By the time Wang Yu arrived beneath the tribulation clouds.
Wei Hao had merged his corpse aura and magical power. The demon corpse was standing behind him, roaring incessantly at the gradually dissipating lightning tribulation. That soaring demonic intent was extremely astonishing.
"Hahaha, my path is complete! How exhilarating!!"
Wang Yu quickly approached and congratulated him.
"Congratulations, Senior Brother Wei, for achieving your wish."
Unaware of when it started, the two had begun addressing each other with the more intimate term of senior and junior brother. Seeing him approach, Wei Hao laughed so hard he couldn't close his mouth.
"Not at all, not at all. This time, I still owe much thanks to Junior Brother Wang for parting with what you cherished."
"This was a matter of mutual willingness, Senior Brother need not mention it again."
"Alright then."
With a thought, Wei Hao stored the demon corpse into a pitch-black bead. He explained.
"This is the [Nine Nether Pearl], containing a large amount of Netherworld Stygian Qi. It can help this corpse transform into the [Nine Nether Demon Corpse]. Once it succeeds, it might truly be able to compete with a [Corpse Fiend]!"
"Oh?"
Wang Yu was slightly curious.
"I remember Wei Shanze had a trump card named [Six Forms Nether Demon Fist]. Is the Wei Family's Nascent Soul Elder from Five Yin Peak — [Nine Nether Demon Lord]?"
"Exactly."
Wei Hao nodded.
"That is the Xuanzu Grandfather of my lineage. Wei Shanze's lineage entered Savage Ghost Peak; they are descendants of the [Nether Demon Savage Lord]."
"So that's how it is."
Wang Yu suddenly understood. The Wei Family actually had two Nascent Soul Elders? So they had branched into two lineages? No wonder they contended for the True Transmission positions on different peaks.
"No time to delay. Waiting for this Nine Nether Pearl has already wasted some time. Junior Brother Wang, please come with me, let me introduce you to the people on my side for this operation."
"Alright."
Next, after leaving the tribulation site, Wei Hao took him to meet the experts participating in this operation to seize the Earth Spirit Fruit.
"Junior Brother, this is Wei Xianglong, peak Foundation Establishment cultivation, also my second uncle, who has watched over me since childhood. He is proficient in offensive magical abilities."
Seeing this, Wang Yu quickly greeted this elderly man with a broad frame but a slightly thin build: "This junior Wang Yu pays his respects to Senior."
"No need for formalities." The man waved his hand, polite yet not lacking warmth. "Little friend, you gave Wei Hao a stroke of fortune. If you are willing, you can call me Second Uncle."
"Second Uncle."
Wang Yu readily complied.
"Ai—"
The old man's smile immediately became several degrees more genuine. In his view, Wang Yu's potential was limitless, not inferior to Wei Hao, and even slightly superior, especially in terms of fortune and luck.
There was no reason not to be friendly to such a genius as a friend. Moreover, for this Earth Spirit Fruit seizure operation, Wang Yu had the right to claim one fruit with priority.
Obviously, he did not know that this "genius" originated from a Waste Spiritual Root.
Wei Hao was happy with this situation. He had always intended to befriend Wang Yu, and when bringing people to greet him, he had given instructions in advance.
"Junior Brother, these are Wei Yuyu, Wei Yuting, and Wei Yuzhen, all at the seventh layer of Foundation Establishment cultivation. The three of them are proficient in combat formation combined attack techniques, skilled at defensive counterattacks.
"Once you encounter danger, hide among these three. Unless a Nascent Soul expert makes a move, even if three or four ordinary peak Foundation Establishment cultivators come, there's nothing to fear."
"Greetings to the three Seniors."
"You needn't be so polite, little friend."
Both sides exchanged greetings, thus becoming acquainted.
In this way, including Wei Hao and Wang Yu themselves, there were already six people. Offense and defense were both covered. What was still missing was...
"—Wei Ying!"
"Your subordinate is here."
A figure different from all the others suddenly appeared within sight, kneeling on one knee, ghostly aura swirling around his entire body.
Wei Hao's expression was slightly complicated as he said.
"Wei Ying is also at peak Foundation Establishment, skilled in concealment and speed techniques. Whether for ambush or seizing the Earth Spirit Fruit, he will play a key role.
"Once we succeed, he can quickly take us away from danger."
Seven people, all set!
Wei Hao and this Wei Ying seemed to have some special relationship. Since the other party didn't elaborate, Wang Yu didn't ask further. The move to borrow strength seemed to have been the right one.
As for whether the value of the transaction was equivalent, it also depended on the person.
Purely in terms of spirit stones, Wang Yu definitely lost out.
For someone like Wei Hao who had lost his lifebound corpse and suffered severe damage to his vitality, he would be willing to trade even a high-grade Foundation Establishment spiritual object for the demon corpse!
And the eleven Purple Gold Peaches were also resources obtainable only through power and status. Relying solely on Wang Yu himself, he couldn't buy them at Tianbao Pavilion or Jinman Tower; they wouldn't sell to him.
Including the Earth Spirit Fruit and the assistance of these people's strength, it wasn't something he could get just by opening his mouth. Wang Yu considered it worthwhile, even a huge profit, because he had gained time!
What Zhuo Shouqing said last time had given him immense pressure.
Before confronting Zhuo Shouyun and Fu Xiao, he must form his Golden Core and even advance a considerable distance. Otherwise, he would have no confidence to face them head-on.
"Prepare yourselves, we are setting off!"
...
...
Mount Luofu.
Also known as Sword Qi Mountain, it covers a nine hundred li area, possessing three third-grade spiritual veins. The He Family entrenched here is a top-tier Golden Core family.
They have a full twelve Foundation Establishment cultivators. Deploying the [Mount Luofu Twelve Swords Formation] is even said to be capable of opposing Nascent Soul experts. Among them, the Mount Luofu Patriarch shone brilliantly during the great war between righteousness and demonic paths over three hundred years ago!
He once slew three cultivators of the same realm in a single battle, making his name known in one fight.
He was not some local tyrant from a small place. His strength, even placed among major sects, could rank within the top thirty among inner sect elders.
With this kind of strength, the Earth Spirit Fruit that fell into their bowl naturally had no reason to be taken out again.
Unfortunately.
The He Family of Mount Luofu faced too many and too varied enemies.
The peak Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Yellow Springs Sect hiding among them would unexpectedly deliver a sneak attack, causing several of the Mount Luofu Twelve True Persons to be seriously injured.
The standoff had dragged on for almost a month, with the number of confronting Foundation Establishment cultivators approaching thirty. Dragging it out any longer would definitely bring no good outcome.
At this moment, within the He Family ancestral land at Mount Luofu.
Conference Hall.
Besides the twelve Foundation Establishment cultivators, many senior elders in power at the Qi Condensation stage also participated in this discussion. This kind of meeting had not been held for the first time in the past month.
The attitude of the He Family cultivators had also changed from initial stubbornness to increasingly weak compromise.
"Patriarch, this matter can no longer be delayed. That storage bag should contain sixteen Earth Spirit Fruits. What if we take twelve and throw out four?"
The Mount Luofu Patriarch fell silent for a moment, then said.
"Myself, Second Brother, and Third Brother have all cultivated to peak Foundation Establishment. The Earth Spirit Fruit is useless to us, but it can help you all.
"If all of them are used to nurture Jian'er, perhaps he can lead our He Family of Mount Luofu to advance even further!"
He QiuJian, the most outstanding talent among the new generation of the He Family, had just turned one hundred and fifty years old a few days ago and had smoothly formed his Golden Core.
If he could obtain sixteen Earth Spirit Fruits, he would undoubtedly break through to mid Foundation Establishment in a short time, giving him a longer period in the future to aspire to Nascent Soul, naturally increasing his chances greatly.
He was the thirteenth "Patriarch" level figure of Mount Luofu.
Hearing that the reason the Mount Luofu Patriarch insisted on not backing down was to "cede" the Earth Spirit Fruits to He QiuJian, a sixth layer Foundation Establishment cultivator who had been seriously injured earlier said indignantly.
"Patriarch, Jian'er is so young and has already broken through to Foundation Establishment. His temperament is proud and arrogant; he will surely have his own opportunities in the future. The Earth Spirit Fruits... I will not yield them!"
"You—"
"Eighth Elder!"
"Zi'ang..."
"Silence!!"
The Mount Luofu Patriarch roared angrily, causing everyone to quiet down.
He Zi'ang looked up at the Patriarch, firmly stating.
"I, He Zi'ang, am only over four hundred years old today. If I can use the Earth Spirit Fruits to break through to late stage, how can I say I have no possibility of forming Nascent Soul in this lifetime?"
Everyone was stunned in unison, not because they were awed by his ambition.
But because... what he said was right!
This was a problem family forces had to face: the trouble lay not in scarcity but in uneven distribution.
That He QiuJian is a genius, but when I, He Zi'ang, was young, was I not also a genius? Was I not also the hope for the family to advance further?!?
Although separated by over two hundred years, for cultivators, both are in their prime, the future uncertain.
How could he possibly be willing to cede the precious resources he desperately wanted to obtain to a junior!
It wasn't a life-or-death juncture anyway.
In fact, He Zi'ang was not the only one with this kind of thought.
Among the Mount Luofu Twelve Foundation Establishment cultivators, except for the top three, the latter nine had not reached the peak realm. They all needed the Earth Spirit Fruits for assistance, but one or two fruits wouldn't be enough.
Splitting sixteen Earth Spirit Fruits among two to three people would be most appropriate.
All could make significant progress.
Just as the Mount Luofu Patriarch was struggling with indecision, a report suddenly came from outside the hall: "All Elders, Patriarch, those Foundation Establishment cultivators have begun attacking the Mount Luofu Sword Formation."
"Dammit, let's go!"
"We must resolve this matter today."
At the same time, outside Mount Luofu.
Wang Yu, Wei Hao, and the others were concealed under Wei Ying's concealment technique, watching from afar as the cultivators continuously expended their magical power to wear down the sword formation's strength.
At the center of the formation was a storage bag that glowed brilliantly due to someone's spell, causing it to glitter with golden light. That item inside contained the Earth Spirit Fruits.
"These people's methods are truly despicable, actually able to use such a method. With such dazzling treasure light, whoever takes it first becomes the target of everyone."
Wei Hao stroked his chin, saying this.
But Wang Yu pointed at the sword formation and said.
"This formation is difficult to break. When there weren't so many Foundation Establishment cultivators at the beginning, they should have been able to directly retrieve the treasure and refine it.
"By then, it would have been a done deal, the Earth Spirit Fruits eaten and digested. These people would have naturally dispersed. Why did they drag it out until now?"
"You don't understand this."
Wei Hao said with a strange smile.
"The smaller the family, the fewer the resources, and the harder they are to distribute. The Mount Luofu Patriarch couldn't suppress everyone. They didn't trust anyone to retrieve the fruits.
"This kind of situation only becomes harmonious when a pattern of one dominant and several strong forces is achieved.
"Take my Wei Family as an example. When the Nine Nether Demon Lord was in charge, everyone in the Wei Family obeyed without exception. Even if it meant sacrificing personal interests, they would follow Xuanzu Grandfather's commands.
"After the Nether Demon Savage Lord broke through to a higher realm, he established his own lineage, not contending with the Wei main lineage. The two cooperated to enable him to take over Savage Ghost Peak. Can Junior Brother understand the principle behind this?"
Wang Yu was not stupid. With a little guidance from Wei Hao, he understood the reasoning behind it.
In simple terms, the power of decision-making was too dispersed.
They lacked a Nascent Soul Patriarch who could have the final say! When a force is small, it is mainly troubled by resources, and conflicts arise.
When a force becomes larger, low-level resources are not lacking, but top-tier resources still require competition. It's like a nested doll; almost all will encounter this problem.
If the Wei Family could give birth to a third Nascent Soul expert, the situation of branching families would gather back together to jointly seek Nascent Soul level resources.
The intricacies within were difficult to explain clearly in a few words.
"Internal disagreement... surprisingly reasonable."
(End of Chapter)