NOVEL NEXT Chapter 521: Choices
Elder Xue's words made a lot of sense, and they actually didn't differ greatly from what Tian Lin thought.
However, engaging all the commoners and Loose Cultivators of the North Wilderness would certainly require a massive expenditure of manpower and resources. Could this plan from Zhai Xingzi even be implemented?
Moreover, even if Zhai Xingzi's plan succeeds, what benefit would it bring to the disciples of the Wenda Sect?
If things proceed exactly as Zhai Xingzi plans, the future of the Wenda Sect could be dire—
"Zhai Xingzi now has a young True Dragon at his side. Even if the sect disciples have any discontent, it's hard for them to rebel. Hence, even though we know he has selfish motives, to avoid causing chaos now, we still have to follow his instructions."
Elder Xue glanced at Tian Lin and said, "You now have two choices. One is to stay in the sect and host those from the new Four Gods Sect and then follow them to cultivate the land together.
The second is to take on a task and open territory in the secret realm."
The first option mentioned by Elder Xue doesn't involve facing Evil Spirits, so it seems somewhat safer. But farming is a meticulous task, and besides, Tian Lin's current understanding of the Dao doesn't benefit much from farming anymore.
"Little brother will start from today to help open new territory."
"To open new territory, it needs to be done deeper in the secret realm. This is unlike when you used the Transmission Array in the outskirts of the secret realm before—in the depths of the secret realm, there are many places that even we Nascent Souls and Divinity Transformation cultivators dare not tread.
Are you sure you want to choose the second path?"
Without waiting for Tian Lin to answer, the nearby Fairy Mei couldn't help but say, "If one cultivates with fear and hesitation, then why bother cultivating at all? Might as well go home and farm. Besides, he has the Divine Maiden Tree to cultivate. Without Evil Spirits to feed it, how will the Divine Maiden Tree advance?"
Evidently, Fairy Mei wanted Tian Lin to choose the second path because she also intended to take that path.
Seeing that Tian Lin did not object, Elder Xue did not try to persuade him further.
The group returned to the sect, and Elder Xue clearly had other important matters, especially as they parted ways halfway up the mountain.
Fairy Mei wasn't in a hurry to go home; instead, she followed Tian Lin to his cave mansion.
After entering the cave mansion, they found that not only were Yu'er and her sister there, but Wang Yanyu and Zhou Mengjiao as well.
It was not surprising for Wang Yanyu to be there; she typically had nothing much to do in the sect, so her presence there wasn't strange.
But Zhou Mengjiao managed a lot of affairs on Gourd Peak and wasn't someone who had much idle time.
As soon as Tian Lin appeared, Zhou Mengjiao stood up first. Smiling broadly, she looked at both Tian Lin and Fairy Mei and said:
"Senior Brother and Sister's return is just in time. Quickly tell us what was said at this meeting?"
Fairy Mei had never seen someone so unabashedly familiar as to call her "Senior Sister" so intimately.
Not in the mood to deal with Zhou Mengjiao, she snorted and walked straight toward Wang Yanyu.
Tian Lin, however, did not have a bad impression of Zhou Mengjiao. As he moved toward the table, he said to both Zhou Mengjiao and Wang Yanyu, "The sect has summoned us primarily for two things: first, the sect is going to change its Great Elder; henceforth, Zhai Xingzi will take up the position of Great Elder in the Wenda Sect."
This statement immediately caused Zhou Mengjiao and Wang Yanyu to raise their eyebrows.
The former didn't really care who became the Great Elder since Zhou Mengjiao had neither grudges nor favors with Zhai Xingzi.
The latter had a different story, having left the Wenda Sect, severed ties with her family, and married hastily, all inextricably linked to Zhai Xingzi.
People speculated that Wang Yanyu harbored a deep hatred for Zhai Xingzi.
Unfortunately, no one could decipher even a hint of emotion from Wang Yanyu's facial expressions.
Tian Lin, not waiting for them to speak, continued about the sect's plans to bring the commoners from the North Wilderness into the secret realm and to expand territory extensively.
At this point, Zhou Mengjiao's face turned distinctly sour.
She couldn't help but say, "Isn't Brother Zhuang making a mess? Even if the new Four Gods Sect can aid in the yield of the secret realm, where will so many commoners be settled, and how will their basic needs be managed?
Moreover, opening new territory isn't that easy. The depths of the secret realm are infested with unknown numbers of Evil Spirits and perilous areas. Even elders would find encountering these Evil Spirits and perilous areas very dangerous. Sending True Disciples to pioneer is as good as sending them to their deaths, isn't it?"
Tian Lin remained silent, as there was really nothing much to say.
Since Zhai Xingzi's decision couldn't be altered by other elders, complaining behind their backs wouldn't help either.
"Zhai Xingzi, with his actions, has offended many of his colleagues and most likely isn't planning to compete for the position of Sect Master of the Wenda Sect. I'm just unsure of what Sect Master Tang is thinking—
Could Sect Master Tang intentionally be letting Zhai Xingzi offend the other elders?"
Upon hearing Wang Yanyu's analysis, Fairy Mei sneered:
"No matter what the surname Tang thinks, he doesn't dare oppose Zhai Xingzi. In this world, only strength speaks. As long as the young True Dragon at Zhai Xingzi's side remains and as long as the surname Tang doesn't reach the Divinity Transformation Realm, the surname Tang will have to obediently heed Zhai Xingzi."
She was clearly impatient to analyze such trivialities, and straightforwardly said to Wang Yanyu: "Junior Sister's strength is no less than mine or Tian Lin's. Are you interested in coming with us to open new territories?"
She figured Zhai Xingzi wouldn't leave people in the sect idle.
Even if Wang Yanyu stayed in the secret realm, she would certainly be assigned something to do, no matter if she was part of the Wenda Sect or not.
Since work was inevitable, it was better to join her and Tian Lin in pioneering new territories.
She trusted in Wang Yanyu's abilities and believed that having someone familiar in dangerous situations would be advantageous.
Wang Yanyu nodded, and Fairy Mei exclaimed joyfully: "I knew Junior Sister wasn't one to fear death! Perhaps, in this secret realm, with both our efforts, we might break through to the Nascent Soul Realm!"
Both of them already had the 'flesh' of Divinity Transformation experts, making a breakthrough to the Nascent Soul Realm only a matter of time.
However, when they'd achieve the Nascent Soul Realm was uncertain for both.
A wealth of combat experience can greatly aid Cultivators in understanding Daoist Skills and tempering their minds. Moreover, Fairy Mei's cultivation requires advancing the Divine Maiden Tree, so she certainly wouldn't settle for merely consuming flesh to boost her cultivation.
She, in fact, preferred fighting Evil Spirits to break through in cultivation. As for consuming the flesh of Divinity Transformation experts, it was merely supplementary.
"I heard Senior Brother Ju has become a True Disciple too. Why not invite him along?"
Tian Lin nodded beside him and told Yu'er, "Send someone to Quyun Peak with a message to see if Senior Brother Ju would like to join us in hunting Evil Spirits."
Yu'er left to fulfill the task, and those in the mansion were already discussing which direction to go in search of Evil Spirits.
Everyone was fervently engaged in conversation, except Zhou Mengjiao, who seemed quite absent-minded.
Zhai Xingzi's plan to bring in a large number of mortals into the secret realm would certainly increase her workload tremendously.
That aside, the key issue was that her husband was the one primarily in charge of capturing Evil Spirits within the sect.
Since the sect intended to kill more Evil Spirits and expand territory, it would necessarily mean sending disciples deeper into the secret realm—her husband, being only an Inner Sect Disciple, might not avoid danger in the depths.
Though she didn't favor her husband, even forbidding him to share her bed, she genuinely didn't want to become a widow again.
"When Senior Brother Ju arrives later, please make sure to visit my mansion, Senior Brother and Senior Sisters. I'll prepare some wine and food for us to gather together."
Evidently, she hoped her husband could join Tian Lin and the others, providing him some protection.