Mo Su and Mo Yi both knew there was no way to stop Mo Yue, so they didn't bother saying anything more.
"I've still got plenty on my plate. I won't be tagging along the whole way. I'll just meet you at Purple Sky Sect for the last stop," Jian Dan said casually. After that, she picked up Xiao Yue and headed back to Mo Yan Peak.
Once Jian Dan left, Mo Su immediately called Mo Qi over. The three of them discussed Mo Yue's suggestion in detail.
"I think her idea's good. Even Dao Gate held a joint Grand Competition. If we're going to hold one within our own sect, we should make it grand too," Mo Qi said crisply.
"I agree with Senior Sister's idea. I'll pull out the agenda from our past sect competitions and adjust it a bit using Senior Sister Mo Yue's suggestions. It'll be easy," Mo Yi offered, eager to help.
"Alright. You make the changes we just discussed, then pass it to me. I'll submit it to Chief Mo Zhang for final approval, and once it's cleared, we'll notify the sect," Mo Su concluded firmly.
The two of them had no objections and went off to handle their tasks.
Afterward, Mo Su didn't waste time. He first contacted the Buddhist Sect and asked them to send people to escort Bi Shu. The Heavenly Demon Palace also dispatched the Tian Squad's third unit as guards. On a quiet afternoon, they slipped out of the sect.
Meanwhile, Jian Dan went to meet Chief Mo Zhang at the Black Robe Guard's compound. This time, he was surprisingly polite, discussing adjustments to the mountain-protecting formations around three peaks.
"You mentioned a few spots last time. Mo Su and I already inspected them. With the Tiangang Star-Sealing Lunar Array, if we swap the Life Gate and Death Gate, the transitions will be smoother," Mo Zhang explained as he handed her an obsidian jade slip.
She swept it with her divine sense, frowned slightly, and then spoke.
"Swapping the Life and Death Gates is common, but it's too easy to see through. My suggestion: reverse the formation on the key peak, and for the other six, you can swap the Life and Death Gates. That way, even if there's a traitor among us, they won't see the real pattern. Worse, they might think they've figured it out, when in fact it doesn't apply to every peak."
"Brilliant. Your idea breaks rigid conventions, making it impossible to predict the pattern at a glance."
"I'm not a formation master. If they hear this, they'll just say I'm breaking the rules."
Jian Dan laughed lightly.
"That doesn't matter. In the Black Robe Guard, what matters is achieving results, not sticking to stale rules," Mo Zhang said.
"But remember, once the Tiangang Star-Sealing Lunar Array is altered, it has to be restarted. You must invite a Zhēnzūn to act so the disturbance is kept to a minimum. If outsiders notice, all the adjustments will be pointless."
"You're right. Caution first. Every sect has spies, even ours. I'll discuss this with Mo Su and ask Mo Yan Zhēnzūn to handle it. Rest assured," Mo Zhang promised.
"Good. With Chief Mo Zhang and the Palace Master working together, nothing could be more reliable."
Jian Dan mentally ticked off her list of tasks. The most important ones had all made progress, so she could finally let out a small sigh of relief.
"Chief Mo Zhang, I'll leave the rest to you. I've only got one last stage left in strengthening the Heaven Division's combat power. I won't be coming by these days."
Holding Xiao Yue in her arms, she rose and excused herself, hinting that he could manage things on his own without bothering her further.
Mo Zhang, of course, understood perfectly well what Mo Yue Zūnshàng meant. Smiling, he personally escorted her out, then summoned formation masters from the Spirit Division to start adjusting the peaks' arrays.
From then on, Jian Dan devoted herself fully to raising the Heaven Division's strength.
This time, she pulled them all into an illusion. With just a glance, she dropped them into a first-level trial realm, where they got properly beaten down.
Except for the Tian Squad's third unit, who were still out on a mission, everyone else entered the illusion on the peak. Jian Dan activated the protective barrier, left the Black Robe Guard to keep watch, and went back to rest.
—
In Beast Taming Sect.
After attending the Heavenly Demon Palace's succession ceremony, Shou Feng and Shou Min rushed back to their sect to meet Yu Yan Zhēnzūn in person.
Yu Yan Zhēnzūn looked like a handsome man in his thirties. He wore an earthy-yellow robe embroidered with beast patterns in golden thread, with arrays stitched along the collar and cuffs. It might've been a bit blinding, but it carried an undeniable sense of prestige.
On his head was a purple jade crown carved with a tiger's head, and at his waist hung a jade plate etched with his contracted insect beast. If Jian Dan had seen it, she would've recognized it instantly. It was a Gu King. On the back were two words: Beast Taming.
At the moment, Yu Yan Zhēnzūn was carefully pruning a ninth-grade white jade mulberry branch. It was feed for his treasured beast, so he never let anyone else handle it.
"Zhēnzūn, we've brought the item back," Shou Feng said. He took out a special formation disk from his sleeve and handed it over.
Yu Yan raised his hand, pulling it in with a suction force. He activated it, and instantly a spatial cage appeared. Inside was a blood insect, lying in suspended animation.
He could sense it wasn't dead. It was only conserving its energy, lying dormant to protect itself.
"You've worked hard. Did they say anything else?"
"Jian Lu Zūnshàng hinted that this blood insect is a fusion of black-armored insects and a blood sac, and the blood sac itself is a plant," Shou Feng reported.
Yu Yan nodded. The other side was cautious, but the information was indeed useful.
"Anything else?"
Shou Feng hesitated.
"Speak freely."
"Yes, Zhēnzūn."
He bowed and continued, "This part came from Meng Zūnzhǔ, the one I traded with. He said their Heavenly Sword Sect captured the blood insects to research the fastest way to kill them. But our Beast Taming Sect, instead of focusing on extermination, might think about exploiting their strengths. The problem is..."
"What's the problem?"
"These creatures are foreign to our world. If we fail to control them and instead help them reproduce and evolve faster, it could backfire badly."
In other words, Heavenly Sword Sect was studying how to wipe out the blood insects, while Beast Taming Sect seemed more interested in their potential as a new species. That was fine, as long as they were careful. But if the blood insects mutated after adapting to the cultivation world, it could be a disaster.
Yu Yan Zhēnzūn 's face darkened slightly, though he knew this was exactly how Heavenly Sword Sect operated.
"Enough. I understand. You're dismissed."
He waved them off.
Relieved, Shou Feng and Shou Min bowed and withdrew.
Not long ago, they'd also smuggled back black-armored insects from Heavenly Sword Sect, which helped the Artifact Sect develop the Golden Bee Resonance Orb, a special weapon for capturing insects. That was a great success.
But this time, with the blood insect, Shou Feng felt uneasy. Heavenly Sword Sect had been extremely cautious and had initially refused to trade. It was only because Yu Yan Zhēnzūn personally reached out that they'd relented.
After delivering the task, Shou Feng and Shou Min went back to their own caves.
When Shou Min returned, she sealed her cave with restrictions. A cold blue light flickered in her eyes.
She pulled out a jade slip, recorded every detail of their meeting with Yu Yan Zhēnzūn , and sent it straight to Jian Dan.