Chapter 1558: Counterproductive, Advice and Lessons

"Yes, yes, the Master is right to lecture me! It won't happen next time!"

Sikumu, who had been feeling quite smug just a moment ago, was now being scolded by Aiden in front of the other six Controllers of the Seven Towers; at this moment, he wished he could dig a hole and crawl into it.

He had originally wanted to use this to establish his authority in the Seven Towers and return the center of the Seven Towers to Giles Tower, but he hadn't expected Master Aiden, who was supposed to be helping him, to turn around and give him a heavy blow, leaving him unable to recover for a long while.

It wasn't until someone called his name that Sikumu snapped out of his daze; he mumbled a few responses, barely managing to muddle through, but he knew that if he didn't remedy the situation soon, he would likely be replaced by a newcomer before long.

The position of Seven Towers Controller is not a lifetime appointment; as long as the majority within the group does not approve, one must step down when it is time to step down.

Although Master Aiden himself is not a Great Arcanist, nor even an Arcanist, he possesses significant influence within the Giles Lineage, especially among its deep-seated powers.

He even has very deep connections within the other six lineages of the Seven Towers.

Or rather, if it weren't for Aiden's support, Sikumu would never be able to sit firmly in the Controller's seat.

At this moment, Sikumu actually felt a bit of regret; Aiden is not the only expert on Ether problems in the New World Aether Affairs Department, and if he had known earlier, he would have found someone else.

But it is too late to say anything now, so he could only try his best to make up for it.

"Establishing a long-term and stable Forward Base has always been one of the important tasks for the Seven Towers' activities in the Ether Plane. Now that a nearly natural Forward Base is placed before us, I believe we cannot give it up!"

Afterward, Sikumu rattled off a long list of reasons, but it only earned a cold snort from Huo En, "Were you listening just now? Master Aiden has already said that this discussion is based on the premise of not giving up the Forward Base; hurry up and say something else!"

Upon hearing this, Sikumu's face turned dark, and he subconsciously glanced at Master Aiden. Seeing that the other party's face was neither happy nor sad, Sikumu felt even more nervous and subconsciously blurted out his true thoughts:

"Then let the Arcane Union hand it over to us! Only the Seven Towers possess the richest experience in exploring the Ether Plane; wouldn't it be a waste to give the base to them?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Sikumu realized he had said the wrong thing. Looking at the expressions of the others, they all looked at him as if he were an idiot. He should have just thought that to himself; what was it if not foolish to say it out loud in public?

But to his surprise, Master Aiden supported him at this moment, "Well said! The Seven Towers should have such resolve!"

Then, Aiden added, "Yiaole's personality is too extreme and he is often rash. I am not surprised at all that he could cause this incident, but that Forward Base cannot be left for him to manage; it is safer in the hands of the Seven Towers."

Sikumu never expected Aiden to say such things, and looking at the other party, it didn't seem like he was joking, which made him feel restless and at the same time feel extremely stupid for having brought Aiden here.

Not to mention how the Forward Base should be allocated, but Sikumu was very certain that the Yiaole in his eyes was not as Aiden described.

Perhaps Yiaole has an unknown extreme and rash nature, but at least what he has shown so far is quite normal; otherwise, Kangjienio would not have handed the Arcane Union over to him!

The other six people also looked at each other in dismay upon hearing Aiden's words, not knowing what to say for a moment, looking at one another and wanting someone else to speak first.

Some things might not be suitable to say in front of an elder like Aiden, but they were all Great Arcanists, so it was not difficult to hide things from Aiden and communicate privately.

Like Badijiaer, who asked Sikumu directly, "Does Master Aiden have any grudge against Master Yiaole?"

"I don't know, but there shouldn't be! Master Aiden has stayed in the New World for many years and has hardly ever come to the Main Plane, so how could he have developed a grudge with Master Yiaole!"

"That's hard to say! I think we should end this discussion here for now; I'll go back and find out what exactly happened between them!"

"Don't! Don't get me in trouble!"

Sikumu's heart almost jumped into his throat. If he had known Aiden was like this, he would never have asked him to come and stand for him, and now, even if he had objections, he couldn't end this meeting so simply and crudely.

Sikumu almost begged Badijiaer for help, and only after agreeing to many conditions did they manage to agree on how to properly coax Aiden away.

"Master Aiden, I agree with your view. The Ether Forward Base should indeed be in the hands of the Seven Towers, but since the Plane Overlap area is currently located within the Arcane Union, this matter still needs to be considered carefully!"

"Yes, the Arcane Union is not just Yiaole. If this matter is not handled well, it might cause Master Kangjienio to intervene."

Mentioning Kangjienio, Aiden's face changed several times, but in the end, he did not say anything about Kangjienio like he did about Yiaole.

It was clear that he also knew Kangjienio was not like Yiaole, and he was not qualified to judge the other party at all.

At this time, Badijiaer persuaded again:

"Why don't we discuss this matter later? We definitely support taking that Forward Base into the Seven Towers' possession, so please set your mind at ease, Master!"

"Alright then! You are the ones making the decisions anyway; I am old, and I can only offer suggestions."

After Aiden finished speaking, he stood up shakily from his seat, and the Apprentice at his side quickly supported him, whispering, "Careful, Teacher!"

Afterward, Sikumu personally saw Aiden off, but the remaining Badijiaer and the others did not disperse, instead waiting quietly.

Before long, Sikumu returned to the conference room with a look of exhaustion.

"Sent him off?"

"Yes, sent him off."

"You handled this poorly."

"I know."

Sikumu slumped his face and sat down, leaning directly against the back of the chair. The scene from before had already been seen by Badijiaer and the others, so he couldn't be bothered to pretend anymore.

But Badijiaer did not let him off, "I'm not saying you shouldn't have found Master Aiden, but that you shouldn't have found anyone. A Seven Towers Controller must consider the overall interests of the Seven Towers, not suck up to those old guys who only got where they are by age!"

"Badijiaer, you—"

Although he was being lectured in a tone that was almost a scolding, Sikumu felt a strange warmth in his heart, as if the grievances he had suffered from all sides to maintain the situation since taking office had been released all at once.

He stared blankly at Badijiaer, unable to speak for a long time.

"No need for extra words. As fellow Seven Towers Controllers, reminding you is what I should do. As for whether it's embarrassing, we're all our own people, so why fear such things? Take Huo En, I don't know how many times I've scolded him; do you see him feeling embarrassed?"

"Hey, hey, hey!" Huo En was immediately dissatisfied upon hearing this, "You make it sound like I'm habitually shameless!"

"Isn't that the case? If you had any shame, would you still be hitting on my Apprentices?"

"I don't call that hitting on them; I just want to give their restless hearts a home!"

"..."

Seeing the topic drifting further and further away, Lander was the first to stand up, "I have things to do, so I'm heading back. Let's each determine the tone for the Forward Base internally before we discuss it together!"

After saying this, he left on his own without waiting for the others to respond.

"Lander has left, so let's disperse for today!"

"Dispersed!"