Chapter 3604: The Gu-Nurturing Plan

Wu Feiyan is very clear that the Wu family members are all self-interested.

The Wu family is divided into five branches, each overseeing one of the Five Military Governorates, a structure Wu Feiyan herself established—like five fiefdoms of princes and marquises; though they are all subjects of the Son of Heaven, their hearts certainly would not place the emperor's orders above their own personal interests.

Therefore, the Five Military Governorates may not truly be sparing no effort in searching for Lin Wanan.

To the Five Military Governorates, they indeed do not care much about Lin Wanan's whereabouts or life or death.

Don't look at them being Wu Feiyan's juniors, today's everything also relies on Wu Feiyan, but they are very clear in their hearts that their current good life is actually built upon the foundation of the Five Military Governorates.

As long as the Five Military Governorates remain, even if Wu Feiyan dies, the Wu family members can still live a life above others.

In contrast, Wu Feiyan being alive poses a greater threat to the Wu family members, because Wu Feiyan acts without regard for cost or consequence, and the Wu family members are easily swept along by her will.

Lin Wanan concerns Wu Feiyan's life or death, but if Wu Feiyan dies, it is not a bad thing for the Wu family members.

If the Five Military Governorates were to lose the Son of Heaven above them, then each of the five Grand Commandants would be an emperor.

Wu Feiyan also understands this principle in her heart—aren't the Wu family members not so concerned about her life or death?

Well then, let these clan heads also taste what it means to savor longevity.

Wu Tianlin also knows Wu Feiyan's intention, and thus respectfully said: "This subordinate will convey the Yingzhu's oral order to the five Grand Commandants."

Wu Feiyan slightly furrowed her brows, then said: "Notify the three elders, just say I have matters to instruct them."

Wu Tianlin felt surprised in his heart, yet dared not ask further, and immediately respectfully said: "Yingzhu, please wait a moment; this subordinate will go notify the three elders right away."

More than ten minutes later, three elders nearly two hundred years old walked together to the outer chamber of Wu Feiyan's sleeping palace.

The leading Grand Elder Wu Bolin respectfully said: "Yingzhu, your subordinate Bolin, together with Wen and Zhong, request an audience."

"Come in." Wu Feiyan said lightly.

The three immediately pushed the door open, unhurriedly came before Wu Feiyan, and respectfully bowed: "We pay our respects to Yingzhu!"

Wu Feiyan slightly nodded, then spoke: "Today I summoned the three elders to discuss a few matters."

Wu Bolin immediately respectfully said: "Yingzhu, please give your orders!"

Wu Feiyan glanced at each of the three in turn and said: "I have already ordered Tianlin to issue the command: whoever in the Purging the Pure Society captures Lin Wanan will be rewarded with countless gold and silver, and their entire family will receive a hundred years of yang longevity. However, judging by the three elders' current strength, unless they find the Eternal Verdant Elixir or help the three elders open the Purple Mansion Palace, I, Wu Feiyan, also lack the ability to grant the three elders a hundred years of yang longevity. Thus, the three elders need not trouble themselves over this."

The three exchanged glances, all unaware of what Wu Feiyan meant by this.

Since she does not want them to trouble themselves, why did she summon them to say these things?

Moreover, speaking of opening the Purple Mansion Palace, the three elders harbor some resentment in their hearts, after all, they have been in seclusion for a hundred years, needing only to grit their teeth and persist for another ten or so years, possibly opening the Purple Mansion Palace one after another; once opened, their lifespans would exceed two hundred years, even two hundred and several decades would not be out of the question.

But all this has been interrupted by Wu Feiyan; once this momentum is shattered, trying to recover it would not be a matter of ten or so years—wasting another ten or twenty years would be commonplace.

Wu Bolin's mind reacts faster; he dare not think too much in his heart, merely stepped forward, knelt on one knee, clasped his hands, and said: "Your subordinate serves Yingzhu in affairs, always without seeking reward; as long as Yingzhu speaks a word, we three shall certainly scale blades and plunge into flames and seas—how could we calculate gains and losses? I implore Yingzhu to issue the order, permitting us three to leave the island to search for Lin Wanan's whereabouts!"

The other two then suddenly understood.

It seems we have been in seclusion too long, our minds have grown dull; when the boss says he cannot offer a satisfactory price, if we stay silent or refuse, we might just touch the boss's reverse scale.

When the boss says she cannot give us a satisfactory price, the correct response should be to flatter her and immediately declare: I serve the boss not for money, no money is fine—I will still work, and without even a hint of discount.

Thus, the two also quickly declared in unison: "We subordinates wholeheartedly wish to serve Yingzhu, disregarding gains and losses; we hope Yingzhu permits us three to leave the island!"

Wu Feiyan let out a light snort from her nose, smiling yet not smiling, and nodded: "Having this intention is enough for you; capturing that little fox Lin Wanan relies on ingenuity, not brute force—sending you is truly overkill."

Wu Bolin's thoughts turned quickly; upon hearing Wu Feiyan say this, he roughly guessed that Wu Feiyan certainly still had other matters to instruct the three.

Thus he immediately respectfully asked: "I wonder if there is anything else we can do to relieve Yingzhu's worries?"

Wu Feiyan went with the flow and said: "Over these years, the consumption of spirit stones and elixirs in cultivation has been enormous, the loss of heavenly materials and earthly treasures is a bottomless pit; I wish to gather essential materials in time for future needs, but many materials are not obtainable by ordinary people, so I hope the three elders will go out and travel, see if they can gain anything; if they find spirit stones, in principle I will not interfere; if they find magical artifacts, the three may keep them; but those millennia-rare alchemical materials, keeping them would be useless—bring them back to me, and after I refine them into pills, I can divide fifty percent among you three."

In this world, there are many supreme treasures; those whose cultivation is insufficient find them hard to obtain, especially places ordinary people have never gone, strange beasts and rare creatures they have never seen; if they encounter formations left by ancient cultivators before their death, breaking them might bring great fortune.

However, Wu Feiyan is naturally suspicious, and with the vast enterprise of the Purging the Pure Society before her, she dares not go alone to seek fortune, so she plans to send the three great elders scattered, to seek those fortunes in her place.

Magical artifacts and spirit stones—she truly does not care much; what she truly cares about is the formulas and raw materials for high-grade elixirs.

She has never transmitted the art of alchemy to anyone in the Wu family, so even if the three great elders obtained the formulas and materials, they could not possibly refine them; thus, as long as they find these and bring them back, she can refine large quantities of elixirs.

She knows in her heart that if she fails to obtain the Hundred Reversals Thousand Returns Elixir for a long time, in the coming hundred years she will surely fall into demonic madness, and she must make the Wu family's descendants share her madness, otherwise the Purging the Pure Society will surely turn against her in heart while appearing united.

Making the Wu family members fall into demonic madness is not difficult—they already have wealth and status; what can control them is lifespan.

If there is a large quantity of elixirs, it can make the current leadership of the Wu family cease iteration, thus making the current leadership loyal and devoted to her, letting them enjoy several more decades of power and peak life conditions—they will surely become utterly immersed in it.

This is a decades-long nurturing of gu plan; decades later, when the Wu family leaders of the Five Military Governorates are all over a hundred years old, their dependence on her will only grow stronger, for once she has an issue, or once she cuts off their elixirs, they will undoubtedly die.

In this way, they will face the same situation as her.

If she cannot live, she will overturn this world.

If they cannot live, they will surely be willing to accompany her into utter demonic madness!