161: Chapter 161 Ten Years in a Flash, The Situation on All Sides!

...

Time passed quickly; ten years vanished in the blink of an eye.

White Cloud Immortal City was originally a market town at the foot of the Yunjian Mountain Range. Over the past decade, it had grown following the establishment of the Ming Prefecture Northern Protectorate.

This place had undergone five expansions, and the number of permanent resident Cultivators had reached several thousand.

Inside the city, at the Drunken Immortal Tavern.

The main hall was bustling with noise, the air thick with the mixed scents of tea and wine.

On the central high platform, a one-eyed old man in a green robe was spit-flyingly striking his gavel.

"Clack!"

As the gavel sounded, the entire hall fell silent.

The old man scanned the room, his single eye flashing with sharp light.

"Everyone, as the saying goes, there are no years in cultivation; a thousand years have passed in the world."

"Our Xuanling Continent, since that national war ten years ago, has truly been turned upside down, the world transformed!"

"Today, this old man won't talk about romance and scenery. I'll lay out the grand trends of the world over these past ten years for you!"

Immediately, a wave of cheers erupted from below the stage.

A bearded giant took a swig of strong wine and shouted loudly, "Old Man Bao, stop keeping us in suspense! Say what you have to say. First, tell us about our north!"

"Have those beasts from the North Sea actually retreated or not?"

"I'm still thinking of finding a chance to head out to the North Sea to hunt monsters!"

Old Man Bao laughed heartily, picked up the gavel, and gave it a sharp clack. "Good!"

"Since a guest has asked, then this old man will explain it clearly to everyone!"

"The calamity of the North Sea has long since receded, but things are not peaceful now. I hear the Xuanqing Sect suffered greatly in that war, and the people under its rule are displaced—it's one natural disaster after another!"

"Over these ten years, the northern sea demons have been a veritable purgatory for our Human Race."

"It's said that in this war, the North Sea Yao Race, led by several Transformed Great Demons, stirred up a monstrous tsunami that flooded over thirty thousand miles of the northern Xuanling Continent!"

"They slaughtered tens of millions of our kin; immortal clans were wiped out, and immortal cities were destroyed in an instant."

"To hold the defensive line, the Xuanqing Sect even brought out their Sect-protecting 'Xuantian Sword Array.' That battle was fought until the heavens collapsed and the earth split, the sun and moon losing their light."

"It was truly earth-shattering and soul-stirring—a single line across ten thousand miles to protect all living beings!"

"Ten Nascent Soul Old Ancestors of the Xuanqing Sect acted together to suppress the North Sea demon calamity, fighting until the world was turned upside down. Yet, two Nascent Soul powerhouses successively lost their lives there."

"One of them was even forced to self-detonate his Nascent Soul, dragging a Transformed Demon King down with him to a mutual destruction!"

"That scene was truly extraordinary!"

"Ten thousand miles of heaven and earth were as bright as day, and millions of sea beasts were erased in an instant!"

In the hall, the crowd gasped upon hearing the news.

A Nascent Soul self-detonation—what a tragic and intense sight that must have been.

Old Man Bao picked up a tea bowl to moisten his throat and continued, "That Xuanqing Upper Sect also paid a heavy price, but they finally drove the North Sea Yao Race back into the deep sea not long ago, reclaiming our Human Race's lost territories."

"But the current Xuanqing Sect has only eight Nascent Souls left. Their Origin Qi is heavily damaged, and they have long since lost the prestige of being the number one Sect of the Wei State."

"It is truly a pity."

A Cultivator below the stage, looking like a scholar, couldn't help but frown. "With the Xuanqing Sect suffering such a heavy blow, did the Taiqing Sect not kick them while they were down?"

"Kick them while they're down?"

Old Man Bao sneered. "The Taiqing Sect has no mind to deal with the Xuanqing Sect right now. Those two are currently allies as close as brothers!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the whole room was in an uproar.

The Xuanqing Sect and the Taiqing Sect had fought openly and covertly for thousands of years to claim the orthodoxy of the Wei State. How could they possibly form an alliance?

"Don't forget, everyone, above us is the Qingcang Kingdom!" Old Man Bao pointed his finger upward and lowered his voice.

"Now, it's no longer the old days of the three 'Qing' Sects being one Family. It is the Qingcang Kingdom, which has carved out territories and unified the lands of six provinces!"

"Look at the scale of our country; it has already left the Xuanqing and Taiqing Sects far behind."

"How can one allow others to snore beside one's bed?"

"The powerhouses of the Xuanqing and Taiqing Sects are naturally not fools. To prevent the Shangqing Sect from becoming the sole dominant power, they certainly won't stab each other in the back!"

"Therefore, these two Sects have secretly sworn a blood oath of alliance and stationed troops at the borders. Nominally, it's to guard against the Yao Race and the Demonic Path, but in reality, they are guarding against our Qingcang Kingdom!"

The patrons looked at each other, the atmosphere momentarily becoming heavy.

Everyone knew that with this level of precaution, once a spark ignited, it would be a world-shaking war sweeping the entire continent.

"What about the Liang Kingdom?"

Someone changed the subject. "I heard that the Liang Kingdom side has been quite quiet these past few years."

Old Man Bao nodded and began telling everyone about the four Sects of the Liang Kingdom:

"That's a good question, sir!"

"The Liang Kingdom is the one truly making a fortune in silence."

"Over a decade ago, the four Righteous Path Sects of the Liang Kingdom were fighting tooth and nail with the Taixuan Sect. But as soon as things became chaotic here in the Wei State, those Nascent Soul powerhouses of the Liang Kingdom immediately sensed something was wrong."

"They decisively stopped the war, demarcated boundaries, and went to lick their wounds."

"In these ten years, the Liang Kingdom has had no wars. The four Sects have rested and built up their strength, recruiting many Disciples. It's said that with the four Sects developing together, their foundation has skyrocketed."

"The current Liang Kingdom, in terms of overall strength, is likely no longer inferior to the remnants of the Wei State."

Discussions filled the hall.

The world's grand trends were like a great game of chess.

All forces were lying low, accumulating power.

For these Loose Cultivators and low-level Cultivators, this was an excellent peace. If war broke out again, it would be these low-level Cultivators who suffered.

...

White Cloud Immortal City, the City Lord's Mansion.

This mansion was built upon a Spiritual Vein node in the center of the Immortal City, where the Spiritual Qi was so dense it turned into mist.

Inside the discussion hall.

Sun Mao sat to one side, holding a thick stack of ledgers, reporting to Immortal Master Daoist Yun Du in the main seat.

Ten years had left some traces of time on Sun Mao's face, but the aura on him had become increasingly steady and heavy. His cultivation had just reached the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage.

Immortal Master Daoist Yun Du was dressed in a white robe. His hair and beard were entirely white, but his complexion was ruddy, and a restrained divine light shone in his eyes.

Sun Mao closed the ledger, his voice steady. "Temple Master, over the past ten years, within the eighteen counties under the jurisdiction of the Northern Protectorate, the sixty-two Foundation Establishment families have all been brought into order."

"Each county pays its spirit tax on time, without a single delinquency."

"At the old site of Fenghe County, the newly opened spirit fields have welcomed their third harvest. The half of the territory transferred from Guling County has also had the hidden agents of the original forces completely uprooted and is now fully under our control."

"Currently, the various annual incomes of our White Cloud Temple, converted to Low-Grade Spirit Stones, have stabilized at around one million."

Immortal Master Daoist Yun Du nodded slightly, a look of satisfaction appearing in his eyes.

An annual income of a million Spirit Stones.

Ten years ago, this was a number he wouldn't even have dared to dream of.

"I have always been at ease with how Nephew Sun handles things."

Immortal Master Daoist Yun Du picked up his teacup and brushed away the floating leaves. "However, the more stable things are, the less we can afford to be careless. Have you been paying attention to the situation outside?"

"I have been sending people to keep an eye on the intelligence from the Tianji Pavilion," Sun Mao said with a solemn expression.

"Tell me, has there been any movement from the Jin State lately?"

A strange smile tugged at the corner of Sun Mao's mouth.

"The Jin State... has become a joke."

Immortal Master Daoist Yun Du raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Half a month ago, an Elder from the Blood Bone Demon Sect went to the Tiansha Sect with heavy gifts, wanting to borrow a group of Disciples to jointly guard the border patrols of the Qingcang Kingdom."

Sun Mao's tone held a hint of mockery.

"As it turned out, when that Elder arrived at the Tiansha Sect's mountain gate, he found that although the Sect-protecting array was active, it was deathly silent inside."

"He forced his way through the array, only to discover that the entire Tiansha Sect was already empty!"

"Really?"

Immortal Master Daoist Yun Du's movements paused, and his tea nearly spilled.

"It is absolutely true."

Sun Mao nodded. "Those two Nascent Soul Old Ancestors of the Tiansha Sect, who claimed to be in secluded cultivation, had already fled the Xuanling Continent in batches seven or eight years ago. They took all the Core Disciples, Cultivation Techniques, classics, and treasury resources through a secret underground teleportation array."

"Where did they go?"

"According to the Tianji Pavilion's speculation, they likely fled into the depths of the Boundless Sea to seek out the islands of those overseas Loose Cultivators."

The hall was silent for a moment.

Then, Immortal Master Daoist Yun Du couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Hahaha! What a Tiansha Sect! What typical demonic behavior!"

"When disaster strikes, they each fly their own way, abandoning even their ancestral legacy. They certainly ran off cleanly!"

After laughing, a sharp light flashed in Immortal Master Daoist Yun Du's eyes.

"With the Tiansha Sect gone, the Jin State's Demonic Path is left with only six Nascent Souls. The Blood Bone Demon Sect cannot stand alone, and the remnants of the Wandu Sect and Hehuan Valley are even less of a threat."

"The Jin State is completely finished."

Sun Mao nodded in agreement. "Indeed. The current Jin State is merely lingering on its last breath, guarding what little barren land remains. The Qingcang Kingdom could swallow it in one bite at any time."

"It can't be swallowed."

Immortal Master Daoist Yun Du shook his head, his gaze deep.

"Secret orders have come from the provincial capital. The Xuanqing and Taiqing Sects are making frequent moves at the borders, and the Liang Kingdom has also begun increasing troops on the eastern front."

"The Qingcang Kingdom is now attacked from both front and back. True Monarch Fang Yi sent word for our Northern Protectorate to strengthen combat readiness and be prepared at any time for potential conflicts."

"The world has been at peace for ten years."

"But in the cultivation world, there is never true peace."

"All parties are conserving their energy, waiting for an opportunity."

"Once the balance is broken, the next fires of war will surely sweep across the entire Xuanling Continent. When Nascent Souls take the field, no one will be able to stay out of it."

"We still need to make more preparations."

...