You think your technology and your wisdom are everything. Then let me ask you, how powerful is Earth's current technology? How powerful is your Stark Industries? Breaking out of the Planet? Conquering the Star Sea? These are but trivial paths, mere confinement to your native Planet."
"When I entered samadhi, my primordial spirit reflected the void and observed the various aspects of the Universe. In the distant starry sky, there are technological civilizations countless times more powerful than Earth, with populations in the trillions, and Universe warships as numerous as fish crossing a river. But there are also even more powerful individuals, who with a wave of their hand can bring about the Destruction of civilizations and the extinction of all living beings."
"In the eyes of those individuals, Earth is merely a speck of dust, not even worth noticing."
"Now that the Disaster is rising and conflicts are constant in the Universe, even though Earth is in a remote location, it is still in danger of being destroyed. If not for this, why would I have emerged from the Mountain Gate?"
"You once asked me why I specifically sought you out. As your Master, I never speak falsely; I naturally value you. I possess a scroll of Dao of Talismans. If one cultivates it thoroughly, one can wield great magical power and divine abilities. In some respects, it might even have a miraculous complementary effect with what you call technology. Because you are a technological genius, I secretly believe that you have some future in the Dao of Talismans. That is why I value you. Otherwise, wouldn't it be more convenient for your Master to simply choose anyone?"
"As for using the method of the Jin Gu Curse to control you, there are two reasons. Firstly, I do not wish to be troubled, although I could resolve it with a wave of my hand. Secondly, your nature is arrogant and conceited. If I did not control you, how could I impart the Great Dao to you?"
As Tony listened to Zhao Yu's words, his mind wandered. At times, he felt that Zhao Yu was being overly anxious and thinking too much; at other times, he felt that he made sense; and at still other times, he found it both amusing and frustrating—it turned out that his own excellence was the cause of his misfortune.
Seeing Tony's shifting expression, Zhao Yu chuckled inwardly.
This series of deceptions, a mix of truth and falsehood, falsehood and truth, involved him racking his brains to say everything he could think of and everything that needed to be said. Even if it couldn't immediately fool him, it would leave an impression in his mind, and when future events confirmed everything one by one, Tony would have no choice but to truly fall into the trap.
"What your Master has told you today, you must remember and not spread indiscriminately. Now, take your Master to see that farm."
He flicked his fingernails and stood up.
...
"Geniuses or evildoers, their personalities vary, but arrogance is their true nature. It might be pride or unyielding spirit." In the car, Zhao Yu said faintly, "As a mortal, your status and wealth determine your comfort, but this is only on an ordinary level. One day, you will be drawn into a larger vortex."
Tony remained silent, a smile of nonchalance perpetually on his face.
Seeing this, Zhao Yu said no more.
Soon, they arrived at a small farm called "Musket" on the outskirts of Queens, by the Hudson River.
Tony's efficiency, or rather Pepper's efficiency, was naturally beyond doubt. This farm had changed hands yesterday afternoon. When Tony brought Zhao Yu here, apart from a small Villa and the orchards and cash crops in the fields, there were no traces left by the previous owner.
Zhao Yu took the silently accompanying Tony on a rough tour of the farm and was very satisfied.
The farm was exactly one hundred acres, of which approximately forty acres were planted with grain crops, another thirty acres were orchards, and the remaining thirty acres consisted of a small lake and a forested area.
The small Villa was situated between the forested area, the small lake, and the Hudson River. It was nestled against a hill and by the Water, and the scenery was indeed pleasant.
After the tour, Zhao Yu nodded in satisfaction: "Very good, it temporarily meets the requirements."
He stood with his hands behind his back, his posture tall and straight, and calmly said to Tony, "Your Master has no specific requirements for lodging; this farm will do for now. As for the workers, dismiss them all. Your Master did not acquire this farm for farming."
Tony shrugged, indicating his indifference.
Immediately, Zhao Yu and Tony walked into the Villa together.
Inside the Villa, it was empty; there was nothing. All the furniture and such had been moved out by the original owner. Zhao Yu said, "Let's decorate this place today."
Tony still shrugged.
However, he gave a meaningful look to Pepper, who had been following beside him with a strange expression and hadn't said a word.
Pepper nodded, turned, and walked out.
Only then did Zhao Yu turn around and stand face to face with Tony.
"Today, with a Mountain Gate and a disciple, it is time to establish a sect."
After Zhao Yu finished speaking, he slightly closed his eyes.
In reality, without that lottery draw, it would have been incredibly difficult for Zhao Yu to complete the task of establishing a sect within three months. Without the summoning saint token, he couldn't have achieved this step.
Without the Chaos True Body method, he would only be slightly stronger than an ordinary person.
The difficulty of acquiring a large sum of money to buy land and then tricking someone into becoming a disciple was imaginable.
But now, in just three days, the task was complete.
Originally, Zhao Yu did not intend to immediately submit the task to the system—he even planned to drag it out until the last moment of the three-month deadline. He wanted to see if the system would feel frustrated.
However, he changed his mind.
The main reason was the luck value.
The luck-suppressing spiritual treasures and blessed lands were not in high demand now; they were temporarily optional. But the demand for luck value was urgent. Having accepted a disciple, he naturally had to fulfill his obligations, but Zhao Yu had no other methods to impart besides a fragmented version of the Chaos True Body. And the Chaos True Body was his fundamental reliance; how could he easily impart it?
Therefore, exchange was imperative. And exchanging for methods required luck value.
He still had ninety luck points now, which could be used to exchange for some Cultivation methods of the mortal level. But firstly, Zhao Yu's aspirations were high! The ultimate task of this system was O-A-A; he couldn't have low aspirations.
Secondly, ordinary methods would absolutely not be able to fool Tony.
Just as Zhao Yu had told Tony before, he believed that if Tony embarked on the Dao of Talismans and combined it with his technology, it would have a great future. Therefore, he planned to first exchange a basic Cultivation method of the Dao of Talismans for Tony.
However, the basic Cultivation method of the Dao of Talismans was not included in the basic talismans. This classic, Basic Talismans, did not contain fundamental Cultivation methods; it only contained methods for drawing various basic talismans.
Cultivation methods are fundamental. Their value far exceeded the ninety luck points Zhao Yu currently possessed.
Because they simply couldn't be found in the methods section.
That's why Zhao Yu decided to submit the task to the system early, to first get the ten thousand luck points reward. As for seeing the system frustrated, there would be other opportunities in the future; it wasn't just this one time.
"Main Task One: Establish a Sect completed. Task reward issued."
Hearing this voice in his mind, Zhao Yu exhaled slightly.
He thought to himself: "Search for a basic Cultivation method of the Dao of Talismans."
"Deducting ten luck points. Do you want to search?"
"Search!"
Zhao Yu's expression remained unchanged.
Only ten points, did it think it was like before? With ten thousand and ninety luck points in hand, what was ten points! Rich and willful!
Immediately, in the light screen visible only to Zhao Yu, a plethora of various talisman Dao methods in the methods section made Zhao Yu dizzy. Zhao Yu pondered—these methods varied in quality, but they were all complete methods that directly led to the Qi Refining and Spirit Transformation stages, allowing Cultivation from Forging Body and Dao Foundation building all the way to Spirit Transformation Ninth Layer. Therefore, their value was quite considerable.
The worst Cultivation method required a thousand luck points, and the best surprisingly required five thousand!
This made Zhao Yu frown considerably.
He couldn't help but ask inwardly, "Those three Supreme methods could be divided into small layers, why are these all complete methods reaching Spirit Transformation Ninth Layer?"
"All rights of interpretation belong to the system, the host has no right to inquire."
Zhao Yu's mouth twitched, and he vaguely guessed that this was the bastard system's revenge!
They all can't stand being wronged!
He secretly took a breath and pondered in his mind.
Luck value was very precious, there was no doubt about that. Just looking at the system's name, one would know. He had only just managed to complete the task early by expending one summoning saint token opportunity, and he only obtained ten thousand luck points. This showed the high value of luck points.
But to exchange a Cultivation method for Tony, even the worst one would cost one-tenth of his current luck points, not to mention the best one, which made Zhou Yu particularly pained.
Although he had taken Tony as a disciple, it had only been a short time, and Zhao Yu had no Master-disciple affection for Tony. Secondly, Tony himself was unwilling and only agreed because he was under duress.
Was it worth giving him the best method?
Just then, the system's voice sounded: "Side Task: Accept one disciple completed. Accepting disciples gathers luck. For each disciple accepted, different rewards will be given based on their level of luck. Tony Stark, the future Iron Man, one of the most important Super Heroes on Earth in the Marvel Universe, blessed by luck. The host accepting him into the Mountain Gate, imparting the Great Dao, and binding his luck, rewards five hundred luck points."
"..." Zhao Yu was surprised; he hadn't thought of this at all: "Accepting disciples also gives rewards?"
"Only those blessed by luck receive rewards."
Zhao Yu pondered for a moment, his mind turning, and said: "What if I accept an ordinary person who isn't a Super Hero, but after he gains the method and becomes powerful, he also participates in and influences major events in the Marvel World? How would that be calculated?"
"Luck is innate, but it flows." The system explained vaguely, saying: "Friendly reminder, if the host's disciples participate in Marvel World events, regardless of size, there will be accumulated luck value rewards. The larger the event, the deeper the involvement, the greater the role played, the greater the influence, the stronger the disciple's luck, and the sect's luck will increase accordingly. The system will, after each event, compare the growth of the host's disciple's luck and reward the host with luck points."
Zhao Yu was even more surprised: "This is a long-term investment… So, if Tony goes on a heroic deed or something similar, I'll get income every time?"
"Indeed."
After the joy, Zhao Yu's mind turned—if he accepted an ordinary person, as long as he could participate in major events that influenced the World's development, he would gradually be blessed by luck, and Zhao Yu would still receive luck value rewards for any event he participated in!
Thinking of this, he made up his mind.
In this World, although Super Heroes were the protagonists, ordinary people were not necessarily incapable!
Each of those Super Heroes had distinct personalities, and it was difficult to bring them all under his tutelage. Now it was good; he had another option.
Of course, Zhao Yu also knew that protagonists would definitely benefit the sect more and yield faster returns than ordinary people. But no matter what, having an extra option was good.
"Since that's the case..."
Zhao Yu's mind turned, and he gritted his teeth, saying, "The stronger the disciple, the better... System, exchange the Qiankun Fulu Lianqi Method for me!"
The Qiankun Fulu Lianqi Method was the most valuable, top-tier method in the current methods section, requiring a full five thousand luck points to exchange.