The matters occurring within the Human Cultivation Alliance of the Northern Borders Continent's cultivation world, involving those False Nascent Soul stage cultivators of the Spirit Creek Sect, were unknown to Guo Feilong.
Given his current cultivation stage, such matters were beyond his reach.
To avoid unnecessary trouble, he had temporarily abandoned the idea of seeking suitable women to marry and take as concubines. After all, with each additional wife or concubine, he would have to deal with their maternal families.
The children born to his wives and concubines would naturally have grandparents and maternal uncles and aunts to consider. This is why having a large number of wives and concubines can be quite overwhelming.
In normal circumstances, in-laws and siblings-in-law are close relatives. Recently, the wives and concubines of Guo Feilong who had maternal families had brought their parents, elders, and siblings to reside in the Guo family's Heavenly Abode.
His children got along well with their maternal grandparents, uncles, and aunts, primarily because Guo Feilong and his wives held high status, and their maternal families were eager to curry favor with them.
If he were a person without status or position, the attitudes of his wives' maternal families would be unpredictable.
The influx of relatives from his wives' maternal families suddenly increased the population of the Guo family's Heavenly Abode by twenty thousand. Among them, a few hundred were cultivators with spiritual roots, while the majority were ordinary people without spiritual roots who could not cultivate.
Although Guo Feilong had spirit stones and cultivation elixirs, he did not have enough to spare for his wives' maternal families. However, the parents and siblings of his wives still needed cultivation resources.
Since they entered the Guo family's Heavenly Abode, Guo Feilong had forbidden anyone from leaving to prevent the possibility of demon cultivators infiltrating. He set up a large formation at the entrance of the Heavenly Abode, which could not be entered or exited without a token. If someone tried to force their way in, there were only two methods.
The first and simplest method was to break in with brute force, which would immediately alert Guo Feilong. The second method required the intruder to be a formation master, at least at an advanced level.
Formation masters could not only set up formations but also break them silently. A skilled formation master could enter and exit another's protective formation as easily as walking through their own front door.
In many important places within cultivation forces, not only are there large formations for protection, but people are also stationed to guard them around the clock to prevent skilled formation masters from bypassing their defenses and stealing.
The formation outside the Heavenly Abode was not set up with high sophistication; it could withstand the attack of a Golden Elixir stage grand cultivator for the time it takes to burn a stick of incense. Its primary purpose was to serve as a warning, alerting him of any approaching enemies.
If a friend arrived, they only needed to send him a voice transmission, and he would naturally go to bring them in.
The Guo family palace within the Heavenly Abode was enveloped by a protective formation barrier. Only Guo Feilong's wives, concubines, children, and household servants were allowed to stay there. No other outsiders, including his wives' maternal families, were permitted entry.
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Due to the pervasive threat of demon cultivators, Guo Feilong could not guarantee that a demon cultivator wouldn't disguise themselves as one of his relatives or that a relative might not be a demon cultivator.
If not for the pleas of his hundreds of wives and all his children, Guo Feilong would not have allowed those relatives to reside in the Guo family's Heavenly Abode during this period.
Managing these relatives was challenging for Guo Feilong, so he built a town for them in the northernmost forest area of the Heavenly Abode.
Wherever there are people, there are conflicts. Fearing disputes among so many relatives, Guo Feilong established a set of laws specifically for them.
Firstly, anyone who committed murder, regardless of their identity or background, even if it were the children's grandparents, would be sentenced to death.
Secondly, anyone who humiliated women would also face the death penalty.
As for verbal disputes or causing injury, severe punishments were imposed.
Severe punishments were necessary because these were his wives' relatives. If two of his fathers-in-law fought and one was killed, and he didn't execute the surviving father-in-law, it would inevitably turn the two wives into mortal enemies, and their children would become adversaries, losing the familial bond of siblings.
If one brother-in-law seduced the other's wife, it would lead to a life-and-death struggle between the two brothers-in-law, turning the two wives into enemies and their children into foes.
These were scenarios Guo Feilong wished to avoid, so he made the rules clear and enforced them strictly, without leniency.
However, despite the clear rules, someone still broke them.
It involved a brother from one wife and a brother from another. The two had a longstanding grudge and, during a heated argument, one severed the other's arm.
The one who severed the arm was Guo Feilong's elder brother-in-law, while the one who lost an arm was his younger brother-in-law.
The sister of the injured brother naturally felt heartache for her sibling.
"Husband, you must seek justice for my brother. He's lost an arm."
This concubine was named Jiang Xuewei, at the early Foundation Establishment stage.
"Father, you must stand up for our uncle," her five children cried alongside her.
The other concubine, named Li Ying, also at the early Foundation Establishment stage, pleaded for her brother with her four children.
Both wives had close friends among the other concubines, and at least forty of them had divided into two groups, standing behind Jiang Xuewei and Li Ying, though they remained silent.
At this moment, Guo Feilong felt overwhelmed. The more wives and concubines he had, the more family conflicts arose.
He used to think palace dramas were just for entertainment, but now he truly understood the challenges of being an emperor.
"Enough, everyone be quiet!" Guo Feilong impatiently slammed the table, silencing everyone instantly. This was the authority of the head of the household.
"I'll say it again: anyone who breaks the rules here, regardless of who they are, will be dealt with according to the rules."
"Bring the two of them to me."
Guo Feilong ordered.
The steward quickly brought the two men into the main hall.
"Brother-in-law, you must seek justice for me," Jiang Xuewei's brother pleaded, kneeling before Guo Feilong. Though his bleeding had stopped, his clothes were stained with blood, presenting a pitiful sight.
"Uncle..."
"Woo woo woo..."
Several nieces and nephews went over to help their uncle with the severed arm.
Guo Feilong turned his attention to the other man, Li Ying's brother.
Li Ying's brother said, "Brother-in-law, I did cut off his arm, but he attacked me first with a flying sword. I was forced to defend myself, and many can testify to this."
Jiang Xuewei's brother retorted, "If you hadn't provoked me with such harsh words, I wouldn't have been driven to attack you with a flying sword."
Li Ying's brother replied, "You could have insulted me back. Using a flying sword was your mistake. If you can't beat me, that's your problem, loser!"
Jiang Xuewei's brother shouted angrily, "Shut your filthy mouth! If you want to fight, let's take it outside. Even with one hand, I can take you down."
"Enough!" Guo Feilong slammed the table hard. The ordinary redwood table couldn't withstand his strength and shattered into pieces.
Li Ying's brother was the instigator, not a good person. Jiang Xuewei's brother had a fiery temper and was no pushover.
This matter had to be resolved properly today, or the consequences would be dire. His two wives and several children were already influenced by their relatives.
In the cultivation world, people always sided with family over reason. When family members had conflicts with outsiders of similar strength, they would support their family first and deal with them later.
Regardless of who was right or wrong between the two brothers-in-law, his two wives would inevitably side with their respective siblings.
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