A few days later, in South Annex City.
Feng Jianxian had passed through this section of South Annex City many tis before.
Originally a barren wilderness, the area had since been enclosed to form the immortal city's new annex. The newly constructed combat arena sat in its southwest corner.
Spanning three hundred mu, the circular arena was entirely ringed by walls six zhang high.
Inside, a vast expanse of land surrounded a tranquil lake, with a small island resting at its center.
Even for a structure built in the annex city, the venue was staggeringly massive.
"Yulou, your Wang Clan is truly overbearing..."
Taking in the grandeur of the combat arena, even a seasoned Foundation Establishnt cultivator like Feng Jianxian sighed in awe.
Wang Yulou laughed heartily, pointing across the nearly completed arena.
"Ah, let's not dwell on that. Senior Feng, I invited you here today because I want you to unleash your full power in the combat arena to see if it's large enough."
An arena covering three hundred mu had a radius of roughly ninety zhang. Flying from one end to the other spanned one hundred and eighty zhang.
While a Qi Refining cultivator could cross that distance in a dozen breaths, a seasoned Foundation Establishnt cultivator like Feng Jianxian would cover it in the blink of an eye.
Feng Jianxian frowned.
"Yulou, if I use my full strength, I'm afraid this place will still be a bit too small."
Feigning surprise, Wang Yulou offered a bitter smile.
"That's my own ignorance showing. How about this... Feng Jianxian, just suppress your strength to the Peak Qi Condensation realm and exchange a few blows with . We can just test if the venue is suitable."
Feng Jianxian naturally wouldn't refuse. He and Wang Yulou were good friends who spoke freely with one another.
While both n were the type who could comfortably call a stray dog their brother, that didn't diminish their genuine effort to maintain their friendship.
Wang Yulou was a heavenly genius of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect, a cultivator from Dripdrop Cave, and more importantly, soone with a grudge against Yuan Daoshen.
Feng Jianxian still expected Wang Yulou to help him deal with Yuan Daoshen in the future.
"Yulou, speaking of which, most direct lineage mbers of major families like yours have never engaged in real magical combat. Are you the sa?"
Feng Jianxian stood at a distance within the combat arena, calling out to Wang Yulou, who was already prepared on the lake's island.
Disciples of major families rarely needed to risk their lives fighting for cultivation resources. They were like flowers raised in a greenhouse, though this only applied to a small fraction of the major families—the direct lineage.
Zhou Yingxi and Lian Chengxian both fell into this category; their clans were true major families.
Wang Yulou was a bit special. The Wang Clan lacked a Purple Palace realm cultivator and was technically a minor family. But Feng Jianxian wasn't Lian Chengxian; he would never utter sothing as condescending as 'your minor Wang Clan.'
Furthermore, Wang Clan mbers had to undergo nurous trials before earning the chance to receive allocated Foundation Establishnt resources. However, Wang Yulou's growth had been... rather unusual.
As a result, he truly had never engaged in real magical combat. Whether sparring with Wang Xianzhou in the past or exchanging blows with Feng Jianxian now, it was all just practice, not genuine life-and-death struggles.
"Yes and no. It's mostly just a lack of opportunity. I've still received training in magical combat."
Wang Yulou explained as he raised his hand, firing three Gui Water Hidden Edge Needles. Seeing the weak, wobbly needles approach, Feng Jianxian was utterly stunned.
Must be nice. A child backed by a family is treated like a precious treasure. Truly nice.
Although he also ca from a major family, the Feng clan had long since declined. He had only reached his current realm thanks to the constant tornt from that bastard Yuan Daoshen—grinding on the West Sea frontlines was its own kind of whipping.
Seeing Wang Yulou's abysmal combat strength, how could he not sigh?
"Yulou, you really need to practice your magical combat."
After lanting Wang Yulou's apparent uselessness, Feng Jianxian leisurely drifted toward the Gui Water Hidden Edge Needles.
With a light wave of his sleeve and a brief tremor of spiritual energy, the three needles easily scattered.
Feng Jianxian then launched an incredibly obvious golden flying blade straight at Wang Yulou, keeping its speed roughly equal to the Gui Water Hidden Edge Needles.
"Careful!"
Senior Jianxian even offered a thoughtful warning.
To his bewildernt, Wang Yulou dodged erratically before crashing squarely into the golden blade, like a scamr staging an accident for extortion.
Feng Jianxian had halted the blade in midair, yet Wang Yulou had actually accelerated, throwing himself onto the construct before it could vanish.
"Ah, it hurts."
A professional actor never lacks a stage. Wang Yulou's staged injury succeeded, startling Feng Jianxian into rushing forward to check on him.
Grabbing Feng Jianxian's hand, Wang Yulou smiled bitterly, his chest dripping with blood.
"Senior, your golden blade was simply too fast. I tried to dodge, but my escape thod didn't respond, and I ended up crashing right into it."
Feng Jianxian moved to treat the wound, only to realize that Wang Yulou was gripping his hand tightly, refusing to let go.
'I am fine. I have tempered my body before; a pill will heal this wound. Senior Feng, I must ask you to contact my father-in-law on my behalf.
Just ask him, "Are you no longer caring for your own daughter?" That is all. Be careful, do not let my master know.'
This was the true reason for inviting Feng Jianxian here.
Wang Xianmao was unsuitable; he was far too conspicuous.
Gu Qilang seed friendly on the surface, but the Gu Family's Qiyuan Zhenren was too deep of a pool.
As for Shen Guang's three disciples, although they all knew Wang Yulou, he simply didn't trust them.
The sa applied to Mo Xunzhou, Jiuqu, and the other Foundation Establishnt cultivators he knew; they lacked mutual trust.
Therefore, he could only turn to Feng Jianxian.
The lands of the West Sea nourished its people. The harsh environnt had shaped many unique individuals, and Feng Jianxian and Mo Yunshu were pri examples.
Feng Jianxian's habit of crying out against injustice might have seed ill-suited for the cultivation world, but at this mont, his existence was a massive help to Yulou.
"Take this pill, and let thoroughly examine your injuries."
Feng Jianxian was a seasoned Foundation Establishnt cultivator who had weathered many storms. How could he not grasp what Wang Yulou was afraid of? He imdiately took a healing pill from his robes, and at the sa ti, the divine ability Limitless Spiritual Opportunity veiled Yulou's wound.
Naturally, the examination couldn't be too obvious.
'Your words just now might have already been overheard by your good master.'
'If he heard it, he heard it. Don't worry. I've thought this through; him hearing it is actually a good thing.'
'Yingxi is a good girl. So, what exactly is that good master of yours planning to do to her?'
'It's nothing major... Senior Feng, are you willing to help ?'
Feng Jianxian slapped Yulou's wound, making his face imdiately contort in pain.
"It's nothing major. You just need to rest for a couple of days once you get back."
On the surface, he was showing concern for Wang Yulou's injuries, but internally, he was annoyed that Wang Yulou was treating him like an outsider.
'I've told you many tis. Don't call Senior; it makes us sound distant.'
The taut string in Wang Yulou's heart finally loosened. He transmitted his voice in gratitude.
'I leave it in your hands, Feng Jianxian.'
Feng Jianxian tilted his head. His eyebrows twitched slightly as he shot back a dismissive look, indicating it was rely a trivial matter.
'I am a Sword Immortal, after all. Upholding justice is only natural. It's just... did your good master truly refine the entire Zhou Family?'
Among seasoned Foundation Establishnt cultivators, there were no fools. The absolute limit for an idiot from a major family was ordinary Foundation Establishnt.
Feng Jianxian had a wide circle of friends in the West Sea, so it was no surprise that he had caught wind of the rumors.
"I still need to practice my magical combat more often. I made a complete fool of myself today, sigh."
'In all likelihood, yes. The situation is very complex; you must contact him as soon as possible.'
Even now, Wang Yulou couldn't be absolutely certain that the Zhou Family had already been refined by Zhou Bojiao.
But judging from the signs, the probability was extrely high—so high that even an outsider like Feng Jianxian, who didn't know the inside story, could guess it. That alone proved how glaring the clues were.
In the cultivation world, truly critical information was monopolized by grand cultivators.
The Immortal Alliance offered no detailed guidance to the cultivators under its rule. The true purpose of sects was simply to provide grand cultivators with a more efficient organizational structure for their reign. This harsh reality ensured that only the most cunning cultivators could reach relatively high positions within Wunan's Immortal Alliance and Ten Sects system.
Wang Yulou was one such person, and Feng Jianxian was another. He had never been a fool who only knew how to blindly dispense justice.
——
Leaving the task of contacting Mu Chunze to Feng Jianxian was a move Wang Yulou had carefully calculated.
Mu Chunze was no simple Foundation Establishnt cultivator. In his early years, he had survived the West Sea, cultivating his Five Spirits Monster-Absorbing Qi from a mountain of demonic beast corpses and a sea of blood to achieve Foundation Establishnt.
Later, he married into the Zhou Clan. While he was serving as the town guard in Clear Stream Market, Wang Yulou had been controlled by Shen Guang. Mu Chunze was the first to notice the problem—but was he truly the one who discovered the issue?
Why couldn't it have been that grand cultivator, Shen Guang himself, who tipped him off and told him how to solve it?
Wang Yulou hadn't considered this possibility in the past. But after arriving at the West Sea, he noticed the Transform into Auspicious Deer divine ability—the very one cultivated by Mu Chunze—sold right on the third floor of the Myriad Dao Origin Hub.
Then he discovered that Guo Yaoyue, who had abruptly appeared at the Talisman Master Competition and taken the championship back then, unexpectedly held a post in the Annex City Enforcent Team—Immortal Venerable Shenguang's sphere of influence.
Combining the two, Mu Chunze's suspiciousness was glaringly obvious.
From these two clues, Wang Yulou deduced that the mysterious grand cultivator who caused chaos in Clear Stream Market that day was likely Shen Guang.
This was why he didn't lose his composure under the pressure of Zhou Bojiao possibly seizing Zhou Yingxi's body through body usurpation and forcibly using her as a furnace.
From Danri instructing him to go to Dripdrop Cave to cultivate Source Vein Gui Water Qi, to Danri raising his cultivation base in the Red Lantern Illumination Sect and then demanding he co to the West Sea, Mang Xiang had spent seventeen years laying out his pawns.
Shen Guang was an Immortal Venerable. When a legendary figure like that placed his pawns, how many years would it take?
Ten years?
That felt sowhat inappropriate; it was underestimating an Immortal Venerable.
Around twenty years?
Possible, but there was no harm in being bolder.
That was Shen Guang—the Shen Guang who had sold countless cultivators to the demons of the West Sea to achieve his Dao!
Towards fierce figures like Immortal Venerable Shenguang or Patriarch Mangxiang, who stood out among the nurous Purple Palace cultivators in the cultivation world, one could never hold too much reverence.
Therefore, Wang Yulou was highly confident that Mu Chunze might be Shen Guang's pawn.
His reason for not having Wang Xianmao contact Mu Chunze was that he feared his own actions would disrupt Immortal Venerable Shenguang's layout—the Immortal Venerable's target was evidently his good master, Zhou Bojiao.
A few days ago at the Gu Family Tea House, using the excuse of writing a biography for his beloved master, Wang Yulou had obtained the detailed past experiences of Zhou Bojiao.
Many years ago, using his strength at the Peak Foundation Establishnt stage, Zhou Bojiao had slain a Demon General-level azure flood dragon, thereby gaining the opportunity to step into the Purple Palace realm.
The flood dragon corpse that Zhou Bojiao had attached his soul to belonged to the brother of that Demon General azure flood dragon. It wasn't just cultivators who experienced the phenonon of throwing their lives away one after another like the Calabash Brothers trying to save their grandfather; demonic beasts did too, and Demon Generals were no exception.
Wang Yulou guessed that since Zhou Bojiao achieved his Dao by slaying a flood dragon and then slew a second one, he had most likely offended certain factions in the West Sea.
The "West Sea" here referred to the depths of the West Sea, the very sa West Sea that had pushed Shen Guang step by step from a loose cultivator to an Immortal Venerable; it referred to those Demon Gods.
His good master might have offended the even more terrifying entity standing behind the two azure flood dragons.
As to why Zhou Bojiao's physical body had vanished, the intelligence provided by Gu Qilang didn't say.
But this wasn't important.
Through Shen Guang's special background and Zhou Bojiao's special past, Wang Yulou was very certain that his good father-in-law was likely Shen Guang's hidden piece.
So, when faced with the situation of Zhou Yingxi being viewed as a furnace by Zhou Bojiao, Wang Yulou needed to further confirm whether Mu Chunze was indeed Shen Guang's hidden piece.
If Mu Chunze was, then Wang Yulou wouldn't need to worry about Yingxi potentially facing body usurpation by Zhou Bojiao—Shen Guang had already laid out his plans long ago.
If Mu Chunze wasn't Shen Guang's hidden piece, and Wang Yulou's guesses were all wrong... then he simply had to find another path to solve this predicant.
One always had to move forward. The cultivation world was just like this; it had always been this way since ancient tis. He couldn't give up on moving forward just because there was no path.
How did that saying go? The path is right beneath your feet.
As long as he kept walking, he could reach the other shore.
If he really blew up at Zhou Bojiao and was crushed by Old Zhou's pinky finger, then it would be completely over.
Wang Yulou was ntally prepared for the worst-case scenario.
If there truly was no way out, enduring it for now and waiting for the skies to clear wouldn't be impossible either.
In the future, he would avenge Zhou Yingxi, and avenge the humiliation he had suffered!
If my soaring ambitions are fulfilled one day, I dare mock Yulou as no true man.
——
His beloved master was like an evil demon sitting in the heavens, ready at any mont to overturn Wang Yulou's current life.
Even so, he still had to live according to his established trajectory, displaying a level of obedience sufficient to set Zhou Bojiao's mind at ease.
Zhou Bojiao perhaps didn't care whether Wang Yulou had guessed the truth, and didn't care about loyalty, but he definitely cared whether Wang Yulou was willing to display a respectful attitude and allow himself to be manipulated.
Thus, for the next three months, Yulou's days in the West Sea went on as usual, without much turbulence.
Every few days, he would investigate that case that could never possibly uncover the truth, urge Qiu Lianpu, who was already viewed by everyone as the scapegoat, and encourage Guo Yaoyue, who might beco a colleague, along with his good brother Chen Yanghe.
His remaining primary energy was still focused on polishing his cultivation base to reach Foundation Establishnt as soon as possible.
Mu Chunze had repeatedly reminded Wang Yulou and Zhou Yingxi on several occasions, spurring them on to reach Foundation Establishnt faster.
At the ti, Wang Yulou didn't catch any underlying implications.
Thinking about it now, this kind of repetitive spurring—especially when Wang Yulou and Zhou Yingxi were already taking their cultivation very seriously—was actually quite interesting.
This was also one of the reasons why Wang Yulou was willing to believe that Mu Chunze was Immortal Venerable Shenguang's hidden piece, after seeing through the truth hidden beneath the chaotic situation in the West Sea.
In his ordinary life as a heavenly genius, the only slightly challenging matter was his work at the Wang Family's Western Sea Branch.
Earning spirit stones was not a simple task.
The West Sea held countless loose cultivators eager to rise above the rest. They yearned to follow the old path of Immortal Venerable Shenguang and establish their own new legends in the West Sea.
Therefore, the competition here was far more intense than Wang Yulou had imagined.
The Immortal Venerable's Demon-Suppressing Treasure Pagoda was only one part of it. Besides the Demon-Suppressing Treasure Pagoda, there was no shortage of formidable enterprises founded by other cultivators.
Fortunately, thanks to the three thousand Qi Refining cultivators of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect gradually entering the West Sea, business at the inns and courtyards Wang Yulou had set up was quite good.
On this day, Yulou was cultivating in the quiet room of his residence. Yingxi sat by his side; the two were already true Dao Companions, and they often cultivated together.
But Wang Yulou suddenly stopped cycling his arts, stood up, and left the quiet room.
"Uncle Rongwen?"
Wang Rongwen stood in the courtyard, holding a sealed wooden box in his hands.
Seeing Yulou co out, Wang Rongwen smiled and handed the wooden box to him, saying,
"This is an item Ancestor Jingyi entrusted a sect steward to bring to you. She said it must be handed to you, for you to open personally."
Nowadays, with three thousand Qi Refining cultivators under the jurisdiction of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect entering the West Sea, the scale of the sect's Western Sea Branch was also expanding, and the exchanges between the main sect and the branch had beco increasingly frequent.
Under such circumstances, entrusting soone to deliver an item was just a matter of convenience.
"Alright, thank you, Uncle Rongwen."
Wang Yulou returned to the quiet room and, under Zhou Yingxi's curious gaze, opened the wax-sealed wooden box.
Inside lay a small jade bracelet.
Looking at that jade bracelet, Wang Yulou's expression turned sowhat lancholic.
"A Storage Bracelet?"
Yingxi was a bit surprised, and then carefully added,
"I haven't gone to check on the case for two days. Yulou, I'll head over and take a look first."
Seeing her act like this, Wang Yulou smiled and pulled her back, explaining the origins of this jade Storage Bracelet.
"This is Old Ancestor Xianzhu's Storage Bracelet. He should have already returned to Dripdrop Cave by now. I didn't expect him to give his own Storage Bracelet to , and in this manner at that."
"In this manner?" Yingxi sensed sothing was wrong and asked.
Wang Yulou first shook his head helplessly, then nodded lightly.
Helpless, because he could no longer repay Old Ancestor Xianzhu's care for him, although Old Ancestor Xianzhu had never expected him to repay it.
"Yes, I wouldn't even have an excuse to refuse it. Sigh."
Picking up the jade bracelet and inspecting it with his divine sense, Yulou felt even more conflicted inside.
Inside, there were five items.
An artifact refining furnace, which was also an elixir furnace: the Dual-Polarity Pill and Artifact Furnace.
A top-tier high-grade magical artifact with thirty-six restriction layers. It was the ultimate dream of Qi Refining stage artificers and Alchemist Masters, sothing Wang Yulou had yearned for day and night for a long ti.
Because of its exorbitant price, he ultimately hadn't been able to bring himself to buy it.
Now, however, it had been gifted to him by Old Ancestor Xianzhu.
An inconspicuous magical artifact, very small, about the size of a ring, yet rippling with a faint glow capable of causing one's mind to sink and scatter.
The Ethereal Orchid Jade Buckle, a magical artifact refined from scraps of sixth-grade Ethereal Orchid Jade.
A magical artifact refined using the materials of a magic treasure, its effect was very simple—smashing forcefully.
This magical artifact could unleash so characteristics of the Ethereal Orchid Jade, but because it was too small, it was rely better than nothing. In actual magical combat, its greatest use was brute force—shattering the opponent's magical artifacts and defensive spells like a flying brick.
Back then, Wang Xianzhou had relied on this very Ethereal Orchid Jade Buckle to win the combat selection and beco an Immortal Alliance Emissary (Old Ancestor Xianzhu's own strength was also sufficiently powerful).
A set of Immortal Alliance battle armor, consisting of seven parts in total: helt, shoulder guards, arm guards, breastplate, faulds, boots, and an arm shield with a bladed edge.
They were all spiritual artifacts, ranging from low-grade to mid-grade. The helt, breastplate, and arm shield were mid-grade, while the rest were low-grade.
They didn't possess any divine abilities; their sole function was to act as spiritual artifacts that protected their master, giving a Qi Refining stage Immortal Alliance Emissary a fighting chance against Foundation Establishnt cultivators.
The Immortal Alliance didn't appoint Qi Refining cultivators as Emissaries because they lacked Foundation Establishnt cultivators; rather, it was to control the escalation of conflicts.
However, these Emissaries often encountered Foundation Establishnt cultivators massacring lower-level cultivators. When handling such incidents, backup wouldn't always arrive imdiately, giving Immortal Alliance Emissaries a very high chance of battling Foundation Establishnt cultivators.
This set of armor was exactly what Wang Xianzhou had earned through his years of contribution to the Immortal Alliance.
A set of seven long halberds. Four were tipped with fritillary pearls, and each tip possessed the ability to break a spiritual artifact's spiritual charm.
The other three were tipped with seventh-grade actinolite, capable of shattering spells.
These were the very weapons Wang Xianzhou had relied on to effortlessly slaughter cultivators of the sa Qi Refining stage. Now, surprisingly, they had also been given to Wang Yulou.
There was also a massive Combat Talisman Chest. Wearing it on one's back during a fight allowed for the seamless activation of various talismans to aid in magical combat, offering endless marvelous uses.
Built with black steel bones and a spirit wood body, it possessed the restriction layers of a low-grade magical artifact—but it was far more than just a low-grade magical artifact.
Looking at the items in the Storage Bracelet, Wang Yulou felt his nose tingle with emotion.
Old Ancestor Xianzhu hadn't left him a letter, nor had he asked anyone to pass on a ssage; he had simply delivered these treasures to him in silence.
Old Ancestor, Old Ancestor... but these cannot save .
Yulou has grown up. No matter how difficult it is to cross the sea of suffering, I must ultimately cross it myself.
Wang Yulou put away the Storage Bracelet, stood up, and left instructions.
"I'm going to take a look at Forge Peak Residence."
Yingxi naturally didn't object, but after Wang Yulou left, her brow furrowed tightly.
Her husband had obviously been weighed down by heavy thoughts lately, but why?——
The magical artifact shop under the Wang Family's Western Sea Branch had still been nad Forge Peak Residence by Wang Yulou.
There was no need to think of a new na; Forge Peak Residence was perfectly fine.
The Wang Clan had been able to open Flavorful Bistro across various markets under the Red Lantern Illumination Sect's banner, spreading all the way to Lotus Immortal City and Western Sea Immortal City.
In the future, Forge Peak Residence might also follow this example and open branches throughout the Red Lantern Illumination Sect.
Sitting in the artifact refining room of Forge Peak Residence, Yulou first brought out the Dual-Polarity Pill and Artifact Furnace.
Dual-Polarity referred to the fact that this furnace was compatible with both water and fire thods.
As a fire-thod Master Artificer, Wang Yulou's current skill level had securely reached the point where he could easily refine a high-grade magical artifact containing thirty-two restriction layers.
Even without Ruyi Golden Radiance, his refining success rate was high enough to break even.
However, after using the Dual-Polarity Pill and Artifact Furnace today, Wang Yulou imdiately realized the difference.
The Dual-Polarity Pill and Artifact Furnace was the highest-tier Qi Refining stage artifact refining furnace available for exchange in Dripdrop Cave. Even across the entirety of Wunan, its quality was considered first-class.
He just hadn't expected the effect to be this significant once the quality of the artifact refining furnace improved.
In the past, without using Ruyi Golden Radiance, refining tal and stone-type high-grade magical artifacts using fire thods always carried roughly a sixty percent chance of exploding during refinent.
But the situation was different today. Even though Wang Yulou had only refined a mid-grade magical artifact to warm up, his own artificing path level was already high enough that he could clearly feel the difference. Using this furnace to refine magical artifacts would increase his success rate by roughly five percent.
The adverse effects he had suffered in the past due to inferior artifact refining furnaces were drastically reduced with the Dual-Polarity Pill and Artifact Furnace.
A five percent increase seed small, but when paired with Ruyi Golden Radiance, the effect was entirely different.
Wang Yulou had also gained new insights into using Ruyi Golden Radiance. He now only used it when a magical artifact was on the verge of exploding during refinent, pulling it back from the brink of destruction.
This way, the golden light consud was minimal, and the amplifying effect of Ruyi Golden Radiance on artifact refining was maximized.
Because cultivators in the West Sea constantly battled demonic beasts, their demand for magical artifacts was exceptionally high.
With the help of Ruyi Golden Radiance, Forge Peak Residence had been open for only two months but had already made a profit of nearly thirty thousand spirit stones.
It could be said that by relying purely on his artificing path level, Wang Yulou could easily pile up enough resources to push himself into the Purple Palace realm—provided he actually knew the thods to reach the Purple Palace.
The bastardry of the Immortal Alliance and Ten Sects system lay exactly here. Foundation Establishnt cultivators could not obtain Purple Palace thods through normal channels, and simultaneously, the Immortal Alliance placed the strictest limitations on Foundation Establishnt cultivators.
Thus, it wasn't just those five gifts given by Wang Xianzhou that couldn't save Wang Yulou; even the Sky River Escape divine ability talisman given by Wang Jingyi couldn't truly help him break free from the cage set by grand cultivators for lower-level cultivators.
Sky River Escape could fly him up to the sky river, but heaven and earth were entirely viewed as objects of plunder by the grand cultivators, forced by them to summon a lightning tribulation once every seven years.
rely escaping into the sky—how could that be considered true freedom?
Therefore, even though Zhou Bojiao was a bastard, Mang Xiang was a bastard, and Shen Guang was also a bastard, Wang Yulou still had to deal with them.
Even if he changed locations, the grand cultivators elsewhere would be just as bastardly.
——
A few days later, the West Sea combat arena, which had been in preparation for months, finally opened its doors.
For today's opening, the people of the Wang Family's Western Sea Branch had already traveled through the fourteen outposts of the West Sea and every corner of the seven-thousand-li Western Sea Levee.
The person leading the promotional team was none other than a Foundation Establishnt cultivator—Zheng Yan.
There were three main promotional points. First, the combat arena allowed cultivators to win cultivation resources through magical combat without risking their lives.
Second, spectators at the combat arena could gain cultivation resources by betting on the wins and losses of the combatants, relying solely on their own eyesight and judgnt regarding a cultivator's strength.
Compared to slaughtering demonic beasts for cultivation resources and opportunities—while constantly running the risk of ending up in a monster's belly—the danger of stepping into the combat arena to fight was undeniably much smaller.
Consequently, this promotional strategy garnered a massive amount of attention. Many of the loose cultivators who operated year-round near the West Sea outposts rushed to the immortal city on the combat arena's opening day.
The third promotional point was a bit more special.
"Under the tutelage of Immortal Venerable Shenguang: Xihai Longhu, vs. Under the tutelage of Perfected Man Fujiao: Mu Chunze"
Such a lineup, out of the entire West Sea, could only be assembled by Wang Yulou.
Of the two, one was a disciple of Shen Guang and the head of South Annex City; the success or failure of the combat arena was directly tied to the success or failure of South Annex City.
The other was Perfected Man Fujiao's son-in-law, a Core Disciple of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect, the seal-holder of the Western Sea Immortal City's Punishnt Court, and a renowned figure of loose cultivator origins in the West Sea—Mu Chunze. As Wang Yulou's father-in-law, after Wang Yulou whispered in Zhou Yingxi's ear, Mu Chunze naturally wouldn't refuse his daughter's request.
Therefore, Wang Yulou's current status as a heavenly genius was practically unquestionable.
Zhou Bojiao's conspiracy was indeed terrifying, but precisely because he was deeply involved in so many terrifying vortexes, Wang Yulou had been able to grow so quickly into a renowned heavenly genius of the West Sea.
In the eyes of many Fellow Daoists in the West Sea, Wang Yulou achieving Foundation Establishnt in the future was a foregone conclusion, as certain as catching a turtle in a jar.
What they were privately discussing now was that Wang Yuque might beco the new Purple Palace cultivator of the Behemoth Lineage after Immortal Venerable Mangxiang achieved his Dao!
The combat arena was completely surrounded by walls six zhang high, resembling a small city.
In the middle of the eastern and western high walls were two magnificent palaces.
The western palace was nad the Immortal Venerable Palace by Wang Yulou. It housed the venerated seats of Immortal Venerable Mangxiang and the other three Purple Palace cultivators of the Behemoth Lineage, while Immortal Venerable Shenguang's venerated seat mirrored Immortal Venerable Mangxiang's.
Placing the venerated seats of the two Immortal Venerables in the palace signified that the combat arena was an enterprise backed by Immortal Venerables.
This act was not excessive at all, and it would definitely not bring disaster to Wang Yulou.
Four portions of the profits went to the South Annex City Developnt Office, which effectively ant they went to Immortal Venerable Shenguang.
Of the remaining six portions, Wang Yulou planned to give five portions to Immortal Venerable Mangxiang—when there were two suns, one had to distinguish the larger from the smaller.
This was called maintaining constant awareness of one's stance, following closely in Immortal Venerable Mangxiang's footsteps without wavering.
Absolute loyalty was all that mattered!
As for whether his remaining one portion was too little... how to put it? Earning spirit stones was important, but it was rely a ans.
Wang Yulou clearly distinguished between the ans and the end.
Through the combat arena, he could support his own people, gather his own montum, foster his reputation, and display his loyalty to the two Immortal Venerables.
It seed he had lost nine-tenths of the profit, but what he gained was sothing spirit stones couldn't buy.
This was the true way of doing things, rather than idiotically fantasizing about hogging it all to himself.
Inside the Immortal Venerable Palace, Mu Chunze, Xihai Longhu, and several others had already arrived.
Old Mu stood beside Yingxi, accompanied by a few mbers of the Zhou Family's vassal clans. Perfected Man Fujiao had refined the Zhou Family's direct lineage clean, but he still had no shortage of beasts of burden; Wunan would never lack so-called geniuses.
Wang Yulou stood with Feng Jianxian, shooting the breeze with Xihai Longhu.
"Senior Longhu, as the most formidable high-level Foundation Establishnt cultivator in the West Sea, your strength is naturally trendous. But my father-in-law also possesses profound divine abilities.
When you two fight later, you must hold back a bit. Don't shatter this combat arena we worked so hard to build."
Wang Yulou carefully reminded him.
Being able to invite Xihai Longhu over to put on a show was already an unexpected delight—even he hadn't been very confident it would work out at first. However, he had to make Xihai Longhu and Mu Chunze hold back; otherwise, leveling the combat arena to the ground was entirely possible.
In that case, the unexpected delight would truly beco a disaster, and Wang Yulou wouldn't even have a place to cry.
"What 'most formidable in the West Sea'? My third brother is the number one Foundation Establishnt cultivator in the West Sea. Yulou, do not speak nonsense!"
Xihai Longhu glared at Wang Yulou, looked around, and emphasized this loudly.
Just then, the invited Xihai Zhongcheng was being led into the Immortal Venerable Palace by Zheng Yan, and his expression instantly turned ugly.
Fuck your number one Foundation Establishnt cultivator in the West Sea! Xihai Longhu, you're truly a piece of work!
Only an idiot would fight for the title of number one! Dripdrop Cave was a shallow pool with few turtles, which was why Yuan Daoshen dared to claim the top spot.
Xihai Zhongcheng was confident that he should count among the most formidable batch of Peak Foundation Establishnt cultivators in the West Sea.
But having confidence in himself and having a loudmouth constantly force a high hat onto him were two entirely different things.
The West Sea was a mixed bag of fish and dragons, and the title of number one Foundation Establishnt cultivator couldn't be eaten for sustenance. Unlike the situation Yuan Daoshen faced, Xihai Zhongcheng was practically sick to death of this bullshit title.
While Wang Yulou was shooting the breeze with these distinguished figures of the West Sea, nearby, Yingxi quietly asked her father.
'Father, where exactly did Uncle Zhuoliang and the others go?'
Zhou Yingxi wasn't stupid. There were just many things she couldn't fathom; she couldn't conceive that Zhou Bojiao could be so ruthless.
Hearing his daughter's question, Mu Chunze took a deep look at Wang Yulou. To this day, he still wasn't sure exactly what Wang Yulou knew.
After pondering for a mont, Mu Chunze looked at his daughter.
His daughter's beautiful eyes were brimming with worry.
He smiled and reached out to pat Zhou Yingxi's head. Yingxi initially wanted to dodge, but then she heard her father's sound transmission.
'Do not be afraid. Do not answer.'
Zhou Yingxi stopped dodging and fell into deep thought, while Mu Chunze patted her head two more tis, experiencing a long-lost mont of father-daughter warmth.
The Transform into Auspicious Deer divine ability Old Mu cultivated shared so similarities with Ancestor Jingyi's Manifest Golden Aspect. The difference lay in the fact that after Ancestor Jingyi used Manifest Golden Aspect, she would imdiately rebalance her Dao foundation to prevent the divine ability from affecting her.
Old Mu was different. Over the years, perhaps because he was reluctant to part with spirit stones, he had continuously suffered the side effects of his divine ability. The antlers on his head hadn't disappeared; instead, they grew longer and longer, and his physique gradually beca burlier.
Although Yingxi was tall, standing next to the massive and burly Mu Chunze, she still appeared petite and delicate, just like a little girl.
Elsewhere, Wang Yulou communicated so details with Mo Yunshu, then turned around to greet the nurous guests in the Immortal Venerable Palace one by one.
These people highly overlapped with those who had attended his and Yingxi's wedding; they were all core figures of the West Sea.
It could be said that Wang Yulou's status in the West Sea was already no different from that of an ordinary seasoned Foundation Establishnt cultivator.
In fact, even though they were both at the 'seasoned Foundation Establishnt' level, Feng Jianxian—a seasoned Foundation Establishnt cultivator who had mingled in the West Sea for many years—might not necessarily possess his level of influence.
"Father-in-law, Senior Longhu, it's about ti. Shall we begin?"
Having finished his round of greetings, Wang Yulou, along with the two 'contestants' fighting in the combat arena today, bowed to the two Immortal Venerables together.
Though they might belong to different factions, whether it was Mang Xiang or Shen Guang, both were leading figures of the Immortal Alliance, so paying respects to them was naturally proper.
Establishing the Immortal Venerable Palace served this exact purpose.
Formalism itself was not a problem; a sense of ritual was one of the core thods for shaping ideological power.
Having combatants bow to the Immortal Venerables first served as a concrete ans to reinforce the combat arena's special nature, and the invisible value it brought was imasurable.
For instance, the Immortal Venerables were so far away that bowing to them was practically bowing to empty air, but Wang Yulou was close by.
'God is a distant savior, but the shepherd before your eyes is your true master.'
Of course, this influence only affected ordinary cultivators; it had no impact on experts like Mu Chunze and Xihai Longhu.
The high walls on all four sides of the combat arena were packed with cultivators watching the matches.
Unlike the original racetrack, Wang Yulou had absorbed his past experiences and made improvents based on the West Sea's unique characteristics.
For example, watching regular matches at the West Sea combat arena was entirely free.
People could watch as much as they pleased.
Through this thod, he could cultivate the cultivators' habit of watching magical combat.
But when those stronger Qi Refining cultivators—who had survived round after round of magical combat to secure their victories—fought, a specific fee of spirit stones would be charged.
For the combat arena's profitability, Wang Yulou planned to rely on two points.
The first was catching those who privately used the combat arena's matches to act as underground bookies; catching even one would result in a fine severe enough to bankrupt them.
At the sa ti, he would also catch the fools who used their divine sense to secretly peek at the paid matches. Once caught, they would be fined just the sa.
Greed was a desire present in everyone's heart. With so many cultivators in the West Sea, Wang Yulou wasn't worried about a lack of foolishly bold people willing to deliver spirit stones directly to his doorstep.
He hadn't opened such a massive operation to do charity, but to generate profit. Otherwise, how would he report back to the two Immortal Venerables?
Behind the combat arena stood Immortal Venerable Shenguang and Immortal Venerable Mangxiang. No one could topple a combat arena sheltered by these two.
The reason he needed to report back to Mang Xiang was that Wang Yulou himself couldn't clearly see how the future would develop. As long as the ti hadn't truly co to tear away all pretense or for the situation to completely change, he still had to keep his head bowed toward Mang Xiang.
The second point relied on the sale of tickets for magical combat matches and the sale of licenses to open betting pools.
The phrase 'Revolution is not a dinner party' also applied in the cultivation world—cultivation was not a dinner party. The struggle for benefits would inevitably spawn conflicts, and to thrive in such an environnt, one needed to possess decisiveness and ruthless thods.
In Wunan and even within the Immortal Alliance, for cultivators, achieving the Dao was inherently a zero-sum ga.
The cultivation world's very nature, derived from the special characteristics of its power system, determined that the possibility of everyone being equal simply couldn't exist.
The seemingly equal alliance of grand cultivators was itself forged entirely from the mutual apprehension between those who held power.
Therefore, Wang Yulou would not let the so-called 'original intentions' forged over a re few decades in his previous life hinder his advancing footsteps in the cultivation world.
Mu Chunze did not unleash his divine ability, and Xihai Longhu didn't even use a spiritual artifact.
Mu Chunze raised his hand to summon spiritual energy tides, while a re movent from Xihai Longhu conjured flying sand and rolling stones.
Without using divine abilities, spiritual artifacts, or secret spells that demanded imnse consumption, the two simply brawled for a quarter of an hour using high-tier spells commonly utilized by Foundation Establishnt cultivators.
Wang Yulou guessed that perhaps one was hiding his strength, and the other was saving spirit stones.
Although the two fought quite deceptively, it still left the nurous West Sea cultivators who had co to watch the combat arena's opening performance ntally shaken and captivated.
Two seasoned Foundation Establishnt cultivators engaging in magical combat was sothing many spectators would only ever see once in their lives.
The Immortal Alliance was just like this. Foundation Establishnt cultivators were practically in jail; disciples of True Persons and Immortal Venerables were slightly better off, but not by much.
As a performance, this was sufficient.
After the two finished fighting, Mo Yunshu, who had been wrangled over by Wang Yulou, flew into the arena.
Fellow Daoist Yunshu was a good prospect. Wang Yulou planned to appoint her as the 'Vice List-Holder' of the combat arena, while he naturally served as the List-Holder.
This title seed abstract, but it actually corresponded to the seal-holders in Western Sea Immortal City—it concealed Wang Yulou's ambition.
"...Thank you, two Seniors. Fellow Daoists interested in participating in magical combat can register at the Combat Palace on the east side.
Inside the Combat Palace, three permanent rankings will be established: the Ten-Day Ranking, the Monthly Ranking, and the Annual Ranking.
Every ten days, the combat arena will reward the top six of the Ten-Day Ranking, starting at three hundred spirit stones.
Every month, the combat arena will reward the top ten of the Monthly Ranking, starting at one thousand spirit stones.
Every year, the combat arena will reward the top twenty of the Annual Ranking, starting at five thousand spirit stones.
Fellow Daoists, do you wish to know how to get on the rankings?"
Mo Yunshu generously introduced the rules, interacting with the cultivators who had co to the combat arena to watch the opening performance today.
Inside the Immortal Venerable Palace, Wang Yulou called out to stop the departing Xihai Zhongcheng.
"Elder Zhongcheng, please hold your steps."
(End of Chapter)
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