Chapter 478 - 346: New Spirit Medicine
The site of Iron Tiger Manor, a vassal Foundation Establishment power of the Original Celestial Demon Sect.
Now, it was the territory of the Peng Family, a Demon Foundation Establishment Clan.
Like most newly established Foundation Establishment powers, the Peng Family had only one member in the Foundation Establishment Stage: their patriarch.
’A message from the Celestial Demon Sect?’
The Peng Family’s patriarch, having just finished his cultivation, immediately received a message from the Celestial Demon Sect’s Spirit Destruction Hall Master.
The brief message made the Peng Family patriarch’s expression change drastically.
It was news concerning a mysterious Spirit Refiner from the Celestial Cloud Sect.
After many years, the mysterious Spirit Refiner from the Celestial Cloud Sect had struck again, annihilating Iron Wolf Castle.
The Celestial Demon Sect wanted them to remain vigilant at all times and to send word immediately if the mysterious Spirit Refiner attacked.
’A mysterious Spirit Refiner... We can’t possibly deal with that.’
Both were Foundation Establishment powers, but the difference in overall strength between their Peng Family and Iron Wolf Castle was immense. Even Iron Wolf Castle had fallen easily to the mysterious Spirit Refiner; wiping them out would be effortless for such an individual.
Originally, with the Celestial Demon Sect’s support, he had successfully reached Foundation Establishment. His Peng Family had become a Foundation Establishment Cultivation Clan and had even been granted the former territory of Iron Tiger Manor.
These had all been good things.
But everything went wrong the moment a Foundation Establishment Spirit Refiner from the Celestial Cloud Sect appeared in the Celestial Demon Sect’s territory and attacked one of their Elders.
The Peng patriarch had originally thought he would have at least two or three hundred years for his family to develop.
As long as the Celestial Demon Sect didn’t move against the Celestial Cloud Sect, they would have ample room to grow.
If the Celestial Demon Sect were to attack the Celestial Cloud Sect, they, as a vassal power, would have to answer the call. This would be detrimental to their peaceful development, especially since their family’s territory now bordered the Celestial Cloud Sect’s.
He had analyzed the situation for ages and concluded they had significant room for growth. In the end, however, he didn’t have to wait for the Celestial Demon Sect to attack the Celestial Cloud Sect—the Celestial Cloud Sect struck first.
And now, the mysterious Spirit Refiner was also on the move.
’The future of our Peng Family...’
Patriarch Peng found it difficult to imagine what the future held for his family.
If the mysterious Spirit Refiner so much as decided to target the Peng Family, they were undoubtedly doomed.
Ever since the Foundation Establishment Spirit Refiner from the Celestial Cloud Sect began operating openly in the Celestial Demon Sect’s territory, the Peng Family hadn’t received a single piece of good news.
...
The Celestial Demon Sect’s most powerful vassal was the Profound Essence Sect.
Compared to Iron Wolf Castle, the Profound Essence Sect’s overall strength was considerably greater.
The gap between them wasn’t a matter of a close first and second place; Iron Wolf Castle had no hope of contending with the Profound Essence Sect.
As the strongest among the Celestial Demon Sect’s vassal powers, they had dispatched numerous Foundation Establishment cultivators to support the Celestial Demon Sect’s efforts during the previous great war with the Celestial Cloud Sect.
Today, a message arrived from the Celestial Demon Sect’s Spirit Destruction Hall Master.
The Profound Essence Sect’s Sect Leader called for an emergency meeting.
"Sect Leader, everyone has arrived. What is the matter this time?"
"A message came from the Celestial Demon Sect. Iron Wolf Castle has been annihilated by the mysterious Spirit Refiner."
"What... I need a moment."
"The mysterious Spirit Refiner has appeared again. This time they destroyed Iron Wolf Castle. They won’t be targeting us next, will they?"
"I think it’s highly likely. The mysterious Spirit Refiner attacked Iron Wolf Castle, perhaps with us as his ultimate goal. Only by destroying Iron Wolf Castle could he gauge whether he has the power to destroy us."
"This mysterious Spirit Refiner’s strength... it couldn’t be comparable to an Early-stage Core Formation Spirit Refiner, could it?"
The meeting had just begun, and the high-ranking Demons of the Profound Essence Sect were already in a heated discussion.
As the discussion continued, the sense of crisis in the meeting grew ever stronger.
"The mysterious Spirit Refiner could strike us at any moment. We must be even more careful from now on."
"Right, there’s another important piece of news. The Celestial Demon Sect only discovered something was wrong some time after Iron Wolf Castle had been destroyed."
The Spirit Destruction Hall Master of the Celestial Demon Sect had relayed this in a subsequent message.
Among the vassal powers, not everyone was privy to this information.
The vassal Foundation Establishment powers that had been newly propped up in recent decades were not told this news.
The Spirit Destruction Hall Master, considering that they would surely panic even more upon learning this information, had chosen to share certain details selectively.
Their strongest vassal Foundation Establishment power, however, definitely needed to understand the full picture.
"The Celestial Demon Sect didn’t find out immediately when the mysterious Spirit Refiner moved against Iron Wolf Castle. This means that when the Spirit Refiner struck, not a single person from Iron Wolf Castle managed to send out a message."
"Mm."
Faced with this news, the higher-ups of the Profound Essence Sect all sucked in a cold breath.
This piece of news was clearly far more terrifying than the last.
If no message could be sent out, then there was no possibility of escape.
In other words, if the mysterious Spirit Refiner were to attack them, they wouldn’t have the slightest chance of survival.
After being stunned by the explosive news for a while, they slowly calmed down and began to analyze the situation and formulate a corresponding strategy.
"As long as Iron Wolf Castle’s Foundation Establishment cultivators died, their Demon Jars would have shattered. It should have been difficult for the mysterious Spirit Refiner to kill them all at the same time."
"Do you think that when the mysterious Spirit Refiner struck, the people of Iron Wolf Castle were in the same situation as us right now?"
He was referring to all the sect’s higher-ups being gathered in one place.
Their current gathering seemed like a perfect opportunity for the mysterious Spirit Refiner to strike.
"You’re overthinking it. Even if a Core Formation Spirit Refiner attacked all of us at once, it would take some time to wipe us all out, and that’s assuming we don’t try to flee."
"That’s a good point. The mysterious Spirit Refiner must have picked off Iron Wolf Castle’s Foundation Establishment cultivators one by one."