Demon Sword Sect’s Undercover
Chapter 477 - 477 476 Desperation

477: Chapter 476: Desperation 477: Chapter 476: Desperation Dugu Lan and Xiao Qiang, sisters, were in charge of a shipment of spiritual plant medicinal grass materials from the Three Immortals Mountain in the Lizhi Sea.

Compared to the scarcity of spiritual plants on the continent, the overseas islands are much stronger in this regard, offering many types of spiritual plants rarely seen on the continent that are highly sought after in the field of elixirs and are indispensable pillars for cultivators’ cultivation.

For Prince Manor, acquiring this shipment of goods was not easy; although as a nascent transformation ancestor, he held significant influence, the Shan Sect was not just about one nascent transformation ancestor.

In the Southwest region, various sects and factions also had great nascent transformation cultivators, especially the Wu Sect; and if the scope was expanded to the entire continent, there were even more nascent transformation great cultivators.

There are many national forces, but there’s only one Lizhi Sea, plus the Tongtian Ocean.

The maritime resources, once divided among these nascent transformation great cultivators, were actually quite tight.

Thus, it became a matter of comparing strengths, networks, and tactics.

The great cultivators had to choose and be wary of each other, eventually reaching some kind of equitable balance, with focuses and gains varying from one to another.

For Prince Manor, the supply of medicinal spiritual plants from the Three Immortals Island was a fixed channel.

How resources were allocated among the nascent transformation great cultivators had been long established; every few years, it was only necessary to go to sea once to secure them.

For some special spiritual plants that were not suitable for storage in spatial items and needed exposure to the natural world, this was the reason for making the voyage.

Such a trade route had been run by Prince Manor for hundreds of years and wasn’t particularly challenging.

With King Wucheng’s sword flag present, there were few who dared target these goods, which was also a way of survival among the maritime forces.

However, too many peaceful days led to carelessness, and occasionally, ruthless pirates who did not care about offending these traditional powers would raid and then scatter, hiding in the vast ocean; where could they be found?

Moreover, as a nascent transformation great cultivator, he wouldn’t truly descend to handle such matters with the younger generations endlessly.

It would usually result in sending his disciples to search, allowing some leeway for maneuvering.

In the Lizhi Sea, such trade routes were countless, for there were numerous islands and many nascent transformation great cultivators, forming a unique seascape; countless ships bearing various identifiers sailed the ocean, transporting those precious resources back to the continent year after year.

Though incidents of piracy occurred, if one considered the overall quantity of maritime transportation, it was not significant; it was merely a matter of which family was less fortunate.

Relatively speaking, the great cultivators of major countries and powers were less likely to have their resources stolen, such as the Wu Sect or the Shan Sect; sword cultivators were not easy to provoke, with formidable strength and strong revengefulness.

Likewise, few would target ships bearing the Sword Flag, reflecting the general situation of maritime transportation in the Lizhi Sea now.

Having been peaceful for hundreds of years, to Prince Manor this route seemed safe, as no one dared to stir trouble under its watch; the cultivators escorting the ship had shifted from initial Golden Core sword cultivators, gradually to family members who had reached the Tongtian three realms, and then slowly to attending guest elders, reflecting their attitude.

After all, traveling by sea took a lot of time; going back and forth, plus checking the quality of the spiritual plant medicinal grasses on the Three Immortals Island—such a trip generally took at least a year to complete.

Which true family promising youngsters would want to spend their time on this?

The Dugu sisters, well-versed in spiritual plant elixirs and having married into prominent families, naturally took on this task, heading to the Three Immortals Island to manage the transport of the past few years’ share.

The sailors at the bow were seasoned, the route was familiar, and with the two Tongxuan cultivators overseeing the voyage, this allotment had always been the setup; nobody worried about it, seeing it as a routine task with no difficulty.

The two sisters thought the same, so they didn’t prepare much.

In fact, they couldn’t prepare for the situation in the Lizhi Sea; even ten or eight years wouldn’t be enough.

It was unnecessary.

The journey there went smoothly, and collecting the spiritual plant medicinal grass was also successful, but the return journey was not.

A group of pirates raided their ship, plundering all the goods, unconcerned with the Sword Flag of King Wucheng flying high on the bow; under these tyrants of the sea, the sisters had no power to resist.

Their only relief was that, although the pirates were arrogant, they only robbed the goods and did not harm anyone—perhaps this was due to the sisters’ limited resistance?

Having lost a ship full of precious medicinal spiritual plants, essentials for the Prince Manor in the coming years, one could imagine the significant impact this would have on the resource distribution of the entire manor.

It might not cripple them, but confusion was inevitable, and they would have to tap into the reserves stored for changes on the continent.

Such an error occurring under their watch was unforgivable.

Theoretically, they couldn’t have stopped the pirate’s robbery; theoretically, this was just a result of the usual negligence of the King Wucheng’s Manor.

But these reasons might excuse family members, yet they could never excuse outsiders like them; guest elders, concubines.

Someone had to take the blame, and who else would it be but them?

The ship, under the sailors’ control, continued to struggle on the sea, and where it would end up, they didn’t know.

They could only rush back early, hoping to find a way to remedy the situation before the news spread.

Stopping the error invisibly was the only way to ensure their status remained unaffected; Wu Weijiang, the daoist couple of King Wucheng, had over ten individuals, each not losing to them in charm or capability.

There was already competition among them, and if this leverage was seized, how could their future status in the manor survive?

Their aim in rushing back was to enlist the help of the Shan Sect sword cultivators in the Lizhi Sea to help recover the shipload of resources for King Wucheng’s Manor.

They imagined that with the ancestral status of old King Wucheng within the Shan Sect Quanzhen, wouldn’t this be a matter of just one word?

But the reality truly taught them a lesson.

For them, who rarely ventured out and spent most of their lives wandering around Shan Country, enjoying the supreme veneration of the Shan Sect’s sword cultivators, the outside world was more complex and harsher than they had imagined.

Because of their previous lack of understanding about the Lizhi Sea, only after something went wrong and they looked back did they realize there was no specific base for the Shan Sect sword cultivators in Mirage City.

Those sword cultivators who had been sent here were scattered across the sea, impossible to find in a moment’s notice.

So they turned to the Lihai Jiedu Mansion.

Even when invoking the name of King Wucheng, these Wo Sect sea folks were all evasive and made endless excuses.

Numerous practical reasons left them newcomers speechless.

King Wucheng indeed had a deterrent power, but here it was Linhai Country, belonging to a different Daoist lineage.

The person himself might prompt swift action, but if it’s just two manor descendants serving as concubines, well, that’s too bad.

All these were minor, the key was the subtle disregard during the process of seeking help, which let them know that the influence of King Wucheng’s Manor might be top-tier in Jade Capital, and they could command laws instantly in Shan Country, but outside the stronghold of Shan Country…

Heh, heh…