X-Dragon Era

The reason for the sudden increase of four stars was not due to any random factors. At that moment... the Four Great Sword Souls transformed into four-colored rays of light and entered Xin Yun's body. With each expansion and contraction of Xin Yun's body, the energy of the Four Great Sword Souls all flowed into Xin Yun and was infused into the Dragon Ball.

Originally, Xin Yun's realm was stable at the strength of a One Star crystal. Now having risen four stars in succession, Xin Yun had reached the standard of Five Stars. The speed of this advancement was astonishingly fast, which sometimes is not a good thing, as it could likely lead to an unstable foundation. If Xin Yun did not refine this properly, it would be easy to lose control of the energy and thus succumb to demonic possession.

Fortunately, the energy accumulated by the Four Great Sword Souls was exceptionally pure and originated from the same source as Xin Yun's own energy. There was no difference from the energy cultivated by Xin Yun himself, and it was even purer, therefore integration was not too difficult. The only thing needed was to adjust to the new state.

As for Yi Luo Xiang, Yan Qingying, Ming Xuan, and Luo Fu, they had just reached Ten Stars and gone into battle before their realms could stabilize. They also needed a period of quiet cultivation; otherwise, issues could arise.

As Xin Yun and the others went into seclusion, everything seemed to return to calm, especially for the Crazy Dragon Tie Zhan, who felt as if he had lived through a nightmare. Every morning when he woke up, he doubted if everything had been but a fleeting dream. However, it was clear that it was not a dream. Everything else might be questioned, but the members who had been killed had truly disappeared.

Tie Zhan did not harbor too much sorrow or hatred for the deaths of his fellow gang members. Given the stance of both parties at the time, it was a matter of life and death, and no method was considered excessive. If one couldn't get over this, then they were not fit to be a true Martial Artist.

Having become a member of the Dragon Gate, Tie Zhan naturally received a Taiji Diagram, which made it very convenient to travel between Shoushan and Ling Shan. With just a thought, he could arrive instantaneously, making arrangements extremely effortless.

Although Xin Yun had only given him one Taiji Diagram, it was a delight for Tie Zhan. It might look inconspicuous, and its ability wasn't strong; for Tie Zhan, who possessed the Diamond Shield, the Taiji Shield wasn't much to look at. However, the Dimensional Shuttle that covered a distance of 180 million li in one go was incredibly useful.

For instance, during this incident, if Tie Zhan had possessed a Taiji Diagram at that time, Xin Yun and the others would not have had a chance to take over Ling Shan. As soon as an attack occurred, the two Diamond-level experts of the Crazy Dragon Gang would have arrived instantly, not allowing anyone to act insolently!

If Tie Zhan had had the Taiji Diagram then, there would be no need to lead his subordinates on a long trek to Ling Shan, and Xin Yun and his people would have lost the opportunity to intercept. This demonstrated the power of the Taiji Diagram.

For Tie Zhan, the greatest function of the Taiji Diagram was the ability to traverse space, ignoring the limitations of distance, and shuttle between cities at any time. With this treasured diagram in hand, although the Crazy Dragon Hall only had two Diamond-level experts, the number of cities under their control increased significantly.

Previously, the Crazy Dragon Gang could only occupy two cities with its two Diamond-level experts. After all, without a Diamond-level expert in charge, it was bound to be attacked and would definitely not hold.

But now things were different. With the Taiji Diagram, the Crazy Dragon Hall could occupy cities at will. Once any city was attacked, the two Diamond-level experts could activate the Taiji Diagram instantly and arrive at the city under attack. It can be said... with the Taiji Diagram, the two Diamond-level experts essentially stood guard over countless cities at the same time.

While Xin Yun and the others were in seclusion, the Crazy Dragon Tie Zhan did not rest. He first gathered the gang members together to announce the joining of Dragon Gate, then proceeded to reorganize the members according to the structure of the hall.

The head of the Crazy Dragon Hall was naturally taken by Tie Zhan, while the other Diamond-level expert of the original Crazy Dragon Gang, Ying Long Gao Fei, served as the deputy head. Then he formed a battle team of over a hundred Amethyst-level experts. As for the members at the Crystal level, they were formed into a management team to maintain order in the cities.

In the following month, led by the Crazy Dragon Tie Zhan and his subordinates from the Crazy Dragon Hall, they began their conquest from Shoushan City, radiating outward...

In every city they went to, the Crazy Dragon Tie Zhan and Ying Long Gao Fei would directly step forward to challenge the local gangs. After defeating their rivals, they would set up their flags and then... send out a group of Amethyst-level experts to forcibly take control of the city by strong-arm tactics...

As for city governance, Tie Zhan strictly followed the rules of Dragon Gate. The administration of a city was left to the city's inhabitants. The city lord and various officials were elected by the citizens. Moreover... all cities occupied by Dragon Gate practiced a one-way taxation rate of 15%.

Originally, Xin Yun's stance was to have one-way taxation at a rate of 10%, but after being persuaded by Tie Zhan, Xin Yun changed his mind and agreed to Tie Zhan's request.

10% wasn't impossible, but it would disrupt the order. While the citizens would welcome it, other gang powers would not. There's wisdom in not overdoing it – if everyone else charged 20%, and you only charged 10%, how would other powers operate?

As for 15%, that was already the lowest possible rate. As for 10%, it had never even been heard of. If Dragon Gate continued to insist on 10%, it wouldn't be long before others would come knocking, and once they came, they would likely be an allied force. By then, hundreds upon hundreds of Diamond-level experts would converge, and even with the Heaven and Earth Seal, it might not be enough to withstand them.