Bloodline Tree – [Clan Building]

“Are you sure everyone who is going is on?” Bian Fenglin walked over and asked.

“I sure hope so. I’ve counted everyone several times, and it adds up,” Shu Yang said. He turned to his daughter, who was a bit further away on the deck of the flying ship, and called out to her. “Tianyue, have you checked everyone off the list?”

“Twice!” Tianyue called back to him, waving the list in her hand.

“Then are you ready to leave?” Bian Fenglin asked.

Shu Yang took a deep breath and nodded. “Let’s go.”

Bian Fenglin nodded, and through the formation plate in his hand, controlled the flying ship to slowly rise into the air.

His family members were all gathered back at the stern, looking down at what had been their home for over ten years. A few of them waved; a few of them cried. 

Thankfully, his grandchildren seemed to take the departure well enough, their faces lit up with excitement.

‘Yeah. Leaving anyone behind would have been too hard. Perhaps especially so for those kids who would have been left behind.’

Shu Yang could just imagine it, Tianan’s family staying behind, the children having to wave goodbye to their cousins as they flew off to a new and foreign land. It would have been just as cruel to leave them behind as it was to take them to a place where they might not fit in.

‘I really hope I did the right thing.’

Either way, it was too late for regret, so he didn’t waste more time thinking about it. 

Qianyue walked up to him, and they both looked down as the settlement grew smaller and smaller, eventually disappearing from view.

“Do you think they’ll be alright?” Qianyue asked. The Shu family would leave quite a vacuum behind, after all.

“I don’t know,” Shu Yang said, shaking his head. The power of his family had been pretty crucial in keeping order at the settlement. But it wasn’t like they could stay behind and take care of these people forever. They had done what they could; now they had to take care of things on their own.

‘I would have loved to settle everything before leaving. Take down the Lishen Emperor and the Wen King, solve the threat of the Far West, and set up something more stable so the people here can prosper. But in the end, it’s not realistic. I just don’t have the time.’

‘My first priority is to take care of my family, and everything else is irrelevant in the grand scheme of things.’

‘Perhaps some of my descendants want to come back one day, and then we can return to do things properly, with the Shu Family taking charge of these lands.’

But Shu Yang knew that would require a Foundation cultivator to be willing to stay there, or else it would be too risky.

“All we can do is wish them luck,” Shu Yang said. “At least the Sword Sect should take care of the evil practices here soon enough.”

“And then the Lishen Emperor will take over?” Qianyue asked.

“Probably. It’s not ideal, but at least the wars should end,” Shu Yang said. If he killed the Lishen Emperor, he would just create unrest and instability. And as much as Shu Yang hated him, he was someone who could stabilize the area after they left.

‘Well, from now on, this is all the past. I should look ahead.’

He walked over to Bian Fenglin and asked, “How long do you think the journey will take?”

“We’ll get to Yuanchi Immortal Land in about a month,” Bian Fenglin answered. “After that, it should be another four or five months until we reach the Sword Sect.”

“Good,” Shu Yang said. That wasn’t too long. He felt a bit daunted by the spirit stones that would be used for the journey, though. He would offer to contribute, but he really needed the ones he had for when they settled in the Sword Sect. 

‘I’m sure it’s fine. Bian Fenglin shouldn’t lack spirit stones.’

He wasn’t sure of Bian Fenglin’s background, but from what he had seen, it should be very impressive. He didn’t seem very concerned about things like spirit stones.

‘I hope Lady Jiangxi received my letter, and she is ready to leave when we get there.’

‘She should come with us, right?’

As for how to deal with the Qing Family, Shu Yang really couldn’t do anything about them right now. He was too weak. And it wasn’t like he could ask Bian Fenglin for yet another favor.

Besides, Shu Yang would rather settle things himself once he was powerful enough.

But how he would handle it would depend a lot on Lady Jiangxi’s opinion. As much as Shu Yang hated the Qing Family, he was even more grateful to her. If her stance toward them had softened over the years, Shu Yang was willing to defer to her. What was revenge worth compared to what she had done for his daughter?

“By the way, do you have a suggestion for where we should settle once we arrive? I assume the Sword Sect’s territory is already pretty occupied by the forces there,” Shu Yang asked.

“Indeed,” Bian Fenglin said with a nod. “Even if you got a spiritual mountain within the sect’s territory, you would still need the strength to keep it. There are a lot of different factions and families, all with their own interests and agendas; just my word won’t keep the vultures out forever. You would also get on the wrong foot with a lot of people. Powerful people. It’s better to settle for something a bit more within your means, and then work your way up. If those girls make it far within the sect in the future, they could improve things for you. No one would object if they had the strength and influence to support you.”

“That’s what I was thinking,” Shu Yang said. “So perhaps an estate in an Immortal City? Is that viable?”

“That shouldn’t be a problem at all,” Bian Fenglin answered with a smile. “If you’re willing to listen to my advice, I would suggest you settle in one of the cities in Zhixian Immortal Land. You can always look for something better once you’ve found your footing.”

“What’s Zhixian Immortal Land?” Shu Yang asked.

“One of the sixteen Immortal Lands under the purview of the Sword Sect. Not including the Sword Immortal Land, where the Sword Sect is located, it is the largest of all Immortal Lands. It is also quite close to Huanhon Immortal Land, with only a few mortal kingdoms in between. It’s also the closest Immortal Land to the Beast Taming Sect, so it sees a lot of trade, and travel is easy. 

“Still, with opportunity, there is always a risk. If you want to just lay low, another Immortal Land might be better, where your Foundation strength is a bit more of a deterrent.”

“Are there Golden Core cultivators there?” Shu Yang asked.

“Yes,” Bian Fenglin answered. “Quite a few, so be careful and make sure you don’t offend someone you can’t afford to.”

“Right,” Shu Yang said. 

‘Well, not having a Golden Core cultivator close by would certainly put me more at ease, but there are bound to be a lot more opportunities for the family if there are stronger cultivators living there.’

‘If we settle for a safer place, it might not be long before we need to relocate again. Probably long before I advance to the Golden Core stage. It’s better to just move there straight away.’

Shu Yang left Bian Fenglin and took a lap around the flying ship to make sure everyone was doing alright. 

Luckily, the younger generation’s excitement seemed to have made their parents a bit cheerful as well. 

“Really, you see a person flying every day,” Tianyi was talking about life in the cultivation world to a crowd of curious listeners. “I managed to learn a bit, but it’s really only a wind spell. To really fly, you need to reach the Foundation stage. At least sister Hongchi said that there is no way you can have enough spiritual qi before then.”

“I really want to fly,” Xinru said with dreamy eyes.

“Aren’t you flying now?” Xinyang questioned.

“Oh. I really am, aren’t I?” Xinru asked, seemingly just realizing it.

Shu Yang just watched them from a distance with a smile and moved over to the railing. This flying ship was a bit different from the ones he had seen before; it actually had sails, like ships at sea. But these sails were attached to the sides of the ship, looking like a pair of wings.

He was actually quite surprised when he first boarded the ship; it was a lot more accommodating than he had thought. Everyone basically had their own room to sleep in. It was even better than the flying ship he had taken from Chenqi to Shenchu Immortal City. He and Qianyue even got a very big and fancy-looking room, where you could cultivate if you wanted to. 

Shu Yang wouldn’t do that, though. It was a bit over the line to use Bian Fenglin’s spirit stones not only to transport his entire family, but to accelerate his own cultivation as well.

The flying ship did look a bit old, though. Shu Yang guessed it was used to transport people between sects. Perhaps it belonged to some merchant company that arranged travel between the Sword Sect and the Green River Sect. 

Shu Yang had no idea how Bian Fenglin managed to get his hands on it. 

“Xiaorong! Can you really catch up if you fall down from there?” Shu Yang called out to the small black fox that was perched on the mast sticking out the side of the ship.

Xiaorong took a few quick steps back to the railing. “I won’t fall.”

She climbed back onto Shu Yang’s shoulder for some reason. “Besides, I could easily catch up.”

“Right,” Shu Yang said, smiling. “Are you looking forward to getting to the Sword Sect? The environment there should be a lot more suitable for your cultivation.”

“Is there spiritual qi?” Xiaorong asked.

“Definitely better than back home,” Shu Yang answered. “I would prefer if we had access to a 2nd stage spiritual vein, but that might not be so easy. We’ll see when we get there.”

“Is there meat?” Xiaorong asked.

“We’ll be pretty close to the Heaven-Reaching Forest, so I imagine there will be quite a lot of meat, yes,” Shu Yang answered. He hesitated slightly before asking, “Do you think you want to go there at some point? Your clan should be there.”

“No,” Xiaorong answered succinctly.

“Good,” Shu Yang said, smiling.

He definitely didn’t want Xiaorong to leave; she was part of the family too.

‘Even though it’s only a few months of travel, I really can’t help but think it’s too long.’

Shu Yang was just looking forward to having his entire family gathered, once again working together from the bottom. Working their way up in status and strength, step by step.

This time, it would probably take a lot longer than it had done in the Yan Kingdom, but Shu Yang didn’t mind.

‘As long as the family can live together in peace, it can take centuries for all I care.’