Summit of the Old Gods

"It seems that controlling Jingxian Island will be easier than imagined." Lu Ran sat down at the stone table in the southeast corner of the courtyard.

"There's no harm in giving it a try." Jiang Ruyi signaled the Xuan Shuang Guard to make some tea, then also sat down at the stone table.

Lu Ran felt like he was ill.

A drooping Immortal Jasmine Tree was planted on the west side of the courtyard. Inside and outside of Cloud Sea Residence, a faint jasmine fragrance wafted through the air.

It wasn't until Jiang Fairy got closer that Lu Ran seemed to realize this and finally caught the scent of the flowers.

Sniff~

Lu Ran twitched his nose, making Jiang Ruyi chuckle at the sight.

No wonder the people in Da Xia call you "Ran Dog."

That little gesture is truly expressive.

Jiang Ruyi turned her head and saw the three-meter-high flower tree with lush branches and leaves, clusters of pink and white jasmine flowers gently swaying in the breeze, a delightful sight.

Lu Ran was also looking at the drooping Immortal Jasmine.

Not at the flower tree,

but at his own blossom.

"How many people do you plan to take on this expedition to Jingxian Island?" Jiang Ruyi casually asked.

"I'll take as many as possible." Lu Ran recalled the layout of Jingxian Sect, "Besides the central main island, there are people stationed on the surrounding small islands, and we need to catch them all in one go."

The number of guard islands around Jingxian Island is quite considerable.

Jiang Ruyi contemplated, "After taking down the Jingxian Sect, you can leave an Evil Mirror Demon on the island to help you collect Holy Spirit Energy."

The Holy Spirit Energy falling within the Cloud Sea Cliff and Pear Garden Sect territories can be guarded by sentries, but the terrain of Jingxian Island is special. If the Holy Spirit Energy falls into the sea, people cannot guard it.

The issue is, Lu Ran has "Fourteen Star Island" overseas.

Whenever he goes to harvest, he nourishes the Evil Mirror Demon Sculpture; the resources for their growth are already plentiful enough.

Lu Ran had an idea: "I can try to teach the Evil Mirror Demon to store the collected Holy Spirit Energy in one place rather than absorbing it themselves."

Jiang Ruyi slightly raised her eyebrows.

Lu Ran continued talking to himself, "This tribe is not low in intelligence; with patient teaching, it should work! Even if, in the process of collecting, she accidentally absorbs a small part into her soul, it should still be manageable."

Jiang Ruyi nodded, "Then on Jingxian Island, you can arrange a house for the Evil Mirror Demon, allowing her to use a mirror to direct the Holy Spirit Energy into the house.

Let everyone on the island cooperate with the Evil Mirror Demon. If they find any Holy Spirit Energy falling, they should notify her immediately."

"Mm." Lu Ran nodded silently, the more he thought, the more feasible it seemed.

The same method can be applied to Cloud Sea Cliff and Pear Garden Sect, making it more conducive to centralized resource protection and sparing Ran Sect disciples from standing guard in the wild day and night.

That's how it'll be done!

Jiang Ruyi suddenly said, "Actually you can select a few disciples from the Ran Sect to become believers of the Evil Mirror Demon."

Human Clan communication is naturally more convenient.

"Hmm..." Lu Ran seemed hesitant.

It's not easy to recruit believers of the Evil Mirror Demon!

It's not that there's a technical difficulty, but a matter of selecting candidates.

Ultimately, the evil technique of the Evil Mirror Demon clan is too dominant! Just the Evil Mirror Believers in the River Realm can expend magical power to traverse a hundred kilometers at once.

This is undoubtedly a divine skill!

Extremely functional and highly threatening.

Even if Lu Ran can control the life and death of his disciples, to recruit Mirror Believers, he must choose people he can trust completely.

Lu Ran expressed his concerns.

Jiang Ruyi agreed deeply. As the power of the Ran Sect grows larger and its development speed increases, caution and prudence are indeed necessary.

Every Mirror Believer is like a large door.

Cloud Sea Cliff, Pear Garden Sect, Jingxian Island, Tiangang City, wherever there are Mirror Believers, people inside can go out, and people outside can come in through the doors.

And the doors themselves have unparalleled mobility, able to travel to various places in the Mountain Realm at will.

Various Evil Demon strongholds, each major sect power...

So Mirror Disciples must be carefully selected, their numbers should not be too large, and there should be others nearby to monitor them. If something does happen, it allows Lu Ran to quickly know the situation and promptly find the source of trouble to mitigate losses immediately.

Human hearts are complex, especially in such a cruel place, where beings tormented by pain can do anything.

Thus, Lu Ran's Shadow Guard Team only has four members so far.

Therefore, Lu Ran completely sealed the skill of the Fiery Fire Heavenly Leader in the Divine Sculpture of Lie Tian.

Jiang Ruyi said, "After capturing Jingxian Island this time, I'll choose a few disciples from the Ran Sect."

"You choose?" Lu Ran did not doubt her personal ability.

Jiang Ruyi confirmed, "With the help of the phoenix robe as a filter, I'll find a few obedient, loyal, and reliable disciples to train by my side for a while. Once I think they're ready, I'll hand them over to you."

"Alright." Lu Ran nodded heavily.

Mirror, Mirror Disciple... oh right, is today the tenth of October?

It's been five months since I last went to sea.

"Ruyi, I'm going to take a spin around the Fourteen Star Island and will be back soon." Lu Ran stood up, summoning the Ancient Bronze Mirror, "Evil Shadow."

A Charm Shadow silently appeared, standing beside Lu Ran, nodding in acknowledgment to Lady Ran.

"Be safe." Jiang Ruyi softly reminded him.

"Understood!" Lu Ran quickly replied.

Yan Shuangzi: "..."

Master Lu and the Evil Shadow Guardian left swiftly, and the Landing Mirror disappeared without a trace.

Just then, the Xuan Shuang Guard came with a tea tray, followed by a petite figure.

"Sister Ruyi." Tian Tian called softly.

"Hm?" Jiang Ruyi turned her head to see the timid look on Tian Tian's face and couldn't help but smile.

"I... I can help you collect the Holy Spirit Energy." Tian Tian approached Jiang Ruyi, head down, her small hands nervously twisted together.

The smile on Jiang Ruyi's face softened.

Tian Tian lowered her little head further, eager to help Lu Ran and Jiang Ruyi but worried about overestimating herself and being rejected.

What she feared most was Jiang Ruyi not trusting her.

Although this situation shouldn't be a concern for Tian Tian, she was never a confident person.

Suddenly, Tian Tian's body tensed up.

Because a slender hand reached out, gently caressing her pretty face: "We are collecting Believers, but you're different, Tian Tian."

"Hmm?"

"You are a Divine being." The woman's voice was cold, like a breeze brushing past.

The sensitive Tian Tian had all her complex emotions blown away.

"Don't rush, Tian Tian." Jiang Ruyi's gaze softened, "The days are long, you, Yutang, and Manni, including Little Yuanxi, are all in the stage of growth.

The Divine Power is abundant in Holy Spirit Mountain, comparable to the cultivation environment in the Inner City beneath the feet of the Divine beings in the human world.

Your only task now is to cultivate and grow quickly in this stable environment."

Tian Tian quietly nodded repeatedly.

There was good news from Deng Yutang and Bai Manni's side; since binding with the Evil Sculpture, this young couple broke through their talent limit and easily stepped into the Fifth Rank of the River Realm.

Afterward, they jointly advanced to the River Realm, becoming Great Powers by the standards of the human world.

But in Holy Spirit Mountain, the River Realm is not worthy of being called a "Great Power."

Here, the initial stage of the River Realm is the lowest existence.

Such words, if spread to the human world, would certainly cause a stir!

And there would certainly be a considerable number of people unwilling to believe such nonsense...

"Yuanxi?" Jiang Ruyi suddenly asked.

"She's... she's in the backyard, cultivating under the tree." Tian Tian's voice was already small, and this sentence became smaller and smaller.

Jiang Ruyi didn't say anything else, just smiled slightly and gently pinched Tian Tian's cheek.

"Oh, I'll go cultivate now." Tian Tian hurriedly said, reluctantly stealing a glance at Jiang Ruyi, and quickly headed for the northeast corner of the courtyard.

The reluctance came from a strong Dao Heart.

The effort in cultivation also arose from it.

On both sides of Cloud Sea Residence, thick stone walls were connected. Tian Tian passed through the gate of the wall to the backyard, and indeed saw Qiao Yuansi quietly meditating under an Immortal Jasmine Tree.

A Black Ice sword—Flower Night Sword—lay horizontally on her knees.

Lu Ran had once asked about the name of this sword, and according to Little Yuanxi, the name of the weapon is an extension of her own name.

The so-called "Flower Night" referred to the lively night scene of lantern displays and brilliant fireworks that the human world should have had on the night of the fifteenth day of the first month, before the descent of God Demons.

At this moment, the usually cheerful and lively Little Yuanxi was diligently cultivating.

She was so serene.

It's important to know that the mist inside Cloud Sea Cliff had just dissipated, and even though she had been in seclusion for nine days, Qiao Yuansi still showed no signs of resting.

She continued to absorb Divine Power, constantly impacting and broadening her internal meridians.

If her mother, Qiao Wanjun, saw this scene, she should be relieved, thinking that her child had finally grown up.

Qiao Yuansi indeed harbored a strong determination!

She clearly understood that she was precisely the canary raised at home by her brother and sister-in-law.

It was not a bad situation, Qiao Yuansi really liked and enjoyed this care, but she also wanted to fly out and see the mysterious Holy Spirit Mountain.

Her brother's requirement was also clear: to advance to the Sea Realm!

She was currently at the Fourth Rank of the River Realm, just a little bit short...

"Hmm?" Qiao Yuansi sensed something, opened her eyes, and saw Tian Tian lost in thought.

"What's up?" Qiao Yuansi blinked.

Those bright and lively eyes were hard not to love.

"Nothing, nothing." Tian Tian hurriedly averted her gaze and went quickly to a seat under an Immortal Jasmine Tree in front of her room, kneeling down on the ground.

"Big sister, keep it up~" Qiao Yuansi encouraged with a smiling crescent moon-like eyes.

"Mm!" Tian Tian replied softly, inhaling the refreshing floral fragrance, bowed her head, and closed her eyes.

In the backyard, there were four drooping Immortal Jasmine Trees, all brought back by Lu Ran from the Glazed Realm.

They constantly absorbed Divine Power from the heavens and earth, and since they couldn't contain it themselves, they continuously exuded a faint Immortal Fog.

For the Human Clan, this was naturally a magical treasure to accelerate cultivation.

Lu Ran was indeed dedicated, providing better conditions for his companions. The Nightmare Residence where Mr. Deng and Bai Manni lived, as well as other residences like Mad Immortal Residence, also had exotic flowers and herbs.

But these were not the extremely rare Immortal Jasmine Trees, but vine-like plants with similar effects—Earth Cover Grass.

Like climbing tigers, they covered every face of the courtyard fence...

On this side, Yuanxi and Tian Tian were full of inner drive, working hard in their cultivation, while far across the vast seas thousands of kilometers away, Lu Ran and the Evil Shadow Guardian climbed one island after another.

Frantically collecting rents!

Until they reached the fourteenth island, Lu Ran counted the notches recorded on the wall and calculated that he had collected a total of 913 strands of Holy Spirit Energy.

Not much different from last time, on average each island could hand over about 13 strands of Holy Spirit Energy per month.

In the God Demon Sculpture Garden, the Evil Mirror Demon Sculpture at the Third Rank of the Sea Realm unexpectedly began to tremble.

Lu Ran, with a buzzing brain, supplemented the islands with stationed Evil Demon Minions with ease.

When he returned to Cloud Sea Cliff, it was already noon, and Jiang Ruyi was still sitting in the courtyard, quietly sipping tea and enjoying the flowers.

"Was it smooth?" Jiang Ruyi looked at the person stepping out of the mirror.

"Yeah." Lu Ran returned to the stone table, letting out a long sigh, "The Evil Mirror Sculpture is advancing to the Fourth Rank of the Sea Realm, once it successfully upgrades, I will be able to summon two more Evil Mirror Demons."

Jiang Ruyi picked up the teacup and handed it over: "Once the Evil Mirror Sculpture advances to the Heavenly Realm, you'll be able to lay out a large net."

A Heavenly Realm Evil Sculpture can summon Sea Realm Evil Demon Minions.

But there's no need.

Lu Ran can continue to summon River Realm Evil Mirror Demons, multiplying the quantity by ten!

For occupying islands, it could then be calculated in units of hundreds.

This has quite a snowballing effect.

As Lu Ran's power grows stronger, the areas he controls increase, and the resources he gains surge exponentially...

...