Chapter 199: Let Them Provide the Resources

However, at this moment of clan-wide celebration, as the family head Gu Lin Tian, after a brief excitement, his brows furrowed tightly.

He quickly walked into the hall and found Gu Yuan leisurely sipping tea.

"Yuan'er."

"Dad, what's wrong? Mom and the others have become immortals, why do you still look so worried?"

Gu Lin Tian pointed outside, his voice tinged with bitterness:

"Don't you feel it? The spiritual energy concentration of our Gu Family Divine Island has dropped by at least ten percent just now!"

"Ten percent?" Gu Yuan blinked in surprise.

Now, the Gu Family.

Though not boasting many spirit veins, they still occupy about thirty percent of the Primordial Immortal Realm's amount.

"This is only the beginning."

Gu Lin Tian said in a deep voice, "These four have just broken through; they now need vast amounts of immortal substance and heaven-earth essence to stabilize their realms, like four hungry bottomless pits. Other things can be discussed, but the immortal substance will definitely be insufficient."

As Gu Lin Tian spoke, his face grew grimmer: "Moreover, dozens of Supremes in the clan are waiting to break through to Perfection; they too are major consumers. Though the path to immortality is good, we… can't afford it!"

The blissful worry has finally turned into a real crisis.

The Gu Family faces an unprecedented… resource crisis.

……

……

Inside the council hall, the atmosphere grew somewhat gloomy.

Gu Linjiang, Gu Xue Dao, Jiang Rou, and Gu Zhan, who had broken through earlier, the four newly ascended True Immortals, now sat cross-legged in the hall's center, like four massive whirlpools frantically devouring the surrounding heaven-earth essence.

Each of their faces beamed with the joy of breakthrough, yet this joy had become a heavy stone in Gu Lin Tian's heart.

Can't afford to support.

These two words echoed in his mind like a curse.

Think of our Gu Family, which has dominated the Primordial Immortal Realm for countless ages—when have we ever worried about resources?

But now, just four True Immortals have made the family's resource reserves flash red.

Of course, it's not that there isn't enough.

Considering only spiritual energy consumption, even ten more True Immortals would be sufficient.

But immortal substance—there's simply not enough of it.

"The family head is right."

Gu Linjiang, who had just stabilized his realm, opened his eyes, feeling his meridians empty inside, and gave a wry smile: 'I feel I could swallow an entire spirit vein and still not be full. The consumption of the True Immortal realm is far more terrifying than we imagined.'

"Me too," Gu Zhan said in a muffled voice, "I'm so hungry I could gnaw on a star."

Inside the hall, the gathered Supremes and elders exchanged glances, their fervor gradually cooling, replaced by deep worry.

They saw the hope of immortality, but also its cost.

The family's resources are limited; after giving to these four, what about those who come after?

Could it be that this True Immortal production line has just started and must already shut down?

"What's the point of all these worried faces?"

Just when everyone was at a loss, an untimely voice sounded.

Gu Yuan held his teacup, slowly blew a breath, took a sip, and wore an expression of calm ease.

"Dad, it's just a lack of energy, no big deal."

Gu Yuan refilled his cup at a leisurely pace, saying, "If ours isn't enough, we just use someone else's."

"Someone else's?" Gu Lin Tian blinked.

The elders present also perked up their ears.

"The Young Master's words sound so familiar."

"Oh, I remember now—back then Gu Zhan that oaf suggested that if energy is lacking, we could 'borrow' the spirit veins of other Dao lineages."

"Rob?"

Gu Linjiang furrowed his brows; he is the family's strategist, always emphasizing proper procedure,

"Young Master, our Gu Family is now the lord of the Immortal Court, representing the order of the Primordial Immortal Realm; if we lead in pillaging, we risk alienating myriad clans, which would be detrimental in the long run."

"Who said we would rob?"

Gu Yuan set down his teacup, scanned the circle of worried elders in the hall, his gaze as if looking at a bunch of beggars guarding a gold mine yet starving.

He cleared his throat, stood up, and walked to the center of the hall.

"Elders and ancestors, I have a question for you."

"Whose is this path to immortality?"

Everyone blinked, then instinctively replied, "It… it belongs to the Young Master, that is, to our Gu Family."

"Exactly."

Gu Yuan snapped his fingers, "Things are ours, so the rules are naturally ours to set. Since our own resources aren't enough, why not let outsiders foot the bill?"

"Let outsiders pay?"

Gu Lin Tian chewed on those words, his eyes gradually brightening.

"Dad, you mean…"

Gu Yuan coaxed gently, like a fox luring a child with candy,

"In the Primordial Immortal Realm, how many people seek immortality?"

"As numerous as carp crossing the river."

Gu Linjiang answered without hesitation.

Do they have a way?

No.

Now we have it. We hold in our hands a broad road that guarantees a hundred percent chance of becoming immortal.

Gu Yuan spread his hands, the smile on his face turning somewhat playful,

"We'll put this road out there, then put up a notice."

He paused, then said word by word:

"Immortal quotas are open to the highest bidder. Want to get on the road? Sure. First, bring all your family's hidden immortal gold, divine source, and imperishable substances over to me. Once you've gathered enough, I'll give you a chance to queue."

"As for whether you can finish the road, whether you'll die on it, whether you'll be struck to ashes by the Heavenly Dao during tribulation— that all depends on your own ability and luck. Our Gu Family only provides the venue and tickets; we take no responsibility for after‑service."

These words spoken, the entire hall fell silent.

Everyone was shocked by Gu Yuan's recklessly insane idea.

Treating the chance to become immortal as a business?

And it's that kind of black‑hearted business that only takes money and offers no after‑service?

This… this is just too damn clever!

After a brief silence, the hall erupted with violent coughing and sharp intakes of breath.

"Young master… how did your brain grow like that?"

An elder stroked his chest, feeling his heart beat a little fast.

"My goodness."

Gu Zhan had just stabilized his realm when he heard this discussion, his copper‑bell‑large bull eyes staring wide,

"I've been saying I'm lacking compared to the young master; I used to think it was in cultivation, but now I see it's right here!"

He pointed at his own head, looking utterly convinced.

Robbing? Too low‑level.

Making others cry and beg, sending their life savings to you, pleading for you to accept— that's the art!

"This method… works!" Gu Lin Tian slapped his thigh hard, the worry in his eyes vanishing.

Yeah! How could they not have thought of that?

What they hold in their hands is the most scarce and precious resource of the Primeval Immortal Realm— the hope of becoming immortal!

This thing, there's no worry about selling it!

"We can not only get them to contribute resources, but also to contribute people!"

Gu Linjiang also reacted, a flush of excitement appearing on his usually steady face,

"We can set a threshold—for example, only those lineages with the deepest foundations may participate in the bidding. We can have them bring out their own core inherited scriptures, their most precious refining materials, and even… have them contribute enough powerful souls to replenish the foundation of our Gu Family's forbidden land!"

"Wonderful! Too wonderful!"

"This way, we won't have a resource crisis— instead, we can use this opportunity to gather all the resources of the Primeval Immortal Realm into our Gu Family!"

"And it's them volunteering!"