I established the Eternal Immortal Clan by taming beasts.

Inside the Zhou Family's Spirit Beast Garden, the grass is lush and green, and the fences are neat and orderly.

The patriarch, Zhou Wanhong, with his plump figure and round, full-moon-like face, stood with his hands behind his back, squinting his shrewd eyes as he inspected the glossy coats and low whimpering of the Wind Chaser dogs in the garden.

He wore a brocade robe embroidered with dark gold cloud patterns, and a large jade thumb ring on his finger gleamed warmly in the sunlight.

A faint vibration came from the sound transmission stone in his bosom at just the right time. He slowly took it out and scanned it with his divine sense.

The message was brief: "The Lin family has begun selling their batch of edible spirit beasts."

On Zhou Wanhong's round face, his small eyes narrowed even more, almost to the point of being just two thin slits, but a cold light flashed within them.

He gave a soft snort, his voice low and laced with disdain and calculation: "The Lin family, the Lin family... whatever you want to do is none of my Zhou family's business. But you shouldn't have chosen the path of beast taming. Now that we've crossed paths, don't blame me for being ruthless."

In the past few months, apart from the patriarch Lin Che occasionally making appearances, no other members of the Lin family have been active outside, leaving all the forces in Chuyang City puzzled.

They eventually discovered that the Lin family had started recruiting people, and among those they recruited were even spirit plant masters, which puzzled everyone even more.

Generally speaking, being a spiritual plant master is the most common skill among the various arts of cultivation, and ordinary clansmen can do it. Why does the Lin family need to recruit spiritual plant masters?

A somewhat absurd idea popped into my head.

Could it be that some independent cultivators truly start a clan from scratch?

It seems that only this explanation can make sense as to why he is the only person with the surname Lin coming and going from the Lin family.

If that's the case, the Zhou family's previous apprehension will vanish.

Resources here are limited, and the market has already been divided up. How could the Zhou family allow others to get their hands on it?

If the other party is a powerful and formidable opponent, they might back down and try to make money peacefully.

But if it's just a mudfish that doesn't know its own limitations... Zhou Wanhong's face revealed a strange smile.

By activating the hidden schemes laid out by the Zhou family over many years, and leveraging their control over the spiritual chefs and food procurement channels of major restaurants and eateries in the city, they completely blocked the Lin family's sales of spirit beast meat, intending to strangle them economically.

Of course, they will only impose economic sanctions on the Lin family, and will not engage in a real war with the Lin family, as that would not be profitable and would only allow other families to benefit.

"Pass down the message," Zhou Wanhong said into the communication stone, his voice carrying an undeniable authority: "Anyone who dares to purchase spirit beast meat from the Lin family is making an enemy of the Zhou family! Let them think twice about whether they still want to live in Chuyang City!"

……

……

Inside the Lin family's reception room.

"What? A marriage alliance?"

When Wang Yanchi cautiously proposed the marriage alliance, Lin Che, who was deep in thought about how to break the deadlock, had not yet expressed his opinion when Liu Qingxue, who was standing to the side, suddenly cried out in surprise.

In an instant, everyone's eyes in the hall were focused on her.

Lin Che looked slightly surprised, Liu Yunzhou looked astonished, and Su Wanwan blinked curiously.

Liu Qingxue instantly realized her lapse in composure, and two barely perceptible blushes rose on her fair cheeks.

She coughed suddenly, took a half-step back to cover her mouth, lowered her eyes, and her voice returned to its usual coldness, but with a hint of stiffness: "I'm sorry, I was just thinking about how to deal with the Zhou family when I suddenly heard this word, so I was a little surprised."

She tried to remain calm, but her slightly clenched knuckles betrayed her inner turmoil.

Lin Che glanced at Liu Qingxue with a hint of doubt.

This girl is usually aloof and reserved, and rarely loses her composure like this; it's strange that she's acting this way today.

Perhaps I was too focused on thinking?

He stopped investigating and instead turned his deep gaze to Wang Yanchi, who stood respectfully below him, carefully considering the other party's marriage proposal.

Suddenly Lin Che was taken aback. Wasn't he the only one left in the Lin family now?

Isn't he the one they're going to marry?

Having children and grandchildren was part of his plan, but he never expected it to happen so suddenly.

Lin Che looked Wang Yanchi up and down again.

Although the other party was humble at this moment, the refined and elegant demeanor accumulated over the years between his brows was hard to conceal. Judging from his profile, he must have been a very elegant person when he was young.

The image of Wang Lingsu appeared in my mind.

The girl wasn't exceptionally beautiful, but she was pretty and charming, especially her voluptuous and graceful figure, which left a deep impression on him.

If a marriage alliance can be formed, the Wang family will be completely tied to the Lin family's cause, and they will feel more at ease using them.

Moreover, the Wang family might be a key link in realizing his newly conceived plan, and a marriage alliance could solidify the partnership and give him more peace of mind.

Considering this, Lin Che smiled gently and nodded to Wang Yanchi, saying, "Since the Wang family has this intention, my Lin family will naturally grant it. I agree to this marriage."

Upon hearing this, Wang Yanchi's tense shoulders finally relaxed, and he let out a long sigh of relief, his face beaming with barely suppressed joy.

He quickly stepped forward, took out a storage bag that had been prepared beforehand from his bosom, and presented it with both hands: "Your Majesty, please be wise! This is a small token of our Wang family's appreciation, intended as my daughter's dowry. It is a simple item, and we hope Your Majesty will not find it offensive."

Lin Che scanned the storage bag with his divine sense. Inside, there was a specially made jade box. Runes flowed around the box. It was a magic tool used to seal the living spiritual plant. Its shape was exactly the same as the one he used when he transplanted the Crimson Sun Spiritual Tree.

He probed the jade box with his divine sense, and what was inside surprised him slightly.

It turned out to be a mature, vibrant, first-tier superior red crystal fruit tree!

The fruit produced by this tree has similar effects to the previous Sun-Bathing Fruit, both of which can temper a cultivator's physique, but with even stronger effects.

However, the Wang family probably used it for brewing wine. Among the wine recipes they presented to Lin Che, the Crimson Sun Fruit was the core ingredient of the best wine recipe.

A mature Crimson Crystal Fruit Tree that can begin to bear fruit can be worth 2000 low-grade spirit stones.

This dowry is quite substantial for a family with a strong spiritual connection.

With a thought, Lin Che placed the jade box in his hand.

"I appreciate the Wang family's sincerity, and the betrothal gifts will be delivered to your residence soon."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "As for the wedding ceremony, keep it simple and don't make a big fuss."

Lin Che decided that they should just become Daoist partners and skip the wedding.

Firstly, he is the only member of the Lin family now, with few relatives or friends. Secondly, the current situation is still unstable and it is not suitable to hold a grand celebration.

"I will leave it all to Your Majesty's arrangements!" Wang Yanchi replied with a bow, his attitude respectful, without even mentioning the matter of official status.

After seeing Wang Yanchi off, Lin Che prepared to immediately put into practice the plan that had just come to him.

He was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn't notice that Liu Qingxue, who was beside him, quietly pursed her lips when he agreed to the marriage, a complex and unfathomable look flashing in her eyes. After he left, she continued to gaze at the direction of the hall door for a long time.

……

Return to the Azure Mystic Realm.

Lin Che went straight to the earth fire branch that had been modified by the Azure Profound Realm Spirit.

What was once a simple cave filled with fire has now been transformed into a miniature active volcano.

The dark red mountain is rugged and steep, barren of any vegetation. Only in the huge central crater, the molten red magma beats and surges slowly like the heart of a giant beast, occasionally bubbling up a scorching bubble and bursting open with a "pop," sending up a few sparks.

The intense heat caused the air to distort slightly, and a scorching heat wave swept over us, filling the air with a rich aura of sulfur and fire spirit.

The Crimson Flame Tiger, whose body had become increasingly agile and powerful, was lazily curled up on a hot boulder at the edge of the volcano, absorbing the pure essence of the earth's fire.

Sensing Lin Che's presence, it immediately raised its head, its golden tiger eyes lit up, and let out a deep, joyful roar.

Its massive body leaped down with a light touch, and in a few bounds it reached Lin Che's side, affectionately nuzzling Lin Che's palm with its enormous head, creating a scorching breeze.

Lin Che smiled and gently stroked the soft, warm fur on its neck, feeling its warmth to the touch.

"Alright, I have important business to attend to this time. I didn't bring you any treats. Go back and cultivate diligently." His tone was a mix of helplessness and doting affection.

Upon hearing this, the Crimson Tiger's ears drooped down, and it let out a pitiful "woof" sound. It kept turning back to look at itself, looking somewhat like a child who couldn't get candy, rather than a ferocious beast.

Looking at its appearance, Lin Che couldn't help but smile. The frustration he had been feeling for days due to family matters dissipated considerably at this moment.

After spending several months together, Crimson Tiger and Lin Che's relationship deepened. He was no longer as respectful as before, but instead became more like a big cat and began to show his gluttonous nature.

He found a clearing with abundant fire spiritual energy not far from the foot of the volcano, planted the Crimson Crystal Fruit sapling, used the power of the system to upgrade it, and then ignored it, turning to walk towards the second-tier mid-grade Crimson Sun Spirit Forest that had already grown into a forest.

In the forest, the original mother tree still stands tall, while beside it, eighteen saplings, grown using the fruit pits harvested earlier and nurtured by Su Wanwan with the skills of a spiritual plant master, are already lush and green.

The Wang family's dowry inspired Lin Che, and he carefully selected ten of the best-growing saplings to be part of the return gift.

After thinking about it, I felt it was a bit lacking, so I decided to add another second-tier high-grade water-attribute spirit beast egg.

He observed that both Wang Yanchi and his daughter possessed water-elemental roots, making water-attribute spirit beasts more suitable for their family.

With the betrothal gifts settled, Lin Che took a deep breath, turned his gaze to the distance, and began to focus on his key idea for breaking the deadlock.

Develop snacks to go with drinks!