After a temporary truce, a few leaders from Shudao Mountain invited Shi Chun aside for a talk.

This was all about the Divine Fire. To any Artifact Refiner who hadn't tasted the Divine Fire, this knot couldn't be easily untied.

Gu Lianni went straight to the point without beating around the bush, "Shi Chun, hand over those two Ice Flames first to us at Shudao Mountain."

Shi Chun's eyes widened, "Didn't we say that was in the past? Why bring it up again?"

Gu Lianni said, "I'm saying to give them to us first, not for free. Once we find the Divine Fire later, we'll compensate you first."

Shi Chun looked puzzled, "Why make it so complicated?"

Gu Lianni had her excuse ready, "Because of our cooperation with you, Shudao Mountain has suffered many casualties. It's hard to explain without seeing any benefits. Seeing tangible benefits ensures our cooperation can continue."

Shi Chun felt a bit troubled, "I have the Four Cauldron Sect on my side as well; they practice the Fire Attribute Skill. If they learned that two more Ice Flames have surfaced, they'd rather I give them to outsiders than to them, which is also hard for me to explain."

Yuan Yao interjected, "You just said 'if,' which means they don't know yet?"

Shi Chun hummed in affirmation, "Before, I was thinking of making up an explanation when you guys would find it. I've been keeping those two Ice Flames for you without telling them, fearing they would fight for them. However, when trying to persuade you at Iron Forest, I let it slip, and they surely heard it too."

Yuan Yao said, "They haven't seen it anyway, as long as we cooperate here, any explanation will do."

Shi Chun thought for a moment and counter-questioned, "Are you certain that the Divine Fire that we find later will be compensated to us first, without any reneging?"

Gu Lianni swore, "I swear on my father's safety."

Initially, making such an oath was burdensome. After loosening up twice, it came out quite naturally.

Shi Chun was startled and exclaimed, "Using your father for a curse again?"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Yao and Pang Hou held their breath and keenly observed Gu Lianni's reaction.

Gu Lianni's face turned red with embarrassment, finally, she snapped angrily, "The previous times were because you forced me..."

Shi Chun was merely teasing her to test this woman's mettle and seeing her about to flare up, he quickly raised his hand to stop her, "Alright, alright, I'll agree to your terms. I believe you; those two Ice Flames will be given to you first."

That slightly eased Gu Lianni's expression.

Yuan Yao quickly changed the subject, "How will you divide the Divine Fire you get with the Four Cauldron Sect?"

"That, we will handle internally; it will not affect the share of Divine Fire promised to you," Shi Chun pressed the issue down and raised another concern, "However, regarding Qianyan Sect, those in blue clothes, I'm afraid we'll have to count them in for a share of the Divine Fire."

The instant they heard someone else was coming to share the benefits, their expressions immediately turned gloomy. Gu Lianni said coldly, "Our cooperation agreement did not include this part."

Shi Chun turned around and called out, "Jinliang, come here a moment."

Wu Jinliang immediately came over with a chuckle, "What's up?"

Shi Chun said, "Tell them about how you found Qianyan Sect in the exit area and the whole process of how we located Qianyan Sect from there."

Wu Jinliang was taken aback but saw that it was serious and so he recounted his experience of waiting by the exit, how he discovered them, how he learned about their location through the Arrogant Flame Sect, hurried to Iron Forest to inform Shi Chun, and then made his way here.

Hearing that Qianyan Sect was playing the trick of luring the tiger away from the mountain, Gu Lianni and her two partners were filled with surprise and suspicion.

Shi Chun added, "I know a secret about Qianyan Sect; they have secret agents planted in some sects. The reason Arrogant Flame Sect was lured away was due to a mole leaking information. What we originally planned to do was simple, just guard the exit, obtain the approximate location, and then figure out a way to trick Qianyan Sect away. Now because of your actions, I had no choice but to expose it, meaning later, I'll also have to convince Qianyan Sect to give us a share."

Yuan Yao was skeptical, "Based on what you said, you didn't know them before. If that's the case, why would they listen to you and help you against us?"

Shi Chun answered, "If someone can get Mingshan Sect into the Divine Fire Domain, they can certainly provide other kinds of help too. As for the details, even I am not completely clear. Matters of the higher-ups, we don't need to pry into, I think Shudao Mountain doesn't need to know. We just need to focus on dividing the Divine Fire."

Gu Lianni said sternly, "If we have to change the agreement, changing the distribution, it's fine to divide it among three parties. Let's do it based on the proportion of our numbers. Half of the collected Divine Fire should go to us, and the other half you can divide with them."

Yuan Yao agreed, "Exactly, that's only fair."

Pang Hou added, "An agreement is an agreement; it should not be changed lightly!"

Shi Chun replied indifferently, "There is another sect with a situation similar to Qianyan Sect. I was thinking we could handle it behind Qianyan Sect's back and get another participant. One third for us on the left and one third for the one on the right would also be nice. Now that Shudao Mountain wants half just for itself, let alone convincing Qianyan Sect—there's no need to talk about the other sect. They'd be fine on their own; why give away half for nothing and then divide the leftover half? At least, I don't have the ability to persuade them."

Wu Jinliang chuckled, "Whether it's wanting half from one family or a third from two families, it shouldn't be hard to calculate which is lighter and which is heavier."

Anyway, Gu Lianni and her two companions started hemming and hawing, saying they could agree to take a third but doubting Qianyan Sect would consent. They told Shi Chun to talk it over with Qianyan Sect and get back to them, saying they would wait for Shi Chun's news before returning to their own people.

"Slapping your own face really quickly." As Wu Jinliang chuckled while watching them leave, he asked in a low voice, "You already knew that Shudao Mountain might find us, but you didn't take precautions to avoid them, isn't this deliberately handing the advantage over to them?"

Shi Chun pondered and said, "You previously told me that at the exit, an elder from Shudao Mountain broke the rules to intervene on behalf of Shudao Mountain."

When Wu Jinliang remembered that incident, he got angry, "Exactly, had it not been for that damned elder's rule-breaking, we wouldn't have had to deal with so much trouble."

Shi Chun said, "From that moment on, I changed my mind. Jinliang, because of us, Shudao Mountain lost many people—without cooperation, this vendetta was established. Once it reaches that elder's ears, who knows what might happen next? Can we really count on those elders to play by the rules, as you've personally experienced?

What use is obtaining more Divine Fire if, by chance, someone trips us up and doesn't let us out? If someone among the elders speaks for us, the rules stand; if not one speaks for us, then there are no rules, and the more Divine Fire we obtain, the more dangerous it becomes.

We've become aligned with Shudao Mountain, which makes it convenient for us to act freely with someone to cover for us in times of trouble."

Wu Jinliang thought about it and was about to silently agree when suddenly, a figure flew down—it was Gong Shixi, the leader from Qianyan Sect, who couldn't hold back any longer and took the initiative to approach.

Gong Shixi glanced at Wu Jinliang and asked, "Brother Chun, is it convenient to talk?"

He had heard Shi Chun using a secret code earlier and hadn't made the details clear, so even though he knew Wu Jinliang was Shi Chun's man, he didn't dare to speak carelessly.

Shi Chun replied, "Rest assured, he's one of us."

Gong Shixi asked, "Which lineage do you belong to?"

Shi Chun responded, "I don't ask you, so don't ask me."

Gong Shixi asked sternly, "How do you know my background?"

Shi Chun said, "Do you think I would tell you?"

Gong Shixi said, "If that's the case, let's each take our own path. It seems your troubles have also been resolved, and it's time for you to leave, right?"

He wanted to send them away to quickly find the Divine Fire in this area. So far, their Qianyan Sect had found only one Divine Fire.

Shi Chun told Wu Jinliang, "We did help Brother Gong out before. It seems Brother Gong has already forgotten. Go get Xu Anzhang to help remind him."

Gong Shixi frowned, puzzled, not knowing when the other party had helped him. Wu Jinliang went on his way amidst his confused gaze.

Soon after, Xu Anzhang arrived, saluted by Wu Jinliang, bringing along a fellow sect member.

As they approached Gong Shixi, after confirming Shi Chun's intentions, Xu Anzhang gave his accomplice a look. The accomplice then pompously said, "Elder brother, do you think there might be Divine Fire here?"

Xu Anzhang replied just as pompously, "Who knows? But the best opportunity to find Divine Fire is at night, it's easier to spot the glow."

The accomplice said, "Elder brother, there's just a few of us left now, can we really find the Divine Fire?"

Xu Anzhang sighed, "Let's do our best. We're lucky enough to have escaped being hunted. Those damned things, once we're out of the Divine Fire Domain, we must have the sect avenge this enmity."

The accomplice said, "The elders guarding the exit said those scoundrels have already found seven or eight Divine Fires."

Halfway through their nonsensical conversation, Gong Shixi's face had already undergone a drastic change, and by the time they finished, his complexion was the ashen color of a liver.

He glared at Shi Chun for a long time with a sinister look before finally saying slowly, "I've long heard of the fame of the number one figure of the Sky Rain Meteor Conference. Seeing you today, you truly are extraordinary. Brother Chun, since things have come to this, let's not beat around the bush, what exactly do you want?"

Shi Chun replied, "My trick of luring the tiger away from the mountain was used on Shudao Mountain's head, but it backfired. Do you know how it failed?"

Gong Shixi said grimly, "I don't have time for your riddles."

Shi Chun explained, "Because the ten elders at the exit had already appreciated it. I thought they would play by the rules, but little did I know, when I applied it to Shudao Mountain, one of Shudao Mountain's elders directly exposed it, and so Shudao Mountain and I ended up in the current situation.

In other words, if someone interferes, the trick of luring the tiger away from the mountain simply can't proceed.

If Shudao Mountain steps in to help, it's different. Once we become a faction, we needn't worry about the exit. Later on, even if we move away and traveling to and from the exit becomes inconvenient, those executing the lure can simply hide behind a crowd from Shudao Mountain, and the effect will be the same. Letting Shudao Mountain's people face the consequences of offending others.

The lure was my idea, so naturally, I will keep contributing. Having more people to search for Divine Fire can speed up the process.

Anyway, the current situation is a joint effort formed by the three families, so the gains must also be shared equally among the three. This is Shudao Mountain's intent, and neither you nor I have the leeway to refuse. Of course, you may also choose to abandon this method."

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