Chen Zilong was an ambitious person. He was born in the Chen Clan, an organization equal to the Cloud Margin Pavilion. Thus, he had always been prideful. Furthermore, he also had an excellent talent in cultivation. Because of that, he had set his sights on the pursuit of ultimate strength at a young age.
After joining the Dragon Society, he had received a decent amount of support. However, his support was still incomparable to those crown princes with deep foundations. Many factions were prejudiced against him, and he would have been crippled long ago if he wasn’t capable enough.
Eventually, he had become one of Dragon Society’s crown princes, but he still didn’t receive the support he deserved. He had long grown dissatisfied with the Dragon Society. Thus, it was understandable that he would be enticed by Xiang Shaoyun’s offer after seeing Xiang Shaoyun’s strong background.
He knew that he would become Xiang Shaoyun’s subordinate after agreeing to the offer, which would probably hurt his pride as a man. However, a real man should also be aware of when to advance and when to retreat. If he could catch up to or even surpass Xiang Shaoyun in the future, all the so-called shame would be washed clean.
Xiang Shaoyun’s offer had successfully enticed him. However, he still had some misgivings.
“I am interested, but I can’t do it. Our Chen Clan still operates within the Dragon Society’s territory. If I turn on them, I’ll be a rebel, and my Chen Clan will be purged,” said Chen Zilong after suppressing his ambitious heart.
Xiang Shaoyun replied, “If you can convince your clan, I’ll let them move here.”
“That’s a good idea, but it’s not easy to just up and leave our home,” said Chen Zilong with a sigh.
Xiang Shaoyun felt that it would be improper to keep pushing, so he took out two jars of liquor and said, “Let’s stop talking about all that. No matter what happens, I do not wish to see us become enemies. Come, drink up.”
“That’s right. I wouldn’t even dare to make the current you an enemy anyway,” said Chen Zilong. He accepted the jar of liquor, toasted Xiang Shaoyun, and gulped it down.
The two drank and chatted idly in the courtyard. Instead of talking about the same topic, they talked about completely random topics, acting like old friends who had been separated for a long time. The entire scene was harmonious and tranquil.
They chatted until daybreak. Talking through the night had greatly deepened their friendship. Unknown to them, this night was also the start of a friendship where each was willing to die for the other.
After returning to his own residence, Xiang Shaoyun spent some time with Tuoba Wan’er, then got to work and wrote down a list of materials.
Tuoba Wan’er nestled against his body and gently asked, “Holy son-in-law, why are you writing all this?”
“These are the materials required for laying out a teleportation formation,” replied Xiang Shaoyun.
“You even know something like this?” asked Tuoba Wan’er curiously.
“Of course. Your husband is omnipotent,” said Xiang Shaoyun smugly.
Tuoba Wan’er had a look of admiration as she praised, “Wow, you’re amazing.”
She believed fully that Xiang Shaoyun would never lie to her. Teleportation formations were high-level formations. Few people knew how to build one, but Xiang Shaoyun actually knew. It made him seem even more incredible.
In truth, Xiang Shaoyun did know how to construct a teleportation formation. Two lifetimes ago, he was a top-tier formation grandmaster. He also had the book of formations, allowing him to master formations without a master.
He was preparing to construct a long-distance teleportation formation. To do it, he needed to be fully prepared. He would first prepare the list of required materials, then show it to the high priest. After finding out what materials the high priest had, he could then plan on how to acquire the rest of the materials.
After he wrote the list, which was quite long, he went to the high priest. Even an entire sect would have difficulty supplying all the materials. Everyone needed to work together and slowly collect them.
When the high priest received the list, astonishment flickered in his eyes. “Where did you get this list? Do you have a formation grandmaster here?”
Xiang Shaoyun replied, “I am a formation grandmaster.”
“You are?” the high priest raised his brow in shock. “It’s a pity your cultivation is not high enough. Otherwise, we might really be able to construct this long-distance teleportation formation.”
“Don’t worry about that for now. Look at these materials. How many of them do you have?” asked Xiang Shaoyun.
The high priest did not think too much about it. As he went through the list of thousands of materials, he smiled bitterly and said, “I can’t even supply a third of these materials. The angels have remained in seclusion for too many years. We haven’t attached much importance to things not of the light element.”
“Tell me which materials you lack,” said Xiang Shaoyun.
The high priest listed out the materials they could provide, and Xiang Shaoyun memorized everything in silence.
“Looks like we really still lack a lot of materials,” said Xiang Shaoyun with a sigh.
After some thought, the high priest said, “I can supply some spirit crystals so you can buy them. I believe these materials will be available in many of your human territories.”
“It’s the thought that counts. I’ll think of something,” said Xiang Shaoyun.
He knew very well that a few of these materials were incredibly hard to find. Even so, he still decided to deal with it himself because he did not want to rely on the high priest for everything. There were things the Ziling Sect had to handle by themselves.
“There is a lot of work waiting to be done here, so I’m afraid you won’t be able to spare too many spirit crystals either. Isn’t that so?” asked the high priest.
“I do have the 20 million high-grade spirit crystals you helped me get from the Dragon Society not too long ago,” said Xiang Shaoyun.
“That is far from enough. Many of these saint materials require saint crystals to purchase them,” said the high priest. He took out a storage ring and said, “I have some saint crystals in here. Use them. The angels don’t really need them in the meantime, anyway.”
Xiang Shaoyun accepted the storage ring. Moved, he said solemnly, “High priest, for your favor today, I, Xiang Shaoyun, will forever guard the angels with my life.”
“I believe you,” said the high priest with a satisfied nod.
After spending some more time with the high priest, Xiang Shaoyun returned to the grand hall. There, he summoned the higher-ups and had them start gathering the required materials.
They had no idea what he was trying to do, but they still did as told. Xiang Shaoyun then handed the spirit crystals over to Qian Furen and had him take charge of purchasing the required materials.
Qian Furen felt extremely honored. He could feel Xiang Shaoyun’s trust in him, and his devotion toward Xiang Shaoyun deepened as a result. The materials Xiang Shaoyun had them gather did not include saint-grade materials. Those were the materials only Saints could gather.
With worry plastered all over his face, Xiang Shaoyun returned to his residence. Tuoba Wan’er donned a look of pity on her face as she asked, “Holy son-in-law, are you worried about the materials?”
“Yeah. Many of the materials are hard to find. I have some people searching, but I’m not optimistic about it,” replied Xiang Shaoyun.
“In truth, the Holy Hall can also give you some help,” offered Tuoba Wan’er.
