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Chapter 972 The Plan to Stabilize the Prefecture
The Prefectural Pastoral Palace is crowded with people from all directions!
When Governor Zhou Nanwang returned from his inspection tour, his entourage had swelled a hundredfold, consisting of martial artists from various factions who had joined him along the way.

Among them were members of prominent families from various regions, who were impressed by Zhou Nanwang's demeanor and willingly joined his staff to serve him.

It can be said that the purpose of this inspection has been successfully achieved.

The journey back for Zhou Nanwang was far more bustling than the journey there, and he had not yet returned to the Jie residence...

Families and sects from all over the Lihuo Prefecture rushed to send people to pay their respects. Those forces that had previously maintained their status and waited for the governor to treat them with respect could no longer sit still and began to set aside their airs and visit him on their own initiative.

One by one, the masters who acted as behind-the-scenes supporters also appeared on their way to the Jie Mansion.

When Zhou Nanwang returned, the gate of the Jie residence was already bustling with activity, so much so that it was almost impossible to squeeze in.

"Your Excellency, my family is..."

Upon returning to the Jie residence, Zhou Nanwang immediately sought out Zhou You, saying, "Take me to see the Quan Ding!"
Jiefu became the most bustling place in Lihuo Prefecture, gathering high-ranking officials from all sides, all because of one thing... the Demon Transformation Cauldron.

Zhou Nanwang received the news on his way back and returned to the Jie residence without stopping.

The Governor's Power Cauldron is also the mother cauldron of the Demon Transformation Cauldron. It is the first Demon Transformation Cauldron in the world and the only one that can bestow inscriptions and transform ordinary cauldrons into Demon Transformation Cauldron sub-cauldrons.

Xiaoyaozi and his group of Golden Immortals retired after achieving their goals, but left a hot potato behind at the Governor's Mansion.

From Juding Mountain to various corpse-piling sites, the fires burned day and night, on a scale even larger than that of the Shishen Sect's incineration. One demon corpse after another was refined and disappeared, but the two treasures extracted were kept secret.

Secrets cannot be kept. There are three thousand bronze vessels alone that have been granted seals, not to mention the many pharmacists who are too numerous and gossipy.

The inside story of the Demon Transformation Cauldron has spread far and wide, and countless forces have taken action upon hearing the news.

During this period, hundreds of spies who attempted to infiltrate the Jie residence to gather information were killed, not including the extreme cases of demons forcibly breaking in, causing great tension throughout the Jie residence.

Quan Ding became the most heavily guarded location!
"This is the Demon Transformation Cauldron that was crafted by Xiaoyaozi?"

Zhou Nanwang stood in front of the cauldron, his palm lightly pressing on the seal script on the cauldron's body, the meaning of which was... transformation into a demon.

The Quan Ding is 100 meters tall and sits on a high platform in the center of the Jie Mansion. It is not built in a sealed space, but rather as a pavilion to provide shelter from wind, rain and sun.

On the day he took office, Zhou Nanwang led Zhou You to worship the tripod, symbolizing the transfer of power.

Unexpectedly, I will be visiting Quan Ding again in a short period of time. This time, the "Quan" in Quan Ding has acquired a substantial meaning.

The ability to transform into a demon aligns with the mainstream ideology in several neighboring states where the Ten Demons of the Southeast are rampant.

The Quan Ding, as the only source material capable of bestowing seals and mass-producing tripods, is of paramount importance.

At this moment, 99% of the people outside the Jie Mansion are there for the Demon Transformation Cauldron.

Some of them were the lenders of the three thousand cauldrons. Their unintentional act unexpectedly gave them the potential to become the owners of the Demon Transformation Cauldron, and they were overjoyed and decided to seize the opportunity.

Those waiting outside the door were all senior members of the family and the younger generation they were grooming. They didn't ask for the return of the cauldron. They all said they cared about the cauldron in the family and were willing to follow the pharmacists, even if only to help with the maintenance and dusting of the cauldron.

They all knew that the profits were enviable, and they feared that others would take advantage of their vulnerability, so they kept a close watch on their own assets.

He was even a little annoyed, wishing he had lent out a larger and heavier cauldron, since the larger the Demon Transformation Cauldron, the more efficient and effective it would be at refining the demon corpse.

Oh, I regret it so much!

Even more regretful than them were the families who had refused to lend the tripod.

Everyone now knows that the authority to bestow the title of the Demon Transformation Cauldron is in the hands of the governor, and one must pay a huge price to obtain it.

Before this, among the three thousand cauldrons of Juding Mountain, even the lowest-grade rusty and broken cauldrons had a chance to be selected. Lending out a cauldron and receiving a Demon Transformation Cauldron could yield a profit of tens of thousands, so lucrative that it would make one laugh in their dreams.

Those who borrowed the tripod were laughing the loudest, even boasting that they wished they could have gone bankrupt to support the governor's cause.

Nonsence!
Because of a single wrong decision, some of the families who initially refused to lend the tripod even took responsibility and committed suicide to atone for their sins!
Then came the aftermath: sending high-ranking family members to cultivate relationships and build connections to pay a visit to the governor, firstly to sincerely apologize, and secondly to ask if the offer to borrow the tripod now still counted.

Zhou You was well aware of what these people were thinking, but that wasn't what he was concerned about right now.

"Grandmaster, please look. This is demon essence, and this is demon ore. Both are important substances!"

Zhou Nanwang, being a discerning person and having already learned a great deal of inside information before coming, nodded and said, "Not bad!"

"The Bitter Soup Pharmacist is working with many other pharmacists to create a powerful elixir formula using demon essence as the main ingredient, and it is expected to succeed!"

"The corpse-filled fields at the state border and outside are turning into demons day and night, and all demon essence and demon ore are being transported to Juding Mountain for storage!"

"Grandmaster, I heard the Great Gentleman is coming again!"

Zhou Nanwang listened quietly until the mention of the Great Gentleman, at which point he spoke slowly, "The Great Gentleman will definitely come!"
"Although we won the battle against the Ten Demons of the Southeast, we suffered heavy losses and urgently need to replenish our supplies!"

"The Fire Continent still owes millions of tons of medicinal herbs, along with countless divine weapons, but he certainly didn't come here for that!"

Indeed, the great gentleman is coming, surely for the Demon-Transforming Cauldron.

The extraordinary power of the Demon Transformation Cauldron lies in its ability to reverse the situation on the demon battlefield once it reaches a certain scale.

Moreover, even a skilled cook cannot make a meal without rice; without demon corpses, the Demon Transformation Cauldron cannot produce much demon essence or ore.

The only major supplier of massive amounts of raw materials is the Great Gentleman who leads the Hundred Factions Alliance.

"Grandmaster, the great gentleman has come here to discuss with you the proportion of demon-generating resources to be divided. I have no worries about that!"

Zhou You paused for a moment, then said, "The demon race is cunning; they might be able to see through the Demon Transformation Cauldron's function. Once it attracts their attention..."

"Indeed, the demon race is rampant. If they take a liking to the Demon Transformation Cauldron, they will surely attack it, attempting to destroy the mother cauldron!"

Although Xiaoyaozi, who created the Demon Transformation Cauldron, is still alive, the cost of inviting a renowned Golden Immortal of that level is considerable, not to mention that some miracles are difficult to replicate a second time.

Therefore, this mother cauldron must not be damaged in any way, not even the slightest.

"Daqian took it upon himself to send all the products to Juding Mountain under the guise of sending them, but in reality, only the demon essence was sent. All the demon ore produced was secretly escorted by people in storage bags, and the destination was... Huoguan Mountain!"

"Mount Huoguan, the place where the Great Gentleman repaired the Hun Tian Axe?"

Zhou Nanwang understood immediately. "You were prepared all along?"

"Grandmaster, I've estimated that the current output of demon ore is barely enough for the Great Gentleman to repair the Hun Tian Axe."

"When the Great Gentleman arrives later, he won't be empty-handed, but rather in full health, wielding a divine weapon!"

Zhou Nanwang nodded after hearing this, "Very good, since you have this intention, it shows that I don't need to worry about it."

He then asked, "When did you know that the Ten Demons of the Southeast were about to attack, and how did you prepare in advance?"

From this sentence alone, it can be judged that Zhou Nanwang has learned that the Ten Demons of the Southeast are about to attack, attempting to destroy the Demon Transformation Cauldron Mother Cauldron.

(End of this chapter)