Chapter 219: 'White Cave' Quota

An inexplicable chill suddenly surged into his heart. Xu Xiaoshou looked at Zhao Xidong's face, which seemed about to darken, and instantly backed down.

"It's not that serious, really not that serious..."

"Fine, I'll go with you, okay?"

For now, he put aside the matter of Sang Lao—who knows, maybe the dean really does have an urgent matter for him.

Even if not, with that old man backing him up, no one in Ling Gong should dare to touch him.

After witnessing Sang Lao's power that night, Xu Xiaoshou had gained a clear understanding of the true behind-the-scenes bosses in Ling Gong.

"Let's go!"

Zhao Xidong reverted to his usual taciturn self. He swore to himself that he wouldn't say another word this time.

By now, the Luo Han in Ling Shi Ge had all rushed out. As they watched Xu Xiaoshou leave like this, their eyes were filled with reluctance.

But there was still an enforcer from Ling Fa Ge leading the way, making it impossible to act.

"What a shame, letting Xu Xiaoshou get away—we didn't even get his signature."

"Heh, is that really what you want? Be straightforward—why is your hand injured?"

"I don't know, someone slashed me... Aren't you the same?"

"What about it?"

"Why is your hand broken? Don't you have any idea?"

The crowd chattered away, and finally, they remembered that Xu Xiaoshou had actually left a signature.

In an instant, hundreds of gazes converged on the young girl who had greeted Xu Xiaoshou earlier.

With a thud, the girl fell to the ground in terror. "What... what are you all going to do?"

"Hey hey!"

"What do you think?"

The crowd closed in on her, backing her into a corner. Someone realized things were getting out of hand and had already run off to call for help.

Suddenly, a cry rang out:

"Please, sell me the signature—whatever the price!"

"No way, it has to be mine!"

"Get lost, the signature is mine!"

"Mine!"

Crash, bang—

Amid the chaos, a loud roar shook the pavilion.

"Qiao Changzhi is back!"

Huh?

The crowd froze.

"Run!"

In the inner courtyard.

In the new council hall.

Pfft—ha ha ha ha ha!

Qiao Qianzhi spat out his tea in disbelief, staring at Jiang Bianyan sitting across from him. He slammed his teacup down on the table with a thud.

"Jiang Dianzhu, you're not joking, are you?"

"The spots to enter 'Bai Ku' aren't just something our Tian Sang Ling Gong is eyeing—Tian Sang Jun's various forces are all eyeing it covetously too!"

"Not to mention the four major families in the county plus some independent powers, but just around 'Bai Ku' alone, there are twelve other counties!"

"When all the forces divide them up, our Ling Gong gets no more than ten spots a year!"

"And here you are, casually claiming one-fifth of them?"

Ye Xiaotian nodded inwardly in admiration. As expected of the chief great elder of Ling Shi Ge, his tongue was perfect for situations like this.

If he had to handle this alone, he might not have come up with such words.

He thought back to the bet he had made with Sang Lao earlier. Just a few days had passed, and he was already losing miserably.

Indeed, Sheng Shen Dian Tang wasn't as selfless as he had imagined. Even as the top force on the continent, it still had its share of worldly concerns.

All the world rushes toward profit; all the world scrambles for gain.

The ancients were not deceiving us!

Ye Xiaotian glanced discreetly at Jiang Bianyan's impassive face, sipping his tea and savoring the flavor, while inwardly smirking.

This Sheng Shen Dian Tang is really bold, asking for favors without lifting a finger, while spending goodwill so freely!

But now, with the 'Bai Ku' anomaly occurring and the legend of the 'You Si Jian' emerging, it's both a crisis and an opportunity.

If we play our cards right, the value of our ten spots will skyrocket. How could we give them away so easily?

What's more, Tian Sang Ling Gong holds the upper hand:

Xu Xiaoshou has the sheath of the 'You Si Jian' in his possession!

Jiang Bianyan glanced at the two young people beside him. If it were just Cheng Xingchu, it wouldn't matter where they got a spot.

But with Yu Zhiwen here this time, they couldn't just drop it.

Even though he didn't contribute much in the recent Ling Gong conflict, he still needed to get this girl in.

"Sigh, I know I've underestimated that 'Sheng Nu' this time, so I've made some extra preparations. I believe the value is absolutely worth those two spots."

As Jiang Bianyan spoke, he pulled out a ring.

Ye Xiaotian just shook his head.

Ling Gong doesn't lack resources. As the leader of Tian Sang Jun, with no ambitions for expansion, they could be completely self-sufficient, even prosperous.

"This isn't about a ring—it's mainly that the spots are rare."

He gestured for Jiang Bianyan not to get up and continued:

"The inner court's new group of thirty-three, plus the veteran group, for such trial grounds—the arrangements were made long ago, with no extra spots."

"On the contrary, for this 'Bai Ku' trip, there's been a lot of internal strife among the juniors, even some shortages."

"If possible, I'd like to trade resources for a few more spots to appease those restless ones!"

Ye Xiaotian chuckled lightly, with no intention of accepting Jiang Bianyan's deal.

Jiang Bianyan didn't retract the ring but placed it on the table, scanning the crowd as he said:

"Ye Gongzhu, you know this 'Bai Ku' anomaly has significantly increased the danger. Your new disciples..."

He shook his head, advising sincerely: "I'm telling the truth—they really don't need to go in."

What he said was basically pointing out bluntly that the Tian Sang Ling Gong disciples weren't up to par.

A look of arrogance crossed Cheng Xingchu's face.

After the 'Sheng Nu' incident, he'd wandered around these past two days. That so-called new group of thirty-three—none of them could fight worth a damn.

He'd battled the ones he could and analyzed the rest.

There were some talents, sure, but they were only noteworthy in a small place like Tian Sang Jun.

Take them outside, and they'd be instantly crushed to dust!

Ye Xiaotian and Qiao Qianzhi exchanged smiles, completely unfazed.

They had a clear understanding of Ling Gong's position. There were talents, of course, but they weren't foolish enough to compare themselves to Sheng Shen Dian Tang, even if just a branch.

If you look down on us, that's fine—we're not playing your game anyway.

Those who can make it out of this small place will have unstoppable futures—probably enough to make even you at Sheng Shen Dian Tang wary.

Sang Lao was like that, Ye Xiaotian was like that, and in the future, there will be other Ling Gong practitioners!

"Jiang Dianzhu doesn't seem ready to give up?"

Ye Xiaotian's gaze swept through the hall; by now, the person should be arriving.

Jiang Bianyan nodded with a smile. How could he give up?

Not just the spots—he had his eye on the sheath too!

"In that case, let's make a bet," Ye Xiaotian said.

"What kind of bet?"

Ye Xiaotian's spiritual sense had already detected Zhao Xidong's figure. He turned to Jiang Bianyan. "We'll each send out one person for a fight, and let the result decide."

"Oh?"

Jiang Bianyan's smile grew even wider. A fight?

Hadn't Cheng Xingchu's recent victories been enough to make this Ling Gong leader swallow his words?

Cheng Xingchu became even more spirited. "You still have someone?"

As soon as these blunt words left his mouth, everyone's eyes turned to him, and Cheng Xingchu instantly felt a bit unsteady.

"Sit down!" Jiang Bianyan snapped.

He could joke with peers, but what was Cheng Xingchu to speak so rudely?

"Oh."

The young man touched the white jade at his waist and sat down reluctantly.

"May I ask, Ye Gongzhu, who have you called this time?" Jiang Bianyan had clearly noticed the white-haired Daoist child at the head seat gazing upward.

Ye Xiaotian paid no mind to Cheng Xingchu's rudeness and said, "You've met this person before."

"Oh?"

Jiang Bianyan pondered—the new group of thirty-three didn't have anyone standout that he'd seen. Where did Ye Gongzhu get such confidence?

"The veteran group of thirty-three?"

Ye Xiaotian shook his head without speaking, his gaze sweeping toward the hall entrance.

"He's here!"