Chapter 64

Chapter 62: Fanning the Flames

The news of Tuobaye's great victory over Duan Tianmeng spread like a whirlwind through the Immortal Cloud Valley.

Now, all the one million outer disciples of Immortal Cloud Valley knew about this new outer disciple, Tuobaye, who had defeated Duan Tianmeng and seized his spirit weapon.

Duan Tianmeng was very strong and famous, and as the captain of the Tianmeng Squad, no outer disciple who had been in Immortal Cloud Valley for a year was unaware of him.

He was a hot favorite to place in the top ten of the year-end outer disciple competition, yet he had been defeated by a new outer disciple. This was truly shocking.

Everyone's conversations revolved around Tuobaye and the Shenmo Squad, while Duan Tianmeng and the Tianmeng Squad became stepping stones for Tuobaye and the Shenmo Squad, their reputations tarnished.

After returning, Duan Tianmeng flew into a rage: "Tuobaye, I will make you die!"

"Captain, Tuobaye's strength is very strange. Few outer disciples can surely defeat him. If we want revenge, we might have to find inner disciples," someone suggested.

"If that doesn't work, I'll ask my cousin, Duan Tianxiong, to deal with Tuobaye. I must get my spirit weapon back," Duan Tianmeng said solemnly.

"Captain, why don't we gather some gold coins and buy another spirit weapon?"

Duan Tianmeng nodded: "Let's do that. This time, let's try to buy a second-grade spirit weapon. I must place in the top ten in the year-end competition to obtain the Heavenly Profound Pill."

...

In the Sea God Squad, Lu Haicheng gathered his people: "Everyone, you are all core members of the Sea God Squad. How can we teach Tuobaye a lesson?"

He was at a loss and could only rely on his subordinates to come up with ideas.

"Captain, Tuobaye is too strong. If we go against him now, we might suffer a great loss. It would be better to divert the trouble elsewhere..."

"Oh! How do we do that?" Lu Haicheng asked.

"Currently, Tuobaye has gained quite a reputation and has certainly attracted the attention of some powerful squads. The top ten squads all have strong backgrounds. Let them recruit Tuobaye. Since Tuobaye is already the captain of the Shenmo Squad, he naturally won't join any other squad, which will offend those powerful squads. This way, we don't have to act ourselves to teach Tuobaye a lesson."

"That's a great idea!" Lu Haicheng said happily. "Immediately select some clever people to spread the news, exaggerating Tuobaye's abilities. Don't mention that he formed the Shenmo Squad."

"Captain, don't worry, we are best at this."

Lu Haicheng was very excited, as if he could already see Tuobaye being suppressed by the Ten Absolute Squad and the Six Paths Squad.

...

Tuobaye's one battle made him famous, and the Shenmo Squad quickly absorbed peripheral members, soon surpassing two thousand.

Of course, the Shenmo Squad was formed late, and the outer disciples they recruited were generally weaker, being the leftovers after other squads had picked their members.

Even so, Yang Bin and the others were overjoyed. Having so many people to command felt great.

However, the Shenmo Squad's reputation was still not high, and some stronger outer disciples had no interest in the Shenmo Squad.

Although they had two thousand peripheral members, there were none who could provide substantial help to Tuobaye.

Tuobaye didn't worry about these things; he became a hands-off leader.

After seizing the Tiger-Slaying Saber, Tuobaye began to seclude himself. He first used his divine consciousness to erase the imprint on the Tiger-Slaying Saber, then began to refine it.

The Tiger-Slaying Saber had been refined by Duan Tianmeng, who had left his imprint. If the imprint wasn't erased, it couldn't be refined.

After these two battles, Tuobaye realized that his fighting style was still too monotonous. With the Tiger-Slaying Saber, he could use the War Dragon Dominant Saber technique, making his group combat ability stronger.

Moreover, with the Tiger-Slaying Saber, a first-grade spirit weapon, his combat power would increase significantly.

Refining the Tiger-Slaying Saber took some time.

Holding the Tiger-Slaying Saber, Tuobaye practiced the War Dragon Dominant Saber technique for a while. The War Dragon Dominant Saber was a technique he had taught to the Eight Dragon Guards. Although he had learned it, he wasn't very proficient, as he was more skilled in the Tyrant God Fist.

The Tyrant God Fist, combined with his powerful physical strength, was invincible, and its power far exceeded that of the War Dragon Dominant Saber.

However, Tuobaye still took some time to practice the War Dragon Dominant Saber. Having more techniques meant having more cards up his sleeve.

In the future, if he could resolve battles with saber techniques, he wouldn't want to expose the Tyrant God Fist and his physical strength.

After five days and nights of seclusion, Tuobaye finally mastered the War Dragon Dominant Saber and emerged from seclusion.

"Captain, you're finally out of seclusion!" Gao Chuangxin said happily.

During Tuobaye's seclusion, Gao Chuangxin had led several capable peripheral members to guard him.

As for their medicinal garden, other disciples took care of it.

Tuobaye was quite satisfied. Now he could focus on cultivation and learning.

His Primordial Energy cultivation had long reached a bottleneck, and he planned to break through it and become an Eighth Star Innate Martial God.

"What's the situation outside?" Tuobaye asked.

He was still concerned about the situation in Immortal Cloud Valley, as he was now a part of it.

"Captain, your reputation has been growing, and it seems to be getting more and more exaggerated," Gao Chuangxin said. "Shu Haiyang suspects something is amiss and has already sent people to investigate."

"Is someone deliberately spreading my reputation and exaggerating it?" Tuobaye asked in surprise.

"Captain, you're really clever, you guessed it right," Gao Chuangxin said.

Tuobaye frowned, immediately realizing that someone was fanning the flames, putting him in the spotlight. A slight misstep could bring him big trouble.

"Gao Chuangxin, tell Yang Bin to keep an eye out and find out who is spreading the news," Tuobaye said after some thought.

"Captain, Shu Haiyang is already paying attention to this and has dispatched peripheral members to investigate," Gao Chuangxin said.

"You're doing well. Focus on your cultivation and improve your skills," Tuobaye said.

Gao Chuangxin was overjoyed: "Captain, rest assured, we will work hard and not let you down."

He felt that Tuobaye cared about him, so he was very excited.

"If you have any cultivation problems, you can ask me. I can teach you some things in this area," Tuobaye said.

These peripheral members were too weak, and Tuobaye wanted to improve their strength so they could help him in the future. With his past experience, guiding these outer disciples was not a problem.

"Captain, guiding each one individually would waste your time. I'll discuss it with them, and we can gather together for you to give us some guidance. That would be invaluable," Gao Chuangxin said.

"Arrange it, and coordinate the time with me," Tuobaye said.

With his previous experience guiding the Iron Blood Tiger Guards, guiding these peripheral members was not a problem.

"Captain, there's another big matter. The year-end outer disciple competition is in one month. Do you want to participate?" Gao Chuangxin asked.

"What are the requirements for the year-end competition? What are the rewards?" Tuobaye asked.

"To participate in the year-end competition, your Primordial Energy cultivation must reach the Eighth Star Innate Martial God level. The rewards are very generous. The top hundred all receive good rewards, and if you can place in the top ten, you'll get the Heavenly Profound Pill and a spirit weapon," Gao Chuangxin said enviously.

Tuobaye was somewhat moved. He didn't need the Heavenly Profound Pill or a spirit weapon, but he could take them back to the Tuoba family to strengthen their power.

Tuobaye had taken the Heavenly Profound Pill before and knew its value. One Heavenly Profound Pill could create a Qi Cultivation realm expert.

Of course, the person taking the Heavenly Profound Pill must have a spirit root, even a weak one.

With divine consciousness, Tuobaye could select slaves with spirit roots, so he didn't have to worry about a lack of talent to take the Heavenly Profound Pill.

After some thought, he made a decision: "Gao Chuangxin, have Yang Bin register me. I'll join in the fun."

"Captain, you're going to participate in the competition! That's great. We can take this opportunity to boost the Shenmo Squad's reputation and attract some strong members to support us," Gao Chuangxin said excitedly.

"This is what I should do. I am the captain of the Shenmo Squad," Tuobaye smiled. "If you need gold coins, you can ask me. I have quite a few."

He had extorted nearly 300,000 gold coins from the Sea God Squad, and using them to strengthen the Shenmo Squad was a good idea. As the captain and founder of the Shenmo Squad, he couldn't just do nothing.

He went into his room, took out the gold coins, and handed them to Gao Chuangxin: "Give these gold coins to Yang Bin. Let him handle the distribution, whether for resources for the brothers or other uses, without needing to ask me."

"Captain, I'll thank you on behalf of the brothers!" Gao Chuangxin said happily.

Gao Chuangxin was strong and very loyal. Seeing Tuobaye's generosity, he was very grateful.

"Go, you don't need to guard me every day. You also need to cultivate," Tuobaye said.

"Captain, you are our mainstay. You must not be in danger. We will take turns guarding you," Gao Chuangxin said.

"Alright, don't neglect your own cultivation," Tuobaye accepted.

He had offended the Sea God Squad and the Tianmeng Squad, and it was easier to avoid open attacks than hidden ones. He really had to be cautious.

Of course, anyone who tried to sneak attack and disrupt Tuobaye's cultivation would not find it easy. His wooden house was guarded by Bunny and the Gold and Silver Flying Snake King. Anyone who intruded would not have an easy time.

Bunny and the Gold and Silver Flying Snake King were Tuobaye's trump cards, and it was best not to expose them.

Having someone guard him was also good, and he could give them some benefits later to help improve their cultivation.

Tuobaye didn't like owing favors and couldn't let the peripheral members work for nothing.

"Captain, rest assured. We have many people, divided into many small teams, taking turns to guard. It won't interfere with our cultivation," Gao Chuangxin said.

"Alright, I won't interfere," Tuobaye said. "I will continue my seclusion. Call me if anything happens."

Tuobaye planned to seclude himself to break through his bottleneck and become an Eighth Star Innate Martial God as soon as possible.

At first, he wasn't in a hurry, but to participate in the year-end competition, he had to improve his cultivation.

However, before he had even started to break through his bottleneck, someone came to visit him. He had to end his seclusion to handle the matter before he could focus on cultivation.