Seeing everyone raise their hands, Jiang Daoguo finally felt a weight lift from his heart.
There was a reason he had been so insistent on arranging for people to enter the instance.
His greatest wish was, of course, to forge a connection with Tang Long.
Once he had that connection, the Sacred Soul Hall would be utterly insignificant!
Besides, he had recently heard some rumors.
An Evil Spirit was supposedly the true power behind the Sacred Soul Hall!
Although the claim lacked credibility, it still seemed like the most plausible explanation.
Otherwise, how could mere human power interfere with an Evil Spirit Instance?
He therefore wanted to use this opportunity to contact the Sacred Soul Hall again and find out whether the rumors were true.
As for Tang Xiaoling, he had thought that matter through even more thoroughly.
The little girl's livestream had already taken the internet by storm.
Stopping its spread was clearly impossible.
With the Sacred Soul Hall's intelligence network, they would surely learn about it soon.
Given their nature, once they learned that Tang Xiaoling was a princess, they would definitely try to win her over!
Barring any surprises, they would most likely send some people who had cleared instances to Dragon Country to participate in the next Evil Spirit Instance.
In that case, he might as well turn their scheme against them!
He might have no way of dealing with the Sacred Soul Hall's ability to interfere with instances.
But Tang Xiaoling wasn't so easy to fool either!
How could Tang Long, who stood behind her, possibly tolerate a cult trying to lure his daughter away?
If someone appeared at Tang Xiaoling's side at that moment, helping her distinguish right from wrong and standing against the Sacred Soul Hall...
Even if Tang Long learned the truth, surely he wouldn't make things difficult for them, given their goodwill?
Besides, since Tang Xiaoling lived in Dragon Country, her father had to be either a citizen of Dragon Country or a ghost from Dragon Country.
Banding together to oppose outsiders-what person from Dragon Country would refuse that?
Now that the vote had passed unanimously, everyone began discussing candidates.
Wu Guang spoke first. "I recommend Zhang Tao. That boy is an elite soldier, strong-willed and loyal to Dragon Country. He's an excellent fit for this mission."
"Not a good choice," Chen Jie objected. "Don't underestimate the Sacred Soul Hall. They can turn even our top agents. An elite soldier is no sure bet either."
"I recommend Song Jiao. She's undergone a series of training exercises specifically designed to counter the Sacred Soul Hall's brainwashing. We were already preparing to plant her among them."
"This would be the perfect time to deploy her."
But as soon as she finished, Li Yan shook his head.
"Song Jiao seems suitable, but her training isn't finished yet."
"It's too early to deploy her now."
"In my opinion, we should send Gao Feng, the director of the Demon City Investigation Bureau."
"He has cleared an instance himself and is fully capable of resisting the Sacred Soul Hall's temptations."
"Besides, I've watched that boy grow up. His character is beyond question."
As he listened to everyone talking over one another, each recommending their own trusted subordinate...
Jiang Daoguo suddenly chuckled and mocked them outright.
"You old geezers opposed this at first, but the moment you agreed, you all started scrambling to get your own people in."
"But don't forget, I was the one who proposed this."
"And I've already decided on a candidate."
Everyone froze at his words. Li Yan couldn't help asking, "Who?"
Jiang Daoguo stroked his beard and slowly replied, "Jiang Ya!"
At that, everyone's expressions turned strange.
Jiang Ya?
Isn't that your damn granddaughter?!
So that righteous act you put on earlier was just for our benefit?!
You shameless old bastard!
We've never seen anyone so brazen!
"No! Your granddaughter is too flighty. She can't shoulder such an important responsibility!"
Li Yan was the first to object, his eyes bulging like a bull's. He was clearly furious.
Wu Guang chimed in beside him.
"Old Jiang, I hate to say it, but Jiang Ya is famous throughout the capital for being a wild girl. Sending her would be a complete farce!"
Even Chen Jie, who was always amiable, couldn't help trying to dissuade him.
"Old Jiang, this is a serious matter. You absolutely cannot act recklessly for your own selfish interests."
"I'm very fond of Jiang Ya too, but she really isn't suited to this mission."
Faced with their objections, Jiang Daoguo wasn't angry. He simply smiled and said:
"You people are hilarious. You're allowed to put your own people in, but my granddaughter isn't allowed to get a spot?"
"Let me make this clear right now. If any of you dares to shut my granddaughter out, none of you will get anyone in either!"
Seeing him being so stubborn infuriated everyone.
But just as they were about to give him a dressing-down, they suddenly noticed something was off.
Wait!
From the sound of it, Old Jiang wasn't planning to send just one person into the instance?!
"Old Jiang, explain yourself!"
Li Yan abruptly rose to his feet and demanded an answer, visibly agitated.
Jiang Daoguo raised an eyebrow and replied calmly:
"Haven't I made myself clear enough? Judging by the livestream footage, the next instance is clearly a multiplayer instance. It'll require at least five people to enter."
"What, were you planning to send just one person in to keep the little princess company?"
At those words, everyone exchanged looks, their expressions becoming increasingly colorful.
They felt as though their intelligence had been utterly outclassed!
How the hell had they forgotten that?!
For an instance with a guaranteed clear, of course they should take every available spot besides Tang Xiaoling's!
Yet here they were, arguing like children over who should go in!
"Old Jiang, you're the ruthless one!" Li Yan gave him a thumbs-up, full of admiration.
Jiang Daoguo waved a hand nonchalantly. "Just the basics. No need to applaud."
Everyone: ...
With their thinking adjusted, they stopped arguing over the candidates.
Each recommended one person as a candidate to enter the instance.
They were only candidates because no one yet knew how many people the next instance could accommodate.
Although they had seen that footage, it had been handed over to the National Spirit Bureau for analysis, and the results weren't out yet.
They therefore decided that once the instance's final number of participants was confirmed, they would draw lots to make the final selection.
Whether their candidates were picked or not, no one would be allowed to complain!
Of course, as the person who had proposed the plan, Jiang Daoguo was exempt from the draw. His granddaughter would qualify automatically!
Jiang Daoguo offered a few modest words about this, looking thoroughly pleased with himself.
Once that was settled, the next step was to contact the Sacred Soul Hall.
As the former special envoy dedicated to communicating with the Sacred Soul Hall, Wu Guang naturally had to take on that task.
Without wasting words, he took out a satellite phone on the spot, entered a string of numbers, and dialed.
After a few rings, a deep voice came from the other end.
"You actually called me first. How unusual."
"Well? What is it?"
Wu Guang wasted no words either, quickly explaining that they wanted to arrange for their subordinates to enter the next Evil Spirit Instance.
But when he asked about the price, his voice abruptly rose, and he launched straight into a furious tirade.
"What the hell? Five million Spirit Coins per person?!"
"Why don't you just fucking rob us!!!"
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