"In seven days, we march to war."
With these final words from Yi Lao, a shift ran through the gathered Inner Sect disciples. The atmosphere changed, most of them began to feel a rush of excitent, stirred by the looming prospect of battle.
Li Yun was no exception. His eyes glead faintly, caught between eagerness and deep thought.
As the initial wave of emotion settled, many disciples began to calm down. By then, Yi Lao had already left the conference cave, slipping away so quietly that most didn't even notice his departure.
One by one, the other disciples also began to filter out, and the once crowded cave quickly started to empty.
Yuan prepared to leave as well, but when he glanced at Li Yun, he noticed that his companion seed completely lost in thought, still standing motionless, eyes distant.
So Yuan decided to wait.
Half an hour passed before Li Yun finally stirred, snapping back to reality. His gaze shifted around the now almost empty conference cave, clearly surprised at how much ti had slipped by.
When he turned to his side and saw Yuan still standing there, waiting patiently, Li Yun let out a bitter chuckle.
The soft sound was all Yuan needed to know that Li Yun had returned to himself. Without saying a word, Yuan simply turned and began walking out of the cave.
Li Yun quickly followed.
As they walked down the mountain path together, Li Yun broke the silence.
"So… any plans before we head out? Maybe one last cup of tea before the War breaks?" he asked, a hopeful smile on his face.
But Yuan shook his head, his expression calm and unreadable.
"No. I plan to spend this week cultivating in peace. After all… once the war begins, there won't be much peace left."
Li Yun paused at that, taken aback by the weight of Yuan's words. He sighed softly but nodded in understanding.
Still, he didn't let the conversation die there. As they walked, Li Yun began talking about their assigned subordinates, the disciples they would be leading during the upcoming mission.
The discussion wasn't particularly important, mostly Li Yun sharing nas, backgrounds, and a few personal impressions. Yuan listened quietly but responded here and there, offering short, thoughtful comnts on each person ntioned.
After all, as Vice Leader, he knew he couldn't remain completely silent. Leadership required at least the appearance of engagent.
Ti passed this way, with Li Yun talking and Yuan listening, until they reached the point where their paths separated.
Yuan, now alone, returned to his cultivation cave.
Without hesitation, he sealed the entrance, sat cross legged on his cultivation bed, and closed his eyes.
There was no more need for words.
Once again, he turned his focus inward, channeling his spiritual blood, pushing it to infect and transform more of his ordinary blood. There was always the chance, however slim, that he might advance further before the week was over.
With that quiet hope, Yuan continued his ditation, imrsing himself completely in cultivation.
The days slipped by, silent and steady, until the week ca to its end.
In the silent cultivation cave, where Yuan sat alone on his cultivation bed, there was no sound, no movent, only the steady rhythm of his quiet breathing.
That stillness remained undisturbed until the soft knock of a hand against the wooden door broke the silence.
Yuan slowly opened his black azure eyes, calm and sharp. Without rushing, he stood up and moved to unseal the door.
Just as it had been a week before, standing there at the entrance was Li Yun.
"It's ti. We need to go," Li Yun said simply.
Yuan gave a silent nod of acknowledgnt. There was no need for more words.
Together, they began to walk toward the South Gate of the sect, the gate positioned at the southern edge of the Howling Wind Sect's territory.
As they made their way there, Li Yun spoke, filling the quiet space between them with important details.
He shared what he had learned about the organization of their ranks, the Squad Leaders, Supre Squad Leaders, and the Third-Ranked General, Yi Lao.
It seed that, despite the surveillance placed on the Li Family, his family was still able to provide him with information, details that were clearly not available to just any disciple.
After covering the leadership structure, Li Yun shifted the conversation toward their target, the Crystal River Domain.
At first, the na "Crystal River" suggested a region covered with rivers and lakes, but Li Yun quickly explained that this was not the case.
The Crystal River Domain was actually a large mountain plateau. At its center stood a single, small pond, a clear pool of water perched atop one of the mountains. Around this central mountain, the main city of the domain had been built, its structures clinging to the slopes like vines around a tree.
This city was known as Blue Clear City.
Li Yun described it as having a population of around one thousand humans, with approximately three hundred cultivators stationed there. Most of these cultivators were at the Blood Purification and ridian Awakening stages.
The city itself was ruled by a noble family loyal to the Yang Family, the Blue Family.
The Blue Family was not particularly powerful by noble standards. They were considered a mid ranked clan, with only a handful of cultivators at the Bone Forging Stage. However, they were not the only noble family living within the Crystal River Domain.
There was also the Crying Family, another noble house with similar influence and strength under the Yang Family's banner.
Unlike the Blue Family, who had focused on fortifying and maintaining one large, central city, the Crying Family had chosen a different approach.
They had built multiple smaller cities, prioritizing quantity over quality. This allowed them to compete directly with the Blue Family despite their similar standing.
Ever since the Crying Family had risen to power, the two clans had been locked in a quiet struggle for dominance over the domain, each trying to outmaneuver the other, neither willing to yield.
There were three main cities under the control of the Crying Family.
The first and most important was the Rain Dropping City, where the family head resided. Despite its political significance, the city itself was small, ho to only about five hundred people.
The second was Rain Falling City, the largest of the three, with a population of nearly two thousand. However, most of its inhabitants were ordinary mortals. Only a handful of ridian Awakening Stage cultivators lived there.
The third was Raining Mountain City, housing around eight hundred people. Though not as large as Rain Falling City, it held strategic importance due to its location.
These were the three major cities of the Crying Family.
Beyond these urban centers, the domain was dotted with many small tribes. Each of these minor settlents was typically ruled by one or two ridian Awakening Stage cultivators, but none possessed anyone at the Bone Forging Stage.
The reason for this was simple, both the Blue Family and the Crying Family kept these tribes under strict control, suppressing any possibility of their growth. Neither noble house wanted the tribes to gain enough strength to challenge their authority.
With that, Li Yun concluded his introduction to the Crystal River Domain.
By then, they had already arrived at the South Gate of the sect.
There, a large group of fellow Inner Sect disciples was gathered, each team neatly arranged under their respective Team Leaders and Squad Leaders.
Li Yun scanned the crowd briefly before spotting their own Squad Leader, Di Fang.
Di Fang stood out easily.
He had long, flowing red hair that cascaded down his back and a face that could be considered handso, with sharp green eyes that gave him an intense, focused expression.
His dark green robe, marked with a phoenix pattern, signified his rank clearly.
Seeing him, both Li Yun and Yuan made their way toward their assigned camp, where the other mbers of their squad had already gathered.
Among the group were around nine other Inner Sect disciples wearing phoenix-patterned robes, signaling their high status within the sect.
There were also many more disciples wearing the fla patterned robes of the Rising Flas rank, along with a large number of plain dark green robes, indicating the lowest Inner Sect disciples.
Behind them stood rows of Outer Sect disciples, dressed in standard green robes. They were gathered in smaller groups, talking and laughing among themselves, as if they were preparing for a simple journey rather than marching into war.
Although the cheerful atmosphere of the outer sect disciples felt out of place, Yuan simply ignored the strangeness and quietly followed behind Li Yun.
As the vice team leader, he couldn't walk side by side with Li Yun, the team leader outranked him, and proper conduct was expected. Respecting the hierarchy was important, especially now with so many eyes watching.
Li Yun guided him toward their designated squad, a small team of about one hundred disciples, consisting of both inner and outer sect mbers. Among the inner sect disciples, a few were Rising Flas ranked, but the majority were at the Ashes rank.
Altogether, they made up roughly thirty percent of the group. The remaining seventy percent were outer sect disciples.
As Yuan and Li Yun approached, the inner sect disciples imdiately bowed, setting an example that the outer sect disciples quickly followed.
"Greetings, Team Leader and Vice Team Leader!"Their voices rang out in unison as all thirty inner sect disciples, along with the sixty outer sect disciples, respectfully lowered their heads.
After the greeting, Li Yun raised his arm, a clear signal for silence.
His expression was not warm. His face was calm but stern, and his tone matched his cold deanor as he addressed the group.
"Fellow disciples and juniors, I am Li Yun, the leader of this one hundred man team. Standing behind is my brother and your vice leader, Yuan. Now that introductions are done, let's get to business."
The group fell completely silent, their attention fully fixed on Li Yun.
"I will divide this group into smaller teams. Each team will consist of three Rising Flas inner sect disciples, six Ashes ranked inner sect disciples, and twenty four outer sect disciples."
The Rising Flas disciples nodded imdiately, showing their understanding. The rest of the group followed more slowly, still processing the structure.
Li Yun continued without pause.
"The leaders of the three small teams will be Schtterling for Team One, Yan Lao for Team Two and Roan for Team Three."
His gaze swept across the gathered disciples.
"I will now call out the nas assigned to each small team. If your na is called, step forward and stand with your designated team leader."
With that, Li Yun pulled out a piece of paper and began reading the nas, carefully assigning each disciple to their respective groups.
The process was long, taking nearly two hours to sort everyone.
Once the nas were called and the teams had ford, Li Yun dismissed them with a final instruction.
"Take the ti to rest, get to know your teammates, and prepare yourselves."
Many disciples began to mingle, introducing themselves to their new teammates or sitting down to cultivate quietly. Conversations sparked here and there as they beca familiar with one another.
With the arrangents complete, Li Yun and Yuan stepped away from the group, finding a quiet spot to sit.
Both of them settled onto the ground, wordlessly choosing to focus on cultivation while they waited for the Third Rank General, Yi Lao, to arrive and lead the next phase of the operation.
The wait had begun.
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