New Cloud Alliance

The happiest person after the victory was none other than Kuai En. Although he had offended the Huo Household, he had at least gotten to know the two Foundation Establishment True Cultivator to some extent.

If it weren't for the fact that there were still a group of Foundation Establishment remaining in the courtyard, he probably would have already started preparing a banquet for his clansmen.

After the Foundation Establishment cultivators finished watching the spectacle, Tie Liuyun laughed heartily, waved his hand, and in the blink of an eye, the isolation formation he had set up at some unknown time blocked all the Qi Refinement cultivators from entering.

A hint of longing instantly appeared on Jiang Qing's face. "This is the method of Foundation Establishment. It's truly something to aspire to."

Sect Leader Kang Da curled his lip. Now he couldn't see, hear, or touch it, which was quite boring. However, he dared not have the slightest thought of probing, as high-level cultivators were absolutely not to be offended.

If there's anything he should know, the Daoist Black Shoes will tell him later; there's no need to pry now.

"Come on, tell us about that blue silver mine!" Kang Dabao said, patting Kuai En on the shoulder.

The latter led everyone into a quiet room, where there was a detailed sand table modeled after a blue silver mine. The Kuai Household had put a lot of effort into making it, but it was all for someone else's benefit.

Composing himself, Kuai En began his explanation.

"My family's blue silver mine stretches for sixty miles, which is quite large. The geomancer hired by the Huo Household examined it and said that to mine it properly, there need to be three groups of First Tier Demon Beast beasts and eleven groups of mortal bandits within it. According to that geomancer's experience, at least seven First-Tier Superior-Grade formations need to be built. The mining will be difficult and costly, which my family certainly doesn't have the resources for."

At this point, a hint of sadness flashed in Kuai En's eyes. If it weren't for their own lack of strength, how could they bear to hand over such a treasure to outsiders?

"Oh, so this Dantong Cliff was given up by someone else too." Kuai En's eyes grew increasingly complicated. He knew how much effort he had put into Fire Saber Stronghold last time.

Kuai En knew perfectly well that Kang Dabao, his uncle, was a rare kind-hearted man. When Kang Dabao gave up Dantong Cliff earlier, it was because his family had benefited from it.

Logically speaking, I shouldn't have felt any resentment at all.

However, the Huo Household's loss in the contest might not be a good thing for the Kuai Household either. The former has been a local tyrant in Tanggu County for one or two hundred years, and they have plenty of ways to deal with the Kuai Household.

Even though being dragged into this conflict was not the Kuai Household's original intention.

They offered up the mineral veins, obtained Spirit Stone, and then gradually used their proximity to the Huo Household to curry favor, even hoping for a marriage alliance between the two families, thus achieving prosperity.

The grand plan that the patriarch of this small Lineage had drawn up for the future has been completely shattered, and they may have to be wary of the Huo Household's counterattack and retaliation in the future.

"What a great place!" Kang Dabao exclaimed. Chongming Sect hadn't had a valuable First Tier mineral vein like Blue Silver Ore for many years.

"Wonderful! Wonderful! I'm becoming more and more like the founder of a revived dynasty!"

After inspecting the blue silver mine, Kang Dabao intended to ask Tie Xishan and Kuai En if they knew about the Spirit Stone mine.

But then a voice called out from outside Dantong Cliff: "Yue Lan from Han City has come here unexpectedly. I humbly request that you fellow Daoists take the time to meet him."

Tie Liuyun, standing in the formation, sneered and raised his hand to stop the conversation with the Foundation Establishment present. "I should have known better. How could the Yue Household not get involved in something like this!"

"Have you all made up your minds?" Tie Liuyun looked around. The Foundation Establishment hesitated for a moment, then a red-faced old man took the lead and said, "If Commander Tie's previous promises are all true, we are naturally willing to serve Lord Tie."

"Good! The Two Instruments Sect has plagued Cloud Horn Prefecture for a century, blind to talent and mistreating capable individuals. Now that you have abandoned darkness for light and are willing to serve Lord Liang, we are now one family."

Tie Liuyun's face lit up with joy. He flicked his sleeve and retrieved the array flag. At this moment, a robust middle-aged cultivator stood in mid-air outside the array. When he looked at Commander Tie, his sword-like eyebrows furrowed and his eyes were filled with anger.

"Steward Yue." Tie Liuyun greeted him with a grin, with a dozen or so Foundation Establishment True Cultivator standing behind him.

"Commander Tie." The middle-aged cultivator, alone and fearless, spoke coldly.

"Do you really think that by getting together with these chickens and dogs, you can oppose the Immortal Sect?" The middle-aged cultivator scanned the cultivators behind Tie Liuyun. The Foundation Establishment True Cultivator who were scanned were usually big shots who dominated their respective areas.

But now, having been insulted to his face, he dared not move, lowering his head and avoiding eye contact with the middle-aged cultivator. Only when his gaze fell upon the Daoist Black Shoes did the middle-aged cultivator's expression suddenly change, and he said coldly, "Fellow Daoist Black Shoes, do not make a mistake for yourself."

"I don't need you, Yue Lan, to teach me how to do things." The Daoist Black Shoes slowly raised his half-closed eyelids, looking directly into the middle-aged cultivator's piercing gaze, not yielding an inch.

"Good!" Yue Lan looked at the Daoist Black Shoes again, and after a long while, he uttered a single word, "Good!" He then pointed at the cultivators behind Tie Liuyun and said fiercely, "You all better watch yourselves!"

After saying that, he stepped onto his flying sword, turned around, and left.

Seemingly pleased with Yue Lan's retreat, Tie Liuyun laughed heartily and began to soothe the Foundation Establishment present with words.

Looking at the crowd, the Daoist Black Shoes sighed inwardly, "These people are utterly useless. The combined power of the Northern Peak and Southern Ox Capitals is already so great; the Two Instruments Sect has ruled Cloud Horn Prefecture for nearly a thousand years. How difficult it will be for anything to change."

Thinking about this, the Daoist Black Shoes was unsure whether his decision was right or wrong.

Fortunately, he wasn't actually trying to side with the Immortal Dynasty. After all, when Kuang Liuting personally invited him, even the Daoist Black Shoes wasn't tempted and even gave that newly rich member of the royal family a scathing sarcastic remark.

Even Kuang Liuting, the dignified Earl of Nan'an of Nan'an, couldn't persuade him, let alone a mere Tie Liuyun.

The Daoist Black Shoes had no intention of selling himself to the Immortal Dynasty; it was merely a cooperation. The two sides were brought together by mutual benefit and would also part ways because of it.

The Daoist Black Shoes only wanted to acquire some benefits for his own cultivation and did not want to get too involved with the Immortal Dynasty; Tie Liuyun naturally saw through his thoughts, but was happy with it.

Despite Kuang Liuting's impressive actions since arriving in Cloud Horn Prefecture —from destroying mountains and temples to maneuvering strategically—he has thoroughly thwarted the Foundation Establishment forces of Cloud Horn Prefecture.

The struggle between the Immortal Dynasty and the Two Instruments Sect has only just begun; the real drama is still far off.

Unless this Daoist Black Shoes truly seeks a secluded place to cultivate in seclusion, or leaves far away never to return, his future prospects are already significant enough to attract the attention of both sides. Such a person is bound to choose a side.

Not everyone has the ability to dance on an egg. Even a powerful family like the Han City Yue Household is now disliked by the Two Instruments Sect and the state court, becoming like Pigsy, who is disliked by both sides.

Although the Daoist Black Shoes was strong, he was ultimately alone and therefore unable to withstand such a powerful force.

Tie Liuyun understood this principle, and the Daoist Black Shoes naturally saw it even more clearly.

Hesitation and indecisiveness will not end well. The Daoist Black Shoes will eventually find a side to rely on. Tie Liuyun is confident that he will come to the side of the Immortal Dynasty.

With mixed feelings, Daoist Black Shoes refused the banquet prepared by Tie Liuyun, and instead summoned the juniors of the Chongming Sect to talk about some matters that the Foundation Establishment had discussed together that day.

"The state government has now determined the true size of this Spirit Stone mine. It's not a miniature Spirit Stone, but a small one. A geomancer estimates that at least 50,000 low-grade spirit Spirit Stone can be extracted annually, and with good luck, mid-grade and high-grade Spirit Stone stones might also be found. As for the reserves, even a conservative estimate suggests they could last for three cycles of sixty years."

"Wow." Everyone gasped in surprise. Jiang Qing was speechless. He wasn't good at math and couldn't figure out how many Spirit Stone this Spirit Stone mine could produce.

Sect Leader Kang Da narrowed his eyes slightly upon hearing this. "That old bastard Huo Bing finally managed to get the Spirit Stone mine back from the Marquis of Earl of Nan'an, but in the blink of an eye, it's been taken back by the state court again."

"From today onwards, Pingrong County Chongming Sect and Hemu Dao of Pingrong County will join the Lian Water Alliance, which is composed of Book and Sword Gate of Guo County, Jade Moon Shan Household of Hong County, and Zi Maple Valley of Shen County. The Lian Water Alliance will be renamed Xinyun from today onwards, and will serve the state court together."

The state court has decreed that within a sixty-year period, the profits from the Spirit Stone mine shall be distributed among the five parties through consultation, with the state court taking no commission. After sixty years, if the five parties perform their duties to the satisfaction of the state court, then the Spirit Stone mine shall continue to be jointly managed by the five parties as before.

Upon hearing this, Kang Dabao had a thought, "The Huo Household has lost all face in front of Kuang Liuting. Not only were their mines forcibly seized, but they weren't even among the five Huo Household entitled to a share of the profits."

Pei Yi started calculating in his mind. Now that Kang Dabao had entrusted most of the Chongming Sect's resources to him and Yuan Jin for joint management, Pei Yi was very sensitive to numbers.

He calculated clearly that the state court was offering quite a lot to win over a few families. Some small Lineage were already paying high prices if they could hire ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators as retainers, with an annual salary of one or two thousand Spirit Stone.

The state government did indeed pay a high price to recruit local cultivators to risk their lives for them.

With the Spirit Stone mine as a source of shared interests, even if each family intends to maintain a distance from the state court, they will still unconsciously and subtly protect the state court's interests.

Kang Dabao's knowledge wasn't too bad; he knew that the Lian Water Alliance, originally formed by the three families mentioned earlier, was considered the second-tier power in Cloud Horn Prefecture, second only to the Niu and Yue families.

Each sect has several Foundation Establishment True Cultivator and hundreds of Qi Refinement cultivators. The Chongming Sect and Hemu Dao are listed in the alliance, but they are somewhat out of place.

Perhaps sensing the doubt in his junior apprentice's eyes, the Daoist Black Shoes casually and leisurely said in an arrogant tone, "I alone am worth three sects; they are not at a loss."

Such a bold statement drew admiration from the younger generation, who, led by Kang Dabao, showered him with compliments, making the Daoist Black Shoes blush before finally stopping.

"The days ahead will be tough," the Daoist Black Shoes paused, then turned his gaze to Kang Dabao, "We must strive." The latter felt a slight chill and replied solemnly.

The next day, Tie Liuyun, still reeking of alcohol, strode confidently to the Spirit Stone mine with a group of Foundation Establishment, pointing out the flaws in the landscape with great pride.

Returning to the old place, Kang Dabao sighed, the joy that had risen in his heart the day before because of the large sum of money he had acquired gradually fading away.

He had lost count of how many mortals and cultivators had perished in this mine. He believed that the Foundation Establishment above him were equally clueless, yet they all seemed oblivious, their faces beaming with joy as they gazed upon this treasure trove.

The path to immortality is fraught with peril!

The Daoist Black Shoes came and went without a second thought. Kang Dabao had no desire to stay any longer. He sighed, made up a story for his three junior brothers, and then went alone to a cultivator's manor outside Tanggu County, relying on his memory.

He scanned the manor with his Divine Sense and found a woman. The woman had a delicate face and a lovely appearance, but she was pale and lacked color. A bewildered child was being held in her arms.

She was humming a lullaby to lull her child to sleep, but as she continued, her eyes became vacant, her singing lost its warmth and became numb, and tears streamed down her face without her realizing it.

Upon witnessing this, Kang Dabao silently slipped into the woman's bedroom and returned a Storage Bag that had already been washed and cleaned.

He looked at the child for a while, stood there for a moment and was about to take a step, but then stopped and put another fragment of spirit into his Storage Bag.

People only grieve for their own kind; none of the important figures within the New Cloud Alliance felt sorrow for the deceased low-level cultivators. They first held a small exchange meeting, from which they all gained quite a bit.

Apart from the heads of each household, they all left Tanggu County. Cultivating immortality was too busy for them to waste time here.

The heads of each family returned to the Kuai Household and began the first meeting since the establishment of the New Cloud Alliance. Tie Liuyun, as the representative of the state court, attended the meeting as an observer.

The meeting was chaired by Ye Zhen, the leader of the Shujian Book and Sword Gate and the former leader of the Lian Water Alliance, who is now the only Foundation Establishment Late Stage Cultivator in the New Cloud Alliance. He is also quite old and has a certain air of high prestige.

The kind-faced, white-browed old man, with a plump figure, spoke gently, "From now on, we are allies again. I hope we can help and support each other, love and care for one another, and unite under the banner of the state court to serve the Immortal Dynasty together."

"Absolutely, absolutely."

"Old Ye is right."

Tie Liuyun nodded with a smile, appearing quite satisfied.

"It is a joyous occasion that Fellow Daoist Black Shoes has joined our alliance. I propose that Fellow Daoist Black Shoes assume the position of Vice Alliance Leader. Does anyone have any objections?"

"No objection."

"Fellow Daoist in Black Shoes truly deserves the title."

The other two sect leaders exchanged glances but did not object. The Lian Water Alliance had been very loose in the past, and even the so-called alliance leader only talked more during meetings.

The Daoist Black Shoes was probably unaware of this matter beforehand, but being a decisive person, he accepted it after only a moment's thought and bowed to the three of them.

The meeting also discussed the mining arrangements for the Spirit Stone mine, the investment ratios of each party, and so on. Only at this point did some discussion begin.

The Foundation Establishment abandoned their aloof demeanor and acted like common merchants, refusing to budge an inch for their own interests. After discussing for a long time, they still couldn't reach a decision. Helpless, Ye Zhen could only say that they would discuss the matter later.

The problem lies in the lack of a strong leader; Ye Zhen's prestige within the alliance is insufficient.

Although his Foundation Establishment Late Stage cultivation was considered top-notch within the alliance, he was not good at combat and was only at the Green Leaf Foundation Establishment, so the probability of him forming False Core was not high. Naturally, people lacked respect for him.

This is also why, although the Lian Water Alliance was quite strong, it was not dominant among the nearby Foundation Establishment alliances and was often taken advantage of by the others. As a result, it was the first alliance that Tie Liuyun took a liking to and successfully recruited by enticing them with benefits.

Tie Liuyun kept this in mind, glanced at the expressionless Daoist Black Shoes, and held no hope.

This is a rare, pure-hearted Daoist; he wouldn't stoop to such petty and despicable acts.

With the matter of the Spirit Stone mine temporarily put aside, Ye Zhen brought up the last topic of today's meeting: a newly assigned task.

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