Chapter 411: Reverend Huo Yan (1)

Chapter 411: Reverend Huo Yan (1)

“He killed a Golden Core cultivator in his early twenties? How did he do it?” A black-armored youth seated at the edge of the gathering asked, his tone icy cold. Nêww chapters will be fully updated at novelhall.com

The crowd of elders turned toward the silver-robed elder, their faces mirroring their shock. This was beyond their imagination.

“We intercepted the expedition team from the Middle Land. Sect Elder Mo eliminated three and interrogated the last. However, he refused to budge, and we’ve yet to pry open his lips. Sect Elder Mo is currently on his way back.” The silver-robed elder spoke in a grave tone.

“The information we’ve gathered is solely from the jade slips and books found in their storage artifacts.”

“According to their historical records, we know that Wu Yuan, a peerless genius from the Middle Land, killed the founding emperor of the Jin Empire, a Golden Core cultivator, twenty-eight years ago. Furthermore, Wu Yuan has several Golden Core cultivators as his subordinates.”

“Subsequently, he unified the Middle Land, founding the Wu Empire. All immortal cultivators in the Middle Land are required to swear fealty to him and join the Middle Land Guard, which is a unified force.”

“The Middle Land's total population is close to ten billion, as for the specifics about their powerhouses, the qi refiner is still keeping silent, so we can’t extract any information for now,” the silver-robed elderly man shook his head.

Everyone listened in silence.

“The ability to kill a Golden Core at twenty, even if just a first-stage Golden Core cultivator, proves his monstrous talent,” the black-armored youth said calmly. "If we estimate his rate of progress, he should currently be at the third-stage Golden Core phase. There's a fifty percent chance he's at the mid-stage Golden Core phase." [1]

"As for him reaching the late-stage Golden Core phase? The odds are slim."

Many elders nodded in agreement. Progressing through each stage of the Golden Core phase was not easy. The mere accumulation of mana took up a great deal of time for an average Golden Core cultivator.

A mid-stage Golden Core cultivator was already incredibly powerful. To reach the fourth-stage (mid-stage) Golden Core phase, one had to reach the Domain stage of Dao comprehension. This was a difficult hurdle for many Golden Core cultivators.

In the entirety of the Huoyan Sect, there were thirty-five Golden Core elders, but only twelve had reached or surpassed the mid-stage Golden Core phase. As for the late-stage Golden Core phase? Only four achieved it.

“You can’t calculate his strength based on the normal progression rate,” the silver-robed sect leader of the Huoyan sect scanned the crowd of elders from the host seat. “According to the current intel, the ruins of an ancient sect have likely been uncovered in the Middle Land."

“What?”

"Ruins of an ancient sect?"

"Is that true?" Astonishment filled the eyes of the previously calm Golden Core elders.

They all knew what uncovering the ruins of an ancient sect implied.

"Sect leader, could you elaborate?" The white-robed Elder Yun asked.

"The civilization in the Middle Land is strong. Accounting for population ratio, the number of immortal cultivators born on this island is close to half that of our Summerpeak mainland," the elder in silver robes said.

Waving his hand, a light screen appeared, displaying densely packed lines of text. "This is all the information collected by Sect Elder Mo. You can take a closer look."

The elders immediately noticed how detailed the information was.

"These immortal cultivators carry Spirit Nurturing Pills? And they know specialized pill refining techniques? How is that possible?"

"They even have teachings that can be cultivated all the way to the Amethyst Cradle level? It would take an Amethyst Cradle Reverend to create such teachings, right?"

"They have specialized battle talismans crafted in the Golden Core phase. But how did they research this in such a short time?"

"Inconceivable."

"Preliminary deductions suggest that the Middle Land civilization's equipment forging, pill refining, and talisman crafting standards are at least on par with our three great sects, if not stronger."

"I’ve just browsed through our previous reports on the Middle Land civilization in the library. A thousand years ago, my Huoyan Sect and the Starcom Consortium arrived at the Middle Land via a channel in Huang Island. Very few qi refiners were present then. Yet, they were able to prosper to such a degree in just a thousand years? It doesn't make sense."

"Given the limited territorial area and sparse population, such rapid progress is illogical," the Golden Core elders discussed among themselves, quickly reaching a consensus.

Right from the beginning, Wu Yuan adhered to his master's suggestion: treat the qi refiner self and the body refiner self as two separate individuals.

Only by keeping their connection a secret could each of his true selves play their roles more effectively in the future.

It was just like how some great beings with two true selves joined two different super factions. Yet even after billions of years, no one knew that they had another true self.

The powerhouses of the Huoyan Sect, however, had no interaction with the Redmoon Immortal Continent. Moreover, the Spiritless Regions had only dissipated recently.

Unless Wu Yuan's body refiner self also left the Middle Land, such a possibility would never occur to them.

...

After some time, the elderly man in silver robes presented the huge quantity of intelligence collected to the elders present, allowing them to gain a deeper understanding of the Middle Land.

Two hours later.

“Fellow Elders, based on our present intelligence, the overall strength of Middle Land civilization is estimated to be equivalent to a second-rate faction on the continent." the silver-robe elderly man stated.

The gathered elders listened attentively.

The three great sects ruled over the Summerpeak mainland, while numerous islands that dotted the oceans surrounding the mainland were the territories of demonic beasts and several smaller factions.

These factions, all led by loose Golden Core cultivators, were hard to eradicate unless the sect ancestors made their move.

As the three great immortal sects checked and balanced each other, these second-rate sects were able to continue existing.

"There is a ninety percent chance that the Middle Land civilization has unearthed the ruins of an ancient sect."

"They possess large quantities of precious spirit equipment, possibly even third-grade spirit equipment." The elderly man in the silver robe continued, "At least, they have a fair quantity of ethercrystal and numerous teachings."

"Teachings are crucial," the elder in silver robes stated solemnly, "If our Huoyan Sect wishes to surpass the other two great immortal sects, we must build a stronger foundation."

The accumulation of teachings was of utmost importance to any immortal path civilization.

"The Middle Land civilization has produced at least a hundred Qi Sea cultivators, and at least three Golden Core cultivators," the elderly man in silver robes continued. "If we capture them all, the issue of the Bloodforge quota shortage would be partially solved."

Many Golden Core cultivators nodded in agreement.

The higher world demanded a total of a thousand Qi Sea cultivators and thirty Golden Core cultivators.

The quota set for the Huoyan Sect was three hundred Qi Sea cultivators and ten Golden Core cultivators. The Middle Land civilization alone could already fill a third of the quota.

"Now, there are three possible plans we can choose from. The first plan is assimilation," declared the elderly man in silver robes. "The Middle Land’s territory is one-tenth of our Huoyan Sect's. It’s not too small, and home to billions of living beings."

"Moreover, it has decent overall strength, so we can attempt to cooperate with them, integrate the Middle Land into our Huoyan Sect, and grant Wu Yuan the position of sect elder."

"In this way, without resorting to force, we can acquire all of Middle Land, and even all the treasures from the ruins of the ancient sect."

The elders fell into a pensive silence.

"Sect Leader, cooperation is not a bad idea," the young man in black armor shook his head. "But how big is Wu Yuan’s appetite? Will he be satisfied? Forget everything else, would Wu Yuan be willing to hand over the ancient sect’s relics?"

"Moreover, after we establish a cooperative relationship, will we still send immortal cultivators from the Middle Land to participate in the Bloodforge?"

"Finally, with Wu Yuan's talent, will he turn the tables on us once he grows stronger and assimilate our Huoyan Sect instead?" the young man in black armor fired off his concerns in one breath.

1. mid-stage = fourth to sixth-stage, late-stage = seventh to ninth-stage ☜