As a sect, Hongdengzhao was highly anthropomorphic in everything from its na to its governance model, right up to the grand cultivators at the top.
But in reality, it was a textbook example of a local power faction.
Once Mangxiang secured the sect's backing and declared war, the three front-line Defense Passes remained as steady as Mount Tai, regardless of how the Sky Serpent Sect attacked.
What did it an to have a deep foundation?
This was it.
Yet, more often than not, the complexity of war lay in the fact that it was never just a war—it was a ga of power.
External maneuvering and internal struggles existed as a composite whole, completely devoid of even a shred of isolation.
The power of cultivators itself was an extension of strength. Factions and smaller forces acting as the external manifestations of that extension were rely organized displays of strength—in essence, they were still strength.
Therefore, when grand cultivators clashed over the right to distribute benefits, internal sect strife inevitably erged.
Viewed through the lens of internal strife, the war revealed many counterintuitive yet logical points.
Pi Lingxiu driving charges on the Southern Front and forcing the Foundation Establishnt and Qi Refining cultivators beneath him to their deaths was exactly this kind of "counterintuitive yet logical" behavior.
Yi Zouri showing absolutely no regard for the fact that the Wang Clan had just lost Wang Rongyuan, trying to push them to send more people to the front lines as cannon fodder without a single thought for the greater good or solidarity, was also "counterintuitive yet logical." It conford perfectly to the logic of the Zhuzhao faction routinely suppressing the Mangxiang Faction.
But Wang Yulou refused to bow his head easily. Bowing was always simple, yet back when Yuan Daoshen had been so wildly in the wrong—staging that farce about a "fourth layer of Qi Refining cultivator attempting to murder Dripdrop Cave's number one Foundation Establishnt cultivator" and making a complete clown of himself—old Yuan had still refused to bow his head.
Bowing was simple; the price of bowing was not.
At Dripdrop Cave, Wang Yulou had begun to grasp the true underlying rules of the cultivation world, deeply participating in the internal tug-of-war for interests within cultivator organizations.
Old Yuan was a difficult man to evaluate, but from him, Wang Yulou had learned one thing: never bow your head easily. As long as you hadn't lost completely, you must never admit fault.
Surviving in the cultivation world wasn't like being a student in school, where admitting a mistake might even earn a teacher's praise.
If Wang Yulou easily bowed his head, admitted fault, and conceded, no one would say, "Wang Yulou, you're very sensible." Perhaps Yi Zouri and Yan Keyi would smile, throw an arm around his shoulder, and say, "Xiao Wang, you did the right thing."
But that kind of "praise" was no different from the ultimate humiliation. No, it was the ultimate humiliation.
When Wang Yulou was at the Qi Induction or Qi Refining stage, he could endure humiliation to bear heavy burdens. But now, he had too many people following him, and he carried too many expectations—even direct investnts from figures like Jin Shan.
That was why he projected an attitude of "who else but , standing boldly at the crest of the wave" on the two sects' front lines, thereby strengthening his bargaining chips.
Even deliberately framing Nan Ye Ke with massive accusations to apply extre pressure on the Southern Leaf Kingdom, thus paving his own path of restructuring on the front lines, served this exact purpose.
Strike while the iron is hot. At a mont when Patriarch Mangxiang's path to the Golden Core was becoming increasingly obvious, Wang Yulou could not halt his sprint of loyalty.
If he slowed down even a little, his position might be overtaken by Yan Keyi.
This thod of pursuing longevity seed abstract, but among the countless narrative lies constructed in this Great Heaven, it was actually one of the few true paths.
Otherwise, why would Yi Zouri strike directly at Wang Yulou, a man he had never even t?
Otherwise, why would Pi Lingxiu act so ticulously against Mangxiang?
Were they stupid?
They weren't stupid. The truly stupid ones were those who only hoped to quietly open their Purple Palace, beco the lowest tier of the realm, and rely on the "rules" of the Immortal Alliance to gain status.
When a group of clever people who understood the true rules—all backed by factions, True Persons, and even Immortal Venerables—played the ga, the complexity of the match rose yet again.
Faced with Wang Yulou's open sche—that all Hongdengzhao vassals must dispatch people to the battlefield as cannon fodder based on their faction's number of Foundation Establishnt cultivators—Yi Zouri was actually helpless.
If he followed Wang Yulou's suggestion, wouldn't it be easier for Mangxiang to win the war?
Defeat was disgraceful, but if the person held responsible for that defeat was Mangxiang, then Yi Zouri, and even True Person Jinxian behind him, would be highly supportive.
But if he disagreed with Wang Yulou's open sche, Yi Zouri's plan to single out the Wang Clan and use his status as the sect master's assistant to force them to send more Foundation Establishnt cultivators to die on the front lines could no longer be implented.
With this in mind, Yi Zouri finally made his decision.
Disgusting Wang Yulou and sabotaging the Wang Clan were minor matters. Helping the Mangxiang Faction actually win the war would be a truly massive, self-inflicted loss.
Inside True Person Jinxian's grotto-heaven, Yi Zouri was reporting his response strategy to his ancestor.
"...We cannot play into Wang Yulou's hands. The front-line special rit Hall has already been restructured. If we send a large number of the Foundation Establishnt cultivators under the sect's governance over there, we'll just be handing the Mangxiang Faction a foundational base."
Yi Zouri had not acted on impulse. His response could largely ensure that the Zhuzhao faction would not suffer expanded losses.
However...
"We still have to send people. There are many things you aren't aware of. With the way Mangxiang ran things in recent years, the number of Foundation Establishnt cultivators under the sect's governance has increased drastically.
"If we don't cull a batch, we won't see problems in the short term, but once those cultivators beco seasoned Foundation Establishnt cultivators, the sect's foundation will be affected."
True Person Jinxian had the appearance of a suave and handso youth. As he imparted his strategy to the middle-aged-looking Yi Zouri, the scene carried a distinct sense of absurdity.
"Understood. But Ancestor, can we pull Yan Keyi back? Right now, the front lines are entirely filled with Mangxiang's people. The situation doesn't look right."
Yi Zouri knew he might be overthinking it, and his ancestor perhaps had other plans, but he still had to offer a reminder. That was the duty of a disciple.
Following Hongdengzhao's Great Favor Distribution, the battle on the front lines would only grow more intense, creating the possibility of reshaping the interest distribution among the sect's Foundation Establishnt cultivators.
If this possibility truly materialized, Yi Zouri absolutely refused to accept a reality where the Mangxiang Faction reaped all the benefits.
"There is no need. Yan Keyi and many others on the Middle Front will die very soon. I have already contacted True Person Gua of the Sky Serpent Sect.
"The Sky Serpent Sect already has the front-line defense maps. They are just waiting to amass enough strength to launch their first major offensive. The main point of attack will be the Middle Front!
"Mangxiang has left Azure Plains Immortal City, and his current whereabouts are unknown. With just Xuanzhuan alone, even if he personally intervenes, he won't be able to save a Middle Front that spans seventeen hundred miles."
Yi Zouri was left sowhat speechless.
Was this the level of maneuvering among True Persons?
As a major sect with deep foundations, Hongdengzhao would never collapse from a single defeat in battle.
Letting the Sky Serpent Sect tear into the Middle Front would deal a severe blow to the Mangxiang Faction's prestige, while also culling the sect's excess Foundation Establishnt cultivators to maintain internal stability.
For the Zhuzhao faction, the ideal outco was for Hongdengzhao to win, but for Mangxiang to suffer a pyrrhic victory. Only then could they fully realize a scenario where "Mangxiang becos an Immortal Venerable, but lacks the true authority of one."
Hongdengzhao's interests would expand, Zhuzhao would effortlessly suppress Mangxiang, and their share of the pie would increase imnsely.
Ultimately, the Zhuzhao faction decided to accept Wang Yulou's open sche. At the sa ti, they secretly colluded with True Person Gua of the Sky Serpent Sect to launch a full-scale offensive, aiming to cripple the Mangxiang Faction's influence on the front lines.
With Candlelight Immortal Venerable in seclusion, True Person Jinxian and Yi Zouri were the ones calling the shots.
In a sense, their orders could be seen as Zhuzhao's orders.
The situation roughly amounted to this: Zhuzhao's favors were passed downward, and Hongdengzhao's Foundation Establishnt cultivators paid with their lives.
They were sent to the front lines to serve as trench-filling consumables.
The statent Wang Xianzhou had once emphasized to Wang Yulou was proving increasingly true: Hongdengzhao only had two types of disciples—those with backing, and those without.
In ordinary tis, the distinction between the two might not be so obvious.
But when conflicts were actively or passively escalated to a certain point by various factors, the divide between them instantly beca glaringly clear.
The debt-repaynt agreent negotiated by the various factions within Hongdengzhao was quite interesting.
Factions with over thirty Foundation Establishnt cultivators had to send one-fifth of them to the front lines.
Factions with over ten Foundation Establishnt cultivators had to send one-fourth of them.
Factions with five to ten Foundation Establishnt cultivators had to send two.
Those with fewer than five had to send one. Once that cultivator died, the faction would not need to send another for five years.
The slightly larger factions needed to be courted. Having over thirty Foundation Establishnt cultivators usually ant a Purple Palace True Person was at the helm. The one-fifth quota was a sign of respect for the True Person's interests.
The Foundation Establishnt families with over ten mbers were harvested the hardest, out of fear that they would grow too powerful. They were the primary targets of Hongdengzhao's favor-debt restructuring plan—they had to pay first, and in full.
The even smaller Foundation Establishnt families acted as a firebreak between Hongdengzhao and the bottom-tier cultivators. They couldn't be completely wiped out, so so leniency was shown. The goal was a systemic purge of newly risen, single-pillar Foundation Establishnt families to create an environnt that "tempered" them.
Among these, the most representative unlucky soul was likely Wu Jinyan—the standard Foundation Establishnt patriarch of a single-pillar family.
Hongdengzhao did not feed idlers. If Wu Jinyan couldn't survive this, the Wu Clan would simply disband.
Such precise, differentiated harvesting and targeted treatnt seed absurd, but it was brimming with realism.
The concept of "a whale fall nourishing all life" didn't quite apply to Purple Palace cultivators and Immortal Venerables. Hongdengzhao preferred a top-down, collective harvesting approach. This way, they could also prevent internal strife from escalating beyond all boundaries.
"Patriarch, Yulou and Chu Ran have been waiting for you."
Wang Yulou had transferred Qin Churan out of Dripdrop Cave, planning to station her at Fragrant Bamboo Market to help keep an eye on his interests there.
Despite holding multiple positions, Wang Yulou strictly followed the rules within both the Southern Leaf Kingdom and the special rit Hall, never proactively doing anything that might be suspected of violating regulations.
In the Southern Leaf Kingdom, he had already offended Nan Ye Ke. anwhile, the special rit Hall's restructuring had offended far too many people over the redistribution of interests. In short, Wang Yulou wielded influence in both places, but not enough to act without restraint.
Thus, it was the seemingly inconspicuous Fragrant Bamboo Market that beca his largest source of inco on the front lines.
"Chu Ran, not bad. You've already reached Qi Refining. Cultivate diligently, and strive to reach Foundation Establishnt as soon as possible."
Only after dismissing little Qin did Wang Xianmao discuss true matters of importance with Wang Yulou.
"Was it inappropriate for you to ask to co alone?"
The Wang Clan currently possessed seven Foundation Establishnt cultivators: Wang Jingyi, Wang Yulou, Wang Xianmao, Wang Rongjiang, Wang Rongwen, Tie Qinhuo, Zheng Yan, and Zhou Yingxi.
Therefore, in theory, the Wang Clan should have sent two Foundation Establishnt cultivators to the front lines.
"Ancestor Jingyi, Yingxi, Zheng Yan, and I are not strictly considered mbers of the Wang Clan.
"So you need not overthink it. The sect master won't deliberately look for trouble. Just be careful and secure your footing on the front lines. After that, we'll never have to worry about being conscripted again."
Wang Yulou was highly confident, placing great faith in Huang Qiusheng's cowardice. Once old Huang entertained thoughts of retreating, he would never lightly offend the Wang Clan, which was currently a rising star under the tutelage of Mangxiang.
Three Core Disciples from a single clan—anyone who understood the weight of that fact knew exactly what it ant.
"I'm not worried about that. Once the war begins, no one can easily stay out of it.
"Or rather, the price of staying out is too high.
"Yulou, have you considered sending every available Wang Clan Foundation Establishnt cultivator to the front lines?
"Rongwen, Rongjiang, and Zheng Yan have lower cultivation bases; they can work under you. Tie Qinhuo and I will go to the front lines.
"Only then can we demonstrate our attitude toward the Patriarch."
Wang Xianmao certainly hadn't gone mad. He knew exactly how dangerous this strategy would be to execute.
But... having acted as attack dogs to this extent, the Wang Clan had no way back.
If Hongdengzhao lost this war between the two sects, the Wang Clan would perish right alongside the Patriarch!
"There's no need. Currently, all three fronts are on the defensive. There won't be any major issues.
"Furthermore, as long as I manage the special rit Hall well, it will be enough to prove the Wang Clan's dedication to the Patriarch."
By focusing on the major issues and letting the minor ones go, as long as he handled the core conflicts, why would he worry about Mangxiang ignoring the Wang Clan's contributions?
The true value of the special rit Hall lay in the fact that its existence ant the Behemoth Lineage controlled the distribution rights on the front lines!
Faced with Wang Yulou's explanation, the patriarch fell silent for a mont before asking,
"Yan Keli hasn't shown himself in seven years. At first, the Yan Family said he was in seclusion.
"Yulou, True Person Xuanzhuan said the Behemoth Lineage would produce ten Purple Palace cultivators in the future. But out of those ten, how many will actually fall under True Person Xuanzhuan's banner?"
How many could there be?
Four at most!
Wang Jingyi was one. Among the four Yan brothers, Yan Keli and Yan Keyi might account for two. Wang Yulou or Wang Xianmao would take one.
That was it—and that was assuming no accidents occurred.
What if Wang Jingyi encountered problems while attempting to open her Purple Palace?
What if others within the Xuanzhuan faction opened theirs first?
The thod to open a Purple Palace was incredibly difficult, but for cultivators who had reached Peak Foundation Establishnt within the confining system of the Immortal Alliance, it wasn't insurmountable. None of them were fools.
Wang Yulou naturally understood what the patriarch was hinting at... but he had his own ideas.
"It is ti for the clan to split, Ancestor.
"The outco of the war is unpredictable, and our disciples' future developnt cannot rely solely on the Patriarch. Preserving a chance for a resurgence is absolutely necessary.
"Yu'an has been at Hidden Dragon Abbey for many years. I sent soone to check on him recently and found that the boy has been cultivating rather diligently.
"I believe he can shoulder the responsibility of leading a branch of the clan. You should have Uncle Rongsheng take so people over as soon as possible. If we wait until Yu'an reaches Foundation Establishnt to leave, it will be much harder to get away."
Wang Yulou once again proposed dividing the family. This ti, Wang Xianmao did not voice direct opposition.
Just as he had reminded Wang Yulou earlier, by following Mangxiang, the Wang Clan's ceiling was two Purple Palace cultivators—and that was only achievable if they caught the right era and everything went smoothly.
If they didn't split the family, many within the clan would find their cultivation efforts ending up as nothing but drawing water with a bamboo basket. It was even possible that relatives would turn against each other.
For example, Wang Xianmao had always held a grudge against Wang Jingyi.
"Alright. Divide the family. It is ti we did. But Yulou, can the branch we send out truly secure a foothold in Hidden Dragon Abbey?"
Wang Yulou sighed faintly in his heart, yet his words carried absolute confidence.
"They can. You must believe in our clansn!"
There were many problems that simply could not be solved.
Yet one still had to accept them.
If a person refused to live their life just because certain problems remained unsolved, then life would truly beco unbearable.
Wang Xianmao looked at Yulou with a complex expression. A thousand words ultimately condensed into a single sentence.
"You've grown up."
There was gratification in his voice, but also lancholy, helplessness, and a hint of unwillingness.
"Haha, Ancestor, in front of you, Yulou will always be a child."
Wang Yulou and Wang Xianmao chatted a bit more about the two sects' front lines before moving on to the arrangent for his position.
"You can just go serve as the captain of a support squad on the Middle Front. The task sounds busy, but in reality, most of the ti it's just making a single trip.
"Besides, the defensive lines on the Middle Front are the most secure, from the formation arrays down to the number of cultivators stationed there.
"If you go there, it won't delay your cultivation, you won't have to exert too much effort, and you can still earn another stipend."
Looking at Wang Yulou's spirited and commanding expression, the old patriarch smiled and nodded.
How could he remain a child forever?
Yulou, you have already gone much further than .
(End of Chapter)
"If we don't kill off a batch, we won't see the issue in the short term. But once those Foundation Establishnt cultivators beco seasoned Foundation Establishnt cultivators, the very foundation of the sect will be affected."
True Person Jinxian appeared as an elegant, handso youth. Giving face-to-face instructions to the middle-aged Yi Zouri created quite an absurd sight.
"Understood. It's just... Ancestor, can we pull Yan Keyi back? Right now, the front lines are entirely populated by Mangxiang's people. The situation doesn't seem right."
Yi Zouri knew he might be overthinking things, and that his ancestor might have other plans, but he still needed to speak up. It was his duty as a disciple.
After Hongdengzhao's Grand Dispensation of Grace, combat at the front lines would only grow more intense, threatening to reshape the distribution of interests among the sect's Foundation Establishnt cultivators.
If that potential truly materialized, Yi Zouri would absolutely not accept a scenario where the Mangxiang Faction alone gorged itself on the spoils.
"There is no need. Yan Keyi and many others on the Middle Front will die very soon. I have already contacted True Person Gua of the Sky Serpent Sect.
"The Sky Serpent Sect has already obtained the front's defensive deploynt maps. They are only waiting to accumulate enough strength before launching their first general offensive. The primary point of attack is right on the Middle Front!
"Mangxiang has already left Azure Plains Immortal City, and no one knows where he went. Relying on Xuanzhuan alone... even if he takes the field personally, he cannot save the 1,700-li Middle Front."
Yi Zouri was left utterly speechless.
Was this the kind of ga True Persons played?
As a major sect with profound foundations, Hongdengzhao wouldn't completely collapse from the failure of a single campaign.
Letting the Sky Serpent Sect tear into the Middle Front would severely damage the Mangxiang Faction's prestige. It would also flush out a large number of excess Foundation Establishnt cultivators, thereby maintaining the sect's overall stability.
For the Illuminating Faction, the ideal outco was for Hongdengzhao to win the war, but for Mangxiang to suffer a pyrrhic victory. Only then could they achieve a result where "Mangxiang becos an Immortal Venerable, but isn't quite an Immortal Venerable."
Hongdengzhao's interests would expand, and Candlelight Immortal Venerable would easily suppress Mangxiang, upgrading from eating two portions of the spoils to three—an absolute feast.
Ultimately, the Illuminating Faction decided to play along with Wang Yulou's overt sche, while simultaneously colluding with True Person Gua of the Sky Serpent Sect to launch an all-out offensive, dealing a heavy blow to the Mangxiang Faction's influence on the front lines.
Whenever Candlelight Immortal Venerable was absent, Jinxian and Yi Zouri were the ones running the house.
In a sense, their orders could be viewed as Candlelight's orders.
The reality of the situation was that Candlelight handed down favors, and Hongdengzhao's Foundation Establishnt cultivators paid for them with their lives.
They went to the front lines to serve as cannon fodder.
The lesson Wang Xianzhou had once emphasized to Wang Yulou only grew truer by the day: there were only two types of disciples in Hongdengzhao—those with backing, and those without.
Normally, the difference between the two wasn't so obvious.
But once conflicts were actively or passively intensified to a certain point, the divide between them instantly beca incomparably stark.
The debt-repaynt agreent, negotiated through the maneuvering of Hongdengzhao's multiple factions, was quite interesting.
Forces with over thirty Foundation Establishnt cultivators had to send one-fifth of them to the front lines.
Forces with over ten Foundation Establishnt cultivators had to send one-fourth to the front lines.
Forces with five to ten Foundation Establishnt cultivators had to send two.
Those with fewer than five had to send one; after that cultivator died, they wouldn't need to send anyone else for five years.
The largest factions needed to be courted. Having over thirty Foundation Establishnt cultivators usually ant a Purple Palace cultivator was at the helm. The one-fifth quota was a show of respect to the interests of a Purple Palace True Person.
anwhile, the clans with over ten Foundation Establishnt cultivators were harvested the most ruthlessly. This was out of fear that they might grow too large. They were the primary targets of Hongdengzhao's debt-repaynt plan—they had to pay first, and in full.
The smallest Foundation Establishnt families served as a firewall between Hongdengzhao and the bottom-tier cultivators. They couldn't be completely wiped out, so so leniency was granted. The goal was to systematically clear out the newly erged, single-sprout Foundation Establishnt families, treating the war as a crucible to temper the survivors.
Among them, the most representative unlucky bastard was likely Wu Jinyan—a textbook example of a Patriarch leading a single-sprout Foundation Establishnt family.
Hongdengzhao did not feed idle mouths. If Wu Jinyan couldn't survive this, the Wu Clan would dissolve, and that would be the end of it.
Such precise, differentiated harvesting and unequal treatnt seed absurd, yet it was thoroughly pragmatic.
The concept of a whale fall nourishing the sea didn't quite apply to Purple Palace cultivators and Immortal Venerables. Hongdengzhao preferred a system where those at the top harvested from those below them together. This way, they could also prevent their internal strife from spiraling completely out of control.
"Clan Head, Yulou and Chu Ran have been waiting for you for quite so ti."
Wang Yulou had transferred Qin Churan out of Dripdrop Cave, preparing to station her at Fragrant Bamboo Market to help him oversee his interests there.
Although he held multiple concurrent posts, Wang Yulou strictly adhered to the rules within both the Southern Leaf Kingdom and the rit Hall, never actively doing anything that might violate regulations.
In the Southern Leaf Kingdom, he had to deal with Nan Ye Ke, whom he had already offended. anwhile, the rit Hall had offended far too many people through its redistribution of interests following the restructuring. In short, while Wang Yulou wielded influence in both places, he wasn't powerful enough to act without restraint.
Ultimately, it was actually the seemingly unremarkable Fragrant Bamboo Market that beca Wang Yulou's greatest source of inco on the two sects' front lines.
"Not bad, Chu Ran. You've already entered Qi Refining. Cultivate diligently, and strive to reach Foundation Establishnt early."
Only after dismissing little Qin did Wang Xianmao speak with Wang Yulou about truly pressing matters.
"You had co alone. Isn't that sowhat inappropriate?"
The Wang Clan currently had seven Foundation Establishnt cultivators: Wang Jingyi, Wang Yulou, Wang Xianmao, Wang Rongjiang, Wang Rongwen, Tie Qinhuo, Zheng Yan, and Zhou Yingxi.
Therefore, in theory, the Wang Clan should have sent two Foundation Establishnt cultivators to the front lines.
"Ancestor Jingyi, Yingxi, Zheng Yan, and I are not mbers of the Wang Clan in the strict sense."
"So you don't need to worry too much. The Sect Master won't look for trouble out of nowhere. As long as you are careful and establish a firm footing on the front lines, we will never have to worry about being drafted for Foundation Establishnt cultivators again."
Wang Yulou was brimming with confidence, holding great faith in Huang Qiusheng's spinelessness. Once the desire to retreat sprouted in Old Huang, it was impossible for him to casually offend the Wang Clan, who were currently highly favored under the Behemoth Lineage.
One clan with three Core Disciples—the weight of that golden standard was understood by anyone who knew anything.
"I'm not worried about that. Once the war starts, no one can easily stay out of it."
"Or rather, the price of staying out of it is too high."
"Yulou, have you considered having our Wang Clan send every single Foundation Establishnt cultivator we can spare to the front?"
"Rongwen, Rongjiang, and Zheng Yan have lower cultivation bases, so let them work under you. Tie Qinhuo and I will go to the front line."
"Only by doing this can we demonstrate our attitude toward the Ancestor."
Wang Xianmao certainly hadn't gone mad. He knew exactly how dangerous executing this strategy would be.
But... having played the loyal dog to this point, the Wang Clan had no path of retreat.
In the grand war between the two sects, if Red Lantern Illumination suffered defeat, the Wang Clan would fall into ruin right alongside the Ancestor!
"There is no need. Right now, the three lines are generally on the defensive; there won't be any major issues."
"Additionally, as long as I manage the special rit Hall well, it will be enough to demonstrate our Wang Clan's attitude toward the Ancestor."
Grasp the major issues and let go of the minor ones. Once the core conflict was managed well, why worry about Mangxiang not noticing the Wang Clan's contributions?
The value of the special rit Hall lay in the fact that its very existence ant the Behemoth Lineage controlled the distribution of resources on the front lines!
Faced with Wang Yulou's explanation, the Patriarch fell silent for a mont before asking:
"Yan Keli hasn't appeared for seven years. Initially, the Yan Family said he was in seclusion."
"Yulou, True Person Xuanzhuan said that the Behemoth Lineage will have ten Purple Palace cultivators in the future. But of those ten, how many can actually be assigned under the True Person's na?"
How many could there be?
Four at the absolute maximum!
Wang Jingyi would take one. Among the four Yan Family brothers, Yan Keli and Yan Keyi might take two. Wang Yulou or Wang Xianmao would take one.
That was it—and only under the condition that no accidents occurred.
What if Wang Jingyi's attempt to open her Purple Palace didn't go smoothly?
What if others within the Xuanzhuan faction were the first to open their Purple Palaces?
The thod to open the Purple Palace was difficult, but for the cultivators who could reach Peak Foundation Establishnt within the cage system of the Immortal Alliance, it wasn't that difficult—none of them were fools.
Wang Yulou naturally understood what the Patriarch was reminding him of... however, he had his own thoughts on the matter.
"The family has reached the point where it must be split up, Ancestor."
"The outco of the war is unpredictable, and the future developnt of the clan's disciples cannot solely follow the Ancestor. Preserving the possibility of a coback is absolutely necessary."
"Yu'an has been at Hidden Dragon Abbey for so many years. So ti ago, I sent people to check on him and found that the kid has been cultivating quite diligently."
"I see him as soone who can shoulder the heavy responsibility of a branch lineage. We should have Uncle Rongsheng take so people over there as soon as possible. If we wait until after he achieves Foundation Establishnt to leave, it won't be easy to move."
Wang Yulou once again proposed the suggestion to split the family, and this ti, Wang Xianmao did not directly voice his opposition.
Just as he had reminded Wang Yulou monts ago, by following Mangxiang, the ceiling for the Wang Clan would be two Purple Palace cultivators at best—and that was only achievable if they caught a good era and enjoyed smooth sailing all the way.
If they didn't split the family, many in the clan would find their cultivation ending in a complete waste of effort, and kinsn might even turn against each other.
For instance, Wang Xianmao had always harbored grievances against Wang Jingyi.
"Fine. Split the family, split the family. It is ti to split the family. It's just... Yulou, can the branch we send out truly establish a firm footing at Hidden Dragon Abbey?"
Wang Yulou sighed softly in his heart, though his words carried great confidence.
"They can. You must have faith in our clansn!"
Many problems simply couldn't be resolved.
But you still had to accept them.
If one decided that life couldn't go on unless certain problems were solved, then life truly wouldn't be able to go on.
Wang Xianmao looked at Yulou with a complex expression. In the end, a thousand words dissolved into a single sentence:
"You've grown up."
There was gratification, there was lancholy, there was helplessness, and there was unwillingness.
"Haha, Ancestor. Before you, Yulou will always be a child."
Wang Yulou and Wang Xianmao chatted a bit more about matters regarding the front lines of the two sects, moving on to the arrangent for his position.
"You can just serve as the captain of the support squad on the Middle Front. This task sounds busy, but in reality, most of the ti it just involves making a single trip."
"Additionally, the defensive line on the Middle Front is the most stable, from the formation arrays to the number of cultivators stationed there."
"By going there, it won't delay your cultivation, you won't need to exert too much effort, and you can draw an extra salary."
Gazing at Wang Yulou, whose face carried the air of a commander directing troops, the old Patriarch smiled and nodded.
'How could you always be a child?'
'Yulou, you have already walked much further than now.'
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