Unnamed Territory Chapter Ninety-Seven: The Secret Between Him and Me
“I must say, I quite admire your cunning, young friend. If you were to command a faction, you might surpass even me as head of the family!” Zhou Xuanhong replied modestly, “Master, you flatter me. I am skilled in schemes, but managing a faction is beyond my reach; I lack the experience. In that regard, I am far inferior to you.”
Shangguan Ba chuckled, “Enough of this. Zhuge Jiangniao... Zhou Xuanhong, tell me about your proposal! I want to hear what kind of stratagem you’ve devised.”
Zhou Xuanhong smiled mysteriously. “This plan is still unstable, but if it succeeds, the Shangguan family will be free from the Taiyin Ji Shi Sect’s control. At the very least, the city lord’s mansion in Yundong City can be removed. Tell me, is this worth the formation jade slip you offered?”
Shangguan Ba raised an eyebrow. “You intend to scheme against the Taiyin Ji Shi Sect? With your abilities? Even as a fourth-rank formation master, that’s like an egg striking a rock. If a fourth-rank formation master could topple a sect that has stood for thousands of years, Taiyin Ji Shi would have been destroyed countless times already.”
Zhou Xuanhong laughed lightly. “When I destroyed the Xingyan Sect, I was only at the Foundation Establishment stage.”
Shangguan Ba shook his head. “That was due to favorable timing, terrain, and internal strife—the Xu family’s internecine conflicts, the external assaults from the Yinshi Sect and the Demon Ghost Faction, and the factor of Xu Yuqi.”
Zhou Xuanhong laughed uproariously. “Timing, terrain, and human harmony? Ha ha ha!”
“What are you laughing at?”
Zhou Xuanhong said confidently, “If you go to the current Xie Kui Sect and find the Black Ghost Taoist, you’ll understand what so-called timing, terrain, and human harmony really mean. Master, the three elements you mentioned can all be found, and if not, they can be created. You... understand my meaning, don’t you?”
Shangguan Ba asked, “Then tell me, where are the timing, terrain, and human harmony to topple the Taiyin Ji Shi Sect?”
Zhou Xuanhong raised his hand and pointed toward the city lord’s mansion outside the room. “That is timing.”
Then he pointed toward a direction outside Yundong City. “That is terrain.”
Finally, he pointed at Shangguan Ba, then at himself. “And this is human harmony.”
Shangguan Ba shook his head. “I don’t understand what you mean.”
Zhou Xuanhong bowed slightly. “I imagine that having lived so long in the Nameless District, you see many things more clearly than I do. The Taiyin Ji Shi Sect’s dominance is excessive; it forbids other factions from having any True Void Stage experts, forcing great powers like yours to submit to it. As a paragon of your generation, don’t you wish to change this situation?”
Shangguan Ba asked, “Wish to? How? And if I don’t?”
Zhou Xuanhong raised a finger. “If you wish to, the Shangguan family will replace the Taiyin Ji Shi Sect and become the new rulers of the Nameless District.”
He withdrew his finger. “If not, things will proceed as they are, and your family will lose without gaining anything.”
Shangguan Ba chuckled, “You’re that confident? And where does this confidence come from?”
Zhou Xuanhong stood up and shook his head. “Belief or disbelief is your choice alone. As head of a family, this decision is crucial. I know you cannot entrust your family’s future to an outsider like me. However, when the stakes far exceed those of the family, why not take a chance?”
Shangguan Ba fell silent. Indeed, if Zhou’s words proved true, the Shangguan family’s future would be at the pinnacle of the Nameless District. But if they failed...
“You cannot rely on words alone. You must take concrete action, or I cannot trust you.”
---
Zhou Xuanhong smiled slightly. “Naturally. Soon, you will see my words are not empty. Every journey begins somewhere—let’s start with the Xie Kui Sect.”
Shangguan Ba was curious. “If your reason for destroying the Xingyan Sect was that Xu Yuqi wanted to possess you, why do you plot against the Taiyin Ji Shi Sect?”
Zhou Xuanhong shook his head, unwilling to answer.
Shangguan Ba guessed it had something to do with Zhu Xiaona and did not press further.
He asked, “What do you need me to do during this time?”
Zhou Xuanhong took out a jade slip from his storage ring and handed it to Shangguan Ba. “Find the Grandmaster Dayan and give him this jade slip. Once he understands its contents, he will know what to do.”
“Very well.”
Shangguan Ba accepted the jade slip and probed it with his divine sense, only to be stopped by a formation barrier. It was a fourth-rank formation seal, requiring a specific item to unlock.
Zhou Xuanhong cupped his fists again. “Please return my soul blood. You know that during the Xingyan Sect incident, my soul blood was in Xu Yuqi’s hands. But holding it, he could do nothing, so soul blood is less useful than an immortal oath.”
Shangguan Ba considered for a moment and nodded. Indeed, there was no need to keep it. If controlling Zhou Xuanhong had been as simple as possessing his soul blood, he wouldn’t have given it up so easily upon his arrival.
After returning the soul blood, the two swore an immortal oath, marking the beginning of their plot against the Taiyin Ji Shi Sect.
Exiting the room, Zhou Xuanhong produced a black, circular object—a formation plate he had forged from materials obtained from Shangguan Liming. Multiple formations were layered upon it, with the core refined into the same plate.
Now, this formation plate looked nothing like a formation plate, but resembled a black millstone.
Zhou Xuanhong named it the Thunder Void Plate. It had space to place spirit stones and did not consume the user’s strength to fly.
At full speed, with sufficient spirit stones, it could reach speeds comparable to the Nascent Soul stage. Moreover, the various formations required vast spiritual power and formation skill to sustain. Even if others obtained the Thunder Void Plate, they would likely lose control.
Stepping onto the Thunder Void Plate, Zhou Xuanhong and Li Li arrived at the Shangguan family’s martial arena, which was filled with many Golden Core stage cultivators, all exuding a sword intent.
This was the Shangguan family’s hallmark—dual cultivation of sword technique and magic. Only a few, like Shangguan Yixin, practiced the body-sword dual cultivation; most were refined and scholarly sword cultivators like Shangguan Liming, blending the sharpness of the sword with the elegance of magic. Hence, the Shangguan family was renowned for its prestige in the Nameless District.
They were surprised by Zhou Xuanhong’s arrival; they expected that after Shangguan Ba took him away, he wouldn’t participate in this trial. Yet the family head had consented!
“Brother Daoist? The family head really agreed to let you join?”
Zhou Xuanhong nodded, smiling and cupping his fists to the Golden Core sword cultivators. “Friends, please guide me. I ask for your care and support in the Great World.”
Although inwardly disdainful—after all, a first-level Golden Core cultivator entering meant certain death—the disciples smiled politely and promised as if nothing was amiss. This was the Shangguan family’s usual facade: respectful outwardly, but inwardly indifferent.
Zhou Xuanhong scanned with his divine sense and was surprised to find that after talking with Shangguan Ba, the original group of 42 had grown to 53. That meant all these Golden Core cultivators were under 200 years old, an astonishing number of talented disciples in the Shangguan family.
Compared to the Xingyan Sect, they were incomparable. With such a base, without the Taiyin Ji Shi Sect’s restraint, producing several True Void Stage experts would be effortless.
---
“Brother Zhuge, I didn’t expect Father to agree to your participation.”
Not far off, Shangguan Liming bid farewell to several late Golden Core elder brothers and approached Zhou Xuanhong, also surprised.
Zhou Xuanhong chuckled. “I’m just one among many guest officials. One more or less makes no difference. But Liming, your cultivation has improved considerably; it won’t be long before you break into late Golden Core.”
Shangguan Liming looked embarrassed. “That’s because that girl Yixin pushed me. After entering your formations twice, my progress skyrocketed. I can’t let my younger sister leave me so far behind. Oh? This flying treasure of yours is strange—somewhat odd and mismatched.”
Zhou Xuanhong didn’t explain, smiling instead. Then he looked toward a direction and said, “Your sister is coming.”
Nearby, a graceful figure soared in with her physical body. She radiated the power of a ninth-level Golden Core cultivator, clearly a recent breakthrough.
Shangguan Yixin wore a smile of confidence and pride. Her skin was snow-white, dazzling like a peerless jade, and every strand of hair was smooth, resilient, and refined.
Shangguan Liming asked in amazement, “Sister, you broke through so quickly! From seventh to ninth level Golden Core in just two years—how did you do it?”
Not only he but many cultivators nearby cast curious glances, their envy and admiration well concealed.
Just as Shangguan Yixin was about to speak, she caught sight of Zhou Xuanhong smiling slyly and changed her mind, shaking her head. “I won’t tell you. This is a secret between me and Zhuge Jiangniao.”
“Uh...”
Even Zhou Xuanhong was speechless. The more she cultivated, the sillier she seemed—her answer was tantamount to saying nothing.
Shangguan Liming immediately looked at Zhou Xuanhong, a little resentful. “Brother Zhuge, that’s unkind. You have a way to advance quickly but won’t share it with me?”
Zhou Xuanhong shrugged. “Mainly because Yixin is half a physical cultivator. With the right environment, she can break through quickly. But that’s about it; further progress will be difficult. If you switch to physical cultivation, you could train alongside your sister.”
Shangguan Liming glanced at Shangguan Yixin and knew Zhou spoke truthfully. Zhou could deceive him, but he knew his sister too well—if Zhou had lied, Yixin’s expression would have shown doubt or disdain.
Shangguan Yixin chuckled, “Don’t worry, Brother. I’ll protect you. Now I’m one of the family’s top Golden Core experts. Even Sister Bai? I feel I can take her on head-to-head!”
Because of Shangguan Yixin’s poor reputation within the family, other cultivators instinctively avoided her upon her arrival, fearing another fight. Not because they couldn’t defeat her, but because of Yixin’s status—they dared not strike hard. Yixin’s stubbornness made her truly difficult to handle.