Chapter 4105: 4086 Quotas

On the Chaos Continent, within the North Sea Immortal Realm, in a quiet manor in Xuanyu City, Wang Yingjie, Wang Qingfeng, Wang Qingshan, Sun Yuejiao, Wang Qingcheng, Ye Haitang, and Qi Shuting were seated in a green stone pavilion, deep in conversation.

She had barely escaped with her life, pursued by a Golden Immortal-stage Chaos Beast, but fortunately, Wang Mengbin arrived in time and saved her. The Qi family suffered heavy losses and had to dispatch additional personnel from the Tianchen Sea Region to regain control of Golden Crocodile City.

The tide of Chaos Beasts caused severe losses for all major forces. According to data released by the Cao family, hundreds of Golden Immortal cultivators perished. While the figures were likely inflated, the fact that "Xuan" cities became vacant was true.

This battle led to a major reshuffle of power, significantly shrinking the Murong family's territory. The Wang family did not expand; they merely defended Xuanyu City. Qi Shuting had initially wanted to control several more Xuan cities, but after hearing Wang Qingshan's analysis, she decided that merely defending Golden Crocodile City would suffice.

Other forces, however, did not share this view. The Ghost Spirit Sect and others seized the opportunity to expand, occupying multiple Xuan cities. More than five thousand years have passed since the great battle, and the major forces have somewhat recovered their strength.

Chen Yueying, Lan Fukong, Ni Tianlong, Gongsun Yang, Four Seasons Sword Master, Li Qinghuan, Ci Lei, Zhou Yushan, and Yang Chunqiu successively advanced to the Golden Immortal stage. Even so, Wang Qingshan did not expand. Instead, he dispatched members of the Commerce Hall to various sea regions to collect cultivation resources, preparing for war with utmost diligence and not daring to show any slack.

The various halls of the Wang family operated swiftly, producing all kinds of strategic resources: immortal talismans, immortal artifacts, and immortal puppets, with a particular focus on Immortal Extermination Arrows, Immortal Extermination Cannons, and Chaos Armor.

Wang Qingshan acquired Mixed Origin Stones from various forces using Chaos Beast crystal cores at a price thirty percent higher than market value, then handed them over to the Divine Armaments Hall for crafting Chaos Armor. Wang Jiye, Wang Zongyun, Wang Yuyu, Su Hongshang, and others had mastered the "Azure Lotus Artifact Forging Art," significantly increasing the success rate of crafting Chaos Armor. As a result, the Wang family's Immortal Armored Army expanded once more, reaching one hundred members.

Chen Yueying, Lan Fukong, Ni Tianlong, and others were promoted to captains, each leading a team. They selected elites from their own forces to join the Immortal Armored Army. All cultivation resources for the Immortal Armored Army were provided by the Wang family, and treatment was equal for all, without distinction.

"Fellow Daoist Wang, please reconsider Fellow Daoist He's suggestion. Such an opportunity is rare," Qi Shuting urged.

She somewhat regretted not listening to Wang Qingshan earlier; they should have seized the Xuan cities.

The Ghost Spirit Sect, which originally controlled only two Xuan cities, took advantage of the major forces' heavy losses to proactively apply to the Cao family for control of two additional Xuan cities. Many similar cases occurred.

After the Chaos Beast tide receded, the Ghost Spirit Sect and other forces saw their strength rapidly increase, relying on the cultivation resources from the Xuan cities. Qi Shuting observed this with growing anxiety.

The Qi family's vitality was severely damaged, making it difficult to recover quickly. The Wang family also suffered losses, but the advancement of Chen Yueying and others to the Golden Immortal stage greatly enhanced the Wang family's strength.

She wanted to persuade Wang Qingshan to take control of a Xuan city, believing it would make their development easier.

"Madam Qi, as I've told you, Immortal Luo Shui must have divined some great disaster. Even if the Murong family suffered heavy losses, they wouldn't just defend two Xuan cities! As far as I know, the Murong family is procuring strategic materials in large quantities," Wang Qingshan said gravely.

He trusted his own judgment. Wang Chuanming had been closely monitoring the Murong family and discovered they were procuring strategic materials in large quantities. The Murong family conducted these transactions very discreetly, with their disciples not appearing in person and buying through intermediaries, which naturally incurred higher prices. Other forces found it difficult to detect, but Wang Chuanming still found some clues.

"Fellow Daoist Wang, everyone is procuring strategic materials in large quantities; that doesn't prove anything. So many years have passed, and we haven't seen a larger-scale war break out. You're simply worrying needlessly. Perhaps the Murong family is holding onto only two Xuan cities due to other considerations, or maybe there's an internal issue within the Murong family," Qi Shuting said stubbornly.

If the Wang family did not act, the Qi family lacked the strength to occupy more Xuan cities. "Madam Qi, I trust my own judgment," Wang Qingshan said.

"What if your judgment is wrong? Wouldn't that be wasting an opportunity to rise?" Qi Shuting asked with a frown.

"If we have enough experts, won't we rise? Talent is the most important thing; territory is secondary. My mind is made up, please say no more," Wang Qingshan said, standing firm and unswayed.

Qi Shuting sighed deeply, looking at Wang Qingfeng and the others, who remained silent.

To be honest, seeing the Ghost Spirit Sect and other forces seize Xuan cities and develop increasingly well, it would be false to say they weren't envious. There were differing opinions within the Wang family, but Wang Qingshan had made it very clear: they would rather miss an opportunity to expand than take a big risk. As long as the number of Golden Immortal cultivators was sufficient, the Wang family's expansion was only a matter of time.

With Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan absent, Wang Qingshan was the highest in terms of both strength and seniority, so other family members could hardly say anything further.

Wang Qingshan had wavered at times, but when Wang Chuanming investigated and reported that the Murong family was acquiring strategic materials at high prices, it solidified Wang Qingshan's belief in his own judgment.

"Please consider it carefully. Contact me anytime if you change your mind. I'll take my leave now," Qi Shuting said, standing up to depart.

"I'll see you out, Madam Qi."

Wang Qingcheng stood up and personally escorted Qi Shuting out.

Wang Qingfeng took out a red immortal transmission mirror, struck a magical incantation into it, and Cao Yuanxing appeared on the mirror's surface.

"Fellow Daoist Wang, there are still several Xuan cities vacant. Would you like to consider them? With the current strength of your Wang family, only defending one Xuan city is quite a waste," Cao Yuanxing said.

"Thank you for your kind offer, Fellow Daoist Cao. We appreciate it. Our strength is humble, and we are quite content with being able to defend one Xuan city," Wang Qingfeng tactfully declined.

"By the way, we, along with the Tianming Clan, the Yang family, the Five Immortal Sects, and the Nine Yuan Palace, jointly control a secret realm called the Seven Rainbow Grotto-Heaven. It contains many cultivation resources needed by Golden Immortal cultivators, as well as Golden Immortal-stage Chaos Beasts. We plan to open the Seven Rainbow Grotto-Heaven and send Golden Immortal cultivators inside to gather resources. If you're interested, you can send people to sign up," Cao Yuanxing said, changing the subject to business.

"Just signing up grants participation? Aren't you sending your own people in?" Wang Qingfeng asked curiously.

"Of course not. To obtain a spot, there will be a competition, and only the top ten will receive spots. The first-place winner gets five spots, second place gets four, third gets three, fourth and fifth each get two, and from sixth to tenth place, each gets one spot. The higher the ranking, the more spots you get. We won't send our own people in; only those from subordinate Xuan cities will participate, to demonstrate fairness. Upon leaving the Seven Rainbow Grotto-Heaven, we will collect one-fifth of the immortal herbs," Cao Yuanxing explained.

This was a way for the Cao family, the Tianming Clan, and other forces to resolve disputes. By allowing Golden Immortals from their subordinate Xuan cities to enter and seek treasures, they would all receive a share of cultivation resources regardless of the outcome. The faction whose subordinate Xuan city produced the most Golden Immortal cultivators alive would be deemed the winner.

If they were to send their own clan members or disciples into the Seven Rainbow Grotto-Heaven, the resulting bloodshed would only escalate conflicts. However, if the Golden Immortals from subordinate Xuan cities fought and suffered casualties, it would not escalate conflicts between the major powers themselves.