"Everyone, many of our friends from Azure Cloud charged into the Duravia Trade Prefecture. In doing so, they have enabled our Azure Cloud, in this age of great chaos, to eliminate the hidden tiger and wolf at our side, securing for us a hundred, perhaps even a thousand, years of peace."
Li Dalong spoke, and the assembled people of Azure Cloud lowered their gazes. They had already been told what had transpired, though they did not know the full picture.
Li Dalong continued in a grave voice,
"This war involved many conflicts. The great Immortal Clans and sects of Eternal Sun Prefecture are now in open warfare, and the fighting will not cease for the next hundred years. This is a prosperous land.
Years ago, I wished for our people of Azure Cloud to be able to walk freely in the Eternal Sun Prefecture, but I was thwarted by the resentment of its inhabitants.
Now, there is no place in Eternal Sun where the people of Azure Cloud cannot go."
"And what of the Duravia Trade Prefecture?"
Feng Chunlin, the Li family's in-law, knew how to continue the conversation.
"We fought our way out of the Duravia Trade Prefecture, and Prince Qian has fallen into our hands, but the Three Great Powers still remain."
"The Three Great Immortal Sects are no longer a cause for concern," Li Dalong said with a smile.
"On that day, we fought a desperate battle in the Duravia Trade Prefecture, captured Prince Qian, and killed Ming Daozi of the Void Refining realm. This has already left the prefecture leaderless. As for the internal affairs of the Three Great Powers… Chang'an, why don't you explain?"
Hearing his Great-Grandfather call on him, Li Chang'an showed no sign of nervousness, even when facing so many seniors.
He nodded slightly and then said, "This junior spent many years in the Aeternus Sect, so I am exceedingly familiar with the Three Great Powers."
The people of Azure Cloud blinked as Li Chang'an began to speak.
They knew of many members of the Li family, but as for this Li Chang'an, most of those present had rarely even heard his name.
Even those who had only knew that the Li family had a certain Li Chang'an who served as the Law Enforcer in Eternal Sun Prefecture—a position akin to that of a judge.
They listened as Li Chang'an explained, "The situation in the Duravia Trade Prefecture is clear. It is composed of twelve regions, each with two or more great Clans that hold each other in check, all managed by the Three Great Powers. The disciples within these sects are all children from the families of the various regional cities. The families look to the Three Great Powers for leadership; they are interdependent, yet they remain wary of one another."
"In this recent war, their greatest weakness was exposed," he continued. "When the disciples from the various clans saw that the situation was turning against them, they all slipped away to save themselves."
Hearing this, the people of Azure Cloud let out a sneer.
Damn it, they thought to themselves, the people of Duravia are useless trash.
Li Chang'an paid no mind to their expressions and continued, "I imagine you are all thinking that the people of Duravia are so selfish they are nothing but trash. But you would be wrong. It is precisely because they are wary of one another, and because their Clans have been suppressed by the Three Great Powers for so many years, that they took this opportunity to break free from their control. They even wanted to use our hands to eliminate the Three Great Powers."
As soon as he said this, the expressions of even the Li family members and Li Wei changed. Although these Clans could not pose a threat to them, their ruthlessness was truly chilling.
"And then there is the Aeternus Sect."
Li Chang'an remained calm. "Daoist Puci is no saint. He has always been ambitious. The moment something happened to Prince Qian, he immediately ceased hostilities with the senior White Qilin."
Li Wei and Li Dalong both knew this.
At that time, Li Wei had already recovered from the agonizing pain. Although he was in a state of epiphany, he would have willingly given up the opportunity if it meant he could have taken down Daoist Puci.
"In truth, Daoist Puci doesn't care who becomes the ruler of the Duravia Trade Prefecture," Li Chang'an said.
"He is very pleased with the current situation. The disciples from the various clans have all left the Three Great Powers and returned to their respective families. He has lost a rival—and his most important one at that: the compassionate Ming Daozi, who hadn't taken a life in twenty thousand years. Now, he is the only one in the entire Duravia Trade Prefecture at the Void Refining realm."
"If I were him…"
Li Chang'an was fond of analysis. He smiled and said, "Faced with this situation, the Three Great Powers are at their weakest, and Prince Qian is already a thing of the past. Our Li family will inevitably seize this opportunity to devour the rich prize that is the Duravia Trade Prefecture. He cannot stop it, and neither can the great Clans. But if I were him, I would never start another bloody war over it."
"If I were him, I would accept the current state of affairs and side with the victor. But at the same time, the great Clans of the twelve regions of the Duravia Trade Prefecture would become apprehensive. They would fear that once the Li family enters the prefecture, we would seize their space for survival."
"Therefore, he will inevitably use this opportunity to become the backer for the great Clans of the twelve regions. And then, using his status as their protector, he will pledge his allegiance to us."
The people of Azure Cloud stared wide-eyed.
An ambitious fence-sitter, to be sure, but a fence-sitter at the Void Refining realm nonetheless.
But they also understood one crucial thing: whether in the Duravia Trade Prefecture or the Eternal Sun Prefecture, from this day forward, there was nowhere they could not go.
As Li Chang'an finished his analysis, Li Dalong let out a long breath.
"Everyone," he said, "are you ready to receive the lands we have conquered?"
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