I Pick up a Lost Godhood-Chapter 88 - 86: Dry Wood and Raging Fire

’Perhaps it’s time for a counterattack. The rewards for the top-ranked Sub-Hall are far beyond what the others could ever hope for.’

As a disciple of the Hundred Herbs Hall, Zhang Liang didn’t just gather intelligence; he also used his network to resell some Spirit Grass. Recently, Thunderlight Hall’s demand for Spirit Grass and ore had skyrocketed. Their increase was the largest of all the Sub-Halls, and rumor had it they were making elaborate preparations for the Hundred Treasures Hall Meeting.

Zhang Liang truly couldn’t make sense of Thunderlight Hall’s situation. They had somehow mysteriously defeated Hengshan Hall. But generally speaking, Hengshan Hall’s carelessness was the main reason for their failure. The Hundred Treasures Hall Meeting, on the other hand, was a time to display a Hall’s true foundation. Last-minute preparations wouldn’t cut it. He really had no idea what kind of spectacle Thunderlight Hall was planning to stir up.

Because a whole lot of people from Thunderlight Hall were here now.

"Over there, over there! Keep it orderly! Pills, Talismans, weapons, and all that need to be separated," Zhou Qian said.

He was directing a group of junior brothers as they set up their section of the venue.

Thunderlight Hall had the worst location, but that didn’t dampen the disciples’ enthusiasm in the slightest. Unlike the other Sub-Halls, which were calm, orderly, and wore expressions of pride, Thunderlight Hall’s area was more like a bustling market fair.

Having untied the knots in their hearts and cast aside their worthless feelings of inferiority, the Hundred Treasures Hall Meeting was like a festival for the disciples of Thunderlight Hall.

"Brother Zhou, shouldn’t our Talismans be a little more to the front?" a junior brother asked with a sly wink.

"You little rascal. Let the Body Cultivators have it. I heard Ancestor Master Lei might be coming. We need to have a spirit of sacrifice."

"Sigh, when will we Talisman Cultivators produce an Ancestral Master of our own?"

"We’re just waiting for you."

"Haha, waiting for me? You’d have better luck waiting for Brother Zhou."

Everyone burst into laughter. Zhou Qian just shook his head. ’I’ve really gotten into this role. Now that I’m on this crazy ride, it’s pretty much impossible to get off.’ The most crucial part was that he was actually enjoying himself.

"Ah, where’s Zhang Xiaojiang?"

"Senior, Brother Zhang and Senior Sister Liuu went to scout out the other Sub-Halls," a disciple said.

Zhou Qian froze for a second, then shook his head helplessly. ’That’s their excuse? It’s obviously just a passionate rendezvous. Liuu Mei is one of Thunderlight’s finest flowers, too. You’d never guess in a million years that she’d actually like Zhang Xiaojiang—and that she’d be the one to pursue him. I’m speechless. The world has changed, and so have people’s tastes.’

Hearing this, Hu Jing revealed a faint smile. She was happy for Zhang Xiaojiang, too. They were friends, but there was never that kind of feeling between them. Zhang Xiaojiang’s affection had been more of an admiration, won over by Hu Jing’s elegance and kindness.

When Liuu Mei bravely confessed her feelings, in Zhou Qian’s words, it was like "dry tinder and a raging fire, a scandalous couple, celestial thunder striking earth flame"—once it started, there was no stopping it!

Before Hu Jing arrived, Liuu Mei, despite her carefree and forthright personality, had been incredibly popular among the Thunderlight disciples. Many had pursued her, but nothing ever came of it.

Of course, Zhang Xiaojiang was no slouch either. He was extremely well-liked, capable, and competent. It was just the fact that Liuu Mei had pursued him that was a little hard for people to accept.

Thunderlight Hall was as rowdy as a marketplace, but it didn’t affect the rhythm of the other Sub-Halls. Dao Guang Hall had the largest area and the best location, right in the center of the entire meeting. The other eight Sub-Halls could only arrange themselves according to their rank.

In the Holy Hall, or rather, in the system of Saint Cultivators, ranking and status were extremely strict and important.

When Dao Guang Hall was setting up, disciples from other Sub-Halls were not allowed to watch. This was the rule, and it had been so for years.

Over at the Lingyin Hall area, Li Tianyi watched his fellow disciples bustle about while he played with his sword, making it dance on his fingertips. In any case, he couldn’t understand why everyone cared so much about the Hundred Treasures Hall Meeting.

Mingren, however, was moving things right alongside the other disciples. This was Lingyin Hall’s Senior. If you didn’t know him, you could easily mistake him for an ordinary disciple.

Flying Phoenix Hall... they hadn’t even started, but it was already packed with a sea of people. Why were all the ones doing the work male disciples???

Flying Phoenix Hall was a Sub-Hall composed entirely of female disciples. Where did all these guys crawl out from?

"Senior Sister, where does this go?"

"Junior Sister, how about putting this here?"

The male cultivators were so enthusiastic. It seemed they weren’t even this passionate when working for their own Halls. It was strange—with their level of strength, this kind of work shouldn’t even make them break a sweat. Yet here they were, one after another, drenched in sweat with their tops off, eager to show off every charming part of their bodies.

With the help of the crowd of enthusiastic male disciples, Flying Phoenix Hall’s area was set up the fastest.

In a private room, Yang Ying and the "Four Golden Flowers" of Flying Phoenix Hall were discussing their plans for the next few days.

"Hundred Herbs Hall and Beast Hall will be holding their usual auctions. The message from Zhang Liang says there’s some good stuff this time."

Youn Yuqing said.

"Hundred Herbs Hall and Beast Hall do this every year, but you never see them bring out their truly good items for auction. They just try to fool us with those second-rate goods."

Shurou shook her head. "Hundred Herbs Hall and Beast Hall are supposed to serve the entire Holy Hall, but now it’s like they only serve themselves."

The Immortal Mountains owned by Hundred Herbs Hall and the Spirit-Controlling Valley owned by Beast Hall were actually resources belonging to the Holy Hall as a whole. But over time, they were gradually appropriated by those Sub-Halls. To be honest, even Thunderlight Hall hadn’t fallen to such a state; any Sub-Hall with resources like those could just rest on its laurels.

Yang Ying smiled. "Stop complaining. They have their own plans. The Main Hall has its reasons for approving this system. What we need to do is improve ourselves. Look at it from another angle: the disciples of Hundred Herbs Hall and Beast Hall have poor combat abilities, and that’s also a consequence of being bogged down by these resources."

"Bogged down? I’d love to be bogged down like that," Wan Fanghua said.

"Fanghua, what Senior Sister means is that precisely because they have such resources, their motivation to cultivate is weaker. They often become lazy."

Gao Dandan said with a smile.

"Haha, Dandan put it well. Dao Guang Hall, Lingyin Hall, and Immortal Origin Hall have always dominated the top three spots, yet none of them have a resource advantage. Ever since the nine Sub-Hall system was established, no Sub-Hall with a resource advantage has ever taken the number one position."

Yang Ying continued, "In the history of the Holy Hall, besides Dao Guang Hall, Lingyin Hall, Immortal Origin Hall, Thunderlight Hall, and Flying Phoenix Hall have all claimed the top spot."

"Sigh, Thunderlight Hall’s fall from grace was just too fast and too drastic," Gao Dandan said helplessly.

During Master Lei’s era, Thunderlight Hall’s glory was unrivaled. All other Sub-Halls had to step aside. For a time, they even had the most Body Cultivation Disciples in the entire Holy Hall, making them a symbol of invincibility.

Rise and fall are part of a natural cycle, but when Thunderlight Hall fell, it fell straight to rock bottom.

"Thunderlight Hall is just about ready to hit bottom and bounce back," Yang Ying said. The battle between Thunderlight Hall and Hengshan Hall had left a deep impression on her.

"Senior Sister, you seem to think highly of Hu Jing. But she’s still young, after all. It’s hard to say what will happen in the future. Most importantly, Thunderlight Hall’s foundation of disciples is too thin," Youn Yuqing said, still unconvinced.

’Bouncing back isn’t that easy.’

"Reporting to all Senior Sisters, Liu Xinyu of Dao Guang Hall has arrived," a female Bow Cultivator disciple came in and announced.

Yang Ying nodded. ’The timing is about right. As the number one of the younger generation, Ning Zhiquan has that authority.’