"..."

Her subordinate’s suggestion brought a look of displeasure to Shen Wanshang’s face. What shamed and annoyed her even more was that for one fleeting moment, she had actually considered its feasibility. Although she viciously cast the thought from her mind almost immediately, that brief wavering still left her unsettled.

Her gaze, sharp as a frozen blade, swept over the crowd of cultivators below the dais. Her icy voice was wrapped in an authority that permitted no argument: "As for Master Luo Zhiwei, I will continue to extend invitations myself. However, I forbid any more of these devious, unorthodox proposals. The Celestial Sea King’s Mansion has always acted with honor and integrity. We would never deign to use such treacherous tricks."

...

The retainers of the Celestial Sea King’s Mansion, in their bid to gain access to the Dream Array, had put forth some outrageous suggestions.

In an auxiliary residence of the Silver Moon Royal Mansion, someone had also proposed this same recruitment strategy.

And over here, far more people were proposing it. In the Celestial Sea King’s Mansion, Shen Wanshang was a figure of immense power and influence. She was a peerless talent and a Commandery Princess who wielded true authority. Faced with such a woman, the cultivators who depended on her, despite drooling over the effects of the Dream Array, dared not challenge her authority—with the exception of one reckless fool.

The situation at the Silver Moon Royal Mansion, in contrast, was completely different. The leader here was Ji Hao, and while Ji Yao was his sister, she wasn’t considered an indispensable core member of the mansion.

In the eyes of many cultivators, a significant part of her value lay in her potential for a political marriage.

And while most people didn’t think much of Zhong Ming’s strength, the fact that he had won Luo Zhiwei’s favor made him a valuable target for recruitment.

To Ji Hao’s relief, while some agreed with the proposal, others outright rejected it. A large portion of those who objected secretly coveted Ji Yao for themselves, hoping to marry her and become a core member of the Silver Moon Royal Mansion’s main lineage.

Of course, they wouldn’t voice these thoughts aloud. Instead, they offered up some high-sounding, noble-sounding excuses:

"AHEM, I disagree. Winning over Luo Zhiwei is one thing, but we shouldn’t resort to such methods. If word of this gets out, people will think the Silver Moon Royal Mansion can only gain support by marrying off its women."

"Qi is absolutely right. This would severely damage the mansion’s reputation and only fuel Zhong Ming’s arrogance. Even if he did surrender, he would never be content to just take orders. If we’re going to recruit him, we should do it by defeating him fair and square, showing him the true power of the Silver Moon Royal Mansion."

Ji Yao was, after all, a Commandery Princess, and cultivators knew their own standing. As a result, any retainer who dared to harbor designs on her was, without exception, an individual of outstanding strength.

Their objections gave Ji Hao plenty of room to maneuver.

"Xia is right. To suppress Zhong Ming and Prince Qinghe, direct and honorable methods are the most effective."

Having said that, he paused for a moment before turning to Qi Yue. "For tomorrow’s Path of Purgatory, set the initial difficulty to High!"

Qi Yue was taken aback for a moment, but he quickly understood the intention. This was a ploy to embarrass Zhong Ming and get him eliminated as quickly as possible.

The Path of Purgatory, created by the Qi Family, had different difficulty levels. If the initial difficulty wasn’t high, cultivators had a period to adapt, allowing even ordinary ones to make some progress along the path.

The High difficulty setting, however, was a different story. Its extreme challenge would eliminate a large number of people right from the very beginning.

Originally, Ji Hao had planned to accommodate the average cultivators, ensuring that everyone would have a decent experience.

But now, his mindset had shifted. In order to thoroughly embarrass Zhong Ming and diminish his importance in Luo Zhiwei’s eyes, Ji Hao planned to crank the Path of Purgatory’s difficulty up to High. The best-case scenario would be to have Zhong Ming eliminated right at the very beginning.

This proposal aligned perfectly with Qi Yue’s own interests. He immediately nodded again and again, bowing as he replied:

"Rest assured, Young Master. I will send a message to the clan elders at once and have them set the difficulty to its highest level."

...

Zhong Ming was still completely unaware of Ji Hao’s scheme.

At that moment, he was discussing matters with Ji Qingyue. Chu Hanzhen and Luo Zhiwei were also by their side.

"How many cultivators have joined our faction now?"

"A lot." A look of joy initially lit up Ji Qingyue’s face, but her brow quickly furrowed, and her tone grew worried. "However, the ones who’ve joined us so far are all Loose Cultivators, or from small families and sects. The great clans of Immortal Martial City, and the other major powers, haven’t joined."

Her words made Zhong Ming raise an eyebrow. "So, they’re still betting on the Celestial Sea King’s Mansion or the Silver Moon Royal Mansion?"

"That’s inevitable." This time, it was Luo Zhiwei who spoke. Spreading her hands, she sighed. "Under normal circumstances, with the appearance of the Dream Array and the backing of Prince Qinghe’s vast wealth, the great clans of Immortal Martial City would have been more than happy to side with us."

"But with the second Great Calamity approaching, they’re more desperate for the protection of the powerful than they are for future development."

At this, her tone shifted as she turned to Zhong Ming to add, "Of course, that’s not to say your Great Dream of Thousand Years is useless. If Prince Qinghe’s Mansion can demonstrate overwhelming strength—even if it’s slightly weaker than the Silver Moon Royal Mansion or the Celestial Sea King’s Mansion—the great and noble clans of Immortal Martial City will still be inclined to side with us."

"So, in the end, it all comes down to strength." As he spoke, Zhong Ming showed no signs of distress. On the contrary, he was smiling. "This is... just perfect! My greatest strength is crushing everything in my path with pure force!"

After that remark, Zhong Ming said no more and began to prepare for the next day’s Path of Purgatory.

And he was not alone. The other great clans of Immortal Martial City, and even the Demon and Monster Races, were all gathering their strength for the coming trial.

...

And so, amidst everyone’s anticipation, time flew by. Soon, the day arrived for the opening of the Qi Family’s Path of Purgatory.