Hermit in the Mountains

In the ancient city of Hanzhong, Liu Yunzhong mentally exited the virtual world and immediately summoned Zhuge Yanqing and Guan Shanyue to discuss important matters.

Zhuge Yanqing and Guan Shanyue rushed to the study, entered the room, and bowed, saying, "Elder brother, elder brother."

"Second brother, third brother, sit down and let's talk." Liu Yunzhong gestured with his right hand, indicating that the two should not stand on ceremony.

"I have reached an agreement with my cousin Liu Zhengbang that the main branch in Luoyang will be merged into the Liu family in Hanzhong."

The study seemed to freeze. After a few moments, Zhuge Yanqing suddenly stood up, his face filled with disbelief. "Brother, really?"

"What?" Guan Shanyue also realized what was happening and jumped up from his chair.

Seeing their elder brother smiling and nodding, Zhuge Yanqing and Guan Shanyue were filled with surprise and delight.

The merging of Luoyang into Hanzhong was not a simple combination of two separate entities; its impact was enormous.

With the merger of the Northern and Southern Liu clans, the Liu clan became a unified entity, eliminating the need for future internal strife over the legitimacy of the "Great Han".

Hanzhong's population, strength, and economy will all see a several-fold increase.

Zhuge Yanqing's smile froze, her brows furrowed into a deep frown, and a wave of pressure washed over her.

Seeing his second brother sitting back in his chair with a worried look on his face, Guan Shanyue asked in confusion, "Second brother, why do you look so worried?"

"Isn't this a good thing?"

"Sigh—" Zhuge Yanqing sighed, looked at his elder brother, and voiced his concerns.

"Brother, based on the several expansions of Earth, Luoyang is 15 billion kilometers away from Hanzhong."

"It is unlikely that a large-scale relocation of people to Hanzhong will be possible."

"If we send people to relocate the people ourselves, our defense capabilities will be severely insufficient."

"If we hire Dongfeng, Shuntian, Jingfeng and other transportation alliances to transport the people, the cost will be astronomical."

"No matter the method, the result will be to weaken our national strength."

"The risk is too high, far too high."

He sighed helplessly, "If this had happened before the expansion of Earth, we would still have been able to relocate a large number of people."

"But we can't take that big of a risk now."

"The only way is to bring all the members of the Liu family in Luoyang over."

"We can raise the banner of 'Great Han' and prepare for the future establishment of a nation."

"At most, we will select some talented individuals with cultivation aptitude; a million is the limit."

After Zhuge Yanqing finished speaking, Liu Yunzhong fell into deep thought. He was well aware of the difficulty involved, but he hadn't expected it to shake the foundation of Hanzhong.

His second brother is right. By taking over the main lineage of the Liu family, they can raise the banner of the "Great Han" in the future.

Recruiting a million talents is also feasible.

"Second brother, you are in full charge of this matter, and all departments will be at your command."

"As long as it doesn't affect the foundation of Hanzhong, we should relocate as many talents as possible."

"Bring the Liu family from Luoyang over first. If some members of the Liu family don't want to come, let them stay in Luoyang."

"But all the family genealogy and other relevant documents of the main lineage must be brought back. In the future, the family members who remain in Luoyang can only be from the branch lineage."

"Since relocating the people of Luoyang would be counterproductive, we should strengthen the efforts to gather the people in the surrounding areas."

"Yes, elder brother." Zhuge Yanqing breathed a sigh of relief.

He was genuinely afraid that his older brother would follow in the footsteps of their ancestor.

Things are different now. With the fusion of different worlds, there are plenty of ordinary people now, so there's no need to fight tooth and nail against the people of Luoyang.

"Third brother, follow your second brother's orders." After saying that, Liu Yunzhong waved his hand to signal the two to prepare.

Zhuge Yanqing and Guan Shanyue rose, bowed respectfully, and left the study.

After his two sworn brothers, Liu Yunzhong and the others, left, he raised his right hand and rubbed his temples.

He could only apologize to his distant cousin in his heart.

On the other side, Zhuge Yanqing arranged various government affairs, selected nine deputies and one hundred top guards, and set off for Luoyang a day later.

He used the innate spiritual treasure embryo - the innate Bagua array diagram - to teleport everyone through space and arrive in Luoyang as soon as possible.

The outside world's commotion has nothing to do with Gu Changsheng.

In the Qinling Mountains, he was riding a blue ox, enjoying the scenery and feeling carefree and at ease.

After walking for an unknown distance, the blue ox suddenly stopped, turned its head to look behind it, and spoke in human language, "Master, something is attracting me from the southwest."

Upon hearing this, Gu Changsheng chuckled and teased, "You're quite lucky; you stumble upon a treasure as soon as you step out the door."

"Master is truly a man of great fortune." Qingniu's words were not a compliment.

They encountered many hidden realms along the way, but ultimately did not enter any of them.

He was puzzled as to why the master did not take the treasure when he saw it, but despite his doubts, he was sure the master had his reasons for doing so.

Gu Changsheng smiled knowingly. Wherever he went, any hidden secret realms within a ten-kilometer radius would release their aura.

These naturally born spiritual beings instinctively know how to seek advantage and avoid harm, and they also know how to choose their masters.

With their owners being powerful, their reputation grows even stronger, and they may even break through their own limitations.

In the blink of an eye, hundreds of kilometers away, the green ox carried Gu Changsheng into a secret realm.

Even without the Green Ox breaking the formation, the secret realm's protective array automatically opened its gates to welcome Gu Changsheng upon sensing his presence.

The green ox entered the secret realm without any hindrance, flattering the master as it went, "Master is really amazing, you can enter the secret realm without even having to exert any effort."

He was well aware that the protective formation hadn't stopped the attack thanks to the old man on his back.

Every secret realm they encountered along the way was open and waiting for them.

The man and the ox walked to the very center of the secret realm, where a blue copper ring came into view.

The blue copper ring emitted a deep humming sound, as if welcoming a distinguished guest.

The cyan copper ring flew towards Gu Changsheng and hovered in front of him.

The blue ox rolled its eyes, speechless, and on the verge of tears.

Wasn't he supposed to be the one who was led here? Why is he now running off to fawn over the master?

Gu Changsheng lightly tapped the cyan copper ring with his right middle finger, and the spiritual treasure's information flowed into his sea of ​​consciousness.

[Innate Bronze Bracelet: A mid-grade innate spiritual treasure embryo, containing eighteen innate restrictions and the laws of earth and gravity.]

I thought it was like the Vajra Bracelet of the Taiqing Daoist, capable of collecting all the magical treasures in the world.

It is both offensive and defensive, making it very suitable for the Green Ox. With proper training, it has the potential to advance to the ranks of top-grade spiritual treasures.

"Qingxuan, keep this as a protective spiritual treasure and nurture it well."

"Thank you, Master!" the Green Ox said gratefully, and immediately sent a wisp of its divine soul into the bronze chisel.

After the Green Ox completed its initial bond with its master, Gu Changsheng gestured, "Let's go."

With a thought, Qingniu put the bronze pendant on his right front left leg and walked towards the outside of the secret realm.

When he walks, the bronze chisels sway and make a crisp sound when they touch his skin.

The man and the ox continued their journey westward.

Along the way, Gu Changsheng would collect any useful spiritual treasures he encountered. These were all strange and unusual spiritual treasures, and their grades were not high.

He collected four spirit lamps along the way, all of which were low-grade innate spiritual treasure embryos. He planned to take them back and use them as candlesticks for lighting.

A bright green fishing rod, containing a mid-grade innate spiritual treasure embryo, perfect for fishing when you have nothing else to do.

Given his status as a sage of heaven and earth, he would basically have no opportunity to engage in fighting and killing, and could only take a leisurely route.