Nine Evolutions of the True Spirit
chapter-85

Everyone was sad when they heard of Enlightened Master Xuan-Yong’s death.

Since he knew he had no hopes of advancing into the Mid Core Forging Realm, Enlightened Master Xuan-Yong had spent the rest of his life taking care of and nurturing the side hall disciples. He had been in charge of the side hall for over 150 years. When Master Immortal Liu was a side hall disciple, Enlightened Master Xuan-Yong was already the dean.

Enlightened Master Xuan-Yong was approachable, and many young cultivators had received his guidance before. He enjoyed a high reputation among the disciples that came out from the side hall. Over the years, some disciples that he had taught had become Core Forging Enlightened Masters like himself.

Lu Ping had also received Enlightened Master Xuan-Yong’s guidance. He had even instructed his student, Wu Zi-Niu, to accompany Lu Ping to Tian Ling Mountain.

Lu Ping asked about the casualties among the Blood Condensation Realm. Master Immortal Liu was silent for a moment before replying, “Among the seven hundred disciples present, more than two hundred died, and half of those remaining are injured. And this is after Xuan Hua Island sent two hundred disciples to help. Without those reinforcements, the number of casualties would definitely be higher.”

Lu Ping knew Xuan Hua Island’s timely aid had also been arranged by the sect, so he didn’t dwell any deeper on the topic. He then asked about Xuan Ling Sect’s casualties.

Master Immortal Liu stated that he didn’t know the exact figure, but it was said that more than three hundred—out of roughly five hundred—Xuan Ling disciples had died.

After all, Xuan Ling Sect definitely wouldn’t announce the precise number. Even if it did, the numbers would surely be reduced by at least half or more. Any other report would only damage the sect’s morale.

Shi Lingling was excited and proud to report to Master Immortal Liu about the group’s achievements of killing six Blood Condensation monsters. The only dissatisfaction she had was that they were all in the Early Blood Condensation Realm.

Then, she complained to Master Immortal Liu that Lu Ping wouldn’t allow them to join the center of the battlefield. Because of that, they could only roam around the perimeter and kill another dozen Blood Refining monsters.

Lu Ping exchanged more than 2,000 spirit stones for the skin and blood of these monsters, surprising the group with his wealth. And since Lu Ping bought most of the valuable parts, the rest of the group distributed the remaining parts that weren’t worth much.

As everyone knew Shi Lingling’s character, no one took her words to heart and they all just smiled or laughed happily. After they were done playing around, Master Immortal Liu’s expression turned serious and he said, “Lu Ping made the right decision. Cultivators in the Mid and Late Blood Condensation Realm are more than you can contend with. Not to mention that two of you are still in the Blood Refining Realm. And Lu Ping earned his wealth with his own capability. If you are envious about it, you must learn from him.”

Yao Yong asked what the North Ocean’s situation would be like moving ahead. Master Immortal Liu seemed to consider this question earnestly. After some time he replied, “The North Ocean Alliance must remain unified. Most likely, we will reach a truce with Xuan Ling Sect. Furthermore, the monster race has just launched an invasion.

“The call to rally together against the monster race will be heard soon. As the two strongest sects, neither Zhen Ling Sect nor Xuan Ling Sect will gain anything from continuing the war. There are other strong sects nearby, so wouldn’t both sects suffer if a third party took advantage of our impaired forces?

“Even so, small conflicts and arguments between the sects’ disciples will never stop. Petty schemes and hidden traps will not be uncommon. You all need to be careful about that. Even if you must work with Xuan Ling disciples to fight the monsters, be sure not to fully give them your trust. Always stay vigilant and watch your backs.”

…

The situation in the North Ocean developed as Master Immortal Liu had predicted. Xuan Hua Island and Xuan Qi Island both bordered the human and monster territories. In the following days, there were no battles between the sects anymore and peace was maintained.

The number of cultivators on both islands continued to rise as the days went by. There were Zhen Ling Sect disciples, Yu Jian Sect disciples, Lin Hai Pavillion disciples, Wu Liang Sect disciples, and a large number of rogue cultivators.

Another month later, Hu Lili, who successfully broke through to the Blood Condensation Realm returned to Xuan Qi Island. Her return effectively expanded the group of seven to eight members. At the same time, she also brought them two pieces of news.

The first was about the monster race’s invasion. The monsters had not only marched into Xuan Qi Island’s waters, but also other human seas that bordered their territory. Both humans and monsters suffered heavy losses.

In every battlefield, both human Core Forging Enlightened Masters and monster Core Forging Palace Masters had fallen. The most heated confrontation was on the seas surrounding Xuan Qi Island that involved Zhen Ling Sect, Xuan Ling Sect, and the monster race. A total of nine Core Forging experts lost their lives and ten more were severely wounded.

She then relayed news about the North Ocean Alliance. The North Ocean human sects agreed to stop all internal fights and unite together against the monster invasion. Every sect were required to dispatch disciples to eliminate all monsters seen at the border of the monster territory. Additionally, any spoils from battle would be theirs to keep.

It was then Lu Ping and the rest understood why so many disciples from other sects and rogue cultivators had come to Xuan Qi Island recently.

Sure enough, their sect gave the order two days later. The sect disciples were to stop all disputes with the Xuan Ling disciples and work together to defend the border from the monster invasion.

With that said, island disciples on duty like Lu Ping, Yao Yong, Du Feng, and the rest could at last return to their mini islands safely. At the same time, the initial Blood Refining island disciples were replaced by Blood Condensation island disciples.

Because Lu Ping’s Huang Li Island was close to Xuan Ling Sect and the monster race, Zhen Ling Sect intended to make it a leading operating site. Therefore, a team of cultivators including Lu Ping returned to the island. The team was led by a Late Blood Condensation disciple and consisted of three at Mid Blood Condensation, six at Early Blood Condensation, and thirty Blood Refining disciples.

Lu Ping was also considered one of the six Early Blood Condensation disciples. For some reason, Hu Lili requested to also join the team and follow them to Huang Li Island.

Lin Sheng, who was somehow still alive, was also one of the six. During the outbreak of the war, he returned to his clan to prepare for his breakthrough to the Blood Condensation Realm. Hence, another disciple was sent to replace him on Huang Yu Island, and this was the unfortunate soul that ended up killed by the Xuan Ling disciples.

After breaking through to the Blood Condensation Realm, Lin Sheng was instructed by his clan to join the team in the leading operating site.

Lu Ping couldn’t help remembering the old saying: “The good always die young, but the bad lives long.”

After some thought, Lu Ping suddenly understood why Hu Lili and Lin Sheng had requested to join the team. It was all because of Huang Li Island’s strategic location.

Xuan Qi Island was definitely the logistics base for any confrontation with the monster race, and Huang Li Island was its leading operating site. It would naturally attract a large number of cultivators.

It was predicted that once this war between the races starts, the large number of cultivators on the islands would earn a huge sum of wealth and resources. Huang Li Island would become prosperous in no time. The two of them had clearly come for the resources.

Lu Ping thought for a while—he would have to make preparations beforehand to share a piece of the fortune.

Right now, the most urgent thing for Lu Ping was to move the two mini spirit veins to his cave-dwelling. After all, a long delay causes many troubles.

He also had to improve his power as soon as possible. If a large number of cultivators were to gather on the island, there would naturally be more conflicts and troubles he would have to settle. If he wasn’t strong enough, how could he suppress these cultivators.

Despite having a Late Blood Condensation disciple in the team, Lu Ping’s cave-dwelling was here on the island. He had always seen this place as his territory. Furthermore, he was still planning to move two mini spirit veins to the island. It would be a lot more troublesome if the team found out about his plan.