A Sect from a Spirit Vein

Chapter 114 - 104: Secret Passage in the Room

Seeing that everyone was silent, lost in thought, Master Xuan Ji chuckled, "Although I don’t have much talent, my experience is abundant. I’ve seen many such Qi Cultivation Minor Sects. Being adept at shifting allegiances is their secret to survival. With Bichao Mountain so near, if they don’t cling to Yunshan Sect, who else can they turn to? How can they ensure turning to others won’t result in them being swallowed directly? As long as Yunshan Sect remains powerful, they will remain docile. The indignation from having their Mountain Gate burned; they will swallow it willingly."

Lu Qian’s mind raced, carefully weighing the pros and cons, and he agreed with Master Xuan Ji’s perspective. Indeed, having the wisdom of the elders is invaluable.

He immediately nodded, "Elder Zhou’s approach is more suited to Yunshan Sect’s current situation. The reasons are threefold: First, as Elder Zhou mentioned, with Yunshan Sect occupying Bichao Mountain, the best survival strategy for Qingli Mountain and Liuhua Valley is to swallow their hatred and become our vassals. As long as we are willing to recruit and protect them, they will surely submit. As long as the people of those two sects are sane, they won’t risk extinction by choosing rebellion."

"Second, we presently lack the strength to hold two Spirit Veins. It’s better to let Qingli Mountain and Liuhua Valley guard the entrance for us. Third, exterminating these two sects yields minimal gain. These sects have already been thoroughly plundered last time, by leaving them, they can give us a little Annual Tribute each year."

"When Yunshan is strong enough in the future, we can decide their fate then."

Seeing that Lu Qian had made his decision, everyone naturally agreed.

"Let Senior Sister Qingfeng handle this matter. Just send a disciple with a command to the two sect leaders, demanding them to come to Bichao Mountain within twelve hours to forge the vassal contract. If they are not present when the time is up, destroy them immediately!"

Jiang Qingfeng’s gentle yet resilient character makes her an ideal choice for this. It’s expected that she won’t be overly aggressive, nor will she undermine the dignity of the Sect Leader, causing it to be underestimated.

Qingfeng naturally agreed.

Lu Qian hesitated a moment but ultimately did not speak further. Besides these eight matters, he also pondered another issue.

This was devising a strategy to find other disciples of the Yunshan Sect who were scattered.

At that time, the Quyang Wang Family launched a surprise attack on Yunshan. The Former Sect Leader was thrilled to see allies from Ziluo Mountain coming to aid, unbeknownst that Ziluo Mountain betrayed them at the front line, severely injuring the Former Sect Leader. The sect collapsed overnight, becoming tremendously chaotic. Among the escaping disciples, only about half followed Lu Qian, the new Sect Leader, while the others scattered, uncertain if they ultimately escaped death.

But the enemy’s main focus was on capturing the Sect Leader himself, thinking this through, despite other disciples’ bad luck, there should be at least a dozen who survived.

Now having established Yunshan anew, bringing these people back would ease operations significantly. But after repeated consideration, Lu Qian decided to postpone.

Searching for these disciples requires sending people across Qingzhou, which is currently impossible. If Yunshan’s re-establishment is announced widely in major marketplaces through notices, it’s sure to attract widespread attention. The two feuding families, Wang Family and Ziluo Mountain, would also learn of it.

It’s not that he fears them. Separated by state commandery, they are merely Foundation Establishment sects, each with only one Foundation Establishment master, posing a small threat. If they dared to come here, they would hardly be a match for Gu Niqiang.

However, open attacks are easy to avoid, but concealed schemes are hard to defend against. One doesn’t know what cunning tactics they might devise, and it could severely threaten the surviving disciples emerging. What’s paramount now is the establishment ceremony, requiring caution and prudence to avoid complications impacting its proceedings.

Thus Lu Qian plans to wait until the establishment ceremony officially takes place and Yunshan’s reestablishment is publicly announced, then allocate personnel for searching these disciples.

At present, all matters have been discussed and everyone has received their task, focusing around preparing for the establishment ceremony as the core objective, and commenced action.

Tan Hong and his wife were the first to leave, needing to quickly assemble personnel to patrol and execute the task of wiping out the remnants of the Chaosheng Sect. They also need to hurry in their cultivation, lest their Cultivation level fall behind.

Qingfeng Baitao and Lin Le also left, as their tasks are substantial and crucial to the sect’s operations, requiring meticulous handling.

Master Xuan Ji is still recovering, consuming Spiritual Medicine daily. He feels in good spirits and might recover within a year. Despite being unable to participate in any significant matters recently, he is nonetheless eager.

With urgency, he said, "Sect Leader, let’s start now, and draft a plan for Yunshan Sect’s operations."

Lu Qian naturally wished to hasten, carrying heavy responsibilities unyieldingly.

But just as he was about to speak, he suddenly felt dizzy, his ears buzzing, vision blurred, and even his breathing became labored.

He couldn’t hold on; his body was already too exhausted, unable to endure any longer.

A long day and night of intense planning, calculation, dispatching, fighting... others had rested briefly after the battle ended, but Lu Qian constantly schemed future plans, without closing his eyes.

The recent discussion was driven by his last burst of excitement; now, with a slight relaxation, things seemed unclear, his head splitting with pain, necessitating rest.

Seeing his pallid complexion, Master Xuan Ji quickly came over to support him. Recognizing time’s value and the inadmissibility of delay, Lu Qian hesitated a moment, still deciding to retrieve a Star Dew Nourishing Spirit Pill from his bosom, intending to take one to sustain a little longer.