Heaven Sect

April, Year 2639 of the Douluo Calendar

"Big smooth-talker, have you really decided?" Lin Ao sat across from Tang Xuan, looking at him.

"Old man Lin, you've already asked eight hundred times. Let me tell you one more time, in all seriousness: I've decided. I'm going to establish a force of my own."

"Why did you suddenly get this idea?" Lin Ao asked, puzzled.

"Dark currents are surging beneath the continent's surface, and the various powers are interlocked like a dog's jagged teeth. Under these circumstances, one person's strength is ultimately limited. Having a force of my own will give me more security."

Besides, there was his own identity to consider. The Spirit Hall regarded Tang Hao as a mortal enemy, so Tang Xuan could not stay out of it either. Sometimes, he truly could not understand it. Bibi Dong had no grudge against Tang Hao. In fact, to a certain extent, Tang Hao had even helped her. Tang Hao had severely wounded Qian Xunji, and it was precisely because Qian Xunji had been wounded that Bibi Dong had been able to kill him! Yet after Bibi Dong ascended to the papal throne, she still pursued Tang Hao relentlessly. If that had been meant to appease the people of the Spirit Hall, why had the hunt for Tang Hao continued even after she had gained complete control over it?

This tangled grudge, in which right and wrong were so difficult to distinguish, would ultimately have to be settled through strength. Economic power alone would not suffice against the Spirit Hall. He needed hard power as well.

"Anyway, after all that, old man Lin, are you joining or not?"

"Of course I'm joining! Why wouldn't I? I've long considered you a friend despite our age difference. With your gift for smooth-talking, any force you establish is bound to have a future."

"Besides, I owe you my thanks. Your soul core condensation method has benefited me enormously, giving me both the opportunity and the hope of climbing to a higher realm. Whether out of friendship or obligation, I ought to lend you a hand," Lin Ao said earnestly.

A year earlier, Tang Xuan had talked Lin Ao into staying. Once he stayed, he could no longer bring himself to leave. When he learned that Tang Xuan was only seven years old, Lin Ao had marveled at both his cultivation talent and the commercial fortune he had built from nothing.

More importantly, their temperaments were similar, and they got along exceptionally well. With Tang Xuan's help, Lin Ao had now reached the peak of rank eighty-eight. If he successfully condensed a second soul core, he might be able to break through to rank ninety.

Without Tang Xuan's soul core method, reaching the Soul Douluo realm would already have been the limit of Lin Ao's aptitude. Now that he had a much greater hope of becoming a Titled Douluo, he felt not only friendship toward Tang Xuan, but gratitude as well.

"Still, I have no problem joining, but I don't know whether Elder Song and Su Qing will agree."

The two were Lin Ao's longtime friends, both powerful rank eighty-six Soul Douluos who had also practiced Tang Xuan's soul core condensation method. After deciding to stay, Lin Ao had invited them over as well. Not only had Tang Xuan talked Lin Ao into staying, he had also persuaded Song Ming and Su Qing to remain. It was buy one, get two free-three Soul Douluos acquired in one stroke. Why else would Lin Ao call Tang Xuan a big smooth-talker?

"What are you saying, old man Lin? If you can join Little Xuan's sect, what do Su Qing and I lack? Why couldn't we join?"

An elderly woman and a middle-aged man entered through the door. The elderly woman was the one who had spoken. Though her hair was graying, she walked with a tiger's vigor. The middle-aged man had sharp brows and bright eyes, and his tall, straight frame looked powerful and imposing.

"Little Xuan, Su Qing and I want to join too." After speaking, she shot Lin Ao a glance.

"Old Song, why do you turn up everywhere? You haunt me like a lingering ghost!"

"What, do you have a problem with that?" Song Ming shot back. The two started bickering the moment they met.

"Little Xuan, there's no problem with us joining, is there?" Su Qing stepped forward and asked.

"Absolutely not! Uncle Qing, Elder Song, I couldn't be happier to welcome you into my sect!" Tang Xuan said at once.

"Little Xuan, have you decided how to proceed?" Song Ming's question gradually brought the discussion back on track.

Tang Xuan considered it for a moment before speaking.

"The sect will be named the Heaven Sect. To handle all kinds of situations, we'll need not only Soul Masters, but an army as well. The sect won't reveal itself directly. On the surface, we'll appear before the world as a merchant guild. Using the guild as a cover, we'll secretly recruit and cultivate Soul Masters and train an army." Lin Ao, Song Ming, and Su Qing all nodded in agreement.

"We also need to establish an organization responsible for researching and developing soul weapons to equip the army." Tang Xuan had already assembled people to develop some simple soul weapons, and their power was considerable.

"Operating under the name of a merchant guild will make it easier for the sect to conceal its strength. The guild's profits can also fund the sect's development, so the two will complement each other. Equipping the army with soul weapons will greatly improve its fighting strength. Even against the elite armies of the two great empires, we could win every battle," Su Qing analyzed. They had all witnessed the power of soul weapons.

Tang Xuan continued, "I'll be the sect master. Old man Lin will be the first elder, Elder Song the second elder, and Uncle Su the third elder. The three of you will oversee the sect's Soul Masters and army. I'll transfer over a thousand Soul Masters from the merchant guild to bolster our ranks." Over the past two years, the Heavenly Journey Merchant Guild's businesses had spread everywhere, and its personnel had steadily increased. Countless Soul Masters had joined the guild, so transferring a thousand of them would not be difficult.

"The merchant guild's affairs will be managed by Wang Wei, Nock, and Xiao Cheng." These three were trusted subordinates whom Tang Xuan had recruited and trained. Their strength was at ranks sixty-eight, sixty-nine, and sixty-eight, respectively.

"Mm, that's a good division of responsibilities. Old Song, Su Qing, and I know nothing about business, but managing Soul Masters should be within our abilities. I agree!"

"Mm, we have no objections either," Song Ming and Su Qing said together.

"Also, since the sect is still short-handed, old man Lin, I'll leave the Shadow Pavilion under your direct supervision." The Shadow Pavilion was too important; Tang Xuan had to entrust it to someone he trusted.

"All right. Rest assured." Knowing the Shadow Pavilion's importance, Lin Ao readily agreed.

"Then, as of today, our Heaven Sect is officially established," Tang Xuan said happily.

Lin Ao and the other two stepped aside and bowed. "We pay our respects to the sect master!"

"Haha! Please rise, elders."

"From now on, the three of you, together with Wang Wei and the other two, will form an elders' council and jointly discuss and manage all the sect's affairs. But remember one thing: until the sect formally reveals itself to the world, I am only the president of the Heavenly Journey Merchant Guild, and you are only the guild's elders."

"Yes, Sect Master." Lin Ao and the other two straightened. The four exchanged looks, then all burst into laughter.

Today was an ordinary day, yet also an extraordinary one. An organization that would one day become the continent's overlord was born on this day.