Looking at the distant scene of the world collapsing and the earth splitting, as if it were the end of the world, everyone was dumbfounded. After a while, it was Jin Li Daoist Master who first reacted.
"Tianzhu Uncle Master burned his own life, forcibly activating the power of Grand Dao, and perished together with that Fifth Rank Earth Spirit."
"Due to the drastic changes in the rules of heaven and earth around the battlefield, various anomalies have appeared. Cultivators at the Gold Core stage had better not approach that area to avoid being harmed by the lingering power of Grand Dao."
"Alright, let's put aside the matter of Tianzhu Uncle Master for now. What are your plans next?"
Upon hearing Jin Li Daoist Master's question, everyone fell into rare silence. Finally, it was Fei Shi Daoist Master who spoke first.
"Since Senior Tianzhu said that something has happened to Feihong Mountain, it's most likely not false."
"Even if True Monarch Mountain Peak and True Monarch Profound Wind don't know about Senior Tianzhu's death and dare not act rashly, their underlings will likely be used as cannon fodder."
"We know nothing about the specific situation. Let's first understand the current situation and then figure out a plan."
Meng Zhang agreed with Fei Shi Daoist Master's statement. Regardless of the decisions they make or their plans, it is better to first understand the latest situation.
The five Gold Core Daoist Masters set off again, leaving everything behind in the Deadly Sea of Sand, quickly flying away from that place. They rushed all the way and caught up with the cultivator army that had left earlier, composed of the three forces.This army, composed of cultivators from three forces, had just left the Deadly Sea of Sand and had not had the chance to contact their respective homes yet. Qi Nanfei Daoist Master must have never thought of this. After escaping the battlefield, he did not immediately try to catch up with the army and join the other cultivators of his family.
The five Gold Core Daoist Masters tactfully contacted their own cultivators and then launched a surprise attack on the unsuspecting Qi Family cultivators. Flying Swan Sect and Taiyi Sect cultivators all participated in the ambush. The Qi Family, with mediocre strength, had virtually no resistance. They were wiped out without much effort.
The five Gold Core Daoist Masters had already agreed to strictly keep the news of True Monarch Tianzhu's death confidential and not to leak it easily.
Meng Zhang and the two Gold Core Daoist Masters from Flying Swan Sect found an excuse to comfort their own cultivators. The army of cultivators stopped their advance and tried to contact their respective homes.
After leaving the Deadly Sea of Sand, the nearest base was Taiyi Sect's stronghold in the Demon Wind Gobi. Since the army of Taiyi Sect's cultivators entered the Demon Wind Gobi for battle, their communication channels with the rear had been kept open.
Before long, Meng Zhang and Yang Xueyi received the latest information from Taiyi Sect's Secret Hall.
Fire Cloud Sect, with the assistance of Yellow Lotus Sect's East River Branch, organized a formidable force of cultivators and launched a sudden long-distance raid, ambushing Flying Swan Sect's mountain gate, Feihong Mountain.
Due to the belief in Yellow Lotus Sect's Mountain Branch promise and excessive trust in the strength of True Monarch Mountain Peak, Flying Swan Sect dispatched all their elite cultivators to participate in the battle at Deadly Sea of Sand, leaving their mountain gate too weakly defended.
Flying Swan Sect had experienced a previous incident of being captured by Fire Cloud Sect, which led to their reinforcement of Feihong Mountain's defenses. However, facing the joint forces of Yellow Lotus Sect's East River Branch and Fire Cloud Sect, Feihong Mountain did not hold for long and fell again.
The enemy continued to pursue victory and completely swept through Flying Swan Sect's territory. Probably to preemptively strike, the joint forces dispatched three Gold Core Daoist Masters on a long-distance raid, targeting Taiyi Sect's mountain gate, Grand Lion Ridge, hoping to stage another great victory.
However, Wen Qiansun, who had recently broken through to the Gold Core stage, promptly responded and defended the mountain gate with the Third Rank mountain protection formation, Grand Lion Ridge.
Being proficient in formations even before becoming a Gold Core Daoist Master, Wen Qiansun displayed the power of the mountain protection formation to its fullest after achieving this stage, resisting the enemy's attack.
When the enemy's attacks proved futile, Delicate Water Spirit General, who had been observing from the sidelines, suddenly launched a surprise attack and severely wounded one of the attacking Gold Core Daoist Masters.
Taking advantage of the chaos caused by the enemy, Wen Qiansun activated the power of the formation to counterattack and inflicted another heavy blow to the enemy.
In the end, the three attacking Gold Core Daoist Masters paid a heavy price with one slightly injured and two seriously injured, and they had to retreat in embarrassment.
After this battle, the invading joint forces of Fire Cloud Sect and Yellow Lotus Sect's East River Branch probably realized that Taiyi Sect was not an easy nut to crack. Even if their main force was not present, it wasn't easy to conquer Taiyi Sect.
As they needed to sweep the areas around Feihong Mountain and guard against Taiyi Sect's counterattack, the joint forces did not continue to advance towards Demon Wind Gobi. Instead, they chose to consolidate their occupied territories.
Under the joint forces' sweep, most of the Endless Sea of Sand had fallen. Even Flying Swan Sect's original main gate, Yellow Sand Ridge, was captured by the enemy.
After receiving this information, Meng Zhang did not conceal it but called the five Gold Core Daoist Masters together to inform them of the situation.
When Taiyi Sect's Secret Hall conveyed the information to Meng Zhang, Flying Swan Sect, through other channels, also learned about everything happening in the Endless Sea of Sand.
Taiyi Sect's territory was mostly intact. As long as Meng Zhang and Yang Xueyi led their army back, they would at least have the ability to resist, if not completely impenetrable.
Flying Swan Sect, on the other hand, had lost its territory and became a destitute group. Fei Shi Daoist Master looked at Meng Zhang with a gloomy expression, feeling bitter.
Wen Qiansun of Taiyi Sect had recently broken through to the Gold Core stage, and Meng Zhang found a way to keep him within the sect. What was even more unexpected was that Taiyi Sect still had another hidden Gold Core Daoist Master, who had remained unknown until the crucial moment and played a decisive role.
"Sect Master Meng, you really are cunning," Jin Li Daoist Master couldn't help but feel a little dissatisfied with Meng Zhang's act of hiding their true strength.
Meng Zhang didn't defend himself. If given another chance, he would still try to hide their strength. If it weren't for Delicate Water Spirit General's intervention this time, the enemy wouldn't have been easily repelled.
Flying Swan Sect had lost its territory, and their greatest support, True Monarch Tian Zhu, had already passed away. Faced with the potential retaliation from True Monarch Profound Wind and True Monarch Mountain Peak, if Fei Shi Daoist Master and the others decided to leave and abandon the Endless Sea of Sand, then Taiyi Sect would be left to bear all the pressure alone.
Taiyi Sect was currently in a precarious situation. If they left here, where would they go to find a place to settle?
Meng Zhang and Yang Xueyi had already discussed this matter before. They decided to hold on to their current foundation and not give up unless it was absolutely necessary.
Facing the dire situation, what path would Flying Swan Sect take? This was the real test for Fei Shi Daoist Master and Wu Mingwei Daoist Master.
The two of them had discussed this matter a long time ago. During the gathering of everyone, they had also communicated privately before finally making their decision.
Fei Shi Daoist Master's attitude was resolute. Everyone in Flying Swan Sect was born and raised in the Endless Sea of Sand. Even if they were to die, they wanted to die here in the Endless Sea of Sand.
Of course, Fei Shi Daoist Master's words sounded noble, but he naturally had his considerations and judgments. As they were unaware of True Monarch Tian Zhu's fate, True Monarch Mountain Peak and True Monarch Profound Wind would not dare to enter the Endless Sea of Sand in the short term, even after recovering from their injuries. At most, they would send controlled cultivators to slowly probe the situation.
As long as the Primordial Spirit True Monarchs didn't directly intervene, Flying Swan Sect and Taiyi Sect combined should be able to resist. As for the possibility of the two Primordial Spirit True Monarchs becoming suspicious about True Monarch Tian Zhu's life and death, that might be a matter for much later.
Whether Flying Swan Sect decided to leave or stay in the Endless Sea of Sand, they needed to temporarily settle down and handle various affairs. Even if they planned to escape in the future, it would take a lot of time to make preparations before leaving.
If Flying Swan Sect chose to stay, Meng Zhang would naturally be very pleased. However, the problem was how to accommodate all of Flying Swan Sect's members, which was a bit troublesome.
Finding a Third Rank spirit vein for the long-term residence of Gold Core Daoist Masters would be ideal. But Taiyi Sect's Grand Lion Ridge, with its Third Rank spirit vein, was already unable to support even two Gold Core Daoist Masters. Now that Taiyi Sect had four Gold Core Daoist Masters, there was no surplus energy to help Flying Swan Sect.
After reaching the Gold Core late stage, Gold Core Daoist Masters could ascend to Nine Heavens to collect Nine Heavens Refined Essence for absorption and refinement. Their demand for a spirit vein would be greatly reduced.
Jin Li Daoist Master himself didn't really need a Third Rank spirit vein, but he could understand the predicament of Flying Swan Sect and Taiyi Sect. Flying Swan Sect had lost even Yellow Sand Ridge this time, and they truly had nowhere to go.
Jin Li Daoist Master took the initiative to ask, "Where do you plan to settle down next? Do you have any ideas?"
Fei Shi Daoist Master bowed to Jin Li Daoist Master, Meng Zhang, and Yang Xueyi, and politely said, "Please assist me in taking down Qi Family's mountain gate."
Northern Desert's Qi Family, they almost forgot about them. Although Qi Family was in a remote and impoverished area of the Northern Desert, their base did indeed possess a Third Rank spirit vein.
Regardless of how Qi Nanfei Daoist Master, the current head of Northern Desert's Qi Family, felt, due to the actions of Qi Family's elder Qi Mingyun, they had become enemies of Flying Swan Sect and Taiyi Sect.
If there were no conflicts of interest, Meng Zhang and the others might not have bothered with Qi Family. However, since Flying Swan Sect had set their sights on the Third Rank spirit vein at Qi Family's mountain gate, and Taiyi Sect welcomed it, Qi Family was in trouble this time.
Meng Zhang and the others agreed to Fei Shi Daoist Master's request. Jin Li Daoist Master was the most decisive. "Since we have decided to deal with Qi Family, the sooner, the better. We should act as soon as possible to avoid any other complications."
Meng Zhang nodded in agreement. Qi Nanfei Daoist Master had fled in a hurry before and didn't even have time to join his own army. If they suddenly launched an attack now, they could catch him off guard.
The five Gold Core Daoist Masters briefly discussed their plan and immediately set it in motion. Leaving their respective forces behind, they flew together towards the Northern Desert.
Qi Family's mountain gate was located to the north of the Endless Sea of Sand, near the border with the Deadly Sea of Sand. It wasn't too far from their current location, about 5,000-6,000 li at most.
The five Gold Core Daoist Masters swiftly flew over the desert, entering the territory of Northern Desert's Qi Family.
Northern Desert's Qi Family's territory was not small, covering an area of over a thousand li. However, this region was too barren and far less fertile than the core area of the Endless Sea of Sand. If it weren't for possessing a Third Rank spirit vein, the environment here wouldn't even compare to Twin Success Valley's territory from before.
Within this area of over a thousand li, there were only a few oases. Each oasis was not large and could only accommodate a small number of people.
Meng Zhang had never been to Northern Desert's Qi Family's territory before, but he had heard about it. Now that he was here in person, he was a little surprised by its desolation.
In such a place, it was indeed not easy for a Gold Core family like Northern Desert's Qi Family to survive, reproduce, and continue their legacy.
Qi Nanfei Daoist Master witnessed how True Monarch Tian Zhu had easily defeated Qi Family's elder brothers, which frightened him. He abandoned everything and quickly fled back to Dustfall Mound.
After returning to the family's mountain gate, Qi Nanfei Daoist Master did not relax. Knowing that True Monarch Tian Zhu would undoubtedly take revenge on Northern Desert's Qi Family, they had to plan ahead while they still had time.
Qi Nanfei Daoist Master had some understanding of the two Primordial Spirit True Monarchs of his family. After experiencing this defeat, they would most likely directly escape back to Middle-Earth Continent.
Qi Family was a first-rate cultivation family in Middle-Earth Continent, but the distance between Middle-Earth Continent and the Endless Sea of Sand was too far, making it difficult for Qi Family's power to reach this area.
Qi Mingyun and Qi Mingyuan True Monarchs would not have come to this place if it hadn't been for a fortuitous encounter. As for facing True Monarch Tian Zhu's future revenge, they couldn't rely on the family's power.
The only thing Qi Nanfei could do was to early prepare to lead his clan members to escape far away from the Endless Sea of Sand.
Since Qi Mingyun and Qi Mingyuan True Monarchs had already fled, Qi Nanfei no longer cared about the tasks they left behind. There were very few people left in Qi Family's mountain gate, and they were mostly the elderly, weak, sick, and disabled.
Qi Nanfei directed them to move the treasury, pack their belongings, and make preparations to escape.
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