Li Ling had no plans to deal with her at the moment, so he ignored the enthusiastic spy and arrived at the Administration Hall rather quickly, a slight smile on his face as he anticipated the upcoming scene with a hint of morbid amusement in his heart.

The Administration Hall was quite bustling as always, as many were still taking small-scale dispatches to the further beds of the pseudo-region to farm merits before all dispatches were closed and the final siege began in about four days' time.

Li Ling even noticed Pang Wen, who was snoring at his counter, as very few came to him for dispatches since he only did 'special' work. Li Ling chuckled and ignored the fellow, walking to the upper layer of the Administration Hall, where a bunch of Divine Deva Hall Path Lords were chatting while overlooking the entire foyer, their words slowing to a stop once they saw Li Ling walking by them.

Even as Li Ling deliberately slowed his steps to give them a chance to stop him, none of them did, only tracing his movement with their eyes, their expressions unreadable. Li Ling could tell that they either must have been given some heads up or—more likely—they instantly recognized him and knew they couldn't stop him if they tried.

Hmm, that battle with Bai Yegui seemed to have long-term repercussions that Li Ling did not easily foresee…

Pushing the door open, Li Ling was admitted into a rather small chamber with the symbol of each of the Six Paths Halls hung above a colored banner. At the bottom of each symbol and banner was a colored meditative cushion upon which sat the various Hall Masters of the different halls, each of them glancing at Li Ling with different expressions.

Li Ling wasted no time scanning each of them, as if it would give him foresight into their intentions and also their strength.

On the farthest left was a man with a wild head of yellow-colored hair, messy and untamed, with a burly body full of packed muscles that the white and gold robe of the sect could barely contain. He had rough features and grinned savagely at Li Ling, exuding a bestial aura that seemed to embody the essence of a prowling lion.

｢Name: Hu Wulei

Status: Healthy.

Age: 156/660

Slaughter Points Value: 2000

Cultivation Base: Core Formation Perfection (100%) || Golden Body Perfection (100%)

Remarks: The Hall Master of the Wild Beast Hall, Hu Wulei has fused with the bloodline of the Divine Lion and obtained its prowess, granting him great strength and deterrence at his current stage. He initially dismissed you as nothing much just based on your so-called potential and was not part of the negotiations to establish your 'team' using administrative force, but quickly changed his mind after being privy to the details of your battle with Bai Yegui. His current intention is to plant his daughter into your team to procreate with you and give birth to litters of cubs for their clan that have your fighting potential.｣

Beside Hu Wulei was a gloomy-looking young man with ash-colored hair tied into a scholarly bun, wearing the white and gold loosely on his seemingly thin frame, his cold pale eyes seemingly unable to see the world around them yet giving off the feeling of being seen through down to one's bones when looked at.

｢Name: Gu Mugui

Status: Healthy.

Age: 168/730

Slaughter Points Value: 2000

Cultivation Base: Core Formation Perfection (100%) || Golden Body Perfection (100%)

Remarks: He is the Hall Master of the Hungry Ghost Hall. Gu Mugui was born with the Pure Yin Eye, a set of visually clouded pupils able to see supernatural entities and Yin-related essences with ease, allowing him to easily take advantage of his Hungry Ghost's power to cultivate faster. As the manager of corpse rights, soul ledgers, and the sect's funerary contracts, he covets your Asura Blood Qi as a walking famine to the living and prosperity to the dead and intends to secure first claim on corpses from your campaigns through his own plant into your team.｣

After Gu Mugui was a woman with familiar features to Li Ling, very similar to that girl Cao Xian whom he met at the Six Paths Pavilion. Like her, she had silky black hair tied into a matronly bun with two golden hairpins, peach-blossom-shaped eyes, a beautiful visage, and quite a voluminous chest area that was concealed by her conservative white and gold robes.

｢Name: Cao Tian

Status: Healthy.

Age: 141/640

Slaughter Points Value: 2000

Cultivation Base: Core Formation Perfection (100%) || Golden Body Perfection (100%)

Remarks: She is the Hall Master of the True Human Hall, elder sister to Cao Xian, and political heir of Deva Elder Cao Ling's wider network. She quietly paid a steep price to make Tang Huo offend you overtly and assign her sister to you, gambling that your potential would be high enough to carry her sister to the upper layer of the sect, giving their Cao family higher leverage. Her current intent is utilitarian and cold—to integrate you into her clan's forces if you obey, or to block your advancement to the higher levels if you prove uncontrollable.｣

Li Ling raised an eyebrow, glancing again at the mature woman who gave him a charming smile, the kind that would make even the steadiest young man want to 'explore' what such experienced mamas had to offer.

He tore his eyes off and focused on Tang Huo, who was beside Cao Tian, glancing at him with an impassive expression. Clearly, the fellow knew that he had already offended Li Ling to death once, and offending him again was just adding more shit atop a pile of feces.

Li Ling ignored him for now and looked at the man who sat next to his own hall master, who had an expression of cold arrogance as if he could be anywhere but here. His glance toward Li Ling, though, was slightly softer and less disdainful, as if he felt that in this sea of filth, there was at least one piece of spotless earth he could stand on.

｢Name: Shen Taixu

Status: Healthy.

Age: 233/700

Slaughter Points Value: 2000

Cultivation Base: Core Formation Perfection (100%) || Golden Body Perfection (100%)

Remarks: He is the Hall Master of the Deva Path Hall and one of the doctrinaires of Immaculate Domain and Heavenly Repulse. He is famed for sterilizing entire battle lines of 'impurities' before stepping across them. His lineage is currently held up by the talented Shen Ziyan, whose Deva Path temperament mirrors his obsession with purity. He regards your extremely pure Asura Energy as a form of toxic brilliance—useful at arm's length, unacceptable up close. His current intent is to assess your value and report upward to his niece to see how you can be best utilized.｣

Li Ling's eyes narrowed, but he still did not pass any comment nor greet those present here until his eyes fell on the last person seated at the farthest right, a veiled woman with purple-colored hair in a fancy up-do, her lovely phoenix-shaped eyes full of detachment from the mortal world, her gaze coldly scanning Li Ling as if aiming to pass verdict on the spot.

｢Name: Yan Moqing

Status: Healthy.

Age: 289/720

Slaughter Points Value: 2000

Cultivation Base: Core Formation Perfection (100%) || Golden Body Perfection (100%)

Remarks: She is the Hall Master of the Hell Path Hall, keeper of Punishment Seals, Oath Chains, and the Execution Grounds. Yan Moqing cultivates the Huangquan River Art, weighing crime, merit, and karma before stamping verdicts that even disciples of the Middle Layer avoid crossing. Your particular ledger is entirely aberrant—extremely light on guilt by law, heavy on violence by fact, yet suffering one of the weightiest punishments—therefore making you a fascinating 'resource' for her cultivation. Her current intent is to bind you to a three-clause pact that overrides your merit ban in exchange for future service in 'troublesome' exterminations where the offender has a strong backing in the sect and most of her enforcers don't dare to act on them.｣

Li Ling restrained his scanning gaze over the group of Hall Masters, feeling the edge of his lips twitching as the situation had become supremely interesting. Despite sitting in a row opposite him, as if they were all on the same side—a united force against him—Li Ling had just found that there were undeniable cracks in the whole charade.

The best part was that some of the intentions of these fellows were not so disagreeable to him!

However, Li Ling immediately changed his plan to go on the offensive to demand certain things for what he thought was inevitable. Now, he fully intended to watch the scene play out and everyone lay out their cards before picking the best outcome that suited him.

"Path Lord Li Ling, please have a seat." Hall Master Tang Huo said emotionlessly, waving his hand to create a red-colored meditative cushion at the focal point between the six Hall Masters.

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