Cultivation Begins From The Desert
Chapter 215 - 213: Struggle and Non-Struggle [Seeking Subscriptions]

Chapter 215: Chapter 213: Struggle and Non-Struggle [Seeking Subscriptions]

Ginger gets spicier with age!

After listening to the two suggestions from the old clan leader Zhou Minghan, Zhouyang could only sigh with admiration.

The matter of forming an alliance with the Yang Family wasn’t too surprising; he could have thought of that himself after some reflection.

But using an old incident from decades ago to strike against the Gao Family showed the deep foresight of old clan leader Zhou Minghan.

Over fifty years ago, the Zhou Family was in a difficult situation with dwindling resources, always on the brink of losing their legacy.

At that time, Zhou Minghan was so concerned with the family’s safety that he hardly dared to leave the Yuquan Lake Oasis.

Yet even under such circumstances, he thought to preserve evidence of the Gao Family’s murders and treasure plundering using the Memory Pearl Artifact. If that’s not foresight, what is?

"So clever, Great-Grandfather, your plan is truly brilliant!"

With a face full of joy, he gave a thumbs up to Zhou Minghan, praising the "killing the chicken to warn the monkey" strategy.

"Hehe, I too did not expect that an impulsive act back then would still come in handy today!"

Zhou Minghan chuckled, openly accepting Zhouyang’s praise.

After laughing for a while, his expression turned serious as he looked at Zhouyang and said, "However, this matter also serves as a reminder to me: if you want others not to know, avoid doing it yourself. Such deeds of murder and treasure plundering should be avoided by our Zhou Family in the future, or else today’s Gao Family could be tomorrow’s Zhou Family!"

"What you say is true, Great-Grandfather, I will certainly remember your teachings!"

Zhouyang nodded solemnly, humbly accepting Zhou Minghan’s warning.

Seeing this, Zhou Minghan nodded with satisfaction, then his face relaxed into a gentle smile as he said, "Of course, we may not actively seek to murder and plunder treasures, but if we find ownerless treasures and engage in normal magical combat to compete for them, it is still acceptable. Treasures belong to those who have a destiny with them; this destiny can be an opportunity or luck, or it can be strength and power. On the path of cultivation, when we cultivators encounter things we should compete for, we must do so!"

Zhouyang nodded repeatedly at this, saying, "Naturally, I am not such a pedantic person. If I truly encounter such a situation, I would surely use all means to compete for it resolutely!"

Afterward, Zhouyang and Zhou Minghan directly rode the Eagle Lion Beast back to the Yuquan Lake Oasis, and on their way back, they also brought along Zhou Guangxiang, who had been honing his skills in the Marketplace for several years.

Now that the conflict between the Zhou and Chen Families had become public, neither Zhouyang nor Zhou Minghan felt assured leaving Zhou Guangxiang alone here to train.

Moreover, after several years of experience, Zhou Guangxiang had grown significantly, and they planned to bring him back to prepare for his Foundation Establishment.

Upon returning to the clan, the few Foundation Establishment Cultivators of the Zhou Family discussed and immediately arranged for Zhou Minghan to go into seclusion to heal on Jade Spring Peak, while Zhou Xuanhao was sent to oversee cultivation at Haoyang Mountain, vacating his abode for Zhou Guangxiang to use for his foundation building.

Meanwhile, Zhouyang went to visit the Yang Family at Golden Spring Valley to discuss the alliance with Yang Family Patriarch Yang Xingyan.

As Zhou Minghan had predicted, Yang Xingyan, who was preparing to establish a Purple Mansion, neither confirmed nor completely rejected the Zhou Family’s proposal for an alliance.

After an exchange of discussions and negotiations, Zhouyang and Yang Xingyan finally agreed that the Zhou and Yang Families would form a Dark Alliance, meaning they would not publicly announce the alliance but would respond to any call for aid from the other family should their Spirit Mountain come under attack.

Expecting the Yang Family to directly oppose the Chen Family was unrealistic, so forming a Dark Alliance was already within Zhouyang’s anticipated objectives.

After reaching the agreement, he left the Yang Family of Golden Spring Valley and took the Memory Pearl left behind by the old clan leader Zhou Minghan to visit the Foundation Establishment Loose Cultivator he had mentioned.

This loose cultivator was named Zhong Ziming, who, along with another Foundation Establishment Loose Cultivator, lived and cultivated in seclusion atop a Tier Three Low-Grade Spirit Vein within the Desert Sea.

This Tier Three Low-Grade Spirit Vein resembled the "Thousand Machines Grotto Heaven" that Zhouyang had once adventured, with no oasis nearby, only a vast desert sea.

Following the map given by the old clan leader Zhou Minghan, Zhouyang searched for several days before finding Zhong Ziming’s hidden cultivation abode and meeting him face to face.

"The Gao Family, oh, the Gao Family! I never expected that my Brother Yan was the one they killed!"

After watching the image within Zhou Minghan’s Memory Pearl, Zhong Ziming’s face was filled with anger, and, as expected, he now bore a grudge against the Gao Family.

Upon seeing this, Zhouyang immediately put on a serious expression and said to him, "I won’t hide it from you, Fellow Daoist Zhong, that my Zhou Family produced this item now to seek you out indeed with the intent to use you to suppress the Gao Family!"

"However, it is a fact that the Gao Family committed murder and treasure plundering. With your friend slain by them, and you possessing evidence to seek vengeance on their behalf, this is a perfectly reasonable and legitimate act!"

"The promise our Zhou Family can make to Fellow Daoist is that as long as Fellow Daoist targets only the Gao Family and doesn’t harm any innocents, our Zhou Family will definitely stand by Fellow Daoist and help relieve the pressure from the Yellow Sand Sect!"

Zhong Ziming, having successfully established his Foundation as a Loose Cultivator, certainly wasn’t a fool. The Zhou Family, after decades, took out the Memory Pearl and sought him out, obviously intending to use him. If Zhouyang couldn’t even acknowledge this point, wouldn’t it be an insult to the other party’s intelligence?

So, not only did he frankly admit it, but he also sincerely expressed the help the Zhou Family could offer.

Indeed, upon hearing Zhouyang’s words, Zhong Ziming’s face immediately softened considerably.

He looked at Zhouyang with a flicker in his eyes for a moment before suddenly saying, "Fellow Daoist Zhou is very sincere, but Zhong still has a question for Fellow Daoist Zhou. With the strength of the Zhou Family, the Gao Family shouldn’t be foolish enough to provoke the Zhou Family. Why has Fellow Daoist Zhou traveled thousands of miles to seek out Zhong to deal with the Gao Family?"

"Well... Zhou shall not hide from Fellow Daoist. The Zhou Family has had some conflicts with the Chen Family over certain matters. The Gao Family’s Patriarch, being a petty person, has actively become the Chen Family’s lackey, eager to bite a few times at our Zhou Family to show loyalty to his master. Naturally, our Zhou Family cannot let this go unresponded!"

Zhouyang hesitated a bit but still honestly explained the reason.

The open conflict between the Chen Family and Zhou Family would soon spread among the Foundation Establishment Cultivators in the Baisha River Oasis’s Cultivation Realm. If Zhong Ziming wanted to find out, there was no fear of not uncovering this news, so hiding it at this time would not only be useless but also cause him to doubt their motives.

Upon hearing this response, Zhong Ziming’s face immediately became serious, and he asked, "Then how can Fellow Daoist Zhou ensure that after Zhong seeks revenge on the Gao Family, the Chen Family Ancestor and Chen Ping’an, these two Purple Mansion Stage Cultivators, won’t act against Zhong for the Gao Family?"

"Honestly, Zhou cannot guarantee this, so once Fellow Daoist Zhong decides to take revenge on the Gao Family, he surely cannot stay in the Baisha River Oasis’s Cultivation Realm anymore. But Zhou also believes, as long as Fellow Daoist leaves the Baisha River Oasis’s Cultivation Realm, the Chen Family won’t go to great lengths to search for Fellow Daoist just for the insignificant Gao Family!"

Zhouyang shook his head, for there was truly no solution to Zhong Ziming’s question.

If the Zhou Family had the power to hold back the Chen Family’s two Purple Mansion Stage Cultivators, they wouldn’t have come to Zhong Ziming to deal with the Gao Family.

However, fearing Zhong Ziming might shrink back, he quickly continued, "Though the Zhou Family can’t help Fellow Daoist fend off the Chen Family’s two Purple Mansion Stage Cultivators, we can provide some Tier Three Spirit Talismans for free and offer intelligence updates. Fellow Daoist only needs to break the Gao Family’s Mountain Protection Array and loot the Gao Family’s Spirit Mountain. I believe the collection of a Foundation Establishment Clan will suffice for Fellow Daoist to live comfortably after leaving the Baisha River Cultivation Realm!"

"Oh, how many Tier Three Spirit Talismans can your Zhou Family provide?"

Indeed, moved by Zhouyang’s words, Zhong Ziming eagerly inquired about the specifics.

Zhouyang, having decided this, didn’t hesitate and immediately took out ten Tier Three Lower-Grade Attack Spirit Talismans made by Zhou Yuanchen and handed them to Zhong Ziming, "Fellow Daoist Zhong, are these enough?"

At the price of five to six hundred Spirit Stones per Tier Three Lower-Grade Talisman, ten would be five to six thousand Spirit Stones. The investment the Zhou Family made to deal with the Gao Family was considerable.

Zhong Ziming, a Loose Cultivator, after years of cultivation, saw for the first time someone offer so many Tier Three Spirit Talismans at once.

Immediately, he accepted the talismans from Zhouyang with both hands, saying continuously, "Enough, enough. With these Tier Three Spirit Talismans in hand, Zhong can crush that old dog of the Gao Family just by using talismans!"

Undoubtedly, Zhouyang’s proposal was incredibly tempting for a Loose Cultivator like him.

If he could kill the Gao Family Patriarch and then loot the Gao Family’s Spirit Mountain, Zhong Ziming wouldn’t worry about cultivation resources for the next few decades, and he could even establish a Cultivation Clan in another Cultivation Realm and pass on his bloodline.

After discussing the detailed plan with him, Zhouyang was directly sent back to the clan under Zhong Ziming’s watchful eyes.

After returning to the Zhou Family, Zhouyang immediately visited the Spirit Vein at Haoyang Mountain, asking his foster mother Zhou Xuan Yu to monitor and gather intelligence outside the Gao Family’s Spirit Mountain.

Years ago, upon his return, he transmitted the Golden Cicada Concealment Technique obtained from Dong Jianping to several Foundation Establishment Cultivators within the clan. Zhou Xuan Yu, though a Demon Cultivator, had no issues practicing such auxiliary secret techniques.

Now, with her cultivation concealed while she monitors the Gao Family, the likelihood of being discovered is negligible.

More than a month passed thereafter, and although no news arrived from Zhou Xuan Yu’s side, Zhou Guangxiang, who was in seclusion to establish his Foundation at Jade Spring Peak, unsurprisingly succeeded.

Yet, upon seeing Zhou Guangxiang emerge from his cave residence to report his success, Zhouyang’s face immediately changed.

"What’s going on? Did you not take the Foundation Establishment Pill I gave you?"

With an expression of shock and anger, he looked at Zhou Guangxiang, the joy on his face vanishing without a trace.

Since the Zhou Family had previously seen Zhou Xuanhao and Huang Yi, two Foundation Establishment Cultivators who succeeded without using the Foundation Establishment Pill, and Zhouyang himself succeeded with it, he immediately knew upon seeing the unstable aura around Zhou Guangxiang that he hadn’t used the pill to establish his Foundation.

Cultivators who take the Foundation Establishment Pill are protected by its medicinal power to restore the body, never experiencing unstable aura post-establishment.