The Qin family was thus inexplicably promoted.

The Golden Grade Qin family of the Southern Domain.

Oh, maybe not necessarily in the Southern Domain… Feng Qinxue looked at the Qin family’s relocation application letter with a calm mindset.

Compared to the eye-popping promotion process of the Qin family, the relocation seemed like a perfectly reasonable move.

After all, having reached the Golden Grade, it was inappropriate to stay in the Southern Ridge.

It wasn’t that the Qin family didn’t want to be the top family in the Southern Ridge, but the Southern Ridge was close to the primordial forest.

Qin Ruqing must have anticipated future troubles.

The Qin family, being adjacent to the forest, would be the first to face the beast tides when they came.

Feng Qinxue stamped the letter with a blank expression and handed it to the recorder, saying, “Send it back and inform them that the Eastern Domain Celestial Bureau Authority has approved it.”

The recorder looked hesitant. “So, the Qin family was promoted just like that?”

It was indeed a historic first.

In reality, the Qin family’s promotion was a matter of time.

The two Celestial Family wouldn’t obstruct it.

However, the Qin family’s approach was unusual this time, which made the Celestial Grade Family’s stance quite delicate.

The Qin family had their Golden Grade certified directly by two divine artifacts… this essentially bypassed the Celestial Bureau and the Celestial Grade Family.

This was essentially telling everyone that the Celestial Bureau weren’t so authoritative after all.

It revealed that the rules of the families weren’t set by the Celestial Bureau Families.

It showed that there was another way to bypass the Celestial Bureau Authority and let the Dao of Heaven determine it directly!

When the result was announced, all the recorders immediately felt that the Heaven and Earth Book in their hands had become hot.

The recorders, who were supposed to oversee the affairs, didn’t expect that the Heaven and Earth Book, which was thought to be merely for recording history, had such a function!

The recorders who were close to the Heaven and Earth Book didn’t know this, and neither did the high-level Celestial Bureau Officers!

And it was a prodigious talent from a small family in the Southern Ridge who knew it!

By defying the heavens and changing fate in such a world-announcing manner, the Qin family had adorned themselves with a golden halo.

The subtlety and frustration in the hearts of the Celestial Bureau members were almost indescribable.

Seeing the recorder hesitating, Feng Qinxue saw through her thoughts.

With an indifferent expression, she said, “What can be done? The promotion was granted by Heaven… Can you ask the Heaven and Earth Book in your hands to change the Qin family’s grade?”

This was the first point that made this matter difficult to handle.

That day, the divine artifacts exhibited phenomena not only in the virtual space of the family decree but also synchronously entered the Heaven and Earth Book.

All the auxiliary volumes of the Heaven and Earth Book automatically activated and began displaying the words “Heavenly Grant Promotion.”

The golden board hanging on Mount Bu Zhou also shone brightly, showing those lines of text.

It was an announcement to the world.

Undeniable.

Unchangeable.

The Celestial Bureau had no room to maneuver—while they didn’t want to erase the fact of the Qin family’s promotion, they merely wanted to slightly alter the external presentation, such as claiming that the Celestial Bureau had granted the promotion.

This way, the dignity of the Celestial Bureau and Celestial Family could be preserved to the greatest extent.

But even such a compromise couldn’t be realized.

The two divine artifacts didn’t give them any time to react and directly synchronized the phenomena from the virtual space.

Watching the recorder remain silent, Feng Qinxue sneered, “This is it. It’s an irrefutable fact now. There’s no point in pondering it endlessly. It’s better to gracefully acknowledge them and show the public the stance and demeanor of the Celestial Bureau.”

The recorder immediately composed herself, taking on a respectful attitude. As she reviewed the letter that she was about to send out, her eyes widened in surprise: “The Qin family is relocating to Mount Buzhou? Why not to Yingzhou?”

Wasn’t Yingzhou the Qin family’s true ancestral land?

They had suffered so much humiliation and fled in disgrace.

Now that they could return in glory, why choose another place?

“Yingzhou, the Qin family of that era had an unglorious end. Now that they are rising again, they are in a completely new guise. Why should they be associated with the past?” Feng Qinxue said calmly.

A completely new guise, huh?

The recorder inexplicably sensed a surge of change from those words.

Updating and advancing, the new generation pushing out the old.

The recorder felt that she was witnessing history.

..

Ancestor Wenxuan commented, “This time, it’s quite fast.”

In the past, things used to move as slowly as a turtle.

“Could it be any faster? They’re afraid I might pull some stunt again. It’s almost like they want to finish the matter quickly and send me off,” Qin Ruqing said with a smile.

Ancestor Wenxuan glanced at Qin Ruqing. “You seem to know how it is.”

She knew she annoyed people.

Qin Ruqing replied with a grin, “I know very well!”

The Ancestor was accustomed to Qin Ruqing’s irritating demeanor.

Since it didn’t affect her, she let Qin Ruqing be.

Leisurely flipping through a document, the Ancestor raised an eyebrow after reading the content. “The Feng family allocated an independent island to us.”

She paused, “It’s close to the barren island assigned to the Fang family.”

Qin Ruqing immediately understood. “Not bad, Director Feng is very skilled.”

The Fang family, having lost their clan status, could no longer reside in Yingzhou.

The issue was where they would be relocated.

Eventually, the Feng family “consulted” Qin Ruqing and chose a small barren island in Yingzhou for the Fang clan.

Now, the Qin family’s new territory was an independent island on Buzhou Island, not far from the barren island where the Fang family was relocated.

This meant the Fang family was essentially under the Qin family’s watch.

This move demonstrated the Feng family’s thoughtfulness.

“Director Feng seems to have no grudges,” the Ancestor Wenxuan remarked.

This time, it wasn’t just about losing face for the divine beings but also about potential embarrassment.

For those with a smaller temper, holding a grudge against Qin Ruqing would be normal.

Qin Ruqing smiled, “She’s a smart woman.”

At least smarter than that old guy from the Fifth family, though also more ruthless.

Ancestor Wenxuan said nothing and sipped tea quietly, while Qin Dameng, buried in paperwork, finally looked up.

With the Qin family relocating, various matters were hectic.

Unfortunately, Qin Ruqing was a hands-off manager, and the Ancestor wasn’t going to handle the trivial details.

Thus, all the administrative work fell on Qin Dameng, the clan leader.

He had to enlist his son and “secretary” Cheng Yiming for assistance to catch a break.

Qin Dameng said, “Daughter, use your brain. I need your advice on a matter.”

Qin Ruqing looked up, “I’ve been using my brain all along. What’s the matter?”

“With this relocation, should we move everyone or leave some behind?”

“Are there any specific rules about this?” Qin Ruqing’s abilities were unquestionable, but some of the clan’s intricate rules might be unknown to her father.

Qin Ruqing’s Elder Brother, Qin Ruyu, opened a document and explained, “For Affiliated clans, there are usually several branch families to expand the clan. Our Qin family’s branches haven’t amounted to much, so this relocation is a good opportunity to split the clan.”

Cheng Yiming, sitting in the corner, added, “Moreover, the Qin family has deep roots in the Southern Ridge. Abandoning it would be a pity.”

Cheng Yiming, sitting upright and looking somewhat nervous, spoke as if reporting to a superior.

Seeing him like this, Qin Ruqing couldn’t help but smile. “Understood. So, keeping a branch in the Southern Ridge is indeed necessary.”

She thought for a moment and said, “We do have branches. Since they’re not thriving, why don’t we make them thrive this time? Let the branches move to the Southern Ridge’s main city and select a few reliable managers. The issue should be resolved.”

Qin Ruqing didn’t seem too concerned about the matter.

After all, compared to other things she usually worried about, branch issues seemed trivial. Qin Dameng swallowed the words he was about to say and decided to convene a clan meeting later to decide on the candidates for these “reliable managers.”

What no one expected was that Qin Dehao and the Grand Elder would voluntarily stay in the Southern Ridge.

Qin Ruqing was surprised to hear this news. But soon, she understood the mindset of the main house.

“They’re worried I might mind the previous conflict between the main house and the branch, so they’re staying in the Southern Ridge to avoid suspicion and make amends?”

After all, everyone knew that moving to the Eastern Domain was a step up, as it was the core area of the cultivation world.

Staying in the remote Southern Ridge inevitably seemed like being “sent to exile,” with limited prospects.

Qin Dameng sighed, “The elders don’t need to do this. Although I frequently argued with him in the past, we’ve been much more peaceful in recent years.”

Qin Ruqing thought to herself, that’s because I’ve dealt with him.

However, she also said, “I agree that Uncle doesn’t need to do this. Father, you should try to persuade him.”

Qin Ruqing had no strong feelings about Qin Dehao himself, but the matter was still concerning to her.

Because it involved her third sister.

Lu Wei would surely care about this matter.

Since Lu Wei cared, Qin Ruqing cared.

In the main house, Lu Wei was having a heated argument with Qin Dehao.

“Father, the past is over. You and the main house have received the punishment you deserved. Qingqing and Uncle won’t hold grudges, so why must you stay in the Southern Ridge?”

Qin Dehao sighed, “Lu Wei, you don’t understand. Some people care about this. Moreover, this kind of thing always depends on our own awareness. I don’t see anything wrong with staying in the Southern Ridge. The Southern Ridge is beautiful, and serving the Grand Elder here in retirement is a kind of completeness.”

“Are you worried about what others will say?” Lu Wei’s eyes sharpened, and she even drew her sword, “I’ll see who dares to speak!”

She looked gentle, but that was only in comparison to Qin Ruqing.

The determined Lu Wei, who had once pursued dual cultivation with sword and alchemy, had never changed fundamentally.

Qin Dehao looked at his daughter’s delicate face and resolute eyes, feeling a moment of complexity.

He remembered how his daughter used to argue with him frequently when she was young.

Ignoring his teachings and insisting on learning swordsmanship, even if it delayed her alchemy training, she remained resolute because, “A daughter must be strong to protect herself.”

Ignoring his advice, she proactively befriended the eldest branch’s Qin Ruqing, and even when he publicly fell out with the eldest branch, he consistently supported Qin Ruqing.

He believed that his actions back then were justified; it was Lu Wei’s failure to heed advice that led to the disheartening situation.

But now, Lu Wei had demonstrated with facts and actions that she was indeed right.

Even though she practiced both alchemy and swordsmanship, she had never neglected her alchemical pursuits.

Having acquired the ancient alchemy inheritance in the Void Realm, she was now a top-notch female cultivator in Four Domain capable of self-defense.

The benefits of being close to Qin Ruqing were undeniable.

Not only did she gain advantages, but her entire branch of the Qin family was also promoted, and now they were about to honorably relocate to the Eastern Domain.

Her friendship with Qin Ruqing was genuine and without pretense.

Qin Dehao thought to himself that he might truly be getting old.

He lacked Lu Wei’s vision and determination.