Free Web NovelChapter 74: Chapter 74: Go to War
First was the Storage Bag’s capacity. It was a full ten cubic meters, far larger than Jiang Xu’s current two-cubic-meter bag.
Inside, the first thing he found was a small pile of Lower Grade Spirit Stones, about forty in all.
In addition, there were three Middle Grade Spirit Stones, whose spiritual pressure and qi purity far surpassed those of Lower Grade Spirit Stones!
And a piece of pure Primordial Magnet Iron, the size of a human head and weighing about a hundred pounds!
Primordial Magnet Iron was, after all, a Tier One Upper Grade spiritual material.
A hundred pounds was enough to serve as the main material for three Upper Grade magical artifacts!
The price of Upper Grade spiritual materials was determined by their rarity. frёewebnoѵēl.com
Primordial Magnet Iron was quite rare. A pound of the pure material went for about five Spirit Stones.
A piece this large was worth five hundred Spirit Stones!
Adding in the Spirit Stones and the value of the Storage Bag itself, the total haul had to be worth at least eight hundred Spirit Stones!
To Jiang Xu, who was currently without a single Spirit Stone, this was an absolute godsend!
’I work my fingers to the bone making Talismans, but in the end, it doesn’t pay nearly as much as looting one dead guy. This is ridiculous.’
Jiang Xu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, but he made a mental note of this.
’It doesn’t necessarily have to be money from the dead.’
’The Seeking Technique can also find things hidden by the living.’
...
"What did you say?!"
Qin Muxian’s face was ashen as he demanded in disbelief,
"Are you saying you only have about fifty disciples left on your side?! That’s impossible! We brought at least one hundred and twenty Qi Cultivation Middle Stage disciples with us, and they’re not the kind to die from a fall! How could we have lost so many!"
Dai Hong, the man in charge of leading the group to the Purple Profound Celestial Marketplace, spoke with a trembling voice. freewebnøvel.com
Every single person in the team under his charge was exceptionally valuable.
While not all of them had mastered one of the Hundred Skills of Cultivation,
anyone sent on a "cushy assignment" like this trip to the Purple Profound Celestial Marketplace either possessed a particular skill or had connections.
But now, after what the Three Sects had done,
his team was decimated—dead, maimed, or missing.
Only this small number of people remained.
Forget explaining this to the Sect Leader Zhenren;
even his fellow disciples would surely hate his guts.
Dai Hong gritted his teeth and snarled,
"Wind and Thunder Manor! Flame Dragon Stronghold! Cyan Island Valley! How dare you pull such a vile scheme! You’ve gone too far!!!"
Qin Muxian’s expression was grave.
"Elder Dai, it seems the Three Sects didn’t come here for the entry slots. From the moment I started fighting Jin Chong, I felt something was wrong. He clearly had no intention of fighting me seriously and was holding back. But whenever I tried to disengage, he would suddenly strike with full force, preventing me from getting away. It was obvious he was just trying to stall me."
"That’s right. It was the same situation on my end."
"This matter is now beyond our control. The only thing we can do is report to the Sect as quickly as possible and ask the Sect Leader to make a decision."
"Agreed!"
Qin Muxian and Dai Hong exchanged a glance, then each retrieved half of a Jade Disc from their Storage Bags. Working together, they cast a spell, merging the two halves into a single whole.
Once whole, the Jade Disc began to flicker faintly in the deep night, and a phantasmal image materialized before them.
It was the back of a figure, standing with his hands clasped behind him. The figure seemed to merge with the surrounding air, flickering in and out of view like a mirage in the night.
Yet, his presence was impossible to ignore. The figure’s back was as straight as a pine tree, and though it was only an image, they could feel a majestic and steady aura emanating from it.
Upon seeing the phantasm, the two Elders dared not tarry. They hurriedly bowed in salute and then recounted the entire incident from start to finish.
They left out no details, nor did they dare to shirk responsibility or embellish the facts in the slightest.
After they finished, the phantasm remained motionless for a long time. The two Elders held their bowing posture, not daring to move.
After a long while, the phantasm stirred. Though they could not see his face, they could feel a gaze that seemed to pierce through mountains and rivers, seeing all.
"Mere juniors dare to think they can lord over my Profound Origin Sect? If that’s the case, then we will go to war."
With that, the phantasm vanished. The Jade Disc split back into two halves and returned to the Elders’ hands.
"Elder Qin, I didn’t mishear that, did I?"
"Elder Dai, you heard him correctly."
Both Elders looked dazed.
"Their actions were vile, but is it really enough to start a war over?"
"I agree. We still have that Secret Realm to investigate. If a war breaks out, what happens to it?"
"The key question is, can our Profound Origin Sect even win against them?"
"Exactly. We’re facing three Sects. Our only chance is to convince the Purple Flower Palace to join us against them.
But due to their political stance, the Purple Flower Palace will only intervene if they’re directly provoked, or if either the Profound Origin Sect or the Celestial Blade Sect faces a major crisis.
They won’t lift a finger for a ’minor issue’ like the death of a hundred or two low-level disciples!"
"Right. The very foundation of the Purple Flower Palace’s power is maintaining close ties with all Sects. They won’t just tear up relations with another Sect over something so minor."
"Then what gives our Sect Leader the confidence to fight them? He can’t be planning to drag the Celestial Blade Sect into this, can he?"
"Haha, don’t be ridiculous. There’s no way he’d involve the Celestial Blade Sect..."
As he spoke, both Elders’ smiles froze on their faces.
"Unless...?"
"The Sect Leader... he’s planning to sacrifice himself?"
They looked at each other, and both saw the terror in the other’s eyes.
...
Now that he was suddenly rich, Jiang Xu couldn’t wait to go on a spending spree.
But just as he was about to head toward the Purple Profound Celestial Marketplace, a thought suddenly struck him.
’On the surface, I’m still just a Qi Cultivation Third Layer cultivator.
And while I’m confident my current Concealing Breath Spell can even fool a Foundation Establishment Elder...
...if I just show up completely unharmed after falling from that height and ask to rejoin the group...
...who would ever believe that!’
After some thought, Jiang Xu came to a helpless conclusion.
He would have to fall from the sky again, get seriously injured, and only then could he rejoin the group.
’I’ll also have to stop my Cangmu Skill from healing me too quickly... This is so difficult!’
Still, this approach had one advantage: it would explain why he ran off to the Marketplace instead of immediately rejoining the group.
’When the time comes, I’ll say that I got lucky when I fell. I landed in a river and was washed away. I was seriously injured, and as soon as I felt a bit better, I rushed to the Marketplace.’
Jiang Xu controlled his Ten Thousand Laws Gourd and flew toward the Purple Profound Celestial Marketplace.
’When I enter the Marketplace this time, I can’t reveal my identity prematurely, otherwise it’ll contradict my cover story.
I wonder if they sell any Magic Secret Techniques for altering one’s face and build in the Marketplace. An auxiliary magical artifact would work, too.
Combined with my Concealing Breath Spell, I’d be able to switch my identity in an instant.’
