News of the Doanh Th??ng Hi?n (Prince Hi?n, Virtuous Prince) —who had dared to hunt a dragon alone, seemingly courting death—reached the ears of Silver Beard, the commander currently defending Jin City. Upon hearing the report from Commander Ngu, Silver Beard flew into a towering rage. Abandoning his post, he marched straight to the North to confront Doanh Thuong Hien (The Prince Hi?n).

  "What do you think you’re doing?!" he roared the moment they met. "Why would you throw yourself into such peril? Do you truly believe that because you are a good and virtuous person, the heavens and gods will simply bail you out?"

  Silver Beard’s voice trembled with fury. "Your actions are nothing but an exploitation of the gods' kindness. Can you please be less naive? Less reckless? Stop making those who care about you worry for your life!"

  The Prince Hi?n could only bow his head in silence, offering no excuses. To the world, Silver Beard was merely his bodyguard, but Hien knew better. This man was his second father—the one who had watched him grow, his master in martial arts and magic, and the person he trusted absolutely, without a single shred of doubt.

  "I have made my decision," Silver Beard declared firmly. "From this day forward, I will follow you closely. Anyone who wishes to harm you will have to step over my corpse."

  Hien bowed deeply. "Yes, Master."

  Silver Beard belonged to the Thach Mon (Stone Gate) clan. They followed a matrilineal system where children took their mother’s name, all property belonged to the women, and inheritance passed only to daughters; men were essentially considered outsiders. His clan lived in the western reaches of the Northern lands, far from the constant theaters of war. Even Silver Beard’s own children bore their mother’s surname and lived with her.

  The Thach Mon clan was a terrestrial branch of the Eternal Hau Tho Sect, an Immortal Race sect whose main headquarters resided on a floating island in the eastern corner of the North.

  During a previous dragon hunt, Silver Beard had discovered a vein of rare precious metals. When The Prince Hi?n reported this to the Dragon Hunters' Association and nearby villages, they simply laughed it off. Their metallurgy was primitive, relying on mobile forges that traveled with their herds. They could only work soft metals like gold, silver, and copper. The rare metals Hien found were hard, and current forges weren't equipped to process them.

  However, The Prince Hi?n saw a golden opportunity. These minerals were surface-level deposits; no deep mining was required. The only obstacle was the brutal desert climate. While the people of the Jade Pearl Kingdom found the conditions unbearable, the local tribes flourished there. Even with the harsh environment, the cost of extraction was far lower than the deep mines in the south.

  Hien immediately contacted the dwarf Thorin to gather wandering dwarves to build a shelter and warehouse near the deposits where groundwater was available. He also sought out Silver Beard’s son, Thach Kim Ngoc, an expert in ores and gemstones.

  To secure the operation, Hien asked the local villages for permission to mine and hired their people as laborers. Every month, he sent wagons of grain to these villages as gifts. The locals were amazed—someone actually wanted this "useless" rock, provided housing and food for the workers, and gave the village gifts of food and water (the most precious commodities in the desert). Naturally, he won their full support.

  Soon after, Hien traveled south to the central plains of the Jade Pearl Kingdom to purchase vast quantities of food. Under Noe’s management in Jin City, the hundreds of daily trade shipments were converted into capital to develop the city. It expanded rapidly, attracting more citizens and evolving into a major commercial hub of the North.

  Once the city reached a stable level of growth, Noe requested to resign. He arranged for successors and handed over his duties clearly. As an Immortal, he had no love for the crowded, noisy life of a city.

  The Prince Hi?n came to see him off, traveling with Noe for a week to listen to his final teachings.

  "We should never harbor the intent to harm others," Noe advised, "but we must always maintain the heart to guard against them. Do good, but do not let others exploit your kindness."

  Hien asked, "I possess the Appraisal Eye and can see a person's talent, but I cannot see their character. How do I know whom to employ and whom to discard?"

  "This is a universal problem for growing organizations," Noe replied. "There is a saying:

  Virtue without talent is useless.

  Talent without virtue is destructive.

  When too many talented individuals gather in one place, jealousy is born, leading to internal sabotage. This is why most small and medium organizations fail—not for lack of talent, but because of internal strife."

  "I see," Hien mused. "Is that why you are leaving, Master Noe? Is someone trying to plot against you? Just say the word, and I will handle it."

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  Noe laughed. "It hasn't come to that. It is simply my nature; I prefer tranquility. The Prince Hi?n, do you know why they compete so fiercely?"

  Hien shook his head. "I do not. Please, enlighten me."

  "Let’s look at the word competition (C?nh Tranh)," Noe explained. "

  C?nh means 'beside' or 'near.'

  Tranh refers to a 'picture'—a narrow space where all the colors jostle to show themselves.

  Competition occurs when you gather too many talents of the same field in one spot, forcing them to fight for the spotlight."

  "Is competition bad, then?" Hien asked.

  Noe "On the contrary, competition is healthy, but excessive competition is destructive. If the four strongest people compete for 1st through 4th place, that is good because their abilities are close. But if you force the four strongest to compete against the four weakest, the weak will never win. They will become discouraged and eventually resort to sabotage and foul play."

  "What is the solution?" Hien asked.

  "First, segment your territory so that equals compete with equals—much like how the world is divided into the Mortal, Immortal, and Divine Realms.

  Second, expand the 'picture.' Your current vision is too small. A single City Lord’s horizon isn't large enough to provide a 'place' for all your talents. If you stay this way, they will leave.

  You must have a greater ambition—a kingdom of a hundred cities. Only then can you utilize everyone."

  Noe continued, "Then, you must test their hearts, just as the Creator tests the world to see who stays and who rises."

  "How and when should I test them?"

  "Imagine you are the father of a large family," Noe said. "You have many children: some kind, some fierce, some greedy. You love them all, but you must go on a long journey. To whom do you leave your estate?

  If you give it to the greedy one, the others starve.

  If you give it to the violent one, he will beat his siblings.

  If you give it to the one who is too soft, the estate will be lost.

  To find the right heir, the father must devise a test."

  Hien nodded. "So I must view these talents as my children, loving them while placing them where they fit best."

  "Exactly. You must hunt for talent and care for them like a father, but a father must also know when to use the rod. Like a smith refining gold in fire to remove impurities, or a lapidary grinding a gem to reveal its beauty. These punishments aren't meant to destroy, but to warn. You must be extremely careful and fair."

  "It sounds difficult," Hien sighed. "To love and punish simultaneously... how do I find the balance?"

  Noe smiled. "It is a narrow path with a chasm on either side.

  Too much freedom leads to the abyss of chaos.

  Too much severity leads to the abyss of slavery, where everyone becomes a drone and talent withers. You must decide for yourself. Ideally, build a council of advisors before deciding on rewards or punishments. And most importantly: do not rush. Running on a narrow path is suicide."

  After days of conversation, Noe finally said, "This is far enough. It is time to part. Before I go, I have a gift for you. Lend me your two artifacts: the Mask and the Dragon Tendon."

  Noe took the two dharma treasures in his hands and used his intent to speak directly to them: "Hello both of you, we have met in the Black Tower before, haven't we?"

  The two alien souls replied, "We know you are a prophet, right? One with the ability to connect with the Creator God of this world."

  Noe replied, "A connection to the Heavenly Dao, the divine intelligence that manages this world, not the Creator."

  The alien souls said, "To us, those two names are one. What do you want? Speak. We have been imprisoned here in such misery; do you intend to torture us even more?"

  Noe said, "Do you both want to be free?"

  An alien soul replied, "Of course. How can we be free and escape this world?"

  Noe replied, "Ah, that is not possible. You cannot go outside this world. But you can be more free, like moving from a cramped solitary cell to a larger prison room with more amenities and better clothes. In the terms of this world, it means being granted a Divine Position to govern a land, allowed to possess more things like trees, beasts, and birds, but you cannot leave that area."

  The aliens said, "That works. How do we do it?"

  Noe said, "Here, in the Soul Realm, there is a common currency called Merit (Yang Merit, Yin Merit, Divine Merit). You can use this to buy a Divine Position to rule a land."

  The alien asked, "How do we get Divine Merit?"

  Noe pointed at The Prince Hi?n and said, "Help him, and you will share in his Merit.

  He is a City Lord, and in the future, he will be the king of a vast land. Every action and word of his will bring great merit, but it can also deduct merit very quickly.

  To put it simply, both of you are prisoners, and The Prince Hi?n is the warden managing a part of this prison. If you cooperate with him, both of you will benefit."

  Noe smiled and said, "Words alone are hard to believe. I will open the Merit trading system for you two and provide a ticket to the Soul Realm in this space."

  The two aliens saw a "free one-time conversation outside the world" voucher in the Merit Market. They both immediately bought this voucher and contacted their soul families in the Omega Alien Alliance. After that conversation, both felt more comforted and joyful than before.

  Immediately afterward, a source of energy from the sky (from another world in the Omega Alliance) transmitted directly into the two dharma treasures.

  The Dragon Tendon gained the ability to fly, helping The Prince Hi?n fly freely—activated once a day for one hour. Later, as The Prince Hi?n reached a higher cultivation, it allowed for nearly free flight. It was named Kh?n Thiên L?ng (Heaven-Binding Silk) and recorded in the library as a powerful dharma treasure that could bind anyone with a cultivation below Nascent Soul (S). It became the terror of any Golden Core (A) who dared to duel The Prince Hi?n and served as a solid layer of protection when he faced opponents who were too strong.

  The mask gained the ability of telekinesis, controlling all surrounding objects, enhancing both attack and defense for The Prince Hi?n. Later, this power combined with the flight of the Heaven-Binding Silk to form a perfect flight team: the Heaven-Binding Silk served as the pilot, the mask as the gunner firing weapons, and The Prince Hi?n as the high-level commander, observing and giving final orders. Later, it was called Ng? Th?ch Linh Di?n (Spirit Stone-Governing Mask).

  Afterward, Noe departed with the best blessings for The Prince Hi?n.