The Great Sacred Hall was obviously furious over the Three Star Sect's leak, but after combing through the ruins for several days, they ultimately came up empty.
"It seems the Three Star Sect feared they couldn't withstand the fury of the Myriad Phenomena Domain and went into collective hiding," sighed Lord Tianming of the Northern Abyss Sect.
Palace Master Dan Chi gazed at the ruins of the Three Star Sect, lost in thought. He kept feeling that something about the whole affair was off. Why would the Three Star Sect, perfectly fine as they were, have leaked their secrets?
It defied all common sense.
But with every member of the Three Star Sect having vanished and no evidence to be found, Palace Master Dan Chi had no grounds to say anything. After all, he had originally suspected the Holy Sword Palace of being the leakers.
Now it seemed the Three Star Sect had been the ones to leak — and they had already suffered the judgment of Heaven and Earth.
Xiang Wentian of the Great Sacred Hall growled angrily, "The Three Star Sect declared dissolution purely to evade the judgment of Heaven and Earth."
Everyone understood this well enough by now.
But the Three Star Sect members had committed themselves to disappearing without a trace, and there was nothing anyone could do about it.
"I propose we discuss how to handle the Three Star Sect's territories," said Wang Jianyu of the Holy Sword Palace with a faint smile.
"Mm. Since the Three Star Sect has dissolved, their territories are now unclaimed. In that case, it is our responsibility to ensure that the people living under the Three Star Sect's rule continue to enjoy the protection of a powerful sect, so they can live in peace and prosperity."
These words were exceedingly high-minded, but put bluntly, it was still about carving up territory and seizing resources.
Xiang Wentian nodded. "This is imperative. We cannot allow such vast territory under the Three Star Sect's former rule to descend into chaos. The question is — how should we divide it? Does anyone have a good proposal?"
"What is there to debate? The five fourth-grade sects simply split it equally," said Wei Wuying, Sect Master of the Carefree Sect.
His biggest fear was that the Great Sacred Hall would throw its weight around again and claim half for itself, leaving the other four sects to fight over the remaining scraps.
"Agreed. An equal split would be best," Wang Jianyu smiled. Clearly, he had no desire to see the Great Sacred Hall dominate either.
"An equal split — the Northern Abyss Sect has no objection," Lord Tianming said.
As for Palace Master Dan Chi, he naturally would not oppose an equal division. He was not particularly concerned about the Three Star Sect's territories; what intrigued him far more was why the Three Star Sect had leaked in the first place.
Sensitive as he was, he kept feeling that something about this whole matter reeked of the bizarre.
The Great Sacred Hall had indeed originally planned to swallow half, leaving the rest for the other four sects to divide equally. But seeing that all four other sects — aside from the Dan Qian Palace — were clearly and firmly demanding an equal split, they knew they could not push it.
If the Great Sacred Hall's appetite was too shameless, it would likely provoke public outrage.
The Myriad Phenomena Domain was already showing signs of crisis. If internal strife broke out on top of that, there would be no need for outside enemies — the domain would collapse on its own.
And so the discussion began on how to divide the Three Star Sect's regions. Since it was an equal split, it was actually quite simple. Territory was divided into five portions. Spiritual lands and resources were likewise divided into five portions, each party taking what they needed.
After the division was complete, Xiang Wentian declared, "From this day forward, there is no longer a Three Star Sect in this world, and the Myriad Phenomena Domain will no longer acknowledge the Three Star Sect. Even if they attempt a comeback, they will be traitors to the Myriad Phenomena Domain. They are already a disgrace, and the Myriad Phenomena Domain will absolutely not tolerate them!"
"Correct. Leaking the Myriad Phenomena Domain's secrets makes them enemies of the entire domain. The Three Star Sect does not deserve to remain in the Myriad Phenomena Domain," Wei Wuying echoed.
On this matter, the interests of all five great sects were aligned. Having just carved up the Three Star Sect's territory, they needed some high-sounding justification — otherwise, how could they silence the murmurs of the world?
By branding the Three Star Sect as traitors, they could justify seizing the territory, block any chance of the Three Star Sect's resurgence, and make it all seem righteous and proper.
Dan Chi, however, did not dwell on this issue. Instead, he said, "Everyone, the Three Star Sect chose to evade the judgment of Heaven and Earth and dissolve their sect. There must be some conspiracy behind it. Has anyone truly considered this?"
"Dan Chi, do you have some insight?" Lord Tianming had always been on good terms with Dan Chi and knew the Palace Master was shrewd and resourceful.
"Yes, Dan Chi — your mind is sharp and you see far ahead. Why do you not analyze it for us? The Three Star Sect has already been struck from the records anyway, so there is no risk of offending anyone," Xiang Wentian encouraged.
Wang Jianyu merely sneered but said nothing. He harbored deep hostility toward the Dan Qian Palace, always feeling that Dan Chi was merely grandstanding for attention.
Wei Wuying smiled faintly but was also curious to hear what Dan Chi had to say.
"Last time my Dan Qian Palace was attacked by the Nine Yang Celestial Sect, they demanded Heaven-grade spiritual medicines and the formula for the Ten Thousand Year Pill right from the start. So I can say with certainty that if the Three Star Sect did leak, they leaked to the Nine Yang Celestial Sect. And the Nine Yang Celestial Sect has long had designs on the Myriad Phenomena Domain. Everyone, think carefully — if the Three Star Sect had no connection to the Nine Yang Celestial Sect, what reason would they have to gamble the fate of their entire sect?"
Dan Chi's words caused everyone's expressions to change dramatically.
"Dan Chi, are you certain it was the Nine Yang Celestial Sect last time?" Xiang Wentian, clearly sensing the gravity of the matter, could not help but ask.
"I am absolutely certain. After the fact, I quietly pulled some connections and inquired in the Upper Eight Domains. The person who attacked my Dan Qian Palace that day was Cao Jin — one of the Ten True Disciples of the Nine Yang Celestial Sect! That man is a peak Saint Realm powerhouse." Recalling that battle, Dan Chi still felt a chill run through him.
In the face of the absolute power of a first-grade sect, the sects of the Myriad Phenomena Domain were still weak.
For the Myriad Phenomena Domain to achieve true unification — the difficulty was anything but ordinary.