Translator: CinderTL
Great Shang Royal Capital.
Li Chunjun, along with Huan Ming, Lei Yuan, Jiang Yuqiu, and other Nascent Soul cultivators, returned to this land once more.
After a little over half a month of reorganization and restoration, the royal capital had regained its vitality.
Although it would take time to fully recover, glimpses of its former prosperity and brilliance could still be seen.
"The Flaming Phoenix Sword Prodigy is undoubtedly the top True Inheritor Disciple of our Taixu Sword Sect. Naturally, you need your own territory and personnel to cultivate your influence. Since you hail from Great Shang, from today onward, Great Shang will be your domain. I hope this land will flourish even more under your governance," Huan Ming said with a smile, pointing to the land beneath their feet from the Flying Boat.
"I'm not skilled in governance. The sect can send people to manage it for me," Li Chunjun replied.
"Haha, your Dao Protector team is still not fully staffed. You can select others from the sect who are adept at management to join your team and help oversee the operations of Great Shang," Jiang Yuqiu chimed in with a smile.
She looked down at Great Shang and continued, "There are many valuable resources within Great Shang. The Crimson City Gold Mine near the royal capital has a high yield. The gold extracted can be refined into Scarlet Gold and further into Essence Gold, which is the most commonly used material for forging Flying Swords. If refined further, it can even produce third-tier materials, which are quite valuable even for Core Formation cultivators."
Seeing this, Li Chunjun no longer refused.
It was within the rules.
The resources within Great Shang were not particularly significant.
The annual income it could provide him was less than what he could gain from slaying a single Core Formation cultivator.
However, the population of hundreds of millions in Great Shang could produce some talented individuals who could become the foundation of his first faction.
Many True Inheritor Disciples established their own factions during their time as True Inheritors.
In the future, whether he became a Vice Sect Master or competed for the position of Sect Master, he would have people to rely on.
But Li Chunjun clearly had no intention of making a big fuss in Great Shang or gathering a large number of people.
Because…
He might not stay in Great Shang for long.
As Li Chunjun and his group descended, Zuo Tian, along with Jun Zhou, Yi Feng, and Gao Fan, quickly stepped forward to greet them: "Sect Master, Peak Lord Lei, Peak Lord Jiang, Sword Prodigy Li…"
Huan Ming nodded at him and then snorted lightly, "The Chiyang Sword Sect sure has a big attitude, making us wait for them."
"The Chiyang Sword Sect is currently coordinating with the Wu Ji Sect, Zhou Tian Sect, and Piao Miao Sect. Now that Great Shang has become our territory, they naturally have to be cautious when stepping into this land," Peak Lord You Long explained.
"Hmph, then we'll generously wait and see what they're up to," Huan Ming said, then quickly headed toward a newly established mountain peak nearby that had been developed in the past ten days.
Shortly after the group arrived at the peak, two streaks of light appeared in the sky, breaking through the air.
Two Flying Boats, each controlled by two or three Nascent Soul cultivators, carried dozens of Core Formation cultivators…
And even some Qi Refining cultivators, flying through the air.
Seeing these two Flying Boats, Huan Ming and You Long stepped forward to greet them with smiles.
Jiang Yuqiu, standing beside Li Chunjun, introduced, "These are the True Lords from the Sky Sword Sect and the Thunderclap Sect. Since these two sects do not border our Taixu Sword Sect, our relationship with them is relatively amicable. Especially recently, after our Taixu Sword Sect extended goodwill, they have also expressed their intention not to oppose us."
After a pause, she added, "Between sects, there are no eternal friends or enemies, only interests that each seeks to grasp."
Li Chunjun remained calm.
Such words...
He merely listened.
Though he knew Jiang Yuqiu spoke the truth.
The real world was far from the black-and-white simplicity he had understood in school; it was infinitely more complex.
But...
He did not wish to entangle himself in the intricate web of sect relations and interpersonal interests.
The right or wrong of his goals no longer mattered.
Everyone had a myriad of reasons for doing what they believed was right, and human interactions were like an inescapable net.
He could not see clearly.
Nor could he comprehend.
Thus, he chose not to look too deeply or think too much.
His only goal was to ascend to immortality! At this moment, Huan Ming approached with two Nascent Soul cultivators from the sects, smiling as he said, "Esteemed True Lords, allow me to introduce you. This is the second Flaming Phoenix Sword Prodigy of our Taixu Sword Sect, Li Chunjun, Sword Prodigy Li!"
He then turned to Li Chunjun and introduced, "Sword Prodigy Chunjun, these are True Lord Xiang Qi from the Sky Sword Sect, True Lord An Li, True Lord Sen Ran from the Thunderclap Sect, and True Lord Yue Ming..."
"Greetings to the True Lords," Li Chunjun responded.
The Nascent Soul True Lords before him did not dare to act arrogantly.
Everyone knew that geniuses like Li Chunjun, at the level of a Sword Prodigy, had a great chance of cultivating into Primordial Spirit True Monarchs once they reached the main sect.
And the True Monarch realm...
That was essentially the lifelong pursuit of these Nascent Soul cultivators.
Otherwise, if there was any hope of cultivating into a Primordial Spirit in the main sect, they would not have come to the Blue Star Minor Realm to gamble on the opportunities of this Star Gate.
Thus, the Nascent Soul cultivators were extremely courteous. "In a single day, you defeated over sixty Core Formation cultivators of the Chiyang Sword Sect and shattered the Great Shang royal city, which was protected by a fourth-tier linked great formation." Such achievements truly make you unrivaled among Core Formation cultivators!"
"Sect Master Huan, your Taixu Sword Sect of the Azure Star lineage is truly blessed with fortune. First, there was Jiang Lingyun, the Sword Prodigy Jiang, whose reputation is awe-inspiring. And now, you have cultivated another prodigy like Sword Prodigy Li. It is truly astonishing."
"With Sword Prodigy Li's unparalleled cultivation, the Blue Star Minor Realm will likely be dominated by him and the Taixu Sword Sect for the next few decades."
The Nascent Soul True Lords spoke with smiles on their faces.
Behind them, the Core Formation and Qi Refining cultivators, who were clearly there to "broaden their horizons," took the opportunity to scrutinize Li Chunjun with great curiosity.
A few of the younger-looking Core Formation cultivators seemed slightly unconvinced.
Perhaps they felt that they might one day reach Li Chunjun's level, but for now...
They dared not show even a hint of it.
Their future achievements were a matter for the future. For now, Li Chunjun's sword reigned supreme, and among the Nine Immortal Sects, no Core Formation cultivator could rival him.
Thus, they had the sense to keep their thoughts to themselves.
As everyone exchanged greetings, streaks of light pierced through the sky from the distant horizon, accompanied by vast and majestic auras.
Huan Ming sensed for a moment and soon his expression changed slightly: "Xi Yan, that old fellow from the Wu Ji Sect, has also arrived!"
"And that Sword God, Zhuo Yu! Quite the grand entrance!"
Lei Yuan said with a grave expression.
The Nascent Soul True Lords stationed in the Blue Star Minor Realm by the Nine Immortal Sects numbered over a hundred. Among these Nascent Souls, there were naturally distinctions in strength.
For instance, Qi Qian Yu from the Taixu Sword Sect was one of the strongest, second only to the Primordial Spirit True Monarchs, either on the verge of achieving Primordial Spirit or having mastered high-level Mystical Powers.
Xi Yan and Zhuo Yu from the Wu Ji Sect were such individuals.
Xi Yan, like Qi Qian Yu, was a peak Nascent Soul Great True Lord, waiting only for the right moment to overcome the Thunder Tribulation and achieve Primordial Spirit.
As for Zhuo Yu, though only at the mid-stage of Nascent Soul, he had mastered the high-level Mystical Power "Myriad Swords Heart Incantation," granting him astonishing combat prowess, and thus he too became one of the strongest Nascent Soul True Lords.
He even surpassed Qi Qian Yu to claim the title of "Sword God."
Amidst the solemn expressions of the crowd, six streaks of light approached.
Among them, Jiang Yuqiu's gaze lingered on one of the streaks for a moment before he spoke in a deep voice: "I didn't expect the Overturning Sea Sect to stand with the Wu Ji Sect and the Chiyang Sect."
"Thirty years ago, Jiang Jianzi killed a Golden Core cultivator who was the direct disciple of Yun Han, the current Sect Master of the Overturning Sea Sect. It's not surprising they've made this decision."
You Long appeared to have anticipated this.
"In the end, it's all about interests. Apart from the Chiyang Sect and the Wu Ji Sect, the other four sects are merely fence-sitters. As long as our Taixu Sword Sect demonstrates invincible strength, they will naturally bow and submit again."
Jiang Yuqiu snorted lightly: "Otherwise, they'll have to be prepared to be completely driven out of the Blue Star Minor Realm."
You Long nodded.
At the same time, he subtly glanced at the slightly tense expressions of True Lords Xiang Qi and Yue Ming, among other Nascent Souls.
Speaking of fence-sitters…
The Sky Sword Sect and the Thunderclap Sect were no different. However, their presence could somewhat alleviate the pressure on the Taixu Sword Sect.
At the very least, they could offset two of the opposing sects.
With two sects less, the odds shift from one against six to one against four…
Even with the Wu Ji Sect among these four, the Taixu Sword Sect might still stand a chance.
As several Flying Boats approached, Zhan Chiyang, the Sect Master of the Chiyang Sword Sect, who should have been the main speaker, remained silent, while Xi Yan from the Wu Ji Sect spoke first.
"Sect Leader Huan Ming, your Taixu Sword Sect's actions are hardly in line with the principles of being part of the Immortal Alliance…"
His words were extremely direct.
Even carrying a hint of reproach.
Huan Ming didn't hold back either, cutting him off: "Enough. Since our Taixu Sword Sect has already agreed with the Chiyang Sword Sect on how to resolve this dispute, let's proceed accordingly."
After speaking, his gaze directly bypassed this meddlesome Nascent Soul from the Wu Ji Sect and landed on Zhan Chiyang: "Who will the Chiyang Sword Sect send to battle? I'd like to see what tricks you plan to play, knowing full well that our Taixu Sword Sect's Sword Prodigy Li has attained the strength of a Sword Prodigy."
"The Taixu Sword Sect has treated our Chiyang Sword Sect with great disrespect. Even though we do not have a 'Philosopher'-level prodigy in the Blue Star, we will never tarnish our sect's reputation."
Zhan Chiyang spoke, turning his gaze to someone behind him: "Yan Zhi, let the Taixu Sword Sect and this arrogant Flaming Phoenix Sword Prodigy, who betrayed our Taixu Sword Sect, see clearly that becoming a Sword Prodigy doesn't mean you're the best in the world!"
Xiao Yan Zhi, one of the three True Inheritors of the Chiyang Sword Sect, nodded solemnly and stepped forward from the crowd.
His eyes fell on Li Chunjun, carrying a hint of an inexplicable meaning: "Flaming Phoenix Sword Prodigy? Come up."
"Wait a moment."
Huan Ming interjected: "Since the Inheritance Battle was initiated by you, the rules regarding what can and cannot be used should naturally be decided by us. For fairness, each person can carry at most one Mystic Treasure and must temporarily set aside their Storage Treasure to prevent anyone from relying on external forces to win."
"Agreed."
Zhan Chiyang responded expressionlessly.
His prompt agreement surprised Huan Ming, You Long, Jiang Yuqiu, and the others.
Without these external aids and tools, how could Xiao Yan Zhi, whose combat strength was on par with Zhou Wu Gou, possibly stand against their Flaming Phoenix Sword Prodigy?
"Alright, let's get this over with quickly. Great Shang is the territory of our Chiyang Sword Sect, now and always will be."
At this moment, Zhan Chiyang even took the initiative to urge them on.
(End of the Chapter)
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