Chapter 179 Call to Arms

The next two months passed rather uneventfully.

During this time, everyone in the Nine Suns Sect cultivated hard, spurred on by Lu Tianzi's recent success at the the Scarlet Moon Heroes Meet.

And while everyone was working hard, Lu Tianzi certainly did not slack off either.

On this day, Lu Tianzi slowly opened his eyes while he sat crossed legged in his room, finally ending a period of deep meditation.

In his inner world, the liquid Slaughter Essence flowing throughout had already become far denser and far more viscous than before. In fact, it had long surpassed the level of an Intermediate Essence Condensation realm martial artist!

He had broken through to the Advanced Essence Condensation realm a while ago, and was now focusing on consolidating his current cultivation.

At this moment, a message came in through his communication ring.

"This is a message from Scarlet Moon Palace. Nanlu Tianzi, you are to gather your combat gear and report to the lord of the nearest city within three days. If you fail to do so within the stipulated time, you will be regarded as having abandoned your duty."

Hearing the message to the end, Lu Tianzi let out a confident smile.

The tone in the message could have been more polite, but he did not think too much of it.

Back then during the Scarlet Moon Heroes Meet, the Scarlet Moon Overlord had announced that their Scarlet Moon Kingdom would be going to war against the Dragon Cauldron Kingdom in three months.

Now, three months had passed.

Thus, it was simple enough to guess what this matter was about.

That night, Lu Tianzi found himself in the front hall of the Nine Suns Sect, standing before Sect Master Nanhui and the various Elders, all of whom had solemn expressions on their faces.

Standing by his side were many of his peers from the Inner Sect.

Among them, Nanhuang Jiansheng and Nanlan Qianxue had received the same message that he did, requesting them to report to City Lord Nanlan within three days.

The three of them had previously agreed to join the upcoming war in order to gain the privilege of being allowed to cultivate in the Lifebrand Courtyard, and had left their communication marks with the Scarlet Moon Palace.

However, they were not the only ones intending to join the war.

Nancheng Shu, Nanqing Haowen, as well as many other Inner Sect members had also gathered here, heeding Sect Master Nanhui's request to see all who were interested.

Over the past two months, Lu Tianzi had been solely focused on cultivation, only spending a minority of his time reading up on the art of formations, mainly going through the information that could be found in the Nine Suns Sect's Pagoda of Wisdom and in the Heaven Constellations Inscription Tower's libraries.

Doing this had allowed him to fully appreciate the profoundness of what Formation Master Beimu had passed down to him.

Even with the two influences combined, the level of their research in this field was nowhere near that of the Beimu Clan!

It was no wonder that Formation Master Beimu was so highly regarded by the Scarlet Moon Overlord.

Due to his hermit-like lifestyle, this was also the first time that Lu Tianzi was seeing his peers in the past month.

With everyone gathered here today, Lu Tianzi was silently surprised to realise that he was not the only one who had managed to make a breakthrough over the past two months.

Nanlan Qianxue, befitting of her high martial talent, had already reached the Intermediate Essence Condensation realm after returning from the Scarlet Moon Heroes Meet. Thanks to the visit to the Lifebrand Courtyard, her comprehensions in the Law of Ice had also improved, albeit only by a slight amount.

But what was more surprising was that even Nanqing Haowen had broken through to the next level, reaching the same Intermediate Essence Condensation realm as Nanlan Qianxue!

Lu Tianzi believed that this was in large part due to the dark figure that was obediently sitting by Nanqing Haowen's side at the moment.

It was likely that he had obtained some benefits from formally contracting the Black Maned Shadow Lion, resulting in a slight boost to his cultivation level.

As for Nanhuang Jiansheng and Nancheng Shu, neither of them had managed to take the next step and break through to the next boundary.

However, what was of note was that there had been a drastic change in Nancheng Shu's disposition.

He was now far calmer, no longer as hot tempered as he was before.

This change did not occur over a long period of time, but had been triggered by a particular incident soon after their return from the capital.

This was no honourable incident.

His own blood brother, Nancheng Wei, had not only been forced to leave the Nine Suns Sect, but had also been exiled from Bluenight City.

The first portion was due to the unanimous decision of the Elders of the Nine Suns Sect, while the second portion was largely due to the judgement of society as a whole.

Having offended someone who later climbed to the position of the top ranker of the Scarlet Moon Heroes Meet, it was no surprise that Nancheng Wei had been directly shunned by every single influence within Bluenight City.

City Lord Nanlan did not explicitly pass the order for his exile, but as things were, there was no longer any future for him in the city.

In fact, after he left the Nine Suns Sect, even the Nancheng Family was quite uncomfortable with taking him back in. However, they had no choice but to do so in order to prevent straining their ties with his accomplished younger brother, Nancheng Shu.

Still, ostracised by even his family, Nancheng Wei realised there was no longer a place for him in Bluenight City.

Thus, he made the tough decision to put down everthing and leave the place that he had lived in his entire life, all in search of a new beginning.

After Nancheng Shu realised that his elder brother had left the city, he suddenly became a man of few words, creating much uneasiness for the people around him.

Even now, everyone was still struggling to adapt to this new Nancheng Shu.

Perhaps it was because they were not of the same sect, or perhaps it was because of Nanqing Haowen's close relationship with Lu Tianzi, but as opposed to Nancheng Wei, Nanqing Zhengxian had gotten away with a much lighter punishment.

Even then, the Nanqing Family had stil ordered Nanqing Zhengxian to kneel in front of the Nine Suns Sect for days, until Lu Tianzi finally relented and spoke out to forgive him on account of his elder brother.

To the current Lu Tianzi, someone like Nanqing Zhengxian could no longer enter his sights, and all Lu Tianzi wanted was to get rid of this annoyance.

After all, he had never truly suffered any disadvantages in the hands of Nanqing Zhengxian, and did not bear much of a grudge against him.

It was said that after hearing about this matter, Nancheng Shu simply brushed it off, as though he had never cared.

But could he really not care about it when his elder brother had suffered such a difference in treament?

Thinking about this matter, Lu Tianzi subconsciously stole a glance at Nancheng Shu, only to find that the latter was simply looking forward with a stoic expression.

"I believe that all of you have already made up your mind, but I have the responsibility to remind you once more," Sect Master Nanhui's voice instantly brought Lu Tianzi's attention back towards the front. "The Dragon Cauldron Kingdom is not to be trifled with, and its military might is no less than that of the Scarlet Moon Kingdom. Even though there will be great benefits to this, the risks are just as high, and you might even lose your lives. Considering this, are you really sure that you want to go through with this?"

"Yes, Sect Master!" everyone answered in unison.

Everyone who had gathered here knew exactly what they were signing up for, and were certainly not about to back down at this stage.

"I see," Sect Master Nanhui nodded before turning towards the Elders standing beside him. "What about you?"

This time, unlike the Scarlet Moon Heroes Meet, Origin Core realm martial artists were being called upon to join in on the war as well.

For these lofty existences that each had a lifespan of over a thousand years, even if they chose not to join in on the war, they could still live out the rest of their long lives in luxury and comfort.

On top of that, there was no doubt that the fight at the Origin Core level was going to be far more brutal than that at the Essence Condensation and Essence Building level.

As compared to the younger generation, they actually had far more to lose if they chose to risk their lives in the upcoming war!

Even so…

"I am willing to represent the sect!" Elder Diansheng stepped out before clasping his fist towards Sect Master Nanhui.

"I am willing to represent the sect as well!" Elder Mingxin stepped out as well.

Sect Master Nanhui nodded in approval.

Both of them were Third Cycle Origin Core realm martial artists, and would at least be able to hold their own against others at the same realm. Even if they were to be defeated, it should still be possible for them to escape from most opponents as long as they paid a corresponding price.

As for Sect Master Nanhui himself, he naturally was not intending to personally join in the war.

After all, he was already nearing the end of his lifespan, and with his weakening lifeforce, there was little hope for him to advance further in his cultivation level.

If he were to join the war, the risks would only far outstrip the benefits.

Moreover, should anything unfortunate ever befall him, what would become of the Nine Suns Sect?

"All right then. All of you should make full use of this time to discuss with each other and prepare whatever you need," Sect Master Nanhui advised. "Three days later, you will be following your Elder Diansheng and Elder Mingxin over to Bluenight Palace. If there is nothing else, you are hereby dismissed."

"Yes, Sect Master!"

After being dismissed, those of the younger generation promptly left the front hall, only to quickly reconvene in the open grounds outside.

"Congratulations on breaking through!" Lu Tianzi cheerfully addressed his two friends.

"Well, with Inscription Master Nanlu Tianzi setting the standards this high, we can't possibly let ourselves fall too far behind, can we?" Nanlan Qianxue grinned smugly.

"Haha, I haven't seen such a friendly expression on your face in a month. As expected, Brother Nanlu has a special charm to him that I cannot compare with!" Nanqing Haowen teased openly, earning him the irritated glare of the young lady.

As though he did not even notice it, Nanqing Haowen turned towards Lu Tianzi and continued. "In all seriousness, the upcoming war is not going to be a walk in the park. Do you have any sort of special plan?"

Upon hearing this, the other Inner Sect members immediately gathered closer.

What Nanqing Haowen just asked was exactly what they had wanted to know as well.

In the past months, Lu Tianzi's unprecedented achievements had not only earned him glorious fame throughout the kingdom.

Nearer to home, it had also long earned him a place in the hearts of the members of both the Inner Sect and the Outer Sect, all of whom acknowledging him as their unofficial leader.

After learning about his fight with Beihua Wanlei, even Nanhuang Jiansheng had no choice but to admit his inferiority.

Because of that, all of them were now curious about what this extreme genius had prepared for the upcoming war. If possible, they would certainly follow his example and do exactly as he did.

This was testament to the level of belief that they now had in him, almost to the extent of blind trust!

However, they were destined to be disappointed this time.

To Nanqing Haowen's question, Lu Tianzi merely smiled in response. "Even though we will certainly face dangers, I believe that it is not at the level that we are unable to deal with. As long as we heed the instructions of our Elders and prioritise our own safety over benefits, it should be more than enough to ensure that we return in one piece!"

Lu Tianzi's words were perfunctory in nature, but that was only to be expected.

After all, it was not as though he had anything special that he could impart to them in a short span of three days.

Lu Tianzi's hidden cards were all things that he had built up painstakingly over time, and not something that the rest of them could even hope to emulate.

Whatever else that could be done, such as preparing things like medicinal pills, the rest of them must have already done so.

Right now, all that remained was for them to fully exhibit the fruits of their years of cultivation!

Whether they survived or perished, or whether they managed to obtain any huge benefits, all of that could only be left up to their destiny!