Outside the Imperial Capital, Sword Master Fang Yunyu wore a conflicted expression.
"What is the meaning of this? What exactly does the Commander intend?"
Fang Yunyu narrowed his eyes.
Just moments ago, Wu Neng had summoned him for a private meeting and produced a stack of case files.
Those files contained detailed records of how he, along with the other two major powers, had secretly framed secluded factions and lined their own pockets over the years!
Wu Neng had remained silent the entire time.
No matter how Fang Yunyu asked, trembling with fear, Wu Neng only made him study those case files carefully.
He did not punish him, nor did he hold him accountable.
Once Fang had finished reviewing the files, Wu Neng simply let him leave.
"The matter of lining one's pockets is something all three families do.
Never mind us, even the Immortal Suppression Department does it themselves.
As for framing others in secret, that is merely one side of the story.
Besides, the Immortal Suppression Department permitted it; when executing those secluded factions, we lacked concrete evidence of their crimes, so we had no choice but to act in such a way."
Fang Yunyu felt an incessant panic in his heart.
"Why bring these matters up now? The Great War against the Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems is imminent. What is he trying to achieve?"
His voice had hardly faded when...
Fang Yunyu's expression instantly returned to normal.
That calculating woman from the Zhangsun family approached him.
"Sword Master Fang."
"What do you want now?"
Fang Yunyu shot her a cold glance.
He truly looked down upon the Zhangsun clan—an Immortal clan that had built its foundation by relying on its women to sell their charms, currying favor with other powers to extract exorbitant betrothal gifts.
"Sword Master Fang, oh Sword Master Fang. Why must you pretend to be so aloof in front of me?" Zhangsun Buhuo sneered.
"You and I are actually the same kind of people. We are nothing more than profit-seekers."
"If you have nothing else to say, then farewell."
With a cold harrumph, Fang Yunyu turned and left.
Watching the direction the swordsman departed, Zhangsun Buhuo wore a playful expression.
"I'd really like to see just how long you can keep up this act of arrogance.
Your true worth is completely visible to the Lord Commander.
If you were truly capable, you wouldn't have been associating with the likes of us all these years."
Then, she turned her gaze toward the Immortal Suppression Department.
"It seems the Lord Commander truly intends to move against the Li Clan.
This is a golden opportunity.
His Highness the Crown Prince lived within the Li Clan for three hundred years. Now, the Li Clan sits in possession of the Southern Border.
In Shadowfell Prefecture, nearly a million troops under the Crown Prince's banner are commanded by Li Tianyue, and the family's business interests span the entire Imperial Dynasty."
"If the Lord Commander wishes to become the foremost subordinate under the Crown Prince, then the Li Clan is his greatest rival!"
"For this operation at the Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems, the Li Clan has dispatched two Void Refining experts—Li Dalong and Li Yaozu have arrived in person—along with numerous Divinity Transformation stage and Nascent Soul cultivators.
If they were all to perish at the Mountain... the clan would find it difficult to recover its vitality.
At that point, Azure Cloud Prefecture might even descend into chaos once more.
Even if the Li Clan discovers the truth, they will have no choice but to knock out their own teeth and swallow them."
Zhangsun Buhuo let out a cold sneer.
Although Wu Neng had merely used the evidence of her crimes over the years to threaten her without explicitly stating his demands, Zhangsun Buhuo sensed something was amiss.
Having specially come to observe Sword Master Fang Yunyu's expression, she needed only a moment of speculation to realize that during their separate private meetings with Wu Neng, she and Fang Yunyu had essentially received the same treatment.
"Why resort to threats unless he plans to do something that must be kept hidden from outsiders?"
"Interesting."
...
Azure Cloud Prefecture.
Inside the City of Merit.
Days drifted by, and the members of the Li Clan seemed not the least bit affected by the impending events at the Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems.
Li Wei obtained another portion of the Power of Rules from a planet.
He appeared within the idyllic, paradise-like environment of the City of Merit, wiping the sweat from his brow.
"Just ten more portions of the Power of Rules, and the job will be done.
Then I can go home and eat the braised pork Yuexian makes."
He checked the time again.
[Year 799]
There were only two months remaining until the assault on the Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems.
System notifications appeared incessantly in the game event log.
Most were related to family development; a cursory scan with his spiritual soul revealed that the majority were clan members breaking through.
The family population had now reached one thousand.
The sheer volume of weddings, births, and breakthroughs alone was enough to make one's eyes swim.
However, the new generation of Li clansmen did not break through as rapidly as the original family members had.
Occasionally, there were even reports of deaths—killings born of feuds, fatalities during experiential training, failed breakthroughs, and the like.
Li Wei could not help everyone in this regard.
He only offered a hand when he happened to notice a specific incident.
He had already bestowed Ancestral Spirit Tablets, and the elders of the clan had distributed treasures such as the Hidden Edge's Sword and Thunderfire Spirit Puppets.
At this moment.
The clan members were gathered together, all gazing at a humanoid creature lying within a Spirit Pool.
[Dabao (Sixth Generation)]
[Realm: Peak Nascent Soul]
"In less than ten years, created from nothing, it has reached the Peak Nascent Soul Realm!"
Li Dalong had also returned from the Underworld.
His expression was complex. From being mortals to reaching the Nascent Soul stage—how arduous was the path they had once traveled?
Yet now, through the Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems' Art of Corpse Stitching, they could actually create living beings at the Nascent Soul realm!
To the side, Li Yaotie grinned.
"It is still far from perfect. Once we obtain the precious knowledge from the Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems, we can attempt to refine an Integration Realm entity."
"And the Ling Tian Three Corpses."
Li Yaozu's lips curled up slightly.
"Regardless of what schemes Fourth Prince is harboring, as long as we give him the Ling Tian Three Corpses, he will provide us with the opportunity to reach the Integration Realm.
He wouldn't go so far as to deceive us."
Hearing this, Li Chang'an stepped forward and bowed to his elders.
"A message has arrived from the Immortal Suppression Department ordering the Li Clan to rendezvous at the Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems."
The clan members glanced at one another, and then, broad grins broke out across their faces.
The Spirit Tablets of the Old Ancestor floated into the air.
Immediately, everyone reached out and took hold of the Old Ancestor's Spirit Tablets one by one.
Li Dalong rose into the air, a colossal chain coiling around him like a swimming dragon.
"Then... let's go wreak some havoc!"
---
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