In the eastern reaches of the Southern Empire, sitting on fertile plains and stretching for over a thousand miles, stood a large city. This city was named Ning and it overawed its surroundings.

Ning City was famous and had been peaceful for over a thousand years, never experiencing any destruction or turbulence. Because of that, it was even more prosperous and its accumulations of wealth and treasures reached astronomical figures.

They naturally attracted numerous covetous eyes, but no matter how the surrounding forces changed around them, Ning City remained calm and stable throughout, a silent and formidable force.

Over time, although no one knew their depths, there was no other side around them that dared to have any ideas about them.

But as time passed, there would eventually be rumors that came out. Whispers said that behind Ning City stood a powerful family which lived in seclusion, their strength unfathomably deep.

This was a rumor without any solid evidence at all. But every 20 years, Ning City’s Ning Mansion would openly recruit servants. They would select a group of outstanding young cultivators and then these outstanding young elites would disappear shortly afterwards.

Speaking of this, it seemed quite scary. But every now and then, one or two of the earlier selected cultivators would reappear at Ning Mansion with a far deeper cultivation, and they would wield tremendous authority there.

When combining the above factors, it was only then that the various factions guessed there was a large secluded family standing behind Ning City. And, the reason that Ning Mansion chose to recruit servants every 20 years was all in order to seek out suitable servants for this family.

Cultivators with status and background certainly wouldn’t bet their...