Edited by Aelryinth

Mo Fan initially planned to visit Xinxia, but was disappointed to learn that she was not at the Parthenon Temple. She was currently in England.

Mo Fan was utterly speechless. He did not even bother to check Xinxia's schedule before coming all the way here. She was still a candidate, after all, so she had to be extremely busy with a lot of things. After asking around, Mo Fan learned that Xinxia had paid a visit to Ayleen's clan.

"Does Ayleen have some influence in England?" Mo Fan asked, looking confused as he stood at the foot of the mountain.

The Parthenon Temple was as crowded as usual. The mountain paths were full of believers slowly making their way to the Hall of Faith, even on a rainy day.

The truth was, many believers did not come for their own sake. They were here on behalf of their family members. If they could receive the blessings of the Mountain of the Goddess, their families would be freed from sickness and disease.

It was normal for people to get sick, be it serious or trivial. Those sicknesses would not necessarily cost them their lives, but would still torture them from the moment they woke up to when they could finally sleep. The pain would accompany them always, be it on sunny or rainy days.

The blessings and the power of faith of the Parthenon Temple were not purely psychological. Its ability to drive away plague and pain was matchless. Only the people that had been through torture and pain from disease knew how precious being healthy was. Therefore, the Parthenon Temple was never short on disciples!

"Ayleen might only be around our age, but her status in England is quite extraordinary. She's from the reputable Victoria clan, who once had an impressive queen. Their queen earned a lot of respect from many important parties during the political crisis. You know how strong an influence the Casas have in Europe, right? As a matter of fact, the Casas were once vassals to the Victoria clan. The nobility might not have as much power as the royalty, but they still have a huge say at the international level! Xinxia is smart to cooperate with the Victoria clan. They are rather conservative, and they believe in resolving conflicts peacefully and putting people first," Zhao Manyan said.

Zhao Manyan knew Mo Fan was clueless about things like this.

"Does Ayleen have a say, too?" Mo Fan asked.

"Of course she does, she's the primary successor! It's why she is called the Great Duchess of England! Xinxia is around the same age as Ayleen. I bet they will become friends very easily. From what I know, the Victoria clan is not fond of the way Izisha was ruling the Parthenon Temple. It's unlikely they will support her now that she has resurrected," Zhao Manyan stated firmly.

Xinxia would be worried if she knew he was in Athens. He had been missing for quite some time, after all!

"Xinxia is pretty good at grasping the big picture. If she manages to get the Victoria clan's support, the situation might not be as one-sided as after Izisha secured the Casas' support," Zhao Manyan judged.

"Is she really that brilliant? Why didn't I notice it before?" Mo Fan raised his brows.

"The two of you grew up together. In your eyes, Xinxia will always be the little sister under your protection. You assumed she was weak and unable to protect herself because she couldn't walk, but you've really underestimated her. Her intelligence is several times yours. How did she survive the deceptions at the Parthenon Temple, where everyone is trying to outwit one another? Look at how she's competing with Izisha. Don't you know who Izisha is? If she wants to kill someone, the person might even kneel and thank her for her kindness!

"What about the incident at the Alps? She was killing three birds with a single arrow… Xinxia is going up against someone like her; the very fact that she hasn't lost yet indicates how wise and insightful she is. I initially thought she was going to lose for sure once the Casas were involved, and she would soon be sent back to our homeland, but she immediately set her eyes on England to obtain support from the conservative Victorian clan. She managed to recover some lost ground!" Zhao Manyan pointed out.

"Is she really that smart?" Mo Fan exclaimed in shock.

"Brother, the Victoria Clan is just like the Mu Clan in our country. They might hold a grudge against Izisha, but that doesn't mean they will support another Candidate. The Candidate must have the bearing of a leader and know how to assess and control the situation in order to win their support. It is important to understand the complicated relationships between factions of different countries, too. Sharing the same beliefs isn't a good enough reason for them to work together. Most importantly, it is how she negotiated and convinced the Victoria clan to reach a mutual agreement and support her. She couldn't just win over their support by remaining silent…

"You must understand, if the Victoria clan does not intervene in the election for the Goddess, it's unlikely that Izisha would do anything to them if Xinxia lost. However, if they choose to support Xinxia, what do you think Izisha is going to do to them if Xinxia loses? The Victoria clan are not idiots. Them being conservative means they won't easily take a side, but Xinxia managed to convince them to side with her…

"Man, am I playing the lute to a cow now? Can you please spend more time learning about the current news? Yes, you might not be interested, but you should know the basics so you understand the situation your woman is in," Zhao Manyan told him sharply.

Mo Fan immediately felt awkward. He was more ashamed than ever.

"I finally realized something. You two might have grown up together, but Xinxia has all the brains, while you took all the muscles," Zhao Manyan said disdainfully.

"You sound like I'm so useless, yet why do you only know how to waste money when your family is so good at earning it!?" Mo Fan rebuked.

"What do you know? I'm just not interested in money!" Zhao Manyan refuted promptly.

"Exactly! I'm not interested in authority, either!" Mo Fan declared.

"Fine, we are both cultivators!"

"Speaking of which, how does the election of the Parthenon Temple work?" Mo Fan asked.

"Through votes, of course, votes from the Magic Associations across the world! The Parthenon Temple has temples all over the world, which means their believers are everywhere, too! I'm not too sure about the ratios, but I think the votes from Mages weigh more. Governments aren't allowed to vote, so the Parthenon Temple has fostered close ties with the renowned clans. Apart from them, votes from schools and institutions are very important, too. The higher their rankings, the more weighty their votes are," Zhao Manyan explained for him.

"What about the Alps Institute? Does their vote count?" Mo Fan asked.

"Of course, and their vote matters a lot, too! The Alps Institute visit different countries and take in orphans. They have built many orphanages in many countries. They have a good reputation, and since these orphans strive unremittingly to become better, the Alps Institute always has great talents among their students. You know how hostile the Alps Institute is toward the Parthenon Temple. Even though their vote means a lot, they have never voted in the election for the Goddess. They might be a great opportunity for Xinxia. If she can obtain their support, Izisha would surely panic!" Zhao Manyan said.

The Alps Institute had orphanages across the world; those orphanages were teaching orphans magic like normal schools. They would bring the talented ones to the Alps Institute.

Every graduate of the Alps Institute was extremely grateful to the school once they moved on with their life. Therefore, the orphanages were kind of like a religion, too, and a strong one at that!

"The approaches that the Alps Institute and the Parthenon Temple take are very similar, but they are involved in different fields. The Parthenon Temple focuses on healing the sick, while the Alps are helping the homeless kids and fostering them into people that make great contributions to society. If the Alps Institute and the Parthenon Temple could work together, it would help the Parthenon Temple recruit more believers in a different field… in return, the locals might pay more respect to the leaders of the temples, too!" Zhao Manyan declared.

"Would that really work?" Mo Fan blurted out in surprise.

"Your eyes are only fixed on the beauties of the Alps Institute, you only care about their bodies and their good looks. You have no idea that they are as influential as living Buddhas in society..." Zhao Manyan sniffed.

"F**k me, who was the one that was acting like an aroused dog at the Alps Institute? Who kept telling me that his flag was raised twenty-four hours a day!?" Mo Fan immediately swore.

"Are you seriously thinking of helping Xinxia build a connection with the Alps Institute?" Zhao Manyan realized what Mo Fan was thinking.

"Hehe, Xinxia has been working so hard. Shouldn't I, as her man, give her some support? Heidi and Brianca are going to be in charge of the Alps Institute in the future. I can work on them first, then slowly convince Headmistress Perry and Miss Ceylan. It's been generations, why do they have to hold onto the grudge still..." Mo Fan said with a smile.

"That's not a bad idea. The Alps Institute has already provoked the Casas, meaning that they have lost one of their backers. If the Parthenon Temple can let go of the past with Xinxia's help and help the Alps Institute overcome their financial difficulties, it's not impossible for them to be working together," Zhao Manyan admitted.