With the Netherworld Hall, a formidable faction in its own right, taking the lead in drawing closer to the Soul Clan through the Soul Palace, the other factions that had intended to watch from the sidelines could no longer sit still. They hurried to answer the Soul Palace's call, forming an alliance and joining forces against the Gu Clan's interests in the Central Plains.
Even the Pill Tower, the sacred ground of alchemists that so often opposed the Soul Palace, suffered an unprecedented blow. For a time, complaints filled the Pill Tower as its alchemists endured unspeakable misery, yet they had no good way to deal with it.
After all, although the Soul Palace had a long record of atrocities, committing demonic acts and harvesting souls, most of its targets had belonged to the Pill Tower, and its operations had been conducted in secret. Most other factions had never suffered at its hands, so they did not share the Pill Tower's hatred and fear. They merely knew that the Soul Palace was rather mysterious.
As a result, even when the Pill Tower issued statements exposing the Soul Palace's crimes, others assumed that it simply could not bear to see its sworn enemy prosper and was maliciously slandering it. Their attitude left the Pill Tower helpless. It could only remain silent and obediently pull back its forces, unwilling to provoke the Soul Palace again anytime soon.
The Pill Tower's silence signified that this faction, once ranked alongside the Soul Palace, had been pushed down by its rival. The Soul Palace was now the undisputed foremost faction in the Central Plains. After certain interested parties spread the word, it became an object of widespread admiration, and countless people hoped to join its Central Plains One Family Great Love Alliance.
For a time,