Chapter 796

Before the Dao Yi Sect, the Qing Tian Holy Land is as if naturally restrained—no matter what you do, you always end up losing.

Translate: "In the face of the Dao Yi Sect, the Qingtian Holy Land seemed to be naturally restrained; no matter what they did, they inevitably suffered a loss."

Check: "suffer a loss" means "suffer a loss". Keep.

In other words, anyone who faces the Dao Yi Sect is likely to feel ill at ease.

"Or to put it another way, whoever it is, facing the Dao Yi Sect probably wouldn't adapt well."

Better: "Or rather, no matter who, facing the Dao Yi Sect, one would likely feel ill at ease."

"The Dao Yi Sect's behavior is utterly brazen."

Quote: "The Dao Yi Sect's conduct is truly unrestrained and audacious."

"They lack any semblance of a proper orthodox sect's decorum."

"They have none of the bearing of a respectable orthodox sect."

"Their tactics are utterly despicable and filthy, akin to a demonic sect."

"Their methods are extremely vile and dirty, practically like those of a demonic sect."

Many cultivators scoff at the Dao Yi Sect's deeds, feeling its behavior utterly disgraces the notion of an orthodox sect.

"Many cultivators scoffed at the Dao Yi Sect's actions, believing its conduct utterly disgraced the four words 'respectable orthodox sect'."

Naturally, they only whisper such criticisms behind closed doors, never daring to speak out against the Dao Yi Sect to its face.

"Of course, they only dared say such things behind their backs; they would never dare bark wildly in front of the Dao Yi Sect."

Along with the Qing Tian Holy Land, its loyal ally, the Dingming Commerce Association, is also suffering.

"Naturally, also suffering misfortune alongside them was the Qingtian Holy Land's loyal ally, the Dingming Commerce Association."

In fact, the Dingming Commerce Association is presently the one suffering the biggest loss.

"Or rather, the Dingming Commerce Association is currently the one suffering the greatest loss."

Nearly all of its branches have been torn out by the Dao Yi Sect and absorbed into the Black Rock Commerce Association.

"Almost all of its branches were uprooted by the Dao Yi Sect and swallowed up by the Heiyan Commerce Association."

It is practically on the verge of extinction.

"Almost reaching the brink of life and death."

Faced with this predicament, the Dingming Commerce Association can do nothing but fume impotently.

"However, faced with this situation, the Dingming Commerce Association could do nothing but vent its impotent fury."

Their own superior sect has withdrawn, so they certainly can't stand against the Dao Yi Sect on their own—clearly impossible.

"Their own superior sect had backed down; could they possibly rely on themselves to oppose the Dao Yi Sect? That was obviously impossible."

While some rejoice and others lament, the Black Rock Commerce Association has been ecstatic lately.

"Some rejoiced, some lamented; the Heiyan Commerce Association these days has simply gone wild with joy."

In Black Rock City's headquarters, Deputy Head He and the two others, together with all the elders, are smiling broadly.

"At the headquarters in Heiyan City, Deputy Heads He and the two others, along with a host of elders, were all grinning from ear to ear."

"Ha ha, excellent! In just a few days, our Black Rock Commerce Association's power has surged by at least sixty‑seventy percent."

""Haha, good, good! In just a few short days, the strength of our Heiyan Commerce Association has increased by at least sixty or seventy percent, if not more.""

"If we can absorb the Dingming Commerce Association outright this time, our Black Rock Commerce Association will surely regain a place among the top ten."

""If we can swallow the Dingming Commerce Association whole this time, our Heiyan Commerce Association will surely return to the ranks of the Ten Merchant Guilds.""

"That's a foregone conclusion; now it's up to the superior sect to act."

""That is inevitable; now we just wait to see how the superior sect acts.""

"Regardless, the superior sect's orders must be executed flawlessly—pass the directive and procure everything they need, price being no object."

""No matter what, the superior sect's orders must be carried out without the slightest omission; relay the command, procure all resources the superior sect needs at any cost—price is no object.""

Hearing the elders' discussion, Deputy Head He and the two others smiled.

"Hearing the discussion of the elders below, Deputy Heads He wore smiles."

These old‑timers, who once fretted over every detail, now change their tune faster than flipping a page.

"These old fogeys, who used to worry about this and that, now? They flip sides faster than turning a page."

Especially when speaking of the Dao Yi Sect, they become reverent, even more loyal than the two of them.

"Especially when speaking of the Dao Yi Sect, they are reverent to the point of being even more die-hard loyal than the two of them."

This makes sense, given they once feared the Dao Yi Sect couldn't stand against the Qing Tian Holy Land.

"This is normal, after all, they previously worried that the Dao Yi Sect was no match for the Qingtian Holy Land."

But now it seems the superior sect is destined to triumph; the modest Qing Tian Holy Land poses no threat at all.

"But now it seems the superior sect will surely win; dealing with a tiny Qingtian Holy Land is no trouble at all."

Even tagging along behind the superior sect, the Black Rock Commerce Association has reaped huge profits.

"Even following behind the superior sect, their Heiyan Commerce Association has profited handsomely."

Since the Dao Yi Sect has no interest in any commerce association, all of the Dingming Commerce Association's assets naturally fell into the hands of the Black Rock Commerce Association.

"The Dao Yi Sect has no interest in any commerce association, so naturally everything of the Dingming Commerce Association went to the Heiyan Commerce Association."

Who would refuse work when there's meat on the table?

"Who wouldn't work when there's meat to eat?"

At present, everyone in the Black Rock Commerce Association, from top to bottom, is devoutly loyal to the Dao Yi Sect.

"Right now, everyone in the Heiyan Commerce Association, up and down, is devout and loyal toward the Dao Yi Sect."

Besides, many of them haven't even sampled the Dao Yi Sect's food yet.

"Moreover, don't forget that many of them have never even tasted the Dao Yi Sect's meals."

If we let them eat the Dao Yi Sect's meals again, their loyalty would go through the roof.

"If we let them eat those meals again, their loyalty would probably skyrocket."

The Dingming Commerce Association has already been utterly suppressed.

The Dingming Commerce Association has already been completely suppressed.

Li Jue is no minor player; exploiting your weakness to strike you down, he's basically kicking a man while he's down, cutting off the Dingming Commerce Association's ability to acquire any resources.

"Li Jue also counts as a notable figure; taking advantage of someone's illness to seize their life, he's practically beating a dog in the water, making it nearly impossible for the Dingming Commerce Association to procure any resources."

He outright severed the Qing Tian Holy Land's supply of talismans, pills, and formation disks.

"He directly cut off the supply of talisman seals, elixirs, formation disks, and the like to the Qingtian Holy Land."

In the face of the dominant Black Rock Commerce Association, other merchant guilds aren't acting rashly either—perhaps the Yunluo and Yaochi Holy Masters issued behind‑the‑scenes directives, leaving the other major guilds to simply watch from the sidelines.

"Faced with the mighty Heiyan Commerce Association, the other commerce associations at this time also had no reckless ones; perhaps the Yunluo Shèngzhǔ and Yaochi Shèngzhǔ gave some orders behind the scenes, so the other major commerce associations have remained mere spectators."

This only makes the Black Rock Commerce Association's advance even more irresistible.

"This only made the Heiyan Commerce Association's momentum even more irresistible."

Within the Wan Yao Pass, Yu Mo, Wang Man, and Yuan Cang gaze down at Li Jue, who stands respectfully below.

"Inside the Wan Yao Gate, Yu Mo, Wang Man, and Yuan Cang three people looked down at Li Jue standing respectfully below."

This is Li Jue's first encounter with the three of them, the Dao Yi Sect's Emperor‑realm elders.

"This was Li Jue's first time seeing the three of them, the three Great Saint elders of the Dao Yi Sect."

"Li Jue, well done."

""Li Jue, well done.""

Yu Mo, in the center, offered a faint praise; hearing it, Li Jue responded respectfully.

"The central Yu Mo gave a light compliment; hearing it, Li Jue replied respectfully."

"You flatter me, senior; this is simply Li Jue's duty."

""Seniors, you overpraise me; this is merely my duty.""

"Well, the time is ripe; let's send all the acquired resources to the Wan Yao Pass."

""Hmm, the time is about right; send all the procured resources to the Wan Yao Gate.""

Yu Mo's comment made it clear he planned to move against the Qing Tian Holy Land, and Li Jue promptly agreed.

"Yu Mo said this, clearly intending to act against the Qingtian Holy Land; hearing it, Li Jue promptly assented."

In the following days, a continuous flow of assorted resources was dispatched to the Wan Yao Pass.

"Over the next few days, various resources flowed continuously into the Wan Yao Gate."

As the Dao Yi Sect has always been, it naturally won't begrudge these resources.

"And given the Dao Yi Sect's usual nature, they naturally wouldn't begrudge these resources."

Virtually every disciple is outfitted head‑to‑toe with talismans, formation disks, and pills—the more, the better.

"Almost every disciple was armed to the teeth—talisman seals, formation disks, elixirs—the more the better."

In particular, dispelling talismans of all grades are mandatory gear for every disciple.

"Especially the various-grade dispelling talismans, which are essential items for each disciple."

Furthermore, Hong Zun and the others who had been dispatched elsewhere have also returned to the Wan Yao Pass in succession.

"Also, Hong Zun and others who had been sent out to various places returned to the Wan Yao Gate one after another."

Once fully prepared, the Dao Yi Sect finally unleashed its final offensive against the Qing Tian Holy Land.

"After making thorough preparations, the Dao Yi Sect finally launched its final assault on the Qingtian Holy Land."

Starship after starship, filled with Dao Yi Sect disciples, launched from the Wan Yao Pass, while the Pass's defense was temporarily placed in the hands of the Yunluo and Yaochi Holy Masters.

"Starship after starship, fully laden with Dao Yi Sect disciples, flew out from within the Wan Yao Gate; as for the gate's defenses, they were temporarily entrusted to the Yunluo Shèngzhǔ and Yaochi Shèngzhǔ."

The two holy masters had no objection and were actually delighted, since it gave them an excuse to keep freeloading meals.

"In response, the two Shèngzhǔ naturally had no objections and were quite delighted; after all, this gives them a reason to keep mooching meals."

Unfortunately, Ye Changqing also departed with the Dao Yi Sect this time, meaning he'll probably go without meals for a spell.

"It's a pity that Ye Zhangqing also left with the Dao Yi Sect this time; he'll likely go without food for a while."

Still, as a positional offset, the two holy lands' folk were given some dry rations that tasted quite decent.

"However, as compensation for their positions, the people of the two holy lands each received some dry rations, which tasted quite good."

The Dao Yi Sect's large‑scale move naturally soon drew the notice of Zhongzhou's major sects.

"The Dao Yi Sect's large-scale operation naturally soon attracted the attention of the major sects of Zhongzhou."

At that moment, all eyes were on the Dao Yi Sect and the Qing Tian Holy Land.

"For a moment, everyone's gaze fell upon the Dao Yi Sect and the Qingtian Holy Land."

The situation has completely flipped; now more people favor the Dao Yi Sect, since the Qing Tian Holy Land is genuinely difficult to oppose.

"The situation has completely reversed; now more people are optimistic about the Dao Yi Sect, after all, the Qingtian Holy Land is truly hard to contend with the Dao Yi Sect."

The starships raced straight for the Qing Tian Holy Land.

"The starships sped all the way toward the Qingtian Holy Land."

Within the Qing Tian Holy Land's main hall, the three Emperor‑realm elders who got the news wore grim, sullen expressions.

"Inside the main hall of the Qingtian Holy Land, the three Great Saint elders who had received the news wore grim, dark expressions."

"Damn them, they're bullying people beyond tolerance!"

""Damn it, bullying others to this extent, bullying others to this extent!""

"What good does cursing do? Can it drive them off? Now we need to decide how to respond—should we fight to the death, or what should we say?"

""What's the use of cursing? Can it scare off the enemy? Now we must think how to respond—should we fight to the death, or what should we say?""

Because of the great defeat of the Dingming Commerce Association, all kinds of resources needed by the Qingtian Holy Land are extremely lacking.

Some subsidiary forces below, as well as various spirit veins and industries, have also almost fallen into a stagnant stage.

As the saying goes, when the wall falls everyone pushes; seeing the Qingtian Holy Land, this massive entity, about to collapse, the people below naturally also had other thoughts.

And under these circumstances, the Qingtian Holy Land also had no energy to attend to these matters, which only made the people below act even more recklessly.

Should we fight head‑on, or seek another path?

The three elders spoke with grim expressions.

If we fight head‑on, the chances of victory are almost zero, and the gap in strength between the two sides is growing ever larger.

The previous crushing defeat, and this time repeatedly suffering losses at the hands of the Dao Yi Sect, could be said to have added insult to injury for the Qingtian Holy Land.

So, if we fight to the death, the outcome is likely not good.

But if we don't fight to the death, what else can we do?

We had indeed contacted the Cloud Lotus Holy Land and the Jade Pool Holy Land before, but their attitudes were remarkably unanimous—none of them intended to intervene in this matter.

Moreover, the Cloud Lotus Shèngzhǔ and the Jade Pool Shèngzhǔ are still in the Myriad Monster Pass; these two have remained there, clearly on good terms with the Dao Yi Sect.

Although we don't know the reason, now hoping for the other two great holy lands to step forward is almost impossible.

As for other forces, there's no need to even consider it—no one is foolish enough to offend the Dao Yi Sect at this time.