Before the war started, the patriarchs of both sides met up for final talks. On one side were eight patriarchs from the five sects. And on the other side were six patriarchs of the Red and Blue Fire sect.
There were eight patriarchs from the five sects because one came from the Purple Flower sect, one from the Black Bones sect, and two from the other three sects.
The two from the Blood Skull sect are Lady Evergreen and Thunder Drake. The two from the Sword Way sect and the Beast Training sect are the old patriarchs running out of lifespan, and new patriarchs who would replace them.
The new patriarchs from the Sword Way sect and the Beast Training sect are still weak. This was why they only came to participate in the war with their avatars. Their main body would be too weak to make a difference, so they didn't come with their main body in order not to risk their lives and die.
On the other hand, the old patriarchs of the Sword Way sect and the Beast Training sect came with their true bodies. The patriarch of the Purple Flower sect and Thunder Drake also came with their true bodies.
Only Lady Evergreen and the patriarch of the Black Bones didn't need to come with their true bodies in order to display significant strength. This was because their avatars are very strong.
The avatar of the Black Bones sect is a nascent soul corpse that has been raised to the peak of the fifth mortal coil. This avatar was created from the corpse of a talented junior.
So the Patriarch of the Black Bones sect doesn't need to go anywhere with his true body in order to display power that is at the peak of the nascent soul realm. This and the fact that he owns many such avatars are why he is considered one of the strongest nascent soul cultivators in the Five Vein Region.
Lady Evergreen is no slouch either. Her avatars were given the bodies of trees that she raised to the fifth mortal coil to possess. So, she, too, doesn't need to be here personally in order to display great strength.
Unfortunately, her avatars can't share in the power of her armament. This and the fact that the wood element has weak offensive potential while the death element is fatal to every living thing is why she can't compete with the avatar of the patriarch of the Black Bones sect.
Be that as it may, these two are not the strongest nascent soul cultivators on the side of the five sects. That title is something that can only be claimed by either Thunder Drake or the old patriarch of the Sword Way sect.
Thunder Drake is here with his true body, so he has the enhancement of his armament on his side. He also has the power of lightning, which is the strongest element.
On the other side, the old patriarch of the Sword Way sect has his offensive techniques and a powerful sword that the Sword Way sect raised by sacrificing the spirit and cultivation of their patriarchs when they are about to die.
The nascent soul patriarchs of the Beast Training sect are no slouches either. Both of them have at least one nascent soul beast to assist them in battle.
All in all, the people of the Five Veins region have appeared with significant force and are showing that they take this war seriously. The patriarchs of the Red and Blue Fire sect saw this fact clearly, but they still didn't take their enemies seriously.
To them, this part of the world is a backward region, and the people living here are barbarians. Besides that, they are experienced with wars and have won many of them.
The sixth and youngest patriarch of the sect didn't take the people of the Five Veins region seriously because of pride. She looked down on them, while the older patriarchs were confident of their victory because of their extensive experience.
Of the six of them, two were women, while the other two were men. They varied in height, body structure, and size. But they all have the same type of hair.
Their hair was a flame. A literal fire was burning on their heads. The fire is mostly red with blue highlights at its edges.
Their leader, the oldest one with the biggest fire burning on his head, stepped forward and said, "Lives need not be lost needlessly. We don't need to fight because your efforts to block our path will surely fail. The only thing you will gain will be a waste of time, resources, and lives."
"We are a sect that rose in ardvasary and fell in ardvasary. We have invaded entire worlds and destroyed them. You bunch are but a tiny blimp compared to the foes we've fought in the history of our sect. The fact that we've fallen to this level doesn't mean that you can step on us."
"I propose that we come to an understanding that will avoid bloodshed. We want the Purple Flower sect and are willing to pay for it. Let us spend money to avoid dying for something that we don't need to fight for."
His speech started with a condescending tone, but he finished with a reasonable offer. He didn't say something like, "Let us get the secret realm of the Purple Flower sect while you find a way to deal with it."
The offer he made was tempting. After all, most of them were fighting for benefits. If they didn't need to fight for those benefits, then they would be on board to accept the deal.
Only the Purple Flower sect and the patriarchs of the Blood Skull sect were not tempted by the deal. This was because no deal could offer them what they truly wanted.
But the patriarchs of the other three sects were very much tempted and had already been swayed by the offer.