It was rather unfair to the second and third tier factions, but the ten sacred lands had no other options.

Meanwhile, some had other concerns.

“My friends, there’s something we haven’t talked about. If these fugitives occupy our sacred lands, there’s no guarantee that we’ll be able to take them back with our strength divided like this.

“The cultivators from the Boundless Prison are more powerful than we expected. We previously thought they can’t compare to the ten sacred lands, but it now seems that we may have been wrong.”

Jiang Chen had held the same belief, but he agreed that he might have misjudged.

They’d assigned six divine cultivators to the exit of Sandplain alone. How many divine cultivators must’ve been sent to attack the ten sacred lands?

Even if they had only one god lead the attack on each sacred land, that would still be ten divine cultivators.

Added to that the sheer number of demigods they already had, it was reasonable that their collective power was no worse than that of the ten sacred lands. If the sacred lands fought among themselves, they were likely to be divided and conquered.

It’d be exactly what their enemy wanted, for them to return to their respective sacred lands.

As such, the group sank into a dilemma.

If they split up, they risked being picked off one by one.

If they were to prioritize saving a particular sacred land first though, it was difficult to be fair.

This was no game. No one wanted their home to be at the bottom of the list. Everyone wanted to be the group’s first destination.

Even Eternal’s forefather wasn’t shameless enough to say that they had to go to the Eternal Sacred Land first just because they were the leader of the alliance.

That would be unjust.

“Let’s weigh our options, everyone. If you have any ideas, speak freely.” Eternal’s forefather’s gaze swept over the other forefathers.

“I believe it’s better for us to stick together than to go separate ways,” started off Radiance’s forefather.

Martial’s forefather nodded. “I agree. If we split up, it’ll be easy for the enemies to defeat us one by one.”

Jiang Chen was too anxious to join that train of thought.

“You have to lead the group as the alliance head, Venerated Forefather,” he spoke up. “I’d like to return to the Eternal Sacred Land first before it’s too late.”

The forefather was surprised. “You? On your own?”

Jiang Chen nodded. “Yes, on my own. The others will be following you. Don’t worry. I’ll do my best.”

The forefather perked up. He knew what Jiang Chen was capable of. And he knew the young man had a Vermilion Bird as his companion, which was a divine sacred beast.

Jiang Chen stood a good chance of winning.

However, as the sacred land’s forefather, he was ashamed to not be able to return at its eleventh hour as its forefather. Instead, their top genius was forced to take the reins on his own.

Such was the reality of being the alliance head.

The others admired Jiang Chen for keeping the big picture in mind.

“Venerated Forefather, please allow this subordinate to return with Jiang Chen,” Ziju Min piped up.

Wu You and Gan Ning followed suit. “We’d like to follow senior brother Jiang Chen as well.”

Eternal’s forefather threw Ziju Min a glance and nodded. “Alright. I feel better with you by his side, Elder Ziju. You can return first. I’ll be here planning our next move with the others. I’m entrusting the sacred land to you.”

He didn’t dawdle needlessly. He knew he wouldn’t necessarily do a better job than Jiang Chen. The Vermilion Bird was just as powerful as he, if not more.

By sticking with the alliance as the leader, he could win the other members’ respect and forge a better image.

Although he was still worried, this was how things had to be. There was no perfect solution.

With that decided, Jiang Chen raised a cupped fist salute. “Seniors, our forefather has chosen the alliance over his own sacred land. It’s undeniable that he’s made a selfless decision. I hope you’ll be able to consider the big picture as well and put aside your personal needs.

“I’m young and shouldn’t be saying these things, but I’ve thought about the operation and feel that we must act smartly. It’s best that you prioritize the lesser known sacred lands that the enemies are less likely to focus on. Catch them off guard and take back those first. If you go for the obvious targets immediately, there will be a difficult fight and you’ll suffer great casualties.”

He’d made himself clear. It was better for the alliance to pick the lower hanging fruit first.

Although he’d made a lot of contributions, it would be inappropriate for him to say too much as a junior. After making his case, he entered Starfate and departed with Ziju Min and the others.

He didn’t take with him the guards he’d picked from the second and third tier factions. He hadn’t done a background check on them himself. Their loyalty wasn’t yet a guarantee. Jiang Chen decisively put them in one of the sealed airbots, temporarily taking away their freedom.

The ten forefathers watched Jiang Chen leave, impressed.

They were fortunate to have a young genius like Jiang Chen on their side. The young man was talented and independent. He could play the role of a divine forefather, and sometimes was even more useful than one.

“Don’t worry, Daoist Eternal. Jiang Chen was able to help us resolve the myriad of traps and formations and poisonous mist. Nothing will stop him.”

“That’s right. We envy the Eternal Sacred Land.”

Eternal’s forefather sighed faintly. “Please stop putting him on the pedestal. We’ve forced this responsibility on the young man because we have no other options in these difficult times. I don’t know if it’s the right thing to do to push him this far. I hope he can take it.”

......

Jiang Chen didn’t care what the ten sacred lands were going to do. That was out of his hands. His sole focus was on the Eternal Sacred Land.

According to his speculation of the timeline, he believed all this was premeditated. The escapees must’ve attacked the sacred land at the same time when they quarantined the Sandplain Island.

The sacred land’s defenses would be able to withstand regular or even fiercer attacks. What worried Jiang Chen was the possibility that powerful gods might have been assigned to assault the sacred land. Worse, that Master Lightford could take matters into his own hands.

If Lightford knew Eternal had become the alliance head, he might pick it as his prime target.

If that was the case, Jiang Chen couldn’t be sure how long it would be until Eternal’s defenses failed.