Chen Shi'an shook his head. "Even if we split up into small groups, with so many people in our Earth Pill Sect, we couldn't leave the Sacred Martial Dynasty safely.
"Never mind the Sacred Martial Dynasty-even leaving Desolate Suppression City would probably be difficult."
An elder was about to object when Chen Shi'an continued, "Even if we could leave the Sacred Martial Dynasty and go to Northern Liang or Southern Qing,
"we would still be living under someone else's roof.
"Who could guarantee that Northern Liang or Southern Qing wouldn't treat us just like the Sacred Martial Dynasty?"
At those words, the Council Hall fell silent again.
Only after six full breaths did someone ask gravely, "If we can't go to Northern Liang or Southern Qing, are we supposed to stay here forever and let Gao Tianfang carve us up as he pleases?"
Chen Shi'an raised his voice slightly. "Leaving Desolate Suppression City is certainly the best choice, but we must go somewhere we can control our own destiny, rather than live under someone else's roof again."
Someone chimed in, "In the world today, apart from the Sacred Martial Dynasty, Northern Liang, and Southern Qing, there's only the Eastern Nethersea, far across the ocean. Where else could we go besides those four places?"
Chen Shi'an raised his head. "Have you all forgotten one place? It's right before our eyes!"
"The Desolate Ruins!"
"You mean we should move the Earth Pill Sect into the Desolate Ruins?"
"No! Conditions in the Desolate Ruins are harsh, refugees are everywhere, Demon Beasts run rampant, and dangers abound. How could we go there?"
"The Desolate Ruins are a land of exile. How could we Alchemists go somewhere like that?"
At the mention of the Desolate Ruins, the Earth Pill Sect's leaders immediately became agitated,