Chapter 2231: Going With The Flow

Lu Yin and the other two stepped out of the beam of light and looked around. The place around them looked no different from the land down below. There were still mountains, rivers, and jungles just like below. The only difference was that there were no cities, only massive family compounds.

"Hundreds of millions of people live here on this floating landmass. The vast majority are descendants of the Wang family’s various branches that have multiplied over the course of countless years. Additionally, there are a few people who have been greatly rewarded by the Wang family along with their families, as well as a few prisoners who have been captured. This is the heart of the Wang family," Lei Wu briefly said as an introduction.

Long Tian was unimpressed. "Let's go. We need to meet with Patriarch Wang Zheng right away."

He immediately started traveling in a specific direction.

Lei Wu had only been used to provide access to the Wang family’s headquarters because it was easy for the Celestial Frost Sect to see whoever openly entered the place. However, after arriving, there was no reason for the messengers to hide. The only danger they faced after being noticed was the possibility that the Wang family would not join the alliance.

The Wang family’s hand-shaped landmass was not very large. At least, not for Envoys.

Lu Yin and Long Tian easily found the patriarch’s home. Long Tian had visited this place before, and since Lu Yin was posing as an injured Xia Yuan, he followed behind Long Tian. This kept Lu Yin from exposing himself as he did not know where they were going.

Long Tian never doubted his companion, and he reached out to contact Wang Zheng after arriving close to the home of the Wang family’s direct line.

Lu Yin looked up at the glowing orb. The ball of light had supposedly incinerated and killed a Progenitor before. Could it be true? The most powerful person in the history of the Wang family should be Wang Fan, who controlled one of the Nine Mountains and Eight Seas. Could this orb be something that belonged to Wang Fan?

The two men did not speak to each other, and they waited in silence until someone from the Wang family arrived. The Envoy then led them to the gate of the direct line’s home.

The direct line of the Wang family was Wang Zheng's line, and the Wang family’s direct line had never changed. Wang Zheng was a descendant of Wang Fan, and the current patriarch was actually the Progenitor’s son, his youngest son.

Of the four ruling powers, the White Dragon Clan’s main family was the most unstable, and their foundation was also the shallowest. Whichever family was the strongest within the clan would become the main branch. On the other hand, the main branches of the other three families of the four ruling powers were extremely stable. This was because each of them were directly descended from a Progenitor. This meant that the Xia, Wang, and Bai families were all in unassailable positions within their individual organizations.

As Lu Yin traveled towards the direct line’s home to meet with Wang Zheng, he saw many of the Wang family’s cultivators. It was clear that most of these people were not from the direct line, but rather from branch families.

The Wang family was a powerful force that had flourished since the Heavens Sect era. Even the branch families had many geniuses, which was completely different from the White Dragon Clan.

It was not long before the two messengers met with Wang Zheng in the main hall.

"Greetings, Uncle." Long Tian offered a respectful bow.

Lu Yin also bowed. "Greetings, Senior."

He was unsure if this was the proper way for Xia Yuan to address Wang Zheng, given the man’s status in the Xia family, so Lu Yin could only hazard a guess.

Wang Zheng stared at Long Tian. "You’re here because of what happened to your father."

"Yes."

Wang Zheng’s voice dropped low. "I merely reported what I saw. I never intended to frame your father. If your father is innocent, the Celestial Frost Sect will release him, as Progenitor Long won’t allow them to go too far. You can leave."

Long Tian and "Xia Yuan" glanced at each other, and then they offered the two letters to Wang Zheng at the same time.

The patriarch was puzzled by these actions.

"If you have any questions, a quick glance at this will answer them, Uncle," Long Tian said.

Wang Zheng took the jade slip from Long Tian and examined it. The man’s expression instantly changed, and he quickly examined the letter from Shenwu's Sky as well.

Lu Yin had already seen the contents of the letter from Shenwu's Sky, and he knew that it fully detailed their conjectures. He believed that the White Dragon Clan’s letter most likely held similar contents, so Wang Zheng’s reaction was only to be expected.

After Wang Zheng finished examining the two jade slips, he grew incredibly solemn. He stared at “Xia Yuan.” "Is this what Xia Xing and Xia Ziheng believe to be true?"

Lu Yin nodded and coughed twice. "Everything that’s been observed has only served to confirm the sect master and Semi-Progenitor Ziheng's speculations. Examine the situation carefully, Senior. If the Celestial Frost Sect is not the culprit, then why did Bai Teng disappear without the God of Food noticing anything? Senior God of Food is a peak Semi-Progenitor who is comparable to the White Dragon Clan’s Grand Elder Ni Huang. Unless a Progenitor personally took action, no one could make Bai Teng disappear without a sign."

Long Tian spoke up as well. "My father has absolutely no reason to move against Bai Teng. Truthfully, you should already be aware of the situation within my White Dragon Clan, Uncle. Our family’s foundation is too shallow, and our main family is failing. Without my existence, the branch families would have already surpassed us, and my father might not even be the patriarch right now. My father’s always been concerned about the internal stability of our clan, so why would he ever attack Patriarch Bai Teng?"

Wang Zheng’s mind was racing.

Lu Yin continued. "Virtue Archives’ Yu Hao is supported by Grandmaster Gu Yan, and the Celestial Frost Sect has been sending Bai Weiwei to get closer to Yu Hao. While I don't know what sort of promises they might have made, it’s quite clear that Yu Hao is getting closer to the Celestial Frost Sect. If our suspicions are true, then this means that, not only does the Celestial Frost Sect want to win over Grandmaster Gu Yan, but they also want to gain control of Star Alliance. If they succeed, none of us will be able to compare to them when it comes to forces beneath the Progenitor level."

Wang Zheng arched a brow. "Even if the Celestial Frost Sect gains complete control of Star Alliance, they still won't be able to completely overpower the rest of us."

"Uncle, you just said it yourself—they won’t be able to overpower the rest of us. We were able to guess what the Celestial Frost Sect’s plans were, which is why we moved in secret to speak with you to form an alliance between our three forces. But what if we had not grown suspicious of them?" Long Tian presented an alternative scenario.

Lu Yin could not help glance over. Long Tian was quite convincing.

This last argument swayed Wang Zheng. It was indeed true that if the Celestial Frost Sect’s plans had not been seen through, then gaining Grandmaster Gu Yan and complete control of Star Alliance would elevate the Celestial Frost Sect’s strength to a level that none of the other three powers could even come close to on an individual level.

"Even if the Celestial Frost Sect is able to greatly surpass our three forces in the Envoy and Semi-Progenitor levels, what about the Progenitor realm?" Wang Zheng still did not fully believe it. "Can the Celestial Frost Sect really overwhelm our three Progenitors all alone?"

Long Tian frowned. "This is something that we have been unable to understand ourselves. It’s possible that the Celestial Frost Sect assumed that they would not be seen through until after they secretly managed to gain control of Star Alliance. Don’t forget, Uncle, how the Lu family was exiled in the past."

Wang Zheng's heart dropped, and his brow furrowed.

Lu Yin's eyes were serious. Long Tian knew the truth behind the Lu family’s exile? That should be impossible. Lu Yin had already questioned Xia Xing's clone about the matter, but the clone had not known anything. If not even Xia Xing’s clone knew, then Wang Zheng should not know anything either, given his personal strength. Lu Yin had also spent a long time reviewing Long Ke’s memories, and had found nothing. How could Long Tian know?

Wang Zheng sat back down and stared at Long Tian. "You’re saying these things because you want my help in saving your father."

"I won't deny it, but if our suspicions are accurate, then does the Wang family want to follow in the Lu family’s footsteps?"

Unconsciously, Wang Zheng's fingers trembled.

Lu Yin spoke up next. "Regardless of whether or not our suspicions are valid, the three of us should still unite against the Celestial Frost Sect. They’ve grown too strong, especially her."

Lu Yin was very worried that he would be discovered as an imposter, especially since he knew very little about the actual inner workings of the four ruling powers. All he could do was address matters that he did know about.

Still, his words were quite effective.

"Once she leaves seclusion, there’s no telling what she will do next. No one wants to be treated like the Lu family was," Wang Zheng muttered to himself. He looked up at Lu Yin and Long Tian. "No matter what, you only have speculations. Still, since you’re here, I’ll agree to temporarily form an alliance with you. However, I will only agree to work to restrain the Celestial Frost Sect, nothing more. I will not actively attack the Celestial Frost Sect. We need to remain clear that humanity’s greatest enemy is always Aeternus."

Lu Yin and Long Tian both nodded.

Wang Zheng rubbed his head. "Truthfully, regardless of whether Bai Teng is missing, or even dead, none of it has anything to do with me. I’ll go visit the Celestial Frost Sect again and find a way to rescue Long Ke."

"Thank you, Uncle," Long Tian said gratefully.

Long Ke had been imprisoned within the Celestial Frost Sect because they suspected that he was involved in Bai Teng's disappearance. If the White Dragon Clan did not want to openly attack the Celestial Frost Sect, then their only option was to ask Wang Zheng to step forward and alter his testimony. Otherwise, war would break out.

However, war was highly unlikely. Bai Teng meant nothing to the Celestial Frost Sect in the grand scheme of things, while Long Ke was relatively unimportant to the White Dragon Clan as a whole. Even though the White Dragon Clan’s amassed wealth and power was relatively lower than the other three powers, they were still one of the four ruling families. There were always powerhouses on the outside willing to join them if the White Dragon Clan was keen on recruiting them.

Long Tian was the most desperate White Dragon Clan member to save Long Ke.

"Senior, with all due respect, how many members of your Wang family know your family’s portion of the restrictions placed on the members of Star Alliance?" Lu Yin asked, bringing up another point.

Wang Zheng replied, "Four: our Progenitor, myself, Elder Wang Si, and Semi-Progenitor Wang Xun, who is currently stationed on the rear battlefield."

Wang Xun was the third array base’s general, and he was one of the Wang family’s Semi-Progenitors.

"Our Progenitor can be dismissed, and Elder Wang Si is currently hunting down the last member of the Lu family in the Fifth Mainland. As long as I don't leave my home, the Celestial Frost Sect can do nothing to me," Wang Zheng concluded.

"So, their only option is General Wang Xun," Lu Yin said.

Wang Zheng laughed. "That’s also impossible. No one would dare to attack a general on the rear battlefield. Doing so would cause too much discord, and if that happened, all four of our ruling powers would be punished as one. It is an inviolable rule that the rear battlefield cannot be manipulated, which is why we took such strong actions and erased the Dealcut Association after they were exposed for secretly manipulating the allotment of resources assigned to the rear battlefield."

"If our speculations are valid, then the Celestial Frost Sect has already captured Xia Xing, the sect master of Shenwu's Sky, and arrested my father. This means that they already have acquired two portions of the restriction, in addition to their own. The Wang family’s portion is all that they’re missing, and they will definitely find a way to go after you, Uncle. You are the only one they could possibly target," Long Tian warned.

Wang Zheng sneered. "As long as I don't leave this place, no one can touch me."

Lu Yin suddenly spoke up, "Don't forget about how our sect master disappeared."

Wang Zheng’s eyes instantly narrowed.

Xia Xing had disappeared in the Middle Realm. No one had expected the man to suddenly make such a journey, but he had.

"Why did Xia Xing go to the Middle Realm?" Wang Zheng asked.

Long Tian also looked over at the fake Xia Yuan.

There were some rumors floating around regarding Xia Xing's disappearance, but few people were fully informed of what had happened. After all, it was related to Yu Hao, and everything related to that young man was an embarrassment to Shenwu’s Sky. It was only natural that they had not publicly released any of the information.

Only the Celestial Frost Sect understood that it was because Bai Weiwei had gotten too close to Yu Hao.

Lu Yin was put in an awkward position, but he did reveal the reason for Xia Xing’s trip to the Middle Realm.

Wang Zheng frowned. "Grandmaster Gu Yan is certainly worth recruiting. It makes sense for Xia Xing to travel to the Middle Realm for such a purpose. Still, isn’t this Yu Hao quite suspicious?"

"For now, no. Our sect master was attacked by Realmless after they were hired to kill him. Aside from my Shenwu’s Sky, only Headmaster Wen and Yu Hao knew of the sect master’s visit. However, Ancestor Ziheng has mentioned that it is also possible for Bai Weiwei to have learned of it, as she and Yu Hao have gotten very close to each other," Lu Yin replied.

All of the circumstantial evidence continued to point towards the Celestial Frost Sect, and Lu Yin continued to push the boat along. It would be best for him if these three forces united against the Celestial Frost Sect, though all hostilities would vanish as soon as Yu Hao was revealed as a fraud. After all, many of the speculations stemmed from Yu Hao’s identity.

As soon as Yu Hao was revealed to be Lu Yin, everything would unravel. The four ruling powers were not fools, and this tripartite alliance would instantly fall apart.