Void Empty Island, Immortal's Leisurely Courtyard Five Hundred Years
Virtual Universe, Tang Family's exclusive island.
In the void, this island was comparable to Black Dragon Mountain Island, vast and boundless, but such a large island had no construction whatsoever; it was simply an empty island.
At this moment, Tang An and the others seemed to have received some news, and one by one they logged on and landed on the island.
After Tang An and his two companions left the Initial Universe and successively broke through to immortality, they truly experienced "great freedom".
First, each spent a hundred years establishing their own God Kingdom deep within the spatial turbulence. Then, following the instructions of the Virtual Universe, they developed the various exclusive functions of their God Kingdom, explored their potential, and sought ways to earn wealth.
For example, Tang An's God Kingdom is a secret realm surrounded by towering green mountains, with spiritual springs flowing between the peaks that can nourish the divine body, and spiritual herbs everywhere; Tang Guo's God Kingdom is covered with endless grasslands, and several star beasts that can roam freely in the void have been tamed.
In their respective God Kingdom, they are omnipotent Immortal God, capable of achieving whatever their hearts desire.
Hapiness!
They no longer need to be urged to cultivate diligently, nor do they need to go through life-and-death trials to break through realms. They are also free from the constraints of mandatory tasks and can sleep for a thousand years, letting their divine bodies be naturally nourished in the spiritual spring.
You can immerse yourself in a top-tier gaming pod in Virtual Universe, team up to fight across universes, and if you lose, you can unleash your immortal power to rewrite the course of the battle. You can also buy delicacies from various races, sit around drinking with your brothers and sisters, and fall asleep with your head resting on a nebula when you're drunk.
They lived these carefree days for five hundred years. Then, the ecstasy and pleasure gradually faded, replaced by boredom.
Tang An was the first to speak up, sending a message in the family group chat. "If I keep lying down, my body will rust. How about going out for a walk?"
Tang Guo: 1
Tang Yiyi: Let's go!
The three parties quickly reached an agreement and embarked on a journey together.
With shares in Earth and dividends from the Initial Universe Sword Family, this money continuously flows into the Tang Family's public account, enough to support their extravagant spending for trillions of epochs. Crucially, they are the only three registered heirs of the Tang Family, granting them considerable authority. They can freely apply for account funds, and with their wealth and background, they can travel to any territory of the Human Race's 1008 High-level Universe Country, or apply to enter various mysterious realms, all without any hindrance.
From then on, the three of them traveled to almost every corner of the Human Race Territory, enjoying the beautiful scenery and often sharing it with their parents to show off their happiness.
First stop: The Core Secret Realm of the Glazed Universe Kingdom: the Myriad-Colored Glazed Abyss.
That secret realm floated within a seven-colored nebula. The bottom of the abyss had no soil or rocks, but rather billions of shimmering glass fragments with different lusters. Even more miraculously, each fragment contained a miniature world, some depicting the rise and fall of ancient races, others reflecting the trajectory of star birth.
The secret realm is inhabited by the Glazed Butterfly Race, whose entire bodies are made of glass. When they flap their wings, they scatter glass shards that can soothe the soul. Every year during the Frost's Descent season, the clan holds a special event: the Glazed Festival.
At that time, tens of thousands of glass butterflies flapped their wings at the same time, and the light fragments gathered into a pillar of light that reached the sky. The people of the tribe sang ancient songs around the pillar of light and prayed for divine protection.
Tang An and his two companions were also given ornaments made from their natal crystal by the Butterfly Clan elders, which could resist certain Soul Attack when worn.
Second stop: The Umbral Shadow Secret Realm of the Black Stone Universe Kingdom. There is no daylight here, and it is Yongheng shrouded in a pale purple mist. Light-eating mushrooms grow on the ground, which can absorb the surrounding light and release a faint glow to illuminate the winding stream at your feet.
The native inhabitants here are the Shadow Demon Race, a race known for their speed and stealth.
The grandest Shadow Hunt Ceremony in the clan is a contest where powerful members of each clan team up to venture deep into the secret realm to hunt down Shadow Shadow-Devouring Beast that can devour shadows. The victors will receive the Shadow Demon Race's secret "Shadow Pattern Potion," which can greatly enhance their stealth abilities.
As honored guests, Tang An and his two companions were naturally invited to participate. However, as soon as they entered the secret realm, three top-tier Shadow-Devouring Beast rushed in front of them and committed suicide.
Ultimately, as a reward for breaking the record for the fastest completion of the Shadow Hunt Ceremony, they were all given potions by the Shadow Demon Race's Great Elder, and even a top-tier clan concealment technique was given to them for free, which greatly increased their ability to survive.
The third stop is the Azure Scale Universe Kingdom's Vast Sea Secret Realm Ocean, a boundless ocean of liquid crystal, with water as clear as a mirror.
The Azure Scale Race inhabits the seabed. These people have human bodies and scaly tails and are skilled at crafting utensils from crystal. Their signature dish, "Crystal Scale Soup," is made by simmering the shed scales of Azure Scale Race cubs with Soul-Gathering Flowers from the depths of the sea. It melts in your mouth and nourishes the soul.
Every hundred years, the Azure Scale Race holds an event called the Crystal Sea Festival. The tribespeople throw the refined crystal vessels into the sea, praying for the ocean to bestow more spiritual gifts. Thousands of crystal cups float on the sea surface, reflecting the faint light from the seabed, creating a breathtakingly beautiful scene.
Besides the hidden realms, they also visited many unique tourist planets.
For example, the Cloud Wisp Star is composed entirely of floating nebulae. Stepping on it feels like walking on clouds. The Cloud-Dwelling Race on the planet feed on clouds and can weave cloud carpets that can carry people flying. Their specialty snack, cloud silk cake, is made from morning dew and cloud wisps. It is soft and has a fresh, star-like fragrance.
On Star Gravel Star in the Shattered Star Kingdom, the surface is covered with fragments of broken stars, inhabited by special creatures: Star Armor Beetle. This race can gnaw on ores, and their excrement is rare Star Core Crystals. The people of the race grind the Star Core Crystals into powder and make Star Crystal Cakes, which are crispy and can replenish their Origin Force.
On the Phantom Moon Star in the Dream Universe Kingdom, everything on the planet changes with the moonlight. By day it is a barren desert, and by night it transforms into a bustling city. The Illusion Race here is skilled in illusion magic, and the delicacies at their Illusionary Dream Feast are formed from illusion magic, which can lull one into a beautiful dream.
The three siblings and their families lived on the Phantom Moon Star for a hundred years, having different beautiful dreams every day, lingering there and reluctant to leave.
The days passed quietly as they wandered, enjoyed the scenery, savored delicious food, and experienced Alien Race cultures. In the blink of an eye, thousands of years had passed, and Tang Ping naturally saw the lives of the women.
How wonderful!
But how can they be so happy?
Virtual Universe, Tang Family's exclusive floating island.
Tang An, Tang Yiyi, and Tang Guo looked at each other in bewilderment.
They had just sent their parents selfies and food photos from the Alien Race festival, but when they tried to pay for their trip by credit card, their payment request was rejected outright.
This is the first time in thousands of years.
It's important to understand that the Tang Family's shared account has a deep foundation. The resources from Earth and the dividends from the Initial Universe Sword Family flow in daily, amounting to an immeasurable sum. Over the years, the three of them have squandered their wealth recklessly, indulging in food, drink, entertainment, and collecting rare treasures without restraint. Yet, the balance in the shared account has not only failed to shrink but has continued to increase.
After all, if they don't touch Heavy Treasure or get involved in investments or gambling, and only spend money on daily entertainment, this amount is just a drop in the ocean for the Tang Family now.
"There's clearly enough money in the company account. Dad even gave me a smiley face just now, so why is he suddenly stopping me from spending it?" Tang Guo frowned, tapping her Personal Terminal repeatedly to confirm that the payment records indeed showed "Insufficient permissions, credit limit exhausted."
Before he could finish speaking...
"Whoosh~"
A blue triangular fighter jet appeared out of thin air above the island. The jet was made entirely of G-grade special metal, gleaming with a cold, eerie light. Its fuselage was covered with intricate and complex spacetime runes, and thousands of gleaming cannons were scattered under its wings and on its belly.
Just by hovering in mid-air, this ferocious weapon of mass destruction inspires awe and fear.
A moment later, a cold, emotionless mechanical female voice came from the fighter jet. "Greetings, members of the Tang Family. I am the Tang Family's advanced intelligent management system, codename: Number One."
"Number One?" Tang Guo stepped forward and questioned, "Why was our payment request rejected? Isn't there enough money in the company account?"
"According to the <Tang Family Member Hierarchical Management Measures (New Regulations)>," Number One's voice was mechanical and devoid of any emotion, "The extra million-yuan annual consumption quota for Level 4 members has been completely exhausted."
Aside from necessary expenses such as cultivation resources, access to secret realms, and special technological equipment, non-essential consumption is temporarily unavailable.
If continued spending is required, you can wait for the next million-year credit limit refresh, or unlock a higher limit by upgrading the level of family members. The full details of the new regulations are below and have been synchronized to all terminals.
"Huh?" The three of them were all dumbfounded.
There's a limit to how much money we should spend on our own? My parents only have three children; if they don't spend it on us, are they just going to let it go to waste?
Tang Guo stomped her foot angrily, "It must be Dad's doing! He's trying to mess with us again!"
Despite their complaints, they knew they couldn't fight city hall.
The new regulations are concise and clear, with the core being a family member tier system: from level one to level nine, each level corresponding to strength and authority.
All Tang Family offspring must be born on Earth and undergo bloodline testing to confirm their identity. Before the age of twenty, they live as ordinary humans. During this period, Number One is responsible for conducting Level One character assessments. As long as they do not cross the line of selfishness, violence, or inhumanity, they can pass smoothly.
Upon passing the assessment, Level 1 members can receive their first generous training resources and basic welfare benefits, enough to ensure a life free from financial worries.
From now on, strength will be the core of level advancement: Star Rank comprehension of a domain may lead to a breakthrough to the Domain Lord level, thus advancing to level two;
The World Lord Rank corresponds to Level 3, the Immortal Level to Level 4, the Marquis Immortal level to Level 5, the King-Rank Immortal level to Level 6, the Venerable level to Level 7, the Cosmic Overlord level to Level 8, and only by reaching the Universe Master realm can one advance to Level 9.
Each level of member can receive a consumption quota according to the corresponding cycle. The quota for Star Rank is settled once every hundred years, the quota for Domain Lord- level members is settled once every thousand years, and the quota for level two and above members is enough to support the lifestyle of interstellar tycoons.
At the same time, with each promotion, one can apply for corresponding level of cultivation resources, exclusive equipment, and secret realm access. For example, after obtaining the recognition of the laws at the World Lord Rank, one can directly apply for Initial Universe entry quota.
Once the quota is exhausted, in addition to waiting for the periodic refresh, you can also increase the quota by cultivating offspring of the corresponding level; gifted individuals can obtain achievement points by climbing the Heaven-Reaching Tower, participating in the Genius Tournament of the Universe, and other means to unlock special privileges and quota rewards.
After reading the new regulations, the three of them immediately deflated.
Tang Guo said with a bitter face, "The days of spending money like water are completely over. From now on, I'll even have to carefully budget my money when I go to the Alien Race market—waaaaah~ That awful dad!"
What angered them even more was that this rule was clearly a disguised way of forcing them to undergo rigorous trials with their offspring.
It's important to understand that when they learned the truth about the Soul Hall Trials, although they initially wanted to treat their children the same way their fathers did, they hesitated and gave up. They even secretly vowed never to let their children repeat the same mistakes, and never resorted to corporal punishment, but instead guided their children's growth with love and example.
Over the years, they have always kept their vows, often accompanying their offspring through the Virtual Universe, teaching them how to conduct themselves in society, and encouraging them to cultivate themselves diligently and live life earnestly.
The Tang Family now has a considerable number of descendants, who are obedient and sensible in the presence of the children. Their cultivation levels are mostly at the Universe Level, and they have been assigned to basic departments of the five major peak forces: the Luo Family, the Black Dragon Mountain Empire, the Ganwu Universe Kingdom, and the Human Race.
Many of them received awards for their performance and were considered outstanding among their peers. In their view, such children did not need to undergo rigorous trials and be bound by hierarchy.
"Dad must be overthinking it. Our kids are all very well-behaved, why would they need so many rules?" Tang An frowned.
Just then, Number One's mechanical voice sounded again, "We have retrieved nearly a thousand years of behavioral data on the Tang Family descendants, including video recordings, transaction records, performance evaluations, and behavioral tracing. Would you like to view it now?"
The three exchanged a glance, a sudden, inexplicable gloom settling over them.
"Check!"
Then, a virtual screen instantly unfolded in front of the three of them, with countless images and data flowing rapidly.
Over thousands of years, the Tang Family has grown rapidly. Although most of its offspring are monogamous, the family has expanded to hundreds of thousands in size.
With more people around, things become more complicated.
Relying on the power and wealth of the Tang Family, many of their descendants began to indulge themselves: some lined their own pockets through power-money transactions, some deceived their superiors and subordinates and slacked off in their jobs, and some even, relying on the protection of their immortal ancestors, regarded the lives of Alien Race as worthless and wantonly slaughtered and committed evil deeds in remote star fields.
On the screen, a series of shocking images flashed by: Tang Family members buying and selling high-ranking Alien Race slaves at will in the slave market, deciding life and death for others with amusement; some abusing their family authority to embezzle resources for personal enjoyment; and others using their cultivation levels to bully their colleagues and steal opportunities from others—
Classic lines like "You've already met your demise!" "Treasures belong to the virtuous!" "Give them to me!" "Watch me grab them and refine them in an instant!" kept popping up.
Looking at these data, Tang An and the other two's faces turned from white to green.
Tang An clenched his fist. "Good, very good! We thought they were well-behaved and sensible, but they were hiding so many filthy things!"
Recalling what their father had done for them, they finally understood just how kind their father, a powerful Human Race, truly was.
Jade that is not carved cannot become a useful object; a person who does not learn will not know righteousness; a tree that is not pruned will not grow its proper shape!
Dad, your punches back then weren't fast enough or ruthless enough!