Starting as the heir of a marquis's mansion, I gained access to a summoning system.

At the border of Yanmen Prefecture and Xunyang Prefecture, one of the thirteen prefectures in the west, lies an unnamed, desolate mountain.

The mountain's interior has been hollowed out.

Outsiders would never know that within the belly of this mountain lies the central hub of the Heavenly Network in the thirteen western prefectures, named "Chenyuan Pavilion."

There was no plaque, no lintel. Only a stone path carved downwards, with dim oil lamps embedded on both sides. The lamps flickered, and the entire passageway was as deep and secluded as a throat.

At the end of the passageway was an iron gate. There was no handle on the gate, only a bronze ghost head with its mouth wide open.

The person must place their palm into the ghost's mouth. Palm print, body temperature, and pulse are checked three times.

One mistake. The ghost's mouth closes, the wrist is severed.

Behind the door was a dark room. The dome was extremely high, almost cutting through the entire mountainside. The walls were covered with black cloth, and the candlelight was covered with shades, making the light as dim as a dying ember.

There was a long table in the very center.

There was a person sitting behind the table.

The man appeared to be in his forties, with a thin face, high cheekbones, and slightly closed eyes. He wore a plain white robe with a dark pattern embroidered around the hem, the lines so fine that they were almost imperceptible without close inspection—it was the pattern of a spider web.

There was a cup of tea on his left. The tea had long since gone cold.

There is a stack of papers on the right.

The orders were all in black and white.

In the martial world, anyone who needs to be killed, any secret that needs to be investigated, or any sect that needs to be destroyed—all must pass through his hands. He is the branch leader of the Skynet in the thirteen western prefectures. The outside world only knows him by his code name "The Net Weaver," and no one knows his real name.

There were other people in the dark room at that moment.

On each side of the long table sat three empty chairs. Behind the chairs stood four men dressed in black. They were motionless, their breathing extremely low, like four wooden stakes driven into the ground.

The net weaver suddenly opened his eyes.

"We have a guest."

He spoke very softly.

A moment later, footsteps echoed from the end of the passageway. They were steady and unhurried.

A tall man in black robes walked in.

The hood was pulled down very low, revealing only the lower half of his face. His jawline was sharp, his skin was slightly yellow, and his lips were tightly pressed together. His right hand was always tucked into his sleeve, never showing.

He walked to the long table and stopped.

"I want to place an order."

The voice was hoarse, like sandpaper scraping against iron. It wasn't his real voice; it was deliberately suppressed.

The net weaver did not stand up, nor did he exchange pleasantries. He merely raised his eyelids and glanced indifferently at the newcomer.

"The order form."

The man in black robes took out a roll of paper from his pocket and pushed it across the table.

The paper contained four names, along with brief identification information, place of residence, and estimated strength. The Web Weaver unfolded it and read them one by one.

"Four grandmasters. Two million taels each. Total price: eight million taels." He folded the paper and tucked it under his elbow. "Sixty percent deposit, due within three days. The balance will be settled upon completion of the transaction. If the target dies, the full amount will be collected. If the target survives, the deposit is non-refundable."

The man in the black robe nodded.

"Order accepted." The net weaver tucked the roll of paper into his sleeve. "The first batch of assassins will depart within three days."

The man in black robes turned around, his steps still unhurried.

Just as he turned around, his sleeve twitched slightly, and a dried white petal drifted down from his sleeve.

The petals were very thin, already dehydrated, with slightly curled edges. Yet the color remained an unnatural white—as if it had been soaked in some kind of potion and had not decayed for many years.

It was a white lotus.

a few days later.

A secret report was delivered to Dongfang Weiwo.

From Guangling Prefecture. Written by Shangguan Jin Hong himself.

There is only one item:

"Someone has placed an order on Tianwang to buy the heads of Zhongshu Guan, Xiaoyao Hou, Lei Sun, and Shangguan Jin Hong. Two million taels of silver for each of the four. The identity of the person who placed the order has not been confirmed, but they are suspected to be from the Iron Blood Hall or the Blood Dark Cult. Tianwang has accepted the order."

After reading the secret report, Dongfang Weiwo remained silent for a moment.

Skynet—one of the top ten assassin intelligence organizations in the Xuan Tian Dynasty. The most feared dark force in the thirteen western prefectures. It is said that for the right price, there is no one they cannot kill, and no secret they cannot uncover.

The fact that Tianwang accepted the order means that the four hall masters have been added to the list of those who must be eliminated.

But he did not rush to give the order.

Xiaoyao Hou, Lei Sun, Shangguan Jin Hong, and Chai Yu Guan. Each of these four men had fought their way through mountains of corpses and seas of blood. The assassins of Tianwang were coming to kill them? Unless a Grandmaster intervened, no one could do anything to them. But assassins from Grandmasters came at a much higher price.

Dongfang Wei really wants to know—did Skynet kill them, or did they uproot this group of assassins along with Skynet from the thirteen western prefectures?

Over the next two weeks, the situation unfolded as expected.

The first batch of assassins from Skynet headed straight for Shangguan Jin Hong of Yiyue Hall.

Three grandmasters—one late-stage and two early-stage—sneaked into the main altar at night, intending to make their move when he was alone.

He infiltrated for less than an incense stick's time—before being detected by Jing Wuming's counter-tracking network.

Shangguan Jin Hong did not call anyone.

He faced the challenge alone.

The dragon and phoenix rings drew sharp arcs under the moonlight.

Thirty-two moves.

The assassin, a late-stage Grandmaster, was forced back; of the two early-stage assassins, one died and the other was seriously injured.

The one captured alive was handed over to Han Tang for interrogation.

They revealed two strongholds of the Skynet in Pingyang County.

It was then removed.

The area around San Yue Tang.

Two wax figures have appeared in the garden of the Doll Manor.

It is marked: "Skynet, Dingzi Ninth and Tenth".

The assassin's weapon was disassembled into parts and neatly arranged at the feet of the wax figure.

After that, there were no more Skynet assassins within Xunyang Prefecture.

They withdrew two groups of standby agents. Clearly, they were unwilling to add any more lives to that strange manor.

The battle was the most brutal among them, and that was April Hall.

The Iron Blood Hall has made its move.

Tie Jianfeng personally led three hundred elite soldiers to Yanmen Prefecture. Duan Peng's Wolf Fang Alliance was officially brought under his command.

Iron Blade King did not come in person. He sent his top general, Tie Wushuang, who was at the mid-stage of the Grandmaster level.

He led this force south from Yanmen Prefecture.

A head-on collision with lightning would cause damage.

The two armies clashed head-on in the central part of Yanmen Prefecture.

There were no sneak attacks or ambushes. It was pure legion-based open field combat.

Lei Sun led 150 elite soldiers of the Azure Dragon Society to fight against 300 elite troops of the Iron Blood Hall.

The crimson palm strike of the Crimson Sand Divine Palm stirred up a scorching, bloody wind.

Lei Sun withstood Iron Warrior's forty-seven palm strikes.

With a final palm strike, he shattered the opponent's right shoulder, repelling the enemy.

But he himself also suffered serious internal injuries.

More than a month later, the lightning injury was fully healed.

He no longer confronts them head-on.

The tactics were quickly adjusted—breaking up into smaller units. They continuously harassed the Wolf Fang Alliance's outposts in the southern part of Yanmen Prefecture, dragging the Iron Blood Hall into a war of attrition with no end in sight.

Four assassination attempts.

Skynet gained nothing but a pile of corpses and a few destroyed strongholds.

All parties in the thirteen western prefectures finally realized an undeniable fact:

The four hall masters were not mere paper-thin grandmasters.

Each of them is capable of independently dealing with attacks from multiple sides. Moreover, the secret coordination between the four halls is far closer than outsiders perceive.

Late at night. Guangling Prefecture, Eryue Hall.

The candlelight flickered.

It was a rare occasion for Shangguan Jin Hong, Chai Yu Guan, Xiao Yao Hou, and Lei Sun to gather together.

There were no pleasantries, no formalities. Four chairs were set up, facing an open map of the thirteen western prefectures.

Shangguan Jin Hong spoke first, his tone as steady as ever:

"The orders from Skynet haven't been withdrawn. They'll kill one batch and then come back. I've already ordered Han Tang to lead a counter-investigation into Skynet's spies and take down two strongholds. But their master's cultivation is unfathomable, so it's not advisable to directly attack their headquarters for now. Right now, the most important thing isn't the assassins—it's the Iron Blood Hall. Their investment in Yanmen Prefecture is greater than anticipated. Iron Knife King should have already noticed the connections between our four halls."

"That's exactly what I want him to notice."

Lei Sun braced his hands on the edge of the table, his tiger-like eyes still bloodshot.

"If Iron Saber King doesn't take action personally, Yanmen Prefecture will be devoured by me sooner or later. If he comes in person—I'll retreat. If he doesn't come—I'll devour his outer perimeter bit by bit."

"I held off the Blood Demon Cult for a while."

Marquis Xiaoyao smiled, his tone as light as if he were talking about the weather.

"The Blood-Handed Celestial Venerable has lost an arm. Blood Demon Child will not send more protectors to Guangling Prefecture for the time being—unless he comes himself."

"If Xue Mingzi were to arrive in person, no one in Guangling Prefecture could withstand him."

Chai Yuguan's words hit the nail on the head.

"We can only temporarily avoid his sharp edge."

The four powerful figures fell silent for a moment.

Chai Yuguan steered the conversation back on track:

"The situation at Black Wind Ridge is about to end. The Green Wood Sword Sect lost Master Green Pine, and three protectors of the Blood Nether Sect were killed. Both sides are deeply wounded. Once the standoff ends, the western power structure will inevitably be reshuffled. The five major forces are currently investigating our background. The fact that they can't find anything is why they dare not act rashly."

"First, digest the territory we've already occupied."

Shangguan Jin Hong began assigning the next tasks.

"The March Hall will move eastward to clear out the remnants of the Blood Hand Gang and scattered bandits along the way. Clean up the eastern side of Xunyang Prefecture, preventing Chaotian Palace from finding an opportunity. The April Hall will continue to control the southern border of Yanmen Prefecture, maintaining a war of attrition against the Wolf Fang Alliance and the Iron Blood Hall—no rush into a decisive battle. The February Hall will firmly hold the central position in Guangling Prefecture, gradually taking over the remaining assets of the Zhao family. The January Hall will consolidate its rear, ensuring uninterrupted logistical supplies for the four halls."

The carefree Marquis gave a soft "hmm".

Lei Sun nodded expressionlessly.

No one talked about credit, and no one cared who contributed more.

Four stakes have already been driven into the soil of the thirteen western prefectures. Each one is drilling deeper and deeper.

The investigations by the five major forces, the bounty offered by Skynet, and the impending upheaval in Black Wind Ridge—all the winds are blowing in the same direction.

But none of the four powerful figures showed any fear on their faces.

On the contrary—that's the kind of excitement that comes when you meet a worthy opponent.