518 Eradiate Seven Branches Part 3

"Luckily, we don't split our force." Alex sighed, leaning on a tree.

"Yeah. We have only used twenty percent of our power this time, but with the little number we have after splitting the group, we might need more than 70 percent." Anna nodded in agreement.

He looked at Stina, recalling the previous attack. "How is your condition? That last attack uses many of your Spiritual Energy, right?"

"I am sorry for making you worry, Master. Because I was too excited earlier, I used my strongest attack. I still have around 60 percent of my power." Stina shook her head.

"Well, it is a shame that you can't kill him even with that attack… I guess it might be normal, considering it is blocked by a hundred people, either Martial Kings or Martial Emperors." Alex paused a bit, noticing something off in her attack. "Besides, it seems you have yet to grasp the scepter's power."

"Yes. The fire itself has taken root inside me, and I can slowly nurture it. Although it won't be as strong as you, I might get a portion of Pure Fire ability. If I have gotten used to this wand, I should be able to kill them."

"That's good then. Anyway, you can take your time in mastering the weapon, and I am sure this mission will provide a good experience for you." Alex nodded.

"Yes. I am thankful for Master's trust." She smiled.

"You are Kyle's…" Alex paused a bit, wondering if it was alright to call her Kyle's wife. After a few seconds, he corrected himself, "You are my contracted beast. If I can't trust you, then who can I trust?"

The others could not help but chuckle, including Stina. She shook that smile and replied, "Yes. I won't disappoint you, Master."

Alex shrugged his shoulder, ignoring their chuckle. "Alright. Time to discuss the second branch. I am sure you have read the information about them, so I make it brief.

"There is no change in our plan. Hit and run. The reinforcement from the city will be in your hand again, Stina. It's just this time, I want Greg to back her up since her Spiritual Energy is a bit low.

"Since we will stop after this and wait for the next day before continuing our plan, you can use your full strength in order to end the battle earlier, which means we can get more time to recover our energy," Alex explained.

"Understood." They nodded.

"There is one more thing you need to consider. It would seem that we don't have time to waste." Alex sighed.

"What do you mean, Alex?" Anna asked.

"They have a soul in memory crystal, making their death to be noticed. I saw that crystal energy inside their heart."

"As expected, they really have. The Willow Continent does not have this kind of thing, making it easy to ambush." Anna nodded. "Don't worry. We have calculated the timing too. As long as we can continue two branches per day, we can finish our mission before the reinforcement comes."

"I know. Still, why don't you guys learn Spirit Eyes? This way, you all can learn about it." Alex wanted to ask this question for a while.

Anna and the others looked away, not wanting to disclose the reason. After all, how can they tell him they did not want to learn it because it was previous Alex's original technique. It was considered blaspheme if they learned that technique.

"It's fine if you are not going to tell me since it is only a simple matter. You can even learn all my memories just by going inside the card." Alex shrugged, not caring about this matter.

"Yeah." Anna simply smiled, trying to change the topic. "Anyway, we should get going to the second branch."

"You are right." Alex rose and said, "Let's go."

"Yes." The spirits went back into his card while the contracted beasts hid inside his body. He snapped his finger, creating a teleportation array.

Unbeknownst to them, Alex had miscalculated something, leading to a big fight against the Joyful Union Sect.

…

A major reaction appeared in the midst of the upper rank of Joyful Union Sect. Inside a big room sat a few elderly men and women, discussing a pressing matter.

"Sect Master, Elder Luna's crystal is shattered… We need to mobilize our force here." The fourth elder shouted. He had been nurturing Luna for a while, letting her take advantage of the city lord to raise her strength before using her in the same way.

This incident hit him the most, thus he wanted to move the disciples in the sect to hunt whoever did this down.

The elder knew that this was close to the fourth elder's personal matter, but knowing someone dared to attack the sect certainly made the other furious.

It was at this time a disciple slammed the door, rushing inside. "We have bad news… Elder… Elder Gian has died."

"What did you say?!" The sect master rose from his seat with an angry look.

"And that's not all. According to the sect master's request, we have confirmed that many core disciples have died too." The disciple said while sweating, knowing the graveness of the news.

"!!!" All elders turned around, looking at him with a darkened expression.

"This…" The sect master furrowed his eyebrows. "Do we have any information about our attacker? I don't remember offending anyone that can destroy our branches."

"Sect… Sect Master… I have recalled a group, a group that we put under our observation." The third elder said.

Once again, the room fell into silence. "Third Elder… Do you mean the group that has a deal with the Blackwade Clan, Spirit Nest?"

"I assume, yes. Even though they have hidden, we have yet to see their real power." She nodded. "It seems they are close to a first rate-influence. But seeing how they strike at our branches, it would mean they have yet to reach our level, or they just don't have enough people. If it is like this, we should strike back."

"We can strike back, but how can we find them? Last time, they completely disappeared from our eyes without leaving any trace. They even killed a few disciples."

"Actually, there are two possibilities that I have thought of. First, their target might be our branches to warn us not to mess with them. The second target would be our top disciple, Raku, who is currently in Klard City."

"..." The elders sweatdropped, noticing the severity of this situation. The sect master shook his head, sitting down on his seat weakly. "No. Raku went back yesterday. I assume he will pass one of the branches and probably will get attacked by them."

"We need more information about these guys… How strong they are to destroy our branches…" The sect master sighed.

"Sect master, Raku still has the first, second, and fifth elder accompanying him as well as ten Martial Emperors disciple. I think they can turn it around and strike back at them. We can even reinforce them too." The third elder said.

"Indeed." The sect master nodded. "However, you have missed one problem. That is why they can destroy two branches in a single day, even though it should be a few days traveling around. If they are splitting their force, judging from the first two branches they destroyed, I am sure they will meet the elders in the last branch.

"In other words, they will strike with a stronger force than the three elders can handle. We need reinforcement. Third Elder and Fourth Elder shall bring a hundred Martial Emperor disciples to aid the three elders and probe the enemy.

"I assume they should not move their entire force to strike us and most likely, we have underestimated this Spirit Nest for the whole time. If you can't win, then retreat."

The third elder and fourth elder immediately rose from their seat, clasping their hands politely to the sect master before leaving the meeting hall.

"Seventh Elder, I want you to take the lead of another a hundred disciples to gather the information about this Spirit Nest."

"Understood."

"Sect Master, how about we inform the Fire God Clan about this too?" The sixth elder asked, knowing their relationship with Fire God Clan. If they moved together with the Fire God Clan, even if the Spirit Nest was under the protection of the Blackwade Clan, they still could not escape their wrath.

The sect master quickly rebuked her. "Are you stupid? Fire God Clan might have a friendly relationship with us. However, their true target is the Blackwade Clan, not Spirit Nest. Unless we can prove Blackwade Clan is also participating in this war, we can't persuade Fire God Clan. Besides, where can we put our face if we need their help in destroying a pest like this?"

The sect master was in full anger. He might know that the Fire God Clan stemmed from the Heavenly Continent, and they had even sent many disciples to please them. If they truly used that favor just for something like this, it would be such a waste.

"Spirit Nest…" He looked down, weighing something in his mind. "We have too little information about them before we can act. Damn, those people. If I can catch them right now, I will destroy their cultivation and send them to our brothel as our free service."

The other elders also had the same thought as him. Spirit Nest itself was only established for a year or so. At first, they thought this was only an aspiring group that wanted to be recognized by others.

By the time they found out that the Spirit Nest was full of handsome men and pretty women, they could make them their disciples. With how good the relationship between them and Blackwade Clan and how much money had come to their pockets, it was enough to incite the greed from many first-rate influences.

If that Blue and Antheram family was situated in the east of the continent, they might even try to recruit this group.

Unfortunately, it would seem that their actions had turned back at them. After concealing themselves for a year, they resurfaced and struck at them at a very unexpected time.

And at this time, he recalled certain information coming from a spy in a certain family. He thought for a while before smiling underneath that serious face. "Sixth Elder, I want you to do something for me."

He sent this mission through a thought transmission, leaving only him and the sixth elder to know the mission. The sixth elder was, at first, shocked by the mission, but he nodded his head with a serious expression.

Unbeknownst to them, this decision of his would lead to a big war that concerned the fate of his sect. A war that would be in the eyes of every influence in the Heavenly Continent.