Chapter 923: Arousing the Enthusiasm
Guo Chong's words completely discouraged some of the Five Element Sect's disciples from trying to hide the Profundity Fragment after they found it. If their Spatial Ring would be searched as well, it would definitely be impossible to hide the Profundity Fragment.
'Search the Spatial Ring?' Upon hearing Guo Chong's words, Duan Ling Tian frowned a little.
Unlike the other Five Element Sect's disciples, he had already possessed three Profundity Fragments even before he entered the Martial Emperor's secret treasure. They were obtained from the Sword Monarch's Treasure before this.
He could still accept it if the Profundity Fragments that he found in the Martial Emperor's secret treasure were taken away. However, if the three Profundity Fragments that he originally possessed got taken away, who should he lodge a complaint to?
"Sect Leader," Duan Ling Tian looked at Guo Chong and spoke up immediately.
"Yes?" Guo Chong stared at Duan Ling Tian with a puzzled look. The stern look on his face had vanished without a trace. Instead, it was replaced with a smile as he asked, "Anything?"
In his opinion, among all of the young Five Element Sect's disciples who would be entering the Martial Emperor's secret treasure, the person who possessed the greatest strength was none other than Duan Ling Tian. He had pinned most of his hopes on Duan Ling Tian this time.
For this reason, he did not put on the air of a sect leader in front of Duan Ling Tian.
"What if we managed to get two or more Profundity Fragments in the Martial Emperor's secret treasure? Do we really have to hand in every piece to the sect as well?" Duan Ling Tian looked Guo Chong in the eyes and casually asked. "Not only would the Profundity Fragment allows the sect to give birth to a Martial Emperor, it would also help us enter the Martial Monarch Stage if we can keep one for ourselves!" Duan Ling Tian's eyes shone brightly as he said this.
The moment the words left his mouth, all the other nineteen Five Element Sect's disciples immediately shifted their attention towards Guo Chong in unison. It was apparent that they were curious about this as well.
After all, Duan Ling Tian's words resonated with their thoughts.
Of course! The Profundity Fragment would help the sect give birth to a Martial Emperor, and it would also help them enter the Martial Monarch Stage in the future and become a Martial Emperor themselves.
"T-This..." Upon hearing Duan Ling Tian's words, Guo Chong became hesitant immediately.
"Sect Leader, if the sect really wants us to hand in all of the Profundity Fragments that we obtain, I'm afraid not many of us will be interested in fighting for the Profundity Fragments inside the Martial Emperor's secret treasure!" Duan Ling Tian continued to add on, "After all, what use is there for us to fight till our very last breath for something that doesn't belong to us? What use is there for us to take as many as possible?"
"Hurmph!" The moment these words left his mouth, Cha Bai, the Peak Master of Fire Peak, who was standing by the side, snorted, "What do you mean by 'what use is there for us to fight until our very last breath for something that doesn't belong to us' and 'what use is there for us to take as many as possible'? Don't you forget that you're all the disciples of the Five Element Sect! The sect trained and fostered all of you. Now that the sect needs you, don't you think you should devote yourself entirely to your last breath for the sake of the sect?"
As he was speaking, Cha Bai swept a glance at the Five Element Sect's disciples, including Duan Ling Tian.
"Peak Master Cha Bai, you're speaking with such a strong sense of awe-inspiring righteousness. Does this mean that you'll be willing to put your life at stake to fight for those Profundity Fragments that will eventually be handed to the sect if you're the one entering the Martial Emperor's secret treasure?" Duan Ling Tian narrowed his eyes as he stared directly at him.
"Of course!" Cha Bai replied as a matter of course, putting on an air that was saying 'I'm willing to sacrifice everything for the sake of the sect!'
"In that case, do you dare to swear by the Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribulation, Peak Master Cha Bai? Swear that if the words that you just said did not come from the bottom of your heart, you're willing to be killed in a strike by the Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribulation!" A ridiculing smile crept up on the corner of Duan Ling Tian's mouth.
"You..." Cha Bai's face turned pale at once. He did not expect Duan Ling Tian to bring up the Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribulation into the conversation again.
However, did he really dare to swear by the Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribulation?
Of course not!
"Looks like the words that you just spoke were uttered against your conscience, Peak Master Cha Bai?" Duan Ling Tian stared deeply at Cha Bai and mocked him with a sneer.
Many of the Five Element Sect's disciples immediately cast a mocking glance at Cha Bai while some even snorted.
"We're duty-bound to find the Profundity Fragments for the sect. However, if there are no incentives, I'm afraid it's not enough to raise the sect's disciples' morale." Duan Ling Tian looked at Guo Chong again before he slowly proclaimed, "Sect Leader, please consider this for a while. When the disciples enter the Martial Emperor's secret treasure knowing that they will not get to keep the Profundity Fragments for themselves, how passionate do you think they would be when they're searching for the Profundity Fragments? At that time, their minds will be totally focused on the high-level items such as the Concept Fragments or spirit weapon instead. After all, no matter how many pieces of those items they get, it'll belong to them!"
When he reached this point, Duan Ling Tian paused for a moment before he changed his tone and said, "However, if the sect promises that no matter who it is, we can keep the second or the third Profundity Fragments that we found for ourselves, I'm sure all of the sect's disciples will be willing to risk their lives to search for the Profundity Fragments instead! After all, a piece of Profundity Fragment is more than enough to change one's life! All of the sect's disciples present here were chosen by the sect. Each of them possesses a strong innate skill and comprehension. I'm sure they'll eventually make a breakthrough to the Ninth Level Void Transformation and comprehend the Ninth Level Void Transformation Concept someday! To them, the Profundity Fragment is also an equally rare treasure. I hope that you can consider this, Sect Leader. I can't speak for everyone. In my case, I might be willing to search for the Profundity Fragments for the sect's sake in order to repay the debt for the training I received from the sect. However, if the Profundity Fragment is in the hands of a young powerhouse whose strength is on par or stronger than mine and could potentially kill me, I'll most likely not fight for that Profundity Fragment! After all, we only have one life in this world. It's extremely precious and valuable. No matter how attractive the Profundity Fragment is, in the end, it's still not ours so there's no reason for us to risk our lives to fight for it!" Duan Ling Tian addressed the group in one breath.
"Senior Brother Ling Tian said it well!"
"That's right! If all of the Profundity Fragments that we obtain have to be given to the sect, then this will definitely lower our enthusiasm to search and fight for the Profundity Fragments!"
"Since it doesn't belong to us anyway, there's no reason for us to risk our lives for it!"
"However, if we can keep the second piece of Profundity Fragment that we find, I'll definitely fight till my last breath to snatch it! After all, it'll play a role in whether or not I'll be able to become a Martial Emperor in the future!"
"Same goes for me!"
"Although Senior Brother Ling Tian is young, every word of his is a gem, and they completely resonate with my heart!"
...
Before Guo Chong could respond in time, a clamor had already broken out among the group of Five Element Sect's disciples. From their words, it was obvious that they all agreed with Duan Ling Tian's opinion.
Nangong Yi, Tan Huan, and Tian Zhen were no exception as well.
Although Nangong Chen still had a cold look on his face, there were no doubts that he had the same thoughts from the constant gleaming of his eyes.
"Hurmph!" Although Hu Fei was displeased that this words came out of Duan Ling Tian's mouth, he had to admit that he actually agreed with Duan Ling Tian as well.
When Guo Chong saw the scene before him going out of control due to Duan Ling Tian's remark, he could not help but let out a wry smile.
He had to admit that Duan Ling Tian's remark had not only resonated with the other Five Element Sect's disciples' hearts but with his own heart too.
Although he would not be involved in the search for the Profundity Fragments, he could roughly understand the feelings of the people involved.
It was exactly like what Duan Ling Tian said. If the sect's disciples had to hand all of the Profundity Fragments to the sect no matter how many they obtained, their enthusiasm would be killed off no matter how loyal they were to the sect.
"Sect Leader, I agree with Duan Ling Tian about this matter!" At this moment, Qi Yu, the Peak Master of Wood Peak, suddenly stepped out and voiced out directly, "In order to stimulate the enthusiasm of the sect's disciples, I hope that you'll allow them to keep the second, third or even fourth Profundity Fragments that they manage to find in the Martial Emperor's secret treasure."
"I also agree with Duan Ling Tian!" This time, Yu Fang and Tian Gu, the Peak Masters of Water and Earth Peaks respectively, chimed in as well.
"What about you, Peak Master Cha Bai?" When he saw the three Peak Masters had stepped forward and agreed with Duan Ling Tian's remark, he instinctively looked over at Cha Bai who did not say a word at all, "Or could it be that you disagree with Duan Ling Tian?"
"I have no objection." Although Cha Bai hated Duan Ling Tian to the core, he knew that this was not the right time to be cocky. If he denied Duan Ling Tian's remark, even the disciples from Fire Peak would hate him as well.
"Alright!" When Guo Chong saw all four Peak Masters agreed with him, he nodded his head and immediately looked at the twenty young disciples of the Five Element Sect, including Duan Ling Tian. He announced clearly, "I, Guo Chong, the Sect Leader of Five Element Sect, give you my word on behalf of the sect that no matter how many Profundity Fragments you obtain from the Martial Emperor's secret treasure, every one of you only need to hand in one to us. The disciple who hands in one to us will no longer need to hand in their Spatial Ring for us to check!" Guo Chong announced in one breath.
Suddenly, the eyes of all Five Element Sect's disciples shone brightly. Some began to breathe more rapidly than usual.
"All hail the Sect Leader!"
"In this case, I must obtain at least two Profundity Fragments even if I fight till my last breath!'
"Wait for me, Martial Monarch Stage!"
...
Chaos broke out in the group of Five Element Sect's disciples. Each and every one of them was extremely excited.
Guo Chong could not help but sigh emotionally when he saw this scene. He knew that the enthusiasm of the sect's disciples in finding and fighting for the Profundity Fragment had finally been successfully aroused. Now, all that was left was for them to enter the Martial Emperor's secret treasure and show off their skills.
Duan Ling Tian breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that situation had finally turned around.
'I hope that I'll be able to get my hands on one Profundity Fragment that's not useful to me in that Martial Emperor's secret treasure. It can also be considered as repayment for the grace of the Five Element Sect and for my training,' he thought to himself.
Previously, the Five Element Sect had given him three spirit fruits and even allowed him to enter the Profound Assimilation Formation. It resulted in him making a great breakthrough in his strength.
The training was also a sign of their grace after all. If he did not repay it, he would feel uneasy about it.
'However, I'm sure that the Martial Emperor's secret treasure won't have too many Profundity Fragments. If I really can't find any Profundity Fragments inside, I'll have to think of another way and hide the three Profundity Fragments I have on hand,' Duan Ling Tian was prepared for the worst scenario.
It was impossible for him to hand in the three Profundity Fragments he had on hand.
The Wind Profundity Fragment, Thunder Profundity Fragment, and Sword Profundity Fragment.
These three Profundity Fragments were all Profundity Fragments that would be useful to him so he would never hand them over.