"Forgive my slowness, but I don't quite see how the Young Clan Leader intends to bring profit to the clan," Song Changan asked with a hint of puzzlement.
Glancing around at the gathered elders, Song Changsheng could tell the others shared the same doubt. His expression grew serious.
"In the last battle, our clan suffered heavy losses, and now we face a financial crisis.
To resolve it, we must either cut costs or increase income.
Right now, the clan is in a period of growth; cutting back is not an option. That leaves only one path: increasing revenue.
And I divide revenue sources into two types: long-term and short-term.
For the long term, because the demon wolves have run rampant, many spiritual mountains and mineral veins in the Wangyue Mountain Range have been left vacant. We can take this opportunity to develop the plains near the Luo River, three hundred li from Cangmang Peak, transplant spiritual veins there, and establish a new marketplace solely under the Song Clan's control. I can assure you that within ten years, its scale will surpass the Liuyun Market.
You all know the profits a marketplace brings. But running one is not an overnight matter; it requires significant initial investment. That is why it must be approached as a long-term plan, pursued steadily.
For the short term, there are now many vacant spiritual mountains and mineral veins in the Wangyue Mountain Range. Though they belong to the clan, with our current strength, we cannot manage them all. It would be better to follow the precedent set by Ancestor Yunhan and auction them to itinerant cultivators.
This would have two benefits. First, it would strengthen the Wangyue Mountain Range with more cultivators present. Second, it would allow the clan to quickly gain resources and replenish our treasury.
Then there are the demon wolf materials we seized earlier. I've already found a buyer. A single trip could exchange them for a large amount of spirit stones, easing our financial woes.
But you must all understand: everything I just listed depends on a stable Lingzhou. Only with peace in Lingzhou can we open a marketplace and attract itinerant cultivators to trade. Likewise, only if Lingzhou is stable can we auction off the spiritual mountains and mineral veins, and only then can I travel to Yuanzhou to sell the demon beast materials.
Therefore, ending the war in the Liuyun Mountains as soon as possible is essential for the clan.
Besides, our aid to them will not be free. According to intelligence from Wind Whisper Hall's spies, the war in the Liuyun Mountains is not going well for them. If we leak the news, they'll come asking for our help just like last time."
When he finished, everyone looked enlightened. Up until now, they'd only thought about letting the Liuyun Sect and Wuling Sect weaken each other; they hadn't considered these angles.
"In that case, it's true we should drive those beasts out quickly. But if we send the Black Star Warship, won't that expose one of our trump cards?" Song Lutong scratched his head.
Song Changsheng smiled. "I want them to know.
The clan has just endured a major battle, and our strength is badly depleted. The Clan Leader himself is in seclusion, attempting a breakthrough, which could easily attract greedy eyes.
Sending out the Black Star Warship serves two purposes: first, to display our military might and deter opportunists; second, to minimize casualties.
Everyone here has seen the might of a quasi-heaven-class warship. Without a great demon present, the demon wolves will be hard-pressed to threaten it. And even if they prove too strong, the ship's speed guarantees a safe retreat, keeping our losses to a minimum."
There was one thing Song Changsheng didn't say: the Black Star Warship's existence was no longer a secret. In that great battle, countless eyes, both seen and unseen, had been watching. It had already been exposed; it simply hadn't been publicized.
Rather than hiding it, it's better to display it openly.
After all, this was a true killing machine capable of threatening even Purple Mansion cultivators. On a Foundation Establishment battlefield, so long as its energy held, it would be a one-sided slaughter. Anyone considering targeting the Song Clan would have to think twice.
His explanation was well-founded and convincing. The council passed the resolution without further objection.
Events afterward unfolded much as he had expected, except that they didn't even need to leak the news. The Yu Clan had already spread word of the great demon's death to the Liuyun Mountains.
Du Huating and Liu Hongye were both shocked and overjoyed by the news. Shocked that the Song Clan had so swiftly destroyed the Silver Moon Demon Wolf Clan's main force; overjoyed that the Song Clan now had free hands, giving hope for a breakthrough in the Liuyun campaign.
They both knew the Song Clan wouldn't help them for free, even if they were nominal allies.
And truthfully, if they had been the ones to crush the demon wolf army first, they would have demanded a heavy price for any aid to the Song Clan.
Thus, when they drafted their plea for help, Du Huating and Liu Hongye made sure to show ample sincerity on behalf of their factions, confident that it would tempt the Song Clan.
They had no choice; circumstances were stronger than pride. After days of grueling battles, their losses were severe. They needed a breakthrough quickly.
Of course, upon learning of the great demon's death, Liu Hongye also released the news to the demon wolf army, hoping it would make them retreat. Instead, the wolves became even more aggressive, attacking with greater frequency.
It was truly a case of lifting a rock only to smash it on his foot, much to his bitter regret…
Inside the Council Hall, Song Changsheng held in his hand a joint plea for aid from Du Huating and Liu Hongye, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
They had shown themselves tactful enough, offering a reward of one hundred and fifty thousand low-grade spirit stones, a massive sum for the Song Clan's current situation.
When added to the earlier twenty thousand spirit stones' worth of supplies, it was clear that the Wuling Sect would be tightening its belts for quite some time.
This was exactly what Song Changsheng wanted to see after all, it was also a way of weakening an enemy's strength.
Since the other party had already shown such sincerity, Song Changsheng wasted no time. He summoned a steward and ordered, "Inform the Third Elder and the others that they can depart."
The Black Star Warship required at least three Foundation Establishment cultivators to operate. Song Changsheng immediately designated Xia Yunxue, Song Lutong, and Song Chang'an to crew the quasi-heaven-class vessel in battle.
With their departure and with Song Xianming and Song Luzhou in secluded cultivation, and Song Xianyun still unconscious, the only one left to hold the fort was Song Changsheng himself.
But he was untroubled. The clan's protective grand array had regained part of its power, and even if enemies came knocking, he was confident he could hold out until reinforcements returned.
As for Xia Yunxue and the others, he felt little concern. Without a great demon, the remaining Silver Moon Demon Wolves were hardly a threat.
The only reason the battle had dragged on so long was that neither side had a decisive trump card.
The Black Star Warship was precisely the tool to break that deadlock.
Once it appeared over the Liuyun Mountains, the demon crisis in Lingzhou would be resolved in short order.
After sending them off, Song Changsheng went straight to the Enforcement Hall. With Song Changan away, only a single steward was on duty.
Seeing the Young Clan Leader arrive, the steward hurried forward respectfully. "Young Clan Leader."
Song Changsheng nodded amiably. "Where's the prisoner the Sixth Elder brought back? Bring him out, I want to question him."
The Sixth Elder, Song Changxuan, was currently stationed in the mortal realm. On the day Song Changsheng returned, an unknown man in white robes had attacked the mortal realm; he had deliberately left one survivor and entrusted him to Song Changxuan for interrogation.
But after repeated questioning, they had gotten nothing useful. So when Song Changxuan returned for the funeral, he brought the prisoner along.
Until now, Song Changsheng had been too busy to spare the time for questioning. Now that he could, he naturally had to deal with it because enemies lurking in the shadows were the most dangerous, and leaving them unidentified left him uneasy.
"Reporting to the Young Clan Leader, that man is being held in the dungeon. I'll bring him up right away."
"No need. Take me directly to the dungeon," Song Changsheng said with a wave. His interrogation methods tended to be… messy, and he'd rather not dirty the hall's floors.
Following the steward, he soon arrived at the dungeon, where he saw a pale-faced middle-aged man. His injuries from before were serious; though crudely treated, he was still far from recovery.
Though a prisoner, the man carried himself with arrogant defiance. When he saw Song Changsheng approach, he even looked faintly contemptuous.
This piqued Song Changsheng's interest; he enjoyed dealing with the stubborn ones.
He dismissed the steward and stepped closer, looking down at the man from above.
The prisoner's hands and feet were bound in specially-made cuffs and shackles, sealing his cultivation and greatly restricting his movement.
"You seem to be recovering well. Care to have a little talk?" Song Changsheng asked with a faint smile, courtesy first, force later. If the man cooperated, it would save time and trouble.
But the middle-aged man only gave a cold laugh, turned his head, and shut his eyes.
Song Changsheng's smile faded, replaced by a cold edge. Since the man wouldn't take kindness, there was no need to be polite. With enemies, he had never been one to show restraint.
He grabbed the man's hand and pressed it to the ground. "What's your name? Why did you attack the mortal realm? Who's pulling the strings?"
As expected, the man refused to answer.
Song Changsheng didn't waste words. With a sharp tug, he snapped the little finger of the man's right hand.
"Ahhh!"
The prisoner let out a scream. Blood poured from the jagged stump, bone stark white beneath the flesh. Cold sweat broke out on his forehead, but he still gritted out, "Even if you break all ten fingers, I won't tell you a thing!"
Song Changsheng's smile returned; he liked people with backbone.
One by one, amid agonized cries, he broke all ten of the man's fingers.
The man's face turned ghastly from pain and blood loss, but his jaw remained clamped shut.
A cultivator who could reach Foundation Establishment naturally had formidable willpower. Song Changsheng hadn't expected this alone to make him talk.
This was only to wear down his nerves, part of the preparation for what came next.
"It seems your will is impressive. Let me stop the bleeding for you," Song Changsheng said, a chilling smile curling his lips. He held out his hand, and a flame bloomed in his palm.
He then pressed the man's hand into the flame.
The middle-aged man immediately let out a shrill, agonized scream so piercing that even the steward, who had not yet walked far, felt goosebumps rise all over his body.
Like this, Song Changsheng tortured him for a full half-hour, until the man's mind began to grow hazy and unfocused.
That was exactly what Song Changsheng wanted.
Placing his palm atop the man's head, a strange light flickered. The prisoner began to tremble violently, drool spilling from the corners of his mouth.
What Song Changsheng was using was a Soul Search Technique, a secret art passed down within the Song Clan, capable of directly probing the target's soul for memories. Only those with exceptionally strong divine souls could even attempt to cultivate it.
The information gained this way was never complete, and the process often left the subject crippled in mind or, in severe cases, with their soul shattered, dying on the spot.
This man's will was exceptionally firm. Using the technique on him outright risked failure, so Song Changsheng had first chosen to wear down his body and scatter his focus before proceeding with the soul search.
In less than the time it took for a stick of incense to burn, the man's eyes rolled back, foam dribbled from his mouth, and he collapsed to the ground dead.
Song Changsheng merely glanced at the corpse and withdrew his gaze. An enemy's death, no matter how many, was nothing to grieve over.
Once he finished processing the extracted memories, his brows gradually furrowed.
From the soul search, he learned the man's name, Bai Zhisheng. A rogue cultivator by origin, he had later joined an organization known as the Thunder King Hall.
From a common perspective, the Thunder King Hall was a true sect of demonic cultivators, sinister and brutal but extremely secretive. Bai Zhisheng knew nothing of its headquarters' location or its true strength.
He only knew that the sect master was addressed as the Thunder King, a figure of tremendous power, and that their influence was spread far and wide.
Bai Zhisheng's branch was one of the Hall's subordinate outposts, located within Lingzhou, manned by three Foundation Establishment cultivators and over a hundred followers. After their last battle, they had been virtually annihilated.
Their attack on the mortal realm had been aimed at abducting commoners, a practice they had been conducting in secret for over a decade, always targeting small clans to avoid notice.
This time, with the Song Clan under siege, they saw a chance to "make a big score" and acted boldly, only to meet disaster.
The abductions were a mission assigned from above, but for what purpose, Bai Zhisheng never knew. Once the number reached a certain quota, envoys would come to take the captives away.
At this, Song Changsheng's eyes flashed with fury. Over ten years, no fewer than four hundred thousand mortals had been taken. A small portion had been directly abducted; most were the offspring of those already captured, forced to reproduce in captivity.
He didn't need to imagine what awaited these people in the hands of demonic cultivators.
"Beasts…"
His gaze turned to ice. Now, he felt Bai Zhisheng had died far too easily.
Suppressing his anger, he continued combing through the memories until something called a Thunderbolt Son (Leizhenzi) caught his attention.
From the recollection, he learned it was a special, single-use magic artifact.
During the attack on the mortal realm, they had planned to bury it underground to damage the city's protective grand array by destroying its foundation.
They had been stopped before they could act.
Seeing this, Song Changsheng's eyes lit up. If the artifact truly had such power, it would be an invaluable weapon for breaking protective arrays.
"I must get hold of the refining method for this thing."
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