The two landed on the ground below, and Ning Qi took out two meditation mats from his Storage Space, whereupon they sat facing each other.
"Senior Sister Qi of the Jade Light Immortal Sect, Ning Qi greets you!"
Ning Qi cupped his hands in a respectful gesture.
"Should I address you as Sect Leader of the Infinite Sword Sect or Domain Master of the Profound Truth Realm?" Qi Keqing asked.
Ning Qi smiled faintly, "There is no Sect Leader of the Infinite Sword Sect here, nor Domain Master of the Profound Truth Realm, only the Alliance Hierarch trusted by the people of the Profound Truth Realm."
Qi Keqing narrowed her eyes slightly, "Alliance Hierarch, huh?"
She recalled the scene when the Profound Truth Realmâs army, under Ning Qiâs leadership, slaughtered the cultivators of the Vast Realm and fierce beasts from the Sea of Realms.
Ning Qi commanded his troops like a deity; reaching such a level indeed required the trust of the various sects in the Profound Truth Realm.
She also cupped her hands to Ning Qi, "Alliance Master Ning, time is precious, so Iâll speak frankly."
"Please go ahead!"
Qi Keqing said, "Under both our commands are strong generals. In this war realm, why donât we unite our forces and form an alliance?"
Qi Keqing had originally come for this node, but upon seeing Ning Qi and his army, and after testing Ning Qiâs strength, she couldnât help but change her mind.
With the Spirit Realm war kicking off, the key is seizing nodes within the war realm.
And to seize those nodes, sending more troops isnât necessarily better.
This is a battlefield of death; the fewer the people, the more isolated you become, and the smaller the chance of survival.
Thus, as time progresses, whether itâs various sects or different spirit domains, theyâll realize one thing: sticking together is essential!
Even if you believe yourself strong, not sticking together, when encountering equally strong people who do, is there a need to ask who will win?
Just like the people from the White Crane Immortal Sect and the Vermilion Bird Immortal Sect Ning Qi encountered before, they thought themselves powerful, and thus adopted the method of splitting into teams to attack the war realm, only to be exterminated by Ning Qi.
If they hadnât split into teams, but had moved forward united from the beginning, Ning Qi wouldnât have been able to defeat them.
Therefore, Qi Keqing inviting Ning Qi to form an alliance is also her foresight into the future development trend within the war realm, making advance preparations.
Regarding Qi Keqingâs proposal, Ning Qiâs expression remained unchanged as he directly said, "I refuse!"
Such a clean and decisive attitude naturally stunned Qi Keqing.
She stared at Ning Qi, and spoke frankly, "You and I are both army commanders; we should know that the future direction of armies within the war realm will certainly lean towards unity. My Fuyao Realmâs army is not weaker than your Profound Truth Realmâs army, so why not agree?"
Ning Qi confidently said, "A mountain cannot accommodate two tigers; if you relinquish command and let me fully lead the Fuyao Realmâs army, only then would cooperation be possible."
Upon hearing this, Qi Keqingâs eyebrows nearly knit together.
Ning Qi wasnât unwilling to unite forces; he knew she couldnât possibly relinquish command.
She acknowledged that Ning Qi was indeed formidable, but to let go of command and give the Fuyao Realmâs army to Ning Qi to lead, Qi Keqing could absolutely not accept; she also had her dignity.
At the very least, she believed in her ability to command an army, believing she wasnât weaker than Ning Qi in this regard.
Moreover, once the war realm is stabilized and the Unity Realm comes into play, they will also participate.
Qi Keqing not only represents herself but also the Jade Light Immortal Sect.
In the future, she would still have to hand over the Fuyao Realmâs army to the Unity Realm Ancestor within her sect to lead, so how could she hand it over to Ning Qi now?
As for Ning Qi, he certainly wouldnât accept Qi Keqingâs leadership either.
The Profound Truth Realmâs army under his command took Ning Qi decades to hone into the unified force it is today.
Overall, the Profound Truth Realmâs army led by Ning Qi is almost like a sectâone devoid of internal conflictâexceeding even his control over the beings in the True Martial Realm.
Thus, if his forces were to merge with Qi Keqingâs army and he couldnât lead the opposing army, it would disrupt his own rhythm.
Why should Ning Qi waste this time? He wouldnât accommodate others, nor does he have time to waste.
Of course, if one says Ning Qi doesnât desire control over the opposing army, that would be impossible.
But right now, Qi Keqing is still quite prideful and wouldnât agree to his demands; wait until sheâs battered by the Vast Realm cultivators and willing, then itâs not too late to reconsider.
Qi Keqing rose and said, "It seems we canât reach an agreement now, then I wonât waste time and will take my leave!"
Ning Qi nodded slightly.
His Spiritual Sense had already commanded the Profound Truth Realmâs army to continue summoning the Mountain and Sea Realm Will.
As of now, the Heavenly Star is formed, and the Mountain and Sea Realm Will is partly present, so Ning Qi isnât worried about the other side attempting to seize the nodes.
Should the other side truly lack clarity, the Mountain and Sea Realm Will would act on its own.
Moreover, with both armies at this node, even if Vast Realm cultivators are nearby, they wouldnât dare approach.
Qi Keqing flew back to her team.
Sikong Lan inquired, "Senior Sister Qi, did negotiations with Ning Qi fall through?"
Qi Keqing glanced at him, "Do you know what we talked about?"
Sikong Lan chuckled, "Senior Sister Qi underestimates us; even if weâre guessing, we can deduce your thoughts. Fellow cultivators, am I right?"
Voices of agreement echoed from among the crowd, mostly from his former subordinates.
Yet few from Qi Keqingâs troops responded to Sikong Lan.
Seeing this, Sikong Lanâs expression remained unchanged, but he had already calculated a bit internally.
One of Qi Keqingâs subordinates said, "Senior Sister Qi, you must have proposed an alliance with Ning Qi, but the other party refused, right?"
Qi Keqing nodded slightly, "He demands I hand over command as a condition for agreement."
"What?"
Upon hearing this, everyoneâs anger erupted.
"This fellow truly doesnât know whatâs good for him!"
"Our Fuyao Realmâs army has more people and is stronger than theirs. If the two armies unite, itâs a great benefit to their Profound Truth Realm, yet Ning Qi isnât grateful and even seeks control?"