Early the next morning, after breakfast, Huo Yuhao followed Yang Haohan into the Alliance council hall.
The council hall was enormous, giving it an elegant and spacious feel.
Five people were already seated inside.
Of the five, Huo Yuhao had met Li Zhengzhi, the master of the Magic Temple, before. When Li Zhengzhi saw him, he greeted him warmly.
Huo Yuhao returned the greeting respectfully.
As for the other four, the fact that they could sit with Li Zhengzhi clearly meant they were also figures at the level of temple masters among the Six Great Temples.
Although it was Huo Yuhao's first time meeting them, he could tell who they were from their clothing.
One of the four was an old man with white hair and a white beard. He wore black robes, and his eyes were sharp. He was studying Huo Yuhao, his eyes full of curiosity.
Huo Yuhao recognized him at once as Saint Moon, the master of the Assassin Temple and a Ninth Tier powerhouse.
But he couldn't quite make sense of the look in Saint Moon's eyes.
Of the other three, the unusually tall and burly old man was Qiu Yonghao, master of the Warrior Temple. He gave Huo Yuhao a slight nod.
Of the remaining two, the old man in priestly robes was Ling Xiao, master of the Priest Temple.
Although Ling Xiao looked young, he could not conceal the traces of age in his eyes, and he gave off a gentle air.
The last was Chen Hongyu, master of the Soul Temple. Summoners were considered the most mysterious profession among the Six Great Temples.
Huo Yuhao was very interested in them as well. Unfortunately, becoming a summoner required one to have no attribute, so Huo Yuhao could only be ruled out.
After recognizing them, Huo Yuhao greeted each of them with a bow.
Once the formalities were over, Li Zhengzhi hurriedly said:
"All right, Yuhao, take out what you made and open the eyes of these old fellows."
The other temple masters' eyes filled with curiosity at Li Zhengzhi's words.
They knew that anything capable of surprising even Li Zhengzhi was bound to be extraordinary.
Then, under everyone's watchful eyes, Huo Yuhao took the parts of the Godly Zhuge Crossbow Cannon out of his spatial ring and began assembling it before them.
In just half the time it took an incense stick to burn, the Godly Zhuge Crossbow Cannon stood fully assembled before them.
The eyes of all six temple masters lit up as they watched Huo Yuhao put it together.
A piece of magical equipment that could be assembled was a rare sight.
The fact that it could be assembled meant it would be easy to transport and move in the future, saving considerable manpower and resources.
Once the assembly was complete, Huo Yuhao made a few simple adjustments. After confirming that everything was in order, he bowed to the six temple masters and said:
"Seniors, the equipment has been adjusted and is ready. As for its power, how should we test it?"
At his words, all six were eager to try it, but Saint Moon was a little quicker and seized the opportunity.
"Let me test this fine contraption of yours, boy!"
Saint Moon first gave Huo Yuhao a long look, then gazed curiously at the Godly Zhuge Crossbow Cannon. He wanted to see whether its shells really were powerful enough to deal with Fifth Tier demons.
"Please be careful, Senior!"
Huo Yuhao adjusted the barrel and aimed it at Saint Moon. Then, as the six men watched, he took four level-four Milk Bottles from his spatial ring and placed them in the cannon.
He operated the cannon briefly, and a shell radiating cold shot toward Saint Moon. It was so fast that the naked eye could barely follow it.
"Come on!"
Saint Moon gave a loud shout and extended his right hand, preparing to catch the shell barehanded.
He used no Spiritual Energy, relying solely on his External Spiritual Power to come into intimate contact with the shell.
But when the two collided, Saint Moon's expression changed slightly. The shell was even more powerful than he had imagined.
More importantly, it also radiated an intense chill. If his cultivation had only been at the Fifth Tier, his palm might already have been frozen and shattered.
Once the shell stopped spinning, Saint Moon gave his assessment.
"Good, good, good! Its power is impressive. Even a Fifth Tier demon would have trouble withstanding a direct hit."
He was very satisfied with the Godly Zhuge Crossbow Cannon now.
After all, it looked very easy to operate. Even ordinary soldiers could use it.
When Saint Moon finished the test, Li Zhengzhi rose at once and went over to Huo Yuhao. Looking at the Milk Bottles Huo Yuhao had put into the cannon, he asked curiously:
"Boy Huo, is that the equipment you mentioned five months ago, the kind that can store Spiritual Energy?"
"That's right. Please take a look, Temple Master Li!"
Huo Yuhao nodded and took out all four Milk Bottles he had put into the cannon. He also made a point of taking out two level-three Sealed Milk Bottles for Li Zhengzhi and the others to examine.
The others came over to Huo Yuhao as well, their faces full of curiosity after hearing Li Zhengzhi's words.
Some tested the Sealed Milk Bottles, while others examined the Godly Zhuge Crossbow Cannon and asked Huo Yuhao to explain how to use it himself.
After learning the exact operating procedure, every temple master's eyes showed surprise.
The Spiritual Energy cannon Huo Yuhao had made had far too many advantages over the magic crystal cannon.
Afterward, the men tried operating it themselves and all nodded in satisfaction.
Seeing their reactions, Huo Yuhao knew that he had essentially achieved his purpose in coming to the Holy City. What remained were the details of their cooperation.
Half an hour later, the six temple masters finished their inspection and returned to their seats, where they began a heated discussion.
They discussed where to build the new magical equipment factory, what each temple would provide, how large it should be, what share each would receive, and so on.
These were not details Huo Yuhao could chime in on, so he could only sit down in a corner, eat some food, and wait patiently.
After a heated discussion, they settled on the terms each temple would offer and how the output would be divided.
First, the magical equipment factory jointly operated by the Six Great Temples would be built near the Holy City, where it was relatively safe.
Second came the question of what each temple needed to contribute.
Of the Six Great Temples, the Magic Temple would provide the most valuable asset: alchemists. The other five temples would provide the construction funds and recruit blacksmiths, guards, and the like.
Once they had agreed on their respective terms, the next issue was allocation, which would determine how much of the output each temple received.
After discussion, the Magic Temple took twenty percent of the output, while each of the other five temples took fifteen percent.
Huo Yuhao was taken aback. The Magic Temple would receive twenty percent, and the other five temples together would receive only seventy-five percent.
That added up to only ninety-five percent. Where had the final five percent gone?
Before Huo Yuhao could think further, all six temple masters looked at him, and Li Zhengzhi spoke for them.
"Yuhao has developed so much equipment, and he also took the initiative to propose that the Six Great Temples produce it together. He has worked hard and made a great contribution, so let Yuhao decide how to distribute the final five percent of the output!"
"That's right. Yuhao has contributed a great deal and worked hard. If this equipment weren't so important, I'd even agree to giving him a larger share of the output."
The second of the six to voice his agreement was not Yang Haohan, but Saint Moon, the master of the Assassin Temple.