tkworld Chapter 221 Secret Negotiation
Chapter 221 Secret Negotiation
Chapter 221: Secret Negotiations
Palace of Calamitous Fate Main Hall.
In the heavily guarded secret palace, Saintess Mei Qingfeng and her own master were hosting a banquet for the sisters Zi Huang and Ling Xi, who had crossed time and space to come here. Luo Yu Jue, Meng Huo, Yuan Xuan Kong, and other core high-level members were accompanying them.
"...The calamity caused by the Demon Race actually erupted just like that?" Mei Qingfeng finished recounting the changes in the Extreme Void Starry Sky over the past few years. Zi Huang put down her wine cup and frowned, pondering, "It's just that the communication between our Heavenly Human Race's territory and your side is inconvenient. Even if we want to lend a helping hand, it's difficult to do so. This calamity can only rely on you yourselves."
The Palace of Calamitous Fate's master smiled, "Although the descendants of the Demon Race are powerful, they are difficult to completely eradicate for the time being. However, they haven't shaken the foundation of the cultivation world in the Extreme Void Starry Sky. At least, the Dao Court is still as stable as a rock, and its subordinate territories are calm. Many small and medium-sized sects and independent cultivators who were quick to react have taken refuge in the Dao Court's territories."
"Yes, my Palace of Calamitous Fate has also taken in some forces. Although there aren't many suitable 'materials' inside, if we search carefully, we can still gather a batch to meet your needs in the recent hundred years. As for more... we'll have to think of another way."
Ling Xi couldn't help but frown. She clearly understood what these so-called 'materials' were. Every certain number of years, the Palace of Calamitous Fate secretly collected a group of young boys and girls and handed them over to the Heavenly Human Race through special channels. They were outstanding cultivators, gathered through the Palace of Calamitous Fate's vast intelligence network and various clandestine means. In return, the Heavenly Human Race would provide the Palace of Calamitous Fate with valuable resources.
For millions of years, the Palace of Calamitous Fate had earned a fortune through this dark business and secretly cultivated a large number of elite disciples, increasing its influence in the Extreme Void Starry Sky.
Zi Huang nodded slightly and said, "Even though a great calamity is approaching, this business still needs to be done. I agree to this matter. Let's follow the previous trading rules."
"But this is not the main point. I came here specifically to inform you that the Illusory Mist Secret Realm will reopen in half a year. At that time, all cultivators in the Extreme Void Starry Sky will be able to freely enter and exit with their quotas, seeking opportunities."
"This...," the master hesitated for a moment, then understood the intentions of the Heavenly Human Race's high-level members. They must not have achieved their expected goals in the last "harvesting" operation, so they planned to reopen the Illusory Mist Secret Realm in the near future and try to harvest again.
"Is there a problem?" Zi Huang asked sensitively.
Elder Yuan Xuan Kong explained, "Nowadays, with the escalating calamity caused by the Demon Race, about seventy percent of the small and medium-sized sects have been wiped out. The remaining majority are barely surviving and struggling. I'm afraid there aren't many cultivators willing to take risks and enter the Illusory Mist Secret Realm."
Currently, besides the Dao Court and the Palace of Calamitous Fate, as well as a limited number of long-established Supreme-level sects, ancient tribes, and prestigious families, the remaining forces have suffered tremendous losses and it is already difficult for them to protect themselves. How could they have the spare capacity to send people into the Illusory Mist Secret Realm to search for opportunities, even if there are many valuable things inside that are attractive to cultivators?
Zi Huang pondered for a moment and said, "This is a problem that you will have to figure out. I believe you can do it."
The master said, "..."
Seeing the troubled expressions of the elders, Zi Huang smiled and said, "I can understand your difficulties. How about this, after this round of harvesting is completed, we will increase the benefits given to you by an additional twenty percent on top of the original agreement. Consider it as compensation, how about that?"
Mei Qingfeng unhappily said, "Twenty percent is too little. It should be at least fifty percent."
Zi Huang smiled, "With the good relationship between our two families over the years, there's no need to be so demanding. Twenty percent of the benefits already compensate for your extra efforts. How about adding another half?"
The master calmly said, "You can't put it that way. Taking action at this critical moment of the calamity, we are taking a big risk. Once the news leaks, all the sects, including the Dao Court, will attack us together. The consequences would be unimaginable! So... at the very least, we need to add forty and a half percent!"
"Thirty percent, we can't add any more!"
"How about forty percent? We've been old friends for so long, why do we need to haggle like this?"
The master chuckled a few times, laughing like a cunning old fox that had lived for thousands of years. As a qualified representative of the sect, when dealing with external affairs, of course, they had to strive for maximum benefits. Even if it was just one percent, it meant huge benefits. How could they easily give in?
Zi Huang stared at him with a cold gaze, then picked up her wine cup and took a slow sip before calmly saying, "Your human race has a saying: 'Brothers should settle accounts clearly.' Our Heavenly Human Race also has a similar principle: 'Brothers are brothers, but money must be clearly divided.'"
"It's clearly a mutually beneficial matter, why do you insist on taking more? We have never let you suffer any losses."
The smile on the palace lord's face faded slightly. "Without our help, I'm afraid you wouldn't be able to deceive even a single cultivator, would you? Compared to the benefits you've gained, your contributions are insignificant, not even worth mentioning!"
The elders' expressions were somewhat subtle. After so many years of dealing with each other, there were some things that didn't need to be said out loud. Everyone understood them implicitly.
Ling Xi hesitated for a moment but ultimately didn't speak. She was carefree by nature and disliked worldly affairs. She was really not good at bargaining like this ambitious friend and companion of hers, who was born to excel in such matters.
"Alright, let's settle for 35%," said Zihuang with a soft voice. "This is already the biggest concession I can make. If you're still not satisfied, we'll have to consider finding another partner."
"Since that's the case, let's settle it like this," said the palace lord cheerfully, raising his wine cup. "In no more than ten days, the news of the reopening of the Illusory Mist Secret Realm will spread throughout the Extreme Void Starry Sky. Half a year later, there will be enough cultivators entering it, I guarantee it."
Mei Qingfeng sighed lightly in his heart. The reopening of the Illusory Mist Secret Realm was not really good news for the billions of cultivators in the Extreme Void Starry Sky.
Especially in the midst of the raging Demon Race crisis, they were about to be robbed of a large portion of their luck by the Heavenly Human Race. It could be described as adding insult to injury. Apart from the benefits that the Palace of Calamitous Fate could gain, other supreme lineages, including the Dao Court, might not necessarily benefit.
Of course, Mei Qingfeng was the Holy Maiden of the Palace of Calamitous Fate and the future leader of the sect. Naturally, she could only prioritize the interests of the sect and couldn't consider outsiders.
At this moment, Mei Qingfeng suddenly remembered the young man from the Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace. He would definitely enter the Illusory Mist Secret Realm to seek opportunities, right?
If she could make good use of this opportunity and arrange for a senior spy from the Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace to secretly abduct his physical body back to the Palace of Calamitous Fate, when his soul returned from the secret realm, he would completely fall under her control and belong solely to her.
...
In the main hall of the Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace, within the secret realm of the sect's back mountain.
Facing Emperor Xinyu's questioning, Luo Yunshui didn't argue much. She just softly said, "Junior knows the depth of her sins and there is no forgiveness. I only hope that the ancestor will have mercy on the difficulty of my cultivation and give me a chance to redeem myself. After I recover, I will definitely fight for the sect's overall situation, make up for the losses, and do my best."
As one of the Great Principle-level powerhouses in the sect and the former Supreme Sect Master, her posture was already very low. If it were some other less determined superiors, they would probably consider relenting.
After all, the various values that a Great Principle-level powerhouse could create and the roles they could play were too great. Without going into other details, even if she were to go and mine spiritual ores as a laborer, the amount of rare spiritual ores she could refine and purify in a year would be equivalent to the hard-earned gains of tens of thousands of years for an ordinary True Immortal.
That's why Luo Yunshui didn't say much. Once her cultivation strength was restored, there would still be plenty of time in the future, and she could calmly manage whatever she wanted to do.
Hmm, I heard that the young man named Qin Muling was brought back by the current Sect Master? When the time comes, I'll use some means to bring him over. As long as I can control him, I'll have a heavyweight bargaining chip in my hands, and it will be much easier to do whatever I want in the future.
Emperor Xinyu silently stared at her for a while and shook his head. "It seems that you still haven't given up. After tens of thousands of years of reflection, you still haven't realized your guilt, or perhaps, you still have some unwillingness in your heart?"
Luo Yunshui's expression stiffened slightly. "Ancestor, why do you think that?"
"You can't deceive me," Emperor Xinyu said expressionlessly. "The cause and effect of the sect's decline back then, I already know, and after verifying it through divination, it is confirmed that they did not wrong you in the slightest. Everything, everything, was caused by your reckless actions and going against the tide, which turned the sect's great foundation into what it is now."
Luo Yunshui fell silent for a few moments, her expression cold. "There is indeed nothing I can say about what happened back then, but my intentions were good, and I did not betray the sect."
"The path of a Saint is judged by actions, not intentions," Emperor Xinyu said coldly. "No matter what you think in your heart, if you mess things up, it is unforgivable! This time, the high-level members of the sect unanimously want to punish you severely and don't want you to recover. Even I can't plead for you, so you can only continue to sleep."
Luo Yunshui's face changed abruptly. "Do they really dare to be so ruthless?"
"It's not them, it's because of what you did back then!"
Emperor Xin Yu sighed, "Almost every high-ranking elder had disciples, close relatives, or senior members of their sect who perished in the great calamity, all because of you. How do you expect them to forgive your actions?"
Silence fell around them, as the Spirit Partitioning thoughts of the still-sleeping elders remained silent, silently observing.
"But I..."
Luoyunshui gritted her teeth, "Can the ancestor summon the current head disciple? And what about those high-ranking elders? I want to ask them face to face about their attitude. Many of my direct disciples also perished back then. Didn't they see that?"
"Forget it, no one in the entire sect wants to see you anymore!"
Emperor Xin Yu's voice was low, "I came here to see you one last time, to fulfill the last bit of our past relationship. You, and the elders of your generation, must spend the rest of your lives here, until the day your life force is exhausted and you return to nothingness."
"..."
A cold light flashed in Luoyunshui's eyes. In the green crystal lotus behind her, her true form suddenly burst out with a large golden radiance, brewing an almost earth-shattering aura.
She actually wanted to self-destruct her physical body and divine soul, destroying the entire Grotto-Heaven secret realm, regardless of the fact that nearly half of the elders were still sleeping in the secret realm.
Cries of shock rang out from all around:
"Luoyunshui, have you gone mad?"
"What do you want in the end?"
"You truly have a heart of a thief! How did the sect end up with such a disaster like you?"
"Insane..."
"It's not my fault! It's all because you forced me!"
Luoyunshui's expression became ferocious, a twisted smile of madness appeared on her face, "Since I have no chance of recovery, let's all go together! If we're going to die, let's die together..."
"Enough, you have already fallen into madness."
Even the last trace of reluctance in Emperor Xin Yu's heart disappeared, "This place is no longer suitable for you. Go to my exclusive Grotto-Heaven secret realm, where I will suppress you deep in the earth's core until the day you dissipate."
The surrounding space suddenly froze, everything was in a state of stillness. Then, the golden radiance overflowing from the green crystal lotus gradually retracted inch by inch, until it completely disappeared within the lotus. No matter how hard Luoyunshui struggled, it was all in vain.
Then, the entire green crystal lotus rose up and shrank into a palm-sized ball, disappearing from Emperor Xin Yu's hand.
Afterwards, nearly a hundred green crystal lotuses of various sizes were successively taken away by her. These were the elders who had committed major crimes in the past long years, and now they were all deprived of the opportunity to recover and were suppressed in Emperor Xin Yu's personal Grotto-Heaven secret realm.
...
In Yu Lingzhou's Cave Mansion.
"...This wine tastes good, do you have more?"
Qin Muling said, putting down the jade flask in her hand. Her eyes were slightly hazy, and she felt a slight dizziness after drinking so much.
"Of course, Senior Sister has plenty of good wine here. You can drink as much as you want!"
Yu Lingzhou smiled, her eyes curved. She had also drunk quite a bit, and now her beautiful face was flushed, her eyes shimmering. Under her translucent thin dress, her seductive figure was fully revealed, and with her movements, her plump breasts trembled slightly.
Her jade hand filled the wine flask again, then she lifted it and offered it to him. Her voluptuous figure leaned closer, intentionally or unintentionally brushing against him, almost hanging onto him.
Hmm, it's just a casual touch, not a big deal.
Yu Lingzhou said to himself like this.
"Previously, you mentioned that the remnant soul of the former Supreme Sect Master, Supreme, has already been reincarnated. Hasn't it been found yet?" Qin Muling asked.
Mu Yinghua's master, Immortal Lord Miaoqing, is also a peak Great Principle expert. If he can return in time and restore his memories and cultivation from his previous life, it would certainly be beneficial to the sect.
Speaking of business, Yu Lingzhou's expression became serious: "Yes, besides the Elder Hengyi who once concealed the heavenly secrets for you, there are no other powerful practitioners in the sect who are skilled in divination. That's why this matter has never been resolved..."
Although Mu Yinghua took over as the Sect Master, her prestige and qualifications were limited, and she couldn't possibly command Elder Hengyi to help, even though she did want to.
Moreover, there have been many powerful practitioners in Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace who have reincarnated and rebuilt over the years, but only a few have been fortunate enough to be found, and the majority are missing.
Involving a peak Great Principle expert and deducing the heavenly secrets would undoubtedly consume a considerable amount of resources. If they made it convenient for Mu Yinghua's master, what about the others? Would they all receive the same treatment? It's likely that even the lifespan of ten Elder Hengyis would not be enough to sustain it.
"But now, Elder Hengyi has recovered, so Emperor Xin Yu should be able to handle this matter," Qin Muling said. Among the first batch of Elders he completely healed, Elder Hengyi's name was included.
"But you have to make the request yourself," Yu Lingzhou said with a smile. "If it's your master who makes the request, it will be seen as using public resources for personal gain, which will inevitably invite criticism. Only your special identity will not give others a handle."
As a super sect with a heritage of millions of years, its rules and regulations are naturally known for their strictness. Even the Sect Master himself cannot easily overstep the boundaries without a suitable reason, with so many high-level elders from various factions watching.
Now, besides Qin Muling, there is probably no one else who can ignore these rules. After all, his special status is too unique, and even Emperor Xin Yu has to accommodate him when necessary.
"Alright, I will take care of this matter," Qin Muling agreed.
A thought suddenly came to his mind. With him around, Elder Hengyi no longer had to worry about the consequences of his lifespan running out. Wouldn't that mean he could intervene almost without restriction? Could he bring back all the elders who had to reincarnate for various reasons?
If this matter could be successfully completed, it is likely that Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace's strategic strength would increase significantly.
"Sister, do you know how many reincarnated elders there are in the sect?" Qin Muling asked after thinking for a moment.
"Well..." Yu Lingzhou's beautiful face changed slightly, and her perceptive mind instantly understood Qin Muling's meaning. She cautiously said, "I'm not sure about this. I have to go to the sect's library to consult the special archives to know the details. But just based on the names of the elders I have heard, there are probably hundreds of them. Their cultivation levels vary, including Taiyi and Great Principle experts."
Qin Muling nodded gently, "It seems that I have found another way to enhance the sect's strength. However, this matter needs to be carefully considered. Well, I will discuss it with my master another day. I think I should start learning divination techniques as well."
In such a large sect, it is not possible to rely solely on Elder Hengyi to handle the field of divination. They need to cultivate several talents. The others cannot be relied upon in the short term, so only Qin Muling himself can achieve something in the shortest possible time.
"Of course," Yu Lingzhou hugged him and kissed him, saying with a smile, "Talents in the field of divination are always welcome in any power. Especially with your talent and foundation, after you become accomplished, even the Emperor might not be able to match you. It's not impossible to bring back all those reincarnated elders."
Error has been corrected.
(End of this chapter)