Chapter 309: Chapter 308: Nine Nether Sect Meeting_1

In the headquarters of the Nine Nether Sect, a large rectangular meeting table lay in the center of the room. The Sect Master sat on one side of the table, with the three Deputy Sect Masters sat on the other side. White ceramic cups filled with boiling water sat next to each of them.

The Sect Master cleared his throat and opened his notebook: “Let’s commence today’s regularly scheduled meeting, there are three items on the agenda. Let’s start with the first one. Vice Sect Master Xiang, please report on the activities of the Nine Nether Sect over the past month.”

Vice Sect Master Xiang had an odd appearance, sporting three eyes on his forehead. With his all-seeing vision, he served as the standing Deputy Sect Master.

“Starting from June, our sect’s overall situation has presented a steady and increasing positive trend.”

“This month, we have added thirty-three new followers to the sect, with twenty-three males, ten females, and three who aren’t humans at all, but rather ghosts.”

“The ratio of male cultivators remains high, and thus we have failed to realize the Master’s directive of ‘recruiting more female cultivators’. We will make revisal after the meeting, striving to achieve the goal of balance between male and female followers soon.”

“This month, eighteen followers were arrested by the Great Xia Dynasty, three followers disappeared in the Demon Territory, and two followers turned themselves in under the persuasion of the Suspension Temple.”

“According to reliable information, facing the increasingly rampant ghosts, the Great Xia Dynasty is working on revising the ‘Great Xia Dynasty Ghost Management Measures’. Once this measure is implemented, our sect’s ghost activities may be influenced, thus indirectly affecting the construction process of Fengdu.”

“On the innovation front, our sect follows the Master’s directive vigorously, promoting diversified business channels, offering one-stop funeral and cremation services, encouraging the public and cultivators to bury their remains in our sect’s established cemeteries and rent the tombs, with the plan to charge service fees every fifty years.”

“Our sect also strongly promotes the smuggling industry, effectively facilitating the implementation of ‘The Smuggling Law of the Great Xia Dynasty’. The Government of Great Xia encourages and supports our practice, even presenting us an honorary banner. But no one in our sect dares to claim it. The smuggling industry is currently in a difficult situation, with meager profits, thus requiring a new approach.”

“In the course of promoting the tomb-robbing business, our Sect frequently encountered the Grand Elder of the Seek Dao Sect and we suspect that they now have some clues about our tomb-robbing habits.”

“Also, during a tomb-robbing incident, we accidentally unearthed an ancient cultivator in the Unification realm who had been in long sleep. After a round of fierce combat, both parties were eventually arrested by the Great Xia Dynasty.”

“Lastly, after thorough investigation, it’s confirmed that there are absolutely no more communication channels established by the Eternity Sect. Neither the Great Xia Dynasty nor the Seek Dao Sect can possibly contact us through any residual channels left by the Eternity Sect.”

“That’s it.”

The Master sighed quietly after hearing the report. Managing the Nine Nether Sect was a tough job indeed, with every issue seeming insurmountable.

It was hard to make money indeed.

“Master Xiang, how did those eighteen unfortunate souls get caught by the Government?” Another Vice Sect Master, who was a ghost cultivator named Shee, asked curiously.

Previously, he had been a disciple of Buddhism. However, during his recitation of a sacred mantra designed to help souls reincarnate, he overexerted himself and ended up sending himself into the state of a wandering soul. He was later discovered by the Nine Nether Sect and recruited into the Sect.

Vice Sect Master Xiang sighed: “Apart from the ten people who were caught after they unintentionally robbed the grave of the ancient cultivator in the Unification realm and made a scene, the rest are simply eight idiots.”

“I assigned these eight people the task of opening a brothel. After surveying the proposed location, they found the taxes for operating a brothel to be too high. As such, they brought some transformed female Demon Beasts from the Demon Territory and registered an animal park instead, to enjoy lower taxes.”

“Although they claimed to run an animal park, the actual business was just like that of a brothel. They disguised it as a legit animal park during government inspections.”

“Well, that’s a pretty clever approach,” the ghost cultivator Vice Sect Master Shee commented in surprise, thinking those eight disciples were very resourceful.

Vice Sect Master Xiang gloomily said: “The problem is, a typical animal park would not state that minors are not allowed.”

“To top it all off, a private school teacher heard of the city’s new zoo and took his students on a field trip to gain some experience.”

“They ended up gaining quite an experience indeed.”

Vice Sect Master Shee: “…”

“Cough cough. We can exchange experiences after the meeting. Let’s proceed to the second item on the agenda.

“Vice Sect Master Shee, please update us on the construction progress of Fengdu.”

“Things are going smoothly, and 80% of the construction is already done. As long as the funds are available, the remaining 20% can be completed quickly.”

Hearing this, the Master heaved a sigh of relief — it was almost finished. He had almost sold everything he had to finance the construction of Fengdu.

It was just unfortunate that he was not part of the Phoenix clan; otherwise, he would have been willing to sell his own blood.

Shouldn’t demonic sects be underground rulers, flamboyantly showing off their power? Why was the Nine Nether Sect in such a terrible state?

Look at the Eternity Sect, Yaoyang Sect, and Ruthless Sect. Does any one of them resemble the Nine Nether Sect?

The other two Vice Sect Masters looked excited upon hearing the news.

Building Fengdu was their aspiration. As members of the Nine Nether Sect, how could they not have a Fengdu that signifies the city of death after life?

“How many more Spirit Stones will it take?”

“Thirty-eight billion.”

The Master’s hand was trembling. They were toying with his life.

There might still be time to abdicate.

Seventeen years ago, when Qin Haoran’s life token shattered abruptly and he died unexpectedly, the Nine Nether Sect was thrown into chaos. All four Vice Sect Masters sought to usurp the leadership position, refusing to acknowledge each other.

Since the realms and control of the forces controlled by the four Vice Sect Masters were similar, it was impossible to determine a winner. At that moment, he came up with a brilliant idea and promised that if he became the Sect Master, he would definitely build Fengdu.

With this promise, he gained the support of many followers of the Nine Nether Sect and naturally ascended the position of the Sect Master.

He shouldn’t have made that rash commitment back then; anyone pursuing this wretched leadership role was welcome to it.

It was too late for regrets now.

Qin Haoran was in office for eight hundred years and failed to build Fengdu. He, the new Sect Master, had almost completed it in just seventeen years, certainly, he had ways.

He was proficient in the art of transformation, and over the past seventeen years, he had taken the loans by using the personal information of each of his followers.

Once this matter was exposed, it wouldn’t just be the end of his reign as Sect Master, but rather his own life would be at stake.

“The Eternity Sect has just been annihilated. The Great Xia Dynasty and the Five Great Immortal Sects have been watching us closely. To be safe, let’s pause the construction of Fengdu for a while.”

The Sect Master’s words were supported by the three Vice Sect Masters. Although the Four Great Devil Sects could not truly unite due to different beliefs, they had coexisted for over ten thousand years. The demise of one sect had made the remaining three feel threatened.

The longevity of the demonic sects was exactly because they always put safety first.

“Now onto the third and final item on the agenda – regarding the reincarnation of Qin Haoran and the authenticity of the Heaven’s Court Sect.”

“Heaven’s Court Sect?” Both Vice Sect Master Xiang and Vice Sect Master Shee looked at each other in confusion. Typically there were only the Four Great Devil Sects, when did this Heaven’s Court Sect appear?

Moreover, what does this have to do with the reincarnation of Qin Haoran?

Both of them had arranged for two junior cultivators claiming to be the reincarnation of Qin Haoran.

“Vice Sect Master Shi, you’re the most familiar with this matter. Please explain.”