Chapter 147: Chapter 145: 3-Tailed Demon Fox

The Lu father and son ultimately compromised.

They really had no choice but to compromise!

Firstly, both of them have already revealed their cards. If they fail to reach an agreement, who knows if the Zhou Family would allow them to see the light of day tomorrow?

Secondly, although they knew that the Zhou Family wanted their father and son to marry the Zhou Family’s mortal women to establish a clan, effectively seeking to influence and control the Lu Family through such alliances.

But on the other hand, if the descendants of the Lu Family carried half of the Zhou Family’s bloodline, it would undoubtedly be easier for them to receive care and support from the Zhou Family in the future.

It’s important to note that some small clans, even if they want to become dependents of a large family like the Zhou Family, the Zhou Family might not be willing to accept them!

With their agreement to the Zhou Family’s terms, Zhouyang and Zhou Minghan also swore by their Dao hearts in front of the Lu father and son that they would never betray them when their use was no longer needed.

Although this kind of Dao heart oath cannot compare to the reassurance provided by signing a “Nether Blood Contract,” it still holds a degree of constraint over cultivators; the higher the cultivation level, the less likely a cultivator is to break such an oath.

After Zhouyang and Zhou Minghan had sworn their oaths, the Lu father and son were immediately represented by Lu Hushan, who took Zhou Minghan to that oasis to check the situation.

As for Zhouyang, being the Clan Leader of the Zhou Family and having just completed the Foundation Establishment celebration, it was obviously inconvenient for him to leave the family at this time.

It was only after over a month had passed that Zhou Minghan returned to Jade Spring Peak with Lu Hushan.

“I’ve thoroughly investigated the situation; that oasis is indeed as the Lu father and son described, extremely suitable for human habitation. From my initial estimation, if the oasis can be fully developed, the land area there could easily support a hundred thousand mortals.”

“Moreover, although the oasis is not as large as Yuquan Lake Oasis, it has a natural Tier Three Low-Grade Spiritual Vein and two Tier Two Middle-Grade Spiritual Veins. These conditions are much better than those of Yuquan Lake Oasis, plus the entire oasis is hidden by a Natural Illusion Array, making it extremely safe!”

“However, the current issue is that the Tier Three Demon Beast occupying that oasis is a Tier Three High-Grade Demon Beast – the ‘Three-tailed Demon Fox.’ You know very well how powerful this exotic beast is; even Chen Ping’an didn’t dare claim victory over such a same-tier exotic beast before opening his Purple Mansion, let alone when it has two other Tier Three Demon Beasts under its servitude!”

On Jade Spring Peak, after dropping off Lu Hushan, Zhou Minghan went into his cave mansion with Zhouyang to recount his experiences from this outing.

Initially, Zhouyang’s face was filled with joy when he heard the first part of the tale. However, his expression turned slightly unpleasant upon hearing the last part.

The reputation of the “Three-tailed Demon Fox” was well-known to him. This fox demon was an atavistic mutation among fox species, its power comparable to that of a same-tier Flood Dragon, not to mention the potential for continuous evolution and growth.

It’s said that if the “Three-tailed Demon Fox” could evolve into a Tier Six Demon King, it could grow three more fox tails, becoming the “Six-tailed Spirit Fox,” even stronger than a same-tier Flood Dragon.

Most importantly, this “Three-tailed Demon Fox” not only possesses formidable strength but also far exceeds other same-tier demon beasts in intelligence. This is evidenced by how, despite its strength being merely Tier Three High-Grade, it has already mastered the ability to enslave other Tier Three Demon Beasts as subordinates like a Tier Four Demon Beast.

To deal with such a formidable beast, frankly speaking, with the current strength of the Zhou Family, it is simply impossible.

Of course, these aren’t the reasons for Zhouyang’s unpleasant expression. The true cause for his concern is that since this matter involves an unclaimed oasis, they cannot, like last time, invite external assistance.

Previously, when dealing with the Water Demon, they dared to invite Chen Ping’an to exorcise the demon for two reasons: first, Haoyang Cave inherently belonged to the Zhou Family, and second, a Tier Three Spirit Mountain without an oasis backing was not enough to tarnish Chen Ping’an and the Chen Family’s reputation in a struggle.

However, this time the situation is different. The oasis occupied by the “Three-tailed Demon Fox” this time is a vast undeveloped oasis.

Such a mid-sized oasis with natural Tier Three Spiritual Veins holds significant value.

The reality of its value is reflected in the template provided by Yuquan Lake’s Zhou Family; had Zhou Yuquan, the Zhou Family ancestor, not discovered the undeveloped oasis of Yuquan Lake, how could the family have established such a foundation?

If the Chen Family could acquire such a mid-sized oasis capable of establishing a millennial foundation besides Baisha River Oasis, even if their family eventually lacked a Purple Mansion Stage cultivator and couldn’t hold the treasured land of Baisha River Oasis, they would still have a fallback option, ensuring the family lineage wouldn’t be severed.

In the face of such enormous benefits, mere reputation is inconsequential, isn’t it?

And it’s not just the Chen Family; even cultivators of the Yellow Sand Sect cannot be relied upon in the face of such interests.

After all, such an oasis is a place that can establish the foundation for a thousand-year clan; who can guarantee that cultivators invited to help would honor their promises in the face of the temptation of an entire oasis?

It’s important to know that the founder of the Yuquan Zhou Family, Zhou Yuquan, was once a cultivator of the Yellow Sand Sect!

“For now, we’ll suppress this matter. Once my grandson reaches the Late-Stage Foundation Establishment, and father’s injuries have recuperated, it wouldn’t be too late to develop that oasis. By then, Guangxiang and those younger generation cultivators would’ve grown and could contribute to the development effort!”

“As for the Lu father and son, let them stay on Jade Spring Peak for cultivation for the time being. If they want to marry and have children, let them do so, but before our Zhou Family occupies that oasis, we must keep them from leaving Jade Spring Peak!”

After contemplating heavily for a long while, Zhouyang finally exhaled lightly and expressed his opinion.

With his various methods, if his cultivation can reach the same tier as the “Three-tailed Demon Fox,” it wouldn’t be difficult to kill it. Then, with Zhou Minghan, Zhou Xuanhao, and Zhou Xuan Yu assisting him, capturing that oasis is virtually guaranteed.

However, with his current cultivation level, it’s estimated, in the most optimistic scenario, that it would take him twenty to thirty years to reach the late-stage Foundation Establishment.

“Alas, it’s all we can do!”

Zhou Minghan sighed deeply, not opposing Zhouyang’s view.

He actually had unspoken concerns, worrying that his lifespan might not endure until the day Zhouyang reaches late-stage Foundation Establishment.

After all, he didn’t know that Zhouyang could use “Qianyang Immortal Light” to dispel erysipelas.

He merely estimated based on his own experience that it would take at least forty years for Zhouyang to progress from third-layer Foundation Establishment to seventh-layer. Coincidentally, this was exactly the number of years of lifespan he had remaining!

The matter of the New Oasis was of great importance, and the only ones in the Zhou Family who knew the full details were Zhouyang and his father, and Zhou Minghan–the three Foundation Establishment cultivators–even Zhou Xuan Yu was unaware.

Zhou Xuantai, the first to contact Lu Family father and son, only knew partially and was placed under a strict gag order by Zhou Minghan, forbidding him from discussing the matter with others.

As for the Lu Family father and son, according to Zhouyang’s arrangement, they were temporarily confined on Jade Spring Peak, with their activity limited to the peak and even having Zhou Family cultivators openly monitoring them outside their residence.

Fortunately, these two are sensible, understanding why the Zhou Family has confined them, and have not attempted to test the Zhou Family’s limits with their lives; they have stayed peacefully in their assigned residence, occupied with procreation alongside the dozens of mortal women brought from the Zhou Family.

Setting aside the New Oasis issues, Zhouyang and Zhou Minghan began to busy themselves with another major task: upgrading the spiritual vein at Haoyang Cave.

During the Foundation Establishment celebrations, the Zhou Family exchanged two Tier Three spiritual artifacts for seven to eight thousand spirit stones. Together with the personal savings of Zhouyang and Zhou Minghan, plus the spirit stones from the clan’s public treasury, they managed to gather thirty thousand spirit stones needed for the spiritual vein upgrade.

Upgrading a spiritual vein is not difficult; the spirit stones are the challenging part.

To upgrade a Tier Three Lower Grade spiritual vein to a Tier Three Middle Grade, thirty thousand low-grade spirit stones are needed. To upgrade a Tier Three Middle Grade, such as in Jade Spring Peak, to a Tier Three Top Grade, at least eighty thousand spirit stones are required!

Given the current scale and financial power of the Zhou Family, the Foundation Establishment cultivators can collectively manage to upgrade a Tier Three Lower Grade spiritual vein like in Haoyang Cave to a Tier Three Middle Grade spiritual vein.

But upgrading a Tier Three Middle Grade spiritual vein to a Tier Three Top Grade spiritual vein is truly beyond their reach.

The Spirit Gathering Array at Haoyang Cave had its location already chosen by Zhouyang during his closed-door cultivation, personally selected by Zhou Family’s only Tier Two Array Master, Zhou Xuantai.

This time, after Zhouyang decided to proceed with the spiritual vein upgrade, he immediately took Zhou Guangxiang, who was learning array techniques with him, and began setting up the Spirit Gathering Array.

Excluding array talents, in the cultivation realm, Array Masters are mostly cultivators of earth and water element techniques.

Earth element spiritual power is sturdy and stable, while water element spiritual power excels in change and is second only to earth in stability in the Five Elements; these characteristics enhance the success rates of array formations.

Zhou Guangxiang is an upper-grade spiritual root cultivator with spirit root attributes leaning toward earth and wood, cultivating earth element techniques, fitting the selection criteria for Array Masters, and he seems quite interested in arrays.

According to Zhou Xuantai, whether his array talents exceed the Zhou Family’s previous Grand Elder Zhou Guangqian remains uncertain, but it’s certainly higher than his mentor’s, offering significant hope for becoming a Tier Three Array Master in the future.

Upper-grade spiritual root cultivators don’t face the problem of not reaching the ninth-layer Qi Cultivation before sixty. Zhou Guangxiang is just over fourteen years old, and his cultivation is already at the fourth-layer Qi Cultivation. Replicating Zhouyang’s cultivation speed later would not be difficult.

Hence, Zhouyang is very supportive of Zhou Guangxiang focusing on learning arrays, as the Zhou Family indeed needs a good Array Master to serve the clan.

It’s not just Zhou Guangxiang; many of the younger generation from the “Yuan” and “Guang” branches of the Zhou Family, have shown interest in the Hundred Skills of Cultivation, and have been arranged to learn these techniques under various family elders.

For instance, Zhouyang’s adopted sister Zhou Yuanyao, and another cultivator Zhou Guangkun from “Fengyue Tower,” also a middle-grade spiritual root cultivator with fire and wood attributes, are now learning alchemy with her father Zhou Xuanhao.

Zhou Xiang, Zhou Guangxiang’s twin sister, has been sent to learn spirit plant techniques at the medicinal garden under the supervision of its steward Zhou Xuanchen due to her spirit root attributes leaning towards wood and earth.

Other techniques such as artifact refining, talisman making, beast taming, and spirit brew also have younger members being trained to inherit them nowadays.

Half of the spirit stones earned by the Zhou Family in recent years have been spent on nurturing these younger generations.

If Zhou Minghan were still in charge of the family, he certainly wouldn’t have invested so heavily all at once.

But Zhouyang is different; his knowledge from a previous life tells him that when it comes to technology, only by daring to invest significantly at the beginning can success and strength be assured in the later stages.

This chapter is updated by freew(e)bnovel.(c)om