Heavenly Dao Engine

Chapter 118: Chapter 0128: Disadvantageous Agreement

Chapter 118 -0128: Disadvantageous Agreement

Neither Zhao Qian nor Huang Liuyan had any solutions to this situation. If they had, Qi Tian would not have encountered them in their woeful state, being chased and hunted two days ago.

The only consensus hope to reach now is that no one should act alone; they must stick together.

The group converged and headed towards the safe house. As expected, after noticing they had numbers, the native cultivators did not attack them again. But their gaze towards them remained incredibly unfriendly, no different from looking at the dead.

After traveling for half a day, around noontime, Qi Tian and his team were stunned to halt. Unlike the chaotic mix of native cultivators and cultivators from the Imperial Master Mansion they’d seen earlier, the scene here had undergone a significant transformation.

If viewed from above, one would find the crowd now distinctly separated. Taking the safe house as the destination, first, there was a vast and empty space stretching towards Qi Tian’s direction, including the small grove where Qi Tian had been ambushed initially, almost devoid of any people. A little further was an isolation strip composed entirely of cultivators.

All were native cultivators of the Lianying Realm, spread across this isolation strip that spanned nearly a kilometer wide and about fifty meters long. The strip was marked into small squares using lime, each occupied by a group of native cultivators.

Beyond the isolation strip was a more open space, where more than two hundred cultivators dressed in the attire of the Imperial Master Mansion were gathered. They were divided into several teams, each maintaining a certain distance from the others. Qi Tian and his team were now standing in this open area.

Behind them was the weirdly balanced region they had just passed through, containing both Imperial Master Mansion cultivators and native cultivators.

Qi Tian and his team were completely clueless about the situation.

Wang Haiyan volunteered to go and gather information from the nearby congregation of cultivators from the Imperial Master Mansion.

Soon, Wang Haiyan returned after finding out, and reported to Zhao Qian and Huang Liu Yan.

The Imperial Master Mansion had sent Qi Tian and his team to the Lianying Realm for training, intending to select suitable talents to serve as County Masters. But the plan was not to push them into a fiery pit, watching them march to their deaths without doing anything. However, the special environment of the Lianying Realm limited the Imperial Master Mansion’s actions. For instance, in the current situation, they could only send cultivators at the peak of the Ninth Level of Qi Cultivation stage to negotiate sternly with the native cultivators of the Lianying Realm.

When the Imperial Master Mansion threatened to send multiple cultivators of the Ninth Level of Qi Cultivation for a tenfold, even hundredfold retaliation if the native cultivators of the Lianying Realm killed all Imperial Mansion cultivators, the native cultivators had to abandon their idea of annihilating all of them.

In the Lianying Realm, the peak of the Ninth Level of Qi Cultivation was the end of the cultivation journey. But for cultivators from Great Zhao, this was just a recent start. The Imperial Master Mansion was totally capable of sending a large number of cultivators at the Ninth Level of Qi Cultivation to the Lianying Realm and stir things up.

However, the native cultivators of the Lianying Realm could not stand by idly as the Imperial Master Mansion’s cultivators left without making a show of force. So, a fierce verbal confrontation started. A few physical clashes ensued, and each side suffered losses. Eventually, a consensus was reached.

Precisely speaking, the native cultivators of the Lianying Realm abandoned their plan of wiping out all the cultivators sent by the Imperial Master Mansion and promised not to use large-scale destructive arrays and spells. However, the native cultivators could form an isolation strip as Qi Tian and his team saw. If cultivators from the Imperial Master Mansion wished to return to the safe house, they would have to go past this isolation strip.

If the cultivators from the Imperial Master Mansion were accidentally killed by indigenous cultivators from the Lianying Realm while traversing the Isolation Belt, they could only blame their bad luck. Conversely, the same applies to the other side; neither party could to cause trouble for the other ever again. If a cultivator from the Imperial Master Mansion successfully crosses the Isolation Belt, the native cultivators of the Lianying realm would not be allowed to continue the pursuit and must allow the successful challengers to return to the safe house.

In addition, indigenous cultivators of the Lianying Realm will deter the invader within the Isolation Belt, with groups coordinated in their respective territories. No group could intrude into another group’s territory. Furthermore, there is a count limit for the cultivators from the Imperial Master Mansion attempting to cross the Isolation Belt, with each squad not allowed to exceed eight people. Also, two squads cannot choose the same direction to cross at the same time; they should give native cultivators time to repair the Isolation Belt. This means that if the native cultivators in the Isolation Belt suffer any damage, they can be replenished at any time. The Imperial Master Mansion can forget about having such luxury.

Generally, these agreements aren’t friendly towards the cultivators from the Imperial Master Mansion which leans more towards the indigenous cultivators of the Lianying Realm. This is essentially what the higher-ups at the Imperial Master Mansion want. There are simply too many disciples in the Qi Cultivation Period at the Imperial Master Mansion, with mixed good and bad characters. The Imperial Master Mansion employs this seemingly cruel method to select the best among them, choosing the truly worthy pupils for vigorous training.

As for the possible loss of many lives, it’s not even within the consideration of the higher-ups in the Imperial Master Mansion. If anything in the Cultivation World could be achieved easily and casually, it would essentially be of no value. Many times, one’s life was the price you needed to pay for what you want. Besides, including Qi Tian, Zhao Qian, and others who chose to enter the Lianying Realm for training, it was their own choice. No one forced them to do so. Therefore, any difficulties and dangers they encountered in the Lianying Realm were theirs to bear. On their part, the Imperial Master Mansion had already done well by dispatching people to intimidate the indigenous cultivators of the Lianying Realm, thereby ensuring a path of survival for the disciples who came to train.

When Wang Haiyan relayed the intelligence he’d gathered, Qi Tian, Zhao Qian, and Huang Liuyan didn’t say much but Li Xue and the others fell silent, with several people even showing signs of panic.

Wang Haiyan had just mentioned very clearly that if they wanted to cross the Isolation Belt, at most they could form a team of eight people. Amongst them, several were not very skilled; if left in a team of eight, they would definitely be a burden rather than an aide. Those who were relatively powerful would all like to team up with strongmen like Qi Tian, without considering any dead weight hanging around them.

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“Senior Brother, we all follow you, you can decide how to divide the group.” With a matter concerning personal benefits, Li Xue and others, forgetting that Zhao Qian was their captain, turned to look at Wang Haiyan.

Wang Haiyan had a headache, Li Xue and others were his followers, he promised to bring them to the Lianying Realm for training. When they returned to the Imperial Master Mansion afterwards, they would hand over a portion of their gains in the Lianying realm to him, which he could use to compete for the County Master position. Abandoning them now would not be a wise move; it could discourage some of his classmates and withhold much of his potential gains.

But with such an immediate challenge, it was clear that the key to success was to give it everything they’ve got and to improve the strength of their own group. Bringing along those weak teammates was not a wise choice. There would be six to seven sniper groups composed of indigenous cultivators in the Lianying Realm along the 50 meters stretch of the Isolation Belt. Even if the eight strongest people in the group were selected, he wasn’t confident he could lead them all safely through. He might even end up losing his own life in the process.

Wang Haiyan glanced at Qi Tian and Zhao Qian, then had an idea. “Why are you all asking me? Have you forgotten what was said yesterday? We’re on the same team as the Princess now. How should we distribute the personnel and form suitable teams to cross the Isolation Belt? I don’t have a say in that, it’s up to the Princess to decide.”

Wang Haiyan’s words seemed fair and just, but he had also hidden some schemes in it. He knew that divvying up the team was a hot potato; no matter what he did, someone would end up aggrieved. He let Zhao Qian take responsibility for it so that any aggrieved party would blame Zhao Qian and not him. Plus, in Wang Haiyan’s view, when Zhao Qian made her strategy, the first thing she would do is to ensure her own safety. That meant she would definitely choose some strong people to form a team with her. As he himself was the strongest after Qi Tian, Zhao Qian, and Huang Liuyan, he wouldn’t likely be left out by Zhao Qian no matter who she chose. This way, he would have the highest chance of survival.

Wang Haiyan doing this was simply acting out of self-interest and an instinct for self-preservation. It wasn’t particularly insidious, at most a bit selfish and unwilling to take responsibility. But that’s human nature; if anyone else was in his place, they would probably make the same choices.

Zhao Qian saw through Wang Haiyan’s mind but she didn’t expose him. She just slightly furrowed her eyebrows, looked at Huang Liuyan, then glanced at Qi Tian. She and Huang Liuyan must be on the same team, because her primary mission in coming here for training was to ensure Huang Liuyan’s safety. Beyond this, all other people and things could be sacrificed if necessary.

Zhao Qian was unsure about Qi Tian’s attitude. Deep down, she certainly hoped that Qi Tian could be on their team. Qi Tian was strong and got along with them well. Keeping him on the team would be extremely beneficial for ensuring Huang Liuyan’s safety. And for all of them, it would mostly guarantee their safe return through the Isolation Belt back to the safe house. But Zhao Qian was acutely aware that only choosing strong people and abandoning the weak wouldn’t leave a good impression among others. Furthermore, some people with stronger moral senses might spend their lives haunted by guilt. Was Qi Tian that type of person?