These assets that had already been swallowed up and siphoned away could not be forcibly reclaid even if Wang Yu tried, so he simply treated them as rewards and displayed rare generosity.
Maintaining a veneer of false dignity.
“Next, this City Lord needs to inspect the missing spirit fields, the ledgers of shops in the five city districts, and the taxes owed by the three great clans.
“I wonder, honored talents of Jade Spirit City, do you have confidence to accomplish this task. If successful, I can recomnd your outstanding descendants to enter the Inner Sect of the Exalted Sect.”
The crowd looked at each other in silence.
Though the reward offered by Wang Yu was enticing, it was nothing compared to the difficulty of the task.
So matters simply could not be done.
Even Madam Chaoyun gave a bitter smile. “City Lord, you underestimate the difficulty. Even in the heyday of the City Lord’s Manor it might not have been possible to collect everything, let alone now.”
As she spoke, she cast a glance at the people from Ink-Water Sect and Scent-Hearing Cult, her aning clear.
She was warning Wang Yu.
These Core Formation sects understood the terror of Nascent Soul forces, so when it ca to great matters of principle, they were willing to lend support and help this new City Lord through his awkward period of having no capable subordinates.
But once their own interests were touched, they could not be trusted. To collect five years of overdue taxes would be the sa as Wang Yu standing alone against the entire city.
If he could not collect them, then in the next five-year cycle the inertia of the large institutions would remain. Spirit stones would still be withheld, taxes still unpaid.
Long silence. No one responded.
Wang Yu sneered inwardly.
A swarm of insects. How could such people ever bring prosperity to Jade Spirit City.
Since none were willing, then they might as well not do it at all. If he could not eat, he would flip the entire pot over.
No destruction, no creation. In any case, the City Lord’s treasury still held a million spirit stones to satisfy this round of tribute. The next five-year cycle was still far off, so there was no need to rush.
Just as Wang Yu was considering whether to use formations to trap them all here, or let them leave and use another thod, the Great Elder of the Bai Clan finally spoke.
“City Lord, my Bai Clan is willing to set an example and make up the entirety of the missed taxes from these five years.”
“Oh—”
This truly surprised him. In his eyes, the Bai Clan had always been the most defiant. In his prediction, it should have been the Jiang Clan to yield first.
The Jiang Clan had shallow foundations and would fold when pressured.
But the Bai Clan had deep roots and many strong cultivators. Could it be that he had stirred their fear of the Blood Reversal Sect.
The Guan Clan Head and Jiang Clan Head were both shocked. They wanted to voice their opposition, but under Wang Yu’s cold gaze, they swallowed their words.
The Bai Clan Great Elder spoke persuasively.
“Clan Head Guan, Clan Head Jiang, the City Lord has shown great leniency in not pursuing our past offenses. You should not resist. Resolve the matter, lest we all be punished by the Exalted Sect later.”
Water too pure holds no fish. Wang Yu, who knew the nature of the demonic path, did not insist on every last coin, but the general total had to be made up.
The Bai Clan Grand Elder had served as the perfect mouthpiece.
Thus, the matter could only be reduced and dissolved.
“Today’s business ends here.
“Bai Clan Great Elder, I give you one month to make up all unpaid taxes. Any delay will be punished severely. The sa applies to everyone.”
“Dismissed.”
“Yes.”
“Yes.”
“As you command.”
So were pleased, so dissatisfied. After leaving the City Lord’s Manor, the Guan Clan Head seized the Bai Clan Great Elder and demanded harshly. “What are you playing at!”
The Bai Great Elder only shrugged innocently, his lips moving.
Quietly he used secret sound transmission.
In the next instant, Guan Clan Head loosened his grip, his eyes filled with shock.
“This… this will not completely enrage that brat, will it.”
“So what if it does. He is only a greenhorn relying on formations to act fierce. With no troops and no generals, what can he do to .”
Their secret discussion ended. The Jiang Clan Head also ca forward.
“Brother Guan, what did Elder Bai tell you.”
“You truly want to know.”
“Of course.”
“Hehe—”
Guan Clan Head leaned closer. Four words left Jiang Clan Head equally shocked, even uneasy. He had the feeling this was no good idea.
“Fire Dragon Burns the Warehouse.”
……
……
On the other side.
After sending everyone away, Wang Yu no longer bothered with such petty sches. Since the Bai Clan had taken the initiative to submit, to dispel the misunderstanding about the Bai Clan Head’s death, he was willing to give them a chance.
He had been in Jade Spirit City for so ti now. It was ti to return his focus to cultivation. A thousand sches, no matter how cunning, could never compare to a single punch from a Nascent Soul ancestor.
In the cultivation world, realm is the highest authority.
If he had Core Formation cultivation, he would not need to worry about these matters at all. He could subdue everyone by strength alone and make them act according to his rules.
Cultivation was what he should devote his energy to. Governing Jade Spirit City was only a ans to assist his cultivation. This priority must never be reversed.
With a solid start, what remained was to wait.
That day…
Wang Yu entered the Spirit Qi Chamber in the City Lord’s Mansion, where the spiritual energy was the densest. After all, this place was built upon a third-rank middle-grade spirit vein. There were many similar Spirit Qi Chambers here.
Such cultivation facilities benefited those with two, three, or four spiritual roots the most. They were the ones most easily influenced in a positive way by changes in the environnt.
Back when he was at the Ice and Snow Pavilion, he had regarded Spirit Qi Chambers as nothing more than chicken ribs. But now, they had beco powerful tools to accelerate his cultivation. Day by day, year by year, he could accumulate a great amount of true essence.
Lighting a stick of Tranquil Spirit Incense, Wang Yu sat cross-legged on a ditation cushion.
Without the support of the Heaven Enlightennt Cushion beneath him, he felt slightly uncomfortable for a while. Yet as his cultivation thod circulated, he gradually entered the proper state.
This ti, he ca to strengthen his divine sense realm.
He took a deep breath, and dense black ghostly evil energy was discharged from his bones and marrow. The black armor talisman condensed at his navel from the Soul-Devouring Demonic Armor Technique also glimred brilliantly.
Cold, howling winds filled the chamber. The temperature plumted.
All the living beings Wang Yu had devoured seed to revive at that mont. Their eyes glowed crimson, their mouths full of sharp fangs and teeth. Among them were both humans and demons.
At Wang Yu’s seated position, his physical body appeared to vanish. Only an illusory soul-body remained, frowning as it sat there. White spiritual flas radiated from his form. This was the secret divine sense technique Heavenly Soul Qi.
Hundreds of ferocious souls bound to the demonic armor lunged forward impatiently. This was their enemy. If not now, then when could they strike?
Outside, Wang Yu still sat calmly upon the ditation cushion. Aside from the black evil armor covering his entire body, there was no other change.
The ghost-face carvings on the armor seed alive, continuously shifting about. Even with his eyes closed, Wang Yu was lost in an illusion of devouring.
His fingers repeatedly pointed upon his body.
This was none other than the Soul-Shattering Finger at the minor completion stage. By allowing ferocious souls to gnaw at his body, he tempered his divine sense. Naturally, he had to control the upper limit. Those ferocious souls he shattered would return to their respective ghost-face carvings on the armor.
They would then fall into deep silence, awaiting the mont when they had accumulated enough strength to revive and strike back at their enemy once again.
This was the entire secret of the demonic technique Soul-Devouring Demonic Armor Technique. If one were to completely scatter those souls, the strength of the black evil armor would also be weakened, which would be a great loss.
Controlling this balance was of utmost importance.
No one knew how long passed. When Wang Yu awoke, his body was drenched in cold sweat, the marks of pain etched upon him.
His body was sowhat weak, but his eyes shone brightly.
“As expected, being gnawed upon by ferocious souls is an excellent way to temper myself. My divine sense has smoothly stepped into the late Foundation Establishnt stage…”
With the support of the Ancient Soul Art and Lunar Yin Moonlight, his cultivation rose rapidly.
After completing his session, Wang Yu rested for a while, then deliberately activated the effect of Soul-Gnawing again. He wanted to force all the ferocious souls into slumber at once, so they would not interfere with him during future battles.
It seed he had managed to avoid the side effects of this demonic technique.
anwhile.
Jade Spirit City, Bai Clan.
When the Bai Clan’s Great Elder explained the “brilliant” plan he had devised, Fire Dragon Burns the Warehouse, to the Bai Clan Patriarch,
This patriarch, nearly three hundred years old, whose youthful injuries had left hidden ailnts, and who had once used longevity treasures to extend his life, was a peak Foundation Establishnt cultivator. He was so enraged that he slapped the Great Elder away.
“Fool!”
The Bai Clan Patriarch’s blood surged violently. His body, already close to its limit, nearly collapsed as dizziness overca him. With trembling finger, he pointed at the culprit.
“Bai Zhiyang, I told you to go and make ands. And this is how you act? Do you know that what you have done could doom the entire Bai Clan?”
The Great Elder crawled out from the rubble of the collapsed building, clutching his swollen face in humiliation. Gritting his teeth, he said.
“Patriarch, that boy is only at the second layer of Foundation Establishnt. If not for the City Lord’s Mansion’s formation, our Clan Head would not have died there. He already harbors murderous intent against our Bai Clan.”
“You… you…”
At this ti, more elders of the Bai Clan rushed out, carefully supporting the Patriarch with worried expressions.
“Patriarch, do not damage your health with anger.”
A long mont later, the Bai Clan Patriarch struck his own chest, coughing out a mouthful of stagnant blood fueled by his rage. His complexion imdiately grew more ruddy. Breathing heavily, he said.
“You keep calling him that boy, dismissing him as just the second layer of Foundation Establishnt. You should have felt it yourself, how youthful his life force is.”
The Great Elder faltered, stamring.
“It seems… not older than fifty.”
“What? To be so young, and yet such a genius. No wonder he can already hold authority over a prosperous place like Jade Spirit City. This is the Exalted Sect rewarding and grooming him.”
Among the elders, so were shocked and worried, their hearts wavering. But others revealed disdain and greed.
“So what? Since he has co to Jade Spirit City, whether he is a dragon or a tiger, he must lie low. If he wants to snatch spirit stones from the Bai Clan, then let everything burn and see how he manages. Would he dare show himself?”
“Indeed. Just a coward hiding in his shell. As long as he does not enter the City Lord’s Mansion, what can he do to us?”
Hearing the younger generation speak in this way, the Bai Clan Patriarch felt utter despair. He struggled to his feet and cried out.
“Fools, fools! Jade Spirit City belongs to the Exalted Sect. You can defy anyone, but not the Exalted Sect. Even if we cooperate with the Yellow Spring Monastery, we still must hand over the proper share of taxes.”
“Patriarch!”
The Great Elder, who had reached the ninth layer of Foundation Establishnt and still had fifty years of lifespan remaining, showed a completely different face.
“n, escort the Patriarch back to the ancestral estate outside the city. Send all direct descendants of the third branch there as well.”
“As for Fire Dragon Burns the Warehouse, I will see it done.”
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