Chapter 448: Chapter 433: Clan Establishment Plan
After dropping off all the Zhou Family cultivators, Zhouyang and his Dao Companion Xiao Ying traveled alone on the "Illusory Cloud Ship" toward Cangyun Immortal City.
Although he had brought the Golden-winged Thunder Eagle along, this mount was too conspicuous. Until he had fully integrated into the circle of cultivators in the Land of the Far West, Zhouyang did not plan to reveal its existence.
However, for convenience, he did not suppress his cultivation to the Foundation Establishment Stage this time but instead slightly lowered his cultivation to assume the identity of a Fifth-Layer Purple Mansion Cultivator.
Additionally, in terms of identity, he did not appear as a Loose Cultivator like the low-tier Zhou Family cultivators but instead presented himself directly as Zhouyang, the Supreme Elder of the Xilong Zhou Family.
The Xilong Country also belonged to the Anti-Light Alliance, but it was seven to eight hundred thousand miles away from Yu Country. Unless one was willing to go through great efforts to investigate, no one would really know if the Xilong Zhou Family existed.
For Zhouyang, even if someone discovered that his identity was fabricated, it did not matter. It was quite common for cultivators to assume false identities while navigating the cultivation realm.
Cultivators who always used their true identity in the cultivation realm were either backed by incredibly strong forces, unafraid of offending others and incurring backlash, or were naive and inexperienced.
As expected, everything went smoothly.
Upon entering Cangyuan Immortal City, neither Zhouyang nor Xiao Ying faced any scrutiny or difficulties. The city guards merely emphasized that no combat was allowed inside the city, allowing them easy entry.
Once inside the city, like most high-tier cultivators traveling through the cultivation realm, they rented a private courtyard in an Immortal Inn as a resting place. They then strolled around various shops within the city, such as taverns and bookstores.
In terms of prosperity, Cangyuan Immortal City certainly couldn’t compare to the larger immortal cities Zhouyang had visited before, like Immortal Sun City.
However, some unique treasures from the Land of the Far West being sold in Cangyuan Immortal City could not be found elsewhere.
For example, the Crystal Treasure Mirror used by Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Giant Spirit Sect to check spiritual roots was made from a unique Tier Three Spiritual Object, the "Immortal Spirit Crystal" found only in the Land of the Far West.
There were many similar treasures covering categories such as magical artifacts, spirit talismans, and elixirs.
If not for the fear of revealing his identity, Zhouyang would definitely have bought a sample of each of these novel items to study.
In the end, he only purchased some maps and materials in a few bookstores to help him understand the Land of the Far West and Yu Country better, and then he focused on studying these materials in his rented courtyard.
By the time the Qi Cultivation Stage cultivators of the Zhou Family arrived in Cangyuan Immortal City on foot, Zhouyang had roughly finished reading the materials and gained an initial understanding of the current situation in the Land of the Far West.
According to the information he obtained, barring uninhabited desolate areas, the Land of the Far West’s cultivation realm was still slightly smaller than that of the Liuyun Continent. Its overall strength was also considerably inferior, mainly due to the ongoing millennium-long conflict between the Great Light Immortal Palace and the Anti-Light Alliance.
Currently, the number of Nascent Soul stage cultivators in the Land of the Far West did not exceed fifty. The Great Light Immortal Palace had about twenty cultivators, the Anti-Light Alliance slightly more, and a few Nascent Soul Loose Cultivators belonged to neither faction.
Among these Nascent Soul stage cultivators, there were two who had reached the Ninth-Layer Nascent Soul Stage: Master Chihua, the current palace master of the Great Light Immortal Palace, and Master Tianjian, the leader of the Anti-Light Alliance, who came from the Supreme Mysterious Sword Sect.
Master Chihua wielded the Inheritance Immortal Artifacts of the Great Light Immortal Palace, the "Scepter of Light" and "Skull of Light," making his true combat power comparable to a Tribulation Crossing True Immortal.
Meanwhile, Master Tianjian wielded the Anti-Light Alliance’s Tier Seven Immortal Artifact, the "Yin Yang Magnet Bottle," making him an equally formidable opponent in magical combat against Master Chihua.
Due to both sides being evenly matched without any overwhelming advantage, the stalemate between the Great Light Immortal Palace and the Anti-Light Alliance persisted over the past few millennia, preventing either side from exterminating the other. This resulted in minor skirmishes every century and major battles every millennium.
This prolonged war brought agony to all cultivators on both sides and offered no benefit to the entire cultivation realm of the Land of the Far West.
The war consumed a large amount of resources, destroyed many Spiritual Mountain Blessed Lands, and ended the legacies of countless sects and clans.
In addition, the war severed the connections between the Land of the Far West and other cultivation realms. For thousands of years, no cultivators from other realms had visited the Land of the Far West.
Thousands of years ago, when the Great Light Immortal Palace unified the Land of the Far West, cultivators could travel east to the Liuyun Continent cultivation realm, north to the Profound Court State cultivation realm, and south to the Great Wilderness Continent cultivation realm.
Back then, when various forces took advantage of the internal strife within the Great Light Immortal Palace to form the Anti-Light Alliance in resistance, it was like the universe suffering under Qin for a long time—it was a just resistance by the oppressed against the oppressor.
Now, however, the ongoing war has transformed into a struggle between Chu and Han for supremacy.
Neither side, be it the Great Light Immortal Palace or the Anti-Light Alliance, had any retreat path left.
Either the Great Light Immortal Palace would defeat the Anti-Light Alliance, reestablishing hegemony and unifying the Land of the Far West.
Or the Anti-Light Alliance would end the Great Light Immortal Palace’s rule over the Land of the Far West, reopening a landscape similar to the Liuyun Continent’s pluralistic sect autonomy.
After gaining a clear understanding of the greater situation in the Land of the Far West, Zhouyang was more inclined to side with the Anti-Light Alliance.
From any perspective, the Anti-Light Alliance, as an alliance-based organization, securing victory would be more beneficial for families like the Zhou Family.
The state of a cultivation realm dominated by a powerful authoritative sect could be seen from the Yellow Sand Sect two hundred years ago.
Moreover, from an overall strength perspective, the Anti-Light Alliance is significantly superior compared to the Great Brightness Immortal Palace.
The issue that now troubles him is how to enable the Zhou Family to join the Anti-Light Alliance as a faction.
A faction joining an alliance is quite different from an individual joining.
If it were just an individual joining the Anti-Light Alliance, Zhouyang would merely need to enter a sect and take up a position as an Outer Elder, or even like the Cangyuan Wanderer, join directly as an individual without anyone scrutinizing his background extensively.
However, a faction is different. A faction cannot appear out of thin air, and for the Anti-Light Alliance to accept a faction, there must be a thorough investigation of its background to prevent any enemy infiltrators.
The Zhou Family lacks such a legitimate background and origin.
"Hmm, considering the time, Guangxiang and the others should have arrived. Let’s wait for them to all gather, and after they understand the situation, we can collect their opinions and suggestions."
Zhouyang was never someone who refused to listen to opinions. He understood the principle that two heads are better than one.
Generally, unless it’s something he deems absolutely necessary, he is willing to listen to others’ views before making a decision.
In terms of establishing a family branch, he only decided that it must be done. As for how to do it, he was open to the suggestions of the clan cultivators he brought.
Under Zhouyang’s instructions, after Zhou Guangxiang and the other Zhou Family cultivators entered Cangyuan Immortal City, they first scattered to stay at different Immortal Inns within the city, then informed Zhouyang of their locations using Sound Transmission Talismans.
Upon receiving their messages, Zhouyang sent various replicated Jade Scrolls of materials to all the Zhou Clan Members, encouraging them to thoroughly read and absorb the knowledge within.
Nearly a month passed like this until Zhouyang finally summoned everyone for a meeting in a desolate mountain outside the city.
"During this past month, you have gone through the materials I provided. Now I ask, do you have any good suggestions or thoughts regarding establishing a family branch?"
In the desolate mountain, Zhouyang looked at over forty Zhou Clan Members who had arrived, and without further ado, directly asked about the matter at hand.
If this issue is not resolved, if these clan members are not settled, how can he embark on a journey to the Land of the Far West to seek elixirs and treasures for enhancing his cultivation?
However, to his dismay, after he spoke, not a single Zhou Family cultivator dared to step forward with suggestions.
In fact, he understood that he couldn’t blame these Zhou Family cultivators for being incapable.
After all, when he initially selected these people to come along, he valued either their combat abilities in magical combat, their expertise in certain skills from the Hundred Skills of Cultivation, or their exceptional talents in management, all considered for the future development of the family branch.
Yet now he cannot even get past the hurdle of establishing a family branch, so how can he expect these people to utilize their talents?
Moreover, all the Zhou Family cultivators, including himself, were born into a cultivation family; none have ever considered how to establish a family from scratch. Asking them for suggestions in this regard is indeed difficult for them.
"Xiaoli, what do you think?"
Out of necessity, Zhouyang had to name the only non-Zhou Family cultivator present, wanting to see if this younger generation whom he valued might still offer brilliant insights.
"Supreme Elder, with all due respect, I do have a method that can help the family pass the background check, but this method is time-consuming and might not align with your intent. I am unsure whether I should say it!"
Li Hong cupped his hands, looking somewhat anxious as he replied to Zhouyang.
Upon hearing this, Zhouyang immediately said, "No problem, just speak freely."
"Then allow me to present my idea."
"My method is quite simple, which is to have Elder Tong Yue take a dozen young clan Qi Cultivation Cultivators to make an appearance in Cangyun Immortal City, openly displaying the family banner, and have those young clan Qi Cultivation Cultivators assume the identity of Elder Tong Yue’s juniors."
"Afterward, Elder Tong Yue can apply to join the Cangyuan Immortal City’s Guard Team for service, thus obtaining a Tier Two Spirit Mountain outside the city as the family’s residence, to settle those young clan Qi Cultivation Stage cultivators."
"Then, those young clan Qi Cultivation Stage cultivators can openly take concubines and have children. The remaining clan Qi Cultivation Stage cultivators can also marry and have children under the guise of loose cultivators, secretly sending the offspring with spiritual roots into the family to be raised by those young Qi Cultivation Stage cultivators, outwardly claiming them as their offspring."
"This way, in just twenty to thirty years, the new Zhou Family should have a population of dozens. At that time, we can arrange for Tong Yue to perform a few acts, allowing us Foundation Establishment Cultivators to also join the Zhou Family as Guest Elders, helping the Zhou Family establish a foothold."
"Once the new generation of Zhou Family cultivators grows up, Supreme Elder, you can appear under the identity of Elder Guangxiang’s mentor, being invited to join the Zhou Family. This will justifiably allow you to shield the Zhou Family and advance it formally into the Anti-Light Alliance."
"Should you succeed in reaching the Golden Core after joining the Zhou Family, the background of the Zhou Family would likely no longer provoke any suspicion!"
"However, for the Zhou Family to withstand scrutiny, Supreme Elder, you and Elder Guangxiang must not appear again in Yu Country in the next twenty years or so, and you must publicly appear together in some place for a period of time, allowing people to be convinced that Elder Guangxiang is indeed your disciple!"