In the end, the bandit attacks on Thousand Flower City came to an end. The process of clean-up and recovery started on the same day. Large parts of the southern districts had suffered great damage. The sect would pay for recovery as well as some compensation to the residents who were affected.
Mei Qiaofeng, Tie Buqun, and Qiu Chuyi were invited to stay at the House of Paradise. They made no comments about the business that took place there. They were all experienced people and had seen many things.
Lin Qingcheng arranged some of the top disciples of the House of Paradise to serve the immortal guests. However, because the house had no male entertainers, Mei Qiaofeng started pestering the other two men. It didn't help that Chen Wentian, as Elder Mo, had conveniently disappeared into smoke after the battle, leaving her beyond frustrated. She even chased away all the beauties serving Tie Buqun and Qiu Chuyi and locked both of them in a room with her.
Ignoring this funny situation, Chen Wentian was more focused on more serious matters. Immediately after the battle, he chased down the bandits and killed all of them. After getting information from a few of the leaders, he identified several local cultivation sects that had been taken over by outside forces.
However, after raiding these local cultivations sects, the trail went cold. He couldn't figure out how they had all been taken over and were doing someone else's bidding. Whoever did this had hidden their tracks very well using some strange Daos. He couldn't figure it out even after taking over a few souls so he gave up.
There were too many rats.
Those that had been scurrying around and causing trouble escaped back to their holes. Many of them were killed but there were probably more hiding in the shadows. Even if they had all been taken care of, more would just show up.
He just had to manage the risk going forward. This was one of the reasons he supported Lin Qingcheng's House of Paradise. Although they didn't play a huge part this time around, they had potential. He would also have to continue relying on the Zhou Clan. He had nobody else. His sect was still young. But there was plenty of time to grow.
This time around, those attacking the city relied on the knowledge that Ten Thousand Flower Valley could only call upon two Spirit Lords in an emergency while they had four Spirit Lords on hand. They were defeated by Chen Wentian's secret alliance with Beast God Sanctum. Although that secret was no longer a secret, it had served its purpose. Going forward, the name of Beast God Sanctum would serve as an umbrella and a form of protection for a while.
As for the culprits, he couldn't say for certain that it was the Yang Clan of Great Waves or the Seven Potentates of Jiannan as a whole. There was also a chance that one or more of the four Spirit King sects of the Eastern Sanmu Metropolis had dipped their toes into the murky waters. Even more unlikely but still possible, the Seven Seas Sacred Palace in the west or the Aiqin Mystic Archipelago to the south had gotten involved.
There were too many uncertainties. He could only deal with them one at a time. Soon, it would be Long Yifei's end-of-the-year examinations. He had to be there to support her as her acolyte or else she wouldn't be able to earn a good evaluation.
Given how uncertain things were in his home province due to unknown enemies, he was strongly considering bringing his disciples along to the Martial Brilliance Continent. Maybe the best defense was present no target at all. If he wasn't home and his disciples were nowhere in sight, there was no point in his enemies attacking.
The more he thought about it, the more he liked that idea.
---
Deep within the Great Smoky Mountains, there was a forbidden area that was so dangerous, even the king of the land dared not enter casually. The flames were so intense, the spiritual energies so vicious, that King Huo Tu could only last a few minutes. This area was Chen Wentian's cultivation ground for the past several weeks.
At first, he could also only stay in there for a few minutes. But as his Blue Dragon Flames absorbed this earthly fire, his Blue Dragon soul grew stronger and could resist for much longer. In the end, he could stay in there for what seemed like forever. It was so comfortable. It was like taking a hot bath.
Finally, after a cultivation session that lasted several weeks, he finally emerged. His exit caused the forbidden ground to erupt with blue flames. The sky which had always been filled with black smoke suddenly showed a glimpse of sunlight for the first time.
The divine aura of a Blue Dragon surged out, covering the land with its might. Chen Wentian's blue flames even suppressed the boundless fire energies of the earth for a short while before finally withdrawing.
"Master Chen, congratulations!" Huo Tu bowed deeply in greeting, "Congratulations on your breakthrough."
"Mmm." Chen Wentian glanced down at his figure.
He was still covered in blue flames. But the heat and energy they contained had transformed completely. His Blue Dragon Soul had reached the Spirit King Realm, meaning he could use the full strength of the source of fire within his body.
This source of fire was something unfathomable that belonged to a divine beast. It wasn't so much that the fierce earth flames within these mountains had increased his flame powers. They merely served as a catalyst to unlock a higher level of power that was already contained within the source.
Just like how Jasmine could cultivate simply by sleeping under the light of the moon to unlock their potential, blue dragons could similarly cultivate by residing within flames. It was one of the advantages of being a divine beast that humans simply couldn't comprehend.
Chen Wentian put on a fresh set of clothes and waved to the forbidden area behind him. "This earth flame is very strong. But I won't be needing it in the future. However, it may still give you a chance to break through in the future. I have created a small formation within using my blue dragon flames that have tempered the wild earth flames a little. It should be helpful to you. If you use this method for a few hundred years, you may have a small chance of touching the Spirit Emperor Realm. But it's only a small, small chance."
"Thank you, Master Chen. Any chance is better than none. I will forever be grateful."
"Mmm. Anyway, how are things?"
"Master Chen, everything has been calm. Your five disciples have been diligently cultivating. They have made great progress."
"Oh? Then, I will have to give them a quick visit before I return to the sect."
---
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