Lingdong, though unwilling in his heart, could not dare to show any resistance to the elder of the Long family. Instead, the black-robed man standing beside the elder gave him a somewhat surprised glance, his lips subtly moving. Instantly, Lingdong's elder heard a voice transmitted in his mind: "Ling-brother, what exactly did you mean just now?" "Hui-brother, do you still remember the mysterious yao yuan who fought against me at Jiuxian Mountain?" Lingdong's words were equally clear to the black-robed man. "Of course. Didn't Ling-brother believe it might have been a yao xiu from the Sacred Island?" The black-robed man's face slightly changed. "Indeed, that's exactly what I thought! But after a thorough investigation, I discovered that this yao yuan had come specifically to assist a young cultivator of Qi stage who had been mistakenly brought to the Long family. And this young cultivator is precisely the designated disciple of 'Han-brother'." "Such a development! Does Ling-brother believe this person has some connection to the Sacred Island?" The man in black drew a deep breath and murmured softly. "Perhaps there's some connection—perhaps a personal tie with that ape spirit. But I can't be certain. Still, one thing is clear: when the magical calamity struck, the Long family managed to avoid unnecessary complications. Though this person's cultivation level may not impress us greatly, his swift progression to the Consolidated Stage suggests he's no ordinary early-stage cultivator. Either he possesses extraordinary abilities, or he carries some rare treasure with him." The elder of the Long family replied calmly. "As you've said, the Long family indeed doesn't wish to easily antagonize anyone at this time. But during the grand ceremony, if we meet the Gu family, shall we not have to yield to them?" The man in black nodded first, then furrowed his brows and transmitted his thoughts. "That won't be necessary. How we handle the True Spirit Ceremony remains unchanged. Should we actually encounter this person, we won't hesitate to act—quite the opportunity to assess his true strength." If there truly were great powers at play, perhaps that matter could also be credited to him at the time. Lóng Jiā's elder master spoke without hesitation. "Ah, I now understand Lóng brother's meaning. The ranking competition during the grand ceremony shall be entrusted to me." The man in black emitted a low chuckle and then fell silent. Meanwhile, Lóng Jiā's elder master kept his eyes closed, his expression unchanged, as if he had never spoken at all. On the other side, Xiao Feng the immortal maiden and Xiao Elder were startled by Han Li's earlier actions. Though the Lóng and Guān families were not exactly on good terms, Han Li's direct and unceremonious manner toward Lóng Jiā's elder master had caused both of them—feeling that no senior elder was present—to grow deeply concerned. Yet, upon seeing that Lóng Jiā's elder master had not taken this matter seriously, they felt a wave of relief, yet also found themselves puzzled. Han Li remained composed throughout, his expression calm, revealing no clear intention behind his earlier actions. Yet in the eyes of the other smaller families, he carried an air of profound depth and enigmatic stature, with some even beginning to discuss matters related to him. "Oh, Ying'er! That friend of韩's who saved you back then—how bold he truly is. A mere early-stage cultivator daring to stand against the old master of Long family. It seems either he possesses extraordinary abilities of his own, or he has powerful backing behind the scenes. It's no wonder that even my little Ying'er hasn't been able to win his heart." The speaker was a female cultivator from one of the earlier-ranking True Spirit families. This group sat adjacent to the Long family and other cultivators, much like the Gu family, with the majority of them being women. The speaker, seated at the very front of this group, was a young woman in her late teens or early twenties, dressed in a five-colored feather robe, smiling warmly. On either side of her sat a beautiful woman in her twenties and an elderly woman with gray hair. "Master, Ying'er's beauty isn't particularly outstanding, and failing to impress the senior Han is by no means unusual." Upon hearing the remark just now, another young woman in white robes standing behind the beautiful middle-aged woman suddenly blushed deeply and stammered her reply. This was Ye Ying—precisely the one who had previously interacted with Han Li at the Universal Treasures Convention. Her appearance bore a striking resemblance to the white-robed maiden, with about five or six parts in common. "Indeed? Yet I still find my little Ying'er endearing in every way. It seems Han's eyes are rather lacking. If only she joins our Ye family, not only would she gain significant advantages, but she could also become my most cherished granddaughter." The white-robed maiden chuckled lightly, her voice as clear and melodious as that of a yellow oriole, drawing the attention of everyone nearby. Although the spell had been cast so that no other noble families could hear the young woman's voice, the mere glances from nearby clan members left Ye Ying flushed with embarrassment—she not only dared not interject with her own elder's words, but lowered her head even further. "Mother, please stop teasing this girl. You're so particular—why must you always deliberately make things difficult for Ying?" the beautiful young wife beside her could no longer contain her gentle scolding. "Ah, what's so unusual about that? Among these young people, only Ying resembles me in appearance. Her temperament, however, is quite different—naturally, I must take the time to guide her a little. Otherwise, a truly lovely young lady would spend her days speaking to a statue, always cold and distant—wouldn't that be rather dull?" the young woman in flowing robes replied with a carefree, composed air. Hearing the young woman's reply, the matron—though clearly composed and dignified—could only shake her head with a quiet smile, at a loss for further words. As for the others from the Ye family, including the elderly woman and several male and female cultivators, listening to the exchange just now, could not help but chuckle softly among themselves. Though both of us have only just reached the initial stage of fusion cultivation, we have already advanced by tens of thousands of years more than him—merely by maintaining our individual strengths, he would surely perceive the gap. All we need to do is gradually drain his spiritual energy and force him to reveal most of his strength. The real battle will be left to the Labor family. After all, the woman from the Labor household didn’t attend this grand ceremony—she must have been quietly smiling all along. "A strange man beside me wears a half-bronze mask, revealing only one side of his infant-like, delicate face, replied calmly. "Your words are well taken. Moreover, back then, even when the two of us worked together, the Tianli lady was no match for us. How much more unlikely will this young one be now?" The well-dressed man slightly turned his head, then smiled and agreed. ... "This time, the Tianli Lady has not attended the True Spirit Ceremony, and only a mere early-fusion cultivator remains with us. This is precisely the perfect opportunity for the Labor household to rise! When we face off against the other families, we can be a little lenient in our performance." But when it came time for us to challenge the Gu family, we must exhaust ourselves completely, without sparing a single ounce of strength." A low, somber voice echoed from one of the families in the back row. "Yes, Elder!" Several of the smaller families also responded. At that moment, Han Li had already turned his gaze back, and resumed looking downward. He now held in his fingers a golden gourd, about the size of a thumb, which had appeared at some point without him noticing—it flickered in and out of visibility, as though it had no solid form—yet beyond that, nothing extraordinary occurred. Yet for some reason, Han Li was particularly enthusiastic in handling this object, clearly delighted to have it. Thus, time passed slowly, and all the members of the thirty or so true spirit families remained quietly patient, waiting in silence. Finally, after more than two hours had passed, a sudden flash of luminous light erupted at the center of the Wàn Líng Platform. A milky-white spell array materialized spontaneously upon the stone surface. Initially only a few zhang in size, it spun rapidly and then expanded dramatically under a surge of brilliant light, growing to an area of several mu. Various characters and symbols began to surge forth from the array, emitting a series of resonant hums. At the very moment the array appeared, the entire Wàn Líng Platform also began to tremble gently. In response, a series of sharp cries resonated from the surrounding mountain walls. Then, without any prior warning, hundreds of towering light pillars rose up from the points of sound, each thick as a water cistern and glowing with vivid, vibrant hues of five colors. Under the influence of the spell array, the sky above the canyon was instantly shrouded in dark clouds, followed by thunderous roars that shook the very soul. And then, one after another, massive purple-golden lightning arcs—thick as giant serpents—appeared out of nowhere. "Ah! It's the heavenly judgment lightning!" "Many first-time disciples from the True Spirit Houses, already stunned by the celestial phenomena earlier, were now utterly thrown off by the sight of those purple and golden electric arcs, emitting loud, disoriented exclamations. "Hmph! A bunch of novices! What's there to be surprised about? The Great Spirit Lord is about to appear. The ritual may begin—what do the esteemed guests think?" Suddenly, the elderly elder, who had been seated with his eyes closed, opened them and rose from his chair with a calm, composed demeanor, speaking without the slightest change in expression. Though his voice was soft, it carried clearly to every listener, instantly calming the scattered disciples and prompting them to exchange glances with one another. "Of course. By tradition, this ritual will be presided over by Brother Long." The well-dressed man from Feng's household chuckled warmly and also rose to his feet. "The junior disciple has no objection!" "Miss, I have no objection—after all, Brother Long is the one with the highest cultivation level among us!" "Brother Long, please proceed!" The representatives from the other families also quickly agreed. "Since everyone has no objections, let us then present the offerings." The elder of the Long family glanced upward at the sky, and only then nodded. Now, beneath the interwoven purple and golden electric arcs in the sky, a vast network of electricity had formed, and combined with the towering light beams rising from all around the valley, a colossal cage had been created.