Eternal Tale

”Little guy, tell me, who sent you here?”

Yao Yue’s eyes glinted with amusement as she suddenly pointed at someone. ”Hmm... Li Minghua, from the Mengmu Sea Region, a member of the Li family on Cuiyu Island, with seventeen family members at home. You once sought immortality at Lingyue Sect...”

”Senior! Please stop!”

Li Minghua shouted in panic, even spitting out a mouthful of blood in his agitation, his voice weak as a thread. ”I... I’ll talk. Just spare my family. I hope after my death, they won’t be implicated...”

”Heh, little guy, do you think I’m playing house with you in this world of cultivating immortality?”

Yao Yue’s gaze turned cold, unmoved by his plea. ”Dare to walk this path, and you must be prepared for the destruction of your family!”

”Yao Yue!” Yun Shao suddenly scolded her, then turned to Li Minghua. ”Speak.”

”The Mengmu Sea Region, the Xu family... They’ve already allied with the Flood Dragon clan of the Eight Veins, eyeing the decomposition technique of Trash Island for a long time.”

”And you? Are you the same?”

”Also Li Chen Island’s Lingbao Immortal Pavilion! And the Azure Dragon Sect!”...

The twelve informants spoke in a panic, their bodies covered in more and more blood, and most conveniently, they all had weaknesses.

As soon as they finished speaking, several bloodthirsty mouths emerged from the depths of the sea, swallowing them in an instant. The sea surface emitted a faint scent of blood, and everything quieted down.

The hundreds of people around began calmly arranging everything, unhurried, even as the surrounding golden rings rolled over, absorbing all traces cleanly.

”Qi Ming!” Yun Shao shouted towards the sky. ”Those few who escaped from Trash Island are yours to handle. Find out who’s behind them and eliminate all internal threats.”

Qi Ming’s eyes focused from above, nodding slightly. Ji Yan had once instructed them to leave these deeply hidden Elemental Infant cultivators.

But the aura had been recorded; no matter where they fled, he could catch them! Unless the difference in cultivation was too vast.

The accumulated troubles over the millennium were not small, and they needed to be cleared one by one, or else when they erupted, no one could predict the consequences. The interests of Trash Island had already attracted the attention of many forces.

If they didn’t act soon, they wouldn’t be able to establish a foothold in the Mengmu Sea Region, and nothing could be accomplished.

Yun Shao took out a Lingxu communication disk, activating her divine sense.

”Ji Yan.”

”What is it?”

”I’ve extracted some information, the Xu family, the Flood Dragon clan of the Eight Veins...”

”I know. If they investigate, they will surely know the goods come from the Immaculate Immortal Ridge, but the Immaculate Immortal Ridge is under Miss Nangong’s name. Now, they might all be a smokescreen on Trash Island.”

”Ji Yan, are you saying Miss Nangong might be in danger?!”

Yun Shao’s pupils widened slightly, not having considered this angle, but she quickly calmed down. ”Should we consult Lord Crossing the World?”

”Heh, interests move people’s hearts, even cultivators are not immune. I still need time.”

Ji Yan’s voice was devoid of emotion, seemingly unconcerned about whether Nangong Heling was in danger. ”She should be fine in the academy, but I will donate a few blessed lands to Dongxuan Dao Academy.”

”Exchange for a hundred spots to become protectors or disciples, and you will secretly enter to protect.”

”Do not publicize this matter for now, give me time to cast a net in the sea region, and when the net is drawn, no one in the Mengmu Sea Region will dare to have any strange thoughts.”

”If everything requires Lord Crossing the World’s personal intervention, then what use are we? Our true opponent is not in this Mengmu Sea Region. He will face the strongest of the Nine Heavens Immortal Alliance, do not let him be distracted from his cultivation.”

”Yun Shao understands!”

”Good.”

...

At this time, Ji Yan was on a large island, but not on the neutral islands governed by the overseers.

Under the moonlit night, clouds slowly drifted across the sky.

Beside him was a blaze of fire, his face stained with a slight trace of blood, and within the firelight, a man wearing a beast bone mask held a long knife, blood dripping from the blade.

Surrounding them were injured sea tribes, their eyes filled with absolute terror, their bodies covered with knife wounds, not deep but akin to a lingering death!

Especially the human man with a friendly smile, whose smile appeared terrifying under the firelight.

”That is... a Dharma Aspect, they... are Unity True Lords!!”

A sea tribe member roared in anger, scales falling from his bloodied body. ”Who exactly are you cultivators!!”

”I heard you were occupied by the Flood Dragon clan of the Eight Veins, even driven to this place. I wonder, do you need some help?”

”This is how... you help us?!”

A sea tribe member stood trembling, looking at the thousands of fallen and wailing kin around, none unscathed. ”The Flood Dragon clan of the Eight Veins dominates the Mengmu Sea Region, even with a revered one behind them. We have no hatred left, you’ve come to the wrong place!”

”If you want to discuss cooperation, at least you need to show some strength. This is the simplest and least time-consuming method.”

The blood on Ji Yan’s face had quietly disappeared, and he smiled. ”You are not worth my scheming, the Blue Scale tribe is too weak, too weak to even have a Unity True Lord.”

”Human...!”

”Why not follow me, and I’ll let your tribe’s cultivators advance to Unity True Lords, how about it?”

”Is this true?!”

The wailing of the Blue Scale tribe’s cultivators quieted significantly, a hint of excitement stirring in their hearts.

This was the soft spot of their tribe, the real reason they had no voice.

If this human promised to make them the strongest among the sea tribes, or to help them take revenge on the Flood Dragon clan of the Eight Veins...

They would scoff at such promises, as such grandiose promises meant nothing to them. Instead, the immediate cultivation and the strength of these two cultivators made their hearts tremble.

”Of course.”

”Then... what do you need us to do?”

”Very simple, just pick up some trash from the world of immortals. There are quite a few broken ships in this sea region, and we need these materials.”

”Is it really that simple?”

”Heh, naturally.” Ji Yan’s eyes flickered with firelight, his face obscured. ”Are you willing?”

”Yes!” The Blue Scale tribe members nodded vigorously, even feeling their wounds didn’t hurt as much anymore. This job was great!

The beast bone mask-wearing cultivator’s eyes flashed with confusion, not understanding why Ji Yan went to such great lengths for this, it seemed a bit overkill...

”Ji Yan... what is this?” he sent a message secretly.

”Tian Li, to truly control the hearts of cultivators, the first step is strength, which is our display, to intimidate.”

”The second step is to promise to solve their urgent needs. With the intimidation of our strength, their trust in us will deepen.”

”The third step is to let them start with small tasks. Once they benefit, they will become increasingly reliant on us, and only then will we truly grasp their hearts.”

”Even if we ask them to do dirty work later, they will find it reasonable and won’t resist at all. Understand? There are many places in the sea region where we need their help with the immortal trash.”

”The fourth step, the Flood Dragon clan of the Eight Veins has many small clan enemies, next...”

”Yes...”

Under the beast bone mask, Tian Li was dumbfounded. How far had Ji Yan calculated, he surely hadn’t finished speaking.

He sighed deeply, deciding not to think too much, he only needed to ensure Ji Yan’s safety.

An hour later.

The two had left the coast, departing on a small boat.

The coast was filled with injured Blue Scale tribe members, but their eyes no longer held hatred, and they even cupped their hands in farewell.

The leader still held a storage ring of considerable quality, their eyes filled with a hint of delight. This person was truly generous... they gave so much!

The Blue Scale tribe members didn’t think much of it, firstly because their tribe was too ordinary, and secondly because they had no real value, not even fast enough to be cannon fodder.

And this method of suppression, though seemingly bloody, was too normal for their tribe... they were already used to it, instead, they highly recognized their strength and promises.