Talent

"Sect Master, the sky-patrol warship of the Wuji Astral Palace has sent a warning... claiming that we stole advanced technology from the Wuji Astral Palace, and stating... as long as they can take away the person who stole the technology, they will withdraw..." The spirit refining disciple responsible for communications reported. Yet before he could finish, Zhao Siliang cut him off without hesitation: "This matter shall not be mentioned again!" He added emphatically, "This is merely a psychological ploy by the enemy! If our Nine Cauldrons Sect cannot even protect the talents within our own sect, wouldn't that chill the hearts of all our loyal disciples?! Furthermore, do you truly believe they will withdraw once we hand over our people?! The Wuji Astral Palace respects only strength and disdains weakness! The softer you appear, the more brazenly they will push their advantage!" The disciple fell silent at once. He understood this reasoning as well. Yet... Apart from this, he honestly knew of no other way to preserve Longxiang City. Or perhaps... to preserve the entire Jiuxiao Domain. The Nine Cauldrons Sect's territory was simply too vast. The sect's strongest fighters—the Sword Bearers, who alone had the power to counter a sky-patrol warship—could not possibly reach the Jiuxiao Domain battlefield in time. By the time they arrived, the enemy would have already achieved their objectives and retreated with ease. "Zhao He," Zhao Siliang spoke into a communication channel, "Can you not even breach a single layer of their formations?" "Our flying sword formations cannot get anywhere near the sky-patrol warship... The moment we approach, the sword formation is suppressed and shattered. Without flying swords to spearhead the assault, dispersed energy spells alone cannot penetrate the warship's defensive formations at all." Zhao He sounded utterly helpless. At the end, he added, "Breaching even a single layer of their formations will take at least ten minutes. To pose a threat to the hull of the sky-patrol warship itself... would require at least five hours." Five hours... That was more than enough time for the enemy to pack up and loot everything in the Zixiao Institute and Longxiang City, leaving nothing behind. And that was assuming the enemy only intercepted attacks without retaliating. If they struck back to whittle down their forces... There was no fighting this battle. The strength of a single domain simply could not stand against a sky-patrol warship. Perhaps only the combined might of five, or even ten domains, would be qualified to contend against a single sky-patrol warship of the Wuji Astral Palace! Zhao Siliang took a deep breath. Looking drained, he turned to another disciple: "Connect me to the Sect Master." ... Above the nine heavens. Within the First Heavenly Palace. Li Qingshan's illusory projection appeared before a man who appeared to be only around thirty years of age, yet had graying temples. This was... A figure whom any Great Cultivator across the entire Cangwu Great World would instantly recognize upon seeing him. The Supreme Elder of the Nine Cauldrons Sect, one of the supreme powerhouses of the current age, a world-stabilizing existence who had condensed a Radiant Sun Golden Core—Li Hanqiu! Though he shared the surname Li with Li Qingshan, there was no blood relation between them. At this moment, within this hall only a hundred meters wide, yet covered in formation patterns across the floor, walls, and ceiling, a voice echoed: "A large wild elephant requires half a ton of food daily. A hundred-meter-tall, hundred-thousand-ton Rank Three Star Lord demon god body consumes the energy of one spirit stone daily for ordinary activities, and three spirit stones to maintain basic cultivation. A major battle easily burns through energy equivalent to tens of spirit stones, while a Foundation Establishment cultivator burns twice that amount." The Golden Core True Person said calmly, "The internal structures of us Golden Cores are inherently volatile. Merely maintaining a base state burns ten thousand spirit stones a day. If I am to make a move, I must circulate the Golden Core within me. Setting aside the risk of losing control when reactivating the Golden Core, do you know how many spirit stones are consumed by this single surge and settling?" "I do," Li Qingshan replied solemnly, "A million at minimum." "Then, is he worth it?" "He is worth it." Li Qingshan bowed deeply to the man. "I implore Granduncle-Master to take action." And Li Hanqiu... His gaze rested for a moment on this Sect Master, who had served conscientiously without the slightest lapse for eighty years. Without asking about the process, nor the reasons. He simply uttered a single word: "Very well." ... On the other side. Inside the central palace of Longxiang City. Everyone—including Longxiang City's City Lord Luo Yunhai, Qin Yi, and the other Star Lords guarding Yaoguang—stared at the display screen, watching the sky-patrol warship remain entirely undamaged beneath the relentless bombardment of sword light and spells. For a long time, no one spoke. Without exception, their faces were etched with deep frustration and chilling helplessness. Seventeen years ago, the Wuji Astral Palace's destruction of the Liusha Sect had already sent shockwaves through the Nine Cauldrons Sect. Back then, the overwhelming power the Wuji Astral Palace displayed in crushing the Liusha Sect was nothing short of devastating, forcing everyone to recognize and acknowledge their terrifying might. Even the exceedingly formidable Northern Alliance, led by the Myriad Beasts Sect, lost the will to resist the Wuji Astral Palace after witnessing the power displayed in that battle, ultimately disintegrating. As for the Nine Cauldrons Sect... Their strength was essentially on par with the Liusha Sect of those years. Although the Nine Cauldrons Sect had pushed forward vigorously over the past decade or so, pursuing sweeping reforms and placing heavy emphasis on the path of spirit cultivation... What could a mere decade or two accomplish? Now, the arrival of this single sky-patrol warship from the Wuji Astral Palace proved their suspicions once again... It truly amounted to very little. And this was merely a single sky-patrol warship. Once the entire fleet of the Wuji Astral Palace was mobilized, the Nine Cauldrons Sect would likely suffer the same fate as the Liusha Sect seventeen years ago, swept away like autumn leaves in a gale. ... The palace was dead silent. Not a single person spoke. It seemed no one even possessed the strength of will to open their mouth. This was true for Qin Yi, and equally true for Zi Qiangwei, who was an Array Master, Grandmaster of Artifact Refining, and Origin Spirit realm cultivator under tight protection. "So..." Yaoguang looked at the looming sky-patrol warship on the screen as it drew ever closer. "The combined attacks of so many people cannot affect that warship in the slightest?" No one answered. Some even cast him an irritated glance. Their looks seemed to say: "Isn't the truth plain to see?" Seeing that no one had spoken for so long, Zi Qiangwei explained to spare Yaoguang's feelings: "It's not that our cultivators lack strength. It is simply that the enemy sky-patrol warship's defenses are too overwhelming. The sword cultivators responsible for piercing through their lines have their flying swords and sword formations suppressed before they can even get close to the warship." Her tone sounded subdued as she continued, "You should be able to see that our Origin Spirit cultivators' divine minds are repelled right at the perimeter. Meanwhile, the enemy can not only ward off our Origin Spirit cultivators' divine minds, but also possess ample power to direct their own sword cultivators toward the weak points of our sword formations, easily intercepting them." "Then, if our Origin Spirit cultivators could break through the enemy's divine mind defense and guide our sword cultivators to strike the hull of the warship itself, could we shatter their defensive formations?" "Yes!" Zi Qiangwei answered firmly, "Although our sword cultivators use flying swords that are less advanced than theirs, attacking has always been easier than defending. The sky-patrol warship is too massive a target to evade as flexibly as individual sword cultivators; it can only withstand blows head-on. If our Origin Spirit cultivators could truly guide our sword cultivators to punch through the interception of the Wuji Astral Palace's flying swords and hit the warship's hull, no matter how resilient its defensive formations are, it wouldn't last through many volleys..." Saying this, she paused briefly. "At the very least... before Longxiang City's defensive grand array is destroyed, we could inflict substantive damage directly onto the warship itself." "That will be enough, then." Yaoguang said, then turned toward Qin Yi. "Connect me to Sect Master Zhao. Have all sword cultivators and Origin Spirit cultivators fall back to Longxiang City!" "They are already returning," Qin Yi said. "At this point, our only choice is to rely on Longxiang City's defensive grand array—which is even sturdier than that of Jiuxiao City—to hold out just a bit longer against the sky-patrol warship's assault..." "Good!" Yaoguang nodded. "Patch me through to Sect Master Zhao. I need to speak with him." "Sect Master Zhao is likely swamped with matters right now..." someone gently warned. "I might have a way to repel this sky-patrol warship," Yaoguang said. The moment those words were spoken, everyone—Qin Yi, Zi Qiangwei, and City Lord Luo alike—turned their eyes upon him in utter astonishment. In the end, the younger Zi Qiangwei could not help speaking up first: "First Seat Yaoguang, please do not joke at a time like this. While your attainments in Artifact Refining are extraordinary, you aren't even a Great Cultivator. How could you possibly..." "Contact Sect Master Zhao," Yaoguang repeated. Qin Yi looked at Yaoguang. Though he, like Zi Qiangwei, could not imagine by what means Yaoguang could achieve a feat beyond the reach of all the experts of the Jiuxiao Domain combined, considering Yaoguang's standing and the fact that no one else had any viable options, he nodded. Treating it as a desperate gamble with nothing left to lose, he placed the call to Zhao Siliang. Beside them, Zi Qiangwei looked at Yaoguang's composure, uncertainty rising within her: "Do you... truly have a way?" "I will give it a try." Yaoguang gazed at the sky-patrol warship on the screen, casting a shadow like a storm cloud. This feeling... It was suffocating. Suffocating to the point of stifling one's breath. Therefore... "This is Zhao Siliang." Soon, a beam of light projected from the device in Qin Yi's hand. "I require command authority over all Origin Spirit cultivators and Foundation Establishment sword cultivators." Before Qin Yi could speak, Yaoguang stepped forward and spoke first. "You?!" "Yes!" Yaoguang gave a slight nod. "Let me command them. Perhaps I can repel this sky-patrol warship." Zhao Siliang looked at Yaoguang... and fell into a sudden silence. Seeing this, Yaoguang did not say anything more either. However, behind him, an illusory phantom materialized. "What is this?!" At this sudden development, not only Zhao Siliang, but even Qin Yi, Zi Qiangwei, and Luo Yunhai revealed expressions of shock. "An Origin Spirit?!" "You broke through to the Origin Spirit realm?" "Of course, you had the Spirit Transformation Pill. By all accounts, you should have broken through long ago. Breaking through now is... actually a little later than we anticipated." A trace of joy appeared in their eyes. They were pleased that Yaoguang had advanced to the Origin Spirit realm, though they were not excessively stunned. This outcome was well within everyone's expectations. However, that fleeting joy lasted only a moment before their expressions darkened once more. The more exceptional Yaoguang proved to be, the more painful his loss would be to the Nine Cauldrons Sect if he fell in this catastrophe. After all, the forces of the Wuji Astral Palace were right at their gates... "Wait!" At that moment, Luo Yunhai seemed to notice something and gasped in shock: "Your Origin Spirit..." With his exclamation, the despondent crowd quickly sensed the anomaly as well. After Yaoguang's Origin Spirit manifested, it grew solid at a pace visible to the naked eye. Becoming increasingly defined, it was momentarily impossible to tell whether it was a projection of an Origin Spirit or a physical entity of energy molded in his own image. There was only one explanation for such a phenomenon... Yaoguang's cultivation in spirit refining... was exceptionally profound. A burst of power built upon deep accumulation! Judging solely by how clear and condensed this Origin Spirit was, given just a little time to settle, crossing all levels of the Blazing Sun Heavenly Lightning in a single breath to step directly into the Zixiao Divine Lightning layer would be well within his reach. "Zi Qiangwei has stayed at the Zixiao Institute for a while now, so she should have noticed that I possess a talent capable of channeling the divine minds and divine senses of all the artifact refiners in the institute to accelerate their efficiency," Yaoguang looked at Zhao Siliang in the projection. "However, this talent isn't merely effective on artifact refiners. It works on all Origin Spirit cultivators and Foundation Establishment cultivators alike!" His voice carried a resolute, all-or-nothing calm: "So... give me command of all Origin Spirit and Foundation Establishment cultivators. I will lead them to break this sky-patrol warship!"