"Once you’ve been through it, the next time will be much better. Our losses won’t be so great."
"Right now, we’re just feeling our way across the river, relying only on ourselves."
"Someone else’s guidance might be a deliberate attempt to lead us into a trap."
A cold glint flashed in Lü Zhenghai’s eyes as he spoke. It was clear he had suffered setbacks in the Merak Sacred Land to have come to this conclusion.
Gu An grew thoughtful at these words, finally understanding why Lü Zhenghai and his group had returned to Qing State to recruit people from the Cyan Yuan Sect.
’The struggles within the Holy Land must be far more intense than the internal conflicts of the Cyan Yuan Sect. Some people might even deliberately mislead you, causing you to suffer disastrous losses—or even your life!’
"The Cyan Yuan Sect will help where it can, but only on the condition that it doesn’t hinder our own development."
"As the Sect Leader of the Cyan Yuan Sect, I must naturally put the Sect first!"
Gu An said with a solemn expression.
But his bottom line had never changed.
Now that he was the Sect Leader of the Cyan Yuan Sect, he wasn’t about to make drastic changes over a few words.
That bottom line had never once shifted; he was still holding firm.
"Your words are enough!"
Lü Zhenghai smiled at this and walked directly over to the other gathered disciples.
Not many people had come from the Merak Sacred Land, but when they left, they took a large group with them, the majority of whom were Servant Disciples.
Many of the chosen Servant Disciples felt that their lives had reached a turning point.
Just moments before, they had been worried about being kicked off the mountain. Life at the mountain’s base was hard, after all. They would have no future to speak of, destined to a lifetime of servitude, forever beneath others with no chance to rise.
But joining the Merak Sacred Land—a power greater than the Cyan Yuan Sect—was a huge opportunity. Even though Lü Zhenghai told them they would face dangers upon entering the Merak Sacred Land, they were all extremely eager. They were terrified someone else would snatch the opportunity, leaving them with no chance to ever rise above their station.
These Servant Disciples didn’t know the nature of the dangers Lü Zhenghai mentioned, but they certainly knew the consequences of being expelled from the sect.
Not everyone was content with a life of mediocrity.
Gu An watched the massive crowd depart, his expression unreadable.
’When you see certain things enough times, you just get used to it.’
"Start this year’s recruitment of Servant Disciples early, and double the number of new recruits!"
Gu An said, looking at the Elder in charge of recruiting Servant Disciples.
This wasn’t just to meet the demands of Liu Xuan and the others from the Merak Sacred Land; it was also to fulfill the Cyan Yuan Sect’s own needs.
The Cyan Yuan Sect had suffered grievous losses and needed an infusion of new blood. The Cultivation Resources they had recently acquired would naturally be used for this purpose.
Cultivation Resources are a sect’s foundation, disciples with Martial Arts Talent are its bedrock, and those with Superior Talent are its future.
These individuals would, of course, be selected from within the borders of Qing State.
In truth, it wasn’t just the Cyan Yuan Sect. The sects in other states were doing the same. All had suffered heavy losses on the battlefield and naturally needed to replenish their ranks.
"Understood."
The Elder in charge of recruiting Servant Disciples nodded.
With so many Servant Disciples having been taken, they needed to replenish their numbers anyway.
"We can also relax the recruitment conditions for Official Disciples from the major Noble Families in Qing State. Raise the age limit by two or three years."
Gu An added, turning to the Elder in charge of recruiting from the Noble Family Descendants.
The Cyan Yuan Sect had an age limit for Servant Disciples. As a rule, any disciple who failed to comprehend Power by the age of eighteen would be dismissed, as they were deemed to have little remaining potential.
Relaxing the recruitment conditions for Noble Family Descendants was a way to bring in more Official Disciples.
For many, this would be a tremendous opportunity.
"Rest assured, Sect Leader. I will see it done."
The Elder in charge of recruiting Noble Family Descendants said with a nod.
Within the Cyan Yuan Sect, everyone generally had their designated roles. Normally, such trivial matters wouldn’t be assigned to these Elders. However, since Liu Xuan had taken so many people, numerous positions were now vacant, forcing these previously unoccupied Elders to take on the responsibility.
Essentially, everyone was given something to do.
Just before Lü Zhenghai’s group vanished from sight, Gu An saw people from White Jade City appear and rendezvous with them. Only then did their figures disappear completely.
’They’re entering White Jade City to see the Old Emperor. I wonder what kind of agreement they have.’
Gu An shook his head, deciding not to dwell on it. It was a question without an answer; there was no point in fixating on it.
If he were meant to know, Lü Zhenghai would have told him already.
The fact that they didn’t tell him meant the Cyan Yuan Sect wasn’t qualified to know.
...
"Of those headed to the Merak Sacred Land this time, the one with the highest Cultivation is at the External Refining Steel stage. The weakest are Servant Disciples who haven’t even comprehended Power yet."
"There are exactly thirty Official Disciples and Basic Level cultivators combined, which isn’t a large number."
"But they took a lot of Servant Disciples!"
A strange look flashed in Yang Chan’s eyes as he listened to the intelligence report delivered by Han Bingyu.
’The Merak Sacred Land is even taking Servant Disciples. It seems they’re not being picky at all, which doesn’t fit the image of a Holy Land.’
’After all, in the eyes of most, the Merak Sacred Land is a lofty, untouchable place. They should never allow ordinary people to enter.’
’But this current situation is quite unexpected.’
Yang Chan certainly didn’t believe that the Merak Sacred Land was desperate for these Servant Disciples. Their demonstrated Talent was, after all, quite average.
He was just like the Yang Chan of the past: his initial Talent wasn’t high, and his Martial Arts Cultivation progressed slowly. Under normal circumstances, he would never have comprehended Power and would most likely have been kicked off the mountain.