In the east of the Chu Kingdom, within a county called Lushan County, there existed a sect with nearly a century of heritage.
This sect was lonely in the green mountains and carefree in the sunset.
Here, lies the Cyan Mountain Sect.
There are cicada chirps, gentle breezes, seas of bamboo, a jade lake shimmering in the midsummer, and the cultivators who fly through the skies and traverse the earth.
It was summer, the scorching sun baking the earth, filling the air with a stifling heat, and even the buzzing cicadas were restless.
In the Back Mountain Forbidden Area of the Cyan Mountain Sect, inside a dim cave mansion, in stark contrast to the unbearable heat outside, the chill inside made Lu Ping furrow his brows.
He only furrowed his brows for a moment, then truly, he was gone.
"Am I... just dead like this?"
Feeling the life force slipping away, the ultimate day of reckoning had arrived, Lu Ping couldn't help but sigh deeply.
Ever since he came to this world over two hundred years ago, starting his cultivation journey with full passion, then marrying, having children, and founding a sect.
Lu Ping believed, that all he had done in this lifetime wasn't in vain.
At this point, he took it all in stride.
Lu Ping was a transmigrator.
Over 290 years ago, he transmigrated from Earth to this world, becoming a loose cultivator.
With decent opportunity and the mentality of someone who has lived two lifetimes, Lu Ping fought his way alone in the cultivation realm, overcoming countless dangers to reach the Golden Core Stage.
After which, Lu Ping chose Cyan Lotus Mountain in Lushan County as his base, founded the Cyan Mountain Sect, became the founding ancestor, and soon united with a Dao companion, giving birth to two sons and a daughter.
Under the protection of Lu Ping, the Golden Core Ancestor, the Cyan Mountain Sect rapidly expanded, wielding significant influence within tens of thousands of miles around Lushan County.
However, as time passed, Lu Ping gradually realized that after reaching the Golden Core Stage, his own power was improving very slowly.
As a transmigrator, Lu Ping's ambitions obviously did not end at merely the Golden Core Stage.
His aptitude wasn't particularly great, only having three spirit roots.
To acquire better cultivation resources, thirty-one years ago, Lu Ping allied with several Golden Core Ancestors, and during a treasure hunt in a secret realm, an internal conflict arose, injuring his foundation and severely shortening his lifespan to less than ten years.
Returning defeated to the sect, Lu Ping had to exhaust his wealth to purchase heavenly and earthly treasures for secluded cultivation, attempting to cling to life while striving for the Nascent Soul Stage, seeking a chance to eke out an existence.
This secluded cultivation lasted thirty years.
Even though he relied on divine elixirs to sustain his life, breathing with difficulty, and bitterly cultivated in seclusion for thirty years, thirty years later, Lu Ping still failed to break through to the Nascent Soul Stage.
The Nascent Soul Stage is not that easy to achieve.
"What a pity, after so much effort, this life still falls short of the Nascent Soul."
Lu Ping felt somewhat unwilling in his heart.
Once upon a time, he aspired to prove the ultimate Golden Immortal Tao in this world.
Now he could only mutter like an old man, lamenting the unpredictability of life.
After experiencing many trials and tribulations, the youthful arrogance had been smoothed out, becoming much more realistic.
"What can I do even if I'm unwilling? It has come to this, is there still room for maneuver? I can only accept it. Just consider it a big dream in this world, maybe after death I might traverse back to Earth..."
"But upon leaving, I can no longer protect the Cyan Mountain Sect. If the outside world learns of my demise, can the Cyan Mountain Sect withstand the retaliation from those enemies?"
"I shouldn't have squandered so much; I should have left some foundation and heritage for the sect. I wonder what the Cyan Mountain Sect is like now…"
"Yuanshan, you must protect the Cyan Mountain Sect well, be a good sect leader…"
Yuanshan, full name Lu Yuanshan, is Lu Ping's eldest son, and is also the current sect leader of the Cyan Mountain Sect.
Lu Ping hadn't seen this eldest son or his other two children in quite some time.
His life was now coming to an end, leaving him unable to gather his children to explain his final wishes.
"The rugged immortal path, the long road to longevity. Today I fall, if you have the ability in the future, then go and see the scenery at the end of the immortal path for me…"
As his consciousness gradually faded, as his last thoughts were of the sect and his children, Lu Ping's thoughts fell into nothingness.
Completely dissipated.
The cave mansion fell into silence.
No one knows how much time passed.
"Ding, system activation conditions met."
"Sect Simulator binding successful!"
A voice caused Lu Ping's consciousness to gradually awaken.
"I…" Lu Ping, whose consciousness was restored, was a bit confused.
"Am I still alive???"
He looked around instinctively.
To his surprise, Lu Ping discovered he had become a phantom, a transparent shadow floating before his lifeless body, the feeling was quite bizarre.
At the same time, something new appeared in his mind, his newly activated golden finger.
"..."
For a moment, Lu Ping didn't know what to say.
Having arrived in this world for over two hundred years, the golden finger was only given to him after he kicked the bucket, wasn't this system a bit ridiculous?
"Getting a golden finger now, what bloody good is it!"
Lu Ping wanted to stomp his feet.
Oh, he forgot, he was now a consciousness body, his movement depended entirely on floating, if he could still stomp his feet.
All he could do was complain.
After calming his mind, Lu Ping spent some time figuring out his current state.
Not exactly a soul, due to the golden finger, I became a consciousness body that can move freely.
Because I couldn't exert any strength, I didn't even have the chance to possess and be reborn.
I didn't know whether to cry or laugh.
However, on second thought, since I still have consciousness, perhaps there is hope for resurrection in the future, so it's not too bad.
"Oh well, I am still me, at least I haven't completely perished, just existing in a different form."
No longer focusing on the state of the body, Lu Ping thought, and a system interface full of ancient charm appeared before his eyes.
[Sect Simulator]
[Host: Lu Ping]
[Sect: Cyan Mountain Sect]
[Identity: Cyan Mountain Sect Ancestor]
[Level: Qi Cultivation Sect]
[Reputation: 50]
[Fame: Greatly reduced, unclear morality]
[Members: 31]
[Buildings: Sect Hall, Library Pavilion, Alchemy Room, Artifact Refining Room, others omitted]
[Resources: Cyan Lotus Mountain Spiritual Vein (Tier Two), Small Mist Concealment Sword Array (Tier Two), Three acres of Medicine Field (Tier One), Ten acres of Spirit Field (Tier One), One Marketplace Shop]
[Income: 730 Spirit Stones/year]
[Expenditure: 1260 Spirit Stones/year]
[Net Income: -530 Spirit Stones/year]
[Savings: 23 Spirit Stones]
[Map: Lushan County (49%)]
[Message: The vast martial world, demons devour the heavens. Your presence is insignificant to the countless masses, an ordinary member, but a small figure can also achieve great things]
[Goal: Cyan Mountain Sect is beset with internal and external troubles, everything awaits rejuvenation, as a founding patriarch, please strive to revitalize your sect]
...
From the name 'Sect Simulator', it's clear that the function of this golden finger is to cultivate disciples and develop the sect.
It's equivalent to a sect-building game, with the difference that the disciples under the sect are flesh and blood, they are living beings, if you don't play well, there's no chance to reload and start over.
Thinking of this, Lu Ping looked at the lifeless body, then glanced outside the cave mansion, thinking of the Cyan Mountain Sect he founded, as well as the children and sect disciples, he was lost in thought for a while.
Simulating the legacy and growth of the Cyan Mountain Sect is no trivial matter.
"Oh well, developing the sect with real efforts is indeed difficult, but as long as the sect still exists, relying on the system to develop the sect quickly shouldn't be a big problem."
This remark is also a form of self-encouragement.
Speaking of developing the sect, Lu Ping actually has some confidence.
In past lives, he played many farming games of this kind, and is considered an experienced player.
In other words, if he had no ability to manage the sect, Lu Ping wouldn't have founded the Cyan Mountain Sect in the first place.
After all, it is a sect founded by him, a Golden Core Ancestor; its foundation is not weak, much stronger than those small sects outside.
Even if the Cyan Mountain Sect has declined, how bad can its development be?
Roaming with some authority in Lushan County, playing the local tyrant is still possible.
Regarding this golden finger, Lu Ping feels it still has potential for play.
But since he is not yet familiar with it, he had to browse through the various sect data on the system panel to quickly understand the current state of the sect,
However, just this browsing made Lu Ping cry out miserably.
"31 sect members... Is this really the true number of sect members?"
When he was alive, the Cyan Mountain Sect was large and prosperous, with three to four thousand disciples, the sect level was thanks to him as the ancestor, reaching the Golden Core Level.
As for sect resources, there was no need to mention them.
A sect founded by a Golden Core Ancestor, resources were definitely ample, completely capable of providing for disciples' cultivation and living, with no lack issues.
But now, only thirty years later, the sect level has suddenly dropped to Qi Cultivation Level, and sect resources have drastically declined, only a few sect industries are left, looking quite desolate.
The medicinal garden and spirit field are only Tier One level, honestly speaking, this level is too low and is unlikely to bring considerable income to the sect.
And the Cyan Lotus Mountain spiritual vein, which has now degraded to Tier Two, the drop is too significant.
The Cyan Mountain Sect's base, Cyan Lotus Mountain, was originally a Tier Four Lower Grade spiritual vein, and was the domain of the Tier Four Demon Beast Green Water Flood Dragon.
After Lu Ping discovered this treasure land, he slew the Green Water Flood Dragon, occupied the spiritual vein, and immediately founded the Cyan Mountain Sect.
How has this spiritual vein not ascended but instead descended to Tier Two?
As for the 23 spirit stones in sect savings, Lu Ping looked at them several times, feeling more and more like it was a joke.
He, a dignified Golden Core Ancestor, wouldn't even bother to pick up such a small amount of spirit stones if he found them on the road, truly disdainful.
Now, well, this pitifully small number of spirit stones actually became the sect's reserve spirit stones, it's truly pitiful.
Heavens, have mercy, the present Cyan Mountain Sect shows no sign of being a sect founded by a Golden Core Ancestor.
Lu Ping is very curious, during the thirty years of secluded cultivation, what exactly did the Cyan Mountain Sect go through to decline to such a state, so much so that even he, the ancestor, couldn't bear to look at it.
"My sect foundation ah!"
The current situation of the sect must be examined outside.
Having no more interest in studying the golden finger, Lu Ping controlled his spirit body and floated out of the cave mansion.