Family Cultivation: Evergreen of the Song Family

"Click"

The blade chipped open and emitted a mournful sword cry.

Bai Zimo's figure reappeared, staggering.

"Wow"

The shattered black and white millstone transformed into pure yin and yang energies in the air and spread out. In an instant, the colors of the world before his eyes faded wildly, turning into a black and white expanse.

The power of heaven and earth pressed down, as if to crush him completely.

This is the second transformation of the [World-Destroying Millstone], and it is also the pinnacle of Song Changsheng's creativity. Even Bai Zimo, who has rich combat experience, did not realize that this divine power actually contains such a passive transformation, and was caught off guard.

"Crack, crack..." A tooth-grinding sound suddenly rang out between heaven and earth, originating from Bai Zimo's limbs and bones.

It is also two enormous forces, but unlike before when they were tearing each other in opposite directions, they are now squeezing each other towards the center.

Even with his physique honed through countless trials, he was already feeling the strain after just one breath.

Bai Zimo's face was calm as water, but his eyes were bloodshot and red from the pressure, and the veins on his exposed skin were bulging, as if they might burst at any moment.

Compared to muscles and bones that have undergone countless trials, the load on the brain and internal organs increases exponentially under these circumstances.

The sharp sword energy burst forth, clashing with the surrounding yin and yang energies, but it couldn't have any real effect because he was inside the domain.

Sword cultivators have sword domains, and other laws naturally have corresponding domain spaces. Within these law domain spaces, the caster's power will be multiplied, while their power will be continuously weakened.

The Yin-Yang principle has the power to reverse the order of things, and this is even more evident in this respect.

Unless one's understanding of the laws far surpasses that of Song Changsheng, such a confrontation is destined to end badly.

"Humph……"

Bai Zimo let out a muffled groan, and a trickle of bright red blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

This scene made Bai Yan secretly gasp. Not only did Bai Zimo fail to suppress Song Changsheng, but he was also at a disadvantage in the confrontation between supernatural powers and laws. Just how strong was Song Changsheng? Was this really the power that a Golden Core cultivator in the early stage could unleash?
Most surprisingly, he has not used any magical artifacts yet.

If they were in each other's shoes, both at the late stage of the Golden Core realm, her performance might not even be as good as Song Changsheng's.

Looking back more than a hundred years ago, when Song Changsheng had just broken through to the Purple Mansion stage and held the Purple Mansion Ceremony, she only sent a congratulatory gift with the intention of winning him over and investing in him.

Unexpectedly, in just one hundred years, the promising young man who had just shown his talent had already acquired the power to rival him.

Such a rate of growth can only be described as astonishing.

This further solidified her resolve to befriend and invest in the company. She had a premonition that this would be the most successful investment she had ever made, and indeed the entire Tianmai Sect, in thousands of years!
At this moment, Bai Zimo drew his sword and unleashed another golden sword beam, purging the Yin and Yang energies completely, and staggered back several steps.

According to the previous agreement, as long as Song Changsheng could withstand three of his sword strikes, he would be considered to have lost. Now that he has already used four sword strikes, the outcome is self-evident.

He didn't seem angry or embarrassed at all. He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and said in a deep voice, "Impressive skill."

On the other side, Song Changsheng, who had just won a small victory, was not in much better shape either. He had activated the Suanni Dharma Image and two powerful divine abilities that consumed a lot of energy. Even with the recovery speed of his [Great Dao Golden Core], he was finding it difficult to continue.

Song Changsheng swallowed a Rejuvenation Pill, cupped his hands and said, "Fellow Daoist Bai, you flatter me."

Bai Zimo glanced at the ripples of the Xianglu River, then vanished from sight in a wisp of breeze. After a long while, his calm voice drifted back from the horizon: "I have never been here today."

This attitude is quite clear: if they haven't been here, it's equivalent to not knowing about Kong Sang Xi Ruo's affairs, and the Golden Crow Sect will no longer get involved or report it.

Similarly, if any problems arise as a result, Song Changsheng will bear all the consequences himself.

"Phew..." Song Changsheng breathed a long sigh of relief. With that, the matter was over.

Not disturbing the dragon clan is naturally the best outcome.

"Now that this matter is settled, I will take my leave. Fellow Daoist Song, you are welcome to visit my sect when you have time. There are quite a few young disciples in our sect who regard you as a role model and idol."

After saying that, he looked at Mu Guibai and said, "The Great City Lord is also one."

Having said that, Bai Yan's feet created clouds, and she rode the wind away...

Finally, a voice transmission reached Song Changsheng's ears: "Fellow Daoist Song, humans and demons are different, and given this woman's special identity, keeping her by your side for too long is a sure way to bring disaster. Remember this, remember this."

Song Changsheng shook his head slightly. He truly owed Bai Yan a favor today. If it weren't for her intervention, Bai Zimo probably wouldn't have been so easy to talk to.

He underestimated the power of Kong Sang Xi Ruo's bloodline, which triggered the Heavenly Tribulation ahead of schedule.

"What are your plans to do next?"

With the outer array and barrier broken, the underwater palace located at the bottom of the river was exposed.

Mu Guibai's gaze seemed to penetrate the layers of palace walls and land on Kong Sang Xiruo. From any angle, she was a hot potato.

However, she holds extraordinary significance for Song Changsheng, and he doesn't want to interfere too much with Song Changsheng's choice. Furthermore, he believes that Song Changsheng can make the right choice.

After all, this disciple of his had never disappointed him.

Song Changsheng paused for a moment and said, "She is new to this world, and I am really worried about handing her over to someone else so rashly."

I want her to stay at the Song family's place for a while first, and then decide where to send her based on her wishes.

During this time, I will definitely keep her under control and keep her hidden away, and I will absolutely not let anyone else know of her existence.

"Since you've already made up your mind, then go ahead and do it."

"It's better for her to stay in Daqi. With her bloodline, if she really returns to the East Sea, she might become a major threat to the human race in the future," Mu Guibai said softly.

"Disciple understands. I am grateful to Master for supporting me today."

I'll take her back to recover. There are quite a few cultivators around Xianglu River, and now that the tribulation lightning has dissipated, they'll probably swarm over here in droves.

Mu Guibai nodded and said, "With so many people around, this place is not a good place to stay for long."

After returning, we jointly announced to the outside world that a demon had become powerful near Xianglu River, attracting a heavenly calamity, and that we had now joined forces to kill it.

This should also reduce some unfounded speculation.

Perfectly, there's no need to create any traces of battle. The traces of the previous sword fight between Song Changsheng and Bai Zimo are enough to fool most people.

"As ordered."

Song Changsheng nodded, then with a flick of his sleeve parted the turbulent river water, and landed lightly in the palace at the bottom of the river. Kong Sang Xiruo's breathing had become stable. He gently stroked her with his palm and cast a sleight of hand spell on her.

He then used his magic to lift her up and bring her to the surface of the river. Looking at the underwater palace, he was in a dilemma. The palace itself was a fifth-order magic artifact, extremely luxurious and full of treasures. Naturally, he couldn't just leave it here.

However, with Kong Sang Xiruo currently unconscious, taking away such a powerful Jiangxia Water Mansion, comparable to a city, is no easy task.

"It seems the less important parts will have to be sealed here for now." Song Changsheng spread his wide sleeves and activated [Sleeve Universe], unleashing spatial power that swept away the scriptures and valuable cultivation resources in the outer palaces.

Time was of the essence, and he didn't have time to examine it carefully. Fortunately, this technique allowed his sleeves to form their own universe, and even after storing so many things, there was no sign of the space becoming unstable.

Looking at the palace floating in the water, Song Changsheng hesitated for a moment, but finally tried to erase the divine imprint left on it by Kong Sang Xiruo. Only in this way could he take it away.

The artifact before me, though described as a fifth-order magic weapon, does not appear to have been crafted in the last few hundred years. Its spiritual essence is perfectly natural, and its laws of the Great Dao are complete, clearly indicating that it has been carefully nurtured for a long time.

Logically speaking, it should already be among the ranks of [Law Treasures], but I don't know why it doesn't have a spirit.

These magical artifacts contain the laws of the Great Dao, have their own internal space, and their spirits not only possess extremely high intelligence but can also manifest externally.

Although it has no physical form, it can exert eight or nine-tenths of the original body's strength without relying on the host's power.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him a weakened version of a Nascent Soul cultivator.

It's no exaggeration to say that if the spirit of the artifact were still alive, he wouldn't even need to take action. Within the Great Qi, probably no one could threaten Kong Sang Xi Ruo.

Refining such a treasure is not so simple; it's not as easy as simply erasing the original host's divine consciousness imprint. It also depends on "fate".

Song Changsheng did this out of desperation, but he didn't actually have much hope.

Surprisingly, the entire process, from erasing Kong Sang Xi Ruo's divine sense imprint to imprinting his own and refining it, went surprisingly smoothly and was completed in just a quarter of an hour.

Even Song Changsheng was a little confused after completing this process.

It should be noted that even when he was refining the magic weapon he had taken from Song Tianyuan, it took him nearly an hour, which was already considered incredibly fast.

This time, the speed was even more unpredictable.

He tried waving, and the main body of the palace actually slowly moved toward him.

"Small."

As soon as the words were spoken, the once enormous palace began to shrink rapidly, like a deflated balloon. The vast palace eventually shrank to the size of a palm, looking like a miniature model.

However, even in this cultivation world, there are probably very few people who can make such a detailed model. It is no less difficult than refining a [Law Treasure].

Only after he put it into his sleeve did Song Changsheng finally realize that he had indeed refined this treasure, but... how did he do it?

It wasn't that he was exceptionally talented; in fact, it was Kong Sang Xi Ruo who secretly helped him.

She is currently in a very mysterious state; she cannot speak, see, or use her magic, but her consciousness remains clear.

She had also "heard" the entire battle between Song Changsheng and Bai Zimo.

With her permission as his master, Song Changsheng's refining process proceeded smoothly.

"Master, I shall take my leave now."

"Go ahead, people are already coming this way."

Not long after the two left, a cultivator from the Purple Mansion Realm arrived by air and fell into deep thought as he looked at the scorched marks left by the raging lightning on the ground.

"Who exactly is undergoing tribulation here? Why is there not even a trace of their presence left behind?"

The heavenly tribulation was so powerful that even though he was nearby, he didn't dare to get close. Only now that the tribulation had completely dissipated did he dare to come over and take a look.

I initially thought it was some rare treasure that had appeared in the world, and I wanted to come and try my luck, but now it seems I was just overthinking it.

His divine sense swept around the surroundings and discovered the lingering wisp of sword energy in the air, a look of horror appearing on his face...

Song Changsheng returned to Cangmang Peak as quickly as possible. Zhuang Yuechan, who had already learned of the news, had ordered a room to be prepared and personally greeted him at the door.

"How did you end up clashing with Master Tianjian? Are you alright?" Zhuang Yuechan asked with concern.

"It just consumed a lot of energy, but I didn't suffer any losses."

"That means True Immortal Tianjian has suffered a loss. Will the Golden Crow Sect let this go?" Zhuang Yuechan asked, her delicate brows furrowing slightly.

In her memory, Tianjian Zhenren was not an easy person to deal with, and the Golden Crow Sect had always been quite assertive in dealing with outsiders. How could they let go of a loss so easily?
"Don't worry, it's been resolved."

Song Changsheng waved his sleeve to remove the illusion surrounding Kong Sang Xiruo and placed her on the soft bed.

Looking at the peacefully sleeping Kong Sang Xiruo, Zhuang Yuechan couldn't help but sigh, "What a beautiful person! I've heard that all the merfolk are stunningly beautiful, and seeing her today, I can confirm the rumors." "Didn't she successfully break through? Why is she asleep?"

"It's most likely related to the sudden surge of power from her bloodline. All her bodily functions are normal, so there shouldn't be any major problems. Let her rest for a while and see. Her identity is still quite sensitive, so it's not convenient for her to see people for the time being."

Zhuang Yuechan was aware of the previous rumors, and it was indeed inconvenient to expose Kong Sang Xiruo's identity to others.

"Alright, I'll take care of her for a while. You should focus on your cultivation, as time is running out."

"Thank you for your hard work, my wife. Today's sparring with Fellow Daoist Bai was indeed very fruitful. I will go into seclusion now. Please let me know when Xiruo wakes up."

Bai Zimo's third sword strike provided Song Changsheng with a lot of inspiration, and he felt that he might be able to learn a trick from him.

In addition, he also needs to study Kong Sang Xi Ruo's [Law Treasure]. This is the first time he has come into contact with a magic weapon of this level, and studying it carefully will definitely greatly improve his weapon crafting skills.

"You should still inform the elders' council so they can be mentally prepared," Zhuang Yuechan reminded them.

"It's natural."

Song Changsheng nodded. It was indeed necessary to inform them about this matter, as it involved risks.

After confirming Kong Sang Xiruo's condition once again, he immediately convened a small meeting with the family's powerful elders.

In addition to reporting this matter, I also wanted to find out the movements of the family's fleet sent to the East China Sea.

This fleet carries nearly one-fifth of the Song family's elite forces, as well as a large number of ordinary people. Their movements must be monitored at all times, otherwise the Song family would suffer serious damage if anything unexpected happened.

Moreover, that fleet also included Song Jingxiao, a genius with the family's Thunder Spirit Root, and his eldest niece, Xu Miaoyin.

His disciple, Chi Li, was also in the fleet.

If anything goes wrong, Song Changsheng will really go on a killing spree.

As for Kong Sang Xi Ruo's matter, since Song Qing Xi had already hinted at it beforehand, the elders were not surprised at all. They were just worried that it might attract the covetousness of outsiders.

"I just received a message from Qingxia three days ago. The family fleet is about to arrive at the Great Qian Cultivation World. We have not encountered any unexpected accidents along the way, and the various cultivation worlds we have passed through have been very cooperative and have not made things difficult for us."

It is estimated that it will take approximately thirteen months to reach the Twin Islands.

"It will take another thirteen months. This journey is going to take longer than I expected."

Song Changsheng frowned slightly. This fleet had set off from his family when he was still in the East China Sea. Now he had been back for three years, and the fleet still needed thirteen months. In other words, just the one-way ticket would take nearly five years.

What a mess this trip would be!

The energy consumed by the airship alone is already a huge amount.

However, considering that the fleet included a large number of inter-domain flying ships carrying mortals, Song Changsheng felt relieved.

Mortals have limited endurance, and long-distance voyages are an extremely tedious affair. Even Qi Refining cultivators need to disembark every three to five years to get some fresh air and relax, let alone mortals with no cultivation.

Every few months, the fleet must stop and rest for a few days before it can set sail again.

The speed of the inter-domain airship increases slowly during the journey. It takes at least several months to accelerate to the maximum speed. Often, the fleet has to stop just as it reaches that threshold. It would be a miracle if it were fast.

"How is the construction of the spatial passage in Muyun City progressing?" Song Changsheng asked in a deep voice.

Compared to air transport, space transport is more expensive, but it is far more efficient. As long as the East China Sea Alliance is not established, it will remain an isolated enclave, and he will always feel uneasy without establishing contact.

"The city of Muyun has dispatched more than twenty array masters of various ranks who are skilled in building spatial teleportation arrays. Several teleportation nodes are under construction simultaneously, and most of them are now complete."

"Judging from the current progress, the space passage may be completed before the family fleet arrives at the Twin Islands," Song Changxiu said respectfully.

"More than twenty?" Song Changsheng raised an eyebrow slightly, somewhat surprised.

Although Muyun City has a profound foundation that is no less than that of a Golden Core cultivator, the number of twenty-odd array masters is probably the maximum that the three major families can offer.

To construct such a long-distance spatial teleportation array, the participants must be at least second-tier top-grade array masters, and there must be at least a third-tier high-grade, experienced array master leading the project.

Muyun City has really gone all out.

Hiring so many array masters normally would cost tens of millions of low-grade spirit stones in fees alone over the past few years, not to mention the rare materials needed to construct the spatial passage.

None of the Song family members contributed any money; the entire responsibility was handled by the Muyun City authorities.

Although it's at cost price, it's still an astronomical figure.

"This deal is far too good to be true." Song Luzhou clicked his tongue in amazement. Not to mention their era, even when he was the family's elder, such a huge project was something he could only dream of.

When Jiangzhou was newly established, in order to attract popularity, the Song family brought out many of their best items, as well as a large amount of land and resources from Jiangzhou. They made ten million in one auction, and they could laugh in their dreams at that time.

It's no exaggeration to say that they had never seen so many spirit stones before.

However, ten million low-grade spirit stones would barely cover the individual labor costs for this project.

This change in circumstances feels like a dream.

“The family can offer them even more,” Song Qingxi said calmly. Then she took out a jade slip and said, “According to the news from the Twin Islands, Muyun City is rapidly expanding in the surrounding area and has already occupied hundreds of spirit islands of all sizes.”

The development of resources in the surrounding waters in cooperation with the Bandung Chamber of Commerce generates hundreds of thousands in net revenue annually, and it's not impossible to increase this to millions as the cooperation expands in the future.

The elders had already learned about this data beforehand; it was mainly meant for Song Changsheng to hear.

"If their profits are so high, their families must be doing just as well, right?"

The Song family and Luoxia City occupy the most valuable area of ​​the Twin Islands. They also obtained a map of the surrounding sea area through the Demon King Liuli, containing hundreds of resource points of varying sizes. Their profits will definitely be greater than those of Muyun City.

Song Qingxi smiled slightly and said, "After officially establishing cooperation with Wanlong Chamber of Commerce, the family's income exceeded 900,000 low-grade spirit stones in the first year, and broke through the million mark in the second year, which is a very impressive increase."

This figure is after profit sharing with the Bandung Chamber of Commerce; if the family were to operate independently, they would receive even more.

"During this time, haven't Youlin and the others learned anything from the Wanlong Chamber of Commerce?"

There are too many difficulties to overcome in underwater operations. At present, the Song family can only hire independent cultivators to carry out mining in Linhai City and surrounding cities. The cost is high, and although the efficiency of individual workers is fast, the number is too small, and the manpower is simply not enough to meet the needs.

However, the Bandung Chamber of Commerce had much more experience in this area, and they even sent ordinary people to mine the water.

Song Qingxi shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Their method is easy to understand at first glance, but difficult to master once you start learning it."

Bandung's method was actually quite simple: every ordinary person was given a set of equipment before going into the water.

These are all low-level magical artifacts, possessing various benefits such as water repellency and pressure resistance. Each mortal can use this set of equipment to work underwater for one hour, with a daily limit of three hours.

They deployed 100,000 sets of this equipment in the Twin Islands, and nearly 500,000 able-bodied men worked in four shifts, day and night, to reduce the cost of underwater mining.

"hiss……"

The elders present all gasped in shock.

One hundred thousand sets, that's hundreds of thousands of low-level magical artifacts, a number that's enough to take your breath away.

This method is something that not everyone can learn.

A single set might not cost much, but it's useless if you don't scale it up. Ten thousand sets would require at least fifty million spirit stones.

And that’s just the cost.

The manual labor involved is even more terrifying. Even if a thousand weapon refiners worked day and night, it would still take seven or eight years to refine these 100,000 sets.

Only a large and established business association like Wanlong could operate like this. No wonder they dared to take on this order; they truly have the capability.

The Song family would need at least 50,000 sets to meet their current needs.

Given their resources, how long would it take them to gather 50,000 sets?

Twenty years? Thirty years?
Such costly investment is far less efficient and worry-free than directly cooperating with Wanlong.

"However," Song Qingxi suddenly changed the subject, "some time ago, someone came up with a very interesting little gadget that might become a brand new option for the family."

Previously, because it had not been verified, I did not mention this matter at the meeting. Just yesterday, the clansmen I sent to the East China Sea to verify it returned.

He brought back some exciting good news.

Everyone's attention was instantly drawn to her.

"Yuhei, come in."

Song Youping strode into the main hall. He looked somewhat haggard, but his spirits were more excited than ever before.

"Song Youping greets the clan chief and all the elders."

The moment he saw him, Song Changsheng had a vague idea in his mind and said with a smile, "Youping, what good thing have you come up with this time that Qingxi praised you so much?"

Song Youping carefully took out a wooden box from his sleeve and respectfully handed it to Song Changsheng, saying with a hint of pride, "This is it."

When Song Changsheng opened it, he found that the wooden box was full of pitch-black beetles the size of a baby's fist.

"It really is the [Gold-Eating Insect], but it seems a little different."

"The clan leader is wise; this is the result of my decades of work in Qinghefang."

Through continuous selection, breeding, and hybridization with other exotic insects, I have cultivated this brand-new "Gold-Eating Insect".

They are no longer aggressive, are larger in size, and no longer have the desire to reproduce, but they can reproduce rapidly by using the spiritual liquid specially prepared by their grandson.

With proper training, this bell can be used to control their movements.

Simply placing these [Gold-Eating Insects] onto the metal ore vein will allow you to mine the vein.

The metals they devour will be refined within their bodies; impurities will be used to sustain their survival, while most of the metals will be stored in their stomachs.

At this point, using another type of powder can help them be excreted quickly.

These Gold-Eating Insects possess even stronger vitality and adaptability, allowing them to move freely even at the bottom of the ocean.

During this trip to the East China Sea, with the help of the elders, my grandson has successfully verified the feasibility of underwater mining using the [Gold-Eating Insect].

One person is enough to control tens of thousands of Gold-Eating Insects using a bell.

One hundred of them can match the mining speed of one person from the Wanlong Chamber of Commerce.

Moreover, it can save the refining process.

Mining using this method is inexpensive, highly efficient, and eliminates concerns about casualties—a win-win situation. Chieftain, please make the decision!

……

P.S.: Here comes another long chapter of 7,000 words.

Last month's monthly pass challenge update totaled 12,000 words, and we've added another 12,000 words so far. The challenge continues this month; it's time for you fellow cultivators to show your strength! (End of Chapter)