A black crow entered the Li family's spiritual formation, streaking past the bustling Outer and Inner Cities of Merit City. It cawed amidst the shouts of the common folk as it flew towards the crimson tree in the city's innermost core.
Li Changsheng floated serenely in the very center of the Old Tree. Beneath it, Li Changyao opened her eyes, and the black crow landed in her hand.
A gentle breeze swept through Merit City, and strands of her black hair brushed across Li Changyao's innocent face. A glint of golden light flashed in her eyes.
"Brother, a message has arrived from Scholar Wuwen of the Shadow Division. The great powers of Eternal Sun Prefecture have finally made their move."
Back then, at the foot of Qilin Mountain, the numerous powers of Eternal Sun Prefecture had all been humiliated. Li Dalong had ordered them to be thoroughly beaten, completely crushing their arrogance. They had no choice.
But this did not mean they were weak. The Li family had been able to defeat Tian Xing by leveraging the power of their formation, exploiting his weaknesses, and through Li Yaowen's clever manipulation of heavenly secrets.
"Of the Seven Great Families of Eternal Sun Prefecture, one has been wiped out. The remaining six, which of them doesn't have deep and powerful roots?
There is also an abundance of sects. The True Yang Faction, the Great Ming King Temple, the Red Star Fort… In total, three hundred and sixty-five powers at the Nascent Soul realm or higher are spread throughout the vast Eternal Sun Prefecture.
These powers have operated in the Eternal Sun Prefecture for many years. Their reach is so extensive; how could the Li family, who have only been here for a few decades, possibly compare?
If they were to activate their formations and unite with one another, and those Divinity Transformation and Nascent Soul cultivators decided to wage a guerrilla war against the Li family, or go into hiding just as the Li family once did, or even throw all rules to the wind and go on a killing spree… In that case, Prince Qian of Duravia Trade Prefecture wouldn't even need to act.
Eternal Sun Prefecture would simply be turned into a barren wasteland, and Prince Qian wouldn't spare it a second glance.
'These powers haven't necessarily thrown their lot in with Prince Qian for real. If they were truly that foolish, Great-Grandfather would have found an opportunity to kill them long ago.'"
Li Changsheng's voice sounded from within the tree. "For all these years, our family has been working to divide them. They've kept to themselves, but now they've found their opportunity. Either to bargain with us, or to join forces with Prince Qian and drive our Li family out of Eternal Sun Prefecture."
"It's just as Fourth Great-Grandaunt predicted."
Li Changyao grinned. "The moment the Feng Royal Mansion in Azure Cloud Region makes a move, the ever-cautious Prince Qian will know that our Li family is about to strike. These powers in Eternal Sun Prefecture are Prince Qian's opening move."
The brother and sister fell silent for a long moment.
Finally, Li Changsheng spoke, his tone measured and distant. "Changyao, I'll leave this to you."
"When is it ever not me who handles things? Just leave the Shadow Division to me."
Li Changyao waved her hand dismissively and turned away. The gentleness she showed Li Changsheng vanished, replaced by a frosty look in her eyes.
"Those wastes of space from the Tian Xing Cultivator Abode were no match for me at all. Ever since getting out of there, I've been itching to see if these old dogs from Eternal Sun Prefecture have truly gone senile!
If age has dulled them, then they should make way for the younger generation!"
...
The Nangong Family, The Hundred Treasures Pavilion.
Contrary to their somewhat vulgar title in Eternal Sun Prefecture, their vast mountain gate had none of the jade pavilions and marble towers one might expect, only fresh and elegant green tiles and blue bricks.
To ascend the mountain, one had to walk a path of bluestone slabs.
The descendants of the Nangong family were all more or less skilled in the four classic arts (the zither, the board game Go, calligraphy, and painting), and along the bluestone path, amidst the grass and trees, one could see these elegant merchants of the cultivation world.
This spring was the Nangong family's Grand Gathering, an event held once every hundred years.
Members of the Nangong family, dressed in a way that was both refined and opulent, gathered together.
Those who were virtuous in character and accomplished in the classic arts could win the favor of the Old Ancestor and use the occasion to sit and discuss the Dao.
The elder generation took the opportunity to see which of the Nangong children truly possessed the qualifications and temperament for cultivation.
Members of the Nangong family's direct line, spanning more than a hundred generations, sat beneath a pavilion. Among them, a handsome youth dressed in simple cloth robes always wore a faint smile.
The surrounding Nangong family members treated this youth with the utmost respect.
This was the Nangong family's most ancient elder of the current age, Nangong Xianliu.
Listening to the sounds of the zither drifting by, Nangong Xianliu smiled at a few clansmen beside him and said,
"Do you know why our Nangong family has this pretentious tradition? Back then, the founding ancestor of our family wasn't named Nangong. He had a surname so common it was a dime a dozen.
In those war-torn years, every household was poor, and it was believed that a humble and unflattering name made a child easier to raise, so the villagers all called him 'Little Ox'."
"Because his family was poor, he could only work for others like an Ox. Later, he learned how to do business, and once he had earned some money, he began to seek immortality.
He achieved some success and reached the Foundation Establishment stage, but because of his humble origins, his fellow Daoists still called him 'Little Ox.'
So, the founding ancestor changed his name and chose a surname that sounded noble, and our Nangong family began to practice the four classic arts."
Hearing this, the younger members of the Nangong family felt a stir of annoyance. Every time at the Grand Gathering, this Nangong Xianliu would bring up these old stories.
A member of the Nangong family who looked like an old scholar furrowed his brow.
"Venerable Ancestor, we can't even be sure if these stories are true. Our Nangong family has a legacy stretching back tens of thousands of years. What matters is that we have reached our current state of prosperity."
"Haha."
Nangong Xianliu held a golden token in his hand; it was the same kind of token the Nangong family used for receiving messages, but this one recorded the family's account books.
He rubbed the golden token as he spoke with a smile, "Whether it's true or not, I can't say for sure. But I haven't told you the whole story. I was afraid you'd find it too shameful."
The members of the Nangong family frowned.
Nangong Xianliu continued, "A merchant is a merchant, after all. The founding ancestor thought that by learning the four classic arts, he had become truly elegant. During a war back then, the ancestor truly believed his opportunity had come. He thought that if he joined a great battle with his fellow Daoists, he could seize more territory for himself.
Unfortunately, at the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, he stepped onto the battlefield and went down with absolutely no impact and disappeared insignificantly. Our ancestors had to pull his body out from a pile of corpses."
"The founding ancestor's eyes were wide open, but he was no longer breathing. The battlefield was covered in the filth of the dead, and the ancestor was covered in it from head to toe."
At such a Grand Gathering.
Hearing such words, the members of the Nangong family were red-faced with shame and anger.
They couldn't believe it; they couldn't believe their founding ancestor was so pathetic. But Nangong Xianliu wasn't just telling them a story. He was... warning them!
"Venerable Ancestor!" The family head of the Nangong, a middle-aged man with a dignified air, finally could not hide his anger.
"This is the Grand Gathering. I must ask that you refrain from speaking of such things any further, Venerable Ancestor!"
"Refrain from speaking of such things?!!"
Nangong Xianliu shot to his feet in fury, a powerful pressure erupting from him. The music of the zither throughout the Grand Gathering halted abruptly, followed by the sharp snap of breaking strings.
Pair after pair of terrified eyes stared at Nangong Xianliu. The Venerable Ancestor had always been gentle and amiable; they didn't know why he had flown into such a rage today.
It wasn't feet touching the ground, but the knees of the Nangong family members.
Burning with fury, Nangong Xianliu pointed at the golden token he had thrown to the floor, then at his clansmen, one by one. "Then you tell me, what is this I see after coming out from healing in seclusion?
"Who can tell me why all the spirit stones, Heavenly Materials, and Earthly Treasures from the ledgers have been used to set up a spiritual formation? You hired a Rank 4 Formation Master to create the 'Divine Smelting Imperial Formation,' a formation whose foundation will dissipate in a thousand years. What a grand gesture! You've exhausted ten thousand years of savings. Who are you defending against?"
The disciples of the Nangong family all bowed their heads.
Nangong Xianliu's furious tirade continued, "Forging immortal soldiers for the last forty years... Our Nangong family is in the business of trade! Where did the twenty thousand armored soldiers and two hundred thousand puppet soldiers hidden in the underground formation come from?"
Perhaps his anger had been spent, or perhaps it was the sight of his descendants, who knew only how to kowtow but not how to repent, that made Nangong Xianliu raise his head and let out a long sigh.
"You're trying to follow in the founding ancestor's footsteps. Have you forgotten? What brought us to where we are today is our honest business and the reputation of our Nangong family.
Why can't you understand that sometimes, a merchant truly has no place in a war?"
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