Cultivation: I Signed in with the Talent of an Immortal at the Start

Chapter 809: An and Zi

Seeing that Leng Qianshuang seemed moved and was still pondering some matters.

Han Xuanji spoke frankly: “Qianhun City is still there, and I have some old acquaintances there. If the Tiannan Wasteland erupts again, Qianhun City will likely be affected. I want to understand more so that, at the very least, I have some peace of mind.”

Upon hearing this, Leng Qianshuang nodded slightly, not questioning the authenticity of his words.

She was silent for a moment, and when she spoke again, her tone was a bit more serious than before: “Since you have asked, I will tell you. You shouldn’t have been exposed to these matters so early, but what you said makes sense; it is better to know than not to know.”

Han Xuanji did not interrupt, listening quietly.

“An is a Saint Lord-level existence in the Tiannan Wasteland, governing most of the Ferocious Beasts there. It is not inherently combative, has no ambition, and one could even say it has no hostility toward Cultivators. However, it has an older brother named Zi.”

When Leng Qianshuang mentioned this name, her tone deepened significantly: “Zi is cruel by nature and has always believed that cowering in the Tiannan Wasteland would sooner or later lead to destruction by Cultivators, so it has always been trying to find ways to deplete our strength. Every Beast Tide is pushed by it from behind. It can also strengthen itself by devouring the flesh and Divine Soul of Cultivators, while simultaneously selecting powerful and vicious Ferocious Beasts from the Beast Tides to cultivate.”

“What about An? Doesn’t it care?” Han Xuanji asked.

“An indeed does not care, or rather, it tacitly accepts Zi’s actions.” Leng Qianshuang’s tone was indifferent: “After all, they are brothers. As long as Zi does not cross the true bottom line, An will not interfere. And Zi is very clear about this limit—every Beast Tide is controlled at the border, posing no real threat to Jiuxuan City. The frequency of attacks is not high, so the Holy Court does not consider it a significant threat, and there are no overly powerful Ferocious Beasts in the Beast Tides, at most just a few Saint-level Ferocious Beasts.”

“Jiuxuan City and the Holy Court… have they really never thought about dealing with it?” Han Xuanji was curious. He did not believe that such a supreme power would have no way to handle it.

“Of course they have.” Leng Qianshuang’s tone carried a hint of complexity: “In fact, Jiuxuan City once organized a crusade specifically targeting Zi. However, this Zi is extremely cunning. Although it is only at the Saint level, it never personally appears on the front lines of the Beast Tides, and most of the time, it hides within An’s sphere of influence, protected by An. Once the Saint Lord experts of the Holy Court approach, An and other powerful existences become aware. That crusade was based on top-secret intelligence that Zi would have a breakthrough in a Secret Realm in the Tiannan Wasteland. Jiuxuan City sent many Saint experts to crusade against it, but the result was significant losses without even catching a glimpse of Zi. Since then, there has been no desire to make such a big move again.”

“Among the people sent…” Han Xuanji was silent for a moment, suddenly associating this with something. Previously, while chatting with Hun Qianxue, he had heard the other party inadvertently mention the fall of the former head of the Hun Family, Hun Wanli. It was said that he had participated in a secret operation. Hun Wanli was already at the cultivation level of an Eternal Saint at that time, and as the most powerful Cultivator of the Hun Family, he participated in that operation and had been missing ever since. It seems likely that this was the operation. After all, if Zi could be dealt with, it would be a matter of immeasurable Merit for Qianhun City.

Seeing Han Xuanji’s moved expression, Leng Qianshuang seemed to realize what he was thinking and did not continue that topic, turning instead to say indifferently: “Furthermore, in the eyes of some superiors, the border region is not a bottom line that must be defended at all costs.” She paused, her tone indifferent as she spoke, as if merely stating a fact: “If it can be defended, that is naturally good; if it cannot, it is not too great a loss.” “There is not even a need to invest too much in defense.”

Inside Jiuxuan City, there had been simulations; if they had to defend vigorously every time, it would not only consume a vast amount of manpower and material resources, but also carry great risks. Under a surprise attack, even the elite armies of Jiuxuan City could easily be wiped out. There was also a high probability of leading to the fall of Saints. Given this level of danger, no one dared to go and garrison the border. The risk was too great, and it was a thankless task. However, if there were no existences like Qianhun City, wouldn’t that threaten the cities of Jiuxuan City? Moreover, there are some resources in the edge regions that need people to go there. Therefore, Qianhun City also had its necessity for existence.

“This is also a form of tacit understanding.” Han Xuanji understood in his heart that this sounded somewhat cold, but in the rules of the cultivation world, it was indeed so. Survival of the fittest, with resources leaning toward the more core and important people and places—this was not the choice of any one person or force, but the way the entire system operated.

“However, Jiuxuan City has actually been sending people to monitor the movements of the Tiannan Wasteland.” Leng Qianshuang added, “Before every Beast Tide, there are scouting Cultivators who detect signs of Ferocious Beast gatherings in advance and then promptly notify the border cities to evacuate early, so the losses are much smaller.”

“Mhm.” Han Xuanji nodded, not saying anything more, but his heart turned cold. According to the displayed simulated future, the scouting Cultivators had not detected any movement at all, or perhaps some accident had occurred, and they were unable to notify anyone in time. Added to the fact that the Saint originally garrisoning Qianhun City was gone, the Eternal True God had almost no resistance against this Beast Tide, and the entire Qianhun City was gone before rescue could arrive. Moreover, it was very likely that they would not be able to wait for the so-called rescue.

Having said this, Leng Qianshuang did not continue. She was only an Eternal Saint and could not influence this situation. Even their Master, a powerful Eternal Saint Lord, still had no good solution. What use was it for Han Xuanji to know? If possible, Leng Qianshuang felt that Han Xuanji might as well have those close to him move to Jiuxuan City to seek other paths. This was not a stupid method. Jiuxuan City had many factions, but relying on Han Xuanji, a disciple of a Saint Lord, they could still be assigned many good positions. It just depended on whether Han Xuanji was willing.

After discussing these relatively heavy matters, the two did not continue talking, but waited silently. The flying boat continued to sail forward on the grey Sea of Hongmeng. The speed was much, much faster than when they were on the True God Heiyan’s warship. After all, this was a Saint-grade flying boat, and it was also flying at high altitude powered by Leng Qianshuang’s Saint power.

The breath of Chaos ahead was becoming clearer and clearer, and he could feel that faint connection gradually strengthening. Han Xuanji estimated that at this speed, barring any accidents, they would arrive in just a few months. During this time, Han Xuanji naturally did not intend to be idle, but instead claimed a Sign In reward—insights into the Nine Heavens Destiny Art.

In an instant, a massive amount of cultivation insights flooded his mind. Han Xuanji had no spare energy to think too much about the Beast Tide, and immediately, without even having time to say a word, he walked into the secluded cultivation room inside the flying boat. Seeing that Han Xuanji wanted to cultivate even in this short time, Leng Qianshuang nodded slightly and did not mind. Perhaps this diligence was what the Master saw in Junior Brother? As expected of a Transcendent; it is said that they are all ascetic Cultivators, possessing an almost pathological desire to become stronger. This is actually something that the descendants of the strong on the Eternal Continent often lack.