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"Oh?"

Above Nanhai City, as one firework after another shot up, the huge monster that was hiding behind the clouds snorted coldly.

"Failed, huh?"

Within the thunderclouds, the massive body of the Ghost Shark General, with a lump of flesh that also made a dull sound, said, "Can’t even handle this simple task, what a humiliation..."

"Heh..." The Ghost Shark wasn’t too concerned, slightly twisting its body and saying, "No matter, the formation won’t hold much longer, at most seven days. As long as there are no reinforcements, once we take what we want from Nanhai City, everything can proceed exactly as the master wished."

"The question is... will there be reinforcements?"

"Too busy with their own problems, where would they get reinforcements?" the lump of flesh said gravely, "This net of ours has been in the making for many years, no one can stop it!"

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"Jiangnan?" Wei Gongzhan’s pupils narrowed, and an unnamed tension arose in his heart. In his current state of mind, trouble in Jiangnan was worse than trouble for himself.

Having always been looked down upon in the Wei Family, treated like a servant, yet in Jiangnan, although his stay was short, he found warmth like that of a home, kind neighbors, Little Mink who liked to stick to him, as well as the seemingly indifferent but actually very caring and attentive elder, Wei Gongcheng.

That was all he now treasured, anyone... anything... daring to make a move on it, he would fight to the death!

"Spell it out for me!"

Suppressing the hostility in his heart, Wei Gongzhan’s voice trembled as he spoke.

"Aren’t you supposed to be clever? Can’t figure this out?

" Chen Zhuo chuckled, "The trouble in the Southern Sea is probably due to news spread by Chen Qing? Despite being in Yundu he knows about what’s happening in the Southern Sea, have you never considered what this Heavenly Master’s Conclave in Yundu signifies? "

"You..." Wei Gongzhan was shaken, but he quickly caught on. The Heavenly Master’s Conclave invited leaders from all parties. Initially, no one thought Yundu would dare to make things difficult for the heads of these major forces because, as strong as Yundu was, it couldn’t possibly become the public enemy of the world. But now, it seemed not so simple...

The opponent’s calculations targeted not just the leaders who went to Yundu but also their foundational forces back home.

But Jiangnan... with such a stable power base, what made them think they could take it down without the master present?

Wei Gongzhan began to calm down; Jiangnan was not a weakling like Nanhai City.

To claim Jiangnan Army was the strongest openly was not an overstatement.

That Ghost Shark General from the sky daring to cause trouble in Jiangnan?

Steamed, braised, over a dozen different cooking methods could be arranged for it!

This was not boasting but a fact. Why do you think, in present-day Jiangnan, every major family is desperately vying to get in?

Isn’t it because of Jiangnan’s sufficient strength? Were Jiangnan to defend itself, he didn’t believe there was anyone who could breach it unless... there was an internal collapse!

"Who is it?" Wei Gongzhan asked, his voice carrying towering anger yet suppressed to an icy chill.

"You do catch on fast..." Chen Zhuo sighed as he looked at the opposite party, "I don’t know either, but I know they.

.." he glanced at the bug on the ground that Ao Zhen had incinerated into ash, and said somberly, "They... have already persuaded your high-ups. As to who exactly, I naturally don’t have the privilege of knowing. "

"High-ups?"

When Wei Gongzhan received affirmative confirmation, his icy breath was thick with a strong intent to kill.

He couldn’t understand; in Jiangnan... the master had never let anyone down.

Anyone with a hint of potential, as long as they worked hard enough in Jiangnan, would not be let down, and this was even more true for the high-ups.

How much benefit had they received? Some held power over the netherworld, others could command whole armies, their own strength growing stronger by the day with the favorable development of Jiangnan.

With such immense benefits, who wouldn’t be envious?

To enjoy such great fortunes and still.. . commit treason?

"Who could destroy such a beautiful Jiangnan, and what kind of cold-blooded and heartless person could do such a thing?"

"This is troublesome..." Ao Zhen looked up at the sky, "The formation can’t be stopped, no one can enter from outside, and we can’t leave either. We can’t just let the aquatic creatures in because of what this kid said, right?"

"Can the elder still contact the other side?" Wei Gongzhan quickly asked.

"I can only contact one person!" Ao Zhen replied directly, "Long-distance communication consumes a great deal of faith, and I have used most of my faith to elevate myself. Now I have just enough to contact one person, and the amount of information I can send is not much, at most twenty words!"

"Twenty words..." Wei Gongzhan bit his lip upon hearing this. With such a complex situation, twenty words are not enough to explain everything. Moreover, the key question is, to whom should he speak?

This Chen Zhuo knew only that the high-level officials of Jiangnan had been bought off, but who exactly was it?

Xu Hu?

Unlikely. As the foremost figure in the Jiangnan Army, he always led the charge in battles and was the most steadfast supporter of the lord.

Tian Heng?

As an outsider who joined later on, it could be possible.

After all, Tian Heng was originally a noble family head with great ambitions.

He now enjoyed almost the best treatment, even better than Xu Hu, not to mention that he was given control over the resources of the West Sea, and even Ao Zhen was put under his power, greatly increasing his strength.

With such treatment, why would he betray Chen Qing? What could he be after?

Someone from the Shen Family?

Each member of the Shen Family wielded great power as masters of the underworld, and even though their positions are not lifelong, they have long been able to accumulate enough foundation for the Shen Family. With such preferential treatment, could the Shen Family possibly remain dissatisfied?

Or perhaps... his own cousin, Wei Gongcheng?

Could that be possible?

Wei Gongzhan didn’t talk much with his cousin, but he was aware of his deeds.

Wei Gongcheng had been utterly loyal to Weichi Peng; later, when abandoned, it was the lord who gave him new hope.

From being a cripple, he became the head of the underworld, and even the Shen Family had to show him considerable respect.

Moreover, during the Lyuzhou rebellion, his cousin had risked his life. Wei Gongzhan could almost see that, just like himself, his cousin cared deeply for Jiangnan, the place they had helped build, and would never tolerate its destruction by outsiders.

"Please relay the information, pass it to Wei Gongcheng!"

"Wei Gongcheng?" Ao Zhen looked at him, frowning, "Why recommend him? Just because he’s your relative, you believe he won’t betray us?"

"He won’t!"

Before Wei Gongzhan even spoke, Murong Yunji was the one who spoke first, "Among those people in Jiangnan, I would believe anyone could betray us, but the only one I wouldn’t believe is Wei Gongcheng. He is the most trustworthy person."

"Oh?" Ao Zhen glanced at her. He was aware of Murong Yunji’s identity and her close relationship with the Shen Family—after all, she was once the main wife of a branch of the Shen Family.

But she said she trusted Wei Gongcheng more, which suggested that Wei Gongcheng must have given such an impression to everyone.

If that’s the case... then they could only place their bets on him.

"Tell me, what should I say to him?"

"Elder, please say it like this..."