Splitting the Heave

“The members of the Four Spiritual Peak cannot be trusted.” Ji Wenlong sighed after hearing what Shang Bo said.

Shang Bo chuckled in response, “Chief Ji, of course I know that! However, all of us know that we cannot allow a third power to appear in the battlefield between the two worlds! They know that we have to work together to get rid of the hidden threat.” Pausing for a second, he added, “Of course, the benefits we obtain will depend on how well we play this.” 

Ji Wenlong nodded slightly and turned to the side. “Brother Shang, what do you think?” 

Shang Lubing smiled silently. “You two can decide. I’ll make an appropriate strategy depending on our choice of action.”

“Brother Shang, you’re acting too humble. You’re much more experienced than me, and I hope you can give me some pointers.” Shang Bo replied.

To that, he only received Shang Lubing’s humble denial.

“Alright alright, enough of the pleasantries.” Ji Wenlong snapped. “Has there been news from the Tongyou Institution? Is the Third Young Lady of the Yun Family coming over?” 

A bitter smile appeared on Shang Bo’s face. “I’m afraid not. The patriarch’s injuries are worse than we thought. Sister Yun is unable to leave the institution for the time being.” 

Ji Wenlong’s expression changed slightly and a sigh left his lips. “Looks like we can only rely on ourselves…” 

“What do you think the situation is inside the Coral Forest? Which one of the elders of the Rose Party led them this time?” Shang Bo asked.

Ji Wenlong’s expression turned solemn and he thought about it for a moment. A name flashed through his mind and he gnashed his teeth in irritation, “Murong Tianlan!” 

…

“We can’t rely on those bastards on the Four Spiritual Peak!” Yuwen Shengjie growled and his complexion didn’t look too good.

He was injured by Shang Bo during the war on the Tongyou Peak, and even though his injuries couldn’t be considered absolutely life-threatening, it was serious enough to affect his fighting abilities.

“The Four Spiritual Peak has been at odds with the Tongyou Peak for twenty years. They killed an uncountable number of people from the other side, and their hatred cannot be resolved till the other party is dead. Now that they have the chance to rid themselves of their enemy once and for all, they should be willing to work with us. Moreover, they can also get some benefits from the Coral Forest.” One of the younger cultivators of the Rose Party spoke up, but unlike the other two around him, he didn’t seem to be able to control his aura.

“It’s hard for us to say. Their battle raged on for twenty years, and they understand each other’s bottom line. They can even guess each other’s thoughts. Moreover, we don’t really have too much intelligence on either side.”

The younger expert continued, “Martial Uncle Yuwen, do you think that they will work together against us? I don’t think that’s possible! They can’t wait to kill each other!” 

Yuwen Shengjie chuckled in response, “Who said that mortal enemies cannot form an alliance?” 

“Uncle Daying, what do you think?” The younger cultivator turned to the other old expert and asked.

Dongfang Daying looked at the two of them before speaking, “We can give up anything but the control over the special regions! Only then will we be able to establish ourselves in the battlefield between the two worlds! Only then will we be able to stand at the same height as either one of the two powers!”

The young cultivator thought about it for a second before asking cautiously, “So… We should be cautious of them even if we work together?” 

Dongfang Daying slapped the young expert on the shoulder and chuckled, “Zhanxing, my intention is for you to go hide yourself. Do not reveal your identity as a Martial Extermination Realm expert. As for Murong Gaofeng, let’s hope that he manages to cross the bottleneck and break through! When that happens, we’ll possess five Martial Extermination Realm experts! When the time comes, the two of you will become the key to our victory!” 

Yuwen Shengjie spoke up too. “Too bad Ouyang Zhaiyuan is adamant about comprehending his ultimate technique. Otherwise, he would have been able to break through a long time ago! With his strength, we’ll be able to gain an absolute advantage!” 

Dongfang Daying smiled, “It’s up to him. Didn’t we send him and that formation master to the Mountain and Sea Fantasy Spiritual World? Let’s see if he can grasp the opportunity he’s been given. He’s been stuck at his current level for such a long time now and the amount of resources he has wasted has already touched on the bottom line of the Ouyang Family. Let’s hope he makes the right choice this time.” 

Yuwen Shengjie sighed, “Let’s hope so. The Coral Forest has been untouched for twenty years and we’re squeezing its resources dry right now. All we hope for is a few more experts to be born!”

The young Sima Zhanxing sighed at the side, “Martial uncles, didn’t we hand the task of controlling the Mountain and Sea Fantasy Spiritual World over to the kids? If I recall correctly, their leader should be a talented formation master from the Murong Family…” 

“Yes.” Yuwen Shengjia sighed, “Some of the kids have been brainwashed by him and all of them chose to head over to grab some benefits. They haven’t responded in a long time and they might have run into trouble. We can assume that all of them have already sacrificed their life in order to control the Mountain and Sea Fantasy Spiritual World… Senior Murong is really too lenient with the members of the younger generation…” 

Dongfang Daying muttered at the side, “That’s right. Even if he wishes to train them, there’s a limit to what they can do! Luckily, Murong Gaofeng is about to break through to the Martial Extermination Realm. The Murong Family will have another expert! Martial Uncle Murong can finally heave a sigh of relief…” 

Sima Zhanxing seemed to have realized something and he quickly responded, “Yeah… Although it's a pity…” 

His response seemed to please the other two, but he followed up with another question. “By the way, why hasn’t Ancestor Murong appeared even though the Tongyou Peak is breathing down our necks?” 

Yuwen Shengjie released a meaningful chuckle. “Uncle Tianlan is focused on the Zhu Family Manor at the moment. He’s suppressing Liu Jitang who is hiding in there. I’m afraid he doesn’t have time to help us.” 

Dongfang Daying interrupted suddenly, “You can’t say that. The Zhu Family Manor is the most important region of the Coral Forest. It’s the key to our Rose Party forming a base of operation here in the battlefield between two worlds.”

Yuwen Shengjie sneered softly, “Brother Dongfang, you’re right. However, I think you missed an important point…”

“Enough. Brother Shengjie, we shouldn’t air our dirty laundry in front of the juniors. Martial Uncle Tianlan is our senior after all…” Dongfang Daying glared at Yuwen Shengjie and growled.

Sima Zhanxing brought up an interesting idea all of a sudden. “Martial uncles, why don’t I head over to the Mountain and Sea Fantasy Spiritual World to take a look? That place seems a little strange. After all, we haven’t received any reports from those within. I heard that once the Mountain and Sea Fantasy Spiritual World opens, illusions will fill the area. Brother Zhaiyuan gave up the chance to enter the Unstable Region and Murong Gaofeng went in his stead. Could he have planned to comprehend his marital intent in the Mountain and Sea Fantasy Spiritual World since the start?” 

Dongfang Daying roared with laughter. “It will be great if that’s true! Anyway, you better not reveal yourself.” 

“Yeah. You shouldn’t head over now. If Ouyang Zhaiyuan really manages to comprehend his martial intent, you’ll find out either way. Moreover, he cannot be disturbed during his comprehension. If you head over now and affect his breakthrough, things will get complicated.” Yuwen Shengjie added.

Sima Zhanxing smiled in response, “Alright! I understand! I thank martial uncles for the tip!” Waving goodbye to the both of them, he took his leave.

Dongfang Daying looked at his leaving figure and whispered, “Brother Shengjie, the Sima Family has always maintained their neutrality in the Rose Party. However, from what he said earlier, he seems to be leaning towards us… We need to hold back a little. If we push him too much, he might lean the other way instead…” 

“I just think the Murong Family went too far! Didn’t I just say a little more…” Yuwen Shengjie muttered.

Dongfang Daying could only chuckle softly, “Alright, alright. The enemy is upon us. We have to look at the bigger picture. Martial Uncle Tianlan is our leader and we need to restrain ourselves.”

Yuwen Shengtian snorted once in acknowledgment.

A quick look at bit.ly/3iBfjkV will leave you more fulfilled.

However, Dongfang Daying seemed to have thought of something. “Oh yeah, what’s the name of Zhanxing’s extermination origin that he refined in the Dual Season Land?” 

“It’s called the Changqing Extermination. Even though it’s not very strong, it allows one to live for a long time. It’s also called the Longevity Extermination…” 

“Huh? Isn’t longevity the opposite of extermination? Those freaks of the Zhu Family… I wonder if their fate now has anything to do with the weird techniques they produced…” 

…

“The seven-colored smoke in the Fantasy Spiritual Pearl should contain an extermination origin!” Shang Xia looked at the pearl carefully and pointed towards the pretty mist within. When everyone stared at him in fright, he continued, “This should be the Fantasy Spiritual Extermination. Well, at least that explains the name of the pearl!” 

“Extermination origin… Is this the key to entering the Martial Extermination Realm?!” Sun Haiwei gasped. She was mesmerized by the beautiful mist contained in the pearl and she reached out unconsciously to touch it. However, her hands passed right through it and she retracted her hand quickly.

Shang Xia nodded and opened the Mountain and Sea Recollection. “According to the records, the Mountain and Sea Fantasy Spiritual World was designed by the Zhu Family to collect extermination origins! The Fantasy Spiritual Pearl is the key to their plan! This book also contains the way to retrieve the extermination origin from the pearl for refinement.” 

Shang Xia paused for a second, expecting the rest to be unable to digest what he just said. 

Shang Ke broke the silence after a long time. “I heard that the Zhu Family has been able to produce a lot of experts during their peak. A Martial Extermination Realm expert would appear every dozen years or so. Before our worlds collided, the Zhu Family actually produced four Martial Extermination Realm cultivators on their own! Their patriarch was at the peak of the Martial Extermination Realm, and it’s said that he would be the first person in our You Continent to break through to the next realm!”

Shang Ke shook his head slowly after speaking up to that point.

If they were talking about knowledge regarding the You Continent, Shang Ke knew a lot more than those present.

Shang Xia changed the topic suddenly. “Now that we’re in the Coral Forest and have lost contact with the outside world, we can only rely on ourselves! We only have one option left! We need to produce a Martial Extermination Realm expert right here and now!” 

He handed the pearl over to Shang Ke after he spoke. “Fifth Grandpa, we can only pray that you succeed…”