Fresh from the Bai estate, Wang Yu still had a mountain of assets to sort through. It looked impressive—but in truth, it was modest.
The Bai Clan's true wealth lay in fixed assets.
Like the vast spirit fields outside the city where they cultivated Bloodfang Rice, the thousand-plus spirit farmers under their command, and their network of shops within Spiritridge—those were the real prizes.
Whether he could absorb them depended on the cooperation of the two remaining clans.
On his way back to the main hall, Wang Yu stopped by the Martial Training Grounds.
There, rows of youths sat in neat formation. The more talented sat up front; those destined to become spirit farmers had voluntarily taken seats in the back.
It looked like a small group surrounded by a larger crowd.
Wang Yu stepped forward, appearing in midair above the front row. The crowd gasped, then shouted in unison:
"Greetings, City Lord!"
"Mm."
Wang Yu scanned them with his spiritual sense. When he saw the dual-root youth had already reached the first layer of Qi Refining, he smiled with satisfaction.
"The City Lord's Manor is built atop a mid-grade third-tier spiritual vein. This may be the best cultivation environment you'll ever encounter. Whether you become city guards or spirit farmers—
"You serve the City Lord's Manor. Anyone who slacks off in cultivation—will be executed."
Fresh from a bloodbath, Wang Yu's killing intent still lingered.
His words sent shivers down spines. Some nearly wet themselves.
Realizing he'd be entering seclusion for a few days, Wang Yu decided to delegate daily affairs. He pulled out a scroll from his storage pouch.
Since recruiting these youths, the Jiang Clan had investigated their backgrounds—family, history, everything—and delivered a thick dossier.
Now it was time to assign roles.
"Xu Nianzhou, Wang Ling—you'll manage the general warehouse. It holds mundane goods: gold, silver, grain, and supplies."
"Yes!"
"Ma Da, Yang Erlang… Kang Liuer—you'll work in the kitchens, preparing meals. You'll draw funds from the general warehouse."
"Yes!"
One by one, Wang Yu assigned positions.
Gatekeepers, logistics, procurement, patrol squads, cleaning crews—every role was filled. Those with three spiritual roots got the better jobs. The faster one cultivated, the higher their rank.
Menial tasks went to those destined to be spirit farmers.
This was just the initial arrangement. Snow Jade would oversee operations for a few days. Once the recent turmoil settled, rogue cultivators would begin to arrive.
At that point, Wang Yu could delegate more authority and ease his own burden.
Everything was falling into place.
With that, Wang Yu vanished and returned to the main hall atop the 360 jade steps, ready to inventory the Bai Clan's spoils.
…
"Just over 200,000 low-grade spirit stones. Did the Bai Patriarch take some with him?"
Reclining on his throne, Wang Yu frowned.
The Bai Clan's treasure vault had been half-empty. Their second-tier treasures were on par with the Tuoba Clan's—clearly lacking.
Either the vault had been split into multiple caches, or someone had preemptively removed assets. They had anticipated today's outcome.
Perhaps?
Among third-tier treasures, he had acquired two:
Bloodgold of Living Souls and Earthheart Spirit Milk.
The former came from south of Spiritridge, beyond the 3,000-li Reed Marsh, near the largest black market in the Crimson Kite Territory—Yanluo Ghost Market.
Its masters, Yanluo True Lord and his consort Yanfloating Lady, were both Nascent Soul cultivators—infamous across the region.
Rumors linked them to Nether Spring Temple.
Further south lay the Desolation Desert, one of the realm's dead zones. Bloodgold of Living Souls was born there—from the blood and souls of countless corpses, refined by centuries of wind and sand.
A classic demonic treasure.
It was universally compatible—usable in most demonic artifacts. A hard currency among cultivators.
Earthheart Spirit Milk was more common. A staple third-tier item, it could instantly restore over 80% of a Core Formation cultivator's spiritual power.
It could also be refined into pills for enhanced effect. Wang Yu had obtained about 15 drops.
With all recent gains accounted for—
Wang Yu's wealth now included four third-tier treasures, hundreds of second-tier items, and 670,000 low-grade spirit stones.
All this in mere weeks. One Tuoba Clan, one Bai Clan—and he was fattened like a pig.
No wonder this was called a fertile territory. It was rich beyond measure.
Had he stayed in the Blood Reversal Sect, he'd need to slaughter an entire Core Formation peak to gather such wealth.
It was time to digest these gains.
Among the seized artifacts, Wang Yu selected a high-grade second-tier defensive item—a cauldron—to replace the shattered Earth Element Cauldron.
The rest—over a thousand first-tier artifacts and a dozen second-tier ones—were stored in the warehouse. They would serve as elite rewards for future recruits.
That concluded the physical inventory.
As for books and manuals—the Bai Clan had plenty. Their strength came from a complete inheritance system.
Their core cultivation methods suited most spiritual root types and reached high-grade second-tier level—enough to support Core Formation breakthroughs.
Some texts self-destructed upon breaking seals. Wang Yu salvaged three complete methods, which he planned to store in the City Lord's scripture hall for training subordinates.
But one incomplete manual caught his eye:
Wind and Thunder Scroll.
A third-tier inheritance. It included techniques, secret arts, pill recipes, artifact forging methods… everything.
But parts were missing.
Most frustratingly, the energy circulation route was incomplete—utterly maddening.
Wang Yu wasn't sure if the Storage Panel could extrapolate the missing sections.
He cultivated yin and ice attributes. Wind and thunder were far removed. The scroll was mostly useless to him.
Except for one thing: a burst-type secret art—
Wind-Thunder Spirit Pattern.
As a five-element spiritual root cultivator, Wang Yu could theoretically train in wind-thunder variants. It wouldn't weaken the effect or increase difficulty.
The key was absorbing ambient wind-thunder energy during storms, then inscribing a spirit pattern on the body.
Once activated, it drastically boosted speed and added devastating thunder damage to attacks. Useful for both escape and offense.
It also enhanced physical resilience.
A third-tier secret art meant it could be used even after Core Formation. If paired with his late-stage spiritual sense and soul-path inheritance—
His stats would leap to late Foundation Establishment levels. He could finally stand tall in Spiritridge—no longer a turtle hiding in his shell.
This technique was a must. It deserved priority.
After organizing his storage pouches, Wang Yu felt a twinge of regret. Even with high-grade pouches, space was tight. Above them were spatial rings—true storage treasures.
Standard gear for Core Formation cultivators. Even a basic ring could hold the equivalent of six football fields stitched together.
That was the dream.
Next—
Wang Yu touched his left arm. Only a few threads of true essence held it in place.
He had torn it off during the Bai battle to escape the golden ring. Afterwards, he'd haphazardly reattached it.
Since his body refinement breakthrough, it had been severed multiple times. Once, it nearly became scrap. This time, the shockwave had ruined it beyond repair.
"Guess it's finally done…"
He checked the Corpse Demon Secret Art in the Storage Panel. The recovery timer was long. He sighed.
This arm had been his lifeline during his weakest days.
Now, it was like his current trump card—the perfected Dark Yin Palm.
Both offered power far beyond his realm. But in other areas—speed, defense, recovery—he lagged behind late Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Only his attack and spiritual sense gave him an edge.
Ideally, he'd acquire a third-tier corpse-arm to bridge the gap until the secret art recovered. But he didn't dare steal from Jiang Zhenchuan.
"Without my death aura trump card, I'll need to show Guan and Jiang's patriarchs some respect. Even with life-extending treasures, they'll die within ten years."
A dangerous window—and a honeymoon period.
It all depended on how Wang Yu played it.
His empty left arm felt strange. His strength was diminished, especially physically. He felt weak.
He formed a hand seal.
A translucent blue ice arm condensed from true essence, modeled after his right arm. He wrapped it in cloth, bandages, and gloves. Unless someone probed with spiritual sense or touched it directly, no one would notice.
Even as an ice arm, it moved smoothly.
"This will do for now."
Time to enter seclusion—and heal.
…
Five days later—
"City Lord, those people are still waiting outside."
"I know. You may go."
"Yes."
Aside from his left arm, Wang Yu had mostly recovered. It was time to meet them—especially the Guan and Jiang Clan heads.
With the Bai Clan annihilated overnight, they were the most anxious.
The longer they waited, the greater the pressure. He needed to calm them down. If they snapped, it could be disastrous.
His spiritual sense swept across the manor to the gate.
"Enter."
Soon, the group arrived outside the main hall. Alongside familiar faces were four youths—barely thirteen or fourteen—already cultivating.
All were first-layer Qi Refining talents.
They had likely undergone spiritual baptism—allowing mortals to touch to spiritual energy ahead of schedule. Unlike the crude "forced awakening" methods used by Wang Wu in the past, these youths had likely undergone proper spiritual baptism using refined cleansing elixirs.
Not only did this avoid damaging their future potential—it gave them a head start in cultivation. Their prospects were promising.
"Wang—City Lord!"
As expected, the first to speak was the Guan Clan head—the consummate fence-sitter.
He stepped forward with a respectful bow, his voice trembling slightly. "We've brought our clan's finest seedlings. They've already begun cultivating. We hope they may be of use to the City Lord's Manor."
Wang Yu's gaze swept over the four youths. Their spiritual roots were decent, and their eyes held no fear—only curiosity and ambition.
He nodded faintly.
"Good. You've come prepared."
The Jiang Clan head followed suit, presenting his own offerings and reaffirming loyalty. The atmosphere was tense, but no longer hostile.
The Bai Clan's annihilation had sent a clear message.
Wang Yu wasn't just a placeholder City Lord. He was a cultivator with real power—and real consequences.
Now, with the city's future hanging in the balance, the remaining clans had no choice but to cooperate.
Wang Yu leaned back in his throne, his expression unreadable.
The game had changed.
(End of Chapter)