As events unfolded thereafter, they played out exactly as Fang Yuan had predicted.
Just one day later, the old Ge Family Patriarch came to visit Fang Yuan, saying he had thought things through. He no longer wished to stay at Crimson Flame Valley; instead, he wanted to move his entire clan and attend the Assembly of Heroes, striving to gain entry into the Royal Court.
Fang Yuan understood what the old patriarch meant — he simply wanted to use Chang Shanyin once more to break free from the Man Family's control.
Fang Yuan agreed readily. Traveling alone across the grasslands would be troublesome. With the entire Ge Family as company, the risks would drop significantly. At the same time, it would serve as cover for himself.
"Brother Ge sees things clearly. However, when it comes to setting out, the sooner the better. If there's any stir of trouble, the Man Family will surely notice right away." Fang Yuan offered a word of caution.
The old Ge Patriarch felt a chill run through him. From this single remark alone, he could tell that Chang Shanyin was absolutely no fool.
Fang Yuan continued: "Originally, I had promised the Man Family I would pay them a visit. But since the Ge Family is relocating, to be safe, I won't go. Just tell them I've been cultivating recently and sensed signs of my cultivation recovering, so I've decided to go into seclusion. I'll write a letter right now, and I'll need you, Brother, to find someone to deliver it on my behalf."
If the Ge Family were not leaving, there would have been nothing wrong with Fang Yuan visiting the Man Family.
But now that the Ge Family intended to depart, the Man Family would naturally not let such a fat piece of meat slip from their grasp. What the Man Family feared was the alliance between the Ge Family and Chang Shanyin. They might very well place Chang Shanyin under house arrest, then turn around and deal with the Ge Family.
Previously, the Wind Wolf pack's ambush on Ge Guang had very likely been the Man Family's doing. After all, the Man Family was part of the Righteous Path, and concerned with their reputation — they wouldn't go so far as to kill Chang Shanyin. But the Ge Family was too tempting a prize. Under various pretexts, the Man Family was perfectly capable of putting Chang Shanyin under house arrest.
When the old Ge Patriarch heard Fang Yuan's words, he stared at him deeply, then rose and bowed. "What does my petty wisdom amount to in front of you, Brother? I was muddled before — you're the one who sees the whole situation clearly."
"Heh heh heh. Being caught up in the thick of things, one often loses perspective — that's perfectly common. There's no need for you to dwell on it, Brother. Once you leave this region, the Ge Family will have the whole wide world before it!" Fang Yuan comforted the old patriarch, then wrote the letter on the spot and handed it over.
"Brother Ge, I need to continue my cultivation, so I won't see you out."
"I'll issue the orders to prepare for relocation today. The letter will definitely be delivered. Farewell."
The old Ge Patriarch took the letter and withdrew from the room.
Upon returning to the royal tent, he immediately summoned the Elders and issued his command: the entire clan was to prepare to relocate.
After the Ge Yao marriage affair, the Ge Family Elders all held the Man Family in extremely low regard, and they unanimously praised this decision as wise.
The Ge father and son returned to the study, and the old patriarch opened Fang Yuan's letter on the spot.
"Father, isn't this rather improper?" Ge Guang felt somewhat embarrassed.
"Heh, today your father will teach you another lesson. This is a letter from Chang Shanyin to Man Tu, yet he didn't use a Message Gu. Do you know why?" The old Ge Patriarch chuckled.
"Because he doesn't have a Message Gu? No — if he wanted to use one, he could have simply borrowed one from our Ge Family." Ge Guang thought for a moment, then his eyes lit up. "Could it be that he did it deliberately?"
"Heh heh heh, exactly! The reason he used an ordinary letter was precisely so that we would read it. The Ge Family is about to relocate, and he'll be traveling with us from now on. This letter is his way of showing his sincerity and willingness to cooperate honestly. Come here — let's read it together, father and son." With that, the old Ge Patriarch unfolded the letter.
The contents were simple. He explained his own reasons — he needed to go into seclusion to recover his cultivation. He expressed regret at not being able to visit the Man Family in person and promised to make up for it in the future when the opportunity arose.
In the latter part of the letter, Fang Yuan also inquired about purchasing Bone Bamboo Gu from the Man Family, expressing willingness to pay twenty percent above market price. He additionally listed a large quantity of Gu refinement materials, as well as Third Watch Gu and various other Gu insects, hoping to arrange a trade.
"So Uncle Chang Shanyin needs these things. Father, I think our Ge Family should try our best to provide them. After all, he's helped our Ge Family so much," Ge Guang said.
But the old Ge Patriarch was staring at the letter in his hands, a sharp glint in his eyes and a chill rising in his heart.
The struggle between the Ge Family and the Man Family had mostly been a contest fought in the shadows, never an outright face-to-face confrontation. Those were the rules of the Righteous Path's game.
There had been many victims. A Ge Family Elder had died because of Man Duo's mountain gate challenge. Ge Yao had perished in the Withered Poison Grasslands. Beyond that, quite a few Gu Masters had been buried in wolves' jaws.
In this struggle, neither the Man Family nor the Ge Family had truly won. The Man Family had failed to achieve its goals, and the Ge Family had suffered numerous sacrifices.
Yet there was one person who had been the undisputed winner.
That person was "Chang Shanyin."
Think about it. "Chang Shanyin" had come from the Withered Poison Grasslands with nothing to his name — not even a full set of Gu insects. And now?
In this shadow war, he had filled his pockets to overflowing. From Yuan Stones alone, he had raked in over a million in profit. Not to mention that Fifth Transformation Spider Traces Gu.
The old Ge Patriarch suddenly understood: the Ge Family had used Chang Shanyin, but hadn't Chang Shanyin used the Ge Family just the same? On the surface, Chang Shanyin had seemed like an innocent party caught between two clans, dragged into the maelstrom of their conflict, entangled in trouble he shouldn't have touched. But in truth, neither side wanted to offend him — and he had profited from both!