Chapter 193 - Earth Cry Province
Right now, Yaan’s understanding of will and intent was rudimentary, he did not know how to make use of this small insight right away. However, he believed that this concept would be an important aspect of his future strength. He could not explain this feeling, but he felt quite sure of it.
In fact, Yaan could already see how his will could directly become true strength.
Creating illusions from his sword arts according to his will was one of the earliest powers that Yaan had learned to develop!
Where did those illusions come from? Of course, they came from Yaan’s will!
Dao manipulation was also a manifestation of a cultivator’s will.
Yaan quickly calmed down. He felt quite pleased that his cultivation session this time had allowed him to gain insight into such an illusive concept, but he needed to focus on what was right ahead of him.
And so, Yaan began to practise his sword arts once again.
He could not move much in this chamber located on a spear tip, but this limited range of movement allowed him to refine his preliminary sword art further.
The days flew by as Yaan trained in the Piercing Sky Spear. He became increasingly mobile under the sharp spiritual pressure created by the formation, whilst the elixir was steadily absorbed by his body, supplementing his flesh and solidifying his foundation.
As Yaan cultivated alone, the Bloody Totem Province was preparing for war.
Before entering secluded training, Yaan informed the Bloody Totem Tribe Leader that he planned to expand his conquest into the Earth Cry Province once he emerged from his training. He told her to inform only those she trusted about the plans, and that they should keep a close watch on any movement to and from all tribes, ensuring that nobody attempted to leave the province.
It was entirely possible that those five bordering provinces had placed their spies within the Bloody Totem Province. The only way to prevent the Earth Cry Province from learning about their invasion in advance, was to prevent people from leaving the province entirely.
This wasn’t fool proof, but then again, Yaan didn’t care enough to put in more effort than this. He had confidence in being able to take the Earth Cry Province regardless of whether or not they expected the attack.
In preparation for the coming conquest, the Bloody Totem Province continued to undergo drastic changes. The previously isolated and separate tribes, now had constant streams of people coming and going. Borders became more lax, especially for the elders of the various tribes, they were able to visit many different tribes at will.
The Bloody Totem Tribe Elders had the greatest authority, nobody could deny them entry into their tribe, even if they didn’t want to accommodate them. Some of the Bloody Totem Tribe Elders took positions within the larger vassal tribes, keeping watch over them as they waited for Yaan to return. Others travelled regularly between many different tribes, ensuring that they were all acting properly and accepting their place as vassal forces.
There was some unrest, but all incidents were suppressed quickly and without much effort. The Bloody Totem Tribe Elders did not even need to act, there would always be some elders in the vassal forces who were eager to prove themselves in oder to gain more favourable conditions for their tribe.
The tribes had adapted quickly, understanding that their future livelihood depended on how well they served the Bloody Totem Tribe.
Really though, these tribes were trying to impress Yaan himself. Unfortunately for them, Yaan never made any public appearances aside from when he was conquering another tribe, or suppressing a significant dissent, so all they could do was leave a good impression on the other Bloody Totem Tribe Elders.
Finally, after 300 days of secluded cultivation, Yaan emerged from the Piercing Sky Spear. The Grand Martial Tribe Elders at the base of the formation all collapsed from exhaustion. They needed to constantly rotate the elders supporting the formation during these past 300 days, they ended up requiring nearly every 4-Star elder in the tribe, and even then, they barely managed to sustain the formation for the complete length of time!
But since they were entrusted with this task by Yaan himself, they did not dare to fall short.
Yaan gave the elders a light nod, then looked around, soon finding the Bloody Totem Tribe Leader. This woman was far from the strongest warrior in the Bloody Totem Province, but she was Yaan’s main point of contact when dealing with other people in this place.
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“Elder Red!” The tribe leader approached him briskly, her eyes lighting up with unhidden excitement as she anticipated what was to come.
Yaan had already shocked her to the core with his achievements so far.
He had not just annexed a few tribes like she originally expected…he had completely dominated every tribe in the province!
And every time he emerged from training, he did something shocking, making her wonder…what would it be this time?
Well, she could already guess.
“Tribe leader.” Yaan nodded towards the heroic looking tribal woman.
He still did not know the tribe leader’s name, nor she his. This might seem strange given their close relationship, but the other elders always referred to her respectively as tribe leader, whilst she had never proactively given her name, nor had Yaan asked her for it.
He saw no reason to bother with such things. He felt no sense of closeness towards the Bloody Totem Tribe. This tribe, these people, and even the tribe leader were merely tools to help him progress his cultivation. Yaan did not see the need to be overly familiar with a tool…
Or maybe, he just didn’t want to grow overly attached to this ‘tool’.
The tribe leader waited patiently for his instructions. She also knew that their relationship was one of mutual benefits, but she was entirely fine with that, simply because the benefits were too vast!
And by allying herself with this person, she felt like could already foresee the future, a future where she experienced a greatness far beyond the confines of this small secluded province…
“Have you gathered half of the 4-Star warriors in the province?” Yaan asked her directly. She quickly nodded.
“Of course, I have done as you instructed. The warriors to join the coming conquest have been selected and are aware that they might be called upon at a moment’s notice.”
“How soon can they gather at the Eastern border?” Yaan continued to question her.
The tribe leader was slightly taken aback…she knew that he liked to get on with things, never wasting time, but was he really going to jump right into an inter-province conquest immediately after leaving seclusion?
“Within a single day.” She answered.
“Then we will set out in a single day. Ensure that everyone is prepared.”
The tribe leader stood there dazedly for a moment, but she immediately snapped out of her daze when Yaan vanished from her side. She needed to act quickly…really quickly!
One day later, well over 1,000 people gathered at the Eastern border of the Bloody Totem Province. This was an awe-inspiring crowd, because not one of these individuals was ordinary…
They were all 4-Star warriors!
So many 4-Star body temperers! This line-up was extremely impressive, but it was nothing compared to the gathering that Yaan had witnessed at the Xuqi Sect entrance examination.
The Bloody Totem Province was vast, spanning for tens of thousands of miles from end to end. The lands were very fertile, it was a rich environment throughout. Not only that, but compared to the Qi Plane, the Blood Plane tended to have a much higher density of powerful cultivators due to the rich environment.
There were 49 tribes in the province, every single one of these tribes was led by a 4-Star warrior, whilst most were supported by many 4-Star individuals. Take the Bloody Totem Tribe for example, they had 36 4-Star warriors at present, not including those within their vassal forces of course.
Yaan cast his gaze across the crowd. Instantly, the large group became silent, feeling an invisible pressure descend upon them.
For some of them, this was their first time meeting the recently infamous ‘Elder Red’. For others, it was their second time meeting him, the first being when he personally sent their tribe into a crushing defeat.
Regardless, everyone knew of Yaan’s power, nobody dared to step out of line. Perhaps it was his reputation, or maybe it was in aura, but right now, every single individual felt frozen on the spot, unable to look away, not daring to move.
Yaan’s gaze briefly paused on a large figure, covered in a black cloak and wearing a mask. He blended in with the Greenwood Tribe, though his large stature drew some odd gazes.
Yaan looked away without saying anything to Ga Shu. He had already spoken with Ga Shu before entering seclusion. In fact, Yaan even supplied Ga Shu with an elixir which was extremely suitable for Aztecs, as well as many other valuable resources. With this assistance, Ga Shu was able to finally reach the Peak Origin Soul realm!
A person at this level would be very useful in the coming conquest. Yaan also had a tight grip on Ga Shu, an insurance called the Greenwood Tribe Ancestor, Ga Shu’s wife, Freya…
Ga Shu would not devour Yaan’s support and then run. He had something to protect, something that he would not abandon, no matter what.
“We will move out immediately.” Yaan spoke after seeing that everyone was being suitably disciplined. “We will directly attack the Earth Cry Tribe, taking the Earth Cry Province for ourselves. All battle merit will be noted and rewarded, so make sure to contribute properly.”
His promise of reward also acted as a subtle threat; he was saying that if you did not put some effort into this battle, it would be noted!
The group set out with Yaan leading the way. The Bloody Totem Tribe Leader trailed close behind him, then the other Bloody Totem Tribe Elders were further back. Everyone else was much further away.
The group travelled fast. The weakest among them was still at the Initial 4-Star realm, so their group movement speed still allowed them to travel rapidly.
After leaving the Bloody Totem Province, the environment became noticeably dreary. The rich atmosphere faded away and the grass below their feet became withered, until eventually, the air was stagnant and no life could be seen for miles all around.
This was the border that surrounded the Bloody Totem Tribe. It was a few hundred miles wide, there was practically zero life in these lands, whilst there was nothing valuable to be found here. The earth was dried up and lacked all energy, resources would not be found in a place like this, making it worthless for mortals and cultivators alike.
Before long, the group emerged from the wasteland. The change in environment could be seen quite rapidly, as grass, trees and flowers sprouted up beneath them.
They took a route which avoided all major tribes, but it was impossible to completely avoid encountering any people along their way. Their target was the Earth Cry Tribe, and if possible, it would be better to attack before the Earth Cry Tribe was alerted to their presence.
As such, when the Bloody Totem Province army stumbled upon a flower war by pure chance, a war taking place out in the open world, killing intent flashed through everyones’ eyes. The war below immediately stopped as both sides stared stared up with dumbfounded expressions.
The 4-Star elders who were watching the ground battle from above, also stared at the approaching group with dropped jaws.
Yaan stared at these people coldly. He spoke three words, then moved forwards like a blur, rushing over the lower realm cultivators on the ground, immediately reaching the 4-Star elders.
“Kill them all.”