Family Cultivation: Evergreen of the Song Family

The Twin Islands, on the coast of White Dragon Island.

As Song Youlin gazed at the surging blue waves ahead, countless thoughts seemed to swirl in his mind.

A month and a half has passed since the start of the war. The fighting is fierce and the battles are fierce on all sides, but the flames of war have not yet reached their side.

This should have been a good thing, after all, the East China Sea Alliance is currently in a period of rapid development, with vast sea frontiers and countless spirit islands waiting for them to conquer.

The alliance is also developing rapidly, with a large amount of resources being discovered, so much so that even with the help of the [Gold-Eating Insects], they cannot be fully utilized.

The major members of the alliance are all inland powers, with the oldest being the Bandung Merchant Guild, which has only existed for a little over ten thousand years.

However, the cultivation world of Gusu has been developed for several eras. Theoretically speaking, all resources can be regenerated, it's just a matter of time. The speed of regeneration is far slower than the speed of use, and by this time, resources are already very scarce.

The cultivation world of the Great Qi is notoriously poor in resources.

The cultivation world of the Great Chu, where Muyun City is located, is in a slightly better position, but it has never produced a Golden Core cultivator. It is caught in the middle of several major Golden Core forces and becomes a punching bag, barely able to maintain its position by remaining neutral. No matter how many resources are available, they will never get them.

To put it simply, apart from the Wanlong Chamber of Commerce, which is run by a wealthy young master, the other families are all poor.

The sudden discovery of so many resources was like a poor person suddenly becoming rich. They were so focused on it that they poured all their energy into developing it, and several markets were formed.

As the saying goes, "no pain, no gain," meaning that investments are made in the early stages but reaped the rewards later. Just when everything seems to be on track and it's time to reap the rewards, if war breaks out at this point, a century of hard work could be destroyed in an instant.

Therefore, during this period, the elders within the East China Sea Alliance were secretly delighted, as sitting on the sidelines and watching the tigers fight was undoubtedly the outcome they most hoped for.

Although there is a Blood Soul Demon Sect fleet outside, it has not attacked yet, which is obviously a bluff and there is no need to pay attention to it.

Once the Myriad Palace defeats the sea creatures, everything will return to normal.

This was almost a consensus among the elders, but Song Youlin didn't think so. In his opinion, the Blood Soul Demon Sect's mobilization of such a large force was definitely not just a bluff.

After all, Song Changsheng once said that when he annihilated the Sea Yaksha clan, he encountered a person at sea who claimed to be the Great Protector of the Blood Soul Demon Sect, whose strength was above that of an ordinary Golden Core Great Perfection cultivator.

This shows that the Blood Soul Demon Sect is not weak; at least it is stronger than their forces in the East China Sea.

The fact that the other party has not made a move for so long must mean they have some other scheme in mind, and this uncertainty is the source of his troubles.

"Governor, so you're here."

Just then, a clear voice rang out behind him.

The other person's voice was very distinctive. Even without turning around, he knew it was Song Mingyuan, the steward of the Wind Whisper Hall who had been sent here by Song Jingxiu a few years ago.

He was the first cultivator in the "Ming" generation of the Song family to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage. He was only twenty-seven years old at the time, and Song Changsheng had personally received him.

He is not yet a hundred years old, but he is already a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. When he is over a hundred years old, he will be a Great Perfection Foundation Establishment cultivator, only one step away from the Purple Mansion stage.

There are quite a few outstanding cultivators among the "Ming" generation. Although Song Mingyuan only has three spiritual roots, there are not many among his peers who have achieved such success.

Song Jingxiu had always groomed him as his successor. When he broke through to the Purple Mansion stage in seclusion, the Song family's intricate intelligence network in the East China Sea would be temporarily handed over to Song Mingyuan. His trip to the Twin Islands was merely his last trial before taking office.

He was meticulous and thorough in his actions. He was kind to people but also ruthless. He showed no fear in the face of a major battle. After several years of getting to know him, he greatly admired this rising star.

The other person's voice was always full of cheerfulness and confidence, but this time, he seemed to hear something else in it.

"What happened?"

Song Mingyuan pursed his lips and said, "One good news and one bad news."

The good news is that the family has just achieved a glorious victory, annihilating the main forces of two major demon kingdoms in one battle. Although the remaining major demon kingdoms have not retreated, they have temporarily ceased hostilities.

However, the clan chief is seriously injured and currently unconscious. He wants us to collect some treasures that can dispel or suppress the deathly aura without making a sound.

"What?" Song Youlin was startled and quickly took the jade slip from his hand to check the details of the matter. The more he read, the more shocked he became. After reading the last word, he was unable to calm down for a long time.

He hadn't expected the demon race to invest so much this time, to the point that Song Changsheng had to go to such lengths.

"If this is good news, then what's the bad news?" He felt incredibly frustrated.

"Thousand Blade City has defected."

"Are you sure it's a defection?" Song Youlin's gaze instantly turned sharp.

The difference between "escaping" and "defection" is only one word, but they represent completely different meanings.

"This morning, I received three messages, one of which you have already seen."

The second message came from the mistress, saying that Qianren City deserted during the battle and that we should send someone to investigate.

At the same time, I received a message from the headquarters about Thousand Blade City. Everyone in Thousand Blade City, from City Lord Shen Xunyan down, had disappeared, leaving only mortals and some low-ranking servants and outer disciples. They not only abandoned the Thousand Blade Islands, but also Thousand Blade City.

The news was spread by the outer disciples who remained behind, and now Thousand Blade City is in complete chaos.

Strangely, the sea creatures did not attack the Thousand Blade Islands, but instead concentrated their forces to besiege the Vast Ocean Merchant Guild. Based on information from various sources, we have every reason to believe that Thousand Blade City has betrayed us.

The Tenglong Islands are already tightening their defenses, and I believe we also need to be more vigilant.

"With the Wanxiang Palace protecting the Thousand Blade Islands, how dare Shen Xunyan act like this?" Song Youlin frowned, feeling a slight ache in his head.

"Something must have gone wrong. After receiving the news, I sent a message to the Wanxiang Palace to verify, but I haven't received a reply yet."

At this moment, a flash of inspiration struck Song Youlin, and he suddenly realized the Blood Soul Demon Sect's intentions. He exclaimed, "This is bad! Quickly, have the Myriad Manifestations Palace contact the protectors stationed at the Hanhai Chamber of Commerce to find an opportunity to break through."

"You mean, the Hanhai Chamber of Commerce might follow the same path as Qianren City?" Song Mingyuan was startled.

"It's not a possibility, it's a certainty!"
The Hanhai Chamber of Commerce is now isolated and helpless. Once news of Qianren City's defection spreads, they will surely make the same choice in their desperate situation.

These two companies have had their share of dirty dealings, otherwise they wouldn't have lost the trust of Wanxiang Palace.

The Han Hai Chamber of Commerce was already wavering, and now that Thousand Blade City has taken its first step, it has undoubtedly strengthened their resolve. Once they switch sides, the Blood Soul Demon Sect will certainly not stand idly by any longer, and then the Tenglong Islands will be in danger.

Song Mingyuan instantly realized the seriousness of the situation.

Thousand Blade City is one thing, but its foundation is shallow, so even if it defectes to the Sea Clan, it won't have a significant impact. But the Vast Ocean Merchant Guild is different. It's one of the top merchant guilds in the borderlands, possessing numerous external channels and stockpiling massive amounts of resources. Once these strategic resources fall into the hands of the Sea Clan, their war potential will undoubtedly surge.

After all, elixirs, magical artifacts, talismans, and formations—these products related to the various arts of cultivation—have always been a weakness of foreign races and are extremely scarce resources.

This is also the key reason why the human race is able to overpower all other races.

If it were just about supplies, that would be fine. The most crucial thing is talent reserves. The Hanhai Chamber of Commerce has no shortage of talents related to cultivation and various arts.

If these people fall into the hands of the sea creatures and provide them with war support, the consequences will be unimaginable.

In particular, array masters rely on arrays to defend against the sea creatures, who are unfamiliar with this art and often resort to brute force.

Once a formation master intervenes, the sea creatures will be able to grasp the key to breaking the formation.

As far as he knew, the Hanhai Chamber of Commerce happened to have a fourth-tier array master in charge.

Song Mingyuan dared not delay and hurriedly returned to deliver the news to Wanxiang Palace...

On the other side, Wanxiang Palace had also received Song Qingxi's battle report, and the True Lords were also frowning.

The Southwest Alliance was naturally pleased with their great victory, but they felt it wasn't worth it if it came at the cost of Song Changsheng.

In their eyes, Song Changsheng was a prodigy who had the potential to break through to the Nascent Soul stage and lead the entire border region back to the mainstream cultivation world; otherwise, they wouldn't have entrusted that item to him.

This victory came at a far too painful cost.

"Whether Song Zixu can wake up or not is not the most important thing right now. The most urgent task is to remove the death energy from his body as soon as possible. Otherwise, even if he wakes up, his foundation will be damaged," Yi Tianzheng said incisively.

Lei Xiang Zhenjun said in a deep voice, "This matter must be dealt with urgently. The Thunder King Palace has been waiting for this moment because they have not made any move. Once Song Zixu falls, the Nine Realms of the Southwest will not be able to withstand a Nascent Soul cultivator for even an hour."

"Once death energy enters the body, it is not so easy to remove it. This is no easy task."

Just when the two were at a loss, Dragon Elephant True Lord suddenly spoke up: "The Ji family of Tianshui has a girl who cultivates the Law of Death. She already showed some promise during the Five Academies Grand Competition. It is said that she needs to use Yellow Spring Water when she cultivates it."

This isn't something easily obtained. Even if she did, the deathly aura wouldn't be something that girl could withstand. The Ji family must have some unique method. Why not ask them?

Upon hearing this, Yi Tianzheng's eyes lit up and he said, "I had completely forgotten about this. This is indeed a good idea."

“The Ji family is not an ordinary group of people. Since it is a secret technique, they probably won’t hand it over to us easily.”

“It’s impossible for an ordinary person to go, but there is one person who absolutely can,” Yi Tianzheng said confidently.

"You don't want Shi Nian to go, do you? You should know that their relationship has been very strained over the years." Lei Xiang Zhenjun was clearly somewhat dissatisfied with his decision.

Yi Tianzheng, however, was somewhat dismissive: "No matter how tense things get, we must know that blood is thicker than water, and blood ties can never be severed."

Moreover, Shi Nian has now broken through to the Nascent Soul stage, and his situation is vastly different from before. The Ji family of Tianshui will not give up this opportunity to repair relations.

Lei Xiang Zhenjun snorted coldly and said, "Hmph, they can only do so if Shi Nian agrees."

“Song Zixu and he have a good relationship. Shi Nian should not refuse to make this trip. Just send a message to him. Once you get the method, head to the southwest to take charge. I’m worried that the Thunder King Palace will take the opportunity to cause trouble.”

Like the Song family, the Palace Master of Wanxiang Palace wields absolute power. Since he has already made the decision, although True Lord Lei Xiang had some reservations, he did not continue to object.

"This is an exciting and resounding victory, no matter what. Pass it on and let those who are wavering see it."

Upon hearing this topic, the gazes of the True Lords present immediately turned sharp.

The Twin Islands had already received the news; how could they not know? The two sides acted almost simultaneously.

It has to be said that Thousand Blade City really caught them off guard this time.

A great battle took place near the Thousand Blade Islands some time ago, and two elders of the Myriad Manifestations Palace were in imminent danger. The guardians stationed on the Thousand Blade Islands were transferred to provide support.

When he returned, Shen Xunyan had already led a group of elites in a defection, and it was almost certain that they had surrendered to the sea tribe.

"I think this is an opportunity. If the Hanhai Chamber of Commerce really sides with the sea race, then we should wipe them out in one fell swoop, which will be a good opportunity to lure out Kongsang Lifeng and Kongsang Baijue."

Even if they don't fall for it, we can still clean house.

"So, does Grandmaster Uncle mean to make this trip himself?"

“That’s right, I’ll go myself. Palace Master, you can return to the palace to take charge. As long as I show my face, the Thunder King Palace will most likely be unable to sit still.” A cold glint flashed in the eyes of True Monarch Thunder Elephant.

……

Just as they suspected, Thousand Blade City had indeed surrendered to the Sea Clan, not because it was premeditated, but entirely on a whim.

From Shen Xunyan's perspective, regardless of whether he wins or loses this battle, Thousand Blade City will not be the winner.

If that's the case, why stay and die?

Moreover, the sea creatures had contacted him before the war, but at that time he was very optimistic about the war and never expected it to turn out like this.

Under the threat of death, he chose to accept the olive branch extended by the sea creatures.

After changing his stance, his attitude changed just as quickly, and he went directly to the Hanhai Islands to help the sea creatures lobby the Hanhai Chamber of Commerce.

He was well aware of the current predicament of the Hanhai Chamber of Commerce, and he also knew Kuohai Zhenren's character perfectly well. He knew that the other party simply lacked a little courage and confidence.

With the help of the sea creatures, he made contact with the informant he had previously planted within the maritime merchant guild, and through him, he contacted Master Kuohai.

As he expected, Master Kuohai did not refuse outright, but instead proposed to meet and discuss the matter in detail.

Without hesitation, he entered the Vast Ocean Islands alone through the secret door provided by the other party to act as a persuader.

He thought he had everything under control, but little did he know that True Lord Lei Xiang had already arrived above the battlefield, coldly watching his every move.

...(End of this chapter)