119: Chapter 119: The Risks of Publicly Disclosing Evidence

The air in the temporary meeting room of Hengchuan Peak was thick with a low pressure, as if a storm were about to break.

A polished Spirit Stone board stood in the center. Instead of having a Formation carved on it, it displayed a three-dimensional chart projected by the System.

What should have been a smooth satisfaction curve now looked like a viper that had been viciously slashed, with a shocking cliff-like drop plunging abruptly in the middle.

Shen Xingzhou, Su Ciyao, and Wen Xi stood around the stone board, remaining silent for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

"This is what they call 'public opinion'." Su Ciyao sneered, stabbing her finger hard at the cliff-like drop on the chart. "The timing is concentrated in the middle of last night, the wording is uniform, and even the rhetorical devices look like they were taught by the same private tutor. These old fogies, who usually prattle on about benevolence and morality, are more adept than anyone at playing these dirty tricks."

"Truly dirty." Wen Xi adjusted her glasses. Although her abacus didn't move, her eyes were calculating rapidly. "According to the data model, if we don't handle these interference samples, our true satisfaction rate will be diluted by at least 15%. On the life-or-death line for unlocking the V2.0 System, this 15% is enough to cost us our lives."

Shen Xingzhou didn't respond; his gaze remained locked on the [Publicize Evidence] option that was flickering incessantly on the System interface.

"Second Senior Sister, Third Senior Sister, what do you think?" Shen Xingzhou asked softly. "Should we swallow this insult, take the loss to ensure our safety, or... flip the table?"

Su Ciyao lifted her head almost without hesitation, her eyes flashing with a fighting spirit: "Flip it! Why should we endure it? Since they dared to play dirty, they should have known there would come a day when they would be exposed! This isn't just about the innocence of Hengchuan Peak; it's the foundation of our standing in the live broadcast room. If we can't even withstand such backstabbing, who will believe our 'authentic worker' persona in the future?"

She grew more agitated as she spoke, gesturing in the air: "As long as we throw this chart out there, the millions of viewers in the live broadcast room aren't blind. Anyone with a discerning eye can see that those uniform negative reviews were coordinated. When the time comes, the backlash of public opinion will hit them!"

"Public opinion backlash is a double-edged sword." Wen Xi calmly interrupted her Senior Sister's passionate speech, her voice like a bucket of cold water. "Second Senior Sister, have you thought about this? Although this is the 'Elder's' dirty trick, ultimately, it represents the 'Qingheng Sect'. If we make this evidence public, it is equivalent to declaring to the entire Nine Provinces: The high-level management of the Qingheng Sect is manipulating the assessment, and the Qingheng Sect is rife with factions and infighting."

She turned around and pointed to the chart on the stone board: "In the short term, we can indeed win sympathy and clear our name. But in the long term, the 'credit rating' of the Qingheng Sect will hit rock bottom. Who would want to join a Sect that uses dirty tricks for internal assessments? Who would want to do business with such a foul-smelling power?"

Wen Xi paused and looked at Shen Xingzhou: "Senior Brother, this concerns the fundamentals. If we smash the reputation of the entire Sect just for the victory of our Peak, is this trade worth it?"

Su Ciyao froze, the anger on her Face stiffening, replaced by conflict.

This was a deadlock.

Endure, and Hengchuan Peak loses; the V2.0 System is gone, and all previous efforts are wasted.

Don't endure, and the Qingheng Sect loses; Face is lost, and the future path is blocked.

Shen Xingzhou took a deep breath, his gaze turning to the System interface in the Void Realm: "System, simulate the consequences of both paths for me."

The interface flickered, and two detailed reports quickly unfolded.

[Plan A: Endure in silence and accept the interference]

Hengchuan Peak outcome: Satisfaction ranking 3rd-4th. V2.0 satisfaction dimension achievement probability: 40% (Very low).

Sect outcome: Maintain a facade of harmony; the old faction consolidates its position, and the reformists are thoroughly marginalized.

Evaluation: You preserved the "collective" Face, sacrificing your "own" future. You will become an obedient tool, and then have your edges slowly worn down.

[Plan B: Disclose partial evidence and use leverage to strike back]

Hengchuan Peak outcome: Satisfaction rate highly likely to overtake to 1st-2nd place. V2.0 satisfaction dimension achievement probability: 80% (Very high).

Sect outcome: Short-term image shock, mocked by the outside world as "rotting to the core". Internal conflicts become public; Elder faction's hostility toward the host +50%.

Additional impact: You will be thoroughly pushed into the position of "spokesperson for the reformists". You will become a thorn in the eyes of the old System and a beacon of hope for the low-level Cultivators.

The two reports lay there, in stark contrast.

Shen Xingzhou's finger hovered in mid-air. Plan A was safe and mediocre, but it went against the original intention of his journey. Plan B was dangerous and radical, yet it led to the new world he wanted.

"Plan B will push me completely into the position of 'spokesperson for the reformists'..." Shen Xingzhou muttered to himself, "This means there is no turning back from now on; I can only walk this path to the end."

"What's wrong with that?"

A lazy voice suddenly came from the doorway.

Several people turned back to see Peak Master Luo Qingyi leaning against the door frame, holding her ever-present wine gourd. She seemed to have been standing there for a while. Her eyelids were drooping, and she looked as if she hadn't woken up yet, but her tone carried a clarity that pierced through the ways of the world.

"Revered Master..." Shen Xingzhou stood up.

Peak Master Luo Qingyi waved her hand and paced inside. Her gaze swept over the two charts, and a smirk played on her lips: "What are you agonizing over here? Are you afraid the Sect's Face won't look good? Or are you afraid of offending those old fogies?"

Wen Xi lowered her head, feeling a bit embarrassed: "Revered Master, we are worried..."

"Worried about what? Worried that they will make things difficult for you in the future?" Peak Master Luo Qingyi sneered. "If you want to change the System and establish new rules, someone has to lose Face first. Where in this world is there reform without bloodshed? If you are afraid of the Sect losing Face and afraid that everyone won't be able to save Face, then stop trying to reform. Go back and obediently play the grandson; how wonderful, how safe."

She walked to the stone board, reached out her finger, and tapped the red abnormal curve: "This thorn was originally stuck in by them. If you pull it out now, although it will hurt and bleed, that is treating the wound. If you push the thorn into your flesh just to hide the ugliness, the final result will be festering."

Shen Xingzhou looked at his Revered Master and suddenly asked: "Revered Master, back when you were in the Heavenly Court... did you also make a similar choice?"

Peak Master Luo Qingyi's movements paused.

The hall went quiet. This was the first time Shen Xingzhou had taken the initiative to ask about his Revered Master's past. The former War God of the Heavenly Court, the Peak Master Luo Qingyi who had attempted to reform the Heavenly Dao, failed, and was cast down to the mortal world.

She was silent for a moment, tilted her head back to take a sip of wine, and her gaze became somewhat ethereal: "Back then..."

"Back then, I didn't calculate the cost clearly." She said softly, her tone carrying a trace of imperceptible desolation. "I thought that as long as I was strong enough, and as long as the sword in my hand was sharp enough, I could cleave through that darkness. I thought that as long as the goal was just, the means didn't matter. But I forgot that there are some people you cannot wake up, and there are some debts you cannot settle."

She turned her head, looking at Shen Xingzhou, and for the first time, her eyes held a measure of approval: "You are better at calculating than I am. You can see the exchange of interests clearly, and you can see the game of human hearts clearly. This is very good. Since you have calculated it clearly, then do it. Don't be like me back then; don't wait until your sword is broken to regret that you didn't put a blade to someone's throat sooner."

After saying this, she turned and walked out, leaving behind only one light sentence: "The ugly daughter-in-law must meet the parents-in-law sooner or later. Someone has to tear down this fig leaf of the Qingheng Sect sooner or later. It's better that you tear it down first than have it shredded by someone else."

Shen Xingzhou stood where he was, ruminating on his Revered Master's words.

"The ugly daughter-in-law must meet the parents-in-law sooner or later..."

He looked at the [Publicize Evidence] option on the System interface, which was glaringly red. Yes, the corporate management of the V2.0 System was meant to break these hidden rules of a "society of human favors". If one didn't even have the courage to Face internal conflicts, what was there to talk about regarding restructuring? What was there to talk about regarding mergers and acquisitions?

"Third Senior Sister," Shen Xingzhou suddenly spoke, his voice firm, "You said that if we make it public, the Sect's image will be damaged, and its credit will hit rock bottom."

"Yes, that is what the model shows." Wen Xi nodded.

"Then we will use a new image to fill in this rock bottom." A trace of determination flashed in Shen Xingzhou's eyes. "Even if we become the 'joke of the entire Nine Provinces' in the short term, as long as it is a real joke, it is better than being a hypocritical 'corpse'."

He suddenly reached out and tapped heavily in the Void Realm, pressing [Plan B: Disclose partial evidence].

In an instant, the System interface erupted with a blinding red light; it was not an alarm, but the blood-colored glow of a contract being formed.

[Confirm Operation]

Instruction: Disclose partial "malicious interference samples" and "evidence of Elders colluding to extort".

Operation Target: Qingheng Sect internal assessment data chain, Heavenly Dao public notice interface, external live broadcast channel.

Record Archive:

This action has been recorded in: Qingheng Sect Audit Log

This action has been uploaded to: Heavenly Dao Adjudication Observation List

System Comment:

"You rejected a false peace and chose real turmoil. You chose the hardest path to walk. Good luck, 'gravedigger' of the Qingheng Sect."

As these words faded, the originally noisy Martial Arts Arena outside the meeting room seemed to suddenly go quiet for a moment. Shen Xingzhou could feel that some invisible restraint had been broken, and some huge, irreversible gear had begun to turn slowly.

He lowered his head and looked at the small text slowly emerging at the bottom of the System interface, feeling that every word weighed a thousand jun:

"From this moment on, you are not just saving your own Peak; you have begun to move the fig leaf of the entire Sect. Tear it open; let the sunlight shine in, or let the blood flow out."