The Burning Heaven Sect dominated the territories south of the Qingyuan Sect. While their land holdings were slightly smaller, their hunger was far greater. Their headquarters sat atop a Third-Grade High-Tier Spiritual Vein—a respectable foundation, but one that was already groaning under the weight of four Golden Core cultivators.

This scarcity was the root of their aggression. They didn’t just want the demon beast resources of the Severed Origin Mountains; they coveted the Qingyuan Sect’s crown jewel: the Fourth-Grade Spiritual Vein.

Without a Fourth-Grade vein, cultivating a Nascent Soul expert was a pipe dream.

Despite having one more Golden Core cultivator than their rivals, the Burning Heaven Sect remained the underdog in overall power. The Qingyuan Sect’s access to the demon beast wilderness gave them a depth of resources the southerners couldn’t match.

Fear also played a role. If Du Guangchao of the Qingyuan Sect succeeded in his Nascent Soul breakthrough, the Burning Heaven Sect wouldn’t just lose the war—they would face extinction.

The man driving this conflict was Sha Dinshan, the newly ascended Late-Stage Golden Core master of the Burning Heaven Sect. He was a prodigy, blessed with a Single-Attribute Heavenly Spiritual Root. Barely two hundred years old, he had already reached the late stage of the Golden Core realm. Were it not for the limitations of the local spiritual Qi, he would have soared even higher. He felt the cage of his environment keenly. He needed that Fourth-Grade vein.

He was willing to gamble everything on a war. If they won, the resources of the Qingyuan Sect could propel him to the Nascent Soul realm within a few decades. The Burning Heaven Sect would rise from a fringe power to a true titan of the South Sea.

Inside the grand hall of the Burning Heaven Sect, Sha Dinshan looked down at his assembled subordinates.

“How proceed the preparations with the vassal families?” he asked, his voice echoing with authority. “They must be kept on a tight leash. When the main offensive begins, they must strike the Qingyuan vassals simultaneously.”

Elder Ji Shuguang stepped forward, bowing low. “Reporting to the Patriarch: the families have received the decree and are willing to act. However, they have requested material support, specifically Array Breaking Talismans.”

Sha Dinshan drummed his fingers on his armrest. “Grant them the talismans. As for pills, we are short ourselves; tell them to solve their own supply issues. Furthermore, you and the other supervisors will embed yourselves with their armies. Your duty is to oversee the battle and ensure they do not falter. Report any anomalies immediately.”

“Yes, Patriarch!” the elders chorused. They were relieved; supervising the destruction of mere Foundation Establishment families was a low-risk assignment compared to the meat grinder of the main front. They wouldn’t be leading the charge, only watching from the rear.

“Go. Tell them to strike in two months.”

Sha Dinshan waved them away. Once the room cleared, he turned to the other Golden Core elders to discuss the true heavyweight of this conflict: the Boundless Palace.

The Burning Heaven Sect had not acted alone. They had invited the Boundless Palace to join the fray.

The Qingyuan Sect’s strange behavior—the lockdown, the resource hoarding—had not gone unnoticed. If a small clan like the Wangs could deduce Du Guangchao’s breakthrough attempt, the high command of the Burning Heaven Sect certainly could. They had to strike now.

The Boundless Palace had initially planned to sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight, hoping to sweep in later to claim the fisherman’s profit. However, the prospect of a Nascent Soul cultivator emerging in the northern Leizhou Peninsula changed their calculus. They couldn’t allow a new superpower to rise on their doorstep.

Thus, they agreed to the alliance. They would send a few Golden Core experts and a detachment of Foundation Establishment disciples—enough to tip the scales, but not a full commitment. Their goal was limited: stop Du Guangchao’s breakthrough. They had no interest in destroying the Qingyuan Sect entirely, for if Qingyuan fell, the Burning Heaven Sect would grow unchecked.

In the cultivation world, there were no ironclad alliances. Loyalty was a transaction, dictated by immediate and long-term interests.

Elder Ji Shuguang arrived at the Ye family estate swiftly, carrying a stack of high-grade talismans. The Ye estate had become the staging ground for the southern coalition.

He summoned the heads of the six vassal families. His gaze was cold, stripping away their pretenses.

“I have brought the talismans you begged for,” Elder Ji said, tossing a storage bag onto the table. “Now, tell me: are you ready?”

Ye Jingshan, the host, stood up nervously. “Reporting to Elder Ji, our forces are mustered, and supplies are being distributed. We also dispatched scouts to the Green Bull Market. As expected, the Five Families have heard the wind. They are digging in.”

“Is that all?” Elder Ji’s brow furrowed. “Where are the details? Troop deployments? Formation weaknesses?”

“This…” Ye Jingshan hesitated, sweat beading on his forehead. “Their defense is… extremely tight. We can enter the market area, but the moment we approach their clan territories, we are discovered. My family sent over a dozen scouts. Only four returned.”

The Ye family, being the closest neighbor, had taken the lead in reconnaissance. To avoid detection, they had sent inconspicuous Qi Refining disciples. But whether due to incompetence or the enemy’s hyper-vigilance, the operation was a disaster. The scouts had vanished as if swallowed by the earth. The surviving four reported that their comrades had been intercepted near the clan bases—captured or killed.

“Elder Ji, please do not blame Patriarch Ye entirely,” Gu Lizhan interjected, seeing the elder’s darkening expression. “The families of the Green Bull Market have spent centuries fighting demon beasts in the Severed Origin Mountains. Their counter-reconnaissance is honed by survival. Our people simply lack that kind of field experience.”

“Excuses!” Elder Ji slammed his hand on the table. “I told you to gather intelligence, not to beat the grass and startle the snake! You bunch of trash!”

He snorted, leaning back with a sneer. “Fine. You are the ones who have to fight them. If you’ve alerted them, you deal with the consequences.”

The family heads exchanged awkward glances. Some looked at Ye Jingshan with disdain—losing spies was one thing, but failing to get any useful intel was pathetic. Though, privately, they knew they might not have fared any better.

“Since the element of surprise is gone, we have no choice but a frontal assault,” He Junyi said, breaking the tension. “We stop playing games and speak with strength.”

Xu Minglang laughed confidently. “Let them be prepared. They will turtle up in their separate shells. Our strategy stands: two families against one. We have double their strength and Array Breaking Talismans. We will crack them open like eggs.”

The group nodded in agreement. There was no other way.

Back at Wang Family Ridge, the capture of the Ye family spies confirmed Wang Hao’s worst fears. War wasn’t coming; it was already at the door.

He convened an emergency war council.

“My recommendation is absolute consolidation,” Wang Hao stated, his voice cutting through the murmurs. “Recall every cultivator to Wang Family Ridge. Abandon all other territories. Abandon the resource points. As long as the green hills remain, there will be no shortage of firewood.”

“Abandon Ruojun Mountain?” Wang Yanzhi, who had just succeeded in his Foundation Establishment, looked pained. “We spent years developing that vein. And the shop in Qingyuan Market… it’s my life’s work. Must we throw it all away?”

Wang Yanzhao stroked his new beard, his face grave. “The financial loss would be catastrophic. We now have five Foundation Establishment cultivators. Can we not split our forces? Defend both main peaks, and reinforce each other if attacked?”

“Absolutely not,” Wang Longyou, the strategist, spoke up sharply. “If the enemy hits Wang Family Ridge, we can hold. Our formations here are ancient and reinforced. But Ruojun Mountain? It’s too exposed. And the distance is too great—even at full speed, reinforcements would take a day to arrive. By then, the battle would be over.”

He looked at Wang Hao, nodding. “I agree with Wenhao. Indecision leads to disaster. We must cut our losses to save the trunk.”

Wang Hao looked around the table, meeting their eyes. “Actually,” he said softly, dropping the real bombshell, “if the situation demands it, we must be prepared to abandon Wang Family Ridge as well.”

“What?”

“Abandon the ancestral land?”

Even Wang Longyou froze, his expression twisting in shock.