“We can encourage the enemies’ arrogance by pretending to be weak.”

When Qai noticed that the meeting was still far from over, he went into seclusion and re-evaluated his own strength.

He knew that as a Grandmaster rank Knight—apart from his sturdy physique—he had two closed range Guandao skills in ‘Nightfall’ and ‘Dance of Death.’

‘I already lost count how many Spirit Beasts I had slain with these skills. And now that I have my own Intent ability ‘Meteor Slash,’ perhaps I can now kill a level 3 Spirit Beast on my own.’

But as a Dao cultivator—in the level 9 Qi Condensation stage—he had 3 acquired but self-enhanced abilities from his ‘Transcending Autumn Arts,’ namely, ‘Raging Bison,’ ‘Shadow Steps’ and ’Cornelia Sphere Shield.’

Also, he had cultivated to mid-level his ‘Sky Piercing Dagger’ technique which he always intended to use as a surprise attack.

However, Qai always felt that his biggest secret was his contracted level 5 Spirit Beast.

Because of the Queen Ant and it's colony’s cultivation bases were comparable to Core Formation stage cultivators,’ he felt often confident facing enemies with higher cultivation bases.

And with the addition of Spirit Beast Eland in his side, he even felt more secure.

But as far as his Soulflame was concerned, he still hadn't found a way to use it ‘offensively’ in combat.

He tried many times to integrate it into his ‘Raging Bison’ but he always failed.

‘Perhaps my current cultivation base still couldn't handle multiple enhancement of the skill. I should forget it for now and try it again when I advance to Foundation Establishment stage.’

Qai sighed after his self-evaluation then began to peek into his storage pouch.

There he saw his collection of treasures.

He had his Guandao, Dart, Cloak and few talismans as well as formation Flags.

Until now, Qai hadn't obtained any better inner armor. Under his sect robe, he still wore the armor his father crafted from the level 6 Spirit Beast Ape with Metal elemental affinity.

Upon careful inspection though, he theorized that perhaps even without summoning the giant Ants, he could take on early and perhaps even mid Foundation Establishment stage cultivators.

And with the giant Ant colony around, any cultivator in the Foundation Establishment stage would be in for a surprise.

Of course, that was in a one-on-one fight.

However, the scale of war was different.

Qai alone might meet a bunch of Foundation Establishment stage enemies or even worse, a group of Core Formation elites.

So in truth, his personal strength does not guarantee anything.

After some thoughts, he looked into the horizon and took a deep breath.

He stood up and went to see his Spirit Beast Eland—surprisingly, it hadn't come out yet from its own seclusion since it evolved.

Three days later, the Sect Master together with the sect elders and the Patriarchs of the 8 clans within the region finally emerged from their tightly secured meeting.

Their emergence immediately caused an uproar among the sect disciples.

The Patriarchs, on the other hand, did not linger around and instantly rushed their separate ways like streaks of light.

And this did not go unnoticed by the disciples. They already had their own speculations about the coming calamity, and their action just confirmed the urgency of the matter.

All of sudden, a sound of clanging bell reverberated like a piercing cry throughout the grounds of the sect.

Then a voice, powered by a peak Core Formation cultivation base, boomed in the air.

Sect Master!

Everyone bowed from the direction of the voice and listened intently.

As expected, one by one, announcements were carefully broken down into details.

First, war was indeed upon the Precious Tree Sect, but the sect will only stand on the defensive.

As such all the Array Formations covering the 5 Mountain Peaks will be activated. And the territory closest to Heavenly Sword Sect—the Shu Clan—will be fortified.

Secondly, two armies of disciples will be sent on missions—and all outer, inner and core disciples, together with some sect officials and elders, were called to participate in the battle.

A smaller group shall head to aid Scarlet Feather Sect so that the sect can protect its rear.

And the rest—which would be the bulk of the forces—shall defend the region and meet the Heavenly Sword Sect at the borders of the Shu Clan’s territory.

Accordingly, teams will be formed in order to assure the safety of everyone.

Third, merits in the war shall be rewarded with Contribution Points.

Fourth, rogue cultivators shall be recruited to join the war—they will all be welcomed to participate but they will have no access to Contribution Points, instead, they will be rewarded with Spirit Stones in accordance with their merits.

Finally, spoils shall be left to the teams for distribution or they may be exchanged for Contribution Points as well.

“Everyone, please prepare and report to the Regulations Hall for the approval of your teams. After that, both forces will depart in 3 days.”

When the Sect Master said his last words, a commotion erupted like fire.

Unfortunately, there was no mention as to why the Broken Moon Sect started a war—leaving everyone with his or her own speculations.

Nevertheless, many felt excited while some felt uneasy, but obviously, there were others who felt fear in their hearts.

When Qai heard all the announcements, he didn't know what to feel but his initial reaction was not to head to the Regulations Hall but to inform the Crag Brothers to proceed with the plan.

In fact, he started picking up all the precious herbs in his garden plot in order to sell them as well.

‘Perhaps I can request Shu Liang to help my group to put up a small shop in the Shu Clan territory.’

Qai then summoned back all the Ant Workers hiding in his valley since he didn't know how long he would be on the battlefield.

As he was busy clearing up his place, few familiar outer disciples suddenly appeared near his valley.

“Brother Qai!”

“Big brother Qai!”

‘I wonder who would come at this time?’

The group was actually calling for him from outside the restrictions.

Qai extended his Spiritual Sense and realized it was Ji Wuheng and the 3 Mo disciples. And as he expected, they came to form a team with them.

Qai did not refuse their invitation much to the elation of the disciples. They had seen his abilities back in the ranking competition so they were confident of his skills.

And now that Qai was already a level 9 Qi Condensation stage cultivator, they all the more felt optimistic about surviving in the war.

Qai met them and led the group to first evaluate their overall strength and abilities before heading to the Regulations Hall.

And before a set of sect officials inside the said Hall, they found Qai’s team alright but—contrary to Qai’s expectation—their team was assigned to the group going to assist the Scarlet Feather Sect.

His initial plans were set in the Shu Clan territory. But now that there were changes, he had to adjust his own agenda.

“Alright, we should split up first and should make some preparations. When everything is ready, we’ll meet up my valley in two days.”

After Qai reminded them of few other things to bring, he went to the Contributions Hall and exchanged some of his herbs into Contribution Points.

Thereafter, he went to the sect’s breeding ground and looked for a disciple willing to trade a beast pouch for Contribution Points.

It didn't take long before he found one who gladly accepted his Contribution Points.

Qai then went to meet the Crag Brothers to discuss a lot of things before handing them over some of his precious herbs.

In the end, the 3 decided not to split up and to just put up their small shop in the territory of Scarlet Feather Sect.

“Alright, the both of you should head now and inspect the battlefield area. Two of my giant Ants will follow you secretly. And once our forces arrive in the place, I’ll contact the two of you.”

Qai once again went back to his valley, pull out the illusion Array covering the garden and went to see his Spirit Beast Eland.