Several days later, Yunwu Sect was officially renamed the Yunwu Mountain Branch of the Zixia Sect.
As soon as she regained her freedom, Mo Tiange first went down the mountain to check on her second uncle and inform him of the matter.
Over these past few days, Ye Jiang had already gotten a clear understanding of the situation. He only said to her, "Just focus on your cultivation. There's no need for you to get involved in matters like this, and you can't do anything about them anyway. As long as you can achieve Foundation Establishment, which sect you belong to isn't important."
To be honest, Mo Tiange didn't have much attachment to the sect. Over the past ten years, it was her second uncle who had wandered with her, devoted his efforts to her, and raised her. Yunwu Sect hadn't done anything for her, and she hadn't invested much emotion in it either. Most people in the entire Tianji region, or perhaps the entire Immortal cultivation world, were similarly pragmatic.
At Qi Refining tenth level, she could already abstain from food. So, she simply secluded herself, stabilizing her cultivation and studying formations. The 'Qimen Dunjia' she had obtained from the Mist Valley two years ago had been sitting untouched, and this period was the perfect time to study it carefully.
During her seclusion, the impact of the sect's annexation grew.
The Zixia Sect sent several Core Formation cultivators to take over. Now, there was no Yunwu Sect leader, only a Mountain Range Master of Yunwu Mountain. The one appointed to this position was precisely that Core Formation cultivator from the Jiang family. Of course, this had little to do with Jiang Shanghang. He wasn't close to the main family branch, and he had a grudge with Jiang Chengxian. Not being bullied was already considered good fortune; how could he expect any special treatment?
Apart from the Jiang family, none of the other Core Formation cultivators escaped this calamity. Even their families were implicated. Since most sect disciples came from cultivation families, the new rulers employed a mix of threats and inducements, killing the chicken to scare the monkey. Disciples died every day, and a pervasive sense of fear hung over everyone. Logically, their courtyard housed disciples who had entered the sect through the Immortal Platform Meet as rogue cultivators, so they shouldn't have been greatly affected. Yet, several disciples were still implicated and perished. Fortunately, Xu Jingzhi was not among them.
Later, Mo Tiange heard that Wang Qianyi had married a descendant of a Zixia Sect Core Formation cultivator and gone to the Zixia Sect. Because of this, the Wang family was spared and no longer pursued.
Mo Tiange could only sigh at this. As a woman, one's body was ultimately the final bargaining chip. Senior Sister Wang was a woman of self-respect. Despite having a Foundation Establishment father, she never flaunted it and had always been kind to others. Yet, in the end, she couldn't protect herself. Mo Tiange recalled encountering her and Shen Bing in the Mist Valley, where they mentioned being verbally harassed. Shen Bing, though angry, tolerated it, but Wang Qianyi had cursed them out loudly. Thinking of her now, forced to marry the very type of frivolous young master she despised most... truly, fate was not in her own hands.
Some time later, she heard again that Shen Bing had been forced to become a concubine to the son of that Sect Leader Li. Senior Sister Shen Bing had always been famous for her beauty among the Three Sects, with countless disciples being her admirers. That she would end up in this situation was not surprising in the least. Beauty was wealth, but also a curse. If she herself hadn't disguised herself as a man and concealed her feminine demeanor, she probably wouldn't have had a good outcome either.
Fortunately, Murong Yan did not follow in their footsteps. After Shen Bing's sacrifice, she was protected.
Later, Mo Tiange received a communication talisman from Murong Yan. After this series of upheavals, her words revealed a heart grown cold and disillusioned, resolved to focus solely on cultivation. And apart from sending back a talisman with her blessings, Mo Tiange could do nothing.
Several months later, the turmoil from the annexation of the two sects gradually subsided.
When Mo Tiange emerged from her room, she saw all three of her housemates in the common room and couldn't help but feel surprised. "What's going on?"
Liu Yidao waved her over. "Junior Brother Ye, come join us for a chat."
Full of questions, she walked over and took a seat on a chair. If they said nothing was up, she truly wouldn't believe it. Liu Yidao and Xu Jingzhi were one thing; they were both outgoing by nature, so chatting together for no reason was normal. But Qin Xi usually never left his room unless he had business or was interested in the topic.
Liu Yidao asked with great enthusiasm, "Junior Brother Ye, you haven't heard the news that just came out, have you?"
"What news?"
Liu Yidao paused mysteriously for a moment before continuing, "News about the Foundation Establishment Pills."
"Ah..." She had almost forgotten about that. With the sect being destroyed just happening, she had also forgotten about the small competition that should have been held months ago. "What, is the small competition being held again?"
Liu Yidao shook his head, still excited. "I've heard news that, supposedly to appease the sect disciples, they will increase the distribution of Foundation Establishment Pills and change the method of distribution."
"Method? What is it? No more small competition?"
Liu Yidao nodded. "Exactly. This small competition has been canceled."
Mo Tiange was puzzled. "Then what method will they use?"
Xu Jingzhi, who had been silent until now, snorted coldly. "It's just because too many people died this time. Holding a small competition would feel too desolate, so they changed the method."
Xu Jingzhi's mood hadn't been good. Although his Xu family hadn't been implicated, they weren't faring well either. Xu Jingzhi originally had a Foundation Establishment uncle who, because of his closeness to Sect Leader Fang, had been demoted back to the family in a roundabout way. Fortunately, they declared their stance quickly, so others weren't implicated. Coupled with the experiences of Shen Bing and Wang Qianyi, Xu Jingzhi, also a scion of a cultivation family, harbored deep resentment.
Seeing him like this, Qin Xi coughed and said, "Junior Brother Xu, it would be better for you to calm down a bit. Regardless of how things were before, we now belong to the Zixia Sect."
Xu Jingzhi's face stiffened, but he finally acknowledged with a sound. He knew this logic perfectly well. It was just that he had been smooth-sailing since childhood, and apart from the Immortal Platform Meet incident, he had never encountered such frustrating matters, so he couldn't hide his emotions.
Interrupted like this, Liu Yidao felt quite awkward. Xu Jingzhi was in a bad mood, yet he was so excited. He immediately reined in his emotions and said, "I heard that the Demon Beasts deep in the Kunwu Mountain Range are becoming restless again, and even the smaller beasts nearby are frequently injuring people. So, the sect has decided to have us hunt Demon Beasts here in Yunwu Mountain. Within one day, rewards will be given based on the number of beasts captured. The top few dozen will qualify for a Foundation Establishment Pill."
"Is that so..." Mo Tiange frowned. The deep south of Kunwu was an endless dense forest, said to harbor many high-rank Demon Beasts. Near the sect, there were generally only First-Rank or Second-Rank beasts. First-Rank was equivalent to the Qi Refining stage, Second-Rank to early Foundation Establishment. Qi Refining disciples like them could handle First-Rank Demon Beasts if they were careful. Second-Rank... though more difficult, since Demon Beasts couldn't use magic tools or talismans and knew few spells, they could still be killed by surround and attack, or one could at least escape if killing wasn't possible. This method sounded good on the surface—unlike the small competition where even if you were strong, encountering a similar opponent meant one person would meet a tragic end. But upon closer thought, it actually favored cultivation families because they had enough manpower. They could concentrate their gains on one person to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill. Other disciples, who would be willing to sacrifice their own gains for someone else? After all, spoils meant rewards.
"Can we form teams?"
Liu Yidao shook his head. "This isn't like the Mist Valley; the disciples are competitors against each other. Of course, if you run into each other inside, acting together is probably allowed. But the chance is really low; the mountain forest is too vast."
Mo Tiange calculated in her mind. This way had both advantages and disadvantages. The advantage was she wouldn't have to worry about others seeing her and could use whatever means she had. The disadvantage was she would have to be doubly careful, as fighting Demon Beasts meant a moment of carelessness could lead to being buried in a beast's maw.