The Long Journey to Immortality

Two of the mountain lords of Jiulong Mountain also chuckled and flattered Master Xuyu, praising the future of Jiulong Mountain.

The Taoist Master stroked the spotless table, took another sip of tea, and then said, "Since everyone agrees, this matter is settled."

"This matter is not difficult, but it requires everyone's cooperation and concerted efforts..."

The Taoist priest assigned tasks and requirements to everyone.

The requirements weren't demanding; it mostly involved contributing manpower and effort. Naturally, no one dared to object to Jiulong Mountain's request at this time.

Thus, this matter, which could potentially affect the future stability of Dongzhou Prefecture, was completely settled under the guidance of the Taoist priest's words.

[Author's Note] In Zhejiang, it feels like autumn has passed before winter arrives.

Chapter 283 The Situation in the Eastern Continent

After assigning tasks to each faction and delivering supplies for Jiulong Mountain's "punishment" operation, Master Xuyu finally instructed, "Although today's events are not exactly confidential, please refrain from discussing them loudly outside."

These words were somewhat ambiguous, but any intelligent person could understand what the Taoist Master Xuyu meant.

Although cultivators dislike using schemes and tricks and act according to the circumstances, it doesn't mean they won't use some underhanded tactics at certain crucial moments.

The Taoist priest's words were a hint to everyone so that he could use some tricks.

He believed that after this secret meeting, some true and some false information would definitely be leaked to the outside world.

The three sects designated as targets for conquest will definitely receive advance notice.

Of course, Xuan Yu Temple will also learn of this matter in a few days.

Applying pressure in advance, in Xuyu Daoren's view, could help Jiulong Mountain resolve this matter sooner, and also allow him to see clearly which of the nearly fifty large and small cultivation forces in Dongzhou Prefecture were still firmly on the side of Xuanyu Temple, and which were already wavering, so that they could be completely won over without resorting to violent means such as conquest.

Sure enough, after the Daoist Xuyu finished speaking, the cultivators whispered among themselves and quickly understood what he meant.

Some of the smarter ones had already figured out how to complete this secret mission, and what true or false information to release to confuse the public.

Several other cultivators, skilled in social etiquette, quickly expressed their willingness to serve Jiulong Mountain.

In a peaceful atmosphere, the Taoist priest announced the end of the meeting.

The first to leave were two representatives of independent cultivators and many cultivators from small sects.

Next up was the hermit of Jinghu.

Before leaving, the Hermit of Mirror Lake pulled the Taoist Master Xuyu aside and whispered a few words to him. The Taoist Master Xuyu responded only with gestures, nodding and shaking his head.

No one clearly heard what the Hermit of Mirror Lake asked, but the Taoist Master Xuyu's answer obviously did not satisfy the Hermit of Mirror Lake.

The Taoist Master's friend left the council hall, looking worried.

After he left, the other four Golden Core cultivators from Nine Dragons Mountain also got up and left their seats.

Unlike the other monks who attended the secret meeting, they already knew the content of the meeting and what each of them should do in the final days before the start of the campaign.

Although they were all mountain lords, the First Mountain Lord, the Master of the Sect, Xuyu, gave his four colleagues ample respect.

He stood up, bowed, and said, "The future of Nine Dragons Mountain rests on your shoulders."

That's a bit of an exaggeration, but it's quite apt.

Three of the four mountain lords returned the greeting, while the third merely nodded and left first.

The Nine Dragons Mountain was not a monolithic entity. The mountain lord, who had once formed a mountain academy with the Tianwu Sect, was unhappy about this matter but had nowhere to vent his frustration, so he could only express his dissatisfaction through such actions.

The Taoist Master Xuyu didn't have any particular feelings about this; on the contrary, he was quite understanding.

Looking at the retreating figure of the mountain lord, Daoist Xuyu spoke again to comfort him, "I can understand Fellow Daoist Xinyue's feelings. If my Nine Dragons Mountain suddenly had a whim to attack the mortal Zhengyi Sect, I would be just as unhappy as Fellow Daoist Xinyue."

The Taoist Master Xuyu was the scholar mentioned by the scholar who had once communicated with Han Lu, who had studied at the Zhengyi School of Confucianism in the secular world.

Upon hearing this, the Crescent Moon Immortal stopped, sighed, and hesitated to speak.

After hesitating for a long time, he still said indifferently, "I will not let down the sect."

Having received this statement, Xu Yu Dao Ren was completely relieved.

He knew that Crescent Moon Immortal would not be perfunctory in this matter and would do his best for Jiulong Mountain.

After saying a few more polite words, the Taoist priest saw the four people off.

In the end, only the Taoist Master Xuyu and the cultivator from the Kunwu Taoist Sect remained in the council hall.

"May I ask your name, fellow cultivator?" Master Xuyu gestured to the seat next to him, indicating that the cultivator should sit down.

The cultivators of Kunwu Dao Sect were flattered and declined several times before finally obeying the instructions of Daoist Xuyu and sitting down.

"I am Luo Feichi of Kunwu Dao Sect, greetings to Master Xuyu Mountain."

Although the Kunwu Dao Sect has a prestigious name, it is only a second-rate sect in Dongzhou Prefecture.

The most powerful cultivators in the sect are Luo Feichi and his junior brother, both of whom are at the late Foundation Establishment stage and have not even reached the Pseudo-Core stage.

"Come, Fellow Daoist Luo, tell me about the conflict between your Kunwu Dao Sect and the Jingyue Sect." Daoist Xuyu took another sip of tea.

Upon hearing this, Luo Feichi immediately spoke up.

"About three months ago, my two disciples..."

Because of the difference in status and cultivation level, and because he rarely participated in such major events, Luo Feichi spoke cautiously, pausing after every few sentences to think.

He spoke for a full five minutes, though it was only a dozen or so sentences. He even summarized it at the end, as if afraid that he hadn't explained it clearly and that the Taoist priest hadn't understood.

After listening, Daoist Xuyu said, "The female cultivator from the Jingyue Sect slandered the disciple of the Kunwu Dao Sect and even injured her?"

"Yes," Luo Feichi said with a smile, "Two of my disciples broke their arms and it took them twenty days to recover after applying medicine."

"Has he been left with any disabilities?" the Taoist priest inquired.

Luo Feichi shook his head. "No, not at all."

Upon hearing this, the Taoist priest felt that using this as an excuse to start a war was not quite right.

It's like killing an entire family over a trivial matter; whether it succeeds or not, it will bring shame to Jiulong Mountain.

“This is not a very appropriate matter, but…” the Taoist priest instructed, “we can add fuel to the fire.”

“In that case,” said Daoist Xuyu, “I will write a letter, and Fellow Daoist Luo, please take it and help deliver it to the Jingyue Sect.”

"Repair a letter?"

“I’ll help you claim compensation from the Jingyue Sect,” the Taoist Xuyu explained. “Just ask the Jingyue Sect for 200,000 spirit stones. 100,000 spirit stones for an arm is a reasonable price.”

"This..." Luo Feichi's mind was still a little confused. "Even if the entire Jingyue Sect adds up all its resources, it probably wouldn't be enough for 100,000 spirit stones. How could they possibly afford to give 200,000?"

The Taoist priest was somewhat helpless. He was certain that Luo Feichi was indeed a blockhead and not a smart person.

"If they can't afford it, won't that give us an excuse to attack them?" After saying that, Daoist Xuyu said with a little impatience, "Alright, alright, this matter is settled. I will have my disciple send the letter to your room later. Just don't forget about this matter after you go back."

"As for the reward, Jiulong Mountain will not forget the contribution of Kunwu Dao Sect after the matter is accomplished."

Luo Feichi was stunned for a moment before he understood the crux of the matter.

"Your Excellency is truly talented; I have learned a great deal from you." Luo Feichi was overjoyed and rose to bow and bid farewell.

Chapter 284 Using Competition as Training

After honing her swordsmanship with Xiao Ran for three days, Han Lu gained less and less from each of their sparring matches.

On the last day, she even felt like she hadn't improved at all.

"Xiao Ran clearly put his heart and soul into teaching me, and his skill level is still far beyond mine, so why have I gained nothing?"

Having grown accustomed to her genius and the smooth path of cultivation, Han Lu felt helpless and unhappy about the situation.

It's difficult to go from extravagance to frugality, so Han Lu's feelings are perfectly normal.

Xiao Ran also noticed that Han Lu was stuck in a rut and gave her his advice based on his experience.

"Fairy Han, why don't you take some spirit stones and go to the fighting arena to find someone to fight a few rounds with?"

Xiao Ran felt that the reason his swordsmanship had improved by leaps and bounds was because he had experienced countless life-or-death battles.

Learning from books is never enough; one must put it into practice to truly understand.

Although Xiao Ran and Han Lu's comparison in the courtyard could be considered a haphazard practice, the effect of such practice was far inferior to a proper battle of wits.

Han Lu naturally knew that Xiao Ran's words made a lot of sense, but she was still somewhat unwilling to show her strength in the "dangerous place" of Jiulong Mountain.

Just as Han Lu was hesitating and struggling, Xiao Ran's next sentence enlightened her and made her no longer timid.

“Fairy Han, since you’re going to hone your sword skills anyway, and you have plenty of spirit stones in your storage bag, I think…” Xiao Ran suggested, “Why don’t you just use your spirit sword in the fighting arena? Consider it paying for a sparring partner, what do you think?”

The three-day contest in the courtyard gave Xiao Ran a general idea of ​​Han Lu's strength.

Although this assessment is far from Han Lu's true strength, or rather, far from the true strength of the True Spirit Han Lu, in Xiao Ran's opinion, if Han Lu were to go all out, she could easily win ten out of ten battles against other early Foundation Establishment cultivators on the gambling arena.

Therefore, by imposing some restrictions, Han Lu can feel the pressure during the battle, and also deepen her understanding of the "Point Technique" through repeated use.

Upon hearing this, Han Lu immediately realized that she had fallen into a fixed mindset.

"Yeah, there's no rule that I have to win every single battle in the gambling arena. To keep a low profile, I can just deliberately lose, right?"

Thinking of this, Han Lu agreed with Xiao Ran's suggestion, "Fellow Daoist Xiao, good idea, why don't we set off now? Let me go up to the dueling stage and try my skills?"

“Okay, I’ll watch from the sidelines. If I find anything you’re not doing well enough, I can give you some pointers.” Xiao Ran completely regarded himself as Han Lu’s mentor and took the initiative to assume responsibility.

Xiao Ran's words pleased Han Lu, so she naturally did not refuse.

After spending three days in the temporary gambling arena area of ​​Jiulong Mountain, Xiao Ran became a familiar face there.

Becoming a familiar face has both advantages and disadvantages.

When Han Lu arrived at this place, many people took the initiative to greet Xiao Ran, a master who had made a name for himself in the past three days.

The downside was that when Xiao Ran, who had gained a false reputation, went on stage several times to initiate another duel, no one would accept the challenge.

When Xiao Ran stands beside a certain arena, many late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators who believe they cannot defeat him will voluntarily avoid his sharp edge and not step onto the stage, giving Xiao Ran a reason to initiate a duel challenge.

Thus, Xiao Ran, who already possessed over two thousand spirit stones, realized that his path to wealth in Jiulong Mountain had come to an end.

He only planned to leave this place after being eliminated in the competition at Jiulong Mountain in the next few days, claiming the reward, and then find a suitable place to try to advance to the Core Formation stage.

With Xiao Ran, an experienced driver, leading the way, Han Lu easily found her first opponent with ten spirit stones as the stake.

The difference in wealth between a cultivator in the early stages of Foundation Establishment and one in the later stages is enormous, making ten spirit stones a suitable stake.