Chapter 246 - 139: Secrets of Profound Yellow, Mystery of the Celestial Waterfall

Chapter 246: Chapter 139: Secrets of Profound Yellow, Mystery of the Celestial Waterfall

With the spectacular showdown between the Dragon Image Sect and the Divine Flow Sect, not to mention True Form Temple’s defeat of the Celestial Permanence Sect, still fresh in everyone’s minds, the dozen or so conflicts that followed during the Celestial Waterfall Dharma Assembly suddenly seemed utterly tasteless.

All the sect leaders present were distracted. The only exceptions were those whose sects—or even their entire lineages—were facing a true life-or-death crisis. They were all singularly focused on one question: what would happen next in the conflict between True Form Temple and the Celestial Permanence Sect?

As a result, this session of the Celestial Waterfall Dharma Assembly ended up lasting an unprecedented twelve days. With no other sects willing to start a dispute, it was officially declared over.

Before the various factions could even disperse, they all used their own unique methods to gather information. Sooner or later—within a few days at most—the news became common knowledge: Xuzhuang had single-handedly stormed the Celestial Permanence Sect’s mountain gates, crushed them in one fell swoop, and seized complete control of the Celestial Permanence Domain.

Since the Celestial Waterfall Sacrificial Ritual evolved to include an assembly for ranking the Immortal Sects, it had been held for more than thirty sessions. Yet, this was the first time a sect had ever successfully ascended the stage to advance its rank and join the Five Domains Great Sects.

Most crucially, the other four great sects showed no signs of opposition. The Dragon Image Sect and the Westyi Sect even sent congratulatory gifts, celebrating True Form Temple’s promotion into their ranks.

’Does this mean it isn’t as impossibly difficult as everyone imagined for a smaller sect to rise through the ranks?’

’Of course, just nurturing a single Nascent Soul Venerable is a monumental task for most sects. But that didn’t stop their imaginations from running wild. If they just developed their sect properly and trained their disciples well, couldn’t they produce a heaven-sent genius like Dao Miao? And couldn’t they, just maybe, find their own opportunity to advance?’

However, these pleasant daydreams were quickly extinguished by a piece of news. As the Celestial Waterfall Dharma Assembly concluded, the Divine Flow Sect was ruthlessly annihilated by the Dragon Image Sect. Its lineage was severed and its members were scattered to the winds, serving as a stark reminder to all that provoking the authority of the five great sects was no trivial matter.

Meanwhile, the Celestial Permanence Sect, under Wang Xingsi’s leadership, retreated from the Celestial Permanence Domain and occupied two of the provinces left vacant by the Divine Flow Sect’s destruction. This move attracted considerable attention, and some pundits were quick to comment:

"The five great sects, after all, share a common origin. Because of the rules of the Celestial Waterfall Dharma Assembly, they might not have blocked True Form Temple from taking over, but they would never allow the Celestial Permanence Sect’s lineage to be completely extinguished."

"Who’s to say? True Form Temple may have occupied the Celestial Domain, but they lack the method to establish a Grotto Heaven. A hundred, or even a thousand years from now, the Celestial Permanence Sect might just stage a comeback and reclaim its place among the Five Domains Great Sects."

But regardless of the rampant speculation from the outside world, True Form Temple, under the direction of Meng Fusheng and Daoist Zhang, had already begun relocating the sect to the Celestial Permanence Domain.

The Celestial Permanence Domain was more than ten times the size of Yunlan Province, with an abundance of resources and a population that was simply beyond compare. Although True Form Temple had been rooted in Yunlan Province for several hundred years, sect migrations were a natural and common occurrence in the history of the Celestial Waterfall Realm. Even when the Celestial Permanence Sect fled in defeat, nearly half of its members retreated with it to their new provincial territory.

Of course, Yunlan Province was not simply abandoned. True Form Temple left behind a number of disciples with strong ties to their homeland to maintain the area. The Dragon Image Sect also offered its assistance in regulating the region’s climate. With the passage of time, it might evolve into a branch of True Form Temple, or perhaps be taken over by another sect entirely. Only time would tell.

Celestial Permanence Domain.

By rights, True Form Temple could have renamed the domain to the True Form Domain, but Xuzhuang did not issue such a decree.

True Form Temple had defeated the Celestial Permanence Sect fair and square to earn the right to rule this domain; they had no fear of so-called "nominal legitimacy." If True Form Temple governed well, the name change would happen naturally in due time.

The Celestial Permanence Sect’s original mountain gates, however, had been completely torn down. They were being rebuilt according to the rites of the Tai Su Orthodox Sect, signifying that the Immortal Mountain Blessed Land, which the Celestial Permanence Sect had occupied for ten thousand years under the blessings of the Great Celestial Waterfall, now officially belonged to True Form Temple.

At that moment, inside one of the Celestial Permanence Sect’s original grand halls, Meng Fusheng and Daoist Zhang were reviewing the logistics of the sect’s move and taking inventory of the Celestial Permanence Sect’s seized assets.

Although Xuzhuang had allowed the Celestial Permanence Sect to retreat, he had only permitted them to take their personal belongings. The vast wealth the sect had accumulated over ten thousand years was, of course, another matter entirely. It was all confiscated by True Form Temple, and Meng Fusheng and Daoist Zhang were tasked with overseeing the disciples who were meticulously cataloging it.

Daoist Zhang was holding a thick ledger and appeared to be nearing the final page. He read aloud, "...in addition to the Three-Flavor Pill Formation Great Medicine, the Celestial Purity True Sand, Five Elements True Sand, and Yin Yang True Sand have all been registered and counted."

"Furthermore, the high-grade five-element treasures have been cataloged separately. The quantities vary; we have the most Earth-element treasures and the fewest Water-element ones, though the latter are of the highest quality. The list is ready for your inspection, Martial Uncle."

With that, he bowed to Xuzhuang, who had been standing to the side with his eyes slightly closed as if lost in thought, and presented him with a smaller list.

Xuzhuang opened his eyes. "You’ve been very thorough, Martial Nephew," he said, taking the list. After a quick glance, he pointed to a few items. "Send these to me. The rest can go into the sect treasury."

Daoist Zhang took back the small list and looked it over. Although the Earth-element treasures were the most numerous, Xuzhuang had only selected one item from that category: a type of Spiritual Soil that enhanced Earth Element Magical Power. From the Water-element treasures, however, he had chosen two: the "Essence of Ren Shui" and "Starlight Divine Water."

This was not surprising. The items Xuzhuang selected were all beneficial for cultivating the Five Elements Origin Fusion Art or could be used as materials for the external refinement of his Five Elements Primordial Divine Light. Even in the resource-rich Profound Yellow Realm, these were considered high-grade treasures, and the Celestial Permanence Sect’s treasury hadn’t held a large supply of them.

Seeing this, Daoist Zhang simply put the list away. "Yes, Martial Uncle. I will have someone retrieve these treasures for you shortly."