Li Yuanjiao stood with his hands behind his back, listening as Zong Yan introduced the island to him.
"There are more than five thousand people on the island, and most are fishermen. The island also cultivates rice and fruit, but the fields are sparse, so women and children handle most of the work..."
"There are many demons in the area, some of whom are the Dragon Son's lackeys. They tend to be greedy, so when some of our people don't return from venturing out to sea, we know they've been eaten."
After observing Zongquan Island for a while, purple and golden lights streaked in from the east and west. Zong Yan quickly opened the formation, and Li Qinghong and Kongheng landed one after the other.
Li Qinghong surveyed the surroundings and commented, "There are several islands to the east, but none are as good as this one. It's a pretty good size but the spiritual energy is weak."
Li Yuanjiao nodded in agreement, while Kongheng clasped his hands together and spoke in a measured tone.
"I traveled westward. The sea was vast but without a suitable place to establish ourselves."
After hearing their conversation, realization struck Zong Yan and he felt a surge of excitement.
So, these cultivators of orthodox Dao from the mainland are looking for a place to settle! Wonderful! They appear to be disciples of the immortal sect—Zongquan Island's time has finally come!
Li Yuanjiao and Li Qinghong exchanged glances and came to a decision. Noticing her brother's stern expression, which made him appear fierce, Li Qinghong turned to Zong Yan, who seemed delighted.
"Fellow Daoist, as you can see, we intend to establish a base at sea. Zongquan Island is quite suitable for us. We would like to investigate further and discuss this matter in detail with you."
Since Li Yuanjiao intended to take on the role of a villain, Li Qinghong stepped in to chair the negotiation. Although she spoke politely and expressed her intention to discuss the matter in detail, Zong Yan understood that there was little room for negotiation due to the stark disparity between their strengths. It all came down to whether this group would ultimately decide to take over this island.
Zong Yan timidly agreed before Li Qinghong requested, "Well then, fellow Daoist, please accompany Kongheng and the other guest cultivators to survey the earth vein and assess the spiritual energy."
Kongheng excused himself and went off with the rest, leaving Li Yuanjiao standing alongside his younger sister.
He voiced his concerns and Li Qinghong contemplated for a moment before replying, "From what I've observed along the way, the Eastern Sea Dragon Clan treats the islands as fields and the people as livestock, much like raising pigs and cattle in a pen. Even the Golden Tang Gate and the Profound Peak Gate have to pay their tributes; it will be nearly impossible for us to avoid that."
"That's true," Li Yuanjiao agreed, lowering his gaze before saying, "I wonder if I could meet the Dragon Son or find a way to negotiate the matter... perhaps use other resources to pay. Regardless, I need to try."
Li Qinghong shook her head and said softly, "It'll likely be very difficult for you to meet the Dragon Son. Although he is only at the Foundation Establishment Realm, he is a noble dragon. I can't even imagine how many demon generals he commands. Even if we manage to meet him, we can't predict what kind of payment he might demand. It would be better to start with the lesser demons and bribe them with a generous sum, which may ultimately cost less."
The two of them rode the wind through the dark night, sinking into the sea without even realizing it.
Under the night sky, the Scarlet Pristine Sea sparkled with countless tiny green lights. The mana lights deep in the sea flickered like stars, creating a breathtaking sight in the darkness. The golden magnificence of the demon palaces could be seen from the distance.
Li Yuanjiao nodded slightly and remarked, "Only after leaving the Eastern Sea did I realize how small the mainland is and how powerful the demons are. The strength of the Eastern Sea demon clan alone can rival that of Jiangnan. It's even rarer to see such a unified command; they are deeply rooted and work together."
Sighing, Li Yuanjiao turned back to glance at Zongquan Island, while Li Qinghong said softly, "This island has no fire veins or earth veins; it offers little benefit other than a few sources of incense. The important thing is to establish a foothold overseas. Our family is gradually stabilizing as a prominent clan... we should consider reaching the Purple Mansion Realm."
"Without the right cultivation techniques and opportunities, it's all just empty talk," Li Yuanjiao replied, shaking his head before continuing, "In my opinion, our family can only improve significantly by obtaining what Yu Muxian possesses."
Given Yu Muxian's status, it was impossible for him to die on the mainland. If the Li Family wished to plot against him, their only option was to ambush him in the Eastern Sea with the help of the mirror, in a way that they could avoid Daoist Master Yuanwu's retaliation. This was also a troublesome matter.
Li Yuanjiao added, "Once the island matters are settled, you should return home first. I will stay here to guard, cultivate in seclusion, and try my luck to break through to the middle stage of the Foundation Establishment Realm."
"Meanwhile, send people to the major markets to gather all available information about the Purple Mansion Realm cultivators and their immortal foundations. These are classified information on the mainland, but there might still be opportunities to uncover them overseas," he said.
"All right," Li Qinghong replied.
Thunder immortal foundation was not highly coveted in Jiangnan, making it more suitable for her to remain on Qingdu. The siblings discussed for a while longer before landing back on the island.
Kongheng approached them and reported politely, "There are three relatively strong earth veins on the island, but the others are weak with shallow spiritual energy. It's impossible to establish a Foundation Establishment Realm formation; at most, it can only support one that is at the peak of the Qi Cultivation Realm."
After hearing this, Li Yuanjiao turned to Zong Yan and asked, "When will the Dragon Son's subordinates arrive?"
"In the next few days!" Zong Yan replied quickly.
At that moment, a cheer suddenly erupted on the island. A man arrived on the wind and whispered something into Zong Yan's ear. Li Yuanjiao cast a neutral glance at him and Zong Yan immediately caught on.
He bowed and said, "My lord, I practice the Six Yi All-In-One Technique on my island. I follow the Purple Mansion Golden Core Dao but wield the shamanic spells and talismans. There are many Dao paths to raise medicine-humans... All this was granted by the Dragon Son, for the sake of raising them..."
"And we just found a baby born on the required day..." he added.
Zong Yan spoke vaguely, wary of offending the others. He lowered his voice and continued, "Each time the tributes are collected, the Dragon Son keeps the one with a specific birthday for the next collection. If no suitable person is found, he will use a hundred others to offset it. So... each time a suitable child is discovered, it's hard for us to contain our excitement."
Before Li Yuanjiao and Li Qinghong could respond, Kongheng could no longer restrain himself. He said in a sudden outburst of emotion, "Don't you have an ounce of compassion? Even if you're sacrificing one to save many, you shouldn't be so proud of it! Are you going to thank the evil dragon next year if it eats one less person next year?!"
Zong Yan dropped to his knees, horrified.
"Master Monk, you can't say that! If it weren't for the Dragon Son's protection, we would have been killed by passing devil cultivators or devoured by the demon generals... How can we not be grateful?"
Kongheng was taken aback. He stared at Zong Yan in disbelief for a few breaths before exclaiming, "So, you're saying that a minor crime isn't a crime?"
Zong Yan was confused by the monk's reaction. He raised his head in fear and mumbled, "But Lord Dragon Son saved us from a greater evil... Everyone knows we should choose the lesser of two evils. Why do you want to beat him down for it?"
"But he clearly eats people! How can you still be grateful toward him?"
"That's enough..." Li Qinghong interjected, trying to mediate. The perspectives of Kongheng and Zong Yan were so different that they would probably continue to argue until dawn without an outcome.
Zong Yan responded timidly, while Kongheng let out a long sigh before apologizing and appeared lost in thought.