Chapter 2085: Conditions for Ling Mountain to Bloom

"I don't have enough information to understand," He Lingchuan said. He was always candid with her, especially since he had been leading troops out of the city recently. "But this whole mess with Baishawan seems more like a fabricated bargaining chip. So, what other issues have come up before this?"

"Smart!" Sun Fuling praised him. "The relationship between Mount Ling and Panlong City hasn't been so..."

She chose her words carefully: "Smooth."

He Lingchuan was astute enough to know that by putting Mount Ling first, she meant—

"Is Mount Ling instigating trouble?"

Sun Fuling gave a slight smile. "Not long ago, Mount Ling sent word through Mr. Xin that they wanted to further cooperate with Panlong City."

He Lingchuan knew immediately that there was more to it. "What kind of 'further' cooperation?"

"First, Mount Ling hopes that its internal sects can establish their gates and teach their practices in the Panlong Wasteland and Mao River Plain."

Currently, there are no sectarian forces within Panlong City's territory. The power structure here is very simple: horizontally, there's only Panlong City and other cities; vertically, there are only three parties—the military, the government, and the civilians.

Simplicity makes for easier management.

He Lingchuan mused, "What's Dean Xu's opinion?"

Within Panlong City's domain, the Shumin Academy is the primary institution responsible for teaching practices and imparting knowledge.

"Dean Xu believes that once foreign sects establish themselves, management will become quite difficult. The objectives and policies of foreign sects will inevitably differ from Panlong City's and will inevitably conflict with Shumin Academy."

In simple terms, they won't be on the same page as you.

He Lingchuan added, "These sectarian strongholds could also become bases for spies and infiltrators."

The forces he had built from scratch, whether the Yangshan Merchant Guild, the Black Armored Army, or the Dragon God Army, had all caught internal spies, and he knew very well that not all infiltrators had been apprehended.

Similarly, he had frequently inserted his own agents into other factions.

While Mount Ling and Panlong City had a seemingly good relationship on the surface, there were underlying power struggles. It would be perfectly natural for Mount Ling to want to place informants and gather intelligence here.

Spies who want to collect and transmit information and cooperate with each other need reliable strongholds. Ideally, these would be legal, long-term locations that aren't easily dismantled.

From this perspective, sectarian strongholds would be very suitable. Ordinary people couldn't enter, and officials couldn't interfere with their internal affairs.

Sun Fuling then added, "But allowing sects to establish themselves also has benefits. Panlong City has expanded too rapidly in recent years, and the new population is too large. The teaching and research capabilities of Shumin Academy are severely lagging behind. In the short term, we can't replenish our staff with that many people."

Besides being a formal academy, Shumin Academy also undertakes various research tasks in addition to its teaching duties.

He Lingchuan recalled Sun Fuling's two years of hard work in Yuheng City. When Panlong City acquired the Mao River Plain, it built over forty new academies and public schools of various sizes, which kept Sun Fuling extremely busy and severely imbalanced the student-to-teacher ratio.

Panlong City is now famous, with people coming from all directions to join it. The rapid population expansion is not only a challenge for public facilities, housing, and supplies but also a major problem for educational access.

As for sects, they recruit disciples from childhood, meaning they start teaching from basic literacy.

He Lingchuan stroked his chin. "Sects are very selective about who they accept, unlike Shumin Academy, which offers education to everyone regardless of background."

After all, people with cultivation talent are a minority in the world, even with the current spiritual energy resurgence.

"That's easy to handle," Sun Fuling said, blinking. "One of the conditions for allowing sects to enter could be setting a quota for how many urban and rural schoolchildren they must accept each year. We would also provide the test papers and conduct regular assessments for these children. Sects that fail to meet the performance standards multiple times would have a difficult time on Panlong City's territory."

On Panlong City's territory, they must abide by Panlong City's rules. This is called 'when in Rome, do as the Romans do.'

He Lingchuan chuckled. "That's a solution. What else?"

"Dean Xu and Commander Zhong were still discussing this the day before yesterday. Currently, residents of the Panlong Wasteland who want to acquire better cultivation techniques have only one path: joining the military. Alternatively, they can buy them at high prices from unofficial channels, which carries a high risk of being scammed."

At these words, He Lingchuan nodded repeatedly. "That is indeed a problem."

Panlong City has already made basic cultivation methods public to all wasteland residents. However, higher-level techniques must be exchanged for military merits.

This was actually a wartime measure, as Panlong City needed to ensure that its skilled main forces enlisted quickly. But now, it no longer meets the demands of the wasteland residents.

Since the spiritual energy between heaven and earth is increasing, more people will certainly become qualified to enter the path of cultivation. After all, people naturally aspire to higher things. Panlong City must provide them with ample room for growth; otherwise, they will naturally seek out more suitable lands and nations.

Introducing sects could absorb a large portion of this demand, and Panlong City would need more cultivators in the future.

These aspects could be considered a win-win situation.

"There's much room for discussion on this matter, and it will likely be negotiated successfully in the end," He Lingchuan said, hitting the nail on the head. "What other conditions did Mount Ling propose that made even Commander Zhong feel uneasy?"

He showed particular concern, primarily because he was already a part of Panlong City—not just a complete Panlong City native, but also one of its leaders, so naturally he had to consider its welfare.

Secondly, the Golden Flash Plains in reality faced the same problems as Panlong City: once it became a significant power, or rather, had the fortune of becoming a thorn in the side of a major power of the current era, what changes would occur in its relationship with Mount Ling?

Conversely, how would Mount Ling treat such a rising new power? Would its attitude change?

Everything Panlong City was currently experiencing held significant lessons for him in operating the Golden Flash Plains in reality, because he would soon be dealing with Mount Ling.

"Mount Ling hopes to establish a new branch here in Panlong City," Sun Fuling explained. "And because many of Panlong City's overseas partners were connected through Mount Ling's mediation, and Mount Ling also sent people to coordinate operations, Mount Ling is now proposing that a portion of the profits Panlong City earns from foreign trade should be attributed to it."

He Lingchuan listened to this without saying a word.

Sun Fuling continued, "You weren't at the last meeting. Dean Xu and I attended, and all the high-ranking attendees were against it."

From the perspective of Panlong City's people, everything Panlong City possessed today was a result of their own hard work, wasn't it? People must rely on their own efforts to succeed, and cities are no different. Even if Mount Ling extended a helping hand, it was merely the icing on the cake. Why should they take such a large share of the money?

"But Xin Yi once said that the nations and powers Mount Ling assisted had an obligation to reciprocate and support Mount Ling."

"Hmm, 'support' is a good word choice," He Lingchuan said, taking a sip of his fruit cordial. It wasn't a good day for alcohol. "Just like Beijia must support the Heavenly Palace."

Speaking of which, both the immortal and demonic powers have an ethereal, detached nature. They don't directly confront the mortal world but instead, through the nations and forces under their command, they influence this world and achieve their goals.