Star Martial Era: The Way of Star Light Cultivation

Chapter 1724: Chapter 713: The Centennial Vein

"Give it up!"

In the study of the Yutang Royal Mansion came the incomparably decisive voice of Princess Zhu Linxiao.

The chubby Yutang King Zhu Shizhen was sunk deep into his chair, his plump face clouded with gloom. "They really know how to pick their timing. The hundred-year seal period on those few Jade Gui Mine Veins in the Lower Pool Star Domain is about to expire, and they come to pick the peaches right now. Looks like this was all calculated in advance.

It’s not just calculated in advance—there’s a traitor in our ranks, one hundred percent!

Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence?

According to the secret records of the mansion, the matter of sealing those few veins that produced Nine-tiered Star Crystals back then is top secret. The number of people who know of it can be counted on one hand."

"That’s also why we must give it up!"

Princess Zhu Linxiao’s voice grew even firmer. "Even without a mole, our chances of countering their scheme are extremely low. Now that there’s an insider helping them, it’s even harder.

All these years, have we had only a few Little Star Monarchs of the Yutang Royal Mansion die in battle or mysteriously disappear?

Give it up, and wait for..."

"Eh, what are you planning to give up?"

Outside the door, Xu Jin’s voice suddenly sounded. Zhu Linxiao cast a glance at Yutang King Zhu Shizhen, seemingly asking with her eyes. Zhu Shizhen spread his hands in an innocent gesture—he hadn’t informed his brother-in-law.

Zhu Linxiao immediately got up to open the door and welcomed the wine-jar-carrying Xu Jin into the study. Zhu Shizhen’s fat body bounced nimbly up from the chair, the gloom on his face already replaced by a smile. "Brother-in-law, you’re here."

"I came to drink and chat with you. I heard you were handling government affairs—did I disturb you?"

Back when Xu Jin had first entered the mansion, Yutang King Zhu Shizhen had clearly announced that Xu Jin was also a master of the Jade Hall True Monarch Mansion and could walk anywhere in the mansion without prior notice.

Because of that, Xu Jin had arrived at the study where the two were discussing matters without them even knowing.

Of course, Xu Jin’s visit was actually quite deliberate.

Over the past few days, under the large-scale sensing of the Mingji Star Pattern, Xu Jin had learned that the Yutang Royal Mansion had recently run into some troubles. Xu Jin felt this was an opportunity and intentionally sought them out.

"Brother-in-law, you’re being too polite!

If I weren’t afraid of disturbing your cultivation, I’d have long wanted to hand this whole mess of the Yutang Royal Mansion’s affairs over to you to handle! You don’t know how stifled I feel managing all this!" Yutang King complained.

"How stifled? Tell me, let me hear it." Xu Jin said with a smile.

On the other side, Zhu Linxiao had very sensibly taken Xu Jin’s wine jar, poured the two men each a cup, and then called for side dishes from the kitchen.

After three cups of wine, Yutang King Zhu Shizhen began to pour out his bitterness to Xu Jin, lamenting the current helpless state of the Jade Hall True Monarch Mansion.

With cup after cup, Xu Jin also got a clear grasp of the situation.

The Domain Master and War Master of the Lower Pool Small World Star Domain subordinate to the Jade Hall True Monarch Mansion had both sent an urgent plea to the Yutang King, reporting the discovery of a Tenth Rank Little Star Monarch invading the Lower Pool Star Domain—two of them, in fact—and requesting support from the Jade Hall True Monarch Mansion.

For the Jade Hall True Monarch Mansion, this sort of thing was actually commonplace.

Over the past few decades, such situations had occurred dozens, even hundreds of times, and the Jade Hall True Monarch Mansion had thereby lost over a hundred Star Domains. Within the Jade Hall True Monarch Mansion, they had originally commanded forty-seven Tenth Rank Little Star Domains, stationed across the various Small World Star Domains.

Although all of them had used Heaven and Earth Authority to advance into Little Star Monarchs, their combat power was still greater than that of Ninth Tier experts.

Yet over these years, under the deliberate targeting and arrangements of various factions headed by the Bi Xuan True Monarch Mansion, these forty-seven Tenth Rank Little Star Monarchs had either died in battle or surrendered.

Now, within the Jade Hall True Monarch Mansion, only one mobile Tenth Rank Little Star Monarch remained.

There were still eleven Tenth Rank Little Star Monarchs, but they were garrisoning critical Star Domains and could not leave.

Therefore, the number of Small World Star Domains actually under their control was dwindling by the day.

However, those Small Worlds that produced more and particularly valuable resources were still held by the Jade Hall True Monarch Mansion.

Especially since, with the Heaven and Earth Authority of these Small Worlds firmly in their grasp, it wasn’t something other factions could seize just because they wanted to.

Even without Tenth Rank experts garrisoned there, as long as there were Peak of Ninth Rank experts, with thirty to fifty percent of the Heaven and Earth Authority, they could easily contend with Tenth Rank Little Star Monarchs. Then, by mobilizing elite Eighth and Ninth Tier troops to form battle formations and besiege them, even two or three Little Star Monarchs could be withstood.

Yet the Lower Zhe Small World Star Domain, for all that, was sounding the alarm just because of an invasion by two Little Star Monarchs.

Eight or nine times out of ten, that meant there was a traitor.

Yutang King Zhu Shizhen had already gone through this sort of thing many times.

People’s hearts yearned for change. Now that the Jade Hall True Monarch Mansion was weakening with each passing day, the people below were restless, and naturally all sorts of incidents occurred.

In the past, Zhu Shizhen had been furious about this, wishing he could eat the traitors’ flesh and drink their blood. But now, he had somewhat come to terms with it.

After all, people seek higher ground.

The problem was, this Lower Pool Star Domain was a vital stronghold of the Jade Hall True Monarch Mansion. It contained as many as five Jade Gui Mine Veins which, in the past, had produced all sorts of High-level Star Jade Gui and had even yielded Nine-tiered Star Crystals.

Even though the Jade Hall True Monarch Mansion still directly controlled over a hundred Star Domains, Star Domains that could abundantly produce Nine-tiered Star Crystals like this were very few.

The output of Nine-tiered Star Crystals from this Lower Pool Star Domain ranked in the top five among the Star Domains controlled by the Zhu Family.

Most crucially, in order to increase the yield of Nine-tiered Star Crystals, the Jade Hall True Monarch Mansion had secretly sealed the Jade Gui Mine Veins of the Lower Pool Star Domain a hundred years ago.

Now that the time for unsealing was at hand, such a situation had arisen.

The fury of Yutang King Zhu Shizhen could well be imagined.

This was someone reaching out directly to snatch the fruit, and in the process stamping a few extra times on the face of the Jade Hall True Monarch Mansion, which was already lying on the ground.

One must know, from a certain point of view, Nine-tiered Star Crystals were the most precious Cultivation Resources second only to All Heaven Star Dew.