Upon hearing Lie Que's words, Zong Shou finally realized that among his captives was such a treasure. The Cold Crystal Shadow Blade Frigate was something he paid little mind to; among the Earth-tier warships, it was hardly top-tier.

It required five or more Nine Capitals Immortal Court's unique Nine Capitals Absolute Blade Immortals to be stationed within it before it could possess combat strength comparable to the Divine Realm. This was far inferior to the Grand Unity Divine Thunder Frigate, which only required a single peak Immortal-tier cultivator to operate effectively.

Moreover, with the Great Qian nascently established, recruiting too many defectors carried the risk of them becoming too large and unwieldy to control. But those Artificers, Zong Shou cared for them greatly.

After all, they had experience refining Earth-tier aerial warships. When forging other classes of vessels, they would surely adapt quickly.

However, this Yi Lingsu was not as astute as Lie Que. Zong Shou employed a mixture of softness and hardness, using every tactic Lie Que had suggested—coercion through power, appeals to sentiment.

He only stopped short of using the man's family to threaten him before Yi Lingsu finally agreed. He did not pledge allegiance as a subject of the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty, but only agreed to help Zong Shou persuade others to surrender and be recruited.

He would relocate his clan, along with the original artificers of the Nine Capitals Immortal Court, to the Primordial Lotus World. He would also try his best to persuade more Cold Crystal Shadow Blade Frigates to defect.

In Zong Shou's view, the reason this man agreed to these terms was likely not genuine persuasion, but rather the impending chaos within the Nine Capitals Immortal Court. Worried about his clansmen being caught in the ensuing disaster, he was merely securing a safe harbor for his own family first.

Zong Shou didn't mind this; in fact, he was pleasantly surprised. Experienced artificers were hard to find, and while the Cold Crystal Shadow Blade Frigates were unremarkable, the elite crew members required to man them were equally difficult to cultivate.

When all these matters were settled, ten days had already passed. By this time, the Primordial Lotus Realm was largely stabilized.

The royal houses of the southeast had changed hands, and their territories were re-apportioned based on individual merits. The various military generals were consolidated, the elite chosen, and transported via aerial warships, under the protection of Shi Ruolan's Fleet Master guidance, into the outer void to campaign against the surrounding worlds.

In truth, calling it 'campaigning' was less accurate than calling it 'garrisoning.' At this moment, the small and medium worlds surrounding the realm, which had been affiliated with the Nine Capitals Immortal Court, had largely fled. Some bolder ones were even preparing to pledge allegiance directly.

As for the Profound Spirit Association and the Ultimate Bliss Immortal Court, they were shrewd enough to have withdrawn their personnel early on. They sent envoys, bearing heavy apologies, to signify their desire to mend old ties.

On one hand, they sought to cede territory and admit their errors; on the other, they gathered envoys from major powers to jointly urge and pressure him, the Lord of Great Qian, to abide by the domain's common regulations. The so-called common regulation stipulated that above the Immortal Realm, one must not lightly engage in territorial disputes.

Zong Shou scoffed at this. By now, he had seen through the essence of these 'common regulations.' If you lack strength, others simply pretend they don't exist, paying no heed.

Only when one becomes powerful do these people remember the common regulations and start talking about rules with you. On the surface, he still agreed.

After all, Great Qian currently lacked the ability to redraw the rules. The immediate vicinity of the Primordial Lotus Realm did not require much worrying; however, seizing the territories of the Nine Capitals Immortal Court needed careful planning.

Zong Shou pondered for a long time before deciding to appoint Kui Xuan as the marshal. This man's generalship was notably steady and prudent.

His only foray into recklessness resulted in a devastating defeat against Zhuang Yu, a memory he likely retained deeply and could not forget. Appointing him as marshal served two purposes: showing him trust, and because Zong Shou genuinely lacked competent subordinates.

Although the area near the Primordial Lotus Realm had been subdued, the situation remained unstable, harboring variables. Without Zhuang Yu to anchor things, Zong Shou truly could not feel at ease.

As for Lie Que, he had other uses; that other location required a peerless great general. As for the campaign against the Nine Capitals, signs of collapse were already appearing there, suggesting no major battles were expected.

With the guidance and direction of the several dozen Divine Realm experts who had surrendered to Zong Shou, there shouldn't be any major blunders. And anchoring the Primordial Lotus Realm, besides Zhuang Yu, was Lu Wubing.

Were it not for Lu Wubing assisting him during these days, handling many administrative affairs for him, Zong Shou truly didn't know how he would have managed the workload. Now that he had to leave, it was even more necessary for this man to stay behind to streamline the governance of the Primordial Lotus Realm and perfect the laws of the nation.

It was not entirely over even at this point; there was just a bit more breathing room than those ten days of relentless work, where he even had to utilize the Chronos Scroll's acceleration ability just to manage state affairs. There was still time needed before everything was truly settled, but Zong Shou could finally steal a moment of leisure from his busyness, step out of the warm chamber, and take time to relax a bit.

It was just past dawn, yet the Primordial Tranquility Palace was already noisy. People came and went, with countless individuals entering and exiting the palace gates.

Zong Shou had barely inhaled the fresh air when his mood was disturbed, and he shook his head inwardly. "It seems the Primordial Tranquility Palace is ultimately too small." It sufficed as the nexus of the Primordial Lotus Realm, but the current Great Qian Immortal Dynasty was about to govern over sixty small and medium worlds and hundreds of nations.

Even if most administrative tasks were handled by the mortal imperial courts, the officials within the Immortal Dynasty still swelled, reaching a staggering figure of twenty thousand. Within a few years, he would need to consider expanding the Primordial Tranquility Palace or even rebuilding the Immortal Capital.

Thinking of state affairs, Zong Shou frowned deeper. "Nearly all my time is consumed by these trivial matters daily.

When will I ever reach the pinnacle of the Sword Dao?" This was a contradiction. In truth, the time Zong Shou spent on politics was minimal compared to the imperial leaders of other powers.

Only this period of sudden territorial expansion for Great Qian—more than tenfold—made him seem busy. Yet, even so, Zong Shou found it intolerable.

To become the master of a hundred million worlds across the Ten Directions, he had to govern the lands under his rule diligently. And to become unrivaled across the eight desolate corners of the universe, he needed to spend more time delving into the Martial Dao, achieving perfection in the sword.

It seemed absolutely necessary to establish a complete 'Inner Cabinet' within the Immortal Court to handle state affairs on his behalf. Zhang Huai could be transferred from the Cloud Realm; this man’s talent actually surpassed Lu Wubing's slightly.

Using just the Cloud Realm as a stage was far too confining for him. With the two working together, this 'Inner Cabinet' was already beginning to take shape.

However, in addition to them, he needed several political talents, ideally one elderly person with seasoned governing experience to assist. The most suitable was Ren Bo— The thought of this old man caused a sharp pain in Zong Shou's heart.

He still hadn't found the method for longevity. Sighing, Zong Shou flipped his right hand, bringing a blood-red crystal into his grasp.

His spiritual sense probed inward, searching continuously. Faintly, he could hear bursts of mournful wails emanating from within.

This was the Nascent Soul of Xiao Xiangzi; Zong Shou had shown no hesitation in taking his life after that battle. Since he had torn his face with the Daoist Sect once again, there was no need to show courtesy.

And the subsequent Soul Scouring confirmed that the Myriad Life Cosmos Realm was indeed in dire peril. Unfortunately, Xiao Xiangzi's position was still too low for him to know the precise details.

But just from the scant clues, it was clear that the Daoist Sect was indeed preparing to strike against the Myriad Life Dao. Moreover, the Daoist Sect would not be the only force taking action then.

Ten days ago, Zong Shou was desperate to return, yet he could only endure and arrange all matters here properly. "The Daoist Sect?

I only have three months—" According to Xiao Xiangzi's memories, Wei Xu should be undergoing the Tribulation to reach the Transcendent Realm within these three months. Based on this memory, four months prior, the Myriad Life Dao had already sensed the situation was unfavorable.

But by then, it was too late to turn back. Wei Xu's cultivation had peaked, long reaching the limit.

Choosing to break through at that time meant the celestial-mortal resonance was set, the tribulation period fixed; it could only be brought forward, not postponed. It was likely that the day Wei Xu faced his tribulation would be the day the Daoist Sect exerted its full force.

Searching the remnant soul yielded nothing more. All the Daoist Sect's arrangements and schemes remained unknown.

Zong Shou held the blood-red crystal, feeling a sense of emptiness. He wondered what he could even do if he returned.

To command this army and return to the Cloud Realm? Impossible, and of no benefit.

He also knew that once Qing Xuan Dao Lord made his move, it would be a devastating torrent. Even Long Ying Ao Kun owed Wei Xu a great favor; once he understood the situation, he would not stand idly by.

But once drawn into this vortex, even they themselves might face mortal danger. He had once examined the secret histories of the Myriad Life Dao's continuation.

Back when the Daoist Sect besieged and killed Xi Zi, the recorded True Realm cultivators numbered as many as seven, in addition to the three Pure Ones of the Daoist Sect, the incarnations of the four Sages of the Confucian Sect, and seven Divine Treasures. The number of Saints and Divine Realm experts who sealed their cultivation and descended into the Cloud Realm reached over a hundred.

The total number of other Immortal Realm, Spirit Realm, and Ninth-Rank cultivators was even more countless. That battle was a true sea of corpses and blood, utterly brutal.

Both the Daoist and Confucian sects suffered heavy losses; at least two-thirds of their Saint Realm cultivators perished. However, the foreign powers suffered the greatest losses.

Xiu Guan was not comparable to Xi Zi, being half a step into the True Realm, but he was still at the peak of the True Realm. It was only thanks to him, single-handedly, that the Myriad Life Dao had managed to remain standing among the Five Great Sects.

Yet, the Daoist Sect was so supremely confident as to aim to annihilate the Myriad Life Dao in one battle. One could imagine the scale of forces that would be mobilized this time.

Zong Shou, although barely considered a figure of power now, already dominated one side. But to intervene in this battle, he was truly as insignificant as an ant.

At this moment, the only ones who could aid the Myriad Life Dao were the Scorching Sky Lu Family and the Buddhist Sect— "Do I truly have to beg for help?" As the thought arose, Zong Shou let out a bitter laugh. He was certain that neither the Scorching Sky Lu Family nor the Buddhist Sect would refuse.

But it would definitely come at a price! Either entering the Buddhist Sect to prove the Boundless Beginning and End Buddha.

Or changing his surname to join the Lu Clan and inherit the Scorching Sky Holy Land. Otherwise, if he offered nothing in return, how could anyone help him for free?

In the end, it was Zong Shou's own pride that caused him trouble. Until it was absolutely necessary, he was unwilling to seek aid from these two factions.

Was he being too selfish? Recalling how many disciples of the Myriad Life Dao would perish in this battle after he left, Zong Shou fell into a daze.

Many of them had been his classmates for a time. Standing rooted, lost in thought, Zong Shou only snapped back to awareness when he felt a resonance.

Looking up, he saw Feng Taiji, Ci Fang, and Zhao Yanran walking side-by-side toward him. Zong Shou immediately put aside his distracting thoughts; these three arriving meant they were certainly here regarding sect affairs.

He had also waited a long time for the decisions of these three sects.