Alex pondered briefly. "For when?"

"Three days from now."

"Good." Alex nodded, smiling faintly.

"Tell the Heavenly Flame Empress that I will definitely be there. However, there is a high probability that Saint Lord Alistair and Saint Lord Malakai will not go."

When they parted last time, Alistair and Malakai had friction with him, eventually parting on bad terms. During this time, neither the Blackwood nor Sol families had taken the initiative to send anyone to ease relations.

Given their temperaments and their arrogance as Saint Lords of Saint Lineage families, they probably wouldn’t give Aurelia this face.

"Okay, I will go reply to the Heavenly Flame Empress right away." Adrian continued.

"Right, additionally, that Knox is still locked in the dungeon’s interrogation department. Following your instructions, I slap him twenty times every day and send people to deliver food morning and night to ensure he stays alive."

"Mhm, I know." Alex nodded with an approving smile. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

"You are doing very well. Later, I will naturally reward you. It’s just that, do not tell anyone else about this matter. The fewer people who know, the better. Also, instruct the people delivering food to be extra vigilant and prevent that Knox from committing suicide."

"Saint Lord, you can rest assured about this." Adrian waved his hand cheerfully.

"That Knox is confined by the Forbidden Magic Stone chains twenty-four hours a day. How formidable are those Forbidden Magic Stones? Even the Giant Demons in the Heavenly Flame Dynasty’s dungeon can’t break free from them. If Knox could break free from the chains, he wouldn’t need to commit suicide. He could directly slaughter our Hale family Holy Land."

"Go on, don’t say such unlucky things." Alex rolled his eyes grumpily.

"Alright, if there’s nothing else, go do whatever you need to do."

Adrian smiled and nodded, just about to leave. Suddenly thinking of something, he said. "Right, Saint Lord, in a few more days, it will be the day of our Hale family’s Heaven Sacrifice Ceremony. This year happens to be the 500th anniversary of your ascension to the Saint Lord’s throne. I wonder if you want to rush back and personally host the ceremony?"

"Oh, I actually forgot about this." Alex narrowed his eyes, unable to hold back a smile as he sighed with emotion.

"Five hundred years, not a short time."

Not every Saint Lineage family had the qualification to hold a Heaven Sacrifice Ceremony.

Only great clans like the Hale, Blackwood, and Sol families, with formidable strength, profound foundations, and long histories, were qualified to host this annual ritual.

The Heaven Sacrifice Ceremony wasn’t considered a fixed holiday. Each family had different dates, essentially all adopting the day their current Saint Lord ascended to the throne as the standard.

On the day of the grand ceremony, all the disciples of the entire clan, including every branch family, had to gather at the Main Family Holy Land.

Under the leadership of the Main Family Saint Lord, or a highly prestigious elder, they would offer sacrifices to heaven, earth, and their ancestors, praying for the protection of the ancestors and for favorable weather and good fortune in the coming year.

Saint Lineage families with closer relationships would lead their own disciples to come, bringing gifts to congratulate and participate in the joint sacrifice.

And some second and third-rate small families would also bring heavy gifts, hoping to use this opportunity to establish relations with the first-rate Saintly families.

Alex had always been too lazy to intervene in these worldly social interactions and tedious formalities, always handing them to Cedric to handle.

However, this year was somewhat special.

It happened to be exactly the 500th anniversary of his ascension to the Saint Lord’s throne.

Coupled with the fact that over the past year, the Hale family had accomplished all sorts of world-shaking events, their strength skyrocketing rapidly. Especially the recent rescue of the Empress, as well as the slaying of the Heavenly Flame Dynasty’s three ancestors, it made him bask in the limelight and his fame shake the world.

Right now, many surrounding dynasties called Alex the new Guardian Deity of the Heavenly Flame Dynasty.

As long as the Hale family stood tall, no one could threaten Aurelia’s rule.

All these active performances had long made Alex the most eye-catching focal point of the entire Heavenly Flame Dynasty.

Many first and second-rate families, as well as major sect forces, were eager to use this ceremony to get closer to the Hale family.

If he didn’t even show his face at such an occasion, wouldn’t he completely become a hands-off boss?

"Good, Adrian, go back and have Cedric and Lara start preparing." Alex said faintly.

"On the day the Heaven Sacrifice Ceremony begins, I will definitely be there."

"Excellent!" Adrian nodded joyfully.

"In recent years, our Hale family’s power is so prosperous, it is exactly the time to bask in the limelight and show off our strength."

"But if you are absent, Saint Lord, no matter how strong the disciples’ cultivation is, we ultimately lack the decisive figure. Now it’s fine. With you present, the Hale family finally has a soul. On the day the ceremony begins, it will inevitably make the people of the world tremble in fear and awe!"

Seeing Adrian’s excited appearance, Alex was instantly amused. "Adrian, you’re several hundred years old. Why are you still acting like a hot-blooded young man?"

"This thing called basking in the limelight isn’t just as simple as feeling good. Right now, people respect and fear us. Our Hale family’s word is law. Those who submit prosper, those who resist perish."

"But they are all Saint Lords of Saint Lineage families. They all have their own arrogance. They even feign compliance while acting in opposition to Aurelia’s words. Who can truly, from the bottom of their hearts, submit to us?"

"Right now, these people who fear and flatter us are simultaneously waiting to see our Hale family become a laughingstock."

"If one day our Hale family loses power, they will inevitably act like a pack of wolves gnawing on a camel, gnawing us down until not even our bones are left."