Chapter 541: The Spirit-God Sect Deliberates on Destroying the Fuji Organization

Fujun Gongyuan...

It remained a simple earthen house with stone walls, with a bell and a tripod standing on either side, like loyal guards standing in formation.

Many Martial Saints were gathered here: the Tiger Corpse of Dayin Mountain, Lian Zixiu of Wanxiu Mountain, the Commander of the City Gate Guard, and others who had just ascended, such as Yanshan—each one a heavyweight figure.

However, the Monarch, the Grandmaster of the mansion, was not present.

A young man in white faced the many Martial Saints, smiling and cupping his hands in a friendly manner.

"Jiangnie, a White-robed Priest of the Southern Hall, has borrowed this precious place to invite you all to gather; please forgive any presumption."

From the crowd came a heavy, cold snort! Lian Zixiu spoke up, "You must have a lot of face for the Monarch to lend you the Imperial Garden, Spirit-God Sect."

Today's gathering at the Gongyuan had two layers of meaning.

The Monarch lending out the Imperial Garden represented his tacit approval for the Spirit-God Sect to invite the many Martial Saints here to deliberate.

But by not showing his face, he indicated he would not endorse the Spirit-God Sect's actions, leaving the Martial Saints to judge for themselves.

However...

That the Spirit-God Sect could actually make the Grandmaster Monarch yield the Imperial Garden was a display of strength that truly made everyone weigh the situation.

Wanxiu Mountain, behind Lian Zixiu, was the sect with the largest number of Martial Saints, so he had the confidence to express his stance in public.

The Martial Saints were also whispering to one another, unsure of why they had been invited.

"Southern Hall? We are in Beixuan Zhou, the extreme north of the Wushizhou; this name clashes with the location!"

In the corner stood two Martial Saints in coarse clothing; one look and it was clear they were independent Martial Saints with no sect or faction, working on their own.

The one who asked was a straightforward and honest-looking middle-aged man; if Zhou You were here, he would surely recognize him as an old acquaintance... Yin Sanfen.

The Martial Saint beside Yin Sanfen had a wooden expression and replied, "The Spirit-God Sect has five halls: East, South, West, North, and Central."

"According to their doctrine, since the gods of this world are nowhere to be seen and the heavens and earth are inverted, the four directional halls are all contrary to their actual cardinal directions."

"The Northern Hall is in the south, and the Southern Hall is naturally in the extreme north; there is no problem with that!"

Hearing the wooden man's answer, Yin Sanfen was thoughtful and asked again, "Then what about the Central Hall?"

"The center is the center; even if inverted, it is still the center. It is just that within the Spirit-God Sect, based on the reverse of the Imperial Capital, they call themselves 'Heavenly Earth'."

"I see."

Yin Sanfen cupped his hands to ask, "You are so familiar with the Spirit-God Sect, may I ask your name!"

"I am the down-and-out wanderer Baishiwu. Those inside details were told to me by a priest of the Western Hall while he was trying to recruit me."

Over these years, the Spirit-God Sect had tried every way to recruit martial artists into the sect, and even Martial Saints were not spared.

Baishiwu pointed to Jiangnie not far away, accepting his rank and level.

"White-robed Priests of the Spirit-God Sect are all walkers in the world and can represent their hall externally."

"Look, this Jiangnie is young but is already a high-level Martial Master; he is clearly a seed of a Martial Saint within the Spirit-God Sect."

"If he can break through, he can be transferred to become a Red-robed Ascetic and be listed in the Spirit-God Sect's powerful martial group."

Yin Sanfen was thoughtful, "You mean, the Red-robed Ascetics of the Spirit-God Sect are all Martial Saints?"

"Correct, they would rather have nothing than settle for less."

The two hit it off immediately, and after exchanging names, they talked quite congenially.

Yin Sanfen still wanted to ask what level the masters of the five halls were, but he heard Jiangnie had already reached the main topic.

"Everyone, you must have some complaints about our Spirit-God Sect's vigorous promotion of cremation; Jiangnie can explain a little."

Hearing this, Yin Sanfen and Baishiwu both listened intently.

The world valued the idea that death was the greatest event and that one should be buried in the earth to find peace. So-called cremation, understood in the extreme, was to grind bones and scatter ashes—an act reserved for irreconcilable enemies. Many filial children and grandchildren were unwilling to bear the infamy, deeply detesting cremation and resisting the Spirit-God Sect.

Only those unclaimed corpses were collected by the Spirit-God Sect, with the tacit understanding that they would be burned to ashes and buried.

This was also the reason why the Spirit-God Sect's proselytizing was slow; it was only because the chaotic times had arrived and so many people were dying that, for fear of a plague spreading if they were not cleaned up, the higher-ups tacitly allowed them to spread quickly.

However, noble families and clans valued the preservation of ancestral bloodlines and were not short of burial grounds, so few believed in the Spirit-God Sect.

The White-robed Priest Jiangnie said softly, "Because there is an evil art in the world that can bring the dead back to life, manipulating them like puppets while they retain the strength they had in life."

"This evil art has been passed down to this day, and recently, it has emerged."

Once these words were spoken, the many Martial Saints were in an uproar. Bringing the dead back to life? Many were even moved by the idea.

Immortality and resurrection were legendary miracles; even a Martial Saint could not achieve them.

"Everyone, listen to me: this is an evil art. What is resurrected is not the old friend, but a living corpse. All past memories are gone; they only obey the black hand that controls them, becoming their minions."

"Could this evil art be in the hands of the Golden Immortal Dao?"

The Tiger Corpse suddenly spoke; it was the young girl on the tiger's back who opened her mouth to speak directly.

This veteran Martial Saint had a clear train of thought, "Who doesn't know? Your Spirit-God Sect has been around for millions of years, and your mortal enemy has always been the Golden Immortal Dao."

"Since you use cremation as a trade to restrain the evil art, then the evil art must be in the hands of your mortal enemy to be worth such a grand mobilization."

"Besides, isn't the pursuit of the Golden Immortal Dao just these tricks of immortality and resurrection?"

Jiangnie bowed respectfully, "Senior Tiger Corpse is wise and peerless; that is indeed the case."

"My Southern Hall has discovered that there is an underground organization in the six northern states named Fuji, which is one of the branches of the Golden Immortal Dao."

"The leader of the Fuji Organization is called the Dao Master, who has mastered the means to resurrect the dead and manipulate them as puppets."

"He is secretly subverting the order of the six northern states, aiming for the Nine Tripods with sinister intentions."

"If this villain is not destroyed, the world is in danger!"

It was the Tiger Corpse again who expressed doubt, "The Spirit-God Sect has never worried about the world. You have been very active in recent years, even interacting with the Witch Tribe to promote cremation and your doctrine."

Jiangnie smiled awkwardly, "Of course, being able to eliminate a branch of the Golden Immortal Dao is also a great benefit to our Spirit God Sect."

Seeing him admit it so openly, the many Martial Saints believed him a little more; Jiangnie must have had selfish motives for inviting them here.

"The Fuji Organization's leader, the Dao Master, is a Grandmaster, and he has seven Martial Saints under his command. The heavenly treasures they need for their daily cultivation are produced from the thirteen Medicine Fields they control."

Upon hearing of the Medicine Fields, all the Martial Saints were moved; these were cultivation treasures!

Only now did the main topic of this gathering finally make its belated appearance.

"You only need to annihilate Fuji; we will not take a single cent of the Medicine Field, and it shall all be divided among you meritorious individuals."

The conditions Jiangnie offered were too generous.

The Spirit Liberation Sect and the Golden Immortal Dao are mortal enemies, and they have planted spies and informants in Fuji; they provide intelligence, and the numerous martial experts provide the manpower to cooperate—if they work together, it could be called a win-win outcome.

For a moment, the numerous martial experts became lost in thought, until... a piece of news reached Gongyuan.

"Zhengming Martial Arts Hall and Daqian Martial Arts Hall are pitted against each other, facing off at Yuanmo Guangchang in the city, with nearly 30 other martial arts halls involved."

Zhengming Martial Arts Hall?

The reticent middle-aged man Bai Shiwu frowned slightly; it had to do with him!

Daqian Martial Arts Hall? Zhou You? Yin Sanfen recalled this slightly familiar name and felt that the matter had occurred quite coincidentally.

(End of this chapter)