Fortunately, Gulanxiu reacted quickly and hurriedly said, "Brother, you've misunderstood! The reason I haven't broken through is that I don't want to yet. During my cultivation, I once met an expert who told me that if I could fuse three Bloodfall Crystals at the Cloud Soaring Level, he would take me as his disciple. For years, I've traveled through different worlds, experiencing their customs and ways of life, all in the hope of improving myself enough to fuse the Bloodfall Crystals!"
Hearing this, a look of understanding flashed through Liu Qingyuan's eyes. He nodded and said to Gulanxiu, "Brother Jia, you're truly lucky! Any expert with such high standards for his disciples must be one of the continent's supreme powerhouses.
"According to legend, if you can fuse three Bloodfall Crystals and become a Blood Warrior at the Cloud Soaring Level, then after breaking through to the World Level, you'll have a chance of becoming a Black Warrior. And once you become a Blood Warrior, you'll have a considerable advantage in both combat strength against opponents of the same level and cultivation speed!"
Gulanxiu nodded. "You're right, Brother Liu! That expert really is a supreme powerhouse. He came from up there!"
As he spoke, Gulanxiu pointed toward the sky.
"The Immortal Temple!" Liu Qingyuan exclaimed. He soon sighed and said, "No wonder he has such a requirement. It seems you really shouldn't break through yet, Brother Jia. You must seize this opportunity! By the way, how is your fusion coming along?"
Hearing this, Gulanxiu put on a bitter smile. "Brother Liu, fusing Bloodfall Crystals at the Cloud Soaring Level is no easy task. Many at the Domain Level can't even fuse Bloodfall Crystals, so becoming a Blood Warrior at the Cloud Soaring Level is incredibly difficult. I've been cultivating for hundreds of years, and I'm still just a little short. If all else fails, I think I'll make a trip to the Ancient God Ruins!"
Liu Qingyuan sighed. "Brother Jia, the Ancient God Ruins are too dangerous. With your strength at the ninth tier of Cloud Nine, going there would be far too risky. Besides, you've only been cultivating for a few hundred years. Those at the Cloud Soaring Level can live for a hundred thousand years! There's no need to rush."
Gulanxiu nodded. "Let's see how things go first."
Liu Qingyuan suddenly changed the subject. "Brother Jia, what do you think of Li'er?"
Here it comes, Gulanxiu thought. Liu Li had been dropping by whenever she had a chance lately, and he had already sensed what she and her family had in mind. But he was focused on cultivation and hadn't paid it much attention. Now that Liu Qingyuan had brought it up, though, he had no choice but to respond.
Gulanxiu nodded. "Miss Liu is beautiful and kindhearted, and there's no denying she's wonderful. But my lifelong pursuit is the pinnacle of the martial path. I haven't given any thought to romance."
Hearing this, Liu Qingyuan sighed inwardly. He knew Gulanxiu had rejected him, though he had softened the refusal out of courtesy.
Still, Gulanxiu's rejection had thrown his plans into disarray. It wasn't easy to find a powerhouse like him—someone with little ambition who could break through at any moment. And now that he knew Gulanxiu might become a disciple of an Immortal God, such a person was even harder to come by.
If he entrusted his family to the wrong person, everything he had built would be devoured.
His health was still in terrible shape. If he died, the Liu Family, without a Domain Lord to protect it, would become a huge prize, and every faction would want a piece. With Liu Jiang and Liu Li's temperaments, they would surely be devoured without a trace.
The Bloodfall Continent was rife with killing. Countless families had been wiped out after their strongest member fell, and Liu Qingyuan now found himself in a dilemma.
After a moment, Liu Qingyuan gritted his teeth and said, "Brother Jia, what do you think of my Liu Family?"
Gulanxiu was taken aback. He didn't know what Liu Qingyuan meant, but he still answered, "It's doing very well! Under your leadership, Brother Liu, the Liu Family has such a large residence in the heart of Cloudsun City. You've clearly managed things well. In Danyang City, it's also one of the leading powers, second only to the City Lord's Mansion!"
Gulanxiu wasn't flattering him. In Danyang City, any faction with a Domain Lord counted as a first-rate power.
But Liu Qingyuan shook his head. "You're right, Brother Jia, but you haven't seen the crisis facing my family."
After a pause, Liu Qingyuan continued, "Everything my family has gained rests on my strength. If I die one day, Jiang'er and Li'er won't be able to hold on to this family legacy."
Gulanxiu asked in surprise, "Is something wrong with your health, Brother Liu?"
Liu Qingyuan nodded. "You're no stranger, Brother Jia, so I'll tell you the truth. A thousand years ago, Wild Beasts invaded from the Blood Spirit Grassland. All four gates of Danyang City fell, plunging the entire city into chaos.
"Back then, I fought with everything I had and slew three Domain Level Wild Beasts on my own. But that drew the attention of a Wild Beast King, the Golden Armor Dragon. With a single blow, it left me gravely injured.
"Later, a Divine Envoy from the Immortal Temple arrived and stopped the fighting, and I barely managed to survive. But after that battle, I discovered a crack in my Core Nucleus. My cultivation could no longer advance, and my vital energy kept leaking away. Over the years, I've tried every method I could think of to repair the crack, but nothing has worked. It seems my days are numbered."
Gulanxiu listened quietly as Liu Qingyuan recounted the past. He didn't know what to make of Liu Qingyuan's luck.
You could call him lucky, since he was still alive despite being gravely wounded. But you could also call him unlucky—few people survived having their Core Nucleus shattered.
Liu Qingyuan continued, "After I was gravely injured, the Liu Family withdrew and kept a low profile. Even so, people set their sights on us. Somehow, word of my injuries got out, and from then on, my family was constantly targeted. First, my eldest and second sons were killed outside the city. Then our retainers gradually left. That's why the Liu Family is so quiet now."
Gulanxiu nodded to himself. He had noticed it on his first visit to the Liu Family estate: within its sprawling grounds, stretching for tens of thousands of meters, only a few hundred people lived there. Besides family members, maids, and servants, they had fewer than a hundred Cosmic Level guards. That was far too meager for a Domain Lord family. But they hadn't known each other well then, so Gulanxiu hadn't asked. He hadn't expected this to be the reason.
Liu Qingyuan continued, "I'm almost certain that once I die, the families eyeing mine will descend like sharks scenting blood and devour everything. As long as I'm alive, they don't know how strong I still am, so they don't dare cause trouble here!
"You have great talent. You're bound to become a Domain Level powerhouse one day, and you may even go further than I did. You're also not particularly ambitious, so I thought of marrying Li'er to you to protect the Liu Family. But you just turned me down. Brother Jia, I have another, more moderate proposal. What do you think?"
Before you continue