Volume 1, Chapter 5 – Yaochi Is Founded

She flew into the valley and landed on a flat patch of grass by the lake.

With a thought, the “stone” carrying the Heavenly Maiden Temple appeared in her hand.

“System, release the mountain and connect it to the local earth vein.”

[Command received. Releasing relocated unit… adjusting spatial parameters… connecting to the local spiritual vein…]

Gu Han tossed the “stone” in her hand into the air.

The pebble swelled in the wind, rapidly returning to the mountain’s original size.

It then slowly descended onto an open area in one corner, blending perfectly with the surrounding environment, as though it had always grown there.

Atop the mountain, the Heavenly Maiden Temple still stood, only now it was no longer surrounded by desolation, but by mist-wreathed beauty.

From this day forward, this would be her new beginning.

“All right, System. It’s time to use the Sacred Land Construction Card.”

Gu Han took a deep breath of the spiritual-energy-rich air and gave the command.

[The Sacred Land Construction Card has been activated! Beginning scan of the earth-vein environment… planning sect layout… generating building modules… infusing the structures with the Dao resonance of laws…]

As the system prompt sounded, Gu Han felt a power far grander than anything she herself could summon being drawn down from the void and descending upon this valley.

Rumble…

The earth let out a deep roar, as though a giant dragon were turning over beneath the ground.

With Heavenly Maiden Peak and the lake as the center, the surrounding terrain began undergoing earthshaking changes.

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First came the outermost perimeter, where towering jade walls a hundred zhang high rose from the ground, gleaming with the light of runes.

They swiftly joined together along the edge of the valley, forming a grand and sturdy wall around the sect.

Above the walls, faint phantoms of soaring dragons and dancing phoenixes circled, radiating a powerful defensive aura.

Inside the walls, the ground was leveled and compacted, then paved with smooth white-jade tiles polished like mirrors.

One magnificent palace and pavilion after another sprang into existence out of thin air like bamboo shoots after rain, laid out in elegant, orderly fashion.

The first to take shape was a towering main hall nine stories high.

It had a glazed golden roof, carved beams, and painted rafters. Above its entrance was a blank plaque, waiting for her to name it.

On either side of the main hall stood the functional buildings: the Transmission Pavilion, the Scripture Repository, the Alchemy Pavilion, the Artifact Refining Pavilion, the Enforcement Hall, the Mission Hall, and more, all complete and accounted for.

Though their interiors were empty for the time being, the buildings themselves flowed with Dao resonance, clearly no ordinary structures.

There were disciple residential quarters, twelve peaks in different styles, a martial practice ground, a spiritual herb garden, a spirit beast garden…

Every supporting facility one could need was there, all planned with perfect order.

Even more wondrously, the lake expanded outward by another ring, and a small island appeared in its center, with an exquisite pavilion atop it.

Streams condensed from spiritual energy wound their way through the valley, nourishing the newborn spiritual plants.

The entire complex had an ancient, majestic style, yet its finer details were exquisitely crafted.

It fused perfectly with the surrounding mountains and waters, seamless and natural, as though it had stood there for tens of thousands of years.

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In less than the time it took to burn a stick of incense, the embryonic form of a sect, complete in function and perfect in defense, now stood imposingly within this once-isolated valley!

Gu Han hovered in midair, looking down at her brand-new “home,” and a surge of indescribable pride rose in her chest.

This was her foundation!

From this day on, she was no longer that drudge struggling just to survive. She was now the master of a sect with a blessed land all her own!

[Ding! Basic construction complete! Please name the sect!]

The system prompt sounded again.

A name?

She thought of the old man who had tricked her into coming there, and of that blurred statue of the Heavenly Maiden.

“Heavenly Maiden Temple… Heavenly Maiden Sect? Heavenly Maiden Sacred Land?”

“No, no… too cliché… not grand enough…”

She softly murmured several names to herself, then seemed to think of something. A smile curved her lips.

“Since I’ve become a woman, then let’s call it… ‘Yaochi Immortal Palace.’ ¹ 瑶池/Yaochi (Jade Pool) originated in early Chinese mythology as the sacred paradise of the Queen Mother of the West (Xiwangmu) on Mount Kunlun, where she dwelt and later hosted the legendary Peach Banquet granting immortality to the immortals. “

As soon as the words left her mouth, ten thousand rays of rosy light gathered above the blank plaque on the main hall.

Four golden characters slowly emerged, each one containing supreme Dao resonance, bold and soaring like dragons in flight:

Yaochi Immortal Palace!

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At the same time, a vast will spread outward from Yaochi Immortal Palace in all directions.

It proclaimed to this land that on this day, at this very moment, a new power had officially laid down its roots!

Almost the instant the sect’s name was set, Gu Han felt herself form a deeper connection with this patch of heaven and earth and with the sect beneath her feet.

She was the sovereign here, and the rules here would be shaped by her will.

[Sect: Yaochi Immortal Palace]

[Level: 1 (Newly Established)]

[Sect Master: Gu Han]

[Disciples: 0]

[Elders: 0]

[Buildings: Complete (Basic Version)]

[Spiritual Energy Density: High (thanks to the spiritual vein and system enhancement)]

[Protective Sect Formation: Nine Heavens Dragon-Guarding Formation (Activated)]

[Prestige: 0 (Unknown)]

The system interface updated, displaying the current state of Yaochi Immortal Palace.

“The sect’s built, but it’s completely empty. I’m the only one here, a commander with no troops.”

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Gu Han descended from the air and stood before the magnificent main hall, scratching her head.

Recruiting disciples, finding people, gathering resources… there were still countless matters to deal with.

Still, she was not in a hurry.

With Immortal Ascension cultivation and the system at her side, time was no longer any kind of problem for her.

She had more than enough time to slowly build and manage this “home” of her own.

She first walked toward the still-dilapidated Heavenly Maiden Temple.

This was her starting point, and it would also become her private place of secluded cultivation within Yaochi Immortal Palace.

She pushed open the creaking wooden door. Inside, the furnishings were unchanged, still full of traces from ten years of living there.

She walked up to the indistinct statue of the Heavenly Maiden and gazed at it in silence.

“Whoever you are, thank you for giving me a place to stay for ten years.”

She spoke softly, then shook her head and laughed at herself.

“What am I even saying to a stone? Honestly…”

She turned and was just about to go familiarize herself with the newly built halls.

Suddenly, the system prompt sounded once more.