"It's time to reap the rewards!"
Disguised as a branch disciple, Ian Song smiled and strolled out, then joined Shaoyang Chen and the other four to help clear out the Great Wild Province Branch Altar's treasure vault.
They also abolished the cultivation of the remaining branch disciples for good measure.
Back at the Lesser Sun Sect, everyone counted their haul and realized it was even greater than expected. Just the combined contents of the three Fusion guardians' Storage Rings were worth over fifty thousand top-grade spirit crystals.
Honestly, the Prime One Church's Fusion guardians were insanely rich.
As for the resources in the Great Wild Province treasure vault itself, their total value was only about ten thousand top-grade spirit crystals.
All told, they'd raked in sixty thousand top-grade spirit crystals. Shaoyang Chen got twenty percent—twelve thousand crystals—while the other four each received eight thousand.
For a moment, all five Fusion patriarchs were absolutely thrilled. Their sects' total assets had only ever been two or three thousand crystals, so this single night's haul was several times their entire foundations—they almost wanted to break out into song.
"Murder and arson bring golden belts! Patriarchs, how about another job?" Ian Song joked, grinning.
If they hadn't seen this mountain of resources with their own eyes, they definitely would have refused. But after making several times their sects' net worth in a single night, all five Fusion patriarchs were itching for more.
It's just like robbing a bank—before the first time, everyone's full of doubts. But after one successful heist and a big payout, if someone suggests doing it again, you can bet everyone will be tempted.
Plus, Ian Song's schemes were seriously sharp. With his plans and their muscle, tonight's operation was a breeze—barely a hint of danger.
"Old Chen, what do you think?" asked the Sunrise Sword Sect patriarch, though it was obvious everyone was itching for another round.
If they hit one more Prime One Church branch altar, the loot could easily let them raise another Fusion expert.
"Right, you brought us in—it's your call!"
The Spiritfish Sect patriarch grinned, thinking about those eight thousand crystals. Despite being a Fusion patriarch, he's always stuck guarding his sect, not roaming the world for treasure—so honestly, he's not much richer than a few hundred top-grade crystals.
The other two Fusion patriarchs also left it to Shaoyang Chen to decide.
"You old foxes! Acting chaste after turning to crime—clearly you've all made up your minds, but you want me to take the blame. Fine, for the sake of our years together, I'll make the call!"
Shaoyang Chen laughed—his take was far bigger than his old friends', so it was only fair he took the lead.
Once the five Fusion patriarchs had agreed, Ian Song said, "Sharpening the axe doesn't delay chopping wood. It'll take at least three days for news of the Great Wild Province Branch Altar's destruction to spread, so let's set the next raid for the day after tomorrow. Rest up for two days, and I've got a few things to hand out to everyone!"
As they spoke, Ian Song took out five jade slips and five jade bottles, handing one of each to the five patriarchs.
After receiving them, all five immediately checked the jade slips. Seeing they really were the continuation manuals they'd wanted, each couldn't help but flush with excitement.
Shaoyang Chen in particular was so moved his hands trembled.
"Young friend, you're the great benefactor of the Lesser Sun Sect!" Shaoyang Chen said, bowing deeply to Ian Song.
"Senior, you mustn't! This is just a transaction!" Ian Song hurriedly helped Shaoyang Chen up.
Shaoyang Chen laughed, "Deal or not, we're getting a huge bargain. You absolutely deserve this bow!"
"That's right, we really are getting a huge bargain!" The other four also stood and bowed to Ian Song.
After dividing up the spoils and settling on the rendezvous for the day after tomorrow, everyone headed home.
Back at his own sect, the Sunrise Sword Sect patriarch remembered the pill bottle Ian Song had given him. Knowing Ian never handed out ordinary gifts, he thought to himself, 'Let's see what this pill is?'
Opening it up, he instantly broke into a grin. "That kid really is something!" he couldn't help but say.
Inside the jade bottle were a full hundred Godbreaking Pills. With them, he could pick a hundred outstanding late Out-of-Body disciples and instantly create a hundred Soul-Split-stage core elders.
Soul-Split disciples are the backbone of any sect.
Adding a hundred would boost the sect's overall strength by at least thirty percent.
The other four patriarchs found the same—each had received a hundred Godbreaking Pills from Ian Song. They were all deeply gratified, and began to think that if the next raid succeeded, there was no reason not to keep working with Ian long-term.
Soon, word of the Great Wild Province Branch Altar's destruction spread throughout the province. But people weren't as shocked as before—after all, Ian Song had already wiped out four branch altars.
Now the hot topic was: just how many Prime One Church branch altars will Little Demon Song destroy before he stops?
At the same time, news of the Great Wild Province Branch Altar's destruction quickly reached the Fire God Church. Before making his deal with Ian Song, Vulcan Pi already knew which altars Ian planned to target.
So after the Battlefront Branch Altar was destroyed, he stationed Fusion-stage spies in the provinces bordering the Ming Dynasty. Any disturbance, and these agents would instantly relay the news back.
Once he learned the Great Wild Province Branch Altar had fallen, Vulcan Pi was certain Ian Song had the power to wipe out ten branch altars. He started weighing whether to contact the sects in two key provinces and bring them under the Fire God Church banner.
At the same time, he considered whether to recruit Ian Song himself. Ian's cultivation might be 'low,' but his skills were terrifyingly effective.
Just imagining Master Mingtan's face when he found out his branch altars were being wiped out one by one was deeply satisfying.
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"Hmph, if that kid can destroy eight more Prime One Church branch altars, I wouldn't mind marrying Diana Toba to him!"
............
Two days flashed by, and by evening, the four patriarchs arrived at the Lesser Sun Sect again, full of energy.
When they saw Ian Song, their gazes were especially warm and friendly. After all, they'd already distributed the hundred Godbreaking Pills, and while only some disciples had broken through to Soul-Split so far, the rest would soon follow.
"Little Song, which branch altar are you targeting next?" Shaoyang Chen asked.
"Sunset Province Branch Altar!"
"Great, let's head out!" All five Fusion patriarchs were eager to get going.
Four hours later, all six returned to the Lesser Sun Sect. Though the Coldreach Sect patriarch had a wound on his arm, no one paid it much mind—they were too busy counting the loot.
The Coldreach Sect patriarch was injured this time because there was a Fusion expert still lurking in Sunset Province—turns out, that branch altar had four Fusion guardians.
Luckily, Shaoyang Chen and the others were all veteran Fusion cultivators. Even with the extra enemy, they managed to fight him off in the end.
After counting up the haul, they found about fifteen thousand top-grade spirit crystals in the Sunset Province Branch Altar's vault. The four Fusion guardians' Storage Rings held treasures, pills, resources, and crystals worth another sixty thousand. In total, they scored more than seventy-five thousand top-grade spirit crystals.
Ian Song said, "Same split as before: Senior Chen gets fifteen thousand crystals, the other four each get eleven thousand two hundred and fifty. Since Senior Zhou from Coldreach Sect was injured, I'll take five thousand from my share to compensate him!"
Hearing this, the Coldreach Sect patriarch, who'd been annoyed about his injury, instantly broke into a big smile.