A Sect from a Spirit Vein

Chapter 162 - 132: Chaotic Situation

Lu Qian held the second-class subordinate imperial decree, feeling a mix of emotions.

Over the past month, he had endured countless hardships and poured his heart into obtaining this item. Now that the decree was in hand, it officially signified that the Golden Core Sect governing Chongming County formally recognized the Yunshan Sect as a subsidiary Foundation Establishment Sect, established within Chongming County.

In other words, the Yunshan Sect now possessed an official legal status and was recognized as a small sect.

In the past, the Yunshan Sect perished in Quyang County, Qingzhou. Now, six months later, under his unwavering efforts, it has finally found its footing again in Cangzhou, Chongming County!

This decree represents a significant achievement for Lu Qian.

But in Lu Qian’s heart, it served more as motivation to push himself further.

This is merely the rule of this world. Is there anything to be proud of about being a subordinate sect? I must continue to strive, and one day, the Yunshan Sect will no longer be controlled by anyone.

Hee Yangchen then explained to Lu Qian the annual tribute and responsibilities required of a second-class sect.

It turns out that the higher the status of first, second, and third-class subordinate sects, the less labor and annual tribute they must bear. Conversely, in various tasks, they need to dispatch more elite forces. However, these tasks come with rewards, so dispatching elites to execute tasks for the Xuanguang Sect is not in vain.

As a second-class subordinate, they need to annually provide two thousand spirit stones as tribute, or undertake equivalent labor tasks.

Lu Qian smiled bitterly in his heart. Generally, a Foundation Establishment Sect earns around ten thousand spirit stones annually, and a second-class subordinate is equivalent to surrendering twenty percent as tribute.

Yet now that the Yunshan Sect is just starting, it’s estimated to earn only about two to three thousand spirit stones annually, which would be entirely surrendered. The only solution is to use the treasury’s reserves and constantly expand income sources.

After chatting for a while, Lu Qian rose to take his leave.

Although he didn’t meet Master Fengfeng this trip, he gained a basic understanding of the Xuanguang Sect. In the Xuanguang Sect, there’s one Golden Core Master, nine Foundation Establishment Feather Scholars, over a thousand Qi Cultivation Elites, with a total of over 1,500 disciples distributed across the Five Peaks and Five Veins.

On Huanjian Peak, where Hee Yangchen is located, there are two Foundation Establishment and over two hundred Qi Cultivation Elites. Just his vein alone is no weaker than ordinary Foundation Establishment Sects.

With the decree in hand, returning to the mountain gate, all elders were naturally delighted. Lu Qian decided not to voice his thoughts, preventing dampening their spirits. He immediately ordered a feast for a small celebration, treating it as motivation for the sect establishment ceremony in a month.

Just as everyone in the Yunshan Sect was working together wholeheartedly to prepare for the sect establishment ceremony, war finally broke out in the north.

The Northwest Two Sects seizing the opportunity, assembled their forces and launched a fierce attack on the Shahe Gang. The Shahe Gang, while desperately resisting, requested assistance from the Spirit Talisman Sect. Yet, the Spirit Talisman Sect sent a letter to Bichao Mountain on the day the war drums sounded, aligning for a joint attack on the Shahe Gang.

But Lu Qian straightforwardly declined the request for military support, citing the full effort needed to prepare for the sect establishment ceremony, lacking surplus energy. This infuriated Yinn Hongbo. Yinn Hongbo and Zhuang Qing, after a brief discussion, saw clearly that Lu Qian was unwilling for the Spirit Talisman Sect to expand rapidly, wary of making clothes for others.

Yinn Hongbo could do nothing, delaying Shahe Gang’s pleas for aid with various excuses, hesitating whether to disregard the Shuangye Alliance and act alone, launching a surprise attack while the Northwest Two Sects and Shahe Gang were engaged in fierce battle.

Before he could decide, the Shahe Gang, having lost some peripheral territories, suddenly produced a large sum of spirit stones, inviting a Foundation Establishment Feather Scholar as an Honored Guest Elder, recruiting many Loose Cultivators, and rallying their vassal sects, barely stabilizing the war situation.

By then, after this battle, the Northwest Two Sects had reclaimed lost territories and tasted a minor victory. Faced with a stalemate, they returned to a confrontational stance with the Shahe Gang. The Spirit Talisman Sect’s chance was lost, unable to completely trust the Northwest Two Sects, they had to abandon the attack.

However, through this incident, the Shahe Gang clearly saw the Spirit Talisman Sect’s intentions. On one hand, the Spirit Talisman Sect was evasive and unwilling to assist, on the other, the Northwest Two Sects didn’t attack Spirit Talisman Sect’s territories, remaining at peace, which spoke volumes.

Thus, the relationship between the Shahe Gang and the Spirit Talisman Sect plummeted to an icy point, albeit maintaining peace on the surface, both sides grew wary of each other.

The Spirit Talisman Sect simply sent a letter to the Yunshan Sect, inquiring about the start and funding requirements for the new marketplace in Red Maple Valley, clearly determined to ally with the Shuangye Alliance.

Lu Qian analyzed that Yinn Hongbo had long awaited this opportunity, eager to replace the Shahe Gang. The next time troops are moved, the Spirit Talisman Sect will likely initiate it, possibly roping in both the Shuangye Alliance and the Northwest Two Sects.

However, for Lu Qian, agreeing to reconcile with the Spirit Talisman Sect suffices for now. Whether the Shuangye Alliance dispatches troops still depends on their condition. Until current territories are thoroughly digested and strength consolidated, Lu Qian isn’t prepared to plunge into this muddy water, avoiding plotting with a tiger.

In all, as the attempt to ambush Lu Qian by the Shahe Gang and Spirit Talisman Sect failed, as the Spirit Talisman Sect suddenly reconciled with the Yunshan Sect, as the Northwest Two Sects attacked the Shahe Gang, and as the relationship between the Spirit Talisman Sect and the Shahe Gang broke down, a series of events led Chongming County’s situation to grow more chaotic, with the turmoil becoming more enigmatic.

Today’s ally might well turn into tomorrow’s enemy, making it imperative for the Yunshan Sect and the Shuangye Alliance led by Lu Qian to tread carefully and act cautiously.

Lu Qian promptly summoned the other four in his capacity as Shuangye Alliance’s Alliance Leader for another meeting at Red Maple Valley.

In this meeting, Lu Qian detailed the radical shifts within Chongming County’s situation and his vision for the Shuangye Alliance’s future development. The leaders listened intently, realizing that their doom would be imminent without the Yunshan Sect’s support, unanimously pledging to uphold all decisions of the Alliance Leader, ready to mobilize elite forces at any call.

Then, Lu Qian elaborated on the idea of constructing a mid-size marketplace in Red Maple Valley, talking about business prospects, naturally exciting everyone as their eyes gleamed with interest.

Everyone discussed in detail the proportions of investment and effort put into building the marketplace, its construction, investment solicitation, operation, and management plans, and the construction tasks assigned to each faction. It was decided the new marketplace would see the Yunshan Sect holding a forty percent share, the Spirit Talisman Sect twenty percent, and the Zhou Family and three other factions holding ten percent each.

Finally, a simple yet straightforward name was given to the new marketplace: Shuangye Square.

Shuangye Square would commence construction after the Yunshan Sect’s sect establishment ceremony. Using this chance, Lu Qian also shared the sect establishment ceremony plans with everyone, inviting all parties to contribute efforts and resources according to plan, presenting the ceremony as a showcase of the Shuangye Alliance’s strength.

The allies gladly agreed to comply.

A few days later, Guh Niqiang unexpectedly came to seek Lu Qian, catching him by surprise.

She flipped her hand to reveal a porcelain bottle, one of the five treasures retrieved from the Sea Abyss Pavilion, that bottle of elixir, now thoroughly researched and results achieved.