The Immortal Clan begins with deductive intelligence.

Xu Changqing turned and left the backyard, walked around the corridor, and just as he passed through the moon gate, he bumped into Xu Dayou, who was rushing over.

The old man was panting heavily from running, and his hair was askew.

"Chief! Someone's here!"

Xu Dayou grabbed Xu Changqing's arm, lowered his voice, and looked somewhat nervous.

"What kind of behavior is this, shouting and yelling like that?"

Xu Changqing reached out and straightened his uncle's collar, his tone calm.

"Has someone from the Zhang family arrived? Or has something else happened at the upper sect?"

"Neither."

Xu Dayou caught his breath and pointed towards the gate.

"They are from the Li family of Ironwood Island."

"The Li family?"

Xu Changqing frowned slightly.

On the edge of this great marshland of Nanzhu, besides the Xu family of Cangwu Island and the Zhang family of Ling'ao Island, there are a few other small, insignificant families.

"Who came? How many people did they bring?"

"There was only one, Li Shan, the second elder of the Li family. He didn't bring any magical artifacts either. He said he came specifically to pay his respects to the clan leader and to mourn the passing of San Shun and the others."

Upon hearing this, Xu Changqing began to make plans in his mind.

The condolence was just a pretext; Li Shan definitely had other plans.

"Please invite them to the main hall and serve tea... Just serve that old jar of tea dust; we don't have any good tea."

Xu Changqing straightened his clothes and strode towards the main hall.

……

Inside the main hall.

Li Shan sat in the guest seat, holding a cup of hot tea with cloudy broth in his hands. He didn't mind, taking sip after sip to dispel the chill from his body.

The old man looked even older than Xu Dayou, wearing a gray-brown robe and a sorrowful expression.

Upon seeing Xu Changqing enter, Li Shan quickly put down his teacup, stood up, and his face, full of wrinkles, formed an extremely humble smile.

"Clan Chief Xu, I hope my intrusion has disturbed your peace and quiet?"

Xu Changqing returned the greeting with a cupped-hand salute, his face bearing the practiced polite smile.

"Elder Li, you're too kind. In this snowy weather, instead of enjoying yourself on Ironwood Island, you've come to my poor, remote place. I really feel bad for you."

The two took their seats as host and guest, respectively.

Xu Changqing didn't ask why they came, but chatted casually about the awful weather or how the price of rice in the market had risen a few coins.

Li Shan chatted with him for a while, and sweat gradually appeared on his forehead.

He glanced at the young but composed Xu family patriarch sitting at the head of the table and sighed inwardly.

He was the one who managed to pull the Xu family out of the mire; his composure was far superior to that of his own sons who were only good at bullying their own family.

"Clan Chief Xu."

Li Shan put down his teacup with a soft sound.

He stopped beating around the bush, leaned forward slightly, and lowered his voice.

"I have come today for two reasons. First, I heard that your family has suffered a disaster and lost two men, so I came to offer my condolences. Second... I also wanted to give Chief Xu a heads-up."

Xu Changqing paused in his teacup and looked up at Li Shan.

"Elder Li, please speak."

Li Shan looked around to make sure no one else was present before gritting his teeth and saying with a face full of resentment:

"Those beasts from the Zhang family sent people to my Ironwood Island a few days ago."

Xu Changqing raised an eyebrow.

"Oh? Is the Zhang family expanding their business again?"

"What kind of business is this! That's blatant robbery!"

Li Shan slapped his thigh, his beard trembling with anger.

"The steward from the Zhang family, carrying Zhang Shichang's warrant, says he's set his sights on those five acres of spirit land on the west side of our island and wants to buy it out for three hundred spirit stones!"

Three hundred spirit stones?

Xu Changqing sneered inwardly.

Five acres of spirit fields are the foundation of a family's existence. Not to mention three hundred, even three thousand spirit stones wouldn't be enough for any family to sell them.

This is practically no different from outright robbery.

"Elder Li didn't agree?"

"How could we possibly agree to that! That's our ancestral heritage; if we sell it, our entire clan will starve!"

Li Shan looked miserable and spread his hands.

"But the Zhang family steward made a harsh statement, saying that if the land deed is not seen by the end of the month, our Li family's boats will not be allowed to pass through this area, and even our shops in the market will need to be looked after by someone every day."

At this point, Li Shan raised his head, his cloudy old eyes filled with expectation as he looked at Xu Changqing.

"Clan Chief Xu, I've heard that the Zhang family also came to cause you trouble before, regarding that fishpond..."

He didn't spell it out explicitly, but the meaning was clear.

Everyone here is a victim of the Zhang family's bullying. Now, the Zhang family's fire is not only burning the Xu family, but also trying to devour all the surrounding small families.

If the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold.

Xu Changqing gently stroked the rim of the teacup with his fingers.

The Zhang family is in a panic.

This is an attempt to squeeze every last drop of profit from the surrounding area before the grand opening ceremony.

"What does Elder Li mean?"

Xu Changqing asked the question knowing the answer already.

Li Shan took a deep breath, his expression becoming serious.

"Join forces."

"If we fight one-on-one, none of us can beat the Zhang family."

"But I heard that the Zhao family not far ahead, and the Sun family to the south, also suffered humiliation at the hands of the Zhang family."

"If our families can communicate and help each other on a regular basis, the Zhang family will have to think twice before they try to harm any of us."

After Li Shan finished speaking, he looked at Xu Changqing nervously.

Xu Changqing did not agree immediately.

Such verbal agreements are the most fragile.

When disaster strikes, these people will run faster than anyone else.

But right now, having an ally, even if it's just to bolster their morale or act as a messenger, is better than the Xu family being isolated and helpless.

Moreover, the fact that the Zhang family has made enemies everywhere indicates that their forces are scattered.

This presents an opportunity for the Xu family.

"Elder Li is right."

Xu Changqing put down his teacup, and the smile on his face became more genuine.

"The Zhang family acts tyrannically. If we continue to be a disorganized bunch, we will be defeated one by one sooner or later."

"This alliance is now formed by the Xu family."

Li Shan was overjoyed and was about to stand up and bow when Xu Changqing waved his hand.

"However, since it's an alliance, there has to be some rules."

Xu Changqing looked at Li Shan, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his eyes.

"We can't just passively take the beating. We need to think of a way to make things difficult for the Zhang family and let them know that we're not so easy to gnaw on."

Li Shan paused for a moment, then hesitated, "What does Clan Chief Xu mean...?"

Xu Changqing leaned back, his tone indifferent.

"Doesn't the Zhang family have a transit station on the outskirts of the market that specializes in buying spiritual materials from independent cultivators?"

"I heard that although the place is not big, every five days a batch of spirit stones and supplies are transported back to Ling'ao Island."

Li Shan broke out in a cold sweat, and exclaimed in a low voice, "You...you're trying to rob me..."

Elder Li, please be careful with your words.

Xu Changqing raised a finger to his lips, interrupting him.

"I'm just saying that bandits are rampant in the Great Swamp lately. If something happens to the Zhang family's transport team, it's just that the Great Swamp is full of rough seas. What does it have to do with us law-abiding families?"