106: Chapter 47: The Majesty of the Leader_2 106: Chapter 47: The Majesty of the Leader_2 Bu Linhai was deep in thought when suddenly he heard an elder call his name:
“Linhai, why aren’t you speaking anymore?”
The other four disciples chuckled to themselves.
Bu Linhai hurriedly said, “Disciple is pondering over how to make the disciples of Wanyun Sect lose convincingly and how to make the other guests cheer for our Sea Watch Sect.”
“Good,” the elder stroked his beard and smiled, “That’s the right way to think about it, figuring out how to make them lose is exactly what you should do.”
“This time, for the sect’s internal training, we will use the ruins in the East Sea, which are already partially destroyed, as the site.
The sect will dispatch a hundred Immortals to set up a grand Formation, trapping the sea monsters within, and then you all will enter the Formation.
“According to the rules of previous years, disciples from each sect will team up in groups of five, and the disciples who come will all be in the Refining Void and Merge True realms.
“After the beasts are slain, the Immortals will record it, and you will need to take some tokens from the bodies of the beasts to make the results believable.
“During this training, the teams of disciples that rank in the top six in slaying beasts will receive rich rewards from the six sects, and your task is to each lead a team of Merge True realm disciples and make sure none of the Wanyun Sect disciples enter the top six.
Even if not a single team of our Sea Watch Sect disciples makes it to the top six, it won’t matter.”
Bu Linhai and several disciples took their orders at the same time.
‘It seems that the elders of the sect truly bear a lot of resentment towards the Wanyun Sect; even if they don’t vie for the rankings themselves, they still want to see Wanyun Sect embarrassed, with both sides suffering in the process.’
Bu Linhai smiled and said, “Disciple thinks that during the training later, we need only send part of the disciples to keep a close eye on those Wanyun Sect disciples.
As long as we can beat them to the monsters they intend to kill, we can ensure that they are all eliminated, while our side selects two teams of elite disciples to compete for the rankings.”
“You all can decide on such matters yourselves.
All right, you may go and prepare…
Linhai, stay behind.”
Bu Linhai was momentarily startled, his lips curling slightly upwards, a hint of anticipation in his eyes.
Opportunity knocks but once.
The second day of the journey, early in the morning.
The cloud ship of Wanyun Sect had temporarily disengaged its Protective Array, and with a series of dull thuds, clouds materialized out of thin air and drifted away with the wind.
Over thirty disciples split into two groups;
The female disciples gathered at the edge of the deck, throwing ‘Blast Cloud Pills’ from time to time, listening to Ningning Mu explain the marvelous uses of these items.
Most of the male disciples sat in a circle in the center of the deck, playing a game of hot potato with a Blast Cloud Pill—each person infused a wisp of Mana into the pill and then passed it to the next person, seeing who would be the last to cause it to explode, resulting in a round of cheers.
Li Ping’an still sat in the old spot in the corner, holding a Jade Talisman, studying the insights on formations written down by an Immortal of the sect.
In the past two years, he had become increasingly interested in Formation and Artifact Refining.
Of course, the basis for his fascination with these ‘external matters’ was that he had not neglected his understanding of the first half of ‘Wanyun Jue’; the insights he had accumulated until now were absolutely sufficient for the Heaven and Earth Bridge realm.
Ordinary Qi Cultivators accumulate Mana and wait for insights, but Li Ping’an did just the opposite.
He accumulated insights and waited for his father to pass on his power.
Elder Yansheng walked behind the disciples with his hands clasped behind his back, quietly floated past them, and approached Li Ping’an.
The disciples turned their heads to glance at Elder Yansheng, those who were more formal got up to greet him, while those who were more casual didn’t move an inch, continuing with their fun.
Li Ping’an got up to greet him.
“Mmm,” Elder Yansheng forced a dry smile.
A cloud materialized beside Li Ping’an and formed into a cloud stool, and Elder Yansheng took a leisurely seat, a green water pipe appearing in his hands.
This elder normally used a common Magic Artifact pipe within the mountain gate, filled with leaves from a hundred-year-old Spiritual Root;
However, once outside the mountain gate, he switched to an Immortal Treasure grade pipe, and he filled it with processed fragments of thousand-year-old Spiritual Root leaves.
Elder Yansheng took a comfortable puff of the water pipe, a wisp of smoke swirling out slowly, shrouding the figures of the two men.
“There might be some trouble this time,” Elder Yansheng said slowly:
“The Sea Watch Sect will likely make you disciples face some embarrassments, what do you think?”
“That, I’m not well-placed to comment,” Li Ping’an put away the Jade Talisman and took a bottle of Spiritual Spring water to moisten his throat before sighing,
“I just think that regardless of how strong we are, we can’t suppress the local snakes; moreover, the Sea Watch Sect is slightly more powerful than our Wanyun Sect, so it wouldn’t be wise to clash with them.
“Although, among the six sects heading to the East Sea for the trial, there are two with good relations with us who we can rely on for mutual assistance.
“However, the other two are essentially vassals of the Sea Watch Sect and will surely follow their lead.”
“In my humble opinion…
not vying for victory is also an option.”
“The sect has made the same considerations,” Elder Yansheng nodded slowly, “This time we have chosen you to lead with much deliberation since you are good at improvising; nowadays, you have the Refining Void Realm cultivation and possess the Spirit Explosion Secret Technique.”
Li Ping’an wondered, “Wasn’t this arranged by my father?”
Elder Yansheng explained, “Dazhi Uncle Master merely wanted Ningning to accompany you on this external mission, intending to matchmake the two of you, but he didn’t say anything about the rest.”
Old Li indeed remained true to his original aspirations.
“Ping’an, I surely understand your nature,” Elder Yansheng continued soothingly:
“You need not worry too much for Uncle Master Dazhi anymore.
“Uncle Master Dazhi’s contributions to the sect cannot be denounced nor replaced by anyone.
Ancestor Kongming has already settled into seclusion contentedly, and the Sect Leader has placed some of the sect’s minor matters in your father’s hands.
“The elders are clearly aware of this; before your father ascends to Heavenly Immortal, it has become an unwritten rule in the sect that he should not venture outside.”
Li Ping’an smiled and asked, “Elder, please feel free to speak directly.”
Elder Yansheng nodded gravely and then furrowed his brows, puffing the water pipe before saying slowly, “There’s no need for you to worry too much at this East Sea training conference; instead, take a closer look at the people around you.”