Within the Misty Sect's Council Hall, the Misty Six Tigers, along with Zhang Chengyue, were discussing the sect's development and Ouyang Peng's upcoming meeting with several other sects on the second day of the second lunar month.
Ouyang Peng still sat in his old seat, taking in at a glance the fellow disciples who had grown up alongside him. After nearly ten days of rest, he seemed to have completely brought his surging inner power under control. The divine light in his eyes had turned inward, and from his appearance alone, no one could tell that he was a martial arts master. He had truly returned to simplicity.
Ouyang Peng was greatly gratified. In truth, he was not the only one in high spirits. Apart from Zhang Chengyue, who had not taken any pills, everyone else was in an exceptionally good mood. Of course, after nearly ten days of cultivation, their initial excitement had calmed. What they needed to do now was readjust the Misty Sect's development strategy, work hard to strengthen its influence, and one day become a supreme sect capable of standing shoulder to shoulder with Great Forest Temple, the Incense-Passing Cult, and the Heavenly Dao Alliance.
Ouyang Peng coughed and cleared his throat before saying, "Fellow brothers, congratulations once again on the great advance in your martial arts."
The others returned the courtesy. "The joy is mutual. Thank you, Sect Master, for making this possible."
Ouyang Peng continued, "Now that our Misty Sect's strength has greatly improved, have the other three factions made any moves? Chengyue, is there any news from that side?"
Zhang Chengyue hurriedly replied, "Reporting to Sect Master, news has come from Wan Jian Peak. Sword Master Wan Chengjiu and several protectors from his sect entered seclusion for several days. After emerging, they too refused to see outsiders, much like all the martial uncles here. Presumably, they have all improved their inner power. The Tan Family operates as a lineage, and our spies cannot penetrate their upper ranks, so we do not know the specifics. As for Yanming Villa, I am even more ashamed to say that we have no way of getting involved at all. The outer servants know very little, and know even less about the inner villa."
Ouyang Peng was somewhat displeased. "Chengyue, you have already done much work in this regard, but this alone is still not enough. If we are to make the Misty Sect larger in the future, we cannot do without intelligence. You must speed things up and use every means to drive our nails into the various sects from within. Without information, we are blind men with our eyes open."
Zhang Chengyue said with a face full of shame, "Yes, Master. I will certainly take greater care from now on."
Ouyang Peng added, "This is also because I did not properly instruct you. Before, I only had you practice martial arts and cultivate your inner power. Now I must teach you more about sect affairs. In this respect, learn more from your Fourth Martial Uncle and put more thought into it in the future."
Zhang Chengyue nodded in assent.
Then Ouyang Peng said, "The Medicine Hall has refined another batch of pills from the medicinal herbs in the Secret Realm. There are now more than fifty pills in total. Fellow brothers, once you return, notify your personal disciples to gather at the Training Hall tomorrow afternoon. They will prepare to enter the Secret Chamber and cultivate in seclusion. Make sure this remains confidential. And Chengyue, notify your junior disciples as well."
Everyone indicated that they understood.
After giving it some thought, Ouyang Peng said, "Chengyue, select some disciples with good aptitude from among the second and third generations and bring them to the Council Hall tomorrow. We must still expand the ranks of our core disciples."
At this point, Shangguan the Fourth interjected, "Senior Brother Sect Master, now that the Misty Sect's strength has increased greatly, we should consider how to expand our sphere of influence."
Ouyang Peng nodded. "Yes, that is one of the matters for which I summoned everyone here today."
Hu the Eldest suggested, "Fourth Brother, expansion is not something that can make a man fat with one bite. Do you have any concrete proposal?"
Shangguan the Fourth said, "For the past few days, I have been considering this matter. I have a rough idea now."
Ouyang Peng smiled. "Then tell us quickly. Who does not know that you are the wisdom treasure of our Misty Sect?"
Shangguan the Fourth said, "There is nothing particularly difficult about this idea. I believe the first step should follow Senior Brother's plan: first strengthen our core disciples, then use them to form elite teams and assign them to the External Affairs Hall to carry out expansion missions. Wan Jian Peak to our south likely also gained greatly from this opportunity, so it is not advisable to contend with them at present. Moreover, Senior Brother may yet form an alliance with them next time, so we cannot move south. The Luoshui Gang to the east and the Golden Crow Gate to the west were formerly slightly weaker than us, making them suitable targets. However, one lies in the east and the other in the west. Moving against both at once would scatter our strength, so Senior Brother must weigh the matter."
After a brief moment of thought, Ouyang Peng said, "For now, let us settle on the Luoshui Gang. The Golden Crow Gate lies to the west, and its territory overlaps with Wan Jian Peak's in places. I fear they may have ties with Wan Jian Peak. Wan Jian Peak may even have its eye on them already. Once Yucheng has formed an alliance with Wan Chengjiu, we can sound him out. The Luoshui Gang has always been rooted in the Luoshui River, and this is precisely what we lack. While their wings are not yet fully grown, we should swallow them first. Advancing by both water and land will bring endless benefits to the Misty Sect."
Hu the Eldest offered, "Third Junior Disciple Brother, waterways are our weak point. Why not strike at the Xinrong Sect in the east instead? After all, the Xinrong Sect does not have a very deep foundation, and we are confident on land as well."
Ouyang Peng smiled at Hu the Eldest. "Eldest Senior Brother, both you and I were deceived by the Xinrong Sect's low profile. I have just received word that the Xinrong Sect's leader is an expelled disciple of Great Forest Temple's Enforcement Elder. The Xinrong Sect is clearly a chess piece Great Forest Temple planted in our Pingyang City and Yucheng. We cannot act blindly. Besides, though the Luoshui Gang began on the waterways, if we take the initiative and plan properly, our chances of success remain considerable."
Ouyang Peng took a sip of tea and continued, "Furthermore, our Misty Sect has always been based on land, and Pingyang City is trapped between the Luoshui Gang, the Golden Crow Gate, and the Xinrong Sect. Our room for development is limited. If we take over the Luoshui Gang's territory and make use of the Luoshui River, we can move east or west, which will be greatly beneficial to the sect's development."
Everyone fell into silent contemplation.
After the time it took to drink half a cup of tea, Shangguan the Fourth spoke. "Fourth Senior Brother, following this plan, I fear our sect does not have enough manpower."
Ouyang Peng said, "I have long considered that. The Misty Sect's development requires manpower. In the past, our sect emphasized quality over quantity. Now that the strength of our upper-level disciples has increased, the number of lower-level disciples is clearly insufficient. Chengyue, give it some thought. Recruit a batch of disciples soon to bolster our sect's strength. You may take charge of the specific arrangements."
Zhang Chengyue nodded in agreement.
Then Ouyang Peng said to Zhang Chengyue, "Chengyue, you may leave first. Go notify your junior disciples. You should also rest well and prepare to improve your inner power tomorrow."
Excitement flushed Zhang Chengyue's face red. He saluted and withdrew.
Liu the Fifth, who had not spoken until then, finally said, "It is only an increase in inner power. Look at you, Chengyue—what are you getting so worked up about?"
Good heavens, it's an increase in inner power! How could I not be excited? I heard you raised your inner power by twenty years in one go. Could you possibly not be excited?
Yet aloud, he said, "Yes, Fifth Martial Uncle's reprimand is correct. This nephew should remain unshaken even amid chaos."
Ouyang Peng said, "Do not listen to your Fifth Martial Uncle's nonsense. Still, do not get overly excited. When you take the medicine, you must carry out your qi circulation with a calm mind. Otherwise, you will waste heavenly treasures."
Zhang Chengyue quickly walked out, wanting only to escape Fifth Martial Uncle's gaze as soon as possible.
Only after Zhang Chengyue had left the Council Hall did Ouyang Peng turn back, smiling at Liu the Fifth. "Fifth Junior Brother, Chengyue is a steady child. Do not always make fun of him."
Xu the Sixth also said, "Heh heh, and you are talking about someone else? When Fifth Brother took the Bone-Strengthening Pill that day, was he not just as excited? Afterward, he drank with Shi Niu until he was mud-drunk. If he had not been happy, could he have gotten that drunk?"
Liu the Fifth's face reddened as he argued, "I was absorbing the medicinal properties, and cultivation had exhausted me. Otherwise, how could I possibly drink less than that stone ox?"
Everyone burst into laughter.
Then Ouyang Peng turned serious and said to the others, "Brothers, all the medicinal herbs we brought out from the Secret Realm last time have been refined. In a few days, it will be the second day of the second lunar month, and our four factions have agreed to meet at Wutong Mountain. This time, we will discuss entering the Secret Realm again to gather medicinal herbs. We may also discuss forming an alliance. What are your thoughts?"
Shangguan the Fourth said, "Senior Brother, I do not think an alliance is very likely."
Ouyang Peng asked, "Why not?"
Shangguan the Fourth explained, "Wan Jian Peak and our Misty Sect can certainly form an alliance. We are both sects of the martial world, sharing blessings and bearing hardships together. But Yanming Villa and the Tan Family, though they are part of the martial world, basically do not take part in its affairs. They have neither reason nor strength to form an alliance with us."
Ouyang Peng stroked his chin thoughtfully. "A public alliance is naturally impossible. Our four factions cannot account to the other martial world sects in terms of our directions of development, spheres of influence, or organizational structures. If we announce an alliance, we will certainly draw the attention of other sects, and the gains will not make up for the losses. I favor a loose alliance, or rather, an alliance among the four sect leaders rather than an alliance between the sects themselves. This way, we can share the Secret Realm's secret while ensuring that news of it does not leak."
Hu the Eldest nodded. "That is a good approach. The purpose of this alliance would concern only the Secret Realm, separated from the interests of the sects. Should any side leak news of the Secret Realm, the other three factions will join together to punish it."
Ouyang Peng gave a bitter smile. "Once the news leaks, there will be no need for the other three factions to punish anyone. A storm of blood and wind will soon sweep through the martial world. That is why we must hurry and strengthen our own power."
Then Ouyang Peng turned and asked Li the Second, who had remained quiet with lowered brows and compliant eyes, "Second Senior Brother, have you read that sword manual?"
Li the Second nodded, stingily offering no reply.
Ouyang Peng did not mind and continued asking, "How many of our current sword-practicing disciples do you think can switch to cultivating it?"
Li the Second shook his head again.
Ouyang Peng said somewhat dejectedly, "Sigh, changing one's cultivation midway is indeed inappropriate. Fourth Senior Brother, when Chengyue recruits disciples, select some from among them as well to cultivate this sword manual. At the same time, ask Second Senior Brother to guide them. It would be best if Second Senior Brother could take in a few more personal disciples."
Li the Second nodded in agreement. Ever since his inner power had greatly advanced last time, he seemed to have become even more focused on cultivating the sword, and spoke even less than before.