Even though the groundwork had been laid for years, the Red Lantern Illumination Sect's sudden declaration of war on the Sky Serpent Sect still shocked everyone.
It was one thing to guess that the massive boulder perched on the mountain peak would fall one day; it was quite another to face the imdiate danger of that boulder rolling down right this very second.
However, many cultivators in Western Sea Immortal City no longer had the ntal capacity to spare on the future.
The prerequisite for dying the day after tomorrow was surviving tomorrow. Looking at the numbers rolling across the spiritual jade wall—"Ninth-Grade Standard Demonic Beast Hide: Eleven—Seven"—Yuan Wu felt as though he could not breathe.
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! How could it have surged so much? With three thousand Qi Refining cultivators entering the West Sea, the price of ninth-grade demonic beast hide should have dropped further!"
Ninth-grade standard demonic beast hide referred to ninth-grade demonic beast hide materials that t the delivery standards of the Western Sea First Auction House. These materials could be used for talisman making, artifact refining, pill concocting, and the like—though primarily for talisman making.
"Eleven" referred to the Western Sea First Auction House's November contract for the current year.
"Seven" ant the contract holder needed to complete the physical delivery within the seven-day delivery window in early November. Not a day early, and not a day late.
Yuan Wu rembered clearly that when he checked the Western Sea First Auction House half an hour ago, the contract price for ninth-grade standard demonic beast hide on the spiritual jade wall was only four hundred and thirty spirit stones. Yet now, it had directly surged to six hundred spirit stones.
It seed like an increase of less than half, but it was exactly enough to completely wipe out Yuan Wu's capital.
"Rigged! Tell Wang Yulou to get out here! Your Western Sea First Auction House is definitely rigged!"
Yuan Wu could not accept the reality of being instantly bankrupted. He pointed angrily at the assistants in the front hall of the Western Sea First Auction House, demanding that Wang Yulou give him an explanation.
His words were like a lit fuse to a powder keg. Cultivators who, like Yuan Wu, engaged in long-term arbitrage within the Western Sea First Auction House were not few in number. Most of them had also suffered heavy losses today, but they lacked the courage to call out Wang Yulou by na.
To the vast majority of West Sea cultivators—was Wang Yulou soone they could just casually demand to see?
Now that they had a big fool like Yuan Wu taking the lead, they naturally seized the opportunity to join this collective protest, figuring that the law does not punish the masses.
Wang Rongchuan was the first person in charge from the Wang Clan to rush to the scene. Facing the hundreds of furious "investors" inside the Western Sea First Auction House, Wang Rongchuan channeled his magic power and said at the top of his lungs,
"Everyone, please do not be agitated. Keep your emotions stable. Anger will not solve problems; it will only escalate them.
"Furthermore, you must be careful not to join in the commotion just because of the instigation of certain individuals. I know everyone's initial intentions are good, and you have simply been led astray by bad actors.
"As long as everyone remains calm and sits down to have a proper discussion, we will definitely be able to negotiate a good outco."
Damn it. Looking at Wang Rongchuan and his high-sounding, sanctimonious words, Yuan Wu's eyes turned blood-red.
"To hell with your mother! What do you an we shouldn't be agitated? What do you an our emotions are unstable?
"Why don't you talk about what made us agitated? What made our emotions unstable? Why don't you say it?
"Are you playing blind or playing dumb? Speak!"
This fool Yuan Wu had truly been driven into a corner by reality. He managed to perfectly deflect the labels and the conflict-shifting tactics that Wang Rongchuan had thrown at them.
Reminded by Yuan Wu, the cultivators who had suffered disastrous losses inside the auction house also realized—why were they agitated? Why were they angry?
Wasn't it because they had been screwed over by the Western Sea First Auction House?
Under these circumstances, what right did Wang Rongchuan have to stand there lecturing and blaming them?
If they didn't make a scene, if they didn't band together, would the Western Sea First Auction House even spare them a single glance?
Under Wang Rongchuan's guidance and persuasion, the crowd only grew more agitated.
anwhile, Wang Yulou and the Patriarch were rushing to the battlefield—no, rushing to the Western Sea First Auction House.
"Yulou, now that war has broken out, you're instead obsessing over the Western Sea First Auction House. This shouldn't be urgent, right?"
Wang Xianmao had been dragged directly over by Yulou, and his mind hadn't quite caught up yet.
"The First Auction House deals in resource contract trading, which involves lending and brokerage. We don't have any issues ourselves, but there will always be people who lose spirit stones.
"News like the outbreak of war will cause the contract markets to move in extre, one-sided trends. The clients in the West Sea probably won't understand this and might even think it's our doing.
"For the Western Sea First Auction House, it's best if the market remains stable. We don't rely on entering the market directly to earn spirit stones anyway.
"Besides, Patriarch, think about it. Even if the Sky Serpent Sect and our Red Lantern Illumination Sect truly go to war, Wang Family Mountain is still over a thousand li away from the front lines. There is absolutely no need to worry.
"On the contrary, a major incident is bound to happen at the Western Sea First Auction House today.
"Once I arrive, I'll step forward to handle the first wave of appeasent and offer those people certain terms.
"If they don't accept, we'll continue to stall, and then you can step forward to handle the second wave of appeasent. Keep your attitude pleasant, but absolutely do not yield too many benefits.
"Finally, we'll wait for Xihai Longhu to arrive. If the situation is already under control by then, naturally nothing will happen."
At this point, Wang Yulou stopped speaking.
Doing business was hard. Earning ten spirit stones in the West Sea required handing over seven of them; it was incredibly difficult.
But this hardship also brought advantages. Similar to paying protection fees, when an incident occurred, soone would have Wang Yulou's back.
"And if it still can't be controlled?"
Wang Xianmao further pressed for Wang Yulou's thoughts. He was still worried that Wang Yulou would be too soft-hearted.
Being soft-hearted would truly make them a target—when a pack of wolves fought for food, the weaker wolves also beca food!
"Then we'll have Xihai Longhu call the Annex City Enforcent Team to take action!"
The Patriarch nodded in satisfaction and comnted,
"Very well. However, there's no need to owe Xihai Longhu that kind of favor. Our accounts with him must be calculated down to the last penny.
"I'll send a transmission to Zhang Heng right now. Oh, right, you should call that cheap father-in-law of yours over as well."
When the two hurried to the auction house, they arrived just in ti to see the crowd of cultivators surrounding and berating Wang Rongchuan.
Wang Yulou's expression imdiately turned ugly.
True, Wang Rongchuan was only at the first layer of Qi Refining, so his cultivation base was low. Among the crowd, there was no lack of Foundation Establishnt cultivators who could naturally bully him.
But Wang Rongchuan belonged to their Wang Clan. Officially, he was a deacon of the Wang Family's Western Sea Branch; he was his, Wang Yulou's, man!
'Patriarch, hide to the side and watch. If things go wrong, I'll call you.'
Following the "three firewalls, fight if all else fails" strategy they had agreed upon, Wang Yulou acted as the first firewall, stepping forward to face these unfortunate souls who were utterly exasperated by their losses.
"Everyone, I am Wang Yulou, the Chief Steward of the Wang Family's Western Sea Branch. If you have an issue, you can co to . Do not make things difficult for my Uncle Rongchuan.
"Uncle Rongchuan's cultivation base is low. For you Foundation Establishnt cultivators to gang up on him is hardly appropriate, is it?"
Wang Yulou?
The crowd looked toward the auction house entrance and saw Wang Yulou standing there. His expression was perfectly composed, not in the least intimidated by the tumultuous atmosphere inside.
"Stop trying to slap labels on us, Wang Yulou! You're the best at beating around the bush, but I'm not going to play that ga with you.
"I'll just ask you this: why did those contract prices suddenly skyrocket? You must give us an explanation!"
Faced with massive losses, Yuan Wu seed to have activated his intelligence, actually seeing through Wang Yulou's attempts to beat around the bush.
How to put it? This was actually a manifestation of the self-correcting nature of a large clan's education.
Yuan Wu of the Yuan Clan, after experiencing long years of idiocy, had benefited from his deep family heritage and broad horizons, giving him a slight inkling of an awakening—there was no derogatory aning to this awakening.
For large clans, a disciple's occasional bouts of idiocy were impossible to control, but their training chanisms could lower the proportion of such fools and plant the seeds of a self-healing cure within them.
Yuan Wu was not simple; he could be considered to have set foot on the path of self-healing. Of course, he also had to thank Yulou.
"The sudden spike is because war has broken out. Besides, not all contracts skyrocketed; a third of them actually dropped."
Wang Yulou used Absorb to pull Yuan Wu over with a single hand, explaining calmly.
Only now did the crowd notice that Wang Yulou had actually reached the Foundation Establishnt realm!
Dragged in front of Wang Yulou, Yuan Wu, who had been leading the commotion, lost his previous fearlessness.
Leading a charge against a tower and actually being targeted by the tower were two entirely different matters.
But Yuan Wu was still Yuan Wu. A successful treatnt did not an the disease was completely cured. He gnashed his teeth, turned back to look at the crowd, and agitated them,
"No one plays the ga like you guys do! It's only been fifteen minutes—the ti it takes to take half a piss—and I've lost twelve thousand spirit stones! Is there anyone in the world who does business like this?
"Wang Yulou, you must give us an explanation! Isn't the Western Sea First Auction House just straight-up robbing us of spirit stones?"
Frowning, Wang Yulou took a step forward, standing directly in front of Yuan Wu.
He raised his hand, and dark blue Gui-water spiritual energy instantly wrapped around his fingers. Yuan Wu tried to dodge, but how could he possibly escape Wang Yulou's grasp?
True, Wang Yulou had never engaged in magical combat with anyone, but he had also never neglected his combat practice.
Seeing Wang Yulou grip Yuan Wu's head as if he were about to kill him on the spot, the rioting cultivators fell silent.
However, Wang Yulou was ultimately no slaughtering fiend; he still wished to settle the problem gracefully.
"No need to send voice transmissions, I won't compensate you for that twelve thousand, Yuan Wu. Put away these petty calculations; our Fellow Daoists all understand the bigger picture!"
Did everyone hear that? There was a bad apple among the masses, and specifically, it was Yuan Wu.
This bad seed was incredibly wicked. He had led everyone to riot while secretly acting as a traitor, all just to get his own spirit stones back first.
Faced with Wang Yulou's blatant framing, Yuan Wu's eyes instantly widened, and his limbs began to struggle violently.
If I, Yuan Wu, had that kind of brain, would I have been reduced to being labeled a "Qilin child" and sent off to the West Sea?
"Fellow Daoists, I have a few words that I hope you will carefully consider.
"You cannot only accept the rules of the Western Sea First Auction House when you are earning spirit stones!"
"You cannot only accept the rules of the Western Sea First Auction House when you are earning spirit stones."
These few short words were actually the greatest harvest of Wang Yulou's twenty years of cultivation.
He had begun to define the rules.
The weak always sought opportunities within the rules of others; even in their fantasies, they only looked for chances within another's rules—the emperor's golden hoe law was never outdated.
The strong dared to venture into savage lands where rules had yet to be established, thereby avoiding being harvested by others.
Wang Yulou had reached the third stage. He had built his own faction, established his own industry, and set his own rules.
"Are there any more questions?"
Seeing the crowd remain silent, Wang Yulou added,
"The Western Sea First Auction House was established because Shen Guang Immortal Venerable and Immortal Venerable Mangxiang took pity on the hardships of cultivation, wishing to give everyone another opportunity and another path.
"And I, Wang Yulou, am rely serving the two Immortal Venerables.
"You may question , Wang Yulou, or distrust , but you must at least believe in my reverence for the two Immortal Venerables.
"Therefore, the Western Sea First Auction House has never been rigged in the past, and it will not be rigged in the future.
"Anyone who dares to rig things is opposing the two Immortal Venerables.
"And if soone dares to oppose the two Immortal Venerables, Yuan Wu, how do you think I should deal with you?"
"Kill him!"
His voice arrived before he did. Xihai Longhu strode into the grand hall of the Western Sea First Auction House with the imposing gait of a dragon and tiger. Arriving even earlier than the man himself was his unwavering support for Wang Yulou.
"No need to kill him. Death is too troubleso; just send him off to the combat arena.
"Old Fifth, Elder Daoshen sent you to the West Sea so you could gain experience.
"Hiding in the Western Sea First Auction House every day doesn't count as gaining experience. Going to the combat arena to fight a few matches—that is true experience."
Wang Yulou smiled and set Yuan Wu down. He no longer dared to cry foul.
In the West Sea, even if the words coming out of Xihai Longhu and Wang Yulou's mouths were just farts, they were still equivalent to irrefutable proof.
In this place, there was no right or wrong, only benefits.
Yuan Wu caused a scene not because he believed the Western Sea First Auction House was in the wrong, but because he had taken a loss.
Wang Yulou suppressed him not out of personal grievance, but simply because Yuan Wu had taken the lead in rioting and hard the interests of the Western Sea First Auction House.
——
On another side, Mu Changze also received a voice transmission.
However, it was not from Wang Yulou, nor was it even a voice transmission talisman.
Unseen by anyone, Mu Changze received an order.
Soon, he left the courtyard of the seal-holding official of the Punishnt Court, heading straight for True Person Longhu, Jin Shan.
Jin Shan hadn't expected Mu Changze to co see him. After mulling it over, he sent out his errand boy.
"Go, Mingdu. Go tell him that I'm not here!"
The outbreak of war between the Red Lantern Illumination Sect and the Sky Serpent Sect made Jin Shan increasingly certain that his guess had been correct, or at least partially correct.
Mang Xiang might not have joined forces with Tianshe, but he had absolutely joined forces with Shen Guang.
Wondrous Peak Mountain was located on the western border of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect. Training troops for twenty years, they were likely sharpening their blades toward the Red Lantern Illumination Sect.
Li Haiping and Zhou Bojiao had co to the West Sea again, and the Wang Clan and Yan Clan of the Behemoth Lineage had also arrived.
To be able to force the Red Lantern Illumination Sect to unite from top to bottom and declare war on the Sky Serpent Sect for his sake, Mang Xiang must have obtained Shen Guang's support.
With Shen Guang's support, many of the events occurring in the West Sea naturally didn't seem strange anymore.
As for Mu Changze coming up to see him now, it was eighty percent likely for the sake of his cheap daughter, and for all that nonsense Zhou Bojiao was doing.
If he personally stepped forward, wouldn't he be tainted by the karma involved?
At the thought of this, Jin Shan's head throbbed fiercely.
The West Sea had Shen Guang, the depths housed a bunch of Demon Gods, and on the borders lay powerful local forces like the Sky Serpent Sect and the Red Lantern Illumination Sect.
In this place, the West Sea Dragon-Tiger True Man appeared to hold great power, but it was essentially no different from serving ti in prison.
If one could avoid the world within a grotto-heaven, which Purple Palace cultivator would be willing to suffer bitterly out in Great Heaven?
"Is your patriarch truly unwilling to see ?"
Wearing a bitter expression, Mu Changze repeatedly verified Jin Shan's decision with Jin Mingdu.
Jin Mingdu found it a bit strange, but that only made her even less willing to add careless remarks.
"Senior Mu, my patriarch is not here."
Turning away in disappointnt, no one noticed that from the depths of Mu Changze's bitter eyes, a cold light he had hidden for decades finally leaked out.
Concealing my edge and spirit to enter a noble house, humbling myself and bowing my head as a live-in son-in-law. Wasting a hundred years as a discarded pawn, until the winds and clouds t with the god of the West Sea.
Immortal Venerable, I do not regret it.
——
"Yulou, as I was saying, you are the West Sea's... no, you are Wunan's... no, the Immortal Alliance's! You are the Immortal Alliance's most incredible heavenly genius.
"Compared to you, let alone Qiu Lianpu or Lian Chengxian, even I, in my youth, was leagues behind you."
Xihai Longhu knew how to spout nonsense. Opening with drivel that no one would believe, he smoothly transitioned into his true demand.
"It's just, Yulou... regarding the profits from the combat arena..."
Wang Yulou raised his hand. Xihai Longhu stopped instantly and looked at him.
"Senior Longhu, the Patriarch is actually well aware of this matter. Patriarch, please explain my difficulties to Senior Longhu."
"Don't call Senior, just call Fellow Daoist. You and I are both at Foundation Establishnt; 'Senior' is inappropriate!"
Wang Xianmao laughed heartily. In situations like this, his role as an elder of the clan beca crucial.
"Ah, you must still call him Senior. Yulou, whenever you see Fellow Daoist Longhu in the future, you must respectfully address him as Senior. Rember that?"
Wang Yulou imdiately confird that he would rember. Though it seed like a re title, it tied directly into tangible benefits.
Negotiations operated on varying levels of progress; they weren't locked in a life-or-death magical combat. By presenting two distinct tiers of leadership to outsiders, the Wang Clan successfully widened their room for bargaining.
"As for the combat arena's profits... I'm not afraid of Fellow Daoist Longhu laughing at us. Think about it: a disciple of Haikuo Zhenren's disciple is practically Haikuo Zhenren's disciple, right? We can't very well stop them.
"Then there are the likes of Qiu Lianpu and Lian Chengxian, who are also quite nurous. They don't go often, but when they do, they are bound to sweep the board, and we must give them rewards.
"Sigh, truth be told, we are in a difficult position too.
"Of course, Fellow Daoist Longhu, you are different. You are a disciple of the Immortal Venerable. If you could secretly pass a word to these people, that would naturally be for the best."
Xihai Longhu was left speechless, completely blocked by the Wang Clan's reasoning.
Secretly pass a word? Forget it. He'd rather pretend he hadn't heard anything at all.
Seeing Xihai Longhu fall silent, Wang Yulou thoughtfully offered his own solution.
"Senior Longhu, we'll host a banquet at Immortal in Wine House this ti. If you and I speak to them like this... and like that... they'll get the ssage. What do you think?"
Putting on an act to stop those idiots—the ones from major clans with deep backgrounds who held unrealistic fantasies about magical combat because they had never experienced real danger—from fleecing the combat arena... Wang Yulou's strategy wasn't brilliant, but it was passable.
In truth, the best thod would be to find a youth from Hexi—a youth from Hexi who believed in the whole "My destiny is my own" rhetoric—and groom him to tornt those well-connected, high-born exploiters in the combat arena.
However, such a person wouldn't suit the environnt governed by the Immortal Alliance. Regardless, in all these years, Wang Yulou had yet to et even a single one.
"Alright, Yulou. I was a bit too anxious.
"However, will the war between the Red Lantern Illumination Sect and the Sky Serpent Sect affect your subsequent arrangents?
"I an, will you be leaving the West Sea?"
Wang Yulou's eyes flickered—Xihai Zhongcheng was favored more than Xihai Longhu.
That made sense. Xihai Zhongcheng had, after all, changed his na to "Zhongcheng"—Loyalty—and simultaneously controlled the distribution channels for Shen Guang's sales of Purple Palace cultivation thods.
On the other hand, Xihai Longhu, who had stepped up to manage the South Annex City Developnt Office as a figurehead, felt more like a marginalized figure propped up to shoulder high-risk tasks.
"As a Core Disciple under the tutelage of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect, should the sect summon , I will naturally comply. However, this does not affect my reverence for the Immortal Venerable."
I don't know, but the profit split won't change. We'll keep operating as usual.
"Understood. Sigh, the winds are rising, the winds are rising. Speaking of us Foundation Establishnt cultivators... now that you've reached Foundation Establishnt too, Yulou, you should soon feel the helplessness of being at the Foundation Establishnt realm within the Immortal Alliance's system."
Helpless or not, Wang Yulou didn't need Xihai Longhu to tell him.
He had recognized the Immortal Alliance system's "special care" for Foundation Establishnt cultivators over a decade ago.
How to put it? It was a strict defense, guarding against Foundation Establishnt cultivators even more fiercely than guarding against demons.
"Alright, Brother Longhu, you always like to joke..."
Halfway through Wang Xianmao's sentence, he and Xihai Longhu looked toward the Dragon Tiger Platform in the center of the immortal city.
Over there, a massive golden figure had ascended into the sky. It was True Person Longhu, Jin Shan.
anwhile, Li Haiping looked much shabbier, rely holding a length of red silk and a stone hamr.
Wang Yulou could see clearly that both of them were still only spiritual artifacts.
"The winds really have risen. Let's go!"
Wang Xianmao shot to his feet, grabbing Wang Yulou and rushing toward the Western Sea Levee.
Xihai Longhu stared at them dumbfounded. He felt a bit of envy, but could only grit his teeth, rise into the air, and prepare to support the two True Persons.
"Patriarch, what's going on?"
Wrapped in Wang Xianmao's spiritual light, Wang Yulou asked in confusion.
"I don't know, but sothing major has definitely happened.
"It might be that Tianshe, seeing the ancestor and Shen Guang joining forces, has chosen to attack the Western Sea Immortal City first.
"In any case, just run."
"What about Yingxi?"
"Look after yourself first. Never forget to look after yourself first."
"If I, Yuan Wu, had that kind of brain, would I have ended up being labeled a 'Qilin child' and sent off to the West Sea?"
"Fellow Daoists, I, Yulou, have a few words that I hope you will consider carefully.
You cannot only recognize the rules of the Western Sea First Auction House when you are earning spirit stones!"
"You cannot only recognize the rules of the Western Sea First Auction House when you are earning spirit stones."
These two short sentences were actually the greatest harvest of Wang Yulou's twenty years of cultivation.
He had begun to define rules.
The weak always searched for opportunities within the rules of others; even in their fantasies, they only looked for opportunities within the rules of others—the emperor's golden hoe ntality never went out of style.
The strong dared to venture into savage lands where rules had not yet been established, thereby avoiding being harvested by others.
Wang Yulou had reached the third stage: he had shaped his own faction, built up his own industries, and set down his own rules.
"Are there any more questions?"
Seeing that the crowd remained silent, Wang Yulou added:
"The Western Sea First Auction House was established because Immortal Venerable Shenguang and Immortal Venerable Mangxiang took pity on the hardships of cultivation, wanting to give everyone one more opportunity and one more path.
And I, Wang Yulou, am rely executing orders for the two Immortal Venerables.
You can question , and you can refuse to believe , but you must believe in my respect for the two Immortal Venerables.
Therefore, the Western Sea First Auction House has never used underhanded manipulation in the past, and it will not use it in the future.
Whoever dares to manipulate things behind the scenes is acting against the two Immortal Venerables.
If soone dares to act against the two Immortal Venerables, Yuan Wu, how do you think I should handle you?"
"Kill him!"
The voice arrived before the person. Xihai Longhu strode into the grand hall of the Western Sea First Auction House, his vocal support for Wang Yulou preceding even his physical presence.
"There is no need to kill him. Killing him is too troubleso; just ship him off to the combat arena.
Old Fifth, Elder Daoshen sent you to the West Sea so you could temper yourself.
Hiding inside the Western Sea First Auction House every day doesn't count as tempering. Going to the combat arena to fight more—that is true tempering."
Wang Yulou smiled and let go of Yuan Wu, who now no longer dared to cry foul.
In the West Sea, the words that ca out of Xihai Longhu's and Wang Yulou's mouths—even if they were complete nonsense—would be treated as ironclad, undeniable evidence once spoken.
In this place, there was no right or wrong, only benefits.
Yuan Wu made a scene not because he believed the Western Sea First Auction House was wrong, but because he lost money.
Wang Yulou suppressed him not because he had a personal grudge against Yuan Wu, but simply because Yuan Wu had taken the lead in rioting, harming the interests of the Western Sea First Auction House.
—
On the other side, Mu Changze also received a transmission.
However, it was not from Wang Yulou, and it was not even a transmission talisman.
Unnoticed by anyone, Mu Changze received an order.
He quickly left the courtyard of the Punishnt Court's leader, heading straight for the residence of True Person Longhu, Jin Shan.
Jin Shan had not expected Mu Changze to co see him. After running several calculations, he dispatched his subordinate.
"Go, Mingdu. Tell him I'm not here!"
The Red Lantern Illumination Sect and the Sky Serpent Sect had gone to war, which made Jin Shan increasingly certain that his guesses were correct, or at least partially correct.
Mang Xiang might not join forces with Tianshe, but he had definitely joined forces with Shen Guang.
Wondrous Peak Mountain was originally situated on the western border of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect. Training troops for twenty years had likely been a way of sharpening their blades against the Red Lantern Illumination Sect.
Li Haiping and Zhou Bojiao had co to the West Sea again, and the Wang Clan and Yan Clan of the Behemoth Lineage had also co to the West Sea.
To be able to force the upper and lower echelons of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect to unite as one and go to war with the Sky Serpent Sect for his sake, Mang Xiang must have obtained Shen Guang's backing.
With Shen Guang's support, many of the strange occurrences in the West Sea naturally made sense.
And Mu Changze coming here now was eighty percent likely for the sake of that cheap daughter of his, regarding those matters Zhou Bojiao had carried out.
If he truly stepped forward, wouldn't he be tainted by the karma involved?
At this thought, Jin Shan's head throbbed terribly.
The West Sea had Shen Guang, its depths harbored a bunch of Demon Gods, and its borders were occupied by powerful local tyrants like the Sky Serpent Sect and the Red Lantern Illumination Sect.
Here, the West Sea Dragon-Tiger True Man seemingly held great power, but he was essentially in prison.
If one could withdraw from the world within a grotto-heaven, what Purple Palace cultivator would be willing to suffer bitterly out in the Macrocosm?
"Is your family's ancestor truly unwilling to see ?"
Mu Changze wore a look of sorrow, repeatedly confirming Jin Shan's stance with Jin Mingdu.
Jin Mingdu felt it was a bit strange, but she refrained from speaking out of turn all the more.
"Senior Mu, our ancestor is not here."
As he turned to leave in disappointnt, no one noticed the cold light that had been hidden for decades finally leaking from the depths of Mu Changze's sorrowful eyes.
Hiding his edge and restraining his spirit to marry into a high-status family, bending his body and submitting his heart to act as a live-in son-in-law—after a hundred years of wasting away in abandonnt, the eting of wind and clouds had finally brought the West Sea God.
Immortal Venerable, I do not regret it.
—
"Yulou, as I said, you are the most formidable heavenly genius in the West Sea—no, in Wunan—no, in the entire Immortal Alliance.
Compared to you, let alone the likes of Qiu Lianpu or Lian Chengxian, even I was several hundred li behind you when I was young."
Xihai Longhu knew how to spout nonsense. Starting with a bunch of rubbish that no one believed, he smoothly brought up his true demand.
"It's just, Yulou, the profits of the combat arena..."
Wang Yulou raised a hand, and Xihai Longhu imdiately stopped, looking at him.
"Senior Longhu, the Patriarch actually knows about this matter. Patriarch, please explain my difficulties clearly to Senior Longhu."
"Do not call senior, just call Fellow Daoist. You and I are both at Foundation Establishnt; calling senior is inappropriate!"
Wang Xianmao laughed out loud. In this kind of situation, his role as an old-tir of the clan was very critical.
"Sigh, you must still call him senior. Yulou, in the future when you et Fellow Daoist Longhu, you must respectfully call him senior without exception. Do you rember?"
Wang Yulou imdiately indicated that he rembered. This might have seed like just a simple form of address, but it brought along real, concrete benefits.
Negotiations had levels of progression. They weren't engaging in a life-and-death struggle of magical combat. By displaying a dual-layered approach within their leadership, the Wang Clan significantly expanded their room for maneuvering.
"As for the profits of the combat arena, speaking of it, we aren't afraid of being laughed at by Fellow Daoist Longhu. Think about it, that disciple of Haikuo Zhenren's disciple is essentially Haikuo Zhenren's disciple, so we can't easily block him.
Furthermore, people like Qiu Lianpu and Lian Chengxian are also nurous. They go rarely, but whenever they do, they are bound to win every match, so we also have to pay out rewards.
Sigh, speaking of it, we find ourselves in a difficult position as well.
Of course, Fellow Daoist Longhu, you are different. You are a disciple of the Immortal Venerable. If you could secretly pass a word to these people, that would naturally be best."
Xihai Longhu was left speechless by the Wang Clan's reasoning.
Secretly passing a word? Forget it. He would rather pretend he had heard nothing.
Seeing Xihai Longhu fall silent, Wang Yulou considerately offered his own solution instead.
"Senior Longhu, this ti we are hosting a banquet at the Immortal in Wine House. You and I can say this and that... say it like this for them to hear, and they will understand. What do you think?"
Putting on an act to deter those sheltered fools from major clans with deep backgrounds—who had never experienced real danger and held unrealistic fantasies about combat—from leeching the combat arena's profits wasn't exactly a brilliant strategy. It could only be considered acceptable.
In truth, the best thod would be to find a youth from Hexi—the kind who believed in the saying "my destiny is my own"—and cultivate him to trouble those profit-scraping monsters from the major clans in the combat arena.
But such people weren't suited for the environnt under the governance of the Immortal Alliance. In any case, after so many years, Wang Yulou had yet to see even a single one.
"Very well, Yulou. I was slightly too hasty.
However, will the outbreak of war between the Red Lantern Illumination Sect and the Sky Serpent Sect affect your subsequent arrangents?
I an, will you leave the West Sea?"
Wang Yulou's eyes flickered—Xihai Zhongcheng was more favored than Xihai Longhu.
It made sense. Xihai Zhongcheng had, after all, changed his na to Zhongcheng, while simultaneously controlling the distribution channels for the Purple Palace cultivation thods sold by Shen Guang.
On the other hand, Xihai Longhu, who had been pushed forward to handle the South Annex City Developnt Office, looked more like a marginal figure dragged up to shoulder risky assignnts.
"As a Core Disciple under the tutelage of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect, whenever the sect summons , I will certainly obey. But this does not affect my respect for the Immortal Venerable."
"I don't know, but the profit split won't change; we'll continue running it like this."
"Understood. Sigh, storm clouds are rising, storm clouds are rising. Speaking of us Foundation Establishnt cultivators... now that you have also reached the Foundation Establishnt realm, Yulou, you should soon be able to feel the helplessness of a Foundation Establishnt cultivator within the Immortal Alliance system."
Whether helpless or not, Wang Yulou did not need Xihai Longhu to tell him.
More than ten years ago, he had already seen through the "special care" directed at Foundation Establishnt cultivators in the design of the Immortal Alliance system.
How should one put it? One aspect was strict vigilance, while the other was guarding against Foundation Establishnt cultivators even more closely than they guarded against demons.
"Alright, Brother Longhu, you just like to joke—"
Wang Xianmao stopped halfway through his sentence, looking toward the Dragon Tiger Platform in the center of the immortal city alongside Xihai Longhu.
There, a golden giant had already risen into the sky; this was True Person Longhu, Jin Shan.
anwhile, Li Haiping appeared much more ager, rely holding a length of red silk and a stone hamr.
Wang Yulou could see clearly that both of those items were still spiritual artifacts.
"The storm has indeed risen. Move!"
Wang Xianmao stood up abruptly, grabbing Wang Yulou as he bolted toward the Western Sea Levee.
Xihai Longhu stared at them in dumbfounded surprise. Feeling a bit envious, he could only grit his teeth and rise into the air, preparing to support the two True Persons.
"Patriarch, what is going on?"
Wrapped in Wang Xianmao's spiritual light, Wang Yulou asked in confusion.
"I don't know, but a major incident has definitely occurred.
Perhaps the Sky Serpent Sect saw that the Ancestor and Shen Guang have joined forces, so they chose to strike Western Sea Immortal City first.
In short, just run."
"What about Yingxi?"
"Look after yourself first. Never forget to look after yourself first."
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