The true body of Sword Flash, in particular, felt off to their senses. The energy waves coming from his body were erratic. They rose and churned, causing environmental mana to riot like a storm.
So no one made any noise or caused any distraction. They all waited solemnly and in silence for everyone to arrive and for the meeting to start.
The meeting began once everyone had arrived. Sword Flash was the first to speak.
He said, "As you might have guessed. I have advanced to the sixth mortal coil. The advancement is very recent. This is why my control over my power and aura is so weak. So I apologize for my erratic presence."
"I called this meeting to tell you of our current situation and inform you of what direction we are going next. Be assured. I don't have any bad news. All I have is good news."
After saying this, he smiled. His smile eased the tense situation in the council hall.
He looked at everyone and said, "First of all, I want to thank everyone for standing strong in my absence and holding the fort. I am glad to see that the sect hasn't been destroyed in my absence."
When Lady Evergreen heard this, she snorted. She didn't say anything, but her displeasure at the little jab at her was made clear.
Sword Flash ignored her and simply chuckled. Then he continued with his speech.
"I also want to thank everyone for their performance during the war. Your hard work created the perfect opportunity for him to take down the Red and Blue Fire sect in one clean move. You shall all be rewarded for this."
Now it was the turn of everyone to smile. The atmosphere in the council hall lightened even more as a result of the promises of rewards.
Sword Flash saw this and nodded in satisfaction. Then he said, "On to serious matters."
"You guys don't know where I went when I left. All you knew was that I went to secure resources for you. That is the truth. I didn't leave to go and have my breakthrough. My breakthrough was only as a result of a happy accident."
"I'll tell you where I went and what I went to do now. I went to the third layer of space called the void layer. I went there to undergo an assessment that would determine if I would be allowed to join the league of world eaters."
What he said caused the golden core cultivators to be confused. Many of them didn't know about the second layer or the third layer of space. And they certainly didn't know about the league of world eaters.
So Sword Flash explained to them, "Many years ago, the world of Ethera was invaded by a powerful race. This race called themselves herders. They were adept at enslaving other races and driving them like work animals into battle."
"In order to resist this invasion, the great Ethera tree employed a group of powerful individuals. These individuals worked together to repel the herders. But life was never the same after that invasion."
"Those powerful individuals became aware that there were many worlds out there after the invasion. After they repelled the invasion, they counterattacked the world of the herders and destroyed them."
"But they didn't stop there. They also began invading other worlds and consuming them. This trend took off when those powerful people learned that if they offered a whole world to Ethera, the golden tree would grant them power. So the world of Ethera, which used to be in isolation, began exploring the universe and invading worlds."
"However, not everyone could invade worlds. The most important obstacle was the Ethera tree, while the second most important obstacle was the lack of power."
"The Ethera couldn't allow just about anyone to enter or leave the world. It also had to keep tabs on every invasion to ensure that it was going well and that the people of our world hadn't offended an enemy too strong for us, like the herders did."
"The Ethera tree established a council to oversee every matter relating to the defense of the world of Ethera and the invasion of other worlds. The council that oversees the matter of defense is the League of Guardians, while the council that oversees the invasion of worlds is the League of World Eaters."
"Anyone who wants to gain the vast resources of another world by invading it must first join the league of world eaters. For this to happen, their strength must be tested. Based on the outcome of the test, one can become a leader in the league of world eaters or a soldier for the league."
"The assessment I participated in was for the title of soldiers. If passed, I would gain the privilege of taking you guys along with me to other worlds to gain the resources you need. Of course, you will need to fight for those resources. But we would all be under the command of the league of world eaters and have no say in which world we would invade."
At this point, Sword Flash raised his chin and said, "I passed that test. I did so well in it that I was given a reward and the opportunity to take the leadership assessment."
While everyone else didn't know what to do, Sword Flash's three disciples all stood up and began clapping. These three were Void Claw, Silver Web, and Thor, who is now Daoist Metal Heart.
These three clearly knew Sword Flash more than the rest. They also knew a cue when they saw one and immediately took action.
When everyone else saw these three standing up to clap, they also joined them in standing and clapping. Thunder Drake saw this and chuckled in amusement.
Sword Flash waved his hand magnanimously and said, "I just risked my life for all of you. There is no need for you to thank me."
But no one stopped clapping. This was because his three disciples started clapping even harder instead of stopping.