Another two days passed by in a flash. Today was the first day of the Royal Banquet event. At this moment, countless people had already gathered outside the palace, waiting to see the exciting competition.
"How's the preparation?" Inside the vast hall, Zhou Xianyang asked a male servant nearby.
The servant replied respectfully. "Everything is ready, Your Highness. We can start at any time."
Zhou Xianyang briefly swept his gaze over a vast arena at the center of the hall and various tables and chairs around the hall and nodded. "Good. You can tell them."
"Yes, Your Highness." The servant bowed deeply and went out.
Zhou Xianyang looked at a small book in his hand and skimmed through the name list on it. Since his Great Zhou Royal Clan was assigned by the Heavenhold Divine Academy to organize this event, he didn't want to see a tiny mistake happen here.
"Hmm?" Zhou Xianyan was surprised when he saw Yun Lintian's name on it. "Why did he join in?"
His surprised expression was gradually replaced with a frown.
In fact, with Yun Lintian's status as the vice president of the Divine Alchemy Association, he didn't need to participate in such an event at all. He could go straight to the academy directly… Why would he come here then?
If Zhou Xianyang remembered correctly, Yun Lintian was only at the first level of the Divine Spirit Realm. While he wasn't a threat to Zhou Xianyang, his status was still there. It was difficult for him to handle.
Zhou Xianyang pondered for a while and decided to ask his master for an opinion.
While Zhou Xianyang headed to Zhao Shuimu's residence, various participants slowly entered the venue under the guidance of the palace servants.
Qin Jun's group was also among them. They looked around carefully to see the environment here, as well as their potential opponents.
The Great Zhou Royal Palace was a wide area of a sparse emerald-green bamboo forest, and in it stood a huge palace that emitted a dignified atmosphere. This was the biggest and most extravagant building in the entire Great Zhou Kingdom. It was well known as the "Emerald Palace."
Usually, all the important matters inside the palace were conducted in the Emerald Palace, and the upcoming banquet was also conducted here.
"So beautiful." Chen Xue exclaimed in a low voice. Though she grew up in a relatively powerful clan, she had never seen such a magnificent palace before.
"The divine energy here is highly abundant. It's several times higher than the outside." Qin Weizhe said enviously. If he could practice in this kind of environment all year round, his strength would be several times higher than the current one by now.
"Have you seen these servants?" Huang Yuchun drew closer to Qin Weizhe and whispered. "All of them are actually in the Divine Spirit Realm. I fully understand now why the Great Zhou Royal Clan could dominate the eastern land."
Hearing this, Qin Jun frowned slightly and reprimanded. "Be quiet. Don't be rude here."
Huang Yuchun immediately shut his mouth and peeked at Qin Jun resentfully.
"Brother Qin." At this moment, a burly young man came up from behind and said to Qin Jun. This person possessed a powerful aura that oppressed anyone looking at him.
"Brother Chu? When did you come?" Qin Jun was surprised and asked. The burly man in front of him was no other than a son of the Chu Country's governor, Chu Teng.
"I just arrived here today." Chu Teng laughed and patted Qin Jun's shoulder. "We haven't seen each other for a while. Brother Qin's strength has improved a lot."
Qin Jun shook his head and said. "Please don't make a joke on me, Brother Chu. You're a dignified disciple of the Long River Sect. How could I dare to say I've improved a lot?"
Five years ago, Chu Teng was recruited into the Long River Sect, one of the top five sects in the Great Zhou Kingdom. The last time they met, Chu Teng didn't even enter the Divine Foundation Realm, but now, he had already reached the eighth level of the Divine Spirit Realm. This speed was something Qin Jun would never achieve.
"What are you talking about? No matter what status I have, I am still your good friend. And I have no intention of joking with you." Chu Teng said with dissatisfaction. "Your talent is obviously above mine. As long as you can enter the academy later, you will definitely soar to the sky and surpass me."
Qin Jun smiled warmly and said. "I'm sorry, Brother Chu."
"Let's go." Suddenly, an old man clad in a white robe walked up to Chu Teng and said calmly.
"This is my master, Jiang He." Chu Teng said and turned to the old man. "Master, this is my good brother, Qin Jun."
Qin Jun quickly cupped his fists and said respectfully. "Junior Qin Jun greets Elder Jiang."
The old man, Jiang He, glanced at Qin Jun briefly and walked away without a word.
Seeing this, Qin Jun was a little angry in his heart, but there was nothing he could do.
"My master is like that. Don't take it to heart." Chu Teng chuckled. "Let's go. I can't wait to see our opponents."
"Alright." Qin Jun nodded slightly and followed Chu Teng into the Emerald Palace.
Far behind Qin Jun's group, Yun Lintian, Ning Yue, Qin Mei, Shen Yan, Xu Chang, and Tian Hualing got off the carriage and looked around briefly before heading to the Emerald Palace.
Meanwhile, Ximen Wu and his clan members followed closely behind.
"The venue is too small." Shen Yan didn't even look at the environment as she said.
On the side, Tian Hualing said. "It can't be helped. This Great Zhou Kingdom happened to be a host this year. It's not something I can change."
Shen Yan shook her head and said. "Your sect is too stubborn. The ancient tradition is good, but it doesn't mean you have to stick with it all the time. You should learn how to adapt to the ever-changing era."
Tian Hualing pursed her lips and said nothing. The tradition of the Heavenhold Sect had been passed down for countless years. It wasn't something that she or Tian Yuhan could change overnight.
Yun Lintian listened to their conversation with no comment while looking around casually. Suddenly, his gaze met a pair of mesmerizing eyes that happened to look at him…
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