The New Power of the Central Plains: Breaking the Whole into Parts

"We are not discussing who is right and who is wrong now. We should be considering how to preserve the Xiao Clan."

Hearing Xiao Xuan's words, the many elders fell silent. It was easy to say, but exceedingly difficult to do.

Xiao Kong said, "The root of this situation is the depletion of the Xiao Clan's Dou Emperor Bloodline."

"The best solution would be for the Xiao Clan to produce another Dou Emperor, who could reactivate the Dou Emperor Bloodline."

"Patriarch, you are a peerless genius. Doesn't the hope of reviving the bloodline rest on you?"

"Indeed, that is the best solution, the way to resolve this problem at its root."

"The Emperor Realm has vanished from the Dou Qi Continent for ten thousand years. I truly look forward to the sight of the Patriarch making a breakthrough."

Xiao Xuan raised a hand, stopping the clamorous voices. "Everyone, becoming a Dou Emperor is not so easy."

"It is not that I am boosting others' prestige while diminishing my own. I know my own limits well."

"The Dou Emperor Realm has, after all, vanished for ten thousand years. Over those ten thousand years, seas have turned into mulberry fields, and stars have shifted."

"During that time, there were no shortage of peerless geniuses. Take the Purifying Lotus Demon Saint, the Creation Saint, and the Yellow Springs Demon Saint, who once dominated the continent. Which of them was not an invincible expert, merely one step away from becoming a Dou Emperor?"

"But where are they now? Whether they fell or not is unknown, but they certainly did not break through to become Dou Emperors."

"The most recent Dragon Emperor of the Ancient Void Dragon Clan had remained at the peak Dou Saint realm for a very long time, had he not? Yet he still failed to break through."

"Moreover, it is said that the Dragon Emperor has been missing for several centuries."

"It is not that they could not become Dou Emperors. Rather, I suspect that compared to ten thousand years ago, something must be missing from heaven and earth."

"And those things are essential for advancing to the Dou Emperor Realm."

"Therefore, the path to becoming a Dou Emperor is unrealistic. It has already been cut off."

Xiao Chen finally asked, "Patriarch, do you have a solution?"

Having no other options, the others could only look at Xiao Xuan expectantly. Though this Patriarch was far younger than them, he was as cunning as a fox, and they could not help but admire him.

"There is one method that can barely be called a method!"

"What do you mean, a method that can barely be called a method?"

"Break the whole into parts!"

Xiao Kong asked, "Patriarch, how exactly do we divide it?"

"As the saying goes, husband and wife are birds of the same forest; when disaster comes, they fly their separate ways."

"I will tell you my method. Each of you has your own branch within the clan."

"Have your descendants change their names and surnames, then exile them across the Dou Qi Continent."

"You need only know where your respective branches have been exiled and what surnames they have taken. Do not tell anyone else, not even me."

"After all, the fewer people who know, the greater their chances of survival."

"As for after their exile, if they cannot keep their mouths shut and blab everywhere—"

"Then if the various Emperor Clans secretly wipe them out, they will have only themselves to blame!"

"Likewise, I will not tell you where my own descendants will be exiled."

"This is the best method I can think of. Otherwise, once the Xiao Clan declines, there will be no second outcome awaiting its members."

"The Xiao Clan will make its arrangements quietly. Whatever plans you have, it would be best to settle them all within a hundred years."

"Yes, Patriarch!"

The next day, Xiao Feng, Gu Qin, Nangong Ling'er, Xiao Ruoruo, and their granduncle Xiao Gong were all gathered in the pavilion within Xiao Xuan's family courtyard.

At the same time, Nangong Ling'er held an infant in her arms.

This was Xiao Xuan's child, Xiao Wu. Unfortunately, in Xiao Xuan's estimation, even with the Dou Emperor Bloodline, the boy would not surpass the fifth grade.

"Brother Xiao, are we truly sending Wu'er away?"

"Sigh, there is no other way. Ling'er, do not worry. Sending him away does not mean we will simply abandon him."

"The boy has no real memories yet. Sending him away now will prevent word from leaking through him in the future and drawing danger upon him."

"This is only a precaution. As for the Xiao Clan's experts, those willing to remain can continue staying in the Xiao Realm."

Thus, Xiao Wu, the infant son of the Xiao Clan Patriarch, vanished silently from the Xiao Realm. Aside from the Patriarch's family, no one knew of it.

In the years that followed, infants would occasionally disappear from the Xiao Clan.

Xiao Xuan's family concealed their identities and spent a happy childhood with Xiao Wu. They later faked their deaths one after another and went into the shadows.

Although Xiao Wu's talent was lacking and his bloodline grade was not high, he still possessed a fifth-grade bloodline.

By the time he became a Dou Zun, he was already over a hundred years old.

Over the past century, the Central Plains Continent had been swept by surging currents, and several mysterious powers had risen.

The first was the Soul Hall, which seemed to have risen overnight. Its speed of expansion was astonishing.

Then there was Sound Valley, equally mysterious. Its disciple Xi Shao and Valley Master Luo Tianyin, both Nine-Turn Dou Zuns, shook the continent with their strength. They were among the few top experts publicly known across the Central Plains Continent.

As for the Eight Desolations Divine Hall, it was a power that had become famous across the continent more than a century ago.

It was unfathomably mysterious. Rumor had it that the Hall Master of the Eight Desolations Divine Hall was a Saint Level expert, though no one among the major Central Plains powers had ever seen him.

As for the rest, the Eight Desolations Divine Hall was divided into eight halls. The deputy hall master of Heaven Hall had once acted in the Central Plains and killed a Three-Star Saint.

Though the other seven halls had left no trace of action, speculation continued throughout the Central Plains Continent. It was said that each of those seven was at least a Dou Zun expert.

Within the main hall of the Eight Desolations Divine Hall, Xiao Li sat quietly in his seat, looking down at the people below.

After more than a hundred years of operation, they had become a genuine super-first-rate power on the Central Plains Continent.

Besides him, there was another Five-Star Dou Saint: Feng Yu, the Woeful Poison Body whom they had once brought back.

Over the past century, she had truly lived up to the name of the Woeful Poison Body. Her cultivation had soared all the way, and she had directly become the strongest person in the Eight Desolations Divine Hall besides him.

As for the deputy hall master of Heaven Hall, he was an Eighth-Rank Alchemist who had only recently entered the Dou Zun realm. The deputy hall master of Desolation Hall specialized in alchemy.

There were also six other deputy hall masters, all high-level Dou Zuns.

"Greetings, Hall Master!"

"Enough. Sit. The Divine Hall only needs to continue developing as usual."

"With the eight of you assisting me, I am at ease."

"Why was I awakened from seclusion this time?"

The others all turned to Feng Yu. Aside from the Hall Master, she was the strongest person in the Divine Hall, a legendary Saint Level expert.

Feng Yu cupped her fists and said, "Hall Master, there have merely been some recent changes in the Central Plains."

"We could not make a decision, so we disturbed your seclusion."

"There is no need to mention Sound Valley. It emerged around the same time as the Eight Desolations Divine Hall."

"Its Valley Master, Luo Tianyin, is merely a Nine-Turn Dou Zun and not worth mentioning."

"However, the Soul Hall is a power whose rise has been terrifyingly swift."

"This subordinate feels that the Soul Hall is far from simple, because I discovered traces of Dou Saints within that power."

"Besides that, powers such as Tianque and the Great Brightness Realm all carry an air of mystery..."

Xiao Li quietly listened as they reported one by one. There was no need to think about it; quite a few of these powers bore the Xiao Clan's shadow. It seemed some of those elders had grown anxious as well.

"Enough. I understand. The Eight Desolations Divine Hall has always developed steadily and does not interfere in outside affairs."

"Whatever happens outside is none of your concern. So long as it does not threaten the interests of the Eight Desolations Divine Hall, stand by and watch."