554 Prepare! (1/2)

As Feng Qiuran's fatigued voice arrived from behind them, Wang Baole and company stopped in their tracks, shocked by her words. They looked at each other and remained silent. After turning and cupping his fists again, Wang Baole suddenly spoke.

”Elder Feng, can you please tell us the rules of the trial so that the three of us can make preparations?”

Feng Qiuran didn't say anything, as she felt that there was no meaning regardless of what she said. She waved her hand to signal the three of them to leave. Wang Baole wanted to say something but stopped himself. In the end, he didn't continue to speak and turned to leave Feng Qiuran's cave abode.

Having seen the trio take their leave, the emotional and mental fatigue felt by Feng Qiuran could no longer be hidden. It showed visibly on her body, especially on her face. Even though she wasn't feeling completely hopeless, she had already done everything that she could, with the most important being sending her two personal disciples to obtain the Hyacinthus Tree leaf. However, that was her limit.

Unless she decided to completely cut ties with Mie Liezi through a battle, she had no other ideas on how to handle the situation. However, even if she really were to fight it out, Mie Liezi and Daoist You Ran's relationship, which was evident through this incident, made Feng Qiuran realize that there was no way she could turn the situation around anymore.

”Everything depends on how fate plays out…” Feng Qiuran mumbled. She knew that even though her two personal disciples were outstanding individuals, matters like these leveraged heavily on luck as well. She had even mentally prepared herself for the possibility of failure. Even if they didn't fail, it was unknown whether this could allow her to get out of the difficult situation Mie Liezi had put her in.

Thoughts like these made Feng Qiuran extremely frustrated, and her fatigue compounded as a result. This resulted in her slightly regretting the decision she made those years ago, and for persevering all these years.

There's no way out… Unless the three of them can make it to the top three through their own capabilities, obtaining a top position in the trial with integrity and earning a Hyacinthus Tree leaf with the entire Vast Expanse Dao Palace as witness… However, with their capabilities, how is it possible that they'll emerge the top amongst the six hundred people? Unless a miracle happens… Feng Qiuran shut her eyes. She knew that she was daydreaming.

As Feng Qiuran was feeling doubtful about herself and towards the alliance with the Federation, Wang Baole and company, who had left the cave abode, didn't split up. Instead, with Wang Baole's invitation, the three of them charged towards Wang Baole's Green Fire Island. Along the way, they were each deep in thought and didn't speak. When they reached Wang Baole's cave abode on Green Fire Island, a glow flashed across Kong Dao's eyes. He broke the silence first.

”There is trouble. Clearly, Elder Feng can no longer sustain the Vast Expanse Dao Palace. While this was what the Federation predicted, they must never have expected that it would happen so quickly!”

”Furthermore, this trial seems to be an act of the Vast Expanse Dao Palace deliberately picking on us. If we don't manage to obtain a position, they will not allow the second batch of Federation Seedlings to enter!” Kong Dao was solemn, his mood heavily influenced by this matter.

”In reality, I have sensed that something wasn't right the last time I teleported cultivation techniques back to the Federation. The Vast Expanse Dao Palace teleportation array formation seemed to be equipped with some sort of algorithm such that it would inspect the cultivation techniques that we teleport back. Put simply, it allowed the cultivation technique to be sent back, but it didn't allow other information that is unrelated to the cultivation technique!” Zhao Yameng looked calm as she spoke, informing Wang Baole and Kong Dao of what she had been investigating these days.

”There's such a thing as well?” Kong Dao had an awful expression on his face as he looked towards Wang Baole, waiting for him to make a decision. After all, when they were on Mars, Wang Baole was Kong Dao's superior. He was used to listening to Wang Baole's commands. Right here, Wang Baole was also the leader, and as such, regardless of whether it was him or Zhao Yameng, they were both waiting for Wang Baole to determine a plan of action.

Wang Baole looked solemn as well. In reality, for the past year, his understanding of the Vast Expanse Dao Palace had grown deeper than the other Federation disciples. He had long realized that Feng Qiuran was somewhat indecisive towards the Federation Seedlings, being firm some times but also wavering occasionally. On the one hand, this was because of the different choices made by the cultivators under Feng Qiuran's lead, and on the other, it was because Mie Liezi was another strong force!

It must be mentioned that Mie Liezi's power gained the recognition of many Vast Expanse Dao Palace disciples, including disciples of both Feng Qiuran and Daoist You Ran. There were some disciples under them that gradually agreed with Mie Liezi. The idea that the Vast Expanse Dao Palace was supreme was slowly becoming mainstream.

That made Mie Liezi's power slowly but steadily increase, such that it had surpassed that of Feng Qiuran's to become the only voice of the Vast Expanse Dao Palace. It was all a matter of time before that happened, and that was also a situation that the Federation had anticipated. As such, the Federation had sent the current batch of Federation Seedlings to support Feng Qiuran.