After listening to the lengthy discourse of "Daoist Zi Shu," "Daoist Chen Long" managed to collect his thoughts.
He was suddenly shocked and exclaimed.
"Big Brother, do you mean to say that the rebels not only know the miraculous uses of Merit Stones, but they have also built Merit Statues and even established that so-called 'Transformation God Cult,' absorbing a large amount of merit and wish power?"
"Daoist Zi Shu" sighed and nodded.
"That should be the case!"
"Daoist Chen Long" also realized the seriousness of the situation.
Losing two sets of Merit Stones was already a major event.
The imperial court had painstakingly "scraped the land," working so hard that the very grit was about to be scraped out, and had managed to acquire a total of three hundred sets of Merit Stones.
In the blink of an eye, three "Four-Money Heavenly Masters" from the "Qintian Jian" had lost two sets.
What was even more infuriating was that those two sets of Merit Stones had been used to construct Merit Statues, competing with the "Heavenly Dragon Dharma King" for merit and wish power!
Snatching food from a tiger's mouth!
This was too much!
The "Great Xin Dynasty" would surely pursue accountability.
Those three "Grey-faced Nascent Soul cultivators" had already been killed, their forms and spirits utterly annihilated, making it impossible to hold them responsible. What else could be done? The imperial court would certainly place this "bad debt" on the "Qintian Jian."
Although the current "Qintian Jian" was at the peak of its power within the "Imperial Court Faction," even Emperor "Wang Ge Bi" harbored a measure of wariness towards the "Qintian Jian."
However, do you truly believe that all factions within the "Imperial Court Faction" were on amicable terms, devoid of infighting and power struggles?
No way, no way, no way!
Of course, they existed!
In fact, Emperor "Wang Ge Bi" would absolutely not let such a good opportunity pass him by. He would certainly seize the chance to severely discipline the "Qintian Jian."
"Daoist Chen Long" and "Daoist Zi Shu" belonged to the "Qintian Jian Faction" and naturally did not wish for the "Qintian Jian Faction" to be suppressed.
Therefore, "Daoist Zi Shu" immediately reported the matter concerning the "Transformation God Cult" to "Pig Emperor," one of the "Three Giants of Qintian Jian."
Upon learning the news, "Pig Emperor" took it very seriously. He even considered abandoning the grand plan to conquer the "Central Continent Cultivation World" and personally dealing with the "Transformation God Cult."
His reasoning was quite sound.
If they could eliminate the "Transformation God Cult" in advance and reclaim the two sets of Merit Stones, the adverse impact of the incident could be minimized. Then, even if Emperor "Wang Ge Bi" wanted to make a fuss, he would have no excuse, and the "Qintian Jian" could naturally pass through smoothly.
Well, that was "Pig Emperor's" stated reason, supposedly for the good of the "Qintian Jian."
In reality, everyone knew very well that it had nothing to do with the "Qintian Jian." "Pig Emperor" was doing this purely to avenge his illegitimate son, "Zhu Zhen Guo!"
"Zhu Zhen Guo" had died at the hands of these "rebels."
The other two giants of the "Qintian Jian" could not allow "Pig Emperor" to act rashly. The plan to conquer the "Central Continent Cultivation World" was formulated jointly by Emperor "Wang Ge Bi" and the "Heavenly Dragon Dharma King," and it was the most important objective at this stage.
Compared to conquering the "Central Continent Cultivation World," losing two sets of Merit Stones was a minor issue.
If the conquest of the "Central Continent Cultivation World" failed, the "Qintian Jian" would truly be in deep trouble.
Therefore, they absolutely could not let "Pig Emperor" commit the foolish act of "losing the watermelon to pick up the sesame seed."
The other two major giants of the "Qintian Jian" vehemently urged "Pig Emperor" to remain and oversee all matters related to the conquest of the "Central Continent Cultivation World."
However, the matter of the "Transformation God Cult" and the two sets of Merit Stones could not be ignored either. After two days of discussion, the "Three Giants of Qintian Jian" jointly decided to dispatch reinforcements, a large number of reinforcements.
First were those "second-rate lackeys," ah, no, the cultivators and sects who had "abandoned darkness and turned to light," voluntarily joining the "Qintian Jian."
For example, the "Public Intellectuals Sect" and the "Heavenly Treasures Sect"...
When the "Qintian Jian" had persuaded them to surrender, they hadn't even finished their words when the Sect Master of the "Public Intellectuals Sect," True Person "Yuan Yuan," and the Sect Master of the "Heavenly Treasures Sect," Immortal Lady "Cai Jing," had eagerly stepped forward, both expressing their willingness to join the "Qintian Jian."
They not only joined themselves but also righteously urged other sects to join.
What? Your sect has a backbone and is unwilling to bow to the "Qintian Jian" and join the "Imperial Court Faction"?
Heh, very good, then go and die!
"True Person Yuan Yuan" and "Immortal Lady Cai Jing" and others were incredibly brutal towards those "hard bones" who refused to compromise, frequently slaughtering entire families and exterminating entire sects. Not only that, they ensured that their victims were utterly annihilated, with no chance of reincarnation.
How vicious, how cruel!
The methods employed by these individuals were so ferocious that even the notoriously wicked "Qintian Jian Heavenly Masters" couldn't stand to watch.
Did these people have any humanity left?
However, the "Three Giants of Qintian Jian" were extremely fond of "True Person Yuan Yuan" and the others.
In this world, were there any better lapdogs than "True Person Yuan Yuan" and his ilk?
No, of course not!
This time, when they encountered the thorny problem of the "Transformation God Cult," the first individuals that the "Three Giants of Qintian Jian" thought of were "True Person Yuan Yuan" and his group of "loyal hounds."
The "Three Giants of Qintian Jian" immediately issued an order, instructing "True Person Yuan Yuan" and the others to rush to the aid of the "Twelve Zodiac Daoists" day and night.
This was a large-scale operation.
Over a hundred sects that had pledged allegiance to the "Qintian Jian" were all dispatched to the front lines at the "Heze Important Town."
In addition to these "loyal hounds," the "Three Giants of Qintian Jian" also dispatched a "special force."
Led by Cao Ang, a "heavenly prodigy disciple" of the "Dragon Tiger Heavenly Sect," the "Ten Great Young Dragon Tiger Heavenly Masters."
The "Dragon Tiger Heavenly Sect" was equivalent to the "Imperial Court Faction's" exclusive training academy.
Every year, a large number of disciples from the "Dragon Tiger Heavenly Sect" entered various organizations and units within the "Imperial Court Faction."
As the premier popular unit of the "Imperial Court Faction," the "Qintian Jian" naturally attracted countless "Dragon Tiger Heavenly Sect" disciples for "internships."
Most of these "interns" were like Cao Zhi and Cao Pi, only at the "Golden Core realm," with weak overall strength, requiring time to gradually grow.
These "interns" were considered recipients of care within the "Qintian Jian." They couldn't be called burdens, but they were close to it, as they offered no help to the "Qintian Jian's" campaign to conquer the "Central Continent Cultivation World."
However, there were a few "interns," like the "Ten Great Young Dragon Tiger Heavenly Masters" led by Cao Ang, a "heavenly prodigy disciple" of the "Dragon Tiger Heavenly Sect." They were by no means burdens; they were genuine combat power.
Each of these ten individuals had reached the "Nascent Soul realm" in their cultivation. They were even more powerful than the average "Qintian Jian Nascent Soul Heavenly Master," representing elite forces!