458: Is Heshuifu going to be relocated?

Heshui Prefecture is situated in a vast marsh within the State of Chu.

Most of its Spirit Peaks are submerged in the lake waters, and after years of nourishment from the spiritual spring lake, they have acquired an immortal air. While somewhat inferior to the immortal peaks of the Qingling Sect, the difference is not significant.

Rumor has it that the Heshui Prefecture Dao Lineage originates from the Kongming Dao Lineage and seems to be related to a certain True Monarch, having once possessed a complete Nascent Soul Method.

But as time passed, the Nascent Soul Method became fragmented and incomplete. Generation after generation of Geniuses, unwilling to give up, tried to attempt it, but they often ended in failure.

The one attempting a Breakthrough in this generation is an Old Ancestor whose end is near. He has used up all methods to extend his Lifespan and has lived for one thousand eight hundred years. He can no longer extend it any further, so he has entered seclusion for a life-or-death Breakthrough attempt.

Although everyone in Heshui Prefecture knows that the chance of a Breakthrough is very slim, this is, after all, the first time in nearly a thousand years that someone in Heshui Prefecture has attempted a Breakthrough. Therefore, the entire Sect has placed a great deal of hope in him.

Until today.

Ye Chun stepped onto the Sect Master's Peak and met with the Heshui Prefecture Sect Master Jin Cui at a stone pavilion in the forest. They sat opposite each other, drinking tea, as he detailed the recent situation.

Jin Cui is a veteran Golden Core Cultivator who formed a Sixth-grade Flower Core, which is one grade higher than the current Sect Masters of the Qingling Sect and Duan Kong Cave. With hope of forming a Nascent Soul, he can be considered an Outstanding Talent.

He has been in charge of Heshui Prefecture for hundreds of years and has weathered many storms. However, after hearing what Ye Chun said, his hand pouring the teapot trembled involuntarily, causing the tea to overflow.

A gust of wind passed by his ears, accompanied by the rustling of bamboo leaves and the sound of morning dew dripping.

It wasn't until a long bamboo leaf was blown to the ground by the wind, looking tiredly toward the blazing sun in the sky, that Jin Cui regained his composure.

His face was already full of bitterness, an indescribable misery.

“Is there really... really no other way? How could this be? How could this be?”

Ye Chun also gave a bitter smile. “A way? We are trying to think of a way, but how can we? Everyone has their difficulties and their own ideas. Who can persuade whom? Without a proper fight to determine who is superior, how can there be an end to this?”

Normally, as a Player, Ye Chun should have stood on the side of the Players.

Other Players recruited into Heshui Prefecture would also find it absolutely impossible to share the hardships of Heshui Prefecture; they should change their stance and stand with the other Players.

Players who can be as obsessed with role-playing as Jiang Vengeance, even standing by the side of their character until death, are still too few.

However, the matter of Heshui Prefecture cannot be viewed through common sense.

Because a large number of Players, including Ye Chun, Cultivate the Heshui Prefecture Dao Lineage and have essentially become Disciples and Elders of Heshui Prefecture, becoming a part of it.

Even some who did not directly join Heshui Prefecture would often find ways to obtain the Heshui Prefecture Legacy and then Cultivate it, becoming unofficial Disciples or Elders.

This is because for a long time, the Heshui Prefecture Dao Lineage was the most complete, excellent, and easiest-to-Cultivate Golden Core Dao Lineage that Players could access.

To this day, the number of Players Cultivating the Heshui Prefecture Dao Lineage has reached tens of millions.

And now that the Lifespan Acceleration Function has disappeared, once one disperses their cultivation to start over, the time required is often several years or even decades. This is something most Players cannot accept.

The higher the cultivation of the Player, the more unacceptable it is.

Therefore, when Arthur, Wang Long, and others proposed to eradicate the entire Heshui Prefecture Dao Lineage, the Players led by Ye Chun naturally stood on the opposite side.

At the same time, besides the reason of “resolving the Burial Emperor Star threat for Players,” Arthur and others actually had another reason targeting Heshui Prefecture:

Interests.

After the Battle of the Qingling Sect ended, Players obtained the Nascent Soul Method, and many Golden Core Cultivators began to attempt Breakthroughs in seclusion.

For a Golden Core, simply obtaining the Nascent Soul Method was a huge gain, and they did not ask for more.

But for more Players, the Battle of the Qingling Sect seemed a bit anticlimactic.

Because the Qingling Sect Old Ancestor was powerful, the Players were unable to take away the Qingling Sect's spiritual resources, let alone empty out the entire Qingling Sect.

But in the previous fierce battle, the Players had already learned how precious the Qingling Sect's immortal peaks were, how rare the Spirit Fields and Spirit Pools were, and how abundant the hidden spiritual resources were... This situation of being able to see but not take made the Players feel an itch in their hearts and very frustrated.

Thus, Heshui Prefecture, with a legitimate reason for attack, became an outlet and a point of contention for Players seeking Sect-level interests.

Heshui Prefecture Sect Master Jin Cui also knew this, so he felt sad and even a bit desperate.

When he first dealt with the Players, he knew these Extraterrestrial Demons would certainly achieve great things, so he befriended them in advance.

But he never expected that in such a short time, the Players would have already come into their own and become a major force capable of influencing the direction of a Fifth-grade Sect.

While the Players he befriended did indeed stand on Heshui Prefecture's side, the Players themselves had split... This truly left Jin Cui not knowing what to do.

Ye Chun pondered for a moment. He hadn't come here just to inform Jin Cui of the Players' plans; Jin Cui could investigate such things himself.

He came here to discuss a big plan with Jin Cui.

“This Disciple believes that Heshui Prefecture can follow the example of the Qingling Sect and relocate the entire Sect.”

Ye Chun spoke slowly, “Although the final outcome for the Qingling Sect wasn't very good, at least during the turmoil when the state-stabilizing seal established the Immortal Dynasty, and even during the southward turmoil of the Yuyao Kingdom, the Qingling Sect maintained a relatively detached status.”

“And if our Heshui Prefecture moves towards Yanwang Prefecture now and befriends other forces in the Eastern Region, we should be able to carve out a path from this dead end.”

Jin Cui shook his head. “There are already over a hundred Sect forces in Yanwang Prefecture. How could they allow my Heshui Prefecture to move there?”

Ye Chun replied, “I've already thought about this. I think the various Sects in Yanwang Prefecture want to recruit Players but are also wary of them.”

“If our Heshui Prefecture can relocate to the east of Yanwang Prefecture and proactively take in some Players who have been eliminated or ignored, firstly, it wouldn't conflict with our current strategy, and secondly, it would prove the value of our Heshui Prefecture in Yanwang Prefecture.”

“With many Sects in Yanwang Prefecture acting as guarantors, I imagine other Players wouldn't dare to drive us to extinction.”

Jin Cui was slightly moved but still had concerns. “But the various Sects in Yanwang Prefecture have different intentions. How could they be honest with us?”

Ye Chun said, “Staying here means certain death, while going to Yanwang Prefecture offers a way out; that is the first point. Secondly, Players have long since entered Yanwang Prefecture. Although they haven't reached high-level positions, they are aware of the various signals from the Ascension Assembly. The forces in Yanwang Prefecture are reasonable and are considered righteous on the surface.”

Jin Cui felt slightly more at ease, but he had one last doubt: “However, if my Heshui Prefecture relocates like this, the Old Ancestor remaining at the original site would...”