Over the next three months, good news arrived one report after another. Every clan, sect, and local power had agreed.
At least on the surface, the old and new powers participating in the contest were all happy to use this opportunity to establish their legitimacy and governing rights, thereby securing Li Ling's support.
It was now settled that he would arbitrate the affairs of the Long Sea.
"All the Long Sea's powers actually came."
"They aren't fools. Naturally, they know that those who submit prosper, while those who resist perish."
On opening day, colorful banners snapped in the wind and voices roared through the valley where Li Ling planned to hold the trial tournament.
Numerous North Sea cultivators had gathered there to witness this grand sacrificial ceremony that would determine the Long Sea's future.
A group of invited merchant association stewards, aristocratic clan powerhouses, and sect members privately exchanged voice transmissions, discussing everything they had witnessed.
"Elder Li's virtue and integrity are still dependable."
"Indeed. He didn't even swallow up Elder Chang's holdings in the Myriad Treasures Tower, and he still left the Chang Household's descendants in control of their shares in the Immortal Abode. Following his rules and securely governing the Long Sea might not be such a bad thing."
"At worst, we can still withdraw safely and make arrangements for what comes after us."
"In their position, that would be a wise choice. If my own lineage declined, I would rather my descendants join the merchant association in peace than die defending some supposed ancestral legacy and drag the entire clan to destruction."
Someone else said, "The new powers can establish their legitimacy and governing rights through this, gaining territories that will serve as the foundation for their own rise and that of their descendants. The Old Powerful