Upon hearing this, Leng Yaozhu cast a fleeting, almost imperceptible glance toward Qiangu Dongfeng.
With Da Mo's brain, he definitely could not have come up with that argument just now.
Therefore, the shadow of Qiangu Dongfeng clearly stood behind those words; he had simply used Da Mo's mouth to speak them.
But Leng Yaozhu was not flustered in the slightest. She did not even glance at Da Mo again, instead turning her gaze toward the crowd and taking over the conversation with a calm tone: "I do not agree with that statement."
She straightened her posture slightly, her speaking pace steady: "The Legacy Spirit Soul technology is in the hands of our Spirit Pagoda."
"Even if those great Families and great Sects want to pass Spirit Souls down to their descendants, whether it is Fusion of Spirit Souls or unbinding them, it all requires operation by our Spirit Pagoda. This is not something they can accomplish on their own."
She paused, scanning the changes in everyone's expressions, and continued: "Moreover, with the sharp decline in the number of Spirit Beasts, the Spirit Souls available to the Spirit Pagoda will only become fewer and fewer. This is an indisputable fact."
"The Legacy Spirit Soul technology happens to be able to effectively solve this problem, allowing existing Spirit Souls to be used from generation to generation, without having to consume new Spirit Beast resources every time."
"This not only delays the process of Spirit Soul exhaustion but also helps to improve our Spirit Pagoda's reputation within the Spirit Master's world."
Leng Yaozhu's words were well-reasoned and logically clear, peeling away the loopholes in Da Mo's argument layer by layer, causing many present to nod involuntarily.
Judging by their expressions, the vast majority of people were clearly convinced by Leng Yaozhu's explanation.
Da Mo was left speechless. He opened his mouth, but found he could not come up with anything to refute her.
A trace of embarrassment flashed across his rugged face, and his gaze drifted unconsciously toward Qiangu Dongfeng, as if seeking help.
Qiangu Dongfeng sat in the main seat, his expression calm, showing no significant emotional fluctuation.
His eyes narrowed slightly, then he slowly put down the documents in his hand, raised his head, and his gaze crossed the long table, landing directly on Leng Yaozhu's face.
Since Da Mo could no longer hold his ground, he stopped hiding and spoke directly: "The gradual decrease of Spirit Souls is indeed a fact, but it is not without other solutions."
He raised his hand and tapped his fingertips lightly on the tabletop: "The Spirit Pagoda's artificial Spirit Soul technology is now capable of stably producing thousand-year Spirit Souls."
"I believe that as long as the research continues to advance, in the future, even Ten Thousand Years Spirit Souls can be artificially manufactured..."
Before Qiangu Dongfeng could finish, Leng Yaozhu suddenly spoke, interrupting him.
"Since the Tower Master has mentioned artificial Spirit Souls, I happen to have another proposal."
Everyone's gaze focused on Leng Yaozhu once again, and many faces showed expressions of both surprise and curiosity.
They thought that the waves just stirred up by the Legacy Spirit Soul technology Materials in Leng Yaozhu's hand had not yet subsided, and now there was a new move? How many trump cards did this Vice Tower Master Leng still have hidden today?
Leng Yaozhu met those gazes unhurriedly and said: "I propose that my Disciple, Gu Yue, become a reserve Spirit Envoy."
This statement clearly exceeded everyone's expectations, and Qiangu Dongfeng's brows immediately furrowed again.
His tone carried a hint of undisguised impatience: "Vice Tower Master Leng, you are going a bit too far. The appointment of a Spirit Envoy requires strict oversight. First you recommended Huo Yuhao, and now you are nominating Gu Yue. Do not be unreasonable."
Although the reserve Spirit Envoy title carries the word "reserve," as long as a Spirit Envoy position becomes vacant, the reserve Spirit Envoy can directly succeed to the position after meeting the requirements, without needing to go through an additional selection process.
This meant that once Gu Yue was appointed as a reserve Spirit Envoy, it was almost equivalent to locking in a future Spirit Envoy seat in advance.
Leng Yaozhu just looked at Qiangu Dongfeng calmly and said: "It would be best for the Tower Master to hear me out before making any judgments."
Qiangu Dongfeng's expression was somewhat serious. Looking at Leng Yaozhu's determined expression, he truly did not know where her confidence came from.
But based on his understanding, Leng Yaozhu would not do things without certainty, but what else could she say?
The corners of Leng Yaozhu's mouth slowly curved into an arc, and her gaze swept across everyone present as she spoke word by word: "There is no need to wait for the future; the technology for artificially creating Ten Thousand Years Spirit Souls has already been realized!"
The moment these words fell, the entire conference room seemed to be ignited, instantly "exploding into chaos."
Exclamations and discussions mingled together, and even several veteran council members, who were always known for their composure, now had undisguised looks of shock on their faces.
The two pieces of information Leng Yaozhu brought today were simply too explosive.
The Legacy Spirit Soul technology was already enough to make everyone present re-evaluate the Spirit Pagoda's future strategy, and now she had thrown out the declaration that artificial Ten Thousand Years Spirit Souls had been realized.
These two technologies combined were almost going to push the Spirit Pagoda's entire technical system up a notch.
No one doubted the authenticity of these two technologies, because this was not some hearsay, nor was it empty talk about future prospects; this was an announcement made publicly by Leng Yaozhu, the Vice Tower Master of the Spirit Pagoda, at the highest-level annual meeting.
No one would think she would lie on such an occasion, unless she intended to cut herself off from the entire Spirit Pagoda.
Even Qiangu Dongfeng could no longer maintain his composure at this moment. His fists were quietly clenched beneath the table, his breathing rhythm was noticeably faster than before, and his facial muscles twitched slightly, as if he were desperately suppressing some urge to slam the table and stand up.
In his calculations, this meeting was supposed to be where he pushed Qiangu Zhangting to ascend, consolidating the Qian Gu Family's influence within the Spirit Pagoda.
But now, the two trump cards Leng Yaozhu had thrown out one after another had turned his original plan upside down.
In this contest, he was already at a disadvantage.
Leng Yaozhu took in his forced, suppressed expression, feeling a sense of satisfaction in her heart.
She did not look at him again, but slowly swept her gaze across the people present, and spoke in a steady tone: "If no one has any further questions..."
She paused for a moment intentionally, as if giving everyone a last chance to speak.
But at this moment, there were only the not-yet-fully-subsided discussions and a few faces slightly flushed from shock in the conference room; no one stood up to raise an objection.
Then her voice raised by half a notch again, and she said: "Then I think we can start the vote."
"I propose... Huo Yuhao as the new Spirit Envoy, and Gu Yue as the reserve Spirit Envoy. Those in favor, please raise your hands."
The moment her voice fell, the conference room was briefly silent for an instant.
Subsequently, one hand was raised, followed by a second, a third...
In a short moment, except for the eleven seats of the Qiangu lineage, the remaining twenty-five people all raised their hands.
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A/N:
I hope all of you are enjoying this story so far. I would appreciate some Power Stones if you can spare any. Leave a review if you like the story. Thank you.