"Damn, what level am I at now?"
Looking at his character attributes, Yang Hong couldn't help but sigh.
[Yang Hong: Sixth Prince of the Great Sui Dynasty.
Daily灌顶 (Guan Ding) Count: 7/12
Lifespan: 49/2000
Cultivation: 100 years of magical power (Nascent Soul Stage): Strength of 20 million jin, Divine Sense covers 4000 li]
[Techniques: Top-tier Breathing Technique 337th layer, Super Body Tempering Technique 1st layer
Martial Skills: Serious Punch, Casual Slash, Serious Swordplay
Spells: Minor Rain Summoning, Pudu Demonic Chant (Mastered)...
Intent: Fist Intent: Heroic and Fearless, Guardian
Sword Intent: Gentle Breeze
Special Abilities: Eidetic Memory, Farming Mastery.]
With only a century of cultivation at the Nascent Soul stage, Yang Hong's physical fitness was comparable to a sixth-tier demon king known for their physique. His divine sense was outrageously strong, equivalent to a seventh-tier Integration Stage demon king renowned for their divine sense.
"Can I directly fight a seventh-tier demon lord and kill them alive now? If I cooperate with formations, can I even take down an eighth-tier demon lord?"
When he said this, Yang Hong wasn't entirely confident. The gap between an eighth-tier and a seventh-tier demon lord was enormous. Even with his power quadrupling, Yang Hong wasn't sure he could kill an eighth-tier demon lord, even with formations.
However, looking at his cultivation, it was only a hundred years. In a very short time, Yang Hong's strength would surge again.
Also, the attribute panel only displayed strength and divine sense. But don't forget, Yang Hong also had pure and heaven-defying magical power. And his system for灌顶 (Guan Ding) plants and receiving cultivation returns. Killing one or two eighth-tier demon lords wouldn't be difficult, as long as he prepared properly.
"Master, has your cultivation broken through?"
"Master is so fast? It's only been a few years, and Master is already at the fifth-tier Nascent Soul stage."
"Master seems to be 49 years old, older than us."
"No, we are much, much older than Master. We grew for a very long time before transforming."
"It seems we are indeed older than Master."
While Yang Hong was examining his attributes, the group of mischievous little demons started chattering nonsense again, making Yang Hong feel awkward.
"Ahem~ Little ones, what are you talking about? I'm not old, I'm still very young. You are all just little sprouts."
Yang Hong flicked each of the twelve little demons on the forehead, finally quieting them down.
"Let's go, back to the island. I need to do some experiments."
With that, Yang Hong used a Water Evasion Technique and vanished from his spot.
"Master~ Master, wait for me, wait!"
Unfortunately, Yang Hong couldn't hear them. His Water Evasion Technique brought him back to the coast of Ren Dao Island.
"Good, good. One evasion covers over 2000 li, and I still have plenty of energy left. I estimate I can now fly for 3000 li in one go."
The speed of his Water Evasion Technique had roughly doubled, and the distance had tripled. This was another significant improvement.
Afterward, Yang Hong gathered seven spirit plants of different grades and began to灌顶 (Guan Ding) them.
"Ding~ You灌顶ed a 1st-grade Coconut Tree with 200 days of cultivation, receiving an 8x cultivation return, gaining 1600 days of cultivation."
"Ding~ You灌顶ed a 6th-grade Nine-Star Sword Grass with 1200 days of cultivation, receiving a 100x cultivation return, gaining 120,000 days of cultivation."
The basic灌顶 (Guan Ding) time had increased by 50 days, reaching 200 days. The rule that for every grade increase in a spirit plant, the basic灌顶 (Guan Ding) cultivation doubled, remained unchanged. This way, not only could Yang Hong's cultivation increase rapidly, but the growth speed of those spirit plants would also greatly accelerate.
Just as he finished his灌顶 (Guan Ding) experiment, Xiao Kui led the other little demons back, clamoring for Yang Hong to灌顶 (Guan Ding) their cultivation. The little demons had grown a bit after more than a year of灌顶 (Guan Ding). The youngest, Xiao Pu, was already 1.3 meters tall, showing signs of becoming a young girl. The tallest was Xiao Kui, now nearly 1.5 meters, a pure maiden.
However, there was a problem: the little demons' minds were still like children's. Their actual IQ was already much higher than that of ordinary humans, but because they had limited contact with others, their emotional intelligence was still at a child's level. Therefore, the little sprouts became more clingy as they grew.
"Master, I want some too."
"Me too! I'm already at the sixth-tier, sixth layer, about to reach the late sixth-tier. Master,灌顶 (Guan Ding) me first."
Listening to the chattering of these little tree spirits and flower spirits, Yang Hong felt warmth in his heart but also a headache.
"Your minds are too immature. From now on, all of you will go to First City and learn from humans. You will not only learn about cultivation but also life skills, learning like ordinary humans."
"..."
The little sprouts looked disdainful and unwilling. They were all sixth-tier, late-stage demon kings, naturally looking down on the weak humans. Yang Hong wouldn't indulge them and directly cast spells.
"Word Curse: Imperial Decree: Those who disobey orders shall have their magical power sealed."
"Word Curse: Imperial Decree: Those who harm mortals shall revert to their original form and have their five senses sealed. Go!"
Two rays of purple-gold light shot out from Yang Hong's mouth, landing on the twelve little demons. A secret technique, akin to a divine ability, was applied to them. The little demons immediately understood the effect and power of these two [Word Curse] secret techniques. For a while, they would not be able to injure human cultivators and would have to obey the commands of those Yang Hong designated.
All the little demons' faces changed. Master was serious this time!
Afterward, Yang Hong found Lan Fangxuan and others and handed the little demons over to them.
"Lan Fangxuan, these little ones are entrusted to you. I've placed Word Curses on them, so they will obey obediently."
"Yes~ but..."
Lan Fangxuan and the others looked like they had eaten bitter gourds. These twelve, who looked like children, were all sixth-tier, late-stage demon kings. They could kill them with a single pinky finger!
"Don't be afraid, I've placed restrictions on them. Train them well."
"Ah~ I... I'll try my best."
Lan Fangxuan looked worriedly at the twelve little ancestors with aggrieved expressions. He only prayed that the little demons wouldn't kill anyone. Under Yang Hong's arrangement, the twelve little demons entered human families, allowing them to integrate into human society faster and refine their temperaments. After a few more instructions, Yang Hong returned to Huamù City with Yu Kewei and Hua Xinlei.
"Kewei, Xinlei, from now on, don't rush your cultivation. Stabilize your cultivation daily and build a strong foundation."
"Master, Kewei understands. It was because my foundation was unstable before that I couldn't control too many subordinates. From now on, I will diligently refine my magical power and build a solid foundation."
"Me too."
Hearing Yang Hong's instructions, Yu Kewei and Hua Xinlei both responded very seriously. Their minds were relatively mature. Yang Hong wouldn't let them have it easy; he directly used [Spiritual Light Imparting Technique] to teach them some management experience, allowing them to manage Huamù City while cultivating, earning cultivation resources for themselves and other humans. Demonic beasts had long lifespans and ample time to learn. As long as they persisted in learning and had Huamù City for practice, they would become qualified city lords.
"Very good, Huamù City is yours to manage."
Yang Hong nodded with satisfaction and turned to leave. He was a leader, not a nanny, and wouldn't be bogged down by trivial matters every day. His trip to Guangyou Island made him realize: one cannot do everything oneself; one must delegate power appropriately and continuously cultivate new talent. Otherwise, the severe lack of successor cultivators on Guangyou Island was a prime example. Guangyou Island had major management issues. An island with twelve Nascent Soul cultivators had only 8 Golden Core stage cultivators (fourth tier), 23 Integration stage cultivators (third tier), and only 37 Foundation Establishment stage cultivators (second tier). This was an utterly unreasonable distribution of cultivators. Whether human or demonic, the cultivators in a normal region were configured like a pyramid. Typically, a configuration like 1:3:27:108 was normal. Therefore, for humans and the little demons he had cultivated, Yang Hong chose a management model of macroscopic control and comprehensive delegation.