Chapter 150, Distributing the Spoils and Visiting the Wang Clan

Translator: Raznick

 

They had killed their way through the bandit ambush and, without pausing to replenish their spiritual power, flew back to Nine Peaks.

 

Only when they truly entered the clan estate did the two finally relax, letting out a breath they hadn’t realized they’d been holding.

 

Zhou Daoquan didn’t return to his own Flying Stone Peak but went directly with Zhou Chun to Pagoda Peak to meet the Clan Leader to report on the attack.

 

“The important thing is that you are safe. As for whether those two bandit cultivators were instigated by Master Jiang, we’ll investigate that slowly—there will always be a day when the truth is revealed.”

 

Zhou Daoyi nodded, showing no sign of shock.

 

Such things were commonplace within the cultivation world.

 

It wasn’t unusual, whether one was a Foundation Establishment cultivator or a Violet Palace Stage cultivator, to trade valuable items while traveling and risk being ambushed.

 

In such situations, unless you could capture a bandit cultivator to confess or find something among their possessions that could serve as evidence, you could only let it stew and seek revenge at a later opportunity.

 

Without evidence and without the backing of a sufficiently powerful force to operate with impunity, clan and sect could not openly assist with revenge.

 

As for retaliating in kind, one could ask a senior or a friendly cultivator to secretly intervene.

 

Such actions were certainly possible.

 

The problem was that the distance between them was vast; how could one know the whereabouts of the other party?

 

It was even possible that as soon as one entered the other’s territory, they would already know through various channels!

 

You might even end up being ambushed and killed instead. Dying over revenge was pointless!

 

In situations like this, generally, either you truly possessed immense power and a close relationship with a senior willing to risk their own safety and progress in cultivation to take revenge for you, staking out the area where they lived for three to five years if necessary! Or, you just had to wait, letting time pass for ten or eight years until their guard is down, then find an opportunity for revenge.

 

Neither of those conditions was achievable right now.

 

Even if Grand Elder Zhou Mingde favored Zhou Chun, he wouldn’t personally help him assassinate an alchemy master in the late Foundation Establishment stage, based on such unfounded claims!

 

Zhou Daoquan already analyzed this for Zhou Chun on the way, and Zhou Chun himself was well aware.

 

So, he wasn’t counting on his clan to help him avenge this; he was just briefly mentioning the situation.

 

After bringing up the situation, he and Zhou Daoquan began dividing the remnants Wei Tong left behind.

 

Possibly because he was always on the move and because he was a bandit cultivator, Wei Tong’s storage bag was remarkably clean.

 

Inside his storage bag, aside from some pills to restore spiritual power and heal injuries and detoxify and some talismans, there was just a pile of books and jade slips and spirit coins.

 

But clean didn’t necessarily mean there was nothing of value.

 

First of all, there were over five thousand four hundred spirit coins!

 

And those healing and detoxifying pills were incredibly effective, likely crafted by Master Jiang himself.

 

Furthermore, there were two remaining second-grade talisman within his storage bag, identical Wind Travel Talisman.

 

It was likely Wei Tong purchased this talisman intending to use it for pursuit and escape.

 

Zhou Chun initially held considerable expectations, hoping to unearth evidence of Master Jiang and Wei Tong’s collusion.

 

However, Wei Tong failed to leave behind any readily apparent evidence to facilitate his revenge.

 

These records merely documented cultivation methods and secret art.

 

The items appeared to hold considerable value, but after the instruction he received from Zhou Daoyi, Zhou Chun had grown too wary to fully trust them and decided to relinquish them to Grand Elder Zhou Mingde for examination to determine their authenticity.

 

Finally, there were a few artifacts left behind by Wei Tong, also among his most valuable possessions!

 

First was the pair of mandarin double blades, a set of average second-grade artifacts possessing extraordinary power.

 

Despite sustaining some minor damage from the clash with Zhou Chun’s crimson gold claw, it was mendable, posing no significant impact on its value.

 

Then there was the serpent-shaped throwing blade. This artifact was also an average second-grade artifact, capable of triggering devastating explosive damage upon impact, perfectly suited for surprise attacks.

 

Following that was the black gourd Wei Tong had used. This artifact was only an inferior second-grade artifact, but the toxic fumes it expelled were exceptionally useful, especially when confronting demon beasts, and could also serve as a smokescreen during escapes, a valuable skill.

 

And the protective golden light Wei Tong had activated was a jade pendant.

 

However, this artifact was either too fragile to begin with or inherently flawed; when Zhou Chun recovered it, it had already fractured beyond repair.

 

But if one were to ask which of Wei Tong’s artifacts was most precious, it would undoubtedly be the azure flying boat artifact.

 

Although its grade appeared to be only an inferior second-grade artifact, its flight speed was remarkably swift, allowing Wei Tong and his companion to pursue targets at a speed exceeding that of an average late Foundation Establishment cultivator; truly an unparalleled tool for both chasing enemies and escaping danger.

 

That calculation revealed that the total value of the four artifacts obtained solely from Wei Tong already exceeded ten thousand spirit coins!

 

Looking at the pile of items, Zhou Chun felt a moment of consternation regarding how to distribute them.

 

He coveted the azure flying boat artifact, yet knew that the item would also be quite useful to Zhou Daoquan.

 

Thus, he wasn’t sure how to bring up the matter.

 

But at this moment, Zhou Daoquan spoke proactively, “You killed him, so I won’t claim any credit. Give me the pair of double blades, and give me two thousand spirit coins.”

 

He willingly relinquished the azure flying boat, even only taking one!

 

“That won’t do!

 

“If not for Elder holding back that strongest bandit cultivator, I wouldn’t have survived!

 

“Furthermore, Elder’s Earth Armored Bear sacrificed itself to protect me, blocking that person’s assault and helping me kill him!

 

“This whole matter originated entirely because of me; Elder has been completely dragged into this!”

 

Zhou Chun shook his head repeatedly, finding it difficult to agree with Zhou Daoquan’s proposal.

 

However, since Zhou Daoquan was willing to forgo the azure flying boat artifact, there was nothing for Zhou Chun to fret over.

 

He spoke immediately, “How about this? Elder can take the double blades and that flying boat, along with three thousand spirit coins, and we can divide the remaining pills and talismans equally.

 

“That won’t do; if we divide it like that, I will end up with the largest share; how could that be?”

 

Zhou Daoquan waved his hands repeatedly, unable to accept Zhou Chun’s proposal.

 

They were both individuals who disliked taking advantage of others; what appeared to ordinary people as opportunities to exploit, they found beneath their notice.

 

Naturally, this was also due to their close relationship and reluctance to tarnish their reputations.

 

After a prolonged exchange of deference, the two finally reached an agreement.

 

Zhou Daoquan took possession of the double blades and the serpent-shaped throwing blade and also claimed one thousand four hundred spirit coins, with the remainder of the items divided equally.

 

Calculated this way, Zhou Chun received roughly sixty percent of the total harvest, while Zhou Daoquan received forty percent.

 

After dividing the goods, the two returned home to rest and never spoke of it again.

 

Several days passed, and after Zhou Chun had completed his recuperation and binding of the newly acquired artifact, he personally went to the Wang Clan to offer thanks.

 

On this occasion, he traveled alone, utilizing the new flying artifact, and reached the Wang Clan in less than half a day.

 

This was Zhou Chun’s second visit to the Wang Clan.

 

When he presented the formal invitation and learned that the Deputy Clan Leader of the Zhou Clan was personally coming, Wang Zhixiong, the Clan Leader of the Wang Clan, was also very accommodating and personally went to the estate to greet him.

 

“Hahaha, Fellow Daoist Zhou, please come in.”

 

The portly Wang Zhixiong emerged, greeted Zhou Chun with booming laughter, and warmly welcomed him into the estate.

 

In fact, over the years, Zhou Chun had been handling the affairs of the Zhou clan, and they had exchanged correspondence on several occasions, so although they didn’t see each other often, they had known each other for quite some time.

 

Zhou Chun’s visit to the Wang Clan this time was indeed to express gratitude for the Wang Clan’s assistance, but it was also to strengthen ties and discuss cooperation.

 

Therefore, as he followed Wang Zhixiong into the Wang Clan estate and the host and guest took their seats, Zhou Chun didn’t waste time and immediately cupped his hands in thanks, saying, “This harvest was largely thanks to the information from Fellow Daoist Wang and the Wang Clan, allowing me to obtain the two needed pills. Today, I am visiting to express my thanks.”

 

Hearing his words, Wang Zhixiong immediately waved his hands repeatedly, saying, “Please, Fellow Daoist Zhou, you are too gracious!

 

“With our clans so close, exchanging news is natural. Why trouble yourself to come over and express gratitude for such a minor thing?”

 

“It wouldn’t be considered anything if it were regarding clan business, but since I utilized clan channels to handle something for myself, I absolutely had to come over and thank you personally to feel at ease.”

 

Zhou Chun continued, “I know that if I presented a lavish gift, Fellow Daoist Wang likely wouldn’t accept it. Fortunately, during my previous participation in the Heaven Spirit Trial, I acquired some rare herb seeds that are seldom seen in the outside world. Given that the Wang Clan has generations of expertise in cultivating herbs, I believe this would be the most appropriate token of gratitude.”

 

He then reached out and patted his waist, retrieving a few jade boxes containing herb seeds from his storage bag.

 

As expected, upon hearing that the gift was herb seeds, Wang Zhixiong’s eyes immediately widened with surprise and interest.

 

He smiled and replied, “You’ve gone to great lengths, Fellow Daoist Zhou, and I won’t be polite.”

 

He accepted the jade box, examining it thoroughly in front of Zhou Chun.

 

While examining it, he also expressed his opinions, seeking confirmation from Zhou Chun.

 

This allowed Zhou Chun to glimpse Wang Zhixiong’s profound understanding of herbs.

 

He originally presented these herb seeds without revealing their origin, just to assess Wang Zhixiong’s abilities.

 

The unexpected outcome was that amongst the five kinds of herbs, the other man recognized four simply by the seeds, while he misidentified only one!

 

He sincerely praised, “Fellow Daoist Wang truly lives up to his reputation of having extensive knowledge passed down through his clan. I am impressed!”

 

Wang Zhixiong, who had just received several rare herb seeds, smiled broadly. “Hee hee hee, Zhou Daoyi is too kind. Since my Wang Clan has established itself through the cultivation of herbs, a little bit of skill is expected. Otherwise, people would laugh at us!”

 

“Haha, as long as Fellow Daoist Wang likes this gift.”

 

Zhou Chun chuckled, then his expression suddenly turned grave as he looked intently at Wang Zhixiong and said, “Besides expressing gratitude to Fellow Daoist Wang and the Wang Clan for their communication, I came today to seek advice and offer a warning to Fellow Daoist Wang.”

 

Seeing his shift in demeanor, Wang Zhixiong was momentarily taken aback, and then his smile faded as he replied formally, “Fellow Daoist Zhou, please proceed.”

 

Zhou Chun then continued, “Just a few days ago, I was followed shortly after leaving the market after my second trip to Eastern Hill Market to complete the Meridian Nurturing Pill transaction with Master Jiang and encountered an attack by two cultivators in mid Foundation Establishment.

 

“Fortunately, Third Elder was accompanying me, allowing us to combine our strength to repel the attackers and eliminate one of them.

 

“And although I didn’t find any evidence on the eliminated enemy linking them to Master Jiang, the coincidence of this matter clearly suggests his involvement!

 

“If the Wang Clan intends to cooperate and interact with him in the future, it would be wise to proceed with caution.”

 

He then described the artifacts and special skills of Wei Tong.

 

Compared to appearances, a cultivator’s artifacts and special skills are more identifiable and eye-catching.

 

Especially a cultivator like Su Qiang, who cultivated a battle art at mid Foundation Establishment.

 

Having listened to Zhou Chun’s words, Wang Zhixiong was startled.

 

He exclaimed, “How could such a thing happen?”

 

Then he quickly said, “Fellow Daoist Zhou, you are astute. I, the Wang Clan, have not had much cooperation with Master Jiang, only that he has a disciple who frequently visits our Wang Clan to purchase herbs.”

 

“Fellow Daoist Wang, you needn’t worry; I am, of course, aware that this matter has nothing to do with the Wang Clan. I simply wanted to warn the Wang Clan about Master Jiang.”

 

Zhou Chun waved his hand, indicating he had nothing further to add.

 

Upon hearing his words, Wang Zhixiong felt a sense of relief and immediately responded solemnly, “I understand, please, Fellow Daoist Zhou, rest assured. I will shortly contact some cooperative forces in Ridge Province to help Fellow Daoist Zhou investigate the identities of those attackers.”

 

Seeing this, Zhou Chun offered repeated thanks, saying, “Then, many thanks, Fellow Daoist Wang.”

 

Once this matter was settled, Zhou Chun abruptly shifted the conversation, bringing up another subject.

 

“Esteemed Fellow Daoist Wang, my clan sent me here to discuss a partnership.”

 

“The Jade Spirit Bee that my clan has tamed requires a significant amount of spiritual flower pollen as a raw material to maintain a high-quality spiritual honey output.

 

“The Wang Clan has cultivated a vast amount of herbs, and many of them bloom and pollinate.

 

“Therefore, my clan wishes to collaborate with the Wang Clan. When the flowering period of certain herbs in the Wang Clan arrives, could the Wang Clan notify my clan? Then, my clan’s cultivator could lead the bees to pollinate the blossoms.

 

“If this can be realized, after the subsequent spiritual honey is produced, the Zhou Clan will also send a portion to the Wang Clan as a token of gratitude!”