The spectators from the distance nodded after listening to Ping Suoweng, the same with the members of Divine Black.
If Three Truths really wanted peace via the pact, they would have negotiated first instead of teleporting an entire army here.
War was never taken lightly unlike this rapid mobilization. Moreover, this scale of forces required time and preparation. This meant that Three Truths had already gathered their disciples a long time ago for the sake of destroying Divine Black.
Some didn’t find this surprising because these two have been mortal enemies. The peace in the last several decades couldn’t change this.
However, only a selected few knew that Three Truths was actually aiming for the hidden treasury. It had nothing to do with their ongoing feud.
“Suoweng, we’re reasonable people.” Three Truths Sect Master said: “We can withdraw but you need to show sincerity for us to continue the pact. That’s the least you can do after killing our members.”
This sudden change in attitude surprised many spectators. Some didn’t understand why the sect master was suddenly willing to compromise after bringing so many troops here.
“What constitutes sincerity, Fellow Daoist?” Suoweng wasn’t caught off guard.
“An agreement must be reached first regarding the problem at hand. The only way is to pay blood for blood. Hand over Gong Qianyue and Li Qiye, and…” The sect master paused for a bit here.
“Blood for blood.” The spectators exchanged glances.
This was a common occurrence in the cultivation world. In such a transaction, the sects would need to weigh the pros and cons.
For example, some would be willing to sacrifice their disciples for greater benefits. Others would refuse from doing so.
Many have heard of Gong Qianyue - the genius of Divine Black. Li Qiye, on the other hand, was unheard of.
Thus, they thought that Li Qiye was only secondary. The main goal of Three Truths should be Gong Qianyue, the future successor of Divine Black. This demand would cut off their amazing seed.
“Anything else?” Suoweng said flatly.
“Yes, you need to hand over your ancestral peak!” Three Truths Sect Master added.
“Ridiculous, they’re pushing it!” The members of Divine Black became furious after hearing this and glared at him.
Though none of them could make it up the ancestral peak, it still represented their legacy and ancestors. Handing it over meant selling their own legacy. No sect could accept this.
“The ancestral peak?” The spectators thought that this was out of line too. No one wanted to hand over their sacred ground.
“Enough, Fellow Daoist. No more negotiation.” Suoweng said, expecting this request since the beginning.
Three Truths certainly had someone capable of hearing the mantra of the emperor back then. Moreover, they were close enough to notice the beam shooting up the sky from the ancestral peak. This made them connect the dots, hence their desire to take over the peak.
“You misunderstood. We do not want to keep your ancestral peak for long, only for half a year to a year.” The sect master said with sincerity: “Agree to this and we’ll withdraw right away. Moreover, only a few of us will be there. We’ll tread with nothing but respect.”
The spectators were confused because they didn’t know about the portal up there. They wondered why Three Truths spent so much effort in order to gain access to that peak. The whole thing was bizarre.
They then stared at Suoweng, waiting to see a response from him. War would end with heavy casualties. One sect could even fully decline afterward.
However, this request was rather insulting and impossible to accept.
“Leave, we will not accept this request.” Suoweng refused right away.
“Suoweng, you must reconsider, war will cause no end of trouble.” Three Truths Sect Master said.
“Your sect is confident in victory then?” Suoweng glared at him.
Everyone knew that Divine Black was just as strong as Three Truths. Moreover, it had the locational advantage as well. The war could go either way.
“Haha, let me ask you, Suoweng. How many people in your sect are at the sacred level?” Three Truths Sect Master sneered.
Many from Divine Black took a deep breath after hearing this.
The spectators from afar knew about these two sects. One of them said: “Divine Black as Ping Suoweng, Three Truths has their sect master and Lu Yiling.”
“So Lu Yiling is here too?! He’s not staying back to guard their sect? They’re really going all out then.” Another shuddered.
The side of Divine Black became nervous. It was one against two. The problem was, Lu Yiling alone was stronger than Suoweng.
Suoweng might be equal to Three Truths Sect Master but when taking Lu Yiling into account, Three Truths had the upper-hand.
“So if Yiling is here, that’ll change everything. The outcome seems obvious.” One expert changed his expression and whispered.
This was a terrible realization. Another grand dao cultivator could suppress their sect.
“The truth is that there is still more room for negotiation. We’ll take it another step further and forget about the previous conflict. We just need to borrow the peak for one year, how about it?” An aged voice joined.
An old man came out from behind Three Truths Sect Master. He wore a simple robe, looking young except for his white hair.
“Is that Lu Yiling?” One spectator asked.
“No, Lu Yiling is the youngest among the seven daoists.” A guy who has never seen Lu Yiling still knew that it wasn’t him.
“Xu Nan, why is he here?!” Someone from the previous generation recognized the old man and became startled.
“Xu Nan?” This name was unfamiliar to the young ones.