Chapter 893: Differentiation

"This Profound Realm is truly outrageous! They actually demoted you to fourteenth place!" In the main building of Wind Island Pavilion, Yi Qiushui slammed the Divine Dwelling List onto the table, her voice filled with annoyance.

Ye Bingling, standing nearby, also frowned, nodding in agreement that the Profound Realm's action was excessive.

Zhou Yuan, however, showed no sign of anger. He took the Divine Dwelling List, glanced at it, and then smiled, saying, "Fourteenth it is. Didn't I say before that Lu Xiao's ranking was somewhat inflated? Although I defeated him, it's not difficult to understand why I'm back at fourteenth place."

His gaze lingered further down the list, where he saw Lu Xiao at twenty-third place. Clearly, Lu Xiao's defeat by him had significantly impacted his own ranking.

Zhou Yuan didn't actually place much importance on these rankings. After all, everything ultimately depended on genuine strength; a ranking couldn't truly bring anything.

Yi Qiushui rolled her eyes at him. "You're certainly magnanimous, but this isn't just about you. It also concerns the reputation of Tianyuan Region. What will people say when they see this Divine Dwelling List and realize that our strongest Divine Dwelling expert in Tianyuan Region can only rank fourteenth?"

"They'll definitely think Tianyuan Region is declining, and that's not good for our reputation."

Zhou Yuan shrugged. These were, in fact, all true; there was no need to hide them, nor could they be hidden.

However, he didn't argue. He simply let Yi Qiushui vent for a while, then stretched leisurely and chuckled, "The Four Pavilions meeting should be soon, right?"

Since the contest for the Chief Pavilion Master position, he had spent the past few days resting and recovering. Today marked his official start in the role.

Yi Qiushui nodded slightly. "The other three pavilions have already been notified."

She then took out a scroll and placed it before Zhou Yuan. "Now that you're newly appointed as Chief Pavilion Master, the Wind Pavilion and Forest Pavilion are easy to handle; they'll definitely support you. However, the Fire Pavilion has always been quite uncooperative, and while the Mountain Pavilion is slightly better, they're still fence-sitters."

"If you want to fully control all four pavilions and have them obey your commands, you'll need some strategies."

"How should I do it?" Zhou Yuan asked humbly.

"Divide them from within," Yi Qiushui replied without hesitation.

"Divide?"

Yi Qiushui explained, "Currently, in the Fire Pavilion, besides Pavilion Master Lu Xiao, there are eight Vice Pavilion Masters. Seven of these eight are from the Celestial Spirit Sect. But you know that the majority of the Fire Pavilion's members aren't actually from the Celestial Spirit Sect. They joined the Fire Pavilion simply because it offers them more cultivation resources."

"However, they must harbor some dissatisfaction about the Fire Pavilion's upper echelons being almost entirely composed of Celestial Spirit Sect members. It's just that Lu Xiao's suppression prevents them from showing it."

"As Chief Pavilion Master, if you select some outstanding individuals from the Fire Pavilion's non-Celestial Spirit Sect members and promote them to commanders or vice pavilion masters, you'll surely win over many people and even destabilize their internal structure. At that point, even if Lu Xiao and his allies want to object, they won't be able to unify the voices within the Fire Pavilion."

"The same applies to the Mountain Pavilion. I believe it won't be long before all four pavilions are truly under your control."

Zhou Yuan looked at Yi Qiushui, whose pretty face radiated confidence as she spoke eloquently. He couldn't help but smack his lips and give her a thumbs-up. Even before these plans were implemented, just thinking about them made it clear how much trouble they would cause Lu Xiao, Han Yuan, and their factions.

Yi Qiushui smiled faintly, her lips pursed, and pointed to the scroll. "In the past few days, I've thoroughly investigated the situation in the Fire and Mountain Pavilions. The individuals listed here are not Celestial Spirit Sect disciples, yet they possess good strength and talent. They've been suppressed by Lu Xiao for years and harbor resentment. You can choose from them who to promote."

Zhou Yuan nodded, filled with emotion. With Yi Qiushui as his chief steward, he couldn't imagine how much more comfortable his role as Chief Pavilion Master would be.

Zhou Yuan opened the scroll and read it carefully for a moment, then suddenly said, "These methods are certainly enough to establish my authority, but I've just been appointed Chief Pavilion Master. Such drastic measures will inevitably lead to gossip and even some unrest. So, I think we still need a bit of a softer approach."

"Softer approach?" Yi Qiushui paused, surprised. "What do you plan to do?"

Zhou Yuan pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "I plan to lower the selling price of the Four-Source Mark by thirty percent."

The Four-Source Mark was originally created to counter the Fire Pavilion. However, now that Zhou Yuan was the Chief Pavilion Master, he couldn't solely focus on the Wind Pavilion. Doing so in the long run would inevitably cause dissatisfaction among the other three pavilions, who would feel he was too biased towards the Wind Pavilion.

Therefore, if he could lower the selling price of the Four-Source Mark, not only the Wind Pavilion but also members of the other three pavilions would benefit.

Of course, lowering the selling price would also reduce his own income. However, Zhou Yuan wasn't concerned about this, as even with a thirty percent reduction, what he gained would still be sufficient.

Upon hearing this, Yi Qiushui's beautiful eyes lit up. "That's an excellent idea! After receiving such benefits, most people will likely support you, no matter what you do to the Fire Pavilion or Mountain Pavilion."

Her previous methods were assertive, whereas Zhou Yuan's approach was conciliatory. Combining assertiveness with conciliation was indeed the perfect strategy.

Ye Bingling, who was standing nearby, also nodded in support. "I will inform the Wind Pavilion; I'm sure everyone will understand."

After Zhou Yuan's promotion to Chief Pavilion Master, the position of Wind Pavilion Master became vacant. Zhou Yuan entrusted it to Ye Bingling because, while Yi Qiushui was skilled in strategizing, her personal strength was still somewhat lacking to fully command respect. Ye Bingling, however, was entirely capable of ascending to the role, both in terms of strength and experience.

Seeing this, Zhou Yuan also nodded with a smile.

He stood up and said, "In that case, let's go. We'll meet with the three pavilions first."

Zhou Yuan led the way out. Although he had been promoted to Chief Pavilion Master of the Four Pavilions, he couldn't relax. He knew many people were likely watching him. If he couldn't quickly integrate the four pavilions and resolve all internal issues, the Celestial Spirit Sect might use it as an excuse to impeach him for dereliction of duty.

Therefore, whether to secure his position or to consolidate power for the upcoming Nine Regions Grand Assembly, Zhou Yuan had to fully seize control of all the Four Pavilions' forces as quickly as possible.

If anyone refused to submit, be it Lu Xiao or Han Yuan, Zhou Yuan would first have to find a way to remove them from the Four Pavilions, lest they jeopardize his important plans.

As Zhou Yuan walked out of the room, a sharp glint flashed in his eyes.

He hoped Lu Xiao and Han Yuan would be sensible enough.