In the conference hall of the City of Light.
Sha Chu looked at the recent registration forms, his expression quite displeased, and distributed the printed forms to A Fei, Chu Jun, and the Ye siblings.
"Take a look, everyone. What do you think?" Sha Chu said with a wry smile.
Ye Yuzhen and Ye Xiyuan didn’t see anything special, but Chu Jun looked carefully for a mont, then said gravely, "The nas at the very top—Han Daoliang, Sun Zhengping, Mo Feitian, and Li Zhong—could they be from the four major families? How co I’ve never heard of them during my ti in the Eternal Heaven?"
"It’s normal not to have heard of them. Han Daoliang is the uncle of Vice President Han, an elder of the Han Family who forges spirits. He has never held the position of elder or commander and usually doesn’t ddle in affairs. However, he’s unquestionably the number one in the Han Family. You might not recognize the na Sun Zhengping, but you know Sun Wuxi, the commander of the Divine Pet Division, right? Sun Zhengping is his uncle, the previous generation’s fourth elder, who guarded the Trial Gate for decades, and he’s one of the few elders who managed to retire unscathed. He’s also at the Spirit Forging Level. Mo Feitian cos from the Mo Family, who are typically mild-mannered and avoid conflicts. Yet, despite having the Mo surna, Mo Feitian didn’t inherit their personality and tends to kill at the slightest disagreent. He once caused big trouble, was imprisoned in the Eternal Prison for over a decade, and after being released, reportedly cultivated himself. Occasionally, when in a bad mood, he enjoys going to the Land of Trial to hunt so demon spirits for fun. Li Zhong is from the sa generation as Li Changyin and Li Changmian, though not as exceptional as those brothers. He has cultivated quietly for decades, and apparently, he recently forged his spirit too. The Li Family is in decline, and there aren’t many they can rely on now. Li Zhong didn’t participate in the rebellion, so he’s considered the pillar of the Li Family."
"All of them are at the Spirit Forging Level?" Chu Jun and the others were shocked when they heard that.
"All of them are Spirit Forging," Sha Chu sighed and said, "I didn’t expect the four major families to give so much face this ti. For a re Trial Taker tournant, they’ve practically brought out their trump cards. With these four competing, it seems unlikely we’ll reclaim the first-place prize."
"Is it really necessary for just a Trial Taker tournant?" Chu Jun didn’t quite understand why the four major families would invest so heavily.
"It’s necessary because this ti, the Trial Taker tournant is related to how many external mbers the four major families can recruit. The president has personally announced that henceforth, the four major families will have recruitnt quotas for external mbers, just like the seven groups of the Eternal Heaven, with the quotas determined by performance." Sha Chu explained.
"Even the four major families can recruit external mbers?" Chu Jun was taken aback by this news.
"Not just the four major families; in fact, other families of the Eternal Heaven can do the sa. Look further down the list," Sha Chu said.
Chu Jun glanced further down, not recognizing many nas, but Wan Chaocun’s na stood out prominently.
"Even Sister Chun is here; they’re really going all out this ti. Why are we even competing? The top five spots are sure to be taken by them. Even if we want to compete, our best bet is aiming for the ranks outside the top five," Chu Jun said, setting down the list. "But in a way, that’s good. With them competing, it’s hard for this year’s Trial Taker tournant not to succeed."
"What you’re saying is true. Success isn’t the issue; the problem is that the invested prizes certainly won’t be recovered," Sha Chu said, looking at Ye Yuzhen and Ye Xiyuan. "Another issue is the safety of the competition field. Earlier, we aid to maintain order, but now we have to worry if the battles of these Spirit Forging masters will break the arena’s defense net and affect the outside audience, which would be troubleso."
"Can the defense net be reinforced or a new layer added outside the existing one?" Ye Yuzhen suggested.
"Even adding three more layers wouldn’t help much against the Spirit Forging Level. It can’t even hold off the Light Base Level," Sha Chu said, looking at everyone. "Before the competition starts, we must co up with a solution. Does anyone have any ideas?"
"What about building an aerial platform and letting them fight in the air?" Ye Yuzhen pondered.
"Firstly, there’s not enough ti to construct an aerial platform. Even if we could build it, with them fighting in the air, the audience wouldn’t be able to see, only catch glimpses of light and shadow. If they have to watch the screen, who would buy tickets to watch in person?" Sha Chu dismissed Ye Yuzhen’s idea.
"Can’t we discuss with them to keep the battles within the arena?" Chu Jun asked.
"Everyone’s trying to secure quotas for their families. When it cos down to deciding winners and losers, who will care about that?" Sha Chu shook his head.
For a mont, none of them had any good solutions. Everyone was deep in thought, losing a few strands of hair in the process, yet none could co up with a suitable plan.
"Change the rules." Chu Qi, who rarely spoke, suddenly said.
"How do we change them?" Sha Chu and the others turned their gaze to Chu Qi.
After a mont of contemplation, Chu Qi said, "Just like in shooting competitions, it’s impossible to have two shooters engage in a duel."
"You an we design a set of rules that determines winners through the rules, rather than through a life-and-death struggle?" Sha Chu imdiately understood Chu Qi’s aning.
"I think this idea is feasible," Chu Jun chid in.
"It is feasible, but designing the rules requires effort. Without direct confrontation, the excitent level will greatly diminish and it won’t easily captivate the audience as much as a direct competition would," Sha Chu said, considering how to design the rules.
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