Chapter 262: Power is a little willful Nurhaci no longer had the heart to watch the duel below. At this moment, all he was thinking about was whether there was really someone in his family who smuggled spiritual stones into the Ming Dynasty from overseas. If this is true, how many people are smuggling spirit stones? To what extent? Why do I know nothing about it? If this is true, how will the Ming Dynasty deal with my clan? Of course, he still had a glimmer of hope in his heart. If someone in his family smuggled spirit stones but hid it from him, it meant that at least no one in their Aisin-Gioro clan had ever touched the spirit stones. The problem lies with the other eight tribes! Nurhaci was born in Jianzhou Jurchen. In order to unify the entire Jurchen tribe, he established the Manchu Jin family. At the same time, in order to appease other tribes, another eight tribes were established, which were equivalent to the Manchu and Jin side families. In fact, it was based on the ancient times when the Zhou emperor granted fiefdoms and gave other tribes a certain status. To put it more simply, the Aisin-Gioro clan shares family interests with the other eight clans and they form an alliance of interests. "If things become a last resort, I will have to abandon the eight clans and save only my own clan!" In a flash, Nurhaci had made the choice to cut off his arm in order to survive. In the fighting arena below. When Qian Yang heard Tang Rui say that Liu Yu and his team were involved in the smuggling of spirit stones, his expression suddenly changed.
As for the audience outside the venue, although they were a little surprised when they heard about the spirit stone, they did not think it was anything special. Over the past thirty years, various news about the smuggling of spirit stones have appeared every now and then, and the people have long since become numb to it. Unless one is extremely concerned about the matter of spirit stones and is paying close attention to it, only those who hear what Tang Rui said on the stage about students trafficking spirit stones will realize that the whole thing is not simple. Others will at most be surprised for a while. After all, for the vast majority of normal and honest cultivators, things like spirit stones are very far away from their lives and they are simply out of their reach. Even in a place like Jiuwazi Town, where good and bad people mix together, any transaction involving spirit stones is kept secret. Therefore, no one took what was said on the stage seriously. "It's over!" Tang Rui didn't wait for Qian Yang to say anything, a spell appeared in his hand, and he said: "Golden Light Spell: Strangling!" "Wow!" In an instant, the talisman burst out with several bright rays of light, which rushed to Qian Yang at a speed invisible to the naked eye, and terrifying spiritual energy fluctuations burst out. After feeling the terrifying spiritual fluctuations contained in these lights, Qian Yang, who was already at the end of his strength, suddenly contracted his pupils. He had never thought that death would be so close to him. "Buzz!" However, just when the Golden Light Spell was about to blast Qian Yang to pieces, suddenly a layer of light blue ripples appeared around Qian Yang, and the illusion array dissipated. The original appearance of the ring was also revealed at this moment. Looking at the two people on the stage, they were already covered in blood, and under Qian Yang's feet was a defensive magic circle protecting him. After all, it was a formal duel that did not involve life or death or disability, so the underground fighting arena still abided by the rules very much, and at the critical moment, Qian Yang was protected from being killed. Of course, if it is an underground fight at midnight, there is no such thing as protection. Everyone has to sign a life and death agreement. Life and death are determined by fate, and wealth and honor are in the hands of God! "Wow!" Although they knew that the battle, which would start at nine o'clock, was just an appetizer, the audience still gave it warm applause. No matter what, the ones fighting on the stage were also two cultivators at the second level of Qi training. Among all the people participating in the duel in the underground fighting arena, their cultivation level could not be said to be the strongest, but it was not bad either.
"I declare that the winner of the first duel is Tang Rui from No. 2 Middle School!" The voice of the old man in white robe rang out, and the whole audience cheered. At this time, on the second floor of the private room, Li Baole looked at the victorious Tang Rui below, and then looked at his confident buddy Wang Chu. At this moment, what he was thinking about was the conversation on the stage just now. Of course, his best friend Wang Chu's clear grasp of the whole matter made him feel even more uneasy. At this time, Li Baole no longer cared about the duel below. "Old Wang, I always feel that things here are not that simple and the water is very deep. What do you know? Tell me the whole story." Li Baole looked at Wang Chu with some concern. "Don't worry," Wang Chu said, pausing slightly, and then said, "There are some things that you'd better not know." Seeing that his good brother was about to say something, Wang Chu sighed and comforted him: "Don't you know me clearly? I know what can be done and what cannot be done!" "But..." Li Baole wanted to say something, but Wang Chu waved his hand and said, "Continue watching the duel." Looking at Wang Chu who didn't want to say more, Li Baole opened his mouth, but could only suppress everything he wanted to say. He was not stupid, and he actually knew in his heart that this best friend must have come into contact with something he shouldn't touch, such as spirit stones. At this point, he had already determined that the source of his uneasiness was not the bet on this duel. What I have always worried about is that there is someone behind the bets, trying to cheat my best friends and myself out of their money. But now it seems that is not the case at all. Behind the whole thing was a duel between No. 2 Middle School and No. 3 Middle School, which involved the spirit stone business. Gaul from No. 2 Middle School and Liu Yu from No. 3 Middle School were both involved. His best friend knew about this and wanted to make a fortune from it by betting. Then the question arises, why does his best friend Wang Chu know so much inside information? The answer is self-evident! In a flash, Li Baole's brain started to work quickly, connecting every word said by his best friend Wang Chu. Wang Chu's cousin is the "flag bearer" of Dongxing Jidao. The news of the duel between No. 2 Middle School and No. 3 Middle School had already spread a month ago, and many people from various major academies had secretly placed bets. In theory, the fighting between these academies is not a big deal. To the desperate criminals and underground gangs in the outside world, it is just a small fight and not worth participating in or paying attention to. But the best friend knew the news of No. 2 and No. 3 Middle Schools through Dongxing Jidao. Why? It can only be that some people in No. 2 and No. 3 Middle Schools are related to gangs like Dongxing Jidao. The connection between the two parties is the spirit stone! First, Gao Lu from No. 2 Middle School was arrested because of the spirit stone. Then Liu Yu and his friends from No. 3 Middle School were also arrested because of the spirit stone. It feels more like Liu Yu's arrest was a kind of revenge after Gao Lu was arrested. So one of the two middle schools must be from Dongxing Jidao, so Wang Chu knew the inside story of Lingshi. But no matter which the true situation is, it can be proved that since his best friend knows the inside story about the spirit stone transaction, it means that his relationship with Dongxing Jidao is definitely not as simple as his cousin being the "flag bearer" under Dongxing Jidao. It is very likely that his best friend Wang Chu is a member of Dongxing Jidao and is also involved in the spirit stone business. "Wow!" At this time, the second battle below also ended. As expected, No. 2 Middle School won and No. 3 Middle School lost. Outside the window, the firefly clam stone was flashing with colorful lights, and the entire underground fighting arena became noisy again. The shadow of the old man in the white Taoist robe appeared again, loudly announcing the winner. The light shone through the window, making the entire private room dim, but Li Baole did not react much at this time. At this moment, he only felt his hands and feet were cold. He has always been delicate and sensitive, so he is cautious in what he says and does. To put it bluntly, he is smart but timid.
Now that he knew that his best friend Wang Chu was very likely involved in the spirit stone business, his heart was in a mess. Thinking that I had only one good friend like him, and that he had already taken one step down a path of no return, I felt uncontrollable panic, helplessness, and deep uneasiness in my heart. "Pah!" At this moment, his shoulder was tapped, and Li Baole suddenly came back to his senses. Then he saw his best friend Wang Chu excitedly saying, "Do you know how much I made this time? 600,000 taels of spiritual energy!" “Hahahaha!” Wang Chu laughed and patted Li Baole on the shoulder, saying, “Brother, I earned 20,000 taels of spiritual energy for you. Remember to treat me to a meal later!” Looking at his best friend whose face was flushed with excitement, Li Baole's fat face remained calm. He didn't say anything and just looked at him. "What's wrong with you?" Wang Chu noticed that his best friend was in a bad mood, so he couldn't help but stop smiling and asked in confusion. "Nothing." Li Baole opened his mouth but ultimately failed to ask the question. He just stood up silently and said, "You placed the bet, so the spiritual source you won should also be yours." "Those 1,000 taels of spiritual energy, even if I'm lending them to you, you just have to return them to me later. I can't take these spiritual energy." "Hey, what are you crazy about?" Wang Chu also stood up, and his handsome face fell. "I'm not feeling well, so I'll go back first." After saying that, Li Baole lowered his head, turned around and left. Wang Chu watched Li Baole leave and stood there in a daze. "Beep, beep, beep." At this moment, a sound came from his pocket. Wang Chu came back to his senses and took out a photo-taking stone that was as long and as wide as a palm, which was now shining with colorful lights all over. With a slight upward stroke of the thumb, the light on the surface of the image stone appeared as if it was about to be emitted. This is the function of the photo stone. If someone wants to contact you, you can press the surface of the photo stone with your thumb and move it upwards to form a communication photo, allowing you to communicate directly face to face with the other party. Of course, if it is inconvenient, you can also swipe to the side to answer the call directly without leaving a video. After hesitating for a moment, Wang Chu looked at the photo stone and the communication request with the word "cousin" written on it. In the end, he did not choose to communicate face to face, but instead swiped his thumb to the right. "Hey, brother!" Wang Chu held the photo stone against his ear, then walked to the cabinet beside him and poured himself a glass of spiritual juice. Then he slowly took a few ice cubes from the ice jar beside him and put them into the cup. Then he took the cup, walked to the French window, and sat down on the soft chair. "Where are you?" A young man's voice came from the photo stone. "The underground fighting arena in the western suburbs of Jiuwazi Town." Wang Chu said after taking a sip of spiritual juice. "The No. 2 and No. 3 Middle Schools are going to be raided by the government this time. Have you dealt with the goods in your academy?" The voice of the young man on the other side of the photo stone sounded again. "Don't worry, it's been dealt with," Wang Chu's eyes flickered, and then he nodded and said, "By the way, brother, let's report our fellow disciples. If the higher-ups find out..." "Do what you should do, and don't get involved!" Before Wang Chu finished speaking, he was severely rebuked by the young man, "This time, all the major academies will be cleaned up." "The second and third brothers have caused such a huge loss to the gang at one time, and they have to pay various bribes to the government. The boss will definitely not let them off. In a few days, this market in Jiangning District will be ours..." It can be heard that the other party is very excited. "Okay, I understand." Wang Chu lowered his eyebrows, the dim lights flickered, and he lowered his head and drank the juice silently. "You made a lot of money this time, didn't you? Remember, I own half of it, understand?" "Well, I made some money, including the original capital of 630,000... I will go to the silver vault tonight and transfer the spiritual source to your name."
"You're smart, just quit!" "Beep, beep, beep..." Listening to the blind sound beside his ears, Wang Chu silently took down the photo stone, then drank the juice in the cup, and lay comfortably on the big chair. He kept turning the photo stone over and over in his hands. Suddenly, Wang Chu sat up, took the photo stone and gently swiped it. Then, a stream of light shot out from the photo stone and stopped in mid-air, forming a huge blue halo. "Hey, brother!" "Where are you?" "The underground fighting arena in the western suburbs of Jiuwazi." "The No. 2 and No. 3 Middle Schools are going to be raided by the government this time. Have you dealt with the goods in your academy?" "..." As the circle began to ripple, all the sounds from the previous call appeared. Afterwards, Wang Chu waved his hand, and the "voice" in the air disappeared. Then he found the name "Young Gang Leader" on the photo stone and pressed his thumb on it for a long time. Brilliant stars splashed across the stone screen. "People die for money and birds die for food!" Wang Chu said in his mind, and then he hardened his heart and sent the conversation directly. "Huh." After doing all this, Wang Chu let out a long sigh, stared at the roof, and murmured, "It's not easy for me to get in touch with the young master of Dongxing. This is my token of my loyalty!" "As long as we get rid of Red Knight Lao Mo, it means getting rid of the incense master above Lao Mo. Then the entire market of 'Xianfu Road Academy' will belong to me. I will be the youngest incense master in Dongxing!" Li Baole left the underground fighting arena, holding an umbrella, looking at the increasingly hazy and noisy streets in the heavy rain, and couldn't help but sigh. Li Baole was very sad. His intuition told him that he and his best friend had to go their separate ways. He couldn't stop his best friend from going to a dead end. He also understood a truth: sometimes you can't say it out even if you know something. Not saying it out and pretending not to know can't change anything, but at least it can ensure that he won't be hurt. "I'm just a poor student, and the spirit stone business..." Thinking of this, Li Baole sighed again in his heart, and his mind thought of the conversation between his father and mother that night. His intuition has always been accurate. He already knows that his family is very likely involved in the spirit stone business. Whether it is the previous No. 2 Middle School and No. 3 Middle School, or the Xianfu Road area where his Nanjing Xianfu Academy is located, from a broad perspective, all of them belong to Jiangning District. Well, that is the former Jiangning County! Jiangning County is not the center of Nanjing City, but because it was a county of the capital in the old days, it is extremely developed. The Li family is the most powerful first-class family in Jiangning County. Without the Li family's approval, the spirit stone business and these so-called underground gangs would never have survived. "After several decades of development, the Li family has already colluded with officials of all ranks in Jiangning. It can be said that they are deeply involved. If the news of the spirit stone business leaks out and is known to the court..." "Wow!" Just when Li Baole's thoughts were distracted, a strong wind suddenly swept in, causing many people to scream, and the big umbrella in Li Baole's hand was almost blown away. A large stain of water flowed into the collar on the back of his neck, causing him to shudder violently. For some reason, from the very beginning, the feeling of uneasiness and boredom in his heart became stronger and stronger. I always feel like something big is going to happen! At first, he thought that his best friend was being manipulated and cheated out of the bet. Just now, he guessed that his best friend had joined a Yakuza gang and got involved in the spirit stone business. He immediately distanced himself from him and wanted to cut off ties with him. But now, the feeling of uneasiness is becoming more and more intense.
"Could it be that the family is involved?" Thinking of this, Li Baole felt his right eyelid twitching and jumping. "Boom!" At this moment, a shuttle suddenly appeared in the night sky, flashing with light and crossing the sky. This is a shuttle departing from Nanjing and flying overseas. In recent years, with the frequent trade between Ming Dynasty and other countries and the rapid development of the spiritual industry era, of course many additional businesses have been added, such as tourism. The Ming Dynasty also has many factories built on the lands of overseas countries. If you want to travel across borders or work, you can take a shuttle. As for the teleportation array, it is not allowed for civilian use. After all, it is used specifically to transport supplies. "Should I just run away overseas?" For some reason, this thought popped into Li Baole's mind. "Maybe I'm being too suspicious..." Li Baole quickly threw this crazy thought away. "I have the will but not the strength..." Li Baole shook his head, suppressed his twitching eyelids, and got on the Immortal Track. "I must go back and ask my father!" Li Baole felt that he needed to go home and find out. If the Li family's side branch did not participate in the spirit stone business, then everything would be fine. But if they did... Thinking about it, Li Baole became confused. What would happen if he participated? Times have changed now. It's no longer the old days. In the old days, when a child reached the age of fifteen, he could become the backbone of the family and participate in the decision-making of all matters big and small in the family, but nowadays an eighteen-year-old is still just a child. Moreover, Li Baole is not a genius, and he has no say even in the collateral family. He also has a cousin, and each of them is now practicing in a high-level immortal palace in the capital. If his father was also involved in the spirit stone business, he would have no say at all and could only watch helplessly. At this moment, Li Baole felt more and more helpless and the uneasiness in his heart was constantly magnified. He was used to preparing for the worst in everything, but at this moment he was overwhelmed by the fear of being liquidated by the imperial court and having his entire clan executed after his spirit stone business was exposed. What Li Baole didn't know was that his intuition was accurate. The Lingshi business was indeed exposed, but what he didn't know was that for the real upper class, they had always known about the existence of the Lingshi business in Nanjing City. Similarly, the real upper echelons are simply too lazy to conduct a serious investigation. If they really want to conduct a carpet-style purge regardless of cost and without fear of riots, it will only take a few days. Unfortunately, Zhu Youjian is such a person. The reason why he noticed the spirit stones and wanted to clean up the spirit stone business himself was very simple... "Bang!" Nurhaci knelt on the ground, his head on the ground, and said, "Young Master, I beg you to give me another chance!" "Do you know what you did wrong this time?" Zhu Youjian asked again. "Yes," Nurhaci said loudly, "The spirit stone. The young master is angry because of the spirit stone. Moreover, someone in my family touched this thing without my knowledge!" Nurhaci understood many truths. Given Zhu Youjian's noble status, he would not come in person to investigate the Lingshi business, because that was the job of Nanjing city officials and the Embroidered Uniform Guards.
How could he, who had been meditating in Donglin Academy, come all the way to Nanjing? The issues involved were very complicated. But as a smart man, he knew in his heart that when these people took action, it was all just a power struggle among the upper echelons. "How many sons do you have?" Zhu Youjian suddenly changed the subject and asked. "My Lord, I have sixteen sons. The youngest son, Aixinjueluo Feiyangguo, was born this year!" "Well," Zhu Youjian nodded and said, "You have been with me for four years, and you have been diligent and dedicated." Nurhaci didn't know what was waiting for him next, so he could only put his head on the ground and listen quietly. "I know you want to build your family into a family of immortals. Now it seems that I should reward you." Zhu Youjian said calmly, "Cheng En." At this time, a young man in his twenties, handsome but feminine, dressed in white, walked in. This young man was none other than Zhu Youjian's close companion, Wang Chengen. At this time, Wang Chengen was holding a mahogany plate in his hands, with a black storage bag on it. "To cultivate immortality, one must start at the age of six to twelve at the latest," Zhu Youjian said, "Unfortunately, among your sixteen children, only the ones between the ages of six and twelve are..." At this point, Zhu Youjian paused, and Wang Chengen immediately took over the conversation, saying in a feminine tone: "Aisin-Gioro Lai Mubu, Aisin-Gioro Dorgon, eight years old, meets the requirements." "Aisin-Gioro Duoduo, six years old, meets the criteria." "Also, Aixinjuelu Feiyangguo, although less than one year old, also meets the requirements." Listening to Wang Chengen reading out the names of his four sons one by one and saying that they were of the age to practice Taoism, Nurhaci was not happy at all. Instead, his whole heart began to beat wildly. "Nurhaci." "I'm here!" Nurhaci responded quickly. "Since you have served me wholeheartedly for the past four years, I will not pursue the matter with you, the Aixinjueluo clan," Zhu Youjian paused for a moment and continued, "The eight Manjin clans smuggled spirit stones. This crime is unforgivable. I hope you can handle it yourself." Hearing this, Nurhaci breathed a sigh of relief. Things were exactly as he had expected. It seems that it is not his clan that is involved in the spirit stone business, but the other eight clans. In this way, he can only cut off his arm to survive. Moreover, in this way, he would not need to allocate some resources to balance the various races and develop his immortal cultivation family in the future. All the benefits would belong to the Aisin-Gioro clan. The most important thing is that if the imperial court takes action, then one's own hands will be clean. Isn't this killing someone with a borrowed knife? For a moment, Nurhaci thought this was a good thing! As for why Zhu Youjian suddenly decided to take action against the Manjin family, he thought about it and there was perhaps only one reason. That is because the Manchu Jin family’s power in present-day Manchuria, formerly known as Jianzhou, is too great. If all members of their family were allowed to embark on the path of cultivating immortals, they would become an extremely powerful force within the Nurgandusi. Even the power and potential were so huge that they could be compared to some families in the six ministries or even the cabinet. This is not what the Ming court wants to see. Another point is that if this is the case, their Manjin family will be the first alien family of immortal cultivation in the Ming Dynasty! Once this loophole is opened, what will the King of Shunyi, Yisiha Hala, think on the Mongolian grasslands? Would he also bring his family to ask for immortal cultivation? Although Yisiha Hala had already cultivated immortality and his cultivation was quite good, after all, they were the only family in the entire family. Even his clan’s direct descendants have a limit on the number of members! Isn't this partiality? Although the Ming Dynasty can do this, it is unfair after all. The dignity of the Xian Dynasty is not like that of a foreign country that can be arrogant and rude. And there is another truth here, that is, the top leaders of the Ming Dynasty always firmly believed in one truth, that is, "those who are not of our race must have different hearts", and they are always on guard against themselves and others.
Therefore, it is impossible for his Manchu family to become big. He understood this in his heart, and he always had to face a problem, which was to control the number of cultivators in the family. This time, he might as well borrow Zhu Youjian's knife to deal with the eight clans. On the contrary, he could gain a good reputation by directly reducing the status of the remaining people from the other eight clans, and let the Jurchens become the ones who have the final say. "Humph," Zhu Youjian glanced at Nurhaci who was kneeling on the ground, chuckled, and a look of disdain flashed in his eyes. He thought to himself, "Lend me your sword, are you worthy enough, Nurhaci?" "As for your Aisin-Gioro clan, you can be spared the death penalty, but you cannot escape the punishment of living punishment. From now on, there can only be a clan leader and the clan leader's successor in the clan, who can use normal spiritual objects to practice. As for the rest of the people, use spiritual stones to practice." Zhu Youjian said lightly. "What?!" Upon hearing this, Nurhaci looked up suddenly, widened his eyes, and looked at Zhu Youjian in disbelief. "Young master, please think twice. I am loyal to you, young master!" At this moment, Nurhaci's good mood of killing someone with a borrowed knife disappeared instantly. All that is left is panic and disbelief! He didn't expect that the boy in front of him was only nine years old, and his style of doing things was so cruel and ruthless. If only the clan leader and his heirs can use normal spiritual resources to cultivate in the future, then his clan will never be able to grow? And the rest of the clan members will be neither human nor ghost? "Are you dissatisfied with my punishment?" Zhu Youjian said, his tone turned cold, "Should I report this matter to the government? Then things will be difficult to handle." When Nurhaci heard that Zhu Youjian wanted to report this matter to Prince Yu's Mansion, he was shocked and stunned for a moment. Her back bent instantly, and she leaned down tremblingly and said, "Slave, thank you for your grace." He knew that Prince Yu's Mansion didn't care about his alien family at all, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to meet Zhu Yijun, let alone Zhu Changluo and Zhu Youxiao. As for why he was able to serve under Zhu Youjian, it was entirely because Zhu Youjian heard that his brother had no servants to serve him, so he allowed him to join him. If they knew that my family was involved in the smuggling of spiritual stones and harmed the Ming Dynasty, then the attitude of the royal palace would probably be only one: destroy! "Nurhaci, choose one," Wang Chengen's feminine voice sounded at this time, "Laimubu, Dorgon, Duoduo, Fei Yangguo, who do you choose to be the young patriarch?" Hearing this, Nurhaci Chiyi gritted his teeth after a moment and said, "Your servant, choose Dorgon!" "Pah!" He threw the storage bag in front of Nurhaci and said, "There are a lot of spiritual stones in here, you can take them." "Yes," Nurhaci instantly aged a dozen years, stood up tremblingly, took the storage bag and bowed, then said: "Young Master, if there is nothing else, I will take my leave." "Go." After getting Zhu Youjian's permission, Nurhaci turned and left. "Young Master, this man..." Wang Chengen was about to speak, but Zhu Youjian waved his hand and said, "Are you worried that he has ulterior motives?" Wang Chengen fell silent, which was considered as his agreement. "It's just a dog after all. Can't you feed it or cook it?" Zhu Youjian said and ignored it. "Should we report it?" Wang Chengen thought about it and realized that this was the case, so he changed the subject. "Tell my elder brother," Zhu Youjian said suddenly, "By the way, the person who slandered the court that day..." "Don't worry, young master. After we uproot these shady things underground, I will deal with the man named Li Zicheng separately." Wang Chengen said with a smile. Hearing this, Zhu Youjian stopped talking. Seeing this, Wang Chengen quietly withdrew, but shook his head slightly in his heart. Who would have thought that the matter would become so serious that it might even usher in a major purge of the underground world, and the reason for all this was just a young man's wild words that angered the young master. For the dominant family in Jiangning District, the Li family, as well as all the underground and shady gangs, there is no doubt that this will be a devastating disaster! But little did they know that this was just a small act of power abuse, and the only thing to blame was the young man's outspokenness. As for Nurhaci's Manchu Jin family, were they innocent victims? Well, that can't be said, because the Manchu Jin family would have such a day sooner or later, so the young master simply dealt with it in advance.
The Cabinet has never expressed an opinion on the issue of foreign races, but whenever someone brings it up, there will be a big argument. Fortunately, it is not our turn to deal with this issue now, but before that, we must never let it grow stronger. This is also what His Royal Highness the Crown Prince meant! "..." (End of this chapter)