The council hall on the Sacred Island, everyone sat upright. Compared to the last time Lu Ye was here, the number of the senior elders present had significantly decreased. From his previous observation, including the eldest senior brother, there were over seventy top-tier Divine Sea Realm elders on the Sacred Island, but now there were only a dozen or so. Lu Ye was most familiar with Lady Moon, Jian Guhong, Mong Jie, and Wuchang, but they were not present. Evidently, they were not on the Sacred Island. Otherwise, they would have shown up. These top-tier senior elders clearly went out to cause trouble elsewhere; despite their age, none are known to sit idly by. In the Nine Provinces, to pursue a higher cultivation realm, they were willing to sit through life-and-death meditation, comprehending the mysteries beyond the Divine Sea. But here in the Blood Refinement World, such meditation is out of the question. If the power of the Sacred Island wasn't so outweighed by the entire Blood Refinement World, they would have led troops out long ago. Though they can't lead an expedition currently, causing trouble in groups of three or five is still feasible. For people like them, once they start moving, the troubles they cause for the Blood Race cannot be easily overlooked. Feng Wujiang was recounting to Lu Ye the changes in the Blood Refinement World since his departure two years ago. Nearly two years ago, the Blood Race's four armies came to besiege them. Although the Sacred Land managed to repel them, a breach was ultimately made in the last line of defense. Originally, Righteous Blood Sacred Land could rely on this final intact defense to withstand the Blood Race's siege. But once a breach appeared, the situation changed. The next time, the Blood Race is certain to deploy heavy troops targeting this breach specifically. To be honest, the Sacred Land has no confidence in withstanding this, especially since the last battle significantly weakened them, with not a single Blood Race Dao soldier of the Divine Sea Realm surviving. It can be said that compared to last time, the defensive power of the Sacred Land has diminished, coupled with the open breach, the future looks bleak. The Blood Race is apparently aware of this. Since their last retreat, they have been actively preparing for another siege, and now, nearly two years later, their preparations are nearly complete. In as little as six months or as long as a year, the Blood Race will besiege Righteous Blood Sacred Land again. At that time, it will be the battle that determines the Sacred Land's survival! Facing such a situation, the Sacred Land has no particularly effective response. After all, this is the Blood Refinement World, the realm of the Blood Race. The human race cultivator is hard to cultivate, and the Blood Race Dao soldiers are not easily obtained; the Sacred Land is passive in every aspect. They can only do three things. The first is to deploy the senior elders to stir up chaos, trying to kill the Blood Race elites and delay the assembly of the Blood Race army. This is why only a dozen top-tier Divine Sea Realm elders remain in the Sacred Land; everyone else has indeed gone out. No one knows how effective this will be; whether the senior elders outside are alive or dead is unknown, as audio transmissions have a distance limit unlike the Nine Provinces' battlefield markings, which are convenient and efficient. The second is to strengthen the Sacred Island's defensive power fully. This was evidenced in the recent Heavenly Punishment. If it were the Sacred Island's defenses from over two years ago, they might not withstand three Heavenly Punishments, but they can now, showing defense has been strengthened. Yet passive defense is never as good as active offense. When the Sacred Land needs the protective array to survive, even the strongest defense may be breached. The third thing is to wait. Wait for Lu Ye to return! Wait for him to bring enough reinforcements from the Nine Provinces to help Righteous Blood Sacred Land through this crisis. Now Lu Ye has returned, but the reinforcements haven't yet been seen. Naturally, the others don't think no reinforcements are coming. Since Lu Ye could return, surely others are on their way too, depending on Lu Ye's actions. Everyone is very much looking forward to this. With a simple recount, Lu Ye understood the recent situation. After some thought, he spoke, "I have two pieces of news, one good, one bad. Which do the elders wish to hear first?" The white-haired Granny Jiew chuckled lightly, "The old woman can't handle a shock, let's hear the good one first." The crowd nodded in agreement. Lu Ye said, "The good news is that there will be many reinforcements this time." An elder named Zong Zhen stroked his beard, intrigued, "Many? How many?" Lu Ye said in a deep voice, "Across the entire Nine Provinces, from Divine Sea to Cloud River, while not all will come over, getting seven to eight-tenths is probably not a problem!" It's definitely impossible for everyone to come over; some people must stay behind to oversee and guard against any eventualities. As for which sect or family members or provincial guards stay and who participates in the expedition, it will depend on the specific decisions made by those in the Nine Provinces. As for the Spirit Stream Realm... this level of war is not too favorable for them. If nothing else, the mobility of Spirit Stream Realm cultivators is an issue, so according to the information Lu Ye received, Spirit Stream Realm cultivators will not take part in this expedition. Leaving them to cultivate properly on the Spirit Stream battlefield is the right path. Upon reaching Cloud River, mobility is not much of an issue; at the very least, they can travel through air. With a single sentence, the hall fell silent enough to hear a pin drop, and Zong Zhen trembled slightly, snapping off a few strands of his beard. After a while, someone frowned and said, "It's unreasonable. The two domains are a great distance apart, and even if the Heaven's Augury Pillar could be used to teleport, not too many can come over because the cost is too vast. Kid, did you get something wrong?" This was everyone's concern. Originally, they thought if Lu Ye could bring over a few hundred or a thousand Divine Sea Realm cultivators, it would be enough to relieve the urgent crisis. But if what Lu Ye says is true, it won't just be a few hundred or a thousand Divine Sea Realm cultivators — it's likely tens of thousands. Not only Divine Sea Realm, but also True Lake, and Cloud River... The number of cultivators from these two levels would only be greater. By then, not to mention securing one Righteous Blood Sacred Land, they could launch a full-scale counterattack against the Blood Race. But considering the cost of teleportation, everyone felt it was unrealistic. "You all may not know, but over the years, the Blood Refinement World has been pushing in the direction of the Nine Provinces. Nowadays, above the stellar space, the Nine Provinces cultivators can already clearly see the presence of the Blood Refinement World, so although the two worlds are not close yet, they're no longer too far, and the distance is still shortening. Thus, the cost of teleportation because of distance shouldn't be an issue." "Is there such a thing?" The crowd was taken aback. Although they could also look up at the stellar space in the Blood Refinement World, without special sensing methods, they couldn't detect the presence of the Nine Provinces. With so many stars in the sky, who could tell which one was the Nine Provinces? Lu Ye was able to clearly sense the existence of the Blood Refinement World only because he had refined a drop of Sacred Blood in the past. Feng Wujiang nodded, "Indeed, the constellations in the Blood Refinement World have been constantly changing. We speculated it was always moving, but we didn't expect it to be moving towards the direction of the Nine Provinces." Another elder, named Woo Junting, laughed, "Such a good thing, now the Blood Race is going to suffer!" Some of them have been in the Blood Refinement World for decades, others almost two hundred years. Before Feng Wujiang established the Righteous Blood Sacred Land, they each had their own factions, and even with strong individual strength, they lived lives of hiding and sneaking, reluctant to disclose their whereabouts. Once Feng Wujiang came to the Blood Refinement World and established the Righteous Blood Sacred Land, gathering everyone's strength together, they had a place to stay, but their situation remained stifling, facing large-scale hunts by the Blood Race every few years. In the Nine Provinces, they were all figures of tremendous influence, always the hammer rather than the nail. They had considered counterattacking, but the overall strength was lacking, leaving them helpless. But now it's different, with the two domains drawing closer, teleportation is no longer a problem. When the vast majority of Cloud River Realm cultivators from the Nine Provinces enter the Blood Refinement World, they finally won't be bound to one place, and can properly vent years of pent-up frustration and depression. For the moment, everyone was fervent with emotion. They were well aware of the depth of the Nine Provinces cultivation world's foundation. By the time the Nine Provinces army arrives for the expedition, dealing with the Blood Race would only be a matter of a snap! Fortunately, they were all people of steady disposition, and though excited and expectant, they reined it in. "So what's the bad news?" Feng Wujiang asked, not forgetting what Lu Ye had just mentioned. Lu Ye's expression was solemn, "The Heaven and Earth's Will of the Blood Refinement World! You just saw, as soon as I appeared, I was targeted by it, and even faced Heavenly Punishment. What about others? If Heavenly Punishment descends, however many Nine Provinces cultivators come will be how many die!" The old elders' excitement was instantly doused, disappearing without a trace... Oh yes, the Heaven and Earth's Will of the Blood Refinement World was clear and strong. As an intruder, Lu Ye was targeted immediately, and without his special method to resolve the Heavenly Punishment, it surely wouldn't have stopped. But while Lu Ye had this method, others did not. Who could withstand the power of that Heavenly Punishment? By then, it could truly become a situation where many come to die. In the heavy silence, someone spoke, "Perhaps if many people come at once, the Heaven and Earth's Will's targeting will weaken? Besides, Heavenly Punishment can't happen for no reason, it should have a cost, and can't go on endlessly." "That could be, but we cannot rely on it as hope. No one has experienced such a scenario. If we misjudge, it would be the Nine Provinces cultivators who suffer losses. We bring them here to help, not to send them to their deaths." "If the Nine Provinces side can't provide support, the Sacred Land will surely be lost. If it comes to that last step, we can only use the Heaven's Augury Pillar to return to the Nine Provinces." "We could retreat, but the human race in the Sacred Land wouldn't be able to withdraw entirely. It would be a massacre by then." One after another, various elders engaged in heated discussions.