Chapter 5153 — As If It Were Yesterday
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 3
By contrast, Qiu Lingshan and the others—though Wei Zhao had given them an absolute sufficiency of Foundation Establishment Golden Cores—could not have their strength raised directly. And because their power had not been won through their own diligent cultivation, their foundational depths were somewhat lacking, so their progress in breaking through was not as rapid as one might have imagined.
There was no helping it. Ordinary people, upon reaching the peak of the Heaven Rank's Great Perfection, would immediately begin to break through the barrier, whereas these people had already been at the peak of Heaven Rank's Great Perfection three years earlier, and had remained stuck at that realm ever since without the slightest advance. Coupled with insufficient foundation, their difficulty in assailing Foundation Establishment was now far greater than that of ordinary cultivators.
Fortunately, where foundation was lacking, golden cores could make up the difference. Add to that the dense spiritual energy of the Relay Archipelago, and in terms of external conditions alone these people were already uniquely favored. Moreover, among them there was no lack of those with excellent aptitude. Though it seemed not all would break through smoothly, a handful were already nearing the critical threshold. Surely good news would come before long.
Meanwhile, Dr. Glasses' operations on his side continued to advance, though after the promising start with Bing Wushuang and Xue Jianming, their progress over the past month had not been great—at least, far worse than anticipated.
After all, they had to act in secret, and to avoid drawing others' attention and tipping their hand, these people did not dare be too conspicuous. From identifying potential targets worth developing, to gradually drawing closer step by step, to finally making a formal approach—every step along the way had to be taken with the utmost caution. A single slip, and the whole matter would be exposed, which would be disastrous.
"A whole month gone by and we've only won over two people—that's far too slow. Mysterious Man in Black, aren't we being a bit overly cautious?" Big Feng grumbled, feigning complaint.
"The stakes are enormous; no amount of caution is excessive. Be patient." Dr. Glasses was, by nature, the one most eager to achieve something, yet this time he was surprisingly patient. In truth, it was mainly because Lan Xiaoru had given him special instructions the last time he went out to report on their progress. Since Wei Zhao absolutely must not be provoked, this sort of poaching was all the more in need of leaving no flaws exposed. Otherwise, even if the one being poached was not Wei Zhao's man, it could very well develop into a head-on confrontation with Wei Zhao—and that would run counter to their original purpose.
"But at this rate, it'll be the year of the monkey before our ranks truly swell. We'd have been better off grabbing lone operators out there like before. If the higher-ups ask, I'm afraid it'll be a bit hard to explain," Big Feng said, somewhat puzzled.
"It's fine. Times have changed. Operating in this place is far harder than out there, and that was anticipated long ago. The higher-ups won't blame us. Besides, our Center has yet to truly reveal its strength; winning people over with a few smooth words is no easy task. Let's take it slowly," Dr. Glasses said with a sigh.
Bing Wushuang and Xue Jianming were special cases—crippled men, and in their utter despair, naturally easy to win over. But the other Primordial Alliance disciples were different. Even if they harbored resentment toward the Primordial Alliance, they were not so easily recruited. Unless the persuader sent to them was on very close terms with them, it would be hard to talk them around.