Rewards Bestowed, the Giant Bear Clan's Fearsome Reputation!
After the Frenzied Lion Clan was destroyed, the Mountain Bear Main Lineage erected a temporary palace on the site of the Heaven-Burning Plain; on the corpses of thousands of Frenzied Lion, a magnificent demon palace was built to proclaim their power.
Inside the hall, the twenty-seven Nascent Soul Bear Kings who survived this battle stood on either side.
Shi Jian sat in the chief seat on the left.
This time, no one objected; having slain dozens of Nascent Soul, plus his record of fighting fifteen opponents single-handedly in Fallen Fire Valley, he deserved this position.
The ancestor of the Spirit Transformation Shan Yue sat in the main position, while the Spirit Transformation White Bones stood to one side.
The Shan Yue's voice was indifferent; it got straight to the point.
"The Frenzied Lion has been slain, and the vast territory of the Western Frontier, spanning millions of miles, now belongs to our people."
"Today, rewards will be distributed according to merit. Each division and lineage will be granted territory based on its military achievements."
He raised his hand and waved, and a Jade Slip flew to the center of the hall, exploding into a light screen; on the light screen, the mountains and rivers of the Western Region were clearly visible, dividing the area into dozens of regions of varying sizes.
Shan Yue glanced in Shi Jian's direction.
Although his face remained expressionless, his tone carried a hint of seriousness.
"Shi Jian of Lightning Bear Line led the vanguard several times, single-handedly killing thirty-seven Nascent Soul; there is no doubt that he deserves the greatest credit for this battle."
The demons in the hall all nodded in unison. Several of the direct descendants of the Bear Kings had somewhat subtle expressions, but they couldn't find any reason to refute them.
The war achievements speak for themselves, and the heads were chopped off in real battles.
"The original territory of the Lightning Bear Line, Shenxiao Divine Firmament Plain, covered an area of 100,000 li; from today onwards, it will expand westward by 200,000 li, bringing its total territory to 300,000 li."
"Furthermore, from this day forward, clan taxes will be waived, and the territory will be under the self-governance of the clan; a section of the Dao Comprehension Spirit Wood and a piece of Profound Lightning Essence Spirit will be bestowed upon you."
"Furthermore, from this day forward, the Lightning Bear Line will be upgraded from a minor border lineage to an inner-region branch; it will enjoy the same inner-region treatment as the main lineage and be protected by it."
The difference between border regions and inner regions is not small.
Borderline bloodlines, to put it bluntly, are meant to shield the main bloodline from harm; when faced with external enemies, they are the first to be hit, the furthest cannon fodder among the collateral bloodlines.
The inner branches, on the other hand, are protected by other territories of the clans on all sides, allowing them to develop in peace without having to live in constant fear.
In terms of status and position, they are also higher, second only to the seven main branches.
Upon hearing this reward, many of the bear kings in the hall had slight changes in expression.
With a territory spanning 300,000 li, plus the privileges afforded to a branch within the inner domain, the Lightning Bear Line has risen to unprecedented heights.
"Thank you, Ancestor."
Shi Jian stood up and bowed respectfully; his face was calm, but he was already making plans in his heart.
Three hundred thousand miles is enough; enough for the Lightning Bear Line to cultivate several Nascent Soul Nascent Soul within a hundred years; plus the resources from those spirit mines.
We no longer need to worry about Shi Xiao Xiao's Cultivation Resources.
The Shan Yue continued reading.
"The Mountain Range Tribe, having distinguished itself in military campaigns, is hereby granted a territory spanning 150,000 square li..."
"Black Peak Tribe..."
"Earth Mound Tribe..."
As the names were read out one by one, all twenty-seven Nascent Soul Bear Kings received some benefits; five Bear Kings with outstanding military achievements were each granted a territory of tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of miles, where they established new branch sects.
The other bear kings received rewards such as spirit ore, pills, and Cultivation Method.
The entire awarding ceremony lasted for most of the day.
Shi Jian sat in the head seat, listening to the names being read out one by one.
In this battle, the Mountain Bear Lineage lost nearly seven Nascent Soul and over 30,000 demon soldiers; the cost was considerable, but the gains were even greater.
However, compared to the entire Frenzied Lion Clan, this loss is insignificant; it's just the death of a few weak and useless individuals.
The Frenzied Lion Clan, with its vast territory, mineral veins, and spiritual lands spanning millions of miles and cultivated for tens of thousands of miles, lost everything to the Giant Bear Clan in a single day.
More importantly, the annihilation of the Frenzied Lion Clan sent a signal to the entire Beast Realm.
The Giant Bear Clan has been elevated to royalty; all who stand in their way suffer the same fate.
After the bestowal of rewards, Shi Jian and Shan Li led the Lightning Bear Line clan back to Divine Firmament Plain.
Several years have passed in the blink of an eye since I last returned.
There is a real sense of the passage of time, as if I haven't been back for a long time; it's only been a few years, but it feels like decades or even centuries have passed.
When Shi Jian landed on the eastern border of Divine Firmament Plain, he noticed the change.
The territory, which originally spanned 100,000 square miles, has now extended westward by a full 200,000 square miles. Within the newly incorporated territory are vast undeveloped wastelands, several fire-attribute spirit mineral veins, and numerous large-scale spirit mountain ranges.
As Shi Jian traveled westward, all he saw along the way were the demons of the Lightning Bear Line bustling about.
Some set up restrictions on the edge of their new territories, some built mining cave abode at the spirit mines, and some were clearing out the remaining low-level Demon Beast.
They either become food for the bear demon or its vassals.
Everything was in perfect order.
Shi Jian looked at the vast territory, his mind wandering to other things.
With a territory spanning 300,000 li, it has been upgraded from the border to the inner region; the situation of the Lightning Bear Line is now vastly different from before.
But with a larger territory comes more problems.
The new territory needs to be developed, a large number of mineral veins need to be mined, border restrictions need to be redeployed, and the Cultivation Resources of the clan's cultivators need to be redistributed.
More importantly, there are very few Nascent Soul left in the clan.
Besides him and his wife Shan Li, there were only two Nascent Soul left, Xiong Gang and Xiong Lei, who were subordinates.
But in reality, Erxiong was more like a follower of Shan Li.
Strictly speaking, while serving the Lightning Bear Line, his background leans more towards the Mountain Bear Lineage, making him hardly a true confidant.
With only a few Nascent Soul guarding a territory spanning 300,000 li, the foundation is ultimately too weak.
"We need to hurry up and train the next generation. Once the situation stabilizes, we'll find a way to bring all the old subordinates back to the Giant Bear Clan."
"I wonder how Shi Pan and Shi Yin are doing?"
"I've been gone for almost two hundred years, and I wonder if they've reached the Nascent Soul yet, and what about their old subordinates..."
"I really wonder how they are doing now?"
"And Brother Bai, after so many years, I wonder if I'll ever have the chance to meet you again in this lifetime."
Shi Jian Dao of Darkness, and couldn't help but sigh at how much time had passed.
Time flies, and three years have passed in the blink of an eye.
Divine Firmament Plain gradually became more stable, and life was peaceful and uneventful, but the world outside was never at peace.
After the destruction of the Frenzied Lion Clan, the Giant Bear Clan's iron hooves did not cease.
After the Evil Bone Dao Master attained enlightenment, the pattern of the entire beast world was doomed; the power of the royal family needs to be established with blood.
Frenzied Lion is just the first, but certainly not the last.
Sure enough, during the three years that Shi Jian was in seclusion, the army of the Mountain Bear Main Lineage launched two more attacks.
The first time, they wiped out the Heavenly Serpent Race.
The Heavenly Serpent Race occupies the northern border, with three Nascent Spirit Transformation in charge; they once joined forces with the Frenzied Lion to try and contain the Giant Bear Clan.
After the Frenzied Lion was destroyed, the Heavenly Serpent Race became the next target.
The Mountain Bear Main Lineage dispatched four Nascent Spirit Transformation and an army of 200,000 to launch a northern expedition; the Heavenly Serpent Race resisted for three months, and three Nascent Spirit Transformation fell one after another.
The remaining demons scattered and fled, most of them disappearing into the abyss rifts and vanishing without a trace.
The second time, they annihilated the Mysterious Horse Clan.
The Mysterious Horse Clan, residing in the eastern grasslands of the Heavenly Snake and Frenzied Lion Clan, consisted of two Nascent Spirit Transformation. They originally intended to submit to the main lineage and pay tribute in order to protect themselves, but were flatly rejected by the main lineage.
With the overwhelming army pressing in, the two Nascent Spirit Transformation demon immortals of the Mysterious Horse Clan were killed in battle and died by self-destruction; they were not even given a chance to surrender.
They expanded westward across the grasslands for millions of miles, eventually becoming the domain of the giant bears.
This is just a microcosm; it's not just the Mountain Bear Lineage that's constantly being wiped out, but in recent years, other main lineages have seen dozens, if not hundreds or thousands, of their clans exterminated.
They nearly wiped out all the tribes within a five-million-mile radius of their own.
Dozens of small and medium-sized clans in the surrounding area were completely wiped out; those with Spirit Transformation stage were annihilated, and their entire clans were massacred.
Those who possess Spirit Transformation but lack Nascent Soul are given two paths: either their entire clan submits to the Giant Bear Clan, becoming its servants and vassals, or their clan is wiped out.
Of the more than ten tribes, most chose to submit. The few stubborn ones who refused to surrender were crushed by the Spirit Transformation without even a ripple.
In just three short years.
The territory of the Giant Bear Clan expanded several times over at an astonishing speed; the original balance of power with many Spirit Transformation Clans was broken by the Dao Venerable E Gu.
Below the Barbarian Bone Dao Fruit, the Giant Bear Clan has become one of the undisputed overlords of this Beast Realm, sharing control of the Beast Realm with a host of royal families.
The title of royalty is truly well-deserved.