Even to prevent someone with Foundation Establishment cultivation from being unhappy, they explained personally, showing the importance of the top three families in Dongyue.

"Brother Zhao, what exactly is this Chooser's chaos? My wife and I have never heard our elders mention this. Is it possible that merely the act of choosing a concubine could have brought such a powerful nation to this state? That seems quite absurd."

With a face full of lament.

Despite Jiang Feng's appearance of being harmless and as if he's an offsprings leading the life of the noble out of touch with worldly matters, Zhao Ye still showed some helplessness and dread when mentioning this matter, shaking his head.

"Brother Jiang, you're still young, so you probably haven't heard your elders talk about this matter."

"Yet any elderly practitioner who has cultivated for over two hundred years must have heard of this disaster. As the saying goes, family shame should not be publicly aired, and I'm not in a position to reveal specific details since I'm just a man living on wages."

"With your intelligence, you should be able to guess where I stand. But even though my position differs from the top three families, I can't just speak of this matter casually. For the entire Dongyue, it's the past that everyone knows but no one will mention voluntarily—bloody scars."

His expression was noticeably disappointed.

As if perceiving Jiang Feng's disappointment, the practitioner named Zhao Ye stood up and patted the young man's shoulder a few times.

"Alright."

"The tea has been finished thrice, it's time for me to go watch over the west gate for the household inspection."

"Although that catastrophe led to fierce battles between families, it's been over a hundred years, some grudges should be put to rest. At least the interactions among our generation are not as extreme as they used to be."

"If you're really interested, Brother Jiang, you might as well pay more attention. This matter is known throughout Dongyue and is hardly a secret. It's just that with my status, I really can't bring it up. After all, I still have to get by here in Dongxing, hahaha."

He stood up and offered his hands in thanks.

Zhao Ye simply returned the gesture with a smile before leaving. It was clear that he had been suppressing these sentiments for a long time, always wanting to share them. Although he lacked supposed bloodline purity, he was still a family member. Especially having witnessed the decline from a once-prestigious family, there was bound to be some sense of disparity in his heart.

From his tone, it's not hard to hear his respect for the Imperial Family bloodline and a hint of discontent, but more of it was regret. Even though his family lineage had become independent from the Imperial Family's control, it was not necessarily a good thing.

To present the simplest issue, during the era of Imperial Family rule, although the seventeen clans differed, they were more like relatives or brothers, aiding each other if one was in trouble. Whenever anyone dared to invade the border, the Imperial Family would protect them at once and mobilize other families to assist.

Whether someone encountered difficulties or faced an accident, under this special mechanism, the Imperial Family could always shelter them, mutually protecting and helping each other. But now?

With a shortage of cultivation resources, you have to find your own solution. If your land is threatened by an invasion, all you can do is swallow your pride and rely solely on your own strength to resolve it—no help comes. What used to be mutual protection has turned into a case of "if the lips perish, the teeth will feel the cold," struggling against those top forces with no upper hand and barely holding on.

Take the classic example of the emerging Candle Dragon, which is the Phoenix Heavenly Cave.

They actually allowed outsiders to set foot on Jijing Island!

As an outsider, you might not understand this concept. Jijing Island is one of the birthplaces of the entire East Sea Clan. Yet this time, the three kingdoms of Dongyue and outsiders reached an agreement to let them set foot on the island, to enter Phoenix Heavenly Cave by the quickest and shortest path.

This is Jijing Island. To put it plainly, this place is the ancestors' shrine of all Dongyue people!

Back when Dongyue hadn't yet split, no one would even think of stepping on the island. Anyone with such a thought would spark immediate conflict, not even allowing a fly to enter. It was a true sacred place, only for Dongyue disciples to enter first, while others should stand aside.

But now?

Other sects negotiated directly with the current three kingdoms of Dongyue. What was discussed is unknown, but one thing is clear: Their allocated cultivation resources and treasures increased, meaning they used the eagerness of outsiders to log in to Jijing Island as a pretext to demand resources for cultivation.

Didn't get it?

Let me translate it.

The family went bankrupt, nine heirs fought for the throne, and their ancestral shrine became a tourist spot. As long as you buy a ticket, you can enter. That's pretty much what it means, no need to further elaborate—a dish, a lack of riches. It's that simple.

A century-long civil war cleaned out the talents. Initially, the families split, each suspecting the other of harboring ulterior motives. Back when they were a united front, anyone daring to inquire about such matters would be collectively attacked. Now, this so-called "collective" is gone, the power is divided into three, and although the strength remains, it's greatly diminished, unable to withstand so many top forces attacking. So, they could only compromise, trading cultivation resources and treasures for the permission to let others set foot on the island.

Stroking their chins, the two walked together down the street, heading straight along the Vermilion Bird Avenue, following the Spiritual Energy fluctuations in the air. Any large city typically has an "Immortal Pavilion," a gathering place for cultivators.

Every top sect will have such stations for connecting with sect disciples or for aids during an outing. Even remote places like Shuangfeng City had Yu Ying for support, and East New City was naturally no exception.

He was now on his way to seek Purple Cloud Palace disciples with Cen Yueyue; the couple chirping on nonstop along the way.

"Wow, this Dongyue is much more complex than we imagined."

"Indeed, I've heard of the chaos caused by choosing a consort, but I don't know the details. I only heard Grandfather mention it. Do you remember a few families in the Southern Border who invaded Dongyue and were repelled? It seems it was due to the consort selection chaos then."

"The term 'Chooser' is quite interesting. Anyway, I can't imagine what kind of femme fatale could have split the whole of Dongyue, tearing apart such a solid united front. It's impressive."

"Hmph, what's this? You got interested again? Want to go see this troublesome beauty?"

She glanced at the man sideways, her eyes filled with scrutiny.

In front of others, she appeared very cold, paying no mind to Zhao Ye earlier. Yet, only in front of Jiang Feng did she show the lively side of a young girl.

"What are you talking about? Even if I were to see her, so what? That would be a woman ten times my age—I have no interest in older women. I'm just thinking, this so-called consort selection chaos is likely not about a femme fatale."

"Hmm? Why not, aren't there many countries that went to war because of fox spirits?

"Because these are families with bloodlines and heritage. I can't say everyone is as calm as a lake, but at least their worldly desires aren't strong enough to risk the state. Enough, guessing here won't lead us to any conclusions. Should I find someone knowledgeable to get you familiar with the situation?"

Walk straight from here can take you directly

A massive piece of territory was directly divided into three regions or rather three nations.

The snake woman we just passed by,

In the Central Plains, the power structure is similarly complex, but you just need to remember a few sects that have maintained their exalted stature from ancient times to the present, just some remembrance of these few sects

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