Chapter 4631: Original Bloodline

The Wang family possesses six Grand Unity Golden Immortals, while most other Heavenly Cities typically have only three. However, the Wang family gained renown from a single battle. Should Chaos Beasts launch an assault, they would undoubtedly be led by Royal Beasts, and in considerable numbers.

If Wang Changsheng were to scatter his clansmen, it would merely create an opening for the Chaos Beasts. The optimal strategy is to collaborate with other powers, allowing them to share in the benefits and alleviate some of the pressure.

While numerous factions sought cooperation with the Wang family, the Dugu Immortal Clan and the Ye family were ultimately selected. This decision was not driven by Wang Changsheng's generosity, but rather by the favorable terms they offered.

To partake in the spoils, one must naturally demonstrate sincerity, rather than attempting to gain something for nothing.

Fairy Liuyun presented a Heavenly Soul Jadeite Stone, a jade slip, and a small fragment of Blood Nirvana Divine Crystal. The Heavenly Soul Jadeite Stone is suitable for forging top-grade immortal artifacts related to the soul, while the jade slip contained cultivation insights for Golden-Bearded Ice-Scaled Fish, which she had acquired from the Qiankun Ruins.

Dugu Tianlong offered a top-grade spirit bean, a secret art for opening the nine orifices, a casket of Qianjin Immortal Sand, Xuanyuan Golden Scale Jade, and two Sun-Moon Immortal Fruits. The Xuanyuan Golden Scale Jade, valuable in its own right, is particularly useful for crafting top-grade defensive immortal artifacts.

The two Heavenly Cities are situated in the Barghuz and Chahar Mountain Ranges, respectively. In addition to two Tier-4 immortal mines, these regions boast numerous immortal herb gardens, various other immortal mines, and immortal wood gardens, making them rich in cultivation resources.

Chahar City was renamed Green Lotus City and placed under the direct management of the Wang family. Barghuz City became Xuanyang City, to be managed by the Wang family, the Dugu Immortal Clan, and the Ye family. Of the profits generated, the Wang family would receive eighty percent, the Dugu Immortal Clan one and a half percent, and the Ye family half a percent.

Despite these terms, both the Dugu Immortal Clan and the Ye family stood to gain considerably. However, these benefits were not gratuitous; tasks such as mining immortal ores, felling immortal timber, and cultivating spirit fish were to be handled by personnel dispatched from the Ye family and the Dugu Immortal Clan, while Wang family members would serve as the management, overseeing operations.

In essence, the primary management authority over Xuanyang City rests with the Wang family. While the Dugu Immortal Clan and the Ye family possess some influence, it is limited, and they must exert considerable effort to secure their share of the benefits.

The Dugu Immortal Clan and the Ye family raised no objections, as the modest investment promised substantial returns—terms that no other faction would likely refuse.

The profits from Xuanyang City were secondary; the paramount objective was to strengthen their ties with the Wang family.

Immortal Monarch Taihao possesses complete sets of top-grade immortal artifacts, imbued with Primordial Spirit Treasure essence. The Wang family, moreover, owns multiple top-grade Immortal Extermination Cannons and several Earth-grade immortal warships, each also equipped with top-grade Immortal Extermination Cannons.

Fostering strong ties with the Wang family would facilitate seeking assistance from Immortal Monarch Taihao in the future.

"If anyone is providing care, it is the Wang family caring for us; our Ye family relies on them," Fairy Liuyun remarked with a smile. Frankly, she was quite surprised that the Ye family was granted a share.

The Ye family's overall strength was significantly less than that of the Dugu Immortal Clan. However, the Ye family held two distinct advantages: first, their familial ties with the Wang family through marriage, and second, Ye Xuanji's ability to forge high-grade Chaos Armor, which could alleviate the workload of Tier-3 immortal artifact masters such as Wang Jiye.

"From now on, we will all be working together," Wang Changsheng stated, raising his teacup, "so it's not a matter of who takes care of whom, but rather mutual assistance."

Numerous factions had sent representatives to approach him, but after careful consideration, Wang Changsheng decided to accept only the Dugu Immortal Clan and the Ye family. Granting the Ye family a share was primarily a strategic move to create a balance against the Dugu Immortal Clan.

The Wang family currently possessed six Grand Unity Golden Immortals, which necessitated allowing other forces to share in the gains. If they had over a dozen, there would be no need for external participation. It is challenging to make others relinquish what they have already acquired, though it becomes somewhat easier if someone takes the lead.

Naturally, in the realm of cultivation, strength reigns supreme. The Wang family's power was considerable enough that other forces would not dare to openly defy them; Wang Changsheng was simply being proactive and taking precautionary measures.

Wang Ruyan and the two others raised their teacups in unison, clinking them together. The consumption of this immortal tea symbolized the formation of a cooperative alliance among the three families.

"By the way, Fellow Daoist Dugu," Wang Changsheng began, "your clan possesses a venerable heritage, and there are some matters I would like to consult you on."

"Please, Fellow Daoist Wang, speak without hesitation," Dugu Tianlong replied. "I shall withhold nothing I know."

"I've heard that the Lin family, a Daoist clan, has amassed numerous Daoist arts," Wang Changsheng inquired curiously. "Reportedly, Meteor Fire Rain, Moon on the Sea, One Sword to Sever the Dust, and the Immortal Suppression Seal all originated from their lineage."

Dugu Tianlong offered a faint smile and shook his head. "These are mere rumors, largely stemming from the Lin family's immense renown. There are even tales that Dao Ancestor Qiankun achieved his breakthrough thanks to a legacy from the Lin family! While the Lin family indeed possesses many Daoist arts, the most prominent among them is 'Absolute Zero.' This technique can only be mastered by those who command the Law of Ice and possess an Ice Spirit Body. A Grand Unity Golden Immortal from the Lin family once employed this very Daoist art to eliminate a Royal Beast that was a mid-stage Grand Unity Golden Immortal." While some beasts might be early-stage Grand Unity Golden Immortals, mid-stage ones are considerably more challenging to handle.

"Absolute Zero! An Ice Spirit Body!" Wang Ruyan exclaimed, a thoughtful expression appearing on her face.

"Precisely!" Dugu Tianlong affirmed. "The Lin family's patriarch achieved Dao through the Law of Ice. When it comes to pure law power, a Grand Unity Golden Immortal from the Lin family, also mastering the Law of Ice, can suppress other Grand Unity Golden Immortals."

"But surely not all Lin family Grand Unity Golden Immortals can achieve this, can they?" Wang Changsheng mused. "I heard it also requires a sufficiently strong bloodline."

"For a Lin family descendant to possess this capability," Dugu Tianlong slowly explained, "their bloodline strength must reach seventy percent of their patriarch's. This level of bloodline intensity is referred to as 'Origin Bloodline,' and possessing it grants access to a measure of Origin Power."

"Origin Bloodline? Origin Power?" Fairy Liuyun exclaimed in surprise. "Then who could possibly contend against them?"

Any being that ascends to the level of Dao Ancestor gains mastery over Origin Power—an inexhaustible, constantly regenerating force, with every casual strike infused with its essence.

"A Dao Ancestor's Origin Power is indeed inexhaustible," Dugu Tianlong clarified. "However, this particular manifestation merely grants a limited amount of Origin Power. While wielding it can dramatically boost one's strength, it is exceptionally difficult to replenish; it's said that fully depleting it leads to death. Typically, cultivators who possess this form of Origin Power are considered 'Dao Ancestor seeds'."

"Origin Power? Dao Ancestor seeds?" Wang Changsheng asked curiously. "How does this 'Origin Bloodline' differ from the bloodline purity found in demon beasts? And does it increase as one's cultivation realm advances?"

"The purity of a demon beast's bloodline primarily pertains to its ability to shapeshift and cultivate into a True Spirit," Dugu Tianlong explained. "It's not strongly correlated with cultivation realm; achieving shapeshifting or True Spirit status isn't directly proportional to one's realm, nor does a higher realm guarantee such an outcome. The same applies to Origin Bloodline. Its strength can be gradually enhanced through postnatal cultivation or with external aid, but increasing Origin Bloodline's intensity is exceedingly difficult—far more challenging than improving a demon beast's bloodline purity." Dugu Tianlong continued, then, recalling something, added: "Generally speaking, if a cultivator reaches the Grand Unity Golden Immortal stage and their Origin Bloodline strength has not yet reached seventy percent, their chances are slim. However, if an individual successfully cultivates to become a Dao Ancestor, it becomes comparatively easier—though still only relatively—for their descendants of the new generation to achieve an Origin Bloodline strength of seventy percent. Even within the Lin family, the number of clan members whose Origin Bloodline strength reaches seventy percent is exceedingly rare."