Desolate Devouring Art - Chapter 1050 - Refusing Partnership
Chapter 1050 – Refusing Partnership
Participants fanned out across the plaza while second-tier forces began assembling their spiritual arrays.
The Four Great Clans, meanwhile, unveiled their spiritual array compasses, each varying in strength and complexity.
An hour passed swiftly, and most participants had completed their preparations. The judges would evaluate this final segment purely based on the strength of each spiritual array.
Lan Yu, however, remained in a far corner of the plaza. He had already placed his spiritual array compass on the ground with a casual motion, not bothering with dramatic gestures like the others.
“Let the final assessment begin!” Long Chen’s voice echoed across the plaza, signaling the end of the setup phase.
The second-tier sects and clans took the lead. As each activated their spiritual array, mystical patterns lit up, expanding across the plaza.
“The Seven Dipper Destruction Array. Such solid work!”
“The Aquatic Prison Array has decent control!”
“The Terranean Suppression Array… powerful indeed!”
Murmurs rippled through the crowd as they judged the strengths and weaknesses of each formation. Most spectators were seasoned cultivators, and flaws were impossible to escape their notice.
Ten minutes passed. Everyone had evaluated nearly half the arrays, but none had truly impressed them. They were competent, but not original and creative.
All eyes were on three contenders: the Scarlet Dragon Cult, the Liao Clan, and the Heavenly Dao Society. Everyone waited for one of them to deliver a shock that would redefine the segment.
The sun had already begun its descent, casting long golden rays over the plaza. The commerce fair had barely an hour left.
Whispers spread through the crowd. Some could already sense the subtle shift in the air.
The Liu Clan’s array compass came next, but it drew only polite nods. Their spiritual array foundation was still too shallow to compete at the highest level.
And then, all eyes turned to the Scarlet Dragon Cult as their turn arrived.
A middle-aged man from the Scarlet Dragon Cult stepped forward with a cold and unreadable expression. Without uttering a single word, he hurled the spiritual array compass into the air and swiftly formed a series of intricate hand seals.
A surge of wind erupted from the surroundings as the compass expanded mid-air. In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a vast spiritual array that effortlessly devoured the surrounding smaller arrays.
“This is—!” gasped many spectators, rising from their seats in astonishment.
“That’s the Thunderstorm Array,” a grandmaster spiritualist explained, his voice filled with admiration. “It manipulates both wind and lightning.”
As he spoke, he offered high praise for the Scarlet Dragon Cult’s array, impressed by the powerful ripples emanating from it. Even from a distance, it was clear this array was formidable.
Five minutes later, the man retrieved the spiritual array compass, and the light in the plaza faded.
Next was the Liao Clan.
As expected, the Heavenly Dao Society had chosen to go last, just as they had done in the previous segments.
A young disciple from the Liao Clan stepped forward and casually tossed out his spiritual array compass. Unlike the Scarlet Dragon Cult’s array, which required elaborate hand seals, the Liao Clan’s compass activated on its own, descending into a suspended cage-like structure.
This difference alone gave the Liao Clan’s compass an immediate practical advantage.
“That’s the Nine Heavens Soul Suppression Array. Impressive,” said a senior cultivator at the higher level of the Earth Profound Realm, nodding in recognition.
Many others agreed.
The array, while not as violent as the Thunderstorm Array, had precision and control. Spirit Profound Realm cultivators could operate it and were capable of trapping even those at the lower levels of the Earth Profound Realm.
However, such power came at a price.
The array demanded enormous amounts of true essence and spirit stones to function correctly. Without adequate reserves, the user risked severe backlash, especially if their essence ran dry mid-activation.
This spiritual array wasn’t one for the average cultivator.
Mastery of the art of spiritual arrays was essential. Without it, even owning the compass was useless.
As such, the Liao Clan reserved most of their top-tier spiritual arrays for internal use, while only lower-grade versions were ever made available for sale to the public.
“It’s a brilliant spiritual array, but it’s a pity that it’s not suitable for the public,” murmured the spectators, shaking their heads.
No one denied the strength of the Nine Heavens Soul Suppression Array, but its overwhelming drawbacks were just as apparent. The initial excitement gradually faded. Most cultivators dismissed any spiritual array they couldn’t replicate for widespread use.
The crowd shifted their attention toward Lan Yu, eager to see whether the Heavenly Dao Society could pull off yet another miracle.
Still, Lan Yu remained motionless.
Time passed, yet he made no move.
“What the hell is he waiting for? It’s already his turn!” Frustrated voices rang out from the crowd, growing impatient at the silence.
Even those inside the plaza began casting puzzled glances at one another.
Elder Long Chen’s brow furrowed. He wanted to say something to prompt Lan Yu, but ultimately held back. His instincts told him this wasn’t a case of stage fright.
“Brat, are you scared?” one of the Liao Clan’s disciples sneered, stepping forward. To them, it was apparent that Lan Yu had been thoroughly intimidated by the display from the Liao Clan’s array.
Their mockery stirred more people to join in, urging Lan Yu to act.
Lan Yu only smirked and replied lazily, “I’ve already activated it.”
“What?” Shock rippled through the plaza.
People looked around in disbelief. There was no visible energy fluctuation, no sign of activation, not even a slight breeze. They hadn’t seen him make any movements, let alone unleash a spiritual array.
“Hahaha! Has he lost his mind?” one of the Liao Clan disciples laughed mockingly. “There’s nothing there!”
Among the Liao Clan, who had mastered the art of spiritual array compasses, no one could detect the activation of an array. That, to them, was proof enough that Lan Yu was bluffing.
Despite the ridicule from many, others chose to stay silent.
A few individuals, recalling the Heavenly Dao Society’s performance in the earlier segments, hesitated.
Instead of laughing, they began carefully scanning the area, trying to discern what might have escaped their senses.
“Look up!” someone suddenly cried out.
All eyes turned skyward.
A faint, nearly transparent light screen shimmered above them. It was subtle yet unmistakably present. It wasn’t just above them. The entire plaza, vast enough to hold tens of thousands of spectators, had been enveloped in silence by a spiritual array.
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
“What kind of spiritual array is this? Just how much power was needed to cover the entire plaza?”
In sheer scale alone, this spiritual array eclipsed those of the Scarlet Dragon Cult and the Liao Clan. The Scarlet Dragon Cult’s array had engulfed a few surrounding setups, while the Liao Clan’s covered merely a hundred meters in radius. But Lan Yu’s array blanketed the entire plaza.
Spiritual array compasses were known for their portability, but that convenience came at the cost of range. Most focused on single combat or small-scale skirmishes, offering only limited influence.
Yet, Lan Yu’s array displayed no such limitation.
Only now did the crowd notice the absolute marvel: his spiritual array compass had silently fused with the earth.
“What a masterwork!” someone exclaimed in awe. “This compass draws power from the natural laws themselves. It doesn’t even need spirit stones!”
It all made sense now.
Lan Yu hadn’t needed any hand signs. From the moment he laid the compass down, the spiritual array had been silently unfolding, drawn into place by the world itself.
However, what struck fear into the hearts of the spiritualists present wasn’t just the scale or subtlety.
It was the fact that Lan Yu had activated such a powerful array without anyone noticing.
In a duel between spiritualists, such a setup meant one thing: instant defeat.
Had this been a real battle, Lan Yu could’ve trapped the Liao Clan before they even sensed the array.
And now, everyone understood.
If the Liao Clan didn’t retract their spiritual array, it could be dismantled on the spot, rendered powerless within the bounds of Lan Yu’s domain.
“Impressive! How did they even manage to craft such an exquisite compass?” Even cultivators at the high levels of the Earth Profound Realm were stunned, their voices filled with awe.
“Look closely at the operation of the spiritual array,” someone else pointed out, his expression gradually shifting from disbelief to reverence. “It’s harnessing the power of the five elements. That means this array has formed a perpetual cycle, circulating endlessly, as long as the five elements remain unbroken.”
The more they observed, the more shocked they became.
The Liao Clan fell into a heavy silence. No one refuted the claim. No one dared to question the compass or the Heavenly Dao Society.
In the entire Central Plains, only a handful, if any, could craft a spiritual array compass of this level. Since nothing like it had ever been available on the market, no one had the opportunity to purchase it.
That left only one possibility.
The Heavenly Dao Society had created it themselves.
Lan Yu glanced at the Liao Clan with a smirk.
“Any doubts?” His voice rang with quiet arrogance, clearly hoping someone would step up so he could slap them down with facts.
The Liao Clan chose to remain silent despite the provocation. They kept their heads low, their eyes burning with murderous resentment but offering no words.
Unlike the Wang Clan, who had at least managed to engage in a verbal skirmish before being humiliated by Song Ling, the Liao Clan chose complete silence.
They knew all too well that any protest now would only invite ridicule.
The crowd murmured, some shaking their heads, others chuckling bitterly.
The Heavenly Dao Society truly was a gathering of monsters.
All they did was slap faces. And if this continued, the three great clans would have no dignity left.
Lan Yu shifted his gaze toward the Liao Clan, but they averted their eyes, avoiding his gaze entirely.
He then turned toward the Scarlet Dragon Cult, only to be met with the same response.
As for the Profound Cloud Sect, they feigned disinterest, pretending to be engaged in quiet conversation, deliberately avoiding Lan Yu’s gaze.
“Boring,” Lan Yu muttered, then casually retrieved the spiritual array compass and returned to the Heavenly Dao Society’s ranks without another word.
With the fourth segment concluded, only one matter remained: the Spirit Jade Pavilion’s selection of fifty partners for the next decade.
“I will now announce the forces selected as partners with the Spirit Jade Pavilion for the next decade,” Long Chen declared, unrolling a scroll of names with a solemn expression.
The plaza fell into silence. Everyone held their breaths. This was the moment they had all been waiting for.
“Heavenly Dao Society, Nine Profound Sect, Scarlet Dragon Cult, Profound Cloud Sect, Wang Clan, Liao Clan, Yuan Clan, Liu Clan, Blazing Sun Gate…” Long Chen recited the names one by one, listing all fifty at once.
Gasps spread through the plaza as people scanned the list. The Heavenly Dao Society had not only made the list, but they had taken first place.
Many of the selected forces had long-standing partnerships with the Spirit Jade Pavilion spanning centuries, so their inclusion came as no surprise. But the Heavenly Dao Society rising from obscurity and taking the top spot left the entire crowd stunned.
It was clear to all that the Spirit Jade Pavilion had placed exceptional importance on this new partnership.
Some second-tier forces, chosen for the first time, jumped to their feet, overwhelmed with joy.
Even the Liu Clan, who had failed to secure a partnership in the last round, now found themselves on the list. Their inclusion marked a clear shift in the political winds and signaled just how far the Heavenly Dao Society’s influence had spread.
“Now, will representatives of the fifty forces please come forward for further negotiations of our partnership?” Long Chen called out, gesturing toward the main hall.
The judges dismissed the rest of the crowd. From this point on, the negotiations would involve only the selected forces, focusing on discussions of distribution rights, revenue splits, and supply channels.
Wang Yuanhou and the others stood up and followed Long Chen toward the main hall without hesitation.
Surprisingly, one group remained motionless.
“What’s going on? Why isn’t the Heavenly Dao Society moving?” someone whispered.
All eyes turned toward the Heavenly Dao Society.
They had ranked first in all four segments—pill refinement, artifact forging, spiritual talismans, and spiritual arrays. They should have been the centerpiece of this partnership, with their products positioned to flow through the Spirit Jade Pavilion’s expansive network across the Central Plains.
Xu Yilin stepped forward and clasped his hands respectfully toward Elder Long Chen.
“Elder Long Chen, my apologies, but the Heavenly Dao Society declines the partnership with the Spirit Jade Pavilion.”
The crowd erupted into chaos.
“What?!”
A stunned silence fell over the crowd.
“Have they lost their minds?! Wasn’t the whole purpose of this commerce fair to secure a partnership with the Spirit Jade Pavilion? And they’re just walking away from it?!”
The forces that had failed to make the cut and were preparing to leave stopped in their tracks, too stunned to move.
“They’re insane,” someone muttered. “Sure, their products are top-tier, but without distribution power, they would be useless? The Spirit Jade Pavilion has branches in every major city. Do they even understand what they’re giving up?”
It was incomprehensible. Every faction was aware of the tight security surrounding territories in the Central Plains. Expanding into another sector’s market without a distribution powerhouse was nearly impossible.
Yet, the Heavenly Dao Society was publicly severing ties with the one entity that could have opened every door for them.
To the crowd, it seemed as though they had just cut off their future.
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