"Yes, I broke through. And yes, you don't need to hide your cultivation anymore. It is time for you all to let loose and create mayhem. Moreover, there is word from Central Continent. The opportunity we have all been waiting for will arrive within seven years. We need to seize this chance. For that, we must show our strength early and occupy a favorable position before other factions react."
Hearing those words, everyone's eyes widened. The chance they have all been waiting for has come. They all felt a jolt of adrenaline running through their systems hearing those words. All their eyes turned red in eagerness.
"When do we start, Sect Master?" one of the elders asked with a trembling voice.
"We will start once the Grotto Heaven closes. You don't need to care about anything. I want everyone to know that they can't walk into our domain and exit whenever they pleased," the Sect Master said with iron in his voice.
At that moment, the entire meeting hall felt oppressed by the aura that was emitting from the Sect Master. Many elders gasped feeling such oppressiveness. Only very few maintained their image. Even they were shocked inwardly.
"Sect Master, it seems your breakthrough has gone well," the First Grand Elder commented causing the oppressive environment to be lifted.
"Yes, Grand Elder," the Sect Master replied retracting his aura.
The First Grand Elder looked at the Sect Master deeply and nodded. A strange look passed through his eyes as he noticed the Vice-Sect Master Liang Tianye's face hadn't changed expressions much.
"You can all go and make your preparations. I want this entire Grasslands dyed in blood when the Grotto Heaven closes," the Sect Master instructed and ended the meeting.
""Sure, Sect Master!"" the elders chorused energetically.
Soon, the entire hall emptied. The First Grand Elder was the last one to go. He stopped at the door and glanced at the Sect Master and Vice-Sect Master who had remained behind with a deep look and walked away.
"Senior Brother," Liang Tianye said looking at the First Grand Elder. "Looks like that old fossil is suspecting something. Is it wise to rush things along at this critical moment?"
"Don't care about that idiot," the Sect Master scoffed. "He can suspect all he wants. By the time he realizes our real purpose, it would be too late for him to stop us."
Liang Tianye didn't reply. He merely grunted his acknowledgment.
"Initially, I didn't plan to start this soon. I was actually planning to use your latest disciple to create mayhem at first and then escalate slowly. But, who knew he would be useless and die so soon? I actually had to improvise due to it," the Sect Master sighed.
"Moreover, when that time comes, there will be a lot of people who will feel the Aghori Path descending into this world. At that time, we need to have as much buffer zone as possible. Grasslands alone is not enough. I intend to have the entire Star Empire and Wei Empire in my control by then," the Sect Master said solemnly.
"That… will one year be enough?" Liang Tianye asked doubtfully.
"That is why I am starting a massacre in the Grasslands. We already culled some people during that Nine Leaf Lotus incident. And now, these fools have all gathered together in our region like lambs waiting to be slaughtered. Wouldn't it be a shame to let them down?" the Sect Master chuckled.
"You really intend to kill all of them?" Liang Tianye asked in surprise.
"Indeed," the Sect Master said in a solemn tone. "We need to cull people as much as we can. We need to move before others suspect we are up to something. That incident in Central Continent is a good pretext. We can use it to stir up trouble in the following year. The more land that is immersed in the demonic aura, the easier it would be for the Aghori Path to descent."
"In this way, even if we can't capture both empires, the constant killing in the next year would naturally generate a demonic aura around these lands," Liang Tianye said realizing the brilliance of the plan. "And no one would suspect our true purpose. It would look like we are honing people for the opportunity that will appear soon."
"Exactly," the Sect Master smiled.
"Senior Brother, your means are truly unfathomable. Even I would have been misled by you if I don't know the real reason," Liang Tianye sighed.
"When the time comes, you need to go out and create some mayhem as well. I want the demonic aura to be as thick as possible. Don't hold back. As long as you don't reveal your true strength, then everything is fine," the Sect Master instructed.
"Don't worry," Liang Tianye chuckled. "The Wind Demon hasn't taken a walk for a while. I will definitely make those who forget about me remember me well."
"Good," the Sect Master smiled. "I am looking forward to your performance. But remember, our true purpose isn't to kill those idiots. We need to create as much demonic aura as possible."
"I understand," Liang Tianye nodded.
"Hmmm, how is your new pet coming along?" the Sect Master changed the subject casually.
"She has a lot of promise. She is not on our side completely even though she acts as if she is. But, as long as we are strong, she would obey us willingly," Liang Tianye chuckled.
"We can't expect anything more from a demoness like her," the Sect Master chuckled. "As for strength… he he he… apart from the few old foggies who are hidden away and waiting for that chance, we won't face any opposition. And they won't act as well. The more direr the world is in, the more beneficial for them."
"That's true… those bunch of self-serving idiots would not make a move easily. Still, we need to be careful of the First Grand Elder, Senior Brother."
"Don't worry, I am personally taking care of all the preparations," the Sect Master nodded.
Seeing him nod, Liang Tianye put down his heart. Making the Aghori Path descend was a very important mission given to them both. He didn't want to imagine the price of failure.
*****
The next day, in the First Grand Elder's abode, a few of the powerful elders in the Heavenly Demon Sect were gathered together. They all had a solemn look on their faces.
"I can understand flexing your muscles for a bit. But, from the way the Sect Master speaks, he really intends to wipe out all those gathered near the Grotto Heaven. That will make us a lot of enemies," one of the elders said furrowing his brows.
"You are right. But, I can understand Sect Master's actions. That opportunity is not easily obtained. How many of us old fossils have been waiting for such a day? And the allocation of those opportunities is based on the strength of the faction," another elder said solemnly.
"Ahem…" the First Grand Elder cleared his throat and everyone fell silent.
They all watched the First Grand Elder in trepidation. They all knew that they only had to courage to voice their opinions because of the First Grand Elder's support. For the past few years, the First Grand Elder and several other elders have long been dissatisfied with the way the Sect Master was steering the Heavenly Demon Sect.
As a hegemon of the demonic faction, the Heavenly Demon Sect had a unique role to play in the entire Dragon Scale Continent. However, the Sect Master's recent actions have made them uneasy.
Even before the incident with the Nine Leaf Soul Lotus, there have been some actions taken by the Sect Master that had made it hard for them to sincerely listen to. Only the Sect Master's strength had restrained them from outright conflicting with him.
But the actions taken during the Nine Leaf Soul Lotus debacle and this Grotto Heaven incident only made them further dissatisfied. The Sect Master's actions might have looked tough at the beginning, but he repeatedly compromised with other factions in the end.
That wasn't the behavior of a hegemon. What does being a hegemon mean? It means to be absolutely dominant in their actions. In their area, they must rule with an iron fist. But, the Sect Master had repeatedly given ground.
As a hegemon, how can the Heavenly Demon Sect do that? That's why there were several other demonic factions on the continent that were currently eyeing their status as the hegemon. They have grumbled about this numerous times, but the Sect Master had remained firm in his decision.
In the end, they could only direct their complaints to the Grand Elders. Of the three Grand Elders present in the sect, the First Grand Elder was the one who was truly troubled by their complaints. The Second Grand Elder had merely grunted and told he would look into it. But, there were no actions taken regarding it.
As for the Third Grand Elder, very few people know where he was currently. He was always roaming outside and very rarely appeared in the sect. The latest information was that the Third Grand Elder was currently in the Central Continent. So, they had no way to contact him.
Thus, the First Grand Elder became their backbone.
"I think, the Sect Master's plan to massacre all of the experts near the Grotto Heaven is very harmful," the First Grand Elder said mildly causing everyone to listen with rapt attention.
"I don't know what the Sect Master is thinking in recent years. He has been very guarded with me. That's why I asked one of you to get close to the Vice-Sect Master," the First Grand Elder spoke looking at a particular figure among the assembled cultivators.
"Any information you wish to share with us…Elder Feng."
