I'll make you the furnace and the cauldron, so you can refine Yin and Yang and prove the Great

Before Chenshi (7-9 AM), the mountain gate square was already packed with people.

Hundreds of thousands of people.

Since the founding of the Hehuan Sect, this unprecedented sect-wide assembly has emptied the entire Five Peaks. Outer disciples, inner disciples, disciples from various peaks, disciples from various halls, those in seclusion, and those returning from travels—a dense, dark mass of people stretched from the center of the square all the way to the end of the mountain path, overflowing the sea of ​​clouds over the five peaks, and even the air was filled with a hot, excited buzz.

When the bell tolls twelve times, the entire clan must be present.

This is an ironclad rule etched into the bones of every disciple of the Hehuan Sect. Even those who are in seclusion trying to break through a bottleneck have no choice but to curse and leave their seclusion upon hearing the twelfth bell, flying wildly all the way.

At the forefront of the crowd, a group of core disciples whispered among themselves, discussing the matter.

"Twelve strikes... I've never heard of twelve strikes in the three hundred years since I joined the sect!"

"Who rang the bell? Have you heard?"

"It's him! Elder Li! Last night, someone saw Elder Li climb the bell tower!"

A disciple nearby couldn't help but interject, "Elder Li? He's only been a disciple for a few years, does he even deserve to be on the bell tower?"

Before he could finish speaking, his companion yanked his sleeve hard: "Shut up. Guess who gave him the incantation?"

The disciples exchanged glances, then tacitly lowered their voices.

Elder Li ringing the bell—then this bell wasn't rung by Elder Li, but by the sect leader.

An elder who has only been a disciple for a few decades, holding the sect leader's incantation, strikes the summoning bell that only the sect leader can strike—the meaning of this is all too clear: the sect leader is about to regain power.

Using the power of the Dao Integration, the earth-shattering sword strike, and the summoning bell that had been silent for a thousand years, she would declare to the entire sect and the council of elders: From this day forward, what will the Hehuan Sect be called?

-

On the high platform on the east side of the square, Li Hanshan stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the dark mass of people below with a bored expression.

Hundreds of thousands of people.

After watching for a while, he gradually began to understand what was going on.

The Hehuan Sect has far too many disciples. But out of these hundreds of thousands, how many are truly capable fighters?

His divine sense swept across the entire area like water, revealing that more than 70% were Qi Refining cultivators, a little over 20% were Foundation Establishment cultivators, less than half a percent were Golden Core cultivators, and as for those above the Nascent Soul stage, there were even fewer. It couldn't be counted in terms of percentages; at most, there were only a little over a thousand people, and the vast majority of them were in the early or mid-stages of the Nascent Soul stage, making them inconspicuous in the crowd.

Further investigation revealed that there were only a little over a hundred Nascent Soul cultivators and even fewer Void Refinement cultivators. That seemingly imposing aura, when broken down, was as thin as a sheet of paper.

"It looks scary, but it's all just for show," Li Hanshan thought to himself, shaking his head.

In a war against a behemoth like the Immortal Alliance, disciples at the Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment stages wouldn't even qualify as cannon fodder; only Golden Core cultivators are qualified to participate, Nascent Soul cultivators are considered backbone members, Deity Transformation cultivators are considered combat power, and Void Refining cultivators are worthy of deciding the outcome of local battles.

"No wonder the sect leader isn't in a hurry." He mused. "The Immortal Alliance has been besieging the Yinquan Sect for half a month but hasn't managed to take it down, which means their Nascent Soul and Void Refinement cultivators haven't been seriously injured. This battle is about high-end combat power; these lower-level people are just there to put on a show."

Of course, a grand spectacle also has its uses. The mobilization of hundreds of thousands of sect members, with spirit stones, pills, talismans, and flying boats, and the continuous flow of people on the logistics line, is itself a form of strength.

Just then, several streaks of light appeared one after another from the horizon.

First, five figures landed together on the other side of the platform—the Fifth Elder, dressed in a crimson long dress, landed at the front with a smile; behind her, the Seventh Elder, dressed in a plain long dress, nodded slightly; then, the Eighth Elder and several other elders took their seats in turn.

Their seating arrangement was very deliberate—perfectly positioned, directly facing the sect leader's main seat.

Li Hanshan saw it all and understood.

The Presbyterian Council has begun to split.

The Fifth Elder's stance has been clear since that day in the desolate mountain; the Seventh Elder's departure from the Elder Hall with the Fifth Elder was a pledge of allegiance; and the Eighth Elder took the initiative to congratulate the Sect Leader after the battle in the square, and has now completely sided with the Sect Leader.

These individuals have already publicly taken sides.

A tea table was set out on the high platform, with all kinds of spiritual fruits and celestial teas, yet no one touched it. Between the two tables was an empty stone platform, through which the wind passed, swirling the smoke from the incense burner to the left and right, like an invisible boundary.

Several more breaths passed.

boom--

An indescribable aura slowly pressed down from the horizon.

The clouds parted silently, and Elder Nie Hongyuan arrived, dressed in hemp robes and straw sandals, his hands clasped behind his back. Behind him, Elders Two, Three, Four, Six, and Nine followed in succession, landing on the other side of the plaza—separated from Elder Five and the others by the entire high platform, facing each other from afar.

The two groups of people took their seats, and neither of them spoke.

The hundreds of thousands of people in the square gradually quieted down, and you could hear a pin drop.

Li Hanshan stood in the center of the high platform, his gaze sweeping back and forth across the elders' seats on both sides, his mind filled with unease.

The Grand Elder didn't even utter a single word?

He deliberately stood in the most conspicuous position on this platform, just waiting for someone to jump out and question, "Why are you the one ringing the bell?" "Who gave you the authority?"—at that time, he could establish his authority once again.

As a result, after the elder took his seat, he closed his eyes slightly, as if he were in deep meditation, without even lifting his eyelids.

"This old bastard..." Li Hanshan narrowed his eyes, "Has he resigned himself to his fate?"

Not like.

Based on his understanding of Nie Hongyuan, this old fox who had been in charge of the Elders' Council for a thousand years would never bow down so easily. But the other party remained unmoved, refusing to respond no matter how he probed.

Silence is more troublesome than confrontation. Confrontation is like a knife, visible once drawn; silence is like a well, dark and murky, who knows what lies at the bottom.

"Interesting." Li Hanshan licked his lips, suppressing his doubts.