Chapter 519: I Understand (7/10, Autumn Subscription)

"It's fine, I understand when emotions run high." Fang Yue waved his hand, unconcerned.

You Sisi blinked, her brow slightly furrowed, then quickly returned to normal—yet she seemed puffed up with irritation, her gaze sharp and hostile toward everyone.

"Ye Ge, You Daqingyi seems to have taken a liking to you."

At that moment, Jing Yan suddenly sent a friend message.

"No way." Fang Yue froze, glancing at You Sisi beside him—her eyes blazing, as if searching for an opportunity to lash out.

"She looks like she's about to eat someone…"

"Hehe! If Ye Ge doesn't believe it, fine—we'll see."

Jing Yan patted the small Xiao Xuedou sleeping in his arms and chuckled, his lewd expression making Chen Qing, who had no seat and had to stand, silently step farther away.

Most of those who fled from the Underground Stronghold were now gathered in this hall.

After returning to Qingsi County, everyone had personal matters they wished to attend to, but before doing so, they were all summoned by You Sisi to the Qingsi Hall to discuss how to respond to the underground anomalies.

"... Even if it's just precautionary, if that 【Laguan Gui】—along with other groups of anomalies—actually heads toward Qingsi County, the more reinforcements, the better, and the faster, the better. So I propose issuing the 【Summon Sect Order】."

At that moment, Tian Erjun, the longest-serving Qingsi County Qingyi, proposed another route for seeking aid.

"Ye Ge, what's a 【Summon Sect Order】? Can you eat it?"

To Fang Yue's right, Bai Xiaoya sat on a chair, gnawing on a piece of wood, her innocent big eyes blinking up at him in confusion.

"... You can't eat it! Don't think everything is edible!"

Fang Yue's face darkened and ordered.

On the way to the Qingsi Hall earlier, if he hadn't stopped her, Bai Xiaoya would have chewed through everything she saw—from trees to houses.

Fang Yue had always thought Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu was a glutton; now, by comparison, what was Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu?

At least Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu didn't do nothing but eat.

This one, however, truly only eats—she speaks of eating, thinks of eating, and sometimes even steals chickens, eating them outright without asking Fang Yue.

This chair was given to Bai Xiaoya to gnaw on while Fang Yue scowled, just hoping she wouldn't chew too fast and then fixate on something else strange.

As for Tian Erjun's proposal of the 【Summon Sect Order】, Fang Yue wholeheartedly supported it.

After all, this decision could maximally boost Qingsi County's combat strength in the shortest time.

As for the distant Qingsi Bureau and the unknown 【Red Branch】, they were utterly unreliable in the short term.

The 【Summon Sect Order】 is a call for aid to all sects connected to Qingsi County, uniting their forces to defend the county.

At first glance, sects suffer a loss—sending their core strength to guard Qingsi County—but in reality, Qingsi County's own defense is already strong, and under normal circumstances, the 【Summon Sect Order】 is never needed.

Without invoking the 【Summon Sect Order】, these sects closely tied to Qingsi County enjoy all their benefits for free.

Enjoying benefits at zero cost—that's the usual state of the 【Summon Sect Order】.

But once the 【Summon Sect Order】 is used once, the next time it can be invoked to summon these sects is five years later.

Responding to the 【Summon Sect Order】 only once every five years—or even longer—then resuming their free benefits from Qingsi County—what temptation can resist? Naturally, nearby sects have never resisted.

Combined with the fact that Qingsi County rarely uses the 【Summon Sect Order】, sects can develop freely without fear of being dragged into conscription, and thus grow stronger over time.

As sects grow stronger, their aid during a 【Summon Sect Order】 becomes more significant—so this is essentially a win-win, or rather, a system of exchanging favors for benefits.

The sect forces summoned by the 【Summon Sect Order】 are often even stronger than those of the Qingsi Bureau.

Of course, this refers to mid-tier strength; the top-tier fighters are still undoubtedly superior in the Qingsi Bureau—after all, Tian Erjun, the Xiantian Realm apex, stands guard here.

"Your Excellency, you mean the many sects summoned by the 【Summon Sect Order】 don't have a single Person-Level powerhouse among them?"

"You misunderstand. Some major sects naturally have Person-Level powerhouses—but they may not be willing to send them to aid us."

Fang Yue's expression darkened: "If Qingsi County falls, their sects won't fare well either. Don't they understand 'when lips are gone, teeth feel cold'?"

"Of course they understand that principle. But compared to the distant possibility of 'lips gone, teeth cold,' they care more about whether their sect's Person-Level powerhouses will be lost during the 【Summon Sect Order】.

If an Elder or a Sect Master dies, even if the sect survives temporarily, it will later be swallowed by other sects. Who would willingly destroy their own hard-earned sect for the survival of Qingsi County?"

Damn! He made perfect sense—I had no reply.

People are selfish.

For sect high-ups, their sect's affairs are their own affairs.

Qingsi County's affairs are outsiders' matters—they can help, but never fully commit, even though they know that if Qingsi County falls, their own sects won't last long. Yet that mindset persists.

"Your Excellency, what should we do? If sects only send weaklings, how can they possibly withstand such a massive army of anomalies—and that unfathomable Laguan Gui?"

"Ye Baiyi, don't rush. Let me explain slowly."

Tian Erjun remained calm, as if speaking from long experience: "If we merely issue the 【Summon Sect Order】, the old masters—the truly powerful ones—will certainly refuse to put themselves in danger. But after years of cooperation, we know each other well. I know exactly how to make them give their all to help us.

First, I, this old man, must personally repay favors—write letters to distant ones, visit nearby ones in person; with the Qingsi Horse, travel won't take long.

Second, I'll make it clear how grave this crisis is: if Qingsi County falls, the higher Qingsi Bureau will hold every sect accountable—each and every one will be implicated, even to the point of annihilation. I'll detail the consequences based on the situation, and they'll realize what they must do.

Third, and most importantly, I'll personally offer rewards. Others may not understand these old masters' temperaments or what they desire. Having served in Qingsi County for so long, I know them well, have dealt with them before, and know how to cater to their preferences while ensuring they're compelled to aid Qingsi County.

With all these measures combined, I'm confident I can secure eight-tenths of the sects' top-tier strength!"

(End of Chapter)