Chapter 615: Choice

A strange feeling!

Once Qing Chi had gained full control of the army’s morale, she could investigate her own side's military intelligence.

As she gained control over the military intelligence, she naturally learned about the three refinement directions for the army types.

"The first, 'Paper Money Underworld Soldiers,' requires 100,000 jin of century-old green sandalwood pulp, mixed with Cizhou cinnabar to create talismans, forming blue-purple money. While burning the blue-purple money, 900 jin of Nanhai agarwood must also be burned to temper the spirit sea. Finally, an immense amount of Yin energy is used to saturate and infuse the body for twenty-seven days to achieve mastery."

"The second, 'Yin Talisman Suppressing Evil Guards,' consumes 3,000 jin of thunder-magnetic refined iron, along with Taihang five-colored gallstones, and 800 military malevolent energies. Finally, one must cultivate in seclusion for three days and three nights."

"The third, 'Ghost Weeping Door-Sealing Soldiers,' involves drawing a door-sealing formation, gathering over ten thousand ghosts to form the 'Ten Thousand Ghosts Bowing to the Ancestor' grand formation. Then, oil refined from three thousand-year-old zombies is used to wrap the army type and cast it into a current of Yin energy. It must absorb endless Yin energy like a whale swallowing the ocean, until the oil completely transforms into corpse wax. Only then is it considered successful, and it must be retrieved as quickly as possible."

After learning the specific costs, Qing Chi was momentarily stunned.

Such a price was simply too enormous!

The ghost race girl knew clearly that even if she and the entire Qing family were bundled up and sold, they might not be able to gather such resources.

The ghost race girl informed Qing Yan of the specific costs.

Upon hearing this, Qing Yan's face paled somewhat. He managed to comfort her, "Girl, don't be anxious. At this stage of army building, we definitely can't rely on ourselves alone."

"We'll go ask the City Lord for help!"

"Once we successfully establish the army, it will greatly benefit White Paper Immortal City. They will certainly be willing to support us!"

"From the current situation, this is actually the best time for us to build an army."

Qing Yan saw this very clearly.

Li Xiangshang and Qing Chi reported the matter together, and as expected, it received significant attention from White Paper Immortal City.

The City Lord's avatar personally handled the matter. After learning the specific costs, she unexpectedly said, "That little?"

In its past history, White Paper Immortal City had also attempted to build armies multiple times.

Many times, they got stuck at the initial stage of solidifying morale. Without morale, everything that followed was empty talk.

Now, Qing Chi had not only solidified morale but had even advanced to the army type stage.

The White Paper City Lord's avatar looked at Li Xiangshang and sincerely exclaimed, "Your 'Rotten Fish Make Up Numbers' talent is indeed practical. It not only lowers the standard for morale solidification but also reduces the resources needed for cultivating army types. This must have reduced it by at least 30%, right?"

Qing Chi immediately turned her head to look at Li Xiangshang.

Only then did the ignorant ghost race girl realize that the costs she had learned were already reduced by 30%!

Li Xiangshang also looked at Qing Chi, "My talent isn't the key; the key is Miss Qing Chi. Not everyone can solidify morale; it must be genuinely supported by many people."

The City Lord's avatar nodded slightly, acknowledging Li Xiangshang's words.

She pondered for a moment and mused, "White Paper Immortal City can bear the cost of cultivating this army type. However—"

The City Lord's avatar changed the subject and, taking advantage of the situation, made a request.

The request was simple and direct: the cultivated army type could be kept by Qing Chi, but from then on, it would belong to White Paper Immortal City.

Li Xiangshang looked at Qing Chi; the army type wasn't his, so naturally, he shouldn't make the decision.

Qing Chi was momentarily stunned and felt uncomfortable. This was something she had painstakingly solidified; how could it be handed over to someone else?

The White Paper City Lord saw the girl's hesitation and said calmly, "In the past, our White Paper Immortal City also attempted to build armies many times, but all failed."

"The number of times morale solidification succeeded was actually not small."

"However, there are many steps to army building, and this process has a time limit. The most regrettable time was when we pushed it to the very last step,"

"but ran out of time, failing at the brink of success!"

"Your current attempt is even more reckless than any of our Immortal City's previous attempts throughout history."

"The only advantage lies in Young Friend Li's talent."

"To cultivate an army type, can you even provide one-tenth of the resources needed? Without resources, you are destined to fail."

"Even with resources, success is not guaranteed. At that point, White Paper Immortal City would have to bear these exorbitant losses alone."

"Even if army building succeeds in the end, to be honest, White Paper Immortal City may not be able to change any major situation just because of your new army."

The White Paper City Lord's words were all logical, leaving Qing Chi speechless.

As for Li Xiangshang, being a pure ascetic and poor at speaking, he simply watched silently at this moment.

Qing Chi considered for a while, her brow furrowed, and said in a heavy tone, "City Lord, I can't make this decision. I want to go back and discuss it with my father."

The White Paper City Lord nodded and smiled, "Go ahead."

On one hand, even if the army type's ownership was agreed upon, Qing Chi would still be needed to lead it for a long time. On the other hand, she was confident that Qing Chi would agree to the condition.

"Oh, and there's one more request."

"If our city is to fund it, the army type must be designated as 'Ghost Weeping Door-Sealing Soldiers.'"

Not only would the army type belong to White Paper Immortal City, but even the specific category of army type was to be finalized.

Qing Chi looked down at the path, remaining silent all the way back.

The pressure of this silence became unbearable for Li Xiangshang, who proactively offered comfort.

Qing Chi: "Indeed, giving the army type to others makes me uncomfortable, but I believe the White Paper City Lord won't treat us unfairly. However, I just heard that even if we pass this army type stage, there are still many more hurdles afterward, and the army building could ultimately fail."

"If that's the case, do you think I can still use this condition to get Jiao Ma back?"

Li Xiangshang: —

He hadn't expected that this was what truly troubled Qing Chi.

But after careful thought, Li Xiangshang found it very reasonable.

The demon cultivator sighed deeply, "Let me tell you another piece of bad news. Since the army building began, I've been continuously maintaining my talent."

"However, my strength makes it very difficult to sustain it all the way. At most, in half a month, I'll have to stop."

"Once I do that, failure will likely be a foregone conclusion."

Qing Chi was startled, "Ah, how can this be?"

"I said before that we're only forming a temporary army," Li Xiangshang said, spreading his hands with a hint of guilt. "Fortunately, even if it's only halfway through, our temporary army can still employ military tactics, though their effectiveness will be much less than that of a regular army."

Qing Chi shook her head, "I wasn't asking about that. I wanted to know, Elder Li, how much price have you paid to maintain your talent? If the cost is too high, we should stop now."

"It's true that I want to get Jiao Ma back; it's my sincere desire and my own business."

"But I don't want to see my friends and family suffer losses because of my personal desires!"

"Hahaha, you girl," Li Xiangshang immediately felt a warm current rise in his heart.

He sincerely advised, "My talent can only be maintained for a short period, and the White Paper City Lord doesn't know this. So, I advise you, let's quit while we're ahead and let White Paper Immortal City take over."

"While you have this time, seize the opportunity to clarify your intentions with the White Paper City Lord and try to get her to release young Jiao first."

Qing Chi shook her head, her tone hesitant, "Can I really ask that? I don't quite dare. It would be like me trying to snatch a man from the City Lord. Jiao Ma is so good, the City Lord probably won't let him go easily!"

Li Xiangshang: —

He thought for a moment and said, "I think you can boldly make this request!"

"We reported about the army's morale a long time ago. After this period, the White Paper City Lord must have already investigated you beforehand."

"She must already know that you and Jiao Ma have a close relationship and secretly pledged your lives to each other."

"Taking advantage of such a good opportunity with the army type transaction, if you make this request, I feel there's a high probability the City Lord will agree."

Qing Chi's eyes immediately lit up, "Is that really true?"

She then shook her head slightly, "This is a very serious matter. I'm worried that if I take Jiao Ma, the City Lord might suppress our family. I still need to discuss it with my father."

The two conversed secretly using their spiritual senses all the way back to their temporary residence in the city, only to learn that Ning Zhuo was visiting.

Qing Chi immediately became joyful, casting her worries aside. She rushed forward, stepping over the threshold, "What? Little Ma came on his own? Where is he? Quickly, take me to him!"

Li Xiangshang, however, said, "Not good!"

Then, he reached out and pulled Qing Chi back. She turned her head, looking at Li Xiangshang in confusion.

Li Xiangshang sighed, "The City Lord's methods are truly ingenious."

"She knows that young Jiao will have a huge influence on you, so she sent him to act as a persuader, hoping to convince you to agree to this transaction."

Qing Chi: "Is that true?"

Li Xiangshang nodded with certainty, "Nine times out of ten!"

A moment later.

Jiao Ma (Ning Zhuo) shook his head, "I came here purely out of my own personal desires."

Qing Chi's face immediately lit up with joy, "Little Ma, you came specifically for me, didn't you!"

Ning Zhuo nodded, "Indeed, I came for you."

"For you to solidify an army type, the cost is likely not small."

"If you seek assistance from White Paper Immortal City, you will likely become indebted to them."

"Tell me the specific requirements. Perhaps I can help!"

Qing Chi shook her head and sighed, "Little Ma, you don't know how incredibly high the cost of cultivating an army type is; it's terrifying to even say!"

She revealed the specific costs and the conditions offered by the White Paper City Lord.

Qing Yan nodded, showing little surprise.

"Cultivating an army type is something we cannot do on our own."

"Its belonging to White Paper Immortal City is actually inevitable. If I were the City Lord, I would also make this request. After all, we are just a ghost race, not even human, much less the City Lord's confidants."

"If we were to truly command an army independently, then there would be a second voice in the future when it comes to the Yin Tide Black Wetland."

Upon hearing this, Li Xiangshang suddenly understood, "So that's how it is."

He was merely an ascetic, not unintelligent. This experience had enlightened him multiple times. "A second voice? What does that mean?" Qing Chi asked, looking bewildered.

Qing Yan offered a brief explanation, and Qing Chi immediately waved her hand, "We are originally citizens of White Paper Immortal City! Our village is safe thanks to the Immortal City's protection. How could we possibly go against the White Paper City Lord?"

"You can't be sure about that," Li Xiangshang thought to himself, subconsciously glancing at Ning Zhuo, who was sitting nearby.

Qing Yan frowned slightly and said through gritted teeth, "We can accept the army type belonging to White Paper Immortal City. But the choice of army type is not good."

"We should choose the 'Yin Talisman Suppressing Evil Guards'!"

Qing Chi exclaimed again. In her opinion, it didn't matter which of the three army types they chose.

Qing Chi hadn't expected Qing Yan to be so insistent on this minor detail.

Qing Yan sighed and explained to his daughter, "The 'Ghost Weeping Door-Sealing Soldiers' involves arranging formations on the soldiers' bodies to seal various ghosts within the formation, essentially confining them."

"On one hand, it can be used on the battlefield to temporarily imprison troublesome ghosts. On the other hand, soldiers can use formations and various other methods to train and tame the ghosts, forming pet beast contracts."

"By choosing this army type, White Paper Immortal City could have two or even three times its current military strength."

"Over the years, too many ghosts have been imprisoned in White Paper Immortal City."

"However, raising these ghosts requires vast resources. The maintenance cost for the 'Ghost Weeping Door-Sealing Soldiers' army would be at least tens of times higher than the other two army types!"

"This would make us even more reliant on others."

"And one more thing."

"Sealing ghosts within one's own body feels quite awful. Even though every one of us ghost race members has a significant amount of Yin energy within us,"

"making us more suitable for this than human cultivators."

"Ghosts are ultimately foreign entities. Cultivating alongside them is very difficult and painful. At that point, many of our elderly relatives would suffer greatly!"

Hearing this, Qing Chi decisively shook her head, "Then we won't choose that direction."

She showed a resolute expression.

The cultivators around her were all relatives of the Qing family; some were uncles, others were granduncles. These people's recognition and support for Qing Chi were the foundational conditions for solidifying morale.

The ghost race girl certainly didn't want her relatives and elders to suffer.

Li Xiangshang: "Since we're not choosing 'Ghost Weeping Door-Sealing Soldiers,' we can only choose from the remaining two."

Qing Yan nodded, "We choose 'Yin Talisman Suppressing Evil Guards'!"

"We already have the 'Bearing Soldiers and Suppressing Evil Arts.' Choosing this direction will save us more in the future. We can sustain ourselves through war, and the maintenance costs will be the lowest."

"However, every soldier will have malevolent energy suppressing their body, giving them a strong restraint over ghosts."

"Even if our army building fails in the future, the malevolent energy will remain, which can be considered a benefit we secured for our relatives and friends."

"Furthermore, choosing this option means the shortest time commitment for us; it only requires three days and three nights of cultivation."

Qing Chi nodded, "Alright then, let's choose that one."

"Cough, cough, cough." Ning Zhuo feigned three coughs, then interjected, "No, you should choose 'Paper Money Underworld Soldiers.'"

Qing Chi looked at Ning Zhuo, "Little Ma, what's your reasoning?"

Ning Zhuo, in turn, looked at Qing Yan, "Earlier, I was about to state my purpose but didn't want to be interrupted. My purpose in coming here is to provide funds to help us establish a new army."

"One of the conditions is that you must choose 'Paper Money Underworld Soldiers.'"

Li Xiangshang expressed his confusion, "'Paper Money Underworld Soldiers' takes the longest, requiring twenty-seven days, and consumes the most resources."

"The battle power after formation is the weakest among the three directions. Its notable specialty is allowing the entire army to freely travel between the Yin and Yang realms."

"It has more functions."

Qing Yan also frowned deeply, staring at Ning Zhuo, "Our opponent is the Lord of Wangchuan. Are we to form such an army to march into the Underworld, into the enemy's stronghold?"

"That's simply suicidal!"

Ning Zhuo opened his mouth, about to explain.

Qing Chi: "Okay, Little Ma, I'll listen to you!"

Everyone: —