Inside the Wuhou Sect's manor.
Zhuge Feng was still in the basement of his residence, sweating profusely as he stared intently at the golden sphere before him.
Previously, the dragon脉 had been unstable. Zhuge Feng had thought he could stabilize it as usual, but this time the dragon脉's agitation was far more severe than before. Zhuge Feng's routine stabilization efforts not only failed to calm the dragon脉's unrest but instead made it even more unstable!
If this trend continued, the dragon脉 would likely break through the restrictions before long. If the dragon脉's energy leaked out, the nation's fortune would be damaged, and the consequences would be unimaginable!
At this moment, Zhuge Ning entered the basement again and bowed respectfully to Zhuge Feng, saying, "Patriarch, the guests have mostly arrived. You should go out and greet them."
"So soon?" Zhuge Feng's eyes flickered slightly upon hearing Zhuge Ning's words.
He had been so focused on stabilizing the dragon脉 that he had completely lost track of time!
This was a critical moment for stabilizing the dragon脉, and Zhuge Feng absolutely could not leave!
But...
The banquet hosted by the Wuhou Sect this time was unprecedentedly grand, with ten thousand guests. This was a crucial challenge for the Wuhou Sect to regain its prestige. A single misstep could cause their reputation to plummet, sending them into an abyss!
As the protagonist of this banquet, if Zhuge Feng were to be absent, wouldn't the Wuhou Sect become a laughingstock?
Hearing the tone of Zhuge Feng's voice, Zhuge Ning realized that the dragon脉 issue had not been resolved and couldn't help but ask, "Patriarch, has the dragon脉 matter not been handled yet?"
Zhuge Feng said gravely, "The situation here is more serious than I imagined. I can't get away right now."
Zhuge Ning: "But the guests have already arrived. If you, the Patriarch, do not appear, other forces might say we are too arrogant."
"If this causes dissatisfaction among many cultivators in the circle, then our Wuhou Sect will find it difficult to move in the circle in the future!"
"How could I not know this?" Zhuge Feng said solemnly, "But the dragon脉 is of great importance. If something goes wrong at this time, who can bear the responsibility for the severe consequences!"
"At that time, our Wuhou Sect's prestige will also plummet, and we will never be able to hold our heads high in China again!"
Zhuge Ning anxiously asked, "Is there no other way?"
Zhuge Liang sighed, "You go and stabilize the guests first, and give me another hour. I will try my best to stabilize the dragon脉."
"Alas... it can only be this way."
Zhuge Ning also sighed heavily and turned to leave the basement.
Although postponing the banquet would also cause dissatisfaction among many forces, and even make people question the Wuhou Sect's sincerity, compared to the dragon脉 leaking or the banquet becoming a complete joke... postponing the banquet for an hour to resolve everything was already a great favor!
...
In the Wuhou Sect's manor, Ye Ling was eating peanuts and watching the noisy crowd below. He said, "This birthday banquet has been postponed for over half an hour. Zhuge Feng is still dealing with the dragon脉, and Feng Li is nowhere to be seen. I think this banquet doesn't need Yun Gong to make a move; the Wuhou Sect will become a laughingstock on its own."
"How could this happen?" Wang Die couldn't help but show concern as Zhuge Feng was delayed.
If this continued, and the dissatisfaction among the various forces erupted, causing the banquet to fail, the entire Wuhou Sect would become a joke in the circle!
Even if Ye Ling stepped in to resolve this crisis, people's impression of the Wuhou Sect would change from mysterious and powerful to useless hangers-on who relied on others for prestige.
This was not the outcome Wang Die desired.
Ye Ling said, "If this trend continues, even with another hour, Zhuge Feng won't be able to calm the agitated dragon脉. And Feng Li is probably planning to make a grand entrance after Zhuge Feng appears. In this way... everyone will be stuck."
As he spoke, Ye Ling popped another peanut into his mouth, clearly not afraid of causing trouble.
If things continued like this, the forces hired by Yun Gong would also find it difficult to act. This banquet would end in a farce, without a drop of blood being shed.
This was not necessarily a bad thing.
Wang Die's eyes darted around, and she immediately said, "This cannot continue. Emperor, you come with me!"
With that, Wang Die leaped from the top of the pavilion and flew towards the outside of the manor.
"Where are you going?"
Ye Ling called out, then grabbed a handful of peanuts from the table in front of Zhang Xiaoxia and chased after Wang Die.
Soon, Ye Ling followed Wang Die to a cemetery.
"Why are you here?"
Ye Ling landed in the cemetery, glanced at the surrounding tombstones, and asked Wang Die while eating peanuts.
Wang Die quickly walked to an unmarked tombstone, took out a shovel from her Qiankun bag, and began to dig in front of Ye Ling, saying as she dug, "This was originally my backup plan, but the dragon脉 has been unstable, and there's no other way now."
As Wang Die dug open the grave, a ball of golden light flew out from the tomb, illuminating the surrounding cemetery.
Ye Ling looked at the golden sphere and exclaimed in surprise, "The dragon脉's restriction?"
Wang Die replied, "That's right... Besides the dragon脉 restriction on the Zhuge family's side, there is actually another one here. However, only Zhuge Feng knows about this restriction; even the Dragon Division is unaware of it."
Ye Ling teased, "Then how did you know?"
Wang Die: "Does the Emperor perhaps forget that I was fed a fragment of the dragon脉's heart before? The power of the dragon脉 is contained within me, so I naturally know where the dragon脉's restriction is."
Ye Ling watched Wang Die skillfully unlock the dragon脉's restriction and asked, "You're not going to ask me to help Zhuge Feng stabilize the dragon脉 here, are you?"
Wang Die turned around, clasped her hands together, her eyes shining, and coquettishly pleaded with Ye Ling, "Emperor, please... do me a favor..."
Hearing Wang Die's sweet and flirtatious voice, Ye Ling shivered, dropping the peanuts in his hand. His scalp tingled.
"Enough, enough! I'll help, just speak normally..." Ye Ling supported his forehead, unable to bear Wang Die's demeanor.
"Thank you, Emperor!"
Seeing that Ye Ling had agreed, Wang Die smiled sweetly again, then turned and diligently worked to unlock the dragon脉's restriction.
Soon, a dazzling golden light erupted from the sphere, and a powerful aura spread outwards!
Wang Die quickly said, "Emperor, the dragon脉 seal has been broken. Quickly contain the luck, don't let the national fortune dissipate!"
As soon as Wang Die finished speaking, a dragon's roar echoed from beneath the cemetery, followed by a golden giant dragon soaring into the sky, heading straight for the heavens!
Upon seeing this, Ye Ling immediately condensed a barrier around the cemetery, sealing all the leaked energy from the dragon脉 within the grounds.
The giant dragon that was soaring towards the heavens was forced back into the ground by Ye Ling!
"That is..."
After suppressing the agitated dragon, Ye Ling looked at the restless dragon脉 within the golden sphere, his gaze slightly narrowing.
Within the dragon脉, he saw wisps of black energy.
It was clear that China's dragon脉... had already been eroded!