Taking the second path would not be easy. Even though the Holy Spirit Cult scouted for Soul Masters with the potential to become Evil Soul Masters everywhere, and most of those recruits were expendable cannon fodder to them, Dai Yunze doubted Zhongli Wu would let him get anywhere near the recruitment process. After all, bringing in fresh blood was essential to any faction's continued existence.
So what should he do? Take the first path and give Zhongli Wu something to hold over him?
That was precisely what Zhongli Wu had in mind. Otherwise, he would not have sent Dai Yunze out with members who needed fresh souls to advance their strength after confirming that Tang Ya was completely under his control.
Zhongli Wu was not actually afraid of Dai Yunze being unruly, nor was he afraid of being unable to control him. What he feared was Dai Yunze's connection to Shrek Academy and his status as a direct descendant of the White Tiger Duke. He feared that one day Dai Yunze would return to the side of Shrek and the various empires, joining them in opposing the Holy Spirit Cult. Otherwise, Dai Yunze's identity as the White Tiger Duke's son would be highly advantageous to the cult's infiltration of the Star Luo Empire. Zhongli Wu understood all of this.
Since he could neither bear to give up the benefits Dai Yunze might bring nor allow him to turn against them someday, his only option was to force Dai Yunze to willingly stand against Shrek and the various empires, leaving him no choice but to fully integrate into the Holy Spirit Cult.
And as it happened, this was exactly the sort of thing Evil Soul Masters excelled at.
Although Dai Yunze did not know exactly what awaited him on this trip,