"And then?" Chen Jiu gestured for him to go on.

"I believe Wei Zhao must have demands of his own, and he surely wants to talk to us as well. It is only that he is unwilling to negotiate with me directly—first, because it would put him at too great a disadvantage, and second, because it would be beneath his dignity. Perhaps he, too, is searching for a mouthpiece who can speak on his behalf," Lu Ping'an said.

"Who?" Chen Jiu asked.

"Xin Yi'an." Of all the Golden Core seniors of the Cangwu Sect on North Island, he was the only one who could get a word in with Wei Zhao and who might win Wei Zhao's trust.

"Fine. Then go find him." A flicker of cold steel passed through Chen Jiu's eyes. After this affair, there was no need to guess—Xin Yi'an was a dead man walking.

When Lu Ping'an came calling, Xin Yi'an was still doing all he could to win over the other Golden Core seniors. He knew this was the crucial moment when hearts would turn one way or the other; one more supporter meant one more voice, one more chance at victory.

The sudden sight of Lu Ping'an, Chen Jiu's personal disciple, chilled Xin Yi'an to the bone. His first thought was that the scheme had been exposed and the Grand Elder was about to make an example of him.

But once he grasped the other's meaning, he could not help but stare blankly. From what Lu Ping'an said, the Grand Elder intended to negotiate with Wei Zhao as equals—and Lu Ping'an and he were to be the representatives of each side?

Naturally, Xin Yi'an did not dare agree to such a thing on his own authority. Having understood Lu Ping'an's meaning, he hurried off to Heaven-Reaching Cliff to seek Wei Zhao's instructions.

"If they want to talk, then let them talk. We have nothing to lose either way," Wei Zhao said offhandedly.

"Then... how should we talk?" Xin Yi'an asked weakly.

"You don't know how to quibble?" Wei Zhao glanced at him.

"Quibble?" Xin Yi'an's eyes went somewhat glassy. "Junior Grand-Uncle, a negotiation ought to have a goal, surely. Is quibbling itself our goal?"

"Yes. Quibbling is our goal. Let him talk however he likes; there is only one thing you need to do—neither oppose nor agree. In short, quibble. When you have quibbled yourself dizzy, you will have succeeded," Wei Zhao said.

"Wh-why?" Xin Yi'an could not make sense of it for a moment. If the whole point from the start was merely to quibble for quibbling's sake, what meaning could there be in that?

"Two reasons. First, the one hanging between life and death right now is Chen Dongcheng, not one of ours—so they are the ones who ought to be anxious. We have no reason to be anxious at all. In negotiations, the anxious side always loses. Wait and see: once the quibbling drags on long enough, they will absolutely lose their patience, and that will be our opportunity," Wei Zhao instructed.

"Yes, yes." Xin Yi'an nodded repeatedly, then asked, "And the second?"

"The second is you," Wei Zhao said, looking at him.

"Me?" Xin Yi'an looked utterly bewildered.

"Let me ask you—these past days you have been courting support. What have you accomplished?" Wei Zhao asked.

"Uh... very little..." Xin Yi'an said, sweating with shame. It was not for lack of effort. His strength and standing were simply too ordinary; among the Golden Core seniors he had always been the sort no one paid attention to. At a juncture like this, someone like him going around making connections had no appeal whatsoever. Even those who harbored grievances against the Chen faction would only laugh at his presumption after hearing his proposal; few took him seriously at all.

Things were marginally better now. Because of the intimidation Wei Zhao had wrought, the other Golden Core seniors no longer sneered at Xin Yi'an as they once had—after all, in their eyes, even if Wei Zhao could not match a Nascent Soul old monster like the Grand Elder, he was absolutely not someone these Golden Core experts could contend with. Still, to say they could be won over so easily was unrealistic.

"Hence, this negotiation is the chance to raise the influence of both you and me," Wei Zhao said, making the point plain.

Only then did Xin Yi'an suddenly see the light. He slapped his forehead. "I understand! Junior Grand-Uncle means that this negotiation must not only drag on, but drag on until everyone knows of it. That way a notion will take shape throughout the sect—that your standing is equal to the Grand Elder's—and I, as your negotiating representative, can use it to raise my own standing and influence!"

"Correct. But there is another layer of meaning. Everyone knows the Cangwu Sect on North Island is split between the native faction and the Chen faction. The Grand Elder on the negotiating side is the spokesman of the Chen faction—so tell me, who is the spokesman of the native faction?" The corner of Wei Zhao's mouth curved.

"That goes without saying—it is you, Junior Grand-Uncle!" Xin Yi'an's eyes shone.

The reason he had been unable to win over the other Golden Core seniors and disciples of the native faction was chiefly that they did not believe he could carry the native faction on his shoulders. Now Wei Zhao had stepped forward and raised the call—effortlessly crippling Chen Dongcheng and forcing even the Grand Elder to sit down patiently and negotiate. Even the Sect Master, Hong Zijun, had never managed such a feat!

Thus, once the notion of two equal powers facing off took root in people's hearts, it would be impossible for Wei Zhao not to become the leader of the native faction—for all the Golden Core seniors and disciples of the native faction would flock to him of their own accord, and once that momentum formed, nothing could stop it.

"So what are you waiting for? Go quibble with him," Wei Zhao said with a shrug.

"Understood!" Xin Yi'an departed at once, full of confidence.

What followed unfolded exactly as Wei Zhao had foreseen. For all that Xin Yi'an usually wore the look of an honest, simple soul, his mind was in fact quick and lively; once he began quibbling with Lu Ping'an, his arguments came in a dazzling flood, and he did not yield an inch.

Lu Ping'an was nearly driven mad. He had thought that not facing Wei Zhao directly would at least make things easier—who could have guessed he would be handed this sort of creature? At first glance Xin Yi'an was like a pot of plain lukewarm water, but after long contact one learned that this fellow would never come to a boil, and he was not a whit less difficult to deal with than Wei Zhao.

In the end it all came down to two words: no way out.

Yet he could not tear off the mask of civility either. For one thing, in this negotiation they were the passive, weaker side; for another, the other party was not being uncooperative—on the contrary, they were exceedingly cooperative, only ever wearing down words and stalling for time. They had set their minds on a war of attrition, and what could he do about it?

Had it not been for Chen Dongcheng, Chen Jiu would long since have turned on them. As it was, he could only grit his teeth and swallow his fury, instructing Lu Ping'an to keep grinding away at Xin Yi'an.

But as time wore on, Wei Zhao's image and standing within the Cangwu Sect on North Island had indeed changed beyond recognition! (To be continued.)