At the center of Linked Moon Lake stood a towering island.
This island was where the lake's spiritual veins converged. Ancient trees soared into the heavens, and spiritual mist coiled around the land.
At the island's heart rose a seven-story azure jade pavilion known as the Ten Thousand Talisman Pavilion.
This was where Liu Family Ancestor Liu Qingsong usually cultivated in seclusion.
At this moment, within a quiet chamber on the top floor of the Ten Thousand Talisman Pavilion—
An old man in a blue robe, his face covered in blotchy scars, sat upright in the seat of honor. He was none other than Liu Family Ancestor Liu Qingsong.
Below him sat a dark-faced, solidly built middle-aged man named Wen Xun, a Foundation Establishment cultivator of the Zhangming Island Wen Family.
"Elder Liu, the Liu Family now holds all of the He Family's affairs, inside and out. That truly is enviable."
Wen Xun took a sip of spiritual tea, his words clearly carrying another meaning.
Yet Liu Qingsong did not respond. Wearing the decrepit air of a deaf and blind old man, as though he had heard nothing at all, he simply drank his tea.
Seeing this, Wen Xun had no choice but to speak plainly. "Elder Liu, back then, in order to stand against He Sheng, our families secretly swore an alliance to advance and retreat together.
"Now that He Sheng, that plague god, has met his killing calamity, surely the Liu Family cannot swallow everything alone?
"My Wen Family may be lacking, but we too wish to have a share of the spoils."
At this, Liu Qingsong stroked his beard and chuckled, brushing it off with a laugh. "Brother Wen, you jest. How many years has the He Family even been established?
"Their foundations were shallow to begin