Chapter 2095: Chapter 2132: Starving to Death While Clinging Together

Thinking of Ding Fan becoming a strong figure in the future, the Skeleton Sect would certainly rise along with him. The eyes of the Second Elder and the others became fervent. As a Martial Artist, the younger you are, the faster you cultivate. As you grow older, the functions of the body gradually deteriorate, and thinking becomes less agile. It’s generally difficult to improve cultivation Realm further.

Therefore, the higher the Realm is raised when young, the greater the achievements in the future. Given Ding Fan’s current age, it’s still very possible for him to improve his Realm. So, everyone was determined not to let Ding Fan leave just like that. The Skeleton Sect desperately needs such a master.

The Second Elder, of course, understood these things clearly. Although a bit helpless, he was by no means confused. Almost immediately, he had an idea and said to everyone, "There’s no need to discuss this matter further. Ding Fan absolutely cannot leave. Miss Wu, you must become the Sect Leader, for the sake of the Skeleton Sect and the Wu Family, you must assume this role."

As soon as the Second Elder said this, all the elders and Martial Artists agreed. Even the injured Fourth Elder stopped speaking, looked in the direction where Ding Fan was staying, and Wu Qingxia bit her lip without saying anything. When everyone finished talking and looked eagerly at her, she gently opened her lips and said to everyone, "In that case, I will not refuse. However, in the future, I hope the Second Elder, the Fourth Elder, and all uncles present will assist me. Otherwise, I, as a mere woman, fear it would be difficult to shoulder such a heavy responsibility."

"How could the Sect Leader say such a thing? We will certainly do our utmost in the future. Now, everyone come and pay respects to the Sect Leader."

The Second Elder was the first to kneel on one knee, and upon his kneeling, the elders and Martial Artists behind him followed suit, kneeling all over the ground, including even the Ninth Elder, who had not spoken before. Seeing these people kneeling before her, Wu Qingxia felt no joy in her heart. On the contrary, she felt as if a mountain-like responsibility suddenly weighed on her, making her feel breathless.

A silent night passed, turning into the next morning. The Second Elder gathered all the Martial Artists and announced the results of last night’s meeting, confirming Wu Qingxia as the Sect Leader to everyone.

Since the elders and strong figures spoke this way, the ordinary Martial Artists had no more to say and all nodded in agreement. However, some had fears in their hearts, wondering if letting Miss Wu become the Skeleton Sect’s leader might lead everyone into a pitfall. Would it be a rise or a fall? This was hard to tell.

Actually, they worried too much. With Wu Qingxia now as Sect Leader, the fact was there wasn’t much change in the Skeleton Sect. All matters were still deliberated and executed by the Second Elder and other elders. Wu Qingxia was merely the nominal leader. Decisions, big or small, were still made by the Second Elder and others.

That day, the Second Elder held another meeting with Wu Qingxia. During the meeting, Wu Qingxia didn’t say anything and just listened to the discussions of the Second Elder and others.

The meeting settled a few matters. The first point was to secretly send people back to Great Python Mountain to find the elderly, sick, and young still hidden in the valley and bring them back secretly.

Those people were relatives and family of those present. There were many children and women among them. They were the future hope of the Skeleton Sect, especially since among them were a few children with talent in Martial Arts. They were the future hope of the Skeleton Sect.

The Zhong Family probably already knew they had escaped to the Tianmu Sea and should not pursue them further. If the family in the valley had not been killed, bringing them back shouldn’t be an issue.

This matter, after discussion among everyone, was assigned to Elder Wu Ren to handle. Elder Wu Ren’s cultivation wasn’t high, but no one could surpass his scouting skills. He was the most familiar with the Great Python Mountain area. His return wouldn’t easily be noticed, and he was smart and quick-witted, a person who loved to think things through. Entrusting the task to him held great promise of success.

Once the matter was decided, Wu Ren wasted no time, taking his capable subordinates, numbering eight or nine, and set off. He was also anxious because there were many Wu Family members there. Bringing them back quickly would assure peace among the island’s Martial Artists.

As for the second point, which was equally troubling, now that there were so many people on the island and more to come in the future, how to feed them was a problem. Where would resources come from? The little savings left wouldn’t last long. Without a relatively stable source of resources, the Skeleton Sect’s ultimate fate would be as Tie Hualong imagined—voluntarily seeking out the Tie Family for annexation.

The Second Elder decided to personally lead a team to search. He planned to visit various islands and the Tie Family Island to gather information. Living people shouldn’t be trapped by lack of resources, he must find a solution.

Regarding the third point, everyone decided to divide the remaining elders and Second Level Martial Artists into two groups. One group would go to various islands to gather intelligence, while the other would organize defensive forces and lead people to fish, preparing underwater products, and storing the food everyone would need.

Some people suggested setting up various traps on the island and establishing a number of hidden sentries, assigning people for guard duty. At the first sign of trouble, they would report to Wu Qingxia immediately to ensure the island’s safety, ensuring no enemy would sneak onto the island unnoticed.

And then there’s the eating problem for everyone. Feeding so many people is not a small issue. Since everyone had just arrived at this newly opened island, disturbing the island’s original inhabitants would certainly provoke their resentment and resistance. Until they had a firm foothold, no mishaps must happen. Therefore, the Second Elder forbade disturbing the original inhabitants and arranged people to cook meals themselves.

After the meeting, Wu Qingxia also became busy. Previously, she was the eldest daughter of the Wu Family, with nothing to manage, always having food and clothing served to her. But now, in this situation, that wouldn’t work. Although she could remain silent during meetings, she had to handle the responsibilities herself. Now she was the sect leader and had to personally attend to everything and set an example.

Ding Fan was not burdened with these matters. He often stayed in his room cultivating, pondering about the Sirius inheritance and occasionally researching the concept of the Fourth Wave. He discovered that with his current power, he could unleash a Fifth Wave, but it was somewhat strenuous. The main issue was that his True Qi was not abundant enough. If he had enough True Qi, casting a Fifth Wave, or even a Sixth or Seventh Wave, wouldn’t be a problem.

Tie Hualong had released the word that the Skeleton Ground Sect on Xinkai Island was a subordinate force of their Tie Family. With the backing of the Tie Family, no one dared to cause trouble. There were very few original inhabitants on Xinkai Island, and only a few dozen had reached the First Level of the Divine Realm. So the island remained very quiet, with no one daring to create any disturbances.

A few days later, the Second Elder returned, but he was in a terrible mood. Now he understood the method the Tie Family and Moonlight Island used to support so many people, but for them, it was an impossible task.

On Moonlight Island, they raised a type of Spirit Deer. This Spirit Deer’s fur grew rapidly, and they could shear it two to three times a month. This fur could be made into beautiful velvet garments and skirts, which, when lined with soft armor or heavy armor, wouldn’t wear out and provided warmth. More importantly, the fur was very light; a single velvet garment, light enough to grasp with one hand, could shield against cold winds and snowstorms. The price of this velvet was extremely high—a single velvet garment could sell for thousands of pieces of Black Obsidian. With such financial resources, they could buy whatever they wanted, making the owner of Moonlight Island a veritable tycoon.

But the Second Elder also learned that the food the Spirit Deer required was very special, comprising secretively cultivated Spirit Grass. This was a matter of sustenance for an entire clan, and the people of Moonlight Island would never pass it on to others. Even among the top management of Moonlight Island, very few knew about it. The secret recipe was only in the hands of a few influential people. Not even ordinary people on Moonlight Island knew the recipe, let alone outsiders.

The Jiao Family on Moonlight Island was a subordinate force of the Xu Family on Moon Mist Island. The Xu Family was a Fourth Grade family with deep roots; who would dare to mess with them? They could destroy your entire clan!

The source of the Black Obsidian for the Tie Family also involved the use of spiritual beasts. However, they utilized the blood of these beasts. Their island cultivated a type of Spirit Grass, the Crimson Flame Bodhi. Once matured, the Bodhi Fruit was a primary ingredient for the Foundation Building Pill, a Spiritual Medicine essential for training Inner Strength and True Qi. Every Martial Artist needed to buy this Foundation Building Pill for cultivation. Even Ding Fan had used it shortly after arriving in the Divine Realm, so he was familiar with the pill, though he didn’t know that its most crucial ingredient was the Crimson Flame Bodhi. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

The Foundation Building Pill was already very precious, so the Crimson Flame Bodhi rose in value with it. Primarily, there was a market for this because every family had numerous Martial Artists wanting to cultivate. The simplest and fastest way was through medicine!

The Crimson Flame Bodhi was not exclusive to the Tie Family. Many families in the Tianmu Sea region cultivated it, but none could match the quality of the Tie Family’s Crimson Flame Bodhi, which always sold the best.

In reality, the method for cultivating the Crimson Flame Bodhi was simple and not a secret. Many families in the Tianmu Sea knew about it. Moreover, the Crimson Flame Bodhi didn’t grow on ordinary land; it had to grow in the Magma Land. Tie Family Island had the best Magma Land, so their Crimson Flame Bodhi was always of the highest quality.

Tie Hualong had instructed people to attempt growing it on the surrounding islands, including Xinkai Island, totaling over a dozen islands. However, the Crimson Flame Bodhi grown there was so substandard that it couldn’t be sold at all.

The people of the Skeleton Sect were dumbfounded. There were no mineral veins here, and the barren land couldn’t support crops or raise spiritual beasts or insects. There wasn’t much in terms of sea beasts nearby either. Even when the Second Elder had people explore the ocean floor, he found that no resources could be derived from below.

Suddenly, everyone felt they were at an impasse. This situation was the most fearsome for a family. A sect wanting to rise without resources was an impossibility. The combined wealth of the Skeleton Sect wasn’t enough for Ding Fan alone to advance his realm of cultivation.

A Martial Artist wanting to grow stronger requires a vast amount of resources to ensure continued training. Without resources, strong warriors simply cannot emerge. Without strong warriors, how could the sect become powerful?

If there were no resources, how could the Martial Artists within the sect be united here, or work for you? ’If a person does not look out for themselves, the heavens and earth will annihilate them.’ Truly reaching such a stage, ordinary Martial Artists, even those at the Second Level of the Divine Realm, wouldn’t stay here.

This issue was tremendously alarming and had to be resolved. In the past, during the Battle of Great Python Mountain, Elder Wu Ji sought some strong external reinforcements. They all spoke well but ultimately, when they saw that the Great Elder couldn’t provide benefits, they didn’t show up even when the Wu Family was breached. This was a living example.

Back then, in their push into the Tianmu Sea, the Skeleton Sect lost a lot of property, including Martial Arts Manuals and inheritances passed down through many years.

They were also extorted for much Black Obsidian by the warriors from Moon Mist Island. Now, they were impoverished, and if they didn’t quickly come up with a solution, and really brought their families over, everyone might end up hugging each other and starving to death.