The Great Seminary

Chapter 294 Disaster
Seeing that Zhang Gui was able to admit his mistakes and correct them, Zhang Liulong nodded in satisfaction and continued to teach the mysteries of the "divine way" in the underground world.
"Since you have already guessed that the 'Records of the Vertical and Horizontal Alliance' was collected by the Four-Dimensional Grand Chancellor, the restorer of the Zhang family in Pingyang, who exhausted all his efforts back then."

It seems ordinary, but it actually matches the 'true form' of Kuafu very well.

Naturally, one should understand that such a rapid advancement in one's extraordinary level is entirely due to the interaction and simultaneous progress of the 'divine path' and the 'spiritual path'.

In fact, this kind of situation is by no means uncommon among influential sects in the 'Cave Realm'.

However, it is necessary to distinguish between primary and secondary priorities.

For example, although I have now mastered all twenty-seven methods of entering the Dao from the "Record of Vertical and Horizontal Paths".

He has already reached a level of consummate skill in the twenty-two techniques he has mastered without weapons.

However, the foundation for extraordinary abilities is still the 'divine path,' which is the divine lineage of Kuafu.

Cultivation techniques are merely supplementary…

In fact, when cultivation techniques reach their limit and become 'instinct', divine energy can also be generated.

This is not a top secret; you probably already know that.

However, there is a hidden secret here: it is not necessarily true that higher-grade cultivation techniques are more likely to transform into divine essences than lower-grade ones.

For example, the "Zongheng Lu" of the Zhang family in Pingyang is only of the "medium" grade, yet it can transform into a divine cluster.

The Zhehai Tao family's "Xingchuan Chapter" is of "upper-middle" grade, yet there has never been an example of it transforming into a divine cluster since ancient times...

Although the innate 'divine cluster' and the 'divine cluster' generated by cultivation techniques are essentially the same, they are often clearly distinct and cannot be integrated.

This is because the two are self-contained systems and are prone to differences in quality.

For example, the Kuafu bloodline of the Zhang family in Pingyang originates from an ancient god, which is equivalent to 'true mercury'.

When our family's inherited cultivation technique, "The Record of Vertical and Horizontal Strike," is cultivated to its limit, the entire text is transformed into a divine cluster, which is a pool of clear water.

How can mercury and water be mixed together...?

She repeatedly used her family's Kuafu bloodline and the family's martial arts manual, "The Record of Horizontal and Vertical Swords," as examples, revealing everything she wanted to say, and finally concluded:

"Whether it's the divine path or the spiritual path, advancing to the 'Class B' transcendent realm is a truly insurmountable chasm."

It's even harder than being promoted from 'Upper Grade B' to 'Great Fortune Upper Grade A'.

In particular, our Shinto path requires preparations to begin as early as the 'Cheng Shang Zhong' period.

I spent a full twenty years honing my skills in the fifth rank, "Category C, Upper Middle".

He then wasted another thirty-two years in the fourth rank, "Upper Bing".

Only today have we finally seen hope of overcoming the 'Class B' insurmountable barrier.

Thus, he obtained the qualification to establish a sect in a secret realm under the ancient sect "All Things Return to One" in the "Cave Realm".

That's why he returned to Pingyang Town after 83 years.

The intention was to give some talented and ambitious members of the clan, even those from less fortunate branches, a unique and promising opportunity.

"The illegitimate children of wealthy and powerful families are the ones who are stuck in the middle and have a hard time making a living."

Although I don't know how much of a future you can offer people after you "establish your own sect" in the secret realms under the jurisdiction of those ancient and powerful sects in the "Cave Realm".

But it's still much better than someone with ambition spending their whole life in seclusion.

So my great-aunt really put her heart into it.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Gui sincerely replied:

"But what you just said..."

There are only three possibilities for me to evolve into three people who have been promoted from the Divine Cong to the sixth rank of 'Bingzhong'.

They only mentioned two things; I wonder what the third one will be?

“You’re bragging,” Zhang Liulong replied seriously.

Zhang Gui was taken aback, then burst into laughter.

"Great-aunt is right, if you want to brag..."

"Forget about being promoted to 'Category C', even achieving 'Celestial Rank' is nothing special."

"You have a good temperament, and your talent is top-notch."

If I hadn't made a fortune, bringing back just one of your disciples on this trip would have been a huge profit for me.

Unfortunately, you now have fame, fortune, power, and influence in the mortal world. I heard from the head of the household that you have also occupied and developed three islands and three counties at sea.

It's absolutely impossible for me to leave my hometown and wander thousands of miles to the 'Dungeon Realm' to become a disciple of a small sect that has just started its own.

"It's such a pity," Zhang Liulong sighed.

Zhang Gui smiled but remained silent upon hearing this.

At this moment, Zhang Liuduo watched as the two finished discussing serious matters and entered into a pleasant exchange of compliments.

And with the atmosphere just right and the timing perfect, he finally spoke:

"Sister Liulong, I now plan to lead all the members of our Zhang family in Pingyang who are willing to avoid the end of the dynasty to 'the underground world' to seek refuge with you."

How could you possibly try to seduce those who don't want to leave their hometowns and rely on their connections?

"Master, do you really intend to move to the 'Cave Realm'?"

When I arrived, I suddenly had a hunch about this possibility while on the bus.

But, but, but…”

Upon hearing this, Zhang Gui stammered as he spoke, then fell silent, as if he had nothing more to say.

Seeing this, Zhang Liuduo sighed deeply and said wistfully:

People say that fallen leaves return to their roots.

People my age have spent their whole lives working away from home, and now we return to our hometowns to retire and wait to be laid to rest.

If there were even the slightest possible solution, who would want to do the opposite?

But our Zhang family of Pingyang established its foundation hundreds of years ago, during the reign of Zhao Zhusha, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

They knew that even those ancient families with 'secret realms' would be stripped bare and have their bones broken during the final days of the dynasty.

Nine out of ten small, unsophisticated businesses will perish.

It would be better to prepare early while the foundation is still intact, and have multiple burrows like a cunning rabbit...

What followed was roughly what Zhang Gui had guessed.

It was nothing more than him taking his floating wealth and the elite members of the Zhang family of Pingyang to the 'underground realm'.

The elderly, weak, sick, and disabled were all left to Zhang Gui's possession.

From then on, Zhang Gui became the new head of the Zhang family in Pingyang.

Zhang Jiuqing, the other of the two outstanding young men in the clan, will become the new head of the family.

One manages the home, the other the external affairs; they complement each other perfectly, isn't that wonderful?

The only downside is that with this division of the family property, the private residences in Pingyang Town that cannot be moved or taken away will be at the new head of the household's disposal if they want to be taken away.

They also had to spend money to redeem the Zhang family, who were the leaders of the Zhang family members who had migrated to the 'underground realm'.

After all, as the old saying goes, one should keep public and private matters separate.

There is also a saying that even close brothers should keep clear accounts, let alone grandfathers and grandsons who are not even related.

"However, even if we split up, we are still of the same bloodline. It's not dignified to haggle over every penny of these properties."

I plan to talk to the children who have migrated and come up with a total amount.

We can't let you, Gui-ge, suffer a loss.

Zhang Gui was speechless upon hearing this. He realized that he was still young and thought he had a thick skin, but in reality, he was too concerned about saving face.

Just as I was about to retort, someone suddenly rushed into the study.

"Sect Master, Sect Master, disaster has struck! Disaster has struck!"

Tu Zhe, a junior disciple, went missing while playing at sea with several other fellow disciples.

Three other empty boats were spotted to the left and right of the main ship, and it was said that there might have been other empty boats blown away by the wind and waves.

There are at least several hundred people, maybe even over a thousand!

Upon hearing this, Zhang Liulong's calm expression vanished, and he jumped up with a whoosh.

(End of this chapter)