Whether the most important factor was the first or the second, no one could tell.
Li Zimo hesitated for a moment. Unable to bear the thought of how many casualties war would bring, he softly said, “Brother Frigidsect, the Blood Stream Sect doesn’t want to go to war either. You can see that from their demands. They’ve already backed down as far as they can. Why don’t we–”
“Zimo, you’re being too softhearted. At the moment, softheartedness won’t benefit anybody. I know that many lives will be lost if we go to war. The Spirit Stream Sect doesn’t want such a catastrophic event to occur. That was why I initially agreed to Song Wenyun’s demands that we not go to war. Even if it means missing out on a huge opportunity, we could avoid the destruction of our sect, and the loss of many lives among the younger generation….” Frigidsect’s ancient voice seemed tired, although no one could hear his words other than Li Zimo and the other patriarchs.
“We agreed not to attack the Blood Stream Sect, nor to join forces with the Sky River Court. Those are demands we could meet. However, there is no way we could agree to the erection of a spell formation on the Heavenspan River!
“If we allowed the Heavenspan River to dry up in our area, all in order to prevent a catastrophe, the spiritual energy here would grow scarce. Over the course of a thousand years of being sealed, the cultivation bases of everyone inside the seal would stagnate. Progress would be impossible, and it would only take a few hundred years out of that thousand year period for the Spirit Stream Sect to wither away into death. Even if the sect still existed a thousand years later, we would be weak beyond compare. We would simply be giving up our own right to decide our fate, and allowing anyone to come along and destroy us!
“Fate would be like a sword hanging over our necks. Besides, in a thousand years, the Blood Stream Sect would be completely different than they are today. They would be a great sect in the Middle Reaches, far more powerful than they are now. At that time, they might feel pity on us, and honor their agreement from before. But if they didn’t feel like it, they could destroy us as easily as turning over their hand!” Within the eyes of the founding patriarch, it was almost possible to see all those future deaths. His voice sounded very grim.
“Being sealed for a thousand years would avoid deaths in the moment, but the truth is, it would only be delaying our inevitable destruction. We’re actually in a much better situation now, with all the different variables at play. If we do go to war, we might not to be able to defeat the Blood Stream Sect on our own, but with the cooperation of other forces, we would have a chance.
“Zimo, sometimes we patriarchs have to look at the bigger picture, not just the events playing out right in front of us. We have to take the future into consideration!
“It would be better for the Spirit Stream Sect to go out fighting in battle, than to gasp and wheeze our way into death a thousand years from now. Clearly, there is only one path for us!” The founding patriarch seemed very tired. After he was finished speaking, he faded back into the vortex. Soon, the vortex itself dissipated. Li Zimo hovered there silently for a moment, the desire to do battle slowly building up in his eyes. Just as the founding patriarch had said, standing and fighting held the hope of survival, whereas hiding away only ensured a tragic end later on!
Eventually, orders from Sect Leader Zheng Yuandong were sent to both the south and north banks.
“The sect’s grand spell formation will be activated, along with all the formations in the Luochen Mountains. All disciples must return to the sect immediately to begin preparing for war!!’
Meanwhile, the blood cloud shot along at top speed in the air between the Spirit Stream Sect and the Blood Stream Sect. The cultivators from the Blood Stream Sect were scared witless; even the Song Clan patriarch’s face seemed ashen as he sat at the front of the cloud, frowning in thought.
When everyone pondered the words spoken by the Song Clan patriarch when he left the vortex, they realized that the discussions with the Spirit Stream Sect had not ended well.
Apparently, war between the two sects could break out at any moment. That in turn made the return trip to their own sect seem that much more fraught with danger.
Master God-Diviner’s face was pale as he looked down into his lap and performed auguries. Bai Xiaochun also maintained his silence. He knew the big picture, and he knew why the Spirit Stream Sect had made their choice. He sighed inwardly. Huge matters that affected the entire sect were things that he didn’t qualify to participate in or interfere with. He could only turn his head and look back at the Spirit Stream Sect, his heart aching with worry.
Song Junwan sat next to the Song Clan patriarch at the front of the cloud, her face a mask of vigilance as she scanned the road ahead for potential danger. Everyone else on the cloud simply sat there silently.
Time passed. Eventually, the cloud passed through the Luochen Mountains to arrive in Blood Stream Sect territory. At that point, the Song Clan patriarch’s eyes snapped open, and they shone with profound coldness.
Not a single ambush had occurred, and in fact, the instant they left Spirit Stream Sect territory, the Luochen Mountains began to rumble, and a cascade of light shot up into the sky. A huge barrier now existed, clearly demarcating the boundary between the two sects.
After a moment, the Song Clan patriarch murmured, “Well played, Spirit Stream Sect….”
Deep in his eyes could be seen both regret and respect. He suddenly waved his sleeve, and three motes of light flew out, which transformed into three shadowy figures. There was one that Bai Xiaochun recognized immediately. It was none other than Patriarch Limitless.
“So they didn’t intercept us?” Those three figures were illusory projections of patriarchs of the Blood Stream Sect. As soon as they appeared, the cultivators on the cloud clasped hands in formal greeting, Bai Xiaochun included. Then he looked up, shocked at the strange fluctuations emanating from the shadowy figures.
“I put myself up as bait,” the Song Clan patriarch said softly. “Whether because of their righteousness or their suspicions, they allowed me to leave. That in itself is a type of domineering fearlessness. The Spirit Stream Sect is indeed a worthy adversary!”
The other three patriarchs maintained their silence. As for Patriarch Limitless, he looked off in the direction of the Spirit Stream Sect and shook his head. Sighing softly, he said, “It’s too bad. We can’t trust them, nor can they trust us.”
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Chapter
219: Mid Foundation Establishmen
Chapter 219: Mid Foundation Establishment
The blood cloud seethed and churned as it shot back to the Blood Stream Sect. Everyone was wrapped up in their own thoughts, and no one spoke. Bai Xiaochun was most taciturn of all, although he would occasionally turn to look back in the direction of the Spirit Stream Sect.
By the time he got back to his immortal’s cave on Middle Peak, it was evening. He sat there quietly until it was late in the night and the moon hung high. Unfortunately, the matter of war between the two sects was something he had no say in. It was a game being played between the patriarchs of the two sects.
He felt tired. He didn’t even like to think about fighting and killing, but he also knew that sometimes, certain things couldn’t be avoided, no matter how much you wanted to.
He shook his head in frustration. The only thing he could do now was get to the relic of eternal indestructibility before the war started, and then get back to the Spirit Stream Sect.