In the Lesser Sun Sect, a seemingly ordinary courtyard had actually gathered five Fusion-stage masters.
Shaoyang Chen waved Ian Song over and introduced the other four Fusion patriarchs one by one: "Young friend, this is Patriarch Evan of the Sunrise Sword Sect."
"Greetings, Patriarch Evan." Ian Song quickly saluted.
The other party nodded amiably, "No need to be so formal, young Ian."
"This is Patriarch Martin of the Setting Sun Sect... this is Patriarch Patrick of the Coldreach Sect... and this is Patriarch Simon of the Spiritfish Sect."
After exchanging greetings, Ian Song finally took his seat, and all four Fusion patriarchs behaved with notable courtesy.
"Young friend, may I ask why you've invited us old fellows here today?"
It was the Sunrise Sword Sect's Fusion patriarch who spoke.
Ian Song glanced at Shaoyang Chen.
Shaoyang Chen laughed, "Young friend, it's best if you explain the details to them yourself."
Ian nodded, understanding that Shaoyang Chen hadn’t told the four Fusion patriarchs the real reason for secrecy’s sake, to prevent any leaks.
"Seniors, please accept this small token from me!"
Ian Song directly produced four jade slips and handed them to the four Fusion patriarchs.
All four were old monsters who had lived over nine thousand years, so three of them didn’t even look at the jade slips, just tossed them into their Storage Rings, not thinking Ian’s gift could be anything precious. Only Patriarch Simon of the Spiritfish Sect checked his out of curiosity.
But after one look, he was stunned. He quickly skimmed all the contents and confirmed it was a highly advanced cultivation method—training it to its peak could reach early Fusion.
If he switched to this method, the Nascent Soul he condensed would definitely surpass his current one.
He looked at Ian Song with deep meaning, "Young friend, your gift is far too generous!"
"It’s just a small gesture, nothing much," Ian Song replied with a smile.
The other three, now curious, asked, "Simon, what exactly did our young friend give you?"
"You’ll know once you take a look yourselves," Patriarch Simon replied.
So, the three of them all took out their jade slips to check. Their previously casual expressions suddenly turned quite dramatic.
"This is actually a top-tier technique that surpasses our Sunrise Sword Sect's core method. This gift truly is heavy!" Patriarch Evan exclaimed, looking at Ian Song with surprise and shock.
The other two also checked their own jade slips and found that each contained a top-tier method superior to their own sect’s core technique.
Such a technique could easily serve as a sect’s foundation treasure, yet Ian Song had gifted it to all four of them. For a moment, they were deeply curious about Ian’s background and what he was planning.
"Young friend, can you tell us your real purpose now?"
The Sunrise Sword Sect’s patriarch urged him—such a heavy gift felt a bit hot to handle.
"I’d like to ask the five of you to join me in destroying the Prime One Church’s branch altar!" Ian Song stated his goal outright.
"What?"
All four patriarchs were stunned, and their expressions changed dramatically.
"Sorry, young friend, I’m afraid I can’t agree to this!"
Patriarch Simon of the Spiritfish Sect spoke, returning the jade slip. "Please take this back, young friend!"
Ian Song smiled and waved his hand. "A gift, once given, is like water spilled—there’s no taking it back. Even if you refuse, the gift is yours to keep!"
The four nodded quietly to themselves, gaining more respect for Ian Song’s generosity and boldness.
Shaoyang Chen suddenly spoke up, "Don’t be so quick to refuse. At least hear out our young friend’s terms."
Ian Song gave Shaoyang Chen a grateful look, then continued, "If you agree, after our success, I’ll give you the next stage of the technique—enough to reach mid-Fusion. Plus, you’ll get thirty percent of the branch altar’s resources."
"A technique to reach mid-Fusion!"
Hearing this, the four elders narrowed their eyes, clearly tempted. Like Shaoyang Chen, if they couldn’t break through in a few hundred years, their lifespans would run out.
They had poured countless effort into reaching this stage—how could they resign themselves to death now? To them, a mid-Fusion technique was worth more than Ian Song could imagine.
Seeing the four still hesitating,
Shaoyang Chen spoke again, "Old friends, as the saying goes, fortune favors the bold. We’re all half a step into the grave already—why not take a gamble?"
Besides, this young friend has already destroyed four branch altars of the Prime One Church—he’s got plenty of experience. With his planning, I believe our chances of success are high!"
At this, the four looked at Ian Song in surprise. "You’re that Ian Song?"
Ian Song’s form shifted, revealing his true appearance. He said, "It’s understandable if you don’t want to take the risk—after all, you each have a sect to protect. But I must say, we cultivators defy the heavens themselves. If we dare to defy the heavens, why should we fear the Prime One Church? Why should they lord over us, flaunting their power? Why do they get to train in advanced techniques while we struggle to find them? Why do they have endless resources, while we have to scrape and save, barely able to support even two Fusion experts?"
"Enough, young friend—spare us the goading. I’ll agree!" The long-silent Setting Sun Sect patriarch finally spoke.
The Sunrise Sword Sect’s patriarch sighed, "You’re right, young friend. Cultivators should have fearless hearts. It seems the older we get, the more timid we become. Since I’m close to the grave, I’ll take this gamble with you!"
"Fine, since you two old fellows agreed, I can’t let you mock me for refusing—I’ll join in too!" Patriarch Simon of the Spiritfish Sect declared.
All eyes fell on the Coldreach Sect patriarch.
He laughed heartily, "If you all have the guts to gamble, how could I be left out!"
Seeing all four agree, Ian Song was overjoyed and quickly said, "Thank you all for your help!"
"No need to be so formal!" The five patriarchs laughed heartily.
"By the way, young friend, when do you plan to act?" Shaoyang Chen asked.
"Tonight at midnight!" Ian Song replied, a glint of killing intent in his eyes.
Ian Song didn’t act immediately because he still had some preparations to make.
Time passed slowly, and soon night fell.
Even at night, the Prime Wasteland Province branch altar was heavily guarded, with disciples patrolling inside and out. They all knew Ian Song, who had destroyed four branch altars, was a formation master. To prevent him from setting up arrays outside, they had to send people to patrol all around.
"Brother Wei, do you think all this patrolling is really necessary? We’ve got three Fusion patriarchs guarding the branch altar—even if you gave that little devil Ian Song ten times the courage, he wouldn’t dare come!"
In a patrol squad, a guard named Jia Yun complained.
Brother Wei was the squad leader, with late Nascent Soul stage cultivation.
Brother Wei said sternly, "Whether he comes or not, we can’t slack off. I’ve heard that little devil Ian Song is ruthless—at the four branch altars he attacked, even ordinary disciples had their cultivation crippled. If you don’t want to lose your cultivation, patrol properly and don’t let Ian Song’s people slip through!"