Immortal Road.

It was ten days later when they returned to the Xun Gu Sect.

Lin Shan noticed that Tianfu Mountain had become more lively than before, mainly because many holy sites on the mainland had sent delegations to express their desire to establish diplomatic relations.

The crowd was bustling, and all the seats were filled. Almost all the famous sects and factions in the world had come.

The destruction of Penglai in the Eastern Sea has already shocked this world in recent days.

Who doesn't know that the Xun Gu Sect has produced a formidable figure?

They realized that after the disappearance of the two True Immortals, a powerful new force was rising and had become an undisputed behemoth!
Even more surprisingly, the Holy Lord Haoran, who had been at odds with him during the faction war, sent people to come and apologize!
"I vaguely recall hearing that your Holy Land once formed something called the Ancient Annihilation Alliance?"

Lin Shan looked at the envoy with great interest, wanting to hear his explanation.

The envoy was so frightened that he knelt on the ground and hurriedly tried to distance himself from the situation!

"This is a false rumor! There is absolutely no such thing!"

The Ancient Annihilation Alliance was indeed secretly established after the war, and the Holy Lord of Haoran was preparing to take action. After all, Lin Shan had almost destroyed the Haoran Holy Land, and the feud was so deep that it was bound to continue.

But before he could gather his forces, news came that the Xun Gu Sect had destroyed the Penglai Holy Land and the East Sea Alliance, leaving him dumbfounded!

Those allies realized something was wrong and quickly left the group, fearing they would be affected.

There was nothing the Holy Lord Haoran could do; he was afraid too!

That's why they rushed to send people to clarify things, and also sent a huge amount of cultivation resources as an apology, filling up with over a hundred storage magic treasures!

Other holy land-level forces also came to visit to varying degrees. Everyone knows that you can't hit someone who is smiling, especially since they took the initiative to come and repair relations.

Lin Shan accepted them all with a smile. Although he was currently sweeping across the East China Sea, there was no need to be enemies with the entire continent. Sometimes, having many friends was the key.

Otherwise, if he ascends to immortality and leaves behind a mess, how will the entire Xun Gu Sect survive?

But some things, in principle, still need to be taken seriously, for example.
"The Holy Lord Haoran once stole one of my treasures. Why hasn't he returned it to me?"

The messenger asked, bewildered:
"I don't know what kind of treasure it is; the Holy Lord never told me."

"Primordial Spirit Puppet, Yellow Turban Warrior!"

Lin Shan felt as if Mount Tai was pressing down on him, looking down at his opponent from above. Every word he spoke was like a heavy hammer blow, striking his heart hard!

"This thing is my most prized possession, the apple of my eye. You, the Holy Lord of Vastness, have taken what I love. Surely you won't refuse to return it?"

"Ah this."

The messenger was so frightened that he almost wet himself, and could only run back to the Holy Land of Haoran with a sob in his voice to deliver the message.

Seeing that this intimidation had worked, the other envoys from the holy lands were all trembling with fear. The initial effect of this show of force was evident, and Lin Shan was very satisfied with his current prestige.

Then he proceeded to criticize them one by one. None of them felt confident, so they could only nod and bow repeatedly, fawning and flattering like dogs.

"Where is the Upper Night Sword Sect? Why didn't they come?"

Lin Shan looked around and realized that the old man, Yuan Jian Dao Ren, was ignoring him and acting like a blabbermouth.
As the chief steward, Lü Xiuming unfolded the list of tribute items and scanned it again before stepping forward and whispering in his ear:

"Master, we have indeed been unable to locate any envoy."

Bang! !

The vase on the table shattered instantly, and Lin Shan slammed his fist on the table in fury.

Just when I had no reason to cause trouble for the Xiaojian Sect, this excuse just came to me.

The Venerable Burning Fire, Chi Hong, who was standing nearby, noticed Lin Shan's sharp eyes and immediately jumped out as the new number one lackey!
"Our leader has just returned victorious from his expedition to Penglai, and all nations should be here to congratulate him. All the holy lands in the world have gathered here, but Yuan Jian Dao Ren has turned a deaf ear to it, clearly showing his contempt for our leader!"

Sword Saint's disciple, Jian Guhan, had been holding back his anger for a long time, and now that he finally had his chance, he quickly stepped forward and shouted:

"That old scoundrel Yuan Jian has bullied us many times during the faction war, and now he doesn't even come to apologize. He clearly has ulterior motives and can't let go of the Ancient Annihilation Alliance. He deserves to die!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Shan immediately waved his hand.

"Pass on my order: three days from now, send troops to Shangxiao Sword Sect, raze the holy land to the ground, and leave no one alive!"

The whole audience was shocked!

You just destroyed the Penglai Holy Land, and now you're going to destroy the Shangxiao Sword Sect. Are you, Xun Gu Sect, planning to wipe out the entire world?
"Bring it up!"

At this moment, a group of people walked in from outside the hall.

It was Qian Bu leading the Ghost Valley Holy Land delegation, with Mu Yan escorting five prisoners behind him. Each of them was bound hand and foot and had disheveled hair, all exuding the aura of great supernatural beings!

"Your Majesty!"

Thump, thump, thump.
When the Liang lineage master, Venerable Tanmu, Iron-Blooded Wolf Mother, and others saw the throne hanging high at the end of the main hall, they all bowed down and begged for forgiveness in sorrowful voices.

“You have betrayed Guigu, split the north and south, called yourselves a false holy land, and stood against my adopted son. Do you now know your crimes?”

After being brutally beaten, and seemingly under some kind of spell, these people confessed and admitted their wrongdoings.

"We know we are guilty, and we beg Leader Lin to be magnanimous and spare our lives!"

As the saying goes, those who understand current affairs are heroes.

The disparity in strength is now so great that they have no hope of resisting, so they all regret their actions and dare not continue to fight to the end.

A cold glint flashed in Qianbu's eyes as he turned around and clasped his hands in a fist salute.

"Father, these traitors deserve to die. They split up the Ghost Valley Holy Land and even secretly contacted the Ancient Annihilation Alliance. Their desire to destroy us is undiminished. They should be executed immediately as a warning to others!"

Liang and the others were shocked and immediately kowtowed repeatedly.

"Master Lin, please understand! We were forced into this situation. If it weren't for the support of the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect, we wouldn't dare to oppose you even if we had ten lives. We've been wronged!"

Upon hearing this, the envoy from the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect immediately stood up and angrily rebuked him!

"Nonsense! It was clearly you who sent people to seek our protection. Elder Green Bamboo took pity on you and gave you a place to stay. Who would have thought that you would turn around and establish a new holy land, and even secretly contact the Ancient Annihilation Alliance to try to bring us down?"

"Oh? Is this happening?"

Lin Shan squinted his eyes without realizing it.

The two sides argued fiercely, each sticking to their own version of events, each fearing that Lin Shan might become enraged and kill someone.

In the end, Qianbu was magnanimous and suggested that these people could be spared the death penalty but could not escape punishment. It would be better to send them back to the Ghost Valley Holy Land to seal their cultivation, forbidding them from leaving, and only allowing them to educate disciples to continue the lineage until they die of old age.

This was a result that had been secretly agreed upon. The five people were willing to accept the punishment after hearing it, as there was no better ending than this.

The lineages of the Guigu Holy Land cannot be destroyed in their hands, so they must find ways to continue them. Qianbu, as the Holy Lord, naturally understands this principle.

"However, the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect played a role in fueling this, which was truly malicious."

With a wave of his hand, Lin Shan dragged away the five powerful cultivators like dead dogs, and then turned his attention to the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect.

"Your Green Bamboo Sword Master has opposed me several times, and even colluded with the Penglai Holy Land to cause trouble for the Ancient Sect. How do you plan to settle this score?"

The envoy from the Spring and Autumn Sword Gate was sweating profusely, his legs trembling with fear.

I didn't tell him anything before I left.
Looking at the gift list in his hand, Lin Shan threw it at his feet and said indifferently that it was not sincere enough, and that he would let the Minghuang Sword Master of the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect come and talk to him in person!
"Three days."

Lin Shan held up three fingers. "If your Holy Lord doesn't come to Tianfu Mountain to explain things to me within three days, before I send troops to the Shangxiao Sword Sect, I'll wipe out your Spring and Autumn Sword Sect as well. Do you understand?"

The messenger fled in a panic.

Everyone on the field fell silent, terrified; they had never seen such a domineering person before!

The repeated show of force had already intimidated them; what followed was nothing more than polite pleasantries and insincere social interactions.

After the meeting adjourned, Lin Shan turned and left.

The envoys from the various holy sites immediately surrounded the high-ranking members of the Seeking Ancient Sect, offering gifts, flattering them, and trying to build relationships, hoping to gain more connections in the future and have them speak well of them to the sect leader.

Especially Qianbu, the adopted son, now has a special status and also serves as the Holy Master of the Ghost Valley Holy Land. He is extremely proud of himself!
After all, many of those present had participated in faction wars and belonged to the patrol immortal envoy faction, having joined the Ancient Annihilation Alliance. They were filled with unease, fearing that they would be labeled.

"Hey~ No problem, no problem. As long as you all behave yourselves, I'm sure your godfather won't make things difficult for you. My Ghost Valley Holy Land is going to be rebuilt soon, and we might need a lot of supplies."

He wasn't the only one blatantly accepting bribes; even Chi Hong, Jian Guhan, and Mu Yan couldn't resist the temptation. They thought, "Why not take something that's free?"
Three days later, the Holy Lord of Haoran and the Sword Master of Minghuang personally arrived at the scene and sent Yuan Nian incarnation to seek out the Ancient Sect to pay homage.

This news caused a sensation and set off an uproar across the mainland!
On the mountaintop, the morning sun rises.

Lin Shan stood quietly with his back to the two men, watching the ancient-seeking sect's army gathering below, being inspected by Chi Hong and Jian Guhan in preparation for their upcoming expedition against the Shangxiao Sword Sect.

The two men came up behind them and forced themselves to look at each other.

Lord Haoran was the first to frankly admit his mistake, without any ambiguity.

"Sect Leader Lin, the previous statement about destroying the Ancient Alliance was nonsense. The main responsibility lies with me. I have come here specifically to apologize to you and am willing to cede all seventy-eight mineral and spiritual lands on the continent, plus twenty-two extraterrestrial resource points, as an apology."

He was clearly frightened by Lin Shan's words, fearing that the other party might send troops at the slightest provocation, causing them to follow in the footsteps of the Penglai Holy Land!

This cession of territory was a massive financial blow; it represented half of the resources that their Haoran Holy Land had painstakingly accumulated over 100,000 years, all to avoid annihilation.

Lin Shan did not turn around, his tone neither happy nor sad.

"When will those Yellow Turban warriors return?"

"This"

A hint of helplessness flashed across the face of the Holy Lord Haoran, and he spread his hands with some difficulty.

"Master Lin, you are unaware of the truth. That primordial spirit puppet was destroyed by Fairy Qinglian herself during the final battle in the heavens. I cannot give it to you now!"

"If you can't pay it, you still have to compensate, right?"

"Uh, yes, that makes sense, that's the logic."

The atmosphere was awkward for a while.

After much deliberation, the Holy Lord Haoran had no choice but to take out a long box from his bosom. Inside, he found a pen.

It is indeed the Heavenly Spiritual Treasure Mountain and River Brush!
This is the prestigious brand of the Haoran Holy Land, a powerful tool for suppressing the outside world. In order to compensate the Yuan Shen puppet, it had no choice but to give it up.

His heart is bleeding!

Because there is simply nothing in the lower realm that matches it!
Lin Shan then turned around, a smile on his face, and took the Mountain and River Brush into his hand. He checked it with the enhancement panel and confirmed that it was indeed a Heaven-Reaching Spiritual Treasure.

However, its effects are mediocre, not as good as the Void Star Plate, and similar to the Hidden Earth Plate. Moreover, it has considerable limitations, requiring mastery of Confucian techniques.

"That's right. Paying back debts is a matter of course. I'm not forcing you."

"Yes Yes Yes"

The Holy Lord Haoran nodded cautiously, enduring the pain in his liver!

However, given the precedent set by Penglai Holy Land, and with his own ascension imminent, Haoran Holy Land certainly cannot stop Xun Gu Cult Master. It would be better to spend money to avoid disaster.

Anyway, as a top-tier holy land, they actually have another heaven-reaching spiritual treasure. This pen can be used as compensation for now, and there might be a chance to get it back in the future.

"Third brother, come up here."

Lin Shan called out to those below, and soon Zhong Shenxiu reached the summit, respectfully approached him, knelt down, and sat with his feet touching, showing the respect due to a brother.

"Second Brother, I'm preparing the army of Bailu Academy. What do you need me for?"

Over the years, Zhong Shenxiu has been immersed in the world of great supernatural powers for a long time and has clearly touched the threshold of the Nascent Soul stage. However, there is still a long way to go before reaching the seventh step of the Nascent Soul stage, and the gap between him and Lin Shan is immeasurable.

When they met again, he no longer had the competitive spirit he used to have; instead, he readily admitted defeat.

Lin Shan gently patted his back and said with some emotion:

"Third brother, since your elder brother passed away, I have rarely taken care of you. Now that I think about it, I feel ashamed. I have not fulfilled my responsibilities as your elder brother!"

"No way! My second brother has been incredibly kind to me, like a second life. He has saved me from dire straits many times. I am so grateful!"

As Zhong Shenxiu finished speaking, he couldn't help but glance at the Minghuang Sword Master of the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect behind him.

Where do water and fire come from? Does that even need to be said?
Lin Shan smiled and patted him on the shoulder:

"Hey, what's past is past. Here, your second brother has a big gift for you today, take it!"

"This is."

Zhong Shenxiu took it, his eyes widening in disbelief.

The Heavenly Treasure of the Sacred Land of Vastness, a symbolic artifact of the Confucian school in the lower realm, the Mountain and River Brush that was previously regarded as a sacred object?

"Second brother, is this really... a gift for me???"

"Hehe, take it!"

Lin Shan has many powerful spiritual treasures at his disposal, and he doesn't lack a pen like this. If he were to give it to a subordinate, Zhong Shenxiu, who comes from a Confucian family, would be the most suitable person for it.

As the saying goes, to make the most of everything, finding a suitable buyer won't be a waste of this treasure, and it will save face for Lord Haoran.

Zhong Shenxiu glanced guiltily at the Haoran Saint Lord beside him, who awkwardly raised his hand in a gesture of invitation, his expression a mixture of tears and embarrassment, almost as if his nose was about to tingle!

"Then shall I accept your offer?"

"Third brother, your second brother still prefers your old, unruly self!"

Lin Shan smiled broadly, like a kind and gentle patriarch, showing utmost protection to his mischievous brother. The matter of the Holy Lord of Haoran was now over, and it was time for the Spring and Autumn Sword Sect to take its place.

"As the elder brother of the Sunflower Fairy, it's not unreasonable for me to cancel her marriage on her behalf, is it?"

break off an engagement?!

A look of surprise appeared in Zhong Shenxiu's eyes. Such a good thing?

The Sword Master of Minghuang smiled bitterly and could only nod helplessly, not daring to bargain at all.

"By the Lord of the Lin Sect."

Seeing that he was so sensible, Lin Shan then asked about the things he was concerned about.

"I'm sure I explained your connection with Ouyang Feng a thousand years ago very clearly in the letter. Do you know his whereabouts?"

The Sword Master of Minghuang looked lost and said something unexpected!
"He's dead." (End of Chapter)