Chapter 984 - 305: Yellow Heaven Dao_6

Just as his flying boat had just left, a colorful auspicious cloud came rushing from afar, aiming for the sea area rich in Sea Soul Crystal ahead.

...

Jiuzhou World, Inference Saint Mountain.

Above the mountain peak covered by the Grand Array, clouds and mist lingered, and amidst the shifting mist, a delicately carved building stood proudly among the clouds.

This peak was named Inference Saint Peak, and the pavilion atop it was crafted in imitation of the Black Water Pavilion from Yunshui City.

At the plaza atop the peak, at the base of the long stone steps leading to the pavilion, Shen Xiuyan, dressed in a moon-white long robe, held a Silk Scroll in his hand, gazing up at the three-tiered pavilion with hesitation. After pondering for a long time, he chose to ascend the steps, heading toward the pavilion.

Arriving in front of the pavilion, Shen Xiuyan held the Silk Scroll in both hands, respectfully bowing: "Great-grandfather, Xiuyan wishes to rectify the family and draft new regulations."

"Once this rule is set forth, it may affect the fate of many future Shen Clan Members. Xiuyan does not dare to make the decision alone, seeking great-grandfather’s guidance."

After saying these words, he lifted the hem of his attire and respectfully kneeled on the ground, opening the scroll, and declared loudly:

"I hereby compose family precepts to guide future generations:

The path of Cultivation Immortality is as distant as stars crossing the sky, as towering as Bu Zhou supporting the heavens. The great Dao is impartial, yet among the talented, only one in a hundred survives; though the mysteries are vast, true jade and pure gold are rare among millions. My Shen descendants must keenly observe celestial ordination, calmly watch the Qi of Dantian. If Spirit Root is lacking and Immortal Fate is shallow, they must acknowledge that flora blooms and withers in its due time and must not forcibly defy Celestial Mandate.

From now on, any of the clan unable to establish Dao Foundation must self-request to return to the mundane, thereby opening new branches to continue the familial line. Though departing from the cultivation path, they may still manage family assets, tend fields and towns, or uphold family traditions through literature or art. The family shall provide yearly provisions of grain and silk, constructing homes for their settlement, allowing them to live peacefully, marry and grow old.

This is not abandonment; it is indeed wisdom to accept one’s fate. Cultivators command Qi, soaring to the skies, upholding the Dao heritage; the mundane populace reproduces and flourishes, solidifying the roots and nurturing growth. Like the moon’s waxing and waning, and stars’ clarity and obscurity, together they form the sequence of heaven and earth. May future generations understand this painstaking effort and refrain from resentment, thus the Shen lineage may be extended for millennia, and all descendants may enjoy a century of tranquility."

Having spoken, Shen Xiuyan laid the scroll before him and then took out the Treasure Seal representing family authority, holding it in both hands.

He knew very well, upon the issuance of this clan rule, future Shen Clan Members are bound to have some whom, like the Common People, would remain unaligned to Immortal Dao, ending their lives at a hundred years.

Yet this act would allow the Shen Family to branch out more swiftly.

After all, celestial and mortal differ; if the Direct Lineage is unaligned with Immortal Dao, then ensuring the continuation of the family and managing the family’s worldly assets become primary tasks.

And if the various worldly assets are managed by branch line clan members, regularly assisted by family-deployed cultivators, the future Immortal Race leaders could spare some mental energy, focusing more on cultivating the Immortal Race.

Shen Xiuyan knelt before the pavilion for a long time, with Shen Yuan inside never offering a response.

Just as Shen Xiuyan believed that great-grandfather Shen Yuan also disapproved of the harsh clan rule he proposed, a sigh suddenly came from within the pavilion.

Soon after, a gentle Spiritual Power slowly lifted the Treasure Seal from Shen Xiuyan’s hands, pressing it lightly onto the Silk Scroll before him.

"Go now."

"Since you are the current Patriarch of my Shen family, decisions you make in the future need not seek approval from the old man."

A slightly hoarse voice came from within the pavilion.

Shen Xiuyan respectfully bowed his head, then gathered up the Treasure Seal and the Silk Scroll.

Looking at the tightly closed door of the pavilion before him, his lips moved slightly, but in the end, he did not speak.

Shen Xiuyan stood up, respectfully saluted the pavilion, and then turned to walk down the mountain.

On the third floor of the pavilion, Shen Yuan, wearing a gray robe and with hair and beard graying, stood by the window, looking at the somewhat lonely figure on the stone steps, his expression complex.

"Child, the old man knows that celestial and mortal must eventually be severed."

"However, this time you have already carried too much, this clan rule was originally intended to be left to the next Patriarch..."

Having gone through the Dao Collapse of Yangnao Land, Shen Yuan’s mentality also gradually changed.

Perhaps as the Shen family walked further along the cultivation path, he found that the emotional connection with these junior descendants had noticeably dulled.

The Shen family juniors with the name starting with "Xiuzhuo" were still somewhat familiar; he had seen most of them.

But nowadays, there were already several juniors with the name starting with "Yuansi," aside from Shen Xiuzhuo’s "Shen Yuansi," he hadn’t even met the others.

Thinking about this, Shen Yuan showed a slight bitter smile on his face.

"It is indeed normal, even the closest blood relatives, beyond five generations, how could they be like the imagination?"

"If placed in the mundane world, even if lucky enough to see descendants five generations down the line, would most likely be considered a bothersome old man."

"Let it be"

Shen Xiuyan’s figure had already disappeared from Inference Saint Peak.

Shen Yuan also returned to the front of his desk and sat cross-legged.

During the critical moments of Dao Collapse in Yangnao Land, he forcibly used "Mystic Mechanism Escape Armor" to bamboozle nearly twenty Nascent Soul True Monarchs and many Golden Core Purple Mansion Realm cultivators, sealing the Five Elements Secret Realm, protecting the clan’s safety.

He himself, also because of the backlash from "Mystic Mechanism Escape Armor," awoke only after five years of slumber.

As of now, the Jiuzhou World formed by the Five Elements Secret Realm is still fragile.

And due to the sealing by [Mystic Mechanism Escape Armor], the source of Jiuzhou World cannot draw power from outside, and all consumption within the world must rely on the force of the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Veins drawn from Danzhou during the creation of the Five Elements Secret Realm by Shen Xiubai years ago.

Sitting before the desk, Shen Yuan’s mind again recalled the fierce battle above Yunshui City during the Dao Collapse.

"Old fellow expert at calculations, probably wouldn’t easily fall in that battle of bygone days..."

After a while of contemplation, Shen Yuan frowned, murmuring.

Currently, although he could clearly sense the causal line between the Shen family and Xu Xiu disappearing.

Yet he did not believe a shrewd old fox who had schemed for thousands of years would fall so easily.

Lives like rabbits with multiple burrows, if it were said someone like Xu Xiu didn’t have other backup plans, Shen Yuan wouldn’t believe it in the slightest.

Though right now, he is also disinclined to delve further into this matter.

With Xu Xiu’s "death and Dao dispersion," the causal line between him and the Shen family is utterly severed.

Meaning that in the future, there wouldn’t be any entanglements.

For the moment, Shen Yuan is more hopeful that the old fellow truly is dead and Dao dispersed, otherwise, upon meeting again, it would be hard to say if they would be friends or foes.

Especially...

As the image of the palace resembling crystal and glass carving appeared in his mind, Shen Yuan’s eyes slightly narrowed.

He now vaguely realizes that the mysterious palace enabling his entry to the Nine Elements Exiled Immortal Temple is likely related to Xu Xiu!

Thinking of the mysterious palace, Shen Yuan also sighs inwardly.

This period of slumber resulted in missing a chance to enter the Nine Elements Exiled Immortal Temple.

Since awakening from this sleep, he spent more than a year contemplating what the true essence of the Golden Core Realm should be.

Yet, the matters involved are too profound; with his current Realm, hoping for progress evidently posed challenges.

Shen Yuan understands that now he can only rely on the Dao Bell of the Nine Elements Exiled Immortal Temple, perhaps finding a breakthrough.

Better to wait another ten years.

Wait for the next opening of the Nine Elements Exiled Immortal Temple, then the seal on Jiuzhou World will also be ready to be lifted.

He now only holds one hope.

Best if Xu Xiu is unrelated to that mysterious palace, even if related, after this "pretend death," let there be no quick recovery.

As long as the Shen family is allowed another hundred years of development, then he would also have confidence in engaging in an earnest game against the counterpart!