By the side, the metal-tower-like Jiang Man displayed a naive grin as he remarked, “It sounds quite exciting.”
“Shut your trap.”
Mu Qingyan shot a glare at him before turning back to Mu Liu. “Our Forest Pavilion is at best equal in strength to the Mountain Pavilion. Even if my Spirit cultivation has reached the Transformative stage, the Mountain Pavilion also has a Transformative stage expert.
“Zhou Yuan told you their Wind Pavilion will handle the Fire Pavilion, but do you know how many practitioners they have that have reached the Corporeal stage? More than five hundred. What about the Wind Pavilion? Only two hundred. Their opponents have nearly triple their numbers. In such a situation, even a Transformative stage Spirit won’t be able to do much.
“The Wind Pavilion’s foundations are far too weak. Haven’t you heard about the outcome of that Spirit training session they had previously? It was pathetic and shameful!
“So tell me, how will the Wind Pavilion vie with the Fire Pavilion in the Heaven Flame Ritual?”
Mu Qingyan was seething. Mu Liu should have only gone to warn Zhou Yuan. How had it ended with him bringing back such shocking news?
She felt that Mu Liu must have been conned by Zhou Yuan! Moreover, he seemed completely irredeemable!
This was way too cruel of Zhou Yuan. Wasn’t this akin to pushing their Forest Pavilion into the fire? What would happen if the Fire Pavilion easily dispatched the Wind Pavilion and decided to go after their Forest Pavilion next? Although the Fire Pavilion was bossy and unreasonable, they had always given a little face and did not dare to push the Forest Pavilion too far. But if the Forest Pavilion chose to help the Wind Pavilion this time, Lu Xiao would have sufficient reason on his side.
Liu Mu forced a smile as he said, “That may not be so. Zhou Yuan is very strange and unpredictable. For example, who could have expected him to be capable of turning the tables on Chen Beifeng previously? What’s more, even Fang Ao has fallen at his hands.”
Mu Qingyan angrily said, “Zhou Yuan is quite capable, but this is different from before. The Heaven Flame Ritual is a team effort. You can’t tell me that Zhou Yuan will be able to singlehandedly topple the entire Fire Pavilion, right?!”
Mu Liu chuckled. “I don’t know whether he’ll be able to topple the Fire Pavilion, but even if we do not cooperate with him, you know that I can’t possibly accept Lu Xiao’s proposal. Who does he think he is? Does he think I’ll run after any bone he throws? What does he take me for?”
Mu Qingyan was a little taken aback. Though Mu Liu usually put on a friendly, smiling appearance, she knew that his heart was full of pride. Even someone as strong as Lu Xiao could not make him submit.
Jiang Man said in a slightly crestfallen manner, “I feel that the boss is not wrong. Lu Xiao may seem to be giving us some benefits, but if we accept their proposal once, we’ll no longer be able to hold our heads high and will feel shorter whenever we meet any Fire Pavilion members in the future.”
Mu Qingyan pursed her lips as her expression slowly softened. “Now that you guys mention it, that bastard Lu Xiao definitely does not have any good intentions.”
She fell into thought for a while. In the end, she gritted her teeth and declared, “Fine, since you’ve already made the decision, we’ll join forces with the Wind Pavilion. I hope that Zhou Yuan is not conning us purely for the sake of trying to escape from their predicament.”
Upon seeing Mu Qingyan agree, Mu Liu breathed a sigh of relief. He might be the forest pavilion master, but Mu Qingyan was the most popular and influential individual in the Forest Pavilion. If she objected, many members would stand on her side. Most importantly, they had to rely on her leadership for the upcoming Heaven Flame Ritual, and it would truly become problematic if she were to refuse the commander role.
“However, Zhou Yuan is not fully conning me. At the very least, regardless of success or failure, he has promised to provide us three hundred high-grade Mother Runes every month at the price of the normal four Mother Runes.” Mu Liu grinned.
These words made Mu Qingyan’s and Jiang Man’s eyes brighten.
“The 50% effectiveness Mother Runes?”
They had long coveted the high-grade Mother Runes that could increase the effectiveness of gathering Genesis marks by 50%. But it was an extremely scarce product that only some of the high-ranking Wind Pavilion members could receive. The ones that occasionally found their way into the market would immediately be snapped up at very high prices.
Hence, any information regarding them would always be highly sought after.
Mu Qingyan and the others naturally desired these high-grade Mother Runes as well but had no way to obtain them. They never imagined that Zhou Yuan would promise to give them three hundred every month once this affair was concluded.
This was an unexpected surprise.
“It seems that he does have some sincerity,” said Mu Qingyan.
If we can get three hundred high-grade Mother Runes every month, we should be able to make up some of the losses if we fail in the Heaven Flame Ritual.
However, Mu Qingyan still disapproved of Zhou Yuan leading the Wind Pavilion to face the entire Fire Pavilion, and she clearly did not believe he had any chance of succeeding. After all, the gap between both sides was far too great.
Even with Zhou Yuan pouring all of his efforts into transforming the Wind Pavilion, he had far too little time. It had only been a few months since he had joined, whereas the Fire Pavilion’s humongous advantage was the culmination of many years of efforts. How could it be easy for Zhou Yuan to catch up?
She could only pray that they would not lose too badly this time, or it would be a little shameful.
Bah, lose if we have to. I’ll take it as us accompanying them to play!
Mu Qingyan consoled herself with such thoughts.
The Fire Island.
Zhu Lian gazed at Lu Xiao’s back and reported, “Pavilion master, the Forest Pavilion sent someone to reject our proposal.”
Lu Xiao turned his head and nonchalantly said, “How disappointing.”
Zhu Lian said in a low voice, “According to our informants in the Forest Pavilion, Mu Liu has likely chosen to cooperate with Zhou Yuan.”
“An alliance between two weaklings?” Lu Xiao shook his head. “Since when did Mu Liu become so foolish? Never mind, I originally wanted to give their Forest Pavilion some benefit, but it seems that it is not fated.”
He was not the least bit angered by the Forest Pavilion’s decision, because they were not an important part of his plan. He wouldn’t have contacted them, if he did not want to completely crush the Wind Pavilion this time.
However, he was somewhat surprised that Mu Liu had chosen Zhou Yuan over him.
“Never mind, let him do what he wants.
“Since he has decided to stand on the opposing side, don’t blame me for showing no mercy.” Lu Xiao turned his head again and peered into the distance. They had always given the Forest Pavilion a little face in previous Heaven Flame Rituals and had generously given them a little meat to eat. He never expected that his kindness would not be repaid.
Since that was the case, he no longer planned on showing any courtesy.
Lu Xiao indifferently asked, “Zhu Lian, how are our preparations?”
Zhu Lian nodded as he said in a satisfied manner, “Everything is ready. Moreover, I even specially made a trip back to the Heavenly Spirit Hall as per your, the pavilion master’s, request. I only feel that you regard Zhou Yuan far too highly. Our Fire Pavilion already has an enormous advantage and has even prepared such trump cards for the ritual. This is essentially using a cleaver to kill a chicken.”
Lu Xiao placed his hands behind his back as he said, “I do not want to make the same mistake as before. Even a lion should use all its power to slaughter a rabbit.
“This time, I will make Zhou Yuan feel true despair!”
He would also teach the Forest Pavilion how stupid their choice was.
“Trying to shatter a rock with an egg? They’re only courting their own deaths.”
Chapter 854 Spirit Devour Genesis Mark
The days flowed past, and the Heaven Flame Ritual gradually approached.
The four pavilions grasped every second they could to train. Under this calm, secret undercurrents flowed.
Due to Zhou Yuan’s appearance, the Wind Pavilion radiated with new life over the past few months, their fame and strength growing each day. However, the better life was for the Wind Pavilion, the worse it grew for the Fire Pavilion.
The Mark Capturing Rune was completely defeated by the four Mother Runes, causing their sales to plummet tremendously. In turn, the Fire Pavilion’s greatest source of income was now lost, and their previously envious treatment and benefits steadily fell little by little. This drew numerous complaints from the Fire Pavilion, resulting in a substantial blow to Lu Xiao’s reputation.
With regards to this, Lu Xiao’s response was rather cunning. He continuously sent out people to sway public opinion, directing their anger towards Zhou Yuan.
This tactic achieved some success. After all, Zhou Yuan had indeed hurt the Fire Pavilion’s benefits. Hence, nearly every member of the Fire Pavilion was filled with rage at Zhou Yuan. The anger boiled in their hearts, readying them to unleash a brutal counter attack on the Wind Pavilion in the subsequent Heaven Flame Ritual as a form of revenge on him.
After all, although the Wind Pavilion was slowly growing in strength, the current strongest of the four pavilions was still their Fire Pavilion.
The Heaven Flame Ritual was also a competition based on the overall power of each pavilion. As such, the outcome was already self-evident.
This time, the Fire Pavilion would wash away their shame. It was the best chance for them to show Zhou Yuan who was the real boss of the four pavilions!
Several thousand Spirits were orderly standing in the sky, creating a rather impressive sight.
Zhou Yuan’s Spirit also stood in the air, powerful Spirit undulations pulsing from his body. His Spirit was nearly as corporeal as a real person. If the several thousand Spirits were fireflies, Zhou Yuan’s Spirit would be as dazzling as the moon.
Zhou Yuan’s Spirit grasped a giant azure flag, waving it with vigour and enthusiasm.
Bzzbzz!
Several thousand Spirits released a pulse of energy as numerous foot-long Spirit needles appeared. The few thousand needles were quite similar although some were a little brighter and others a little dimmer. A chill filled the surrounding area.
“Attack!”
In the next instant, several thousand Spirit needles shot forward, converging into a giant torrent. Space trembled violently as they passed, emitting an ear-piercing shriek. The Spirit of anyone who was struck would immediately shatter to pieces.
The river of needles swam in the air like a giant illusory dragon. It was honestly quite a magnificent attack.
After training for two hours, Zhou Yuan gave a faint nod of approval. The hard work invested over the past half a month had finally given the Wind Pavilion’s Spirit formation some semblance of power; though, Zhou Yuan would only describe these offensive Spirit needles as crude.
However, as the saying went, nothing could stand before absolute power. In the face of this giant river of Spirit needles, even a Transformative stage Spirit like Zhou Yuan’s would have to evade. It wouldn’t dare to take such a force on directly.
“What a pity. If they had some mastery of Genesis Runes, we could use our Spirits to draw Genesis Runes, maximizing the power of everyone’s Spirits. Several thousand people attacking together would force even a Heavenly Sun stage expert to flee.” A sliver of regret flitted across Zhou Yuan’s eyes.
But he also understood that such thinking was too ideal. The art of Genesis Runes was both broad and profound, making it extremely difficult to study and comprehend. After all, not everyone could focus on Genesis Qi cultivation while not neglecting Genesis Rune study such as him.
While praising himself, Zhou Yuan seemed to have forgotten that if not for Yaoyao’s strictness and constant guidance on Genesis Rune cultivation, he would probably be in a similar situation as the Wind Pavilion members. He was merely a pot calling the kettle black.
Zhou Yuan’s Spirit descended from the air, merging back into his body.
Beside him, Yi Qiushui joyfully remarked, “The training seems to be quite effective.”
Ye Bingling also gave a small nod of agreement as a slight smile rose from the corners of her mouth.
However, Zhou Yuan shook his head as he gazed at the numerous Wind Pavilion members. “This is far from enough to contend with the Fire Pavilion.”
Yi Qiushui and Ye Bingling sighed helplessly. After all, the overall strength of the Fire Pavilion completely eclipsed the weak Wind Pavilion, leaving them at an absolute disadvantage. The Wind Pavilion’s goal for the upcoming Heaven Flame Ritual was not to cross swords with the Fire Pavilion but to do all they could to obtain a little Heavenly Sun Fire.
Zhou Yuan stared at the air in deep thought. On the Fire Pavilion side, just the number of Corporeal stage Spirits alone was nearly six hundred, and no one knew how many advanced Illusory stage cultivators there were. Both quality and quantity far surpassed the Wind Pavilion’s.
In the face of such a powerful force, even Zhou Yuan did not feel confident despite achieving initial mastery in the Spirit Lantern Art. Given his understanding of Lu Xiao, the aforementioned would most likely come at Zhou Yuan with his full power this time after suffering at Zhou Yuan’s hands previously.
Behind Lu Xiao was the Heavenly Spirit Sect. Zhou Yuan could not predict what kind of aid they would give.
He needed to be on guard.
However, reaching this level of coordination was already the limit of the Wind Pavilion. It was not possible to raise their Spirit mastery any further within a short period of time.
But this was not the first time Zhou Yuan had such thoughts. Over the past few days, he had been wracking his brains to come up with some kind of tactic or idea. However, his efforts had been fruitless, leaving him no choice but to inwardly sigh. Even a clever housewife could do nothing without the right tools.
Zhou Yuan sighed in his heart. He grasped the mottled Heavenly Yuan Brush and used its snow-white hairs to scratch his forehead. With how weak the Wind Pavilion was, he was under tremendous pressure as the wind pavilion master, feeling as if he had to do everything by himself.
As the snow-white brush hairs swayed before his eyes, Zhou Yuan blew gently.
The hairs danced in front of him and Zhou Yuan’s eyes suddenly flashed brightly.
“The Heavenly Yuan Brush!”
Zhou Yuan’s eyes darted towards the concealed sixth rune on the brush’s mottled body as an idea flashed in his mind. With a thought, a snow-white hair dropped off and was caught between his fingers.
The hair was even finer than a cow’s and seemed to glow as it gleamed under the light. Mystical patterns were faintly visible on its body.
On this strand of hair was the sixth rune, Spirit Devour.
Of course, it was not the true Spirit Devour but a sliver of Spirit Devour’s power. In other words, a Genesis mark of the Spirit Devour rune.
The Heavenly Yuan Brush’s sixth rune was very effective against Spirit power and could even devour it to use for oneself. If he gave something like this to the others, wouldn’t they be able to utilize Spirit Devour’s power?
Although it certainly could not compare to the power of the main rune, it was enough to raise the Wind Pavilion’s Spirit power to the next level.
“Qiushui.”
Zhou Yuan looked towards Yi Qiushui and said with a smile, “Summon your Spirit and have a duel with senior sister Ye.”
Yi Qiushui and Ye Bingling cast over puzzled gazes. Yi Qiushui rolled her eyes at him and said, “My Spirit is only at the initial Corporeal stage while senior sister Ye has already reached the intermediate stage. How can I beat her?”
S
he felt that Zhou Yuan was playing around and wasting time.
“Just give it a try,” urged Zhou Yuan.
Yi Qiushui could only summon her Spirit, and Zhou Yuan sent the snow-white hair flying forth with a flick. It quickly wrapped around the finger of Yi Qiushui’s Spirit.
Seemingly sensing something, Yi Qiushui cast a puzzled glance at him, but she clearly did not know what Zhou Yuan was up to. However, she swiftly used her Spirit to create a Spirit needle.
Zhou Yuan looked over and found that the needle created by Yi Qiushui was giving off a faint, peculiar undulation. It was Spirit Devour.
Ye Bingling also summoned her Spirit and created a Spirit needle. In the next instant, the two needles shot forth and collided in the air.
Cling!
A faint sound rang out.
Ye Bingling appeared somewhat inattentive. She was substantially stronger than Yi Qiushui and was thus unable to understand Zhou Yuan’s sudden request.
However, he was the pavilion master, and Ye Bingling intended to comply with his wishes.
The Spirit needles clashed. Yi Qiushui’s Spirit needle should shatter soon, right?
Cling!
The instant this thought flashed through Ye Bingling’s mind, however, she suddenly felt some of the Spirit power in her needle disappear for no inexplicable reason, while the Spirit undulations of Yi Qiushui’s needle abruptly strengthened.
In a short span of a few breaths, the two Spirit needles clashed another dozen times.
Ye Bingling’s Spirit needle grew increasingly dim with each clash, whereas Yi Qiushui’s needle grew brighter.
It felt as if Yi Qiushui’s needle was devouring the Spirit power of Ye Bingling’s needle with each clash!
Bang!
In the end, the two Spirit needles viciously collided one final time. Ye Bingling’s needle instantly shattered, turning into specks of light that quickly faded away.
Little by little, Ye Bingling’s and Yi Qiushui’s expressions turned rigid as shock filled their eyes.
Yi Qiushui’s initial Corporeal stage Spirit needle had smashed apart Ye Bingling’s intermediate stage needle?
Dragon Prince Yuan c1-1251 Page 449
