After half a day of contemplation, Wu Tao finally thought of a plan.
Since the cultivation world of Zi Prefecture respected aristocratic families, his Shengxian Sect, lacking sufficient strength, could first pretend to be a family.
He could then disguise himself as an Nascent Soul stage cultivator from overseas, pretending that after arriving in the Zi Prefecture cultivation world, he saw the benefits of the family model and wanted to establish his own family to reign supreme.
However, he had always been struggling without his own territory, which was why he hadn't established his own family yet.
Upon hearing the news of Weicheng, he had rushed over immediately, intending to seize Weicheng as his base before others could.
As this idea suddenly popped into Wu Tao's mind, the more he thought about it, the more it felt right. After a moment's consideration, he decided to go with it.
Near Weicheng, there were always about ten thousand cultivators living there, and tens of millions of mortals. It could be considered a prosperous city.
However, recently, many major events had occurred near Weicheng, and some astute cultivators had already left to avoid being implicated.
The most significant event in Weicheng recently was the extermination of the Fan family, a third-tier family from the east.
This major incident caused a huge stir and triggered widespread panic among cultivators. It was no wonder many families temporarily left the area to avoid getting caught in the mess.
However, quite a few families also chose to remain in Weicheng. Besides having their industries there, they were also extremely curious about what would happen next in Weicheng.
At the same time, they were all speculating who would be the ruler of Weicheng next. Even some fourth-tier families with late-stage Core Formation cultivators were secretly competing.
Half a month after the Fan family was exterminated, another major event occurred in Weicheng!
A rogue cultivator named Wu, in the early Nascent Soul stage, arrived in Weicheng, claiming he had taken a liking to the territory and intended to occupy it to establish his own family.
Faced with a Nascent Soul stage cultivator, the various families who had been itching to make a move, all hid their intentions and outwardly expressed their submission.
Wu Tao thus occupied Weicheng without bloodshed.
However, Wu Tao's troubles were far from over, or rather, Wu Tao's troubles had not yet arrived.
The first immediate threat was the investigation by the Zhuge family, the governing family of Shujun.
The second threat was that Wu Tao had to go to Chang'an, the capital of the Great Jin Kingdom, to participate in the Rank Conference and gain recognition before he could truly be considered an aristocratic family.
…
For certain reasons, the families in Weicheng did not show much resistance to Wu Tao's rule.
However, their good days didn't last long before an uninvited guest arrived.
…
"Boom! Boom! Boom!!!!"
Waves of overwhelming cloud energy surged beneath the suddenly appearing figure, each wave exceeding a thousand zhang!
Even though it was still far from Weicheng, the immense spectacle, as if a large army of cultivators were attacking Weicheng, alerted the entire city.
Thus, under the gaze of at least ten thousand cultivators, the figure walked closer, like a god in this realm. The momentum and scene were imprinted in the eyes of every cultivator!
Among the more than ten thousand cultivators, there were over twenty Core Formation stage cultivators whose gazes were also fixed on the figure.
Unlike the Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment cultivators, their cultivation realms allowed them to more clearly sense the terror of the figure.
It was the domain unique to the Nascent Soul stage, and not just any domain, but a higher-level one.
"I am Zhuge Jin of the Zhuge family. I heard another Nascent Soul stage fellow daoist has arrived in Weicheng. Why don't you come out and meet me?"
"Mid-Nascent Soul stage… it's mid-Nascent Soul stage…"
In Weicheng, Shen Laosan and the other stewards, gathered together, also fixed their eyes on the newcomer when the mid-Nascent Soul stage cultivator named Zhuge Jin appeared.
For some unknown reason, Zhuge Jin did not conceal his cultivation at all, not even slightly, but completely released it.
As the ones currently managing Weicheng, Shen Laosan and the other stewards immediately discovered the newcomer's cultivation realm, which was the only mid-Nascent Soul stage cultivator in the Zhuge family.
They had initially expected that after the entire Fan family was annihilated and a early Nascent Soul stage cultivator suddenly appeared in Weicheng, the Zhuge family would send a Nascent Soul stage cultivator to investigate.
But the cultivator sent should have been an early Nascent Soul stage cultivator. If one was not enough, perhaps two?
The gap between Nascent Soul stage cultivators was vast. Although there was only a minor realm difference between early and mid-Nascent Soul stage, the combat power differed greatly.
Because of this, a mid-Nascent Soul stage cultivator could establish a second-tier family.
A second-tier family could occupy a county as their territory.
However, an early Nascent Soul stage cultivator could only establish a third-tier family.
Third-tier families could only occupy a major city, far from being comparable to a county.
From this, one could see the difference in status between early and mid-Nascent Soul stage cultivators in the cultivation world.
And the difference between mid-Nascent Soul stage cultivators and late-Nascent Soul stage cultivators was even greater.
A late-Nascent Soul stage cultivator could not only establish a first-tier family but also possess a region as their territory.
…
It was for this reason that they had not expected Zhuge Jin, the pillar of the Zhuge family and a mid-Nascent Soul stage cultivator, to come here for an investigation.
In an instant, Shen Laosan and the other stewards' hearts were filled with fear.
"Quick, quick, go notify the Sect Master!"
As Wu Tao's subordinates, the dozen of them worried that if the enemy was too strong and something unexpected happened, they would still need to flee with Wu Tao and be hunted.
However, they didn't expect that what they feared the most would come to pass.
A deep blue Daoist robe, a wooden hairpin to tie his hair, an aged face, and silver-white hair, he appeared as an old Daoist.
…
However, the most alarming thing was that he seemed to be perpetually shrouded in mysterious power. Although he stood in the air, everyone felt that the scene they were witnessing was unreal, like a mirage.
In a corner, an elder family head, in the late Core Formation stage, muttered to himself.
"Zhuge Jin, the pillar of the Zhuge family, a mid-Nascent Soul stage cultivator, a master of formations, renowned throughout the world for his celestial navigation techniques!"
…
Seeing that the troublemaker had arrived, how could Wu Tao not appear?
However, seeing that Zhuge Jin's attitude was relatively polite, Wu Tao couldn't be rude. He rubbed his nose and cupped his fist, saying.
"So it is Fellow Daoist Zhuge Jin who has graced us with your presence. I am Wu Tao, greetings, fellow daoist."
…
After Wu Tao and Zhuge Jin exchanged a few simple pleasantries, Zhuge Jin got straight to the point and said.
"Fellow Daoist, I don't care how the Fan family was exterminated, nor how you took a fancy to this Weicheng. If you wish to establish yourself in Shujun, you must gain my approval."
"How about this: as long as you can hold out under my hands for half an hour, our Zhuge family will recognize your rule over this city, Weicheng. What do you say?"
Upon hearing this, Wu Tao pondered for a moment and immediately replied, "No problem, Fellow Daoist. You are straightforward, and so am I."
…
After discussing the terms, Zhuge Jin suddenly extended his right hand, condensing spiritual energy from heaven and earth through his formation, summoning a starlight dragon close to the Nascent Soul stage.
…
Looking at the starlight dragon charging towards him aggressively, Wu Tao's lips curled slightly, and he thought to himself, "Is he testing me? Interesting?"
…
Wu Tao also extended his right hand, but with a single finger, he condensed sword qi, expanded his domain, and similarly absorbed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, forming a sword tiger.
As the sword tiger collided with the starlight dragon, with a loud bang, both perished.
Seeing this, Zhuge Jin's pupils contracted, and he finally decided to use his true abilities.
Zhuge Jin's entire body was enveloped by starlight, transforming into a nebula formation!
This scene did not escape Wu Tao's eyes.
Taking a deep breath, Wu Tao's expression remained calm. The Chuxi Sword in his hand automatically unsheathed, emitting constant battle cries.
The sword cry was earth-shattering, as if the sharp aura at the tip of the sword could cleave the entire world in two.
On the other side, Zhuge Jin smiled, his blue Daoist robe fluttering without wind, and his entire being changed, resembling the faintly discernible stars in the sky.
Tianshu! Tianxuan! Tianji! Tianquan! Yuheng! Kaiyang! Yaoguang!
Zhuge Jin's body was covered in starlight, and he muttered to himself, as if reciting a mysterious incantation.
It was distant and ancient, as if a deity from the primordial era was speaking, his words carrying immeasurable authority.
At the same time, seven star formation flags of the treasure level floated out from Zhuge Jin's body, communicating with heaven and earth, directly summoning the power of the stars.
Everything merged together, eventually forming a heart-shaped star map, with seven stars shining upon it.
"Profound Heaven Big Dipper Great Formation!"
Wu Tao's expression grew solemn as he looked at everything and uttered the most famous technique of Zhuge Jin, which he had gathered earlier.
A master of formations indeed. To be able to instantly form a formation during combat.
Of course, such a formation was far inferior to a true grand formation that required considerable time and spiritual materials to set up, but it was still quite remarkable.
After the Big Dipper star map appeared, the entire world immediately changed.
"Tianshu! Tianxuan! Tianji! form the body of the Dipper. Tianquan! Yuheng! form the handle. Kaiyang! Yaoguang! form the head of the scoop…"
"Shu is Heaven, Xuan is Earth, Ji is Man, Quan is Time, Heng is Sound, Kaiyang is Law, and Yaoguang is Star, all are stars of the Big Dipper."
As soon as the Big Dipper star map appeared, it cast a cold starlight, influencing a part of the world and turning it into its own domain.
Then, the Big Dipper star map trembled slightly, and starlight condensed into beams of light, striking towards Wu Tao.
…
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