Bombarding Cultivators with Cluster Artillery
Chapter 543 - 528 Qing Qing Got Injured

"The two of you."

"If that's the case, then let us meet again another day."

Jiang Ding nodded and his figure disappeared.

Staying with the current Han Lin and the soul remnant of Sinking Crane whose background he knew not of, made him slightly uncomfortable; he felt a hint of insecurity.

With his form concealed and no longer under the gaze of others, his heart instantly felt much more at ease as he quickly flew off into the distance.

"Farewell, junior uncle!"

Han Lin said his respectful goodbye and maintained a bowing posture.

Not until nearly tens of breaths later, when he surmised that the other party had gone far off, did he stand up and breathed a sigh of relief.

In his incredibly weakened state, both his Divine Soul and Divine Sense had been tightly stretched; only now did they relax a little.

After pondering for a moment,

he also cast a Concealment Spell and randomly chose a direction in which to leave.

"Your Concealment Spell is too weak,"

the aged voice seemed to shake its head slightly, "Even Foundation-building cultivators, using their Divine Sense carefully, can detect some clues, let alone Golden Pill Nascent Soul Monks; it's almost of no use."

"Indeed."

"I must find a more clever Concealment Spell."

Han Lin too sighed.

Clever Concealment Spells are not easy to find.

Such spells are rare to begin with, and the more ingenious ones are the closely guarded secrets of major forces, inaccessible to outsiders at any price, with virtually none circulating outside.

This is the plight of a Loose Cultivator; one has to struggle and assemble resources bit by bit on one's own.

It is not that he dislikes quiet Cultivation, preferring instead to fight and scrap wherever he goes.

On the other hand,

after spending some time, Jiang Ding extracted the memories of two Hei Clan Golden Pill Peak Monks, then placed their soul remnants into an extremely deep cavern tens of thousands of miles away, set with a Formation Method that would detonate and destroy them after a few years.

If any accidents occur, such as being triggered prematurely by Beast People or due to a volcanic earthquake, it would also detonate automatically.

"Hmm, from now on, that's how temporarily I'll deal with those who have a background."

Jiang Ding nodded to himself, took out a Jade Slip, and recorded the process of his actions, the causes and consequences, the detonation Formation Method used, the monitoring Formation Method, the location, and the time of detonation.

"Should there be issues in the future, I will make improvements and refine it."

Having completed this task, his transparent Escape Light flickered as he flew towards the Wei Family of Tuling.

In the future, he would gradually take control of the Wei Family, making it a part of his network of influence.

With the addition of Gong Caiyu and the four maids representing the four seasons, embedded across the Northern Plains and their intermittent reports, he could garner a significant understanding of the Northern Plains, so as not to be utterly blind.

Along the way, there were constantly cultivators fighting and killing each other.

The Hei Clan's reputation was hardly of use; along the route, he observed several members of the Hei Clan's Collateral Lineage, Qi Practitioners and Foundation-building cultivators alike, fall to the plunder of Loose Cultivators—

Relative to Golden Pill Monks, the lives of Qi Practitioners and Foundation-building cultivators are very short, hence they tend to be shortsighted, focusing on the immediate, with immense courage; if they think they can win, they dare to lash out against even the most formidable foes.

Talking to them about the future or about profound backgrounds is utterly pointless.

The bold ones extend their lives by several hundred years, while the timid meet their demise, or even more die in the various battles; the cultivators of the plains are fiercely savage, and there are many who are desperate and fearless.

"Heh, even Divine Crow Immortal has met his match,"

Jiang Ding delighted in another's misfortune.

If a Golden Pill Cultivator commits a crime, Divine Crow Immortal can eradicate them every few years or so to maintain a degree of deterrence.

But these numerous Qi Practitioners and Foundation-building cultivators, across the vast plains, almost every moment see theft and slaughter amongst their ranks, nearly unstoppable.

Do I have to call upon this ancient Hei Clan ancestor every single time?

These Qi Practitioners and Foundation-building Cultivators come in waves every dozen years or so. How could they possibly be eradicated completely?

Even if Divine Crow Immortal could split into dozens of copies, he wouldn't be able to accomplish this.

"Without power, one cannot control all the different territories."

Jiang Ding muttered to himself.

"The renown of a Nascent Soul family cannot forever intimidate others into accepting that third-tier Spiritual Veins and mines are occupied by Hei Clan's Foundation-building Qi Practitioners, even if these Qi Practitioners proclaim themselves as noble nomads with a natural right to rule."

"Such rhetoric may deceive mortals, but Golden Pill Cultivators will not acknowledge it."

"Under these circumstances, if Hei Clan wishes to continue their rule, there are only two paths to take," Jiang Ding introspectively placed himself in Divine Crow Immortal's position and began to deduce.

"One way is to support those of different surnames, to recruit external Golden Pill Cultivators, recognizing their status, and letting them manage territories on their behalf, handing over a portion of Spirit Stones and Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasures, as well as committing to Hei Clan's conscription for combat when necessary."

"Just as I have done in Tushan Immortal City, Hei Clan's territory would soon stabilize, and they would gain many relatively loyal enforcers."

"The downside is that it allows many external families and Sects to grow in power. With more Golden Pill Peak Cultivators and a bit of luck and opportunity, over hundreds or thousands of years, it's quite possible for a Nascent Soul Cultivator to emerge."

"In that case, Hei Clan would be in danger."

"This is why Hei Clan has been hesitant to make a decisive move, preferring to allow chaos to reign in their territories."

Jiang Ding's gaze flashed.

The issue of this magnitude is not difficult to surmise.

Right now, over the vast plains, there must be a large number of external Golden Pill Cultivators lurking in the shadows, forming loose organizations, eagerly anticipating their chance to unexpectedly strike at Hei Clan's Golden Pill Cultivators, weakening the main branch's power.

Hei Clan, of course, reigns supreme.

But to rule over the plains, they must make certain compromises with them!

That is their stance.

Otherwise, this chaos will continue indefinitely.

Golden Pill Cultivators, without territories, without resources, their cultivation base hard to advance, with no way out, will definitely fight to the death, unphased by the prestigious name of a Patriarch Nascent Soul.

"The second way is to support the collateral lineages. Over the years, Hei Clan's collateral lineages have become numerous, with quite a few talents emerging, which are useable. However, this has caused significant internal chaos, needing time to adjust."

After more than ten days,

Jiang Ding returned to the Wei Family of Tuling once again.

With a sweep of his Divine Sense, he showed a faint hint of surprise.

At the edge of the ancestral shrine, in the place where the Spiritual Vein was most abundant, he sat down cross-legged.

"Father."

Wei Qingqing approached, paying her respects to a good-natured looking middle-aged Golden Pill Monk.

On her face was a scar, and it seemed her meridians had been severely damaged, and that had occurred not long ago.

"You've been injured."

Jiang Ding stated indifferently.

Before he gained control over another hidden Golden Pill-level power, the Wei Family of Tuling still held some significance to him.

"I was ambushed on my way back from a visit to Hei Tianlan, the master of the outer hall from the direct line of Hei Clan, in Beast Spirit Immortal City," Wei Qingqing spoke softly, "There was one Mid Jindan Stage Cultivator and one Early Jindan Stage Cultivator. I fought desperately to return alive."

"Do you have any suspicions?"

Jiang Ding inquired.

"It must be the Yu Family and Shi Family who have always opposed us," Wei Qingqing whispered, "Although they disguised their aura and appearance, I could sense it was them. Moreover, it seemed that in the end, they intentionally held back their killing intent, hesitating to take decisive actions that might provoke an investigation from Beast Spirit Immortal City. They want my Wei Family to know our place, to voluntarily go to the frontlines and give up this third-tier fine quality Spiritual Vein located at our ancestors' burial grounds."