Chapter 534
The elders in the hall exchanged puzzled glances, all at a loss.
When Zhao Jingfan entered, he was even more bewildered.
"Take a look at this communication talisman."
The sect leader, Song Zhangmen, handed Zhao Jingfan the talisman from Zheng Fa. After reading it, Zhao Jingfan still couldn't figure out what it was about.
"What do you think? Should we agree?"
The elders were momentarily stunned. What was there to discuss?
Everyone knew the relationship between Zhao Jingfan and Zheng Fa. Could he possibly have a different answer?
"Of course we should!"
Without a moment's hesitation, Zhao Jingfan replied confidently.
An elder opened his mouth to say something, but Song Zhangmen interjected:
"Give me a reason."
"I am the reason!"
"…"
The expressions of the elders in the hall turned somewhat confused as they looked at Zhao Jingfan, who bluntly continued:
"My mother often says that I’m not very bright, my talent is mediocre, and my temperament is even worse…"
"…"
Song Zhangmen listened intently.
"But now I hold this position in the sect. Why is that?"
Why?
The elders were taken aback. Of course, it was because of his close friendship with Zheng Fa, a bond that was anything but ordinary, and the fact that they communicated regularly.
Zhao Jingfan nodded, "Zhangmen, you see clearly. Without this connection, what am I worth?"
Song Zhangmen twitched his lips, realizing that Zhao Jingfan was aware of how some people in the sect viewed him…
"Zheng Fa is someone who never forgets old friendships. I treated him well in the past, and now he can walk tall in our sect… Right now, Jiushan Sect lacks alchemists. If Qingmu Sect can show loyalty…"
As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions of everyone changed.
Zhao Jingfan's reasoning was too vivid, too hard to refute.
(End of this chapter)
**Chapter 404: The Fear of Comparison, Visiting Jiushan**
Watching Zhao Jingfan's retreating figure, the elders turned to Song Zhangmen.
Setting aside Zhao Jingfan's unassailable argument, the fact that Song Zhangmen had summoned him indicated a leaning towards joining this technical alliance—or at least, he was considering it.
"Zhangmen? How can you… This is a secret technique passed down through generations…"
The previously opposing elder asked, his tone filled with indignation.
"You all know about Zheng Fa's past."
At this, the others nodded.
Perhaps outsiders didn't care much about who Zheng Fa was, but the members of the Baixian Alliance were no fools; who hadn’t inquired about Zheng Fa's history?
Seeing them nod, Song Zhangmen continued, "So what kind of person do you think Zheng Fa is?"
The three present fell into deep thought, and unexpectedly, it was the elder who spoke first: "A peerless genius comparable to the Tianhe Zunren, no, even stronger than him…"
Song Zhangmen was momentarily taken aback, not expecting the elder who had opposed him the most to hold such a high opinion of Zheng Fa.
The elder of Qingmu Sect shook his head: "The more of a genius he is, the more I worry… Ability and ambition are always intertwined. Now he’s forming this so-called technical alliance—what will happen in the future?"
Even Song Zhangmen nodded at this.
The Tianhe Zunren was formidable, but he had also eliminated a significant number of the Xuanwei Sect…
"What do you think, Zhangmen?"
Song Zhangmen remained silent, merely pulling out a stack of letters from his sleeve and placing them on the table, asking the others, "Do you know what these are?"
The elders shook their heads.
"They are letters written by the disciples who entered the Jiushan Realm earlier."
Letters?
Song Zhangmen continued:
"Though they hardly mentioned what they did in the Jiushan Realm, at first, they still identified themselves as members of Qingmu Sect."
"But a month later, they almost exclusively referred to Zheng Fa."
"And now…" Song Zhangmen paused, sighing, "Can you guess who they refer to as their leader in their letters?"
From the expression on their leader's face, the others could guess…
Who else could it be?
Certainly not someone sitting in this hall.
"This… only proves Zheng Fa's ambition even more, doesn't it?" the elder said, puzzled.
"But that ambition isn't necessarily a bad thing."
"This…"
The elder was even more confused.
Song Zhangmen seemed to have thought about this for a long time, and now he spoke at length:
"From these letters, it’s clear that Zheng Fa is an extremely cautious person with a strong desire for control."
"Among the many sects in the Baixian Alliance, he hasn’t cared much, and he rarely interacts with us, likely because he doesn’t trust us…"
"But he treats the people in our sect and even those in the Jiushan Realm very well. You all saw the situation during the Jin Dan ceremony at Jiushan Sect… Within half a month, dozens of Jin Dan were produced; I can’t forget that scene."
"This man is cautious, protective, and may not even consider the Baixian Alliance sects as his own."
The implication was clear: since Zheng Fa was protective and suspicious, the best choice was to align with him.
Song Zhangmen's eyes sparkled with shrewdness as he added:
"But these letters also reveal another matter…"
"Our disciples sent to Jiushan Sect are mostly at the Foundation Establishment stage, yet their status there is not low… What does this imply?"
The elder immediately responded:
"Jiushan Sect is short on people! They need alchemists!"
Song Zhangmen nodded:
"Exactly!"
"This so-called technical alliance is likely formed for this reason."
Seeing the confusion still on their faces, Song Zhangmen decided to be more straightforward:
"Even ancestral secret techniques come at a price…"
"Jiushan Sect won’t always be short on alchemists."
The elder understood.
Their leader wanted to take a gamble.
Seeing that they seemed to grasp his meaning, Song Zhangmen exhaled:
"Our Qingmu Sect has accumulated for nearly a decade, and recovering will take too long."
The elder opened his mouth, seemingly wanting to argue.
"I know, we are all in the Yuanying stage, and time isn’t a concern… But how much time can the situation in Xuanwei give us?"
"How do you figure that…"
Song Zhangmen took out a communication talisman and handed it to the elder, saying, "This is news from Haori Mountain."
"Haori Mountain?"
The elder took the talisman and turned pale, his voice trembling:
"Haori Mountain wants all the sects within its territory to pay rent? For every Jin Dan, they must serve ten years of labor every hundred years?"
"This… how can this be?"
Song Zhangmen sneered:
"Why wouldn’t it be? Do you think the Six Faction Alliance exists for no reason?"
"…"
"The Xuanwei Realm has changed. Do you still think Zheng Fa is greedy?"
The elder pressed his lips together, unable to find words.
In any case, comparison is the thief of joy, especially when it comes to comparing misfortunes.
Initially, he thought Jiushan Sect wanting their secret techniques was unreasonable… But after seeing Haori Mountain's actions, Jiushan Sect seemed almost benevolent.
"Moreover, as Zhao Jingfan said… if we seize the opportunity, there might be some benefits."
The elder's expression shifted back and forth, finally understanding why their leader wanted to join this technical alliance.
The situation was indeed stronger than any individual.
If Haori Mountain was like this, the other five sects would likely be no different, while only the Baixian Alliance still had some semblance of humanity.
After a moment, he still gritted his teeth and said:
"Since the Zhangmen has made a decision, I can’t oppose it, but I’m unwilling to hand over many of our secret techniques to Jiushan Sect…"
Song Zhangmen was about to persuade him further.
But the old stubborn man stubbornly retorted, "I have little time left. If it comes to it, I’ll die. If I die, I’ll still have the face to meet our ancestors!"
This left Song Zhangmen speechless. He sighed, but just then, a communication talisman suddenly flew in from outside the hall. Song Zhangmen reached out and caught it, then frowned, puzzled, "Zheng Mengzhu invites us to Jiushan Sect… for a visit?"
The people in the hall were all dumbfounded. A visit… what on earth was that?
…
Half a month later.
On Tiangong Island, Song Zhangmen, accompanied by three elders and Zhao Jingfan, stood bewildered, exchanging glances with a group of women who were casting flirtatious looks.
"Xing Zhangmen? You from the Suni Pavilion… are you here for a visit too?"
Song Zhangmen's expression was one of hesitation, caught between wanting to speak and holding back, as he asked in a strangely awkward tone.
Suni Pavilion was one of the former top nine sects of the Baixian Alliance, specializing in… charm techniques.
They were here for a visit, presumably to join some technical alliance.
So, Xing Zhangmen must be here for the same reason… but was the Suni Pavilion's technique a bit too outrageous?
From the main hall of Tiangong Island, four figures emerged.
Leading them was Sister Zhang, her face adorned with a smile, yet no one dared to look at her directly… Zheng Fa's achievements were extraordinary, and Sister Zhang's serene demeanor was not to be underestimated.
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