When Li Yan learned that these two clans were the ones targeting Falling Star Valley, he thought of the few people he had killed outside Mingdu City. Those individuals had been disciples of the Cangyu Sect.
What Li Yan and the others didn't know, however, was that it was not two, but four alien-race sects that had come to attack Falling Star Valley. This was also why Lin Xinghe had not made the news public, for fear of causing a panic among the disciples.
As Li Yan pondered the matter of reinforcements, he knew Lin Xinghe and the others must have thought of it as well. However, finding trustworthy allies, especially among human cultivators, was truly not easy. The Forsaken Continent was a tangled web of countless powers, large and small, with various races coexisting. Here, strength was what truly mattered, and one had to rely mainly on oneself. In a single year, countless sects were annihilated. So-called friendships often existed only between individuals; when it came to sect-level matters, things became far more complicated.
Li Yan stood outside the Hall of Deacons for a moment before someone came to mind.
'I should go find Feng Tao and ask her. Given her master's status, she should have access to more information.'
After some thought, Li Yan began to walk slowly towards a certain part of the valley.
In a courtyard, Feng Tao was in her room, staring blankly at a green token in her hand. Her master had instructed her to go to a cave in the valley the day before yesterday to retrieve it. The reason for the summons had not been explained. Feng Tao arrived in a state of confusion, where she met other disciples who were equally clueless.
These disciples, both male and female, numbered around thirty. With her current status, Feng Tao could recognize them as the elite of the younger generation. Most of them had cultivation levels at the ninth level of Qi Condensation or above, though there were, of course, a few like her with lower cultivation. After some discreet inquiries, she found that they were also unaware of why they had been summoned. Many who knew each other were discussing it in low voices, but it was all just speculation.
Feng Tao listened quietly off to the side. Among all the theories, the one that frightened and worried her most was a speculation that the majority seemed to agree on.
'They had been summoned to form an elite team to carry out some kind of mission against the enemy!'
To mobilize these elite disciples, the mission would certainly be extremely difficult, one could even say it was a near-certain death sentence. Feng Tao's heart pounded in her chest. Her strength was at the very bottom of this group. She had no idea why she was brought here. When a powerful enemy appeared, she would be among the first to die.
Not long after, the cave's large gate opened, and the thirty or so of them were called inside. What happened next, though unexpected, largely confirmed their suspicions. The cave was empty. Apart from those who had just entered, there was no one else to be seen.
Just as they were looking at each other in confusion, a series of lights suddenly flared in the air, and then, green tokens appeared, hovering before the first person in line. A majestic, aged voice then echoed out of thin air.
"Take these tokens and keep them on your person at all times. When the tokens glow with a red light, no matter what you are doing, you must immediately drop everything. You must arrive here again within half an incense stick's time. At that point, you will act according to orders. Violators will be executed! Anyone who spreads word of this matter will be executed!"
After these words, the old voice fell silent. The cave gate opened once more, allowing everyone to leave. The whole affair was so mysterious, leaving everyone baffled.
'This mission is so confidential that we're not even being told about it in advance!'
Feng Tao murmured to herself, feeling a sense of helplessness. If her Eldest Senior Brother and Second Senior Sister were still in perfect health, this mission probably wouldn't have fallen to her.
Uncertain of what receiving this green token signified, Feng Tao had been unable to relax and cultivate for the past two days. She didn't dare to take the token and ask her master; she didn't know if her master was aware of this matter, but she absolutely could not be the one to leak it.
As Feng Tao's thoughts ran wild, an unexpected voice sounded from outside. For a moment, she didn't even react. It wasn't until Zhang Ming's voice called out again that she snapped back to reality. Zhang Ming's visit was a complete surprise to Feng Tao.
In the parlor, Feng Tao served tea, forcing a smile onto her face.
"Senior Brother Zhang, what brings you to your little sister's place today?"
The moment she saw Zhang Ming, her first thought was that he had come to request the use of the "Shattered Star Chamber." However, she had yet to mention this to her master. Her master was currently busy day and night, seemingly searching for suitable bodies for her Eldest Senior Brother and Second Senior Sister. The souls of those two could not be left lingering indefinitely. Her master didn't possess any high-quality soul-nourishing items, so it was imperative that they perform a Body Seizure as soon as possible. Otherwise, their souls would only grow weaker and weaker. Not only would they fail to possess someone else, but they might instead become nourishment for another's soul.
Therefore, Feng Tao didn't dare bring up the matter of the "Shattered Star Chamber" right now, lest she annoy her master and be scolded for her recklessness.
Another reason Feng Tao wasn't in a hurry to bring this up was that for Zhang Ming to enter the "Shattered Star Chamber," his own cultivation had to at least reach the eighth level of Qi Condensation. Given Zhang Ming's aptitude, this was not something that could be achieved in a short time, which naturally gave her a reason to delay.
But today, Zhang Ming had come to her door, which made Feng Tao assume he was getting impatient. Otherwise, she had no other dealings with him.
"I came to ask Junior Sister about a few things. As you know, my cultivation is low, so I rarely go out. But today, I received a decree from the Hall of Deacons, ordering all cultivators below the seventh level of Qi Condensation to be on standby at all times. The reason was not stated. For cultivators like me, this kind of situation is most worrying. We have no backing and no strength. If I could understand the reason, I could at least make some preparations. I know very few people in the valley, so I thought of Junior Sister Feng. With your status, I imagine you might know some inside information. Therefore, I could only take the liberty of coming to disturb you. I wonder if you have any information you could share? I would be extremely grateful."
Of course, his words were not entirely truthful. Since the Hall of Deacons said they would issue a decree today, they certainly would. As for whether Feng Tao had received it yet, Li Yan didn't care; the time each disciple received the decree would vary anyway.
Feng Tao's brow furrowed upon hearing Zhang Ming's words.
"So Senior Brother Zhang came because of this matter. But I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you. How could a low-level disciple like me possibly know about major sect affairs? Although I succeeded in becoming a disciple, my cultivation is truly not high, and my master would not speak to me about such important sect matters. Whether you believe it or not, I have not even received the Hall of Deacons' decree you speak of. How would I know the reason they are putting all disciples on standby?"
Although she said this, Feng Tao had a faint idea of the answer in her heart. Just the day before yesterday, when her master came to ask her to go to that cave, he had also briefly mentioned the sect's current situation, saying that Falling Star Valley might be on the verge of making a move. He had said, "Although the situation in the valley is a bit precarious right now, the Sect Master will not let it continue to develop. There should be a resolution soon."
Then, before leaving, he had given Feng Tao three talismans, all of which were extraordinary items. Two were attack talismans, each capable of unleashing a single strike equivalent to the power of the tenth level of Qi Condensation. The last talisman was a rare defensive one. Her master said it was her life-saving trump card. If she ever encountered a danger she couldn't resolve, she should activate this talisman, and it might just save her life. This talisman could block a full-powered strike from an Initial-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, making it a true life-saving treasure.
With these clues, how could Feng Tao not understand? A great battle was likely about to begin, and she was one of the people who would be dispatched on some secret mission.
But naturally, she would not tell Zhang Ming any of this. As expected, after hearing her words, Zhang Ming's face showed his disappointment.
Then, Zhang Ming suddenly spoke again. "Oh, the matter of you and the others being summoned the day before yesterday has become the talk of the sect. Many people are guessing that this is a gathering of elite forces to go to war with the enemy. About that..."
The moment Zhang Ming said this, Feng Tao's expression changed. She had not left her courtyard since returning the day before yesterday and was truly unaware of this.
"Senior Brother Zhang, where did you hear such rumors? I was only called over because there was a shortage of patrol personnel and a new batch of disciples was needed. You can say such rumors here, but if the Law-Enforcement Hall finds out, or if it reaches the ears of a martial uncle or martial master, you will have brought disaster upon yourself. Please, Senior Brother, do not mention this again."
Feng Tao said with a stern face. It immediately occurred to her that it would be impossible to keep the summoning of over thirty people a secret from the disciples of the sect.
When Li Yan saw Feng Tao's expression change and her somewhat blustering demeanor, he didn't press the matter further. After a few more seemingly reluctant questions, seeing that Feng Tao acted as if she knew nothing, he had no choice but to get up and take his leave.
Feng Tao paid no mind to Zhang Ming's departure. Her mind was heavy with worries, and she had no capacity to care about others. As long as the words didn't come from her own mouth, whatever happened to others was their own doing. At the same time, her greatest worry was for the Feng family. However, she didn't dare to send a message back, which only increased her anxiety. In just a short while, she had pushed the matter of Zhang Ming's visit to the back of her mind.
After leaving Feng Tao's courtyard, a faint smile touched the corners of Li Yan's lips. It might have seemed like his rambling conversation had failed to yield the desired answers, but in truth, he had still managed to extract a crucial piece of information: Feng Tao had been among the disciples summoned the day before yesterday. Combined with the conversations he had overheard from other disciples earlier, where he had caught the names of several others who had been summoned, he could gain more useful information. All Li Yan had to do was figure out the identities of these people and compare them one by one with Feng Tao as a reference. Li Yan would never engage in useless efforts. If others wouldn't tell him, he would find a way to find out himself.
An hour later, Li Yan returned to his small courtyard and entered his room. With his abilities, as long as the two Golden Core experts in the sect weren't specifically paying attention to him, finding out the identities of a few disciples wouldn't take much effort.
Sitting down cross-legged, Li Yan began to slowly piece together all the information he had gathered that day.
"The disciples summoned the day before yesterday were either experts among the Qi Condensation stage, or those with excellent aptitude like Feng Tao. These people could be said to be the most outstanding disciples of Falling Star Valley's current generation. Why gather so many outstanding disciples together? To carry out some top-secret mission?"
Li Yan considered this for a moment and immediately dismissed the idea.
"To send so many outstanding disciples on a mission together, if something went wrong, it would directly sever all hope for Falling Star Valley's future. It would take who knows how many years to recover. As long as Lin Xinghe hasn't lost his mind, he would definitely not gather these disciples together only to send them all to their deaths at once."
Li Yan quickly thought this through. In fact, it wasn't just him; any cultivator in Falling Star Valley who paid attention to this matter and gave it some thought would feel that there was likely another reason, that the answer was not so easily guessed.