Chapter 814: From Light to Dark

In the Red Moon Sea, South Sea.At Silver Serpent Island, in the reception hall, the Wang family was hosting a banquet for their guests.

Wang Qingling had successfully formed her Core, so the Wang family held a grand banquet, widely inviting guests.

Wang Qingling sat in the main seat, her face beaming with smiles. Several Core Formation cultivators sat on either side, their faces also wreathed in smiles.

At one of the banquet tables, a dozen Foundation Establishment cultivators were drinking heartily, but a middle-aged man in his early thirties seemed somewhat distracted.

"Zhongping, what's wrong? It's a joyous day, why aren't you drinking more?"

Wang Qiuxin picked up the wine pot and poured a cup of spirit wine for the middle-aged man.

Li Zhongping was originally a rogue cultivator who made a living by hunting demonic beasts. He later married into the Wang family, taking a female cultivator from the family as his wife.

When he married into the Wang family, he was already at the second level of Foundation Establishment; now he was at the sixth level. To be honest, the Wang family treated him quite well. His monthly stipend was issued on time, he had a pair of lovely children, and his life was happy and fulfilling.

Li Zhongping forced a smile and said, "Hasn't Tianyou started cultivating? I'm wondering what cultivation method would be best for him. I don't know what method our Old Ancestor cultivates, but I'd like Tianyou to cultivate that too."

Cultivation methods are not easily shared; even family members may not know them. If a cultivator's method is leaked, it makes them vulnerable to enemies. Therefore, cultivators do not easily reveal their techniques, to avoid being targeted.

Towards the end of his statement, Li Zhongping looked towards Wang Qingling.

"I'm not sure about that," Wang Qiuxin said dismissively, raising his wine cup and draining it in one gulp. "Doesn't the clan have a Transmission Elder? You should let the Transmission Elder choose a cultivation method that suits Tianyou. The one that's right for him will be the best."

Li Zhongping nodded with a smile and said nothing more.

Suddenly, a beautiful middle-aged woman in her early thirties walked in, quickly approaching Wang Qingling. The woman's lips moved slightly, clearly transmitting a message.

Wang Qingling paused for a moment, then quickly recovered. She waved her hand, and the middle-aged woman withdrew.

Witnessing this, Li Zhongping's face showed a thoughtful expression.

One hour later, the banquet concluded, and the guests departed one after another.

Wang Qingling returned to her residence, her face looking very grim. Shortly after, the middle-aged woman and Wang Qiuhong entered, both also looking extremely distressed.

"Explain clearly, what exactly is going on?" Wang Qingling frowned deeply and asked sternly.

"Tenth Aunt, we don't know what happened, or who we provoked," the middle-aged woman said gravely. "Green Lotus Villa, Peach Mountain in the Demonic Beast Imperial Nation, and Sea Cucumber Island were all attacked. Over nine hundred clan members died, and financial losses are nearly ten million."

The middle-aged woman spoke in a grave tone, her expression filled with bitterness. All three strongholds were attacked; everything valuable was plundered, and whatever couldn't be carried away was burned. The Wang family had suffered a devastating blow. Fortunately, Wang Qingjing had narrowly escaped, as she had gone to celebrate Chen Yilong's birthday, taking Wang Qiuyan and others with her, thereby preserving some of the family's strength.

The precious texts treasured by the Wang family all had backups, which was a blessing amidst the misfortune.

Wang Qingling's gaze darkened. Before this, she hadn't understood why Wang Changsheng insisted on keeping some clan members in the Red Moon Sea for development. Now she understood; if Wang Changsheng hadn't had a contingency plan, the Wang family might have been annihilated this time.

Both Green Lotus Villa and Sea Cucumber Island were protected by third-tier formations, and given Wang Qingshan's connections, no force should have risked offending the Taiyi Immortal Sect by annihilating the Wang family.

The fact that three strongholds were successively destroyed indicated that the enemy was no ordinary force; a typical power couldn't have accomplished this.

The Wang family had risen too quickly and had also destroyed many other families, so they undoubtedly had many enemies. However, to execute such a large-scale operation, the enemy must have had Nascent Soul cultivators.

Who could it be? Wang Qingling was utterly baffled. In her mind, the Wang family had always placed strong restrictions on its members, making it unlikely they would offend a major power.

"Tenth Aunt, should we inform Grandfather?" Wang Qiuhong cautiously suggested, as several of his descendants and his primary wife had also perished in this catastrophe.

Wang Qingling pondered for a moment, then shook her head and said, "No, informing Ninth Uncle wouldn't be very useful, and we shouldn't disturb his cultivation. From today onwards, the clan will enter a state of combat readiness—outwardly relaxed but inwardly vigilant—to strictly guard against sneak attacks. Also, Qiuhong, you must arrange for some people to go to other sea regions to lie low, to avoid being wiped out completely. Furthermore, send a message to our clan members in the Eastern Wilderness to disperse, not to gather, and not to return to Green Lotus Villa. Select the elites and send them to the South Sea; have Tianqi receive them."

If a Nascent Soul cultivator was involved, even Wang Changsheng's intervention wouldn't be of much use. Moreover, the enemy was hidden while they were exposed. The Wang family had no idea where to find the enemy, and a rash attack might only allow the enemy to exploit their weaknesses. The Wang family now needed to make multiple preparations and transition from an overt to a covert stance.

"Yes, Tenth Aunt."

Wang Qiuhong hesitated slightly, then said, "Tenth Aunt, your nephew thinks we should establish forces directly under our control, with Wang clan members as the leadership. For example, by supporting smaller sects. This would give us an extra retreat route, make us harder to discover, and allow us to conceal our strength."

The advantage of a clan is its strong cohesion; blood ties cannot be severed by distance.

There are still hundreds of clan members in the Eastern Wilderness, and we can't abandon them. Gathering them together would pose a great risk. However, if we support a small sect and settle our clan members under its umbrella, we can ensure their safety without hindering their development.

"Okay, you can handle this matter as you see fit," Wang Qingling said, suddenly remembering something and admonishing him with some apprehension. "Also, when you're in contact with Eighth Sister and the others, you must be extremely careful not to let anyone trace the clues back to us."

If Silver Serpent Island were destroyed, it would be difficult for the Wang family to rise again. As long as Silver Serpent Island remained intact, they would still have a chance to recover. In this attack, the Wang family suffered significant losses to its mid-tier forces, but fortunately, the high-ranking members were unharmed.

"Yes, Tenth Aunt."

Wang Qiuhong agreed and left with the middle-aged woman.

Wang Qingling sighed deeply, her brows furrowed, and murmured to herself, "Who could it be? Who harbors such intense hatred towards our Wang family?"

In the Scripture Pavilion, Ye Haitang held a black seashell in her hand.

The black seashell contained a record of the Earth-tier cultivation method, "Great Dao of Forgetfulness." Originally, a copy was made for Ye Haitang to send back to the Eastern Wilderness, but with Green Lotus Villa attacked, that copy was no longer needed.

She took a deep breath, put away the black seashell, and walked out.

As she passed through the formation's restrictions, a faint red light flickered in her right hand, but the warning formation showed no reaction.

She had personally set up the restrictions in the Scripture Pavilion, so stealing anything from inside would be as easy as turning her hand over.

Sea Cucumber Island, Green Lotus Villa, and Peach Mountain in the Demonic Beast Imperial Nation had been attacked. Such a large-scale operation was ninety-nine percent likely the work of the Nine Nether Sect. Ye Haitang intended to switch to cultivating the "Great Dao of Forgetfulness." To prevent others from knowing the weaknesses of this cultivation method, she had to steal the original version. She intended to avenge Ye Yutong.