Sign-In System: Starting With Invincible Physique

Chapter 276: Chapter 276: A Shift in the Balance

Chapter 276: A Shift in the Balance

Inside the opulent, silver-and-gold-draped grand hall of the Vaelstrum Clan estate, the atmosphere was oppressive.

The elder who had been publicly humiliated at the gates of the Celestial Elixir Pavilion paced back and forth, his face was painted red with anger and humiliation.

"They threw us out in front of the entire commercial district!" the elder roared, his voice shaking with indignation. "And the Nebula Sword Sect dogs were right there, laughing at our faces! This is an insult that the Vaelstrum Clan has not suffered in hundreds of years!"

The dozen Domain Master elders seated around the massive table erupted into furious murmurs.

BANG—!!!

A heavy jade table was smashed into dust.

"Arrogant! Utterly arrogant!" a hot-tempered elder roared, his early-stage Domain Master aura erupting uncontrollably. "A mere pill shop dares to blacklist one of the three foundational pillars of Valdris City? How dare they?"

"We must march our elite guards right now and tear that pavilion down to its very foundations!"

To be openly blacklisted by a mere newly established merchant pavilion was a tight slap on to their faces.

"Silence."

A calm, authoritative voice sounded, silencing the furious voices.

It was first elder Draven Vaelstrum, a late stage Domain Master.

"Do not let your wounded pride blind your rationality," Draven stated coldly. "Celestial Elixir Pavilion can employ true Domain Masters as mere doormen. It shows the power behind them is not simple. Their backer, Grandmaster Korryn, we still have no idea of his true identity. If we retaliate with violence, we risk provoking an enemy we do not fully understand."

Draven’s eyes narrowed into calculating slits.

"We are the wealthiest clan in this city," Draven continued, his lips curling into a shrewd sneer. "If they refuse to sell to us directly, we will simply use our wealth. Send our proxy merchant houses."

The elders exchanged glances, slowly nodding in agreement.

It was a cunning strategy.

But reality proved to be ruthlessly cruel.

The next morning, the Vaelstrum Clan secretly dispatched four separate, highly reputable proxy merchant houses to the Celestial Elixir Pavilion.

But the moment the proxy merchants stepped up to the entrance—

"Get lost."

Thanks to the meticulous, efficient intelligence network established by Ives across the Inner Province, the Pavilion already knew exactly which merchant houses were secretly affiliated with the Vaelstrum Clan.

Every single proxy was identified instantly.

Every single one was mercilessly turned away at the door.

A wealthy Vaelstrum clan member attempted to bypass the blockade entirely.

He tracked down an independent rogue cultivator who had successfully purchased a flawless Epic-Grade pill that morning and offered an astronomical sum—ten times the market value—to buy it secondhand.

The rogue cultivator greedily accepted the offer.

But within an hour, the Celestial Elixir Pavilion immediately issued a public, chilling decree.

The original buyer’s membership was permanently voided.

The message was brutally clear.

Anyone caught reselling to the Vaelstrum Clan would be permanently cut off from the only source of flawless pills in the entire Solathane Dynasty.

The deterrent was absolute.

From that moment on, not a single cultivator, noble, or merchant in all of Valdris City dared to sell a pill to anyone close to the Vaelstrum clan.

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Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

While the Vaelstrum Clan fumed in helpless isolation, their thousand-year rival, the Nebula Sword Sect, was experiencing an unprecedented golden age.

Without the Vaelstrum Clan to bid against them, the Nebula Sword Sect had aggressively poured their vast treasury into the Celestial Elixir Pavilion.

Within just three days, they had successfully purchased over two thousand flawless Epic-Grade pills.

The results were immediately visible.

Disciples who had been stuck at the peak of the Spirit Manifestation Realm for had suddenly broken through to the Core Formation Realm.

Veteran elders, whose internal injuries had crippled their progress for decades, healed overnight.

A young, highly talented prodigy of the Nebula Sword Sect, who had been heavily nurtured with the flawless pills, successfully broke into the sixth level of the Core Formation Realm at the age of just twenty two.

The news sent a catastrophic shockwave through Valdris City.

A twenty-two-year-old at the sixth level of the Core Formation Realm was a talent that could rival even the most elite Imperial heirs!

-------------------

Inside the Vaelstrum Ancestral Estate, another emergency meeting of the inner council had been hastily convened.

"Sixth level of the Core Formation Realm!" an elder shouted, his face deathly pale. "And their overall combat strength is skyrocketing across the board! Our men report that nearly forty of their disciples have broken major bottlenecks in just three days!"

"If this continues..." Draven spoke with a bitter expression. "If the Nebula Sword Sect has exclusive access to these flawless pills for even a single year... the balance of power in Valdris City will be destroyed. We will permanently fall behind them."

The terrifying reality crashed down upon the council.

A thousand-year legacy was on the verge of being dismantled simply because they were denied access to a single shop.

"We cannot let this happen!" a hot-headed elder roared, slamming his fist onto the table. "We must gather our Domain Masters and launch a forceful attack! We will crush the Pavilion and seize the Grandmaster by force! If we cannot have the pills, no one can!"

"Are you insane?" another elder immediately fired back, bitterly splitting the council. "Crush them? Did you forget who is buying those pills? If we attack the Celestial Elixir Pavilion, the Nebula Sword Sect will instantly mobilize their entire military might to defend their supplier!"

The hot-headed elder sank back into his chair, utterly defeated.

A forceful attack was a disastrous idea.

It would eliminate any remaining chance of resolving this peacefully.

The Patriarch, who had been sitting in silence at the head of the table, finally spoke.

"There is only one path left to us," the Patriarch spoke.

He turned his gaze toward the first elder.

"First Elder," the Patriarch said solemnly. "I must ask you to personally visit the Celestial Elixir Pavilion. We must get a deal with Grandmaster Korryn. At any cost."

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Inside the heavily warded inner chamber of his secluded courtyard at the Valdris Royal Academy, Rhain sat cross-legged, silently cultivating.

He was now close to his breakthrough in the second level of Core Formation Realm.

Buzz—!

The transmission talisman in his spatial ring vibrated.

Rhain opened his dark grey eyes and channeled a thread of essence into it.

"Master," Vulcan’s voice came through, "It was exactly as you had predicted. Vaelstrum Clan has finally broken. Their First Elder, a late-stage Domain Master, has arrived at the Pavilion demanding a formal negotiation."

"The fish has bitten the hook," Rhain murmured, a faint smirk brushing past his lips.

"Tell them to go back! We do not want any kind of deal with Vaelstrum clan."

"Understood, Master!"

The talisman dimmed.

Rhain slowly stood up from the ground.

It was time.

He walked out of his pavilion, making his way directly toward the grand central hall of the Valdris Royal Academy.

When Rhain entered the hall, Dean Qaylus was reviewing a series of scrolls, his sharp features etched with his usual sternness.

"Rhain," Qaylus looked up, slightly surprised to see the youth outside his courtyard. "What is it?"

"Dean Qaylus," Rhain spoke, his voice completely calm. "I wish to leave the Academy boundaries."

The words dropped like a thunderclap.

Qaylus shot up from his seat.

"Are you insane?" Qaylus yelled, "Emperor’s executioners must be hiding throughout the city borders! The moment you step outside these walls, my protection is voided! You will die before you can walk a single street!"

Rhain didn’t flinch under the overwhelming pressure.

Dean Qaylus," Rhain spoke, his tone turning incredibly solemn. "I have less than a month before the combined military might of the four Imperial Families descends upon Valdris City to enforce the Royal Decree."

Qaylus’s jaw tightened.

"If we simply hide behind these walls and wait, war is inevitable," Rhain continued, "But if I can force the Vaelstrum Clan to formally align with us, the three foundational pillars of Valdris City will be completely united. The Emperor will not dare to wage a civil war against a fully unified independent territory."

"I have laid a trap for the Vaelstrum Clan. And if I step out now, I can force their clan into an alliance with us."

Qaylus froze, the anger in his eyes rapidly shifting to profound shock.

"Force the Vaelstrum Clan into an alliance?" Qaylus muttered.

He had already understood what Rhain was trying to attempt from the actions of Celestial Elixir Pavilion.

If the Vaelstrum Clan joined the Academy and the Nebula Sword Sect, the three foundational pillars of Valdris City would be completely united.

The Emperor’s Royal Decree would be instantly nullified by the sheer, unbreachable political wall of the independent territory!

But the risk was astronomical.

"It is too dangerous," Qaylus gritted his teeth, pacing behind his desk. "Even if your plan is brilliant, you are still the target of the Royal Court. I cannot allow you to walk out there alone."

"Then provide me with an escort," Rhain suggested. "I am requesting additional protection."

Qaylus stared at Rhain for a long moment.

Finally, Qaylus let out a heavy, resigned sigh.

"You are truly a madman," Qaylus muttered, shaking his head.

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