Chapter 159: Madness Expansion

Two Nascent Soul cultivators, inexplicably missing.

It sounded like a fantasy.

But it happened so strangely.

Since the fall of the Blue Feather Celestial, Du Gu Xi and Du Gu Shi had annually competed in the Tian Du Martial Arena for the ownership of the "Heavenly Feather Art."

For many years, the outcome remained undecided, attracting numerous cultivators to watch each time.

It became a reserved spectacle in the Source Dao State, even drawing cultivators from other states who wanted to witness the grand battle between the two Nascent Soul cultivators.

However, this year, the agreed-upon day for their battle arrived, and the Tian Du Martial Arena was empty.

People waited for a long time, but neither Du Gu Xi nor Du Gu Shi appeared.

Initially, they thought there might be a change in the agreed-upon time, and the cultivators didn't think much of it at the time.

It was only a few days later that shocking news spread.

Relatives and subordinates of the two Nascent Soul cultivators tried various methods but failed to contact them. Even the Celestial Mechanism Hall couldn't find any trace of them through divination.

It was as if they had vanished into thin air, unseen and untraceable!

The most shocked were the Blue Feather Sect.

The disappearance of the two top-tier forces left the Blue Feather Sect in internal turmoil. Nerves were tense, and everyone seemed like a potential hidden hand.

Other forces, after the initial shock, gradually regained their composure.

The Blue Feather Sect, once unshakable, now faced internal strife after years of infighting and the sudden disappearance of two Nascent Soul cultivators.

How much strength did the Blue Feather Sect still have?

Greedy thoughts began to sprout in the hearts of many forces.

A coalition named the Raging Feather Alliance emerged in secret.

It started with small-scale friction and then, using the "Heavenly Feather Art" as a catalyst, escalated into large-scale battles.

The original supreme Dao technique, divided into five parts by the Blue Feather Celestial before his fall, was sealed in five encrypted jade slips. Four of them were entrusted to his most loyal subordinates, and the remaining one was given to the most mysterious and reclusive guardian of the Law Enforcement Hall in the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance.

Only when the five jade slips were combined could the complete "Heavenly Feather Art" be reconstructed.

With the inexplicable disappearance of the Du Gu brothers and the threat of wolves closing in, the one who appeared to be the most loyal and had followed the Blue Feather Celestial for the longest time, with the most seniority among the Nascent Soul cultivators, Weixu Tuo, surprisingly betrayed them.

Under the pretext of discussing strategies against the enemy, he lured the other cultivator in charge of the jade slip, Wutong Tian, into an ambush set by the Raging Feather Alliance.

Wutong Tian fell with resentment, and Weixu Tuo gained two parts of the "Heavenly Feather Art." The Raging Feather Alliance took advantage of the opportunity to aggressively annex the territories of the Blue Feather Sect.

Upon receiving the news, the Blue Feather Sect was first shocked, then filled with anger.

The hundred-legged insect dies but never stiffens.

A bloody counterattack began.

The great battle ignited and soon swept across the entire Source Dao State.

Countless Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, and Nascent Soul cultivators were involved.

The constant signs of falling from the high sky never ceased.

The majority of Qi Refining cultivators, with their low cultivation base, were unaffected because they couldn't even qualify as cannon fodder.

So, they remained relatively unscathed.

Bright Moon Palace.

"Who is behind this grand scheme again..."

Having comprehensively grasped the recent major and minor events in the Source Dao State, Li Fan's eyes flickered.

The thick scent of conspiracy behind this was too obvious.

"A discerning person can see the anomalies in it."

"Unfortunately, now I'm already deeply entangled in the chessboard, unable to escape."

"Cultivators at the Qi Refining stage, with their low strength, don't even qualify as pawns."

"No problem, even if you don't appreciate them, I don't mind."

At this moment, Li Fan gathered the people of the Bright Moon Palace and issued the command for strategic expansion.

Although Su Xiaomei and others were somewhat puzzled by this command, they resolutely carried it out.

Anchored at the end of the 43rd year, the stagnated mission of crossing realms, which had been on hold for almost half a year, was resumed.

This time, it was even more vigorous.

Under Li Fan's guidance, the Bright Moon Palace retained only 30,000 contribution points for emergencies, lending out the rest.

The news of the reopening of the Bright Moon Palace's business spread instantly among the Qi Refining cultivators.

Those who had been waiting anxiously for six months were pleasantly surprised.

They flocked to the Moon Lake.

The number of people exceeded even Li Fan's expectations.

However, Li Fan did not release all the spots for realm-crossing at once. He continued to select one Qi Refining cultivator every three days, keeping the others eagerly anticipating.

It took nearly a month to fully lend out the planned contribution points.

At this point, the external debt of the Bright Moon Palace amounted to nearly 220,000 contribution points.

With the self-reserve of 30,000 contribution points and Zhang Zhiliang's legacy of 320,000 contribution points, the total was 570,000 contribution points.

However, the chaotic situation in the Source Dao State provided the best incubator for Li Fan's lurking growth.

Under the unrestrained and barbaric expansion, the terrifying growth rate of compound interest finally began to show.

Anchored at the end of the 44th year, the external debt contribution points of the Bright Moon Palace soared to 310,000.

By the end of the 45th year, it reached 450,000.

At the end of the 46th year, it reached 630,000.

...

By the middle of the 50th year, the external debt contribution points of the Bright Moon Palace had reached the astronomical figure of 2.2 million.

In just seven years, the Bright Moon Palace successfully guided the crossing of nearly five hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Each successful realm-crossing brought back nearly six months of cultivation, accumulating a total of over 250 years of cultivation for Li Fan.

Under the surveillance of the No-Phantom Killing Machine, Li Fan witnessed the process of crossing realms more than five hundred times.

By now, his understanding of "Establishing the Foundation on the Dao" likely exceeded that of any Foundation Establishment cultivator in this realm.

At the same time, the enormous contribution points in his hands gave Li Fan a sense of walking on thin ice.

Rather than feeling joy from the rapid increase in his cultivation realm, an increasing sense of unease grew in his heart.

Instructing everyone in the Bright Moon Palace to stop the realm-crossing business and quickly reclaim the contribution points, Li Fan took precautions and prepared to escape at any time.

...

In an unknown space in the Source Dao State.

A black-robed cultivator had just awakened from seclusion.

He habitually formed a seal.

In front of him, a golden ginkgo tree suddenly appeared.

The black-robed cultiv

ator held a feather duster and lightly waved it.

The ginkgo tree, which seemed to freeze time on it, suddenly began to change.

The trunk swayed, and five golden leaves drifted down.

The black-robed cultivator showed a pleased expression. "How could five Nascent Soul cultivators die just by closing up?"

The seal changed.

Next to the golden ginkgo, another identical tree appeared.

This one emitted a soft silver glow.

A wave of the feather duster.

Twenty-three silver leaves slowly fell.

The black-robed cultivator was even more delighted. "Unexpected joy from internal discord."

"Strange, who's behind this? Why can't I figure it out?"

"Humph, it doesn't matter. Anyway, the more deaths, the better."

"Originally, after using the Blue Feather's death, I employed the Blue Box plan, which significantly reduced the number of cultivators."

"Now with this unexpected event, it seems I'm going to exceed my mission quota."

The black-robed cultivator rejoiced inexplicably, muttering to himself.

"The Source Dao State has been peaceful for too long, with too many cultivators. It was high time for a ruthless pruning, all thanks to that Blue Feather old man protecting them..."

"Humph, now that you're dead and gone, you can no longer show off."

A blue ginkgo appeared, and this time, even more leaves fell.

The black-robed cultivator suddenly stood up in amazement, exclaiming, "How can this be?"

"The number of Foundation Establishment cultivators has tripled in just ten years?"

Cold sweat dripped from his forehead as he hurriedly performed calculations.

"Damn the Bright Moon Palace..."

After a long time, the black-robed cultivator gritted his teeth and muttered.

"And a bunch of imitators too..."

"You will all die!"

Boom!

The gold, silver, blue, and green ginkgo trees in front of him instantly turned into flying ash.

The black-robed cultivator, holding the feather duster, took a step forward and disappeared instantly.

(End of this chapter)