Chapter 263

Hearing this, Xu Gu knew full well that what followed was not for him to hear.

Added to his unwillingness to stay any longer, he felt as if granted a royal pardon, scrambled to his feet, and bolted away without looking back.

By the time Xu Gu had completely left the ancestral hall.

Only Jiang Daoxuan and Zhang Cang remained in the room.

Zhang Cang stared at Jiang Daoxuan's back, his expression reverent, and ventured cautiously: "May I ask, Lord Jiang, what is your view of the current imperial court?"

At these words.

Jiang Daoxuan slowly rose from his cushion and turned to look.

His face, flawless as that of a celestial immortal, not of this world, startled Zhang Cang deeply.

Simultaneously, an aura of natural authority filled the air, instilling dread—as if standing before an emperor himself!

Though he had long seen Jiang Daoxuan's likeness in portraits.

Yet in person, the sensation was utterly different—worlds apart!

A wisp of qi flowed forth, shaking the very space, making him faintly yearn to kneel.

What cultivation base does this White Robe Sword Marquis truly possess? Could he really be only a Moon Wheel?

Under Zhang Cang's horrified gaze.

Jiang Daoxuan spoke slowly: "The imperial court? It seeks to control the lifelines of all powers under heaven; its relationship with sects and clans has long been like oil and water. In time, a clash between them is inevitable..."

Having arrived in this world for several months.

Aside from cultivating and overseeing family affairs,

he had gathered much intelligence on the Great Qin Dynasty.

Before the founding of the Great Qin Dynasty, this land was ruled by the Great Chu Dynasty.

Back then,

because the Great Chu Dynasty sought to seize power from the great clans and sects to centralize authority,

it moved too quickly, too aggressively.

As a result, numerous powers unwilling to submit united and launched a war!

The founder of the Great Qin Dynasty won the support of countless Ten Thousand Manifestation clans and sects by declaring: "If I establish a dynasty, I shall share the heavens with the sects and clans!"

This war lasted years, ending with the fall of the Great Chu Dynasty.

After the Great Qin Dynasty was established,

it initially honored its promise to share the heavens with the sects and clans.

But as time passed,

the boy who slew the dragon became the dragon himself.

Thousands of years are enough to change too many things.

Gradually, the Great Qin Dynasty began walking the same path as the Great Chu Dynasty.

To reclaim complete power, it secretly suppressed all rival powers.

Especially after absorbing the failures of the Great Chu Dynasty, it surpassed them in cunning and ruthlessness.

It deployed countless methods to weaken the foundations of all major powers.

It divided the thirty-six prefectures to sever ties among sects, established the Black and White Academy to recruit talent from all factions for its own use, and more.

Faced with these moves, the other powers were powerless.

After all, over thousands of years, in fierce struggles over resources,

countless Ten Thousand Manifestation powers lost their lineages and vanished in the conflicts.

The former Heaven Demon Cult was one such case.

Precisely because he knew these facts,

Jiang Daoxuan understood fully.

The current Great Qin Dynasty was a powder keg ready to explode.

It wanted to reclaim power, yet refused to relinquish it—and would not tolerate being restrained!

Hence his assertion: when the time is ripe, a war between the two sides is inevitable.

At this moment, as Jiang Daoxuan finished speaking,

Zhang Cang nodded slightly: "Precisely because the situation is so tense, to resist imperial oppression, we must unite all the more!"

"Currently, our Qingshan Sect, the Zhao Family of Bihai, the Tianyao Sect, and the Chihun Sect all seek alliance. Once united, we can establish a complete trade network, stand together, and make Sima Nan, the city governor, think twice before acting recklessly..."

Hm?

Jiang Daoxuan's gaze flickered, and he grew slightly interested.

He was no stranger to these four powers.

Each had a Moon Wheel cultivator as its pillar—top-tier forces in Tiandou Prefecture!

Even the Zhao Family of Bihai, stationed in Bihai City, possessed greater depth than the former Tang Family.

Their ancestral elder, "Zhao Zizhen," held seventh-layer Moon Wheel cultivation, specializing in spellcraft; his strength ranked among the top ten in Tiandou Prefecture!

Moreover, the Zhao Family's Tongbao Trading Guild spanned several prefectures.

Their wealth was among the top three in Tiandou Prefecture.

As for the Tianyao Sect, it was a long-renowned elixir power.

Its ancestral elder was a high-grade, two-stripe alchemist capable of refining Earth-grade mid-tier elixirs—equivalent to a Moon Wheel True Person.

The Chihun Sect specialized in spear cultivation; its ancestral elder had attained Spear Heart and was honored as the "Spear Marquis!"

Then Zhang Cang continued: "Yet, because we still lack a leader capable of intimidating Sima Nan, the alliance has yet to be formally proposed—it remains only a concept."

"But now, your destruction of the Tiandou Tang Family has echoed throughout Tiandou Prefecture. With your strength, if you lead, this plan will no longer be a dream—it will become reality at once!"

"Moreover, before I rushed over to Cangwu Mountain, I had already visited the other three families first and discussed matters. According to the result of our joint deliberation among the four families, if you agree, our four families are willing to acknowledge the Jiang clan of Cangwu as our leader and place you in the position of Alliance Chief..."

"If you agree, one month from now, the Old Ancestors of our four families will all personally descend upon Cangwu Mountain to meet with you face-to-face to discuss the many specific matters concerning the alliance..."

Having finished speaking, Zhang Cang looked nervously at Jiang Daoxuan.

The matter of the alliance was of great importance and could not afford the slightest carelessness.

At this moment, however, Jiang Daoxuan merely smiled lightly.

Since he could leverage the channels of the four great powers to let the clan's disciples obtain many benefits.

When going out, they could also gain much convenience.

What reason did he have to refuse?

It was the perfect chance to take advantage of the situation to establish a merchant guild and intelligence network belonging to the Jiang clan themselves.

Thinking of this, he nodded and said calmly: "The matter of the alliance, agreed."

The moment these words left his mouth, Zhang Cang was overjoyed at heart.

Once they had the White-Robed Sword Marquis, publicly recognized as one of the top three experts of Tiandou Prefecture, as their backer.

Presumably, even someone as strong as Sima Nan would have to show some wariness, thereby reducing many of the underhanded moves targeting them.

In his delight, he bowed and said: "When I was hurrying over to Cangwu Mountain earlier, I saw that the market town at the foot of the mountain was crude and completely unfit for the standard the Jiang clan of Cangwu should now possess. This time, once I return to my sect, I shall certainly report to those above, then gather the strength of our four families to build a cultivator's city for you — how does that sound?"

"This city can also serve perfectly as the alliance's trade center..."

——————

PS: Planning to transform the market town at the foot of the mountain into a cultivator-exclusive trade city.

Everyone is welcome to actively suggest names: XX City!

The name with the most likes will be chosen as the city's name.

Also, Jiang Daoyun will return in the next few chapters.

Because the timeline is being pushed forward rather slowly, and on top of that it's equivalent to crossing nations, it takes a very long time to travel.

So it gives everyone the illusion that Cat9 forgot about this wandering trio.

In fact, the plot has been advancing all along — multiple Destinies, multiple plotlines running in parallel!

And before each Destiny appears, some plot buildup is needed, to reduce the sense of abruptness.

In short, for the shortcomings, please bear with me greatly. Cat9 is doing his best to improve, accumulate experience, and adjust the writing style.

Oh right, let me explain the matter of clan member ranks.

As strength increases and fortune changes, a clan member's rank will rise.

In other words, clan member ranks are not fixed.

Currently these are only the initial ranks — the ranks of Destiny clan members will also gradually increase!

For example, at the very beginning the Grand Elder Jiang Hong was green, and later leveled up to blue!