Shen Xinglan looked at Shen Boyu and asked, "Granduncle gave me the inner core... what about you?"

"Me?" Shen Boyu laughed bitterly and said, "I'm an old man in my twilight years, what else is there to hope for?"

"No." Shen Xinglan shook his head and refused, "I will take what I want myself. If I succeed, it's my fortune; if I fail, it's my fate. I can't take what belongs to Granduncle..."

"Xinglan, listen to me. In the battle of the Eastern Sea, I was jointly attacked by Xuanyuan Mingjing and Zhong Daoling and was severely injured."

"Even after half a year of recuperating inside this Ghost Coffin, nourishing myself daily with Sea Qi, it's still hard to return to my former state, let alone hope for any further advancement."

"Birth, aging, sickness, and death are natural laws and hard to defy. I'm old, and my body will only continue to decline."

"Unless I can ascend to the legendary Third Realm of the Burning Star Immortal Travel Domain, but that's the God Realm, only heard of, never seen..."

"Originally, I wanted to fight for it, to see how the life of an immortal truly is."

"Now... they've severed my martial arts fate, leaving me stuck here."

"Xinglan, you're still young, with boundless hope. As long as you have confidence and don't lose heart, with your foundation and talent, you can surpass all of us. I believe in you."

"Granduncle, I can't accept it, I will strive myself..." Shen Xinglan's mindset finally changed somewhat, and he hastily said, "Give me some time. When I become a Great Grandmaster, we will have two Great Grandmasters in the Shen Family. Once we join hands, who can rival us?"

Shen Boyu gently shook his head and said, "If it were in the past, we had plenty of time for you to grow. But now, it's no longer feasible... there's not enough time."

"Granduncle..."

"The situation is turbulent." Shen Boyu looked up towards the ceiling, where a hole led straight to the clouds, "On the surface, we control the Empire's legitimate power with Zhong Tianque as our puppet."

"Qi Mountain has a large and powerful army, and in the four seas, we control three..."

"But in reality, the decline is evident, and without any great turnaround, the Shen Family is about to lose completely."

"Granduncle, how could it be this severe? No matter how bad the situation, as long as Grandpa holds the army, we still have a chance to turn it around."

Shen Boyu shook his head and said, "You can't blame your Grandpa either; he was born into the military, spent his whole life in the army..."

"He knows the ways of the military but not of the people. He lacks the ability to manage a nation..."

"And because of his rough nature, he's incompatible with those cultured people, making it hard to gain their true support."

"Whether it's Shang Xiulin or Sheng Jing, they possess the talent of great advisors... but as you can see, they would rather break than bend, rather die than submit."

"Shi Hongchuan doesn't understand the economy, and Su Zhenlie is cunning, seeking only profit without taking responsibility."

"Other people lack talent, are eager to please, or hedge their bets... none of them truly consider us."

"As for Tang Fei, gaining Phoenix's public support, that girl is much stronger than her two brothers. Her capability in handling political matters and her breadth of vision are simply unparalleled."

Mentioning Phoenix made Shen Xinglan's eyes dim.

She was the girl he once loved, the only person he ever considered spending his life with.

Alas, I offered my heart to the bright moon, but the moon shines upon the ditches.

Childhood friends can't compete with those who suddenly appear, close friends have turned into enemies...

What exactly happened between them?

Oh, there was another man involved...

The third party is truly hateful.

"With the full support of the Qin and Lu Families, the Dushan Army changed sides, and the Flame-Bathed Legion suffered a huge defeat... the chips we can play are becoming fewer and fewer."

"It's because of the dire situation that your Grandpa was so angered that he had Sheng Jing killed... that was a terrible move."

"Sheng Jing is a paragon of scholarly virtue and a model of a gentleman. With his death, won't those cultured people hate the Shen Family to the core?"

"Besides, Sheng Jing may not have favored the Shen Family, but he did place the people of the nation first. As long as he held that position, he would have devoted himself entirely to the benefit of the country and its people, boosting the economy..."

"By killing him and replacing him with someone far less capable like Shi Hongchuan, if the economy falters and the people have no money, they will truly curse us. Who will support us then?"

"Since ancient times, ruling the world has not just been about winning wars. It requires policies to appease the people and strategies to strengthen the nation; neither can be lacking."

"So we can't delay any further. The Shen Family needs a strong boost injected..."

"Xinglan, for my sake, for your Grandpa's sake, and for the Shen Family's sake... please don't refuse."

"This is not only a huge opportunity but also a tremendous responsibility."

Shen Xinglan prostrated on the ground, kowtowing heavily to Shen Boyu.

"Xinglan will not disappoint Granduncle's high expectations."

"Good, sit up straight, gather your spirit and maintain your focus."

Shen Xinglan immediately straightened his posture, slightly closed his eyes, and formed a lotus gesture with his interlocked fingers, resting them naturally on his knees.

Shen Boyu sat cross-legged in the mountain cave, under the vast sky, with his eyes closed like a deep abyss.

Though there was no wind around him, his robes billowed slowly like they were immersed in the deep sea, and then they hung.

Enveloping his body like iron.

With the Beiming Kun Breath Skill operating at its peak, the void behind him suddenly collapsed.

It was not darkness, but an endless 'emptiness' of azure blue so deep it was nearly black, as if a piece of the sky was forcibly gouged out, filled with the projection of the Deep Sea's abyss.

No one, no self.

No heaven and earth, no things.

All flows return to the abyss!

A massive whale soared into the sky, covering heaven and earth.

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