Changsun said in a detached voice, "If Fellow Daoist Chong were still here, we could give it a try. With only the two of us, it would be of no use."
Zhong Weiwu shook his head. "Even with Fellow Daoist Chong, we could at most veto the court proposal. But we cannot openly oppose the Chief Executive in this matter, or things will become difficult afterward.
"So this time, we are not trying to persuade all the Court Executives. We must find a way to persuade the Chief Executive. So long as the Chief Executive leans toward us, this can still be accomplished."
Changsun asked, "What will you use to persuade the Chief Executive?"
Zhong Weiwu said gravely, "So long as one's words are reasonable, the Chief Executive will listen. This time, reason is on our side."
Changsun said, "Then that depends on whether your reasoning proves useful." With that, his figure faded from the palace wall.
Seeing him leave, Zhong Weiwu stood there for a moment before returning to his seat.
Two days later, it was once again the mid-month court council. Amid the long, lingering chime of jade bells, the various Court Executives arrived above the Radiant Aura River.
They first discussed several urgent matters requiring immediate attention. In particular, after receiving Zhang Yu's report, both the Inner and Outer Layers had begun reinforcing their defenses against Upper Firmament Heaven, while several forbidden array traps had been laid in suspicious locations.
The Chief Executive asked, "Court Executive Lin, how is the refinement of the Heaven-Earth Mirror progressing?"
The Heaven-Earth Mirror was a magical instrument the Profound Court had recently been refining, intended to fill the gap left by the unusable Clear-Heaven Star Compass. With time in short supply, they had piled on superior materials. Even if the instrument