Aside from troop deployment, the alliance agreement also specified the method for calculating military achievements and the details of distributing spoils of war.
The materials obtained from slain beasts would be collected and handed over to Tianxu Mountain, where they would be refined into artifacts and pills to serve as rewards. Notably, the rewards for military achievements in this agreement were at least 50% higher than those under the Qingyang Alliance.
Under the Qingyang Alliance, slaying an early-stage Foundation Establishment beast would reward the equivalent of 800 spirit stones in resources. Tianxu Mountain, however, offered the equivalent of 1,200 spirit stones.
This generous reward served two purposes: to motivate the clans to strive in this battle and to take advantage of the fact that refined materials, such as pills and artifacts, were often worth double the value of raw materials.
For instance, the core of a low-grade second-tier beast might be worth 500-600 spirit stones, but once infused with Five Elemental Energy and engraved with formation patterns to create a second-tier artifact, its value could easily double, not including other materials like flesh, blood, and hides.
Thus, while Tianxu Mountain offered higher rewards, it could still make a profit—albeit much less than the Qingyang Sect had during its time.
Using this profit margin, Tianxu Mountain would also bear the responsibility for compensation payments.
According to the agreement, any cultivator who died fighting in the beast chaos would receive posthumous compensation. Qi Refining cultivators would receive between 50 and 100 spirit stones depending on their level, while Foundation Establishment cultivators' families would be compensated with a Foundation Establishment Pill.
Though the compensation for Qi Refining cultivators seemed minimal, it would amount to a massive expense. After the beast chaos, compensation for Qi Refining cultivators alone could cost tens of thousands of spirit stones.
In every beast chaos, at least 20% of Chu Kingdom's cultivators perished, and in cases of defeat, casualties could reach 30-40%.
These numbers assumed an organized resistance. Without such coordination, entire counties or even regions could fall, resulting in widespread slaughter. Even Foundation Establishment and Purple Mansion clans would be annihilated, with only a few lucky individuals escaping. Lesser clans and rogue cultivators would fare even worse.
Every beast chaos severely damaged Chu Kingdom's cultivation community. Casualties among Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment cultivators often exceeded 30%, and recovery to pre-chaos levels took decades.
Although the compensation wasn't overly generous, cultivators had no choice but to fight. Without unity, the entire region would be reduced to food for the demon beasts.
The best they could do was to preserve the younger generation while sending older cultivators to face the beasts. Even at 50-100 spirit stones per death, the compensation would be staggering once casualties mounted.
As for this alliance, if it resulted in a crushing defeat with heavy losses, the profits from the war spoils would never cover the deficit, and Jiang Linglong herself would likely have to pay out of her own resources.
A century ago, during the last beast chaos, the Qingyang Sect's three regions lost six or seven Purple Mansion cultivators, nearly 100 Foundation Establishment cultivators, and over 30,000 Qi Refining cultivators to the demon beasts.
The results were devastating. Over 30% of the cultivators in Qingzhou Region, Yang Region, and the Bianzhou Region perished. Tens of millions of mortals died.
The Qingyang Sect suffered immense losses. Compensation for Qi Refining cultivators alone neared two million spirit stones. Even with significant profits from spoils of war, they only managed to cover 70-80% of the deficit.
Two million spirit stones could purchase two Five Elemental Spirit Fruits, which, with some luck, could create one or two Golden Core cultivators.
However, the Qingyang Sect ultimately distributed less than 60% of the promised compensation. Many clans had been wiped out, leaving no one to claim the compensation, saving the sect tens of thousands of spirit stones.
For instance, the Wang Clan of Ink Brush Ridge lost seven or eight Foundation Establishment cultivators and over 1,000 Qi Refining cultivators. Not a single member survived, and even the hidden members in Qing Province mysteriously perished, raising suspicions.
The immortal clans suspected foul play but lacked evidence and had no one to advocate for the Wang Clan, leaving the matter unresolved.
In addition, the Qingyang Sect withheld Foundation Establishment Pills and other resources under various pretexts. Ultimately, they distributed just over one million spirit stones in compensation, profiting tens of thousands of spirit stones.
"Compared to that, Jiang Linglong is far more just," Elian thought.
After confirming there were no issues with the alliance agreement, he signed his name and stamped it with the Chen Clan's seal.
Soon, the others finished reading the agreement and signed their names, stamping their clan seals.
When the signing was complete, smiles spread among the attendees, bringing a sense of security.
Such formal agreements carried significant weight. Breaking the pact would result in severe consequences, including joint attacks from the border regions' clans and exclusion from the cultivation community of Chu Kingdom.
To seal the pact, everyone made heart demon oaths. Violating such an oath would bring calamities of the heart demon, making cultivation extremely difficult.
"Excellent."
Seeing the pact signed and the oaths made, Jiang Linglong felt reassured.
She raised her hand, and three treasures radiating light fell into the hands of Elian, Xu Daoyuan, and Yang Yuanhe.
Elian examined the treasure and found it was a small, black-iron mirror, just a foot in size but weighing over ten thousand pounds—a truly extraordinary artifact.
Seeing their confusion, Jiang Linglong calmly explained, "This is the Horizon Sound Transmission Mirror, a set of three lower-tier third-grade artifacts capable of transmitting messages across 300,000 miles."
"The main mirror will remain at Tianxu Mountain, while these three sub-mirrors will be placed in the three counties. Set them above high-grade second-tier spiritual springs, and they can communicate with the main mirror."
Excitement lit up the crowd.
Xu Daoyuan, holding his mirror, exclaimed, "With these mirrors, we can relay messages instantly, allowing forces from the border regions and Tianxu Mountain to coordinate without fear of being isolated and picked off."
Elian smiled as well. While Yu County had communication talismans, their range was limited to 20,000 miles and could only be used nine times. These mirrors, capable of transmitting messages across 300,000 miles, were vastly superior.
"These mirrors are forged from black iron," Elian thought.
"No wonder she asked me for 30,000 pounds of black iron. It turns out she used it to create this special set of third-grade artifacts.
...
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I need POWAAA! Gimme Power Stones :D