The division and suspicion within the Alliance Council spread like a plague. The foundation of three-race joint governance teetered on the brink. Tang Xiaoqi knew that if he remained indecisive or placed hope in empty appeals, the Alliance would surely fall apart. He must take decisive measures—one hand using an iron fist to stabilize the overall situation, suppressing the division's momentum; the other using conciliation to gather hearts and consolidate the roots of trust.
First came the iron hand.
After announcing the establishment of the "Darkness Purification Discipline Department" and taking the position of Department Chief himself, the first thing Xiaoqi did was use his authority as both Alliance Leader and Department Chief to issue an extremely severe "Rectification Order."
The order spread instantly through every channel of the Alliance, reaching all three realms. The order explicitly stated that the Shadow Assembly was a public enemy of all three realms, with the aim of destroying all living beings—no race would be spared. Certain baseless accusations, spreading panic, and inciting confrontation were precisely what the Shadow Assembly desired, constituting aiding the enemy! From this moment, anyone who publicly spread racial antagonism rhetoric, accused other races of colluding with the Shadow Assembly without evidence, regardless of status or position, once verified, would be treated as Shadow Assembly collaborators, severely punished by the Discipline Department, with the most serious cases executed without mercy!
This order caused an uproar throughout the cultivation world. In particular, Lei Xiao and some of the more radical faction were extremely dissatisfied, believing Xiaoqi was "playing favorites with foreign races" and "suppressing the Human Race's voice."
Lei Xiao even united with several Human Race elders, marching aggressively to Xiaoqi's temporary office to demand an explanation.
"Alliance Leader Tang! Isn't this overly domineering of you? Don't we Human Race cultivators even have the right to question?!" Lei Xiao's beard and hair stood on end, the pressure of his late Nascent Soul stage aura faintly spreading.
Xiaoqi sat upright at the main seat, his expression calm. He didn't even release his own Nascent Soul stage aura, but when those deep eyes swept across everyone, Lei Xiao and his group felt an invisible pressure, immense like mountains.
"Questioning requires evidence," Xiaoqi's voice wasn't loud, but it clearly entered each person's ears, "Sect Master Lei, you accuse the Monster and Sea Tribes of colluding with the Shadow Assembly—where is your evidence? Without solid evidence, you are fabricating rumors and spreading lies, destabilizing morale. According to the order, what should happen?"
Lei Xiao was stumped. He truly had no ironclad proof and could only argue strongly: "Many clues point to..."
"Clues are not evidence," Xiaoqi interrupted him, his gaze sharp as a blade, "The Discipline Department is pursuing the investigation with all strength. If there is conclusive evidence pointing to anyone colluding with the Shadow Assembly, regardless of their race or status, I will personally eliminate them without mercy! But until then, no one may undermine Alliance unity with speculation and prejudice! This is the bottom line—it cannot be crossed!"
He paused, his tone easing slightly, but carrying even greater weight: "Sect Master Lei, honored elders, the Demon Lord is not destroyed, the Shadow Assembly watches covetously, the demonic mark problem remains. If we fight each other over suspicion, who will ultimately benefit? Who will bleed? I hope everyone considers the greater picture and does not destroy their own fortress."
This speech both demonstrated an unyielding, firm attitude and pointed out the crucial interests. Lei Xiao's expression shifted, and ultimately, under Xiaoqi's calm yet terrifying gaze, his momentum wilted, and he left reluctantly. Xiaoqi forcibly suppressed the most violent secessionist voices with absolute authority and strength.
Next came conciliation.
Xiaoqi deeply understood that suppression alone couldn't truly solve problems. He must fundamentally ease contradictions and rebuild trust. He made two crucial decisions.
First, he announced the establishment of a "Joint Investigation Committee" composed of respected and relatively neutral elders from all three races. This committee would specifically be responsible for reviewing all accusations involving racial conflicts. The investigation process would be completely open and transparent, and results would only be published after confirmation by representatives of all three races. This aimed to establish a relatively fair dispute resolution mechanism, giving all parties a platform to reason and clarify, avoiding misunderstandings escalating due to information opacity.
Second, and more importantly, he announced that the Demon Purification Institute's treatment scope would be officially expanded to all races, with resource investment doubled!
He personally presided over the Demon Purification Institute, leading top pharmacists, formation masters, and soul cultivators from all three races, researching demonic mark treatment plans day and night. He treated patients regardless of race, personally administering nurturing techniques for the most critically ill Monster Race warriors and Sea Tribe cultivators, using Green Lotus origin and Buddhist aura power to ease their suffering. He even unconditionally taught effective methods for alleviating demonic mark restlessness to physicians of all races.
The effect was remarkable.
A Monster General who had originally been full of guardedness toward humans, after witnessing Xiaoqi spare no effort or origin to treat his fellow tribesman, who had been tormented nearly to death by demonic marks, had eyes filled with complex emotions, finally bowing deeply to Xiaoqi.
A Sea Tribe elder, seeing several young geniuses from his clan who had been troubled by demonic marks gradually stabilize and even begin improving under treatment at the Demon Purification Institute, also quietly changed his view of humans, proactively restraining his clan members and avoiding conflicts with humans.
The Demon Purification Institute, this place originally born from the Demon Calamity's wounds, under Xiaoqi's purposeful guidance, gradually became a special bridge connecting the three races. Here, racial barriers were diluted by common suffering and the desperate longing for survival. Between doctors and patients, between assistants of different races, new understanding and trust emerged because of shared goals.
Xiaoqi's iron hand deterred petty troublemakers, stabilizing the baseline of the overall situation; his conciliation, like trickles of water, moistened the parched soil of trust, slowly repairing the Alliance's cracks.
The tense, sword-drawn atmosphere at Alliance Headquarters, though not completely dissipated, at least saw the disappearance of open, intense racial antagonism rhetoric. All parties returned to the negotiating table, cautiously, but the joint operations to purge remaining Shadow Assembly strongholds finally began again, albeit with difficulty.
The Discipline Department, under Liu Yun and Ao Qin's leadership, was like the finest hunting machine, launching even more fierce and precise strikes against the Shadow Assembly based on previously mastered clues and information fragments from Xiaoqi's soul-searching of the black-robed figure. Stronger hidden strongholds were uprooted one after another; core and peripheral members were captured one after another.
Xiaoqi stood on the highest pavilion of the Demon Purification Institute, gazing at the scene below—still busy, but the atmosphere had noticeably eased. Iron hand and conciliation, like sword and shield, he must wield them properly. And he knew that the battle truly determining the Alliance's fate was about to arrive. Purge the Shadow Assembly, find and destroy their ritual, then... march directly into the Shadow Realm and have the final showdown with the source of it all!