588: Alliance Leader

He had already obtained all the intelligence Ancestor Wuguang knew regarding the Tian Zhao Sect.

However, he hadn't obtained even a shred of the memories belonging to that Arithmetic expert.

Ancestor Wuguang's goal was to save his master, and by giving Chen De the star map fragment, he aimed to create conflict between the Tian Zhao Sect and Chen De.

However, he was now at the Demon Venerable Realm Sixth Transformation, not far from the Seventh Transformation.

Since that was the case, the star map fragment was no longer that important to Chen De; why should he continue to follow the other's plan?

Furthermore, he had just finished off Ancestor Wuguang and released his master; if there were some means to find out he was the one who did it, wouldn't that just be asking for trouble?

Instead of going to the Tianzhao Domain, any other domain would do!

As for that star map fragment... after Chen De's resurrection this time, the fragment hadn't been brought back with him; it was likely still at the place where he was killed.

Should he retrieve it?

To this question, Chen De's answer was that since it was useless anyway, it didn't matter whether he retrieved it or not.

He had left a mark on it; if he ever wanted it, he could just find it again.

From the memories obtained from the Pavilion Master of Tianyou Pavilion, there were several other domains on the same level as the Tianzhao Domain.

His destination this time was one of them; after some screening, Chen De decided to head to the Sacred Ring Domain.

The environment of the Sacred Ring Domain was not a dictatorship by a single sect, but was jointly governed by an alliance of ten major powers.

Therefore, both inside and outside the domain, these ten major powers were collectively known as the Ten Sects of the Sacred Ring.

It was said that in the distant past, the Ten Sects of the Sacred Ring were originally a single power, overseen by a Saint Extreme Realm expert within the Sacred Ring Domain.

However, after a great war, that Saint Extreme Realm expert fell, and the forces under his command fell into internal strife and split apart.

Thus, for a considerable period, the Sacred Ring Domain was in a state of fragmented chaos and warfare.

After a process of annexation and integration, these forces were eventually reduced to only ten.

Later, due to a series of reasons, these ten major powers united once again into an alliance, standing as equals and supporting one another.

In recent years, while overt and covert struggles continued, they remained harmonious on the surface.

This was precisely why Chen De chose this domain: it was strong enough and chaotic enough.

As for the approach, he could entirely apply the template he used at Tianyou Pavilion, just being a bit more cautious on top of that.

Having determined his direction, Chen De no longer hesitated and advanced toward his goal at full speed.

It was a bit far, but that didn't matter; by devouring along the way as he traveled, time still passed quickly... Sacred Ring Domain.

Within a special space, ten massive thrones stood.

The material of the thrones was clearly very expensive; if placed outside, it would be enough to manufacture multiple Immortal-grade weapons.

Yet here, it was merely used for people to sit on.

At the same time, they radiated a terrifying aura.

Under this aura, those whose cultivation had not reached the Immortal Law Realm would instantly turn to fly ash, while ordinary Immortal Law Realm experts would be suppressed to the point of being unable to move.

On these ten thrones, nine of them were occupied by incredibly terrifying experts.

The aura radiating from each of them made the thrones seem like nothing in comparison.

This was because each of these ten experts was at the Immortal Law Realm Ninth Transformation, experts standing at the pinnacle of this realm.

No one spoke in the hall because not everyone had arrived yet, and private matters would not be brought up here.

After a while, the last vacant seat was also filled.

At this moment, one of the figures on the thrones said to the newcomer, "Canxu, you're late."

Canxu turned his head to look at him, "Fenlie, it's just that the people under my Xukun Sect occupied some of your territory. If you just say the word, I'll have them return it; why be so petty?"

"Hmph," Fenlie sneered, "No need. What my subordinates lost, they will naturally take back themselves. The Fentian Palace isn't so poor a sport."

The ten great sects had been in a chaotic war for many years; some had good relations, some were average, and some were poor.

The Xukun Sect and the Fentian Palace belonged to those with very poor relations; before the alliance, both sides had nearly beaten each other's brains out.

Since the alliance, they had restrained themselves a bit, but they still couldn't stand the sight of each other and frequently had conflicts.

"Alright, alright, stop arguing."

"Indeed, we ten sects have shared the same hatred for so many years; there's no need to hurt our harmony over such a small matter."

"Let's talk about official business instead."

Under the persuasion of the others, Canxu and Fenlie temporarily set aside their targeting of each other.

Once they returned, covert struggles would inevitably follow.

However, the other eight major powers were naturally happy to see this happen.

It just wasn't the place for a fight right now; otherwise, they wouldn't mind watching a good show.

"Another hundred million years have passed," one of the leaders of the powers spoke up.

"Yes," the one sitting next to him nodded. "According to the regulations set when the alliance was first formed, every hundred million years, a new alliance leader must be selected according to the rules."

As soon as these words were spoken, the hall fell silent once again.

In reality, they were nearly shouting at each other in secret.

If anyone present could become the alliance leader, they and the power behind them would undoubtedly hold a greater say in the next hundred million years.

And this also meant they could reap more benefits from it.

For example, the management rights of the place where they were located before the split.

Later, due to a series of reasons, these ten major powers united once again into an alliance, standing as equals and supporting one another.

As for that specific piece of land, although its conditions were extremely superior, whoever took it during the initial struggles would have become a target for everyone and would inevitably have been besieged.

So, instead, no one took it, and it remained vacant until the formation of the ten-sect alliance, where still no one dared to take it.

But leaving it vacant wasn't a solution either; the tax revenue from that one place was far more than the tax revenue of any of their individual powers.

Thus, after the alliance was formed, that area was directly governed by the alliance leader.

A portion of the proceeds would be distributed to the other nine sects, accounting for roughly thirty percent of each sect's tax revenue.

The remainder would serve as their own management fee, equivalent to the tax revenue of an entire sect.

Beyond that, there were various other benefits, such as the power to summon the ten sects, more voting rights on certain matters, and so on.

Therefore, every representative of the powers present held a determined attitude toward securing the position of the alliance leader of the Ten Sects of the Sacred Ring.

"So, how should our alliance leader be selected this year?"

"Should it be a tournament to compare the skills of our disciples, or should we old fellows compete ourselves?"

"Or perhaps compare resourcefulness—give us an area and see who manages it better and earns more resources."

"Or even compare luck; drawing lots, rolling dice, or something like that."

Another person said with a smile.

The selection methods mentioned above were all ones they had used in previous sessions.

The strengths of the ten sects were not far apart; to truly determine a winner, they would have to actually fight.

However, it was unnecessary, as it would likely evolve into a major internal conflict in the end.

Therefore, the selection process didn't necessarily have to be so serious; having a certain degree of randomness was actually better.