Chapter 495 - 451: The Situation

Chapter 495: Chapter 451: The Situation

Golden Core True Masters were often wanderers, traveling far and wide in search of opportunities. Even he himself wouldn’t have lingered in Chixia for so long if not for the many tasks that came with his recent Initial Core Formation.

With his skills, he would never allow himself to be under the Chen Family’s constant surveillance.

This was true for him, and it was undoubtedly true for other Golden Core Loose Cultivators as well.

And yet, as far as he knew, in less than half a year since the Chen Family had resolved to repair the Soldier Puppet, they had managed to summon all of them—a group of Golden Core Refiners scattered all over the Vast Sea Cultivation Immortal World—to this one place.

After a moment of thought, Chu Mu slowly asked, "Are you saying that the Five Poison Child is one of those who resent the Chen Family’s rule?"

Xu Changqing nodded. "The Chen Family has established Beast Cities. However, they don’t raise ordinary mortals, but groups of Low Tier Cultivators. Every year, the Chen Family sends a batch of these cultivators to the Flood Dragon Race as blood food..."

"The Five Poison Child was supposedly born in one of these Beast Cities. When he was just a boy, he was sent to the Flood Dragon Race as blood food, but he was intercepted and abducted by the Profound Serpent Race along the way..."

"As for what happened after that, nobody knows. From the moment the Five Poison Child made a name for himself in the Vast Sea Cultivation Immortal World, his rise was meteoric. In just over a hundred years, he had already formed an Immortal Golden Core."

"He’s incredibly ambitious and has secretly gathered many Cultivators to his side. He has also contacted my Sect multiple times. In fact, ever since his Core Formation, he has been receiving substantial aid from us."

"Figures like the Five Poison Child are not uncommon in the Vast Sea Cultivation Immortal World. It’s just that some are in contact with my Sect, while others are not..."

"The Chen Family’s summons for High Tier Refiners like yourself—those not affiliated with their clan—isn’t just about repairing that Tier Four Soldier Puppet. It’s also likely for the purpose of prevention and surveillance..."

"With the Vast Sea in such chaos, the Chen Family can’t possibly be letting their guard down..."

At this, the tense look on Xu Changqing’s face suddenly gave way to a smile.

"This information isn’t much of a secret to us True Inheritors."

"Once you hold the rank of True Inheritor, you can freely access all of the Sect’s legacies and secret archives."

Chu Mu’s expression shifted. After a moment of contemplation, he asked, "Elder Xu, for what purpose have you come to the Vast Sea?"

Xu Changqing’s expression turned serious again as he slowly uttered one word: "Alliance!"

"My father once said that scattered sand can pose no threat to the Chen Family."

Chu Mu was taken aback. "But with a move this big, surely the Chen Family would notice?"

"And what if they do?"

Xu Changqing shook his head. "This Endless Vast Sea has far too many places to hide."

"Figures like the Five Poison Child, who stir up trouble right under the Chen Family’s nose, are almost all connected to the Great Demons of the Outer Sea."

"The Chen Family and the Flood Dragon Race share the same origin and present a united front. My Sect is far from the only one that wants to make trouble for them..."

A glimmer in his eyes, Chu Mu subconsciously recalled the Yun Xiao Business Alliance’s Deep Sea Base. ’If they’re connected to those Great Demons of the Outer Sea...’

Never mind that the Vast Sea Cultivation Immortal World had already lost half its territory; even at its peak, its influence only ever reached the border between the Inner and Outer Seas.

Even if these forces revealed themselves openly, given the current state of the Vast Sea Cultivation Immortal World, the Chen Family would likely be powerless to stop them.

As his thoughts churned, Chu Mu didn’t dwell on it. Years ago, in Jingmen of Great Chu, he had fled his home because he was caught in an overwhelming tide of events. He could only go with the flow, knowing the slightest misstep would have seen him crushed to dust.

Now, while he still wasn’t a player moving the pieces on the board, he at least had the power to protect himself. He had many, many options.

Chu Mu raised his cup of Spirit Wine and asked casually, "How long do you plan on staying here?"

"I will return to the Sect when I achieve Core Formation."

Xu Changqing took a light sip of the Spirit Wine, his voice even.

Chu Mu nodded. The matter of his Sword Intent’s strange evolution into a Sword Domain Divine Technique flashed through his mind, but he ultimately decided not to ask.

After a moment’s thought, he changed the subject to Lifebound Treasures based on Sword Intent. At this, Xu Changqing’s interest seemed to pique. Given his status in the Longevity Sect, he naturally had a much deeper understanding of refining such Magical Treasures than Chu Mu.

With his status as the Ninth True Inheritor, Xu Changqing clearly no longer had his previous reservations, sharing what he knew with almost no restraint.

They talked and discussed until evening. After leaving behind several more Jade Scrolls, Xu Changqing finally took his leave.

Chu Mu stood at the window, watching Xu Changqing depart. He only looked away after his figure had completely vanished from sight.

He waved a hand, and the Jade Scrolls Xu Changqing had just left behind floated before him.

There were four Jade Scrolls in total.

One of them detailed the current situation in the Great Chu Cultivation Immortal World, as known by Xu Changqing.

The remaining three recorded various methods for refining Lifebound Treasures for different paths within the Sword Dao, as well as their corresponding systems.

Chu Mu casually picked up the Jade Scroll that recorded the situation in Great Chu. As he sent his Divine Sense inside, a sea of information surged into his mind, presenting the chaotic state of the Great Chu Cultivation Immortal World with utmost clarity.

It wasn’t much different from what he had already gathered.

The current situation in Great Chu could perhaps be summed up in a single word:

Stalemate!

Ever since chaos erupted in the Vast Sea and the Chen Family could no longer benefit from all sides as they once had, the Longevity Sect had shed its previously lukewarm approach and launched a full-scale offensive against the Righteous Alliance.

Having already suffered heavy losses from several disastrous defeats, the Righteous Alliance was in no state to withstand such a ferocious assault from the Longevity Sect and was naturally forced into a continuous retreat.

Now that the East Lake Xie Family existed in name only, the Nanshan Li Family was also teetering on the brink of collapse, nearly defunct itself. The banner of the Righteous Alliance was being propped up entirely by its other internal factions.

Of the five great clans that originally founded the Righteous Alliance, the only ones whose power could still be considered stable—aside from the Vast Sea Chen Family, which had long since left the alliance—were the Langya Wang Family, entrenched in the Southwest of Great Chu, and the Changping Zhao Family from the northeastern Land of Ice and Snow.

One in the west, one in the east, both located in border territories.

And according to the Jade Scroll, as the Righteous Alliance suffered defeat after defeat, the Langya Wang Family in the Southwest had begun contacting the smaller border nations there, seemingly preparing to consolidate the various powers, large and small, of the Southwest Border.

Meanwhile, the Changping Zhao Family was located on the Northeast Border. After the Righteous Alliance’s repeated crushing defeats, the remnants of the routed Nanshan Li Family, East Lake Xie Family, and their various affiliated clans had mostly fled and converged in the Northeast.

These forces were, as a matter of course, absorbed by the Changping Zhao Family, causing their power to swell dramatically.

From a strategic standpoint, the Righteous Alliance had undoubtedly suffered a crushing defeat.

But looking at it from another angle, the Righteous Alliance’s disastrous defeat had also clearly forced a consolidation of power within the alliance.

What was once a loose alliance had now, despite being geographically separated and unable to fully merge, been forced to consolidate under two great banners: one in the west and one in the east.

Although the Longevity Sect still held a major advantage, facing these two banners in the west and east meant that completely sweeping through the entire Great Chu Cultivation Immortal World would be no easy task.

After all, even though the Righteous Alliance had suffered one crushing defeat after another, and many of its top Nascent Soul Great Powers had fallen, the balance of power at the very top had not yet been completely shattered.

And as long as that balance wasn’t completely lost, it meant a reversal was always possible.

Things like Tier Four Soldier Puppets, Tier Four Arrays...

These major powers had legacies stretching back tens of thousands of years. No one knew what terrifying trump cards they might reveal when pushed to the brink.

According to the Jade Scroll, in the battle for Nanshan, the Longevity Sect slew three Nascent Soul cultivators from the Li Family and one from the Zhao Family.

In turn, the Longevity Sect itself, seemingly due to a final, desperate counterattack from the Li Family, lost two of its own Nascent Soul Great Powers. Another was gravely wounded and had remained in a deep slumber for years, yet to awaken. As for Golden Core True Masters, the casualties were numerous.

’I just don’t get it...’

Putting down the Jade Scroll, Chu Mu let out a sigh, his feelings complex.

Perhaps it was because he was used to being a lone wolf, wandering outside the major powers for years, free of ties and worries.

He truly couldn’t understand what reasons or conflicts of interest could possibly drive these lofty Nascent Soul Great Powers to become mortal enemies, fighting one another to the death.

’Was it really necessary?’

Chu Mu racked his brain, but he just couldn’t see the need for it.

It took hundreds, even thousands of years of searching, along with countless great opportunities and fortuitous encounters, just to forge a single Nascent Soul.

With a lifespan of several thousand years, why not just peacefully pursue a higher realm?

What possible benefit in the entire Cultivation Immortal Realm could be worth all this?

In the battle for Nanshan alone, six Nascent Soul cultivators had perished...

The thought was nothing short of terrifying!

...