"Everyone has traveled far, thank you for your efforts. Please rest here for a while and have a cup of spiritual tea. I am the Deputy Sect Master of the Saint Puppet Sect. I am mainly responsible for coordinating the defensive operations this time. I hope that you fellow Daoists can lend a hand. If we can repel the powerful enemy, there will be generous rewards." The palace-dressed woman said.

"We are here to carry out our mission, Deputy Sect Master, you don't need to be so polite. What I and the other fellow Daoists from the Unstable Alliance are most concerned about is the current situation of the Saint Puppet Sect. Who is attacking this time, when will they attack, and how many people will there be?" Lin San waved her hand and asked bluntly.

Including Han Li and Lin Jiu, the others from the Unstable Alliance all looked at the palace-dressed woman upon hearing this.

"Actually, to be honest, I don't know who is attacking, when they will come, or how many people there will be." The palace-dressed woman hesitated for a moment, then smiled wryly.

"What?"

"You don't even know? Isn't this a joke?"

"We don't want to fight this unprepared battle!"

"If no one comes in the end, wouldn't we be wasting our time here?"

Upon hearing this, many of the Unstable Alliance members were in an uproar, clearly dissatisfied with the answer.

Although the mission was to protect the Saint Puppet Sect, and didn't mention who the enemy was, they were already taking a risk by accepting the mission, motivated by the high reward and some confidence in their own strength. But in the end, they still had to weigh the risks and rewards, and prepare thorough countermeasures.

Most of them planned that if the difficulty and risk of the mission were too great and exceeded their ability to bear, they would rather pay compensation than risk their lives. Of course, that was the worst-case scenario.

Although Lin San had told them some more in-depth information about the mission along the way, most of it didn't involve the key points of the mission. They thought they would find out more when they arrived at the Saint Puppet Sect, but it turned out that the Deputy Sect Master didn't seem to know much either, which naturally made them uneasy.

Although Lin Jiu and the others didn't say anything, their expressions varied and they looked at Lin San from time to time.

Han Li's expression didn't change much, but he was quite speechless inside.

But before setting off, he had made some estimates about the Saint Puppet Sect's origins and strength. He figured that even if there were Golden Immortal level beings among the attackers, he could protect himself with his current abilities, making him one of the few calm people present.

"Everyone, please calm down. Since you've accepted the mission and come here, we're all in the same boat. Now we should think about how to complete the mission. Of course, if you want to quit now, according to the rules of the alliance, you can pay three times the reward in Immortal Spirit Stones, and I won't stop you." At this moment, Lin San's voice rang out calmly.

Although her voice wasn't loud, it carried an imposing aura that silenced the noisy people, who exchanged glances and said nothing more.

"Deputy Sect Master, we are here to help your sect. It is only right to take people's money and help them avoid disaster, but we are only a few people, and we can't turn things around. I think you should be aware of this. Since we don't know who the enemy is, your sect should have made thorough preparations, right?" Seeing this, Lin San turned her gaze to the palace-dressed woman and said lightly.

"Please forgive me, it's not that I'm deliberately hiding anything, but I really don't know. Our sect only learned from some reliable channels some time ago that someone would gather a force to attack our Saint Puppet Sect. Since our Sect Master is currently far away on another continent and cannot return, I had to spend a lot of money to invite you here to help, just in case. I stated in the mission at the time that as long as you can help our sect get through this crisis, the mission will be considered complete, for a period of three years. During this period, you can cultivate in our sect as much as you like. If no enemy comes within three years, the mission reward will not be reduced." The palace-dressed woman sighed lightly and then explained.

Hearing this, Lin Jiu and the others naturally nodded slightly, and their expressions softened a bit.

"In addition, although our sect is small, it has been passed down for so many years and will not allow others to bully it. Although we cannot predict who the attackers will be, our sect has countless restrictions, formations, and mechanical puppets. If the attackers really appear, we will let them see the power of our Saint Puppet Sect. However, we cannot say too much. Just in case, some of our sect's core disciples have already evacuated. Now, those who remain on the island are people who are determined to live and die with our sect, about three thousand people." The palace-dressed woman paused and then continued.

Han Li nodded thoughtfully, no wonder he hadn't seen many cultivators on this vast island.

"May I ask, how many True Immortal cultivators are among these three thousand people?" Lin Jiu asked.

As soon as he asked, everyone looked at the Deputy Sect Master, clearly very concerned about the answer to this question.

This is not difficult to understand. In battles of this level, even if Golden Immortal cultivators are the highest combat power, there will be many constraints. Therefore, the number of True Immortal cultivators is often the biggest factor in determining the development of the battle and even the outcome.

"There are currently more than thirty people, among whom, in addition to the elders in the hall, other elders are responsible for guarding key locations on the island, and some are responsible for controlling some secret puppet techniques. You will see them later." The palace-dressed woman explained.

After all, the Saint Puppet Sect is not a first-class sect, and cannot be compared with the Candle Dragon Dao. It is already very rare for the sect to have a Golden Immortal Sect Master and more than thirty True Immortal elders. Among sects of the same level, it should already be considered a strong force.

"In that case, with the addition of our Unstable Alliance members, there are at least about fifty True Immortal cultivators on the island. I believe that with this force, combined with the many restrictions and defenses on the island, even if a large sect wants to invade, they will have to think twice." Lin San said after pondering for a moment.

Her few words were like a reassurance, and most of the Unstable Alliance members present were relieved. After all, Lin San was the leader of this mission. The red mask she wore not only represented strength, but also her status in the Unstable Alliance. In the past, these members had naturally had a lot of contact with these higher-level members wearing red masks, and they naturally understood their terrifying strength and rich experience.

Therefore, her judgment was naturally more convincing.

Han Li didn't feel anything special about this. What he believed in was not other people's judgment, but his own strength.

"Now the goal of the mission is clear, to guard this place for three years. I will ask one last time, if anyone decides to quit now, there is still time." Lin San looked around at everyone and said.

At this time, the noise among the crowd was much smaller. Most of them had already made up their minds to earn this money, and after hesitating again and again, the remaining small group of people finally decided not to quit.

"Very good. Since the arrangements on the island have already been made, what do you need us to do?" Lin San nodded slightly and turned to ask the palace-dressed woman again.

"The elders in the sect are mainly arranged to defend the island, but the manpower to guard the eight outer islands is not enough. Some of them only have one True Immortal cultivator guarding them, and some are guarded by Great Ascension cultivators. Therefore, we need the help of the Unstable Alliance to guard these islands." The palace-dressed woman said.

As soon as these words came out, the expressions on the faces of the Unstable Alliance members present changed again.

"Since there aren't enough people in the first place, why not concentrate your forces to guard the island and simply give up a few outer islands? You can just take them back after the storm has passed, right?" Lin Jiu asked, taking in the changes in everyone's expressions, somewhat puzzled.

The eight islands are outside the main island, and it is obvious that they will be attacked before the main island, which is naturally more dangerous. The Saint Puppet Sect deliberately arranged for them to be on the outer islands, and their intentions cannot but be suspected.

Han Li didn't find this strange. They were a group of mercenary-like helpers, so they would naturally be placed on the front line against the enemy. That large reward was not easy to come by.

Of course, the other party must have other purposes.

"To be honest, these eight islands are the most powerful line of defense in the sect. If we can defend them and prevent them from being breached, then we will have the upper hand to some extent. Therefore, we need stronger combat power to guard them. Moreover, even if we let you control the many formations and mechanisms on the island, you may not be able to do it." The palace-dressed woman explained.

After hearing this, everyone understood that this was indeed the case.

"There are sixteen of us in total, how do you plan to distribute us?" Lin San asked after a moment of silence.

"Among the eight islands, only one is guarded by two True Immortal elders. Therefore, the remaining seven islands need your help to guard. As for the specific arrangements, please Lin San make the decision." The palace-dressed woman said as if she had planned it long ago.

Lin San thought for a moment and said, "In that case, you will form teams of two and guard one island. Lin Eleven will stay and sit on the main island with me."

"Yes." Everyone responded in unison without much hesitation.

Han Li also echoed, but his heart moved.

This Lin San seemed to be taking care of Bai Su Yuan, and specially left her on the relatively safe main island. Could it be that she knew Bai Su Yuan's true cultivation? Or were they simply acquaintances?

At the thought of this, Han Li looked at Lin San and had a bold guess in his heart.

Just then, a familiar voice suddenly sounded in Han Li's mind. It was Xiong Shan who was transmitting the voice, saying:

"Fellow Daoist Jiao Fifteen, how about you and I form a team to guard an island?"

"That's exactly what I was thinking."

Han Li had cooperated with him before and naturally knew his strength, so he smiled and agreed.

…

About half a quarter of an hour later, everyone walked out of the hall in succession, formed teams of two, and flew up, led by a Saint Puppet Sect elder, towards the outer islands.

"Fellow Daoist Jiao Fifteen, let's go." Lin Jiu came forward and greeted Han Li.

Han Li nodded silently and said nothing.

Led by a white-bearded old man, the two flew towards the southwest direction outside the island.