Starting with being handed over to the Imperial Concubine, building a family with a thousand-year hi

The reserves of divine stones are even more abundant, with over 150,000 low-grade divine stones, over 50,000 mid-grade divine stones, and even over 1,000 extremely rare high-grade divine stones.

As for the various pills and elixirs, most of them are of ordinary quality and are no longer useful to Su Mu. They can be used to reward his adopted sons and daughters and help them break through in their cultivation.

After the inventory was completed, Su Mu immediately began to distribute the items. He took out the high-grade divine spear and the three mid-grade divine treasures, and gave them all to Song Pingchao. He also divided the divine stones equally among them.

Since the Horned Scale Clan's pills were of insufficient quality and failed to meet Song Pingchao's standards, Su Mu selected a batch of top-grade pills from his own storage treasury and sent them to him.

Song Pingchao received the resources, his eyes lighting up instantly. He could tell at a glance that some of the precious pills and treasures were not something the Horned Scale Clan could possess; they must have been bestowed by the reclusive powerhouse behind Su Mu.

At this moment, he secretly rejoiced that he had made the right gamble. Not only had he successfully secured Su Mu's favor, but he had also gained access to numerous top-tier resources, reaping considerable benefits.

Overjoyed, Song Pingchao secretly glanced at Su Mu, a hint of envy and even jealousy rising in his heart.

He had lived for tens of thousands of years, stuck at the peak of the Celestial God Realm for countless years, and had long since concluded that he had no hope of breaking through to the God King Realm in this lifetime, and had long since taken a detached view of life, death, and lifespan. But ever since his granddaughter Song Qingmei became Su Mu's godfather, she has had a series of fortuitous encounters and her cultivation has skyrocketed, reigniting the spark of his long-extinguished Dao heart.

He was unwilling to fade away, unwilling to exhaust his lifespan and turn to dust. He longed to break free from his shackles, to fight against the heavens and earth, to step into a higher realm, to see a wider sea of ​​stars, and to contend with stronger opponents.

Countless times, he wanted to follow his granddaughter's example and ask Su Mu to be his godfather in order to seek an opportunity. But the words always stuck in his throat. First, given his seniority and age, such a move would be too abrupt; second, Song Qingmei had already become a disciple, and if he were to do the same, the seniority would be completely disrupted, making him a laughingstock.

Song Pingchao's expression was evasive, his face full of struggle and hesitation. Su Mu noticed all these subtle changes in his expression.

Su Mu took a half step closer, lowered his voice, and said softly in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Fellow Daoist Song, there's no need to be so reserved. We cultivators are meant to fight against heaven and earth for our lives. With the Great Dao before us, pride is nothing but an illusion. If you wish to understand this, you can speak to me privately. This matter will remain a secret between us forever."

The words were left unsaid, but the deeper meaning was self-evident.

Song Pingchao was greatly shocked. After pondering for a long time, he finally suppressed his agitation, cupped his hands and smiled lightly: "Thank you for your kindness, Fellow Daoist Su. This matter is of great importance. Please allow me to consider it carefully."

Su Mu did not continue to persuade him. He knew that the other party had completely fallen for him when he started addressing him as "Fellow Daoist Su".

The great opportunities of the Dao cannot be forced. Especially for old cultivators who have lived for tens of thousands of years, who are meticulous and have many concerns, all you need to do is open this door for them, and when the time is right, they will naturally step in on their own.

Outside the imperial city, the chatter of the onlookers rose again, filled with mockery and sighs.

"These three were overestimated! They couldn't even last one breath, let alone five, and they weren't even worthy of the Emperor Emeritus's personal intervention."

"You dare to come here and provoke us? With such meager strength, you're just asking for humiliation."

Amidst the crowd, a figure quietly retreated, concealing himself from the flow of people, and quickly returned to the inn outside the city.

This person was none other than the Heavenly God Tuji, specially sent by the Three-Eyed Clan God King to investigate Tianyuan Star. He had witnessed the entire battle just now. He had intended to probe Su Mu's true combat strength, but he never expected that Su Mu would stand by and watch the whole thing, and the one who made the move was actually Song Pingchao.

Tuki dared not delay and immediately returned to the inn, activating the hidden communication array to transmit everything that had happened on Tianyuan Star back to Taidou Star, reporting to the Three-Eyed Clan God King.

On the other side, on Taidou Star, in the palace of the Three-Eyed Clan God King.

Upon receiving the report, the Three-Eyed God-King frowned, his face darkened, and his eyes were filled with confusion and apprehension.

"Su Mu didn't make a move at all?"

"Is he simply too weak to act, or is he deliberately concealing his strength and hiding his trump cards?"

"Xiao Xuance was so generous as to bestow the precious spatial scroll upon Song Pingchao and specially protect Su Mu... This person's importance in Xiao Xuance's heart far exceeds my expectations."

"But Su Mu, a newly ascended celestial being, is hardly worthy of such strenuous support from the human god-king. What exactly is Xiao Xuance plotting?"

"Could it be that Su Mu harbors some earth-shattering secret that even I haven't fully uncovered, enough to make a God-King willingly devote his full power to protecting him?"

He murmured to himself, his mind filled with doubts, increasingly unable to see through Su Mu's true nature.

A moment later, the Three-Eyed God-King slowly rose, raised his eyes to gaze at the vast starry sea, and revealed a sharp glint in his eyes: "No matter what the truth is, Su Mu must not be allowed to live! Xiao Xuance, no matter what you are scheming or plotting, I will never sit idly by and watch your human race's power grow stronger and threaten the status of my Three-Eyed Clan!"

Night falls in the imperial palace of Tianyuan Star.

After coaxing his young son, Su Changsheng, to sleep, Su Mu turned around and gently embraced his wife, Xiao Yunshang.

Feeling her husband's warm body temperature and steady heartbeat, Xiao Yunshang blushed shyly, lowered her head gently, and took off the jade hairpin from her hair. Her long black hair cascaded down like a waterfall, and she nestled obediently in Su Mu's arms, extremely affectionate.

Su Mu swept her up in his arms and carried her slowly into the inner room. They spent a tender night together, their love deep and unwavering.

As the passion subsided, the two lay together in quiet contemplation. Su Mu spoke softly, revealing his innermost thoughts: "My lady, I intend to take in a group of adopted sons and daughters who are all of top talent and cultivation. Do you have any suitable connections?"

As his cultivation level soared, the growth rate of Chai Min's early adopted sons and daughters gradually lagged behind. The quality of the system rewards was firmly tied to the disciples' breakthrough limits and growth potential. Only by absorbing more top geniuses and nurturing them to break through to higher realms could he unlock top-tier rewards that would excite him and aid his own advancement on the Great Dao.

Among the many disciples, only Song Qingmei can be considered to have top potential and deserves special cultivation. Song Pingchao is still hesitant and cannot be relied upon in the short term.

Xiao Yunshang was already aware of her husband's unique cultivation method. Although she didn't understand its deeper meaning, she always fully supported him. After a moment's thought, she slowly said, "Husband, even with the Time Mirror and abundant resources, the native cultivators of Tianyuan Star have limited foundations and will ultimately find it difficult to catch up with your pace quickly. If you want to recruit top geniuses, you don't have to limit yourself to the local area; you can look to the myriad life-bearing planets in the universe."

Su Mu nodded slightly; he had already considered this idea. He had previously sent Chai Min and others to contact the Ghost Clan, intending to expand their influence beyond their domain and recruit geniuses. However, their strength was still weak, and they nearly perished during their training expeditions, making it impossible to complete the plan in the short term.

Seeing her husband hesitate, Xiao Yunshang smiled knowingly and said, "Husband, there is a perfect place right now."

Su Mu was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized—Star Palace!

Compared to Tianyuan Star and its surrounding star regions, the Star Palace gathers the top experts from the entire star sea, boasting numerous geniuses and profound foundations, fully meeting his needs for recruiting outstanding disciples. Moreover, all members of the Star Palace are bound by palace rules and oaths, making their temperament controllable and their credibility higher.

Having made up his mind, Su Mu decided to go find Song Pingchao early the next morning to inquire about the details of the Star Palace genius.

……

In the depths of the vast starry sea, there lies the celestial star.

This planet is the stronghold of the Sirius Clan, whose entire population numbers only a few hundred thousand, yet they are infamous throughout the myriad star systems. Every member of the Sirius Clan possesses formidable physical strength, is bloodthirsty and warlike, and spends years plundering resources from various planets for cultivation; their ferocity has spread throughout the cosmos.

The Three-Eyed Clan God-King left Taidou Star and made a special trip to Tianjue Star, arriving at the side hall of the Tianlang Clan's royal court.

Seated on the highest throne in the hall was a burly figure. Standing six zhang tall, with long, silvery-white fur all over his body, sharp and menacing fangs, and an aura of overwhelming ferocity, he was none other than Morba, the prince of the Sky Wolf Clan.

The two took their seats, and Morba spoke first, his tone familiar: "My old friend has come all this way, but is there some good fortune to bestow upon my Sirius Clan?"

It's not hard to see from their words that the two have been secretly colluding and cooperating on multiple occasions. The fact that the Three-Eyed God-King was able to gain a foothold and maintain a high position in the Star Palace is undoubtedly due to many shady and clandestine methods behind the scenes.

The Three-Eyed Clan God-King didn't mince words, stating his purpose directly: "The Three-Eyed Clan's position in the Star Palace is increasingly threatened by the Human Race. I've come today to make a deal with you. You help me eliminate the threat and solidify the Three-Eyed Clan's position, and I will grant you an entry quota to a ten-thousand-year-old secret realm."

Morba's eyes narrowed sharply, and he asked in a deep voice, "Are you talking about that secret realm left behind by the fallen demigod?"

"Indeed." The Three-Eyed Clan God-King nodded in agreement. "Currently, only three God-Kings remain in the Star Palace, and of the six slots for the Secret Realm, three are vacant. I possess one of them, which I can bestow upon your Sirius Clan."

Morba did not immediately agree. There's no such thing as a free lunch; such generous terms inevitably come with extremely difficult and dangerous tasks.

He pondered for a moment, then tentatively asked, "Do you want my Sirius Clan to take action and eliminate the Star Palace Human God-King? If so, I cannot agree."

To slay a Star Palace God-King would mean an irreconcilable feud with the entire Star Palace. Even though the Sirius Clan was fierce and fearless in battle, they were unwilling to needlessly provoke such a formidable threat. More importantly, the Star Palace harbored a secret that kept the Sirius Clan constantly on edge.

Long ago, a God-King from the Star Palace entered a secret realm, only to be entangled by the laws of reincarnation and forced into seclusion. No one knows his current fate or cultivation level. This person was at the peak of the God-King realm back then; if he hadn't perished, he would most likely have turned misfortune into fortune, broken through the shackles, and entered the Saint realm.

A Saint Realm expert is enough to intimidate the entire star sea, and the Sirius Clan is definitely not someone they would easily provoke.

Knowing his concerns, the Three-Eyed Clan God-King immediately explained, "The one I want you to deal with is not a human god-king, but a human cultivator from Tianyuan Star—Su Mu."