Chapter 142 – High-level Gathering!

Inside the City Lord’s mansion, in a high-end conference room.

Both sides of the long table were filled with high-ranking dignitaries of Ghost Mountain City. Before the person in the first seat arrived, they chatted and laughed casually among themselves.

Some attendants served them carefully. Any one of these high-ranking dignitaries present could cause a stir in Ghost Mountain City if they stepped outside, each controlling one or several massive power groups behind the scenes.

To put it bluntly, the entire Ghost Mountain City was governed by the people in this room!

All decisions originated from this very office.

“Old Li, what’s the agenda for today?” a Tang suit-clad Elder asked with a smile, turning to a white-haired Elder beside him.

“Of course, it’s about the upcoming Federation Grand Examination,” the white-haired Elder replied with a smile. “Every Federation Grand Examination is a major event! Not just for our Ghost Mountain City, but for the entire Federation!”

“Indeed, the Federation Grand Examination is held only once every three years. The number and frequency of admissions to Fengdu University are far too limited!” the Tang suit-clad Elder shook his head and sighed.

Unlike ordinary universities that hold annual entrance exams, Fengdu University, the Federation’s most prestigious institution, organizes a grand examination only once every three years.

If someone missed it, they would have to wait another three years.

Many would give up on the ordinary college entrance exams, stubbornly waiting for the Federation Grand Examination, hoping to seize the chance to enter Fengdu University and change their lives forever.

Other high-ranking dignitaries were also conversing, all centered around the upcoming Federation Grand Examination.

“Brother Zhao, does your Zhao family have any exceptionally talented young Juniors this year?”

The middle-aged man surnamed Zhao shook his head and sighed, “Very few. The Juniors aren’t striving hard enough. There’s nothing to be done!”

“Haha! That’s normal. Exceptionally talented young Juniors aren’t so easy to come by. It requires opportunity!”

“Brother Zhou, you’re speaking without feeling the pressure. I heard your Zhou family has one, waiting to shine brightly in the Federation Grand Examination!”

As everyone was discussing, the conference room door was pushed open from the outside, and several people walked in.

The leader was a middle-aged man with an elegant demeanor, seemingly wearing a perpetual smile on his face.

“City Lord!”

“Lord City Lord!”

“The leader of our Ghost Mountain City has arrived!” another Elder said with a smile.

In the conference room, the high-ranking dignitaries all stood up, greeting him with smiles.

This middle-aged man was none other than Ghost Mountain City’s City Lord, Lan Tingxu!

A moment later, Lan Tingxu took his seat at the head of the table, sitting upright and smiling as he looked at everyone.

The conference room gradually quieted down.

Seeing that it was about time, Lan Tingxu smiled and began, “Everyone, the Federation Grand Examination will begin in less than five days. This concerns the future of Ghost Mountain City, and its significance needs no further elaboration from me, right?”

Everyone in the conference room nodded, understanding this point well.

Unlike the ordinary college entrance exams, the Federation Grand Examination directly affected the political achievements of City Lord Lan Tingxu!

For every student admitted, Lan Tingxu’s political record would gain a significant mark, greatly benefiting his future promotions.

At the same time, it was also extremely important for the entire Ghost Mountain City!

A student who graduated from Fengdu University would, at the very least, become a City Lord somewhere in the future.

Or even a high-ranking Inspector!

These individuals who emerged from their hometowns were valuable connections and Resources, hard to come by even if sought after.

If one could enter the highest ‘Federal Council,’ that would be even more remarkable.

The entire Ghost Mountain City would rise along with them!

Thus, from the provincial level down to small places like Ghost Mountain City, everyone paid extreme attention to the Federation Grand Examination, which was held only once every three years.

Its importance was evident!

Treating it as a top priority was not an exaggeration.

…

Lan Tingxu smiled, “The reason for gathering everyone here today is to understand the situation! With less than five days left until the Grand Examination, there’s no need for you to keep hiding things any longer.

Let’s report the true combat power of the young talents from each family!”

It might be hard for others to believe, but Lan Tingxu, as the City Lord, actually did not know the true situation of the prodigies in Ghost Mountain City.

The reasons for this were extremely complex.

Ultimately, it all came down to these great aristocratic families.

Only Lan Tingxu knew that nine out of ten true monstrous talents came from the great aristocratic families seated before him.

This was not difficult to understand.

This world was actually extremely unfair—these great aristocratic families controlled over ninety percent of society’s resources.

They had resources and connections.

The resources they could pour into their younger generations were truly staggering.

Ordinary people could only undergo a natural Class Change at the age of eighteen, but through special means, aristocratic families could allow their younger members to awaken and undergo Class Change as early as five years old.

They could even perform heaven-defying feats to achieve a Secondary Class Change.

Compared to ordinary people who could only change classes at eighteen, they had a lead of over a decade to grow.

During that time, they were also supported by vast amounts of resources!

With time and such immense resources, even a pig could take flight.

What could the children of ordinary families use to compete with them?

Unless they possessed heaven-defying talent and awakened into a powerful Class, they might barely catch up to their footsteps.

But even then, they would have to sign contracts with corporate or factional powers, ultimately falling under their control.

Moreover, true prodigies were often hidden away by these great aristocratic families, unknown to outsiders.

The reason was simple: to prevent them from being harmed.

Ghost Mountain City might appear calm on the surface, but in reality, the bloody struggles behind the scenes were extremely fierce. To suppress their rivals, people were often willing to do anything.

The upper echelons seated here might appear amiable on the surface, but in the shadows, they all engaged in unknown dealings.

Forget about rules or the like—in a world of survival of the fittest, there were no real rules to speak of.

Lan Tingxu looked at everyone, but the meeting room fell into silence again. No one was willing to reveal their trump cards first.

Lan Tingxu chuckled, “With only five days left until the Grand Examination, hiding them now is meaningless. Let’s all share some information. That way, I, as the City Lord, can have a clearer picture and feel more confident about this Federation Grand Examination!”

There was a hint of pleading in Lan Tingxu’s voice. Although he held the esteemed position of City Lord, he still felt a deep sense of powerlessness when facing these local great aristocratic families.

After waiting a moment and seeing that no one responded, he took the initiative and said, “Since no one is willing to speak, I’ll start calling on people.”

“Let’s begin with the Shangguan Family!”

Lan Tingxu looked at the white-haired elder seated in the first seat to his left, ‘Shangguan Wushang’.

Shangguan Wushang opened his eyes. He was the spokesperson and helmsman of the Shangguan Family. Seeing Lan Tingxu look at him first, he smiled and said, “Since the City Lord has asked, this old man will be frank.”

“Thank you for your understanding, Elder,” Lan Tingxu replied with a smile.

In the meeting room, the gazes of all the upper echelons focused on Shangguan Wushang, eager to learn what kind of prodigious talent the Shangguan Family had cultivated over the past three years.

Under the gaze of the crowd, Shangguan Wushang opened his eyes and spoke, “Our Shangguan Family has two prodigies in this Federation Grand Examination.”

“Which two?” Lan Tingxu listened.

“One is named ‘Shangguan Ying,’ whose combat power has barely reached the 4th Revolution Super-Limit Tier!” Shangguan Wushang said.

“4th Revolution Super-Limit Tier?” Upon hearing this, Lan Tingxu praised, “Impressive! And from the name, it seems she’s a girl! The Shangguan Family truly produces talents one after another!”

“Old Ghost Shangguan, are you talking about that illegitimate daughter?”

At that moment, an unpleasant voice rang out.

Instantly, Shangguan Wushang’s expression turned extremely grim!