Chapter 577: Stand with the Victor, Break the Formation, A Life-and-Death Struggle (I)

The first day of the coalition's assault ended with the Luo Tian Society's formation master, Min Longyu, displaying divine might and slaying ten Initiates using the society's grand formation.

The coalition had marched in with high spirits, only to suffer grievous losses.

The outcome threw the cultivators of Tianlan Immortal City into an uproar. Amid the commotion, many noticed the Zheng family setting up a massive spirit-gathering formation and immediately guessed their intent. Until the formation was completely broken, Zheng Xian and the others dared not step onto Danxia Peak. To destroy the Luo Tian Society, they would first have to shatter the formation.

Now that they had deployed a massive spirit-gathering formation, it was obvious their plan had shifted from an overwhelming assault to a drawn-out war of attrition. This strategy matched the common understanding of how great powers in the cultivation world fought. Instant victory was rare; steady advances were the rule.

Back in the day, the Min family of Danxia Peak had once endured an entire year of attrition before their enemies finally stormed their gates. Now, history seemed to repeat itself.

So be it. At the very least, the onlookers could enjoy the spectacle for longer.

Yet among them, the sharp-minded sensed hidden opportunities. Within the crowd, a stranger feigned casualness as he whispered to the man beside him. "Earlier, I saw Wei Bufan of Xuchen Mountain fall within that seven-colored formation."

"Indeed. Fellow Daoist, were you close to him?"

The old man gave a low chuckle. "

Hehe

... what I mean is, Wei Bufan was the only Initiate of Xuchen Mountain. Now that he is dead, doesn't that mean Xuchen Mountain has lost its pillar?"

"Uh..."

"I'll be off, then!"

After this brief exchange, the old man carefully slipped away from the crowd. His companion hesitated for a moment before quickly following.

The scene might have seemed discreet, but cultivators' spirit senses were keen beyond measure. Their words had not been transmitted through the spirit consciousness but spoken aloud. As a result, more than a few had overheard.

A ripple of unrest spread among the onlookers.

𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Indeed, now that they thought about it, among the Initiates who had just perished, Wei Bufan was not the only one that had been the strongest backing of a group or another. There were also Black Panther Mountain, Changliu Gorge, Yuhua Sect, and the Tan family, each of whom had lost their pillars.

Naturally, now they were leaderless. Some of them still had one or two Initiates left, but rogue cultivators could easily rally allies to form small squads. They might not be able to storm cities, but plundering opportunities would not be a problem.

In less than half a day, the crowd of onlookers had already thinned by a third. Each departed in search of their own target. These movements did not escape the attention of sharp-eyed observers.

Luo Feng had been standing concealed nearby, watching the old man plot aloud while pretending to be secretive. When the man left and then returned, a half-smile appeared on Luo Feng's face.

Beside him, Chen Xiuli of the Chen family from Tianyi Market caught the expression and grew curious. "Fellow Daoist Luo, do you know that old fifth-stage Initiate?"

"Of course I do!" Luo Feng replied. He transmitted his words quietly through spirit consciousness. At the late stage of Foundation Establishment, he had no fear of being overheard.

"That old man is Kang Dongyue, head of the Kang family from Taishan Market," Luo Feng said. "I met him several times before. His ancestors are said to have ties with the Jade Cauldron Sword Sect."

Taishan Market... Kang Dongyue?

Chen Xiuli frowned.

That marketplace is remote and far away from Tianlan. Its neighboring sects are the Falling Cloud Sect and the Flame Alliance. Why did the family head come to Tianlan Immortal City? And those words earlier...

"It seems this Fellow Daoist Kang has already boarded the Luo Tian Society's ship. He is helping them share the external pressure," Luo Feng remarked.

Chen Xiuli asked, "Since they are vassals of the Sword Sect, why not support the Flame Alliance instead of the Luo Tian Society?"

"What could the Sword Sect possibly offer them?" Luo Feng countered. Without waiting for her answer, he continued, "The Luo Tian Society has real dealings with them. The Kang family's Golden Jade Liquid has been selling well in Tianlan Immortal City for years, and it is all thanks to the Luo Tian Society."

Chen Xiuli still did not understand.

Even with business ties, should they not obey the will of their greater backer?

What she did not know was that the link between Luo Chen and Kang Dongyue was more than trade. A debt of life also bound them. Back then, when Kang Xianqiong came to Tianlan Immortal City to purchase spirit medicine for her grandfather, it had been Luo Chen who helped her secure a third-tier healing medicine at the city's auction.

This time, Kang Dongyue had come alone, without any cultivators from the Kang family. That made it clear his actions were personal.

Chen Xiuli shook her head, pushing her doubts aside, and turned her gaze toward the mountain under relentless assault.

"Are we going to help the Luo Tian Society?" she asked.

The question left Luo Feng momentarily troubled.

Several months earlier, they had met with Sima Huiniang, the director of the Luo Tian Society. At that time, she had asked them to take action and stand against a powerful enemy together. They had stalled and never given a clear answer. Now, the very situation she had feared had come to pass. It was time for them to make a decision.

Luo Feng suddenly asked, "Fellow Daoist Chen, which side do you hope will win?"

Chen Xiuli smiled faintly. "Naturally, the Luo Tian Society. The spirit silkworms they breed have already reached a significant scale. They are one of Tianyi Market's most important raw material suppliers. If they are destroyed, my family's business will shrink by at least twenty percent."

The enchanted robe trade was far more lucrative than the artifact trade. Proper defensive artifacts were nearly impossible to acquire, so robes with even the simplest defensive properties had become the cultivators' preferred choice. In fact, even those who did possess defensive artifacts never hesitated to buy one or two robes.

When Luo Chen first arrived in Tianlan Immortal City, he spent a fortune at Tianyi Market to purchase his later-famous supreme-grade Crimson Cloud Daoist Robe. Later, after Gu Caiyi reached Foundation Establishment, she had personally bought him a white brocade robe. In between, Luo Chen had even purchased a robe for Sima Huiniang. And that was just among three individuals.

Across the cultivation world, from Nascent Soul and Golden Core experts down to Qi Refinement cultivators, the robe trade extended into every corner.

Chen Xiuli then asked in return, "Fellow Daoist Luo, what about you? Doesn't your Luosha Market also have trade dealings with the Luo Tian Society?"

"Which side do I hope will win?" Luo Feng gave a mocking chuckle. "Of course, I hope the Luo Tian Society wins. But that has nothing to do with business. Our trade with them is only a minor part of Luosha Market's dealings."

"

Oh

? Then why?" Chen Xiuli asked in confusion.

Luo Feng tilted his chin toward the distance. Chen Xiuli followed his gaze and saw a one-eyed man guarded by several Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Xiahou family. Realization came to her in an instant.

The Xiahou family of Silver Gorge! They had long been at odds with the Luo family. Years back, the two sides had fought bitterly over a minor spirit mine, and the conflict had planted a deep hatred. They had clashed again in recent years, and even Xiahou Kun's missing eye was actually the result of an ambush led by Luo Feng himself. If anyone wanted the Xiahou family dead the most, it was undoubtedly the Luo family.

Having realized this, Chen Xiuli asked at once, "Since we both want the Luo Tian Society to win, when shall we make our move to help them?"

"Help them?" Luo Feng shook his head again. "Old grudges can be set aside for now. The alliance between our two families was never formed to support the Luo Tian Society. When the time comes, we will stand with whichever side proves victorious."

Chen Xiuli frowned and said, "If the Flame Alliance's vassals win, how could we possibly assist them? They would not even welcome our help."

Luo Feng replied confidently, "Why would we need their gratitude? When the moment arrives, you and I will lead our people up the mountain. We will seize the spirit silkworm resources your Chen family needs, claim the things I desire, and then withdraw at our own pace."

Chen Xiuli opened her mouth but found no words. She had to admit the idea was sound. It offered a way to recover the losses her family would suffer if the Luo Tian Society were destroyed. However, it carried the stain of betrayal. For the Chen family, who had always upheld the principle that harmony brought prosperity, such an approach was difficult to accept.

Luo Feng noticed her hesitation and laughed lightly. "Of course, if the Luo Tian Society shows signs of victory, we can always add flowers to the brocade. We will lend them a hand as though we are simply going along with the flow."

In the end, everything returned to the same principle. Whoever won was the one they would support.

The Chen and Luo families were not the only ones who thought this way. Among the crowd of rogue cultivators, many allies of the Luo Tian Society were already mingling in secret. A frail-looking female cultivator whispered to an elderly man. Sharp-eyed men with sword-like brows gazed at Danxia Peak, torn expressions on their faces. There was even a resolute female cultivator who tried to act, only to be summoned by Yin Yuehua of the Ice Fortress and ordered to stand down.

Over the years, the Luo Tian Society had expanded recklessly in Tianlan Immortal City. They had made plenty of enemies, yet they had forged even more alliances and acquired more partners. Some of these allies were people Luo Chen himself barely knew. Through Sima Huiniang's careful efforts in the preceding months, all of them had gathered nearby.

These cultivators lingered for their own reasons. Some were driven by profit, others by gratitude, and still others by chance. All of them waited for the moment when the tide of battle would reveal its direction.

When that moment arrived, certain people would throw themselves forward to aid the Luo Tian Society, while others would betray them and snatch away whatever they desired. Everything depended on the course of this battle!