Master Cai's Difficult Choice

After immediately revealing his Nascent Soul True Lord cultivation level, Xiao Chen began to carefully examine the Fruit Plate in front of him while holding his teacup.

No other meaning intended, just learning and applying what I've learned.

But this put Master Cai in a rather awkward position.

Why did this senior suddenly stop speaking halfway through their sentence?

Weren't you here to discuss a deal?

What are the specific details of the transaction?

As time passed, Master Cai felt immense pressure, and a layer of sweat appeared on his forehead.

Now it was his turn to get restless.

"Um... um, may I ask what kind of transaction you're referring to, senior?"

Master Cai carefully considered his words before speaking, "This old man is getting on in years, and my mind isn't quite what it used to be. I would be grateful if you could enlighten me, senior."

Xiao Chen shook his head. "Let's not rush into the deal."

"Before I came here, I heard some interesting rumors. Many people were saying that there was something wrong with the feng shui of Pingyi City."

What are your thoughts on this, sir?

If he were to discuss cooperation right away, the other party might not agree. Therefore, Xiao Chen decided to start by talking about the current predicament of the Cai Family.

He needs to make the other party realize that this is a good thing that also benefits them, only then will they be truly willing to cooperate with him.

Instead of making a good deal out of nothing, they turned around and immediately reported to the Gui Yun Sect as soon as I left.

"Most rumors are untrue, and idle gossip should not be taken seriously."

Master Cai first denied the feng shui theory, then explained, "The reason I want to move my clan back to our ancestral home is simply because I want to receive the blessings of our ancestors."

"Our ancestral home is a blessed place for the Cai Family; perhaps it's easier to raise Kirin Child here."

He was only half telling the truth.

The first statement is true; the concept of feng shui is indeed just speculation from outsiders.

The reality is that the Cai Family is currently under immense pressure.

They may appear successful on the surface, but they're rotten to the core.

For the past two hundred years, the clan's members have all been a group of pleasure-seeking, dissolute young men who do not know how to live up to expectations.

Although a few promising talents and diligent cultivators emerged, they all met with various unforeseen circumstances and died before reaching the Foundation Establishment Great Perfection.

Initially, Master Cai believed it was merely a matter of personal destiny.

But as time went on, he couldn't help but wonder if his family was being targeted.

The problem is that he doesn't know which company is behind this operation.

What worries Master Cai even more is that there may be more than one or two people behind the scenes.

They don't have much time left to rebuild their Lineage business.

That's why they moved back to their ancestral home, hid in Linked Array, and even rented out the Spirit Field and mines that were located far away.

This is to prevent the mastermind behind the scenes from continuing to create accidents and interfere with the cultivation of the new generation of disciples in the clan.

Therefore, his last statement was also true; the main purpose of moving was to better protect the chosen Immortal Seedling within the clan.

"Oh, I see."

Xiao Chen seemed to suddenly realize something. "I thought someone was plotting something in the dark."

"It seems I was overthinking it."

Whether or not this is true, he has to give Master Cai a hint.

After saying that, Xiao Chen changed the subject. "In that case, let's talk about the transaction."

"I'll be frank. I've heard that there are always several Fourth-Order Spiritual Item at the auction following the Double Jade Assembly."

"I happen to need some Fourth-Order Spiritual Item right now, but I don't want to be too conspicuous."

"If the old gentleman could help me bid on some spiritual items, that would be great."

"In return, I can help the old gentleman deal with some of the more troublesome enemies."

"Of course, I've already prepared the Spirit Stone. I'm just using this as a pretext; I assure you, sir, that you won't need to spend any money yourself."

"In my view, this is less of a transaction and more of a collaboration that benefits both of us."

"What do you think, sir?"

Upon hearing these words, Master Cai couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

What was bound to happen has finally happened.

He had actually guessed long ago that he would encounter such a thing sooner or later.

It's just a matter of sooner or later.

But when that day finally arrived, Master Cai still felt somewhat emotional and conflicted.

If he's not mistaken, Xiao Chen should be from the Rebellious Immortal Alliance.

They're after the Cai Family's reputation and want to bring them under their control.

From this perspective, the Cai Family has indeed declined significantly.

After all, if given a choice, they certainly wouldn't engage in any so-called cooperation with the Rebellious Immortal Alliance.

In other words, from the other party's perspective, they were already at their wits' end.

Although, in reality, they were indeed facing considerable difficulties.

Now that things have come to this, should he agree?

Master Cai has lived for several hundred years and has seen many ups and downs.

But a huge sense of confusion still arose in my heart.

After all, his choice today could directly affect the future of the Cai Family, if they even have a future.

Judging from experience, secretly colluding with the Rebellious Immortal Alliance is an extremely unwise choice.

The Holy City is a sword hanging over the heads of every sect and every Lineage.

For tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of years, all traitors have met with bad ends.

Anyone found to have colluded with the Rebellious Immortal Alliance was subjected to the most severe punishment.

Therefore, the right thing to do now is to feign agreement to appease Xiao Chen, and then secretly report to the Gui Yun Sect and request their support.

But the question is, can the Gui Yun Sect really be relied upon?

Admittedly, they would certainly contribute when setting up a trap to strike at the Rebellious Immortal Alliance.

But what happens after that?

The Cai Family will still face the predicament of having no successor in the future, and will also attract retaliation from the remnants of the Rebellious Immortal Alliance.

At that point, it would be a dead end anyway. The best outcome would be to be indirectly absorbed by another powerful Lineage through the Marriage Alliance, and then gradually marginalized.

Either outcome is something that Master Cai cannot accept.

But he had no third option.

Sometimes, people don't have the right to choose right or wrong.

The only option is to choose the less serious one from two incorrect choices.

The saying goes, "When faced with two evils, choose the lesser."

On one hand, joining the Rebellious Immortal Alliance would inevitably lead to future retribution.

On one hand, they refuse to join the Rebellious Immortal Alliance, only to be exploited and humiliated by others in the future.

Master Cai really didn't know what to do.

But now that they've come knocking on his door, he can't afford to hesitate.

He could either feign agreement to appease Xiao Chen first, and then report him as quickly as possible.

Either agree to cooperate readily, and then try to secure as many benefits as possible for your own side.

Now that things have come to this, a decision must be made.

Should we cling to life a little longer, hoping for a turnaround that may never come?

Or is it a case of mutually exploiting the Rebellious Immortal Alliance to exchange for crucial Breakthrough Spirit Item, secretly cultivating a Nascent Soul True Lord?

The former depends purely on luck, while the latter requires gambling on whether one's grandson can successfully break through in one go.

After much deliberation, Master Cai decided to take his destiny into his own hands.

It's better to rely on yourself than on fate. Instead of waiting for a change in circumstances, it's better to take a chance.

As long as I can obtain the Breakthrough Spirit Item, I can secretly send my grandson away, letting him change his appearance and run off to a distant place to break through to the True Lord level.

Even if they are investigated in the future, the Cai Family can make a comeback in another place.

After making his decision, Master Cai became much calmer.

He took a deep breath. "I am truly humbled and honored by your high regard for my Cai Family."

Although he expressed his fear, his tone remained calm. "Since you've said you want to cooperate, then this old man would like to humbly request to discuss the specifics of our cooperation."

"I hope you will grant my request, senior."

discuss?

Xiao Chen asked, "Tell me about it, I'd like to hear it."

He's always been easy to talk to; as long as the other party doesn't make exorbitant demands, everything is negotiable.

"Thank you for your understanding, senior."

Master Cai first expressed his gratitude, and then said, "I can help you with your work, senior, and not only in this auction, but also in subsequent collaborations."

"Whether it's stealing intelligence or providing spiritual materials, it's no problem."

"There's no need to trouble you for now, senior. I just hope you can grant me a Rebellious Fate Nascent Soul Pill within three years."

What is it?

Xiao Chen had never heard of this thing. After secretly noting down this information, he shook his head. "I don't want to lie to you."

"I'm not confident I can obtain the Rebellious Fate Nascent Soul Pill within three years, so I can't agree to that."

"How about you change your request?"

Upon hearing this, Master Cai felt a sense of reassurance.

He was just giving it a try, and he was already prepared for the other party to disagree.

But since Xiao Chen is being so frank, there's clearly still room for discussion.

He then said, "In that case, I hope that you, senior, can bestow upon me two Main Ingredient for Refine Breakthrough Spirit Pill within three years."

"If we can obtain the Rebellious Fate Nascent Soul Pill within the next ten years, everything will remain the same."

"If not, then these two Main Ingredient will settle the debt."

"As long as the senior gives the word, the Cai Family will be at your disposal for the next ten years."

This condition might be difficult for others, but it was much simpler for Xiao Chen.

With his current abilities, obtaining two Main Ingredient is not a difficult task.

Therefore, Xiao Chen nodded readily. "No problem, I can guarantee you will get at least two Main Ingredient."

"At the same time, as long as you work diligently for me, I don't mind giving you some extra rewards."

This last sentence is the truth.

It's no exaggeration to say that Xiao Chen could easily support an entire sect, and he wouldn't mind sharing some resources with his own people.

However, this is on the premise that they can actually play a certain role.

The two sides reached an agreement on cooperation, and then naturally discussed the specific actions to follow.

This is much simpler.

It was simply that Xiao Chen impersonated a member of the Cai Lineage and infiltrated the auction along with the Cai Family's group.

Regardless, the Cai Family is still one of the Four Great Families on the surface.

It will have a separate private room at the time of the auction.

At that time, they can act as the bidding agents for anything that Xiao Chen takes a fancy to.

This way, he can obtain the desired spiritual item without revealing himself.

Now that they had become partners, Master Cai took the initiative to present a Formation Flag as a token of his sincerity.

This is a Formation Flag of the Cai Family's Linked Grand Array, which allows the holder to move freely within the formation.

This was to prove that he had no intention of secretly reporting them.

"That won't be necessary."

Xiao Chen waved his hand, saying, "Trust those you employ, and don't employ those you don't trust."

"I believe that since you've agreed to cooperate, you wouldn't lie to me."

Of course, that was just a figure of speech; in reality, it was because he possessed the Night's Edge, which allowed him to escape safely even if he were ambushed.

However, Master Cai was deeply moved.

In his view, this is naturally a manifestation of sincerity.

Whether it was agreeing to change the terms earlier or now actively demonstrating trust, it shows a willingness to win over the Cai Family.

This all demonstrates that the Rebellious Immortal Alliance does not intend to use them and then discard them, but rather genuinely plans for long-term cooperation.

"By the way, the Double Jade Assembly is the day after tomorrow."

Xiao Chen asked, "When shall we depart?"

Master Cai replied, "According to tradition, the Four Great Families will arrive at Gui Yun Market on the Higher Vehicle a spirit ship."

"Senior, are you planning to depart ahead of schedule?"

Xiao Chen waved his hand. "Since there's a precedent, we should definitely follow it to avoid arousing suspicion from outsiders."

"But since we still have a day, why not find something to do?"

"I imagine the old gentleman must have quite a collection of books at home, right?"

"Would it be convenient for me to take a look?"

Since we're already here, we can't let the Cai Family's collection of Ancient Books go to waste.

As the saying goes, even a starved camel is bigger than a horse.

Although the Cai Family is now quite poor, they were once very wealthy.

Their family must have collected a great many ancient books, far exceeding what Zhang Cunfu and others had seen and heard.

Xiao Chen still lacks a lot of understanding about the New Cultivation World.

This is a good opportunity to brush up on my knowledge in this area.

In a sense, if he could see some useful information today, its future value might not be lower than that of the spiritual items at the auction.

"Of course, no problem. Please, senior, move to the study."

Master Cai hesitated for a moment, then readily agreed.

Although he didn't quite understand why Xiao Chen would be interested in his family's book collection, he didn't think much of it.

Anyway, the Cai Family only collects books on general knowledge and stories, so it's no big deal if they read them.

So he personally invited Xiao Chen to his study and served him the best Spirit Tea in the house.

They even specially rummaged through the warehouse and brought in a bundle of top-quality incense, which is said to be able to refresh the mind.

"Really? Then let's just order it?"

Xiao Chen didn't ask any questions about the Spirit Tea and spirit incense, since he wasn't afraid of any problems.

He immediately immersed himself in the two large bookshelves of Ancient Books books in the study.

Although there's only one day left before we leave.

However, with the help of his powerful Divine Sense, Xiao Chen only spent a short time browsing through all the Ancient Books.

We've figured out the general categories and content.

Then, I selected about a hundred of the more useful books and began to study them carefully, quickly supplementing my understanding of the New Cultivation World.

He spent the entire next day in his study.

Even the suggestion from Master Cai to meet the rest of the Cai Family was postponed by him.

He couldn't be bothered to know so many people. If he had something to say, he would just tell Master Cai and have him relay it.