Chapter 1748: Great Reputation

The allocated time was brief. Regardless of whether the attending Moon Sages were fully prepared, they eventually submitted their bids. Inside the grand hall, as Luan Xiao'e's voice resounded once more, over a dozen cultivators from the Three Realms entered from outside, collecting the jade slips from the Moon Sages one by one.

Luan Xiao'e was responsible for checking and tallying the bids, though, of course, it was merely a formality.

A moment later, she looked up and smiled, “Are the fellow cultivators from Quadrant Island present?”

Zhou Chuang and Kang Cheng quickly stood up, feigning unfamiliarity with Luan Xiao'e, and bowed with cupped fists, saying, “Zhou Chuang of Quadrant Island greets Island Master Luan.” “Kang Cheng greets Island Master Luan.”

Luan Xiao'e nodded, “Quadrant Island's bid demonstrates the most sincerity. Therefore, from this day forward, this island will belong to Quadrant Island.”

As her words fell, many Moon Sages in the grand hall showed expressions of disappointment. These were genuinely keen on taking control of Baiyue but had missed their chance. Others, however, reacted with equanimity, likely having only come to observe the spectacle.

Both Zhou Chuang and Kang Cheng wore joyful expressions, putting on a show of having acquired a great bargain.

Luan Xiao'e spoke again, “Fellow cultivators, our cultivators from the Three Realms will remain in Baiyue for ten days. During this period, we will fully assist you in constructing the island's defenses. We also request that both of you prepare all the corresponding spirit jades.”

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chuang immediately expressed his gratitude, “Many thanks to Island Master Luan for this.”

He had previously been somewhat concerned that if the people from Three Realms Island were to withdraw immediately, the defenses here would be incomplete. Should anyone launch an attack, Quadrant Island might not be able to hold its ground.

However, if the people from Three Realms Island were to remain for ten days, the situation would be entirely different. Once the defenses here were fully constructed and their defensive strength greatly increased, unless the invading enemy's strength vastly surpassed Quadrant Island's, it would be impossible to conquer the island.

As for the future, Quadrant Island would need to slowly develop it themselves. The longer an island protection array is managed, the more robust it becomes. Thus, as long as Quadrant Island could establish a firm foothold in the early stages, there would be no major issues.

“The fellow cultivators from Three Realms Island are very considerate,” Zhou Chuang mused inwardly.

An auction for a high-grade spiritual island, without any fierce bidding or contention, began without warning and quietly concluded, all in just over an hour.

Baiyue Island was in ruins, awaiting reconstruction, and had already fallen into the hands of Quadrant Island. It was naturally inconvenient for the many Moon Sages to remain, so they successively bid farewell and departed.

Next, the cultivators of the Quadrant Star System began their migration. Upon receiving messages from Zhou Chuang and Kang Cheng, Zhang Tingyi and Gao Zhan led a group of Star Hosts and rushed to the island.

Zhang Tingyi was a Moon Sage from Daluo, while Gao Zhan hailed from Jingyue. These two, along with Zhou Chuang and Kang Cheng, were the four late-stage Moon Sages of the Quadrant Star System stationed in the Myriad Manifestation Sea.

On the Three Realms side, those who needed healing recuperated, and those who needed rest rested. Many others were assisting the Quadrant Star System in constructing the spiritual island's defenses. The entire scene was bustling with activity.

Lu Ye was also busy, occupied with deciphering the restrictive locks on storage rings…

In the Battle of Baiyue Island, over a thousand Star Hosts from Baiyue were killed. Even if each person only had an average of two storage rings, that would still be over two thousand rings. In fact, the number was even higher.

Even though Lu Ye could now effortlessly decipher restrictive locks, it still took him some time.

Fortunately, he wasn't alone in this task. He had two helpers: one Star Host from the Azure Dawn Dao Realm and another from the Jade Snail Realm. Both possessed some skill in the path of spirit patterns. While their efficiency in deciphering restrictive locks wasn't as high as Lu Ye's, they could at least provide some assistance.

Luan Xiao'e, Shui Yuan, Hua Ci, and Old Tang waited nearby, taking the deciphered storage rings, and then removing their contents to sort and categorize them.

Luan Xiao'e was the Great Island Master, overseeing Three Realms Island's finances. Old Tang had joined the group after the battle concluded.

It was a period of intense activity.

Lu Ye was slightly disappointed, as he hadn't found many resources suitable for his personal use among the spoils of war.

His current demand for cultivation resources was primarily twofold: first, fire-attributed treasures that could provide fuel for his Talent Tree's reserves; and second, items capable of improving the quality of his Dharma Origin.

He did find some fire-attributed treasures, though not many; a small consolation was better than nothing.

As for items that could enhance the quality of Dharma Origin, there were none at all!

Lu Ye was mentally prepared for this, as treasures that could improve Dharma Origin quality, even in the Myriad Manifestation Sea, were often rare and hard to acquire.

The Myriad Manifestation Sea had a vast number of Star Hosts and quite a few Moon Sages. Almost every Moon Sage hoped to enhance the quality of their Dharma Origin, and naturally, there was an immense demand for such treasures.

Therefore, if a Moon Sage acquired such an item, they would typically use it early, as the earlier it was used, the greater the personal benefit.

Ma Shangsi possessed a White Moon Crystal because his own Dharma Origin had already reached its maximum enhancement. Unless he advanced to Sun Illumination and required faster cultivation efficiency, further improving his Dharma Origin quality would have been a waste.

Typically, Moon Sages seeking such treasures could only find them at the Myriad Manifestation Trading Company.

Two months prior, Lu Ye had already sent a message to Cao Xiang, the manager of the Myriad Manifestation Trading Company, asking him to keep an eye out. However, there had been no news to date, highlighting the scarcity of such treasures.

It wasn't that the Myriad Manifestation Trading Company hadn't found even one such treasure during this long period, but rather that there were too many people demanding them. While Lu Ye had asked Cao Xiang to keep an eye out, who knew how many other Moon Sages had asked other trading company managers to do the same?

There certainly were others. Perhaps the Myriad Manifestation Trading Company had acquired some of these treasures, but it simply wasn't Lu Ye's turn yet.

After several days of busy work, he finally managed to fully decipher the restrictive locks on all the storage rings. The remaining tasks no longer required his attention; Luan Xiao'e and Tang Jun would discuss and handle them.

The ten days passed quickly.

Baiyue Island, ravaged by war, was transformed, once again possessing the appearance befitting a high-grade spiritual island. Its various defenses were largely complete, with minor details left for the Quadrant Star System to supplement themselves.

With Quadrant Island's current lineup of four late-stage Moon Sages and a thousand Star Hosts, combined with its existing defenses, unless an attacking force deployed double Quadrant Island's strength, it would be impossible to conquer.

As agreed, the cultivators of the Three Realms prepared to withdraw from the area.

On the eve of their departure, Zhou Chuang and the other three Moon Sages hosted a banquet to express their sincere gratitude. Everyone from Three Realms Island attended, and the atmosphere was harmonious.

Zhou Chuang sought out Lu Ye privately, asking him for a branch from the Cycle Tree. Lu Ye could guess its purpose without being told.

The environment of Baiyue Island was far superior to that of Quadrant Island, which the Quadrant Star System had previously occupied. Aside from the difference in the spiritual island's grade, there was also its sheer size.

Previously, Quadrant Island could barely accommodate a thousand Star Hosts, but Baiyue Island could now easily accommodate two thousand or more.

Naturally, the Quadrant Star System intended to dispatch more cultivators here. This would not only enhance the spiritual island's defensive capabilities but also allow more Quadrant Star System cultivators to benefit and grow faster here!

Therefore, Zhou Chuang and the others had decided to return to the Quadrant Star System soon. However, the journey was long, and a round trip would take at least a year and a half.

The next day, escorted personally by Zhou Chuang and the others, the cultivators of the Three Realms departed in a grand procession.

The Battle of Baiyue Island shook the Myriad Manifestation Sea. This battle created several unprecedented miracles.

Firstly, there was the duration from the start to the end of the battle. Previous contests for high-grade spiritual islands typically lasted ten days to half a month, with three to five months also being common. The longest struggle for a high-grade spiritual island had even lasted several years.

Yet, the Battle of Baiyue Island this time, from its outbreak to its conclusion, lasted a mere day!

In just one day, a long-established high-grade spiritual island, cultivated for eight centuries, completely changed hands. Had many not witnessed this scene firsthand at the time, few would have dared to believe the news when it spread.

While Baiyue Island was certainly not considered a dominant power in the Myriad Manifestation Sea, it was by no means weak. No one understood why such a clearly formidable force had crumbled like a paper effigy when confronted by Three Realms Island.

If the duration of this battle was astonishing, then the casualty ratio between the two sides was truly terrifying.

Several Moon Sages from Baiyue Island were killed, effectively wiping out their entire force. Even Yu Huan, who managed to escape at the end, was personally executed by Garrison Master Yuan Du for breaking the rules.

On the Star Host level, over a thousand were lost!

In contrast, Three Realms Island suffered not a single fatality!

Such a casualty ratio was simply unimaginable.

Many Moon Sages who had witnessed the battle retrospectively analyzed the day's events. Everyone believed that the greatest reason for Three Realms Island's brilliant victory was that, through unknown means, they had infiltrated Baiyue Island in large numbers before its protective grand array was broken, disrupting Baiyue Island's deployment.

To this day, no one understands how the cultivators of Three Realms Island accomplished this feat. Many interested parties sought out the surviving cultivators of Baiyue Island, hoping to glean useful information from them. However, they found nothing, as even the cultivators native to Baiyue Island were unclear about what had transpired.

They had all been on the spiritual island at the time, and then the war had suddenly erupted.

The more one delved into the details of this battle, the more one could feel the terrifying power of Three Realms Island. Superficially, Three Realms Island's force of five Moon Sages and a thousand Star Hosts was a standard configuration – not weak, but not overwhelmingly strong either. However, all cultivators who sought to understand the full story of this battle knew that what they saw was merely the surface. Beneath the deep waters of Three Realms Island, something unknown was certainly concealed, and this was the true reliance for Three Realms Island's decisive victory over Baiyue.

Three Realms Island's reputation soared!

This led to a phenomenon: a vast, high-grade spiritual island, which should have been a coveted treasure fought over by countless forces, remained vacant for over ten days, with no force daring to occupy it. This was unprecedented in the magnificent Myriad Manifestation Sea.

As for the top-tier forces, it went without saying, they already possessed high-grade spiritual islands and would not occupy a second.

Slightly lesser forces, fearing the power of Three Realms Island, dared not make such a move.

Everyone had witnessed Baiyue Island's fate. Simply because Baiyue cultivators had secretly ambushed a Moon Sage from the Three Realms, Three Realms Island had launched an all-out assault, destroying their stronghold. If anyone dared to occupy the island now, they would surely face an unending conflict with the cultivators of the Three Realms.

No one was willing to repeat Baiyue Island's mistakes.