Chapter 544

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Protagonist:

Yu Zhangsheng

"Our Wanxiang Sect has finally weathered the storm; after hardship comes sweetness, and it will rise once more."

Listening to Wei Lao's explanation, a smile appeared on Yu Zhangsheng's face; he sighed with emotion and spoke these words.

"Yes, it will be fine."

Wei Lao was the same, smiling as he spoke; a flash of deep meaning flickered in his eyes as he looked at Yu Zhangsheng, then he suddenly patted Yu Zhangsheng's shoulder, his tone earnest and heavy with meaning, yet also carrying sincerity:

"This matter has indeed been hard on you, child."

"Ah?"

Yu Zhangsheng froze for a moment, a trace of astonishment and embarrassment appearing on his face; meeting Wei Lao's expectant gaze, he could only nod his head.

"Master, what are you saying? The Wanxiang Sect is like my home; you're talking about my own family. Yu Zhangsheng hasn't done anything at all, so what hardship is there?"

Yu Zhangsheng said softly.

"Hehe." Wei Lao chuckled, his smile growing even more kindly.

"These years, it hasn't been easy for you; the Sect couldn't help you much, but instead..."

Wei Lao hesitated, did not finish, merely shook his head and smiled.

In his heart, he was filled with myriad emotions.

"Think of my Wanxiang Sect, from its founding until now, thousands of years of time, how many ups and downs; at its most glorious, it was due to that disciple of Cao Jinxian — merely a pity... now, perhaps it is the karmic connection in the dark, that my Wanxiang Sect has once again welcomed this opportunity for revival?"

Wei Lao murmured to himself in his heart, his emotions surging; he shook his head, then lightly exhaled a breath, and said with a smile: "Alright, alright. In short, there are now quite a few Sub-Talisman Cultivators in the Sect; we can call them over, just right to let them familiarize themselves with the situation in the Bei Hai Yu."

"Besides that, helping together to capture pirates, the efficiency will also be much faster."

"What do you think?"

Wei Lao asked, seeking Yu Zhangsheng's opinion.

"If they are Sub-Talisman, then naturally there is no problem."

Yu Zhangsheng nodded without the slightest hesitation; if he had the help of several Sub-Talisman True Lords of the Wanxiang Sect, his plan would naturally proceed even more smoothly.

For instance, half a month ago, island groups like that demonic cultivator pirate group were still a minority; that was because there were people deliberately nurturing and supporting them from behind, hence they were able to possess seven Sub-Talisman True Lords.

Most pirate groups are led by Golden Core leaders; a pirate group with a Sub-Talisman leader already counts as a fairly famous and formidable pirate group.

Therefore, if these several Sub-Talisman True Lords of the Wanxiang Sect assist, it would naturally be a great help to Yu Zhangsheng, saving much trouble; at the same time, safety concerns would not need to be overly worried about.

"However, thinking back, had I known it would be like this, that demonic cultivator pirate group back then should not have been wiped out entirely; they should have been captured and enslaved, and now they could be put to good use."

"If those seven Sub-Talisman demonic cultivators were helping, sent to mine, then mining efficiency would surely increase greatly, and there would not be this much pressure now."

Thinking of this, Yu Zhangsheng lightly sighed with some regret, his gaze full of wistfulness.

"Enough, enough, what regret is there? Who could have foreseen this?"

Wei Lao smiled lightly, shook his head, and half-comfortingly said: "Besides, those people were ultimately demonic cultivators, different from ordinary pirates; not killing them would be intolerable to heaven's law. Even if they were kept, who knows, their innate nature might erupt one day; for the rest of the miners, that would be no good thing — the threat would be too great."

"Master is right."

Yu Zhangsheng thought for a moment, nodded, and the trace of regret in his heart vanished like smoke.

"Then what follows is relatively simple; I will contact our Wanxiang Sect's Sub-Talisman, leave two to guard Wanxiang Island, and the rest, have them hurry over; then, with these six Sub-Talisman True Lords assisting, plus the two of us as leaders, we can just form a team."

"Clearing out the pirates in these nearby waters should be no problem; the only existing issue is that we are not too clear on the distribution and specific strength of the pirates nearby."

"And some pirates may have some great powers backing them; if we rashly, without knowing right from wrong, without understanding any situation, just enslave and exterminate them, I fear we might provoke some unnecessary trouble."

Wei Lao smiled, and also slowly voiced the trace of concern in his heart.

Yu Zhangsheng's idea was good; pirates, though beaten by all, drifting on the seas, are not perfectly integrated like a Sect — internal scheming and infighting are the norm; they are merely a conglomerate of interests, but likewise cannot be underestimated.

Especially since both of them knew clearly in their hearts that some pirate groups are not necessarily spontaneously formed; behind them, there are mostly certain powers secretly manipulating them to plunder resources.

This point is just like the demonic cultivator pirate group on the Ling Kuang Dao previously; they were the dark chess pieces secretly supported by the Seventh Holy Son Wang Sheng and the clan behind Wang Sheng; these years, they seized quite a lot of resources for Wang Sheng, doing evil to the utmost.

This kind of thing, for great clans and great powers like Yu Zhangsheng, is naturally not good to do openly; so they secretly nurtured this batch of pirates to act on their behalf.

This point, though it cannot be brought to the table, is an open secret among many powers in the Bei Hai Yu.

The pirate trade in the Bei Hai Yu has a long history; after such long years of development, the interests contained within make people envious, and it has long since lost the simplicity, directness, and brutality of the early years; instead, the roots behind the scenes are complex and entangled, often not to be viewed simply.

Some truly large pirate groups all have branches and support of certain powers behind them, enabling them to reach today's step.

And the two of them are not natives of the Bei Hai Yu; they have not been roaming the Beihai for long, and their contact with this aspect is extremely few; they lack corresponding intelligence channels.

If they truly acted as Yu Zhangsheng thought, indiscriminately capturing pirates to enslave as miners, on the surface no one could say anything, but in the dark, it might provoke the dissatisfaction of some great powers, inviting calamity.

Pirate groups led by a Spirit Severing True Venerable are relatively rare, but not non-existent.

This point does not conform to Yu Zhangsheng's cautious nature; therefore, both of their thoughts must be more thorough before they can formally act.

Hearing this, Yu Zhangsheng fell into contemplation; a moment later, he indeed smiled faintly, the corner of his mouth slowly hooking into an arc, and said with some mystery: "This point is simple; it is just an information gap. Previously we indeed couldn't solve it well, but now don't we also have a cooperation partner?"

"Since it is cooperation, it is mutual help, mutual promotion; this matter can just serve as a test of the waters; I expect she will not refuse. After all, it is not too big a matter."

"Cooperation partner?"

Wei Lao froze, looked at Yu Zhangsheng in astonishment; after a good while he suddenly slapped his forehead, realizing suddenly: "You mean that Sixth Holy Maiden Chen Xueqing?"

"That's right!" Wei Lao exclaimed with emotion, let out a long breath, and laughed: "Well said, indeed it is so; to become the Saintess of Hai Shou Tian Dao, Chen Xueqing's background is certainly not simple; just her accompanying Protectors of the Dao, there is openly a Spirit Severing True Venerable.

Then, relying on Chen Xueqing's resources and connections, investigating these pirates' resource situation should be no difficulty for her; we don't directly borrow her people, just borrow her information — that is also justified, no big problem." Wei Lao muttered, chuckling: "Since it is so, then this problem is also easily resolved; just like drowsiness meeting a pillow, everything is just right."

"Sure enough, having a familiar person there who knows a bit more information has its benefits."

Yu Zhangsheng was filled with myriad emotions.

This problem was actually somewhat difficult for them, but for people standing at a certain height like Chen Xueqing, it hardly counted as anything — merely some information gaps.

Thinking thus, Yu Zhangsheng did not delay; he immediately took out the specific communication Jade Tube Chen Xueqing had left for Yu Zhangsheng, pondered for a moment, organized the wording in his heart, and sent it to Chen Xueqing.

On the other side, on Upper Sea Beast Heaven Island, Chen Xueqing almost simultaneously received Yu Zhangsheng's transmission; after obtaining the information within, she smiled quietly, her beautiful eyes shifting, revealing a faint smile full of deep meaning.

"Interesting. He wants to obtain the pirate resource distribution information in my hands, as well as some precautions. It seems he has thought of a way to break the deadlock."

"I thought that facing the suppression quotas added out of thin air by those above, you would be confused for a long time, and finally seek help from me, asking me to help mediate on this Sea Beast Heaven Island... If that were the case, you would owe me a not-small favor."

Chen Xueqing lowered her brows, her gaze flickering slightly; she murmured in a low voice, a trace of a smile surfacing in the depths of her eyes, followed by a somewhat regretful low exhale.

"Unexpectedly, you still have some backbone. Although you also sought help from me, it was only for something as trivial as information... Cooperation? Heh."

Chen Xueqing smiled gently; she pondered in her heart for a moment, and after a long while, shook her head. Her fair wrist lightly brushed aside a few strands of green silk at her forehead. Beneath her peerlessly beautiful countenance, she smiled captivatingly, her eyes holding deep meaning:

"Never mind. Such a small matter, I'll give it to you. However, this also shows that you are a rather meticulous person, not acting rashly. Otherwise, even if you have some strength, if you provoked some pirate groups that should not be offended, that would be endless trouble. Yu Zhangsheng... interesting. My interest in you has increased by another fraction."

"Also, Wang Sheng, it seems your wishful thinking this time will come to nothing again."

Chen Xueqing smiled lightly; thinking this, she sent a message, and after a slight hesitation, sent one to Yu Zhangsheng.

In the end, Chen Xueqing thought for a moment, then added a sentence.

"These are the pirate distribution maps of the nearby seas that I know, as well as some pirate groups that you need to pay special attention to and must not easily provoke. I hope everything goes smoothly for you. Contact me if anything comes up."

Having done these things, Chen Xueqing only then let out a breath of relief. She shook her head, suppressed the thoughts in her heart, and thought no further.

Regarding the events occurring on Spirit Mine Island, Chen Xueqing naturally paid attention. As for the matter of the quotas rising, she had long been aware. In her view, this was a covert, long-distance game between Wang Sheng and Yu Zhangsheng.

She had originally waited for Yu Zhangsheng to therefore seek aid from her. Aid was indeed waited for, but it was not as she had imagined. This left Chen Xueqing somewhat regretful, and some thoughts in her heart also underwent some changes.

…………

…………

On Spirit Mine Island.

"Got it."

Yu Zhangsheng sensed the information on the Transmission Jade Tube with his Shenjue, and immediately smiled knowingly. He nodded at Wei Lao, his smile radiant.

"Chen Xueqing has already sent over this pirate distribution map and some information, including the lairs of some ordinary pirates. This saves us a lot of trouble, and the efficiency is also faster."

"Not bad. Still counts as having sincerity."

Wei Lao nodded, lightly stroking his beard, and spoke slowly.

"Mm-hmm." Yu Zhangsheng pondered for a moment, picked up the Transmission Jade Tube, edited a message, and sent it off.

"Thank you, Saintess, for your generous help. This junior will remember. If there is any place needing help, please speak up. Zhangsheng will do his utmost."

The words were still fairly direct, words of gratitude.

And Chen Xueqing's reply was also very brief, only a few words: "Trivial matter, a mere lift of the hand. The two of us are in a cooperative relationship."

………

"Everything is ready, only the east wind is lacking. Now the information is also here; only people are lacking. Wait a few days. When the various Peak Masters of our Wanxiang Sect arrive, then we can act."

Wei Lao nodded, his heart slightly at ease.

"Rest and recuperate these few days. Prepare a bit, and we can set off."

"Okay." Yu Zhangsheng nodded in agreement. After the two exchanged a few pleasantries, Wei Lao went to organize today's mining work on Spirit Mine Island.

And Yu Zhangsheng walked a circle on Spirit Mine Island. After confirming threats were absent, he returned to the pavilion residence.

"Wang Sheng... Sea Beast Heaven Island... Although this matter can be resolved smoothly, it has also sounded a warning bell for me."

Inside the Cultivation Chamber, after Yu Zhangsheng opened and isolated all Formations, he pondered many matters in his heart. After a long time, a trace of gloomy light flashed in his eyes.

"It seems there are indeed quite a few people dissatisfied with me. Wang Sheng can borrow power to suppress me. Silently enduring only invites escalation. If one truly wants to truly break this deadlock, then one needs to take the initiative to strike, to display one's own value."

"I have still been too low-key. Sea Beast Heaven Island — it is impossible for you, Wang Sheng's single Lineage, to cover the sky with one hand. So, perhaps I only need to be strong enough. If I can use thunderous means to directly speak of exterminating Wang Sheng, then let some other people thoroughly take notice of me... then perhaps that is not a bad thing either. There would be a turning point."

Yu Zhangsheng pondered; many thoughts flickered in his heart.

He knew clearly in his heart that Sea Beast Heaven Island is such a super power. Wang Sheng, within it, though outstanding, is also not irreplaceable.

Those hostile to him must be not few. And if I truly can, with a peerless posture, use thunderous means to forcefully behead him, making some people truly notice me, displaying my talent and strength.

Then, to replace him becomes possible. Within this, there will be risk, and also opportunity for wealth and honor. The key lies in how to reasonably utilize it.

"However, in the final analysis, the premise of high spirits still requires that my own strength is sufficiently strong."

Yu Zhangsheng contemplated: "Current me, Violet Mansion Mid-Stage Peak cultivation base. In the short term, without opportunity, it is not easy to continue breaking through. As for killer moves, they are still too few."

"There is one sentence Wang Sheng said at the time that was not bad. My divine abilities and techniques are still slightly insufficient." (Chapter End)