Chapter 606 - 410: Continuous Action
"Great Cave Master, can you guarantee that the Celestial Cloud Sect’s next move will unfold as you expect? If it doesn’t, then once the Dragon Demon Palace is destroyed, your Black Ghost Cave will be the next to be wiped out.
The Demon Spirit Sect and the Celestial Demon Sect, which once bordered the Celestial Cloud Sect, have both been wiped out. It’ll be hard for your Black Ghost Cave to guarantee its own survival."
Lan Zhaifen’s meaning was crystal clear.
Of the influences now bordering the Celestial Cloud Sect, your Black Ghost Cave is the most likely one for them to target first.
After all, the conflict between your Black Ghost Cave and the Celestial Cloud Sect is the most profound.
"I believe the Celestial Cloud Sect’s decision-makers understand."
"That’s only what you’d like to believe." Lan Zhaifen sneered and continued, "The Celestial Cloud Sect’s overall power has grown, and so has their ambition. Dare you say there haven’t been major changes in their decision-making compared to the Celestial Cloud Sect of the past?
As for the consequences of wiping you out... they’ll deal with those after the fact. By the time the Celestial Cloud Sect pays the price for its inflated ambition, the Black Ghost Cave will be long gone."
Having said her piece, Lan Zhaifen fell silent, waiting for the Great Cave Master of Black Ghost Cave to make a decision.
There was merit to her words; this was the risk of leaving the Celestial Cloud Sect unchecked.
"I cannot decide this matter alone."
With that, the Great Cave Master summoned the other Cave Masters.
They engaged in a lengthy discussion.
Lan Zhaifen was not allowed to listen in. She was shown to a room to quietly await the results.
The wait was agonizing for Lan Zhaifen.
If the outcome was what she hoped for, the wait wouldn’t have been in vain. But if it wasn’t, all her efforts would have been for nothing.
"So, what did you all decide?" Lan Zhaifen asked immediately upon seeing the five Cave Masters emerge.
"We are willing to offer some support," the Second Cave Master replied.
Not a refusal to help, nor a promise of total support—just *some* support.
But how much, exactly, was "some" support?
That would be up to the Black Ghost Cave to decide.
Lan Zhaifen could only nod at his words.
Although it wasn’t the result she wanted, it was at least better than receiving no support at all.
The Black Ghost Cave had chosen the middle ground.
Lan Zhaifen didn’t linger at the Black Ghost Cave; she still had to make a trip to the Ghost-Controlling Sect.
When negotiating with the Ghost-Controlling Sect, she couldn’t use the same reasoning she had with the Black Ghost Cave.
She had to inform the Ghost-Controlling Sect that the Black Ghost Cave had promised some support, hoping it would compel them to do the same.
However, she planned to change the phrasing from "willing to offer some support" to "providing as much support as possible."
"As much as possible" was also subjective, but it conveyed a much stronger willingness to help than "some support."
...
...
「Celestial Cloud Sect.」
In the Alchemy Room of the Sect Leader’s manor.
Fang Yun was currently in the process of refining a Golden Core Pill.
This Golden Core Pill was for his own Celestial Cloud Sect; the last few times, he had been refining them for other sects.
’A Top-grade Golden Core Pill.’
As long as the Spirit Medicines were of decent quality, refining a Top-grade Golden Core Pill was now a simple matter for Fang Yun.
The last Golden Core Pill he had refined was also Top-grade. Now, the sect’s inventory had increased by two Top-grade Golden Core Pills.
Just as Fang Yun left the Alchemy Room, the door to a Cultivation Room swung open.
Song Qiaoqiao had clearly ended her cultivation session abruptly; she must have news for him.
"Husband, Ghost Head Castle has increased its support for the Dragon Demon Palace. While the Black Ghost Cave and the Ghost-Controlling Sect are keeping us occupied, they’re also sending aid to the Dragon Demon Palace, though their support is weaker than Ghost Head Castle’s."
Fang Yun wasn’t at all surprised that Ghost Head Castle was supporting the Dragon Demon Palace.
However, he had considered the possibility of the Black Ghost Cave and Ghost-Controlling Sect supporting the Dragon Demon Palace, though he had thought it was a small one.
"It seems the Black Ghost Cave and the Ghost-Controlling Sect are still defiant." Fang Yun smiled. ’My plan will need a slight adjustment.’
"For being Ghost Cultivator Influences, they’re certainly enthusiastic about supporting the Dragon Demon Palace," Song Qiaoqiao remarked wryly.
"They’re also afraid of meeting the same fate as the Celestial Demon Sect and the Demon Spirit Sect."
"Our Earth Realm is already large enough. They don’t stop to think—do we really need to eliminate Ghost Cultivators like them just to expand our Earth Realm?"
"Ghost Head Castle is almost certainly involved in the actions of the Black Ghost Cave and Ghost-Controlling Sect. We just need to respond as we normally would."
In Fang Yun’s eyes, the demise of the Dragon Demon Palace was already a foregone conclusion.
It was useless no matter how these three Ghost Cultivator Influences supported the Dragon Demon Palace.
For Fang Yun personally, the Ghost Cultivators’ support was actually beneficial.
For now, the Ghost Cultivators were only providing support with their Foundation Establishment Stage and Qi Refining Stage cultivators. But when his side deployed their Core Formation cultivators, they would likely deploy Core Formation Stage Ghost Cultivators in response.
Whether it was an Early-stage Core Formation Ghost Cultivator or an Early-stage Core Formation Demon, they both provided seven million base Talent Points. After the bonus multiplier, that became ninety-one million Talent Points.
「Less than an hour later.」
Both Song Qiaoqiao and Fang Yun went to cultivate.
Fang Yun already had an idea of how to slightly modify his plan.
He would take continuous action over the coming months.
His targets would be either Demon or Ghost Cultivator Foundation Establishment Influences.
Although his previous actions had been efficient, they had one downside: they hadn’t instilled enough fear into these Foundation Establishment Influences.
When he eliminated three Foundation Establishment Influences in a row, the others probably just considered themselves lucky that the mysterious Spirit Refiner hadn’t come for them.
The mysterious Spirit Refiner would go quiet for a period after making a move, and during that time, they could rest easy.
’But if I were to destroy only one Foundation Establishment Influence at a time, but do so continuously, then all of them would live on edge, constantly wondering if they would be the mysterious Spirit Refiner’s next target.’