“Alliance Head… Speak.” The Himmel Ancestor’s words were concise, yet powerful. No one dared to breathe a single word out after hearing the man’s authoritative voice and the floor was cleared for Raphael to give his piece.
“Thank you, Saint Himmel…” Taking a deep breath in, Raphael took the papers in his hands and distributed them slowly amongst the Spirit Saints. At the same time, his trembling voice had turned into one of determination and resilience. “The main reason why I’ve gathered all of you here today is to discuss your future accommodations.”
“Accommodations? Are you expecting us to move out from our bases?” Hearing the idea, the sole woman on the side of the Kori Federation spoke out, gracing the chambers with her heavenly voice. The woman had rich, vibrant grey hair and a face full of black lines. Whenever she furrowed, it seemed like the world was collapsing inwardly. Whenever she clenched her teeth, wild animals would run with their tails stuck behind their legs. “Are you going to tell me to abandon my Emei Church behind and leave it vulnerable to an enemy attack?”
“Saint Lyndis, that’s not what I’m suggesting at all!” Raphael was quick to disperse the female matriarch’s concerns. Spirit Saints would normally recluse themselves, trying their hardest to reach the Immortal Realm with the little time that they had left. However, they also served as a massive deterrent for any entity that covets their organisation’s assets.
For instance, the Emei Church was a holy land where many young virgin maidens sought refuge from evil men who lusted for their flesh. It was common for the Emei Church to accept young girls who had been abused by their families or were escaping forced marriages that could doom their bright future. If Saint Lyndis was not present at the helm of Emei Mountain, what’s stopping those vicious men from charging into their holy grounds?
“So… what do you mean by accommodations?”
Raphael sighed: “Although it might be hurtful to hear, with the Black Masks returning back to the continent… Not even Spirit Saints are safe now. They now have the power to congregate their forces to kill a Spirit Saint rapidly, without giving us enough time to send the appropriate reinforcements.”
“...” The room went silent. They would have loved to refute those words, but the facts speak for themselves.
“Therefore, I would suggest that the remaining Spirit Saints always remain within a ten-minute flying radius from one another. Or at the very least, stay in fortified positions with at least twenty Spirit Venerates and an array of Immortal-Grade Spirit Armaments.”
“...” Once again, no reply. The Spirit Saints were all appalled by the Alliance Head’s suggestion.
“Twenty Spirit Venerates per Spirit Saint… Do you think that our armies are that deep, Alliance Head?” Saint Firebird from the Himmel Empire snorted. “Even if we round up, the current cultivation world should have less than two hundred Spirit Venerates alive. To protect all thirteen of us, we’ll be at least sixty Spirit Venerates short!”
“If I may be so bold… My original thought is for all the Spirit Saints from each region to gather in one place and move as a unit.”
That was the best way to ensure the Spirit Saints safety. No matter what, there was no way that the Black Masks would have the capability of killing a cluster of Spirit Saints. The Black Masks were only able to kill Saint Suhavis was due to the surprise element and the vast amount of preparations they had. However, if there were two or more Spirit Saints gathered in one place unless the Allfather himself acted, there would be no chance that the Black Masks take any of them down.
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“I think that’s a great idea!” Saint Althea, the resident Spirit Saint of the Healer’s Association, beamed in pure bliss. “Thor, Atossa… We’re independents, free from any of the nations. Shouldn’t we band together and move as one?”
The burly blacksmith nodded at the black-haired beauty’s statement. “Yes… If the Black Mask are actively hunting Spirit Saints, we should be their first targets.” Saint Thor gave muttered the honest truth. Among the living Spirit Saints, the three independents were the ones who were most vulnerable. If the Black Masks were to target them as they did the Shaolin Spirit Saint, they would be done in minutes. “Though I’m not weak, I’m not as versatile as Saint Suhavis was. If I wanted to hold on until reinforcements arrive...”
“Me too...” The Mercenary Guild’s Spirit Saint sighed. “Us independents had been living under the safety of our peace treaty. Now, we have an enemy that doesn’t care about humanity and only cares about causing mayhem. We should put aside our differences and protect one another.”
Just like that, the Spirit Saints of the Mercenary Guild, Blacksmith’s League and the Healer Association had joined hands. If someone like Saint Suhavis could be killed in his own home, what’s stopping the Black Masks from assassinating them?
Not to be outdone, the Himmel Ancestor called out to his subordinates: “Firebird… Viacan… Heed the Alliance Head’s warning. Stay at least two minutes away from one another. If you wish, take up residence in the Capital where I can protect you.”
“Understood, Ancestor!”
The Himmel Empire’s accommodations were resolved as quickly as one took a pee. After all, in the Himmel Empire, the Ancestor’s word was king. Even the lofty Spirit Saints couldn’t just brush off those orders for the sake of their own properties.
“Our Lantis Republic’s Spirit Saints had always been staying on Celestial Island anyway. Honestly, our defence network is far more advanced than you would think.” Saint Longyu Tian spoke with her chin up. The Spirit Saints of the Lantis Republic had always had a close bond, not to mention, with the passing of Saint Suhavis, the Lantis Republic were the only organisation with four Spirit Saints living now. They were more than capable of defending themselves.
The Kori Federation, on the other hand…
“Lyndis… Temujin… What do you think?” Saint Geom nervously looked at his compatriots, who were both glaring daggers at one another.
“I won’t let the Khan Tribe come anywhere near Emei Mountain!”
“Hmph! You should be honoured if we wanted to protect you!”
The two giants weren’t all that happy about the notion of staying near one another. See, the Khan Tribe and the Emei Church had a long history of conflicts behind them. In fact, many of the girls that sought refuge in the Emei Church were poor souls that had been discarded by the Khan Tribe. There was no way in hell that Saint Lyndis Virdove would allow the Khan Tribe to come anywhere close Emei Mountain, lest some old grudges resurfaced.
“Hah… This is going to be a problem...” Saint Geom grabbed on his forehead and heaved out a silent sigh. “How about this? Lyndis, you’ll team up with the Arhats. Protect the Shaolin Temple and ask them to loan some of the Immortal-Grade Spirit Armaments for you to use. Temujin, you move the Khan Tribe south to Dragon Tiger Gate. I’ll find a place in the middle to settle so that we can assist one another at a moment’s notice.”
“... I can do that.” Saint Lyndis folded her arms and nodded. The Emei Church was on excellent terms with the Shaolin Sect since they were both considered as ‘sacred’ lands. They wouldn’t mind protecting the Shaolin Sect in exchange for some protective items.
Saint Temujin Khan, however, wasn’t all that happy with those arrangements. Furrowing his brows, he added: “Dragon Tiger Gate… Would those freaks really agree to house the Khan Tribe?”
The five most prominent entities in the Kori Federation were the Shaolin Sect, the Emei Church, the Khan Tribe, the Dalgeom Sect, and last but not least… Dragon Tiger Gate. Although they didn’t have a single Spirit Saint, no one doubted their position as the top dog among all of the Master Sects.
They had the most Spirit Venerates out of all them. They had the most comprehensive cultivation techniques and manuals. And more importantly, they had the most number of Immortal-Grade Spirit Armaments under their belt. One skilled Spirit Venerate could use the Immortal-Grade Spirit Armament to temporarily reach the level of a Spirit Saint. Even if the Khan Tribe fought with everything that they had, including with the power of their Spirit Saint Temujin, they would unquestionably lose to the might of Dragon Tiger Gate.
“Don’t worry about that,” Saint Geom snorted. “Even if they don’t want to, I’ll make them agreeable. You have my word.”
“Fine...” Gaining the protection of the Dragon Tiger Gate wasn’t all that bad a proposition for the Khan Tribe, particularly for Temujin Khan.
“Good… Now Alliance Head, this matter is now resolved. Us Spirit Saints will be sure to take care of ourselves from now on.”
“Thank you, Saint Geom,” Raphael smiled. “Now, shall we move on to the next order of business?”
“There’s still something else?”
“Yes Saint Temujin, and it’s something that I believe that you would be most interested in...” Raphael pointed to the papers laid out in front of the Spirit Saints. With the most disgusting smile one could make, the Alliance Head spat out venomously.
“Since the Black Masks are going to use Saint-levelled combatants in battle, we shall do the same against them!!!”