Chapter 24: Lin Dong: "Let us establish a faction, and I shall be the leader."

It took Shi Jian quite a while to remember that the unlucky fellow, Meng Qi, had passed out.

However, this chat group lacked a remote wake-up service, and Shi Jian had no way to rouse him. Let him stay unconscious, then. After all, nothing in the group would be lost, and he wasn’t missing anything of importance. With this thought, Shi Jian felt perfectly at ease idling in the group.

After a brief exchange regarding their cultivation techniques, the members began to chat idly. Having all finished reviewing their life scripts, they were no longer busy and naturally had time to lounge in the group. Through this casual conversation, they became much more familiar with one another.

[Lin Dong: "I've decided you lot are my brothers. Why don't we find a time to swear an oath of brotherhood, establish a faction, and roam the heavens together in the future!"]

As they chatted, Lin Dong suddenly proposed swearing brotherhood and forming a faction. The others in the group felt their eyes light up at the suggestion. They had grown quite familiar with each other and found they shared similar dispositions. If they could swear brotherhood or form a unified force, their bonds would be even more secure. It was a decent suggestion.

[Yang Qi: "That works. We shall share in the blessings and shoulder the burdens together. But what should we name this faction we are to build?"]

Yang Qi was the first to respond. Although he had undergone a massive transformation and was reborn, he was still a young man, full of spirit and vigor. Swearing brotherhood and establishing a force that could intimidate the heavens was exactly the kind of thing a young man would find appealing.

[Lin Dong: "How about 'The Martial Realm'? We could develop some peripheral members in our respective worlds, while we few act as the heads!"]

[Lin Dong: "After we swear the oath, the eldest brother will be the First Chief, the second brother the Second Chief, and so on..."]

Lin Dong suggested with great enthusiasm.

[Lin Dong: "First Chief, Second Chief—doesn't that sound imposing?"]

[Xiao Yan: "........."]

[Fang Han: "........."]

[Yang Qi: "........."]

His words left everyone in stunned silence. Shi Jian let out a long sigh; he had played the game of the absurd his whole life, but in the end, he still couldn't compare to the spontaneous brilliance of a truly gifted individual.

The world is truly unfair!

[Shi Jian: "I can only give this suggestion an 8.5 out of 10, because I am 1.5 speechless!"]

The others didn't understand Shi Jian's meme, but they certainly understood the sentiment—because they were all feeling a bit speechless themselves.

...

In the World of Eternal Life, Fang Han silently added another label to Lin Dong’s profile, right after "loyal."

*Uncultured!*

Fang Han was genuinely curious how Lin Dong had managed to utter such a refreshingly detached-from-reality suggestion. Could it be that he, like himself, came from humble beginnings and had never studied? How could his cultural level be lower than even his own, a mere stable hand?

There was nothing to pick at with the name "Martial Realm." While a bit plain, it was a normal enough name. But titles like "First Chief" and "Second Chief"... If they were to form a faction, they were surely destined to become an existence that would shake the heavens, were they not? With a force that grand, calling yourselves "First Chief" and "Second Chief"... could you even say that out loud? Anyone who didn't know better would think they were a gang of bandits that had just crawled out of some mountain ravine!

...

Yang Qi, who had originally wanted to suggest the name "Holy King," also fell silent. He hadn't even started pushing his own agenda yet, and Lin Dong had already started pushing his. These titles were just too refreshingly unconventional. He could think for a lifetime and never come up with such names. First Chief, Second Chief... what kind of sane person could come up with that?

...

[Xiao Yan: "That is a very good suggestion. Don't ever suggest it again!"]

Lin Dong looked at the reactions in the group, feeling a bit confused. Why did it seem like the others weren't very interested in his proposal? Could it be that they didn't like the name "Martial Realm"? It couldn't be that they disliked the titles of "First Chief" and "Second Chief," could it?

Those titles... they were so imposing. They sounded so authoritative.

He had single-handedly killed the mood of the entire group.

[Shi Jian: "Swearing brotherhood and forming a faction is fine. Let's find a time to gather and meet up in person!"]

[Shi Jian: "We can discuss the name of the faction then. But I suspect everyone is busy right now, so let's wait until you have all handled your urgent matters!"]

Shi Jian hurriedly spoke in the group, terrified that if they formed the faction now, they would really go through with those titles. That would be a disgrace that would reach even his ancestors.

[Xiao Yan: "I think that's fine!"]

[Fang Han: "Same here."]

The others unanimously agreed with Shi Jian's suggestion. Seeing this, Lin Dong could only sigh deeply and temporarily abandon his dream of being the "First Chief."

However, a trace of stubbornness soon flashed across his face. When they finally met, he would definitely give everyone a proper sales pitch for his idea.

...

Shi Jian closed the chat group, a faint smile playing on his lips. The initial sense of distance and estrangement between the group members had been completely shattered by his "Original True Explanation." They were now truly united. In a sense, the entire group had been molded into his own shape. In a way, these people had become his "harem."

Shi Jian felt his confidence in this Perfect World growing. Even if something went wrong with Huang, with these people in the group, he had the confidence to face anything!

The Huang Heavenly Emperor had already fallen out of favor. Walking toward us now are Shi Jian's newly favored concubines: the Holy King Yang Qi, the Flame Emperor Xiao Yan, the Martial Ancestor Lin Dong, the Other Shore's Meng Qi, and the Gate of Eternity's Fang Han...

Shi Jian felt the future was bright, and the Great Dao was within his grasp!