Although this clash between the Nine Cauldrons Sect and the Xuanming Sect had not risen to the level of great cultivator confrontation, in many situations where neither side had openly torn away all pretenses, what sects truly competed over was high-tier combat power.

Under such circumstances, the Nine Cauldrons Sect’s flawless victory stunned everyone. It was said that Song You, the Xuanming Sect Master, nearly had Ma Ke—the primordial psyche great cultivator responsible for leading the team—detained and sent to the Law Enforcement Hall for trial.

Had it not been for Warfare Hall Master Lyu Ming and several other hall masters pleading on his behalf, Ma Ke might well have faced severe punishment. Even so, the scale of the loss still drove many Xuanming Sect elders to clamor for a direct war against the Nine Cauldrons Sect. Of course, Song You understood clearly that such talk was little more than venting.

If they truly fought without external assistance, it wouldn't be difficult for the Nine Cauldrons Sect to deal with the Xuanming Sect. Because of that, the sect master immediately convened Lyu Ming and Song Xuan, the grand elder of the elders’ council, to discuss how they should react.

"According to Ma Ke, the Nine Cauldrons Sect has developed an extremely advanced third-generation flying sword. That flying sword holds an overwhelming advantage over our equipment. Our disciples simply cannot withstand its edge. Should we continue operations around Posuo Island?" Song You asked bluntly.

"My suggestion is to organize another large-scale counterattack and test things again. What if this was just a coincidence? Also, that deputy hall master from the Nine Cauldrons Sect’s Nine Heavens Domain branch, Bai Lu, is said to be someone capable of entering the Purple Firmament Divine Lightning layer. Could it be that her personal strength was simply too great, or that she cultivated a new divine ability, allowing her to suppress Ma Ke and achieve that result?" Lyu Ming said in a deep voice. "We’ve already invested so much manpower and resources around Posuo Island. We can't allow ourselves to be frightened into retreat by a single battle!"

"I agree with Hall Master Lyu. What if Bai Lu cultivated some other divine ability?" Song Xuan said directly. "I suggest sending a stronger primordial psyche cultivator to Posuo Island to suppress Bai Lu!"

"A stronger primordial psyche cultivator..." Song You mumbled, falling into a state of contemplation.

He was unwilling to withdraw like this, but the Xuanming Sect was not like the Nine Cauldrons Sect. They couldn't be considered more than a small- or at most medium-sized sect. Across the entire sect, they had only a little over a thousand elite sword cultivators, and the number of primordial psyche great cultivators stood at just over forty.

That was precisely why Ma Ke had only been reprimanded in the end, despite committing such a grave error and suffering a humiliating defeat that left the sect without any face, destroyed its morale, and turned it into a laughingstock.

"Assuming Bai Lu has already withstood the first Purple Firmament Divine Lightning, within the sect, only I, Elder Bei Yingxing, and Master Fei Nande could suppress her..."

"Send Elder Bei Yingxing." Lyu Ming glanced at Sect Master Song You. "We don’t need to underestimate ourselves. The Nine Cauldrons Sect may be powerful, but its strength is tied down on many fronts. Even in the East Sea, we aren’t their only enemy. The Great Sun Sword Sect’s coordinated drill is the best example. The power they can truly mobilize is limited. Elder Bei can act boldly, without any need for hesitation."

"Exactly. If the Nine Cauldrons Sect truly stirred up trouble across the East Sea, the Great Sun Sword Sect, the Star Sea Sect, the First Yang Sect, the Ancient Immortal Sect, and the Great Yue Dynasty would never sit idly by. It could easily provoke a joint response, so they should be the ones in fear, not us." Song Xuan nodded as well. "In addition, we should request support from the Infinite Star Palace. Our head-on confrontation with the Nine Cauldrons Sect during this period has already demonstrated our sincerity. Even if they refuse to send people here, they should at least sell us a batch of third-generation high-grade spirit artifact flying swords. The price can be higher. That doesn’t matter."

"Then it’s settled. Let Elder Bei launch a full counterattack! If we can’t strike back, and the disciples develop fear toward the Nine Cauldrons Sect, allowing other sects to think our Xuanming Sect is weak and easy to bully, every East Sea force will swarm in. At that point, how would we protect our interests?" Song You decided decisively.

That 0 to 32 battle had been a severe blow to their morale. They had to regain their dignity. The Xuanming Sect didn't take long to decide it would counterattack. Other forces near the East Sea's islands soon learned of the battle’s outcome as well.

The East Sea stretched across roughly 150,000 kilometers, and its waters touched more than a dozen sects. Although some of the smaller sects lacked the ability to intervene in the islands' situation, every single one paid close attention to all major events happening in the East Sea region, just like the Xuanming Sect or the Nine Cauldrons Sect. This was especially true of the greatest beneficiary of the East Sea's islands: the Great Sun Sword Sect.

When Chi Songzi, deputy hall master of the Warfare Hall and head of East Sea Island Affairs Department, received the report from Nan Bisheng, head of the East Sea Situation Perception Department under the Intelligence Hall, he almost thought he was hallucinating.

Since when did the equipment-deficient Nine Cauldrons Sect become capable of inflicting such heavy losses on the Xuanming Sect? He thought.

In their eyes, whether it was the Nine Cauldrons Sect or the Xuanming Sect, beating each other to death was little more than amateurs fighting amateurs. Yet the reported loss ratio still shocked this deputy hall master responsible for all East Sea archipelago affairs. Thirty-two to zero was just too incredible.

"Investigate! No matter the cost, find out exactly what happened! How could the Nine Cauldrons Sect suddenly gain such strength? Who is backing them? The Thousand-Beast Sect? There must not be a single destabilizing factor affecting our Great Sun Sword Sect’s interests in the East Sea's islands!" Chi Songzi issued the order in a harsh tone.

"Understood. Our people have already gone to the Xuanming Sect to personally question Song You..." Nan Bisheng paused briefly. "As for the drill around Haige Island..."

"The Haige Island drill..." Chi Songzi pondered for a moment.

The Nine Cauldrons Sect was, after all, a powerful force built upon the legacy of the Artifact Sect. It even continued to fulfill Artifact Sect duties within the Cangwu Alliance. The only reason the major sects paid it little attention was that they viewed it as insignificant.

But there was no denying that no one truly knew what hidden trump cards the Nine Cauldrons Sect still possessed after inheriting the Artifact Sect’s legacy. Moreover, the Nine Cauldrons Sect was a force with a Golden Core expert.

With that in mind, Chi Songzi said in a deep voice, "Although our Great Sun Sword Sect possesses the strength to defeat the Nine Cauldrons Sect at any time, for safety’s sake, we shouldn’t act rashly. We must avoid falling into a trap like the Xuanming Sect and suffering unnecessary losses."

He waved his hand. "Wait until we determine who is backing the Nine Cauldrons Sect before taking further action. Until then, treat the Haige Island drill as nothing more than a routine drill."

"Yes."

***

The changes in the situation across the East Sea had not affected Yaoguang in the slightest. On the third day after the battle ended, Zhao Siliang and Luo Yunhai— Longxiang City's Lord—made a trip to the Purple Firmament Institute, personally placing an additional order for four hundred improved Purple Firmament Type 12 flying swords.

At the same time, Zhao Siliang brought news that sent the entire Purple Firmament Institute into cheers. The Purple Firmament Institute would undergo another expansion, this time as preparation for its future elevation to a sect-level artifact refinement institute, becoming a key asset of the Nine Cauldrons Sect.

Such an outcome was already within Yaoguang’s expectations. Although he didn't wish to raise his own status through this kind of fame, he no longer had the power to prevent things from developing that way. And considering those four hundred improved Purple Firmament Type 12 flying sword orders, he could only receive Zhao Siliang in an enthusiastic way.

***

The defeat at Posuo Island had not beaten the Xuanming Sect into submission. They organized several small-scale probes, all of which were crushed by the Nine Cauldrons Sect with devastating ease, causing even heavier losses for the Xuanming Sect.

A month later, Bei Yingxing, a primordial psyche great cultivator who had withstood Purple Firmament Divine Lightning tempering, led more than eighty high-tier sword cultivators in a large-scale counterattack around Posuo Island.

In this battle, Bai Lu’s psychic thought had been suppressed for almost the entire duration. Only 10 or 20% of the psychic thought she would usually dedicate to guide the trajectories of flying swords remained.

Even so, the great clash still ended with an eight-to-thirty-one result. Thirty-one elite sword cultivators of the Xuanming Sect bled across the skies, and the survivors quickly fled under Bei Yingxing’s protection.

This crushing defeat once again proved to the other sects of the East Sea's islands that the Nine Cauldrons Sect's elite sword cultivators were rising at an astonishing speed.

For the Nine Cauldron Sect to be able to still secure victory with an eight-to-thirty-one loss ratio, even while their primordial psyche great cultivator was suppressed, was an achievement that spoke for itself. Even if compared to the Great Sun Sword Sect, or the Six Great Immortal Sects such as the Lunar Sect or the Dharma Heaven Pavilion, that record remained astonishing.

Additionally, during this battle, the improved Purple Firmament Type 12 flying sword used by the Nine Cauldrons Sect officially entered the wider field of view for the first time. Countless intelligence operatives and hidden agents from various sects flooded toward the Nine Cauldrons Sect and the Nine Heavens Domain, probing for information. As a result, a storm began brewing around the Purple Firmament Institute.

*** 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

Yaoguang quietly refined one flying sword after another, steadily completing the orders assigned by the sect. Suddenly, energy fluctuations spread out in a wave. The disturbance lasted only briefly before settling down.

Not long after, Yaoguang sensed Qin Yi approaching and asked, "Another hidden agent?"

"Yes. This time it's from the Star Sea Sect," Qin Yi replied solemnly. "Please rest assured. We will not allow anyone to harm you."

He then added, "We have already applied for the assistance of a primordial psyche great cultivator."

Yaoguang was surprised. "A primordial psyche great cultivator?"

Across the entire Nine Cauldrons Sect, there were only a little over a hundred primordial psyche great cultivators in the open. Every single one either held a critical post, guarded an important location, or protected key personnel.

And now, he had reached the point of requiring a primordial psyche great cultivator for protection? Still, he did not refuse. Before his breakthrough, the stricter the security, the better.

"Who is it? Elder Zhang Jianlin?" Yaoguang asked.

"No. Old Zhang was transferred to the Public Relations Department. Barring accidents, he will become the spokesperson for East Sea's affairs," Qin Yi explained. "For now, it's Hall Master Bai Lu. As for who will replace her later, I don't know."

"Bai Lu?" Yaoguang glanced at him.

She was a powerful primordial psyche great cultivator who treated Blazing Solar Lightning as nothing. How could such an important combat force be assigned to guard him in the rear?

"Hall Master Bai Lu suffered minor injuries in her battle with Bei Yingxing of the Xuanming Sect and needs a period of rest. Moreover, this great battle pushed her cultivation forward again. If there are no accidents, once she finishes recuperating, she will consider entering the Purple Firmament Divine Lightning layer and truly undergo Purple Firmament Divine Lightning tempering," Qin Yi explained.

Yaoguang understood.

"In fact, assigning Hall Master Bai Lu to protect you also carries another intention from the higher-ups. They hope she can help resolve questions you might have in cultivation along the psyche refinement path, allowing you to condense your primordial psyche in the best possible way and step into the realm of great cultivators," Qin Yi said with a smile.

Yaoguang nodded, unsure what to say. This was a show of goodwill from the higher-ups of the Nine Cauldrons Sect. But in truth, ff he wanted to break through, did he really need someone to teach him? Still, Yaoguang sensed the lingering bloody aura on Qin Yi.

The flying swords I refine are only high-grade spirit artifacts, yet they have already stirred up such waves. If I were to truly refine treasured artifacts, who knows what kind of chaos that would cause...

Then again, fame was not without its downsides.

He said to Qin Yi, "Help me invite Master Zi Qiangwei. Tell her that I’ve finished optimizing both the Purple Firmament Type 12 model and the improved Purple Firmament Type 12 for external sale. Business can officially begin."