Qin Zhuofeng heaved a long sigh: “In the past few days, Chongyun Sect had dispatched Immortal Realm disciples to start fights. They continuously incited dozens of our Qingyun Sect’s people, and they would win decisively before going back. Although some secluded disciples came out to fight, only Junior Sect Brother Teng Yunfei prevailed over that Sect’s disciple. Among those remaining, only Huang Ji tied. The rest all suffered defeats.”
Gu Zuo was startled.
There was only one win and one tie, while all the others were losses? When it was at the Xiantian Realm, the battle situation hadn’t been this desperate! Moreover, the strengths of that many secluded disciples would’ve been very powerful. Unexpectedly, there wasn’t even one more win?
But despite the shock in his heart, he didn’t raise any questions after quietly sweeping a glance over those few men and women who arrived.
One would understand after thinking about it. These couple of Immortal Realm seniors were this furious, and there was also some self-blame contained within this fury. One could figure out their identities.
Qin Zhuofeng also didn’t pursue the matter. Their identities and positions were arranged right here. If Gu Zuo, a younger generation junior, made inquiries, wouldn’t that just be a slap to their faces?
However, even if Gu Zuo didn’t ask, the complexions of these mindful Immortal Realm disciples still underwent slight changes. The unwillingness on their faces was extremely clear.
They quickly calmed their states of mind, and reported the circumstances of those battles to Qin Zhuofeng.
On the side, Gu Zuo listened with perked ears, and had a general understanding of the battle situations at that time.
While he didn’t understand what was going on with the others, Huang Ji, who previously only ranked seventh, had gone through a period of Beast Blood Body Tempering, and his Heavenly Beast Body had been developed to some extent. Thus, it would be true to say that his great increase in strength had saved a little bit of Qingyun Sect’s face.
In addition, when the Immortal Realms battled, each of the fights were mostly between those of equivalent realms. The only infuriating thing was that, occasionally, their side would lose while the other side would win with ease. There was also the fact that there were Chongyun Sect disciples who challenged higher-ranked Qingyun Sect disciples and thoroughly defeated them.
To say that their reputations had reached rock-bottom wasn’t enough to describe the Immortal Realm battles.
After Qin Zhuofeng finished listening to the details, his expression was grave: “When it was originally at the Xiantian Realm, our secluded disciples still had some people who could win multiple battles and redeem our Sect’s prestige. But now that it’s the Immortal Realm, even saving face can’t be achieved. If it weren’t for Junior Sect Brother Teng and Junior Sect Brother Huang, you all would’ve been swept aside — But there’s also no difference from what’s happening now and a clean sweep.”
His words echoed throughout the surroundings, and caused Gu Zuo and others’ expressions to become solemn and respectful.
Qin Zhuofeng looked all around him: “All of you — Do you know what this means?”
Gongyi Tianheng was pensive.
Gu Zuo seemed to vaguely think of something.
The few Immortal Realm disciples were capable of becoming secluded disciples, and none of them were stupid. After a moment’s pause, they immediately clenched their fists. In strained voices, they said: “This means that…at the lower realms, our Qingyun Sect still has the power to resist. But the higher the realms of the martial artists, the greater the advantage Chongyun Sect has. It would be a breeze to suppress us!”
— As such, what was the cause that brought about this situation?
Between their two sects, Chongyun Sect was located on a continent with vast territories, and its resources were far superior to that of Qingyun Continent. That side’s disciples also had better aptitudes, and their number of powerhouses was twice the amount that Qingyun Sect possessed. However, this sort of clean-sweep situation was extremely rare. One could imagine that if this wasn’t by chance, but rather normal, then after many years had passed, Chongyun Sect wouldn’t only be twice as strong as Qingyun Sect, it would be five, six, or even ten times as strong. It would view Qingyun Sect as a speck of dust!
Right now, Qingyun Sect looked like a figure of authority. But in actuality, there were external worries and internal troubles. One had to be on guard in all matters.
Qin Zhuofeng shook his head: “You all should know. After Chongyun Sect defeats our Qingyun Sect, what will happen?”
Everyone’s hearts trembled.
Gu Zuo thought about it. Could this be the reason why Qin Zhuofeng cursed out shamelessly just then?
This must’ve been the case. If Chongyun Sect only took the initiative to provoke and defeat Qingyun Sect, no matter how upset they were, there was nothing they could do about it. After all, the others had fought justly and honorably. In the end, their own side would be classified as amateurs. If Qin Zhuofeng cursed because of this, then it didn’t seem too classy.
Qin Zhuofeng’s gaze turned cold. Unlike those peaceful days, no longer was his temperament warm and genial: “Those Grand Elder bastards of Chongyun Sect came to see the Sect Master.” His voice practically hissed through the gaps between his teeth, “They took out a writ of exchange, wanting to obtain our Qingyun Sect’s…”
At that time, Gu Zuo’s thinking started jumping ahead a little bit.
Writ of exchange? Was it that psychic power method? Had it finally come? Was their conjecture that day really correct?!
But what, in the end, did Chongyun Sect want to trade that would make Qin Zhuofeng lose his graceful bearing?
Tianheng and Gu Zuo exchanged glances, having grasped the inside information in their hearts.
Meanwhile, those secluded disciples didn’t know about this matter. Thus, they looked at Qin Zhuofeng with bright eyes: “Senior Sect Brother Qin, please explain it to us…”
Qin Zhuofeng took a deep breath, and sighed: “Chongyun Sect wanted to exchange a psychic power cultivation technique dedicated exclusively to pharmacists for fifty percent of Qingyun Sect’s Profound Ley Lines, as well as eighty percent of its current reserves of Heaven’s Eye Stones!”
None of the people present knew what Heaven’s Eye Stones were, but they understood the part about exchanging fifty percent of the Sect’s Profound Ley Lines.
— Profound Ley Lines! Those were the Profound Ley Lines that acted as Qingyun Sect’s foundation!
Fifty percent of the Profound Ley lines seemed like Chongyun Sect was only taking possession of half of the ley lines, and fifty percent should’ve also been enough for generations of secluded disciples to use. However, this was just a shallow calculation. If one stood from the Sect’s point of view, the portion of Profound Ley Lines that each generation could use was limited. It needed to be controlled within a certain range to guarantee that the ley lines would last Qingyun Sect for generations to come. Each generation couldn’t lack powerhouses.
By reducing the Profound Ley Lines by fifty percent, the number of disciples in each generation who could enter the Profound Qi Eyes for secluded cultivation would also fall by fifty percent. In that case, the number of powerhouses produced would also fall by at least fifty percent.
And the fewer powerhouses there were, the less stable Qingyun Sect’s foundations would be. As time went on, the powerhouses of each generation would continuously weaken. Ultimately, Qingyun Sect would only meet an incomparably miserable end!
This move of Chongyun Sect would weaken Qingyun Sect from the roots. Their scheme wasn’t a brief one. Rather, it might’ve been a huge plan that spanned several thousand years. In this way, Qingyun Sect would never be able to catch up with Chongyun Sect. It would also be impossible to cause any threat whatsoever to Chongyun Sect.
So much so that —
Gu Zuo had a worrisome guess in his heart.
Although everyone wasn’t from the same continent, since Qingyun Sect had a reputation across many of the continents in the Southern Expanse, it was basically in control of the majority of talents who appeared on these continents. As such, once Qingyun Sect was weakened to a certain extent, would the sects and empires that were once controlled by Qingyun Sect continue to blindly follow it? Wouldn’t the Southern Expanse undergo a great upheaval?
If there was a great upheaval… Then, the vitality of the Southern Expanse would take a heavy blow. Would the various sects of the Southeastern Expanse, headed by Chongyun Sect, come to wantonly plunder this place, and even turn the Southern Expanse into a subordinate of the Southeastern Expanse?
All of this thinking and pondering was just too much. Gu Zuo’s heart was pounding.
He always wondered if he worried too much about groundless fears…
While Gu Zuo was in the middle of sorting through his chaotic thoughts over here, Tianheng was pondering about what wasn’t said. Meanwhile, several Immortal Realm secluded disciples were opening their mouths and asking questions one after another:
“Senior Sect Brother Qin, what sort of thing is this psychic power cultivation technique?”
“If one practices it, what benefits would pharmacists have?”
“Will the Sect agree to these humiliating conditions and pander to that Chongyun Sect?”
There were all kinds of thoughts and concerns.
All of which were within these inquiries.
They only knew that their own pharmacists had competed with Chonyun Sect’s pharmacists, and it was considered a match where they neither won nor lost. But as for the specifics, because those pharmacists were just guessing, it hadn’t been announced to the outside yet. Thus, they also didn’t know about the details.
At this moment, Qin Zhuofeng calmed down somewhat, but he was still very solemn: “The psychic power cultivation technique is only suitable for pharmacists. Once pharmacists practice it, they’ll walk along a different path of cultivation, but they’ll have the ability to protect themselves. Aside from this, they can rely on this technique to make their psychic powers even stronger. When pill refining, they can increase the number of formed pills and the pills’ product grades, and they can also persist for longer. It won’t be like in the past where a pharmacist would have to stop and regulate their breathing after a period of painstaking refinement.”
After listening to these words, a secluded disciple gave a low exhale: “If it’s like this, wouldn’t the pharmacists’ capabilities be greatly increased? For a long time to come, not only will our Qingyun Sect be able to nurture even more pharmacists, the length of time that these pharmacists can survive will also grow longer and longer!”
Another person suddenly guessed: “Those Chongyun Sect disciples at the Immortal Realm were able to sweep us aside. Could it have something to do with the capabilities of their pharmacists…”
Someone else was puzzled: “Since this is such an unprecedentedly good thing, why would they take it out to conduct a trade with us? The worth of this psychic power technique isn’t low. After exchanging fifty percent of the Profound Ley Lines, if our Sect’s pharmacists practice this technique, we won’t necessarily be negatively affected too greatly. Could it really be possible that they only want to take away the Profound Ley Lines? By letting our powerhouses grow stronger, could it be that they don’t want to weaken us?”
— Would Chongyun Sect be that kindhearted?
Of the people present, no one really believed this.
Qin Zhuofeng sighed and said: “Correct. Chongyun Sect has been studying this technique for many years, and many pharmacists have already learned it with worthwhile results. This had caused Chongyun Sect to become stronger, which added a lot of leverage. Moreover, even if our Sect’s pharmacists studied it, Chongyun Sect would have a huge lead in the short-term. According to Chongyun Sect’s words, the pill refining of the pharmacists in their Sect is now several times better than before. And after studying that psychic power technique, they can use psychic powers to harass and briefly muddle other people’s minds. Protecting themselves has allowed the lifespans of the pharmacists to lengthen.”
This kind of good thing was indeed something that everyone would want.
Now that Chongyun Sect had mentioned this, it could be regarded as profiting from another’s misfortune. It could also be said that it was a sincere business transaction — A transaction of things that were far too precious. Unfortunately, they were also unwilling to not trade.
It was no wonder why Qin Zhuofeng wanted to curse them out for their shamelessness.
This was practically…a coerced trade. It was hard for a person to endure.
The numerous secluded disciples heard this, and their expressions were all rather unsightly: “Then, what’s the Sect Master’s decision?”
The circumstances were stronger than the individual. Such an urgently-needed thing still had to be bought even though they were being forced to buy it.
Otherwise, it would probably be a loss that the Profound Ley Lines couldn’t recover.
Gu Zuo was well aware of the situation, and blinked his eyes.
In Tianheng’s eyes, there was also a trace of a smiling expression.
Chongyun Sect had performed such a dazzling and flashy large-scale production. By attacking Qingyun Sect from all aspects and showing off their strength, wasn’t it to conveniently threaten Qingyun Sect into paying a huge price to avoid causing more trouble?
But now it seemed that the attacks weren’t considered to be very complete. As for that thing being forcefully traded… Hehe.
Soon after, Qin Zhuofeng’s expression eased up: “The Sect Master naturally refused.”
The numerous secluded disciples: “…”
He naturally refused? This shouldn’t have been a natural refusal! Refusing didn’t make the least bit of sense!
It obviously would’ve required a lot of energy to make this choice, and most of it would’ve been used to bow one’s head…
They truly didn’t expect that the Sect Master would “naturally refuse”.
But Qin Zhuofeng quickly let out a sigh, and said: “Everyone, listen to this Qin’s words.”
The numerous secluded disciples looked over, and their few private uproars were kept hidden.
Qin Zhuofeng smiled and said: “Fortunately, some time ago during the sparring matches between the pharmacists of the two sects, our Sect had a newly-admitted pharmacist who sensed the other party’s use of psychic power. This pharmacist once had a fortuitous encounter, and coincidentally knew of such a psychic power cultivation technique. After that, this pharmacist presented the psychic power technique to the Sect, which freed our Sect from Chongyun Sect’s restriction — Now, even though they brought along quite a few Atomic Realm Grand Elders, they can’t stir up any waves in our Qingyun Sect’s territory!”
Without that psychic power method, Qingyun Sect would’ve had to clench its teeth and follow along.
But now Qingyun Sect clearly had a way out of its current circumstances. Reportedly, the psychic power tempered by this cultivation method, when compared to the technique that Chongyun Sect showed off in order to better persuade Qingyun Sect’s pharmacists, was even slightly better by a few measures.
Why would they still need to compromise with Chongyun Sect?
Whether it was Profound Ley Lines or Heaven’s Eye Stones, absolutely none of it would be given to that scheming Chongyun Sect!
The numerous secluded disciples were elated! Just a while ago, they were unwilling to stand the humiliation of being defeated by Chongyun Sect’s hands. This moment had put an end to much of their grievances. Now that the Sect had a countermeasure, those temporarily losses wouldn’t turn into a lifetime of defeats. When one carefully considered it, this was also a kind of tempering of one’s will. They couldn’t allow this to influence their states of mind.
The disciples who could come to this place for secluded cultivation were all certainly dragons and phoenixes among men. They wouldn’t allow a momentary loss to trouble their hearts.
Currently, Qin Zhuofeng’s mood had also improved somewhat. Previously, he was infuriated by all kinds of deeds done by Chongyun Sect, but after his rage was let out, he promptly recalled that Chongyun Sect was certainly going to go back without having achieved anything. At this moment, his state of mind was naturally smooth and unhindered.
After that, these secluded disciples all said their goodbyes, and went back to continue their cultivations.
Chongyun Sect’s plan had failed, so it would inevitably want to cause some kind of trouble later on. In order to exert their strengths for the Sect at that time, they also had to become stronger.
Once those men and women left, Qin Zhuofeng hinted at Huo Qing and Cui Hao to make them leave as well.
Even though Huo Qing and Cui Hao had informed Qin Zhuofeng of the recent name carving, they weren’t the most outstanding of secluded disciples. Originally, they didn’t have much of a friendly relationship with Qin Zhuofeng, so they bade their farewells the moment they heard this order.
Those who remained were just Tianheng and Gu Zuo.
Qin Zhuofeng gave a warm smile to these two people: “This Qin has already heard about it. The ones who offered the psychic power technique were precisely you two. I ask that these two Junior Sect Brothers accept this Qin’s proprieties.”
After he finished speaking, he bowed and made a true salute to the two.
The feeling of gratitude in his words were also very sincere. It wasn’t hollow or pretentious at all.
Gu Zuo hastily jumped to the side: “Senior Sect Brother Qin, what are you doing this for? We’ve also exchanged for many good things! Otherwise, how could we have come to this place to cultivate?”
Tianheng also stepped aside in a flash: “Ah Zuo’s words are correct. Senior Sect Brother Qin, there’s no need to go this far.”
However, Qin Zhuofeng still carried out this act of propriety to the end.
Immediately following which, he sat down, and resumed that usual grand and stately bearing.
Tianheng and Gu Zuo also took their seats.
After pretending to slightly hesitate, Tianheng opened his mouth and asked: “Senior Sect Brother Qin, I have a question, and I wonder if I can request this senior to answer it?”
Qin Zhuofeng looked at Tianheng, and smiled as he said: “There’s no harm in speaking one’s mind.”
Tianheng paused: “That Heaven’s Eye Stone… What exactly is it?” He wore a smile on his face, “If I haven’t guessed wrongly, this senior’s fury is greatly related to those Heaven’s Eye Stones.”
Qin Zhuofeng also stopped. Shortly thereafter, he calmly nodded: “Junior Sect Brother Gongyi’s words are correct. Just as that junior said before, if what Chongyun Sect wanted was only fifty percent of the Profound Ley Lines, although it would indeed be costly, it also can’t be said that they’re shameless for offering a technique’s method that can subvert the cultivation of pharmacists. The true source of their shamelessness is really due to those Heaven’s Eye Stones.”
Gu Zuo held his breath as he listened.
He couldn’t imagine what a Heaven’s Eye Stone was at all!
Qin Zhuofeng didn’t keep them in suspense: “Heaven’s Eye Stones actually have nothing to do with cultivation. Normally, it would be considered an object of little interest, and it doesn’t have much use to us. Only, it also has a time when it’s absolutely indispensable — At the Roads of Death, which open once every three hundred years.”
Gu Zuo’s mind was tense.
A trace of radiance flashed through Tianheng’s eyes: “The Roads of Death?”
Qin Zhuofeng nodded and said: “You guys wouldn’t know. Above this world, countless continents are partitioned into eight regions. Apart from our Southern Expanse and Chongyun Sect’s Southeastern Expanse, there are still six more expanses. Each of them are based on the eight compass directions. And in the middle of these eight, surrounding expanses, there is a center. It isn’t an expanse. Rather, it’s a complete continent known as the Central Continent.”
Gu Zuo’s eyes gleamed.
The Central Continent. What kind of place was it?
Qin Zhuofeng continued to talk: “This is the history of the world’s origin. Legend has it that during the most ancient of ancient times, this world was once a unified landmass, and the ambient qi was incomparably abundant. There were countless inheritances of the path of martial arts, there were civilizations of unparalleled resplendence, and there were innumerable, heaven-sent geniuses. Mighty martial artists would abruptly rise with each passing generation. They would stir the wind and clouds, and raise unbelievably vast waves upon that landmass.
He continued: “At that time, countless, marvelous personages came and went one after another, leaving behind a myriad of legends — The present expanses simply can’t be compared to that time.”
Gu Zuo couldn’t help asking: “In that case, why is it split up now?”
Qin Zhuofeng revealed a fascinated expression, but within it, there seemed to be a faint trace of indiscernible dread: “They say…there was a natural disaster that engulfed the whole world, and shattered the landmass into pieces!”
A natural disaster!
The pupils of Gu Zuo’s eyes suddenly contracted.
What kind of natural disaster could be so powerful!?
Tianheng breathed slowly. Within his eyes, there was a strange light.
Qin Zhuofeng said: “Back then, the edges of the landmass crumbled piece by piece, forming chunks of smaller continents. As for the largest and centermost continent, it was retained. Later on, after many years had passed, what remained was probably half of the core zone of that ancient continent. This is the Central Continent. As for the numerous continental fragments that broke away, they formed independent continents. These continental fragments are called the Peripheral Continents.
“After the natural disaster, countless formidable energies were left over. Due to the existence of these energies, the Peripheral Continents were incapable of approaching the Central Continent. And because some energies survived in the spaces between various Peripheral Continents, they likewise floated independently. The energies were enormous in some regions and feeble in others, so the degrees of separation were also great and small. The continental fragments that could communicate relatively easily across smaller separations formed the expanses. As for the spaces between expanses, the separation was somewhat larger. This is the origin of the eight expanses.”
Gu Zuo remembered something.
There really was such a matter. Between the Cangyun Empire’s continent and the Qingyun Continent, there were lots of other continents. There were also barriers between these continents, but it was comparatively easy to pass through these barriers. As for the space between Chongyun Sect’s continent and this side’s continent, the barrier was relatively harder to traverse.
Qin Zhuofeng continued to talk: “And between the Peripheral Continents and the Central Continent — Yes, between the continental core and each of the continental fragments, that separation’s energy is unbelievably terrifying. Every three hundred years, there’s a period of weakening. During that period, some new pathways are opened up. Those pathways are the Roads of Death.”
The astonishment in Gu Zuo’s heart couldn’t be described.
Meanwhile, Tianheng glanced over: “Senior Sect Brother Qin, can the continents really be divided so neatly into eight expanses?”
Qin Zhuofeng gave a slight smile: “It isn’t really like this. The eight expanses are named after the compass directions, but the expanses just have to contain at least five or more continents. However, there are still some separated groups that have less than five continents. Those aren’t really expanses. Perhaps, they can be called minor expanses. Their strengths are even weaker. In the vicinity of the eight expanses, there are many minor expanses, but there are only four Roads of Death.”
Tianheng nodded his head: “In that case, each time the Roads of Death open, do we, the people of the various expanses, have the chance to enter that Central Continent? Is the reason why those Heaven’s Eye Stones are indispensable because they display an extremely important function on the Roads of Death?”
Qin Zhuofeng said with praise: “Sure enough, Junior Sect Brother Gongyi is smart. It’s precisely so.”
Following that, he seemed to have a far-away look.
“Back then, the landmass was split apart. However, the present Central Continent still retains an overwhelming majority of the landmass’s inheritances. Right now, it’s also a place whose resplendence has reached an extreme point. The geniuses we recognize here can only be called mediocre on the Central Continent. Perhaps, our exceptional people here can only raise a few waves over there!
“At that time, the Peripheral Continents lost all attachments to the landmass. The ambient qi of each continent gradually weakened, while the Central Continent still has resources that are frighteningly robust. Even the ambient qi gained from a single breath is countless times greater than in this place! The newborns over there have much better aptitudes than that of the people here, and the chosen talents over there are all far superior still!”
T/N: Thanks for the corrections, Charysa.
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