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Wei Wei turned to Wandering Path and said, "Cui Ming told me that during negotiations, we could use this matter to communicate with the Fire Cult. To avoid misunderstandings between our practitioners, we should meet or leave some information. The alliance members are all out in the open; luring them out is the real deal. If they refuse, we can always deal with it later, but we mustn't lose our temper."
"A big watermelon, and the person is burned to ashes, yet he still wants to squeeze something out. I like... it's just that this guy has too low a moral standard and lacks any sense of justice. I originally planned to invite him to dinner to persuade him to negotiate together, but then I thought about it and realized that's not going to work. Cui Ming is a self-centered person; he cares deeply about his family and friends, but if you try to convince him to abandon a friend to save the alliance, he will definitely turn on you. This guy has a mixed circle of friends; he knows elders from Silent City and has connections with Lich, and he's even been to the desert." If Cui Ming and Zhir were close friends, and one day the alliance discovered Zhir was plotting a conspiracy, Cui Ming would most likely tip him off and thwart the alliance's plans.
Wei Wei nodded. "He has no sense of righteousness, only personal interests. There’s no country for him, only his family. On the way, I tried to gather information from Mi Xiaonan and learned that Cui Ming originally intended to frame Liu Meier but found that the only suitable scapegoat was Balance Sect. Since Mi Xiaonan is also from Balance Sect, he kept quiet and made his money without saying a word."
"So he had the chance to frame Liu Meier at that time."
"Yes, you could say he had absolute confidence."
"That's why I feel frustrated with talented people who lack ambition," Wandering Path said thoughtfully. "But there’s definitely a tough mind over at Fire Cult; no one expected that a Fire Cultist would come here to assassinate me in Hero City. It was dangerous; if it weren't for Bufon, I might have been done for. Such underhanded tactics usually come from cunning and ruthless individuals. If this continues, we won't have it easy either. Notify all hunters to stay alert. Be careful in your actions. If there are no major events recently, it's best to keep a low profile and relax at home."
"Understood." Wei Wei grasped Wandering's meaning; the various forces within Force Alliance—the Four Great Families and the hunters—were the main components of the alliance's cohesion. Assassinating one or two scattered practitioners wouldn't change much in the grand scheme of things. Similarly, if Fire Cult suddenly declared war, these forces would be able to unite quickly. Wei Wei picked up on the underlying message: Wandering believed that Fire Cult was restless but was wary of these factions. As long as these factions remained stable, Fire Cult wouldn't dare make a move.
Wandering nodded and left Hunter Headquarters, walking to the hotel. The hotel was being tidied up overnight. Meanwhile, the alliance issued a warning order and began arranging for people to keep watch during night patrols; however, there weren't many personnel available at the moment.
In a hotel room, Cui Ming and Mi Xiaonan gathered with Li Qing in one room. Mi Xiaonan was munching on sunflower seeds while watching TV. Li Qing was meditating, and Cui Ming was preparing hot pot. The door was open when Wandering knocked; everyone stood up to greet him. Wandering gestured for them not to be formal, exchanged a few words, then picked up the room phone and asked for a cold beer and some ingredients to be sent up.
After the beer arrived, Wandering closed the door and sat down with everyone on the floor. He poured drinks and chatted before quickly getting down to business: "I originally planned to treat you all to dinner today; there’s definitely something going on—it's about Liu Meier."
Cui Ming asked, "Is there any change?"
"You all know Cao Yi, right? Limitless Swordsmanship."
"Cao Yi should be the most outstanding young man of the Cao Family in a century," Li Qing said. "Liu Meier is too high-profile, especially with her announcement of a martial arts competition for marriage over a month ago. I don't think the Cao Family would agree to the union between Cao Yi and Liu Meier. In terms of inter-family marriages, Liu Meier is a very important pawn; for example, Ye Wen, the head of the Ye Family, would not work. Cao Yi represents hope, but it won't happen. However, pairing an important family member like Yellen with Liu Meier would be a win-win situation."
Wandering nodded. "The Liu Family is not pleased that Liu Meier visited the Ye Family as Ye Wen's private friend without their consent. Everyone knows that Liu Meier is definitely the most important political asset for the Liu Family. In fact, there are many who are infatuated with Liu Meier, including Ye Wen and Cao Yi."
Cui Ming said, "Ye Wen's value lies within the Ye Family, while Cao Yi's value is inherent. Choosing Cao Yi would not be a good option for Liu Meier as a Fire Cultist."
"Let's start with Cao Yi. After the Assessment Match, some people referred to him as the future Sword Saint," Wandering Path continued. "And you may not have noticed that among your peers in the assessment was the Ding Family; they have a master named Ding Tai, whom I call the Future Blade Saint."
"The Ding Family?" Cui Ming asked in return. There was indeed a Ding Family team during the Assessment Match, but they were quite ordinary and did not stand out much; no one paid them much attention. When it came to Ding Tai, Cui Ming still had little impression.
Wandering nodded. "You rushed through the Assessment Match without catching your breath, and Cui Ming, you went missing. The teams that were relatively friendly to yours were from the Ye Family and Raefus. Aside from these reasons, Ding Tai himself is also very low-key. Here’s his photo."
Upon seeing several photos, Cui Ming praised him as a striking figure—a true blade-like man who was very handsome. This kind of handsomeness was not like those pretty boys on television with uniform hairstyles and faces; it was sharp and distinct. In the photos, Ding Tai wore a silver hooded cloak with his hood pulled down low over his head, but from the side view, his heroic demeanor could be seen. Cui Ming remarked, "From the photos, he seems to be rebellious and independent, someone who keeps a low profile and does more than he says."
Wandering pointed at Cui Ming and praised him: "That's about right. For a long time, everyone believed that Ding Nuo was the ace of the Ding Family and its leader; it seemed that no one could rival him except for Dina. But I want to tell you that the Ding Family has many talents; first are Lineage's Dina and Ding Wen—though they are both women, they are very strong. Dina has now lost interest in worrying about Ding Family matters and focuses on her own alliance work."
"Ding Wen, like Ding Ze, is an exile." Everyone knew Ding Wen's story; she had been missing for a long time before suddenly signing up for an Assessment Match over a month later.
"Yes, Ding Wen is very strong—extremely strong. She is someone with ambition, ideals, and strength. Although she had little contact with the Ding Family before her exile, she is definitely not a low-key person; wherever she goes, she becomes the center of attention." Wandering Path added: "Ding Tai from the western region of Eastern Continent's branch of the Ding Family is truly low-key."
"Besides them, there’s Vlad from their vampire branch." Indeed, being from a prominent family meant there were many talents. Cui Ming asked, "Since this Ding Tai is so low-key, why has he caught your eye?"
"Ding Tai is an unconventional person. He lacks the sense of honor and responsibility typical of aristocratic families. His story is simple: although he is a branch of the Ding Family, his life has not been easy. The testers never ventured to the remote northwest to find Ding Tai; they simply reported to the family head that there were no cultivators in the northwest. Without cultivators, life is entirely different, especially for a branch family member who must fend for themselves. Ding Tai's father was a low-ranking officer stationed in a small town near the capital. Growing up amidst weapons, Ding Tai developed a dislike for guns, particularly falling in love at first sight with knives and greatswords, skillfully playing with small blades.
Ding Tai's life wouldn't have been so terrible initially, but when he was nine, civil war broke out. His father left them to lead soldiers to the front lines. A few months later, the Opposition took control of the country, and Ding Tai's father was executed by them. At the same time, Ding Tai, his mother, and an older sister were reported by neighbors as relatives of a dictator officer who fought against the authorities. With war erupting and a high demand for officers, Ding Tai's father was suddenly promoted to a mid-level officer due to his military achievements. However, this came with immense consequences for his family when the faction he supported failed.
The Opposition was also dictatorial; they overthrew tyranny with the help of farmers but failed to return power to the people after seizing control of the regime, becoming a textbook example of oligarchy. Ding Tai's mother fell ill and died, while his sister married a new military officer from the capital who had been disabled by the war, fulfilling their mother's dying wish. Logically, Ding Tai should have risen as one of the exploiters of the people.
However, at eleven years old, Ding Tai rejected his sister's goodwill and left the capital to start his own wandering life. He became a thief and committed robbery and murder. But unlike others, he did it for survival. During that time, who did Ding Tai hate most? It wasn't the new rulers or his brother-in-law; it was the Ding Family. The vast Ding Family could have spoken up in the Eternity Alliance but chose not to; he felt like someone forgotten.
By the age of fifteen, the Ding Family lineage lacked talent and management, leading to a lack of responsibility among those handling family affairs. The family head's cousin, an elder of the Ding Family, was very angry upon seeing this and took it upon himself to handle some family matters, including improving the family genealogy and paying special attention to branch family members.
In the northwest of the Eastern Continent, only two families remained; one had perished during and after the war. Only Ding Tai's line survived. The cousin personally went to the northwest of the Eastern Continent and found Ding Tai's sister before seeking out Ding Tai through official channels. The cousin's intention was to include him in the family tree since there was a male heir; if suitable, he would be arranged into one of the stable branch families of the Ding Family to earn a living and ensure that their lineage did not die out in the northwest.
The cousin was a member of the Force Alliance; those in power dared not offend him and searched diligently until they finally found Ding Tai, who had been arrested for murder and was about to face execution. The person he killed was his neighbor—who had reported him to curry favor with those in power by declaring his stance correct—leading to a series of disasters.
The cousin reached an agreement with those in power to take him to West Lake City, where there was a branch of the Ding Family engaged in clothing business. In this dictatorial country, laws only constrained those at the bottom while protecting those at the top; when someone from above spoke up, people were taken away without question. It was then that the cousin discovered that Ding Tai was actually a potential cultivator.
This was an enormous mistake; the Ding Family had committed an error that no aristocratic family should ever make."
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