Chapter 423: Section 211: Purple Vine’s Secret Cache
Qing Xin’s words were profound, causing Cang Xu’s pupils to slightly contract.
On the other end of the communication device, Zi Di fell silent for a moment before saying, “Could it mean that my father had connections with the Undead Mage long ago?”
Qing Xin smiled faintly, looking at Cang Xu in front of her, and replied to Zi Di, “Now that you have taken over your father’s secret treasure, do you still need me to prove this question?”
Zi Di: ???
She couldn’t help but fall silent again and began to think rapidly.
“Secret treasure? What secret treasure?”
“Why did Sister Qing Xin link the exposure of the Undead Mage’s identity by Cang Xu to the secret treasure?”
“What kind of secret treasure?”
“From Sister Qing Xin’s words, it seems to be not just wealth. Did my father also secretly cultivate a part of this power?”
“And does this part of the power have something to do with the Undead Mage?”
“Qing Xin understood the inside story, so she was not shocked when she saw Cang Xu expose his identity. Instead, she thought it was obvious and ended up boarding the Iron Lump with Cang Xu.”
“This misunderstanding in fact made Sister Qing Xin trust me even more.”
Zi Di hesitated.
Should she clarify this misunderstanding?
Under the current circumstances, it seemed more advantageous for her.
However, after thinking about it, from her own heart, Zi Di did not want to deceive Qing Xin but preferred to be honest.
Thus, she said, “Secret treasure? Sister Qing Xin, I am not clear about what you’re referring to.”
Qing Xin furrowed her brow: “You don’t know about the Purple Vine secret treasure?”
“That shouldn’t be.”
“How did you then get help from this… Mage?”
Zi Di then said, “There are many complications in it, and I’m not able to explain them clearly yet.”
“Hasn’t this Mage told you the related intelligence?” Qing Xin looked at Cang Xu in front of her.
Cang Xu shook his head slightly: “In fact, I am also not clear about what the Purple Vine secret treasure is.”
However, Qing Xin said, “No, perhaps you just aren’t informed.”
“While I do not know the real ins and outs, I do know that there indeed exists a Purple Vine secret treasure.”
“This is what the Chairman, your father, has been secretly orchestrating.”
“When the Purple Vine Chamber of Commerce was in a desperate situation, the Chairman set up this secret treasure as preparation for reviving the Guild in the future.”
Zi Di, “Sister Qing Xin, please continue.”
Qing Xin’s face showed a nostalgic expression: “Zi Di, your father was a very outstanding businessman with unique vision and advanced thinking.”
“He almost single-handedly built the Purple Vine Chamber of Commerce. At its peak, it was second only to the six major Guilds.”
“Sadly, the Purple Vine Chamber of Commerce rose from the grassroots, inherently possessing a huge weakness—Martial Power!”
“Long before, your father had realized this flaw and began planning to cultivate the Guild’s own power.”
“The whole Guild implemented your father’s will and took immediate action.”
“You know, after my abilities and loyalty were proven, I was cultivated by your father and gradually became a Mage. I am one of the beneficiaries of this plan.”
“However, unfortunately, this plan was not successful.”
“Many were on the cultivation list, but ultimately only a handful achieved something. I am one of them.”
“There were many reasons for this. The primary reason was that almost all of us came from the lower classes, inherently having weak Bloodlines, lacking Extraordinary Talent—no potential.”
“But the main reason was the covert sabotage by the Empire’s Nobles!”
“The rise of the Purple Vine Chamber of Commerce was unexpected for the Nobles of the Empire.”
“But never underestimate these upper echelons!”
“Even when the Purple Vine Chamber of Commerce was still in its formative stages, not truly powerful, many Nobles had already been paying attention to it covertly.”
“When the Guild tried to cultivate its own Extraordinary Power, even though the Nobles did not act openly, they unleashed continuous underground suppression.”
“People on the cultivation list, partly because of insufficient potential, did not develop. Others were marginalized, suppressed, swayed, or even assassinated. The final few who went through numerous hardships and survived by luck—it’s people like me.”
Zi Di then realized: “So, my father had already been finding ways.”
Qing Xin nodded slightly and continued, “This plan failed, but it also allowed the Guild’s upper echelons to detect the malice from the Nobles.”
“Despite this, the Chairman did not give up. On one hand, he actively contacted high-ranking officials of the Empire, attempting to gain protection. On the other hand, he still did not give up on cultivating Extraordinary Power.”
“The plan to select and cultivate from Guild members faced severe obstacles and took too long. Therefore, the Chairman turned his attention to foreign races.”
The world was not just the Human Race; there were also Elves, Dragons, Dwarves, Barbarians, Goblins, and more.
“As the scale of the Purple Vine Chamber of Commerce grew, through its trading channels, it came into contact with many foreign powers.”
“However, the results of seeking help from abroad were not significant.”
“On one hand, the Holy Bright Empire was the strongest power, and the foreign races were very cautious about supporting the Guild against the high echelons of the Empire.”
“On the other hand, the Empire’s Nobles also seized the opportunity to place many of their Transcendents into the Guild.”
“The result was that, although the Guild posessed massive Extraordinary Powers, the loyalty of these Transcendents was extremely questionable, as many of them harbored ulterior motives, coming from various forces.”
“These Transcendents outwardly became the external support of the Guild, but in reality, they were the tentacles of the Empire’s Nobles and foreign powers infiltrating the Guild.”
Qing Xin sighed deeply, “The situation of the Guild grew increasingly worse, and the Chairman could only take desperate measures, beginning to contact some special Transcendents.”
“Among them were the Undead Mages.”
“Zi Di, you should be aware, the situation of the Undead Mages has always been terrible. They are enemies of the gods, wanted by nearly all forces, despised by everyone.”
“Utilizing the Guild’s channels, the Chairman did just a few underground trades and easily gained some recognition from Undead Mages.”
“Undead Mages terribly lack opportunities for trade and communication.”
“Additionally, their hostile relationship with almost all forces also made the Guild feel more secure in using them.”
“So that’s how it was,” Zi Di fell silent for a moment, then asked, “Isn’t it too dangerous to cooperate with the Undead Mages? Didn’t anyone else in the Guild object?”
Qing Xin smiled slightly, “Young Zi Di, you are still too naive.”
“Firstly, although everyone is against Undead Mages, do you think others haven’t secretly collaborated with them?”
“In fact, some top officials of the Empire even take proactive steps to cultivate Undead Mages.”
“Secondly, you underestimate your own father. He founded the Purple Vine Guild and he expanded it massively. Though he was a commoner, his influence within the Guild was immense.”
“Lastly, the collaboration with the Undead Mages took place towards the end of the Guild. By then, the situation was already severe, with noble forces openly interfering, recruiting, abducting, and threatening the Guild’s elders. The high-ranking guild members all clearly recognized that the Empire’s top echelons would never let them go. Therefore, we were actually driven to desperation and chose this strategy.”
“I also came to know about the existence of Purple Vine’s secret store during this period.”
“Actually, your father had prepared this plan long ago.”
“Because of Purple Vine’s secret store, we had a lot of hope. Even if the Guild eventually collapsed, we would still have the capital to restart.”
“But I am not sure what exactly is in Purple Vine’s secret store.”
“In fact, the cooperation related to Undead Mages was only known by a very few elders who understood the real situation.”
“After all, the less people know about these things, the better.”
“But I guess, since it’s established on the premise of facilitating the Guild’s reconstruction, this secret store must certainly contain contact information for Undead Mages.”
“I believe, the secret cooperation between Purple Vine Guild and Undead Mages has earned many friendships from benefiting Undead Mages.”
“This part of Extraordinary Power can be utilized, but of course, with great caution!”
Qing Xin explained in detail.
On the other end of the alchemy communication device, Zi Di fell into silence.
Qing Xin spoke again softly, “Young Zi Di, please don’t resent our inability.”
“Actually, we really did try our best.”
“But the Empire is too strong, truly too formidable, to the point of despair.”
“Your father was very impressive, even though he was not a Transcendent.”
“He led the Purple Vine Guild to hold on till that point, which was beyond many people’s expectations, including mine.”
“It’s just that the enemy was too powerful.”
In Qing Xin’s words, he held a high regard for Zi Di’s father.
Cang Xu pondered silently.
From this conversation, he discerned the various contests that unfolded around the Purple Vine Guild over the past years, some as glaring as blades, others as sinister as hidden sword shadows.
In this struggle that lasted at least a dozen years, countless individuals exhausted their wits in their actions and choices.
Deep Sea Monster Fish.
In the control cabin, Zi Di sat still for a moment.
A rush of emotions flooded her heart.
She recalled her father, and now from another close person, she heard about the hardships of the Guild, sensing her father’s difficulties.
But in reality, her father rarely passed this pressure onto her.
Once, indeed, her father wanted to arrange a marriage for her.
But after she refused, he never asked anything of her again.
“If I had agreed to the marriage at that time, could it have saved the Guild, and could my father have been spared?” This question lingered in her mind, chilling her to the bone.
Then, Qing Xin spoke again, “Zi Di, whether you obtained the secret store or not, you need to be careful.”
“This time, although you were not exposed, your companions revealed the identity of an Undead Mage.”
“They will not stop.”
“Because the secret store has not been searched.”
“That’s why I concealed my identity.”
“We can’t stay here any longer, we must leave as soon as possible.”
“I’m worried that our pursuers will appear before long.”