Chapter 488: Beast-Tending Spirits

"The Dari Sect has split?"

Jiang Ding's heart jolted, and he carefully analyzed the truth of this matter.

In Wei Wei Qingqing's memories, she had participated in many battles involving the Dari Sect, and time and again, Golden Core cultivators from vassal families relied on luck to repeatedly escape death.

One day, everyone from the Nascent Soul ancestors down to the direct lineage of General General Heishi fled madly, abandoning everything, not even caring about their ancestral land, Tushan Xiancheng.

They fled frantically northward out of Yuan Xiu Xian Gao Jie, completely abandoning these bewildered vassal Golden Core cultivators, who could only follow in flight and hide.

Fortunately, the vassal Golden Core cultivators were not the Dari Sect's main targets, and they barely escaped with their lives.

The direct lineage of General General Heishi was a different story.

They were the Top Priority targets for the Dari Sect's Golden Core slaughter, constantly encircled and attacked, suffering heavy casualties, with more than half perishing.

After hiding like this for several years, Tushan Xiancheng surprisingly did not fall.

Later on, the Nascent Soul cultivators and direct-lineage Golden Core cultivators of General General Heishi gradually returned.

Only then did the news spread that the Dari Sect had split and a brutal civil war had broken out, dividing into two.

The Zhengmo Alliance and General General Heishi survived.

But General General Heishi's strength still suffered enormous losses, no longer in its prime.

To the extent that, nowadays, they have fallen into a situation where they can hardly suppress such a vast territory.

Tushan Xiancheng can now only guarantee absolute order within a few thousand li around the immortal city; beyond that, its strength falls somewhat short.

Nascent Soul cultivators patrol once every several years, slaying some Golden Core cultivators, which can ensure a few years of stability.

Afterward, things return to the way they were.

Third-tier spiritual veins, third-tier mines, third-tier heavenly materials and earthly treasures, large spirit stone mines… and so on—these things that once belonged exclusively to the direct lineage of General General Heishi make people salivate, yet they lack sufficient power to guard them.

Many destitute Golden Core loose cultivators or vassal-family Golden Core cultivators, once they succeed, immediately withdraw, carefully erase their aura, and after a gap of several years, even Nascent Soul cultivators may not be able to catch them.

The prairie fell into an even more chaotic situation, and over the years, the direct lineage of General General Heishi had tried many methods, with no improvement in sight.

Unless Nascent Soul cultivators continuously patrolled a territory of several hundred thousand kilometers.

That was impossible.

Nascent Soul cultivators could not delay their own Dao for the sake of some ants, treating themselves like puppets, working day and night without rest; therefore, Master Dinghai Master Dinghai Zhenjun attempted to support a side branch.

But this triggered new internal problems.

"Dari Sword Cultivators… really do have that kind of temperament."

Jiang Ding pondered for a moment and found that there really was a considerable possibility of this.

Dari Sword Cultivators were domineering, self-centered, proud, and ruthless—to both themselves and others.

Perhaps, in the eyes of the Dari Qingse Jianzong's sword cultivators, the Dari Sect was naturally meant to serve them; all heavenly materials and earthly treasures, spiritual lands, and spiritual pills should be chosen by them first, and only then could it be the turn of the Dari Sect's law cultivators.

But how could the Dari Sect's law cultivators be weaklings?

Don't be fooled by the law cultivators always being mild, without so many sharp edges.

A typical example was Antu Zi, who would absolutely never fight to the death over things like face or the reputation of a Dao Child; he revered longevity and eternal vision—just watch him for a thousand years and see.

But once a fundamental conflict arose, their ruthlessness and viciousness were even worse; before others had even made up their minds, a host of inescapable traps and underhanded moves had already been deployed.

Bottom line was something that fundamentally did not exist; everything was for longevity.

"Could it be that the deaths of several Nascent Soul sword cultivators of the Dari Qingse Jianzong were related to the Zhengmo Alliance?"

Jiang Ding thought of a possibility.

It's quite possible that the Dari Sect's law cultivators colluded with Nascent Soul cultivators of the Zhengmo Alliance, launching a sudden attack and a backstab, which was the only way to successfully split the Dari Sect.

After all, the inheritance of the Dari Sword Pavilion leaned more toward the Sword Dao.

The number of Nascent Soul sword cultivators in the Dari Qingse Jianzong might be small, but theoretically they should be the strongest group within the Dari Sect, directing the Dari Sect's course.

That was the root of the inheritance.

The law cultivators' strength was bound to be somewhat weaker.

"Enough, these things are far away from me."

"I can't influence the great trends of the Northern Plains yet; just understanding a little is enough."

Jiang Ding shook his head.

His figure flashed, and several days later he returned once more to the Wei Clan's ancestral land, a square silver-white metal box now in his hand.

"Jin-92, a peak Golden Core-grade nano liquid robot."

"Hmm, Jia-25 self-destructed and got lectured by the staff, but it doesn't matter—I still got a new one, and the safety guarantee is a bit stronger."

Jiang Ding carefully examined the square metal block in his hand.

He extended a finger, let a drop of fresh blood fall, and it was absorbed by the metal block.

The square metal block dissolved, dripping onto the ground with a patter, forming a large puddle of metallic liquid that spread over several square meters.

After a moment,

the metallic liquid bulged, gradually rising, forming a silver-white human shape.

As the light on its surface shifted, a handsome youth in blue robes appeared before his eyes, identical in appearance, though his gaze was slightly colder.

With another shift, it transformed into a Jin Dan Zhong Qi cultivator with an honest, simple appearance.

"From today on, you are Wei Chun Jian."

Jiang Ding nodded slightly, and his figure vanished.

This was to randomly choose a place to establish his second nest, and from now on, he would no longer communicate directly with Jin-92.

It would not have memories of this either, and material transport would be conducted via encrypted teleportation arrays.

Jin-92 stood dazed on the spot for several quarters of an hour.

Slowly, its eyes gradually became lively, becoming no different from an ordinary person.

"Feels like I've suddenly become a lot weaker."

"Now, the most urgent matter is to purchase gold-copper stone to increase the production of Synthetic Synthetic Gengjin No. 21; otherwise, refining the flying swords will soon become unsustainable."

Jiang Ding gazed inward at the artificial meridians throughout his body, muttered to himself for a moment, concealed his form, and flew toward the direction of the Beast Spirit Tushan Xiancheng.

Beast Spirit Tushan Xiancheng.

The city walls were cast entirely from black spiritual metal, etched with intricate runes; they stood over a hundred zhang tall, and up close, they resembled a jet-black divine Shanfeng, radiating terrifying evil qi.

Many rogue cultivators, usually lawless, lined up respectfully to enter; even when scolded, they wore smiles on their faces, begged for mercy repeatedly, and handed over a bag of spirit stones with utmost reverence.

At this moment, a figure in black robes flew in from the horizon.

The General Heishi Foundation Establishment cultivator, who had just weighed his storage bag, changed expression, clasped his hands, and respectfully said, "Greetings, senior. May I ask where you come from, your name, and your purpose?"

Every movement was polite and measured, neither humble nor arrogant.

Yet it was precisely this interrogative tone that made one uncomfortable.

Especially since a Foundation Establishment cultivator dared to question a Jin Dan directly, showing no fear whatsoever—an extreme rudeness.

"Zhang San, from the south, here to buy some things."

Jiang Ding frowned and casually gave a name that was obviously fake.

"Senior Zhang, here is your waist token."

This Foundation Establishment cultivator, regardless of whether it was true, handed over a token and respectfully said, "You may stay anywhere within the city. General General Heishi welcomes friends from all quarters, but you must not violate General General Heishi's rules, nor allow the waist token to leave your body by more than three zhang."

"Should this occur, the city's formation may take notice."

"Understood."

Jiang Ding glanced at the nearby black city wall, towering like a Shanfeng, took the waist token, and walked away.