Clan Cultivation: Starting from Beast Taming

Zhou Mingde had anticipated this question and immediately answered, "Temple Master, your insight is clear. When that villain made a move against Zhengchun, upon seeing the third tier top-grade Defensive Talisman that Taoist Friend Mingxia had given him, he accidentally let slip and asked Zhengchun if the talisman was a reward he obtained from being an undercover spy in the Dragon Transformation Sect."

"Therefore, both Zhengchun and I believe it is very likely that he came for retaliation, certainly because Zhengchun had stood out too much at the Hundred Clans Conference and attracted too much attention. This must have led the spy that the Dragon Transformation Sect had planted to transmit the information back to them, thus the sect learned of Zhengchun's background!"

This speculation was both rational and entirely factual.

Master Qingwei had also long been aware that the Dragon Transformation Sect had Zhou Chun's name on their list.

So after hearing Zhou Mingde's words, he thought for a moment and then nodded, "Taoist Friend Zhou's conjecture is reasonable. I will have someone verify this matter."

Having said this, he looked at the cold body on the ground and pondered for a while, then said, "Regardless, it's a fact that the Zhou Family has slain a protector of the Dragon Transformation Sect, and that is a great achievement. I will consider giving your Zhou Family a reward."

At this point, he looked deeply at Zhou Mingde and advised, "However, when you return, you must remind Little Friend Zhou to not leave home lightly in the future, lest he gets himself into trouble and jeopardizes the great affairs of our sect!"

"Yes, I will strictly follow the Temple Master's decree!"

Zhou Mingde respectfully took the order and then left the Sect Leader's great hall first.

After his departure, Master Qingwei looked at the body left in the hall and went forward to conduct a detailed examination.

However, because the body had been meticulously processed by Zhou Mingde, he couldn't discern any specific useful information, and ultimately could only shake his head and casually cast a ball of flames to burn it to ashes.

As for the reward that should be given to the Zhou Family, he would naturally distribute it when appropriate, but there was no need to do so immediately.

After leaving the Sect Leader's great hall, Zhou Mingde did not leave the Green Lotus Temple but instead opened a room in the cultivation area within the temple grounds and stayed there.

Officially, he was waiting for a Purple Mansion Cultivator from the Jiang Family to arrive so they could reach a negotiation for reconciliation.

But he knew very well that the Purple Mansion Cultivator from the Jiang Family certainly wouldn't make it. Discover exclusive tales on My Virtual Library Empire

Indeed, after Zhou Mingde had stayed in the Green Lotus Temple for about seven days, Master Qingwei suddenly sent someone to relay a message to him. It stated that the Purple Mansion Cultivator from the Jiang Family had encountered a powerful enemy in an ambush en route after leaving his clan and his life or death was uncertain, making it impossible for him to come and reach a reconciliation agreement.

Upon learning of this, Zhou Mingde's eyes immediately revealed an extremely astonished expression.

Soon, as if he had thought of something, a look of joy filled his eyes as he asked the messenger Cultivator, "Do you know who ambushed Taoist Friend Jiang? Could it possibly be from some enemy the Jiang Family had offended in the past?"

Hearing this question, the Green Lotus Temple Disciple, who only had Foundation Establishment cultivation, shook his head repeatedly, "This junior does not know. I am only here to relay the Temple Master's message to you, senior."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Mingde nodded and said, "I understand. Please relay a message from Zhou to the Temple Master, saying that with regards to resolving the issue with the Jiang Family, Zhou has suddenly recalled some details that require further discussion. I need to return to my clan to discuss it with my clan members in detail. I shall not bother your esteemed sect any further!"

After saying this, he left the Green Lotus Temple gate with a joyful demeanor, like a victorious general returning from battle, full of the joys of spring as he hurried back to his clan.

This entire scene was secretly observed by Master Qingwei using his Divine Sense.

On his way back, the messenger Disciple saw Master Qingwei furrow his brows slightly and mutter to himself, "Judging by his expression, it doesn't seem fake. It looks like I was indeed being overly concerned!"

He had already obtained detailed intelligence and knew that the person who ambushed the Purple Mansion Cultivator from the Jiang Family was a Red Dragon Protector of the Dragon Transformation Sect.

After learning of this, according to the logic of suspicion falling on those who stood to benefit, he naturally suspected Zhou Mingde and the Zhou Family first.

After all, if it were not for the appointment at Green Lotus Temple, the Purple Mansion Cultivator from the Jiang Family would not have left his clan alone at this time.

Yet, thinking that the Zhou Family had just slain a Dragon Transformation Sect protector, he felt his doubts were rather unreasonable.

Even to a powerful entity like the Dragon Transformation Sect, Protector-level powerhouses were few and not as common as cabbages on the side of the road.

A minor Zhou Family, even if they really were secretly colluding with the Dragon Transformation Sect, wouldn't be worth the life of such a protector to assist them.

Furthermore, considering that the Zhou Family had previously cooperated with Taoist Mingxia to kill a Black Dragon Protector, Master Qingwei wasn't very confident about her own suspicions.

And now, as Zhou Mingde suddenly received news of the Jiang Family's troubles, his initial shocked reaction followed by subsequent joy could also prove that he likely didn't know about it beforehand.

Although it could have been a carefully crafted facade, Master Qingwei truly had no intention of delving deeper into the matter.

After all, the missing person was merely a Family Cultivator of a vassal clan under their command, certainly not worth the effort for the Sect Leader of Green Lotus Temple to personally undertake an exhaustive investigation, expending a significant amount of resources to look into another family that had just contributed to the Temple!

All of this was within the calculations of the three members of the Zhou Family.

Whether the Jiang Family admitted it or not, after achieving a rank in the top thirty families in the "Hundred Families Gathering," the Zhou Family's standing with the Green Lotus Temple had already surpassed that of the Jiang Family.

If they were in Master Qingwei's shoes, they certainly wouldn't launch an in-depth investigation into the Zhou Family based on mere deductive speculations and confuse the priorities over a Purple Mansion Cultivator from the Jiang Family.

Keep in mind that the entire affair had been handled solely by the core trio of the Zhou Family. If Master Qingwei were to investigate and wanted to uncover any evidence, she would ultimately have to start with them.

And that would undoubtedly leave the Zhou Family feeling disillusioned with the Green Lotus Temple, no longer willing to exert effort on its behalf.

They might even, in a fit of anger, secretly reveal matters concerning the Dragon Transformation Sect.

Unless Master Qingwei had gone mad, she wouldn't provoke a revolt by doing something like this for a Jiang Family Cultivator whose fate was unknown.

Therefore, the smile and pride that Zhou Mingde showed when he left the Green Lotus Temple were indeed heartfelt.

Upon his return to the clan and taking the letter conveyed by Lin Hongyu from Zhou Daoyi's hands, he laughed even more brightly.

Because the mid-stage Purple Mansion Cultivator from the Jiang Family hadn't just gone missing; he had perished!

"Excellent, this is truly great!"

"This way, not to mention seeking revenge on our Zhou Family, the Jiang Family might even have to worry about us causing them trouble!"

Zhou Mingde couldn't help but clap and laugh out loud, feeling genuinely delighted by the news.

"Indeed, it's good news, but isn't Protector Lin's strength a bit too ferocious?"

"She seems to be only at the mid-stage of Purple Mansion Cultivation Level too, aren't she?"

"With such a level of cultivation, being able to eliminate someone of the same stage is somewhat shocking indeed!"

Upon saying this, Zhou Chun couldn't help but show a trace of worry and said, "What if she truly turns against our Zhou Family in the future? Can we handle her?"

Hearing this, Zhou Mingde's gaze involuntarily flickered towards Zhou Daoyi.

And Zhou Daoyi instantly understood what he meant, and shook his head slightly.

Seeing this, Zhou Mingde could only vaguely respond, "There's no need to worry too much about that—the three major sects are about to go to war with the Dragon Transformation Sect. Perhaps that woman will perish in the conflict, and then we won't have to fear her threat any longer."

Having said that and seemingly not wanting to give Zhou Chun an opportunity to ask further, he quickly changed the subject, "Now that the external threat has been removed, Daoyi, you should also start your seclusion to establish your Purple Mansion as soon as possible. Daoquan is still waiting for the family to avenge him!"

"I understand, I will prepare for seclusion right away,"

Zhou Daoyi nodded his head and agreed without hesitation.