A Letter from the Ming Household

Jiang Qing did not change his mind despite Sect Leader Kang Da's good intentions.

If Kang Dabao's vow from the day he received the sect leader's ring from Sect Leader He was to become the restorer of the Chongming Sect, then Jiang Qing, from childhood to adulthood, also had the Yixin Foundation Establishment as soon as possible and help his senior brother, the sect leader, bring glory to the sect.

The two brothers, who had always been close, had a falling out because of Kang Dabao's words, and it was hard for either of them to say who was right and who was wrong.

In fact, as soon as Sect Leader Kang Da uttered those words, he realized he had misspoke. Obstructing Dao Path was a grave taboo, something that should not be done.

But since the words had already been spoken, and he was used to being a parent, it was difficult for him to bring himself to say something conciliatory to Jiang Qing.

The two brothers didn't speak to each other for a month or two after that. As a result, even the most oblivious fellow disciples could sense that something was wrong. Yuan Jin persuaded both sides several times, and finally managed to get the details out of them through subtle questioning.

The Daoist Black Shoes summoned him for questioning, and he dared not conceal anything, revealing all the information he knew. This angered the Daoist Black Shoes, who then called Kang Dabao over and berated him.

The Daoist Black Shoes, still not satisfied with his insults, flicked his finger, drawing out a burst of spiritual light. With a few quick strokes, he turned Sect Leader Kang Da's forehead blue and purple. Then, enraged, he said:

"You're a bamboo shoot reincarnated from the mountains, all talk and no action! I used to really think you were incredibly clever, but why don't you think before you speak? The Foundation Establishment process requires focusing the mind and forging the soul; what you focus on is the heart that seeks the Dao, and what you forge is Wuwei soul."

Fathers and elder brothers are always busy encouraging and spurring their younger brothers on; how could someone as stupid as you spout nonsense and discourage your fellow disciple?! You truly are a brainless and unambitious scoundrel!

"Absolutely, absolutely. Martial Uncle is right, it was I who misspoke. Martial Uncle, please calm down, please calm down." Sect Leader Kang Da was so scolded that he didn't dare to lift his head even slightly.

Although he had known the Daoist Black Shoes since childhood, for thirty or forty years, it was truly unprecedented for him to be scolded so harshly.

Kang Dabao first bowed his head in apology. Seeing that the Daoist Black Shoes's expression had improved somewhat, he dared to smile apologetically and say, "My master also said that the probability of Little Sanzi successfully establishing his Foundation Establishment is less than one in a hundred. I was just worried and confused. Please don't blame me anymore, master."

"Shuhe sent the Limb Restoration and Spirit Renewal Decoction, and you also obtained Upper-Grade Foundation Establishment Pill from Kuang Liuting. With this two-pronged approach, although Brother Qing's physical body is flawed, his Dao heart is resolute, unlike you, a clumsy scoundrel. At the very least, the probability of him successfully Foundation Establishment is at least 20%."

The Daoist Black Shoes still spoke in a bad tone, but he seemed to have calmed down a bit and sat back down.

Kang Dabao's expression did not improve upon hearing the Daoist Black Shoes's words. He said in a hoarse voice, "I know I shouldn't have said such things, but a 20% chance of Foundation Establishment is still too small. I'm really a little afraid."

"Fearing wolves in front and tigers behind! How could my elder brother have such a cowardly disciple like you, with such a womanly temperament! If you're going to fight against fate, how can you succeed if you cower and shrink back?! Is a 20% probability really that low?"

Just consider Chen Ye. He achieved his Dao Foundation through unorthodox methods. Can you imagine what his chances were?! And how much effort he put in?! How many cultivators in the world don't even have that one in ten chance, and try every possible method to overcome that hurdle?!

The Daoist Black Shoes looked at Sect Leader Kang Da with a disappointed expression and berated him again.

Kang Dabao lowered his head again after being scolded, and said in a muffled voice, "Uncle is right, I was wrong. Little Sanzi's injuries are not fully healed, and it will take him at least a year and a half to reach the Foundation Establishment."

These days, I've been collecting more spiritual items that he might need for Foundation Establishment. Even if it's just a little bit more secure, it'll be good."

"That's more like it," the Daoist Black Shoes said, finally suppressing his urge to curse Kang Dabao. He then changed the subject, "Do you know why Gun Shilu wanted you to take over that Cangcui Stone vein in Tanggu County?"

"I know, but I couldn't refuse at the time, so I had no choice but to get involved in that mess." Hearing the Daoist Black Shoes recount this matter, Sect Leader Kang Da couldn't help but sigh.

"If Brother Qing has already reached the Foundation Establishment, why would you worry about such petty scheming? You're short-sighted and narrow-minded!"

The Daoist Black Shoes cursed again, but Kang Dabao's tone was somewhat dejected. "I really didn't expect that just when the state court gained a slight advantage in front of the Two Instruments Sect, the Acting Sima Gun wanted to drag me to Tanggu County to be a scapegoat."

Tie Liuyun had long regarded Tanggu County as his private domain, and he wanted to make it as secure as possible. The job that the Acting Sima Gun gave me was by no means an easy task!

The young man has seen through them. These high-ranking officials in the state court, while paying lip service to the country's interests, are still the same old people who form cliques and pursue personal gain. Under the guise of factionalism and suppression of dissent, they will fight over even the smallest piece of cloth and grain, and will not give up the slightest advantage.

Hearing Sect Leader Kang Da's resentful words, the Daoist Black Shoes showed an expression of complete indifference.

The Daoist priest bluntly stated, "From the imperial court to the border regions, from the current emperor to the lowest officials, where in the Great Wei Immortal Dynasty is this not the case? Even the current emperor cannot achieve unity of purpose among his subjects, let alone Kuang Liuting."

Kang Dabao nodded repeatedly, feeling that his martial uncle was absolutely right. In truth, he understood this principle himself, but he needed to express his inner turmoil to someone.

"Hurry Foundation Establishment and Foundation Establishment. After that, I can take you to seek a fortuitous opportunity. That way, I can feel a little more at ease." After saying this meaningfully, the Daoist Black Shoes walked out of the main hall and returned to Zither Leaf Forest to cultivate.

If this Chongming Sect didn't embody the life's work of Sect Leader He, given the carefree nature of the Daoist Black Shoes, he certainly wouldn't have given it much thought.

His life of toil was completely different from that of Kang Dabao.

The former cultivates the path of transcendence, seeking freedom and unrestraint; the latter, however, is burdened with too many entanglements, making it difficult to achieve true freedom.

After respectfully seeing off the Daoist Black Shoes, Kang Dabao, unable to continue his cultivation, Swift Movement to the Fangshi Mountain spiritual land where Zhou Yixiu had recently been staying.

"Junior brother had a geomancer examine it. There are several Spirit Vein intertwined under this spiritual ground of Fangshi Mountain, and it's in a terrible mess. According to the geomancer, it would probably cost two or three thousand Spirit Stone to clean it up, and even if it were cleaned up, the grade of these Spirit Vein would be hard to guarantee."

Therefore, the junior brother dared not make a decision on his own and specially invited the senior brother to come and take a look." Since losing two disciples, Zhou Yixiu had become visibly dejected.

The once spirited old man, who used to boast about being able to sleep with several women in one night, now rarely even visits the doors of his many wives' rooms, preferring to bury himself in the spirit fields.

Often, after several days, it's rare to see a smiling face.

Seeing Zhou Yixiu's state, Kang Dabao couldn't help but feel sorry for him and comforted him, "Junior Brother, you should take care of your health first. We can take our time with the sect's plans; we'll get it done eventually."

"Senior Brother Sect Leader, there's no need to worry. Although I'm old, I can still eat a peck of rice and ten pounds of meat in one meal without feeling tired," Zhou Yixiu shook his head and continued:

"There is a type of unnamed wildflower scattered in Fangshi Mountain. Although it is not of high quality, it is very popular with many spirit bees and butterflies. My junior brother gave it a name, 'Plain Snow Stamen', thinking that if he could cultivate it to a higher quality, it would definitely be more favored by these spirit bees and butterflies."

"At that time, if any of our disciples have some talent in insect control, they can also raise bees and make honey, just like the Lu Household did in the past, and thus have an additional source of income."

"Thank you for your trouble, junior brother." Kang Dabao's face lit up with joy upon hearing this.

For any ambitious force, developing new sources of revenue is of paramount importance.

Sect Leader Kang Da has consistently done well in this area, Chongming Small Pavilion, spirit fields, caravan organization, Lu Household spirit honey distribution, the Big Locust Tree, blue silver mine, and Spirit Stone mine.

However, if he could add another source of income from raising spirit bees, Kang Dabao would be even happier. He composed himself and continued, "Junior brother's concerns are reasonable. Since the Spirit Vein of Fangshi Mountain are so complicated, let's not try to sort them out for now."

Junior brother, please ask the geomancer to prepare the two spiritual lands, Zither Leaf Forest and Heng Mountain, and see if we can take Rongquan and Mo Ku to open up more spiritual fields. It doesn't matter if there aren't enough people to cultivate them. We can just cultivate extensively and harvest little for the first few years. As long as we can earn back the cost of the seeds, we won't lose money.

"I'll have my Second post some more quests in the Merit Points Hall to find spiritual soil. Using the spiritual soil the disciples bring back, we can nurture the newly cultivated spiritual fields. In a few years, we should be able to grow some low-grade spiritual herbs and other valuable things."

Sect Leader Kang Da's words were substantial, and all the plans were just right, not empty talk. Even Zhou Yixiu, an old master who had spent his whole life dealing with Spirit Plant, could not find any faults in this arrangement.

He nodded repeatedly as he listened, then seemed to suddenly remember something. After glancing around to make sure no one was watching, he leaned close to the Sect Leader Kang Da's ear and whispered, "Grand Master, Junior Brother Chu mentioned sending Mo Ku to garrison Chongming City?"

Upon hearing this, Kang Dabao's face immediately showed a hint of helplessness. He said, "Junior brother, don't worry. Didn't we already reject this matter in the first place? Now that Niu Kuang has been stationed in Chongming City for over a month, why would we send Mo Ku again?"

"Phew, it's good that you're so confident, Senior Brother. I've heard that some people who came to Chongming City are quite resentful and are trying to find a powerful backer within the sect to ask for a change of position." Even Zhou Yixiu, who is usually not competitive, didn't sound friendly when talking about this.

The Sect Leader Kang Da knew that this was Chu Huer's suggestion to send Mo Ku, whom Zhou Yixiu valued highly, to be stationed in Chongming City, thus offending Zhou Yixiu.

In addition, after Niu Kuang went to Chongming City, he would only go back to the sect sporadically to try and find connections. In Kang Dahou's letter, he also mentioned some of the things that Niu Kuang did in the city, such as bullying men and women and oppressing the people.

In this light, it's understandable that Niu Kuang doesn't seem to be dedicated to his work, which has understandably displeased honest people like Zhou Yixiu.

As for how to balance the affairs of the various factions, that is a subject that needs serious study. Sect Leader Kang Da is truly overwhelmed with other matters and cannot manage this situation for the time being.

Fortunately, Pei Yi was a clear-headed person. Whenever Chu Huer was instigated by the cultivators of Shandu Ridge and did something foolish, Pei Yi would teach them a lesson without even having to say anything from the Sect Leader Kang Da.

However, this has created a clear division between the cultivators of Shandu Ridge and the original disciples of the Chongming Sect, which is something that Kang Dabao should pay close attention to.

If this is not handled properly, something serious is bound to happen sooner or later.

The Sect Leader Kang Da, knew all this, but couldn't find a solution for the time being.

Zhou Yixiu noticed the difficulty on Kang Dabao's face and felt somewhat guilty about her earlier words. She then changed the subject, saying:

"Junior brother also knows senior brother's difficulties. The Lu Household head just passed away at Little Wu Mountain, Anle has completely taken over the caravan from him. Shilun and Xinran been preparing for the opening of the small building these days."

Wei Gu studies formations, Rongquan cultivates spiritual energy, Ping Shui refines weapons, and Changsheng Pingshui practices alchemy—each has their own responsibilities. Now that the younger generation has grown up, the burden on the senior brother will be lighter."

"Yes!" Sect Leader Kang Da felt quite relieved after hearing this; all those years of hard work had finally paid off.

After Little Sanzi completes his Foundation Establishment, and after another year or two of sorting out all the affairs of the sect and clarifying the rules and regulations, he, the Sect Leader Kang Da, can then become a hands-off manager and devote most of his time and energy to improving his cultivation and starting his foundation Foundation Establishment process.

Having just finished contemplating his pleasant thoughts, Sect Leader Kang Da bid farewell to Zhou Yixiu and returned alone to his courtyard.

Just as Kang Dabao was contemplating whether to go to Huo Ying's room for a heart-to-heart talk, he received two letters in quick succession.

The first letter was from Kuai En, whom we hadn't heard from in a long time.

Tanggu County Tie Xishan had a good relationship with Sect Leader Kang Da. Because of this relationship, the Kuai Household, who were related to the Chongming Sect by marriage, received a lot of help from Tie Xishan.

In the battle of Little Wu Mountain, the Kuai Household didn't send anyone; they only spent a few dozen Spirit Stone to hire a Rogue Cultivator and managed to get away with it. This was all thanks to Tie Xishan.

Relying on the Spirit Stone obtained from selling blue silver mines, and wearing the tiger skin drawn on the paper of "the family of the junior brother's wife of the Fei Household's eldest son-in-law", the Kuai Household has been living quite well in Tanggu County for the past year or two.

Not only did they discover another promising immortal seedling, but Kuai En himself also found a widowed female cultivator from a small Lineage to be his legal wife.

Thus, the number of cultivators in the Kuai Household finally recovered to the four that existed at the end of Kuai Wu's reign.

Kuai En knew perfectly well who had enabled his family to survive, and his letter remained respectful and obedient as ever.

He didn't say much, only briefly mentioning who got their valuable assets after the Tanggu Huo Household was purged by the state court.

Kuai En also clearly listed the whereabouts, estimated value, and ownership of the scraps and fragments torn apart by the wolves, along with the powerful figures within their Qi Refinement.

Sect Leader Kang Da understood perfectly well that they were urging him to lead his men over there so they could get a share of the spoils.

Since Huo Bing has already defected to the enemy, the Tanggu Huo Household, which he had personally supported, is undoubtedly seen as a tender and delicious steamed bun with a thin skin and a big filling in the eyes of many Foundation Establishment forces in Cloud Horn Prefecture who are close to the state court. Everyone wants to take a bite.

Kuai Wu's letter clearly stated that the Tie Household was the biggest beneficiary this time, having obtained as many as two Second Tier spirit mines.

But in Kang Dabao's eyes, what Tie Liuyun gained was far more than that.

Huo Bing has lost his integrity, Tie Liuyun, as the highest-ranking local official in Cloud Horn Prefecture Court, seems to have won over many of the Foundation Establishment forces in Tanggu County by using the Huo Household's assets that he seized this time.

If by uniting them, and if Tanggu County, a wealthy county in Cloud Horn Prefecture second only to Xuanwei City and Han City, two major cities for cultivating immortality, can be managed into an impenetrable entity, then Tie Liuyun's status in the prefectural court will inevitably rise accordingly.

However, can a small Tie Household really shoulder the responsibility and stand up to the people from the capital region Fei Nanying?

The Sect Leader Kang Da couldn't quite understand it, but he knew that the Huo Household's assets were currently in a very difficult situation.

The emerald vein that Acting Sima Gun had stuffed into his arms was enough to trouble him; he truly had no desire to get involved in anything else.

For a person who manages a household, the worst thing is to be greedy and insatiable, and to understand the principle of not being able to fill one's belly with water.

Kang Dabao had already made up his mind that before Jiang Qing Foundation Establishment, he would simply guard his own domain and not get involved in external affairs unless they were of great importance.

After hastily drawing a few strokes, he returned Kuai En's letter. Then, Sect Leader Kang Da picked up the next letter and frowned in surprise upon seeing the signature on it.

"Second Master Ming's letter?"

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