Once, Wu Yong had hunted Fang Yuan, driving him all the way from the Southern Border to the Western Desert. Now, Wu Yong was deeply worried that Fang Yuan might come knocking to seize Hu Di!
Wu Yong knew that if Fang Yuan came to take it, he would have no way of stopping him.
Immortal Gu could be easily destroyed, making Fang Yuan hesitant to act, but a heaven and earth secret realm was far harder to eliminate. Almost anyone who went for it would succeed.
"Fang Yuan possesses the Supreme Immortal Body. He can cultivate in every path — that's truly terrifying. Hu Di is absolutely useful to him. If this secret leaked out, my Wu Family would never be able to hold onto it. It would certainly be taken. At that point, not only would resources, wealth, and time be wasted, there could even be casualties. The Wu Family's reputation would suffer devastating blows. It would have been better never to have obtained Hu Di at all!" Wu Yong deliberated carefully.
He decided to secretly dispatch his men to quietly move Hu Di out. If the news leaked during the process, he would immediately withdraw.
The Wu Family was large, but they were no match for someone like Fang Yuan!
The great trend of the world was not about numbers, but about strength.
"The few settlements on Stinking Mud Mountain don't have any Gu Immortals, but we still need to guard against mortals and Gu Masters letting things slip. Perhaps we can use the 'Beast Tide' to take care of them."
"No rush to find Kong Ritian. Just quietly investigate his whereabouts. I hope he won't reveal his trail before I've secured Hu Di."
If they still made a big fuss, it would arouse suspicion — the Wu Family Gu Immortals couldn't even catch Kong Ritian? How peculiar. What methods did Kong Ritian use to escape from a Seventh Transformation Gu Immortal of the Wu Family?
At that point, curious eyes would turn toward Stinking Mud Mountain.
Therefore, Wu Yong actually hoped that Kong Ritian would lie low for the time being.
"To draw the attention of the Southern Border's Gu Immortal world, perhaps I need to activate the Ba Family preparations ahead of schedule, as cover for taking Hu Di."
"Of course, the entire plan still had its biggest flaw. That was Kong Ritian."
"Kong Ritian carried the will of Kong Shengtian within him, allowing him to connect to Treasure Yellow Heaven. At a critical moment, if he proactively revealed the secret of Hu Di, it would be no different from the Wu Family inviting disaster upon themselves."
"However, this possibility was not great."
Wu Yong analyzed in private.
First, Kong Shengtian cultivated the Qi Path, so Kong Ritian must have also switched to the Qi Path. The Wu Family has obtained Hu Di. From their perspective, what they would want most is to secretly compete with the Wu Family and ideally reclaim Hu Di. They wouldn't broadcast it to attract countless other competitors.
Second, if Kong Ritian exposed the secret of Hu Di, it would be tantamount to fighting the Wu Family to the death — a very unwise move, because it would invite the Wu Family's retaliation. At the same time, it would also reveal the critical information that Kong Ritian was still at large, attracting other Gu Immortals to continue the pursuit.
Although the possibility was slim, there was still a chance it could be exposed.
The risk of secretly taking Hu Di was still enormous for the Wu Family!
But the benefits tied to Hu Di were too great, and Wu Yong was willing to shoulder this risk.
Several days later.
High above the surface of the Scarlet Dragon River, Gu Immortals from the Wu, Xia, and Ba families faced off in tense confrontation.
The river water surged, its waves like fire, with occasional explosive sounds. This was the Fire Lightning River Section of the Scarlet Dragon River, abundant in Fire Path and Lightning Path Gu Insects.
A newly discovered Eighth Transformation true inheritance was hidden in the depths of this river section.
It had been laid by the Fire Lightning Divine Lord. He primarily cultivated the Fire Path and secondarily the Lightning Path. Though an independent cultivator, he was blessed with considerable fortune and many extraordinary encounters.
However, he was not a Southern Border Gu Immortal, but hailed from the Western Desert.
He had once caused great upheaval in the Western Desert's Gu Immortal world, hunted down by several major powers of the Western Desert. Though he barely escaped with his life, by the time he reached the Fire Lightning River Section of the Scarlet Dragon River, his injuries were too severe to recover from. In his dying moments, he quietly made his arrangements.
It was precisely because of his arrangements that this section of the Scarlet Dragon River gradually became the Fire Lightning River Section.
The Fire Lightning Divine Lord's methods were masterfully unadorned, close to nature. Even though this was at the boundary between the Ba and Xia families, neither superpower detected anything amiss, attributing it all to natural evolution.
Though the Fire Lightning River Section was rich in Fire Path and Lightning Path Gu Insects, no Immortal Gu had ever been born there. As such, it had never been valued by either the Ba or Xia families.
For mortal Gu Masters, while ordinary Fire Path and Lightning Path Gu Insects were quite attractive, the environment was perilous, and very few Fifth Transformation Gu Masters dared venture there.
The Fire Lightning Divine Lord's true inheritance thus remained hidden for a long time, only being exposed when the Qi Tide swept across the world.
The Fire Lightning Divine Lord was an Eighth Transformation Gu Immortal, and the Eighth Transformation true inheritance he left behind was of extremely high grade, immediately triggering a contest among nearly all the major Righteous Path families of the Southern Border.
After a round of probing and competition, only three parties remained.
One was the Wu Family, and the other two were the Ba and Xia families.
The Ba Family's current Grand Elder, Ba De, stood nine feet tall with an ancient and solemn appearance. He was powerfully built, with broad shoulders and a wide back. His exposed skin resembled the bark of a thousand-year-old tree, with moss growing on some parts.
Ba De hovered high in the air and shouted down at Wu Yong: "Wu Family, you've crossed the line. This is Ba Family territory. Whatever true inheritance has appeared here, it rightfully belongs to my Ba Family. Wu Yong, you're the leader of the Southern Alliance and the foremost among Southern Border Gu Immortals. Won't you lead by example and respect the rules of the Righteous Path?"
Wu Yong smiled faintly, his demeanor refined: "Since when was this Fire Lightning River Section Ba Family territory? This is a border area between your Ba Family and the Xia Family — a sensitive location. Ba De, you should choose your words more carefully. At the very least, consider how the Xia Family's fellow Daoists feel about it."
Before he even finished, the Xia Family Gu Immortal Xia Zhao spoke up: "Lord Wu Yong, whether this is Xia or Ba territory, it is ultimately a matter between our two families. The Wu Family's stronghold is far to the south. Even the Qiao Family doesn't share a border with the Fire Lightning River Section."
Though Xia Zhao was only at the Seventh Transformation, the Xia Family's former Grand Elder Xia Cha had been stripped of his cultivation by Fang Yuan and reduced to a mortal Gu Master. As the current Grand Elder of the Xia Family, Xia Zhao's standing was on par with Ba De's. His interjection was not at all out of place.
The Xia Family and the Wu Family had long-standing grievances, and their relations had always been poor.
Setting aside the distant past, consider just recent years.
The Xia Family had competed with the Wu Family over Guanghan Peak. At that time, Fang Yuan, disguised as Wu Yihai, had defeated Xia Feikuai and won the contest.
Later, the Xia Family had taken the initiative to swallow the Qiao Family's Guikong Sky Pit. The Qiao Family was a vassal of the Wu Family, so invading the Qiao Family meant offending the Wu Family. After Wu Yong turned the tide with the aid of the Yu Qing Dripping Wind Small Bamboo Tower, the Xia Family was forced to return the Guikong Sky Pit.
The Xia Family's guest Grand Elder, the Yan Huang Immortal, had once possessed the Moon Worship Bowl, but this estate was also seized by the Wu Family.
Thus, while relations between the Xia and Ba families were also tense, the Wu Family was the most powerful, which drove the Xia and Ba families to tacitly stand together.
Qiao Siliu's expression shifted subtly.
She was one of the three great beauties of the current Southern Border, her looks on par with those of Fairy Miaoyin.
Her cultivation had already risen to the Seventh Transformation.
The Wu Family had mobilized for this venture, and the Qiao Family, as a vassal, had to show support. They dispatched Qiao Siliu to accompany Wu Yong.
Qiao Siliu was well versed in the rules of the Righteous Path's game. Seeing the Ba and Xia families jointly excluding the Wu Family, she felt a twinge of anxiety.
Righteous Path Gu Immortals operated under their own set of rules, far less free than the Demonic Path, far less carefree than independent cultivators.