Protect Our Clan Leader

"Our Prominent Family values two things above all else. The first is to ensure an unbroken heritage for ten thousand years, and the second is to strive for a higher rank, so that our clan members can live better lives."

All being members of Prominent Families, Wang Zong'an's words resonated with the Shangguan clan, who all silently nodded in agreement.

"And to achieve those two goals, there is one thing we cannot do without—'money.' With money, we can purchase limitless Treasure Pills, seek out higher-grade Heaven and Earth Treasures at the Immortal Dynasty, and even spare no expense to obtain Divine Spiritual Treasures," Wang Zong'an said with a smile playing at the corners of his mouth, his demeanor as gentle as jade.

"Why can't an average Rank Four Prominent Family raise a Great Heavenly Proud? It's well known that for a Great Heavenly Proud to grow into a Divine Realm Powerhouse, it requires at least six to seven hundred years, during which the various resources consumed, when converted into Qian Gold, amount to between two hundred million to five hundred million."

"Even for a strong Rank Four Prominent Family like the Shangguan, and with a Family Head skilled in management like Senior Zhenhai, it must still be quite a struggle to provide for Brother Yunque, right?"

Hearing this, the faces of the Shangguan clan members turned somewhat stiff and embarrassed.

Wang Zong'an was right, nurturing a Great Heavenly Proud to the Divine Power Territory is a massive systematic project with immense consumption.

Despite Yunque still not having reached the Purple Abode Realm, and his current expenditures seeming "quite manageable," the reality was that without advance planning and accumulating vast amounts of funds for his future advancement, they could face significant problems once he reached the Purple Abode Realm.

After all, even a Great Heavenly Proud only has a relatively high probability of successfully advancing to the Divine Power Territory. If the resource supply fails to keep up, there is a high chance they won't advance in cultivation speed and might never achieve success within their lifespan.

And should the cultivation to Divine Power Territory fail, the family's massive resource investment would have been for nought, and the entire clan could potentially fall into irrevocable decline.

Especially Yunque, whose expression was particularly gloomy.

Recently, when he increased his consumption, his family had supported him wholeheartedly and without a second word. But he knew that this meant the clan had to withhold resources from other family members, especially the elders in the Purple Abode Realm, who had voluntarily reduced their own resource consumption.

All of this was paving the way for his, Shangguan Yunque's, future, and it made him feel quite uncomfortable.

This is the fundamental reason why most Rank Four Prominent Families, eager to advance to Third Grade, still hesitate and look back. The family coffers aren't deep enough to afford it!

"What's more, upon reaching the Divine Power Territory, one must also consider the matter of Divine Spiritual Treasures," Wang Zong'an sighed. "The difference between a Realm Cultivator with and without a Divine Spiritual Treasure is huge. And the cost of obtaining a Divine Spiritual Treasure is something Zong'an doesn't need to elaborate on."

Yunque's face darkened.

He glared at Wang Zong'an with a hostile gaze.

Are you deliberately bringing up my weak points? If I had a Divine Spiritual Treasure, even if I couldn't fully utilize its power in the Heavenly Human Realm, I wouldn't have been beaten by your sister...

Wang Liyao had a cultivator in the Divine Power Territory go to all lengths to procure a Divine Spiritual Treasure for her, and Wu Zhixing also received a Divine Spiritual Treasure gifted by Emperor Longchang. Meanwhile, poor Yunque—the Shangguan family couldn't afford one.

It was all very disheartening to think about.

The expressions of Shangguan Zhenhai and Shangguan Liyan also turned slightly awkward. They felt rather confident initially, but as the conversation went on, the mood soured.

Wang Zong'an was spot on about the Shangguan's situation.

With their current family wealth, nurturing a Divine Realm Cultivator within the next five or six hundred years would be somewhat forced, creating an air of being stretched thin.

For now, they could reduce the shares of other clan members to supply Yunque. But in the future, when he advances to the Purple Abode Realm and wishes to maintain the current high-speed cultivation mode, they'll probably have to start selling off clan properties.

As for a Divine Spiritual Treasure...

Better to put that thought to rest, unless they're willing to drastically sell off most of their ancestral wealth, which would be difficult to afford.

Lady Bilian, on the side, rolled her eyes in secret.

Young Clan Leader Zong'an usually looked quite honest and upright, but she hadn't expected him to have inherited his father's eloquence. This kid... was truly a master of concealment.

In the world of Rank Four Prominent Families, the GuiLong Shangguan Clan was actually considered a fairly wealthy household. But after his depiction and analysis, they felt as though they were so poor they might have to beg for food.

"Young Clan Leader Zong'an, are you here to mock our Shangguan clan, or to boast that your sister not only has the nurturing of the Academic Palace but also received a Divine Spiritual Treasure early on?" Yunque looked coldly at Wang Zong'an, his tone not very pleasant.

"Here to boast? Haha, of course, I'd have no such free time," Wang Zong'an calmly replied, with a hint of pride, "I, Wang Zong'an, am sixty-five years old—just a humble Sky Pride."

"I'm here to help everyone get rich together."

Before anyone could react, a vast and pure surge of Mysterious Energy of Ethereal Wood erupted from him, instantly transforming into a formidable presence that swept around.

Heavenly Human Realm, Level Three!!!

With such age and cultivation base, he was undoubtedly a Great Heavenly Proud!

Lady Bilian's eyes widened in shock. Zong'an was a Great Heavenly Proud, too?

He had hidden it so well—and what about that infuriating Shou Zhe? To think that two of his children were Great Heavenly Proud, was his bloodline that formidable?

For a moment, Lady Bilian's gaze became transfixed, her lips unconsciously licked, curling into an intense longing.

If only there was a chance...

…