Good... Good... Good

News that a blood qi cultivator of absurdly deep cultivation had smashed two Black Crow Directives with the intent to refine a nation spread like wildfire throughout the entire dark cultivation circle.

Although he named the Northern Lan Kingdom of the Southern Jambu Continent as his target, no one actually believed this was the blood qi cultivator’s true goal.

After all, those who can’t accomplish anything often ruin everything, and even among dark cultivators, there are plenty who cannot bear to see others succeed.

Many times, even when things reach the final step, most people may still not know what they are truly doing or what effect they are having.

Refining a nation was shocking enough, but what truly stirred the storm was the two Black Crow Directives.

A dark cultivator who could produce two Black Crow Directives, and was also an immensely powerful blood qi cultivator—

such a person, with both ability and background, should understand even the most basic principles. Instead of calling him a fool, many were more inclined to dig deeper into what this blood qi cultivator really intended, and why he was making such a grand show of it.

In the Central Continent, at Eight Directions Valley.

Zhao Xuan gently lifted the Black Crow Directive before him, a flicker of uncertainty in his expression:

“This… did I really do this?”

The Black Crow Directive in Zhao Xuan’s hand had been sent directly by the Gathering of Worthies Pavilion. Its design was as usual, yet it possessed a certain inexplicable aesthetic. The anti-counterfeit marks were accurate, and even the blood qi energy within… though slightly different, was essentially flawless.

Zhao Xuan kept a clear mental tally of every Black Crow Directive distributed—who had received which ones, how many had been recovered, and how many should still be circulating.

Black Crow Directives weren’t just something you made carelessly and tossed out for people to scramble over. They were more like an investment—a way to solve problems that the Black Crow Archbishop could no longer handle, with the promise that, when redeemed in the future, the reward would at least be double.

Only by maintaining such value could these Directives earn the recognition of the dark cultivators.

Zhao Xuan frowned deeply. After studying it for a while, he still couldn’t spot where this Black Crow Directive was fake. So it had to be genuine.

At present, only seven Black Crow Directives remained uncollected.

He was certain of three that were with specific people, and those could never be taken out.

So only four were truly in circulation. For someone to now have two of them in hand… that would require immense effort and means to hunt down. With such capability, did they really need to collaborate with others?

Zhao Xuan stared at the twisted little figurine before him, growing suspicious—could someone be forging these?

With the ability to forge them… perhaps only the Eighteen Immortal Sects.

But if the Eighteen Immortal Sects wanted to crush the Dark Spirit Sect, they wouldn’t need to go to such trouble. They could just hunt them down relentlessly, and no one would dare fight back.

Capture them all in one net?

But catching all of the Dark Spirit Sect at once would be useless too. The organization was too loose, filled with every kind of rogue and freak. The Eighteen Immortal Sects have neither the time nor the energy to kill them all. Even if they did, someone would just use the same rules to mimic other sects in the future.

Zhao Xuan pondered in silence for a moment. For the last hundred years, he had been quietly building a legitimate, small-scale influence in Eight Directions Valley. Now, at last, it had taken root in the Central Continent, a foundation for a bright future.

If he could just keep working at it for another hundred years and completely cleanse his reputation in the region, this dark cult leader might finally find a chance to shed his status for good.

So he had absolutely no motivation or reason to go out and stir trouble, only to end up on the Eighteen Immortal Sects’ radar.

This righteous cultivator leader had already been so docile that he might as well crouch at the gates of the Eighteen Immortal Sects, panting and guarding them like a dog.

When a demonic cultivator reached his level, it truly held no further meaning.

His full set of blood-energy cultivation had been stuck at the peak of the Fusion realm without the slightest progress. Though his aptitude was passable, the bottleneck of his chosen cultivation technique was far too severe. Without a stroke of fortune, this would be his ceiling for the rest of his life.

Such cultivation could earn him the title of "great power" in the Central Plains, but being a great power felt no better than a rat in the sewers. He dared not display his power in the public eye.

Seated in deep thought within his great hall, Zhao Xuan sensed something. He quickly raised his hand to stow away the black crow talisman before him, his gaze shifting to the slowly opening door.

A young man with a righteous face pushed the door open and stepped inside. His smile was as warm as a spring breeze. He looked up at Zhao Xuan, who sat in the master's seat, first bowed respectfully, then cupped his hands and said:

"Lord of the Valley, there is news about the matter you ordered us to investigate."

Zhao Xuan looked at the newcomer before him. This was Li Ye'an, a carefully nurtured disciple of the Eight Directions Valley. He possessed excellent aptitude, pure character, and great respect for his teachers. By now, Zhao Xuan held him in considerable esteem. He spoke in a gentle tone:

"Oh? So quickly? Where did the news come from?"

Li Ye'an continued his report: "It came from the Xuan Qing Heavenly Sect and the Heavenly Origin Sect. They are currently working together to search this area. Because our Eight Directions Valley acts with kindness and righteousness, they took the trouble to inform us, saying that a Tribulation Transcendence-level great evil’s secret realm had been unearthed by demonic cultivators."

"Due to the heavy workload of the great sects, their pursuit had not been timely. Many demonic cultivation secret techniques were stolen, including one especially calamitous method cultivated by a Tribulation Transcendence demonic cultivator. If this technique spreads, countless blood-energy demonic cultivators will surely experiment with it, once again stirring up rivers of blood and winds of slaughter."

"The two sects hope that if we have any relevant information, we will provide it honestly, so as to prevent further suffering."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Xuan furrowed his brow slightly and began to ponder. One event followed closely after another—the connection was obvious.

A Tribulation Transcendence blood-energy demonic cultivator’s secret technique?

Two major immortal sects joining hands?

Li Ye'an was not finished. A proud smile spread across his face as he continued:

"When the two senior sect disciples notified us, your servant had already relayed every rumor you mentioned, Lord of the Valley. The two senior disciples were extremely grateful and said they would immediately investigate further."

"With the strength of the Eighteen Immortal Sects, they are certain to uncover the shameless deeds of the Gathering of Sages Sect."

"In the past, other sects feared retaliation from the Evil Spirit Sect, and other forces were tangled in their own interests. But now that the Eighteen Immortal Sects are taking action, the Evil Spirit Sect can only flee like a stray dog, and the other powers will be left speechless."

"Thus, the atmosphere of the Central Plains is bound to be renewed and purified."

"Ah?" Zhao Xuan let out a sound of surprise, his gaze shifting to one of shock and anger as he stared at Li Ye'an.

Seeing this, Li Ye'an froze for a moment, then said hesitantly:

"Did your servant... do something wrong?"

Zhao Xuan took a deep breath, remained silent for a long while, then finally nodded lightly and said:

"No... you did very well... I am merely afraid that those disciples from the Heavenly Sects may act too rashly. In the end, the real mastermind might escape, and the truly vicious criminals will remain uncaught."

Upon hearing this, Li Ye'an breathed a sigh of relief. A confident smile once again appeared on his face.

"Please rest assured, Lord Valley Master. I have already issued the warnings and also notified the two Heavenly Sect disciples about the emergence of the Black Crow Direct Command, instructing them to fortify their defenses. After all, the Gathering of Worthies Pavilion is there—it cannot just run away."

Zhao Xuan’s eyes widened.

Li Ye'an waved his sleeve and continued, "Moreover, I had the Heavenly Sect disciples devise a plan. First, they will monitor the Gathering of Worthies Pavilion for a while to identify the key points, and then they will strike with full force."

Although the two Heavenly Sect disciples hold prestigious status, they were most courteous, praising the Eight Directions Valley as truly righteous to the core, and even lauding you, Valley Master, as the epitome of virtue and goodness."

Zhao Xuan felt as if his mind were exploding. After a long silence, he could only mutter under Li Ye'an's expectant gaze, "Good... good... good."

"You have done truly well."