Fang Yuan's words, though infuriating and alarming to the Righteous Path of the Southern Border, ultimately achieved his purpose — he had successfully persuaded them.
Though this kind of frankness only deepened their hatred of Fang Yuan, they all chose to believe in his "sincerity" in this matter.
In truth, they were willing to believe.
Because, for them, losing a Gu Immortal would mean an even greater loss.
If it had been a Sixth Transformation Gu Immortal of ordinary talent, they could have accepted it. The crucial point was that every single captive Gu Immortal was a Seventh Transformation powerhouse — prominent figures, the face of their respective families. Xia Cha of the Xia Family was even a Supreme Grand Elder.
The loss of such a figure would have a tremendous impact on an entire family.
Ling Yuan Zhai had once lost Feng Jiuge, and immediately their resource points were coveted by the surrounding ten great ancient sects, subjecting them to tremendous pressure.
The ten great ancient sects shared the same origin — the Heavenly Court — making their bonds far closer than those of the Southern Border Righteous Path, and yet this was still the case. If the Southern Border Righteous Path found themselves in such a situation, their position would be far worse.
If all the families of the Southern Border Righteous Path lost their Gu Immortals simultaneously, it would still be bearable. What truly gnawed at them was: what if Fang Yuan killed some and released others?
The world's veins were in upheaval, and in the preceding period, various immortal materials and wild Gu had appeared in profusion, already driving the major forces of the Southern Border into fierce competition, just short of bloodshed.
The Southern Border Righteous Path had always been rife with factions and contradictions, and the upheaval of the world's veins had only intensified these internal conflicts.
If Fang Yuan killed some and released others, the existing balance between the Righteous Path forces would inevitably be shattered, and the entire situation in the Southern Border would descend into turmoil once more.
Was the Southern Border Righteous Path's acceptance of Fang Yuan's extortion driven purely by fear of him, or by concern for their captives?
Not entirely.
They also feared for themselves.
Whom Fang Yuan chose to release and whom he chose to kill could alter the entire balance of power in the Southern Border.
They did indeed fear Fang Yuan, though they would never admit it. But they feared each other even more!
It was precisely because he saw through the situation with perfect clarity that Fang Yuan could extort and blackmail the Southern Border Righteous Path with such impunity.
"The Righteous Path wears a noble crown, but when it comes to taking action, they never hesitate. The Hei Family of the Northern Plains is the perfect example — the Hei Family was weak, and once the pretext of the true culprit behind the Eighty-Eight Angle True Yang Building was available, all the Golden tribes immediately launched a crusade against them."
"Compared to a lone wolf like me, no matter how much I extort, I can't seize their territory, nor can I hastily establish a superpower to occupy those lands. On the other hand, other Righteous Path forces have abundant manpower and an innate drive to expand — they pose a far greater threat."
"Come to think of it, this is only possible because the Southern Border is a patchwork of competing factions, lacking a single powerful leader. If I tried this in the Central Continent, the ten great ancient sects wouldn't give me the time of day!"
"The Southern Border, the Western Desert, and the Eastern Sea are all rife with factions — it's just that the Southern Border's internal contradictions have run deepest recently because of the vein upheaval. As for the Northern Plains..."
At this thought, a sharp glint flashed in Fang Yuan's eyes, and a faint smile appeared at the corner of his lips.
Compared to his previous life, Eternal Life of the Northern Plains had already appeared ahead of schedule and was actively working to unify the entire Northern Plains Gu Immortal world.
Previously, this grand plan had been secretly thwarted by the Heavenly Court. An unknown mole within the Court, impersonating Fang Yuan, had slain Young Master Yun Yunliang, causing Eternal Life's recruitment of independent Northern Plains Gu Immortals to falter.
But not long ago, the Eternal Life side received its opportunity.
It came in the form of the Lang Ya Sect's defection.
Eternal Life absorbed the entire Lang Ya Sect, and through a masterful publicity campaign, made it known to all under heaven that they had taken in the entire Lang Ya Blessed Land. In accordance with the agreement once made between Immortal Venerable Juyang and Ancestor Long Mao, they granted the Lang Ya Blessed Land equal status and took responsibility for its protection.
This move — buying bones with a thousand pieces of gold — was truly brilliant.
The Gu Immortal world across all five regions was shaken.
The Gu Immortals within the Lang Ya Blessed Land were all non-humans, yet Eternal Life had been so magnanimous toward them. Surely, they would treat human Gu Immortals even more favorably.