Five Agree to Join

Second, resources.

With a wave of his right hand, Gu Changyuan summoned five storage rings into his palm. They floated in mid-air, spinning slowly.

Each ring emanated a faint spiritual light, and their surfaces were engraved with different clan crests—Zhuge, Shangguan, Dugu, Xuanyuan, and Gongsun. They were clear at a glance.

Inside each ring are enough cultivation resources to sustain a clan for a hundred years. Cultivation techniques, pills, spiritual materials, magical artifacts... everything you could possibly need.

He paused, his gaze sweeping over everyone present.

I know that your clans are not lacking in resources. However, you must also be aware that the resources I possess are of a much higher quality than yours. Many of them are supreme treasures that are difficult to find in the entire Nine Heavens Realm.

It was not a modest statement, but no one refuted it. It was simply the truth.

Gu Changyuan had his own calculations. What he needed right now, before he reopened the immortal path and returned to the upper realm, was to have more cultivators at the peak of the Tribulation Transcendence realm within the forces under his command.

He did not need these people to immediately break through to the Half-Immortal realm. As long as they could reach the peak of the Tribulation Transcendence realm, they could ascend to immortality and join the faction he would establish in the upper realm in the future.

A Half-Immortal was merely someone who had accumulated power for a longer time and built a deeper foundation after reaching the peak of the Tribulation Transcendence realm.

If they ascended to immortality, their initial strength and cultivation base would indeed be a notch higher than ordinary cultivators at the peak of the Tribulation Transcendence realm.

But what Gu Changyuan urgently needed now was not top-tier combat power, but sufficient numbers.

Only with a sufficient number of cultivators would he have a solid foundation when establishing his overall faction in the upper realm and contending against the Imperial Court in the future. This would allow him to advance steadily and consolidate his position step by step.

Third, management.

Gu Changyuan continued.

If your clans choose to join the Heavenly Human Holy Land, our future mode of interaction will be the same as with the Star Vault Clan.

The Holy Land will not heavily intervene in the internal management of your clans. Your clan's inheritance, rules, and personnel arrangements will still be decided by yourselves. The Holy Land will absolutely not interfere.

We will only build exclusive pavilions for each of your clans within the Heavenly Human Holy Land for you to reside in. This will not only highlight your status but also facilitate future communication between the Holy Land and the various clans.

During these five years, Gu Changyuan had naturally spoken with Zhuge Dancheng and the others about the matters of the Star Clan and the Star Vault Clan.

He had also learned some secret history regarding the Star Clan's past from them.

Meanwhile, Xing Wuzhan and his people had also had several interactions with Zhuge and the others over the past five years, learning about the difficult situation of the five great immortal clans in the upper realm.

They secretly rejoiced in their hearts that the Star Clan had encountered such a powerful Progenitor as Gu Changyuan.

Otherwise, given the expansion speed of the Imperial Court, the Star Clan would sooner or later become a target as well.

Having stated all his conditions, Gu Changyuan slowly withdrew his gaze and let it rest on the elders and heads of the five great clans. His expression was calm as he quietly waited for their decision.

The main hall fell into silence once again. The members of the five great clans sank into deep thought, their fingers unconsciously tapping on the tabletops. Their expressions varied as they rapidly weighed the pros and cons in their minds.

Before long, the head of the Dugu clan, Dugu Qirong, took the lead to speak on behalf of his clan without the slightest hesitation.

My Dugu clan is willing to join the Heavenly Human Holy Land.

Dugu Qirong looked calm, but deep within his eyes hid a trace of imperceptible resolve.

No one present was surprised. Among the five great immortal clans of the upper realm today, only the Dugu clan had been completely annihilated by the Imperial Court, leaving behind only a few remnants.

The Dugu clan in the lower realm had lost the protection of the upper realm. Like duckweed without roots, they were in a dire situation and desperately needed a powerful backer to stabilize their foundation and preserve their legacy.

And now, Gu Changyuan had actively extended an olive branch, offering not only protection but also the support of top-tier resources. Dugu Qirong had no reason to refuse.

For the future of the Dugu clan and to ensure the continuation of their bloodline, he could only choose to agree decisively and grasp this lifesaver.

Not long after Dugu Qirong finished speaking, the head of the Shangguan clan, Shangguan Yihao, also spoke slowly.

The Shangguan clan is likewise willing to join the Holy Land.

The situation of the Shangguan clan was slightly better than that of the Dugu clan. Although the Shangguan immortal clan in the upper realm had not yet been destroyed, they had been severely crippled by the Imperial Court. Their strength was vastly diminished, and they could barely protect themselves, let alone shelter their family in the lower realm.

Over the years, the Shangguan clan had been walking on thin ice. The conditions Gu Changyuan offered now were exactly what they urgently needed.

Only with the protection of the Holy Land and the support of resources could the Shangguan clan establish a firm foothold and perhaps even have a chance to revive their past glory.

Therefore, the Shangguan clan also had no room to refuse.

The five clans had been closely connected for many years, and they were all well aware of each other's circumstances.

The Dugu and Shangguan clans were in the most difficult situations, so their choices were entirely expected.

They had long heard of the tragic state of these two immortal clans in the upper realm and knew that they had no other choice at this moment but to cling to Gu Changyuan as their sole hope.

Zhuge Dancheng, Xuanyuan Feiyue, and Gongsun Xiangming exchanged glances, their eyes flickering with rapid calculations.

The current situation of the five great immortal clans in the upper realm was indeed terrible.

Driven out of the Central Continent, they were hiding here and there, facing the threat of encirclement and suppression by the Imperial Court at any time.

Although the several Progenitors in the upper realm were still struggling to hold on, no one knew how much longer they could last.

To completely escape this predicament, they might truly need to forge a good relationship with the senior before them.

Not just a good relationship, but tying themselves together.

A moment later, their eyes met and they reached a consensus. They nodded together and spoke one after another in respectful tones.

The Zhuge clan is willing to join the Heavenly Human Holy Land.

The Xuanyuan clan is willing to join.

The Gongsun clan is willing to join.

All five clans agreed.

A smile appeared on Gu Changyuan's face.

It was not a polite smile, but one of genuine, heartfelt satisfaction.

Welcome to the Heavenly Human Holy Land, everyone.

His voice was not loud, but it carried a reassuring power.

I believe that you will all be very grateful for the decision you made today.

He did not say you will rejoice in the future, nor did he say I will not let you down.

He merely stated a fact.

Because he knew that the joining of these five great clans was the best choice for everyone involved.

Since that is the case, let us begin discussing the specific matters following your entry into the Holy Land.

Gu Changyuan said, raising his hand to signal everyone to relax a bit.

The discussion lasted for about two hours.

From the selection of pavilion sites to the layout of teleportation formations, from the distribution of resources to the evaluation of contributions, from personnel arrangements to daily management...

Every matter, big and small, was settled one by one.

Of course, these matters were all discussed with them by the three women: Ye Qingxue, Bai Ling'er, and Yue Lingxi.

Gu Changyuan was now completely hands-off. Furthermore, since they had been in charge of the Holy Land's affairs for the past thousand years, Gu Changyuan believed they could manage it much better than he could.

Well, in truth, he was just too lazy to bother.