Ancestor Kunyuan furrowed his brows in thought and shook his head, saying, "Our Waang Family has guarded this Desolate Marsh for generations, and we have always paid close attention to it. Whether it’s our Waang Family’s patrols or those Loose Cultivators risking their lives for resources, no one has ever found anything unusual in the Desolate Marsh."

"Logically, the Primordial Water Cyan Flood Dragon likely swam over from the other side of Anjiang. Whether it came accidentally or with a purpose remains unknown."

"A Tier Six Peak Ferocious Beast’s intelligence is almost no different from that of a human," Wang Shouzhe said with a slight frown. "Ferocious Beasts are very attached to their lairs and would not leave unless forced. Besides, it has reached a bottleneck... its biggest aim might..."

"Patriarch Shouzhe, do you mean... this beast is seeking an opportunity for advancement?" Ancestor Kunyuan’s eyes gleamed with insight. "And that opportunity is likely within this Desolate Marsh? Yes, yes, typically ferocious beasts seldom migrate arbitrarily, and even if they do, there’s no way they would cause such a large commotion."

"Ancestor Kunyuan, do you have a map of the Desolate Marsh?" Wang Shouzhe asked.

"This..." Ancestor Kunyuan hesitated slightly but still retrieved a large map from his Storage Ring, saying, "I present this Desolate Marsh map to Patriarch Shouzhe in gratitude for saving my life."

This map is a detailed representation of the Desolate Marsh, passed down and continuously refined through generations of the Waang Family. The landscape of the Desolate Marsh changes rapidly, differing between rainy and dry seasons, and creating such a comprehensive year-round map is no easy task.

"I’m just taking a look to find a way to deal with that Primordial Water Cyan Flood Dragon, not to plot against your family’s territory in the marsh," Wang Shouzhe chuckled lightly as he took the map and began to study it carefully.

For the Wang Family, the area within a thousand-plus miles beyond has already been explored thoroughly, allowing for a new round of expansion at any time.

Why bother scheming for the interests of the Waang Family’s land?

This is Wang Shouzhe’s way of handling affairs; he prefers to expand outward to develop the family rather than squeezing local Noble Families through internal competition. This is also the reason why the Changning Wang Family’s reputation among the Six Southern Guards is flourishing like never before.

While other Noble Families become powerful by squeezing or exploiting others,

the Wang Family not only refrains from oppressing but also provides better opportunities to earn money, allowing everyone in the rural communities to thrive. They have genuinely realized the great strategic thought of letting those who become prosperous first help others to prosperity.

Subsequently.

Led by the Waang Family, everyone first arrived at a highland site. It was a safe spot established and maintained by their ancestors. It has high terrain and is solidly built even in the rainy season, able to hold off attacks from Tier Four Ferocious Beasts in a short period.

Most importantly, this place is relatively clean and doesn’t require constant suspension by Profound Qi. Ancestor Longyan and Liua Ruolan wouldn’t want to randomly step into the muddy ground.

While making a brief rest, Wang Shouzhe studied the map carefully, occasionally discussing it with Ancestor Chengye of the Waang Family. Over the years, Ancestor Chengye had been managing various affairs. Ancestor Kunyuan, in the Late Stage of the Celestial Human Realm, usually concerned himself only with cultivation and not worldly matters.

After half a day’s efforts, Wang Shouzhe devised a plan: "Please, Ancestor Chengye, look at this Hulu Port. During the rainy season, this area is a shallow watery marsh. But during the dry season, it’s a narrow Hulu Port like a crucial transportation route constricting this part of the Desolate Marsh. Right now, it’s the dry season, and the water level is low."

"We just need to build a large flood control dam inside this Hulu Port to completely seal off this part of the Desolate Marsh. Then, we can release floodwaters via the dam and, in the dry season, use facilities like Water Dragon Vehicles to pump water into the marsh."

"In this way, we have the chance to tame this vast Desolate Marsh."

Wang Shouzhe was known for his planning. When the family was still weak, he initiated a grand project of dredging and field-making. Although that project is now considered small-scale for the Wang Family and mainly as practice for the younger generation,

at that time, the entire family invested all their efforts, even the young Wang Luqiu and Wang Luojing were fully committed.

"This..." The non-strategic Ancestor Chengye was already bewildered by the explanation and weakly asked, "Patriarch Shouzhe, what use is there in taming the Desolate Marsh?"

"Ancestor Chengye, haven’t you realized?" Wang Shouzhe gave him a glance, "The economic potential of this Desolate Marsh is considerable. Once it is completely tamed and managed, the annual revenue could conservatively be estimated at over a million Qian Gold."

A million?

The two ancestors of the Waang Family looked at each other in disbelief. This—isn’t this an astronomical figure?

For the current Waang Family, the annual gross income barely reached three hundred thousand, and they had to cover the family’s vast expenses, including Ancestor Kunyuan’s cultivation costs. As such, the family was left with almost nothing.

With an annual income of over a million Qian Gold, doesn’t this mean...? Ancestor Chengye looked at Ancestor Kunyuan with delight, realizing that his elder’s cultivation resources would be sufficient. There would even be plenty left to gradually save up for purchasing the Sixth-Grade Elixir, the Spirit Communication Treasure Pill, and various auxiliary materials needed for advancing to the Purple Mansion Realm.

Moreover, there would be additional resources for the family’s younger generations to cultivate with.