believed that once he advanced to Fifth-Grade, he would certainly receive a generous portion of the Gourd Vine's resources, and advancing to Sixth-Grade would be well within reach.
If he left Void Land, where would he find such abundant resources?
One could say that Chen Tianfei was now utterly devoted to Void Land.
Bian Yuqing went on, "However, there is currently one difficult matter — the number of disciples capable of refining Fifth-Grade resources is quite small. The resources harvested from the Gourd Vine may accumulate significantly in the short term."
Refining Fifth-Grade resources placed considerable demands on a warrior's Dao Impression. Cultivators like Bing Yun and Wen Zishan had only recently begun refining Fifth-Grade resources. One could imagine that although Void Land boasted six hundred thousand people, not many would be capable of refining Fifth-Grade materials. And with the Gourd Vine being harvested once every month, the surplus would naturally pile up.