Why was he a key figure?
Simple. First, he was Xie Wanzhi's Personal Disciple, and his only disciple as well. Even if he might encounter some unforeseeable danger in the future, it did not affect his close relationship with Xie Wanzhi at present.
Second, several of Xie Wanzhi's disciples had met with misfortune, and Xie Jun likely would not escape the poisoned hand either. Meng Zhao could fully exploit this point to win him over to his side, planting a nail in advance.
Back when Monk Huikong swept across the Jianghu Martial Arts World and bloodily ravaged the righteous heroes, he was ultimately defeated and vanished into the jianghu. To a great extent, that was also because several of his own disciples had stabbed him in the back. Otherwise, given his fortune and martial arts at the time, he would have been difficult to contain.
Meng Zhao could not really say what use this man might have in the future. Perhaps he would be a worthless piece, an idle piece with little or no use—or perhaps he might directly become a stroke of divine inspiration.
"Indeed, Xie Jun is in a dangerous situation. I suspect that he and the other disciples are all provisions Xie Wanzhi has raised, or resources for cultivating some demonic art. In any case, they are bound to suffer calamity.
"Go see him later and reveal these things to him. Tell him that relying on his own strength alone, he cannot possibly resist Xie Wanzhi's schemes. If he wants to survive, if he wants to live, he can only do so by finding a good patron."
When Xie Jun had been muddle-headed and mentally intimidated by Meng Zhao's Primordial Spirit earlier, he had revealed quite a bit of information.
For instance, some of Xie Wanzhi's friends