Chapter 62: Chapter 58: Preparing for Battle, Progress
Upon the Battle Pact, a large seal was deeply red, its spiritual power not yet dispersed, emitting an overwhelming aura, vast like an abyss.
Upon seeing Gu Chunyang's resolute decision, Fang Lie's eyes flickered with a trace of suspicion, yet he did not hesitate. He stood up, took out the Sect Leader's grand seal, and affixed the seal to it.
"The Battle Pact is effective."
Ling Qi put away the Battle Pact and spoke indifferently, his expression aloof:
"Within three months, news shall spread through a hundred nations; a hundred days later, you are free to fight at will. You may recruit allies, but during this period, you shall not slaughter common folk without cause, nor raid or disturb other sects. If the Holy Land receives a complaint, it will intervene according to the law and punish each offense severely."
......
......
Gu Chunyang returned to the sect and informed all the elders about the content of the Battle Pact, naturally sparking a wave of discussion.
However, with Feng Qiyuan's prior statement, no one suggested a ceasefire. The more extensive discussions were about how to win this war or drag it out for decades or even centuries.
"Tai Xu Holy Land has no intention of mediating, pushing this war solely over the matter of High-Quality Immortal Bone, clearly intending to suppress our Phantom Spirit Sect. At this moment, we should thank our forefather's lingering protection, for leaving us a way out."
Eventually, Feng Qiyuan spoke up and made a decision:
"Open the Spirit Beast Garden. Cultivators in the Nourishing Power Realm may take Second Order Spirit Beasts, those in the Spirit Spring Realm may take Third Order Spirit Beasts, those in the Entry Dao Realm may take Fourth Order Spirit Beasts, and those in the Soul Condensing Realm... take as many Fourth Order Spirit Beasts as you can manage, and familiarize yourselves in advance."
......
......
The news of full-scale war with the Night Light Pavilion quickly spread throughout the entire Phantom Spirit Sect.
The younger Outer Sect Disciples, and even some of the Inner Sect true inheritors, were all eager to test their skills, sharpening their swords and honing their blades, unable to wait to demonstrate their capabilities.
Sect contributions, normally extremely difficult to obtain, requiring a great deal of time and effort to complete tasks.
But in war, everything changes. Merely by striking down an enemy, one earns achievements! Those are cultivation resources!
Most crucially, due to the blood feud, the sect was even willing to wage war against an opposing Immortal Sect, a stance sufficient to rally the disciples.
In the eyes of many disciples, behind Song Lingqing there was no noble house. Even though she was crippled and unable to cultivate further, the sect had not abandoned her but was still willing to avenge her and make a statement on her behalf.
This was the sect's protection of its disciples, hence the cohesion of everyone in Phantom Spirit Sect at this moment reached its peak over millennia.
Due to the strict laws of the Holy Land, friction among major sects was mostly kept to a minimal extent.
Looking back ten thousand years, other than minor conflicts between small schools and factions, no Immortal Sects had records of engaging in battles.
This was an unprecedented massive change, potentially affecting the lives and deaths of countless individuals, impacting numerous mortal realms.
Phantom Spirit Sect, after all, was a sect with tens of thousands of years of heritage; even now, despite a gap in its lineage, it still possessed astounding foundations.
Once news of the war preparations spread, the whole Phantom Spirit Sect, like an awakened beast, almost instantly entered a state of frenzied operation.
Supreme Elders, usually a rare sight, personally went into action, entering the Elixir Hall, the Artifact Refining Hall, and sealed themselves in the symbol towers to start mass production of elixirs, forging weapons, and making symbols.
Feng Qiyuan even personally took the initiative, gathering numerous disciples and elders, unabashedly began teaching the sect's secret records and life-saving techniques.
Near the Spiritual Spring at the center of the Phantom Spirit Mountain Range, originally the abode of the various Supreme Elders, was also commandeered during this crucial period, temporarily turning into vast medicinal fields.
Already, Supreme Elders had begun setting up Spirit Gathering Arrays, preparing to accelerate the maturation of Low-Grade Spirit Grass to supply the Elixir Hall, a visible preparation for a prolonged war.
The Pill Furnaces in the Elixir Hall were almost melting, the fires burning ceaselessly day and night. With such intense operations, the rate of elixir spoilage was much higher than usual, with batches of Waste Elixirs piling up like mountains.
These Supreme Elders, although they could not directly participate in the war, had other methods to sustain it, their very existence being the foundation.
On ordinary days, the Spirit Beast Garden, which saw no human activity, was now bustling, with a large number of spirit beasts emerging from the valley. There were spirit beasts of up to Fourth Order, originating from areas Chu Zheng normally couldn't access.
The lifespan of spirit beasts far exceeded that of cultivators. When not needed, they could even maintain a state of suspended animation, ceasing growth and simulating death. Within the Phantom Spirit Sect, there were more than one spirit beasts who had lived over ten thousand years, and this was the legacy of the ancestors.
Besides the Sect-Defending Divine Treasure, the Illusory Spirit Treasure Mirror, most of the Phantom Spirit Sect's strongest foundations were in this Spirit Beast Garden.
Chu Zheng was also compelled to get busy, and within just a few days, he had released most of the spirit beasts in his area.
Amidst the great changes, his mind began to stir. The chaotic spectacle offered little benefit to him, but equally, it offered no harm.
Inevitable battles and conflicts would lead to the damage of magic artifacts and weapons, and once his rank as a Repair Master was raised, he could repair a large number of lower-grade magic artifacts in a very short time.
The Nourishing Power Realm and Spirit Spring Realm cultivators were the main forces on the battlefield, which meant that Chu Zheng had the ability to influence the basic tactics of the battle.
The immense wealth contained within was beyond verbal estimation.
However, profiting from this war was not so straightforward and required deep consideration.
......
......
In the blink of an eye, more than a month had passed.
During this time, Fu Quanliang had delivered three batches of Waste Elixirs to Chu Zheng, each batch larger than the last, with at least several ten thousand pills each, requiring transport by cart.
Not wanting to draw attention, Fu Quanliang did not deliver these batches of Waste Elixirs directly to the Spirit Beast Garden, but hid them several tens of miles away in a mountain ravine.
Night and day, he ingested elixirs for cultivation, and his cultivation naturally improved rapidly. In just over a month, he had progressed to the Ninth Level of the Nourishing Power Realm.
He was extremely thorough in his considerations; in order to conceal his abnormal progression in cultivation, he even spent all his Contribution Points to obtain several bottles of Spirit Pills that could boost cultivation from the Elixir Hall, using them as a disguise.
Chu Zheng, too, devoted most of his energy to cultivation.
Even though Low-grade elixirs were not very effective for him, thanks to nature's spiritual energy, he still managed to enter the mid-stage of the Spirit Transformation Realm. His Yuan Qi surged several times over, and his Life Origin was once again extended.
With the increase in lifespan, his appearance subtly started to regenerate in reverse. The phenomena brought by his Dragon-Tiger Body began to settle down, and at a glance, he appeared to be a young man of about fifteen or sixteen.
......
......
Nightfall.
At midnight, the Phantom Spirit Sect was still a spectacle of divine lights everywhere, looking like a scene of fiery trees and silver flowers.
Outside the Spirit Beast Garden, in the mountain ravine, Fu Quanliang once again delivered a cart of Waste Elixirs, which he piled up inside an excavated cave.
"I'll bring the next batch in a few days,"
Fu Quanliang wiped his sweat, not daring to stay long, and turned to leave.
"Wait,"
Suddenly, Chu Zheng slightly furrowed his brow and reached out to press his hand on Fu Quanliang's shoulder.
[Fu Quanliang (Zeroth Order): Unstable foundation, damaged meridians, slight elixir poisoning in the body, repairable.]