Chapter 165: Qin Yu’s Choice, the Court’s Reward

Chapter 165 -157: Qin Yu’s Choice, the Court’s Reward

One hundred thousand Primordial Stones!

This was by no means a small sum.

The final auction price for the Five Poison Sect Inheritance Token was only 52,000 Primordial Stones.

This was likely the majority of the Qin Family’s Primordial Stones.

“Thank you, Ancestor.”

Qin Yu bowed deeply, his heart filled with gratitude.

To be fair, the Zong Family had treated him very well. After Second Elder Qin Wenyuan discovered him, he had bestowed upon him the family’s Cultivation Technique, taught him about the Dao, and answered his questions.

Later, the two Elders had arrived and given him a life-saving item and a complete Array inheritance.

Although he hadn’t needed to use the life-saving item, he had committed the favor to memory.

Right now, he was in desperate need of Primordial Stones.

The gestation of all Tier Three Insect Swarms required Primordial Stones to supplement their Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi.

Otherwise, they would have to slowly absorb it after they were born and wouldn’t be considered true Qi Sea Realm entities.

This was something he could not tolerate.

With this batch of Primordial Stones, the Thunder Beast and Leviathan could quickly reach combat readiness.

“There’s no need for such formalities. My time is short. The future of the family rests on your shoulders. You must carry the banner and ensure the Qin Family’s prosperity for generations to come.”

Qin Tianfeng waved his hand dismissively. He had lived for several hundred years and had seen all kinds of people.

Though Qin Yu was young, he was mature and steady in his actions.

Even now, after breaking through and manifesting a Heaven and Earth Phenomenon, he showed no signs of arrogance or complacency.

Judging by his attitude toward his parents, it was clear he was not an ungrateful person.

That was why Qin Tianfeng had so decisively taken out the family’s foundational resources to help Qin Yu while he was still relatively weak. Otherwise, once Qin Yu truly rose to power, he would have no need for the Qin Family’s meager assets.

“I will remain in Bishui City to stand guard for a while. Settle your affairs here as quickly as possible, and then we will return to the County City to get your family settled.

After that, you should consider which power you will join, whether in the State City or even the Great Wei Royal Capital.

The Qin Family is your root, but your future lies in a much wider world.”

Qin Yu nodded, not refuting him.

The Great Wei Dynasty had stood for tens of thousands of years. Its territory was vast and boundless, divided into Thirteen States. Each state was immense, governing dozens or even hundreds of counties, with a population numbering in the hundreds of millions.

Yunlong County was merely one of the forty-two counties under the jurisdiction of Ling State, located in a remote corner.

And among the Thirteen States, Ling State was only average in terms of area, resources, and the number of powerful experts.

With the Talent he had displayed, the top Sects in Ling State, and even the entire Great Wei Dynasty, had already opened their doors to him. While he couldn’t just pick and choose at will, he was confident he could enter some of the top-tier Sects.

And this was the real reason Qin Tianfeng had come to find Qin Yu.

He had lived for over four hundred years. Although his strength wasn’t considered top-tier within the Primordial Mansion Realm, he still had a decent understanding of the major Sects of the Great Wei Dynasty.

He could offer Qin Yu some guidance.

As long as Qin Yu joined one of them, anyone who wanted to target him would have to think twice about the power backing him.

Even the Blood Demon Sect wouldn’t dare to casually offend certain top-tier Sects.

However, Qin Yu had no intention of joining a Sect.

‘My life form is too unique. My body was transformed when I received the Insect Swarm’s inheritance.’

‘Now that I’ve broken through to the Qi Sea Realm, my Soul can even transfer among the members of the Insect Swarm.’

‘Dominator of the Insect Swarm isn’t just a title I gave myself.’

‘Strictly speaking, I am now the collective will of the entire Insect Swarm!’

‘The entire swarm is me.’

‘Is this life form even human anymore?’

Qin Yu wasn’t sure.

He wasn’t worried about joining a small Sect.

But he had no confidence when it came to those top-tier Sects, the ones with Primordial Spirit Realm experts, or even Immortals.

‘What if I’m seen through?’

‘The risk is too great!’

‘Besides, even if I did successfully become a disciple, obtaining the highest-level inheritance wouldn’t be easy.’

‘Not unless I met a good master.’

‘Otherwise, no matter how great my Talent is, I’d still have to climb up from the bottom, step by step.’

‘This isn’t like a family with a shared bloodline, where they’ll unconditionally give you top-tier Cultivation Techniques and resources just because you have talent. In a Sect, you still have to compete!’

‘I’d have to climb the ranks step by step, and they might even try to ‘polish’ my character.’

‘And how would I explain my Insect Swarm?’

‘What if my strength improves too quickly?’

‘There are too many problems.’

‘I’d be better off spending that time developing and strengthening the Insect Swarm!’

‘I broke through to Tier Three and reached the Qi Sea Realm in just over a month, and I now command an army of hundreds of thousands of insects. At this rate, what level will my strength and the scale of my swarm reach in a few more months?’

‘As long as I lift the restrictions…’

‘…the number of insects in the swarm will grow exponentially.’

But there was no need to tell Celestial Wind Ancestor this right now. The best way to make his point was to speak with strength, after using the family’s batch of Primordial Stones to cultivate the Leviathan and the others.

He would directly annihilate the Zhang Family, the Cyan Profound Sect, the Su Family, and the rest.

He would plunder their resources to accelerate his growth.

Then he would seize the Five Poison Sect’s inheritance and let his Insect Swarm spread throughout all of Yunlong County.

Throughout Ling State, and even the entire Great Wei!

That was the true path to dominance.

In fact, units like the Thunder Roc within the Insect Swarm were already scouting in the direction of the Cyan Profound Sect, the Su Family, and the Zhang Family.

The intelligence on the major powers he had purchased from the Treasure Pavilion included a simple map.

Although it was crude, the general directions were correct.

The most powerful of these factions, the Cyan Profound Sect, was located about ten thousand li away from Bishui City, atop a mountain peak.

This vast distance crossed mountain ranges and great marshes, with countless Demon Fiends lurking in between.

The Insect Swarm’s vanguard reconnaissance units had already set out.

They were gathering intelligence along the way, mapping the terrain, assessing defenses, setting up surveillance points, and preparing for the main swarm to follow and establish new Insect Nests for expansion.

Although Qin Yu was confident he could crush them, he would not be blindly arrogant.

Know the enemy and know yourself, and you can fight a hundred battles without defeat.

A Sect that had survived for a thousand years would definitely have a considerable foundation. The slightest carelessness could lead to an unexpected and disgraceful failure.

Just as they were speaking, both Qin Tianfeng and Qin Yu looked up, their gazes turning toward the area outside the residence.

The steward who had remained in the residence hurried over.

“Ancestor, Young Master! General Zhang Han and General Chen Jianqiu of the Demon Suppression Bureau are here, along with a special envoy from the Ling State Governor’s Mansion.

They said they have come to announce a reward, on orders from the Court and General Li of the Celestial Patrol Army.”

The expressions of everyone in the hall turned solemn.

A sharp glint flashed in Qin Tianfeng’s eyes. He said to Qin Yu, “They’re here. That was fast. They decided on the reward in just one day. Let’s see just how generous the Court will be this time.”

With that, he was the first to rise.

A glint shone in Qin Yu’s eyes as well. The Qin Family’s resources were one thing.

But in the battle of Bishui River, his War Beasts had suffered immense losses. At least, from an outsider’s perspective, the losses were absolutely staggering. Losing over a thousand Qi and Blood Realm Flying War Beasts alone would be enough to cripple a major family.

The losses of his aquatic units were even more severe.

If the reward wasn’t sufficient, wouldn’t it be utterly disheartening?

Everyone went to the front hall, where Zhang Han and Chen Jianqiu were already waiting.

Besides them stood a solemn-faced, middle-aged official dressed in the black, eagle-patterned robes unique to the Ling State Mansion. His aura was condensed—he was actually a Primordial Mansion Realm expert.

“Young Friend Qin, Daoist Friend Qin Tianfeng.”

As the highest-ranking official of the Demon Suppression Bureau here, Chen Jianqiu spoke first. He stepped aside and introduced the man, “This is the special envoy from the Ling State Governor’s Mansion, Lord Cao Zhenxiong.”

“The reward this time has been decided and issued by the State Governor’s Mansion.”

Cao Zhenxiong nodded slightly. His gaze was like lightning as it swept over Qin Yu. When he sensed the faint Dao rhythm of heaven and earth and the Secret Patterns, a trace of shock and understanding flashed in his eyes.

“A young prodigy indeed!”

A smile appeared on Cao Zhenxiong’s face. As long as such a genius didn’t fall midway, he was destined to secure a place for himself in Ling State in the future.

He hadn’t expected the declining Qin Family to produce another prodigy.

Even Li Xuanting was willing to befriend him, so of course he wouldn’t put on airs.

“Qin Family, receive the State Governor’s Order!”