The Sea of Blood, the Great Wilderness Stronghold. After a contingent of Nascent Soul and Golden Core cultivators from the Violet Sword Palace teleported to this stronghold from Linhai City, they took to their artifacts over the sea, transforming into hundreds of streaks of light speeding northward.

Among this expeditionary force, Ye Qin knew few Golden Core cultivators personally. However, most of the Golden Core cultivators were acquainted with him. Over a dozen Golden Core cultivators from the Violet Sword Palace, who had previously served under Ye Qin, were among them. As for the Golden Core cultivators from other Immortal Palaces, they had more or less heard the name of the Violet Sword Palace's Fifth Elder, regarding him with a mixture of awe and envy, yet keeping their distance due to the gap in status.

Jin Ran, along with a select few other Golden Core cultivators, remained close to him. The proud Miss Zhou Yao of the Violet Sword Palace, the stout Jin Zhongshan from the Treasure Gathering Palace, the gentle and virtuous Liao Xiaozhi from the Guangyu Palace, and the young and handsome Pan Shuang from the Ninghua Palace—these four core disciples from various Immortal Palaces who had once formed a small squad with Ye Qin were familiar with his temperament and felt no reservation approaching him.

All four were core disciples of their respective palaces. Although they had depleted their essence to activate the Ancient Swift Thunder Mirror and slay Yu Weifeng in the Langdu Secret Realm, causing their cultivation to fall from the Golden Core stage back to the Foundation Establishment stage, they possessed the experience of forming a Golden Core. Thus, consuming a Core Formation Pill to break through to the Golden Core stage again would be a relatively straightforward task for them.

Previously, when Ye Qin was summoned by Palace Master Zhou to meet a group of Nascent Soul cultivators from allied palaces of the Violet Sword Palace, Zhou Yao and the others dared not approach him to exchange greetings. Only once Palace Master Zhou finished speaking and the contingent set off for the expedition did they advance to pay their respects on the journey across the Sea of Blood.

"Brother Ye!" "Brother Niu!"

Zhou Yao, Liao Xiaozhi, and the others followed Ye Qin closely on their swords.

Ye Qin had noticed them long ago. Zhou Yao had already cultivated to the fifth layer of the Golden Core stage, while Liao, Jin, and Pan were at the fourth layer. Currently, their cultivation levels lagged significantly behind his own.

Ye Qin nodded and inquired, "Are you tasked with constructing the city, or setting up an ambush to lure and kill demon cultivators?"

"Building a city is boring!" Of course, luring and killing is more exciting! If the demon cultivators attack the city, they will certainly use sea beasts as cannon fodder. While our strength isn't enough to kill the demon cultivators themselves, we can certainly take down some high-tier demon beasts. This time, following the elders to the Sea of Blood, we are counting on earning enough merits to break into the top thousand on the Demon Slaying Ranking..."

Fatty Jin spoke with great animation, spittle flying, his emotions running high.

"Breaking into the top thousand? That's difficult! There are thousands of Immortal Palaces in the East Sea, and most have dozens or hundreds of Golden Core cultivators. Surely, there will be several exceptionally powerful ones capable of cracking the top thousand, and they are all eyeing the Golden Core Demon Slaying Ranking. Those who secure a spot within the top thousand are likely cultivators at the peak of the late Golden Core stage. For us, currently only in the mid-Golden Core stage, it will be hard to compete with them!"

Pan Shuang shook his head, not optimistic about their prospects.

"That’s not certain. We arrived early. If we strive to earn merits right from the start, we might still contend with those late-stage cultivators. Moreover, in the early stages of the great war, the fighting isn't as fierce, demon cultivators appear less frequently, and with the Immortal Palace elders present, we are safer and can easily pick up some easy gains, while accumulating battle experience. By the middle and late stages of the Immortal-Demon War, when the fighting intensifies, we will likely have cultivated to the late Golden Core stage. If we are cautious, there is a good chance we can break into the top thousand," Fatty Jin declared loudly, his calculation being quite astute, factoring in all potential benefits.

"You are all core disciples of Immortal Palaces; the treatment the Palaces afford you is not meager. Why are you so eager to get onto the Demon Slaying Ranking?" Ye Qin sounded somewhat puzzled.

"Brother Ye, you might not know, but we can't afford to wait now! The Palace has already issued an order: the succession status of core Golden Core cultivators, as well as their future official posts, will be reallocated based on their ranking on the Demon Slaying Ranking. I am currently the fifth heir among the Golden Core core disciples in the Ninghua Palace, occupying the post of a Spiritual Herb Garden Steward, which usually comes with decent perks and benefits. To maintain my status and post within the Palace, I must secure a spot on the Demon Slaying Ranking, the higher the better. Otherwise, all the benefits I previously enjoyed will be seized by other core disciples, and without these benefits, life will become very difficult. For now, we must accumulate enough merits to secure our current positions. As for whether we can actually break into the top thousand, that depends on fate," Pan Shuang sighed wryly.

"Reallocating status and posts based on the Demon Slaying Ranking? There's such a rule?" Ye Qin looked at the others in surprise.

"Of course!"

"Since the Demon Slaying Edict and the Demon Slaying Ranking were released, the major Immortal Palaces under both the Heavenly Dao Alliance and the Heavenly Demon Alliance have begun implementing this new regulation. It’s not just for Golden Core disciples; even the rankings of Nascent Soul Elders are being reordered according to the list..."

Zhou Yao and Liao Xiaozhi also nodded, indicating that the Violet Sword Palace, Treasure Gathering Palace, and Guangyu Palace had similar mandates, forcing them to find ways to secure a good position on the Demon Slaying Ranking.

"Sigh, my old man is an Elder in the Treasure Gathering Palace, so I could at least secure a cushy post and rake in some side income before. Now, with positions being reassigned based on the Demon Slaying Ranking, even the easy pickings are about to disappear..." Jin Zhongshan gritted his teeth in resentment.

Most core disciples of Immortal Palaces relied on the influence of their elders to secure privileged positions within the Palace, thereby obtaining vast amounts of spirit stones. Once this privilege was lost, they would have to earn spirit stones like ordinary cultivators—a very arduous path. Lacking spirit stones meant lacking the necessary elixirs for cultivation and superior magic artifacts, which was a huge disadvantage for a cultivator.

Ye Qin certainly understood why Jin Zhongshan was so bitter. Ye Qin had been occupied with his own affairs recently and rarely concerned himself with the internal matters of the Violet Sword Palace. He was unaware that the Violet Sword Palace had also enacted such a rule. However, this regulation did not affect him; after all, he was the lowest-ranked Fifth Elder of the Violet Sword Palace.

"Although we cultivators have longer lifespans than mortals, how many can live for one thousand or two thousand years?! The Immortal Palaces will not sustain us for nothing. This is the time for us to serve the Palace. Although there is a risk of perishing, this is an unavoidable reality..." Liao Xiaozhi stated calmly, before quickly asking, "Brother Ye, what are your plans?"

"I have accepted the mission to escort wartime supplies. I will not participate in the early stages of the great Immortal-Demon War," Ye Qin shook his head. He would eventually make his move, but not now.

"Escorting supplies? Isn't that logistics? You won't earn any battle merits from that! With Brother Ye’s current strength at the eighth layer of the Golden Core stage, if he accumulated merit on the battlefield starting now, he should have a very high chance of entering the top hundred of the Golden Core Demon Slaying Ranking—perhaps even the top ten with good luck! It’s a pity to give up participating in the early battles. If Brother Ye doesn't fight now, it will be hard to contend with them even when he cultivates to the ninth layer of the Golden Core stage years later!" Pan Shuang exclaimed, surprised.

"Top ten, Brother Pan, stop joking! The top ten in the entire East Sea Cultivation World are certainly cultivators at the peak of the ninth layer of the Golden Core stage! Only their cultivation level can unleash the utmost power of a Golden Core cultivator, and they are most likely to seize a good spot on the list! Although Brother Ye is strong, claiming a spot in the top ten..." Jin Zhongshan stared wide-eyed.

"That’s hard to say. The reputation of our Violet Sword Palace's Great Five Elements Sword Array, the Invincible Sword Array, is not ill-gained! When Brother Ye cultivates to the peak of the ninth layer of the Golden Core, he will be able to exert the Great Five Elements Sword Array's full might, potentially rivaling half a Nascent Soul cultivator. Even joining the fight in the middle or late stages, breaking into the top ten might not be impossible!" Zhou Yao stated lightly as she flew on her sword, her delicate beauty and flowing purple robes exuding an imposing air.

"The other Immortal Palaces also have experts. The Five Great Leaders, the Four Palace Masters, and several powerful Great Immortal Palaces all have extremely strong Golden Core cultivators. There are certainly dozens of top-tier, late-stage Golden Core cultivators! The Violet Sword Palace's famed Invincible Great Five Elements Sword Array might not necessarily triumph over them."

The four began to argue over Ye Qin's potential ranking. Ye Qin smiled faintly, not joining the debate.

The Sea of Blood region was vast, and the East Sea cultivators had established no fewer than several hundred strongholds within it. The Great Wilderness Stronghold possessed many large islands; islands spanning hundreds of miles were easily found, and most featured fertile plains, forests, and mountains suitable for farming and planting. If mortals resided on these islands, those islands would likely boast thousands of acres of excellent farmland. Such open island terrain was ideal for constructing fortifications.

Ye Qin was quite familiar with the Great Wilderness Stronghold. Much of the intelligence gathered in the Sea of Blood over the years had been delivered to the high echelon of the Violet Sword Palace through him. The Violet Sword Palace intended to build an Immortal City precisely because of the islands in this stronghold.

Of course, relying solely on the finances of the Violet Sword Palace and its allied Immortal Palaces, building a truly formidable, defensible Immortal City was out of the question. Even a sect branch under the Heavenly Dao Alliance would find constructing a genuine Immortal City a massive financial burden.

The Supreme Elder Zhou Hong led a large contingent of several dozen Golden Core cultivators to search for Earth Tribe tribes in the Great Wilderness Stronghold. Earth Tribe tribes in the Sea of Blood were rare but did exist. Conscripting the laborers from these tribes for construction was highly cost-effective.

Subsequently, on one of the large islands, they began constructing a small stone city, utilizing local resources: excavating mountain peaks for massive stones and felling the island's spiritual timber, proceeding in a seemingly organized manner.

Here, the steps for building an Immortal City must be noted. The first step is to build a stone city. The general layout is designed, giant stones are quarried for the main structure, and large timbers are cut for the buildings. The stone city has no array defenses; it is merely the prototype of an Immortal City. The second step is to deploy defensive restrictive arrays on the walls of the stone city. A small Immortal City spans dozens or hundreds of miles, and a Great Immortal City spans thousands. Deploying such a massive restrictive formation is where the true drain on finances occurs. The third step is to attract a large number of cultivators to settle or temporarily reside in the Immortal City, manage it well, and develop the various spiritual resources in the surrounding area. This is what needs to be considered for recouping the costs after the city is built.

The Violet Sword Palace's capability extended only to completing the first step. The other Nascent Soul and Golden Core cultivators also had their respective tasks. Four or five Nascent Soul cultivators and a group of Golden Core cultivators were dispatched to patrol the island vicinities, maintaining vigilance against demon cultivators spying on the city construction progress. Since they were building a city, they naturally had to make it look convincing and maintain strict defenses to lure demon cultivators into believing it was real and attempting sabotage.

Meanwhile, Palace Master Zhou led the main force of Nascent Soul and Golden Core cultivators into hiding, setting up ambushes inside and outside the intended Immortal City perimeter, patiently awaiting the appearance of demon cultivator scouts or vanguard teams to launch a decisive strike.

An Immortal City, with its extremely strong defenses, is difficult to breach. Building each Immortal City means the East Sea cultivators secure a stable foothold, allowing them to exert strong control over a large surrounding sea area and harvest the resources within it. Without Immortal Cities, it is doubtful the East Sea cultivators could have held out against the demon cultivators for so long.

Everyone believed that the demon cultivators would certainly appear, as they could not tolerate the East Sea cultivators continuously expanding their territory and pushing deeper into the Sea of Blood. If the cultivators were allowed to build cities freely in the Sea of Blood, the demon race would ultimately suffer the loss.

The question was: when would the demon cultivators appear, how many would come, and what methods would they use to sabotage the ongoing construction? Palace Master Zhou, Zhou Hong, and the other seasoned cultivators were cautious; they dared only construct a small-scale Immortal City, putting on the appearance of building a city to lure small groups of demon cultivators to investigate for an ambush kill. If they made too much noise, attracting the main force of the demon cultivators, they might be overwhelmed. The conflict between the demon race and the East Sea cultivators dated back long ago, and many highly intelligent demon cultivators were incredibly cunning and bizarre; deceiving them was not easy. In battles against the demon cultivators, the East Sea cultivators did not win the majority of the time—the success rate was roughly fifty-fifty.

Based on the situations in previous Immortal-Demon Wars, although the number of demon cultivators exceeded that of the East Sea Nascent Soul cultivators, they were also cautious about losing lives. The demon cultivators often drove large numbers of Golden Core demon beasts to attack the city simultaneously and engage the East Sea cultivators in battle.

In the Immortal-Demon War, the primary task of the Golden Core cultivators was to eliminate these attacking Golden Core-level demon beasts. The Nascent Soul cultivators, on the other hand, dealt with the demon cultivators who had taken human form.