"Ah..." Hai Qing and her sisters felt a bit overwhelmed. Earlier, their mother and the other two Divas had warned them that the Ancestral Land and Nine Yin Soul Sea didn't have good intentions; otherwise, they wouldn't have pushed the Harmony Divine Palace into this situation where they must rank in the top ten.

But now, did they truly have such audacity?

"What's wrong?" Mu Zixiao asked softly.

Hai Qing bit her lip, her eyes reddening. "I'm just a bit moved."

Mu Zixiao smiled gently. "As disciples of the Ancestral Land, it's our duty to uphold the true justice of the Heavenly Deity Stellar River. Naturally, we can't shirk this responsibility."

Hai Qing pulled her sisters close. "On behalf of the Harmony Divine Palace of the Extreme Yin Celestial Realm, we thank the Ancestral Land and Nine Yin Soul Sea. Thank you all for your righteousness. If we survive this calamity, we will surely repay you someday."

Mu Zixiao chuckled. "Let's hope we succeed!"

"Yes! Let's fight together!" Hai Qing declared.

"Exactly! With Yun Xiao bringing so many Personal Pledges, and the foundations of your two sects, we can confront that damn Dragon Devil Clan head-on!" Hai Ying clenched her delicate fists, her blood stirring.

At the mention of Yun Xiao, Mu Zixiao's brows twitched slightly. While Hai Qing and her sisters were delighted, he glanced at the seemingly impatient Zu Wei. His expression turned serious again. Stepping closer to Hai Qing, he said softly, "It's certain that our two sects will rally forces and stand shoulder to shoulder with the Harmony Divine Palace. But there's a small issue we need to discuss."

"Please go ahead," Hai Qing said quickly.

Her sisters fell silent, waiting for Mu Zixiao to continue.

"Here's the situation," Mu Zixiao said with a hint of frustration, "The Southern Divine Dragon Realm has spent a massive sum—reportedly 7,000,000,000 Supreme Immortal Jades—to shape public opinion. Throughout the Samsara Galaxy, they've widely spread accusations against you.

"To be honest, within the Samsara Galaxy, aside from the Heavenly Deity Stellar River, the other celestial sects of the Stellar River don't know much about you. Their investment has indeed paid off. Now, across the entire galaxy, the Harmony Divine Palace has been portrayed as the public enemy of all men, stirring widespread outrage...

"Our Ancestral Land was also under immense pressure from this overwhelming public opinion and reluctantly agreed to strip your Harmony Divine Palace's membership from the Heavenly Deity Alliance."

These details were unknown to Hai Qing and her sisters, secluded as they were. Hearing it for the first time, their faces paled, feeling the crushing weight of being spurned by the entire world.

"This is too much..." they murmured, shaking their heads helplessly.

"This world is like that," Mu Zixiao sighed. "The powerful can wash away their sins with money, while the mistakes of the weak are magnified countless times by the same wealth. To be fair, the fault of your celestial slaves is nothing compared to the atrocities of the Southern Divine Dragon's conquests. Yet, as things stand, the Southern Divine Dragon enjoys a stellar reputation across other stellar rivers."

"Why are you beating around the bush so much? What's the 'small issue' you mentioned earlier? Just get straight to the point," came Feng Yao's enchanting, irresistible voice, suddenly breaking the heavy atmosphere and instantly dissolving the tension.

The emotional buildup Mu Zixiao had painstakingly crafted dissipated in an instant. He couldn't afford to show anger toward Feng Yao, so he awkwardly tried to regroup.

"Brother Mu?" Hai Qing looked at him.

Mu Zixiao took a deep breath, gritting his teeth. "Sister Qing, given the situation I've described, our two sects standing alongside you in battle means we'll have to bear immense public pressure. One misstep, and the Southern Divine Dragon will smear us." ṛ�

"Oh." Hai Qing's eyes showed a hint of difficulty. "Then perhaps we should handle this ourselves..."

Mu Zixiao shook his head. "You've misunderstood me again."

"Then what exactly do you mean?" Feng Yao, impatient by nature, couldn't stand this emotional hemming and hawing.

Pressed repeatedly, Mu Zixiao had no choice but to steady himself. Looking at Feng Yao and Hai Qing, he said, "Just as Zu Wei said at the beginning, we're not here to save you; we're interested in the Extreme Yin Star... Please don't be anxious. Can you infer what I'm implying?"

Hai Qing, sharp as ever, softly asked, "You mean fighting side by side won't work, but if we change our relationship to superior and subordinate—you as the suzerain, and us as the vassal state—then the Southern Divine Dragon Realm would have no grounds for complaint?"

Mu Zixiao nodded gently but spoke warmly, "You're overstating it. The so-called hierarchy is just for outsiders. Between us, we know we're friends and allies. This way, we can avoid a lot of unnecessary slander. It will also make it easier to explain to our sect's other disciples, elders, and some allied sects."

After speaking, Mu Zixiao glanced at the disciples who had come with them. "If we don't do this, it'll be hard for us to gather personnel from other sects. Facing the Southern Divine Dragon Realm, who is adept at forming alliances, we'd be at a disadvantage."

Those disciples looked proud and aloof, clearly unwilling to associate with the Harmony Divine Palace. That was unless the Harmony Divine Palace became captives of the Ancestral Land.

After all, captives don't have to worry about their origins...