novelraw Chapter 315: The Yun Clan
Chapter 315: The Yun Clan
"Do you know how to counter the Hundred-Mile Talisman?" Long Xuan asked again.
He needed a clear answer to this question, as it was crucial to determine whether the Teng Clan possessed any methods to neutralize the Hundred-Mile Talisman.
If the investigation revealed that the Teng Clan had no means to counter it, he could confidently proceed with his plans to visit the Teng Clan.
Yun Shuiyao patiently explained, "The principle behind the Hundred-Mile Talisman’s instantaneous teleportation lies in harnessing spatial power."
"Any method capable of restraining space can render the talisman ineffective."
"In other words, all techniques that can disable teleportation formation or suspend gu insect can also deactivate the talisman."
"You need not worry about your future opponents having methods to counter the Hundred-Mile Talisman."
"Even if they possess such means, it is unlikely they could deploy them in time."
"The method to craft the Hundred-Mile Talisman was lost countless millennia ago. This incomplete talisman is the only one of its kind remaining."
"Most people don’t even know that such an artifact exists in this world." "Unless your adversary can foresee the future, there is no way they could preemptively prepare spatial-restraining measures against you."
Hearing this, Long Xuan felt even more confident about his visit to the Teng Clan. He then said, "I assume such an extraordinary talisman must be bartered for something equally precious, correct?"
"Tell me! What do you want!"
Yun Shuiyao smiled lightly and replied, "Indeed, a priceless treasure like this cannot be exchanged for a pile of useless stones."
"Since you’ve taken an interest in the Devouring Demon Cauldron earlier, I presume you’re a Grade 3 Alchemist."
"I’d like to request that you refine a Grade 3 Breakthrough Pill for the Yun Clan. Do you have the recipe for this pill?"
"And do you possess the ability to refine it?" Yun Shuiyao asked directly, locking eyes with him.
Medicines capable of helping Gu Kings break through were exceedingly rare, outnumbering peak-stage Spiritual Sea Gu Masters by more than a hundredfold. Even with the Yun Clan’s vast resources, acquiring one was nearly impossible.
Despite the treasures stored within the Treasures Listening Pavilion, they didn’t have a single Grade Three Breakthrough Pill. Thus, she had no choice but to seek someone capable of refining one.
Upon hearing this, Long Xuan finally deduced her background.
Having arrived on Tianxing Island, he naturally sought to understand the island’s various powers.
He had learned that this medium-sized island was home to numerous Gu Cultivator families, among which five large clans stood out. However, the Yun Clan reigned supreme, capable of countering the other four combined.
As such, island lords across generations had almost always hailed from the Yun Clan.
This woman was undoubtedly a prominent figure within the Yun Clan.
On the island, he had overheard travelers discussing an incident from several months ago, where a massive beast tide of amphibious sea beasts had swarmed the island, causing heavy losses to all the clans.
The Yun Clan, too, must have lost several Gu Kings in this beast tide, depleting their ranks to a critical level, even threatening their dominant position on the island.
Thus, they were in urgent need of a Grade 3 Alchemist to refine Breakthrough Pills to replenish their Gu Kings quickly.
After pondering for a moment, Long Xuan asked, "From what you’ve said, does the Yun Clan not have a recipe for the Grade Three Breakthrough Pill?"
Yun Shuiyao smiled bitterly and replied, "If every force had a recipe for Grade Three Breakthrough Pills, the world would already be overrun with Gu Kings."
"Moreover, the Yun Clan may dominate this medium-sized island, but compared to the powers on the larger islands, we are not a significant clan. On a global scale, we’re even more inconsequential."
"We actually had a recipe for the Grade Three Breakthrough Pill ten years ago. However, one of the required ingredients went extinct a decade ago, rendering the recipe useless."
Upon hearing this, Long Xuan suddenly understood.
He happened to have several recipes for Grade Three Breakthrough Pills, including the Long Clan’s Mystical Dragon Pill recipe and the King-Breaking Pill recipe he had obtained from the Leng Clan.
In his long career as a Gu Master, he had encountered numerous opportunities, acquiring countless storage bags and discovering several Grade Three Breakthrough Pill recipes.
These recipes had been invaluable when he later created his own version of the Grade Three Breakthrough Pill.
With so many recipes in his possession, he had almost come to assume that such recipes were commonplace—until Yun Shuiyao reminded him otherwise.
"I naturally have recipes for Grade Three Breakthrough Pills and can refine them without issue."
"However, the ingredients for the recipe must be provided by you."
"Let me make it clear: my recipes are unique, and some of the ingredients are rather unusual, requiring a significant number of lightning-attribute spirit insects as the catalyst. That’s why this pill is named the Thunder Roar Pill," Long Xuan said seriously.
His intentions were transparent—he wanted to leverage the Yun Clan’s local influence to gather the materials for his 'Tribulation Gu' recipe quickly.
As the most powerful force on Tianxing Island, with extensive connections across neighboring islands, the Yun Clan had the capability to assemble the required materials swiftly.
By doing this, Long Xuan could save considerable effort and simply reap the results.
"Providing the materials is only fair. Can you first show me a list of what needs to be collected so the Yun Clan can start preparing immediately?"
Hearing the Grade Three Alchemist agree to refine the pill, Yun Shuiyao was overjoyed internally, though she kept her expression composed.
Long Xuan, unceremonious as ever, handed her a thick book.
Looking at its size, Yun Shuiyao was stunned. What kind of recipe could possibly be this lengthy?
Curious, she flipped through the book at the fastest speed possible. After a quick glance, the corners of her mouth twitched uncontrollably.
Goodness, the materials in this recipe are almost entirely made up of various thunder-attributed spirit insects.
Does a single pill formula really need so many spirit insects?
It’s true that spirit insects can serve as medicinal guides, but having almost all the ingredients in a recipe be spirit insects is pure nonsense.
At this moment, how could she not see it? This person asking the Yun clan to gather the pill recipe's ingredients was merely a facade; his real intention was to use the Yun clan to collect materials for a Gu recipe.
Yun Shuiyao took a deep breath but ultimately chose not to expose the truth.
She didn’t care what this Grade 3 Alchemist wanted, as long as he could truly refine Grade 3 Breakthrough Pills for the Yun clan. Even if he claimed he could make pills out of metal, she would believe it.
“The ingredients listed in this pill recipe are incredibly rare, and many cannot be found on the island. We’ll need to trade with other merchant associations to acquire them.”
“It will take us some time to gather all the materials in the recipe.”
“For now, why not stay as a guest at our Yun residence for a while?” Yun Shuiyao warmly invited.
“Then lead the way!” Long Xuan nodded, accepting her invitation.
...
Yun Clan
In the conference room, several elderly figures with white hair sat around a table, their faces filled with worry.
“How is the Ancestor doing? How much longer can he hold on?” one elder asked anxiously.
“At most, he has one year left,” an elderly woman replied grimly. “This is the Yun clan’s last Gu King. Once he’s gone, you all know what will happen to our clan. I don’t need to spell it out.”
“We must devise a plan. Without a Gu King, the Yun clan will no longer be able to maintain its position on Tianxing Island.”
“Should we stay or leave? And if we leave, where will we settle? Does anyone have any suggestions?”
“Hmph!” An elder with a fierce expression slammed the table heavily and shouted angrily, “Leave? What nonsense! Do you think the Four Clans will let us go so easily?”
“A few months ago, when the beast tide struck, the Gu Kings of the Four Clans pretended to perish in the tide, leaving us to face the sea beasts alone. That’s why nearly all our Gu Kings were wiped out.”
“After we finally drove back the tide, their so-called ‘dead’ Gu Kings miraculously came back to life.”
“Even a fool could see through their ruse. Their goal was to use the beast tide to severely weaken us so they could carve up our territory on Tianxing Island.”
“Now that we’ve made enemies of them, do you think they’ll spare us or give us a chance to rise again?”
“At this moment, they’re holding back only because of our last Ancestor.”
“A dying Gu King at the peak of his power can still take at least one of their Gu Kings with him in a final counterattack.”
“They’re just waiting for our last Gu King to die of natural causes, so they can take over our territory without any losses. What a cunning plan.”
“If we can’t come up with another way, whether we stay or leave, the Yun clan is doomed.”
The atmosphere in the room grew heavy, and everyone’s faces darkened.
“Are we just going to sit here and wait to die? At worst, let’s fight them while we still have our Gu King!” a young man suddenly shouted angrily.
“If we fight, we can at least hurt them. If we don’t fight, we’re just waiting to be destroyed!”
“Clan Leader, don’t be reckless!” the elderly woman quickly intervened. “Doing so would be like throwing an egg against a rock.”
“The beast tide didn’t just cost us our Gu Kings; most of our lower-ranked Gu cultivators were also lost in that disaster.”
“Meanwhile, the other Four Clans have preserved their strength. We no longer have the power to deal a severe blow to them.”
The elderly woman sighed inwardly. The beast tide had been a devastating blow to the Yun clan. Even the Clan Leader and his wife had perished in the calamity.
In desperation, they had to push the Clan Leader’s youngest son into the role of the next leader.
But now it seemed this young Clan Leader was hot-headed and impulsive, unable to weigh consequences. He might not be up to the task, and entrusting the clan to him could lead to fortune or disaster.
Suddenly, she seemed to sense something. She pulled out a messaging talisman from her storage pouch. Upon seeing the message, her furrowed brows relaxed, and her face lit up with joy.
“The Yun clan is saved! Shuiyao has somehow brought back a Grade 3 Alchemist!”
“This alchemist can refine Grade 3 Breakthrough Pills. Everyone, let’s go greet him immediately.”
The elderly woman stood up excitedly and rushed out.
“What? Is this true?”
The others in the room were shocked and quickly stood up, their faces also filled with delight.
Many of them had already reached the bottleneck at the peak of the Spiritual Sea. With just a few Breakthrough Pills, they could ascend to the rank of Gu King.
As long as this Grade 3 Alchemist’s skill was up to standard, he could help the Yun clan produce multiple Gu Kings within a year.
What the Yun clan lacked right now was Gu Kings. With enough Gu Kings, all their crises could be resolved.
“This Grade 3 Alchemist is truly a godsend! The Yun clan is saved. Let’s all go out and greet him with the highest respect. We must not slight this great figure.”
The Yun clan’s higher-ups quickly shed their previous gloom and left the conference room. In no time, the room was empty.