Chapter 443

Chapter 443: News of the Main Material for the Golden Core

When Zhou Chang Le was still young, his father, Zhou Luo, once said a sentence to him.

"The cornerstones on the great hall are no higher than the lowest foundation stones!"

At that time, he did not know what it meant. Only after gradually growing up did he slowly understand.

His father was actually trying to tell him that every person was a foundation stone forming the world of cultivation, and regardless of their status, they should all be treated equally.

At that time, he had already joined the sect and become a disciple of a Golden Core master, enjoying many admiring and respectful gazes in the sect.

So for that sentence, he did not take it to heart at first.

Because the world of cultivation was inherently a survival of the fittest, with the strong reigning supreme.

How could an eagle soaring high in the sky possibly care for the opinions of ants crawling in dark corners?

However, as the years passed, he increasingly realized that he was wrong.

No matter how powerful he became, he was ultimately just one person.

Perhaps he could fight one against ten, or one against a hundred, but what if the enemy numbered in thousands or tens of thousands?

Could he withstand them all by himself?

The world of cultivation was not just a place where the strong ruled; it was also a world of social bonds, a world that valued personal connections.

The broader your connections, the greater the strength you could mobilize.

So do not ignore anyone around you, even if that person’s status was beneath your own.

This was the principle Zhou Luo intended to impart to him.

Recalling how his father rose from being a lowly son-in-law to his current standing, Zhou Chang Le personally witnessed how he consistently practiced this principle, always treating his numerous wives, concubines, and children with an equal attitude, and this greatly influenced him.

Therefore, his inner thoughts were completely different from Master Ziyang’s.

He believed that ordinary disciples with limited talent were also a force that could not be ignored; a small spark could ignite a prairie fire, and one day, they would demonstrate their true value.

It was this concept of equality that spurred Zhou Chang Le to face Master Ziyang with such firm resolve.

Master Ziyang looked at him, a glimmer of light flashing deep in his eyes.

"Have you really thought this through?"

His voice was somewhat heavy, like a great mountain descending, making the atmosphere in the room grow heavy and oppressive.

As a figure in power, he deeply desired to hold the Heavenly Alliance firmly in his grasp, which was why over these years, he had supported his disciples to establish this force and repeatedly shielded it from external pressures.

However, he also knew that such a vast disciple faction could not remain under his control, so he consistently maintained an attitude of calm detachment, neither contending nor seizing.

His thinking was simple: among the five high-ranking officials of the Heavenly Alliance, four were his own disciples, so in a sense, was the Heavenly Alliance not already in his hands?

But at this very moment, he suddenly realized that he had never truly controlled the Heavenly Alliance.

The philosophies of his four disciples were utterly different from his own entirely.

At that instant, Master Ziyang conceived the idea of destroying this faction immediately.

"Please punish me, master!"

With a thud, Zhou Chang Le knelt on one knee, his voice full of apology.

Master Ziyang did not say much, just blandly uttered, "Take care."

Zhou Chang Le nodded solemnly, then took his leave.

Watching the disciple depart, a layer of chill surfaced in Master Ziyang’s eyes.

"Zhou Luo, you certainly taught quite a group of fine children."

His voice was icy, and the cold, sharp aura seemed capable of freezing the entire room.

This was the first time he realized he had lost mastery over his disciple.

This feeling was extremely unpleasant.

If it weren’t for the great battle approaching, he might have visited him in person.

Meanwhile, walking out of the loft, Zhou Chang Le breathed a long sigh of relief.

He looked up at the azure sky, a bitter smile tugging at his lips.

"I still had to step up my efforts to improve my cultivation stage and strength."

…

In Qinyuan City, Zhou Luo received two letters from Jin Yun Domain.

In her letter, Wang Yu Wei explicitly stated that if he found himself without an escape, he could go to the Biquan True Sect and she would secure him a cultivation site.

Clearly, what Wang Yu Wei could manage was to safeguard just him alone.

As for the Lin family or the Immortal City’s assets, she had neither the justification nor the ability to intervene.

This was the maximum she could achieve.

Zhou Luo could understand.

Compared to this, Yao Wu’s letter contents were more straightforward.

In the letter, she said that if one suffered damage, all suffered; if one prospered, all prospered. If this great battle spread to the Zhou family, she would definitely give it her all effort.

Moreover, she added that she planned to personally visit Qinyuan City after some time, hoping it would intimidate the opponents.

On top of that, she mentioned another matter.

That was, in two months, Jinyun City would auction one of the main materials needed for forming the Golden Core: Xuanming Jade Essence.

This Xuanming Jade Essence originated from the northern Frost Soul Kingdom, situated deep within the Endless Cold Abyss. Ordinary cultivators could not reach it at all; only a strong cultivator at the Golden Core stage had the ability to enter there.

Moreover, this Xuanming Jade Essence was extracted from a kind of Jade Essence spiritual crystals at the bottom of the Endless Cold Abyss, and a single drop required over a century to develop.

Therefore, as one of the five primary materials for forming the Golden Core, the rarity of Xuanming Jade Essence ranked near the peak.

Now that this news had spread, it was bound to attract a large crowd of cultivators aspiring to forge the Golden Core, and when the time came, the competition could be intensely fierce.

After learning of this news, Zhou Luo immediately felt his breath quicken.

If he could obtain this Xuanming Jade Essence, even if he didn’t need it for the moment, sharing a portion with Ye Qian later would dramatically accelerate her process of forming the Golden Core.

If he could have Ye Qian attain the Golden Core stage before the great battle concluded, it would also significantly add a layer of security for him.

"I must secure this Xuanming Jade Essence."

Zhou Luo made the resolution internally.

Currently, he was caught between Long Yu and Long Yunshuang; one carelessness could lead to total doom.

Even if he managed to survive himself, the Zhou family he had worked so hard to build over these many years might be utterly destroyed.

He could not bear to see such a thing happen.

Thus, he absolutely had to enhance his own strength rapidly.

Fortunately, after decades, his accumulated wealth was no small amount.

If it were at the auction place, he felt confident he could win that prize item.

He could enter the auction under the banner of the Wan Gu Sect at the time; that way, even if he obtained it, others would not easily dare to covet it.

Zhou Luo was fully determined over that Xuanming Jade Essence, so he instantly sent a message for Wang Lang to start preparing spiritual stones.

Concurrently, he also informed Ye Qian of this matter.

On learning the news of Xuanming Jade Essence, Ye Qian was overjoyed.

Over these years, she had steadily advanced her cultivation through the dual cultivation technique. But as long as some materials were missing, she still could not form the Golden Core to achieve the Golden Core stage.

Therefore, upon hearing the news about that key material now, she felt even more thrilled than Zhou Luo did.

"Husband, I can also contact fellow sect sisters to help keep an eye out," Ye Qian said seriously.

Though she had been expelled from her sect, she still kept contacts with former fellow members.

Facing such a critical moment, she definitely intended to gather more supportive forces to prevent any potential looting after the auction.

"Yes, but this matter requires extreme caution," Zhou Luo nodded.

A sect like the Biquan True Sect surely didn’t lack Xuanming Jade Essence, so he wasn’t worried those fellow sect members she contacted would covet it, but they still needed to proceed carefully. Otherwise, if word leaked out, it could harm them all.

"I’ll go write the letters right now," Ye Qian hurried away.

Zhou Luo’s gaze turned toward the distant clouds as he murmured to himself, "I hope everything goes smoothly."