Bloodline Tree – [Clan Building]

“Fellow Daoists Sumei and Yasui are bound to be upset. They spent a year for a chance to grab this inheritance. Just as they were about to succeed, you came in and took it. Surely my sect can expect some compensation from the Sword Sect?” Sect Master Tonghe asked in a composed voice, taking a sip of spiritual tea.

Bian Fenglin smiled and took a sip himself. “Good tea.”

“I’ll send a box with you to take home,” Sect Master Tonghe said.

“Thank you,” Bian Fenglin said. “As for compensation, is that really something you want to ask for? It’s not exactly something to be proud of, stealing the resources of an inheritor.”

“That’s because it failed,” Sect Master Tonghe said. “If we had gotten the inheritance, what would it matter what people thought? In a few hundred years, everyone will have forgotten about it. But my Green River Sect will still stand, stronger because of the resources we collected. You are still young, and don’t see things with the perspective of a true cultivator of immortality.”

“Then why would I offer any compensation? You’ll be dead in a few hundred years, but I will still be here, stronger because of the resources I kept to myself,” Bian Fenglin answered with a teasing smile.

Sect Master Tonghe stared at him for a few seconds, then chuckled and shook his head. “You are just like your father.”

“It worked out pretty well for him, wouldn’t you say?” Bian Fenglin asked.

“Not compared to how well he could have done. Just look at True Lord Baimeng. She had the same starting point as Fellow Daoist Luming, but she had the proper attitude toward cultivation, and she soared into the sky because of it,” Sect Master Tonghe said.

Bian Fenglin shrugged and took another sip of tea. It was truly delicious.

‘As if reaching the Nascent Soul stage is just a matter of attitude. No wonder this old geezer lost to Father back in the day.’

“Either way, my aunt divined that my Golden Core opportunity was here, which means the inheritance was always mine; you guys just didn’t know it yet. So it’s no use complaining. If you truly want compensation, I can keep quiet about the Qing Family for you. How about it?”

“The Qing Family? What would you have to keep quiet about?” Sect Master Tonghe asked.

“I found out they’ve been ‘arranging marriages’ with some not-so-willing participants,” Bian Fenglin said. “I suggest you look into it. Better to solve things locally than to involve my Sword Sect for every small matter.”

“Such a small thing,” Sect Master Tonghe said dismissively, waving his hand. “It happens all the time; it’s impossible to smother out completely. Why would I care if you told anyone?”

“Do you know nothing about my aunt? I bet she would care a whole lot more than you do,” Bian Fenglin said, narrowing his eyes. He wasn’t joking. Bloodline breeding had been banned for a long time within the province, but it had only been seriously investigated after his aunt advanced. She truly despised the practice.

“True Lord Baimeng is righteous,” Sect Master Tonghe said, nodding. “If she truly cares, she is welcome to come here and destroy the Qing Family; I wouldn’t dare object. But don’t try to act like this is my responsibility. I can’t possibly keep track of every clan in my territory.”

Bian Fenglin smiled. ‘Oh, how would I love to see him repeat those words to my aunt.’

‘I wonder if there is a way to actually get her to come over. I would love to come along and watch the show.’

“Either way, I would appreciate it if you tell your people to stay out of the south of the Desolate Mountains in the future. The guy I received the inheritance from doesn’t want to be disturbed.”

“Why would I do something like that?” Sect Master Tonghe questioned.

“Why not? There is nothing for you there; it's a wasteland. You have no reason to hunt that guy down now; I’m the one with the inheritance,” Bian Fenglin said.

“To vent,” Sect Master Tonghe replied. “They can’t take their anger out on you, can they? Of course, they would probably calm down if there was some sort of compensation.”

‘Why is this guy so difficult? It looks like my father was right in his judgment. A small-minded man indeed.’

“Is this because of my mother?” Bian Fenglin asked, “My father told me you still held a grudge over that. I didn’t believe him at first, but now…”

Sect Master Tonghe's hand shook slightly at the words. “That’s ridiculous. It’s been over a century. It’s all in the past. Don’t believe anything that man says; he is always spouting lies.”

Bian Fenglin smiled calmly. “Right. I thought so too. Well, either way, I gave a promise to that Shu Yang, and I intend to keep it. Henceforth, anyone who goes south of the Desolate Mountains will become my, Bian Fenglin’s, enemy.

“Do you want to spread the word, or should I fly over the sect and announce it myself?”

Sect Master Tonghe was quiet for a moment before sighing. “Fine. You win. Once again, we cultivators outside the Sword Sect are subject to the whims of your Bian Family. We find something valuable in our territory, expend manpower and resources to extract it, but in the end, your family divines it and comes swooping in to take it, leaving us with nothing. I would have thought a young swordsman such as yourself would at least be righteous enough to offer some compensation, but I suppose I was mistaken.”

“No, no. You are quite right. The path I’m on doesn’t allow me to just take whatever I want, even if I have the power. I will naturally offer compensation,” Bian Fenglin said.

“I thought-” Sect Master Tonghe began, but Bian Fenglin interrupted him.

“Of course, I will only compensate the one I took the inheritance from. As for your people? Forget it. If you want to complain, take it up with my aunt."

After speaking, Bian Fenglin got up on his feet and stretched his back. He looked down on the stumped sect master and smiled cheerfully. “Thank you very much for the tea; it truly was delicious. I believe you said something about giving me a box?”

The top floor of the Yide Pavilion in Chenqi Immortal City was quiet. Only the flipping of pages could be heard from time to time.

‘Two Shadow Foxes, huh. Why would they leave the Heaven-Reaching Forrest and travel all the way to this place?’

‘Were they banished?’

‘Surely there had to be a better place for them to go than here, right?’

‘Too bad the Qing Family seems to have killed them.’

“Are you sure the information about the Shadow Foxes that the Qing Family brought back is correct?” Hanzhu asked the man kneeling on the floor.

“Young master, you can trust any information that dates back less than eighty years with utmost certainty. The Qing Family brought back two dead Shadow Foxes, that I’m certain of. As for how many of them ran away from the Heaven-Reaching Forrest, that is information my predecessor collected,” Wang Fang answered.

Wang Fang was the one in charge of this branch of the Yide Pavilion, and was the one who had given Hanzhu the information about the inheritance a little over a year ago.

The inheritance didn’t really interest Hanzhu much. As someone at the peak of the Foundation stage, the inheritance of a Foundation cultivator didn’t offer much value to him. But still, Hanzhu had figured it was worth checking out; it wasn’t a big detour for him.

Who would have thought that as soon as he arrived, he would get swooped up into the trial of a Golden Core cultivator and be stuck in there for over a year.

What truly angered Hanzhu wasn’t the time he wasted; it was that a branch of his Yide Pavilion could be so incompetent and give him false information. Sure, True Person Jiami had lived a long time ago, but the Yide Pavilion had been here far longer than that. The fact that there was no information about his inheritance had to be entirely due to an administrative issue.

‘I guess I can’t blame him too much; this is just a small branch. I should head to the pagoda in the Green River Sect and speak to the person in charge there.’

“Alright, get up. I’ll give you a chance to make amends,” Hanzhu ordered.

Wang Fang got up on his feet with shaky legs. “Thank you, young master. I am at your service. What do you want me to do?”

“What do you know about Shu Yang?” Hanzhu asked.

“He should be the one who went by the alias of Zhuo Zhangye in the trial. It appears he somehow managed to get his hands on the inheritance, but because his daughter was captured by the Qing Family a few years ago, he had to go get her from the Song Family before leaving. That made him lose his head start, and the Green River Sect’s people caught up to him.”

Wang Fang kept going on, all information Hanzhu was already aware of. He just wanted to make sure this Wang Fang had some capabilities.

‘I guess he’s not entirely useless, after all.’

“That is all we know for now, and some speculation based on his questions in our pagoda. We’re currently monitoring Song Hongchi closely to see if we can figure out what happened between them in the trial,” Wang Fang finished.

“Good,” Hanzhu said with a nod. “I’m finished with my business here, and will be heading to our branch in the Sword Sect. I want you to send some people south of the Desolate Mountains and gather as much information as you can about this Shu Yang, and then send it to me.”

“It will be done, young master. Don’t worry,” Wang Fang swore.

“Do a good job, and you’ll not only not be punished, you will be rewarded,” Hanzhu said.

“Of course,” Wang Fang said.

Hanzhu was just about to step outside when he thought of something.

“Whatever you do, don’t antagonize him. In fact, if there is a chance, you should help him and try to earn some goodwill,” Hanzhu said.

“You…want us to intervene? That’s…forbidden, young master,” Wang Fang said.

“Just do as I say,” Hanzhu said, stepping outside.

He didn’t know if this Shu Yang would be a friend in the future, but until he figured out more about him, he definitely couldn’t become an enemy.

Hanzhu hadn’t left immediately after the final trial broke down. He had stayed for a while and examined the room he was in, figuring he could just reveal his token if those Golden Core cultivators broke inside.

That’s when he felt it. A feeling he had never felt before.

Hanzhu had been in the presence of Nascent Soul cultivators and experienced for himself just how insignificant every other being was compared to them. Their aura was suffocating, and you couldn’t help but be aware that just a single thought from them could wipe out your soul.

Even so, the aura he had felt that final day of the trial was stronger.

Not just a little stronger either. It was… indescribable. It was beyond strength as he understood it.

Hanzhu didn’t know where it came from, or why it disappeared as suddenly as it had appeared. But he knew that the answers he sought should lie with the man named Shu Yang.

He just had to be cautious in the way he got those answers, or no amount of treasures could save him.

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