War Begins

Yan Mao believed that as long as he secured the resources within this Dou Zong cave estate, he would be confident of breaking through directly to Dou Huang!

Thus, relying on his strength as a nine-star Dou Wang, he joined forces with several Dou Wangs who had arrived here, as well as Rogue Cultivators and small factions, forming a temporary alliance to contend against the people of the Rippling Mountain Empire.

"Brother Yan is right. You should reconsider your proposal." A six-star Dou Wang beside Yan Mao spoke indifferently.

This six-star Dou Wang was named Mo Kun. He was the leader of a faction and possessed fifth-tier beast flame. His mastery of fire control had made him renowned within a hundred-mile radius.

"It seems we can only settle this through strength." Hearing the words of Yan Mao and Mo Kun, the Wang Family Head glanced at the contemplative Lan Cangsheng beside him and said gravely.

"Damn it, enough with the stalling. Since we can't reach an agreement, let this Master Chu have a taste of you!"

As he spoke, the Chu Family Head spread his hands and condensed a crimson greatsaber.

The Chu Family Head, Chu Zhengxiong, was a five-star Dou Wang. He had always acted with a fiery temper and hated nothing more than dawdling, all talk and no action.

"Wait!"

An aged yet powerful hand stopped him.

The owner of that hand was none other than the ruler of the Rippling Mountain Empire, Lan Cangsheng.

"I know that all of you have formidable factions backing you, and my empire has no wish to become enemies with those factions."

"Therefore, on behalf of the empire, I am willing to give up forty percent of the items in the Dou Zong cave estate. Consider it compensation for your long journey." After pondering for a long while, Lan Cangsheng spoke.

This was the best compromise Lan Cangsheng could reach after taking into account the factions behind these Dou Wangs.

As the ruler of a nation, he did not wish for both sides to lose too much of their foundations in battle. He also understood that it was impossible for them to swallow everything in the Dou Zong cave estate alone. Besides, who knew whether there were still powerful experts watching from the shadows?

"Only forty percent? Impossible! We want at least seventy percent, and the few of us must be allowed to enter first and choose!"

"Otherwise, I won't be able to explain myself to Lord Dou Huang when I return!"

A skinny, sinister-looking Dou Wang standing to Yan Mao's left shouted arrogantly.

The sinister Dou Wang was the only Rogue Cultivator among the four Dou Wangs, and also the weakest. Aside from the nine-star Dou Wang Yan Mao, the other two Dou Wangs were five-star and six-star respectively.

He possessed only the strength of a two-star Dou Wang. Usually, he made a living through robbery, human trafficking, and bullying small families.

He did not know any Dou Huang experts either, but that did not stop him from using a Dou Huang as a bluff to throw his weight around.

"That's right. A dead Dou Zong did not leave much behind to begin with. If you only give us forty percent, then there would be no point in such a large group of us coming here at all."

The last of the four, a sinister-faced man in a light green robe, sneered.

"The Dou Wang lord is right! People of the Rippling Mountain Empire, aside from the lords in the sky, this huge group of us also deserves a share!"

"That's right, that's right."

"We deserve a share too!"

With the Dou Wangs in the sky backing them, some Rogue Cultivators and small factions on the ground also began speaking up.

As he looked at the crowd beneath the alliance, a mocking expression flashed across the green-robed man's face.

His name was Yan Ming, and he was a guest elder of a major sect. He had traveled thousands of miles this time solely to make a breakthrough in his stagnant cultivation.

He had no intention of considering the interests of the ants below. He had only brought those people along for the alliance's sake.

Besides, forty percent truly was too little. Split among the few Dou Wangs, each of them would receive only ten percent, which was hardly of any use.

"What a joke! The Rippling Mountain Empire discovered this place first, and the information you received was also spread by the Rippling Mountain Empire. Giving you forty percent is already out of respect for you being Dou Wangs!" The Chu Family Head immediately shouted coldly.

At this point, the Moon-Sealing Sect's Sect Master also stepped forward and said, "Old Bear is right. Don't be so insatiably greedy!"

"As for your claim that you cannot explain yourselves when you return—if you truly had Dou Huang experts, they would have shown themselves and seized it long ago!"

If the other side truly had a Dou Huang-level expert, would they still be standing here arguing with them?

"Hehe, whether there are Dou Huangs or not is hard to say."

Seeing that he had failed to bait the other side, the sinister-looking Dou Wang merely gave a sinister smile and said nothing more.

"Further words are useless. They dared threaten us. Your Majesty, let's begin the battle directly." The Wang Family Head, head of the other of the capital's two great families, said in a grave voice.

Lan Cangsheng, meanwhile, furrowed his brow tightly, seemingly weighing the gains and losses.

At that moment, the distant void slowly rippled, and a black-robed man with a cold, handsome face and an air of regal authority appeared below.

That man was Xie Tianxiao.

Did I arrive at just the right time?

"Eh, that person is among them too. It seems that side is the Rippling Mountain Empire's faction."

Having just arrived, Xie Tianxiao spotted several familiar figures in the crowd.

The acquaintance Xie Tianxiao referred to was the junior who had been called Second Senior Brother when they met in the Heavenshade Mountains. At this moment, however, he was being shielded behind his family elders, nervously watching the nine Dou Wangs confronting one another in the sky.

After glancing over the distant group, Xie Tianxiao was mildly surprised. "Interesting. Three Dou Huangs are hiding in the shadows. So it's a case of the snipe and clam battling while the fisherman profits."

"However, one of those Dou Huangs has rather declining vitality and is among the Rippling Mountain Empire's people. He must be one of the empire's hidden foundations."

At this moment.

The experts led by Lan Cangsheng in the distance all stared intently at the four Dou Wangs before them. The moment Lan Cangsheng gave the order, they would strike at once and seize the initiative.

A moment later.

After a brief silence, Lan Cangsheng spoke. "Your appetites are far too great. Since you insist on this, I can only ask all of you to stay behind."

His expression was unpleasant. The other side had demanded seventy percent of the resources the moment they opened their mouths. What did they take the five Dou Wangs for, clay figures?

If the other side had truly brought several Dou Huang experts, that would have been one thing. But they were all Dou Wangs, so why should they be given seventy percent?

To avoid damaging the empire's foundations, he could concede forty percent of the resources, but that did not mean he feared them. Even if the other side truly had the Dou Huang they claimed to have backing them, he was not afraid.

This Dou Zong cave estate contained an enormous opportunity. For this reason, he had summoned the Rippling Mountain Empire's sole Dou Huang—the Supreme Elder of the previous generation, who had been in a life-or-death closed-door cultivation—to deal with any unforeseen circumstances.