Chapter 387: Root Cause
Every single Elder of the Illusive Ethereal Sanctuary, had been invited to participate in that special ceremony and not even the weakest and less illustrious one, had been left out.
Apart from the Grand Elder and the Sanctuary Master, every single one of them had already arrived and were quietly sitting in their designed seats. The ceremony was scheduled to begin in just a few minutes and only those two important figures, would dare to arrive right in time.
However, not even if they were allowed to not take part in this ceremony, none of the individuals present in that hall, would miss it.
The reason for that, was the fact that there was a certain event they were hoping to witness and maybe, even be part of it.
The majority of the elders present in that hall, were supporting a certain figure that had personally contacted or visited them on the past week. That person had requested their help and support on something as crazy as going against the suppressive might of the Sanctuary Master; a request they found really hard to accept. But impressively, that person was able to gather the support of hundreds of Elders, despite the unfavorable odds.
That situation was only possible, due to the dozens of losses the Illusive Ethereal Sanctuary suffered at the Glazed Lake Sect territory. It had changed the mindset of those who participated on that battle.
That crazy individual, was none other than the Grand Elder Chuanli. He had seen the discontentment plastered on the faces of his colleagues and together with the fact that he felt something was off about his son’s situation, he decided on doing something.
.....
However, going against the Sanctuary Master, a Mana Sovereign Realm cultivator, even if it wasn’t in a real battle, it was a tough thing to do. That’ s why in the past few days, he had spoken to hundreds of Elders, fueling the flames of justice within them and gathering their support, so he could ultimately pressure the Sanctuary Master and demand a few answers, demand a few things from him.
In this ceremony, in front of everyone, was just the perfect place for that. The Sanctuary Master couldn’t do anything against him in the open, lest he loses his entire credibility. That was something Chuanli knew, that the Sanctuary Master wouldn’t dare to lose, since ruling over a large territory, required trust and faith. Trying to control an entire territory through fear, would lead to uncountable troubles.
As time passed and the ceremony was about to initiate, the Elders were finally able to see one of the figures the were expecting to see, entering the main hall; however, he wasn’t alone.
Grand Elder Chuanli entered the main hall together with his wife, his other half. Going against the Sanctuary Master required courage and only with her by his side, he could stand firm in his ideals, and go against a Mana Sovereign.
However, the mere fact that he dared to bring his wife there, was already an affront. Only Elder-like figures or above, were allowed to participate in this ceremony and his wife was clearly not one of them. But at that moment, Chuanli felt like breaking the rules.
Although Dongmei, Chuanli’s wife, was not an Elder, she was a Mana Perception late-stage Realm cultivator and could apply to become one if she wished for. But she would rather concentrate on her family, that was already problematic enough, than trying to resolve outside problems as an Elder.
Dongmei accompanied her husband to this ceremony, unbothered by the stares directed at her. But differently from what she was thinking, most people looking at her, were admiring her aged beautiful looks and not reproachfully gazing at her or judging their actions.
As they entered the main hall and sat at the first row of seats, right at the frontmost area and where the most important people would be, whispering noises could be easily heard coming from every part of that place. People seemed to be getting excited for what was about to happen and Chuanli’s presence served as a fuse for them.
But for some reason, as if they had previously rehearsed the right timing, all of those whispering noises died down, once the sound of light steps approaching from the entrance echoed.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
Those noises were faint, but they instantly suppressed every other noise in that whole hall, silencing everyone.
The Sanctuary Master unceremoniously arrived, unhurriedly walking towards the highest seat, located near the platform. Everyone could see his confident, yet mild smile, something that told them that nothing could make him sway.
He walked past everyone and no number of stares being directed towards his back, could make him faze. Not even the strange silence that befell in that hall, was able to make him stop to ask if there was something wrong.
His confidence was oozing out of his black robes and everyone could feel it.
As the Sanctuary Master walked towards his seat, instead of comfortably sitting down, he turned around and passed his eyes over everyone. His gaze subtly stopped at Grand Elder Chuanli and his wife, but just as if there was nothing wrong, he ignored Dongmei’s presence and started his speech.
“Today is a very special date for our Illusive Ethereal Sanctuary. I’ve gathered you all here, not only to properly mourn for the losses of our last battle, but to also celebrate the great accomplishments achieved thanks to those who sacrificed themselves. The dark omen threatening to behead us, had been dealt with!”
At the beginning, everyone felt a heaviness looming over their heads, but towards the end of his speech, the Elders couldn’t believe what they were hearing. Actually, they couldn’t even understand it.
“Hehehe... The Illusive Ethereal Goddess had discovered the root of the plague that had always bothered our people! The forced conflict with the Glazed Lake Sect on that day, had something to do with it and therefore, could not be avoided. Today, I will bring that root here and let you witness everything with your own eyes.”