Stealthily cultivating in the chaotic world of demons and martial artists
Chapter 251 - 250 Movements of the Green Wood Sect (For book-reading and debt-paying leader He!)_1

In Thousand Island Lake, streaks of Escape Light fled in disarray, belonging to Kuang Tianxing, who had been soundly defeated by Fang Xi.

Being beaten by someone crossing a minor cultivation realm, this Law Enforcement Elder’s complexion was naturally dark as water.

Yan Changkong and several fellows covertly transmitted messages through Divine Consciousness Transmission and could only brace themselves to step forward, "Elder Kuang... what shall we do next?"

"What else can we do? I can’t afford to lose face, so we must return to the Sect before discussing anything else..."

Kuang Tianxing rolled his eyes, his tone quite unpleasant.

However, Yan Changkong looked relieved, for if the situation had continued at that time, he truly feared that Dragon Fish Island’s Lord Master would turn hostile and detain all of them!

"Elder is wise... After all, Ouyang Zhen is dead, and as for Yuan Feihong, it doesn’t matter if he has fled..."

Immediately, a disciple stepped forward to flatter him.

"You are right, a mere Yuan Feihong doesn’t count for much... but this Dragon Fish Island’s Lord Master, he’s not young anymore, right?"

In Kuang Tianxing’s eyes, a cold light flashed.

"Yes... calculating his age, he should be over one hundred and sixty years old," Yan Changkong answered.

"One hundred and sixty or more, late Foundation Establishment... considering this person’s Divine Skills, there is a slight possibility of advancing to the Core Formation Stage... I should return and report to the Sect Leader, and also put him on the important observation list..."

Kuang Tianxing sighed, "This small Thousand Island Lake, to actually have three late Foundation Establishment cultivators... The Jade Island Ruins are truly inconceivable..."

Although the Jade Island Ruins tricked many, those who managed to survive the trial gained considerable benefits, with numerous cultivators enhancing their techniques or breaking through bottlenecks.

Upon hearing this, Yan Changkong and others felt a chill in their hearts.

Mysterious Heaven Sect had a set of measures to deal with cultivators within its jurisdiction that might break through to Core Formation.

Strictly speaking, Ouyang Zhen was in that category, even ranking quite high, but his end was...

And the cultivator ranked above him was Ancestor Song...

’Thousand Island Lake... might become the next battlefield between the Song Family and Baize Immortal City, how should I handle my relationship with my Family?’

While Yan Changkong was entangled in his thoughts, a Voice Transmission Talisman suddenly came flying through the air.

This talisman was greatly different from ordinary materials; it was a piece of jade slip wrapped around a Flying Sword, flying with no trace.

"Huh? Is it a Flying Sword message from the ancestor himself?!"

Kuang Tianxing took out a blue glowing token and waved it, retrieving the Flying Sword message. After a sweep of Divine Consciousness, his expression violently changed: "Green Wood Sect... is invading!"

"What?"

All the Foundation Establishment cultivators present showed dramatic changes in their expressions.

It was clear that even though Green Wood Sect always had a rocky relationship with Mysterious Heaven Sect, even when they snatched away that mid-grade Water Spiritual Root genius who had awakened a Spirit Body comparable to an Earth-grade Spiritual Root, the two sides had never come to blows.

If two Golden Core Sects were to go to war, it would surely mobilize a wide area, affecting Yue Country and Wood Kingdom...

The terrible consequences made even Yan Changkong feel a tingling on his scalp!

"What is there to be afraid of? When soldiers come, we will block them; when water comes, we will cover it with earth... According to the ancestor’s wishes, now that Ouyang Zhen’s death is confirmed and Yuan Feihong’s escape is irrelevant, our current task as this small team is to guard the spirit stone mine!"

Kuang Tianxing rebuked.

"Oh, it’s a guarding duty!"

Yan Changkong breathed a sigh of relief.

At this time and place, he really didn’t want to go to the frontlines of battle. This situation was different from attacking Baize Immortal City, where not only did the opposing side lack Core Formation cultivators, but there were also insiders, which made it smooth sailing.

A battle against Green Wood Sect could easily lead to death if not careful, and even Foundation Establishment cultivators could potentially perish!

...

Months later.

"Who could have expected the Cultivation World to change so unpredictably..."

On Dragon Fish Island, in the Evergreen Pavilion, the fragrance of tea lingered.

With such major events occurring continually, Fang Xi naturally called other late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators to discuss strategies.

Ruan Xingling held a teacup, and seeing Yuan Feihong present, her expression became a bit strange.

Liu Sanqi, on the other hand, was focused solely on tasting the Spirit Fruit without a glance elsewhere.

Besides them, Yan Dongqing and Zhong Hongyu were also there, but they were only there to listen.

After all, in this small pavilion, there were four late Foundation Establishment great cultivators!

Especially Yan Dongqing, who knew a bit of the inside story, now looked at Fang Xi with an expression of marvel.

"Yes... Mysterious Heaven Sect easily taking over Baize Immortal City was something no one expected... and then Green Wood Sect couldn’t sit still and declared war directly on Mysterious Heaven Sect... Yiling Valley has always maintained neutrality, and it seems they will do the same this time."

Fang Xi casually analyzed, "Where will Thousand Island Lake go from here?"

"Naturally, we will follow the Island Master’s orders..."

Liu Sanqi smiled.

This person had been thoroughly studied by Fang Xi over the years. He was endowed with an innate ability known as ’Body of Plants’; while not as powerful as ’Green Wood Spirit Body’ within the scope of Spirit Bodies, he had quite the talent for cultivating Spirit Plants and searching for wild Spirit Medicine.

Among the Thousand Island Lake’s Foundation Establishment cultivators, Zhong Hongyu and Yan Dongqing had little weight in their words.

Yuan Feihong is an outsider.

Daqing is not human...

In fact, the only ones who can really make decisions are the three of them, Fang Xi and his companions.

Ruan Xingling took a sip of Spiritual Tea and said, "My heart does not wish for more troubles, especially since Thousand Island Lake is currently facing a Ghost Calamity..."

Fang Xi looked at Ruan Xingling and, seeing her seemingly ageless face, appeared slightly dazed.

This woman should be a few years older than him, yet her cultivation is still in the late Foundation Establishment phase. If she cannot advance to the Completion of Foundation Establishment in a decade or so, her hopes for Core Formation will truly be slim...

Actually, among the cultivators of the three countries, those who reach the late Foundation Establishment stage before exhausting their lifespan are few.

The mention of the Ghost Calamity caused the cultivators present to twitch their faces slightly.

Although Ghost Creatures at the Foundation Establishment level are quite troublesome, defending the spirit islands using a second-order array is not a problem.

Particularly for those in the late stage of Foundation Establishment, if they join forces and regularly form patrol teams, they can easily exterminate a large number of Ghost Creatures.

But Fang Xi and Ruan Xingling did not do so, and aside from scaring fish by draining the pond, it was mostly about using this excuse to refuse the orders of the Mysterious Heaven Sect.

After all, they are cultivators devoted to arduous cultivation, not wanting to get involved in the worldly disputes.

Such maneuvering is something even Yan Dongqing could see a little of, but he did not expose it; he was entirely set on quietly making a fortune.

With his abilities and arrays, defending Ling Kong Island is not an issue, and he could also refuse the conscription of the Mysterious Heaven Sect. How great is that?

If they were in another place, putting aside the issue of being exploited by an Upper Sect, even a second-order Spiritual Vein is often occupied by Foundation Establishment powers. Without a big fight, it is almost impossible to make them budge.

Not to mention that currently in the Cultivation World there is a great war, with the Green Wood Sect invading. There truly is no better place to avoid disaster than Thousand Island Lake.

"In that case, let’s take a neutral stance this time and not assist either side at Thousand Island Lake,"

Fang Xi chose to take the same stance as Yiling Valley.

Though to outsiders, it may seem somewhat arrogant.

Yiling Valley can do this entirely because it is confident, with a lineage of Core Formation strength handed down from generation to generation, and with a stable rule in Martial Kingdom.

But Dragon Fish Island, on what grounds?

...

As days and months revolve, time flies by.

As the days passed, news about the battlefield continuously arrived at Thousand Island Lake.

The Green Wood Sect, as expected, mobilized the entire Wood Kingdom to brazenly invade Yue Country!

Although Yue Country initially captured Baize Immortal City with ease, taking the upper hand, they then relied on the city’s array defenses and confronted the Wood Kingdom’s army along this border segment. But the great war was inevitable.

The army of the Green Wood Sect was led by Core Formation Masters, who monitored Elder Zhang outside Baize Immortal City, nailing the elite forces of the Mysterious Heaven Sect to the border, unable to move.

Alongside this, the Green Wood Sect continuously dispatched elite squads to infiltrate Yue Country, sabotaging various marketplaces, spirit stone mines, and even directly slaughtering the small Sects and Families that aligned with the Mysterious Heaven Sect.

The Mysterious Heaven Sect, naturally unwilling to wait for death, also constantly sent out elite disciples to kill these invaders and called upon the cultivators of Yue Country to surround and attack these foreign cultivation-robbers. For those Core Formation cultivators among them, they offered substantial rewards.

It is said that the head of a Green Wood Sect cultivator at the Foundation Establishment level can be exchanged for a Foundation Establishment Pill!

Even though the Mysterious Heaven Sect does not have such a large reserve of Foundation Establishment Pills, they promised to owe them first, guaranteeing priority choice the next time they begin pill production.

This move indeed drove the cultivators of Yue Country to frenzy, delivering a massive blow to the infiltrating cultivators of the Green Wood Sect.

As the big battles continued, among the squad leaders of the Green Wood Sect, there seemed to be quite a few who were especially familiar with the geography of Yue Country, leading small teams repeatedly to reap victories, even annihilating a Core Formation immortal clan.

Late on, news came out that those leading the way for the Green Wood Sect cultivators were suspected to be cultivators from the Situ Family of former days, and the leader among them was Situ Qingqing!

This woman had apparently also advanced to the late stage of Foundation Establishment, and as one with an ’Illusory Spiritual Root’ and cultivating Demon Skills that included the flawless skill of Transformations of Communication, she once disguised herself as a marketplace Foundation Establishment friend to infiltrate the marketplace’s defensive Great Array and forcefully slain that Foundation Establishment cultivator!

Of course, within the Law Enforcement team of the Mysterious Heaven Sect, there were also quite a few previously unknown cultivators who made a name for themselves.

One of such persons, very familiar to Fang Xi, was none other than Zhan Tu, who came from Dragon Fish Island!

This man had now reached the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment and had once consecutively killed several cultivators at the same stage, thus greatly making a name for himself.

And Fang Xi knew that his real strength was far more than that. Not to mention the great opportunity that he might have obtained on Jade Island, even letting out that mid-stage Flying Night Yaksha could allow him to battle with a cultivator in the late stage of Foundation Establishment...

"...Island Master, the details of the big battle are as such. There’s also another matter..."

Zhong Hongyu reported, "The Hundred Tricks Qi Family, Green Leaf Xu Family, Gloomy Moon Sect... and other Foundation Establishment powers have contacted us, wanting to transfer a group of Sect disciples and bloodline family members to Thousand Island Lake for refuge... Besides that, some small Families and Individual Cultivators have even taken the initiative to migrate into Thousand Island Lake."

"The calamity of war is worse than the Ghost Calamity!"

Fang Xi sighed and quickly decided, "The Hundred Tricks Qi Family, Green Leaf Xu Family? These two Families’ cultivators are not allowed into Thousand Island Lake... As for the Gloomy Moon Sect? Forget it, let a few disciples in for refuge..."

Escaping from Yue Country now would surely lead to pursuit by the Mysterious Heaven Sect! And at the border, there might even be patrolling cultivators from the enemy country, making the rash crossing extremely dangerous.

But Thousand Island Lake is barely considered a part of Yue Country, and it is a natural haven.

Fang Xi, now known as the ’Island Master of Dragon Fish Island’ in Yue Country, has a minor reputation. Everyone knows him to be kindhearted, powerful in magic, and willing to protect the cultivators of his own island.

Rumor has it that once one steps onto Dragon Fish Island, all grudges dissipate, and in major disasters, one remains unharmed!

Naturally, many cultivators sought his protection, or at least, sought to allocate a group of their kin there, as one of the multiple burrows of a cautious rabbit.

Fang Xi was indifferent to this, but the Qi Family and Xu Family were definitely not welcome.

The Qi Family had once opened the Hundred Tricks Tower that plotted to rob and harm for wealth, the Xu Family had imprisoned Chen Ping as a charm-making tool person... These were all noted down in Fang Xi’s little book!