Chapter 142, Zhou Mingde’s Plan

Translator: Raznick

 

Lin Hongyu departed the Zhou Clan.

 

Her expression as she left suggested a degree of satisfaction.

 

However, after Lin Hongyu’s departure, the two influential figures of the Zhou Clan sat within the mountaintop stone pavilion, their faces grim, remaining motionless for a long while.

 

After such prolonged silence, Zhou Daoyi sighed heavily, his expression laden with concern. “We shouldn’t have agreed to her request!”

 

“It’s like bargaining with a tiger!

 

“If this matter is leaked, the Zhou Clan will surely face annihilation!”

 

Upon finishing these words, it was seen that Zhou Mingde, on the opposite side, also sighed softly, “I am aware of this, but the situation is beyond our control!

 

“If we don’t agree to her, whether she causes a commotion within the estate or reveals that you obtained the Blue Flood Dragon inner core and that you have a connection with her, the trouble the Zhou Clan will encounter will be no smaller than if we had agreed.”

 

Zhou Daoyi was immediately silenced, unable to refute.

 

He had personally witnessed Lin Hongyu’s strength; even when her secret art was at its peak, cultivators from the Green Lotus Monastery in the late Violet Palace stage would avoid her. Her strength was certainly not comparable to Zhou Mingde’s.

 

Moreover, she dared to come to the Zhou Clan alone this time, and she must have been fully prepared.

 

If she were to truly cause a disturbance within the Zhou Clan, even if the Zhou Clan could rely on the protective array to suppress her, it was uncertain how many clan members would perish!

 

That kind of consequence was no different from ruin and annihilation.

 

Recalling Lin Hongyu’s previous conditions, Zhou Daoyi’s eyelid flickered. “However, if we truly follow her words, searching for ordinary people possessing spirit roots and recruiting rogue cultivators, that would truly be aiding the enemy. Based on this alone, once the matter is revealed, how can we ever clear our names?”

 

“I, too, know this!”

 

Zhou Mingde raised an eyebrow, saying with a tone of helplessness, “But for the time being, we must first feign compliance and stall for time!”

 

Speaking to this point, a glint of light flashed in his eyes, and he added, “Besides, aiding the enemy depends on how you define it. If we can later find a breakthrough from the Dragonized Sect and manage to inflict a significant loss on them, then it wouldn’t be aiding them, but rather, giving them a taste of their own medicine!”

 

He concluded, “In any case, we must stall as much as possible and delay as long as we can until you have that Sky Cloud Python turn into a Blue Flood Dragon. Then we’ll have the leverage to turn on them and permanently resolve this problem!”

 

But Zhou Daoyi felt that his plan was too risky.

 

With the strength of the Zhou Clan, undertaking such a precarious balancing act could mean ruin and annihilation for the entire clan if there were even the slightest misstep!

 

He spoke again, “Why not be honest with the Green Lotus Monastery? Through Daoist Ming Xia’s voice, inform their leadership about this matter and see what they intend to do!”

 

“If they inquire about the Blue Flood Dragon inner core, we can say it’s already been used. Surely, they wouldn’t resort to demanding blood money from the Zhou Clan over it!”

 

However, Zhou Mingde shook his head repeatedly when he heard his words, “It won’t work. Not to mention that the Green Lotus Monastery certainly has a way to verify the truth of our words. Even if they truly choose not to pursue the matter of the Blue Flood Dragon inner core, handing them this handle is like entrusting the lives of the entire clan to someone else’s hands!”

 

“Don’t forget, the reason the Zhou Clan is helping the Green Lotus Monastery now is because our clan’s foundation lies within their sphere of influence; we’re forced to do so. We don’t have any deep ties with the Green Lotus Monastery, nor do we harbor any deep hatred for the Dragonized Sect!

 

“If you think about it honestly, the Zhou Clan has fallen into this predicament because of the Green Lotus Monastery!”

 

These words silenced Zhou Daoyi.

 

Indeed, for the Zhou Clan, the Green Lotus Monastery was far from a benevolent force.

 

It was the Green Lotus Monastery that initially shattered the Three Absolute Sect, and at that time, nearly half of the sect’s accumulated wealth was forcibly offered as passage fees to the Green Lotus Monastery to secure their acceptance of these foreign cultivators.

 

With that layer of separation in place, actively handing over leverage to the Green Lotus Monastery truly meant putting life and death in their hands!

 

Unless he could bear to part with that Blue Flood Dragon inner core and offer it up as well!

 

But thinking of the sacrifices he made to obtain that Blue Flood Dragon inner core and the importance of that item to himself and the Zhou Clan,

 

Zhou Daoyi quickly dismissed the idea.

 

That was absolutely impossible!

 

“Enough, don’t dwell on it. Although this matter carries a significant hidden danger, as long as we and Lin Hongyu are careful, it might not be exposed, and the benefits gained are not small either!

 

“The Dragonized Sect carved out such a large territory on the edge of the Dragon Mire, where demon beasts run rampant; the various rare treasures they possess must be extremely numerous. If we can acquire some items urgently needed by the Zhou Clan through trading with Lin Hongyu, that would greatly strengthen the clan’s power!

 

“Relying on others is no match for relying on oneself. As long as the Zhou Clan strengthens its power and has the capital to maneuver again, even if we truly completely pledge allegiance to the Dragonized Sect or go elsewhere, that would not be out of the question!”

 

Zhou Mingde said here and waved his hand, “In any case, things have now reached this point; any choice may overturn the clan, so we must naturally choose the one that can help the clan develop faster!”

 

There’s no free lunch in this world!

 

Zhou Daoyi initially managed to profit by acquiring the Blue Flood Dragon inner core and failed to silence the matter, so he was destined to pay a price for it.

 

Zhou Mingde saw this very clearly.

 

Therefore, he was more aware than Zhou Daoyi, who was within the inner circle; if the Zhou Clan wouldn’t give up that benefit, they would certainly have to bear the risks that came with it.

 

After all, scheming with a tiger is dangerous, but the rewards are also great.

 

Just like when he led people to risk tearing his face with Yu Jinghua and perishing to rebuild the Zhou Clan, it was also a great gamble, but the rewards after success were equally significant.

 

Therefore, when faced with a choice requiring a risky decision, he was willing to take bold action!

 

After he repeatedly persuaded him, Zhou Daoyi no longer mentioned informing Green Lotus Monastery of the matter.

 

The two quickly began discussing how to safely and discreetly conduct a transaction with Lin Hongyu.

 

However, after a brief discussion, Zhou Daoyi suddenly said, “Now Zhengchun is handling clan affairs. If we want to use the clan’s power to do this, it will be impossible to keep it from him. Why don’t we call him over to discuss it too?”

 

“This…”

 

Zhou Mingde hesitated, revealing a look of contemplation, and did not immediately agree.

 

Zhou Daoyi understood that he was worried about adding another person who might leak information.

 

But he still spoke seriously: “If you don’t trust him, how can you, Grand Elder, rest assured that he will take over the Clan Leader’s position? Besides, he already knows about the Blue Flood Dragon inner core being in my possession.”

 

“Then, let’s go to Central Palace to discuss it together.”

 

Zhou Mingde nodded, agreeing with his words.

 

Thus, the two immediately went to Central Palace to discuss the matter with Zhou Chun.

 

Of course, to spare Zhou Daoyi’s face, they didn’t mention the matter between him and Lin Hongyu; instead, they changed the story to say that Lin Hongyu, after sustaining heavy injuries, was forced to flee with only a portion of the Blue Flood Dragon’s remains, and now she was coming for revenge.

 

Even so, when Zhou Chun heard about the transaction agreement reached between the two and Lin Hongyu, he was shocked beyond words, his eyes wide with disbelief.

 

“I know you’re shocked by this, but I and the Grand Elder have already discussed it. This is the best choice for the Zhou Clan at present, so now we want to discuss with you how to minimize the risk of exposure during the transaction.”

 

Zhou Daoyi, looking at the astonished Zhou Chun, said with a low voice, revealing his intention.

 

His words were a dismissal, telling Zhou Chun not to question the reasoning behind such a high-stakes endeavor but rather to focus on minimizing the risk.

 

Zhou Chun readily understood this implication.

 

Upon hearing Zhou Daoyi’s words, his first thought was outsourcing.

 

As long as the Zhou Clan didn’t directly utilize the clan’s power to carry out this matter, even if it were exposed, the blame could be shifted to the outsourced individuals.

 

But he quickly realized that such a tactic wouldn’t work in the world of cultivation.

 

While the world of cultivation did possess rules and order, major powers wouldn’t adhere to them when dealing with minor factions in matters of such immense consequence.

 

Furthermore, in the world he’s known in past life, any company daring to delegate a matter of such importance to an outsourcing firm would never be a minor background Zhou Clan like theirs.

 

Therefore, outsourcing would only make it easier for the matter to be leaked and exposed.

 

“I believe that, in order to maintain utmost secrecy, the trading location should first be outside of Mist Province, and secondly, it shouldn’t be done under the banner of the Zhou Clan. It would be best to find ordinary mortals with spirit roots through the means of a rogue cultivator taking disciples and try to send those mortals over.

 

“Even if it’s absolutely necessary to send a rogue cultivator over, we must try to select a foreign rogue cultivator who doesn’t know or is familiar with our Zhou Clan!

 

“Additionally, I feel that the greatest possibility of exposure doesn’t lie with us, the Zhou Clan; as long as we’re not sending a large number of people to her, we’re unlikely to be discovered.

 

“The most likely source of exposure for the Zhou Clan remains the Dragonized Sect; if they fail to maintain confidentiality, the Zhou Clan will easily be exposed!”

 

Zhou Chun’s mind raced, quickly proposing several of his own perspectives.

 

To be honest, he felt that exposure was inevitable if this matter continued for a long time.

 

After all, the Dragonized Sect wanted living people, not the dead.

 

They likely had these living people for a reason, requiring little thought—certainly to exploit these cultivators and mortals capable of cultivation to expand the sect’s power.

 

After all, the Dragonized Sect was situated in such a remote wilderness, making it incredibly difficult to acquire cultivators with sufficient cultivation aptitude.

 

Otherwise, they would have established a kingdom themselves. Why bother taking on the trouble of provoking factions within the Jing Kingdom?

 

And once these living people reached the Dragonized Sect, anyone harboring resentment towards those who tricked them there would easily find a way to leak information, prompting an investigation from the Jing Kingdom.

 

But this was something Zhou Mingde and the others were certainly aware of, so Zhou Chun didn’t elaborate, simply pointing out the risk of exposure.

 

“Dragonized Sect’s danger aside, we can agree that sending mortals is preferable—at least mortals would need a decade or more to grow into a state where they could be useful to the Dragonized Sect!”

 

Zhou Mingde nodded slightly, agreeing with Zhou Chun’s assessment.

 

But quickly, a look of concern crossed his face as he said, “However, Lin Hongyu has set a bottom line—each transaction must involve at least ten cultivators, and there must be at least one transaction per year!”

 

“What? One transaction per year!”

 

Zhou Chun’s expression changed, and he stared at Zhou Mingde in astonishment.

 

Zhou Mingde knew what he was surprised about and couldn’t help but chuckle wryly, “There’s no way around it; we also think this condition is too strict, but she won’t budge on this, even preferring to increase the compensation we receive rather than compromise!”

 

“Then this truly becomes a very difficult matter to handle!”

 

Zhou Chun muttered to himself, his head spinning from the situation concocted by the two Zhou Clan leadership.

 

For the Zhou Clan, with their power and strength, quietly providing ten Qi Refining rogue cultivators to the Dragonized Sect annually was not difficult.

 

The difficulty lay in the fact that this matter demanded an exceptionally high level of secrecy. The true nature of the operation could only be known by the three of them, yet they themselves couldn’t be the ones carrying it out.

 

How could one expect those who take action to forgo inquiries into the reasons and possess the ability to completely comply with the requests of a few?

 

Suddenly, a spark ignited in Zhou Chun’s mind, and he thought of a suitable person.

 

He immediately turned to Zhou Mingde and the others and said, “Grand Elder, Clan Leader, what do you think about the Ape Elder who oversees the library? If the Ape Elder handles the capture, as long as it’s not seen by those familiar with its people, even those captured will only see it!”

 

“That Wood Spirit Ape?”

 

“Excellent idea!”

 

Zhou Mingde and Zhou Daoyi’s eyes brightened, instantly understanding Zhou Chun’s meaning.

 

The Wood Spirit Ape practically never leaves Flying Stone Peak, so only Zhou Clan cultivators can see it.

 

Releasing it to capture someone would absolutely eliminate any worry of information leaking from the Zhou Clan.

 

Zhou Mingde immediately said, “Daoquan is also a trustworthy person; this matter can be entrusted to him, and he can assist in covering it up.”

 

“If it’s like this, then the target is easier to select—let’s choose those bandit cultivators who have exhausted all evil deeds. Sending such people to the Dragonized Sect would also be doing good for the Jing Kingdom cultivation world!”

 

Zhou Daoyi echoed his own opinion.

 

“Then let’s settle it as such. I will return and consider the details of what needs to be done, ensuring a flawless execution!”

 

Zhou Mingde made the decision on the spot, concluding the discussion.

 

After Zhou Mingde left, Zhou Daoyi didn’t immediately leave but instead recounted to Zhou Chun the conversation he had previously had with Zhou Mingde, explaining the reasons for making this risky decision.

 

Having listened to his recollection, Zhou Chun finally understood the reasons behind the actions of these two clan leaders.

 

The lingering questions in his mind had largely dissipated.

 

Consequently, over the ensuing period, the several key figures within the Zhou Clan convened and deliberated on this matter of vital importance to the clan’s survival on multiple occasions, ultimately solidifying a viable course of action.

 

However, with a year remaining until the next transaction, Zhou Chun and his faction were naturally not inclined to act immediately.

 

It was precisely then that news regarding the Meridian Protection Pill he required arrived from the Wang Clan residing in Red Herb Valley.