Chapter 1261 - 17: Wang Guangyuan (2)

Although he was happy to see Wang Guangyuan stepping forward to fight, he was unwilling for the E Mountain Sect to be dragged into the conflict and be used by others.

Wang Guangyuan sneered and said, "Brother Yong, rest assured. This letter was brought from Zhongtai. According to the rules, if the master of the immortal city changes, we can collect an extra levy from Zhongtai."

Yong Fu doubted, "Is it really that simple?"

Wang Guangyuan casually replied, "It’s just that the levy amount is slightly more than usual."

Yong Fu’s mind quickly grasped Wang Guangyuan’s intention, "I wondered why he was so confident, as if he didn’t care about True Master Zhang at all. It turns out he borrowed the name of the Zhongtai Sect."

Yet this also indicates that even if Zhang Yan is expelled, the position of the immortal city master would never fall to him.

Upon realizing this, he lost interest but still wanted to maintain face, so he put away the letter and said flatly, "Soon, I will send someone to deliver it to the Han Yuan Sect, and after that, it will have nothing to do with the E Mountain Sect."

Wang Guangyuan chuckled deeply, stepped back a few paces, and said, "Brother Yong, why make a final statement so soon? It’s not too late to discuss in detail after a few days."

In the Seven Treasures Pagoda, there was a thumb-sized Scorpion Spider crawling back and forth on Zhang Yan’s desk. This insect was a reddish-golden color all over, with faint patterns on its back, resembling a finely crafted copper button at first glance.

At this moment, his doubts were resolved. No wonder the Scorpion Spider was so fierce; it had just escaped from the Ice Plate and ignored the depletion of Primordial Qi to attack him, later desperately devouring Shell Pearls. It was all for the sake of birthing this young spider.

His gaze fell upon it, realizing the mother spider must have given the last consumed Spiritual Energy entirely to the young spider. To be born despite being trapped in the Ice Plate for thousands of years was indeed rare, especially the unusual red-gold color that was never recorded in the texts.

Zhang Yan began to strategize; nurturing the Pan Chai Pill with Poison Insects should ideally use exotic ones, followed by lifespan and Daoist cultivation. Though the Scorpion Spider was young, it appeared unusual. If fed Silk Lotus Seed from this moment, he wondered whether the resulting Treasure Pill could meet his needs.

After pondering for a moment, he decided to give it a try. Though Silk Lotus Seed was rare, with the immortal city in hand, such a small amount wouldn’t be lacking.

Yet to be safe, in the future he would inevitably have to search for more Poison Insects.

But for now, the immortal city had just changed hands, and he couldn’t easily leave Li Mountain; planning would have to wait a year or two.

During this period, he needed to use the resources of the immortal city to first gather easily found Elixir Materials before focusing his attention on searching for those rare treasures.

At this time, a voice sounded outside the door: "Pavilion Master, a messenger from the E Mountain Sect has arrived, requesting an urgent audience."

Due to Yong Fu, the Nascent Soul Grand Elder being in E Mountain Sect, Zhang Yan valued them above other sects. Seeing that they sent a messenger in such a formal manner, he judged that there must be something important and said, "I understand."

He took out a Jade Box, put the Scorpion Spider inside, and slipped it into his sleeve before floating down from the seven-story pavilion to the bottom floor. He sat behind a table and said to the child beside him, "Let him in."

The child struck a gong hammer on the Jade Chime, and after a moment, the pavilion door opened, and a young cultivator with a vigorous build walked in. Seeing Zhang Yan, he bowed and said, "E Mountain Sect disciple Bai Jiyin greets the Pavilion Master."

Zhang Yan raised his hand lightly and smiled, "Nephew Bai, there’s no need for formality. If Brother Yong has something to discuss, a Flying Book would suffice. Why send a nephew running around?"

Bai Jiyin straightened up and said solemnly, "The teacher was entrusted by someone to present an important letter to the Pavilion Master. Since it was no small matter, he instructed his nephew to personally deliver it."

After speaking, he brought out a letter painted with golden lacquer. A child came up and received the letter, then delivered it to Zhang Yan’s table.

Zhang Yan opened it and scanned through it, his eyes flashing as he said, "Thank you, nephew, please convey my regards to Daoist Yong when you return."

Bai Jiyin, having completed his mission, did not wish to linger, and after bowing respectfully, he turned and left the hall.

Zhang Yan pondered for a moment, then instructed the child beside him, "Go and summon Junior Brother Chu."

The child complied and went.

After an hour, Chu Muran hurriedly arrived, continuously apologizing, "Little brother was just invited by the Changshan Sect leader to be a guest, hence coming late, burdening the Pavilion Master with a long wait. Please forgive me."

Zhang Yan gestured, indicating it was no matter, and passed the letter to him, saying, "Junior Brother, take a look."

Chu Muran quickly accepted it, and after seeing its contents, his expression changed.

Zhang Yan asked, "Has this levy occurred before?"

Chu Muran thought carefully for a while, then nodded and replied, "It has indeed happened. Among the various sects of Divine House Mountain, in name, we also regard Zhongtai Sect as our Upper Sect. But because our mountain gate is in the remote northern region, we’re generally ignored by the Upper Sect, thus the levy amount is very low. In each year, it occupies only one or two percent of the immortal city’s collections. During Master Shen’s time, it was completely disregarded. When Master Yong took over, there was a slight change due to his Daoist couple being a disciple from Zhongtai Sect, which showed some intention, but it would never amount to this much, otherwise, how could the E Mountain Sect have thrived as it has?"

"One or two percent," Zhang Yan chuckled, "but the letter demands six percent be collected upwards. How much would be left then?"

Chu Muran suspected, "Pavilion Master, is it possible that E Mountain Sect is causing trouble?"

Zhang Yan gave no affirmation, instead smiling as he asked, "If it truly is Zhongtai Sect’s intention, what does Junior Brother think we should do?"

Chu Muran hesitated for quite some time, sweat gradually seeping from his brow, before finally bowing his head and saying, "Pavilion Master, Zhongtai Sect is powerful. If this is truly the case, following little brother’s opinion... it would be best to comply."

...

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