Hunyuan Immortal Sect

Chapter 413 Internal Strife and Division
The sun shines brightly on the clear sky, overlooking the western city and Luoyun Mountain.

Inside the magnificent and spacious hall, Song Xian entered from outside. Besides Jiang Zichen and Wang Feng, there were three other people inside, all of whom were at the Foundation Establishment stage.

"Sect Leader." Jiang Zichen and Wang Feng stood up and bowed upon his arrival.

"Greetings, Sect Leader Song." The three Foundation Establishment cultivators also bowed.

"I've kept you waiting, fellow Daoists. Please take your seats." Song Xian smiled and nodded, gesturing for the three to sit down, while he himself went to sit in the main seat.

"Sect Leader, let me introduce you. This is Fellow Daoist Li Tai, this is Fellow Daoist Xu Tianci, and this is Fellow Daoist Huang Qi," Jiang Feng said, pointing to the three men.

Song Xian nodded in acknowledgment. Among them, Li Tai was at the third level of Foundation Establishment, of medium build, with a hooked nose, and looked to be in his early thirties. He was originally a cultivator from the Fengxing Sect.

Xu Tianci had a round figure and was also at the third level of Foundation Establishment. He was originally a cultivator of the Fengxing Sect.

Huang Qi was thin and looked to be in his forties. He had a Foundation Establishment level 5 cultivation and was a disciple of the Yunxuan Sect.

Previously, Song Xian sent Wang Feng to Huayang County to win over Foundation Establishment cultivators from Fengxing Sect and Yunxuan Sect. He originally did it with a try-it-out mentality, but unexpectedly, in just a few months, he actually found three Foundation Establishment cultivators who were willing to join him. His efficiency was quite high.

“Three fellow Daoists, you do not mind the small size of our sect and are willing to join us. On behalf of all the disciples of our sect, I extend my sincere welcome. From now on, we will work together in the same boat. With your assistance, I believe that our sect will definitely have a better future.”

"Thank you for accepting me, Master Song. I am willing to serve you like a dog or a horse from now on," Li Tai responded first, followed by Xu Tianci and Huang Qi.

“Our sect has always treated everyone equally, without any sectarian bias. From now on, we are all one family. As family, we don’t need to speak in a formal way. I won’t beat around the bush. Our sect is currently in need of manpower, and the addition of the three of you can be a lifesaver for our sect.” As Song Xian spoke, he looked at Huang Qi with a troubled expression.

“However, Fellow Daoist Huang, you are from the Yunxuan Sect, and the Xuanyuan Sect has already issued an order. To avoid trouble, I would like to ask you to go to the Muhe Grassland to hide for a while.”

"The sect also has businesses there. You will be in full charge of the sect's trade in the Muhe Grasslands. After a few years, when things have calmed down, I will hold an initiation ceremony for you. At that time, you can return to the sect to cultivate openly and legitimately. What do you think?"

Huang Qi nodded expressionlessly: "Fellow Daoist Jiang has already told me about this matter, and I will follow your arrangements."

Song Xian nodded in satisfaction: "Alright, later I'll have Junior Brother Zichen show you around the disciples in charge of each hall and department of the sect."

As soon as he finished speaking, Yu Lian entered from outside and bowed to him, saying, "Sect Leader, the banquet is ready."

"This banquet today is to welcome you three fellow Daoists and wash away the dust of your journey. In a few days, we will hold the formal initiation ceremony. Fellow Daoists, let's go!"

Song Xian smiled and stood up, and the others also stood up and followed him out of the main hall in single file.

.........

In a dimly lit room in Xijiang County, a burly man frowned as he looked at the man before him: "That person hasn't shown up yet."

"No. According to our investigation, he appeared at Yuanxiang Pavilion the day after he appeared in Huayushan Market, and was seen at Ziluo Mountain on the third day. After that, he disappeared without a trace."

"It's been more than half a month, and he hasn't appeared in Huayushan Market since the news was released. Could it be that the news leaked?"

"That's possible. We're unfamiliar with this place, so it's normal for information to leak. If the other party knows someone is trying to find out about them, they definitely won't dare to show their face. Senior Brother Qi, I don't think we can just keep waiting like this."

What suggestions do you have?

"Now we can confirm that this person is a rogue cultivator who makes a living by hunting demonic beasts in the Hundred Thousand Mountains. With this information, I think we can report back to Uncle Chu. The world is so vast, finding a free-spirited rogue cultivator is like finding a needle in a haystack. If he already knows we are looking for him, he has definitely disappeared without a trace. We don't necessarily have to find this person. Aren't there still several Foundation Establishment cultivators who participated in the East Sea District auction back then that we haven't found?"

The burly man pondered for a moment and then said, "How about this? You stay here and continue to investigate this person's whereabouts. I'll go back and ask Uncle Chu for instructions."

.........

In October, the western part of the city was already chilly.

Inside the Luoyun Mountain gate, withered yellow leaves huddled on the branches, occasionally rustling down in a gust of wind.

The two newly joined Foundation Establishment cultivators from the Fengxing Sect have already undergone their initiation ceremonies. Li Tai has taken over Wang Feng's position to oversee the affairs of the Bianxi City market.

Xu Tianci became Lin Zixiang's deputy, serving as the deputy director of the Wuwei Pavilion.

Huang Qi was assigned to the Muhe Grassland to oversee the sect's trade with that region.

As for Wang Feng, he assisted Hu Xiaobao in managing Tianshan affairs.

In just six months, the sect brought in five Foundation Establishment cultivators and hundreds of Qi Refining cultivators. While this greatly enhanced the sect's strength, it also made the sect's management more chaotic.

In the past few months, Song Xian has heard about several disputes and even fights, so he convened a special meeting to discuss solutions.

As the sect leader, he naturally wouldn't concern himself with the disputes among his disciples, but the occurrence of this situation required his attention.

To this end, he revised the sect's rules and regulations, clarifying the responsibilities of each department, especially the responsibilities of the cabinet and Su Zhirou, Hu Xiaobao, and Lin Zixiang.

These disputes all stemmed from the interaction of responsibilities.

For example, the cabinet decided to adjust a certain industry in Tianshan, but Hu Xiaobao was in charge of Tianshan affairs and did not want to make the adjustment, so the situation was deadlocked.

In light of this situation, after deliberation, Song Xian convened a meeting, weakened the power of Su Zhirou and Hu Xiaobao, and determined a plan with the cabinet as the main body.

Hu Xiaobao and Su Zhirou will retain the authority to manage affairs in Tianshan and Bianxi City, the right to make suggestions on major matters, and the right to recommend personnel arrangements, but these decisions will be made by the Cabinet.

As for disciples who engage in fights, they will all be punished severely.

The sect has carried out internal reforms and the external threats have been quelled. He received news that Han Yuan had appeared in the Muhe Grassland on the appointed day using his specially made shape-shifting talisman. This would inevitably attract the attention of the cultivators from Yinyuan Island. At least for the time being, they would no longer suspect him, unless Han Yuan was captured by them.

.........

On this day, Song Xian returned to his residence after finishing his daily cultivation as usual. As soon as the light faded, a disciple came up to him and reported.

"Sect Leader, Senior Brother Huang Ye has arrived. He says he has important matters to discuss and is waiting in the waiting room."

Song Xian nodded and went to the waiting room, where Huang Ye was already waiting. Upon his arrival, Huang Ye stood up and bowed.

"No need for formalities, what is it?" Seeing his solemn expression, Song Xian's heart sank again, knowing that something serious had happened. However, he remained calm and waved his hand, gesturing for him to sit down. "Sect Leader, something terrible has happened. I just received news that there is infighting within the Qianqing Sect."

"Ah?" Song Xian never expected this to be the case. Although he had long guessed that the internal conflicts within the Qianqing Sect were intensifying, he did not expect that infighting would occur so quickly. You must know that this is Bianxi City, a remote western border region.

The fact that news of the internal strife within the Qianqing Emperor's palace had reached this point was practically tantamount to announcing it to the entire world.

"what happened?"

"Take a look for yourself! This is a manifesto issued by Zhou Junyi, the former true disciple of the Qianqing Sect and now an elder of the Qianqing Sect."

Huang Ye flipped his hand and took out a large yellow paper book, handing it to him: "Zhou Junyi accused the current sect leader of Qianqing Sect, Liu Qingyue, of plotting to kill the former Qianqing Sect elder Xu Tianming, harming sect disciples, and plotting to kill him, but was exposed by him."

"He claimed that Liu Qingyue was not qualified to serve as the leader of the Qianqing Sect and had altered the previous leader's appointment. Xu Tianming was murdered by her because of this. Zhou Junyi has now declared his independence in Nanhan County, establishing the new Qianqing Sect and calling on all disciples of the Qianqing Sect and all cultivators in the Qin Kingdom to set things right."

"This proclamation was issued from Nanhan County. In addition to the joint signature of many Nascent Soul cultivators from Qianqing Sect, the Yuji Sect of Nanhan County also signed it."

Song Xian hurriedly took the yellow paper book, which contained a long and detailed article of several thousand words, recounting how Liu Qingyue conspired to murder Xu Tianming, the former elder of the Qianqing Sect, and how she used despicable means to become the sect leader. It also detailed how she harmed the sect's disciples and secretly plotted to kill Zhou Junyi after becoming the sect leader.

But none of that matters. As a former direct disciple of the Qianqing Sect and now an elder of the Qianqing Sect, Zhou Junyi's betrayal of the sect and starting his own sect naturally requires a legitimate reason.

Whether the story is true or false is not important; what matters is the signature on this manifesto.

Besides Zhou Junyi, there were many other great cultivators from the Qianqing Sect, including Qi Xiaofeng, the uncle of Qi Yunxuan, the sect leader of the Yunxuan Sect, and also the Yuji Sect.

With so many powerful cultivators from the Qianqing Sect jointly signing this petition, it's no longer just a betrayal, but a split.

The signature of the Jade Machine Sect undoubtedly shows the outside world that they have completely sided with Zhou Junyi and others.

As the largest sect in Nanhan County, Yuji Sect held a position equivalent to Xuanyuan Sect in Xishu County. Their support for Zhou Junyi meant that all sects in Nanhan County were on the side of the rebellious Qianqing Sect leadership.

In other words, internal strife within the Qin state was inevitable.

Emperor Qianqing would never sit idly by while Zhou Junyi and others betrayed him and established their own power base in Nanhan County. He would definitely launch a large-scale military campaign.

Although Song Xian had guessed from the Yun Xuanzong incident that the Qin state might be about to undergo a tremendous change, he did not expect it to happen so quickly.

No wonder the Xuan Yuan Sect targeted the Yun Xuan Sect, and no wonder the Yun Xuan Sect wanted to escape.

Qi Yunxuan must have received prior inside information. If he were still in Xijiang County, he would surely be doomed. Moreover, Qi Yunxuan had previously lied that he was going to Huayang County to meet with Yunxiao Sect, so his real purpose was probably to escape to Nanhan County.

This is because Huayang County is also in the south. If Xuanyuan Sect had not sent the Beast Taming Sect to intercept them, Qi Yunxuan would definitely have sent someone to Huayang County to inform them to continue south until they reached Nanhan County.

At that time, Emperor Yunxuan and his entourage had already left Xijiang County with their families, and they were in a difficult situation, so they had no choice but to follow him to the bitter end.

"Has Emperor Qianqing responded?" Song Xian read the proclamation in his hand over and over again.

"We haven't received any news yet. This manifesto was obtained by our intelligence agents stationed in Xijiang County. It hasn't spread widely yet, but I think it won't be long before everyone knows about it."

Faced with such a major matter, Song Xian was at a loss for what to do. Just then, a disciple came to the outside of the hall and reported to him: "Sect Leader, the disciples of the Beast Taming Sect have arrived at the mountain gate. They say they are here on Xu Yaoming's orders and have important matters to discuss with you immediately."

It was quite a coincidence that they arrived at this time. Song Xian was certain that Xu Yaoming had sent someone here for this very reason, so he had someone bring the Beast Taming Sect disciple over.

Soon, the person arrived and handed him a jade slip.

Xu Yaoming didn't say what it was about, but only told him to go to Qiyuan Mountain immediately to discuss something important.

.........

Under a bright, cloudless sky, in the magnificent mansion of the Donghai District on the Muhe Grassland, a burly man took a deep breath, roused himself, and then entered the house.

"Disciple greets Martial Uncle Chu." The man bowed to the short, burly man sitting in the inner room.

"You must have brought good news with you this time." The short, tiger-like man gave him a cold look.

The burly man lowered his head and said, "Reporting to my master, we have ascertained the identity and background of the Foundation Establishment Level 6 cultivator who participated in the East Sea District auction. He appeared three times in the Star Gazing District, searching for Thunder Element Wood materials to refine into Thunder Element Plants to deal with the demon foxes in the Hundred Thousand Mountains."

"According to our information, this person is a rogue cultivator who usually makes a living by hunting demonic beasts in the Hundred Thousand Mountains. We spread the word about the Thunder Essence Wood in an attempt to lure him out, but we have not seen him at all."

"After discussion, the disciples believe that this person may have heard some rumors and therefore left the Star Gazing District. Therefore, we have come to inquire about the next step: should we continue searching for this person?"

The short, burly man narrowed his eyes slightly: "I have a feeling that the cultivator who killed Duan Qian is the one we've been looking for. Now there are only five people left who participated in that auction, three of whom are early Foundation Establishment cultivators. They shouldn't have the ability to kill Duan Qian, so let's put those three aside for now. Let's focus all our efforts on finding the other two, especially that ninth-level Foundation Establishment cultivator. He's the most suspicious."

"As for this Foundation Establishment Level 6 cultivator, don't let him get away with it either. Send a few people to the Hundred Thousand Mountains to investigate."

"Yes, disciple understands. I will immediately order them to get started."

At that moment, footsteps sounded outside the door, and a man with triangular eyes came out.

"If there are no further instructions from Martial Uncle, this disciple will take his leave." The burly man tactfully departed, nodding as he brushed past the man with triangular eyes at the door.

"Greetings, Uncle Chu." The man with the triangular eyes also bowed.

"Junior Brother Qu sent you, right? How's the situation on your end?"

"After Yin Tianhua defected, all those who had contact with him have been dealt with. Now, only Feng Ziqing has not been found. Among all those who contacted Yin Tianhua after his defection, this person is a key figure and is highly suspicious. He is a descendant of Feng Xuejuan. Although the ancestor did not find any record of him handing over the stolen items to Feng Ziqing in Yin Tianhua's memory, it cannot be ruled out that Feng Ziqing later found the place where Yin Tianhua hid the treasure."

"What is Feng Ziqing's current cultivation level?"

"He was already at the ninth level of Foundation Establishment a long time ago, but we don't know his current cultivation level."

"What did Junior Brother Qu send you here for?"

"Our ancestor gave instructions to focus our main target on Feng Ziqing. We recently discovered that he spent a long time in the southern Muhe Grassland. Uncle Qu asked you to take charge of the investigation." The triangular-eyed man flipped through his hand and took out a stack of files.

(End of this chapter)