Born with immortal seed

Chapter 546 No Negotiation
Bai Zichen dusted off his sleeves, his tone indifferent, as if he were treating a fellow disciple.

Shi Chengdong was furious and about to turn pale when he remembered the letters his friends from the Central Region had sent him in the past.

The sect my friend belongs to is a Nascent Soul sect that is entirely supported by him alone. During the war between the two races, hundreds of disciples were conscripted.

Over the years, they lost one Core Formation disciple and dozens of Foundation Establishment disciples.

They haven't forced him to personally participate, but every five years, Nascent Soul True Monarchs who don't go to the Jishui camp are required to hand over a top-grade spirit stone or other equivalent item.

This is an edict issued by the Moral Sect in conjunction with all the super sects, intended to subsidize the True Lords on the front lines.

This Nascent Soul cultivator felt that things would get even worse in the Central Region, so he wrote to Shi Chengdong to ask if there was any chance to prepare a backup plan in advance.

Finally, he casually mentioned that a powerful figure had emerged in your Northern Region, who had defeated the Great True Monarch with his sword.

However, there was no further news after that, and it's unclear whether it was just a fleeting moment or a result of the Five Phoenix Sword Sect's efforts to gain fame.

The name of the sword cultivator from the Northern Region mentioned by my old friend was none other than Bai Zichen.

Shi Chengdong was stared at by Bai Zichen's gentle and calm gaze, which was like a spring breeze, but there was a subtle but powerful pressure that made alarm bells ring in his heart.

"I have already sent a letter to Zheng'er, and he will arrive in Qishan next month... With the two of us working together, Qu Yang is nothing to worry about."

After considering his options, Shi Chengdong changed his approach and softened his tone.

"The Holy Lotus Sect has long lost the hearts of the people. When the time comes, the Qishan area will be pacified by issuing a proclamation, and normal life will be restored in less than a year or two."

"Has Yue Zheng already survived the Heavenly Tribulation?"

To be effective in such a situation, only a Nascent Soul True Monarch would suffice, and Bai Zichen quickly grasped the key.

"That's right. Three years ago, I borrowed territory in Zengguang Immortal City, became a True Monarch, manifested the heavenly rain, crossed the rainbow bridge, and displayed the three great Nascent Soul phenomena of blood and loyalty."

Many people witnessed Le Zheng's tribulation, and these details were not difficult to obtain. Shi Chengdong's candid recounting of these events also served as a form of intimidation.

Your Qingfeng Sect has two Nascent Soul True Monarchs, and our Tianli Sect is no less so.

This good news put him completely at ease, as he knew that even after his death, the sect could continue to thrive in the Northern Region.

Given Le Zheng's age, he still has a great future ahead of him. Under his leadership, the Tianli Sect will only develop even better.

"Congratulations, fellow Daoist. You have a worthy successor, and your lineage is secure."

Bai Zichen was not surprised by this. Le Zheng's cultivation level was similar to his at the time, and he was said to be the most suitable for the Confucian cultivation method, so it would be strange if he failed to transcend the Nascent Soul stage.

"But it's still too slow. You and I both know Qu Yang's condition. With the advantage of the terrain, are you really confident of a quick victory? Qishan is related to the land veins of twelve counties in Zhongzhou. If the earth shakes and the mountains tremble, it could very likely affect hundreds of millions of lives."

This statement is somewhat exaggerated, but it's not entirely without merit.

The Qishan spiritual vein stretches across hundreds of peaks, and many of the spiritual lands in the twelve prefectures trace their origins back to the mountains.

The continuous wars over the years have caused the spiritual veins to tremble constantly, and the chain reaction has led to a decrease in the concentration of spiritual energy in the surrounding area and a sharp drop in food production.

At the same time, the earth turned upside down, and after months of drought came torrential rains, with abnormal natural disasters occurring frequently.

Zhongzhou was originally known as the most prosperous region in Liang Kingdom, where there were no starving people on the roads and the old and young had someone to rely on.

Simply cultivate a piece of wasteland, plant the seeds bestowed by the immortals, and you can harvest more than ten bushels per acre without much care.

This is precisely why the Holy Lotus Sect is able to select the best of the best and choose a sufficient number of immortal seedlings every year.

But now, all of that has changed.

The Holy Lotus Sect, its branch sects, and its immortal cultivation families—this entire top-down system was disrupted.

Coupled with frequent natural disasters and countless treacherous cultivators, the land of abundance has become a barren wasteland.

The monks lived a hard life, not to mention the mortals below, whose homes were destroyed and who were displaced.

In the worst-hit areas, nine out of ten houses were empty, and apocalyptic scenes of people exchanging children to eat each other appeared.

When Bai Zichen arrived on his sword, he was horrified to see piles of white bones in the air and vultures pecking at the rotting corpses.

Even in the most difficult times, Montenegro will never allow its people to fall to this state.

Even if he didn't want to seize Qishan, this auspicious place, to use as his own training ground and a place to grow Azure Dragon Spirit Rice, he still had to take action to end this war.

"Qu Yang is only relying on that snow lotus; his true cultivation level hasn't even reached the Nascent Soul stage. External forces cannot last. This time, I've decided to sacrifice the scroll of the sage to completely kill him."

Shi Chengdong pointed to the scroll emitting a milky white light in the Tianli Sect's formation, but he was careful with his words and still did not make any guarantees.

Over the years, he and Qu Yang have faced off no less than five times, and each time they were evenly matched.

As long as he is on the summit of Qishan Mountain, Qu Yang can draw upon an inexhaustible source of Yuan energy, which, in terms of quantity alone, surpasses that of a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator like himself.

In addition, Qishan is the old lair of the Holy Lotus Sect, which has been established for ten thousand years. If you really want to break into the inside, you don't know how many restrictions and secret techniques are hidden there, making it extremely dangerous.

Even with an extra helper, Le Zheng had only been at the Nascent Soul stage for a few years, just consolidating his foundation and becoming familiar with the Nascent Soul realm.

He certainly didn't have time to learn some powerful supernatural abilities.

Fortunately, Le Zheng was different from others; he possessed thirty-six innate righteous energies within his body, and he used twelve of them in one go to overcome the Nascent Soul stage.

Adding the previous ones, there are eighteen left.

If he were willing to burn a wisp of innate righteous energy, Le Zheng could instantly elevate a rudimentary Confucian divine power to its perfect state.

Even if it only lasts for a short while, it's enough to reverse the entire battle.

Shi Chengdong had this idea in mind, but in a desperate situation, he had no choice but to use his talents in a way that was beneath him.

It's best to save all your innate vital energy and only use it for breaking through cultivation realms.

"The affairs of Liang Kingdom must ultimately be resolved by the people of Liang Kingdom... I have already said that this matter is of great importance, and I will not allow any further accidents to occur."

Bai Zichen repeated his request once again in an unyielding tone.

"Tomorrow, I will ascend Qishan. The Tianli Sect can simply observe from the sidelines. If I am defeated, you can continue your attack at your own pace. If I kill Qu Yang, the Holy Lotus Sect will have rendered a great service in destroying you, and you will receive half of the spoils from the treasury. The jurisdiction over the Qishan spiritual vein and Zhongzhou will belong to the Qingfeng Sect."

"Too deceiving!"

Shi Chengdong was furious and could no longer suppress his anger, glaring at her.

"Our sect has devoted countless efforts and sacrifices over the past century to conquering the Holy Lotus Sect. The resources invested are immeasurable. With just a casual remark, True Monarch Bai wants to take the two most lucrative spoils of war, and the third should be split in half. Don't you think that's a bit excessive?"

“I said, Liang Kingdom belongs to the people of Liang Kingdom… Only local cultivators would consider the interests of the lower-level cultivators and the general public. In the past hundred years, the Heavenly Principle Sect has been constantly waging war, yet it has never cared about the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of mortals. Even if you take Qishan, your sect has already started construction on another fourth-order spiritual vein. Which one will you focus on? Can you possibly be divided between two things and develop on both fronts?”

Bai Zichen completely ignored the furious Shi Chengdong and continued talking to himself.

"Qishan belongs to the Liang Kingdom cultivators and the Qingfeng Sect. There is no room for argument on that point."

For his own good, he needed to quickly end the war between the two sects, mobilize the Qingfeng Sect cultivators, rescue the refugees, and regulate the earth's veins.

For the sect, bringing Zhongzhou into its territory would multiply the Qingfeng Sect's potential several times over.

Which major sect of Nascent Soul cultivators doesn't have a province to support it, with hundreds of millions of people as its foundation?

Even a sect like the Azure Lotus Sword Sect, which takes an extreme elite route, has more than ten affiliated sects and hundreds of branch sword pavilions, with its talent pool covering the entire Central Region.

The Qingfeng Sect only has two prefectures on the surface, but the Black Mountain Range is equivalent to several prefectures in size. After eliminating the fourth-order great demons and continuously developing it, its value has exceeded that of many prefectures.

Apart from the fact that spirit stone veins are still scarce, other production has become unrelated to barrenness.

At its peak, Zhongzhou had a population of over 100 million in every prefecture, and crucially, it was home to numerous immortal cultivation families.

They may not be particularly powerful, but they have no shortage of basic spirit-testing artifacts and spirit-opening techniques. Ordinary relatives will have their disciples of the right age tested.

There are virtually no hidden talents; those with real talent will definitely stand out.

This virtuous cycle has led to an increasingly higher proportion of descendants of cultivators, resulting in a higher proportion of spiritual roots among their descendants compared to other states.

Many people with the five spiritual roots need seven or eight months to fully absorb the basic cultivation techniques into their bodies.

You might cultivate for a lifetime and still not break through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining.

Therefore, practicing one or two basic exercises to achieve the effect of strengthening the body and increasing energy is sufficient.

Once they grow up, they will give up the path of cultivation and honestly spend their time in the mortal world.

But with their immortal status and their ability to use tricks to fool people, they did quite well, at least enough to become wealthy men.

Once the Central Plains are absorbed into the Qingfeng Sect, it will usher in another period of rapid development, once again changing the landscape of sects.

Finally, for personal reasons, the Dongxuan Lushen Sword Scripture has extremely high requirements for spiritual energy, and it is even somewhat unusable on Flaming Mountain.

Moreover, with Ge Cang present, if the two Nascent Soul True Monarchs were on the mountain together, they probably wouldn't dare to fully unleash their energy to absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, for fear of affecting each other.

In particular, the Dongxuan Lushen Sword Scripture is extremely domineering. When refining the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, it is completely indiscriminate in its approach and will even take the initiative to forcibly demand it.

And that Azure Dragon Spirit Rice is related to how long it will take him to cultivate to the Nascent Soul stage.

In this era of great strife, chaos has already begun. In the past, Nascent Soul True Monarchs could say that they stood at the pinnacle of the cultivation world.

But nowadays, the Great True Lords are frequently making moves, and even Nascent Soul stage experts have taken action.

Without the combat power of a Nascent Soul cultivator, who dares to say they can definitely get through this safely?

Moreover, while the demon race might spare other human Nascent Soul cultivators like Bai Zichen, they would never forget about him.

The sooner one can advance to the late stage of the Nascent Soul realm, the sooner one will have the strength to fight against the old dragon of the Divine Transformation realm.

Every second counts.

The question of who owns Qishan may seem like a struggle for interests, but it is also a struggle of ideologies, a struggle for life and death, and a struggle for the ultimate truth.

Bai Zichen could not let go, nor dared to let go.

Is he really not afraid that I will mobilize the airships and set up an array to trap him here?
The idea sprouted in Shi Chengdong's mind, and like weeds, it quickly grew and became impossible to eradicate.

Three airships in formation, engaged in positional warfare, are no weaker than a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

With the sect's treasures behind him ready to be activated at any time, and a terrifyingly powerful secret treasure prepared for Qu Yang, it can be said that he is at the peak of his personal strength.

After much hesitation, I still didn't dare to make the decision to take action.

If the news from the Central Region is true, and Bai Zichen has already reached the level of a Great True Monarch, then taking the initiative to attack would be tantamount to courting death.

"With the addition of True Monarch Bai, the Holy Lotus Sect's treasury can receive 30%..."

Shi Chengdong backed down again, partly because he was unsure of Bai Zichen's strength, and partly because he did need help to deal with Qu Yang.

Qu Yang's cultivation all comes from the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus, making him mysterious and unpredictable, and impossible to guard against.

In their several encounters, whether it was a probing attack or a full-force attack, the outcome was always difficult to determine.

It always made him suspect that the other side was hiding their true strength, and that their actual power was far greater than what he had seen.

This conjecture came without any reason; it was merely the result of a seasoned Nascent Soul True Monarch's keen perception, who, out of caution, decided to recruit more people to join his group.

With three Nascent Soul True Monarchs of considerable skill working together to deal with Qu Yang, there's no doubt they'll succeed.

“I don’t want to haggle over this matter. You know very well that the Heavenly Principle Sect has no ability to govern two places across hundreds of thousands of miles. The Central Plains is of no value to you. The Holy Lotus Sect’s secret vault will be split in half. At the same time, I will allow the Heavenly Principle Sect to recruit disciples within the Central Plains once every ten years. The Azure Maple Sect shall not obstruct this.”

Bai Zichen's fingers lightly brushed across the Ziwei Xuanlei Sword, which had previously emitted a sword-like sound; the sword's sound was high-pitched and rapid.

"This is my last offer. If you don't agree, you will have another enemy outside of the Holy Lotus Sect."

"Our sect only needs to break through the Qishan Formation and deal with the bystanders. You can handle Qu Yang by yourself. We don't need to help you."

Two hundred years ago, the feeling of powerlessness that came over Shi Chengdong when the Five Phoenix Sword Sect seized his mountain's spiritual veins surged back into his heart, and he clenched his fists tightly.

The expression and attitude of the once dazzling Sword Lord of the Central Region, who suddenly disappeared not long after the Heavenly Principle Sect moved to the Northern Region, were similar that day.

With a flick of his five fingers, the Sword Lord of Withered Glory sent several sword lights into a cage that imprisoned Shi Chengdong for several hours without harming him.

This made him realize the gap between himself and the Five Phoenix Sword Sect, so he couldn't muster any resistance and obediently gave up the spiritual vein.

Faced with Bai Zichen's even more outrageous words, which remained calm and relentless even before he made a move, and his unyielding attitude of refusing any negotiations, Bai Zichen found himself in a dilemma.

He wanted to turn against them, but his intuition told him that even with the help of the sect disciples, they would still be no match for them.

"I have a word I keep... My promise should still have some value."

If even Qu Yang can't be dealt with, Bai Zichen believes that the Heavenly Principle Sect will not accept the agreement and will definitely have other ideas.

After all this fighting, the Holy Lotus Sect can only retain a limited number of valuable items.

The true essence lies in Qishan, a large fourth-order spiritual vein. Even if the mountain's production stops, it can mostly recover after a period of rest.

Furthermore, there have been rumors that the Holy Lotus Sect possesses a secret medicinal garden. If this is true, it would be tremendous good news for the Alchemy Hall of the Azure Maple Sect.

As for granting the Heavenly Principles Sect the qualification to recruit disciples in the Central Region, it would be a true failure if a local sect were less attractive to sects from other regions within its own territory.

The Heavenly Principles Sect can only recruit once every ten years, while the Azure Maple Sect can select promising talents at any time.

The truly outstanding disciples have already been selected, leaving only those who have been chosen several times over for the Heavenly Principle Sect, so the impact is minimal.

(End of this chapter)