Eternal Life by Dual Cultivation-Chapter 64 - 61: The Calm on the Surface

During the days Ling Changqing was out working at sea, things on Zenxin Island were calm and peaceful. At least, that’s how it seemed on the surface.

With the Patriarch, Ling Qiyue, in seclusion, Tang Qiu Yao was presiding over the clan’s affairs. She handled everything, big and small, with perfect order.

This stunningly beautiful woman was not a member of the Ling Family, yet she was able to temporarily wield the Patriarch’s authority at Ling Qiyue’s behest. For any of the surrounding family powers, this would be absolutely unimaginable.

It wasn’t that no Ling Family members objected, but with the Foundation Establishment Elders remaining silent, such discordant voices couldn’t stir up any real trouble.

Seeing that this approach was ineffective, the Wu Family’s inside informant had no choice but to lay low for the time being, turning their thoughts to other methods of causing chaos.

Several months passed quietly. The Wu Family’s upper echelon had not paused their secret operations for a moment. After paying a considerable price, they successfully acquired two Foundation Establishment Pills.

However, their luck wasn’t very good. Of the two Qi Cultivation 9th Layer elders chosen to receive the Foundation Establishment Pills, only one succeeded in reaching Foundation Establishment.

The success rate for Foundation Establishment was never high to begin with. It was especially normal for Cultivators with poor aptitude to fail once or twice when trying to break through.

Of course, the vast majority of Cultivators would never get more than one chance to break through, as Foundation Establishment Pills were simply too difficult to obtain.

The Patriarch, Wu Canglang, could do nothing about this and could only continue to work hard at collecting materials for Foundation Establishment Pills.

「Hanyue Continent.」

Within a certain cave residence brimming with Spiritual Qi, located in an important area of the Hanyue Gate Sect, more than ten Foundation Establishment Cultivators were gathered in one room. They were men and women, old and young.

They were all important figures from various small clans and minor powers. Their purpose for visiting today was the same. Among them, conspicuously, was the Wu Family’s Foundation Establishment Elder, Wu Qi.

This group had already been waiting for a considerable time, but none dared to show any sign of impatience. After all, Hanyue Gate was a Golden Core Sect; it was only natural for them to put on airs.

After another half an hour, the pleasant, lingering sound of a Jade Chime rang out. Two Cultivators with an extraordinary bearing, dressed in tall hats and wide sashes, walked out side-by-side from the depths of the cave residence.

"Greetings, Elders!"

All the Foundation Establishment Cultivators present immediately stood up and bowed, offering their greetings with reverent expressions.

In truth, this man and woman only had the Cultivation of late stage Foundation Establishment. Yet, because of their status as Outer Sect Elders of Hanyue Gate, no one dared to show any disrespect.

The leader, a middle-aged man with a long, flowing beard and an indifferent expression, nodded and said:

"Fellow Daoists, no need for ceremony. Please, sit and let us talk."

The group of Foundation Establishment Cultivators replied in unison and sat back down.

The long-bearded man unhurriedly unrolled a Jade Scroll in his hand and announced in a calm tone:

"The Elders are aware of all your requests. After careful consideration, some families that did not meet the conditions have been removed. The rest may all receive resource loans from the Sect!"

"The Qingxi Sect of Yunzhou Island may receive a loan of three thousand Middle grade Spirit Stones, twenty-five Bone Marrow Condensing Pills, and four Foundation Establishment Pills. The interest rate is thirty percent, with a repayment period of twenty years!"

"The Yao Family of Cangqing Island may receive a resource loan of two thousand Middle grade Spirit Stones, twenty Bone Marrow Condensing Pills, and three Foundation Establishment Pills. The interest rate is thirty percent, with a repayment period of twenty years!"

"The Feng Family of Golden Page Island may receive a resource loan of five thousand Middle grade Spirit Stones, one hundred Qingyuan Cloud Dew Pills, forty Bone Marrow Condensing Pills, and ten Foundation Establishment Pills. The interest rate is thirty percent, with a repayment period of thirty years!"

"The Cheng Family of Lingxi Island..."

As he read out the list of families receiving loans one by one, smiles of relief appeared on the faces of the Foundation Establishment Cultivators present.

Most of them were subordinate powers to Hanyue Gate. This time, they were representing their respective families, coming to borrow resources from their overlord to overcome their difficulties.

This was not the first time such a thing had happened. As long as the requests weren’t too outrageous, the upper echelons of Hanyue Gate would usually respond favorably.

Of course, the threshold for borrowing resources was not low. An Envoy from Hanyue Gate had to investigate and verify that the borrower had sufficient high-quality assets to offer as collateral before they could possibly get what they wanted.

Furthermore, the interest on these loans was usually quite high. If they couldn’t be repaid by the deadline, the collateralized high-quality assets would belong to Hanyue Gate.

Before long, the Outer Sect Elder finished reading the list and tucked the Jade Scroll into his sleeve.

Only the strikingly beautiful Wu Qi and the representatives of three other small clans were left looking at each other in dismay. The list had not mentioned their powers.

Wu Qi hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward and asked:

"Elder Qu, was our Wu Family’s loan application not approved? What exactly is the problem?"

Elder Qu didn’t speak. The Female Cultivator beside him explained, "There are two reasons. First, the Wu Family has not yet paid off its previous loan, so you do not meet the conditions to borrow again."

"Second, the amount of resources the Wu Family is requesting to borrow this time is too large. The Elders doubt your ability to repay, so it was not approved."

Wu Qi’s beautiful face paled slightly. She said in a low voice, "But we are willing to use the ownership of Longhuan Island for the next hundred years as collateral. That is our family’s foundational territory. Is that still not enough?"

Longhuan Island spanned over two thousand li in circumference. It was the Wu Family’s foundational home, where several generations of clan members had toiled for hundreds of years to create its current prosperity.

In order to deal with the Ling Family, Patriarch Wu Canglang and all the Foundation Establishment Elders had truly gone all out this time, not hesitating to use their family’s foundational land as collateral.

As long as the Hanyue Gate’s upper echelons agreed to lend them ten thousand Middle grade Spirit Stones, one hundred Bone Marrow Condensing Pills, and fifteen Foundation Establishment Pills, this loan contract could be signed.

The Female Cultivator shook her head. "Longhuan Island is too far from the Sect. The high-ranking Elders have no interest in it, so... that’s the end of that."

Hanyue Gate’s current direction for external expansion was mainly toward the resource-rich Fuyue Continent to the south, not toward the Feiyu Sea Region.

Fuyue Continent was more than five times larger than Hanyue Continent, and that wasn’t even including the numerous surrounding subsidiary islands.

Most importantly, Fuyue Continent had a Grade Four Spirit Vein, which could satisfy the Cultivation needs of a Nascent Soul Great Cultivator. This was what the upper echelons of Hanyue Gate valued most.

Fuyue Continent was currently fractured and divided, and the strongest combatants among its various powers were limited to Golden Core Masters. That was why the Hanyue Gate leadership had become interested.

As long as they could conquer and hold this treasure-filled land, Hanyue Gate would have the possibility of advancing further and becoming a Nascent Soul power in the future.

In comparison, the conditions the Wu Family considered so sincere were simply not worth mentioning in the face of such a grand objective.

The situations of the other three small powers were much the same: too far away and difficult to manage, so the Hanyue Gate leadership looked down on them.

With a downcast expression, Wu Qi didn’t even know how she walked out of the cave residence. ’I’ve botched such an important task. How am I going to explain this to the Patriarch when I get back?’

"Fellow Daoist Wu..."

A hoarse voice sounded without any warning.

Wu Qi abruptly looked up and saw a plain-looking Male Cultivator in Daoist robes standing before her, with a Cultivation at the Qi Cultivation 7th Layer.

"You are?"

Wu Qi’s brows furrowed slightly. She didn’t remember ever seeing this person before.

The Male Cultivator smiled faintly. "I serve under Elder Tianyang. I’ve come this time on his orders to deliver a message to you."

Wu Qi’s expression couldn’t help but turn cold. "Elder Tianyang? What does he want to say?" 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Hanyue Gate’s Elder Tianyang was a rather senior Pseudo Core master. Moreover, he was lecherous to the bone, having taken no fewer than three hundred concubines over the past hundred-plus years.

Naturally, Wu Qi had no pleasant expression for such a character, even if he was a Pseudo Core master. After all, his Lifespan was nearly at its end.

"The Elder is quite taken with you, Fellow Daoist Wu. He sent word that if you are willing to become his concubine, he can give you one thousand Middle grade Spirit Stones and three Foundation Establishment Pills as a betrothal gift. I wonder what you think of the offer?"

The Male Cultivator said slowly.

"In his dreams!"

Wu Qi’s eyebrows shot up, her pretty face pale with anger. "What does that old bastard take me for?"

To put it bluntly, even if she were to sell herself, she would never sell herself to that shameless old man with only a few years of Lifespan left.

’How could I let my pure body be had so cheaply by that disgusting, lecherous, old, and ugly piece of trash?’

The Male Cultivator chuckled. "Fellow Daoist Wu, you currently only have the Cultivation of an early stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator. Even if you have the potential to advance further, defying the will of a Pseudo Core master seems a bit too difficult, wouldn’t you say?"

"Besides, the terms Elder Tianyang has offered are so generous. Even for a proper marriage to a Foundation Establishment Female Cultivator, the betrothal gifts might not be this lavish!"

Wu Qi’s expression was icy. "Tell him to give up on that idea. I will never agree!"

The Male Cultivator wasn’t offended. "What if another condition is added? Elder Tianyang can take action for your Wu Family once, free of charge. I imagine it wouldn’t be difficult to crush your enemy, the Ling Family, would it?"

Wu Qi: "..."

...

「Zenxin Island.」

Dressed in magnificent purple robes with a star and cloud pattern, the imposing and clear-eyed Ling Changqing passed through courtyard after courtyard and once again entered Ling Qiyue’s Women’s Embroidery Tower.

In the Inner Garden Flower Hall, Tang Qiu Yao, dressed in a complex and beautiful vermilion gown, sat gracefully behind a writing desk. Her figure was curvaceous and full, exuding a fragrant and charming allure.

The beautiful woman’s hair was styled in an elegant cloud-like bun adorned with a phoenix hairpin. Her graceful back was straight as she reviewed the Jade Scroll in her hands. Beneath her bright red bustier, her proud, high peaks were pressed together, creating a deep, snowy-white, and bottomless cleavage.

"...Senior Sister, I’m back!"

Ling Changqing called out, walked around the desk, and sat down familiarly beside the beautiful woman, wrapping an arm around her smooth, firm waist.

Tang Qiu Yao asked, "Did you run into any trouble at sea this time?"

"It was fine. I accidentally startled two Abyssal Sawtooth Sharks, but they couldn’t catch me."

Ling Changqing hugged her full, fragrant body and nuzzled against her gently.

Tang Qiu Yao turned her lovely head to look at the young man, then reached out a delicate hand to probe his Spiritual Power. Only after confirming there were no signs of injury did she breathe a sigh of relief.

"I’ve collected quite a few new materials. Has... has Senior Sister Ling not come out yet?"

Ling Changqing asked again. More than half a year had passed since Ling Qiyue announced her seclusion.

He had now learned that Ling Qiyue wasn’t in seclusion in her cave residence on Zenxin Island at all, but was instead residing in another secret Spirit Vein Blessed Land.

Currently, only he and Tang Qiu Yao knew this extremely crucial secret. Even the Foundation Establishment Elders in the family were being kept in the dark.

Tang Qiu Yao said in a low voice, "I estimate it will still be some time. After all, she’s breaking through to a new Realm!"

Ling Changqing fell silent. Ling Qiyue’s apparent Cultivation was late stage Foundation Establishment. As for whether she was hiding her true strength, no one else could know.

Therefore, even Ling Changqing didn’t know if she was breaking through a minor realm or a Great Realm this time.

Tang Qiu Yao was tight-lipped about it, preferring to let him hug her and nuzzle her a few more times rather than reveal even the slightest hint.

"Alright. In any case, I don’t feel like going back out to sea anytime soon. How about I go fire up a furnace and refine some Elixirs?"

Ling Changqing said. He was now a Rank One Middle Grade Pill Master and could refine a considerable variety of Elixirs.

Tang Qiu Yao smiled. "That’s no problem. The Elixirs you refine will belong to you. If you’re willing to donate them to the Clan Treasury, I can also convert them into a corresponding amount of merit points for you."

"It’s a deal."

Ling Changqing agreed.