Chapter 240: Nobleman Nan's Majesty

Feng Chi immediately denied, "Even Young Master Nan wouldn't..." She suddenly trailed off mid-sentence, as if something was stuck in her throat.

Everyone, including Xiang Lan'er, stared at her reaction. Xiang Lan'er was actually not very clear about these matters. Comparatively, Feng Chi's knowledge and experience were indeed much richer than Xiang Lan'er's. This was also why the higher-ups had assigned her to be Xiang Lan'er's assistant, as Xiang Lan'er was still young after all.

After pondering for a while, Feng Chi slowly changed her tune: "Young Master Nan might indeed find it much easier to handle this than us because he doesn't have to worry about being investigated. He can act openly. I heard he has connections across all Four Great Continents. If he's willing to help, it's certainly possible to get it done. However, this matter is truly very troublesome, and he might not be willing to assist you."

"Is it very troublesome?" Shi Chun recalled Young Master Nan's attitude again. It shouldn't be troublesome; perhaps Sister Feng was just viewing Young Master Nan's capabilities from her own perspective.

Since Feng Chi also said Young Master Nan could handle it, and Young Master Nan had already stated he would see it through, then there was no problem.

This meant the difficulty now lay in convincing the demonic faction. He brought the conversation back, explaining, "If I go to Julu Continent and join a refining sect, no matter how indirectly, any sect I join will attract attention. It doesn't matter if *I* am scrutinized, but it's not appropriate for the sect we intend to support to be watched. I suggest that the target sect and I have no apparent connection on the surface. I'll establish another sect and then assist the target sect from the side. This way, nothing will be delayed, and it will be much safer. This is my proposal."

Actually, there was no need for further explanation; Feng Chi's attitude had already softened when Young Master Nan's help was mentioned. However, she still hesitated and asked, "You're not a refiner. Do you think it's appropriate for you to establish a refining sect?"

"I don't necessarily have to be the one to establish it," Shi Chun said, pointing towards the newly purchased mansion. "Refiners? Yes, we have them. Legitimate ones, verifiable, completely authentic, recently expelled from their sects, and now without a sect. What's wrong with them establishing their own?"

Wu Jinliang chuckled beside him.

Feng Chi and Xiang Lan'er were both stunned. The former looked at the latter, as if asking, "Are there?" Feng Chi wasn't entirely clear about who those expelled individuals were. As the junior sister who had been mistreated during the Heavenly Rain Meteorite Convention, Xiang Lan'er had interacted with those people. After a brief thought, she nodded slightly, indicating that there indeed were such individuals.

"Alright," Feng Chi said after some thought, "It's not just the refining sects in Sheng Shen Continent that need convincing; we need to clear the way across all Four Great Continents. This is no ordinary hassle. Are you sure Young Master Nan will help?" She knew Shi Chun was quite close to Young Master Nan. The reason, as everyone knew, was that Shi Chun had helped Young Master Nan make a fortune. However, help also had its limits. With such a relationship, asking Young Master Nan to take on such a significant burden, she felt he might not truly agree.

Shi Chun replied, "Leave this matter to me. I'll handle it. If it really doesn't work, it won't be too late to use your method. How about that?"

Xiang Lan'er spoke to Feng Chi, "Go contact them. Let the higher-ups make the decision."

"Okay," Feng Chi nodded in agreement.

That afternoon, feedback arrived. Upon receiving the news, Feng Chi did not take the liberty of finding Shi Chun herself. Instead, she first went to Xiang Lan'er's room to report the situation. "The higher-ups also believe Shi Chun's method is more reliable and can save us a great deal of trouble. If he can indeed persuade Young Master Nan to help, then we'll proceed as he suggested." This decision was then quickly relayed to Shi Chun.

Shi Chun immediately left to find Young Master Nan, with Wu Jinliang, who now carried a large gourd everywhere, following him.

Inside Wuyu Hall, Young Master Nan personally came out to greet them, then led the two to a private room for a confidential discussion. When the two departed, Young Master Nan again personally saw them to the door. As soon as the guests left, the previously nonchalant Young Master Nan instantly became energetic. He waved for a carriage, quickly got in, and departed.

True to his word, three days it was, not a single day delayed. Three days later, Young Master Nan personally arrived at Five Waterfalls Mountain, at Shi Chun's home, to deliver the good news. The matter was complete: the sect had been added to the Divine Flame Covenant, and the names of the participants had been submitted and approved. When the Divine Flame Domain opened, they only needed to attend on time.

Shi Chun was truly impressed by this efficiency. He hadn't been quite so impressed three days prior. Over the past three days, he had thoroughly investigated the relevant situation and only then realized that Feng Chi had been telling the truth: dealing with the refining sects across the Four Great Continents was truly not that easy. To put it simply, the Divine Flame Domain had been jointly controlled by those refining sects, who absolutely forbade other forces from getting involved. They were able to maintain this control because only the powerful figures from these refining sects could jointly activate the Divine Flame Domain—indeed, it required their combined effort, not just one person. These individuals were all people who had entered the Divine Flame Domain in earlier years and absorbed various divine flames. Only they could sense the approaching activation time of the Divine Flame Domain, and only by gathering individuals with a significant amount of divine flame attributes could the Divine Flame Domain be opened. To protect the vested interests of the refining sects, they had created the "Divine Flame Covenant" and established rules to prevent other forces from interfering. In short, unless absolutely necessary, only refiners were allowed to enter.

Currently, the Heavenly Court had conflicts with the Four Great Continents, and these refining sects were distributed across all four continents. It was a situation where if you appeased one, you'd offend another. Even the Heavenly Court wouldn't lightly meddle in this matter, lest they provoke all the refining sects. Young Master Nan managed to resolve this issue in just three days. Shi Chun found it somewhat unimaginable how he achieved it, considering it involved forces spanning all four continents.

In the beautiful scenic environment, the three walked and chatted. As they strolled and conversed, Young Master Nan occasionally glanced at the large gourd on Wu Jinliang's back. Eventually, he couldn't resist any longer; it kept bothering him, and no one could ignore it. He finally asked, "Brother Wu, forgive my ignorance, but I can't tell what kind of treasure that large gourd of yours is. Why do you always carry it? What does it do?"

Wu Jinliang replied, "It collects the essence of heaven and earth." As he spoke, he unfastened it and handed it to Young Master Nan to examine.

Young Master Nan turned it over and over, only to find that it was actually a fake gourd, with no special features whatsoever. He felt his knowledge was truly lacking and wondered, "Collects the essence of heaven and earth? How does it do that?"

Wu Jinliang said, "The profound mystery within is hard to explain. I'll tell you if there's an opportunity in the future."

It wasn't hard to understand that personal cultivation techniques were kept secret. Young Master Nan smiled, handed the gourd back to him, and did not press further. He then turned to Shi Chun and asked, "For the Divine Flame Domain, each sect has an entry quota of twenty people. Your newly established sect only has thirteen. Are you sure you don't want to add a few more? Wouldn't having more people increase your chances of winning the championship? If you need to add more now, there's still time. If you wait until the last minute, when more attention is on it, it might be difficult to increase the number." He had truly worried a great deal about Shi Chun's matter, expressing concern from all angles.

Shi Chun replied, "It's certainly good to have more people, but if those additional people are unsuitable, it might not be a good thing. More people mean more trouble; fewer people have their own advantages. It was already troublesome enough for you to help us get thirteen people in at once. We truly don't need any more."

"If you're confident, then we'll proceed as you wish." Young Master Nan stroked his small mustache with his index finger. "As for the trouble, it wasn't about the number of people. It was primarily troublesome due to the identities of two individuals: An Wuzhi from Vermilion Bird Pavilion and Zhu Xiangxin from Ten Thousand Grass Hall. The refiners were quite resistant to their inclusion for a while. The main issue was that these two individuals' original sects also involved fire-attribute cultivation techniques, and the refiners, who control the Divine Flame Domain, didn't want the divine flames within to benefit practitioners from other fields. Fortunately, we finally found a way to overcome it, which means I haven't let down Brother Chun's trust."

Shi Chun asked curiously, "Young Master Nan, I heard this matter was very difficult to arrange. How did you manage to do it in just three days?"

Young Master Nan smiled faintly. "It was nothing. In three days, I traveled across all Four Continents, finding some friends here and there. As for the specifics... Brother Chun, just know that good deeds were done; don't ask about the path taken. Some friends are willing to help but prefer not to be publicized, so I hope you understand."

Shi Chun decided not to ask further. He was truly impressed by this individual's vast capabilities. Despite having no real 'power' in the traditional sense, he managed to thrive everywhere, which was truly amazing.

After a final confirmation and instruction, Young Master Nan departed.

Once they were alone, Wu Jinliang gestured with his chin towards another large residence. "Chu Jingchang and the others don't even know they've joined another sect, and Tong Mingshan doesn't know he's become a Sect Master. Now that things are settled, shouldn't we inform them?"

Shi Chun thought for a moment. "It's still early. There's no need to make them worry prematurely. They just got out of prison and are finally enjoying a good life; why make them anxious? We'll tell them when we get there, and they'll be inside before they know it."

Wu Jinliang's mouth twitched.

After returning home, Shi Chun called Feng Chi and Xiang Lan'er to inform them that the Divine Flame Covenant matter had been handled.

"Young Master Nan is truly mighty!" Feng Chi couldn't help but exclaim in admiration. She genuinely hadn't expected Young Master Nan to help with such a complex matter, which showed how strong his relationship with Shi Chun was. Without delay, she promptly reported the matter to her superiors.

The matter seemed to be progressing smoothly, but late that night, Feng Chi couldn't help but rush into Xiang Lan'er's room to report.

"Miss, the Divine Flame Covenant matter isn't just 'handled.' The higher-ups discovered that Shi Chun and his group have already established their sect, and all the personnel for entry have already been approved and are listed on the Divine Flame Domain roster! We thought his 'handling it' just meant making arrangements, but we never expected them to be so fast. Now the higher-ups want us to contact Shi Chun to add more people; they only have thirteen individuals."

Xiang Lan'er was a bit confused by this. "Thirteen people? Add whom?"

Feng Chi immediately straightened her words and explained again, "They established a refining sect called 'Mingshan Sect.' The Sect Master is Tong Mingshan, formerly of the Hundred Refinements Sect. All eleven of those who were expelled from their sects, plus Shi Chun and the two who were expelled from Wukang Mountain, have joined 'Mingshan Sect' and are already listed on the Divine Flame Domain roster. Each sect is allowed twenty entrants, and they only have thirteen. This means there are seven extra slots, which we can use to add seven people to our strength. The higher-ups want us to arrange for seven people to join their 'Mingshan Sect' and enter with them, which would greatly assist our side."