Chapter 479 - 267: Ancient Legacy
It was now the seventh month.
The Withered Tide had crossed the Evil Miasma Land, spreading toward the Hundred Illnesses Plateau as expected.
Wherever it passed, any Barbarian Race tribes that failed to evacuate in time were devoured by the Evil Spirits within the Withered Tide. Of the once-mighty Southern Celestial Tribes, only a few remnants now struggled to survive in the southwest of the True Spirit Domain.
The appearance of the Withered Tide sent shockwaves through the Southern Barbarian region, where it was regarded as a catastrophe unseen in a million years.
While the True Spirit Sect, bordering the Hundred Illnesses Plateau, bore the initial brunt, the Xuanyang Sect and Changchun Valley were also on high alert. After all, judging from the current situation, the Withered Tide charging into the True Spirit Domain was just the vanguard. Eventually, it would spread to the territories of Xuanyang and Changchun as well.
Meanwhile, the other four major sects watched with keen interest. If the three southern Sects could not hold out, the Withered Tide would spread into their territories as well.
For a time, the atmosphere in the Southern Barbarian region grew incredibly tense.
Meanwhile, Lü Zhong devoted himself completely to his cultivation.
He had a premonition that it wouldn't be long before he broke through to the Late-stage Core Formation.
No matter what the future held.
Any increase in strength, however small, would offer a greater chance of survival.
It was best to be prepared.
Considering the worst-case scenario, Lü Zhong ordered the Bihai Sect and the Chengde Commerce Association to increase their intake of immigrants. He wanted to populate the desolate Bihai Island Group as quickly as possible and began constructing resource sites like Spirit Medicine Gardens and Spirit Rice Farms to guarantee a baseline supply of Spiritual Objects.
Once the Withered Tide spread, the production of Spiritual Objects in the Southern Barbarian region was certain to plummet.
When that time came, it would be better to rely on oneself than on others.
One day, Lü Zhong was heading to the Waterside Pavilion to rest.
As he arrived, he happened to see a group of cultivators departing. They were all Stewards from the Chengde Commerce Association, and he couldn't help but wonder why they had come to Tide Cave.
"What's going on?" Lü Zhong asked Yu Feng'Er, taking a seat.
"It's about the Withered Tide. They're afraid the disaster will wipe out their entire clans, so they're asking the Commerce Association to help relocate one or two branch families to Bihai, just in case."
This was giving Yu Feng'Er a major headache. As Chairman of the Commerce Association, she had to be considerate of her subordinates' feelings and couldn't just refuse them outright.
But the Commerce Association was short-staffed at the moment, and they couldn't spare any more seafaring ships.
After hearing the full story, Lü Zhong stroked her hair and said, "Then allocate more Spirit Stones and find a way to hire another fleet or two. Having these family branches come over isn't without its advantages. At the very least, they'll bring the talented people and artisans that Bihai desperately needs. In the future, as they settle and grow, they'll represent a significant population boost."
In the Cultivation Realm, Sects may stand at the pinnacle, but they cannot do without the support of families.
A steady livelihood fosters a steadfast heart.
In fact, the most fundamental production of Spiritual Objects in the Cultivation Realm—such as Low-Tier Spirit Rice and young Spirit Medicines, the very scraps the Sects deemed beneath them—relied on the strength of these families to fill the void. The contributions of Loose Cultivators in this area were negligible.
"But, my love…" Yu Feng'Er said, sounding reluctant.
In her eyes, it was better to buy another Spirit Medicine or two to help her husband's cultivation advance than to waste Spirit Stones on transporting people.
In the Cultivation Realm, strength was everything.
It took a great deal of persuasion from Lü Zhong before she finally changed her mind.
Just as Feng'Er headed toward the Quiet Chamber, he was about to enjoy some tea in peace and dispel his recent frustrations, but a servant girl arrived to announce that Luu Baokui was seeking an audience.
'What's he here for?' Lü Zhong wondered, signaling the servant girl to show him in.
"Disciple Luu Baokui pays his respects to the Patriarch!" Luu Baokui said, bowing with cupped hands.
Perhaps due to his last bout of Qigong Deviation, he had aged considerably. He now looked like a middle-aged man with graying temples and more wrinkles on his face, giving him a much more weathered and world-weary appearance.
After they spoke for a while, Lü Zhong learned the reason for his visit.
A shipbuilding workshop.
According to Luu Baokui, a certain cultivator had approached him, claiming that if the Bihai Sect provided support, he could establish a shipbuilding workshop.
Initially, it would only be able to build seafaring ships.
If supporting Artifact Refining and Array workshops could be established alongside it, they would gain the ability to repair Flying Ships. In the future, it could even be upgraded into a "Flying Boat Workshop," capable of constructing Flying Ships under a hundred zhang in length.
'Flying Ships…' Lü Zhong repeated the words in his mind.
If the Bihai Sect could manufacture its own Flying Ships, nothing could be better. At the very least, they would no longer be at the mercy of others for logistics and transportation. In the future, they could even form their own fleet instead of paying millions of Spirit Stones annually to charter vessels, as they did now.
However, it was also possible that this was all a scam.
One shouldn't assume the Cultivation Realm was free of scams. Not only did they exist, but they were also far more rampant here.
According to the annals, there was even a legendary scam in Central Earth where a Nascent Soul Sect fell for a trick, causing its foundation of tens of thousands of years to wash away and its entire legacy to be destroyed in a single stroke.
Even Nascent Soul True Monarchs weren't omnipotent.
As long as one was still human, one was bound to have weaknesses.
After some thought, Lü Zhong decided to meet the man. Regardless, this was an opportunity. Doing so might be playing right into a swindler's hands, but he couldn't just pass up a chance for fear of a potential pitfall.
Soon, the man was brought before him.
He was a middle-aged male cultivator at the Early-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivation. He had a somewhat down-on-his-luck air about him, but his hair and robes were immaculate. With his serious expression, he seemed to be a man of strict self-discipline.
"This junior, Qii Yun, pays his respects to Elder Lü!"
As the man bowed, Lü Zhong noticed him unconsciously tugging at his sleeves. It reminded him of a regional custom, and he asked out of curiosity, "Are you from the Western Realm? If I recall correctly, that particular habit when bowing is unique to the Western Realm."
"I will not hide it from you, Elder. This junior is indeed from the West Extreme Sword Domain."
"Oh? And how are things over there?" Lü Zhong asked, feigning ignorance.