Chapter 60: Building up
Chapter 60: Building up
As time passed, more and more cultivators arrived at the main camp. While Meng Zhang and Xu Chengxian were engrossed in their conversation, cultivators from the Zhao Family also arrived.
Zhao Yanbei, the patriarch of the Zhao Family, stood in front of their flying boat, looking at the various cultivators on the ground with a sense of indescribable satisfaction. The damn Li Family had finally met their end. Although sand monsters were the enemies of the Cultivation World, sometimes they could do good things too. Over a decade ago, during the calamity caused by sand monsters, the Zhao Family lost their only Foundation Building stage cultivator, and since then, they had been on a downward spiral.
The Li Family, which had always been in competition with the Zhao Family, took advantage of their weakness at that time to launch an attack. Facing the Li Family with a Foundation Building stage cultivator in their ranks, the Zhao Family inevitably lacked confidence and suffered losses in their conflicts. They not only lost two shops in Singing Sand City but also two crucial trade routes.
With their interests greatly damaged, the Zhao Family had been determined to cultivate another Foundation Building stage cultivator, and the relentless pressure from the Li Family was a significant factor.
Now that the Li Family had been exterminated by the sand monsters, the pressure on the Zhao Family was significantly reduced. Zhao Yanbei had originally planned to explore abandoned mines, but upon receiving the news of the Li Family's destruction, his mood immediately turned from gloomy to bright.
Following Twin Success Valley's orders, the Zhao Family was supposed to send a total of fifteen cultivators, including their patriarch, to respond to the summon. Zhao Yanbei actively complied and didn't send any weak cultivators to make up the numbers. Instead, they dispatched the elites of their family. The team not only included several Refining Qi Late stage cultivators but also three Refining Qi Completion stage cultivators. Even their flying boat, which was usually preserved due to the cost of using spirit stones, was sent on this occasion.
Zhao Yanbei intended to please Twin Success Valley and hoped to purchase a Lesser Foundation Building Pill from them again.
Normally, a First Rank flying boat could only carry ten cultivators. However, beside the Zhao Family's flying boat were five Red Feather Eagles ridden by cultivators.
The Zhao Family's flying boat directly entered the main camp, and Zhao Yanbei looked down, inadvertently catching sight of the three members of Taiyi Sect. A disdainful smile crept across his lips.
The cultivators sent by the Zhao Family this time were all at least in the Refining Qi Mid stage, while the most powerful cultivator in Taiyi Sect was only in the Refining Qi Mid stage of Cultivation Base. In order to make up the numbers, they had even brought along some trash at the Refining Qi Initial stage.
Xu Chengxian, the Sect Master of Forest Mountain School, whose circle of acquaintances was broad, saw more and more cultivators arriving, including some good friends. He apologized to Meng Zhang and went to greet those friends.
Among the cultivators of various forces, many were acquainted with each other, and there were even some old friends who hadn't seen each other in a long time. They greeted each other and began conversing.
Twin Success Valley held great authority among its vassal forces. Before the final deadline arrived, all the vassal forces that could make it had already gathered in the main camp. Some keen cultivators had noticed that among the arriving cultivators, many familiar faces were missing, and the number of cultivators was significantly reduced.
Of course, this wasn't because any vassal forces dared to defy Twin Success Valley's summon. The forces that hadn't arrived either suffered heavy damage from the sand monster colony and couldn't participate or had been entirely wiped out by the sand monsters.
Upon realizing this, the cultivators looked displeased. The sand monster colony this time was unexpectedly powerful and had caused the destruction of several forces. Even Zhao Yanbei, who had been in a good mood earlier, now wore a serious expression.
The sand monster colony was too formidable, and these vassal forces that responded to the summon faced enormous pressure. It was possible that they might be entirely wiped out.
While everyone was discussing with uncertainty, a flying boat arrived above the main camp. Two cultivators disembarked from the flying boat and floated in mid-air above the crowd.
Some sharp-eyed cultivators had already recognized the two individuals—Shan Ying and Xiao Shenqiang, Foundation Building stage elders of Twin Success Valley. Shan Ying was an old man with a stern expression, seemingly not one to smile easily. On the other hand, Xiao Shenqiang wore a beaming smile, giving people a friendly and amiable feeling.
"Everyone, please calm down and listen to what I have to say," said Xiao Shenqiang, though he wore a smile, his voice wasn't soft, and it resonated in everyone's ears.
The cultivators who had responded to Twin Success Valley's summon gathered on their own without the need for any commands and surrounded Xiao Shenqiang.
Xiao Shenqiang glanced at the situation below and was very satisfied with the cultivators' understanding of the situation.
At this time, the original cultivators of Twin Success Valley in the main camp had already finished counting and were well aware of the number of attendees. After hearing the reports from their fellow sect members below, Xiao Shenqiang's smile grew even broader.
"It seems everyone is giving face to our Twin Success Valley. The deadline is not here yet, but those who should come have already arrived."
"Next, let me give everyone a brief introduction to the current situation and assign tasks," Xiao Shenqiang slowly explained, and everyone gained a new understanding of the current situation.
The outbreak of the sand monster chaos had occurred less than half a month ago, but its devastation was extensive, affecting many forces.
Large groups of sand monsters had formed an array and swept across an area of several thousand li (over a thousand kilometers). Twin Success Valley suffered the most, and surrounding forces like Forest Spring Watch, Liu Family, and Green Bamboo Mountain also suffered significant losses.
Upon receiving the news, the Flying Swan Sect also issued strict orders for the four forces to exterminate the sand monster threat within a limited time, not giving the sand monster colony a chance to grow stronger.
Based on the Cultivation World's experience in countering sand monsters over the years, the most crucial step was to eliminate the sand monster nests as soon as possible. As long as the nests remained, new sand monsters would continue to emerge, and their strength would increase over time.
The four forces had convened and dispatched their elite disciples to form battle formations, confronting the sand monster army head-on. Simultaneously, they called on all vassal forces to search for the sand monster nests and eliminate them as soon as possible.
These four forces didn't involve Refining Qi stage cultivators from the vassal forces in the direct confrontation; it was mainly for coordination purposes. Cultivators from the same sect or family, who had been together for many years and well-trained, would form a solid formation with seamless cooperation.
Introducing numerous unfamiliar cultivators might not only affect coordination but also disrupt their own formation during the large-scale confrontation in the Cultivation World, which would be crucial for the final outcome.
The Foundation Building stage cultivators participating in the battle were generally not part of the formations; instead, they fought one-on-one with the strong sand monster opponents.
In several direct confrontations, the human cultivators had a resounding victory, gaining an absolute advantage. The four forces had set up four major formations, each winning on their respective battlefields, and they had eliminated many sand monsters. They were currently continuing to search for the remaining sand monster groups to annihilate them.
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