Chapter 194: Before the Headquarters

In front of the main entrance to the Xiyang House headquarters.

Elder Zheng Ping looked ahead with a gloomy expression; on the spacious street, a large crowd of people sat in rows, all wearing the robes of Resonance Crafters, and these robes all bore the emblem of Xiyang House.

Outside this group, the street was also filled with onlookers, and many gazes were cast from the surrounding buildings, carrying the intent of watching a spectacle.

Because, whether intentional or not, the news of the internal strife at Xiyang House had already spread throughout Xia City, attracting the attention of various factions.

"Tang Yun, Lu Xiaofeng, you two are considered veterans of Xiyang House, after all. When the House Master sent you to develop the Xiyang House branch, you did well for yourselves, eventually colluding with that Pei Hao. Do you still have the face to come here now?" Elder Zheng Ping scolded sternly.

In front of the many seated Resonance Crafters, there were two middle-aged men who were clearly the leaders of these crafters; upon hearing Elder Zheng Ping's scolding, their faces twitched.

"Hehe, Elder Zheng Ping, that's not right. Pei Hao is also a disciple of the House Master. Now that the two House Masters are missing, Pei Hao has stepped forward for the sake of revitalizing the Luolan House. Is there anything wrong with them helping Pei Hao?" However, before the two could speak, a laugh came from the side.

Elder Zheng Ping looked over sideways: "Pang Qianchi, didn't the Young House Master leave you idle at home? Why have you jumped out again?"

The person speaking was none other than the former Vice President of the Xiyang House headquarters, who had been directly sidelined by Li Luo after failing to compete for the position of President.

Pang Qianchi gave a cold laugh; in truth, he had been extremely frustrated during this period because he had originally thought that after developing in Xiyang House for many years, many people were his subordinates, which was the capital he had relied on when he dared to compete for the presidency.

In his view, once Xiyang House left him, it would inevitably fall into a chaotic mess, and in the end, Li Luo would still have to invite him back to stabilize the situation.

But over this past month, Xiyang House had not fallen into the chaos he had hoped for; instead, various performance metrics were gradually improving, which made him unable to sit still.

A few days ago, he had even secretly tried to invite some senior Xiyang House figures who used to be close to him for a private meeting to understand the current situation inside Xiyang House, but who would have expected that those who once drank and laughed with him would all decline his invitation.

Clearly, Li Luo's control over Xiyang House was more rapid than he had imagined.

And Pang Qianchi also understood that all of this was because of the Secret Method Source Water that Li Luo had brought out... that level of purity in Secret Method Source Water held a great attraction for Resonance Crafters.

Coupled with the fact that Li Luo had improved the benefits for Xiyang House's Resonance Crafters, he had now truly won over their hearts.

Pang Qianchi understood that he could not let things continue like this, so when Tang Yun and the other branch Resonance Crafters came to Xia City this time, he made contact with them almost immediately.

"Elder Zheng Ping, although I have been sidelined at home, I am not a prisoner. Surely I am allowed to leave my house?"

Pang Qianchi smiled, then pointed at Tang Yun and the others, saying indignantly: "I am merely speaking up for these brothers from the branch. They have poured so much effort into the development of Xiyang House, yet now they are being ignored. The Young House Master clearly possesses the method to refine Secret Method Source Water, yet he is unwilling to share it with the brothers at the branch. Isn't this chilling to the heart?"

Elder Zheng Ping was so angry he laughed; damn it, this group of turncoats from the branch had all defected to Pei Hao, and they still wanted to come and ask the Young House Master for Secret Method Source Water?

However, he could not say such things in public, or wouldn't that be directly admitting that a split had occurred within Xiyang House? That would damage the reputation of Xiyang House, and besides, some of these branch Resonance Crafters were not entirely loyal to Pei Hao; they had simply been coerced.

If they spoke too harshly here, it would undoubtedly push these people to the other side.

Therefore, he could only snort coldly and say: "If you have any issues, you can go inside to discuss them. What is the meaning of blocking the way here?"

In front of the seated Resonance Crafters, the middle-aged man named Tang Yun spoke up: "As long as the Young House Master is willing to distribute the Secret Method Source Water to our Xiling County branch, we will leave."

Elder Zheng Ping was so angry he was blowing his beard and staring, but there was nothing he could do; he could only wave his sleeve and ignore them, as the matter here still required the Young House Master and Miss Jiang to handle.

With no results from the communication, both sides stopped speaking and remained in a stalemate.

And the crowd of onlookers grew larger and larger.

In a restaurant near this location.

At a window seat, Duze Beixuan looked at the entrance of Xiyang House with a sneer and said: "Let's see how Li Luo and the others resolve this time; in any case, the Duze House has already helped him spread the rumors."

Beside Duze Beixuan was the hot-bodied, red-lipped Duze Honglian; she glanced sideways at the scene and said: "That Li Luo still has some ability. I originally thought that the time with Han Zhi would have been enough to directly crush Xiyang House; I didn't expect them to pull through in the end."

Duze Beixuan frowned and said: "It is said that it was because Li Luo brought out a type of Secret Method Source Water with a purity comparable to a high seventh-grade, which saved the situation."

"High seventh-grade purity Secret Method Source Water..."

Duze Honglian narrowed her eyes; this level of Secret Method Source Water was rare. Even their Duze House's "Daze House," after researching for so many years and spending countless research funds, only had one type of high seventh-grade Secret Method Source Water.

With such a sharp weapon, it wouldn't be difficult for Xiyang House to stabilize the situation, and if given time, their momentum might even become increasingly formidable. But fortunately, Xiyang House lacked a deep foundation and lagged far behind Daze House in formula research...

"Xiyang House is severely lacking in Resonance Crafters. If they can't resolve this, our Duze House can help them publicize their family scandal. I want to see how many Resonance Crafters will be willing to go to their Xiyang House in the future," Duze Honglian said indifferently.

Duze Beixuan nodded with a smile; the stifled anger in his heart caused by the ranking battle was finally able to ease a little.

While the Duze siblings were watching the spectacle, in another part of the same restaurant.

Pei Hao sat in a private room, drinking tea alone with a calm expression; on the table opposite him, a cup of tea was also served.

He did not look at the farce at the Xiyang House headquarters, but stared with deep eyes at the surface of the water in his cup, where his face was reflected.

Coming to Xia City this time was somewhat rushed.

Because Pei Hao had not expected that since their parting at the old residence a few months ago, such a huge change would occur in that Li Luo.

Not only did he take first place in the Tian-Shu County examination, but he also entered the Astral Sage College; the latest intelligence even revealed that Li Luo had dual resonances...

These repeated pieces of intelligence made Pei Hao unable to help but feel a sense of shock and anger that things were slipping out of his control.

That Young House Master, whom he had previously regarded as a cripple, had suddenly risen.

"Li Luo..."

Pei Hao was expressionless; he suddenly reached out and crushed the teacup directly, then raised his head to look at a carriage speeding toward them from down the street.

"It seems our struggle will have to be brought forward."

"This is just an appetizer I'm sending you."