Golden Core

The repercussions of the battle in the East Sea rippled through the Cangwu Great World to a far greater degree than anyone could have imagined. The Great Sun Sword Sect was already one of the formidable powers among the large sects. Although they maintained only eight elite battle courtyards due to their smaller population base... An elite battle courtyard's true weight depended on who it was compared against. Against a sect like the Xuanming Sect, saying that a single elite courtyard of the Great Sun Sword Sect could take on ten of theirs might have been an exaggeration, but taking on five was more than feasible. Not to mention, the Great Sun Sword Sect possessed the capacity to manufacture sky-patrol warships! They could even produce third-generation sky-patrol warships! This alone was a feat beyond even the Golden Divine Temple, one of the Six Great Immortal Sects. Every single sky-patrol warship belonging to the Golden Divine Temple had been purchased outright. While this was partly due to their doctrine that spending money on research without guaranteed results was worse than buying directly, it nonetheless highlighted the disparity between the two sects in conventional strength. Yet now, a sect of such immense might had practically been ground into the dirt by the Nine Cauldrons Sect. Not long ago, they had just lost an elite battle courtyard and a sky-patrol warship. This time, after finally staging a comeback by deploying three elite battle courtyards and their cutting-edge sky-patrol warship, the Vajra, what was the result? Nothing had changed. One of the three courtyards was wiped out on the spot. And the sky-patrol warship Vajra had followed right in the footsteps of the Chunyu before it. With an efficiency of delivery like that, they were practically acting as the Wealth-Giving Boy. As the scenes of this great clash reached the awareness of numerous Heavenly Palace cultivators, word spread rapidly among the Cangwu Great World's many large sects. Once the large sects learned of the news, it gradually filtered down to the medium and small sects. Those situated far away were relatively unaffected, marveling at most over how the Nine Cauldrons Sect had grown so powerful. Yet factions situated closer to the Nine Cauldrons Sect—especially those with direct conflicts of interest in the East Sea Archipelago, such as the Ancient Immortal Sect, the Great Yue Dynasty, and the Astral Sea Sect—could no longer sit still. One after another, these factions reached out to Nine Cauldrons Sect Master Li Qingshan, expressing their desire to dispatch delegations to visit the Nine Cauldrons Sect. The Great Yue Dynasty in particular. Upon receiving the news, they convened an emergency council, swiftly withdrew all of the Great Yue Dynasty's forces from the East Sea Archipelago, and preserved every building and installation in immaculate condition. Then they notified the Nine Cauldrons Sect to send personnel over to take possession. Their earnest posture fell just short of folding the blankets and sweeping the floors to demonstrate their goodwill and sincerity in pulling out. As for the Xuanming Sect, which had already kept a low profile for a while, they became more docile than ever, abandoning any lingering thoughts of returning to the East Sea. The only ripple of activity was that Sect Master Song You, who had been virtually stripped of power, became active once more. After all... Even a power as mighty as the Great Sun Sword Sect had suffered catastrophic setbacks repeatedly against the Nine Cauldrons Sect, handing over two sky-patrol warships and losing two elite battle courtyards. Compared to the Great Sun Sword Sect, the Xuanming Sect's loss of some three hundred Great Cultivators was practically minor. Considering the actual disparity in strength between the Xuanming Sect and the Great Sun Sword Sect... How could the Xuanming Sect's outcome even be called a defeat?! Clearly, it had navigated a crisis of total annihilation at the minimal possible cost! Under these circumstances, he naturally had to step forward and attempt to reclaim everything that belonged to him as Sect Master. Of course, this fuss lasted only a few days before it ended. Ma Hong, the new Hall Master of the War Hall, publicly announced internally that they had received an invitation from the Nine Cauldrons Sect and would pay an official visit in one month's time. *** Over the following month, the Nine Cauldrons Sect maintained continuous contact with the various powers of the East Sea while dispatching cultivators deep into the East Sea Archipelago to reclaim all the islands that had originally belonged to the Artifact Sect. During this time, not every power was as tactful as the Great Yue Dynasty. Yet with the Great Sun Sword Sect—the foremost bulwark—already in retreat, pulling out of the East Sea was their only option unless they wished to face the full brunt of the Nine Cauldrons Sect head-on. This was especially true when the lesser-known Zhanlu and Chunjun Courtyards demonstrated combat prowess on par with established courtyards like the Shenwei Institute and Qingfeng Courtyard; no matter how unwilling those factions were, they had no choice but to bow their heads obediently. The Shenwei Institute and Qingfeng Courtyard had already cemented their formidable reputation in their battle against the Great Sun Sword Sect's Shenfeng, Shenmu, and Shenshan Courtyards. Given their elite caliber, they could likely hold their own one against two even facing the elite battle courtyards of ordinary large sects; against the courtyard lineups of medium-tier powers, three to five courtyards would not even be enough to give them a workout. Now, to recover the East Sea Archipelago, the Nine Cauldrons Sect had not only deployed two sky-patrol warships as backstops, but also coordinated four elite battle courtyards in tandem. With a lineup like this... Unless one of the three major neighboring powers—the Great Sun Sword Sect, the Shouyang Sect, or the Brahma Divine Kingdom—was willing to mobilize en masse, any medium-sized faction... Could forget about standing a chance. After all, no medium-sized faction could field twenty or thirty elite battle courtyards. Even a "medium-sized faction" backed by numerous powers like the Black Feather Sect could only mobilize a dozen or so courtyards, and their quality would not necessarily measure up to elite standards. *** After this bustle and clamor continued for a month, Li Qingshan appeared once again at the Third Research Institute in the Beidou Domain, personally delivering good news. "The East Sea Archipelago has been fully recovered." The Nine Cauldrons Sect Master radiated heartfelt joy. "We have reached agreements with all the powers in the East Sea Archipelago. Over the next half year, our personnel will fully enter the islands, take over the formations on the primary islands, and lay down our own formations until we achieve substantive control over these islands, thereby controlling the entire East Sea." "Good," Yaoguang replied with a smile and a nod. The East Sea Archipelago spanned three hundred thousand li. Reclaiming this sea territory effectively expanded the Nine Cauldrons Sect's domain by forty percent. If they could reclaim the Hundred Thousand Mountains in the future... The total territory of the Nine Cauldrons Sect would exceed a million li in circumference. By then, using the modified spirit-gathering formations, they would be able to activate over three hundred spiritual power nodes across the region! Their annual spirit stone yield would likely approach six hundred million. Of course, constructing spirit-gathering formations across these areas would be no simple task; it would take at least a decade or more. Moreover... "Now all that remains is the Hundred Thousand Mountains, correct?" Yaoguang asked. Li Qingshan nodded, then continued, "However, the matter of the East Sea Archipelago might not be fully settled. On one hand, the Nine Cauldrons Sect's rise has made the Shouyang Sect—currently locked in a civil war—feel threatened, prompting them toward reconciliation. On the other hand, the Great Sun Sword Sect will certainly not let their defeat in the East Sea Archipelago rest. The moment an opportunity arises, they will stage a comeback. Therefore, we must still keep sufficient forces here to guard against any shifts." "Leave this place to me to watch over. The name Zhenhai Courtyard carries the very purpose of anchoring the East Sea," Yaoguang said. "Once the handover in the East Sea is complete, have Hall Master Lou and First Seat Shen take the Chunjun and Zhanlu Courtyards to the Hundred Thousand Mountains. Combined with the Jiulong Courtyard, that makes five elite battle courtyards... Hmm, and it would be best to take along the Chunyu... the Luori warship. With that force, it will be enough to push back the Brahma Divine Kingdom." "It's not the same," Li Qingshan said gravely. "The Brahma Divine Kingdom is a theocratic state. The cultivators among them are... very stubborn! Fanatical, even! Furthermore, their internal propaganda is profoundly deceptive! According to their propaganda, the Brahma Divine Kingdom's might is second only to the Wuji Astral Palace, and on equal footing with the Myriad Beasts Sect and the Immortal Alliance as a top-tier power capable of shaping the world's landscape! In their eyes, the Taiyin Sect, Fatian Pavilion, and Golden Divine Temple don't even hold a candle to them!" "The Brahma Divine Kingdom... second only to the Wuji Astral Palace? On equal footing with the Myriad Beasts Sect and the Immortal Alliance?" Several question marks popped into Yaoguang's head. If he remembered correctly... Didn't the Brahma Divine Kingdom lack the ability to build sky-patrol warships altogether? Weren't their only two sky-patrol warships first-generation vessels purchased from the Myriad Beasts Sect? "That is precisely what their internal propaganda claims. Under constant brainwashing, the people within the Brahma Divine Kingdom believe this without a shadow of a doubt. They look down upon all other sects with condescension. Under these conditions... once war breaks out with the Brahma Divine Kingdom, it could truly escalate into an all-out conflict!" As Li Qingshan spoke, he concluded, "Ignorance breeds recklessness." Hearing this, Yaoguang was left somewhat speechless. "They might deceive common mortals, but could their Great Cultivators truly be hoodwinked as well?" "While some Great Cultivators understand the Brahma Divine Kingdom's true standing... the one who ordered the populace's minds clouded is none other than that supreme entity standing above all—the Brahma Divine Lord!" Li Qingshan said. "Faced with the decree of such a being, many Great Cultivators dare not disobey even when they know the information is false. Over time, subjected to such indoctrination, even those who initially doubted end up brainwashed into believing it." "The Brahma Divine Lord," Yaoguang murmured. In this world, the ultimate power was unquestionably the Radiant Sun Golden Core. This was because a Radiant Sun Golden Core could simulate a supernova explosion; the energy released in an instant was said to be more than even the entire Cangwu Great World could withstand. In other words, it was world-ending power. Yet aside from the Radiant Sun Golden Core, the might of a Crimson Golden Core was by no means to be underestimated. They might not be capable of destroying the Cangwu Great World, but reducing a continent spanning millions of li to dust or reshaping the world's geography was entirely within their grasp. The Brahma Divine Kingdom was one of the factions that possessed a Crimson Golden Core. Aside from the Brahma Divine Kingdom and the Six Great Immortal Sects, the only other factions in the world possessing a Crimson Golden Core were the Brahma Cult and the Shouyang Sect. The rest were sects like the Great Sun Sword Sect, the Taiyi Cult, the Blue Sea Holy Land, the Sacred Flame Cult, and the Yatai Dynasty, which possessed Star God-level combat power. These powers were largely concentrated on the Tianxing Continent and the Heiyan Continent. The reason they were concentrated on these two continents... Was that only these two continents lacked a transcendent force towering above all else. The Golden Divine Temple on the Heiyan Continent did not count—it was hollow and frail beneath its grand veneer. "Therefore, the time has not yet come to reclaim the Hundred Thousand Mountains! At least... until we have absolute certainty of defeating the Brahma Divine Kingdom, we should focus on aiding the Brahma Cult and letting them fight it out first," Li Qingshan said. "Over the next five to ten years, our primary focus will be fundamental development—constructing spirit-gathering formations and defensive formations across the board. The three-hundred-thousand-li East Sea Archipelago is waiting for us to tap into... and that is no small undertaking." Yaoguang nodded in understanding. "All right. Now, let's talk about the treasure to be exchanged with you for the warship Vajra." With that, Li Qingshan produced a rhombus-shaped apparatus. As soon as the apparatus was brought out, it swiftly expanded, growing to a diameter of three meters. The apparatus itself was clearly a heavily sealed formation. And at its very core... Lay a Golden Core! A Golden Core... That resembled a blazing crimson sun!