One person said: The essence of Wuhou Qimen lies not in Qimen, but in Wuhou.

"Our company's previous responsibility was to balance the conflicts between the world of supernatural beings and society. The methods we used could be roughly summarized as turning minor issues into major ones and minor issues into minor ones. From now on, we can no longer do that. We can't cause trouble and create chaos in society over some old, trivial matters, such as the Eight Extraordinary Techniques."

When he mentioned the "Eight Extraordinary Skills," his tone was not emphasized; he simply slid over it as if he were talking about something as ordinary as the weather today.

"These are nothing more than intangible cultural heritage. Cultural workers must be cultured! To try to deprive the country of its intangible cultural heritage without being cultured is a crime."

The conference room was as quiet as the seabed.

"As I said before, every country has its laws, and every family has its rules. Even those who are considered 'outsiders' are still lawful citizens of China. They cannot knowingly break the law, much less harm the people's property, interests, or safety. From today onward, if any 'outsiders' are found to be breaking the law or violating discipline in any major region of the country, the people will surely exercise proletarian dictatorship over them."

He uttered the last four words slowly and deliberately.

"We will show absolutely no leniency."

Everyone, including Zhao Fangxu, swallowed hard.

This subtle movement occurred almost simultaneously in the quiet conference room, as if an invisible hand had pressed down on everyone's throat at the same time.

For the first time, a genuine seriousness appeared on Bi Youlong's face, which always wore an expression of "I refuse to accept this."

Chairman Su's eyes narrowed even more, becoming as narrow as two sharp blades.

Beneath Fei Dong's expressionless exterior, a barely noticeable blue vein was visible on his neck.

Xu Si simply stuffed his unlit cigarette back into his pocket.

Zhuge Ming had not finished speaking.

He picked up his teacup, took a sip of water to moisten his throat, and continued speaking. His tone was not as sharp as before, but the weight of his words was no less.

"Our colleagues in the company, of course, must set an example. Everyone here is a Party member, and we must always uphold the leadership of the Party and the country. We cannot tarnish the Party and the country, nor can we bring shame to the organization. We must abide by discipline, set an example, and have no bad habits."

His gaze slowly swept over everyone present, lingering on Xu Si for a fraction of a second longer.

Xu Si felt as if someone had poured ice water on the back of his neck.

"Especially the heads of the various regions. The Party and the State have given you tremendous power—you cannot let the Party and the State down. Restrain yourselves and your subordinates. No one has any privileges, no excuses. Including myself—no one must harm the interests of the people."

Every sentence he uttered was inseparable from the words "Party and State".

Once, twice, three times, ten times.

It's not gossiping; it's a kind of reinforcement similar to a screw thread.

Each repetition of this phrase twists the knot deeper in everyone's heart.

Finally, those words became a nail, firmly driven into the very center of the conference table—the nail was invisible, but everyone present felt its presence.

Zhuge Ming relaxed his tone slightly, his expression shifting from serious to more casual, and a faint smile returned to the corners of his mouth, as if he were switching roles from "leader" to "colleague".

"Comrades, relax a bit, there's no need to be so tense. It's normal to have pressure at work."

He leaned back in his chair, tapped his fingers lightly on the table, and suddenly changed the subject, "Take me for example—I have to take a flight to Jiangxi tonight. Who's in charge of Jiangxi?"

Dou Le, the head of the East China region, jumped up almost reflexively.

He stood ramrod straight, his hands pressed tightly against the seams of his trousers, his movements so precise and his reactions so swift, like a raw recruit called upon by the instructor.

His Adam's apple bobbed, and his voice, though clear, carried a barely perceptible hint of tension: "Reporting to the Director! I am Dou Le, the head of the East China Region! Jiangxi falls under the jurisdiction of the East China Region!"

Zhuge Ming reached out and pressed down, his tone as gentle as if speaking to a nervous junior: "Comrade Dou Le, don't be nervous, relax. Please sit down."

Dou Le sat down.

He sat down very steadily, and the chair made no sound.

But a fine layer of sweat had appeared on his forehead, faintly reflecting the light under the conference room's overhead lights.

Xu Si, sitting next to him, glanced at him out of the corner of his eye and silently wished him well, brother.

After Dou Le was seated, Zhuge Ming continued, his tone still gentle yet weighty: "This isn't criticism. It's just that you have a heavy responsibility on your shoulders—there have been quite a few reports about Jiangxi recently. Otherwise, the organization wouldn't have parachuted me there. The Luotian Grand Ritual at the Tianshi Mansion on Longhu Mountain, and the cooperation with the company—I've read the report on this operation in detail; it's quite large-scale, mobilizing almost all the supernatural organizations across the country."

He leaned forward slightly, his tone more serious, as if speaking one-on-one with Dou Le, but his volume was just loud enough for everyone to hear: "Therefore, this time we'll start with Jiangxi. We'll use the Luotian Grand Ceremony as a starting point to reform and innovate, and advance the next steps. This is a breakthrough. We must work together."

Dou Le stood up again, this time his voice louder and steadyer than before, like a soldier who had just been given a mission: "I will resolutely obey the Party organization's arrangements! Please rest assured, Director Zhuge!"

Zhuge Ming nodded, then gently called out a name: "I remember the trigger for this incident was a young man named Zhang Chulan, right? Which regional manager is he currently working for?"

Xu Si, the head of the North China region, stood up abruptly.

He stood up even faster than Dou Le, and the chair slid back a little, making a slight scraping sound in the silence.

He was used to standing lazily, but at this moment he forced himself to stand in a straight line, the strength of his shoulders and back almost stretching the back of his shirt into two creases.

A standard smile, somewhere between obsequious and professional, played on his lips. His voice was loud but not exaggerated: "Director! I'm Xu Si, the head of the North China region! Zhang Chulan is now a special employee of the company's North China region—I'm leading him to the Celestial Master's Mansion on Longhu Mountain for this operation, personally arranged by the old Celestial Master Zhang Zhiwei!"

Zhuge Ming smiled slightly, a faint smile that inexplicably sent a chill down Xu Si's spine.

He reached out and pressed down, gesturing for Xu Si to sit down: "Don't be nervous, Comrade Xu Si, you've worked hard. Please sit down."

Xu Si plopped down, his mind racing to review every word he had just uttered, wondering if he had said anything wrong.

He thought about it three times, but couldn't figure out what the problem was.

This made him even more nervous.

Zhuge Ming did not look at Xu Si again.

He turned his head and his gaze fell on Zhao Fangxu to his right.

Zhao Fangxu sensed the gaze and turned slightly to the side, his expression maintaining a perfect balance between professionalism and humility.