Gentlemen, it's time to enter the Banner of Ten Thousand Souls.

Chapter 324: Strike first to gain the upper hand

The meeting between Zhou Lang and Chen Ye ended on bad terms, but Zhou Lang had already anticipated that the talks would fall apart before he came. It was just proceeding according to the original plan.

After leaving the Yellow Springs Palace, Zhou Lang didn't rest. He first sent out his disciples to run around Fengdu City, not to cause any damage, but to gather intelligence.

No matter how small the matter, he had to come back and report if he felt anything was amiss.

Zhou Lang, on the other hand, went to the residences of other guests to find suitable allies.

The new leader of the Qinghe Sword Sect, Daoist Yuji, was treated very well by the Mirage Sect. Zhou Lang felt that he had grasped the new leader who had been in seclusion for hundreds of years and was ignorant and clueless. He believed that the Qinghe Sword Sect would be on his side in the future.

But that wasn't enough. Chen Ye had been too resolute in his words, willing to gamble the fate of the entire sect for a mere few mirage demons.

Zhou Lang did not come to wipe out the entire family; he could only continue to win over allies and force Chen Ye to hand over the people with absolute power.

Let's rule out Yunlu Immortal Sect for now. The relationship between Shenlou Sect and Yunlu Immortal Sect has never been good, and there have been many conflicts between their disciples. It's probably impossible to win them over, but Tianxin Island is still worth a try.

Although the disciples of the Mirage Sect caused a lot of trouble on Tianxin Island, it was eventually proven that it was the demon who instigated it. Tianxin Island did not pursue the matter, but instead sent people to explain in detail to avoid further misunderstandings.

Moreover, Tianxin Island and the Mirage Faction have something in common.

The Mirage Sect has mirage demons, and Tianxin Island has merfolk; both are mixed-race groups, so naturally they have a lot in common.

As for the Incense Burning Sect, there's no need to consider it. The Incense Burning Sect is now just a name, with a few unknown figures rebuilding their sect in a dilapidated place. The most powerful among them is only at the Nascent Soul stage, so there's no point in trying to win them over.

Zhou Lang was trying to win over allies, but Chen Ye was getting annoyed by this kind of tedious socializing.

Cixin Temple, Mirage Sect, rogue cultivators of Hundred Seas Valley, Tianxin Island, Yunlu Immortal Sect... and all sorts of other sects, big and small, that I've never heard of before.

I have to meet with all of them and have a chat with them, otherwise it would be considered favoritism and people would say I'm treating them differently.

Chen Ye thought he could just focus on cultivating immortality in this life, but he ended up having to use the same methods from his previous life again. It was even more tiring than chasing after the Azure Dragon Lord.

However, his interpersonal skills honed in his previous life hadn't become rusty. By the end of the day, at least most people felt that the Yellow Spring Sect was quite good, and the guests and hosts had a pleasant time.

Chen Ye rubbed his face, which had been faking a smile all day, and returned to the Yellow Springs Palace, only to find Chen Guang already waiting for him.

Chen Ye asked, "What commotion did Zhou Lang cause?"

Chen Ye had sent the mirage demons out to monitor the people of the Mirage Sect, so since Lingguang came to report, there must be a problem.

Lingguang whispered, "Sect Master, it seems the Mirage Sect has discovered our cooperation with the Demonic Sect."

"what?!"

Chen Ye was stunned for a moment. When did he start cooperating with the Demonic Sect? Oh, just a few days ago.

Could it be that Youluozi, seeing that he wasn't taking the bait, exaggerated the cooperation between the two sides to Zhou Lang?

It's quite possible that this witch is capable of anything to open the Void.

"Explain in detail, what exactly did Zhou Lang discover?"

Lingguang then recounted what he had seen that day, except that it wasn't Zhou Lang who had discovered anything, but rather the disciples of the Mirage Sect who were running around everywhere who had discovered the problem.

The Mirage Sect disciples sent out by Zhou Lang wandered around Fengdu City and, after a day, they actually discovered a problem.

There were a few devils mixed in among the herdsmen outside the city.

It would normally be difficult to detect, since the people of the Northern Frontier worship ancestral spirits and possess some supernatural abilities. Once a cultivator activates their spiritual eyes, what they see is similar to spiritual energy.

But these demons were different. Although they were dressed as shepherds, they were driving a group of slaves toward Fengdu City.

There are slaves in the northern border region, but not many.

Moreover, the leaders didn't look like people from the northern frontier; instead, they spoke with a Central Plains accent. Such strange appearances naturally attracted a lot of attention.

Some people from the northern frontier even came to ask which tribe they belonged to, but were only met with cold stares in return. The hot-tempered people from the northern frontier almost got into a fight with them.

However, soon the City God and Yin soldiers arranged by the Yellow Springs Sect came to meet them, escorted them into the city, and took over the slaves they had brought.

This was not a big deal, but the disciples of the Mirage Sect noticed it. So they quietly followed the strange people who had brought slaves and then left without a word.

Lingguang explained, "Then, they discovered that this group of people came from underground and were disciples of the Crimson Serpent Demon Sect."

Chen Ye sighed; he was the one who had brought this trouble upon himself.

He previously became one of the eighteen "Lords" of the Demonic Sect, seizing the throne from the Crimson Serpent Sect, and ended up even inheriting a minor role from the Crimson Serpent Sect.

Chen Ye's idea was to have the Chi Lian Sect bring the "human sacrifices" to Fengdu City, so that hundreds of lives could be saved.

These little devils were quite obedient, sending people over in several separate trips. Chen Ye gradually learned about these devils, how many of them were utterly wicked, and how many had miraculous circumstances. He had a pretty good idea of ​​them all, and was just waiting to settle accounts after all the human sacrifices were rescued.

"Did they capture these demons?" Chen Ye asked.

Chen Guang nodded: "The disciples Zhou Lang brought are all elite disciples of the Mirage Sect. Those from the Crimson Serpent Sect are no match for them. They only need to cast an illusion spell, and these demons will fall into the trap. They are currently being hidden outside the city by the Mirage Sect. However, Zhou Lang does not know that the area within a hundred miles of Fengdu City is under our observation."

Chen Ye exclaimed in surprise, "Oh, the formation has been improved to this extent?"

The protective array around Fengdu City is constantly being adjusted and optimized. Initially, it may only have a protective effect, but various useful functions will definitely be added later. This requires the entire sect to work together to complete, making it a massive project.

Chen Ye was usually so busy that he didn't even have time to go into seclusion, so he was naturally not very clear about the specific progress. Now, after hearing Chen Guang's report, he realized that this sect was becoming more and more like a famous sect.

Chen Guang explained, "Thanks to Elder Pang, it was much easier to adjust the feng shui, calculate the five elements, and improve the formation."

Chen Ye laughed and said, "Having an elder in the family is like having a treasure. Indeed, we still need the help of an elder."

Chen Ye felt that taking Pang Duoduo into his sect was the best decision he had ever made, as a skilled diviner could be useful in many ways.

Chen Guang smiled and said, "Sect Master, I've heard that no woman wants to be told she's old."

Chen Ye quickly said, "Slip of the tongue, slip of the tongue. You're quick to learn in this area."

The former Chenguang was like a block of wood, showing almost no emotional fluctuations and having little concept of people. Chenguang only used illusion magic to transform into human form; in reality, she was still a mirage demon, a race distinct from humans.

But recently, Chen Guang has seemed much more lively, and you can occasionally see various expressions on her face. Although they are not very intense, they are much better than her completely numb appearance before.

Perhaps because it received so much incense offering, Chenguang looked less and less like a mirage demon and more like a human.

"Getting back to the main point, the Mirage Sect has hidden the people well. They are preparing to accuse my Yellow Spring Sect of colluding with the Demonic Sect in front of everyone when the ceremony begins. We need to make some preparations in advance."

Chen Guang asked, "Sect Master, are you worried that other sects will believe this accusation? I remember you explained your underground trip to the Qinghe Sword Sect beforehand, and they should be able to testify for you."

Chen Ye shook his head and said, "I'm not worried about the Yellow Springs Sect turning into a demonic sect, but I'm worried that the demonic sect will seize on my weaknesses, and then all our previous efforts will have been wasted."

Chen Ye is now one of the eighteen Venerable Masters, and through this identity, he can find out a lot of information about the inner workings of the Demonic Sect.

If the truth were revealed on the spot, it would feel like a loss.

Even though many demons suspect Chen Ye of being an undercover agent, suspicion is one thing, but without concrete evidence, it's just a matter of words. If the Mirage Sect pulls this stunt, forcing Chen Ye to prove his innocence, then the demonic sect will have nothing to say and wouldn't be surprised if they came knocking on his door.

Chen Ye now needs to figure out a way that satisfies both sides.

Chen Ye stroked his chin, pondered for a moment, and then said to Chen Guang, "If the Mirage Sect wants to accuse me of cooperating with the Demonic Sect, and Youluozi wants to force me to submit, then don't blame me for striking first."

(End of this chapter)