Chapter 957: Chapter 957: Dragon Spirit’s Secrets
"Dragon Spirit? Why mention that all of a sudden?" Jiang Yunxuan asked with an odd expression.
Liu Zixuan thought for a moment: "Actually, I wanted to ask you about this during the martial arts tournament. There was an elder from Dragon Spirit at the tournament, named Wang. He stayed in Lingxiu Village for a while, and before he left, he told me something. Since then, I’ve felt like Dragon Spirit is positioning itself as our opposition."
"Considering all the incidents at the tournament, I feel that Dragon Spirit seems to be secretly working to unify the Martial Realm. It also seems to have some connection with the Hidden Sect. If my guesses are correct, then facing the Celestial Dao Alliance will certainly involve Dragon Spirit!"
Jiang Yunxuan grinned: "You guessed it right. Actually, I only learned about this after leaving the Hidden Sect."
"That day was strange too. Ever since I left the family, my old man has never called me proactively. But that day, he somehow guessed I would leave the Hidden Sect and come looking for you, and surprisingly, he called me."
"What did he say?" Liu Zixuan asked.
Jiang Yunxuan’s old man was naturally Jiang Yifan. Whatever he called Jiang Yunxuan about at that time was surely crucial.
"He told me there was indeed a problem within Dragon Spirit. The entire group completely separated from the official authorities six months ago. Of course, their true mission is still to protect the Star Sea, but after splitting, they divided into two factions."
"Two factions?" Liu Zixuan raised his eyebrows, vaguely guessing something.
"Indeed, in general terms, one is our Direct Lineage faction, and the other is Elder Wang’s faction. Most of our family’s Direct Lineage were personally placed by my old man and selected from the elite Blood Wolf Guard Team. Although their strength is quite remarkable, they are fewer in number."
Jiang Yunxuan paused and continued: "Elder Wang’s faction mostly consists of Dragon Spirit veterans and talents recruited recently. Their numbers are larger and their backgrounds extremely complex. According to my old man, many people from the Celestial Dao Alliance have infiltrated, which led to this split."
"Then it all makes sense," Liu Zixuan replied with narrowed eyes and a smile, "It’s Wang’s faction, under the influence of the Celestial Dao Alliance, that stealthily pushes for the unification of the Martial Realm. As for their connection with the Hidden Sect, I can’t quite figure out their intentions."
"My dad didn’t mention that. He hasn’t managed Dragon Spirit’s affairs for years anyway, and whether they split has little impact on our Jiang Family. Recently, those from our Direct Lineage returned to the family, yet some overseas deployments remain intact."
"I’ve heard Elder Wang say, the middle-aged man who saved us in the Witch Country was from your Direct Lineage," Liu Zixuan laughed.
"You could say that, but not too closely linked. Actually, the Jiang Family’s main core force is the Blood Wolf Guard Team, which my uncles manage — like Wang Liang, whom you’ve met before," Jiang Yunxuan explained.
Liu Zixuan nodded and asked, "Did your old man say anything about this Martial Realm unification?"
"He said, ’These people must be really bored. Rather than unifying the Martial Realm, they’d find more fun playing hide and seek with some girls!’ Jiang Yunxuan laughed helplessly, "I don’t know our family’s exact strength, but I sense my dad isn’t really concerned about these Martial Realm issues as a threat."
Liu Zixuan chuckled: "Then the Jiang Family’s power must compare with those Hidden Sects."
"Who knows!" Jiang Yunxuan shrugged.
"If Dragon Spirit is secretly involved, should we adjust our plans?" Zhao Yi asked.
"No need for now. Although Dragon Spirit pushes for Martial Realm unification, they haven’t directly assisted. With their ties to the Hidden Sect, it proves Elder Wang has other intentions, so everything proceeds as usual."
"By the way, what about the guy who went to the He Family with us earlier?" Hu Zi asked then.
"I sent Shi Ke back to his family; he couldn’t stay with us too long. Otherwise, he’d be of no help and would expose the Shi Family," Liu Zixuan said.
Liu Zixuan took a deep breath, stood up, and said, "It’s getting late. Let’s head to the Gu Family. By now, Gu Yu should have spread the information."
"I’ve wanted to go for a while. I heard these sub-branches hide plenty of treasures. When I bump into them, don’t grab them from me!" Hu Zi laughed heartily and strode forward.
...
As they headed straight for the Gu Family, something occurred in the Celestial Dao Alliance Headquarters hall.
A martial artist rushed forward, reporting to several elders, "Just received news, Liu Zixuan and his crew are heading directly to deal with the Wei Family."
"Wei Family..." Willow Association’s elder squinted: "This aligns with Liu Zixuan’s usual style — knowing the Wei Family Patriarch is dead, leaving behind only a sub-branch with no support, will obviously make them easy to wipe out."
"What should we do?" the martial artist asked.
The Willow Association elder glanced at the elders nearby and smiled: "We cannot let Liu Zixuan succeed. With three sub-branches eliminated, a Wei Family wipe-out would halve ours."
"Moreover, the Wei Family Patriarch sacrificed for the grand plan of unification. If we don’t assist, many martial artists will think we elders only care for ourselves, never concerned with the underlings’ fate," another elder stated.
"Indeed, Liu Zixuan destroyed three sub-branches in two days, unsettling our troops. We should seize this chance to stabilize forces," the Gu Family elder added.
"Where’s Hua Qiu?" the Willow Association elder asked.
"He went home handling some private matters. Why?" the Gu Family elder inquired.
"No reason." The Willow Association elder shook their head, eyes flashing a strange expression momentarily, then said, "Liu Zixuan and his crew might think dealing with the Wei Family will be easy, thus lowering their guard. So while stabilizing the troops, let’s kill Liu Zixuan at the Wei Family."
"That sounds good. Removing these threats will complete Martial Realm unification!" an elder nearby chimed in.
"Alright. For the Wei Family’s sole bloodline and the grand plan of unification, let’s prepare thoroughly this time. Gu Family elder, you and the Zhong Family elder take ten Half-Step Emperor Realm experts to make sure Liu Zixuan is erased from this world!"
Upon hearing the Willow Association elder, the Gu Family and Zhong Family elders stood up, wearing disdainful smirks: "Dying in front of so many experts would be Liu Zixuan’s fortune, not in vain of his enchanting genius reputation!"
After this, they led some martial artists hurriedly towards the Wei Family, while the Willow Association elder smiled wickedly, murmuring: "Zixuan, you shouldn’t have chosen this time to challenge the Wei Family..."
