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Chapter Eight Hundred and Thirty Three – Intentions
"How are the losses?" the sect leader of Tian Huan asked.
"Extremely serious." An elder had an ugly expression. "All the materials in Clear Sea Storehouse has been ruined. The value of the materials is not high, but there were too many materials and their loss that it has already affected the market price. The price of low and mid-level materials on the market is madly growing to meet the new demand. The cost of producing our shen equipment is three-tenths higher than before. Only next year when new materials are obtained will this situation ease."
"Thousand Sail Sect is also badly off." Another elder walked out. "All of Thousand Sail Sect was destroyed, and almost exterminated. Almost all the materials were burned. We do not have enough transport boats."
The sect leader of Tian Huan was silent for a moment before asking, "Which other sects can forge them?"
"None." The elder shook his head. "There used to be many sects like Thousand Sail Sect that were skilled in making transport s.h.i.+ps, but in past these years, we have always supported Thousand Sail Sect. Thousand Sail Sect has grown by more than ten times, and swallowed many other sects. Almost all of the forgers of treasure s.h.i.+ps had been recruited by them, they were all killed by Mo Cloud Sea … …"
An elder stood out. "Since Thousand Sail Sect has no production ability, we should divide the orders equally among the sects that have the ability to forge transport boats."
A hint of anger flashed through the sect leader"s eyes. This elder had several sects with production abilities that met their needs under his service which was why this elder was so impatient.
Yet this elder was smart in that he did not want it all to himself, but shared the benefits. Immediately, many elders spoke their agreement.
"Then let us do this," the sect leader of Tian Huan said after a long moment of silence.
Several elders had expressions of joy. Tian Huan"s order was so large that they would make a good profit.
"What about the Yao Forging Tower?" the sect leader of Tian Huan asked.
The elder that had reported first shook his head and said, "They all ran, not even one was left inside. The battalion and all the guards were killed, the battle was intense, no one retreated."
The hall immediately became silent.
The sect leader said gravely, "Increase the death gratuity, and reward their families."
News of these three battles quickly spread through all of the xiuzhe world and caused waves. Tian Huan had received a great blow this time. Mo Cloud Sea had not sent many people, and infiltration of such a small scale could not be defended against.
Mo Cloud Sea had started a completely new method of fighting. People thought that in the era of shen power, high level offensive forces could not dominate like they did before. However, Mo Cloud Sea had showed everyone how to use high level offensive manpower in the new age.
Especially the targets that Mo Cloud Sea had chosen. Each one was worthy of study, and to learn from.
What shocked people even more was the strength of Mo Cloud Sea"s high end forces.
People now found that Mo Cloud Sea didn"t just have two of the ten great battle generals, they had numerous high level forces. Those shen power experts were enough to make any faction anxious!
Never underestimate Mo Cloud Sea!
This phrase quickly spread.
———
"Can you still fight?" the chief elder said coolly.
"Yes!" Mi Wu nodded forcefully. There seemed to be something burning inside of him. Chief Elder had taken along almost all of the experts from in Tian Huan this time. Those familiar faces caused Mi Wu to realize that this would be an important and unprecedented battle.
The chief elder nodded slightly. "You should also know the situation. Mo Cloud Sea has attacked Thousand Sail Sect, Clear Sea Storehorse, and the Yao Forging tower. We have suffered great losses. However, forget all that now."
Many people unconsciously balled their fists.
Looking at the young faces, the chief elder felt comforted. His expression quickly became serious again. "You all think that the target of this battle is to save Li Xian Er."
Almost everyone had expressions of surprise. They raised their heads to look at Chief Elder with puzzlement on their faces.
Was this not the case?
"You are wrong!" Chief Elder"s tones was still cool. "This time, our target is Zhong De. Not to save Xian Er but to save Tian Huan!"
The expressions became more puzzled.
"Maybe you feel puzzled right now, but in the future, you will become the new generation of leaders and will have to think independently. Widen your eyes, do not let emotions affect your judgement. Where our strategy failed the greatest was in predicting Zhong De"s choice. Our mistake was not incorrectly guessing that Zhong De will choose us, but in believing Zhong De would choose the Xi Xuan sect leader!"
The chief elder"s words were like a tongue-twister but caused these people to sink into thought. These were the elite of Tian Huan, and none of them were dumb.
"Zhong De did not choose the Xi Xuan sect leader, he killed the sect leader, what does this say? It means that he had another candidate in mind long ago! This mistake is fatal to us! From the start, we were lead on the wrong path. Zhong De does not have many choices, only two, one is himself, the other is Gu Liang Dao. Gu Liang Dao"s battalion has started to travel towards Xi Xuan, meaning he choose Gu Liang Dao. Mo Cloud Sea"s battalions are also gathering. He also chose Mo Cloud Sea as an ally."
The chief elder"s pair of eyes that seemed to see through the world caused everyone to feel respect. In just a few sentences, the entire situation was clearly spread in front of everyone.
Everyone looked in reverence at Chief Elder, this great power that pushed Tian Huan into the era of shen power by himself! If not for Chief Elder, Tian Huan might not have crumbled quickly like Xi Xuan but their decline would most likely have been inevitable.
This ultimate master that had went into seclusion for decades to comprehend shen glyphs was worthy of their respect, their allegiance!
"Tian Huan is now at a dangerous juncture, if Zhong De and Zuo Mo"s goals are realized, then another t.i.tan will undoubtedly appear. All of our actions to restrain Mo Cloud Sea until now will be ineffective. We will face an enemy that is almost the same level as us, but even stronger. For control of the market, we have to have a final battle. Do not forget the monster that is Kun Lun. If we continue to struggle and waste our strength with Mo Cloud Sea whether we win or lose, it will be a failure to us."
Everyone"s expressions became grave. If it really advanced to such a step, then Tian Huan would really be in danger!
"This is our last chance! The last chance to avoid defeat!" Chief Elder said gravely. His old eyes only held fiery resolve. "We need victory in this battle!"
"Victory!" Everyone shouted in unison.
Looking at the young people full of fighting spirit, he couldn"t help but feel a thread of exhaustion.
Suddenly, he admired Kun Lun. Compared to Tian Huan that was riddled with problems, Kun Lun did not need to be worried about these things. The sacrifice of the older generation didn"t just earn time for the younger generation, it also freed up room in their upper ranks. Kun Lun had almost completely changed. All the old factions had been swept away before the last sect leader of Kun Lun abdicated.
Yet in Tian Huan, new and old factions were mixed together, and the families fought. He knew that the present Tian Huan was at its weakest.
It had not yet handed off power from the old to the new generation. Just like a shedding snake, it was in pain, exposed, and weak.
Kun Lun on the other hand seemed to be reborn, full of energy.
Sacrifice, it was a terrifying power!
———
The aura of a battle grew even closer.
Zuo Mo was strangely calm. He repeatedly went through every detail. For some reason, he kept on feeling a tinge of anxiousness. This anxiousness caused him to be wary.
He trusted his instincts. He knew that he had missed something somewhere.
But where?
As time pa.s.sed, the anxiousness grew even stronger. He did not panic. If before, it had been more of a feeling, now he was sure that he had missed something!
He was strangely calm, icy calm. He went over every detail in his mind.
But no matter how he speculated, the conclusion he obtained was no different than before. If Tian Huan wanted to save Li Xian Er, they had … …
Wait!
Lightning seemed to flash through Zuo Mo"s mind. A daring idea rose.
Why did Tian Huan have to save Li Xian Er?
Yes, why did Tian Huan have to save Li Xian Er?
Li Xian Er was the granddaughter of the sect leader, Li Xian Er had the shen device [Weaving Girl Shuttle], Li Xian Er … … all of this all proved how important Li Xian Er was!
But was Li Xian Er something that Tian Huan could not lose at the moment?
No!
What was truly related to the life and death of Tian Huan? If Tian Huan lost this battle, Tian Huan could not suppress Mo Cloud Sea, and the new alliance of Mo Cloud Sea and Gu Liang Dao"s Xi Xuan had the ability to fight Tian Huan. Mo Cloud Sea who had vast territories would be fighting for the market with Tian Huan.
All of Tian Huan was in danger!
Zuo Mo"s thoughts became clearer!
If Tian Huan wanted to resolve this, what should it do?
Zhong De!
Only Zhong De!
Tian Huan"s target was Zhong De!
They would not capture Zhong De alive to trade for Li Xian Er. One Li Xian Er could not compare to the fate of Tian Huan. Their target was Zhong De, to kill Zhong De!
If Zhong De died, Tian Huan"s danger would resolve itself. If Zhong De died, Xi Xuan would descend into chaos, and Tian Huan and Kun Lun would take the chance to conquer… …
A cold sweat rose and Zuo Mo"s face turned ashen.
Zhong De was in danger!
He unhesitatingly stood up and called everyone. "Quick! Tian Huan"s target is Zhong De!"
The situation was in a dangerous time. Li Xian Er had no value in his hand. Zuo Mo couldn"t help but hate how his greed had clouded his thoughts. He had kept on thinking of using Li Xian Er to get something from Tian Huan.
Everyone else was surprised but no one asked any questions. They unconditionally trusted Zuo Mo"s judgement.
The group of people furiously charged out of the secret room, their shen power rippling as they charged towards Zhong De"s tent.
The sound of fighting came from the camp in the distance.
Zuo Mo"s expression changed slightly.
The group didn"t dare to hesitate, their speed accelerating as they furiously flew towards the camp!
They had to make it in time!
Translator Ramblings: Chief Elder of Tian Huan knows how terrible Tian Huan is compared to Kun Lun. 1) the heir is not as strong, 2) the heir doesn"t have the same amount of influence, 3) the elders are out for their self-interest, 4) the younger generation doesn"t have the unity and experience. They are losing to a faction that is a hundred times younger than them. Chief Elder really failed to keep up with the times.