After hearing Xu Zhengyang's words, Zhongli Wu fell silent. Just as Xu Zhengyang said, if Zhongli Wu himself were to mediate, it would probably turn into everyone attacking Zhongli Wu, and no one would care whether it was a conspiracy by the Star Luo Empire.
Zhang Peng, who had never seen Zhongli Wu behave like this before, quickly said, "Master, this is all prejudice from the world. Our Holy Spirit Cult Sect would never think that way."
Zhongli Wu waved his hand. "I still have some self-awareness. If I had really been the one to mediate in Star Luo City back then, I'm afraid Du Busi and the Star Luo Imperial Family would have attacked me. This is probably just the prejudice of the world, and what Xu Zhengyang called reputation."
Zhongli Wu looked at Xu Zhengyang again, a hint of appreciation now in his eyes.
"Tell me, how can we change the reputation of our Holy Spirit Cult, where even we Evil Soul Master are despised by the world?"
Xu Zhengyang smiled and said, "Master, as I just said, this is a prejudice of the world, and also the world's reputation. It cannot be changed in a short period of time, nor can it be reversed by the strength of any one person."
"Take Shrek Academy for example. In order to maintain this reputation and portray themselves as the embodiment of justice, they have accumulated over thousands of years. On the other hand, they train a large number of students every year. These students are not ordinary; many even come from the three great empires. Naturally, these students will uphold Shrek Academy's reputation and image."
"It can be said that anyone on the Douluo Continent who tries to damage Shrek Academy's image will face a backlash from the entire Soul Master World, because these people have long since formed a community of shared interests. If you want to damage Shrek Academy's image..."
An image like that would also damage the image of all Shrek Academy graduates; no one wants to tarnish their own reputation.
"Even the three great empires, influenced by the Shrek Academy for so many years, while harboring some fear of the Shrek Academy Shrek Academy, will not directly oppose it, because they themselves have a large number of the Shrek Academy students. And this ideology spreads like a virus, and no one can stop it."
Zhongli Wu listened to this thoughtfully. "According to what you're saying, isn't there no way to destroy Shrek Academy? No way to overthrow Shrek Academy's rule?"
Xu Zhengyang shook his head. "It's not entirely impossible. Strong external pressure, or the uneven distribution of interests among major powers, can cause conflicts. As these conflicts deepen, they will naturally lead to hatred and even internal strife."
"I made a suggestion to His Highness the Crown Prince some time ago, and it's already being implemented. From now on, all Soul Tool sold by our Sun Moon Empire to the Douluo Continent must be handled by the Dou Ling Empire, and will no longer be sold directly to the Star Luo Empire and the Heaven Soul Empire. Furthermore, all the agents of the Star Luo Empire and the Heaven Soul Empire secretly within the Sun Moon Empire have been eliminated by His Highness the Crown Prince with swift and decisive measures."
"I think the three great empires may be able to maintain a superficial balance in the short term, but this balance will eventually be broken. At the very least, the Star Luo Empire and the Heaven Soul Empire will not be willing to be controlled by the Dou Ling Empire. I just don't know if Shrek Academy can still mediate when the interests involved are so huge."
Both Zhongli Wu and Zhang Peng were stunned when they heard Xu Zhengyang's plan. This scheme was indeed ruthless and vicious. The Dou Ling Empire would either have to give up huge profits or it would inevitably have conflicts with the Star Luo Empire and the Heaven Soul Empire. Moreover, such conflicts were basically unavoidable. After all, the three empires had a long-standing feud. It was only because of the threat of the Sun Moon Empire that the three empires cooperated with each other and maintained a superficial peace.
Zhongli Wu's attitude towards Xu Zhengyang was noticeably more serious than before. " Xu Zhengyang, according to you, how can we reverse the reputation of my Holy Spirit Cult?"
Xu Zhengyang laughed upon hearing this, "Reputation is built up over time, not something that can be changed by one person's strength. Take so-called Evil Soul Master, for example. Is there really a distinction between good and evil in this world? Are there really definitions of Evil Soul Master and righteous Soul Master?"
"According to the rules of the Douluo World, any Soul Master who improves their cultivation by absorbing external energy is generally considered an Evil Soul Master. Take Senior Zhang Peng as an example. Due to the special nature of his Scorpion Tiger Martial Soul, Senior Zhang Peng needed to absorb the essence of Soul Beast to improve, but he did not harm anyone else from beginning to end, nor did he go mad. How can he be considered evil?"
"Based on my research into the history of Soul Master, Sea God Tang San most revered by the Shrek Academy, also possessed the Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul and the same Devouring Soul Skill. If we follow the rules of our current Douluo World, wouldn't Sea God Tang San also be considered Evil Soul Master?"
"On the contrary, those so-called upright people, who scheme and plot for profit, may not even be as upright as the Holy Spirit Cult. At least the Holy Spirit Cult dares to take responsibility for its actions, and at least the Holy Spirit Cult will not falsely accuse others."
"Over the years, Evil Soul Master on the Douluo Continent have committed countless atrocities. Are all of these the work of the Holy Spirit Cult? I doubt it. I'm afraid many of these are the work of powerful forces who, in order to cover up the truth and protect their own image, have pinned all the blame on the Holy Spirit Cult."
Zhongli Wu and Zhang Peng exchanged a glance. They knew better than anyone else the extent of the Holy Spirit Cult Holy Spirit Cult's power and its past actions. But as Xu Zhengyang said, many things were not actually done by the Holy Spirit Cult disciples. They simply didn't bother to refute it, and even if they did, probably no one would believe them.
It is precisely because of this situation that the Holy Spirit Cult's reputation has deteriorated to the point where it is universally condemned.
Zhongli Wu, who had been calm, suddenly looked somewhat conflicted.
" Xu Zhengyang, according to your suggestion, how can we change the image of our Holy Spirit Cult in the hearts of the people?"
Xu Zhengyang couldn't help but roll his eyes at Zhongli Wu. This guy was supposed to be Level 98 Super Douluo, but he was simply a brainless idiot. He really didn't know what he was thinking when he did all those things.
"Why do we need to change the image of the Holy Spirit Cult? With its current strength, the Holy Spirit Cult is probably at least in the top three in the Douluo Continent, and could even be considered the strongest sect."
"In the Soul Master World, the greater the power, the more complex the internal affairs, and the more likely it is to have various conflicts with other factions."
"Based on my previous understanding of the Holy Spirit Cult, I suspect you possess some special means, using a kind of soul imprinting, to control your disciples. While this method of control is effective, it is something I find extremely repulsive, and especially resented by their relatives."
"In fact, in the Soul Master World, this kind of control is the lowest level and the most ineffective. It may make people loyal to the Holy Spirit Cult in the short term, but in the long run, it will make everyone feel that the Holy Spirit Cult is too evil and make everyone very resistant to the Holy Spirit Cult."
"Furthermore, given the Holy Spirit Cult's previous strength, there's no need for further expansion. Instead, they should calm down and consolidate their foundation."
Zhongli Wu looked puzzled. "What does this have to do with the image of my Holy Spirit Cult?"
Xu Zhengyang shook his head. "Master, aren't you mistaken about something? As long as the entire Holy Spirit Cult remains silent, or even announces that the Holy Spirit Cult will now go into seclusion and no longer interfere in worldly affairs, the actions of those so-called Evil Soul Master outside will have nothing to do with the Holy Spirit Cult. This will make people reject those Evil Soul Master who are committing evil deeds, not the Holy Spirit Cult."
"It can even make everyone understand and reflect: if the Holy Spirit Cult no longer interferes in worldly affairs, how come there are still so many Evil Soul Master running amok, and so many killings? Was the Holy Spirit Cult's previous image of disrupting the world deliberately framed?"
"Of course, there's also the most important point, which is the issue of reputation that the leader mentioned. The Soul Master World is full of fighting and injustice, especially due to the limitations of Martial Soul and Innate Soul Power, which makes many people live mediocre lives and prevents many from avenging their grudges."
"The Holy Spirit Cult Holy Spirit Cult has an advantage in this regard. With its special secret methods, it can resolve some Innate Soul Power and Martial Soul defects. You can spread the word that the Holy Spirit Cult doesn't concern itself with worldly affairs, but if you encounter injustice, you can still seek help from the Holy Spirit Cult. You can even secretly spread rumors that the Holy Spirit Cult has the means to defy fate. I believe many ordinary Soul Master will flock to it."
At this moment, both Zhongli Wu and Zhang Peng looked at Xu Zhengyang as if he were a monster. Who exactly was this Xu Zhengyang? How could he use schemes and tricks even more skillfully than the Holy Spirit Cult? Especially since these all seemed to be open and aboveboard schemes, making them completely irresistible.
If what Xu Zhengyang said is true, the Holy Spirit Cult's future development may be somewhat limited, but if it releases the Holy Spirit...
If the news that the sect can solve the problem of Innate Soul Power gets out, it will definitely attract a lot of talented people, and may even make the Holy Spirit Cult even stronger.
As Xu Zhengyang said, the Soul Master World is full of hatred and betrayal, with countless people unwilling to accept their fate. Those whose talents are limited are even more numerous. Even Zhang Peng himself was forced to join the Holy Spirit Cult because he was unwilling to accept Mu En's suppression and threats.
Compared to the shock of Zhongli Wu and Zhang Peng, Xu Zhengyang was speechless. What kind of geniuses were these Holy Spirit Cult members? Not only did they have a bad reputation, but they also had all sorts of bizarre actions.
The Holy Spirit Cult and Shrek Academy were originally mortal enemies, even enemies of the entire world. Their only ally was the Sun Moon Empire Imperial Family. However, Zhongli Wu went too far and offended the royal family, ultimately suffering a betrayal from Xu Tianran. Even the two Ultimate Douluo were severely injured.
To put it bluntly, if the Holy Spirit Cult hadn't clashed with the Sun Moon Empire Imperial Family, Shrek Academy's strength would have been suicidal if they had tried to attack the Holy Spirit Cult.
With at least two Ultimate Douluo present, Huo Yuhao would be nothing more than a subordinate in front of Long Xiaoyao and Ye Xishui, and might not even have the strength to put up a fight.
All of this was caused by the fact that the cult leader, Zhongli Wu, was too arrogant and reckless. Otherwise, with the powerful Soul Tool of the Sun Moon Empire and the powerful Soul Master of the Holy Spirit Cult, they would have had no problem unifying the world.
It should be noted that the Holy Spirit Cult has two Ultimate Douluo and more than twenty Titled Douluo, Titled Douluo is more than the Body Sect and Shrek Academy combined.
Such a powerful force ultimately met a tragic end. Take Zhongli Wu, for example; even if you put a pig to lead the Holy Spirit Cult, it wouldn't amount to much.
They'd do something so reckless.