Chương 162: Last Gamble

Huaijin's cultivation base steadily advanced. He had already become a Tier 3 low grade artifact forger, but even if he wanted to continue forging, there were no Tier 3 materials to be had. In the days that followed, after finishing his daily cultivation sessions, Huaijin would occasionally spar with the Azure Ink Dragon. The Azure Ink Dragon was more than happy to oblige. Huaijin never unleashed his full strength.

Yet the Azure Ink Dragon remained deeply impressed, this human's physical power was nearly catching up to its own. His Body cultivation far outstripped his Qi cultivation by several levels. Sometimes the Azure Ink Dragon would grow serious, only to discover that it truly couldn't overpower Huaijin. Keep in mind, the Azure Ink Dragon was a flood dragon. It had every confidence that, despite being only at the first level of Tier 3, even most mid stage Tier 3 spirit beasts were no match for it.

Such was the might of the dragon bloodline. Legend spoke of true dragons, whose bloodlines were so formidable that at lower cultivation realms, they could fight across an entire major realm. Huaijin's combat experience also grew richer by the day. On Purple Cloud Peak, the spiritual energy in the air was incredibly dense. The numbers of Pine Fish and Blazing Sun Chickens continued to multiply.

To avoid ending up as a dish on the dinner table, the Blazing Sun Chicken King frenziedly reproduced and cultivated with all its might, desperately trying to make itself more valuable. Haihu took things at its own pace. With abundant resources at its disposal, it had already reached the peak of the fourth level. Spirit beasts cultivated slowly, but they faced few major bottlenecks. As long as their bloodlines were strong enough, they could keep breaking through.

Given Haihu's bloodline, Huaijin felt it could at least reach Tier 3 and become a Purple Mansion spirit beast. And with the right opportunity, it might even evolve its bloodline into something far greater. The corpses of the cultivators Huaijin had slain had all been devoured, and the spiritual energy on Purple Cloud Peak was exceptionally rich. Haihu's cultivation base grew steadily. Huaijin also kept a close eye on the situation in Qingtai City.

With Fang Tao watching over things, he wasn't worried about the Jin family making any desperate moves. Fang Tao had himself reached the late stage of Tier 2, stepping into the eighth level. Even against the Jin family's Jin Chenpeng, who stood at the peak of Tier 2, he would not back down. This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. The faction that had once followed Fang Tianyu had severed ties with the Jin family after Fang Tianyu's death.

This was an order from the family's Purple Mansion elder. And that faction had also offered Huaijin formal compensation. Fang Tianyu was dead; the instigator had been dealt with. After all, the Fang Family was a Tier 3 family, one of the pillars of Qingtai prefecture. Huaijin didn't want to worsen their relationship. The two sides reached a reconciliation. In the end, only the Jin family was left holding the bag. When the Jin family received the news, Jin Guang nearly coughed up blood.

Jin Chenpeng was so enraged that he beat Jin Guang half to death. They also came to resent the Fang Family.

"Guang, the family will be yours from now on!" Jin Chenpeng heaved rough breaths, a flash of resolve in his eyes.

"Ancestor…"

"I'm going into secluded meditation, a life-or-death retreat! If I succeed, the Jin family has a sliver of hope. We can continue to live and multiply in Qingtai City. If I fail, take the family and leave Qingtai prefecture, leave Tang Kingdom entirely, go wherever you can." Jin Chenpeng had decided to attempt a breakthrough to Purple Mansion.

"Ancestor, the family doesn't have a Tier 3 Spiritual Object to help with the breakthrough!" Jin Guang's voice trembled.

"There's no time for that!" Jin Chenpeng had less than twenty years left before his lifespan ran out.

"Ancestor…"

"Don't try to talk me out of it. In the end, it all comes down to the family's lack of good fortune. Is everything prepared?" Jin Guang's eyes flashed with regret.

"Everything is arranged." A cunning rabbit has three burrows. To avoid total annihilation, Jin Guang had long arranged for over a dozen foundation establishment candidates to leave Qingtai City, taking with them part of the family's inheritance and resources. That way, even if the Jin family fell, the bloodline would not be extinguished.

"Good!" Jin Chenpeng paused after speaking.

"Guang, I'm satisfied with you." With that, he turned and left, entering his life-or-death retreat. Jin Guang wept bitterly. All of the Jin family's current woes stemmed from his own single lapse in judgment. —— Purple Cloud Peak. Huaijin had just finished his daily sparring session with the Azure Ink Dragon. Then a message arrived.

"The family has finally produced a dual-spirit-root clansman!" A smile spread across Huaijin's face. News had come from Green Bamboo Mountain: at this year's Spirit Root Testing Ceremony, the family had discovered a dual-spirit-root genius. He belonged to the generation after Renan, descending from Zhang Liliang's line. His name was Zhang Qizhi. The Zhang family had now reached its fifth generation. Huaijin's generation had now become the backbone of the family.

Members of the sixth generation had already been born. Over time, the Zhang family had grown into a colossus in Langna county. The family's reputation was excellent, they dealt fairly in business and never bullied those below them. Zhang family members never stirred up trouble without cause. Their shop in Qingtai City had steadily gained a foothold. During their training, some family members had even discovered a few small-scale Mystic Iron mines.

The Zhang family honored its promises, giving those who made discoveries a share of the profits. Now, the Zhang family was unquestionably the number one family in Langna county. Naturally, there was no need to share mining rights with others. And no other family dared to covet what was theirs, not even the Gao family, who had a late stage cultivator of their own. The Gao family, like the Zhang family, was expanding its influence into Qingtai City. The two families had a good relationship and were allies.

Huaijin sent word back to Green Bamboo Mountain: once Zhang Qizhi completed his four years of basic education and began cultivation, he was to be sent to Purple Cloud Peak. After all, he was the family's first dual-spirit-root genius. He needed focused nurturing. Foundation Establishment was not the goal, there was a good chance he could reach Purple Mansion Realm. Zhang Wujian and Yunli also steadily advanced their cultivation. In their spare time, they honed their various cultivation arts.

They even ventured deep into the Purple Dusk Mountain Range to hunt spirit beasts. Cultivators couldn't stay in seclusion forever, they needed combat to stimulate breakthroughs. —— In Qingtai City, the Jin family was like a cornered beast. Their clashes with the Zhang family grew fiercer and fiercer. Members of both families even engaged in open battles just outside the city. By now, the enmity between the two families was no secret among neighbouring cultivation powers.

The two Tier 3 families weren't interfering, and no other force had the standing to do so. And the Fang Family's recent conduct had become a quiet source of amusement among certain circles.