Chapter 196 - 97: War God Palace, The Upper Vein’s Succession

Chapter 196: Chapter 97: War God Palace, The Upper Vein’s Succession

"Hmph!" Before he could finish his invitation, a cold snort sounded from nearby. "I knew your Chen Family had wolfish ambitions and harbored ill intentions."

The speaker was, of course, Yu Xian, who had followed along with the others from Four Seasons Valley.

They had learned from Xia He that the Chen Family had invited Jiang Xuan to come alone. They knew exactly what the Chens were scheming, which was why so many of them had come and why they hadn’t left his side since.

"Jiang Xuan, you absolutely cannot join the War God Palace. The changing of an Upper Vein is no trivial matter. Not only is the success rate abysmally low, but every attempt is accompanied by endless bloodshed. If you get involved now, you’ll be putting yourself in grave danger."

The Four Seasons Valley Elder’s interference was, of course, expected by the Chen Family. But since they dared to make their offer in public, they naturally had a retort prepared. "Elder Yu, you are far too timid. The Great Dao must be fought for. It is precisely because of your constant willingness to retreat that your Four Seasons Valley fell from an Upper Vein to a Middle Vein. And now, you can barely even hold on to that."

This single sentence made the faces of Yu Xian and Yan Shouzhuo darken instantly, but Chen Wandie wasn’t finished twisting the knife. "Besides, if we’re really talking about danger, I’m afraid your Four Seasons Valley is in a far more precarious position, wouldn’t you say?"

"The changing of a Dharma Vein is, after all, overseen by Shenxiao Hall. While bloodshed occurs, it’s far from uncontrollable. Moreover, neither the Shenxiao Sect nor the Law Enforcement Hall would allow such struggles to threaten the lives of juniors. But your Four Seasons Valley’s technique is a different story. If I recall correctly, to cultivate your Vessel-Suppression Technique, one must go through a cycle of Life and Death Reincarnation, right?"

CRACK...

His words left the members of Four Seasons Valley speechless. The danger of the Four Seasons Reincarnation Technique had always been their Dharma Vein’s greatest weakness and fatal flaw.

The decline of Four Seasons Valley was never due to their passivity. It was because too many of their prodigies had fallen at that very hurdle.

As they stood in silence, Chen Wandie turned his gaze back to Jiang Xuan and once again extended a sincere invitation.

"Jiang Xuan, I sincerely hope you will come to the Chen Family and join the War God Palace. Our Dharma Vein’s Main Cultivation Method is already at the Celestial Level, and it won’t be long before we ascend to become an Upper Vein. When that time comes, cultivation techniques, resources, status—whatever you ask for, you shall receive."

Chen Wandie’s invitation was indeed very tempting.

But it was a shame for them that Jiang Xuan didn’t have to think for long before shaking his head in refusal. "Thank you for your kind offer, Patriarch Chen, but I must decline. Four Seasons Valley helped me a great deal when I was still weak and just starting out. I owe them a debt of gratitude for their guidance, and I will not leave them."

’Only three parts of that was genuine; the other seven were just an excuse.’

’The real reason for my refusal is that in Four Seasons Valley, my talent is unmatched. Therefore, the Dharma Vein will have no choice but to pour all of its power and resources into me.’

’But if I go to the War God Palace, even though they might have more resources, they also have more prodigies. I wouldn’t be guaranteed to receive their exclusive, all-out support.’

’In fact, my share of resources might not even surpass what Chen Qianjun gets.’

’After all, if the Chen Family has resources, they’ll give them to their Legitimate Son first, not to an outsider like me.’

"..." Jiang Xuan’s answer was far beyond Chen Wandie’s expectations, rendering him speechless for a moment.

The group from Four Seasons Valley, however, was deeply shaken and visibly moved by Jiang Xuan’s choice.

"Hahaha! Good lad! That’s the way!" Yan Shouzhuo laughed heartily. "I knew you were a man of loyalty and gratitude! Since you haven’t let Four Seasons Valley down, we will absolutely not let you down! From this day forward, my Valley of Summer will provide for all your cultivation resources!"

Following Yan Shouzhuo, Yu Xian also spoke, his voice filled with relief and pride. "Since you love books so much, you may freely browse and borrow any text from the Four Seasons Valley Scripture Pavilion. It wouldn’t be a problem even if you carted away half the collection."

"Thank you, Elder." This offer thrilled Jiang Xuan.

’If there are a hundred thousand Dao Scriptures and Daoist Collections here, I’d stay in Four Seasons Valley even if they gave me no other resources at all.’

’I hope my Scripture Profound Daoist Master talent has no upper limit.’

On their side, Jiang Xuan and the others were a picture of perfect harmony.

Chen Wandie, on the other hand, watched the Four Seasons Valley Elders. He sheathed his former sharpness and no longer spoke with a cold tone. Instead, with a hint of envy and a soft sigh, he said to them, "Congratulations, my fellow Daoists. You have truly found a fine disciple."

The envy in his voice as he spoke was impossible to conceal.

A disciple with such peerless talent, who is also loyal and grateful—who wouldn’t want someone like that?

It was because of Jiang Xuan’s "Innocent Heart" that even after being rejected to his face, Chen Wandie felt no anger. Instead, he made a solemn promise. "The gates of my Chen Family and the War God Palace will forever be open to you, young friend Jiang Xuan. Whenever you are willing to come, we will always be ready to welcome you."

With that said, he instructed Chen Chengguang to go inside and fetch the promised treasures. At the same time, he changed the subject. "Very well, you don’t wish to join my Chen Family. But I wonder, would you be willing to cooperate with us just once? I hope you will enter the Yin Daoist School and fight alongside Qianjun in the upcoming Hundred-Day Exam."

"For you, this arrangement has everything to gain and nothing to lose. The Daozi Courtyard is ultimately a unified body. During the exam, they will likely team up against you for the honor of their school, or at the request of their peers, and try to eliminate you first. You may be powerful, but even you can’t fight against overwhelming numbers. With Qianjun as your ally, you will surely be able to go much further in the exam."

"Of course, you are ultimately the stronger one. If you are willing to lend your aid, the Chen Family will offer an additional, generous gift as compensation."

"Furthermore, if you can assist Qianjun during the exam, we will increase our offer."

After saying this, he recalled Jiang Xuan’s "grateful" nature and added, "You don’t need to worry about Fellow Daoist Song, either. If you agree, we will compensate him ourselves and make sure he is satisfied."

This proposal genuinely tempted Jiang Xuan.

Even with his formidable strength, he couldn’t claim to be completely unafraid of a coordinated attack from all the prodigies in the Daozi Courtyard, to say nothing of the extra resources the Chen Family was offering.

However, he didn’t agree right away. Instead, he turned to look at Yu Xian, Granny Lan, and the others behind him, asking for their opinions.

"Cooperation should be fine," said Yan Shouzhuo.

"We do have to be on guard against the Daozi Courtyard making a move on you," Yu Xian agreed.

With the approval of the Four Seasons Valley Elders, Jiang Xuan immediately turned to Chen Wandie and cupped his fist. "In that case, I will be in your care, Patriarch Chen."

"Haha, what trouble is there to speak of?" Chen Wandie laughed heartily. "And besides, ’Patriarch Chen’ is too formal. From now on, you and Qianjun will be fighting side-by-side as comrades. Just call me Uncle Chen."

"Yes, Uncle Chen." Jiang Xuan readily complied.

As the two were enjoying their pleasant conversation, Chen Chengguang returned from the family’s treasure vault, carrying a brocade box with the promised treasures.

Just by sensing them, Jiang Xuan could tell that the six Treasure Level Treasures inside the box were anything but ordinary Mortal Grade items.

’However, Chen Chengguang only came over after we sealed the deal. It’s obvious he was in constant contact with Chen Wandie. If our talks had fallen through, this set of treasures would look quite different.’

This was all within his expectations. ’They were never going to give me their absolute best treasures. As long as what they offer isn’t too shabby, I’ll be satisfied.’

And yet, there was a clear, pleasant surprise:

When the treasures were presented, what made Jiang Xuan’s heart pound and his breath catch was that one of them began to produce a faint but clear, resonant thrum with the Divine Power Seed—the Eternal Golden Bell—inside his Dantian!