161. Birth of a Collector

Han De almost sighed. 'F#$%, now I need to make a Pavilion.'

Of course, the grandmaster illusionist with him was rather thankful, but Han De on a personal level was disappointed because he just said whatever came to his mind.

'Stick the to plan you F#$%&# idiot. Stick to the plan. Ah… I should've just made the steles beforehand.'

There was also the fact that Han De momentarily panicked after noticing close scrutiny from his disciples. Not that inspecting his eating habits would reveal anything, but it was better for that atmosphere not to be carried over.

'Then again…' Han De couldn't help but dwell on what happened. 'I already ate with Ning Bi, Yao Qing, and Jin Shu. I even used my bare hands to eat dumplings! Me, eating directly from a skewer, shouldn't be that surprising?'

Was there a flaw in his facade that he wasn't aware of? Did he overdo it in some way and his image clashed with his actions?

Han De suddenly stopped and narrowed his eyes. 'The only difference between back then and now is my appearance.' Could that be the case, Han De wondered.

Franky speaking, he didn't have the eye to judge minute variations in beauty. After the Jade Beauty threshold, everyone was unrealistically beautiful, at least for someone born and raised on Earth. Only when there was a vast gulf did the differences become apparent.

And the situation was even worse for judging male features! Han De could tell a guy was good-looking, but he couldn't tell why he was good-looking. Judging his own face that was both familiar and unfamiliar, was quite difficult!

'Ah…' Han De's face suddenly tensed up. 'Whatever I looked like before doesn't matter. I went through an evolution.' Upon realization, his palm made violent contact with his forehead.

Even scriptures deemed "Very Weak" by the System had the power to sweep away masters three major realms higher! Even "Extremely Weak" scriptures could punch way over their weight, provided the comprehension was good enough. The disdain of the System was almost palpable!

Considering that, what would the System do, if the subject matter was evolution? And not a normal one at that, but one where System dragged Han De's body and soul, not even allowing him to perish. Even if the System were to suddenly sprout a spiteful personality, wouldn't the "punishment" of being "Very Ugly" end up being a world-shattering beauty?

And the System didn't look like it was punishing Han De. Rather, his evolution looked tailor-made, even!

Han De ignored another blooming Black Chrysanthemum and focused on his own appearance, using his spiritual sense to get a full-body view.

'… Uh… Maybe?… If I squint enough?' Han De shook his head.

Another one of those ominous flowers bloomed right next to his feet. 'Maybe I should just go near Yao Qing and let her swat this motherf#$%&# tribulation for a week straight…' The urge to get some payback -however small and petty- rose up from within, but Han De took a deep breath and pushed those thoughts away. 'Might as well let everyone settle before doing that.'

He imagined Yao Qing's anti-tribulation ability having a cooldown, with its activation cost being some of his prestige as a Profound Master. Such power had to be carefully managed, not button-mashed.

'… Alright. Let's think positively. If I am super hot, so what? Wouldn't that make my facade even stronger?'

* * *

Far away, Wen Jiayi suddenly started wondering what Han De could be doing. This was the 6th time she thought about him after leaving the Long family homeworld.

Why was she even counting in the first place?

A moment later, her shadow guard spoke. |The assembly is ready.|

* * *

'There should be a path that leads to the Pavilion, right?' Han De pondered inwardly. Making illusory steps was easy, but it wasn't a permanent solution, even if the illusions themselves could stay for years.

No, even if temporary, a sect needed some solid structures.

Besides, Han De had no choice but to see through everything due to his Reality Sense, what would be the point?

'… Should I get some lackeys to quickly build something? There are so many new faces, some of them bound to have some experience with masonry, or some other Xianxia construction technique…'

Somehow, that thought didn't sit well with Han De. This was a Xianxia, and he was on vacation/exile, why not do whatever he wanted?

Jumping on his speed-focused sword, Han De flew outside of the gigantic natural array he constructed. He flew further and further toward the east, to the same location he did his previous tests, until even his Nascent Soul eyes couldn't see a speck of his (WIP) sect. At this distance, one or two missing mountains couldn't have an effect on the spiritual energy density!

Han De evaluated the vertical mountains as if he was evaluating watermelons. Some were almost hollow, some denser than others. Since he just wanted to make a stone-paved trail, the decision was easy; he simply chose the one with the most pleasant-looking colors.

'If I cut up huge slabs and push them to the ground with my Qi, that should work, right?'

Without waiting, Han De condensed his totally-not-Primordial-Light-Qi Sword Qi, and made sure it was the sharpest he could ever make it. Then he sliced the top, bottom, and four sides of the mountain, put the excess inside his storage ring, revealing an almost perfect block of black and white marble.

Han De whistled inadvertently. The stone almost looked like a mirror, as if it was the most perfectly polished mountain-sized slab of marble in existence. 'F#% out of it…'

Han De put the cut-up mountain inside his storage ring with a sigh. Thankfully, his storage ring was quite abnormally large. He had a lake's worth of gold within, a mountain wasn't too much of an issue. Still, it was the first time he put something as big in it. His curiosity was successfully piqued.

[Really Big Storage Ring]

[A rudimentary ring made and named by Long Ai. Created by refining a severed section of a shapeless void spirit for 1.29566 million years. Only 814 were made.]

[Notes: Can be nurtured to gain consciousness.]

'… What?' Han De re-read the description again and again. Wasn't this one of the backup rings that he had with him? The shape and color matched his memories!

'Oh… Did she swap it when I was unconscious or something?'

While Han De was thankful for Long Ai, he also noticed something peculiar. The System had toned down its usual diss! It wasn't a "primitive" ring, but a "rudimentary" ring! The System even acknowledged the name she gave it!

The note, Han De decisively ignored.

'If she calls it Really Big, then it must be really big… Then… I guess I should take a few more mountains, just in case.'

Somehow, cutting up a mountain, lifting it up, feeling the wind created by its movement… felt almost cathartic. Han De cut another one, enjoyed the whooshing sound effect made rapid miniaturization of a literal mountain. 'Actually, can't I just drop a frickin' mountain at my enemies?' With that thought, Han De cut down and stored ten more. 'Wait, the collateral damage would be huge if I do that though.' Han De stopped after putting 42 mountains in his storage ring. He had to force himself to stop.

'No wonder Xianxia characters are so obsessed with mountains!' Han De nodded as he stared at the aftermath of his harvest. From above, it looked like a bunch of stumps after someone randomly cut down trees, but each of those "stumps" could fit a city inside.

The shape of an entire region was changed, just because Han De had an OP storage ring from his great-great-grandmother, and he wanted some paving stones.

'It's like giving monkey a razor…' Han De couldn't help but comment inwardly. He purposefully avoided any and all OP or OP-adjacent treasures, only to be blindsided by his own family. He immediately referred to his flow charts. 'I should… avoid using and/or displaying the item's full abilities in public… Yeah, makes sense. Good job me.'

Dropping a mountain on top of a demonic sect, Han De decided it wasn't a good idea after all. Probably.

Thinking that he wasted too much time, Han De immediately tested his idea. First he sliced yet another mountain (because he didn't want to waste his stock on mere tests), created pavement-sized rocks and pushed them into the ground. Unsurprisingly, the soil underneath had to go somewhere, and after enough stones, they decided to go to the sides. The messy sight prompted Han De to cut and remove some of the soil first, which allowed the rocks enough support to settle while bulging the surrounding soil.

For the problem of mirror-like rocks, Han De couldn't find a quick solution; his sword scripture was simply too sharp, and making it too dull used more effort than he could stomach. With a stroke of genius, he ended up melting the exterior of the rock, which roughened up the surface enough to lose that polished mirror look.

All that was left was to go back to the sect. But then, Han De realized that the place look too out of place, too nonsensical. To make things more Xianxia, he decided to leave a heavy-duty sword aura to make it appear as if this was the aftermath of training.

It was his backyard after all, so his disciples were bound to find it someday. A preemptive sword aura would cut off any questions before they could even arise.

Han De flew back to the sect with his speed-focused sword. By this time, his disciples should've finished eating. He was actually too late to make a Profound Trail, but there would always be a next time.

Now that he had those mountains in his storage ring, Han De felt far more relaxed.

As the giant eight trigram-inspired natural arrays came into view, Han De the Array Grandmaster imperceptibly nodded. There was much work ahead, but the foundation was truly solid!

Han De's disciples had already started walking toward the center, which they assumed where Pavilion would be.

From up above, Han De condensed an illusion, interleaved with his Through the Starlight footwork. The distance between the disciples' location and center was too big, but this way they could arrive within minutes, unaware of what had occurred.

Well, if it was a normal level illusion, Ning Bi would know the moment she closed her eyes, but combining mental and physical illusory techniques could even fool the little Purifier of Planes. Probably.

As the disciples entered the illusion, Han De focused on the Pavilion and the steles. Thankfully, both were easier to make than functional tubs used for medicinal baths!

* * *

A few minutes ago.

After a silent breakfast consisting of questionable fish, Han De's disciples started walking toward the center of the sect grounds, led by Yao Qing. Among the six disciples, she had the most experience in walking long distances, though no one other than Yao Qing knew of it.

'… Again?' Yao Qing suddenly frowned. In the past day or so, she felt the precursors of heavenly tribulation frequently. Sometimes popping up in the middle of the night, sometimes while eating, or meditating. They were like an itch that she couldn't scratch. Multiple times, she almost stormed towards the location of heavenly intent, just to make the tribulation descend and obliterate whatever sliver that was doing it once and for all!

Could she do that? 'Of course not,' was Yao Qing's first thought. Though with her bloodline, she wasn't sure. Differentiating between the feeling of power and the irrational anger from a persistent annoyance, wasn't so easy.

Naturally, she could tell that the culprit was her master. How did he manage to always, always stir the heavenly laws just enough to almost condense heavenly punishment, only to stop right at the end? And why did he do that to begin with? Yao Qing didn't know, and she didn't want to know.

Thankfully, patience: Yao Qing had in abundance.

'…' Yao Qing's steps faltered as the heavenly intent increased in strength. 'Patience.' She repeated inwardly, then willed her body to match the pace of other disciples.

What if she could somehow disintegrate heavenly intent, remotely? Could she train herself to do that? Could she practice with the Black Chrysanthemum that Jin Shu had in her storage ring?

No, Yao Qing rejected the thought. Most likely this… form of torture… had some use for her master.

Or perhaps her master was simply punishing the heavens; annoying them for annoying him.

As Yao Qing led everyone while deep in thought, the morning fog thickened instead of fading away. The surrounding mountains gradually melted into murky silhouettes before vanishing entirely. The group forged ahead, following the gentle sound of a creek; each rustling step gradually faded into an echo as the mist became dense to the point of near-blindness.

And then, the mist suddenly carved open. Six disciples found themselves in front of a white pavilion, standing tall in the middle of grassy plains. Its walls seemingly crafted from painted wood, its gate without any adornments, the pavilion looked modest, unassuming to the naked eye.

Ning Bi marched forward, not minding the others, soon she was followed by Yao Qing, Jin Shu, Treebeard, and Liang Cuifen. The last one, Yu Xian, trailed behind with a relaxed pace.

The moment Ning Bi's hands touched the wooden gates, air cracked with a wave of power. A tempest of ancient energy rolled and churned, then disappeared into nothingness as if it never existed. Ning Bi's hands only faltered for a moment, her movements felt like a cosmic wave of calamity, threatening to awaken an otherworldly being from its eternal slumber. Yu Xian almost wanted to shout to stop her, but no words could come out. And then, the gates opened, revealing the soft glow of flickering candles, creating dancing shadows in secluded corners.

Yu Xian closed his eyes and recited those familiar words of comfort. 'As witnessing of the unceasing existence…' An instinct that was forged through blood, the Unending Sutra allowed him to re-open his eyes. Inside Han De was sitting on a prayer mat, elegant and refined.

The dread and terror: an illusion, Yu Xian realized. But the God-King's intuition wasn't so convinced.

Before entering, Yu Xian touched the wooden gate. Weathered but well-tended wooden boards were protected against the elements by meticulously applied white paint. Sensation of it was sublime, a testament to the craftsmanship's resilience, despite the seemingly modest materials. Yu Xian had no criticism; he too was a craftsman.

But he activated his little hammer all the same. Information about the natural grain of wood that was obscured by the evenly distributed paint, came to Yu Xian's mind. The age, cutting season, how long the logs were dried, how were they cut, he understood it all.

The wooden planks of this door could be used as lumber for construction, despite being entirely made of Qi.

Same bizarre and alien Qi as those prayer beads, but in an infinitely more complex configuration.

As the other disciples sat down in front of Han De, Yu Xian realized he shouldn't linger outside any longer.

"Some body cultivation techniques require an already strong body, but we will not be needing that." Han De spoke while his eyes were still closed. "A body of a human is unlike that of a beast, it has to weigh where to spend energy, optimize everything until it can survive with the least amount of effort."

Yu Xian silently sat down on the last praying mat, half paying attention to Han De, and half thinking whether it too, was an illusory construct.

"I will teach you a better way," said Han De, finally opening his pitch-back eyes. "Advancement will not be fast, prepare yourselves; for more haste means less speed."

The pavilion suddenly started dissolving. The scent of pine and sandalwood disappeared, replaced with an intense fresh and green scent. Within seconds, master and his disciples were sitting on an unfamiliar grassland surrounded by sweet billowy hills.

Han De snapped his hand, making a variety of spiritual plants appear. Even with the naked eye one could tell they weren't ordinary herbs, as most of them had some strange features, ranging from a simple glow, to even swaying by themselves.

Inwardly, Han De the Grandmaster Illusionist was pleased. The pavilion he made as a last-minute addition was actually a heavy-duty illusion that he put in extra-extra effort. And the payoff was all worth it. Even the ex-god-king's face looked like he had seen a ghost. 'That Harem F#$%&# definitely used that hammer-thingy didn't he?' Han De smirked inwardly. Considering how often Yu Xian used his cheat item, Han De guessed that it had some sort of practical function. But frankly, before a quest appeared, he wasn't interested in finding out more.

'Wait till you see the steles…' Han De the Grandmaster Illusionist commented inwardly, highly pleased with the quality of his work.

As the dust settled within the council of Han De's, the sound of footsteps echoed. The strides were light, the pace leisurely, but their mere presence was enough to cause a noticeable shift in the air.

"The Dao of Herbalism is vast and profound; I will not be preaching it today." Han De said to his disciples. "But I will be teaching the basics. Why do plants look the way they do, grow in the places they grow; such knowledge will form the foundation of your cultivation." Han De stared at his disciples one by one, not to make sure if they understood of course. Whether they comprehended wasn't important; they were MCs. And if need be, Han De could drill the knowledge into them later with the form of Knowledge Impartation.

Han De locked eyes with them, to make them know that herbalism, was Important. With capital I.

Within the council of Han De's, no sound could be heard. Grandmasters didn't dare move a muscle. Even The Survivor couldn't raise his eyes.

None could stand before Han De the Grandmaster Herbalist.