Beast Taming Clan: I Have a Jade Book

”Jiang Daoist, wait a moment. Could you share your insights?” Li Shangwu’s words clearly carried a sense of uncertainty, lacking his usual confidence. His tone also revealed deep confusion.

”Li Daoist, what do you think the chances are of True Monarch Divine Medicine of the Medicine King Valley breaking through?” Jiang Xuanyuan asked. When Li Shangwu did not answer, he added, ”If True Monarch Bai Yao breaks through, what could we possibly gain from it?”

”I want to know what we have to do.” At this point, Li Shangwu deflated like a punctured balloon.

”We don’t need to do anything right now. We only need to provide the locations of some Teleportation Arrays at the critical moment, as well as the weaknesses of the Mountain Protection Array,” Jiang Xuanyuan said. ”The Gold Condensing Pill that my Jiang Family can obtain, your Li Family will also be able to get.”

”Then what about True Monarch Qianchen’s Nascent Soul ceremony this time?” Li Shangwu continued to ask.

”By destroying the Teleportation Arrays, we naturally can’t let the Ye Family hold it smoothly. Someone will find an excuse when the time comes!” Jiang Xuanyuan replied. However, his expression quickly turned serious. ”I can’t say anything more specific. Now, I hope Li Daoist can swear a Heavenly Dao Oath regarding today’s matter, promising not to leak a word of it.”

”I can certainly swear a Heavenly Dao Oath. But with just one sentence, you expect me to gamble the lives of over a million members of the Li Family?” Li Shangwu retorted. Over the years, since becoming a Golden Core Clan, the Li Family naturally had no shortage of Cultivators. They had over a thousand Cultivators and more than 1.9 million Mortals.

”What do you mean, Li Daoist?” Jiang Xuanyuan frowned, killing intent leaking from his eyes.

”Nothing much. It’s just that Jiang Daoist’s way of doing things disappoints me.” Li Shangwu shook his head and waved his hand dismissively. ”If Jiang Daoist cannot reveal more secrets, then please go back. I guarantee with my character that I will never tell anyone,” he added nonchalantly.

Jiang Xuanyuan’s expression changed. Raising his sleeve, he flicked it sharply at the air before turning to leave. ”If today’s matter is leaked, I will ensure the Li Family is damned beyond redemption.”

His cold words lingered in the air.

Jiang Xuanyuan disappeared from the courtyard. Li Shangwu’s lips curled into a helpless smile. Beside him, a Cultivator stepped forward—it was his son, Li Quanxian.

”Father, the Jiang Family has actually rebelled! We can completely use this evidence to damn them, and our Li Family will be heavily relied upon.” Li Quanxian’s eyes brightened. He naturally wasn’t worried about the other party’s deterrence. As long as the Taiyi Sect and the Ye Family took action, the Jiang Family wouldn’t even have a Late Stage of First Tier domestic chicken left alive, let alone the strength to retaliate against the Li Family. As for character and integrity, in his eyes, they were utterly unimportant.

”Do you truly think so?” Li Shangwu looked at Li Quanxian, sudden disappointment flashing in his eyes.

”Father, is that not the case?” The smile on Li Quanxian’s face faded, replaced by confusion.

”I had you watch from here because I wanted you to analyze the situation and come to a conclusion, so that if I die one day, you can hold up the Li Family.” Li Shangwu sighed in disappointment. ”Do you truly believe Jiang Xuanyuan would rebel so easily? Do you really think he would make a decision that simply? Even if he were to be killed, he wouldn’t act so hastily,” he explained after a brief hesitation. He only had this one son, and in the entire Li Family, Li Quanxian was the only one with the hope of Golden Core Formation. He had no choice but to be as patient as possible.

”Father, are you saying...” Li Quanxian said, somewhat surprised.

”I didn’t say anything. I merely met with Jiang Xuanyuan today; he was very confused and worried,” Li Shangwu interrupted before Li Quanxian could finish. He knew very well that in times like these, doing more meant making more mistakes, and doing less meant making fewer mistakes. If the higher-ups became suspicious, they would suspect everything regardless. If he reported it falsely and the Jiang Family could prove their innocence, the Li Family would be in trouble. If he reported it truthfully, the Li Family might be suspected of colluding with the Celestial Corpse Sect to elevate their own status.

To those high above, Golden Core Clans were insignificant anyway. They didn’t care whether these clans defected or not, so whatever happened today was ultimately unimportant. It would be better to simply report that Jiang Xuanyuan was acting a bit strangely, and add that the weather today was quite clear. As for whether the Jiang Family actually had any issues, let the Taiyi Sect and the Ye Family figure it out themselves. Their Li Family was nothing more than a small clan.

”Is that Treasure ready?” Li Shangwu suddenly changed the subject.

”It’s ready, but do we really have to...” Li Quanxian hadn’t fully recovered from his shock before hearing his father ask for the Treasure. Reluctance flickered in his eyes. However, upon meeting Li Shangwu’s firm gaze, he swallowed the rest of his sentence. He then stepped back and went to make the final preparations, knowing that he would only invite a scolding if he spoke further.

Li Shangwu couldn’t help but sigh as he watched his son leave. He knew Li Quanxian had lived too smooth a life. It was true that heroes were forged in chaotic times, but the number of Cultivators crushed in the chaos would easily number in the tens of millions.

***

While several families remained ambiguous, such a situation did not exist in the Celestial Arrival Commandery.

The Xiao Family had already recalled most of their talented members into the Market. Inside the Market, they naturally didn’t have to worry about being harassed. The only issue was that cultivating Spirit Medicine and mining Spiritual Ore had become problematic. However, to the Xiao Family, their relationship with the Ye Family had always been good. In their view, if the Penglai Sect were to strike, it would only be during the Nascent Soul ceremony. They just needed to endure for a while. As long as the Ye Family remained intact, they—having distanced themselves from any suspicion—would be absolutely safe.

As for their own Spirit Mountain, if it was occupied, then so be it. With the Spirit Mountain Array in place, the enemy would have to deploy more High-Tier Cultivators if they wanted to take it. But the moment they revealed High-Tier Cultivators, they would be inviting eradication from the Ye Family and the Taiyi Sect. Either way, the Xiao Family wouldn’t lose out.

”We need to prepare a congratulatory gift. Also, we must learn from the Wei Family!” Xiao Yuntian, a Purple Mansion Cultivator of the Xiao Family, sighed emotionally. He then ordered his clansmen to make preparations. Since there was a Teleportation Array right in the Market, he wasn’t worried about much. But to maximize their gains, he planned to head over early. The Ye Family would definitely host a trade fair for Purple Mansion and Golden Core Cultivators. Exchanging for some defensive Treasures would obviously make them much safer.

”Pity the Li Family and the Jiang Family. They can’t bear to part with their Spirit Mountains and Spirit Medicine Gardens.” Xiao Yuntian naturally understood their predicament. It was terrifying in a way; the Celestial Corpse Sect’s constant visits were simply too sickening.

At this moment, the Gu Family of the Celestial Arrival Commandery was in a similar situation to the Xiao Family...

***

Atop the Celestial Blade Nine Peaks, the Golden Core Cultivators of the Tian Dao Sect gathered in the Treasure Tower, with Master Mo Dao and Master Ye Feng taking the lead seats. Because they were already attached to the Ye Family, and Ye Jingcheng was an Honorary Supreme Elder of the Tian Dao Sect, they naturally had nothing to worry about. Their only task was to prepare a suitable gift.

Although they hadn’t managed to collect suitable Essence Blood, they had gathered a stalk of Tier Five Spiritual Medicine. As a congratulatory gift, this was definitely not shabby. Meanwhile, Ye Jingfeng was finding it a bit hard to handle the overwhelming enthusiasm of the Tian Dao Sect’s Golden Core Cultivators. They kept urging him to take more Treasures back to Lingyun Peak.

At first, Ye Jingfeng felt it was somewhat inappropriate. However, Master Mo Dao insisted that this was half a gift from the Tian Dao Sect. Hearing this, Ye Jingfeng finally nodded. Agreeing with their reasoning, he took out quite a few Treasures from the Treasure Vault.

To ensure maximum respect, the array of Treasures resembled a lavish betrothal gift: 999 Upper-grade Spirit Stones, one stalk of special Tier Five Spiritual Medicine, two stalks of ordinary Tier Five Spiritual Medicine, nine stalks of Tier Four Spiritual Medicine, one piece of Tier Five Profound Iron, and nine pieces of Tier Four High Grade Spirit Materials... The sheer quantity of the congratulatory Treasures left Ye Jingfeng somewhat numb.

In truth, Ye Jingyu had secretly given him some hints, telling him to manipulate the situation appropriately. But now, what need was there for manipulation? Ye Jingcheng’s name alone was enough to make the Tian Dao Sect willingly offer their own blood for the Ye Family to drain—and they would even be deeply grateful for it.

Furthermore, aside from the gift, the Tian Dao Sect also took out Tier Four Spirit Tea and Tier Four Spirit Wine for the Ye Family to use in entertaining the other Cultivators. For the Ye Family, more than half of the expenses were probably being shouldered by the Tian Dao Sect. It could be said that the Ye Family was truly making a pure profit without a single loss.