<h4>Chapter 753: Undercurrents, Schemes (1)</h4>


    Violent undercurrents filled the Human Realm.


    Zhou Polong, multiple character faction, character fusion...


    These words filled the minds of the upper echelons of humanity. Zhou Polong had the highest chance of advancing into an Invincible cultural researcher. He was the seconding of Ye Batian. He might be even better than Ye Batian and seeded where Ye Batian had failed.


    As for whether that was true, not even Zhou Polong''s denial could change anyone’s mind. They would simply assume that he was denying it so that he could advance in peace. After all, one of the reasons for Ye Batian''s failure was because he had been too eye-catching.


    Otherwise, the myriad races might have assumed that he would fail anyway. But he was too conspicuous and domineering, ultimately resulting in that tragedy. Zhou Polong seemed to have learned from that as he had been staying low-profile.


    ***


    In an underground pce somewhere in the wilderness.


    One projection after another appeared.


    This was a ce only known to the sect masters of the Myriad Race Cult. During their previous meeting, they had discussed killing Su Yu. A few sect masters had died since then. Today, they were not here to talk about Su Yu. They also weren''t here to talk about Hong Tan who had been creating a storm of chaos in Great Xia.


    Rather, they were here to talk about the biggest threat of all, Zhou Polong. No matter how active Su Yu and Hong Tan were, they wouldn''t be able to jump to the Invincible Realm in one day. Meanwhile, Zhou Polong could enter that realm any day now.


    "Everyone, this is very troublesome."


    One of the sect masters sighed and said, "I suspect that a big war ising."


    "It will probably happen right in the Human Realm."


    "That will happen to prevent Zhou Polong''s advancement. Nobody knows if breaking through in the Human Realm will grant him the ability to activate the suppressive force, but it is likely that he will choose to advance in the Human Realm if he senses that it''s too dangerous to attempt it in the Allheaven Battlefield."


    "To prevent that, myriad race Invincibles might start sneaking into the Human Realm. Or at the very least, some ninth-stage Sunmoons wille to assassinate Zhou Polong."


    An old woman said, "That''s up to the myriad races. I''m worried that they will make us carry out the assassination instead. That will be the same as courting death. The Divine Skywing Sect isn''t weak, right? Even the divine skywing race itself sent several eighth and ninth-stage Sunmoons to help them. But all of them were killed by Xia Longwu."


    Assassinating these super experts was too dangerous. Previously, Xia Longwu did not even seem that strong, but he had still managed to kill multiple high-stage Sunmoons. Not one of them survived the encounter with him.


    Thus, these sect masters were worried that the myriad races would make them do the assassination instead. That would be the same as telling them to throw their lives away.


    People like Su Yu, Chen Yong, or any other person would be weaker targets. There was still hope in assassinating them. The cult wouldn''t mind doing so as long as the rewards offered were big enough. But it was very unlikely that they would seed in assassinating Zhou Polong.


    "Zhou Polong might not be the sole expert left in Great Zhou. Great Zhou King might be away, but the prefect, Zhou Potian, is around. He''s not weak. He has been a ninth-stage Sunmoon for many years so we shouldn''t forget him. They basically have two ninth-stage Sunmoons that might advance into the Invincible Realm at any time."


    "We have one more thing to consider. Do we need to kill Zhou Potian after killing Zhou Polong? Who knows if he''s also a secret multiple character cultivator?"


    "Without an Invincible, who can kill two peak ninth-stage Sunmoons? We only stand a chance if we send dozens of Sunmoons for the mission."


    "..."


    One after another, the sect masters spoke. They were all worried that the myriad races would force them to do this. How were the myriad races supposed to force them?


    Well, after serving the myriad races for so many years, they hadmitted numerous crimes against humanity. And the myriad races also knew their actual identities and their strongholds. The myriad races merely needed to expose this information to destroy their lives.


    At that point, these sect masters would no longer be able to stay in the Human Realm. But they also couldn''t go to the Allheaven Battlefield as they had offended their masters. Their only recourse was waiting for death. At their level, these sect masters had no choice but to stand with the myriad races until the very end.


    Soon, one of them said, "Recently, the various sects have lost too many Sunmoons. The Human Realm is bing more and more dangerous. The Blood Fire Sect has lost three sect masters in a row. Numerous Sunmoons are sweeping through the Human Realm to subjugate the various sects. And a big chaos might erupt soon. Everyone, it''s time for us to truly join hands. We also need to help the sect master and the deputy sect master of the Six-Winged Divine Sect."


    Only by joining hands would they have the strength to weather theing storm. The various sects of the cult had never been united. Each of them would mind their own business. But now, they felt a need to change as things were getting more and more dangerous.


    Over the past year, how many Sunmoons had they lost? If this continued, it would only be a matter of time before all of them were eliminated. If the two Sunmoons of the Six-Winged Divine Sect were killed as well, things would be even more troublesome for the cult.


    "Also, how can we refuse the myriad races alone if they force us to assassinate Zhou Polong? Only by joining hands will we be able to let the myriad races realize that we are a major power they shouldn''t ignore. That will bring them to the negotiation table. They won''t be able to force us on these suicide missions."


    At this moment, someoneughed and said, "This is simple. Come under my Original Devil Sect and you will receive protection."


    That was Lan Tian.


    Someone else coldly said, "Lan Tian, we''re talking about cooperation, not subjugation."


    Lan Tian smiled, "Is there a difference? You''re all dogs of the myriad races. Why does it matter whose dog you are? Just choose to be the dog of the party that can provide you with enough benefits and security. Don''t tell me integrity is suddenly important for you people?"


    Nobody said anything. Those words were harsh, but they were also the truth.


    But after a while, someone said, "A lot of people are saying that you''re actually on the same side as Wan Tiansheng. The human Invincibles are waiting for you to bring all sects together so that they can deal with us in one fell swoop. Lan Tian, do you think we will trust you?"


    Lan Tian said, "That is merely a misdirection. How can you believe something so ridiculous? WIth this level of intelligence, no wonder you guys can only remain as dogs. Whatever. If you wish to join me, feel free to do so. If you''re not interested, so be it. I don''t care."


    The sect masters decided to ignore him. One of them looked at the First Divine Sect master who had been remaining silent and said, "First Divine Sect master, what do you think about our n to join hands?"


    "Heh." The First Divine Sect master sneered and said, "Join hands? Let me ask you one thing. Who among you can trust a different person here? Who will be the leader if we do join hands? Will you be willing to follow the orders given after joining up? This is nothing but empty talk. The thirty-six prefectures have been talking about joining hands for so many years yet they are all separate. This doesn''t work."


    The sect masters sank into silence. After a long while, one of them said, "Even if we can''t fully join hands, we need to at least have a level of cooperation with each other. We can''t afford to lose more experts. Yes, we are not a part of a single united group. But we all share one simr trait. We are all traitors. And traitors will never be weed no matter where you go."


    "We have to cooperate and seek a way out for ourselves. Before long, the myriad race experts will start entering the Human Realm. Are we really going to allow them to order us around as they wish? If you disobey when they tell you to kill Zhou Polong, what will happen to you?"


    "Earthfire Sect master, go straight to the point. What idea do you have?"


    The Earthfire Sect master replied, "Even if we don''t fully unite our forces, we need to form a limited alliance and help each other when required. For example, we will be providing help to the sect master and deputy sect master of the Six-Winged Divine Sect that are being hunted by numerous Sunmoons. Of course, the help we give will be something within our capabilities."


    "In that case, who will be the leader of this limited alliance? Who will be giving out the orders? Who will decide on the direction of the alliance?"


    Once again, the sect masters sank into silence. It was easy to talk about an alliance, but it wasn''t so easy to implement.


    Lan Tian smiled and offered, "Why don''t all of you join me? I''ll be the leader. The Holy Original Devil Sect has suffered very few losses over the years. That''s all thanks to me. I have always been a very cautious person. Don''t tell me you want to be led by someone from the Blood Fire Sect instead, right? Those fellows lost three sect masters in one year. If you really want someone like that as your leader, sure. I don''t care."


    Everyone was left speechless. What nonsense. The Blood Fire Sect had lost three sect masters and no new sect master had been appointed. Thus, nobody from the Blood Fire Sect was present in this meeting.


    It was impossible for the Blood Fire Sect to be the leader of this alliance. They would only let that happen if they were tired of living. But Lan Tian was also right. Without a leader, their alliance would be in chaos.


    Someone said, "Why don''t we do the same as the academies? We will have a council of elders while the principal has the veto power. The elders can vote before making any important decisions."


    "That works. The academies have been using this system for many years. For the most part, it has been working well."


    "We can''t afford to work independently anymore. If we stay separate, it is only a matter of time before all of us are wiped out."


    Everyone voiced their opinions. There were about a dozen sect masters present. All of them were Sunmoons. These were almost all the Sunmoons the Myriad Race Cult could produce in the Human Realm at the moment. The rest were either on the run, in the Allheaven Battlefield, or in seclusion.


    Over the past year, only eight Sunmoon sect masters had been killed. The rest of the dead Sunmoons were actually not sect masters. Excluding the blood fire devil Sunmoon, only seven human Sunmoon sect masters had died in the past year.


    After a while, one of them said, "In terms of strength, the First Divine Sect master is the strongest among us as a ninth-stage Sunmoon. And the leader of our alliance needs to be strong. I believe everyone agrees with this, right?"


    Some of the lower-stage Sunmoons stayed silent. They were naturally somewhat unhappy about that. But as Sunmoons, they also weren''t fools. Without the strength to back it, their words would mean nothing.


    "Lan Tian, your actual strength is still a mystery. Just what is your current strength?"


    Lan Tian smiled, "I''m not weak. I''m an eighth-stage Sunmoon. But I doubt the First Divine Sect master is my match despite his higher cultivation. Am I right?"


    "Eighth-stage Sunmoon!"


    Some of them found that hard to believe. It had only been twenty years since Lan Tian defected from the academy. How was it possible for him to reach such a level in only twenty years? Previously, everyone assumed that he was around a fourth or fifth-stage Sunmoon. Was he really at the eighth stage?