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The Science of Cultivation - Chapter 270: The Final Verdict
🕑 Added 2025-03-28 22:30:02 +0000 UTCMany people around Li Lang knew the elder from the Drenched Earth Sect was purposefully making trouble for him, but none of them intervened. None of the people present were short-sighted, at least when it came to their own interests. They could see that Li Lang was soon about to garner the attention of the entirety of Violet Isle, and his influence would exponentially increase for the foreseeable future.
If he managed to grow without incident, it wouldn’t have been hard to believe that a power equal to theirs could rise. In that case, Elder Ji’s point about Li Lang’s faction only having orthodox cultivators was a potential problem. After all, they all knew of the saying—there are no eternal allies, no perpetual enemies, only interests that are eternal and perpetual. No one could assure Li Lang would stay neutral forever.
Facing the scrutinizing gaze of Violet Core experts, Li Lang didn’t falter. Bolstered by the presence of his Spirit-grade artifact behind him, he stood tall, despite having been accused as a spy of the orthodox sects.
“I would love to reassure you that you’re mistaken, but I know words are cheap. The only reason I have previously avoided recruiting demonic cultivators is because of the need for secrecy. I also do not possess any demonic techniques to teach my students, so everyone in my circle inevitably consisted only of orthodox cultivators. Now that my ownership over the Crucible has been revealed, I can naturally remedy your concerns. I am willing to sign a binding contract that states I will ensure that at least a third of the people in my nascent organization will consist of demonic practitioners.”
A few nearby dignitaries nodded approvingly at the suggestion. Most of those from the orthodox sect didn’t seem to be interested in this squabble, as they were satisfied that Li Lang himself and his current group were not demonic cultivators. In their view, there was no harm if a few grunts were demonic cultivators, as the leading figures mattered significantly more.
Elder Ji ground his teeth and seemed to be contemplating other areas he could nitpick about, but thankfully, the Sword Saint intervened before it could happen.
“That sounds like a wonderful idea. I must commend you, Li Lang. You’re quite wise beyond your years, being flexible enough to appease opposing parties. Now then,” he turned toward the rest of his guests. “Shall we move on to the voting?”
Once again, no one dared to second-guess the Sword Saint, and soon, several dozen of the Sword Saint’s disciples began handing out slips of paper to all the representatives at the desk.
Li Lang was relieved to see the Sword Saint take charge once more. He had a feeling this mysterious expert in the Spirit Divide Realm was on his side. If he pushed for the voting to begin, it must mean he believed Li Lang’s chances of winning were high enough. It matched up with Li Lang’s observations as well.
The righteous sects had no complaints, considering they were the ones pushing to form a task force in the first place. Their main concern was preventing their rival’s influence from expanding. To them, Li Lang’s group was one of their own, or an acceptable compromise. By now, their investigations should’ve told them he was a former member of Spirit Grove.
As for the demonic cultivators, Li Lang had many allies among them. Just their association with Nightmoon Valley had smoothed things along.
This is probably the best scenario I can ask for. I only revealed the Crucible. I even dropped hints that alluded to the Crucible being responsible for the fast progress of my students and I.
Still, the orthodox sects should be approaching me for quotas to have their disciples enter the pocket realm soon. They’ll eventually be able to extrapolate that the Crucible alone won’t produce exaggerated results.
I’ll have to prepare for when the Cleansing Drug goes public. We’ll need to be at least in a position to defend ourselves. To that end, it’s best to emulate what we did in the Luminescent Domain and find sects to ally with. But that’s a problem for later. For now, I need to focus on the Abductress.
The world continued without waiting for Li Lang to finish mulling over his plans. One by one, the representatives around the table wrote down their vote. When they were done, the slip of paper instantly flew toward the center of the donut-shaped table, to where the Sword Saint stood. They then exploded into tiny motes of light that flew into the sky. However, it wasn’t flying around erratically. It soon formed into a legible screen of light that displayed the tally of the current results.
Li Lang cheered as the vote piled on to the retaliation plan under his name. Each of them represented a force that could either field dozens of Violet Core Experts or perhaps even a Spirit Divide ancestor. They signified another helper he could call on when it was time to confront the Abductress.
He wasn’t sure how helpful numbers were at such a high realm of cultivation, but if the fight against the Sword Saint was anything to go by, having several cultivators of his calibre should be enough to prevent any escape.
The entire voting process didn’t need any input from Li Lang, and it soon came to an end.
The results were clear. There were no surprises. There were only two options that people voted for. Few favored the endure option when a viable retaliation option was present.
“The result speaks for itself,” the Sword Saint solemnly declared. “With over seventy percent of the votes, we will move forward with the retaliation plan. The framework of it revolves around Li Lang’s group scouring the entirety of Violet Isle to track down the Abductress. Then we will gather our experts to strike her down.”
The host glanced over at Li Lang, gesturing for him to come closer, so he did.
Literally standing at the center of attention, Li Lang was once again assaulted by gazes from every direction.
“That means I expect all forces that are here today to cooperate with the tracking efforts. None shall bar Li Lang and his group from investigating your territory. Offenders will face the wrath of our collective group for aiding the enemy. While the elders will be in close contact for the foreseeable future, now is the time to ask any questions you may have.” The last part was directed at the audience in the stands.
It was done out of consideration for Li Lang’s position. While the recent turn of events granted him the legitimacy to visit the territory of every major sect and organization, he did not have much hard power. The Sword Saint’s words served as a warning to any disgruntled Foundation Establishment cultivator, reminding them that this is the business of their elders and not for them to muddle in.
Seeing no one speak up, the host continued.
“Very well. You are free to leave, stay here to converse with your peers, or witness Li Lang signing the binding contract to fulfill his previous promise to Elder Ji. The Dark Sea Arena will continue tomorrow. Today’s meeting will be adjourned. ”
The silence was instantly broken after the Sword Saint’s proclamation. A lot had happened today. Some would even say it was more impactful than the attack they had suffered on the previous day. It was exceptionally rare for the people of Violet Isle to be introduced to a new power that could rival a Spirit Divide Realm cultivator. While no one knew the full capabilities of the Crucible, its name was destined to be spread far and wide.
While the events spread like a wildfire, Li Lang himself was standing thoughtfully in place. The signing of a binding contract only took a few seconds. It was only a single page that he signed after confirming the penalty for breaking its terms. Just like the one he had signed with The Orchid Covenant, it simply notified the other party of any breaches. It was nothing to worry about for now, as there was a five-year time stipulation.
He had plenty of time to train demonic cultivators, but the problem was trying to train exceptional ones. In terms of demonic technique knowledge, Li Lang could only be considered an armchair theorist. He had a basic understanding but zero experience.
It wasn’t going to be easy for him to broach an entirely new paradigm of cultivation when he would need to focus on orthodox techniques as well. After all, he knew everything had changed after today. He gained a lot, but also exposed himself to the world.
He would need to empower both himself and his allies if he didn’t want to be reduced to a chess piece.
There’s never enough time. If only it were something I could buy more of.
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Comments
John 'the Flud' Douglas, Deadlock Pakistan Wrestling Worlds Champion
The name of the Crucible, 'Great Trial of the Water Crest' has got me wondering if there are 'Great Trial of The [Other Element] Crest' out there as well. I don't know how they'd differ from the Crucible itself, considering its not strictly Water related but maybe they'd be an even higher tier? A beyond-Spirit Divide artifact thats for training people to peak Violet Core for example.
Green0Photon
> There’s never enough time. Chekhov's Gun? Perhaps we'll see some time dilation chambers soon. Lovely seeing this arc of secrecy being closed. So much fun, and I'm so happy to have this payoff.
