Chapter 577: Chapter 577

When Zhouyang was first met a few years ago, they received a promise from him that they would be given an opportunity to advance to the Purple Mansion, and at that time, Zhou Tongyue and Li Hong had vaguely guessed the outcome.

Now, they truly received two invaluable pieces of "Purple Heart Jade Marrow" from Zhouyang’s hands. Although the two had long cultivated a composure of not being easily moved during their over two hundred years of cultivation, at this moment, they were overjoyed and hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed to express their gratitude.

They were elders of the Zhou family, and although they had left the family over a hundred years ago, they were well aware of the strict rules of the Zhou family and knew how rare the "Purple Heart Jade Marrow" was.

Now, Zhouyang was willing to break the rules for these two old men over two hundred years old, using such a precious treasure on them. The grace was immense, difficult to repay, and completely reciprocated the contributions and sacrifices they had made for the clan over the years.

When they received such a treasure, they couldn’t help but exchange a glance, seeing a spark of excitement and joy in each other’s eyes.

At this moment, the two were immensely grateful for their initial decision to follow Zhouyang to the Land of the Far West.

Though coming here had brought them much hardship and grievance, it also gained them the favor of Zhouyang, the family’s ancestor, who generously rewarded them with abundant spiritual objects to aid their cultivation. This allowed even those with mediocre spiritual root talent like themselves to smoothly cultivate to the Ninth-Layer Foundation Establishment. Now, he even bestowed upon them such spiritual objects as the "Purple Heart Jade Marrow" to help them establish the Purple Mansion.

Life is always about countless choices; sometimes, a single right choice can alter one’s destiny. Zhou Tongyue and Li Hong undoubtedly made the right choice and received an opportunity to transform their destiny.

Of course, whether they can ultimately succeed in changing their destiny depends on themselves.

The Gray Rock Mountain Range does not have the conditions necessary for advancing to the Purple Mansion, so next, Zhou Tongyue and Li Hong gathered the remaining Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Zhou family and, after slightly revealing Zhouyang’s true identity, they took the "Purple Heart Jade Marrow" and headed to "Celestial Cauldron Immortal City," established by the largest sect in Great Yun Country, the Celestial Cauldron Sect, to rent a cave abode for establishing the Purple Mansion.

Besides Zhou Tongyue and Li Hong, there were still ten Foundation Establishment cultivators from the Zhou family on the Gray Rock Mountain Range.

Among these ten, the oldest was Li Hong’s Dao companion Zhou Fuyun, who was about to reach two hundred and twenty years old. Due to overexertion during her attempt to break through to the Purple Mansion stage twenty years ago, she suffered a difficult-to-heal injury, having long lost the ability to engage in magical combat and even struggling with sword flight, barely able to maintain normal walking ability.

The other nine Foundation Establishment cultivators, all born after Zhouyang first arrived in the Land of the Far West, were not very old, with the oldest just over a hundred years old and the highest cultivation at the Fourth-Layer Foundation Establishment.

At this moment, Zhouyang gathered these ten in the cave abode, preparing to have a deep conversation with these Zhou family cultivators to let them know the real situation of the Zhou family.

"Fuyun, you don’t need to salute; in truth, it’s partly my responsibility you ended up , as I didn’t fulfill the promise I made to you back then!"

In the cave abode, Zhouyang saw the white-haired, elderly Zhou Fuyun about to bow before him. He quickly waved his sleeve to support her with a force of magical power, showing a hint of guilt on his face.

To have Zhou Fuyun and Li Hong become Dao companions, he had promised her that once her cultivation reached the Ninth Layer Foundation Establishment, he would give her priority to exchange for the "Purple Heart Jade Marrow."

Unfortunately, by the time Zhou Fuyun’s cultivation rose to the Ninth Layer Foundation Establishment, he was trapped in the "Dome Heaven Immortal Realm," breaking that promise.

This led Zhou Fuyun to forcefully break through without the help of the "Purple Heart Jade Marrow," resulting in the difficult-to-heal injuries she now bears.

He felt a twinge of guilt upon understanding the situation after coming over this time.

"Ancestor, there’s no need to blame yourself. It was my own misfortune for failing to break through to the Purple Mansion; I can’t blame you, Ancestor. I know you had your own unavoidable difficulties!"

Zhou Fuyun softly replied to Zhouyang’s words, with a tone of self-pity that made Zhouyang frown deeply.

If it had been any other Zhou family member expressing such pessimism before him, he would surely have reprimanded them.

However, given the wretched state Zhou Fuyun was in, he feared reprimanding her would be heartless and might inflict further harm on the woman whose spirit was already shattered, so he had to forcibly hold back his words.

He took a deep breath, calming his emotions, and said solemnly, "What’s wrong is wrong. As your ancestor, I will not shy away from acknowledging my mistakes. I can no longer help with establishing your Purple Mansion, but you can make one modest request to me; whatever I can fulfill, I’ll agree to."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Fuyun had yet to respond when the other nine Zhou family Foundation Establishment cultivators in the cave abode all showed heated gazes, faces full of envy.

These cultivators, having just learned of Zhouyang’s status as a Golden Core Stage cultivator and his connection to their family, were still digesting the shock of this revelation. However, it did not stop them from understanding what Zhouyang’s words signified.

Among them, a plain-looking, yellow-robed Foundation Establishment cultivator had an especially eager gaze. He looked at Zhou Fuyun with expectations, his lips moving slightly as though he wanted to speak but was hesitant, catching Zhouyang’s attention.

He noticed that this person’s facial features bore some resemblance to Li Hong, and he immediately understood that this person must be the son of Zhou Fuyun and Li Hong.

Among the nine Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Zhou Family, Zhou Tongyue and Li Hong each had a son among them. Zhouyang had learned this from their conversations previously.

"Ancestor’s great kindness is beyond words; Yun’Er is deeply grateful. Please, Ancestor, take Ze Qian back to the Boundless Desert Sea for cultivation. Moreover, when you return to the family, please take Yun’Er along as well. Like leaves returning to their roots, Yun’Er wishes to be buried in the family grave on Red Tiger Mountain after death!"

Zhou Fuyun, with cloudy eyes, glanced at his son Zhou Zeqian, who was looking at him with eager eyes. With a sigh in his heart, he couldn’t bear to refuse the child’s wish and stated his request.

Upon hearing this, Zhouyang immediately agreed: "No problem. When the Ancestor returns to the family, I will take you both with me and allocate one hundred thousand clan contribution points to your son from my personal account!"

Unless a Zhou Family Foundation Establishment cultivator only goes in and never comes out after succeeding in the Foundation Establishment, before their passing, the clan contribution points they leave to their descendants would undoubtedly not reach one hundred thousand.

Zhou Zeqian might not fully understand what so many clan contribution points signify, but Zhou Fuyun knows that this compensation from Zhouyang is enough to secure his son’s cultivation path in the future, at least until the Purple Mansion without worrying about the sufficiency of clan contribution points.

"Ancestor’s great kindness, Yun’Er is deeply thankful. Ze Qian, quickly kowtow to thank the Ancestor."

She quickly urged her son to kowtow in gratitude to Zhouyang, and she also bowed deeply along.

This time, Zhouyang did not refuse, accepting their courtesy calmly, then waved his hand and said: "Alright, we’ll talk about the old days later. Now, I, the Ancestor, want to speak to these juniors about the real situation of our family today!"

For the next two years, Zhouyang stayed with the Zhou Family cultivators in the Gray Rock Mountain Range, waiting for news that Zhou Tongyue and Li Hong would achieve the Purple Mansion and taking the opportunity to explain the cultivation path to the nine Zhou Family Foundation Establishment cultivators. He elaborated on the situation of the Zhou family’s clan within the Boundless Sea of Sand Cultivation Realm, expanding his and the Zhou family’s influence and making these Zhou Family cultivators understand where their roots are.

To the Zhou Family Foundation Establishment cultivators in the Land of the Far West, suddenly gaining a Golden Core Stage Ancestor was a surprising delight. Upon learning that the Zhou Family’s main clan actually held large oases and spirit mountains within the Boundless Desert Sea and had become a dominator of a small cultivation realm, they became filled with boundless aspirations.

There’s a famous saying: Those inside the city want to get out, while those outside want to come in.

The Zhou Family cultivators from the Land of the Far West and those from the Boundless Sea of Sand Cultivation Realm find themselves in such a situation.

In the eyes of the Zhou Family cultivators in the Land of the Far West, they only see the freedom, power, and wealth of the Zhou Family cultivators in the Boundless Sea of Sand Cultivation Realm—things unobtainable from their side of the land.

They cannot imagine that a Foundation Establishment cultivator occupies a Tier Three spirit vein and an oasis, ruling over hundreds of thousands of mortals and dozens of Qi Cultivation cultivators—such an enviable life.

They cannot imagine that Foundation Establishment cultivators can own an independent cave dwelling on a Tier Five spirit mountain—such an enviable life.

They were captivated by the abundant treatment of Zhou Family Foundation Establishment cultivators in Zhouyang’s words and yearned to become one of them, receiving the rich rewards they dared only dream of in the past.

When they asked the Golden Core Stage Ancestor Zhouyang about this, he would always reply warmly: "Of course, no problem. You are all members of the Zhou Family. As long as you are Zhou Family members, you will all be treated equally, and no loyal clan member will be mistreated."

Golden Core Stage cultivators’ words are trusted by the Foundation Establishment cultivators, as such a being has no need to deceive them.

Thus, Zhouyang, with just a few words, gained the goodwill of these Zhou Family cultivators. Many had already started looking forward to a promising new life.

This is the authority of those who hold power and strength.

If a cultivator below the Golden Core Stage, even if it were Zhou Tongyue and Li Hong, those elder patriarchs and elders of the Zhou Family from the Cangyuan Immortal City, said such words, they might deceive inexperienced young clan members who are unaware of the situation, but the Foundation Establishment cultivators familiar with the family’s truth would just scoff and hardly believe in the promise.

However, when the promise-maker is replaced by the Golden Core Stage cultivator Zhouyang, they believe it because they understand that although it’s just a promise, Zhouyang possesses the power to turn promises into reality, whereas their patriarchs and elders who compelled loyalty through the Nether Blood Contract do not hold such capabilities.

This scenario is similar even in mundane circumstances. When substantial events occur, causing public unease, ordinary individuals even if they know the truth tell these people but aren’t believed, liable instead to be accused of spreading rumors.

But if an authoritative official steps forward, even if their statement completely misrepresents the truth, there will be far more people believing him than the individual who speaks the truth.

This is the power of authority!

Of course, relying on promises only temporarily wins trust and heart. To truly inspire faith and loyalty, one must turn promises into reality, allowing individuals to genuinely taste the sweet savor of the promises.

On this matter, Zhouyang is fully confident he can accomplish it.

There are not many Zhou family cultivators in the Land of the Far West, and even if he were to pay them according to the treatment of Zhou family cultivators in the Boundless Desert Sea Cultivation Realm, he could afford it.

After waiting for more than two years, Zhouyang finally received news from Zhou Tongyue and Li Hong.

The results left him half pleased and half worried. He was pleased because Li Hong successfully opened his Purple Mansion and advanced to the Purple Mansion Stage, thus extending his lifespan once again.

He was worried because Zhou Tongyue failed to open his Purple Mansion, suffered internal injuries, and would need an extended period of rest to recover, possibly unable to fully heal before his lifespan runs out.

After receiving the news, he could only let Zhou Tongyue’s son take some Healing Spirit Pills to the "Nine Tripods City" to care for his father, while Li Hong was asked to return and prepare for the Zhou family’s migration back to Cangyuan Immortal City.

When Li Hong, who had advanced to the Purple Mansion, returned to the Gray Rock Mountain Range, Zhouyang summoned him to the cave abode and laid out his plans.

"To avoid any mishaps, first claim that you can’t bear the harsh conditions imposed by the major families of the Great Yun Country, and then disperse and migrate back to the Yu Country. Once you’ve reached Yu Country, I, as your ancestor, will use the excuse of avenging the Li family to lead Li Mubai to Cangyuan Immortal City to kill Geng Zhong. I will also eliminate his accomplices according to the list you provided to pave the way for your return to Cangyuan Immortal City."

"After that, I, as your ancestor, will no longer be able to intervene. You will have to manage everything yourselves. The last help I can give you is to have Guangxiang exchange a Tier Four Puppet Beast for you at an Underground Exchange Meeting, and to leave you with ten Foundation Establishment Pills!"

Zhouyang did not want to leave too many trump cards for Li Hong, but given the previous foundation of the Zhou family, bringing out too many high-tier treasures at once might cause others to suspect the relationship between the Zhou family and him, potentially leading to their annihilation.

Moreover, the help he was giving the Zhou family this time was already considerable: two portions of "Purple Heart Jade Marrow," a Tier Four Puppet Beast, and ten Foundation Establishment Pills, totaling about seven to eight hundred thousand low-grade Spirit Stones.

Not to mention his personal effort to kill Geng Zhong and disrupt the situation in Cangyuan Immortal City, these actions are not without cost.

Li Hong was a smart person, a wise person knows when to advance and retreat and understands reason.

He realized that the assistance Zhouyang was providing was beyond what he had previously dared to imagine, so he had no thought of bargaining with Zhouyang. Whatever Zhouyang said, he agreed to, merely offering some suggestions on minor details.

After several days of discussion, Zhouyang left the Great Yun Country ahead of time to meet with Zhou Guangxiang and his wife, who were still hiding in the Rocky Wilderness, and to contact Zhou Guangxiang and others, who should have returned from their travels.

Meanwhile, Li Hong quickly followed his instructions, using his advancement to the Purple Mansion as an excuse to reject the solicitations from the Great Yun Country families and arranged for Zhou family cultivators to withdraw from the Great Yun Country one after another.

Upon Li Hong’s advancement to the Purple Mansion, the Zhou family was no longer an easy target. Although the families of the Great Yun Country were somewhat annoyed by Li Hong’s defiance, they did not resort to force, and upon confirming their intention to leave, they let them be.

In the Rocky Wilderness, Zhou Guangxiang and his wife, heeding Zhouyang’s advice, did not attempt to gather any external information.

They were unaware of Li family’s eradication by Geng Zhong until Zhouyang returned and recounted his journey, including the clan’s annihilation.

"Geng Zhong, you old scoundrel, I, Li Mubai, will fight you to the death!"

On the wilderness, when Li Mubai learned of the Li family’s tragic end, he nearly fainted from rage. As he regained his senses, he glared at Cangyuan Immortal City and roared in fury.

Seeing him in such a state, Zhouyang quickly signaled to Zhou Guangxiang to calm her Dao companion down.

Once Li Mubai calmed down with the comfort of Zhou Guangxiang and their children, Zhouyang looked at him and said, "Your family suffered because of my involvement. The dead cannot be brought back to life; there is little Zhou could do but help you kill Geng Zhong and annihilate his accomplices, to comfort the spirits of your fallen family members."

"Guangxiang has recounted past events to me—Ninth Uncle, you were not at fault. The fault lies with that old scoundrel Guo Jinhong and that ungrateful beast Geng Zhong!"

Li Mubai, with bloodshot eyes, gazed back at Zhouyang. Shaking his head, he did not place the full blame for his family’s demise on Zhouyang. Then, gritting his teeth, he snarled, "Junior only has one request now. Please, Ninth Uncle, when you go to kill Geng Zhong, take me with you. I wish to personally kill that ungrateful beast and eradicate every cultivator of the Geng family!"

Annihilation of the clan is an unending feud!

Li Mubai may have been somewhat timid by nature, but upon learning of his family’s destruction, he was consumed by the single thought of revenge.

Although Zhouyang had anticipated this reaction, witnessing it still stirred feelings of guilt in him.

The Li family’s demise carried some of his responsibility, though not significantly, because, as Li Mubai said, the blame lay primarily with Guo Jinhong, and Zhouyang had never used the Li family’s influence to evade the Anti-Light Alliance’s pursuit.

Instead, after rescuing Li Mubai from Cangyuan Immortal City, he even had Li Mubai send a message to remind the Li Family to beware of Guo Jinhong’s wrath. It was their own fault for not taking his warning seriously.

However, using Li Mubai’s hatred towards Geng Zhong to help the Zhou Family regain Cangyuan Immortal City was somewhat unethical on Zhouyang’s part.

Feeling guilty, he wanted to make some sort of compensation, and immediately said, "After exacting revenge, Mubai, you will return with us to the Boundless Desert Sea Cultivation Realm. Although the Li Family has been annihilated, you still have your children. Once we reach the Boundless Desert Sea Cultivation Realm, I will grant you a Spirit Mountain to rebuild the Li Family there!"

"Thank you, Ninth Uncle, but the younger generation has no mood to think about these things now. Let’s talk about it once my revenge is complete,"

Li Mubai casually thanked him, but didn’t really care much about Zhouyang’s offer.

His mind was clouded with hatred; before his revenge, nothing else could capture his attention.

Zhouyang understood this point and didn’t say much more, instead urging him to wait a bit longer until the Zhou Family successfully moved back to the territory of Yu Country, then he would act upon receiving the message. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ N0veI.Fiɾe.net

Not long after, Zhou Guangxiang received his message first and found his way to the Rocky Wilderness.

Zhouyang immediately handed over a Tier Four Middle-Grade Puppet Beast to him and sent him to a certain Immortal City in Yu Country to wait until Li Hong brought the Zhou Family cultivators into Yu Country. They would enter the Immortal City together and participate in an underground exchange meeting, exchanging the Puppet Beast into Li Hong’s hands.

As for why it was a Tier Four Middle-Grade Puppet Beast instead of a Tier Four High-Grade Puppet Beast, it was because the latter required Top-grade Spirit Stones to be activated, and the Zhou Family’s background wasn’t substantial enough to acquire such treasures.

Months later, when the Zhou Family cultivators arrived in Yu Country, Zhou Guangxiang and Li Hong completed the exchange of items and sent the message, Zhouyang, who had been patiently waiting for news, immediately set off with the long-impatient Li Mubai towards Cangyuan Immortal City.

He and Li Mubai concealed their cultivation and disguised their appearances to infiltrate Cangyuan Immortal City, and it wasn’t until they reached the outside of the City Lord’s Mansion did they reveal their cultivation and suddenly strike down the guards outside.

When Geng Zhong, who was cultivating at the time, sensed something amiss and activated the City Lord’s Mansion’s Array, Zhouyang was already inside the mansion.

Previously, Geng Zhong believed that with the aid of the City Lord’s Mansion’s array, even a Late Stage Golden Core cultivator would not intimidate him.

However, once he started fighting with Zhouyang, he immediately felt deceived.

Zhouyang aimed for a swift and decisive battle, with no intention of holding back.

He first released the Tier Five Tiger Human Puppet Beast reclaimed from Zhou Guangxiang, then unleashed several artifacts including the "Lion Fire Ruyi," "Taiyin Soul-cutting Saber," "Heaven-shaking Copper Gong," along with his lifebound spiritual artifact "Qianyang Golden Tower," attacking Geng Zhong.

Later, he even brought forth the "Qianyang Treasure Pearl," a Tier Seven Immortal Artifact, releasing the enhanced version of "Qianyang True Flame," setting fires everywhere inside the City Lord’s Mansion.

And so, under his one ferocious assault after another, the grand array of the City Lord’s Mansion couldn’t withstand it and was forcibly blown apart!

Without the aid of the array, the Golden Core Stage Third Layer Geng Zhong didn’t last three rounds against Zhouyang before he was subdued and suppressed into the tower using the "Silent Extinction Soul-Burning Divine Light" combined with the lifebound spiritual artifact "Qianyang Golden Tower."

From his sudden action to Geng Zhong being captured and suppressed, less than a quarter-hour passed, and Geng Zhong’s other lackeys barely gathered and arrived to attempt rescuing him.

This saved Zhouyang the trouble of exterminating them family by family, and he immediately released the sixteen "Great Derivation Divine Light Swords," effortlessly slaughtering Geng Zhong’s most loyal henchmen.

With his powerful divine sense and the list of Geng Zhong’s henchmen drawn by Li Hong and Li Mubai long remembered, his divine sense covered most of Cangyuan Immortal City. As soon as he saw someone matching those on the list, a flying sword quickly claimed their head.

While Zhouyang targeted and killed those Purple Mansion Stage or Ninth-Layer Foundation Establishment Geng Zhong’s henchmen, Li Mubai, driven by intense hatred, stormed into Geng Family’s manor within the city.

The manor’s array had already been broken by Zhouyang, and its strongmen were slain by him. With his Sixth-Layer Purple Mansion cultivation, Li Mubai was entirely capable of overwhelming the Zhou Family cultivators inside, who were merely at Late-Stage Foundation Establishment.

The bloody massacre persisted for half an hour before it ended.

When Li Mubai, drenched in blood, walked out of the manor, no cultivator survived inside; there were just headless corpses everywhere!

Li Mubai specifically prepared a storage ring to hold the severed heads of those corpses. He intended to repay blood with blood by emulating how Geng Zhong treated the Li Family cultivators, using the heads of all Geng Family cultivators to erect a stark mound outside Cangyuan Immortal City to honor those Li Clan members who died unjustly.