"Every cultivator from the fifth level of Qi Refinement upward?" Wang Hao thought. The Wang Clan must be about to embark on something significant. In recent years, their spirit veins had been insufficient, restricting the family's growth. He needed to return to the Wang Mountains and assess the situation himself.
Once back in the Wang Range, Wang Hao hurried to find Wang Yanzhao—but his uncle was still in alchemical seclusion. Wang Hao dared not disturb him. If it weren't for something truly important—a second-order pill or higher—Wang Yanzhao wouldn't seclude himself so strictly!
He waited over ten days before Wang Yanzhao finally emerged. Seeing Wang Hao, his uncle beckoned him in at once.
"Have you been here several days already?"
"About ten," Wang Hao replied.
Wang Yanzhao studied him for a moment. Noting the extra power in Wang Hao's cultivation, a spark of excitement lit his expression.
"Excellent—so you really reached the eighth level of Qi Refinement. When did you break through?"
Wang Hao nodded. "Right after I returned from Qingyuan Fang City, I secluded myself in cultivation. The breakthrough wasn't long ago." Then he asked, "Uncle, what pill were you refining that took so long?"
"There's no harm in telling you," Wang Yanzhao revealed, lowering his voice. "It was the Blood-Burning Pill!"
Wang Hao's eyes went wide. "The Blood-Burning Pill? Why would you refine that? As an alchemist, you know its dangers—taking just one requires years of recovery!"
"Why are you shouting?" his uncle scolded, then sighed. "We had no choice. The Wang Clan must open new borders now, but how easy is it to secure lands against the demons? Refining a furnace of Blood-Burning Pills is our contingency plan!"
The Wang Clan's strength lay in alchemy, not combat. Naturally, with everyone focused on pill-making, few had time to train spells or martial techniques.
"Don't worry. The old patriarch refined a furnace of Essence-Supplementing Pills, and three remain—enough to pair with the Blood-Burning Pills!"
Wang Hao frowned but said no more. The decisions of the Clan's Establishment-of-Foundation cultivators were not his to change. Were it not for his own interest in the next-level Lotus-Heart Illusion Method, he wouldn't bother with these troubles.
"Where is the target this time?" he asked. "The demons of Broken-Origin Mountain are all connected. It's hard to attack—and even harder to defend once land is seized!" Any new territory would be on the front line against the five great clans and subject to constant demon assaults.
Wang Yanzhao thought for a moment. "This time we aim for Ruo Jun Mountain, an outlier of Broken-Origin Mountain. Once captured, it's easier to form a defensive line. Ruo Jun originally belonged to the Xiao Clan, but they couldn't withstand the beasts over two hundred years ago and lost it to the demons."
"Ruo Jun?" Wang Hao opened his map. Indeed, it was a strong choice—securing it would link to the Wang Clan's existing borders and form a defensive pincer with the Li Clan against the demons.
Yet the map still showed Ruo Jun blank—unreconnoitered. Wang Hao's brow furrowed. "Have you scouted the demons at Ruo Jun? They won't be easy to handle!"
"Yes." Wang Yanzhao nodded. "They're long-armed macaques—in packs of about two thousand, with over three hundred classified, and three long-armed macaques of second order! The leader is a high-grade second-order macaque."
Wang Hao did a quick mental comparison. The Wang Clan had three Establishment-of-Foundation cultivators and hundreds of Qi-Refinement members—roughly equal strength. With proper formations and strategy, success was likely.
Seeing Wang Hao so invested in clan affairs, Wang Yanzhao beamed. "No need to worry, we've prepared thoroughly. The old patriarch is at the peak of Establishment-of-Foundation—he'll handle the demon leader. My uncle and I will deal with the other two second-order macaques, and you can block the first-order ones.
"Ruo Jun's territory lies on Broken-Origin's fringe. Any stir won't draw the demons' main forces. Also, these macaques oppress weaker beasts nearby, so even if they're attacked, no strong reinforcements will come.
"Besides, the old patriarch invited the Li Clan to help—we'll have at least one Establishment-of-Foundation cultivator and ten Qi-Refinement members from them. With that lineup, our odds are very high!"
"The Wang Clan only flourished after centuries of effort. If we don't seize this chance to expand, we'll remain confined to the Wang Range and never progress!"
Wang Hao felt a pang of sorrow. Cultivation, after all, was a struggle for resources—and sometimes those resources had to be taken by force.
If Ruo Jun fell quickly, the Wang Clan would have room to grow for the next hundred years. If we failed—or paid too high a price—we'd drop to the bottom of the five great clans of Qingyuan Fang City, taking centuries to recover.
…
One month later, all Wang Clan cultivators at or above the fifth level of Qi Refinement were summoned back to the Wang Mountains. Departure day approached, and Patriarch Wang Guang'an issued the final orders.
The party traveled unceasingly for nearly a month before they neared Ruo Jun Mountain!
At the mountain's foot, Wang Guang'an set up a concealment formation to hide them from demon scouts, then waited for the Li Clan's arrival.
A few days later, Li Yaozu—the Li Clan's Establishment-of-Foundation cultivator—arrived with ten clan members, including Li Derong.
Seeing the exhausted Li Clan cultivators, Wang Longyou forced a wry smile: "We've imposed on the Li Clan by making them travel so far to help us. I'm truly ashamed."
"Don't say that," Li Yaozu replied. "Our two clans have long been allied. The Wang Clan's expansion benefits the Li Clan too—when your power grows, it eases pressure on us!"
"Of course," Wang Longyou agreed warmly. The two spoke intimately, as if one family.
Yet the price paid by the Wang Clan was steep. From just this operation's demon kills, the Wang Clan would not keep a single second-order beast—they'd all go to the Li Clan. On top of that, the Li Clan would claim over a hundred first-order beasts—total value at least fifteen thousand spirit stones!
They'd also receive pill compensation, and if the Li Clan took territory in turn, the Wangs would have to assist again!
Moreover, if any Li Clan Qi-Refinement cultivators were injured, the Wang Clan owed a thousand spirit stones each! A downright ransom!
But it was worth it, since the Li Clan willingly minimized the Wang Clan's losses.
Meanwhile, Wang Hao and the younger Wang Clan members were greeting the Li Qi-Refinement cultivators at the city gate. He'd have preferred not to—but now that his cultivation had reached the eighth level, making him the foremost "Wen" of his generation, he could not hide, and found himself roped in early by Old Wang.