New Task

Si Ming would never engage in business warfare with the Ji Lineage. He had neither the experience nor the patience for it. Besides, he was now a member of the Heaven's Will Palace with the power to change national policies. Fighting against a third-rate Aristocratic Clan would only elevate their status if exposed.

He's not some urban show-off king. Even if he's a billionaire and a cultivator who has achieved immortality, he wouldn't hold a grudge against a snobbish waiter and be smug about successfully humiliating him.

Si Ming's first thought was to tell the other party that Liu Qingqing was under his protection, and not to be foolish enough to try and extort money from her. He wouldn't give her a chance to blackmail him and would just run her over with his car.

However, Si Ming quickly realized that the identities of the Heaven's Will Palace members were not to be publicized. Although there was no requirement to keep it secret, once it was leaked, it would cause endless trouble. Many people who wanted to profit from national policies would deliberately approach him, trying to get information from him, or trying to befriend him and then ask him to change a certain policy through their connections.

However, even without the name of the Heaven's Will Palace, the identity of "Mad Ink" alone might not be enough to suppress them. After all, "Mad Ink" is just a genius martial artist with the combat power of a Nascent Spirit Transformation cultivator, not a true Spirit Transformation. The Ji Lineage, on the other hand, has a Nascent Spirit Transformation. Even if this Nascent Spirit Transformation despises them, he is still a member of the Lineage, which gives them confidence.

There's no way around it; Qi Refining to Spirit Transformation is the mainstream system in the Sea Continent, and everyone recognizes that title. Even though Si Ming possesses the strength to easily defeat most Spirit Transformation cultivators, in the eyes of the public, his prestige is still slightly lower than that of Spirit Transformation.

Finally, Si Ming had no choice but to bring up Murong Qing's name, the youngest Nascent Spirit Transformation in the history of Su State, whose future was limitless. As long as the other party wasn't collectively under a brain-dead halo, they would understand what they could and couldn't do.

However, Si Ming felt somewhat aggrieved that he had to rely on his girlfriend's reputation. He wanted to advance to the Nascent Spirit Transformation, but he couldn't find the right opportunity. Although his Internal Cultivation had reached the peak of level fourteen and he could break into level fifteen at any time, he still didn't feel that quantitative change leading to qualitative change.

He asked Murong Qing how to advance to the Nascent Spirit Transformation, and was told that it would be even more difficult to advance if he told her, and that everyone has different methods. It is more common for people like Murong Qing to break through in seclusion, but there are also types who break through in battle, or who have an epiphany when they see a certain scene that touches their soul. Moreover, there is a prerequisite: the martial artist himself will have a premonition that he is about to advance to the Nascent Spirit Transformation stage, as if there is an invisible wall in front of him, and he cannot continue to move forward until he breaks through it, and his path of progress is blocked.

Si Ming felt nothing like that. He felt he could still run a long way ahead, which meant that his goal of reaching the Spirit Transformation was still a long way off.

Since it couldn't be achieved in the short term, Si Ming stopped wasting his time. With the cultivation speed of the Vacuum Zero-Energy Furnace, even without any fortuitous encounters, he could still raise his Internal Cultivation to level sixteen within three years through sheer hard work. Si Ming refused to believe that even if his aptitude for Qi Refining was poor, level sixteen should be enough. Most Spirit Transformation Grandmaster were only at that level.

He shifted his focus back to propaganda. The initial task of helping Xing Daozhuang launch a counterattack in public opinion was not yet completed. The campaign was delayed for a week due to the Spring Festival, but he continued to intensify his offensive after the holiday.

Finally, one day, the silent "majority" couldn't help but speak out. Perhaps it was because their good mood for the New Year had been disturbed, or perhaps it was because they "did not want to perish in silence." When the first person shouted the slogan "Don't slander our heroes!" and it was designated by Si Ming to be published in the "Wisdom News," the other silent people seemed to be awakened from their slumber and began to speak out in denunciation.

"What exactly did Thunder King do wrong? Why are you slandering him for no reason?"

"If you say Thunder King colluded with Remote Heaven Society, then provide evidence! Don't try to fool people with baseless accusations and unconvincing claims."

"If you can't kill someone physically, you have to ruin their reputation. For centuries, they've been using such clumsy tactics as sowing discord. It's a pity we're not in a feudal dynasty now; we won't let meritorious officials suffer injustice."

"This must be a conspiracy by hostile forces to smear our national heroes. I think we should send the Mohist Knight Guard to investigate this matter thoroughly and get to the bottom of it. We must not let these foreign spies get away with this."

The matter escalated, starting with newspaper rebuttals. Gradually, people organized marches, and some even went to the newspaper offices that had previously questioned Xing Daozhuang to block the entrance. Soon, newspapers across the country began discussing the matter, and even television programs treated it as a hot topic. However, compared to the previous smear campaigns, public opinion now overwhelmingly supported Thunder King.

Regardless of what Xing Daozhuang is thinking, he has not left any evidence against him so far, and with the Holy Maiden's guarantee, no one in the higher-ups doubts Xing Daozhuang's identity.

"You've done a great job with this reverse publicity campaign; it's quite successful," Ji Shichen remarked, holding several newspapers in her hand.

"You summoned me here just to discuss this matter?" Si Ming took out a goose feather fan and fanned himself leisurely, remaining calm and composed, as if everything was within his expectations. "This was simply an inevitable outcome; I foresaw it even before I made my move."

What's the point of showing off in front of those incompetent playboys from the Ji Lineage? Only by showing off in front of Spirit Transformation can you truly demonstrate your class.

"Look how smug you are."

Ji Shichen really didn't want to see the other person's smug expression in front of her, but it wouldn't be good to refuse something someone had asked her to pass on. So, she reluctantly took out a letter and said, "This is a thank-you letter from Thunder King to you. He thanks you for helping him clear his name and feels indebted to you. You can ask him for help if you need anything in the future."

"You're too kind, Thunder King."

Si Ming accepted the letter but didn't open it on the spot. He just knew it was from someone thanking him; the only difference was the wording.

"By the way, are there any upcoming Trials of the Grandmaster Trial?"

Ji Shichen said, "Originally, we planned to send you to Germany. After all, the Divine Pillar of Li State has already been cut down, and the Remote Heaven Society suffered two losses in Nation of Valor. The only remaining Divine Pillar is in Germany that has not yet been discovered. Therefore, we wanted you to search for relevant clues. However, a small accident happened later, and the mission was canceled."

"What accident?" Si Ming asked curiously.

Recalling this, Ji Shichen couldn't help but chuckle and said, "Germany refused to let you in."

"Why should I?!"

Si Ming refused to accept this. Laozi was a first-class citizen, the most trustworthy Mohist in the world, and one of the eleven representatives of the Heaven's Will Palace. He was reliable in character and credible in ability, having resolved world-class calamities multiple times. Were Daoist School Daoists blind?

"Don't you have any self-awareness?" Ji Shichen laughed. "Wherever you go, disaster strikes. Russia, Nation of Beauty, France —which trip did you ever return unscathed? The Nation of Valor are stubborn and don't believe in this stuff, and as a result, they immediately suffered a terrible fate. Moreover, many people think that the reason why the war between humans and demons broke out in the Northern Continent is because you went there too often."

"What does this have to do with me? Does it mean the Demon Race won't launch a large-scale invasion if I don't go? I didn't release them."

Si Ming looked up at the sky speechlessly. He had been teased before that he might be refused entry one day, but he didn't expect that day to come so soon, catching him somewhat off guard.

"That makes sense, but some things can't be reasoned with. Besides, Germany has many Daoist priests and is very superstitious. They believe in this kind of thing the most. If something bad happens after you go there, they will definitely put the blame on you. So you should rest well this time and do whatever you want. You don't need to carry out the Grandmaster Trial for a long time."

Si Ming snorted twice, "When they suffer, they'll realize they've wronged me."

If he really wanted to go, with his skills he could easily disguise himself and sneak in, making himself unrecognizable. However, doing so would require him to keep a low profile and he couldn't use any publicly available resources, which would impose significant constraints.

"Let's talk about it then. Right now, I have another task for you, but it's not the Grandmaster Trial. You can choose whether or not to go."

What mission?

"Destroy one of the Remote Heaven Society's strongholds," Ji Shichen explained. "I think you probably already know that the Poison-Handed Evil Physician Wei Chunxi is not dead. We just announced his death to the outside world to lull the enemy into a false sense of security. Some time ago, we finally managed to extract useful information from him. Combined with the clues we discovered during this information war, we finally located one of the Remote Heaven Society's strongholds."

"Then what are we waiting for? Speed is of the essence! Quickly gather a group of people and surround the enemy. I refuse to believe that no matter how many strong people the Remote Heaven Society, they can't possibly outnumber the Heaven's Will Palace!"

"Unfortunately, we cannot do that. According to the intelligence revealed by Wei Chunxi, there is a master in the Remote Heaven Society who is skilled at sensing danger. Unless one is proficient in stealth, he will detect them if they approach within five kilometers, allowing them to escape in advance."

"So what should we do?"

"It's simple. Just find someone skilled in concealment to take action. This operation includes Liu Qingqing and Zhu Hao's apprentice, Lin Qingxiang. Both of them are very good at hiding their auras, even better than someone like me at the Spirit Transformation. I've heard that you learn very quickly, so you should be able to put your skills to use after a little last-minute preparation. After all, the Remote Heaven Society isn't easy to deal with; we need to send more experts. Their combined strength isn't enough to complete the mission."

"Isn't there a team leader? Are you going to make me do it?"

"The leader is Chen Xiangduan, the head of the Shadow Hero Guard, whose ability in stealth is undoubtedly number one."

Si Ming frowned and asked, "Can Chen Xiangduan be trusted?"

He couldn't help but recall the voting process when his master recommended him to join Heaven's Will Palace, during which Chen Xiangduan constantly obstructed and nitpicked. As a result, he had a very bad impression of Chen Xiangduan and felt that he might be betrayed at any time, especially since Chen Xiangduan was the leader of the Shadow Hero Guard, who did those kinds of work hidden in the shadows, which reminded him of those secret service leaders in history.