The Eternal Sacred Land’s executives were surprised. They hadn’t expected Jiang Chen to give them two free Crowning Empyrean Pills. Eternal had just as much of a need for them as anybody else.

Jiang Chen gave the two pills to Ziju Min.

“Elder Ziju, you were the man who brought me into the fold. I make a personal gift of these two pills to the seniors of the sacred land. You should keep one and give out the other.”

The older man was the person he liked most within the faction.

Ziju Min was taken aback, but could see Jiang Chen’s sincerity. He accepted the pills without ceremony.

“Introducing you to the sect is the greatest accomplishment of my life, Jiang Chen. Though I am nothing special myself, I at least have a keen eye. Your future is indubitably bright, and absolutely no one here knows your limits. Perhaps you will ascend to greater heights than we can possibly imagine!”

This included the ten sacred lands’ forefathers, but the elder wasn’t afraid of offending them. He truly believed what he said.

“I hope your auspicious prediction comes true,” Jiang Chen smiled.

The nine Crowning Empyrean Pills remaining corresponded to the nine other sacred lands. Each of them had a good shot at getting at least one.

As to exactly where the pills ended up, that depended on their willingness and wealth. Jiang Chen could hardly express bias, given his desperate need for spirit stones.

Once he was done collecting the requisite funds, he could return to the human domain and reactivate the Great Formation of Heavenly Soul Confinement.

Once that formation was in place, Eternal could have a moment’s respite. The human domain would be protected from the demonic menace – or at least be placed out of reach from their grasping claws.

The beginning of the auction marked the end of the sacred lands’ amity.

Each and every pill was hotly contested. The sacred lands that did manage to buy one entered into competition for the subsequent pills with renewed fervor.

The more Crowning Empyrean Pills, the merrier.

The factions that couldn’t win became more and more incensed over time, a fact reflected in their aggressive bidding.

Jiang Chen struck a good balance between the haves and have-nots. The former received a longer period between each call, that the latter might have more time to consider whether they wanted to place a higher bid.

Careful maneuvering placed one pill into each of the sacred lands’ hands, making for a relatively comfortable compromise.

Some of the richest sacred lands weren’t entirely happy with this resolution, but they didn’t want things to get too ugly, either. There was no need to draw unnecessary jealousy.

As the auction played out, more people noticed Jiang Chen’s attempt to balance their collective interests, and the bidding thus relaxed.

In the end, everyone bought their respective pills at comparable prices.

As a result, Jiang Chen received an immense infusion of spirit stones – enough to reactivate the formation, with plenty to spare. He was approximately ten percent over the goal.

This wasn’t a problem, of course. In fact, it was better. It was hard to calculate precisely the cost of reactivating a formation, and now he had enough to mitigate potential wastage.

All the factions were quite pleased to receive the Crowning Empyrean Pills. Even the Flora Sacred Land had nothing to say.

Despite their heated argument earlier, neither involved party mentioned Jiang Chen’s angry declaration about excluding them from the auction in the end. As such, they were able to benefit just like the rest.

The magnanimous gesture won even more hearts in the process.

However, one pill was certainly not enough for most. Many factions swarmed him after the fact.

“Young friend, the Crowning Empyrean Pill is many times more attractive than any other. If you have the time, you really must refine another cauldron for us. Your payment is certainly very negotiable.”

“Yes, if you can give us priority in refining the pills, we’re willing to give you more of the corresponding cut.”

Though Jiang Chen had mentioned taking only twenty percent earlier, the standard was thirty to forty. Greedier pill masters collected half or more.

“If the chance arises, refining the pills should be trivial.” Jiang Chen smiled amicably.

“Do you have time recently, young friend Jiang Chen? Immortal Sacred Land has a secret realm opening up very soon. There will be a very festive gathering then. If you have time, why not drop by?”

“A secret realm is far from interesting, young man. The Abyssal Sacred Land has nine ancient vales that contain a smashing collection of ancient herbs. If that strikes your fancy, our doors are always open to you.”

He found it hard to refuse the plethora of invitations.

“My friends, I have some important business to take care of in the near future. As soon as I’m freed up, I will definitely visit all of you in turn. Unfortunately, that’s simply not possible right now.”

Jiang Chen wasn’t just being polite. He was very much interested in ancient vales and secret realms, since they often concealed a considerable amount of treasure.

Alas, the Great Formation of Heavenly Soul Confinement was more important right now.

The ten sacred lands’ senior executives gathered together to discuss plans for Myriad Abyss’s future. Their talks centered all around Jiang Chen’s earlier proposals.

Hiding the plane’s coordinates to resolve the matter of the offworld battlefield was a critical matter. The ten sacred lands were currently mired there, and they desperately needed some time to recuperate.

Amid this conference, Jiang Chen’s consciousness suddenly moved. A look of peculiarity tinged his face.

The Eternal forefather saw his change instantly. “What is it?”

“Seniors,” Jiang Chen frowned, “there’s a strangeness in the fabric of space.”

“What strangeness do you speak of?”

“It feels like someone is attempting to seal Sandplain’s exit.” Jiang Chen’s consciousness was exceptionally perceptive. Even the smallest of movements did not escape him.

The sacred lands’ forefathers traded confused looks. As divine realm cultivators, they didn’t sense anything out of the ordinary. How could a young advanced empyrean notice something they had not?

Still, Jiang Chen’s words carried a natural weight to them.

“Let me go see.”

“I as well!”

The forefathers of Sunrise and Radiance dashed out from the island as two streaks of light.