Rise of the Wang Clan: Starting with a Portable Farm

Chapter 181: The Wang Clan Members

Wang Hao led the party again. There were two Foundation Establishment cultivators in all; the other was Wang Longyou.

Wang Longyou had dealt with the Qingyuan Sect for years, so it would be easier for him to communicate with them.

The Wang Clan sent just ten Qi Refining cultivators, a largely symbolic contingent. They had no intention of sharing the Qingyuan Sect’s fate: they would fight if they could, and flee if they could not.

So few people would also make an escape easier. With Wang Hao’s Sun and Moon Shuttle, they ought to be safe unless a Golden Core cultivator pursued them.

The Li family thought much the same. Though the Wang Clan had not told them where Wang Guang’an had gone, they seemed to have guessed something and sent an elite party overseas.

To support the Qingyuan Sect, the Li family dispatched only a single Foundation Establishment cultivator and a handful of Qi Refining juniors. The team leader was Li Derong, an old acquaintance of Wang Hao.

Li Yaozu had calculated carefully. Wang Hao knew Li Derong, and Li Yaozu believed he would not leave her behind if he fled. That gave her a better chance of surviving.

Wang Hao would naturally help Li Derong so long as his own family was safe. But who could promise safety in a war between Golden Core powers?

The Qingyuan Sect was going to great lengths to win over the clans. It even had Wang Clan members within the sect receive Wang Hao’s party.

As the local overlord, the sect required each subordinate clan to send it, every few decades, a member with at least three Spiritual Roots as an outer disciple. It called this a favor, but the disciples also served as hostages.

Over the years, the Wang Clan had sent more than ten such members. Tragically, these talented individuals rarely received the treatment their aptitude warranted. Forget reaching Foundation Establishment; several had already perished within the sect.

This was a deliberate strategy by the Qingyuan Sect to suppress the growth of vassal forces. If too many family-born disciples reached Foundation Establishment, they would inevitably form cliques. And if one of them ever achieved the Golden Core realm, the Qingyuan Sect might find itself answering to a new surname.

None of those Wang Clan disciples had reached Foundation Establishment. Through marriage and children, however, they had formed a Wang family within the sect. They had arrived in different years and were only distantly connected, so they remained scattered rather than united.

If one of them reached Foundation Establishment, they might be able to unite. With so few resources, though, that was nearly impossible.

They had little contact with the clan as well. At their cultivation level they could do little for it, and the clan could not keep supporting them at a loss when it could use the same resources to train members at home.

Their lot was miserable. The clan did not help them, and the sect gave them little attention. With low cultivation and no particular skill, they could only take on menial and unpleasant work. Even good aptitude could be wasted for a lifetime.

The sect sent a grandfather and granddaughter to receive them. It had told the two to persuade the Wang Clan to help it through the crisis. If they succeeded, their standing in the sect might rise; they might even get a chance at Foundation Establishment.

Wang Zhi was over seventy, had three Spiritual Roots, and had reached the ninth layer of Qi Refining. Getting that far under such difficult conditions showed how hard he had worked. Had he stayed with the clan, he might already have reached Foundation Establishment; Wang Hao still had quite a few Foundation Establishment Pills.

His granddaughter Wang Wuling was in her twenties and at the fifth layer of Qi Refining. She was pretty, with an oval face and willow-leaf brows. She looked somewhat delicate, though her green clothes lent her a cool air.

Wang Hao noticed that one of her arms seemed swollen, though he did not know why.

“I am Wang Zhi. Greetings, Clan Elder! This is my granddaughter, Wang Wuling.” He took her hand. “Pay your respects to your clan uncle. He’s a Foundation Establishment cultivator. A little of his good fortune might smooth your path!”

“Greetings, Clan Uncle,” Wuling said. Both of them kowtowed respectfully.

Their blood ties to Wang Hao were very distant; strictly speaking, Wang Zhi was his elder. Even so, Wang Hao felt uncomfortable seeing an old man kowtow to him.

He skipped the pleasantries. “Rise. What orders has the Qingyuan Sect given?”

“The sect only told us to receive your party, Clan Uncle. It gave no other instructions. Please rest. If there are orders, I expect the sect will let you know in advance,” Wang Wuling said timidly at Wang Zhi’s prompting.

It was hardly surprising. A chance to improve her position did not come often; of course she wanted to make a good impression.

“Alas,” Wang Hao sighed, his tone softening. “In the end, your ancestors sacrificed themselves for the Clan. The family has let you down. If you have any needs, speak them. As a Foundation Establishment cultivator, I should be able to assist you.”

Once they joined the sect, they were no longer regarded as clan cultivators and did not have to follow the Wang Clan’s generational naming pattern. Wang Zhi clearly had not. Wuling might have adopted hers just for this meeting to seem closer to Wang Hao. He suspected as much but said nothing. His offer was also a test: if they were not the sort to flatter and cling to power, he would be willing to help.

Wang Wuling lowered her head, silent. Wang Zhi hesitated, clearly wanting to ask for help but fearing he would overstep and offend this powerful relative.

Having survived at the bottom of the Sect for decades, they weren’t fools. They assumed Wang Hao’s offer was mere politeness. If they actually made a demand, it might backfire.

“What happened to Wuling’s hand?” Wang Hao asked proactively, nodding slightly with satisfaction at their restraint.

Wang Zhi’s eyes lit up. Wang Hao seemed genuinely willing to help.

“Elder, my granddaughter and I tend the Qingyuan Sect’s Green Jade Bees. Their spirit honey is valuable, but they’re fierce and often sting the cultivators who harvest it. Wuling has only just begun the work and was stung several times.”

He rolled up Wuling’s sleeve. Several sting marks dotted her fair arm. The whole arm was swollen, and the wounds were darkening and oozing pus.

Lower-ranked cultivators in a great sect did not necessarily fare better than the Wang Clan’s cultivators. Wang Hao had never been at the bottom of his own clan, but he knew from people like Wang Wenxin that the clan would not assign them such dangerous work.

“Does the Qingyuan Sect not provide healing pills?” Wang Hao’s voice carried a trace of anger.

“There are pills,” Wang Zhi said cautiously. “But we have to apply to a steward. Without a little something for him, we can’t get them.”

“Outrageous!” Wang Hao slapped the table. “Even a capitalist running a ‘996’ work schedule would provide the five insurances and housing fund!”

They understood the first few words but not the strange terms that followed. They could see his attitude clearly, though. Since the matter concerned the sect, they dared not complain and stood quietly to one side.

“Forget it. These are troubled times, and I can’t make an issue of it with the Qingyuan Sect. Since you’ve come to see me, take these pills.”

“One bottle of Antidote Pills will help Wuling recover. The other contains Yellow Dragon Pills, a gift from your clan uncle.”

On the whole, Wang Hao was satisfied with them. Their small hopes were understandable. Few people would not think to ask a well-off relative for help when they lived in such straitened circumstances.

But he would need to watch them longer before giving them more help.

“Thank you, Elder!” Wang Zhi accepted the pills and thanked him repeatedly. Seeing Wuling still standing there, he scolded her: “Why aren’t you thanking your clan uncle?”

“Thank you, Clan Uncle!”

Wang Hao waved a hand. “It’s late. Go back for now. If you need anything, come find me.”

At Wang Hao’s dismissal, the two took their leave.