"No! That's far too unfair for you, and what if he denies everything in the end? That's the riskiest part of your plan; how can you be sure that he'll comply?"

Dai Yun'er replied in a firm manner, "Because I know him. Brother Three is a man with a very strong sense of responsibility. Otherwise, he wouldn't have made it to this point. If my plan succeeds, he'll definitely be angry, but there's no way he won't take responsibility. Even if it fails, is he going to turn on a woman who did everything for love?"

Dai Tianling closed his eyes as his brows furrowed tightly.

Dai Yun'er stood beside him and waited with an impish look in her eyes. She was naturally willing to sacrifice herself for the empire, especially when she could kill two birds with one stone.

After a long while, Dai Tianling finally reopened his eyes. "What do you want to do?"

Dai Yun'er hurriedly replied, "I need the support of our imperial science institute."

"Alright, I'll get into contact with them; you can go there right away. Yun'er..." Dai Tianling embraced his daughter as he closed his eyes with a pained expression, and sighed, "I'm sorry for being such an incompetent father."

"Father..."

......

The next morning, Tang Wulin awakened from his meditation, feeling completely reinvigorated and refreshed. Perhaps it was due to the fact that he no longer had to compete in the Trial of Five Gods, but this was the most relaxed he had been since arriving in the Star Luo Empire.

He wasn't concerned that the imperial family would change its minds as this was a matter of public safety for the entire Star Luo Empire. After he completed this deal, he would be able to return to the federation, and the Smiling Douluo would take care of everything else.

Following the celebrations the night before, many of the Tang Sect disciples were still sleeping, so the headquarters was very peaceful. When Tang Wulin arrived in the cafeteria for breakfast, there weren't many people present, but all of them appraised him with respect and reverence.

After breakfast, the Smiling Douluo came to find him, and he was very pleased to see that Tang Wulin was in such high spirits.

"Sect Master, we've already contacted the empire; we can go and sign the agreement today. We'll do it in the imperial palace to ensure safety and confidentiality; the imperial palace has vacated a warehouse for this purpose, and it'll be heavily guarded."

"Alright, thank you for your hard work," Tang Wulin smiled, and said, "Thank heavens we're finally about to complete the mission. During this time, I'll have to trouble you to keep the members of our Tang Sect in check and ensure that they keep a low profile. I don't want to sour our relationship with the imperial family over the Trial of Five Gods."

Hu Jie chuckled, "I understand. As your subordinate, it's only right that I take care of such matters in your stead."

Tang Wulin's heart stirred slightly upon hearing this. This was the first time that the Smiling Douluo had ever referred to himself as his subordinate! It seemed that the Trial of Five Gods had changed not just the outside world, but also the people around him.

Shrek’s Seven Monsters and Hu Jie arrived at the Star Luo Empire imperial palace at the agreed time, and on this occasion, both Dai Tianling and Dai Yueyan were already waiting for them in the largest conference chamber in the palace.

Dai Yueyan's expression had clearly changed significantly as he looked at Tang Wulin now.

When he had first met Tang Wulin, Dai Yueyan had been eager to challenge him in order to examine the fruits of his own cultivation over the past few years, yet now, he didn't even have the confidence to challenge him anymore.

Perhaps in this generation, he was destined to be nothing more than a stepping stone for Tang Wulin.

"Your Majesty, Your Highness." Tang Wulin nodded as a gesture of acknowledgment.

There was no sign of displeasure on Dai Tianling's face at all as he smiled, and said, "Congratulations on successfully completing the Trial of Five Gods, Sect Master Tang. As per our agreement, our empire will pay an additional 10% to purchase the weapons provided by the Tang Sect. I've seen the list of weapons your sect is going to provide, and there are no issues. We've already begun to gather the resources that the Tang Sect requires, and it'll all be delivered to a warehouse designated by your Tang Sect within three days."

"Thank you for your support, Your Majesty," Tang Wulin said in a heartfelt manner.

Dai Tianling sighed, "To be honest, I regret my decision, but at the same time, I'm glad I made this decision. At the very least, the Trial of Five Gods has shown me the future of the Tang Sect, and also strengthened our confidence in collaborating with the Tang Sect. I hope our collaboration can continue for thousands of years to come; please support our Star Luo Empire as well, Sect Master. Regardless of what happens in the federation, our Star Luo Empire will always be a home for the Tang Sect."

Dai Tianling's words were very sincere, and Tang Wulin was quite surprised by his attitude considering the defeat they had just suffered during the Trial of Five Gods.

"You're far too kind, Your Majesty; it's our honor to be able to work with the Star Luo Empire," Tang Wulin said with a smile.

Dai Tianling asked, "What are your plans after this, Sect Master Tang?"

Tang Wulin replied, "I'm going to return to the federation as soon as possible. As you know, our Tang Sect is facing immense pressure in the federation; I have to go back and face the pressure with everyone else."

Dai Tianling sighed, "In all honesty, I truly hope that your Tang Sect will move entirely to our Star Luo Empire someday. If that day ever comes, we'll be able to match up against the federation."

An apologetic look appeared on Tang Wulin's face. "Thank you for placing so much faith in our Tang Sect, Your Majesty, but the Tang Sect was founded on the Douluo Continent, and all of our forefathers, including the Thousand Hand Douluo and Spirit Ice Douluo, have fought to ensure that the Tang Sect continues to thrive on the Douluo Continent. I can't change the heritage left behind by our forefathers, but the Star Luo Empire branches are also very important to our Tang Sect. Our ultimate hope is that the three continents will be able to coexist in harmony someday."

Dai Tianling nodded in response. "Your Tang Sect's support is much appreciated. I'd like to offer my sincerest apologies for making your stay in our empire not as pleasant as it otherwise could've been. I'll be setting up a banquet in our palace tonight; please do make sure to attend."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Following a brief exchange of pleasantries, the agreement was signed. Tang Wulin was responsible for delivering all of the weapons to the imperial palace's warehouse, and everything else was taken care of by the Smiling Douluo.

Everything was said and done during the span of a single day, and the imperial family had already prepared all of the resources for the Tang Sect, while the additional 10% was paid in monetary units.

Tang Wulin was very relieved, and a perfect conclusion had been reached to cap off his first visit to the Star Luo Empire as the Tang Sect Master.

The banquet was held in the inner court of the imperial palace later that night. From the Star Luo Empire, only Dai Tianling, Dai Yueyan, Dai Yun'er, and some other important members of the imperial family were in attendance.

From the Tang Sect, there was Tang Wulin, the Smiling Douluo, and Shrek's Six Monsters.

For some reason, En Ci wasn't in attendance, and Long Yue was representing Monster Academy in his stead.

Tang Wulin sat right beside Dai Tianling on his left, while Dai Yueyan sat across from him.

In the Star Luo Empire, the left-hand position was considered to be the most important one aside from the main seat, so this meant that Tang Wulin was in a postion that was even higher than that of the rightful heir to the throne. This was another show of the Star Luo Empire's sincerity.

Dai Tianling was no longer trying to oppress or intimidate Tang Wulin. Not only was he proposing toasts and engaging in friendly conversation with Tang Wulin and the Smiling Douluo, he was doing the same to Shrek's Six Monsters as well.

"I propose a toast, Sect Master Tang." Long Yue's tall and broad figure appeared before Tang Wulin.

Tang Wulin raised his cup and rose to his feet. "There's no need for such formalities, Brother Long."

Long Yue smiled, and said, "I'm glad I became acquainted with you. In the future, you're going to be the target that I'll constantly be pursuing."

Tang Wulin glanced at him before asking, "You're already at the Titled Douluo level, right, Brother Long?"

Long Yue nodded in response.