Ascending the Jade Palace Chapter 70: This Is It, and Yet How Many People Want to Knee

In the past, when Yulou first heard about the Wang family's strategy of differentiated placent for its younger generation, he harbored quite a few doubts regarding the policy of keeping first-rate disciples at ho.

Were great sects not good? Why send the less talented ones to the sects while retaining the most gifted at ho?

Now, the decree from the Red Lantern Illumination Sect master in his hand served as the best answer to that doubt.

The Red Lantern Illumination Sect boasted tens of thousands of disciples, and its territory stretched for millions of miles across the northwest of the Wunan Cultivation World.

Within the sect, there were dozens of Purple Palace Grand Cultivators and Golden Core True Persons, split into more than a dozen major and minor factions.

Under such circumstances, an individual with a shallow background entering the sect would amount to nothing more than cannon fodder for the high-level cultivators of great clans.

Even for soone with perseverance, bitterly accumulating rits within the sect made the path of advancent exceptionally difficult.

Take Gao Jian, for instance. He was thoroughly wicked, but wasn't his persistent wickedness also a form of perseverance?

Yet, he could only serve as a dog for the Core Disciples. Though called a cultivator, how did he differ from a Dao slave?

As a subordinate branch of the Mangxiang lineage within the Red Lantern Illumination Sect, the Wang Clan regularly offered tribute, but tribute ca with returns.

For example, the sect master's decree obtained just now, or the long-term trade relations between the Wang Clan and the Red Lantern Illumination Sect.

Through the inner disciple slots granted as rewards, the descendants of the Wang family could bypass the process of being ordered around like Dao slaves by the Red Lantern Illumination Sect and directly join the inner sect.

The significance of keeping the best children at ho lay in the fact that the benefits the family obtained from the sect through their subordinate relationship could be used to precisely nurture core disciples, such as Yulou and Yu'an, ensuring they received the finest cultivation before reaching Foundation Establishnt.

By remaining within the clan, the exploitation they faced before reaching a certain level of cultivation was practically nonexistent.

To be precise, that was not exploitation at all.

Having enjoyed the clan's protection, it was only natural to make contributions so the family could prosper and endure across generations.

Of course, ungrateful wolves existed, individuals who would harm the family's foundations to realize their own wild ambitions. Such degenerate obstacles had certainly appeared in the history of the Wang Clan, but they were few and far between.

Furthermore, human sentint shifted like the tide. If one acted too selfishly, no one would be swayed.

No matter how powerful Mang Xiang was, didn't he still need a group of people supporting him to step-by-step attain his Golden Core?

Now, borrowing the decree of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect Master Huang Qiusheng, he had distributed a massive portion to the Wang Clan. Though it was a display of the sect's generosity, the Wang family had indeed eaten its fill.

No matter how promising the future expected returns of the Great Goods Store were, one had to consider whether it could be protected. Yulou understood the discrepancy between projected earnings and tangible, real-world benefits all too well.

In truth, the Wang Clan had not just made a small profit this ti; they had made a fortune.

Only...

"Patriarch, since we received this decree from the sect master, shouldn't we express our gratitude?"

Providing kickbacks or tea money after securing a massive deal was basic etiquette, which Yulou naturally would not forget.

Wang Xianmao smiled and shook his head, saying, "You little rascal are quite sharp. Out of fifty-two thousand spirit stones, fifty thousand go to True Person Xuanzhuan, and two thousand go to Fellow Daoist Qiusheng."

So it was Xuanzhuan who pushed this matter forward. With that being the case, such a grand gesture was no longer surprising, though Yulou remained sowhat startled by Xuanzhuan's appetite.

Fifty thousand spirit stones—the Red Lantern Illumination Sect gave generously, and Xuanzhuan, who handled the matter, accepted even more generously.

It felt very much like seventy percent belonged to soone else. Perhaps in the eyes of a True Person, fifty thousand spirit stones were of little consequence.

Seeing Yulou's expression alter completely, Wang Xianmao explained in a gentle tone.

"Yulou, there are things you do not know. The value of this bottle of Spirit Marrow ridian Cleansing Pills far exceeds fifty thousand spirit stones, and these pills were refined by a master of the alchemical Dao at the Foundation Establishnt stage. They are perpetually in high demand but short supply.

"As it happens, our Wang family needs this dicine, which is why Jingyi specially requested True Person Xuanzhuan to facilitate this matter."

It wasn't that Xuanzhuan was overly greedy, but rather that the True Person had provided imnse assistance.

The structural innovation of the Great Goods Store held exceptional value from the height of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect's perspective, which was the fundantal reason why Huang Qiusheng specifically issued a sect master's decree.

But how that value would be realized, and what it would be exchanged for, was not for the Wang Clan to decide.

Xuanzhuan had secured the urgently needed Spirit Marrow ridian Cleansing Pills for the Wang Clan. This was effectively a form of help that allowed them to draw a guaranteed top-tier prize directly, bypassing the regular risks.

To put it bluntly, no matter how rare a Foundation Establishnt Pill was, no matter how useful a high-grade spiritual artifact might be, or how scarce an inner disciple slot was.

For the Wang Clan, these were all things they could slowly acquire on their own or find soone to handle.

But the Spirit Marrow ridian Cleansing Pill was sothing the Wang Clan could not obtain even if they wanted to!

Particularly now, with a great war about to erupt, this type of spiritual pill used to repair ridians and the Dao foundation would only dwindle further with each use.

Within a given tifra, the quantity of alchemical materials could hardly achieve a breakthrough increase, while the expected growth in demand was very high. The price of the Spirit Marrow ridian Cleansing Pill would only continue to climb.

Therefore, taking all this into account, Xuanzhuan had actually not taken that much.

The man was already a Purple Palace True Man; wasn't it only right for him to receive fifty thousand spirit stones as a facilitation fee?

How did the saying go?

This is it, and yet how many people want to kneel but lack the entrance!

"Could it be that Ancestor Xianzhou's injuries can be treated with this pill?" Yulou asked.

Wang Xianzhou was once a genius of the Wang Clan who achieved fa at a young age. Later, he joined the Red Lantern Illumination Sect and won victory after victory in the Immortal Alliance Envoy Combat Selection, becoming an Immortal Alliance Emissary through his own strength.

Had his Dao foundation not been damaged, he would absolutely have been able to achieve Foundation Establishnt, and after doing so, he might have been even stronger than the current Wang Xianmao.

Although Wang Xianmao possessed divine abilities, Wang Xianzhou belonged to the tier of individuals who could firmly establish a foothold among the gathered talents of the Immortal Alliance. The upper limits of the two could not be spoken of in the sa breath.

But those possibilities, that beautiful future, and those things belonging to Wang Xianzhou no longer had anything to do with him now.

Yulou had personally witnessed the way Ancestor Xianzhou dared not look his old lover in the eye.

That day, Wang Xianzhou's Dao heart was so disrupted that even Yu'an could see it.

How could juniors like Yulou and Yu'an not feel a pang of sorrow?

If the Spirit Marrow ridian Cleansing Pill could treat Ancestor Xianzhou's injuries, then the Wang Clan would very quickly gain another Foundation Establishnt cultivator.

Given Ancestor Xianzhou's age, he might not be able to extend his lifespan by too long after reaching Foundation Establishnt, but at the very least, he would certainly be able to live past two hundred years.

Moreover, with his combat prowess, a Foundation Establishnt Wang Xianzhou would beat the likes of Tie Qinhuo and Wu Jinyan as easily as child's play.

"Xianzhou, Xianzhou... Sigh, he has used spiritual pills even better than the Spirit Marrow ridian Cleansing Pill. This Spirit Marrow ridian Cleansing Pill is ant for Rongyuan.

"In addition, if chaos arises in the future, having more Spirit Marrow ridian Cleansing Pills prepared within the clan will ensure we are ready for any eventuality."

Regarding his younger brother, Wang Xianmao also felt powerless.

If the children of the Wang family were not sent to the most dangerous places to be tempered, how could they be chiseled into fine jade?

But once sent, accidents were inevitable.

"Uncle Rongyuan? Uncle Rongyuan is injured?"

Yulou imdiately grew anxious.

Demon hunting in the West Sea was the best way out for low-level cultivators, and the only fair avenue for advancent in Wunan when there were no large-scale sect wars.

It sounded excellent, but it was also a process of raising venomous insects; the Immortal Alliance summoned cultivators there wave after wave.

Yet out of the clan mbers from successive generations of the Wang family who went to the West Sea for demon hunting, barely more than half returned. Those who failed to return all ended up in the bellies of demonic beasts.

"Yes, though it is quite light. He just needs to recuperate. Now that we have the Spirit Marrow ridian Cleansing Pill, his injuries will not even affect his Foundation Establishnt."

Wang Rongyuan had lost half a shoulder along with an arm. It sounded like a severe injury, but for a cultivator, such a wound was rely ordinary.

"By the way, Yulou, the sect master's decree instructs our Wang Clan to complete the handover of the Great Goods Store with the Red Lantern Illumination Sect's Comrce Hall of Elders.

"This shop was built up through your managent, so you understand its specific operations best.

"When I spoke with Mu Chunze, it was settled that you would handle the handover. Tomorrow morning, the Comrce Hall of Elders will send several Foundation Establishnt cultivators over.

"Open the doors early tomorrow and think about how to conduct the handover smoothly.

"Since we have accepted the rewards from the Red Lantern Illumination Sect, we naturally need to put forth our best efforts. Otherwise, it is the face of Ancestor Xuanzhuan that will be lost. Do you understand?"

Yulou originally wanted to ask more about Wang Rongyuan's injuries, but hearing the patriarch speak this way, it was inappropriate to press further.

"Yulou understands. However, after the Great Goods Store is handed over to the sect, will it continue to operate in the Clear Stream Market?"

Changing the subject proved effective, but Yulou's question managed to pique Wang Xianmao's interest.

"Are you saying... we should open another one?"

It had to be said that this idea of Yulou's was bold, considerably bold.

After the Red Lantern Illumination Sect absorbed the industries of its subordinate families and minor sects and provided a sum of compensation, the party whose asset was taken would open another identical business to continue operating.

Regarding this matter, first of all, Wang Xianmao was certain it did not violate any regulations.

The network of interests within the Red Lantern Illumination Sect was complex, and quite a few people engaged in similar behavior. The sect could not manage it, nor did it wish to.

With factions standing in numbers, the Red Lantern Illumination Sect possessed intricate governing decision bodies, and its governance efficiency dropped drastically outside the established rules.

Minor sects and subordinate families were themselves buffer zones outside the rules and above the order, responsible for helping the Red Lantern Illumination Sect extend its governing feelers into every corner of the territory.

The relationship between the two sides was not a simple superior-subordinate one. Although the operational model within it was complex, there remained imnse room for maneuvering.

In other words, as long as the Wang Clan's foundations were sturdy enough, they could naturally proceed with confidence.

"If conditions do not allow it here, we can start fresh. We don't have to operate in the Clear Stream Market; we can change to another market town."

Wang Xianmao was certain that Yulou's suggestion held imnse practical value.

After pondering for a mont, he made the executive decision.

"We won't make a move for the next few years. No rush. We'll wait and see first."

The characteristic caution and observation of the Wang family.

Yulou nodded, then brought up another matter.

"Patriarch, regarding the matter of Hongi's Foundation Establishnt, has he ntioned it to you?"

The patriarch froze for a mont.

This was the second ti Yulou had raised this matter with him.

Last ti, he had given Yulou a reason to temporarily smooth things over, because at that ti, Wang Xianmao did not believe Yulou possessed the qualifications to discuss such major family affairs.

But the situation had changed now. While Yulou's cultivation base was not high, his contributions to the clan were greater than those of the vast majority of mid-stage Qi Refining cultivators.

With the structural innovation of the Great Goods Store as his backing, even so high-stage Qi Refining cultivators with shallow seniority could not compare to Yulou.

The current Wang Yulou had used the victories he won to earn a well-deserved status, to the point where even Wang Xianmao had to take his thoughts seriously.

Since Yulou raised the matter of Hongi again, he naturally could not brush it aside.

"If you want Hongi to achieve Foundation Establishnt, that is entirely possible, but we need to wait until the direct lineage of our Wang Clan has a few more Foundation Establishnt cultivators.

"At least two more. What do you think?"

Wang Xianmao was well aware that Yulou possessed deep thoughts. By asking about Hongi's Foundation Establishnt, he actually wanted to establish his own authority and faction within the small power structure of the Wang Clan.

Regarding this sort of ambition from Yulou, Wang Xianmao actually felt no aversion.

Cultivating immortality was still bound to human affairs before one truly beca an immortal.

Far too many things required people to be carried out successfully.

If nothing else, the Ning Clan of Huishan Prefecture was forced to rge with the Gushen family precisely because they ran out of people, becoming re shareholders of the Valley Spirit Sect.

But how could minor shareholders compare to major shareholders?

The hardships involved were things only the Ning Clan itself understood.

Even if a cultivator attained a Golden Core, they still needed to manage their own forces.

After all, no matter how formidable a grand cultivator was, they could not attend to every single matter personally, could they?

Mang Xiang attaining his Golden Core, with two disciples of Purple Palace cultivation running errands all over the place and the entire faction being mobilized to support him, served as another example.

Seeing that Yulou understood the importance of gathering people and building montum at such a young age, the patriarch was naturally pleased to see it succeed.