Jiao Wu ordered his men to send the heads of the Reef Kingdom spies back to their nation, demonstrating his firm resolve to sever ties and leave no room for reconciliation.

Thus, preparations were made, things were cleared, songs were sung, and dances performed.

Marquis Xue Mingyi of Wugong also refrained from causing further disturbances, sitting down next to Jiao Wu with a smile. Having achieved his objective, he had no reason to be anything but composed.

Wearing a mask, Mo Jingyu’s expression remained unreadable, but throughout the banquet, he noticeably spoke less.

The undercurrents between these three influential figures stirred the hearts of all the guests, preventing anyone from truly letting loose afterward.

Even the gloomy Feng Ming refrained from touching his wine glass.

Midway through the banquet, Mo Jingyu bid farewell and departed. Xue Mingyi waited until Mo Jingyu had left before taking his leave from Jiao Wu.

With both of them gone, Jiao Wu no longer needed to feign enthusiasm. Claiming fatigue, he left the gathering as well. After all, figures of their stature need not be excessively “close to the people.”

The remaining guests made some noise for a while, but ultimately, the earlier events dampened their spirits, and the atmosphere gradually cooled.

Everyone pondered the potential impact on the future, but most could only wait and be “influenced” by it.

As the banquet neared its end, a servant from the Marquis’s mansion approached Feng Yue and whispered a few words in his ear.

Feng Yue smiled and rose to leave with the servant, his demeanor calm and assured.

Apparently, Zong Shou of Qingyun Pavilion’s willingness to endure humiliation had finally moved Marquis Weining, or perhaps Marquis Wugong’s visit had caused the Weining Marquis Mansion to shed its arrogance. In any case, the Weining Marquis Mansion had offered Qingyun Pavilion an opportunity to mend relations. With the level of cunning Feng Yue had displayed thus far, he was unlikely to botch the task.

Thus, the Feng family’s goal for this trip could almost be considered achieved. Qingyun Pavilion, whose base was in Shunan Prefecture, had repaired its relationship with the only Divine Progeny Marquis in the prefecture. This accomplishment would greatly benefit Feng Yue in his future quest to become the next Sect Master.

Jiang Wang diligently engaged Feng Ming in conversation, hoping to leverage the young master’s connections to infiltrate Qingyun Pavilion. Based on his experience with obtaining the Spirit Void Hall, the lost architecture of the Cloud Summit Immortal Palace likely existed in a hidden manner, thus avoiding plunder.

Its location should be of great importance, perhaps highly symbolic, making it less likely to be lost during sect migrations. The Spirit Void Hall was moved from Zhuang land to Cheng, yet the lost architecture of the Cloud Summit Immortal Palace remained. This could be used to argue the point.

Back in Chi Yun Mountain, he had pondered a question: the entry criteria for Chi Yun Mountain were so strict, requiring the simultaneous presence of Qingyun Pavilion, Spirit Void Hall, Soaring Firmament Pavilion, and the Wandering Elder to open it.

From ancient times to the present day, how could it be ensured that these four parties would continue to exist until the Cloud Summit Immortal Palace chose its successor?

The three forces other than the Wandering Elder were initially likely of similar strength, but now only the Soaring Firmament Pavilion remained dominant, capable of contending with surrounding forces.

For example, the Spirit Void Hall was first crippled by Zhuang Chengqian, then embroiled in disputes in Cheng, before being subdued by Dou Mian of the Dou clan in Chu, and finally falling under Jiang Wang’s control. Any instance of bad luck during this period could have led to the Spirit Void Hall’s destruction.

So, what was it that ensured the continuation of the lineage?

Jiang Wang initially believed that Ye Lingxiao was secretly balancing everything, preparing Ye Qingyu to take over the Cloud Summit Immortal Palace. As for the years before Ye Lingxiao, it could be understood that these four forces had some ancient understanding: whichever force became stronger would need to shoulder the responsibility of maintaining the lineage.

However, this conjecture was overturned after Ye Qingyu sent the Cloud Soaring Pavilion.

If Ye Lingxiao was balancing everything, then the Spirit Void Hall, Qingyun Pavilion, and these lost architectures should have been in his grasp. Why not do it completely and give them all to Jiang Wang?

Jiang Wang concluded that there must be another method to ensure the continuation of the Cloud Summit Immortal Palace’s lineage, but with his current understanding, he could not accurately deduce it.

Ye Lingxiao had reminded him that the Cloud Summit Immortal Palace was his fortune, but it might not be a blessing for him.

Therefore, the question of the Cloud Summit Immortal Palace’s inheritance was very important, but due to limited knowledge, he could not find the answer. He had to put it aside for the time being.

Regarding the matter of returning to Qingyun Pavilion, as long as he could infiltrate the sect, relying on the connection between the Cloud Summit Immortal Palace and the lost architecture, he could likely take the lost architecture away silently, just as he had taken the Spirit Void Hall without alarming anyone.

Therefore, he had to carefully maintain the relationship he had painstakingly built with Feng Ming.

Feng Ming was not drinking at the moment, but after his father was invited into the inner chambers by Marquis Weining, he became more talkative.

Combining the information he had gathered in Wenxi County and his interactions today, Jiang Wang had a preliminary assessment of Feng Ming.

He possessed cunning and ruthlessness, had a strong sense of pride, and suffered from the common flaws of wealthy young masters, such as being unable to endure humiliation. Feng Yue’s intention in bringing him to the Weining Marquis Mansion was likely to temper his temperament in addition to adding prestige.

As he listened to Feng Ming’s grand tales, offering occasional agreement, a subtle feedback came from the Towering Heaven Palace.

Jiang Wang diverted a portion of his attention into the Towering Heaven Palace, where wisps of green smoke dissipated.

These were the final traces of the Nether Candle.

After Zhuang Chengqian’s death, the Nether Candle remained in the Towering Heaven Palace. Although he knew it was a rare treasure, Jiang Wang did not want to touch it. Having experienced Zhuang Chengqian’s conflict with the Bone God, he now had sufficient respect for the deities of the netherworld. He would not assume he could win a move. Facing a suboptimal option, avoidance was the best course of action.

At the same time, he did not want to casually discard the Nether Candle anywhere, fearing that it might be sinister and harmful to whoever found it. Harming innocent people was unacceptable. Moreover, the sense of oppression that Zhuang Chengqian had given him was too strong, and he worried that there might be some residual schemes within the Nether Candle.

So, he chose to directly move his divine power seed and burn the Nether Candle with True Samadhi Fire. Regardless of whether Zhuang Chengqian had any backup plans, the Nether Candle would be reduced to smoke, leaving nothing behind.

However, the Nether Candle’s resilience exceeded expectations. The True Samadhi Fire burned continuously, but only now was the task completed.

The Nether Candle had completely turned to smoke.

At that moment, numerous mystical Bone Secret Techniques flowed through his mind, just like when he first lit the Nether Candle. Jiang Wang suppressed his instinct to learn them, simply recording them silently.

No matter how powerful or marvelous these secret techniques were, he would definitely not learn or use them. However, that did not prevent him from recording them and contributing them to the Dao Evolution Platform of the Grand Void Illusion.

If there were any problems with these secret techniques, let the Bone Venerate God and the Grand Void Illusion contend with each other…

“What are your plans after this, Brother Yu?”

Perhaps they were chatting happily, but Feng Ming suddenly asked.

It was a series of good fortunes. The complete eradication of the Nether Candle’s hidden dangers was one joy. He was pondering how to steer the conversation to this topic with Feng Ming when he heard Feng Ming take the initiative, which was another joy.

Everything was going smoothly.

Jiang Wang temporarily suppressed his gains and sighed, “Since my master’s death, I often feel lost about the future. Brother Feng’s question caught me off guard; I haven’t really thought about it.”

Within his Second Inner Palace, the black and white divine power seeds spun around. The power of the divine power, in the darkness, guided the direction.

Feng Ming nodded, “I see.”

Then he simply skipped over the topic, “When I was traveling in Lanan Prefecture…”

Jiang Wang was momentarily stunned.

He realized he had been too confident.

It wasn’t that his strength was insufficient to influence Feng Ming’s path.

But in Feng Ming’s choices, the option of taking in Yu Songhai simply did not exist!

Lacking “knowledge,” the altered path was ineffective.