Alliance benefits galore! Xuanfu Sect breaks through defenses!

Three days later, outside Linyuan City, several streaks of light approached from a distance, finally stopping a hundred zhang in front of the city gate, revealing Ye Youmeng and eight figures behind her.

Leading them was an old man with white hair and beard, dressed in an Eight Trigrams Daoist Robe. He had a lean face, an immortal demeanor, and held a compass in his hand. He was the Grand Elder of Xuanfu Sect, Fu Qingyun, who currently held the highest seniority.

Behind him were seven core Elders who held real power within the Sect. Their expressions varied, showing both unease and a hint of unwillingness, as they clustered around an aloof young woman in a green shirt.

"Fellow Daoist Ye, this... is this the Blood River Spirit Mine?" Fu Qingyun looked at the colossal city, unimaginably majestic, sprawling across the land before him, his eyes filled with shock.

The city walls soared into the clouds, entirely cast from sturdy obsidian, with countless profound Talismans inscribed on their surface, glowing faintly with spiritual light under the sun.

What shocked them even more was the Spiritual Qi that enveloped the entire giant city.

It wasn't mist; it was pure spiritual liquid formed by the liquefaction of Spiritual Qi!

Just standing outside the city and taking a breath, they felt a surge of pure energy flow into their limbs and bones, an effect even better than cultivating in their Sect's Forbidden Ground!

"The Blood River Spirit Mine is a thing of the past. This place is called Linyuan City," Ye Youmeng introduced calmly, a hint of pride on her face.

Upon hearing this, everyone from Xuanfu Sect gasped.

They had originally held onto some of the pride of a major Sect, thinking that even if they surrendered, they would still negotiate for the best terms.

But now, even before entering the city, they felt like country bumpkins who had never seen the world.

"Everyone, please. Alliance Leader Lin has been waiting in the hall for a long time," Ye Youmeng gestured.

Fu Qingyun took a deep breath, suppressed the shock in his heart, tidied his Daoist robe, and led the seven Golden Core Elders into Linyuan City with anxious hearts.

Along the way, the city's layout was orderly, Spiritual Qi assailed them, and the streets were wide. Yin Corpse Sect Disciples and Five Poisons Sect followers could be seen patrolling everywhere, all looking energetic, with advanced Cultivation, and their gazes at the Xuanfu Sect members carried a genuine sense of pride.

This was not at all like a place that had just experienced a great battle; it was clearly a thriving, rising Holy Land!

As they were led into the great hall for discussions, Fu Qingyun immediately saw the young man seated at the head.

He looked to be just over twenty, with a handsome face and restrained aura. Although his Cultivation appeared to be only at the Early Stage Golden Core Stage, strangely, his aura was exceptionally dense, not much inferior to an old fellow like himself who had been in the Late Core Formation Stage for many years, making it impossible to underestimate him.

"Xuanfu Sect's Fu Qingyun, with my Elders, pays respects to Alliance Leader Lin!"

Fu Qingyun dared not be negligent, leading the seven behind him in a deep bow.

"Elder Fu, there's no need for such formality. Please be seated," Lin Yuan raised his hand, his voice calm.

Once everyone was seated, Lin Yuan wasted no words, getting straight to the point: "Fellow Daoist Ye has probably informed you of my Alliance's intentions. My time is precious, so I won't beat around the bush."

"Xuanfu Sect can choose to preserve its Daoist lineage and its Sect Legacy. However, annually, you must hand over fifty percent of your Sect's Talisman production to the Alliance for military provisions."

Although this condition was harsh, Fu Qingyun and the others were mentally prepared for it and found it within an acceptable range.

After all, they were in a weaker position and had to yield.

However, Lin Yuan's next words instantly changed their expressions.

"Additionally, within the Alliance, resources will be shared, and Cultivation Techniques will be mutually accessible. The Yin Corpse Sect's Refined Corpse secret techniques and the Five Poisons Sect's Gu refining methods will be open to core Alliance members. In exchange, Xuanfu Sect must also make a copy of all Talisman crafting methods, to be kept by the Alliance for core members to study together."

"What?!" A hot-tempered Golden Core Elder immediately stood up. "That's absolutely impossible! The Talisman crafting methods are the foundation of our Xuanfu Sect; how can they be divulged!"

The others also showed indignation, and even Fu Qingyun's brows furrowed tightly.

Handing over the crafting methods would be digging up their roots!

"Hmph! Why not?" Old Monster Xuanyin, standing nearby, snorted coldly and rose, his Late Nascent Soul Stage pressure unceremoniously crushing down. "Which one of my Yin Corpse Sect's True Scripture of Corpse Dissolution or the Five Poisons Sect's Myriad Poisons True Scripture isn't a treasure that guards its Sect? If we can all share them, what does your Xuanfu Sect have to hide?"

The Golden Core Elder's face flushed under the pressure, but he still stubbornly retorted, "Refining corpses and Gu, how can they be compared to our Talisman Dao! We..."

"Enough," Lin Yuan said calmly, interrupting the argument.

He looked at Fu Qingyun, who wore a troubled expression, and a slight curve appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"It seems Fellow Daoists of Xuanfu Sect don't yet know the true benefits of joining the Alliance!"

"By joining the Alliance, I can provide Xuanfu Sect with two slots each year for breaking through a Bottleneck."

"Whether it's a Golden Core advancing to Nascent Soul, or a Middle Nascent Soul Stage advancing to Late Stage, I can help them succeed. Of course, as a price, those who receive help must make a Heart Demon oath and sign a Divine Soul contract."

At these words, the entire hall instantly fell silent.

All eight members of Xuanfu Sect, including Fu Qingyun, stood dumbfounded as if struck by a bolt of lightning, their faces filled with disbelief.

They had originally thought that the other party's demand for Xuanfu Sect to join meant they would be enslaved from then on, but it seemed not to be as they had imagined.

Although those who broke through their Bottleneck would be bound by a Heart Demon oath and a Divine Soul contract to never betray.

Why would someone who could help them break through a Bottleneck, even a Middle or Late Nascent Soul Stage Bottleneck, betray them?

Several people's breathing grew heavy.

Fu Qingyun himself had been stuck at Golden Core Perfection for nearly two hundred years, with not much Lifespan left, on the verge of turning into a pile of yellow earth.

How many exceptionally talented Disciples in the Sect had fallen not due to Cultivation resources, but before those damned Bottlenecks!

So, comparatively speaking...

What was handing over the Talisman crafting methods?

To exchange some dead knowledge that anyone could learn for the Sect to produce more Nascent Soul Old Ancestors—this was a hugely profitable deal!

However, just as he was about to waver, a young woman in a green shirt, looking eighteen or nineteen, with an aloof expression, stepped out from behind him. She cupped her hands towards Lin Yuan and said, "Alliance Leader Lin, this matter concerns our Sect's ten-thousand-year plan; we dare not make decisions on our own. Please wait until my Master, Senior Murong Yue, returns before discussing it further!"

This woman, named Fu Qingxuan, was a famous 'Talisman fanatic' within the Sect. Her personality was aloof, and she had immersed herself in the Talisman Dao her entire life, valuing the Sect's Legacy more than her own life.

She looked directly at Lin Yuan, her tone carrying a hint of undisguised accusation: "Moreover, the art of Talisman crafting is the painstaking effort of our ancestors; it is art, it is Dao! How can it be a commodity exchanged for profit! What is the difference between Alliance Leader's action and outright plunder? This is an insult to our Xuanfu Sect's Talisman Dao!"

"Insult?"

Lin Yuan chuckled at her words. He rose from his seat and slowly paced to the center of the great hall, looking at the stubborn Fu Qingxuan with interest.

"That's rather interesting. It seems you have great confidence in your so-called Talisman Dao."

He stopped, his eyes calm as he asked, "Then I ask you, within Xuanfu Sect, what is the generally acknowledged most difficult Talisman to draw?"