Xiuxian: Start with the medicine boy

at the same time!

Inside the deathly silent underground palace...
A hoarse, broken voice, like a shattered gong, slowly rang out, shattering the surrounding silence.
The voice carried a hint of the vicissitudes of time, yet exuded an undeniable majesty, echoing in the empty palace, its lingering notes lingering long afterward.

"Now that all fellow Daoists have taken their places, let's officially begin today's meeting!"

The speaker was a monk sitting upright to the left of the main seat, wearing a black robe and a pure black mask.

He slowly raised his head, his eyes beneath the mask sweeping over every figure present, his gaze sharp as a knife.

It's as if it can see through everyone's disguise and see what they're thinking.

A moment later,
His gaze slowly descended, settling on a throne not far away, where a cultivator wearing a jade fox mask sat regally.
The mask is exquisitely crafted, adorned with lifelike depictions of a fox spirit.
She exuded a faint allure, yet also a sense of calm and composure.

The black-robed cultivator's voice rang out again, slow but carrying an undeniable air of authority:

"Fellow Daoist Jade Fox!"
"Regarding the matter that I and my fellow Daoists raised with you last time, how did your discussions with the elders of your sect go after you returned?"

With this remark,
The deathly silent underground palace instantly became even quieter.
Even the sound of everyone breathing became faint.

All the mysterious cultivators present focused their gazes on the cultivator wearing the jade fox mask.
Their perspectives differ, making the situation complex and difficult to discern.

Some eyes held eager expectations, clearly valuing the attitude of Fellow Daoist Jade Fox's sect and hoping they would agree to the proposal.

Some eyes revealed a hint of disdain, seemingly not caring about Fellow Daoist Jade Fox's decision, believing that their sect was unimportant;
Some gazes were extremely indifferent, as if looking at an unimportant stranger, regardless of what Fellow Daoist Jade Fox decided;
However, most of the cultivators' gazes remained calm, without the slightest ripple.
As if he had anticipated the black-robed cultivator's question,
They were also quietly waiting for Fellow Daoist Jade Fox's reply.

see,

The cultivator wearing the jade fox mask slowly raised his head.
Beneath the jade fox mask, his eyes slowly swept over each figure present, taking in all their different gazes, his expression remaining calm and without the slightest panic.

A moment later,
He spoke slowly, his voice clear and cool with a hint of magnetism.
Like a clear mountain spring flowing, yet carrying an undeniable air of authority, he spoke slowly and deliberately:

"Fellow Daoists, rest assured!"
Regarding the suggestion made by everyone last time, after I returned, I immediately summoned several of the sect's supreme elders and discussed it repeatedly for a long time, finally reaching a consensus—

Our sect has no objection to this proposal.

Speaking of which,

He paused slightly, his fingertips lightly tapping the stone seat before him, producing a crisp sound that broke the brief silence.

He then continued:

"However, there's always a chance of something going wrong, so I have to consider all the possibilities beforehand."

Fellow cultivators, consider this: the president of that cultivator association is a rogue cultivator who survived from ancient times. His cultivation is unfathomable, and he has already reached the Nascent Soul stage.

As for those of us present here, the highest we can reach is only the Half-Saint Realm, still one step away from the Divine Transformation Realm.

Even if we exhaust the resources of all the major sects and launch a joint attack, we still cannot kill it.

He even discovered their presence and managed to escape.

How should we respond then?

His voice rose slightly, his tone carrying a hint of seriousness:
"After all, the path of cultivation is strictly divided into realms, and the difference between these realms is like heaven and earth, as different as clouds and mud."

The Nascent Soul and the Spirit Transformation realms may seem to be separated by only one step, but in reality, their strength differs by a hundredfold.
If he does escape, he will recover from his injuries and come back to take revenge on us.

At that time, all of us major sects will likely face annihilation.

Upon hearing this,

The expressions on the faces of the mysterious cultivators seated on the stone thrones all changed.

A thoughtful look also lingered in their eyes, whether behind the mask or beneath the aura of enlightenment.

Obviously,

Fellow Daoist Jade Fox's words resonated deeply with them.

They had considered the risks, but had been unwilling to confront their fears. Now that Fellow Daoist Jade Fox had pointed it out, everyone fell silent and began to weigh the pros and cons.

A moment later,
One of the burly cultivators, whose face was obscured by a ball of spiritual light, spoke first. His voice was loud and clear, like a bell, carrying a hint of agreement and solemnity as he echoed:

"Fellow Daoist Jade Fox is absolutely right!"

This matter is indeed extremely dangerous and cannot be taken lightly.

Unless we can kill that old monster completely in one strike...
We must give him a chance to catch his breath and recover his full strength. Then we will face a fully-fledged Nascent Soul cultivator.
"Our fate will be terrible; we will surely die!"

He paused, then continued:
"Although our ancestors left behind some resources capable of contending with Nascent Soul cultivators, those resources have been eroded by time, and their power has long been diminished."
Trying to rely on those remaining resources to withstand the revenge of a peak Nascent Soul cultivator is still a drop in the ocean, and only leads to death.

Besides,

Once action is taken, the resources and strength of all the sects present will most likely be completely exhausted.

At that time, let alone resisting that old monster's revenge, we will be powerless to resist even the covetousness of other sects.
In the end, they will only suffer the destruction of their sect and their own demise.

"Furthermore, as fellow Daoists know, our various sects are scattered across the country, far apart, and we rarely interact with each other."
Some sects even harbor old grudges and estrangements.

How difficult it is to truly work together as one!
Once the battle begins, if anyone backs out or sabotages the operation from the shadows...
We will all become victims of that old monster's blade.

The burly cultivator's words were precious and earnest, expressing the concerns in everyone's hearts.

At this time,

The black-robed cultivator seated to the left of the main seat slowly shook his head, and his voice rang out again.

His tone carried a hint of helplessness, yet also revealed a firm resolve:
"I share the concerns of my fellow Daoists, and in fact, I am even more anxious than you are."

However, we now have no way out.

The voice just fell,

His tone suddenly changed, becoming extremely serious, and his aura sharpened, carrying an undeniable resolve:

"I believe that over the years, you have all figured out the nature of that ancient rogue cultivator, right?"
He appears to be fair and selfless, wholeheartedly dedicated to the development of the human cultivation world.
In reality, however, they are cunning and ambitious, and have already secretly set up numerous restrictions to suppress our various sects.

In recent years, in particular, his support for independent cultivators has far exceeded that of us sect cultivators. He provides independent cultivators with a great deal of resources and protection, and encourages them to support each other and strengthen their power.

If it weren't for the fact that among the rogue cultivators there are few top-tier cultivators who can rival us,

The position of Hall Master in the Cultivator Association is absolutely not for us sect cultivators!

"He is gradually weakening the power of our major sects and undermining our foundations. Once our sects have completely declined and the forces of independent cultivators rise up..."
He could then completely control the entire human cultivation world!
So now, it's time for us to make a decision...
Alternatively, we can join forces, fight to the death, kill that old monster, and reclaim the glory and power that belong to our various sects.
Either we sit and wait for our sect to decline step by step, or we simply sit and wait for our demise.

Ultimately, he was completely devoured by that old monster, his body and soul vanished!

The black-robed cultivator's words were like a thunderclap, exploding in everyone's ears and instantly igniting the anger and resentment in the hearts of many cultivators present.

As soon as these words were spoken, several figures immediately echoed them.
His voice carried a hint of anger and resolve.

"good!
The black-robed Daoist is absolutely right!

That old monster's ruthlessness was unparalleled in the world.

In previous years, he showed no mercy to us sects!
In our various sects, countless exceptionally talented individuals have been executed on his orders simply for unintentionally violating his rules, and the consequences have far-reaching consequences.

Not only were the senior members of the sect, but also their disciples and grand-disciples were all killed.

Even the mortal realms under the sect's jurisdiction were implicated, and countless ordinary people died tragically.

In that incident, countless innocent cultivators perished, and countless sects suffered devastating losses from which they have yet to recover!

A hoarse voice rang out, filled with deep hatred and resentment.

"yes!
That old monster appears outwardly righteous and devoted to the people, but in reality, he is treacherous, cunning, and malicious!

Over the years, the measures he has implemented, such as establishing the "Spirit Vein Protection Law" to prohibit our major sects from privately mining spiritual veins and restricting our cultivation resources;
They still promulgated the "Immortal City Security Regulations," targeting our sect's cultivators at every turn and restricting our actions.

And the promotion of cultivating [Earthly Elemental Grass] seems to be aimed at enhancing the overall potential of the cultivation world, allowing more mortals to embark on the path of cultivation...

In reality, they are secretly cultivating smaller factions to suppress sects like ours.

If this continues, it won't be long before the strength of our sect's cultivators plummets, and we will be completely surpassed by rogue cultivators.
At that time, all our major sects will be reduced to dust in history!

Another figure chimed in, his voice tinged with anxiety and anger.

That makes sense!

We absolutely cannot sit idly by and wait to die. We must join forces, slay that old monster, and reclaim everything that belongs to us!

A chorus of agreement rose and fell, and more and more cultivators felt their anger ignited, their eyes revealing a resolute glint.

Obviously,

They had been persuaded by the black-robed cultivator's words and were determined to fight that ancient rogue cultivator to the death.

However, at this very moment...
One of the monks, seated on a stone throne, frowned deeply behind his mask.
He spoke slowly, his voice tinged with hesitation and caution, attempting to persuade the crowd:
"Fellow Daoists, please be patient."

Although I am extremely dissatisfied with that old monster's actions and want to kill him and reclaim the power of our sect,

But the cost of failure is simply too high.
We can't act rashly.

He paused, then continued:
"Perhaps we should wait a little longer."

After all, the president of that cultivators' association was a cultivator who survived from ancient times, millions of years ago.

Even though he fell into a deep sleep and sealed himself away to slow down the loss of his lifespan, his lifespan would eventually run out.

Now that he has awakened from his slumber, his lifespan must be running out. If we wait patiently until his lifespan is exhausted, he will naturally die and his spirit will dissipate.
At that time, with the resources of our major sects, wouldn't it be easy for us to regain control of the Cultivator Association?
In this way, we can achieve our goals without paying a heavy price.

Wouldn't that be safer?

The cultivator's words were like a bucket of cold water, instantly extinguishing the anger in the hearts of many cultivators.

The crowd fell silent again, their eyes showing hesitation.

Yes!

The cost of failure is too high. If one can act prudently, who would be willing to risk their life?

At this moment, the monk sitting on the far right of the stone seat, wearing a hooded cloak, slowly spoke.
His hat brim was huge, hanging low and completely obscuring his face, leaving only a glimpse of his sharply defined jawline.
His voice was calm and even, yet it carried an undeniable persuasive power:
"That's very true!"

"Now, that old monster's lifespan is running out, and he won't be able to hold on forever. It's estimated that in a few more years, he will try to ascend to the Spirit Realm."

Fellow cultivators, as you all know, lifespan is of paramount importance to cultivators.
Faced with their lifespans dwindling, no cultivator could endure it any longer.
Ascending to the Spirit Realm, seeking a longer lifespan and higher cultivation, is his only way out.

"And now, the reason that old monster hasn't made a move, hasn't rashly attempted ascension..."
I believe it is highly likely that he has not yet found the way to the Forbidden Sea.

After all, to ascend to the Spirit Realm, one must first enter the Forbidden Sea, arrive at the Thunder Abyss Forbidden Land, and open the ascension passage before one can ascend to the Spirit Realm.

After the ordeal at the Forbidden Sea...

The teleportation array that once connected the Forbidden Sea and the cultivation world has been completely destroyed and can no longer be used normally.
Entering the Forbidden Sea again is as difficult as ascending to heaven.

"Therefore, we only need to wait patiently until he finds the path to the Forbidden Sea. He will naturally be eager to go to the Thunder Abyss Forbidden Land to attempt ascension."
At that time, he would no longer be able to stay in the Cultivator's Association.

And we can then seize the opportunity to regain control of the Cultivator's Association, achieving our goal without paying any price.

The cloaked monk spoke clearly and logically, each sentence making perfect sense.
This instantly moved many hesitant cultivators.

Those cultivators who were already somewhat hesitant, after listening to his words and silently weighing the pros and cons, nodded in agreement:

"Um!

What you say, fellow Daoist, is not without merit!

"Yes, that old monster doesn't have much time left. We might as well wait a few more years. There's no need to risk our lives and increase casualties."

"We've waited all these years."

We're not short of a few decades or a hundred years.

"..." (End of this chapter)